10 Months

Not too much has changed in the last month -
Miss S is definitely more confident in pulling up on everything she can hold onto and is starting to cruise a little, too.

She seems more like a real person with her interactions with us and in her attempts at saying what we say.  She says Dada and gets so excited when she sees her Daddy.   She has definitely stolen his heart.  If he's having a rough day at work, I bring her into his office and he can't help but smile at his sweet girly.

Miss S is still so joyful and I treasure all of her smiles and kisses!

Mema

The world lost a special woman two weeks ago when my husband's grandma passed away.  Mema was a strong lady who loved her family and worked hard at keeping everyone together.

We went to Virginia for the weekend to celebrate her life with more than 40 other family members who came from near and far to gather together.  It was an obviously hard time for the family, but great to all be together.  She will be missed but has left a legacy of a strong family who loves each other well.

Here are some sweet pictures of her with Miss S this summer at the beach.
 

 

And a very special picture of almost all of her direct descendants together.
I know she was proud of this family.

 

Mud and Trucks

This is going back a few months, but I wanted to make sure to post these pictures.
This fall, my husband ran the Tough Mudder, a 12 mile race with 20 some obstacles, including jumping in a dumpster of ice, running over fire, and running through electricity.  For some reason, that sounds fun to some people.  Not to me!

So while he was training for it, the boys enjoyed pretending that they were doing the Tough Mudder too!  One day we turned on the sprinkler and made a giant mud puddle in the front yard where we had dirt patch from having a tree cut down.  They had so much fun! You can even see Mr. Mister doing push ups in the mud in the last picture.

Enjoying things like this and not worrying about the mess is something I've had to learn since having boys.  I know how good it is for them to get muddy, whether they are 5 or 30!

 

 

 

 

On an unrelated note, here are some pictures from the Touch a Truck event that our city does every summer.   Trucks are another thing I've learned a lot about as a mom to boys!

 

 

 

 

A Warrior

Today as we walked into the grocery store, Mr. Mister saw a guy pushing the long line of carts from the parking lot back into the store.  He thought that looked really fun and decided that's what he wanted to be when he grows up.  After a minute, he said, "Actually, I think I want to be a warrior instead.  A warrior sounds funner than pushing carts."

Haha. I would have to agree!

Two and a Half

Dear Mr. Newton,
You are quick to correct anyone who would suggest that you are just two.  You are two and a half...going on five.  I forget sometimes how young you are because you keep up so well with your big brother and want to do everything by yourself.  We treasure you as our middle child - rough and tough with your brother but sweet and playful with your little sister.

One of my favorite things about you is your words.  You make me laugh all the time with your mind that soaks everything in and processes life with such innocence.  I will be sad when you stop saying "mine, yours, ours".... like this:
"now I know mine abc's"...
"is this yours coffee, Daddy?"
"This is ours house"

You and your orange dog are still best friends.  He is now known as do-do instead of Orange Juice because that's how you said it when you were little and it stuck.  We have had many near losses and on the most recent one, you were laying in your crib crying, "I can't sleep without do-do!"  Thankfully, we found him and life can go on.


Other things you love:
building with blocks
singing
puzzles
doing anything your big brother does!!

Things you don't like:
wearing long sleeves
wearing shoes
eating at the table - you'd rather sit on the floor

Your measurements:
80th percentile for weight
90th for height
80th for head.

I could fill this blog with funny things you have said or things I love about you.  But here is just one more for now.  About a month ago, you dislocated your elbow.  You were in so much pain and as we sat in the ER, we were explaining to you that the doctor was going to take an x-ray of your arm.  Then they could see inside of you to see your bones.  Through tears and with a quivering voice, you looked up and said, "And Jesus?"  because you knew that Jesus is inside of you and if they could see your bones, they must be able to see Jesus too.  So sweet.

I love you, little man.  You bring such joy and laughter to our family!

9 Months

We're rounding the corner to a year!

As you can see, Miss S loves to stand now, especially by the front window where she watches the world go by.  She tries to pull up on most things and looks like she wants to start cruising but can't make herself move quiet yet.  

She got all four top front teeth at one time, which has made for a nice long stretch of waking up again at night.  Those teeth are just starting to show when she cries or laughs and she looks like such a big girl with a smile that's no longer just gums.

