Sunday Afternoon

I love Sunday afternoons. Once we're home from church, after a good lunch, the kids usually nap and Joel and I get some down-time. I love to cut coupons, watch a movie, or get a nap. It's like a mini-vacation from a hectic week, ha!

I feel like, between the kids and I...we were sick for almost the entire month of January. First, baby M got the croupy coughing nasty cold stuff (yes, that is my official medical diagnosis). It lasted for 10 days. Then, P got it. Next, P got staph infection. And M got pinkeye. Then I got pinkeye from M--both eyes for baby and Mommy!...Fun times. Then, I got the hacky cough/nasty cold & sinus misery...It lasted just over a week. I've decided that just having one more child, it's harder for us all to stay healthy around here. If M picks up something, P gets it...If P comes down with something, it's hard to keep him away from his little Sister...He loves to kiss her and be in her face, trying to make her laugh, etc. That is not an ideal way to stop the spread of germs, and so she gets sick. I am a self-proclaimed "germaphobe" so this is hard for my hand-sanitizer loving self to handle. :)

We also went to Iowa this month to meet our new niece...She is so sweet! M seemed like a giant next to her though, and she's only 6 months older than her new cousin. It's crazy how fast babies grow. My baby is no longer a scrunched-up newbie...She's a growing girl that rolls over, loves her baby food (and puffs), already has her first tooth (middle, bottom) and shakes her head back and forth at us, so funny!

Hope everyone has a fantastic Sunday afternoon (and a great week to follow too!)



M, trying out cantaloupe for the first time...yum!

Catching Up

Still in my mind...is a Christmas post! I wanted to get this done before the end of January, so here goes! :)

We had family staying with us through Christmas. Nine different relatives stayed with us for 6 nights in a row! It was busy...but fun! P was sad when the last of our relatives had gone--he said, "Our house is more fun--with kids!" He enjoyed playing with the 3 kiddos that were here over Christmas.

Here's a few photos:

Daddy set up P's new Handy Manny Crane playset.


Big girl sitting in her Bumbo! I love how her little hand is over her mouth, like she's giggling. :)


Picture I took of the kids and I. M is wearing her "My First Christmas" outfit!

Seven Years

So...I'm a little behind but on December 20th, Joel and I celebrated 7 years of marriage. I can't believe how fast 7 years has gone. I love him more now than I did the day we were married. I've heard that said before, that people were more in love after years of marriage, but didn't understand how it could be true. Then, I realized...that life happens. And with it, we experienced pregnancy woes, births, a miscarriage, financial difficulties, job changes, moves, stress, training children, growing in Christ, laughing at funny things our children do--kind of like a zillion inside jokes, all of those things bring us closer. And cause me to love this man more. This man who works so hard to provide for our family...He's such a smart, loving, devoted, loyal man. I'm proud of him. And I'm so glad to be his wife. :)

We celebrated our Anniversary by eating at a boatyard cafe down on the water. It was completely romantic. Our waitress even brought our bread arranged in the shape of a heart. With pecan butter. It was amazing. I had raspberry chicken and Joel and I shared a fantastic piece of chocolate cake--that the waitress brought us free of charge, because she knew we were celebrating. She earned a good tip. :) After dinner, we strolled around downtown. Everything was lit up in white Christmas lights. Breathtaking. We went in to a few shops to warm up. I tried on a gorgeous leather coat at a leather goods store. Realized it was over $2,000. Carefully unzipped it and hung it back up. Yikes! We also got to watch some ice-skaters. It was a great evening.




Our lovely bread basket. Sadly...there are no pictures of the chocolate cake. Perhaps it was devoured too quickly? :)


Indiana Joel?

5 Years Old

A 5th Birthday party has come and gone...I'm not sure how that happened. I was just putting P to sleep in his crib yesterday. He was patting my back as I swayed and sang to him, "Hush, Little Baby..."

I can't believe how fast time flies although P has been wanting to be 5 since his 4th Birthday. We all had a great time at the party and he got some wonderful gifts! His loot included a bike, scooter, and 4 water guns! You'd never know that he turned 5 in December...in the midwest, ha! :) He's ridden his wheels around in the garage so far...because the wind was unbearable. I'm thinking we still have some cold days outside ahead of us, watching while he rides up and down the street. Here's a sampling of the fun to be had:

P with his fantastic Lego Fire truck! (Thanks Josh & Sarah!)

