1st Christmas

Oh My Darling!

Cupcake made her entrance into this world last Saturday night. Praise God for her safe arrival! She is a beauty, a precious gift from our Lord. We are so thankful that she is healthy and strong. We are praying that the Lord will draw her to Himself early and that she will live out her days in faithful service to Him. What a great reminder it is for us to faithfully pray this prayer for all of our children!

Our Gingerbread House

Last year we attempted the Gingerbread House project using a kit that came in a box. Unfortunately, it lasted all of about 5 minutes after we put on the finishing touches. Boo-Boo didn't get in on that fun, but this time we let him help.

We went with a real cake (carrot - yum!) this year, cut and assembled into a house-shape, with frosting all over. That's thanks to Mrs. Fitz' Sunday School project with us when I was a kid. I had to pull out the picture of the cake I made in fourth grade or so and try to figure out the pattern for it. But it seemed to work!

We also made a special trip to the store for candy to decorate the house. The boys picked out multi-colored licorice (gross!!), Skittles and Dots. We colored some coconut green to give the house a yard, and then we were off! The boys had a great time imagining all of the Gingerbread Man's furniture and household goods inside his house as we decorated the outside.

At Saturday night when 8:00 rolled around and I was still cleaning up the dishes and mess from cake-making and asking myself why I start these projects, Stephen gently reminded me how much the boys enjoy the fun of it. And after all, we're making memories.

Last night when we cut the cake and ate a slice, the boys told us that the Gingerbread Man was sad that his house was being destroyed, so he was moving out! Until next year then...

Waiting...

Only 1 week now from my due date...and I am SOOOOO ready! I don't know what on earth made me think - or hope - that our Cupcake might be born early, but now I'm having to squash those hopes.

It doesn't help any that a cousin who was due just 1 week before me has had her baby girl 2 weeks early! And my sister-in-law who was due the day after me had her baby boy 2 weeks and 3 days early!! And a gal from church who was due a week before me has had her son a week early too. I'm beginning to feel like I'm the only one left!!

Yes, it's getting a little discouraging. But I take comfort knowing that she will come at just the right time, according to the Lord's plan for her life. He knows us before we are formed, and He has numbered the days of her life (and mine!). Pray that I will continually be reminded that His plan is BETTER than mine.

In the meantime, I am feeling rather well, thankfully. Mostly I just struggle with fatigue in the later part of the day. But I keep telling myself that it's nothing compared to the fatigue I will be feeling when I'm dealing with sleepless nights! :-)

On another note, we are praising God today for providing the vehicle we have sorely needed. We've been looking to get another car for several months so that I won't have to drive Stephen to the train station each morning and pick him up each evening (or be without a car when he needed to use it). And last night, after a rather unpleasant attempt at a purchase last weekend, the Lord provided to us a good car...just at the right time!

And thankfully, He provided it before Cupcake's birth...which is when the real need would begin.

Praise Him for His mercies to us!!

More Parenting Stuff

Here is a an article on the IX Marks website entitled An Embedded Portrait: A Theological Vision for Families - 3. Don't let the theology reference in the title scare you off. It's a great article (third part only...I haven't read the first two parts yet...although I'm sure they're equally helpful)!!

In our "Sunday School class" (or Core Seminar, as they're known at our church), we've been studying Biblical Manhood and Womanhood using Piper & Grudem's volume, Reforming Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. We finished up the 13 week class yesterday, and the above article was mentioned, so I had to check it out. It was specifically directed toward the ways in which we raise boys and girls differently. So...since we are about to embark on this new adventure of raising a girl, I decided to bone up on my theological perspective!

I hope some of you might find it helpful as well. And I'd encourage you to browse around the IX Marks website in general...there's always something new and interesting (and thoroughly Biblical) there to challenge you!

Encouragement in Our Parenting

I've been keeping up with the GirlTalk blog (see the link in the column to the right) this week as they've been discussing a Mother's Faith. It has been so encouraging to me to trust in the Lord, specifically in parenting.

What I do or don't do...how consistent I am in discipline...the fears that lurk in my mind regarding my children...these are not the focus of my parenting. The focus of my parenting has to be faith and trust in the Lord. He has conquered my sinful heart, and He can conquer the sinful hearts of my children. I must walk in obedience to Him, disciplining them and training them in righteousness, always pointing them to Jesus and His forgiveness. But ultimately, it is the Holy Spirit who must work in their hearts, drawing them to Himself.

