Good Taste

So...

Last week Josh's mom asked me for a Christmas list for the boys.  I first asked Max what he'd like to have and was compiling a list on e-mail.  Got his finished and asked Leo what he'd like, and his response was, "Uh, something expensive."  Like mother, like son.

Toothless

So...

Max is 6 now.  He's lost a few teeth and been cool with that, of course.  Lately, his front teeth have started loosening up, and he lost one a few evenings ago.  However, the way he lost the tooth was less than desirable.  

I was in the kitchen fixing dinner, Josh at the computer, the boys running around.  Max runs into the living room, dives onto the ottoman and smacks his mouth on the arm of our chair, which is really hard below the cushion.  Big thud.  Painful crying.  Josh jumps up and goes to him.  We both think he must have broken his arm because it looked kind of funny in between the chair and the ottoman.  Not the arm.  He looked up at Josh with his mouth full of blood.  I believe Josh's words were, "Oh gosh, Buddy!"  We took Max to the bathroom and had him swish around some salt water and got him cleaned up all the while trying to keep him from freaking out because he was spitting out so much blood, and he could see himself in the mirror. After slowing the flow, he bit on a rag for awhile and watched a movie and appears to be okay for now.  Here are some lovely pictures for you to enjoy.  Josh also blogged about this if you want to read his interpretation.  It has a bit of a different spin.

My Husband

So...

I just wanted to say how much I love Josh. 

We had an unexpected date tonight.  Our friends that live across the hall asked us to watch their boys for them last night, so they watched our guys tonight in exchange.  It was great!  We went to St. Louis Bread Co. (known as Panera everywhere else) for dinner, and then we did some Christmas shopping.  The reason my husband is so great is the fact that he went Christmas shopping on a date.  You must understand that finding Christmas presents is my favorite thing about Christmas (the material part of it).  I love trying to come up with the perfect gift for each person.  I really hate it when I can't come up with that gift, though.  

I digress.  For those of you who know Josh, shopping is really not fun for him, but because I wanted to, he did.  It's not just the fact that he went shopping that makes him wonderful obviously, but when I thought of how he was doing something just to make me happy, I started thinking about how great he is overall.

Josh is an amazing man.  I'll just list some of my favorite qualities about him.  He's a man of God, which to me means he leads our family in worship, studying God's Word and teaching it to his family, being an example to our boys of God's grace and love, having faith in Christ, loving us all unconditionally and on and on.  He's extremely intelligent, which not only comes in handy when we're playing trivia, but he keeps me informed of important things.  I'm not saying I'm stupid, but he's certainly a level (or ten) above me sometimes.  Of course, he's a hottie.  I love those blue eyes and dazzling smile.  He's the best daddy around.  I couldn't ask for a better father for my little guys.  He's so sweet and tender when they need him to be, yet he's still able to dole out the discipline when necessary as well as being a wonderful example to them. He is the perfect fit for me.  God new exactly what he was doing when he put us together.  I can't wait until he gets home from work so that I can just melt into his arms, before my belly gets too big for it that is.  Yes, I'm pregnant again for those of you who didn't know.  I'm delighted that Josh and I will be having another little one to love and nurture.  Thanks, Lord, for my wonderful husband.

Halloween or Reformation Day As We Like to Call It

These pictures are in reverse order.  Our day started at the bottom and completed at the top. We went to the Magic House earlier in the day with some friends, which the boys loved!  Then, of course, we went trick-or-treating with everyone's favorite superheroes.  I am well protected; I assure you.

God Is So Strong

So...

Today Max and Leo were sitting at the snack bar checking out our pumpkin from our Fall Fun excursion.  Here is a script of their conversation:

Max:  This pumpkin is so heavy. 

Leo:  This pumpkin is not stronger than God. 

Josh:  Yeah, God is so strong.

Leo:  Yeah, God could sit on it and smash it with his bottom!

Ensuing laughter by Josh and me.  I wonder aloud to Josh, "Does God find these comments by little ones as funny as we do?"  I have to think so.

My Evening

So...

My day started out nicely.  Today was Mom's Morning Out day for the boys, which let Josh and me have our Monday morning date that we are so thankful for.  Picked up the boys.  Had some lunch.

Here it begins. 

