A Timely Word

While I was at Seminary I was challenged to read a Proverb chapter on each day that corresponded to that day of the month.....like on the 4th of July read Proverbs 4. Anyways, I am not consitent but sometimes when I have a moment to read......I'll just open to the Proverbs and read through some or the whole chapter that corresponds to that day....it's kind of nice not having to figure out what I was last stduying or where my Sunday School class is going to be studying form......especially when I just have a moment.

This morning I needed a gentle reminder.....and so while drying my hair I opened my Bible up to Proverbs.....of course 31.....the "perfect" wife!!! And actually it was what my heart needed to be reminded of.....

So tomorrow is Feb 1st!!! Why not start and read Proverbs 1!! ANd whether you can consitently read each Proverb or whether you visit Proverbs during a moment of "down-time". Maybe our hearts and mind can be encouraged and directed this month to seek the wisdom of the Lord!!

Saying His Name

What were we thinking???? Naming our sweet boy "Christopher". He'll finally be able to write his name in 5th grade :) And I've been trying to coax him into saying his name. The conversation usually goes like this:

Kelly:"Christopher, what is your name?"
Christopher: "Anna."

K: "No, your name isn't Anna. Anna is right there (pointing to Anna). What is your name?"
C: "Lydia."

K: "No, your name isn't Lydia. Lydia is right there (pointing to Lydia). What is your name?"
C: "Daddy."

K: "No, your name isn't Daddy. He's in the office. What is your (pointing to his chest) name?"
C: He points to his chest and says confidently, "Me!"

So today I pulled out the last trick.....gummy worms:) His aunt trained him to say "Aunt Jac" when he was 14 months or so...so I figured I'd give it a try....here it is......

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Ohhhh.... and speaking of my kids talking Lydia has started to say another word. Her first two are "uh-oh" and "Daddy". Her newest is "bad"!! Yes and she swats her hand like she is trying to hit........hmmmmm, I wonder where she picked that up. Maybe her sweet and innocent BIG brother!!!

Dinner Differences with kiddies

Well Brian had a meeting one night this week during dinner (which doesn't happen often). It figures that I had at least two cranky kids the whole evening...mostly due to the fact that these colds are physicaly draining and they want extra attention (which is impossible with only one set of arms).

I had on the agenda to bathe them so I fed them the Kiddie Favorite...Spaghetti and Broccoli (they LOVE broccoli) :) During the meal I was watching the difference in Christopher's and Lydia's eating style. Christopher literally digs into his food with hands (sometimes forks or spoons). Lydia is learning how to use a fork and spoon and she LOVES using them!!! In fact we went out to last weekend and I gave Lydia her plate and a fork (from the restaurant) and let her go.....she did soo well that another customer approached us asking her age and how we taught her to use the fork.

I've got a much different story for Christopher. We had a family visiting our church and we invited them over for lunch after church. What did we serve....spaghetti (of course). We sat Christopher down in a booster with his plate and baby fork. Our child started grabbing food by armfuls and shooving it in his mouth. The other family was horrified......no really they were speachless they; they didn't know whether to laugh or gasp or take his plate away or get a washcloth for us. After it looked like he was finished I had to bathe him....yes in the middle of lunch with company....he was that covered in spaghetti. He's much better....but he's still so messy.

So sitting there watching the kids I decided to pull out my camera and try to capture the difference. Of course Christopher really pulled out the manners when I started filming him :) But even in their faces and hands you can see who the messier of the two is..... Ohh and I did have to bribe him to let me take his picture while he ate....so that explains the gummie worm at the end :)

Ohh, and I had to add music to cover the wailing :) They all decided to fuss all night.....just one of those evenings. Thank goodness they don't happen often !!!!!

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So we still have some table training to go. It really was quite the dinner time experience.....fussiness, spaghetti, Anna using the potty, more fussing, sauce, and videos.....I'm sure Daddy was a little glad he missed this one!!

The Ragga-Muffin Strikes Again and Time with Friends

Anna usually dresses herself...although I tried to give her some direction today since we were planning to head outdoors:) But as we were walking out this is what she had on......jeans, long-sleeve T-shirt, sweatshirt, fleece hat and mittens and SANDALS. Soo fuunny....