I've been encouraged too by the recent sermons at our church, delving into the lives of the "fathers of our faith." We've been studying through Genesis and looking at, most recently, the lives of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It is amazing to me to see how sinful these men were (and their wives too!) and yet God used them so mightily. They were deceitful and untrusting. Am I those things? Of course, I am. But God used them.

And I know He'll use me too. Even when I fear that my own sinfulness is pointing my children in the WRONG direction, I can trust that He can use even my sin for good in their lives. I pray that He will help me to believe His promises more and more in this regard. And I pray that He will have mercy on them just as He has had mercy on me.

Gettin' Close...

Invariably, everywhere I go now, I'm asked how long until the baby is due and/or if I know what we're having. I guess it's painfully obvious that the time is drawing near for this baby to be born. I am carrying SO low (always do, that's just the way it is) that it seems this little one is already sitting in my lap.

She is still a mover and a shaker which, while reassuring that she's doing well, is also quite painful sometimes! I guess she takes after her brothers. They are STILL movers and shakers!

I guess maybe it's the "nesting" instinct that they say hits all mothers-to-be in those last weeks, but I've been getting everything ready for this girl. Her room is ready, I've set up the pack-n-play bassinet in our room, and I've been doing baby laundry lately. I have to admit that one of the most exciting parts of these preparations has been pulling PINK lint from the dryer! Never saw that before!

So with 3 or 4 more weeks to go now, I need to keep busy enough to avoid playing the waiting game. But at the same time, I really need to cut back on my activity level too - just getting way too tired all the time.

Last Friday I decided it would be fun to take the boys to the zoo just one last time before we add a new baby to the mix...and before the cold weather really sets in. But that was a pretty big mistake. I was so tired from all of the walking (and trips to the bathroom!), that I was just feeling rather miserable. I'm not sure if the boys noticed or not...at least, they seemed to be enjoying the outing. But, for now, we'll have to try to avoid over-doing it for a while...and hope these next few weeks pass quickly!

Celebrating with our Octagenarian

On Saturday the whole family gathered to celebrate the 80th birthday of our Pap. He is the first of his family to live to be 80 years old in quite a while. We are so thankful for the way the Lord has blessed him with good health these many years.

Here are a few photos:
First - Pap with 9 of his 10 grandkids and 13 of his 14 great-grandkids (missing one granddaughter and one great-grandson)















Second - Pap with 13 of his 14 great-grandchildren















Third - Pap with his grandchildren and their spouses (again missing one granddaughter & husband as well as another spouse)















Pap with his 2 daughters and 9 of his grandchildren (missing one son and a granddaughter)















Pap with his daughters (son missing)

Wildlife

Each evening when Stephen gets into the car as we pick him up at the train station, Mr. Blue-Eyes asks for what we've been calling "The Wildlife Report." Typically, this report includes sightings of deer (with the correct number of each type...bucks, does, fawns) and foxes and birds. A month or so ago, we were all impressed to hear how Dad actually witnessed a bald eagle swooping down onto the water and coming back up with a fish! We even made a special trip to that lake to see if we could catch a glimpse of any bald eagles, but it seems like they have migrated south now. Ospreys were commonly named in The Wildlife Report for a while, too, but it seems that they have also migrated south for the winter.

Our wildlife sightings have been sparse unless you include the groundhog who makes his home under the shed at the golf course behind our house. We often saw him scrounging in the grass as we drove past.

But one night last week, as I was making dinner, I glanced out the window and saw what I thought was a large dog in our backyard. With a second look, I quickly realized that there were two deer in our yard! The boys were so excited to have deer in our yard. They wanted to go out onto the deck, but I knew if we opened the door, those deer would be gone in a flash. I did manage to get one semi-clear picture through the glass and a short video to share. Both deer appeared to be does, although they looked like they were pretty small...perhaps this year's fawns that had lost their spots already, but hadn't grown any antlers yet. So we weren't sure. Uncle Dan would probably know, but we just aren't as "deer savvy" as he is.

At any rate, it was pretty fun to have our own Wildlife Report to share with Dad that night!

The Boys' Room

And here is the "updated" look in the boys' room. Due to Mr. Blue-Eyes' great interest in animals, we decided on a safari / jungle theme.

First, the "before" picture...

And the Safari...

Around the House

We have been slowly getting some work done around the house, and now that Cupcake's nursery is getting closer to being done, I thought I'd post a couple of pictures. :-) There still aren't any curtains hung or decorations on the walls, but I thought this was a pretty good start.

