Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
{Our FAMILY Values}
A few weeks ago the disrespect, whining, selfishness and general bad attitude coming from our boys was at an all-time high...and I had had it! It was starting to get miserable to wake up in the mornings to whiny boys only to have them transition into selfish little whiny boys who seemed only to care about getting their own way no matter the circumstance. It was time for a good old fashioned family meeting!
We all sat down and talked about the biggest problems our family was facing regarding our attitudes and actions, and we all came up with a list of family values to remind ourselves daily (hourly!) of what our family stands for. We also talked about when one of our values isn't followed that there would be consequences of making that choice.
Even though the boys can't read yet I think that it is important to have this written down. I placed it right in our living room so we can refer to it whenever an issue comes up that needs addressing! I think that it has already helped tremendously, and a lot of the bad attitudes have vanished! Praise God! :-)
We all sat down and talked about the biggest problems our family was facing regarding our attitudes and actions, and we all came up with a list of family values to remind ourselves daily (hourly!) of what our family stands for. We also talked about when one of our values isn't followed that there would be consequences of making that choice.
Even though the boys can't read yet I think that it is important to have this written down. I placed it right in our living room so we can refer to it whenever an issue comes up that needs addressing! I think that it has already helped tremendously, and a lot of the bad attitudes have vanished! Praise God! :-)
This whole parenting thing is such a journey, and I'm so thankful for what God is teaching me along the way.
*Grace*
*Grace*
Monday, January 21, 2013
Eli's {First} Hair Cut
(Catch up post)
November 15, 2012 Eli got his first EVER hair cut...poor baby was 2 and a half years old and could barely see.
Boy oh boy did I ever hate to cut off those baby curls...so I just sort of trimmed it up...
...and left plenty of curls...
...see, plenty still there!
UNTIL now...last week I officially gave him a hair cut, and all those sweet curls are gone. Over the last two months his hair had gone from cute and curly to straight and static-y...poor boy had a total mullet going on, so it had to go! He's still pretty cute tho! :-)
*Grace*
Thursday, January 17, 2013
First Week Back at School
It's our first week back at school after a nice holiday break, and things couldn't be going any better. I sort of adjusted our school schedule to better reflect our lifestyle. I'm not stressing out about "getting it all done" in any sort of boxed amount of time, rather we are being a lot more flexible and throughout the day we're fitting in "school" as we go about our daily routine. This approach makes it so much more enjoyable, and learning about all sorts of interesting things is coming quite naturally. I do have set goals for each day that we try to accomplish in the mornings, then the other school lessons are completed soon after lunch. There is plenty of room for grace though, and I think that is what is making it so fun!
This week the boys have been so much better behaved, which I attribute to our newly written down board of family rules/values (more on that later!), spending more quality/quantity time with them, less TV time for them and lots of new fun things that they are learning. It felt pretty good this morning when I told Eli to go play and he asked to do school instead...so sweet! And listen to this, most of you know that our little Eli is a fireball...well he actually will sit down at our kitchen table for an hour or more while we're beginning our school day...that in itself speaks volumes about the behavior of our little busy-body!
Some fun things we've done this week:
-Had our playgroup over to our house Monday so the boys could spend some time with their friends.
-Enjoyed a snow-day on Tuesday morning, the boys made lots of snowballs...all of which they threw at me, lol, and Johnathan made a cute snow angel.
-We made pretzel cookies together and had fun counting out the pretzels.
-Used measuring spoons to measure out raisins, pistachios and other various snacks...hands-on learning is so much fun and we learned addition/subtraction and fractions that way this week!
-Learned about fire and fire safety...we have a lot of fires in our fireplace so we decided to learn a little extra on how to stay safe in the event of a house fire...the internet had a lot of fun games and safety tips for children.
-Shelled lots of pecans...and enjoyed the messiness of it!
This week the boys have been so much better behaved, which I attribute to our newly written down board of family rules/values (more on that later!), spending more quality/quantity time with them, less TV time for them and lots of new fun things that they are learning. It felt pretty good this morning when I told Eli to go play and he asked to do school instead...so sweet! And listen to this, most of you know that our little Eli is a fireball...well he actually will sit down at our kitchen table for an hour or more while we're beginning our school day...that in itself speaks volumes about the behavior of our little busy-body!