We decided to make a quick trip to Target to get Max some new pants because he keeps growing out of all of his.  This trip of course takes longer than expected.  We finally get back home at 3:00 or so and realize we need to have the oil changed in the van before our trip to West Virginia this week.  We think this won't be a big deal because we have a coupon for a dealership that we frequent that's close by.  Coupon expired Friday.  Okay, we decide to put off school until after dinner, so Josh can go to Wal-Mart to get the oil changed because we're sure it will be cheaper there than going to the dealership without the coupon.  Keep in mind this Wal-Mart is in the same area where the Target is that we just left 15-20 minutes away, as opposed to 5-10.  I get chicken out of the freezer for dinner, work on getting some clothes ready for the trip while Josh is gone, change two poopy diapers, do a load of laundry, fold another load and check my e-mail.  Josh gets home a little around 5:15 after paying more at Wal-Mart than he would have at the dealership.  Lesson learned.  I start making dinner while he takes the boys outside.  Dinner takes longer to get ready than anticipated, so we don't start eating until 6:50.  We eat, some of us.  One parent, I won't say who, has to go to the bathroom. While he's gone, I finish feeding Finn while repeating to Leo about 200 time to finish his dinner and griping at him for putting his cup at the edge of the table where it could spill easily.  He then proceeds to put it where it should be and knocks over almost all of it.  Trying to contain my instant anger, because Josh and I just had a conversation about being more gracious to the boys, I go get a towel and make myself not be mean.  Start cleaning up the kitchen.  Josh starts giving the boys a bath.  Must relieve Josh in bath-time duty because he's having intestinal distress.  I get to the bathroom, and Leo is sitting on the potty waiting to be wiped, Max is finished in the tub waiting to be dried, and Finn is standing in the tub pooping.  "Hurry and get out, Max, before Finn's poop gets on you!"  Max is dried.  Tub is drained.  Poop taken care of. Leo wiped.  Start running new water for Finn as he starts peeing.  Drain tub again.  Just wash him while water is running.  Finish and he poops again.  Clean his hind quarter and feet and also his hands because of course he touched his rear and dry him off.  Thankfully, with Josh getting the other two washed and them knowing how to dress themselves, the next few minutes were sane.  Get Finn diapered and pajamatized.  Clean up second poop.  Josh starts bedtime ritual.  Thank you, God, for that man.  Start another load of laundry.  Finish cleaning the kitchen.  Start water boiling to make a pitcher of tea.  Go look at my closet and find nothing that I want to take to wear for the trip.  Lay down.  Kettle whistles.  Pour boiling water on my hand.  Curse.  Confess.  Run water over my hand to make it stop burning.  Go lay down because my back hurts from holding Finn wrong earlier today.  Pray.  Burden easing.  Sit down at computer as Josh leaves for work and hear Max and Leo both in the bathroom.  Threaten them to get up again.  Blog for sanity.  Check on boys, all asleep!  Going to work for two hours.  I will survive.  

Now that I've purged, it's actually funny.  Lord, thanks for a laugh.

It's Officially Fall!

So...

Pickin' punkins, ridin' ponies and camels, playin' with friends and makin' smores.  That's what happens at Eckert's Farm.  We love going there each year to pick the perfect pumpkin and let the boys do some things they don't normally get to do.  It was super fun, as usual!  Not until the boys started melting down did we finally pack up to leave the fun.

Oh, Leo.

So...

This is the second post in one night, but I had to put up a series of pictures Josh snapped last night that I thought was funny.

Just as an aside.  I don't love Leo more than my other sons, but he just seems to do so many funny things that I have to post about.  For example, he got out of bed this evening to tell Josh something while I was in my room unaware that he had gotten up.  When I passed by the boys' room, he was standing in the middle of the room.  I asked him what in the world he was doing, and he said that he had to tell his dad something.  I said, "Okay.  You need to get back in bed now."  He then states, "I can't tell you what I told Daddy, but I'll tell you something." "What is it?" I asked.  "What did one poop say to the other poop?"  I, of course, came up with nothing for an answer to that.  His answer was something like "Pee and poop smell."  Um, okay.  I then came into the living room and passed "the joke" onto Josh.  I think Josh actually felt sorry for me because he was hesitant to say that what Leo got up to tell him was, "I love you."  Great. Josh gets declarations of love, and I get poop jokes.

Here is the cute series.

Family Fun

So...

Yes, I know I'm late in doing so, but here are some fun pictures from our visit with Mimi and Pop (Josh's parents).  They were here a month ago.  We had so much fun being treated to lots of good meals as well as being treated to lots of cuddles, hugs, laughs and love.  Oh yeah, there were loads of birthday presents for all those September boys, too!