And just for perspective, here's the "before" picture...

Political Dilemma

Well, I don't think I've written much of anything here previously about politics. It's not that I don't think about it much -because I do, especially as I have a husband who is very interested and keeps up with this stuff. Oh, and my college study program was Political Science, so it has always interested me...just hasn't been something I've blogged about before now.

But now things are really heating up in a lot of arenas - with the Presidential election looming ever nearer and the mortgage "crisis" threatening our economy, etc. There's plenty to consider.

Now I've been a fan of Ron Paul pretty much ever since I heard his name and learned what he's about. I appreciate his commitment to upholding the Constitution as written and with a strict interpretation (Paul is known to many as "Dr. No" - a reference to his "no" votes on any legislation that attempts to broaden the powers of the federal government or violates the Constitution), and his belief that life begins at conception and the commitment to protecting that life - as he's shown in his many years of practice as an obstetrician. His views on immigration, economics and foreign policy are perhaps a little foggier to me, but understandable enough that I put myself in his camp. Stephen has read his most recent book, and although I've been a bit slower in making my way through it, I've started it as well.

So I'll readily own that I voted for Ron Paul in the primary. We cheer everytime we see a Ron Paul for President sign or bumper sticker. :-) I've long thought that I'd vote for him in the general election as well. I don't particularly care for John McCain. I haven't for years - back to when we were living in Arizona and he was on the ballot there. And I seem to recall that there were many conservative Christians back in 2000 and 2004 who did NOT want McCain on the Republican ticket. He was not considered a true conservative. He was about as liberal a Republican as one could find (excepting perhaps Arlen Specter from Pennsylvania!), just one or two steps away from being a Democrat. We didn't want him representing the Republican party or sitting in the White House.

Choosing Sarah Palin as his VP running mate was a very smart choice for McCain. It has garnered him lots of support that I don't think he otherwise would have had. But I've had my reservations about her from the beginning as well. I know that I have plenty of friends who are wholeheartedly supporting her (and McCain because of her), but she just hasn't won me over in the same way.

I expect that my most serious criticisms of her would have to do with her role as a wife and mother. Please take this all in the way in which it is meant - just my personal musings and thoughts, looking into her life as an outsider, trying to understand her character.

I am tremendously thankful that when she learned that her baby would be born with Down Syndrome, she understood her responsibility to raise and love that child just the same as any other. I am glad that she and her husband are commited to the right to life. I commend her for that.

But I can't help but wonder at how she can leave her precious baby (and her other children who also very obviously need her) in the care of others while she's meeting the demands of a stressful and, well, demanding career. She was back to work as governor of the state of Alaska only three days after giving birth to her son Trig this past spring. Three days!! That's insane! Having given birth twice, I know what the "aftermath" is like. I'm sure she had plenty of help with the baby and other children. But come on.

And then there's the issue of her teenage daughter's pregnancy. I say this not to judge her daughter, but to point out her daughter's NEED for focused guidance from her mother during this time. Thankfully, she does not plan to abort this child, but to marry the baby's father and raise the baby. But it's a traumatic time in the life of her daughter. Isn't that more important to her than public office?

Anyway, like I said, I have reservations. I have serious reservations about casting my vote for the McCain-Palin ticket. Now, obviously, (or at least I hope it's obvious by now!), I would not, WILL NOT, vote for Obama-Biden. Obama's complete disregard for human life is disgusting. His alliance with Planned Parenthood and other baby-killing groups is well-documented, and his support of a bill that would refuse life-sustaining measures for infants born in a failed abortion attempt make me ill. That's all to say nothing of his other policy-making plans such as universal health care, tax policies and immigration.

So...my dilemma has been whether to vote my conscience and cast another vote (a write-in, presumably) for Ron Paul, or to vote "against" Obama by voting for McCain. I've been undecided for a while, hating the choice for the "lesser of two evils."

But after deliberating...agonizing...and reading Randy Alcorn's blog, I expect that I will support and vote for McCain-Palin after all. I don't agree with McCain's policy-making agenda. I don't like his immigration plans. I don't really trust his foreign policy-making either...or his tax policies...and I could go on. But I do believe that he and Sarah Palin are committed to the right of unborn babies to be given every possible opportunity to live and thrive. (By the way, McCain is not 100% pro-life, as is evident in his exceptions for the life of the mother and rape cases - which I don't agree with!) And as the next President of the United States will most likely have the opportunity to appoint two - or more - Supreme Court Justices, the repercussions of this election will be great. How much longer will we allow this killing to go on?

