The best things in life...

... are free :) Friday night, we headed over to Rita's to utilize some good ol' freebie coupons and enjoyed Italian ice. Of course, we had to head over to the park and enjoy some of the pre-summer weather to go along with it! Elyse didn't mind a bit. She's still a bit timid with slides, but the swings are a HIT.

Of course, as I watched my hubby and daughter playing (I'm not exactly great on slides these days), my mind drifted to how much life changed in the last couple of years. Can't help but think, as well, of how much life will change in the next two years! I must say, the park was never so fun before Elyse.

Sacred

Amidst being "housebound" this weekend with a sick, fussy little darling, I listened a bit more closely to this song. The melody is catchy, and I'm a huge fan of Caedmon's Call to begin with. I'll soon be joining the ranks of those of you moms with more than one child, and I know within a matter of weeks, I'll soon be able to relate to this song even more! It doesn't take long for days like these to drive my mind to how much I have to be thankful for (admittedly, after a bit of grumbling). Elyse's cold will go away, unlike many ailments children suffer from in the world. I get to take care of my baby, a privilege many moms without working husbands don't have. I have the Lord to remind me that each action in my day can be done for his glory, even when no one is watching. AND, I can remember that everything is sacred. There is no "banal" task (I admit, rinsing out Elyse's cloth diapers will test that truth) in life when all of life is worship to our God.

"Sacred" from the album Overdressed

This house is a good mess:

it’s the proof of life.

No way would I trade jobs

but it don’t pay overtime.

I’ll get to the laundry;

I don’t know when.

I’m saying a prayer tonight

cause tomorrow it starts again.

Could it be that everything is sacred?

And all this time. . .

everything I’ve dreamed of

has been right before my eyes.

The children are sleeping,

but they’re running through my mind.

The sun makes them happy,

and the music makes them unwind.

My cup runneth over,

and I worry about the stain.

Teach me to run to You

like they run to me for every little thing.

Could it be that everything is sacred?

And all this time. . .

everything I’ve dreamed of

has been right before my eyes.

When I forget to drink from you

I can feel the banks harden.

Lord, make me like a stream

to feed the garden.

Wake up, little sleeper!

The Lord, God Almighty

made your Mama keeper

so rise and shine,

rise and shine cause

Everything is sacred!

And all this time. . .

everything I’ve dreamed of

has been right before my eyes.

Words and Music by Randall Goodgame and Andrew Osenga (c) 2007 House of Mirrors Music (ASCAP) admin. by Simpleville Music, Inc. / 2007 Mighty Molecule Music. (ASCAP) admin by Music Services

Randomness

is the title of this post for a reason. Just lots of little things going on here, most of which won't be too exciting, but a few are interesting enough to make me want to write them down!

SPRING!!! Though here tomorrow, we took advantage of the weather yesterday to spend an afternoon at the lovely oceanfront. Ahhh, yes, a moment that I think to myself, "I never want to leave the beach." Remind me of that in September when we've been there a total of FOUR times, or something like that. It sure is lovely, though, and I will miss it someday. Elyse loves having the breeze blowing in her face, and she decided she doesn't like to touch sand. She stayed mostly on her towel with her hands off of the surface, so as to remind me that she wasn't a fan of the sand. Having said that, she did manage to eat a goldfish cracker coated in sand. She was a great sport, and I hope she will love the water when it comes above freezing temperatures. BRR! We picked up Daddy on the way home and had frozen yogurt together, which topped off the perfect afternoon.

TOYS!!! My sweet neighbor surprised us with a "Little People" dollhouse for Elyse. It was waiting on our porch for us yesterday. She claims she is cleaning out her playroom, but I think she's seen my pitiful lack of toys here and took pity on us :) Jordan set it all up for her before he went to work this morning, and she is having a blast with it. She's definitely not at the point where she's playing "house" or anything, but it is fun to watch her rearrange the furniture. Our neighbor also gave us some backyard toys, and Elyse (though frightened at first by the car) has really taken a liking to them. I'm so thankful for Irene and her generosity to us. Her granddaughters love to come visit :)

FOOD!!! Today marked the first day that Elyse fed herself a bowl of cereal. With a spoon. By herself. With milk and everything. I almost cried. She was quite proud of herself, and I don't blame her. I still have a hard time chasing down the final cheerios in the bottom of my bowl!

WORDS!!! Anything Elyse says these days is hard to bank on. Once in a while, she'll just come up with a "word of the day" and fail to use it for days to come. It is fun to hear her say them, though, even if it's for just a day :) We've had "bye-bye," "yummy," "bum-bum," "baby," and today was the phrase "be happy." I really hope the "be happy" sticks around, because it's like a MadGab phrase. Very funny to hear!