Mimi and the boys while we waited for our lunch.

Pop and Leo cuddling at First Watch.

Max opening up his Batmobile, which he 

played with ALL day, no kidding.

The little Finn man working on his present.

Pop and Finn doing some long-awaited cuddling.

We love you, Mimi and Pop!!!!!

Sweet Boy

Leo:  Mama, I want to give you a smooch.

Me:  Thanks, buddy.

Leo:  That was for my love.

Can you see my heart swelling?

For the Birds

So...

Yesterday, I was ever so proud of myself because I was doing something cool for school with Max. We are currently studying animal life in science, and as we have just finished up mammals (all the while with Max declaring that HE WAS NOT A MAMMAL!) we moved on to bird life this week.  I got really excited because awhile back my dad had sent us these little cards on a chain, a flip chart of sorts, with birds on them.  I thought it would be fun to get out and do a nature walk and flip through the chart and learn about what birds we saw along the way.  Well, as I was preparing to go, I discovered that what dad had sent me were plants and trees.  Oh yeah, I remember now.  Argh, plan B.  Not a big deal, right?  I then decided we'd take the camera and just snap some pictures of a few birds that we saw, and then we would come back and look them up online to learn about them.  That would be fun.  We took Leo along because Josh and Finn really needed a nap, and I knew he'd have fun.

Let me just tell you that we walked around the seminary and even to a nearby park for a solid hour, and we did not see one bird.  Let me repeat, NOT ONE BIRD!  I couldn't believe it.  I realize it's late in the year and birds have probably started migrating, but not all of them for goodness' sake!  You'd think we would have at least seen a goose.  They're everywhere here. Well, the boys and I decided that the birds were all hiding on our "bird hunt" as they called it, and we had fun anyway.  

I'm bound and determined we're going to study some real live animals during this section of science, though.  I refuse to make them learn everything from a book.  SCHOOL WILL BE FUN! I guess we could go to the birdhouse at the zoo since they're all in hiding where we live. 

At least I got some cute pictures of the boys on our "bird hunt".  You might notice we were able to find some sticks/swords.

Addendum to Sin

So...

I got to thinking that people might have misunderstood my post the other day about sin and miscarriage and what I learned at church.  I just wanted to clarify that I meant these effects were from the fall.  I don't want anyone to think that I think God is punishing me specifically with the miscarriage.  I don't think that at all.  I just meant that because of Adam and Eve's sin, i.e. the fall, there are things that are going to happen, and we will feel the effects of it.

I don't know if that had crossed anyone's mind, or if this really clarifies anything.  Just know that I don't think God is punishing me.  

Visitors

So...

I've been meaning to post pictures of our fun visit with Gigi (my mom), Auntie Barb, Drewby (my brother, Drew) and Jackson (Drew's precious little guy).  They came on Labor Day weekend.  I guess it's not too terrible since I'm at least in the same month. :)

                   Leo and the ginormous turtle at Grant's Farm.

                                Aren't these eagles beautiful?

                             Jackson and Finn at Red Robin.  

                   Don't you want to squeeze those cheeks?

                          My cute brother and his adorable son.

        My six-year-old, Max.  Where has the time gone?

Finn's first cake experience.

He also had a birthday.  Again, where has the time gone?

                        Aunt Barb (who you can't see) and Max 

                           feeding the goats at Grant's Farm.

These are some highlights.  I hope you enjoy!  We had a great time, family, and we can't wait until we see you in October!

The Effects of Sin, Some of Them Anyway

So...

We were in Sunday School this morning, and I just have to share a few things I learned.  

We started a new "semester" of classes last week, and we are doing a very broad overview of the Bible.  It's categorized as Creation, Fall, Redemption and Restoration.  This is a reformed theology way of looking at the Bible in case you're interested.  So far, we've discussed creation and made it up to Adam and Eve today when they were banished from the Garden of Eden.  First off, we were talking about how Gen. 1:27 is indented, set off from the rest of the text, which means it could either be poetry or a song.  Our teacher likened it to the hobbits breaking out into song in The Lord of the Rings.  In the previous verses, God names all the things he has created and "saw that it was good."  When he gets to verse 27 it's like he breaks out into song because he delights in the man he has created.  Just think about that.  You always hear that God loves you, but have you ever thought about how he delights in you, HIS CREATION?  He broke into song or makes a poem because of what he has created, man, and then in verse 28 he blesses man.  I don't know, maybe this isn't news to you, but it just reminds me of his awesome grace.