Read Alcorn's blog - here - even if you don't still need to be convinced to vote for McCain...to vote for life.

Editing this to add:

I just want to note here how THANKFUL I am to know that the outcome of this election, the future of our country, is in the hands of an Almighty, sovereign LORD who rules over the hearts of kings. Yes, it has been an agonizing decision for me to wrestle with in deciding who to vote for. But I am so glad to know that whether McCain wins this election and is able to appoint justices in favor of preserving life or Obama wins the election and appoints justices who allow the killing of unborn babies to continue or worsen, our God Jehovah is in control. He rules over all.

May we all remember that it is only by His mercy that we all are not consumed. Praise His name!

Apples! Apples! Apples!

On Saturday, we went apple-picking. The last time we went was 2 years ago, and Boo-Boo, of course, was too young to remember. But he really enjoyed it this time. He even picked a few on his own, though most of the apples were too far out of reach. Mr. Blue-Eyes could reach them a little better and did pretty well at filling a bag on his own.

In any case, it was a good time. But we got a little ambitious with the apple-picking and ended up with 5 half-bushel bags of apples (a variety of MacIntosh, Granny Smith, York and Staymen). That's approximately 100lbs. of apples! Now we have to DO something with all of these apples.

So yesterday I started working on them. I made about a gallon of applesauce yesterday. And almost two gallons today...plus two apple crisps for the freezer...and an apple cake to eat. And we still have 3+ half-bushel bags to go. I plan to work on them again much of the day tomorrow (but first I have to get to the store to get more sugar, cinnamon and flour...things needed to putting up apples properly). And although I have to be away much of Thursday, on Friday we are having an appling party with some friends from church, so hopefully we'll get a lot more done.

The rest are going to be delivered to family this weekend, and they can have at it! Next year I'll have to remember to be more conservative in my estimate of how many apples we can use.

Kindergarten Pics

So, I've been WAY late on getting this boy's 5-year old pictures taken. He is now closer to 5 1/2 than 5. But I decided that instead of heading down to Target, I would try out our inherited tripod and just take the pictures myself. And we'll call them his Kindergarten pictures.

I expected to have a very wiggly, uncooperative subject - you know how boys like to be on the move. But thankfully, with a little advance instruction, Mr. Blue-Eyes behaved very nicely and showed much patience with Mom.

Here's the result...a little different than what we'd have done at Target, but all the same, I think I'm pleased. I guess the verdict will be up to Dad.

A Link to Check Out

I regularly try to keep up with this blog Making Home, and today I was reading the latest post. Jess, the author, addresses the issue of children. Not discipline of children or education of children, but our attitudes toward children in our families as well as the attitudes of others around us. Are these gifts from God welcomed wholeheartedly? Or are they looked upon as "accidents," or "oops-babies"? Are parents considered irresponsible for wanting a large family? Are mothers of multiple children just supposed to "suck it up" because they've made their own bed? Or are these children truly a blessing?

I've found in reading her other posts that her thinking and worldview is clearly Biblical and thought-provoking. So I'd encourage you to take the time to check it out here -

http://makinghome.blogspot.com/2008/09/some-subtle-effects-of-birth-control.html.

Look, Mom! No...training wheels?

Yep, we did it. On Saturday, the training wheels were removed from Mr. Blue-Eyes' bike. Nevermind the fact that the stupid things would never stay where they were supposed to be anyway, it was time for him to learn to ride without them. I don't think he was too keen on the idea for a while. He kept asking us to put them on again. He didn't like not being able to zoom around as fast as his little brother!

But after another practice session yesterday afternoon and a short one this morning, he is doing pretty well. No feet on the pedals quite yet, but he can make it down the driveway without falling now. And he's getting the knack of this balancing stuff too. I know it won't be long before he's zipping around again.

Ok, this was a funny one that I just had to post. Hilarious, actually! Honestly, he wasn't hurt! But he's had a cold, and he was just feeling sorry for himself for falling...trying to get as much sympathy as he could by just lying there, unmoving. Only, he got no sympathy...just Mom with the camera catching the moment for all posterity!

Hallelujah, Praise the Lamb!

Just got this one on film this afternoon and had to share...

If you can't make out the words, they are from a hymn we sing at church - Hark, I Hear the Harps Eternal. Boo-Boo is singing the refrain... "Hallelujah, praise the Lamb! Hallelujah, praise the Lamb!"

And I guess he was praying at the end?? Not sure about that...