Some fun things we've done this week:
-Had our playgroup over to our house Monday so the boys could spend some time with their friends.
-Enjoyed a snow-day on Tuesday morning, the boys made lots of snowballs...all of which they threw at me, lol, and Johnathan made a cute snow angel.
-We made pretzel cookies together and had fun counting out the pretzels.
-Used measuring spoons to measure out raisins, pistachios and other various snacks...hands-on learning is so much fun and we learned addition/subtraction and fractions that way this week!
-Learned about fire and fire safety...we have a lot of fires in our fireplace so we decided to learn a little extra on how to stay safe in the event of a house fire...the internet had a lot of fun games and safety tips for children.
-Shelled lots of pecans...and enjoyed the messiness of it!
Every day presents so many learning opportunities, and I'm happy to be back in the mindset of taking advantage of each moment to teach my little boys!
*Grace*
P.S. Eli got his first "big boy" short hair cut this week...waahhhhhh, my baby is gone! ;-)
Thursday, January 10, 2013
{Sweet Gideon}
{I wrote this for our sweet Gideon James on December 19, 2012. I was unable to post it to my blog at the time so I'm adding it now.}
Sweet Gideon, today marks nine years since you went to be with Jesus...nine years. I can't believe that almost a third of my life has been spent missing you, wondering what you would have been like, knowing that I would have fallen more in love with your sweet little self every day. I imagine you would have been a lot like your brothers...energetic, goofy and full of boyish mischief. You would have undoubtedly loved wrestling around with them and with your dad. And I'm pretty sure you would have loved getting my hugs just like your brothers do. I miss you, sweet boy. I tend to think of you as a baby since I lost you as one, but I can't help but to think that you've grown up in Heaven. I bet you're an excellent helper with all the other babies and children that live there...especially with sweet little Daniel and your other siblings that are there too. What a life you must live, every day in the presence of God, living in His light. We miss you here and look forward to that great day when our family is whole again. A day when there are no more tears and no more pain. Until then know that I will keep on loving you, just as I always have.
Love, Mama.
Sweet Gideon, today marks nine years since you went to be with Jesus...nine years. I can't believe that almost a third of my life has been spent missing you, wondering what you would have been like, knowing that I would have fallen more in love with your sweet little self every day. I imagine you would have been a lot like your brothers...energetic, goofy and full of boyish mischief. You would have undoubtedly loved wrestling around with them and with your dad. And I'm pretty sure you would have loved getting my hugs just like your brothers do. I miss you, sweet boy. I tend to think of you as a baby since I lost you as one, but I can't help but to think that you've grown up in Heaven. I bet you're an excellent helper with all the other babies and children that live there...especially with sweet little Daniel and your other siblings that are there too. What a life you must live, every day in the presence of God, living in His light. We miss you here and look forward to that great day when our family is whole again. A day when there are no more tears and no more pain. Until then know that I will keep on loving you, just as I always have.
Love, Mama.
Monday, January 7, 2013
"Sad is never seeing your brothers."
Today at lunch I told the boys we were going to take down their little Christmas tree that we've had up in the piano room the last month.
"Isn't that sad?" I said.
"No", Johnathan replied. "Sad is never seeing your brothers."
*Silence*
"You're right Johnathan", I finally came back with, "we can always put up another tree next Christmas."
Every once in a while Johnathan totally catches me off guard with his questions or remarks about his brothers in Heaven. Today was one of those days. And I want to remember this brief conversation. Because sometimes it takes a 4 year old to remind you of what "sad" really is. And taking down a Christmas tree isn't sad, because it isn't final. There will be other Christmases and other trees. But you can't get back a brother. Funny how much you can learn from a seven word sentence spoken by a 4 year old.
*Grace*
"Isn't that sad?" I said.
"No", Johnathan replied. "Sad is never seeing your brothers."
*Silence*
"You're right Johnathan", I finally came back with, "we can always put up another tree next Christmas."