The reason for the sandals was so she can show her "painted toes". My Dad and one of my Uncles (they were best buddies) wore sandals ALL the time....Of course I don't think they were trying to show off their "painted toes" :)

FRIENDS..... We moved to our town and home about 3 1/2 years ago!!!! We had just our little 2-month old Anna in our arms and a new place to fit in. I'll be honest here....the people are soo nice and sweet. Our church members and neighbors are so loving.....but I really struggled to find other young moms who were able to have "playdates" and "Mommy lunches"!! I'll be the 1st to admit that I didn't leave my comfort zone often enough (and I still need to in order to reach other young mommies needing mommy friends). Over the last year or so I've been so blessed with a small group of ladies that are young mommies (and one grandma)!!!

We spent the morning and lunchtime with one of our friends. And while traveling home I just felt soo thankful that we have friends........And thankful for the struggle with being content in the Lord through all seasons......WHY thankful for the struggle??? Because then blessing of the friendships have been that much sweeter! And it's even more praise and thankfulness to the Father "who wants to give all good things to His children."

And for more on our morning escapades read Andrea's blog. Thanks Andrea for the pics :)

Happy Birthday, Brian!!!!

Well I don't have a huge collection of pictures of the sweetest and most precious gift I have.......

MY HUSBAND, BRIAN!!!!

A Great Husband......

And Daddy!!!!

Thank You for Our Beautiful Family (they have your genes....hehehe he)

We LOVE YOU!!!!!

Keeping the kids busy:)

Well a friend posted in her blog the other day an appeal to other moms about some new ideas to keep her little kiddies busy during the cold winter days:) Somedays the day goes sooo S L O W when I don't have a set plan or I find myself just cleaning up after "the three tornados" all day.

So as I found myself doing "strange" things to keep the kids "busy" during the day I started to mentally list them....he hehe. Scary, euh?

I think I blogged this the other day. But yes...I got so desparate I pulled out the messy Play-Doh. But what I didn't mention in the last blog was that it was A lOT cleaner this time because Christopher wasn't licking the Play-Doh :)

And here is Christopher in the bath tub "painting" with Daddy's shaving cream. OK...here's the deal don't do it with little ones who will put their fingers in their eyes. And make sure you rinse them off with clean water :) Don't want their soft sweet skin reacting with the shaving cream! Oh and make sure Daddy has plenty of shaving cream left:)

Ok, so this one wasn't my idea :) We have a friend staying with us some this weekend and during Lydia's little birhday party I caught the boys blowing bubbles in the house:)Ok, not normally done in the living room but I have done it in the bathroom :)

A Year Already?

Well today we celebrated Lydia's birthday. Brian and I remember the hoping we did each night waiting for labor to come during the night :) But to no avail, Lydia had to be "induced" out.

I guess I can chase the rabbit about my theory about labor and the kids' personalities. Anna wasn't too early or too late...she's very timely. She required alot of hard work but she was ready and willing. She still can be a little stubborn at times but is usually soo complaint and wanting to please! Christopher...phew...he came at least 10 days early and surprised us all. And we labored in the sweetest environment and immediately had visitors. Can I say Christopher?? He is always TWO steps ahead of us, he can have the sweetest nature (hugging toy babies, saying "I wuv you" to Mommy) and he easily makes friends. Lydia (like I said above) had to be FORCED out and then be checked over by the NICU (who she smiled and coo-ed at). Lydia is by far the snugglest baby we've had and she is very good natured, we've had a LOT of smiles :)

I pulled some of our favorite pictures.....I hope you enjoy as we celebrate Lydia's 1st year :)

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We praise God for our sweet blessings....Anna, Christopher and Lydia!! And we thank Him for everyday (exhausting or fun) that we are given with eachother:)

Visiting the Zoo from Home

We have really enjoyed being members at the Norfolk Zoo this year!!! But when we visited after the new lion cubs were born we saw the advertisements for the zoo and cub cams. What a GREAT idea!!! So even on the coldest days when a trip to the zoo would be crazy, we can watch the animals.

Here's a picture we took of the zebra this morning!! IT's in the 30's there!! That's one COLD zebra!!


Here's an update about Christopher and the bunk beds. He never tried to escape his bed last night...but at about midnight he started waking and calling for "Mommy" and "Daddy". After he first started waking he was "up" the rest of the night. Brian and I took turns caring for him throughout the night. And we both spent some time trying to sleep in his bed. Trying because he was waking every 10-15 minutes crying in pain.... This morning he threw up a tiny bit and ate breakfast and acted normal (terroizing his sisters). He did go easily down for a morning nap as well....he protested until his head hit the pillow and then he was GONE........