Fun at Frying Pan Farm

On Wednesday morning, I woke up with the need to get out of the house and enjoy the brief preview of fall-like weather that was to be coming that day. It would either be the zoo or the farm. Since the farm was a lot closer - and free! - we chose the farm. Besides, we had just finished reading A Year at Maple Hill Farm, and I knew the boys would enjoy seeing the animals we had read about in the book. We called up some friends from church who were able to join us for a picnic lunch before checking out the farm.


From the picture below, you can just imagine what it was like following four active little boys around a farm, looking at all the animals. Mr. Blue-Eyes was rather the ring-leader, being the oldest by a good bit. But the littler guys had a great time, too, trying to pet as many animals as they could reach. We moms enjoyed the chance to chat as we walked...and watched for photo-ops! The weather was picture-perfect. Hope we have a few more days like that coming soon!

School Starts

Yesterday was our first "official" day of school. Nevermind the fact that we've been doing school for the last year or so...we took a long break during the move, and now we're back to school. Mr. Blue-Eyes is doing Kindergarten this year and is quite excited about it. Boo-Boo is hanging out with us, too, and likes to listen in during story-time. His favorite activity while we do school is checking out the farm page in the First 1000 Words book.

This year we're using Sonlight's P4/5 curriculum which is essentially a pre-K curriculum. But we've beefed it up for Mr. Blue-Eyes by adding in reading/phonics instruction as well as Math-U-See Primer level. He's been learning reading for the last year or more, though we've been taking it rather slowly.

And he loves doing his math. We started it back in the spring, and it's probably his favorite part of school. Just today, he got SOOOOO excited when he finally made his '8' correctly for the first time. I think I was almost as excited as he was since he'd been having difficulty with that number and I've been telling him again and again that we just have to be willing to try and practice in order to learn it. He finally got it - I'm glad I didn't miss that moment.

When people comment about our decision to homeschool, they usually either think I must be crazy not to want to send my kids off to school or incredibly organized and brave. Well, I'm none of those things! I just love these "moments" and don't want to miss any of them. I'm learning along with the boys and learning to know my boys better too. We want to make sure that their education is centered around an understanding of God's world and our place in His world. We want to make sure that their education is customized for them...allowing them to excel in areas where they are gifted and giving them extra help in areas where that's needed, too. And we don't want to miss those moments when something just "clicks" for the first time...those moments of discovery.

So when people wonder about our decision to homeschool or comment on my bravery or craziness and I'm not looking to get into a deep discussion over it, I mostly just tell them that it's fun...'cause it is.

The Kitchen

Well, the pictures are slow in coming...that's because I've been slow at getting things orderly enough to want to take a picture!! But here is one of the kitchen (please ignore the dishes drying in the sink!).

We are thoroughly enjoying a MUCH larger kitchen. The one in our last place left much - space - to be desired...no pantry, very little cabinet space, small fridge, single sink, etc. So we are loving all of this counter space and cabinet space and the double-door pantry, too! I'm just having to get used to walking more than a step or two to grab what I'm looking for...but I can live with that! ;-)

I also love the corner cabinet with the glass door. I finally have a place for my teacups again. Most of them (aside from a few I acquired recently) haven't seen the light of day in the nearly two years since we started packing to leave New Hampshire. It's so nice to see them peeking through the glass, prettying up the kitchen! See?

They serve as reminders to me of people who gave them to me...of grandmothers and great-grandmothers to whom they belonged once...of mothers who share my love of tea-things...and of my hopes to pass them onto my own little girl one day! I wonder how old Cupcake will be when we have our very first tea party together...

Some pics coming soon...

Well, we are moved in. Whew! It seems like it was a long process, but it's finally done. I don't think that we have any belongings anywhere other than here in this house. Everything from Dad's shed in PA has arrived. My piano is in my living room now! All boxes and furniture have been moved here from our old place. All our "stuff" is here.

And boy, does it seem like we have a lot of stuff! I'm finding things I forgot we had. Going from a house down to apartment living for a few years forced us to put a lot of stuff into storage. Even once we moved into a townhouse that had more space, we still kept much of our stuff in storage since we didn't know how long we'd be staying. Now that we're back into a house with a garage and basement and more space than we've ever had before, all of that stuff is going to have to find a home. So unpacking will be a long process too. But we're not going anywhere, so what's the hurry?

The kitchen is in order. We have food in the pantry and fridge. We have beds that are made up. And as of today, we have internet and cable. The rest will happen in time.

