"I simply remember my favorite things..."

Yes, I've had that song stuck in my head.  Just thought I'd give you a little "ear worm," too :)  (Yea, look it up; it really is a term for that pesky song...)  In light of the mental picture you all have now of Maria dancing around with the Von Trapp kids in their pj's, I'll bore you with one of my confessions.  To give you a little background, I had one of those weekends.  I had one of those weekends where I was taking care of sick kids and feeling like a sick kid myself.  I had one of those weekends where all I craved was a day out, but all we could do was stay in.  I had one of those weekends where it was so easy to complain and so difficult to be thankful.  I had one of those weekends where the fellowship I was craving from my church family just couldn't happen because of sickness.  I had one of those weekends where every conversation with my husband was interrupted with either snot, poop or intense whining.  I had one of those weekends where I needed a catapult to get me out of bed in the mornings.  I had one of those weekends where it took me days to "get over it" instead of minutes, like it should have taken.  I am definitely not proud of the fact that I spent a few days in a slump, but I am thankful for God's grace and patience with me even when I'm bull-headed.  I may have mentioned this before, but months ago, I began emailing back and forth with my mom and my sister every few days with a list of things we were thankful for.  It truly does serve to slap me upside the head at times and bring me back to the incredible blessings of God.  Here are some of my current reminders of God's goodness:

* A God who loved me so much that he sent his only son to die for me

* A husband who not only tells me he loves me, but shows me every day

* Two sweet little girls that can send all the doldrums away with their big smiles

* I don't have to be with my church to have a relationship with God.  

* On that note, I can pray while I'm washing out diapers.  Yes, it happens.

* Feeling a very full lap when I get to hold a girl on each knee

* Even when my husband has to leave the house, I always get a kiss :) 

* Hearing Elyse say "hug, Mommy!" as she toddles my way

* That baby smell that Emily carries after her bath

* Cooking for my family with the provision God gives

* Having to remind Emily to eat because she's grinning ear to ear

* Great conversations with Jordan, even over goofy toddler talk at the dinner table :)

* Pulling on Elyse's ringlets and watching them boing back into place

* A place to live & bills that get paid with money that God gives

* A washer and dryer to clean our clothes, even though they get cleaned a lot

* A God that is patient with me, even when I am not patient in return

* Friends that encourage me to love God and love my family

* Sunny days and the joy of blowing bubbles with Elyse

* A husband who will work out with me to keep me movin' :) 

* Hearing Elyse count to two over and over again...

* Being able to laugh with my husband at things that would normally make me scream :)

* Rest when I really need it

* The privilege of mothering, even when mothering means getting up 7 times in the night.  It's worth every second.

* Psalm 103:

1 Let all that I am praise the LORD;

  with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.

2 Let all that I am praise the LORD;

  may I never forget the good things he does for me.

3 He forgives all my sins

  and heals all my diseases.

4 He redeems me from death

  and crowns me with love and tender mercies.

5 He fills my life with good things.

  My youth is renewed like the eagle's!

6 The LORD gives righteousness

  and justice to all who are treated unfairly.

7 He revealed his character to Moses

  and his deeds to the people of Israel.

8 The LORD is compassionate and merciful,

  slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.

9 He will not constantly accuse us,

  nor remain angry forever.

10 He does not punish us for all our sins;

  he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.

11 For his unfailing love toward those who fear him

  is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.

12 He has removed our sins as far from us

  as the east is from the west.

13 The LORD is like a father to his children,

  tender and compassionate to those who fear him.

14 For he knows how weak we are;

  he remembers we are only dust.

15 Our days on earth are like grass;

  like wildflowers, we bloom and die.

16 The wind blows, and we are gone—

  as though we had never been here.

17 But the love of the LORD remains forever

  with those who fear him.

His salvation extends to the children's children

18   of those who are faithful to his covenant,

  of those who obey his commandments!

19 The LORD has made the heavens his throne;

  from there he rules over everything.

20 Praise the LORD, you angels,

  you mighty ones who carry out his plans,

  listening for each of his commands.

21 Yes, praise the LORD, you armies of angels

  who serve him and do his will!

22 Praise the LORD, everything he has created,

  everything in all his kingdom.

Let all that I am praise the LORD.

(New Living Translation)

Picture time!

Our sweet friend took some pictures of our little family a couple of weeks ago, and these are some of my favorite shots.  We had a less-than-cooperative toddler this pleasant Sunday afternoon (what should we have expected from her without a proper nap?), but Sarah still managed to eek out a few sweet shots of her.  Shanna, if you're reading this, that dress you bought for Emily is so incredibly darling...