Along comes chapter 3.  Eve is tempted by the serpent, Adam is tempted by Eve, and they both give in to their temptation and eat the forbidden fruit.  "Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked."  Later when God came to walk in the garden, he talks with Adam and Eve about what they have done.  After he curses the serpent for what he has done, he tells Eve that because of what she has done he will multiply her pain in childbearing and tells Adam that the ground is cursed because of him and thorns and thistles will be brought forth, and he will have to eat the plants of the field.  Now, here is the other thing I learned.  Our teacher reminded us that the creation mandate tells us to be fruitful and multiply and have dominion over the earth.  Do you find it interesting that what has been mandated to us has also been cursed?  Because of our sin, life will be hard.  There will be pain.  There will be hard work.

 And yes, I said, "our sin".  Even though Adam and Eve were the ones who ate of the fruit it doesn't mean it was just their sin.  I know that if I had been the first woman, I would have eaten it too.

Changing the subject for a minute, for those of you who don't know, I recently had a miscarriage.  We're doing fine.  It was very sad for a time, but it was very early, and I hardly even had a chance to know I was pregnant before it happened, so don't worry about us.  However, you can't help but wonder things.  It wasn't that I was questioning God, but I just kept wondering why if he didn't think I should be pregnant, then why let it happen in the first place?  My question was answered today, at least in my opinion.  You may not see the scripture this way, but it's how I interpreted it.  

Because of Eve's sin, she (all women) was (were) cursed with pain in childbirth.  I had always thought of that pain as physical.  I realized today that the pain could also be emotional.  I am a human.  I sin.  I receive the effects of that sin.  

I also realize that not everything has a reason.  God never promised that he would make everything crystal clear to us, but this is just something I feel like he put on my heart, and I felt like I should share it and also work out for myself as I type it.

First Day of School

So...

It begins again tomorrow--Josh back to class.  These last couple of weeks have been so nice having him home all day.  It makes me sad to lose him for those precious hours each day; alas, that is why we're here.  Now that Josh has decided what he wants to be when he grows up, though, the atmosphere has changed a little.  It's not quite as stressful because he doesn't feel like he's going to fail at being a teacher or pastor or whatever because he doesn't do well on some theology quiz.  He's now decided that he wants to write fiction.  I'm actually really excited.  I know he can do great things with that.  It's not that I questioned his ability for teaching or preaching, but I could just never see him clearly in those roles.  I could see him teaching some things but probably not at a seminary, which is what he thought of for awhile.  I can TOTALLY see him holed away in some corner typing on the laptop for hours working on a novel or pacing the floor with a baby in his arms while creating a character in his head.

The only problem now, however, is that I want the seminary chapter to be over.  I was never in a hurry before to be done here because we never had any idea what was next, but now that we know, I want to be there now.  Lord, please help me wait.

Waiting has never been something I'm good at, unless it's something I don't want to do.  I'm sure that's the way for anybody.  Speaking of that, the two main things on my to-do list are still undone because they are overwhelming tasks for me, so what have I done?  I've completed all the other things before these two, of course.  Now, I'm down to the wire and am still putting them off by writing this post.  Sheesh.

My major one of the two is making some "lesson plans" for school for the boys.  It's not that it's hard; it's just time consuming.  I just want to snap my fingers and it be done.  I hated school so much (in high school) that I'm desperate to make it fun for the boys.  I don't want them to have the same experience I did.  I don't know what the problem was exactly in high school.  I had friends; I had sports; I even graduated sixth in my class with a 3.96 for goodness' sake; I just hated most of the actual classes.  I guess, aside from the few classes I really enjoyed (thanks Ms. Ferguson, Mrs. Meade and Mr. Meade), I could just never get on the same wavelength as most of the teachers.  It probably had something to do with the fact that I didn't want to think any harder than I had to.  Who knows?

Anyway, I'm working on making some plans for the boys because I just don't want to wing it and not give them my best.  I don't want them to grow up wishing they didn't have a loser life by me teaching them and not getting to go to "a real" school.  There are various reasons why we're homeschooling that I won't go into, but I want school for us to be SO cool that they'll never feel like they missed a thing.  Well, if it's going to be spectacular, I better get to the planning.  

Here are a few books we're using.  Seems a bit much for preschool and first grade doesn't it? :)