Boo-Boo's Masterpiece

Ok, maybe I'm being a really biased mom here, but I happen to think that this is a pretty good drawing for a two year old! Yeah, a two year old. Well, two-and-a-half. But still...

I rather doubt that he was trying to draw a rabbit, but after he took a look at what he'd drawn, he said something like, "Let's give the rabbit an eye." And he proceeded to put his eye right where it belonged! I was astounded.

Now, some of my astonishment may have something to do with the fact that my five-year-old Mr. Blue-Eyes probably still couldn't draw this rabbit. Boo-Boo's drawing is at least as advanced as Mr. Blue-Eyes' drawing was a year ago (at four).

So maybe this is totally normal for a two year old and I'm over-reacting. Or maybe I'm just hopeful that we have a budding artist on our hands!!

Home Owners

Last Thursday, we became home owners again! It's been almost exactly seven years since we purchased our first house. And it has been just a little over four years since we sold that house in Arizona and moved east for school. So it feels good to go from being renters to being home owners again.

Of course, there is plenty of work to be done getting the house ready to live in. It was a foreclosure/bank-owned property, and it's pretty dirty. I don't happen to think that I'm an extraordinarily clean housekeeper, but I'm finding that I must be above average, at least! Whoever lived in this house previously must have rarely cleaned the carpets and never dusted a baseboard! Yuck.

So this week and next week will be devoted to painting (yes, the walls were in sore need of painting!) and cleaning in addition to packing up the rest of our stuff for moving. Over the weekend, my mom helped - ok, she basically took charge and did most of the work - painting the family room and office. Today I gave the boys' room a coat of paint and hope to finish it tomorrow. Then, onto Cupcake's room (as she is now being called), and maybe our bedroom too. I've got "before" pics saved and will make sure to take some "after" pics too for posting.

Thanks to a little inspiration from my aunt, the boys are going to have an animal-themed room. Mr. Blue-Eyes especially loves animals, and we already have a tiger lamp and a cheetah picture. So we'll round it out a little with some tiger throw-rugs (for Christmas...shhhh!) for on their beds and a few more safari/jungle pictures on the walls. If you happen to run across any fun safari animal accessories in your shopping, let me know!

A Study on Soy Consumption

I've read articles previously dealing with the detrimental effects of soy formula or soy milk in baby boys, and found them very interesting (these previous articles are linked in this new one if you're interested). But now there is a new article quoting a recent Harvard study that reveals some serious issues with soy consumption by males. You can read it here:

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=70504

Needless to say, as soon as we read the original articles, Mr. Blue-Eyes was DONE with drinking soy milk (which was his alternative to cow's milk since he's allergic). Thankfully, he was drinking less anyway...and I was offering it much less too because it's quite expensive compared to water!

Ooh La La!

Thanks to Stephen's boss, we were treated to a really fun dining experience at Texas de Brazil. If you haven't been there, let me give you a little preview:

It's a one-price deal and you can eat as much as you want. Kids under 6 are FREE - which we loved. There's a gourmet-type salad bar area with lots of stuff I had never tried before as well as a sidebar with rice and potato dishes and a soup (lobster bisque!). Then, the fun begins! Turn your coaster-like signal card from red to green to bring on the meat!

The restaurant is teeming with Brazilian gauchos, each serving a different meat from a 2-foot long sword-like skewer. I must say that I don't think I've ever eaten meat with so much red in it, but...it was GOOD! We tried many different meats including bacon-wrapped filet mignon (the best!!), flank steak, pork loin, bacon-wrapped chicken breast, parmesan chicken breast, lamb chops, BBQ pork ribs, sausage...hmmm, maybe others? I can't remember.

The garlic-mashed potatoes and sweet fried bananas were really good too!! And dessert looked fabulous, but we took a pass since there was nothing Mr. Blue-Eyes could have with his milk allergy.

For being in a rather pricey, swanky restaurant, the boys behaved beautifully - we were SO thankful. They really enjoyed the meats, too, and were eager to try whatever the gauchos were bringing by the table. And they had great fun flipping from "red light" to "green light" to request more meat!

Funny Boy

I've got 2 funnies to share:

Recently, I was sitting on the couch next to Boo-Boo, and he was holding his souvenir baseball bat "gun". He turned to me and said with utmost seriousness (and a backwoods Southern drawl), "Cover yo' eahs, Momma; I'n gonna shoot!"