His "cheese" face looks like he's in pain, ha! I promise...he really IS excited about all his great gifts!

P with his waterguns!


Love this Lite Brite from my Sister & family...We had these as kids, so much fun!

The first picture we did was of a Birthday cake with 5 candles...how perfect! :) Joel and I got him the Space Shuttle in the background that makes sounds...Fisher Price has some fun toys!

P's scooter from Joel's parents. So much fun!


M wasn't sure what to think of all the excitement.


She seems to like it. :)


Here's a short clip of him on "the bike"...

That Time of Year

With our most recent family photos...I am ready to begin thinking about designing some Christmas cards! With new pics and the fact that Bloggers get 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly I'm really excited to order my photo cards.

Shutterfly has some super cute cards to choose from! I love this one. Here's a super cute Flat Photo Card design. They also have Thanksgiving card designs! I love the idea of sending out a "thankful" card like this one. Have any of you ever sent a Thanksgiving card? Or received one? I never have...but what a great concept!!

Sometimes it's just good to reflect on the things we have to be thankful for. Of course I'm thankful for my kiddos...I post pictures of them all the time. But, there's more that I'm thankful for...


I'm thankful for Joel. He is my best friend and puts up with my...craziness. He is a great Daddy and I love that I can tell him anything.


I'm so thankful for these girls. :) My Momma and Sister are invaluable to me. They are sources of laughter and encouragement. The Lord knew I needed some incredible women in my life to lean on...I'm so thankful He put me into the family He did!! They are blessings. Pure & Simple.

I'm also thankful for great friends. (You know who you are.) :)

Mostly, I'm thankful for a Loving, Heavenly Father who cared enough about me that He sent His only Son to take the punishment on the cross...for MY sins!!! I'm thankful that I have a relationship with my Father. That He saved me out of the darkness...and promises me a life with Him in eternity.

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." - John 3:16

THAT is reason to be thankful! This time of year especially causes me to come to grips with the most valuable things in life. And...I've heard it said before that "the most valuable things in life aren't THINGS".

Life in Pictures

Here's some picture evidence of what we've been up to. I finally took the "effort" to get the photos off my camera. Yes...it took all of oh--5 minutes. Sometimes I wonder why I put some of the "simplest" things off! :)


We've tried rice cereal! M doesn't really seem to mind it...but I think we'll wait a while longer before we make it a regular thing around here. I make it so "soupy" for her and she makes pretty funny faces at it sometimes. It still is a different taste/texture than what she's used to. This last time I fed it to her, most of it ended up sliding right back out the side of her mouth, so...I think we'll wait until she's just after 5 months old and then try it again!

(photo by P)


We love snuggling! P must give his Sister hugs and kisses every single day. :) She adores him. When he kisses her or talks to her and tells her stories, she smiles or giggles. I love the first baby giggles. What a priceless sound!!


Our little superhero. Sure...his costume was a little big this year. I wanted it to last longer than just for the costume party, so he could wear it for playing in. I thought it was pretty hilarious that as soon as I put it on him, for the costume party that he ran around the living room lifting his desk chair, or the laundry basket...whatever he could find that looked heavy...and then he'd throw it down. I put an end to his heroic actions before someone got hurt but he was sure his costume made him instantly strong!




Last but not least--lots of smiling! My baby girl is growing bigger and getting cuter every day! Of course...I'm not partial at all. But I think she's a doll! :)

Highlights

So...It's been a while. A month. Yikes! Time for an update! :)

Joel has been working most weekends with my Brother-in-Law. He has taken some time off...and we've made some good memories. Went to the pumpkin patch one weekend. This past weekend we attended a friends' costume-party...I was Olive Oyl, Joel was Popeye, and M was Sweet Pea. P was Superman. Sometimes I wish my biggest problem in life was deciding what Superhero I wanted to be when I grow up! P's rational: "Buzz Lightyear has a laser, but Ironman can FLY!" Ah, yes...the dilema! ;o)

We also had family pictures taken. Here's a sampling:











LOVE this one of my Sister & her man kissing in the background...Three kids later, the romance is still alive. :)