... and last, but not least (drumroll please) my favorite:

Yes, she broke that stick over her knee.  Precious Memories :) 

Hard to forget...

...this outfit.  It was one of my favorites when Elyse wore it, and it's still one of my favorites now that Emily can wear it.  I dressed her Sunday morning and just had to shake my head in awe of how fast these days are going.  Seems like yesterday!  Elyse's picture was taken when she was 3 months on the dot, and Emily's picture was taken at 3 months and a few days.  As you can see, Elyse wins in the tummy department, but Emily is definitely winning in the cheek department.  Sisters :)

Elyse Noelle

Emily Mae

and she's UP!

Yes, as you MIGHT have guessed from the title, Elyse is walking.  Beeauuuutiful.  Finally.  We are SO happy that she has decided that walking on her feet is way more fun than crawling or walking on her knees.  Love it. She start taking "chances" about 6 weeks ago, and she's slowly progressed into walking (or toddling) around the house at leisure with a stumble or two.  Again, I love it.  I never in my wildest dreams thought that my little girl would wait so long to walk, but it's been fun to see her do this on her own.  No matter how hard I tried to encourage it, she was determined to make it something she would do in her own time, thank ya very much!  I perhaps would have picked an earlier date, but I'm so happy that she's now movin' right along.  Here she is cruisin' around with a good book...

Anyway, enough of that reveling.. Elyse is ALSO 20 months old today!  I didn't think I'd have too much more to report as far as this age goes, but there are some new fun things.  Elyse's hair is getting very long (you'd never know), which makes for some nasty knots & messy tangles.  We get through, but it's not always pretty.  She is outgrowing her glasses, so we really need to figure out where to hunt down some more teeny specs...  She is really enjoying her dirty laundry basket (which has been sorted to contain only semi-dirty clothes.. I promise)... it's bizarre, but she loves to sort the clothes and identify what each item is and who wore it.  She does the same thing when I fold laundry.  We were wondering why she started cussing, but it seems that she's actually attempting to say "shirt."  Hmm...  She loves to stack her books & gets very frustrated when they aren't perfectly aligned.  I'm SO tempted to hide any puzzles (she gets severely angry when she can't get them solved), but I'm determined that she's going to figure out how to chill soon enough!  She is putting words together, and it's fun to hear the mishmash of sounds that come out of her mouth.  She loves to come with me to get Em up from her naps, and she usually says "get Emmie" as she toddles behind me.  Once she gets to her bed, she pulls up as far as she can and yells "Emmie" at the top of her lungs.  What a pleasant awakening for Emily.  I can hardly believe she's on the road to AGE TWO.  But for now, here are some of my fun's and not-so-fun's for this stage:

fun's:

* I love watching her try to figure out something.  It's so fascinating to see a little person learn!
* Elyse loves to go on walks- I get such a kick out of hearing her say: "Mommy, CAR!" or "Mommy, Buurd!"
* She loves to point out our facial features, even during the most serious of moments.  It's SO hard to keep a straight face!!
* She can make the happiest "I'm innocent" face EVER.  Wow.
* I love that she'll still rock with me before bed & asks me to keep singing when I stop.  Maybe I should have her hearing tested?
* One of my favorite moments this month was in the car a few weeks ago.  I was sitting in the back with her trying to coax her into napping... I was playing with her hair as she settled down, and when I stopped, she looked up at me and said "more, please?"  *sigh*
* I love how she's still addicted to Daddy :)
* Elyse is cracking us up with the way she has been pigging out on her food.  The other night, she ate a WHOLE sandwich, almost a cup of peas, almost a cup of grapes, and plenty of craisins for dessert.
* Her eyes light up when I give her a cookie in a way I never thought possible :)  That's my girl!
* I love watching her interact with Emily when she doesn't see me watching.

not-so-fun's:

* Still working through tantrum issues... YUK.
* It's REALLY hard to teach a little person how to be nice, you know???
* The word "no" can turn from polite to evil in about 2 seconds.
* Again, seeing her get so frustrated with toys :)  Okay, it's kind of funny, but I do feel bad sometimes :)
* She wants so badly to play with the big kids, so I'm hoping she gets proficient in this walking-thing quickly!
* Her eye teeth started cutting 6 weeks ago, and they're STILL not through!  OWW.

Elyse, we just love you to pieces.  I hope I always remember the adorable way you look up at me when we read together & the way you smell after your bath.  You'll always be my baby girl!