Last night we went to Home Depot to check out some paint and carpet for the new house. We were there for a little while, and the boys were getting antsy, especially Boo-Boo. He kept wanting up and down and up and down. Finally, he looked up at me and said, as he waved his arm around, "I'm done with this place!" I couldn't even answer him; I was laughing too hard.

Cukes!

We planted 8 tomato plants, a cantaloupe, a rosemary and a cucumber plant this year. Since we expected to be moving before the growing season ends, we put everything into pots which we can just take with us.

It has been fun watching the plants grow from just a few inches tall to about six feet tall (the cukes and melons, anyway). We've been seeing yellow flowers on the melon vine and the cuke vine, and just in the last few days, we've seen some flowering on the tomatoes too.

But last night Mr. Blue-Eyes came running inside to tell me that we have baby cukes! We ran back out to check 'em out, and, sure enough, there were a few inch-or-two-long cucumbers on there. Now, there are A LOT of flowers on that vine. I expect that means that there will be A LOT of cucumbers too! I suppose we'll be eating a lot of salads and pasta salad in the next few months. Yum!

Great Falls

Yesterday we met some friends at Great Falls Park and enjoyed the views as well as a picnic lunch. The kids all loved throwing rocks from the overlook...although I'm not sure if any of them actually made it into the river. I was just glad none of the kids made it over the ledge onto the rocks below. We also watched some kayakers making their way down the river, which the boys found pretty exciting.

Packing

Every time I mention to someone that we're moving again, the response seems to be, "Oh, you ought to be really good at this by now." Seriously. I should be. In the 8 years that we've been married, we've moved 7 times. This will be the eighth. I ought to be a professional by now. You'd think. Somehow it's not quite like that.

I hate moving. I hate packing. I put it off until I know that I really have to start working on it. Like now. We're closing on the house next Thursday - yes, a week and two days. And just yesterday I started packing. We're technically not moving in for about three more weeks, but I really feel like I ought to have more done by now. Oh well, a little at a time, I guess.

Being pregnant doesn't help matters any. I haven't moved while pregnant before. So this is a new experience in that regard. Basically, I'm packing boxes, and then the boxes just stay wherever they were when packed! So our house will be crazy stacks of boxes all over the place by the time we actually move.

But I've decided that it doesn't matter. We will be so glad to get into a house again, we'll put up with it - no problem!!

A Girl??

Yeah. A Girl. I think I'm still in shock. A good kind of shock. But shock.

I was convinced we were having a boy. The possibility that we would have a girl didn't even seem to be a real possibility. We have two boys. Of course, we would have another boy. Boys run in the family.

Now, I wasn't opposed to the idea of having a girl - not at all. But it just didn't seem too likely.

And here we are - back from the ultrasound. And we're having a girl. A GIRL!

Mr. Blue-Eyes and Boo-Boo are very excited about having a sister. They've both been saying that they wanted a sister, and it turns out they're getting one! How fun!!

And Grandma is over the moon, I believe. After 4 sons and 3 grandsons, she is READY for a girl!!

The baby appears to be healthy, and we are thankful for that blessing, too. How good is our God, the giver of life! We pray that He will continue to bless this child with good health and grant eternal Life in Jesus Christ to her.

Baby Kicks

I've kept a Baby Diary for each pregnancy - yes, I'll admit the first one was much more detailed and up-to-date, but I'm trying! So after reading through the previous Baby Diaries, I was a little surprised when I felt the first kick of this new little one a few days ago. With Mr. Blue-Eyes, I didn't feel movement until around 21 or 22 weeks. With Boo-Boo it was earlier - around 19 weeks - but still not this early. At just 17 weeks, I've been feeling definite kicks and rolling movements in my tummy! It's so exciting to finally feel the life that has been growing in me for a while now. Stephen was even able to feel a kick or two already.

We're looking forward to having an ultrasound sometime in the next few weeks, and catching a glimpse of this baby. Hopefully, we will be able to find out the sex of Baby too. Mr. Blue-Eyes is pretty gung-ho on the idea of a sister. Boo-Boo could care less. And while we would surely enjoy the novelty of a girl in our house, we do love BOYS around here!!! :-)

I keep telling Boo-Boo that when babies are very little, they cry "Waa-Waa!" He thinks it's funny. I'm sure he won't find it funny when Baby finally makes an appearance and disturbs his playing or his sleep. :-) Mr. Blue-Eyes got a good laugh this morning when I reminded him of his comment to me a few days after we brought Boo-Boo home from the hospital. He said, "Mommy, put him away!" Boo-Boo didn't think that was too funny! We'll see what he thinks when we bring a new little one home from the hospital.