GLASSES!!! Last week, we seem to have had a small breakthrough with the concept of Elyse wanting her glasses. I went to get her up from a morning nap, and she greeted me by squinting and pointing to her temple, the "sign" for her glasses. I about lost it with excitement. *Knock on wood* Ever since that moment, Elyse has done SO much better in keeping her glasses on. We've had several days when they've come off only when Jordan or I have taken them off! This has been revolutionary for my day to day (okay, I might be overdramatizing) routine, as I am no longer forced to follow her around the house to do glasses patrol. YAY! We're praising the Lord for a great follow-up visit, too, with the ophthalmologist last week. He gave us great news: Elyse's eyes are responding perfectly to the glasses, and at this point, we don't need to head down the path of patching and surgery. She is one of the few "baby" cases that he's seen that is purely farsighted. We're thankful that she can see so much better with her glasses. On that note, they're broken :) Somehow, the part that wraps around her ear is broken. Hmm... I wonder how that could have happened? :) Yes, we resorted to taping it. Yes, she looks nerdy. Yes, it was actually Jordan's idea! Yes, we'll get them fixed on Monday.

BABY!!! We've spent a little more time working on the concept of "baby" with Elyse, but she still has no clue. She has about 2 months to get her little mind around it, because this little baby is going to arrive eventually! I'm 30 1/2 weeks now, and I've been feeling great. Other than an achy back (still hoping Elyse will get on her feet and move soon), I have felt just fine. I'm so thankful for our new little girl, and we are SO excited to finally meet her! I'll admit, I'm already kind of intimidated by this 2nd girl... memories of my sassy ways have started to haunt me, but I hope that will bond us in an even greater way :) Emily delights in kicking my ribs most of the day, and I love knowing her little feet in there will soon be kissable! She is definitely an active baby, and she's kept me up parts of several nights squirming around. I try to use those moments to focus on praying for this little girl and her sister, that they would find the only true source of joy in life.

Well, that about sums up what's going on here. As you can see, it can definitely make Elyse quite sleepy :)

Happy Birthday, Happy Bear!

No, it's not Elyse's birthday yet, but it is the first birthday of her bear, lovingly named Happy Bear until Elyse bequeaths it with a new name (when she can speak). Actually, the bear's birthday was yesterday. On December 14, 2008, Jordan and I had a "walk-this-baby-out" date to the mall, and we headed to Build-A-Bear so he could make a bear for the new baby. I still remember looking at his face when he surveyed the clothing bins for the bears. I don't know what he was expecting, but it was NOT Hannah Montana glitter-wear. He finally settled on the most innocent outfit in the bunch, and he even requested the bows. Elyse LOVES this bear so much, in fact, that she will usually stop mid-scream to smile and bury her face in the bear. There are many times that the bear has napped with her, in fact, and I don't feel guilty at all. Whatever works. The "walk-this-baby-out" method we used last year obviously did not work, as Elyse made her entrance on Christmas Eve. BUT, I look back at those antsy days with fond memories (believe it or not). We sure had fun anticipating her arrival! I can't wait to see what Daddy will build for the new baby. I'm sure it will be done with just as much love. Happy birthday, Happy Bear! Thank you for sparing us moments of sheer insanity! May you continue to bring joy to an occasionally grumpy little girl. And may you always maintain the two bows on your ears, as opposed to losing them to my daughter's belly. AND, may I never find Elyse trying on your underwear.

This was Elyse's first introduction to Happy Bear back in June. The tummy rolls are crackin' me up!

Grandma & Grandpa time!

Last week, we enjoyed a visit from my folks. Their trip was LONG, but they endured it to spend a few days with us down here where it's supposed to be warm. Well, it wasn't warm. It was actually quite cold. Elyse loved the extra attention, though, and when she woke up after they left on Tuesday morning, she immediately started looking over my shoulder to see who was next to greet her. Sadly, it was just ME. We had a great time catching up, and I'll admit, I had a nice little break from lots of the little mommy-ing extras: feeding, reading, bathing, dressing, etc... (For any of you wise-guys out there, yes, I still ate, read, bathed and dressed, but I was speaking of Elyse.) Grandma and Grandpa were a great help, and I think I got a nap each day they were here! **aah!!** I'm so thankful that they took a trip to visit us, and it sure made me wish we lived closer to each other!

Good & Perfect Gifts

I really feel like this stage of life is charmed for us. No, we don't have a lot of money, but we never really expected to. No, we don't have a very big home, but we never really expected to. No, we don't have a lot of time to do all the things we would love to do, but we never really expected to. We seem to be exactly at the stage of life that we expected to be 6 1/2 years ago when we started this little family. Jobs, babies, busy lives, ministry, great friends, wonderful family, cheap dates, RedBox movies, diapers, coupons, renting, saving, saving, saving, some spending, road trips, pregnancy (for me, at least :), cooking, strollers & car seats, do-it-yourself repairs, clearance shopping, ... The list really could go on, but I'm tired of commas. I just say that to remind myself that my expectations can often determine my outlook. We entered our marriage expecting to start small. And we have. And we have loved it. Perhaps it's in looking back at this phase of life that I will remember all the joy and none of the hardship. I hope so. We have it so good. Not only do we not have to worry about our physical provision (God takes care of that for us), but we get to enjoy serving a God whose plans for us are bigger than a big house or a sweet car. We get to look forward to glorification. Wow. So, what do we have to worry about? If God is for us, who can be against us? No, my expectations aren't low, they're high. I'm still in the process of realizing that the best things in life really are the simple, free things :) I really do expect great things from a God that keeps amazing us.

