In my wildest imagination...

... I would have never thought that THIS is what I would want to report. Don't get me wrong - it's not that I'm embarrassed or ashamed that this is my blog post. It's just funny. I genuinely find a lot of joy in knowing that these little things make my days so special. I could entertain you greatly with the stories of what colors we painted our walls, or what errands we've been running... or the awesome conversations Jordan and I have had during quiet moments when the kids are playing or sleeping. I could tell you awesome stories of how God has provided for us these last three months (and perhaps I should?) above and beyond what I could have expected. Yet, tonight, my "pick" for blog post is funny things my kids say and do. Okay, even WORSE, funny to me. So, here they are. Someday I know I will care about them far more than what we painted our living room or what we ate for dinner... right? :)

* tonight as Daddy finished up a story for the kids, Elyse asked if he would ever get younger. His reply was, "no, I'm going to just get older and more gray." To which Elyse replied, "Old and gray? I thought you would get pink and sparkly?" Serious conversations are hard to come by.

* Jakob has some serious vices. One is the big plant. The ONE big plant I just had to buy as he learns to cruise around. Yep, he loves playing in and eating the dirt. Just when we go DAYS without an offense, he will pull a good one. Today he was stuffing the dirt in his mouth and gagging on it. I probably swept up at least a cup of dirt (cup o' dirt for you humorous readers). I would like to think that he got his own punishment for that one, but I highly doubt that plant has lost its appeal.

* Speaking of Jake, he gets hurt ALL THE TIME. Poor kid has had a bloody lip at least three times this week. Today he totally nose-dived out of his highchair (Yes, he was completely buckled in??) and was instantly distracted by pasta. He seems to handle pain quite well. Should I be proud? Probably not. That quality keeps him heading to the plant for more.

* Emily. Where do I start? The moment she wakes up in the morning, she is thinking about wearing "Leggins." No joke. Don't mess with her leggings! She despises wearing jeans, and she will make you suffer when she has to wear them. That's my girl: loves comfort over style ;)

* I love that Emily will almost always pick fruit over any other food in the world. Candy, cookies, you name it- she wants fruit. I also love that she says "mine eyes" or "mine hair"... A few weeks ago, we were singing Em's favorite song (at the time) "Zacchaeus" when Elyse asked an out-of-the-blue question about why the Jews put a crown on Jesus' head. Thinking this was a great time for a great lesson, Jordan answered the question only to have Em's follow-up question go like this: "Did Jesus go to Zacchaeus' house to play dress up with the crown?"

* Elyse is obviously in love with pink. I showed her the pink sky outside her window one morning, and her comment was, "Oh, Mommy... I wish my tongue was always that color!"

* Jakob is VERY close to standing by himself these days. He chickens out pretty easily, but it's fun to watch him flirt with danger... He is jabbering all the time, and since I didn't manage to get an 11 month post out for him, I guess I can tell you his AMAZING new tricks right here :) He now says "nigh-ni!" and waves when he goes to bed, signs "all done", says "yeah" when prompted once in a while, "na-na" when he wants a banana, "ma-ma" when he wants me :) He's pretty awesome. He also raises his arms for "so big!" He likes to pull that one out when he knows I have to change a horrible diaper. AND, I can't believe I can still get excited about these tricks third time around! I love him.

* Elyse was playing with duplo blocks at her cousins' house a while back... Aunt B and Uncle S asked her what she made, and apparently her response was that she made some amazing dessert creation that also had "A little itty bitty bit of popsicle juice" in it :)

* Speaking of her sweet tooth, she was thrilled that I made a cake for our time with our community group... she said with a huge hug, "Mom, you make the best cakes EVER..." but as she turned and walked away, she muttered, "even if you make the yuckiest dinners ever..." I know, I'm appalled. :)

* Emily went to the church building early with Jordan a few weeks ago, and as soon as she entered the front door, she looked up at him and said, "Hey! Now you're Pastor Jordan!"

* Elyse was admiring a picture in a book, and she said, "Mom, that purple house is a million of prettiness!"

* She was lecturing Emily on how to take care of her crayons and said, "You see, Emily Mae, if you break them, they will DIE. You don't want that to happen, do you?"

* Emily asked Elyse if Jesus ever had to go potty. Elyse answered, "No, Jesus doesn't go potty. There's no bathroom in heaven!"

Oh, these kids crack me up. Some of my favorite moments are hearing Elyse and Emily as they have little conversations about life. Elyse obviously picks up from my "matter-of-factness" when it comes to stuff, and she will quickly put Em in her place :) It's funny and convicting at the same time. The joy these kids bring me is pretty much one of the best things ever. As crazy as the days are, every second is worth it. Jordan and I have said so many times lately that we are so blessed with these precious people. I hope we never tire of thanking God for them!

(Okay, since I can't seem to put captions on these pictures, the drawings are Elyse's and Emily's (respectively) pictures of Cinderella and the prince. I also love the one of Jakob throwing out the vibe...)