With Praise to God, We Announce...

...we are expecting our third child! Yes, some of you already know this, and I haven't exactly kept it hush-hush, but...now that I've reached 13 weeks, I feel a bit better about making a "public" announcement. :-) We've heard the heartbeat now, too, which is always very exciting.

The boys are excited about having a new baby in the house. Mr. Blue-Eyes says that he really wants a sister, but Boo-Boo doesn't seem to care. I'm expecting that Mr. Blue-Eyes will be a rather good helper. I'm not so sure about Boo-Boo, although we get regular reports that he is the best helper in his class at church. So we'll remain hopeful on that front. We should be in our new house for a few months before the baby arrives, and I'm hoping that we'll have everything painted, unpacked and organized before the new little one joins us.

As I sit and reflect on God's goodness to us, I am humbled by it. There are many couples, some we know, who have difficulty conceiving a child and struggle for years to have children. There are many (more than I ever imagined previously) who suffer through one or more miscarriages in trying to have a child. The Lord certainly uses these experiences in the lives of His children to strengthen their trust and faith and to draw them closer to His side. And I praise Him for the fruit in the lives of these friends that I can see as they've struggled through these hard times. But, too, I thank Him for His kindness to us in granting us two healthy boys and another - so far - healthy pregnancy. Let's praise His name!

A House!

This is our new house! We've got a contract now, and we're SO excited. After previously owning a house and having to return to renting for four years, we are thrilled to be moving into our own house again.

It has four bedrooms, a SPACIOUS kitchen and plenty of living room (plus an unfinished basement). Best of all, it's on a 1/2 acre lot which means LOTS of yard for the boys to enjoy. The neighborhood is beautiful, and it's close to the train station too. Stephen's commute will only increase by about 10 minutes.

With the house being a foreclosure, it will need a little cosmetic work before we move in...painting, some new carpet, other odd fixes. But overall, it's in great shape, and we thank the Lord for this new blessing and praise Him for His faithfulness.

A Long but Blessed Day

The alarm went off at 3:30am today, and we had to be at the hospital by 5:30am for Boo-Boo's surgery. It was a minor, outpatient procedure, and it went well. We left the hospital around 9:45am. The surgery went as scheduled, and Boo-Boo is doing really well. We're so thankful to the Lord for protecting him as he was under anesthesia - that's always scary, but moreso for moms to watch, I think! I've now seen both of my sons go under anesthesia and I've seen my husband as the anesthesia was wearing off. Let's just say, I'd rather not have to do that again.

But the Lord was good. He sustained us with not enough sleep, lovingly providing naptimes for us this afternoon. And now we have a very active little boy who is not supposed to be very active for a few days, and we're trying to hold him back! We'll see how that goes! I'm sure we'll need the Lord's grace in that as well!

Mr. Blue-Eyes turns 5!

I can hardly believe it's possible that he's five already. We were reminiscing on Saturday morning about the Saturday morning that he was born, and in some ways, it seems like yesterday. But our oldest boy is now 5!

The boys had to put up with a house-hunting trip in the early part of the day, but later we had a small party with another family from church. We met at the park and all went on a train ride through the woods. The boys loved it...as you can see from their faces in the picture. Then we headed home for dinner and Aslan cake.

The Cake

Well, we didn't get off to the best start with this birthday cake, but I think it turned out okay.

Yesterday, I baked a cake and put it on a rack on the table to cool, hoping to get it frosted later in the day. But, even though I gave VERY specific instructions to Boo-Boo about not touching the cake, I found him in the kitchen a half hour later holding the "smoking gun" - a long-handled wooden spoon. He had poked about 30 holes in the top of the cake. Hmmm. Mom was a little upset.

I thought for a minute that maybe I could repair it by just frosting over the holes, but, alas, he had even pushed the handle into the cake and pried it apart causing the cake to fall apart in places. So I baked another cake. Thankfully, I had another mix and all the ingredients on hand. Not that a quick trip to Walmart which is a 1/2 mile from the house would have been the end of the world...at least, you wouldn't think so. But for a nauseous, highly hormonal pregnant woman, it sure seemed like it might be.

The second cake was quickly placed out of reach of all two-year-old children, and it survived. I had to wait until today to frost it, but that was all right. I'm pleased with the way it turned out, and I know another person, an almost-five-years-old little boy, who will be pretty pleased too. Happy Birthday, Mr. Blue-Eyes!!