I am so thankful for my husband who is sitting a few miles away in a crummy call center talking to frustrating people... thankful that he goes to work so I can stay at home & care for Elyse... thankful that he's faithful to God and to us... thankful that I'm pretty sure he's never been bored one minute in his life... thankful that he asked me out and thankful that he keeps charming the daylights out of me. I'm thankful that we love marriage and treasure time together. I'm thankful for the little pumpkin in the other room who's probably all wound up in her blankets as she dreams of pears and her stuffed bear. I'm thankful she smiles at me when I have totally botched something... I'm thankful that she forgives when I mess up & don't have a clue what I'm doing. I'm thankful that she IS in the next room. I'm thankful for this little baby that I'm feeling poke around in my belly tonight. I'm thankful that I can get the meds I need to keep this little baby poking around. I'm thankful for the anticipation of meeting this new little person. I'm thankful for a family that truly loves our God and lives for Him. I could embellish on that forever. I'm thankful for our church family that surrounds us with encouragement, edification and love. I'm thankful for Christ, who made it possible for us to come to the Father. Where would I be without Him? I'd have no joy in all the things I've mentioned. In Christ, I can give thanks in everything. I can even thank him for the washer that seems to be dying, the neighbor that's pesky, the savings account that doesn't grow as quickly as I'd like, and the loser that almost hacked into our bank account... Yes, life is good because God is good. I mean it when I say that I can't wait to see what God does in our family this year. My expectations are high.

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change."

James 1:17

Thankful.

That's how I'm feeling this morning. I'm thankful for God's blessing to me in the form of this handsome guy:

...this sweet girl:

...and this darling baby, arriving in May '10:

Road Trip!

We spent a long weekend up in Indiana celebrating my brother's wedding, and we enjoyed our time immensely! We drove through the night both trips to minimize stops, and overall, Elyse did so well. Twelve hours in a car seat backwards would make me a bit dizzy! This was the first wedding I'd been to in a while, and it was so neat to see my brother marry the girl of his dreams. We have a very small family, but it was also great to see my three great grandparents and my two aunts. I am always astounded at how fun and peaceful our family gatherings are, and the credit goes to God's grace in each of their lives. My brother has married a beautiful girl, both inside and out. It was neat to see my husband stand up for him, just as Philip stood up for him in our wedding. Each wedding I've attended since ours has never failed to make me a bit "misty-eyed" as I reflect on what an astounding picture marriage is. Even in the 6 years of marriage we have shared, we are only beginning to glimpse the great love Christ has for his Bride. I love all the pomp and tradition that surrounds a wedding, as I think it truly is one of the most picturesque celebrations for a believer. Yes, my favorite part is watching the bride come down the aisle to her groom... that is a moment I will never forget from my own wedding. Well, enough of the sentimental stuff :) Here are some pictures from our time with family, and as you can see, Elyse did not lack for attention.

See Ya, September!

It's always at this time every year that I begin to bemoan the fact that we didn't make the most of summer. We are seeing some cool days crowd in here and there, and it reminds me that I need to make the most of these days! We spent some time at the park on Monday, which is much more fun now that Elyse can swing :) I LOVE Septembers in Virginia. The days still have some heat without most of the humidity, and the nights are almost cool enough to want a sweatshirt. I'm not quite in the "fall" mood, yet, but I'll get there. Until then, I'm going to enjoy these lovely days that don't come around yearly: the days we have with Elyse as a 9-month old :)

I LOVE MONDAYS!

I never thought I would enjoy Mondays. Traditionally, Mondays were the days I would dread as I anticipated trudging into work. Now, Mondays are beautiful, since it's the one day of the week that we have the option to be together as a family from the crack of dawn until nightfall. Yesterday, we spent a beautiful morning at the beach with some of our family. It was a perfect day, and we were reminded again of how beautiful the ocean is! By nature, I'm not a big fan of sandy messes, but these three little messes were the cutest on the beach. Here are some pictures of my baby and my adorable nephews. Elyse sat in the waves for the first time, and she loved it!

Notice the water droplets on her face? This was taken after her initiation :)

Daddy introduced Elyse gently to some waves...

Beautiful.

Beautiful.

Beautiful.

Prettiest girl at the beach!!!

Goofin' with Aunt Anneke...

Happy girl after naptime

Peek-a-boo!!!