So thank goodness the transition as been pretty easy....so far.. ha hahaa (only two sleeping times thus far). And last night WE were thankful that he was in a twin versus his crib or a toddler bed because we just curled up right next to him and rested while we rubbed his back.

How in the WORLD can we have a stomach virus again??? (I'm not quite sure at this point it even is a virus) But really except for Sunday and Wednesday night we haven't been anywhere or seen anyone other than church members......and really no other kids (minus 2 older ones in nursery Sunday morning)!!!

Little Monkeys

So, the nap didn't go so well. But I think the main problem was that he took a SOLID morning nap and he's at the point where he might not need two naps (well when you're puttting him down for the nap you question it, but after he keeps the timeout bench warm throughout his naptime you kick yourself). So I sat in his room and read.

The book I'm reading is called Sacred Influence by Gary Thomas. Thomas was an author I read while taking a Seminary class on Marriage and Family......anyway, I really enjoy his style of writting....honest, uses illustrations and humor. The cover makes it seem like the book is all about how women can change their husbands. But you don't get through the first few chapters to realize he is calling women to be the biblical wives they are supposed to be (to love and respect their husbands regardless of circumstances). It's been a very encouraging and challenging book.....

OK...back to the bunk beds. So we decided for the time being that we'd rather not our 3 and 2 yr olds to be climbing up into the top bed....for fear they could fall when we're not around. So this afternoon we got a mattress in the bottom bed and let the kids get used to Christopher's new bed. It took all of 10 minutes before we saw Anna climb up between the slats into the top bunk and balance herself on two slats!!!! I had them demonstrate it for me......

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Soooooo......that was pretty quick. The solution we have is to put a box spring on top. We'll see how long that keeps them from the top. And I'm tried to warn them not to climb on it while Brian and I are not in the room....hopefully these two precautions will keep us from any problems.

Staying Sane during the COLD days

Well I haven't been blogging much this week (ha h aha). Part is due to my camera not having room for more pictures or videos (That I desperately want to catch and post). Part is due to my children being slightly under the weather with colds (coughing, endless runny noses). The other 50% (ha haha) is entertaining the kiddies, since we're all couped up. And with even a slight cold- Momma looses some naptime freedom!!



I did manage to cleanup the camera a little bit to get a little room for some more pictures!! During the LONG winter days we try to bathe during the day....playtime in the warm bathtub!! The hardest part is getting out........





And today I broke out the Play-Doh......They were having a blast and lasted a pretty long time at the table. You may wonder what I do to keep Lydia busy during this time....I found her under the table playing with the Play-Doh toys Christopher was dropping.


Off to sit in Christopher's room....we're transitioning him into a "big bed". This is his first sleeping time in it.....I put him down and caught him running around in the house. SO I put him back down. Daddy just informed me that Christopher was in his crib pulling toys off the shelf (the high shelves he normally can't reach). SO sounds like he needs a little more direction :)

Lincoln Logs with Magnets

Today we pulled out a Christmas toy to use for the first time....they are called Magnalogs by Mega (here's the smaller set on Ebay). Anyway, the box had a picture of the things you could build with them. So Anna picked out what she wanted and we got started....

I'm trying to remember if we owned any Lincoln Logs growing up.....not sure, but I do remember playing with some somewhere. I wasn't sure about these "new" magnetic logs. But they were worth a try and from what older homeschooling parents say.....Lincoln Logs are a great creative/building toy:)


So I started to make the "Super Play Fort" for Anna. I mean it had a little house on stilts and a slide coming down......what a cool house to make!!! I worked for about 15 minutes and realized a BS in Mathematics was NOT enough for this project.....I should have gone into Engineering to prepare for this task:)


I really honestly think that they didn't include enough pieces for the project they had pictured or the pieces weren't quite right!! Most pieces had magnets in the joints but the longest piece with three grooves didn't have magnets in the middle groove....what a pain!!! Daddy walked through the living room at one point laughing because the conversation he had heard Anna and I having about the pieces not being "right". He took a quick look at it and concluded the same thing :) He's challenged to take them back out tonight and try to make the "Super Play Fort". Who knows we might break down and start seaching the Net for the instructions..... ha ha ha :)


I did make part of the playhouse for Anna....the piece that included the slide!!! And she was happy and played with the logs for another hour or so! And they were pretty fun!!!

