A New Kind of Easter

I've been trying to incorporate Christ into the holidays in which He rightly belongs. I love the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus. I did as a child and to this day still do. My parents did a wonderful job of separating and celebrating each and then incorporated our furry friend and jolly old man into the ideals they wanted to espouse in us. For example, Santa was giving and did things out of love, and as long as he didn't get caught, out of sight, never for attention. And his example was Christ. I wanted to pass this onto my children-the joy of childhood and the true meaning of the season. And so this year the Easter Bunny brought something a little different.

To begin with Saturday we had a fun Easter egg hunt.

Then Sunday morning the kids awoke to a trail leading from their door to their respective basket

which was filled with

potted flowers, a different kind for each of my beautiful, unique children. This represented life and living things. Each child also found a framed picture of Christ and children.

and a puzzle of Christ and a child

Of course there was a chocolate Easter Bunny and Easter eggs filled with treats. Boy did the kids love it! And I am so glad.

Happy Easter!

There was a little man who said catch me if you can

Someone came to visit us but didn't stay for long
We set a trap and didn't look back
For how could we go wrong

Well that tricky little man
He got away from us again
But startled as he ran
He left his treasure under the bin

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Cute little side note: The kids were so sure that they'd caught the leprechaun that it took about fifteen minutes for them to gain the courage to check under the green bin to see if he was there. They thought they could see his red beard sticking out. When I walked in the door one child was hiding in the hallway niche and the other under the kitchen table, both giggling in anticipation. They would peek out and then run for cover again. When they realized I wasn't going to lift the bin my sweet three year old decided that he'd brave it out. (Wish I had that picture. His face was priceless.) Isn't it so fun to have kids?

Check out this link!

http://academicearth.org

It's incredible!

He's Finally Here!!!

Thomas Jacob was born Friday, December 11, 2009 at 11:46 am weighing in at 7 lbs 2 oz and is 20 inches long with a full head of hair. I am so in love!!!

The Lord's Tender Mercies

As many of you know I am more than ready to have this baby. My body has felt so done and I have felt discouragement and frustration that he hasn't already come (especially when labor started and then stopped after a few hours last weekend). Remember this has been a bit of a tough pregnancy. Well, today I am so grateful that when our maintenance man came to change our filter he noticed the fire in our gas fireplace going and he observed that the logs were arranged incorrectly allowing the fire to burn up front instead of in the middle. Apparently this was releasing carbon monoxide into our apartment. He fixed the logs. It happens that the cradle was right next to the fireplace. Now I think I understand at least one reason why our baby hasn't made his debut yet. I am so grateful for the Lord's ways and for His tender mercies. 

How I love thee, let me count the ways!

You dance with me

You're creative

You take classes with me

You bring me roses (and lilies and orchids)

You're patriotic

You're still a kid at heart

You enjoy the great outdoors

You love and enjoy your kids

You join your wife on crazy adventures

You bring me chocolate

You make delicious weekend and birthday breakfasts

But most of all you love me!

Happy 8 year anniversary babe! I love you more and more each day!

November 17, 2009

Since We've Been Away

Well, these last few months have been full despite the exhaustion of pregnancy (9 months of being sick is just no fun. It's a good thing these little ones are so worth the effort.) We've experienced birthdays, a reunion, a funeral, Halloween, snow and lots of in betweens. So here is a fun re-cap.

We've apparently started a new tradition of decorating the birthday cake together as a family. It was a lot of fun and the kids still talk about it daily and look forward to the next birthday so we can do it again, this time in castle form.


Snow White and Mickey Mouse, complete with princess shoes and mouse crocs, and loads of fun dressing up. We have a tradition for Halloween as well that after we go trick-or-treating we order a pizza and watch a movie together as a family. This year it was Sleeping Beauty.

And yes, snow. We've experienced a few down falls which are gorgeous to behold and definitely keep you inside for a couple of days with warm mugs of cocoa and a crackling fire. Actually today church was canceled because of a downfall. The amazing thing is that after it snows it melts within a week and the weather is beautiful again. I can definitely handle that.

Another enjoyable thing the kids love is that every Saturday Dad takes them to story time at the library. It's a great bonding experience and gives me a chance to rest. I love that man!


As for me, well, I am really looking forward to this little boy coming. 35 1/2 weeks and home bound leaves for a little stir craziness at times but it's worth it to help ensure complete growth and when I'm not laying down holding onto the bed to keep from passing out I enjoy reading and playing with the kids, doing puzzles (never knew how fast you can put together a 1000 piece puzzle when you can't do anything else. I think I've gone through 8 so far.) And wow my house is very slowly getting meticulously organized. That indeed is nice.


And for this wonderful family of mine? Well, they've learned such patience and love in these past 9 months in a way that we never could have experienced before. I love them dearly and am forever grateful for their service, joy, laughter, and desire to learn and help. The Lord truly blesses us in our lives!