She also loves to babble and does an adorable fake sneeze that's always followed by big smiles and giggles.  We're moving more into finger food, which is fun but messy.  I do get excited about her being able to eat more of what we eat.  It makes life a little easier.

And of course, she loves her brothers and is so loved by them.  They always want her to come in their beds with them and she squeals in delight to join them.  Her smile doesn't get bigger than when she sees those boys! 

 

 

Love these Kids

they make me laugh.
enjoy some very random pictures of some very fun times.

 

Halloween

Christmas carols are playing, Christmas lights are on display, and Christmas trees are attched to every car that passes.  And I am posting my Halloween pictures.  Better late than never, right?

One day, I heard Mr. Mister ask our 12 year old neighbor if he likes Super Why.  The boy had no idea who Super Why was, much to the surprise of Mr. Mister who must think that everyone watches PBS in their spare time.  If you have kids his age, you probably know this super reader who flies into books.  He's definitely a favorite in our house. 

After Mr. Mister recovered from his initial devestation when I told him I wasn't going to order him the $30 Super Why costume he saw on the computer, he soon got on board with making our own version.  It was actually fun to do and I thought it turned out well, despite the fact that I used saftey pins where I should have used a sewing machine.  But that's another skill for another day.

Mr. Newton was a fire fighter.  This was his first year really experiencing trick-or-treating and he quickly caught on to the joy of filling up his bucket with candy!

Miss S was a pumpkin, which only lasted long enough to take a picture because it was so big on her that she couldn't sit and I couldn't hold her very easily.

these pictures aren't great but they get the job done!
 

Mr. Newton went with us to his brother's party at school.  He joined in on circle time like he was one of the class.  He even sang some of the songs with them, watching Mr. Mister the whole time and doing whatever he did.   He thinks he's 5 too!

 

Thankful and Hopeful

Hello, blog world.  It's been a month, I know.  I've had the thought to blog here and there and even started a post or two, but really, this was just a month where I couldn't keep my head above water so blogging took the back seat.  I was actually tempted to give up on it altogether and had to laugh when I recently glanced back at my blogging history and saw how often I posted each month when Mr. Mister was little. And how I wrote about things like how the day was really hot.  Ha.  Add a couple more kids and I'm lucky to get a good picture up now.  But  I'm motivated again and hopeful to catch up a little bit on documenting what's going on in our lives. It's such a valuable resource for me to look back on and remember some of the little things that I would otherwise forget.

So....where to start.  I'm overdue on a 9 month update, a 2.5 year update and most of the fall in general.  I think I'll save those for the near future.  I finally uploaded a couple month's worth of pictures onto my computer so I'll have some good ones to share.

I think to start I'll just go with the day after Thanksgiving statement that I am incredibly thankful for so many blessings in my life.

These three definitely top the list.  

Mr. Mister, our intense little man who is creative & passionate about everything he does.

Mr. Newton, our laughter. So cute and always with a giant smile or giggle.

And our sweet girl - restful and joyful, as her name means. So thankful for the peace and joy she adds to our family.

And of course, my husband. Also passionate about everything he does, he has stretched me past my comfort zone over and over. He has vision far beyond what I see and what most of the world sees and he's willing to take big risks in order to make a big impact.  It's not always comfortable, but it's certainly not boring.

and so many other things ... our families, health, a new home, daily provision, clean water, real community, deepening friendships, warm days in november, and on and on and on.

But most of all, I am thankful for the Rescue Plan.   As I sit and type, I am listening to a playlist of every version of Oh Holy Night that I have on my computer. (for the record, I think David Crowder's is my fav).  This song evokes in me such an awareness of the anticipation of the Great Rescue.  The anticipation of all of creation awaiting the King.  The Savior.  The One who came to rescue us from sin and deception and death and from hopelessness, mundane living, rules and religion.  To give us eternal hope and life and purpose.  The gift of abundant life here and the promise of more to come, when everything will be made new.  When there will be no more tears, fear, sadness, pain, sickness, striving, failing, or brokenness. 

I am thankful for that. For Jesus. For hope and promise and life.  Because as I watch life continue on, ending for some, beginning for others, I want to slow it down.  But I can't.  I can't slow it down, I can't change circumstances, I can't know what tomorrow will bring.  In all of the uncertainty, I am incredibly thankful that God and His promises are certain.  And I'm thankful that even in our sin and our pursuit of things other than our Creator, Jesus stepped into our mess, full of grace, to rescue us, redeem us and make us new.