You just keep charming us :)

3rd month's the charm.

Happy 3 month birthday, Emily!  These months have been crazy, but oh, so fun.  Emily is just charming, I might add.  I forgot how fun this age is.  Smiles everywhere, more interaction with surroundings, still small enough to cradle and cuddle, etc...  Fun, fun.  Emily doesn't seem to be growing like a weed, necessarily, since she still seems small to me.  She is definitely different from Elyse in that department!  I still remember digging into bigger clothes for Elyse pretty early on.  Emily is content to wear her baby clothes comfortably, and I'm really not sure how much she weighs right now.  Maybe 12 lbs?  She's my sweet little peanut.  We have settled into a comfortable routine, and I'm enjoying the fun each day brings.  Emily is still taking some naps in our room, but her evening and night sleep (as well as early morning) is all in her crib. . . ALL under the watchful eye of big sister.  Actually, I've had to cover the foot of Emily's crib with a blanket so nosey big sister won't stand at the edge of her own crib and yell for "Emmie" to wake up.  Yes, the joys of sharing a room :)  Then there's the random night where they compete in a yelling competition.  THOSE nights are fun!  I have learned to relax and let them work it out, and now, most evenings are pretty peaceful.  Elyse loves having Emily in there, and she will often ask for her first thing in the morning.  Emily enjoys having Elyse in her face (surprisingly), and she loves to give her big smiles and "talk" to her.  Elyse loves pointing out Emily's facial features (not too carefully, I might add), and she seems fascinated by her new little friend.  Emily is napping well, but she still usually can't make it more than 40 or 45 minutes after the time she gets up from the last nap!  Whereas Elyse found her thumb early on, Emily loves to chomp on her fist and usually ends up finding her index finger knuckle to chew on.  She seems to be enjoying her surroundings, and I've found that she'll stare for a long time at toys we place in front of her.  She hasn't rolled over since her first episode a few weeks ago, and I'm okay with that!  Vacation the first week of August brought back EVERY night feeding (yippee!!), but thankfully, she's back on track doing 8.5-9.5 hours a night.  I was starting to fear for my sanity.  Here are some of my fun's and not-so-fun's for this age:

fun's:

* I love that she'll search me out with her eyes, even if she has to look around for a while :)
* She crinkles up her little nose like a bunny when she smiles.
* Her cooing is getting louder and MUCH more dramatic.
* She is SO close to giggling but just can't quite get it out.
* I love watching her kick around like CRAZY when she's on her back...
* I love watching her little head bob around like a woodpecker when she's on her tummy :)
* Her 2nd chin is getting SO fat.  It seriously is taking up half of her face at times.
* She can hardly finish a meal without grinning from ear to ear!
* Her hair is getting so thick, and it hardly stays down at all these days.

not-so-fun's:

* It's not as easy for Em to sleep soundly just anywhere these days...she prefers a BED.  Makes going out a bit more challenging!
* She is now giving us her messy diapers about 9 or 10 days apart.  Holy cow.
* Her poochy lip is incredibly pathetic.  I'm so pathetic, I actually delay a nap once in a while if she pulls that one out.  I can't take it!
* Do I detect a bit of a temper when bedtime comes these days?  Surely not.
* Hiccups still haunt her- maybe only a few times a week, but she still despises them!
* My baby's getting big :(

We love you to pieces, Emily Mae!  Keep smiling, and we will, too!

Happy Birthday to you!

He's faithful, loving, patient, gracious, kind, gentle, strong, resourceful, hard-working, creative, caring, compassionate, merciful, bold, energetic, industrious, sacrificial, humble, joyful, curious, persistent, generous, and he's all mine.  Happy birthday to the love of my life.  I'm so thankful for you!

  

Don't worry, J, we're still cool, even if this is our last year in our twenties...  

Vacation!!!

There's LOTS to love about vacations!  There's time with my girls, time with their daddy, time with my parents, time with my siblings (including their spouses), time with sweet nieces, time with great grandpa, no cooking, no cleaning, no cloth diapers, no schedule, lots of food, lots of fun, lots of sun, lots of babysitters, ...  Yep, there's lots to love.  

See?  This little love bug enjoyed it!

So did her big sis...

I got to spend lots of time with my honey with no "gotta go to work"s to interrupt us...

Grandma and Grandpa got lots of hugs and kisses in...

Emily finally got a break from the grind of life... 

And this pumpkin had lots of fun, new experiences.

Yes, there's lots to love about vacation.  Next year can't come fast enough.