Of course, most projects are MUCH easier when Christopher doesn't hide pieces under the couch cushions!!! The little Booger....as I was working he was hiding until I realized the pieces I needed were missing ;) I said aloud, "Now where did all those roof pieces go?" And Little Man ran over to the couch to show me!!

Painted Toes

Since Anna was a little tyke we've tried to paint her toes. I remember her being in a highchair at my parent's house during her first summer. We thought she's be distracted by eating and so my mom and I tried to paint her toes....she pitched a fit.

Everytime she's seen me painting my own I've asked her if she wanted me to paint hers. "Nope." It's not her personality to try something completely new until she's comfortable with it.

Well in the last month she has seen two of her friends (both older by at least 9 months) with their fingernails and toenails painted. Today she made the connection at lunch. "Did you know that Rachel and Katie both had their fingernails painted?" Of course it hadn't crossed my mind that the girls even had their nails painted.

Well she just snuck out of bed and fed me the line, "I need to make a stinky. Will you stay in here with me?" She's had a tough night, so I easily gave in. She then quickly asked if I could "paint her toenails." H ahahahaa.....I told her as long as she tried to make the stinky I would paint her nails. As they were drying she said, "We need to go see Daddy. He will be so impressed." Impressed.....where did she learn that word?

Anyway, Daddy is tickled pink that she is such a cute little girlie girl!!

Can she really be influenced by friends at this young of age? Granted it's just painted toes....something we've been talking to her about and wanting her to try. But for her opinion to change over it just because of her friends......it just seems to young. Of course, she does wait for Christopher to try the new indoor playground before she'll venture up.......

Indoor 3-D snowflakes when there is NO snow outside

So we didn't receive the much anticipated snow this area was talking about and children we hoping for. There were a few flakes mixed in with some rain, so we did see some :)I was reading one of my favorite blogs : Holy Experience. And they had made some really cool snowflakes. I was determined to try it last night during the "Big Snow" but instead we did it during nursery....after Sunday School the kids are usually ready to play more and be active......so I really like to have a craft or a game for them and hopefully some down time to talk through the lesson and verse(s) they had in Sunday School!!!

Anyway, here is the link to make your own: 3-D Snowflake

Everything is Cuter with Piggies in her hair

Well Lydia is still in the pre-walk stage. It's been fun to sit back and enjoy all the different things she has had to learn in order to get to the next stage. Anyway, she is taking more steps and learning balance....and she's doing it on her own :)

I'm also trying, trying to get her used to soymilk so that she'll make the transition to soy easier. She loves to snuggle (and so does Mommy) so that might be a factor in how long it takes her to be weaned. Today she missed her mid-day nurse, so that was just twice....morning and night (we'll see if that is apattern or just too busy playing)!! Anyway, one way to transition is to feed her cereal with soymilk...which she is starting to like.

I've made a video of us today...doing the pre-walking thing, a picture Anna took of us (with my camera) and then her snacking on cereal with soymilk. And another cute piggie picture from last week. (I think I already shared it!) It's just too precious a stage not to share!!

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Egg-Free Chocolate Chip "Cookies"

I've been on the constant hunt for the "perfect" chocolate chip cookie recipe that doesn't use eggs. So many that I've found (and tried) just substitute the eggs in the "normal" recipe with a oil, water, baking powder mixture. The mixture works for bready treats...like banana breads and pancakes. But NOT cookies. The cookies always spread out and get really, really thin...like wafers :(

So as a Christmas gift, I ordered a new "allergy" cookbook.....ahh yes, with a couple chocolate chip cookie recipes...this has to have something that works. SO we tried on tonight....grrr....chocolate chip wafers again!!!! I should say that most recipes work when you completely follow the directions which I DID.....but I'm going to continue my hunt by trying some new margarine....maybe something labeled for baking:)


The kids liked the cookies....which is what really matters!!!

There is ONE great thing about cooking without eggs....eating the batter!!! There are no risks of getting some raw egg bacteria....so we have enjoyed that part(especially with kids and the fingers in the batter)!!! And usually the batter looks just like the regular...it's cooking the batter that is causing us the problems.