Every once in a while Johnathan totally catches me off guard with his questions or remarks about his brothers in Heaven. Today was one of those days. And I want to remember this brief conversation. Because sometimes it takes a 4 year old to remind you of what "sad" really is. And taking down a Christmas tree isn't sad, because it isn't final. There will be other Christmases and other trees. But you can't get back a brother. Funny how much you can learn from a seven word sentence spoken by a 4 year old.
*Grace*
Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas & Happy New Year all in one!
I feel like I've really missed documenting some major family milestones on this ol' blog here. Our old computer got a virus or something and would not let me log onto Google...but my sweet hubby got me a new laptop for Christmas (!) so now I can play some catch-up with what's been happening in our family the last couple of months. Here are a few little snippets of what's happened since I last posted, and I'll go into more detail (with photos) later.
-Mid November Eli had his first ever hair cut! Oh how I hated cutting off those baby curls, so I just trimmed up his hair a bit so he could at least see where he was going when he trots around.
-We celebrated Aaron's b-day the day before Thanksgiving...I even made him his own personal sized blueberry pie amidst the other baking I did for Thanksgiving day.
-We enjoyed a beautiful day on Thanksgiving, and ate our little hearts out and loved all the time we got to spend with various members of our ever growing family.
-Early December we visited Corpus Christi to watch Arden perform in the Nutcracker Ballet. It was beautiful, as always, and Aaron and I were thrilled that the boys actually sat through the whole ballet...that is huge!
-All throughout December the boys and I had fun decorating their own little Christmas tree. We made homemade ornaments, strung up popcorn, cut out snowflakes and had a great time making our old-fashioned Christmas tree. And boy oh boy did those little ornaments get rearranged day after day. It was fun having a tree (in addition to our family room tree) that the boys could do whatever they wanted to with. Pretty great stuff! All the jingle bell ornaments we made got played with multiple times daily, the popcorn strands got munched on, haha, and the tree became a nesting place for many a Nerf gun bullet...which we found later when taking out the tree!
-At the beginning of December the boys and I made a "Christmas Wish List" of fun, family activities we wanted to do. We wrote down about 20 things...like driving at night to look at Christmas lights, making a gingerbread house, doing an Angel Tree project, have a family game night, etc...it was one of my most favorite things about the holidays. I loved getting to do each item with my boys, and they had fun going down the list and wondering what the next fun project would be.
-We spent a joyous Christmas week with sweet family, including some precious out-of-town guests that stayed with us. It was a beautiful time, and I will treasure the memories we made for years to come.
-Year 2013 began at my folks' at their annual New Year's Eve party. Again we enjoyed time with family and friends.
And so there you go! Pics to follow in the next days and weeks as time allows! We're getting back into the swing of things here post holidays, and school will be starting up in a couple days. I love the fun and freedom of the holiday season...but I also crave a little order and organization, so I am super excited about getting back to our "normal" routine! ;-)
Blessings and Happy New Year!
*Grace*
-Mid November Eli had his first ever hair cut! Oh how I hated cutting off those baby curls, so I just trimmed up his hair a bit so he could at least see where he was going when he trots around.
-We celebrated Aaron's b-day the day before Thanksgiving...I even made him his own personal sized blueberry pie amidst the other baking I did for Thanksgiving day.
-We enjoyed a beautiful day on Thanksgiving, and ate our little hearts out and loved all the time we got to spend with various members of our ever growing family.
-Early December we visited Corpus Christi to watch Arden perform in the Nutcracker Ballet. It was beautiful, as always, and Aaron and I were thrilled that the boys actually sat through the whole ballet...that is huge!
-All throughout December the boys and I had fun decorating their own little Christmas tree. We made homemade ornaments, strung up popcorn, cut out snowflakes and had a great time making our old-fashioned Christmas tree. And boy oh boy did those little ornaments get rearranged day after day. It was fun having a tree (in addition to our family room tree) that the boys could do whatever they wanted to with. Pretty great stuff! All the jingle bell ornaments we made got played with multiple times daily, the popcorn strands got munched on, haha, and the tree became a nesting place for many a Nerf gun bullet...which we found later when taking out the tree!