So as I sit and plan advent activities for my kids and as we put up a Christmas tree and make our plans and gather with friends and family, I long to worship the King and celebrate God's extravagant love poured out in sending His Son to rescue His kids.  In a culture that has made Christmas about gifts and food and good deals at the store, I want my heart to be set on the King. Who came. And is coming again.

Twenty-First Century Lemonade Stand

Mr. Mister and I were making lemonade today and had this conversation:

Me: Next summer you should have a lemonade stand!  Do you know what that is?
Mr.: No.
Me:  You make a lot of lemonade and then set up a table next to the street and sell it to people going by.  You would have to decide how much each cup costs. Like a quarter maybe.
Mr.: Or a credit card.

Haha.  I laughed out loud! But he was serious. And the funny thing is that we could actually make that work with this and my iphone.  I think we'll stick with quarters.

8 Months!

Today our sweet girl is 8 months!
(not great iphone pics but better than nothing)


Some milestones:
She is still army crawling all around and moving pretty quickly.
She loves to practice standing while holding onto something.
She's moving toward finger food, loving cheerios and tiny bread pieces.

And of course, those boys still dote on her (except when she crawls over and grabs the blocks they are building with).

Mr. Mister started calling her Lulu...I have no idea where that came from.
Mr. Newton repeats everything his brother says but his comes out as wuwu, which I think is so funny.  He also still calls her Daywa, which is cute too.  And she adores her brothers.  When she sees them or when I lay her in their beds, she giggles and claps and squeals.  I hope they are always such great friends!

And this past month, we had her baby dedication.  This was a time for us to make a public declaration that she is the Lord's, that we hold her open handed back to Him, and that we commit to raising her to know Him. We are beyond blessed to be the ones assigned to raising her and are praying fervently even now for the woman she will become!

I don't have any action shots, but here she is on her big day with her two buddies.  

I love you, Little Miss!

Best Buddies

These two have been best friends lately.


They have always loved each other a lot but lately I have seen their friendship move to a whole new level.  I don't know what caused the change.  Maybe Mr. Mister starting school again..a little absence to make the heart grow fonder.  Whatever it is, it makes this mama's heart happy.  I love watching them play so well together and really enjoy each other.  Sometimes I forget that there is almost 3 years between them.  You would never know it by watching them play.

The other day they were eating lunch and out of nowhere had this conversation:

Mr. Newton: Did you get a sticker on your homework, Mr. Mister?
Mr. Mister: Yep. I did!
Mr. Newton: Wow! Good job!

I loved it. So simple but such love and encouragement.

I pray often for their friendship - that they would really be lifelong best friends.

Finally Sold (for real)

A lot has happened since this post when I announced that we sold our house.  It has been the craziest, most bizarre, most unpredictable experience.  And just today, more than three months after we got a contract on our house, and more than a month after we moved out of the house, we closed on it!  I honestly thought it would be back on the market before this day came.  But it's over and we no longer own two houses two miles apart from each other.  I think we may have a party to celebrate!

What a Week!

Not only did our baby girl start crawling last week, but we had lots of other exciting things going on also.

First there was a visit from Grandma and Papa last weekend.

Then on Monday, Mr. Newton started wearing big boy underwear!  Yay! 

 He's done a great job!

On Friday night, we had a visit from a very special woman - our Mama Rosi from Mexico.  She is the National Director of the ministry we served with in Mexico.  We spent so much time together for the years we were there and she has been very influential in our lives.  It was such a gift to spend an evening with her.  We caught up on each other's lives, shared lots of Mexico memories, and got to encourage and pray for each other.  It was really special to have her spend time with our kids.  She is their abuelita mexicana!

And on Saturday, Mr. Mister got to go horseback riding with his aunt and uncle.  It was his birthday present from them.  He loved it (and had sore legs the rest of the day!).

7 Months and Crawling

This pretty little lady is now 7 months.

She has perfected her clapping.

She is still very loved by her big brothers.

 

And to celebrate her 7 month birthday, she decided to start crawling, army style.
She is on the move!