Funny Child....just like her Daddy and her Momma

It's funny (and sometimes frightening) to see how much alike you child is to you or how much they have picked up from you ;) The little things they do or pieces of their personalities that resemble us are just amazing!!!


Let's take Anna......she is my resident "ragga muffin". She tries so hard to "match" her clothes and then she relies on the clothes that she likes or is comfortable in. This results in the funniest little outfits. Unfortunately, I think I was a little like that as a child.....ha hahaa my husband would say I'm still like that. I can come up with the most comfortable outfits that just don't quite "work"......you know the shades of red clash (or too much of one color) or when the materials just don't work together ( a casual top with a nice skirt).
This was Anna's attire when she woke this morning!! Like the sandals and Dora hat:)

Last night after getting the younger two kiddies tucked into bed we had a heart-to-heart with Anna about staying in her bed.......she's been getting out of bed to tell us "her back needs to be rubbed" and whatever else her little mind can come up with. She goes through cycles of getting out of bed but we've learned through the years (ha haha) that it's better just to end it when it starts back up so it doesn't become habit for her to stay up with us......Mommy and Daddy need "Mommy and Daddy time". BTW I don't feel too guilty about making her go back-to-bed because we are with her ALL day and she gets PLENTY of attention!! We do allow her to get out of bed for dirty diapers and illness. So after we had done our "office work" we went into the living room and found this....Anna asleep on the floor, with a dirty diaper :)

This whole situation is dear to Brian and his parents. They remember for years him sneaking out of bed to stay up with them. Or falling asleep on the stairs listening to the TV and his parents talking. He said, "ANything was better than lying in my bed doing nothing." :)

(Another side note: Our kids have too much to do in their beds.....they have books and dolls and cars...nothing too dangerous, although Christopher does sleep with a pointy car and giraffe? BUt they play before they go to sleep, fall asleep then play a little as they wake up.....it's peaceful!!! And I bet they stay in their crib/bed easier and happier for a longer period of time than if they didn't have the "extras".)



Here's another outfit, the funny thing with this outfit was that she was wearing Lydia's pants. We had put them in the wrong drawer and didn't realize it until we were putting away Anna's clean laundry and her matching pair :)Lydia's pair actually fits Anna better, maybe a little too short!!


Ahh yes, and for all those interested....Anna has also revealed where she will be "preaching this weekend"......the "Baptist Retirement Home". Ha hahaaa!!! Just like her Daddy:)

Video Time

Sorry!! I stuck in a video to get lunch prepared today.....I know, I know....Bad Mommy. But they just needed a little down time and so did I :) And it did wonders, we ate lunch and then they played for 2 more hours and then took their naps! Yay!!

Ahh, yes. That is a tent in my living room :)

Craft Time, again

Well this morning I sabatoged Christopher's naptime myself by starting to wash his "night-night" (blanket) but not finishing it in time for his nap. He MIGHT have fallen asleep if he still had his paci....so I decided it was a battled I didn't want to fight on this raining middle-of-the-week day :)

So we broke out the crafts and Momma had a plan... ha ha haaaa! From previous posts you know plans don't go quite like they are supposed to in my house during craft time. So the goal was to make elephants out of shapes and paint them...to possibly frame and put up in Christopher's room.

Both of them are wanting to be independent, so after following directions to get the originial craft done (minus the painting) I just started cutting out shapes and let them make what they wanted to. But as I was cutting the shapes out I realized that this was a REALLY FUN lesson on shapes. Anna pretty much knows the basic shapes (even octagon, diamond) but Christopher doesn't. So it was fun to say, "I just cut some squares, who needs some squares." And of course what child doesn't get a kick out of creating something on their own :)






















And I went back to my trusty Q-tip container to round up the perfect toddler utensil for working with glue.....ha ahaha. Just make a pile of glue on a scrap piece of paper and hand them a Q-tip and off they go, glueing up a storm!!!

The finished "creative" project. Can you guess which is Christopher's?

Yep, it's the one with the Q-tip glued onto the paper. He also had a triangled glued to the back of the project b/c he somehow managed to place the corner of the project in his pile of glue:) So the triangle was a quick fix that he liked:)

Christopher, My Christopher

Today is just one of those days that just seemed to be FULL of antics. The two younger ones barely napped this morning. I had a major task and some housekeeping that needed to be completed while they slept....ha hahaha!! Lunch was leftovers. Dishwasher, washing machine and dryer all going at the same time as I tried to clean. But I wanted to blog about my Little Man...