-At the beginning of December the boys and I made a "Christmas Wish List" of fun, family activities we wanted to do. We wrote down about 20 things...like driving at night to look at Christmas lights, making a gingerbread house, doing an Angel Tree project, have a family game night, etc...it was one of my most favorite things about the holidays. I loved getting to do each item with my boys, and they had fun going down the list and wondering what the next fun project would be.
-We spent a joyous Christmas week with sweet family, including some precious out-of-town guests that stayed with us. It was a beautiful time, and I will treasure the memories we made for years to come.
-Year 2013 began at my folks' at their annual New Year's Eve party. Again we enjoyed time with family and friends.
And so there you go! Pics to follow in the next days and weeks as time allows! We're getting back into the swing of things here post holidays, and school will be starting up in a couple days. I love the fun and freedom of the holiday season...but I also crave a little order and organization, so I am super excited about getting back to our "normal" routine! ;-)
Blessings and Happy New Year!
*Grace*
Thursday, November 15, 2012
He stuck in his thumb and pulled out a...Raspberry!
The other day the boys were having a special treat...raspberries! My boys can down a half-pint each easily, so we don't get them all too often, but when raspberries go "on sale" at the grocery store I will sometimes snatch them up!
I love these lil' guys!
*Grace*
During their meal I looked over and saw this...
...isn't that priceless?!! I know one of the "unwritten rules" of parenting is to not let kids play with their food...but come on, this is priceless! We encourage all forms of creativity over here! Unless it is extremely unsafe or dangerous of course! But we do messes pretty well in these parts, and a lot of times creativity is just a fun name for messy! ;-)
I love these lil' guys!
*Grace*
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Innocent & Sweet
A lot of life is filled up with the harsh reality that this world we live in is far from perfect...but every once in a while I catch a glimpse of how it should be...and usually it's when I'm watching my children...
Have a blessed rest of your weekend,
*Grace*
...so simple, each moment enjoyed to the fullest, enraptured with what is all too often overlooked...
...so secure, not a care in the universe, their little worlds just right...
...so innocent, full of life, running headlong into a future full of possibilities...
...and that is how it should be.
Have a blessed rest of your weekend,
*Grace*
Monday, November 5, 2012
The Dog Who Has Nine Lives.....:-/
Oh BoBo...you are the sweetest, most protective, most loyal and luckiest dog ever! We are so blessed to have you as our loving pooch....but please, oh please...don't ever do ANY more joy running out to the street...like EVER!
~~~The Story~~~Our poor dog ran out to the street yesterday afternoon on a whim and a Lexus SUV broadsided him in his left shoulder. Johnathan and I saw it all and it was a sight I'll remember a long while...Johnathan asked some questions about it later on yesterday evening, but seemed to be fine knowing BoBo was okay.
We took Bo to the animal emergency hospital and luckily he didn't suffer any major injuries. Just some bruising at the location of the hit, but nothing more that could be determined at the visit. He got sent home with pain meds and we're monitoring him for the next few days 'til we take him back to his regular vet.
Even though I am just sick over the fact he got hit I am grateful for the added reminder of just how dangerous being out in the street can be. It was a good object lesson for the boys, but mostly for me...it all happened so fast, in just seconds, and I am going to be more vigilant than ever when the boys are out there playing. You never can be too careful when watching over little rambunctious dudes who don't understand the full scope of the danger that are out there!
So today finds me thankful for our sweet dog. I just can't imagine life without him. He's been our baby since before the boys and will always hold a very special place in our hearts.
Love you, BoBo, and glad you're living to see another day!
*Grace*
~~~The Story~~~Our poor dog ran out to the street yesterday afternoon on a whim and a Lexus SUV broadsided him in his left shoulder. Johnathan and I saw it all and it was a sight I'll remember a long while...Johnathan asked some questions about it later on yesterday evening, but seemed to be fine knowing BoBo was okay.
We took Bo to the animal emergency hospital and luckily he didn't suffer any major injuries. Just some bruising at the location of the hit, but nothing more that could be determined at the visit. He got sent home with pain meds and we're monitoring him for the next few days 'til we take him back to his regular vet.