He decided that he didn't want to nap, so he played in his crib. (I think he knew he had made the right choice when he heard Lydia wake soon after he was put in his crib.) The girls played quietly in the living room for a bit and then disappeared......yep, right into Christopher's room. Well he had out his Duplos before his nap, so the girls come in and start playing with his favorite toys! I think he just couldn't handle watching them anymore and he climbed out of his crib!!! I walk in hearing Lydia fussing at someone and find Christopher fighting with her over a toy. He must have understood my surprise at seeing him and he said, "I jumped out my bed."

So we'll be in the market this next week for a bed for him!!! I guess I was expecting it would be soon, but I'm not ready for him to have free reign over the house just yet. We were lucky when we moved Anna to a big bed.....she was soo small she didn't realize that she could climb out herself and it took almost 6 months before she figured it out!! There is NOTHING Christopher won't try to climb in or out of.......so we'll have to plan on some "training time" with him :) Although he LOVES sleeping (when he is ready) so maybe it will be uneventful.

Some have asked about he is doing without his paci. He will occasionally ask for it but we'll just tell it broke and we threw it away at Grandma's house. And he'll usually say "Broke" and he's fine.

Attempting Organization

Well much like I thought I was patient and flexible before I had kids, I also thought I was organized.....well maybe I liked being organized! But with kids (at least three of them) being organized is the difference (in our house) between comfortable and cluttered. Or out the door in 10 minutes versus 20 minutes!! And being a Momma who likes to get "out" (walks, grocery store, park), I need organization!!! And I'm still learning how to do it ;)


So I have been in this "Get Organized" mode. I've been organizing kitchen drawers, kids' clothes, craft supplies, etc!! I have a few who are joking me about being pregnant....nope!!! Shoes have been my latest task!!! With three kids and two adults, church shoes, play shoes, casual shoes and slippers, we can have quite a mess at the front door. I thought I was doing well with keeping the kids shoes on a rubbermaid container. But it looked so BAD......


So after I just was tired of the mess I started looking online for a solution. And found the idea of a shoe cubbie!!! I mean we see them all the time at indoor playgrounds and daycares. I dragged the family to Target and lo and behold a shoe cubbie...on sale!!!! That night I started to pull the pieces out and found one already dented, so the boys ran back yesterday and got me a new one (Thanks fellas!!).

I've had it up a couple of hours. It's much smaller than I was hoping for. But I wanted it for the kids' shoes and it fits a pair of kids' shoes...maybe a really narrow pair of adults'. But it will be really nice to keep the shoes at the front door and in pairs, so during the rush to get out we have BOTH shoes in one spot...not having to dig through the pile will be nice!!! We will see how it works for us :)

More Allergy Frustrations

Ok, ok.....so like a week and a half ago we took Lydia to the allergist to get her tested for the few foods that cause trouble for Anna and Christopher. I had noticed her spitting up with milk and peanut (very early in the pregnancy) products after I had consumed them and then nursed her. And I blogged that her tests came back all negative...no allergies to milk, eggs or peanuts!!!!!

Well...it sounded strange that she didn't have any allergies while her 100% biological brother and sister have two apiece. But I thought I would introduce the milk and eggs into her diet slowly to see how she would fair. BTW...the allergist gave us NO ideas of when to start or not to start introducing these foods to her...and the bill came in the mail last Friday....grrrrr!!

So last week we gave Lydia a very small amount of scrambled eggs. She ate them with no reaction at all...I really was excited!! This afternoon we had breakfast for lunch and I gave Lydia more eggs (since she liked them so much). Then that's when it happened!! We looked at her and saw this.....

She had the classic red rash and then the hives followed but were under her chin, where she already has the rash from teething.

So NO more experiments!! She's not going to try to anymore forbidden foods!! I'm not sure how long to wait before giving or trying to give her anymore bad foods...but right now, no more!!! But is it not crazy that she was supposed to not be allergic to anything, but then this........oh well?? We'll do what we can :)

Weird Fears

Ok.......when you potty train most kids you use the potty.....Christopher is just different. To get him used to the idea of what pee-pee is and where it comes from we've developed a habit of letting him pee-pee in the tub.

This morning I gave the kids a quick bath (since we got in late last night). Anyway, Little Man jumped in the tub and did the pee-pee thing on something he thought was a "bug". I'm sure there wasn't a bug in there because I had just taken a shower and because I looked for it after he told me. But he wouldn't touch the water...just plain refused until I put Lydia in and started washing her like nothing was wrong.

As you can see he quickly adjusted to getting his bath, like normal!! It was just so strange and funny the way he had himself propped up like that.

Christopher also managed to bust his lip during Sunday School this morning. He tripped over himself (or something like that) getting out of his chair. The Sunday School teacher came and got me because he started fussing for me ;( Anyway, his tooth must have cut through his lip because it was bleeding on the inside and out....ouch!! After a few moments with Mommy he was back to normal and back in the chair to do his craft :)

Conversations

This morning I had to have a plan to get us at the church for lunch, Daddy had to be out at 10am for greeting and preparations for a funeral. So as I'm washing Anna hands and face after breakfast I say to her, "Why don't you put on your blue dress since we'll be heading off to church this morning."



Anna responds, "And I need to bring my Bible, too. Because I have to preach tomorrow."

I respond back, "Oh really?"

"Yes, I'll be there a LONG time," she said back. I questioned her, "Is that because you preach for a long time?"

"Yep!" And then off she went to get changed into her clothes.



Have a Restful and Sweet Lord's Day tomorrow!!!

How Grandaddys Play

Ahh yes, the kids have a Grandaddy (and Daddy) that will get down and play with them......Don't believe me...Then watch :)

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Random Musings

What a day it turned out to be. Anna had been fussing for a little while now about some pains and aches she had been having....finally tired of having a fussy kid I called our nurses' line. They suggested bringing her in because they suspected an UTI (urinary tract infection). Well once Anna knew she was headed to the doctors' she fussed even more. But we survived....she did the best she had ever done at the doctors !! She's fine, the doctor believes most of it is still problems (stubborn) with moving #2!!!





Speaking of Anna I had to share this pic of her on Monday....it was like 72 outside and she got dressed in sweatpants and a sweater top. I told her it was going to be warm so she should change into a short-sleeve top.....this outfit is what she returned in. She had put on a short-sleeve top and then pushed her long-sleeves up her arm into the short-sleeve shirt. She is my ragga-muffin...for sure!!

Finally, my husband said that if I had to blog today I should ask my loyal readers (...he hehee) if I should dump the plant or try to revive it ? Actually I think he said I should ask if it is suitable for home decor....ha hahahaa. Man, who can think of watering some green onions when there are kids holding onto your legs because they want someone to play with or are hungry :) I do feel bad that I did not care for the onions better becasue a friend gave them to me and I was really looking forward to some green onions in my next stir-fry :) JUst looking now, I think the plant looks better (greener) in the picture!!!!!

Off to fold laundry and watch some more Jane Austen movies...I think were watching Emma now:)

In Memory

It's January 10th....already and again. In so many ways this is a "normal" (I'm not sure if anything is normal in my kid-world) day, but in other ways it's a hard day.


Five years ago, I went to work like any other day with no worries. When I returned home my sweet husband was waiting with a phone for me to return a call to my Mom that he thought sounded urgent....it was! She informed me that my Dad had passed away. Completely unexpectedly, no real warnings...he had a family history of young heart problems and had been dealing with a cold and some chills.

Five years....a lot has changed. My brother has served in Iraq in three different deployments. My family has grown from 2 to 5! I feel like I've really grown-up (sort of) especially since I meet the daily needs of three little people who are so dependent on me. We're serving in a small community church.

I'm thankful for the memories of Dad....watching football, pizza and soda, boating trips, all his high-tech gadgets, fishing, him visiting me in college, having lunch with him at work, baking cookies for him at Christmas, him worried about me getting married so young and to a preacher!!!! And I'm a little saddened by what he has missed....his three darling, energetic grandchildren and my brother working hard with his uncles (at least that is the story he tells me...love you)!

We Miss You, Daddy Kevin!

I always love to leave a verse that corresponds and encourages. My father never made any clear declaration of what he believed although he grew up in the Caltholic church, was generous to those he saw had needs, helped neighbors and proudly showed me where he had given to a Christian cause since he said it reminded him of something I would have been a part of. I'm reminded that our next moment or day is not guaranteed for anyone, therefore we must be ready.....

"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour... [ of His comng or our departing]" Matthew 25:13

*Sorry about the quality of the pictures, we had to pull them off an old Power Point Slideshow....shown at our wedding!

Too Cute!!!

We've been enjoying the beautiful weather that we've been blessed with this week. This was the second day in a row where we spent a good part of the day OUTSIDE....yes, outside with short-sleeves on in the middle of the winter :) What a needed break from the cold!!

Here are some sweet Lydia pictures I was able to catch!! They grow up soo fast. I lOVE this Stage!!!!!

I did want to mention that we did some bargain hunting while spending time with Grandma and Granddaddy. An a Gymboree outlet we found piles of clothes for 99 cents!! Sure some we couldn't use but I found the little yellow top that Lydia wore today...perfect since she's outgrown the summer clothes that Anna wore :) Anyway, what a deal....even if we had to dig some ;)

A New Do

Well it was time once again to cut Christopher's mop :) In fact on Sunday morning when I was getting him out of bed I realized I could easily get one of Lydia's hairbows in his hair. So tonight was the NIGHT!!!


At dinner Brian and I discussed the plan.....in the kitchen, with the clippers, a DVD player, some candy and then a bath for all three :) Christopher quickly caught on and started protesting. His last cut was soo cute, but it was challenging to keep him calm and still using just scissors....so this why we chose the clippers.



He actually did MUCH better with the clippers, even though it was the first time he was around them or they were used on him! He fussed some when we started getting hair on his neck and on his face....who wouldn't, that stuff is itchy!!! Daddy did use the scissors to trim!! Believe me it was a MILLION times easier than taking Anna to get her hair trimmed.....and we weren't anywhere closer to her ears or head :)

Gotta LOVE the portable DVD player and Dora :)

Thanks Daddy!!!!!

Lydia's Teeth

I remember taking Anna to a new pediatrician when we moved, she was just over 2 months. But the pediatrician noticed that Anna's side incisors were starting to surface...way early!! In fact, they were some of the first teeth to come in but not until she was around 9-10 months (thank goodness for this brestfeeding Momma)!!! I remember the pediatrician making some kind of joke that she was going to look like a vampire.....yes, a very encouraging thing to say to a first-time MOm!

Christopher's teeth came in...right in the textbook order...kind of later during his first year!!!

It's soo strange but my little Lydia has had her side incisors emerge earlier as well. So both my girls have had their two little front teeth first and then this two "side" teeth. It is a little odd, but their little smile at this stage is soo sweet.

Oh, as you can see from the picture.....my "little" Lydia is really a chub-ster and a drooler, especially when getting new teeth. We've had this under the chin rash for months....it always the worst with new teeth coming, her missing top middle teeth are getting ready to poke through:)

Check out this cool baby teeth order graphic!!!

Flexibility

I've always thought that I was a pretty flexible person......misson trips, substitute teaching, etc, I could usually go with the flow. But parenting really shows you the areas that need work:) Show you what you're really like....like it or not :)

I have a really sweet, sweet, encouraging friend that once wisely told me ," Marriage teaches you how selfish you can be. But parenting shows you how selfish you really are and that you need to work on it." (Or at least that's what stuck with me.)

With one, things in the house would get a little out-of-order and I was usually ok. With two, phew....the messes and changes in schedules became more frequent and I really needed to let the litle things go...basically preparing me for three!! Three has been wild!!! The house isn't always quite as tidy as I'd like it (oh, it's pretty clean...little ones eat off the floors here...so it's got to be at least clean). The "quiet" evenings aren't always relaxing. Meals are not usually hot when we get to eat them, but we all get good food :)

But life is soo sweet here when I'm willing to be flexible and enjoy it!!!! Here is the best example I can give and it's totally accurate and recent (Ha ha haa...happened last night during a "quiet" evening):





I wanted the kids to help me make some Thank You notes for Christmas gifts. So I do all the preparation with the stamps and I needed the kids to use paints and Q-tips to put colorful dots all over the Christmas tree...like this!!










But the kids got a little carried away and I looked down on the table to find these that they had decorated!!

So, making Christmas Thank You notes turned into Q-tip painting....and boy did they have a good time resulting in a ton of beautiful artwork!!! I think Christopher is my abstract artist as he covered the Q-tip in paint and then left it to dry on the paper!!