Even though I am just sick over the fact he got hit I am grateful for the added reminder of just how dangerous being out in the street can be. It was a good object lesson for the boys, but mostly for me...it all happened so fast, in just seconds, and I am going to be more vigilant than ever when the boys are out there playing. You never can be too careful when watching over little rambunctious dudes who don't understand the full scope of the danger that are out there!
-------------------------------------------------
So today finds me thankful for our sweet dog. I just can't imagine life without him. He's been our baby since before the boys and will always hold a very special place in our hearts.
Love you, BoBo, and glad you're living to see another day!
*Grace*
Friday, November 2, 2012
Happy Harvest...aka Halloween ;-)
We have had a great couple of parties to attend in the last few days to celebrate fun & happy side of Halloween and Fall Harvest! I let the boys choose what they wanted to dress up as...just knowing that they'd want to be super heros since they love playing that on a daily basis...but nope! Eli wanted to be a cowboy and Johnathan wanted to be a "road worker"...I think he has been sitting in traffic too much with me watching all the highway construction that is happening around our home! So here are my two, goofy lil guys, all dressed up for the Harvest Festival!
*Grace*
*Grace*
Quiet on the Home Front...
All has been quiet here on the home front...well, just on this ol' blog
really because things have been rippin' and roarin' so fast around here
that I rarely have time to sit and jot down my thoughts! We have been
having a wonderful Autumn and are gearing up already for what the
Thanksgiving and Christmas season will bring. I will give you a little
glimpse of what our {Fall} has been like so far...
Many Blessings,
*Grace*
We enjoyed a trip to the Dallas Arboretum in early October to see the bazillion pumpkins there...
...and then had a great family day at the State Fair of Texas a couple of weeks ago....
...and yesterday we got to enjoy a fun day at the zoo with Nana!
It's been a great fall and there is so much more to come!
Many Blessings,
*Grace*
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
A Little Bit of This & That
It is definitely starting to feel like fall around here...well, not the weather, it is Texas after all, and we get about a week of fall right before Christmas! ;-) But the atmosphere in our home is changing with the gentle ushering in of the new season. I've been busy getting things cozy in our home...making lots of yummy candle melts, changing up our decor around the house and enjoying the *feeling* that Autumn is here...if only in theory! ;-)
We're into our 3rd week of homeschooling, and I have to say it's going great! I mean, who gets to teach a superhero on a daily basis?!!
This little guy definitely keeps me on my toes, along with his little superhero brother (who was off fighting "bad guys" when this photo was taken!).
The last several weeks I've really seen these two precious boys becoming closer and closer...they really do enjoy being together, and I am so grateful that I get to spend my days with them.
They love doing pretty much everything together, and are two peas in a pod. Gosh I love these 'lil dudes!
Eli is the resident ham of the house and is always cracking us up! :-)
Here is one of Eli's favorite toys...which he insisted I take a picture of!
Oh, and here he is with another fave...face off! Who will win? The king of the jungle, of course!
So anyways, just a little bit of this and that. Life is pretty good! :-)
*Grace*
We're into our 3rd week of homeschooling, and I have to say it's going great! I mean, who gets to teach a superhero on a daily basis?!!
This little guy definitely keeps me on my toes, along with his little superhero brother (who was off fighting "bad guys" when this photo was taken!).
The last several weeks I've really seen these two precious boys becoming closer and closer...they really do enjoy being together, and I am so grateful that I get to spend my days with them.
They love doing pretty much everything together, and are two peas in a pod. Gosh I love these 'lil dudes!
Eli is the resident ham of the house and is always cracking us up! :-)
Here is one of Eli's favorite toys...which he insisted I take a picture of!
Oh, and here he is with another fave...face off! Who will win? The king of the jungle, of course!
So anyways, just a little bit of this and that. Life is pretty good! :-)
*Grace*
Friday, September 14, 2012
The Second Worst Day of Our Lives: Losing Daniel
Today marks our sweet Daniel's 8th anniversary of entering Heaven. Our precious boy is 8 years old, in Heaven years, and it's hard to comprehend what it must be like to spend almost the whole of your existence in the presence of God. Must be wonderful. For us down here though, 8 years seems like such a long time to have a part of us missing. And all the comfort and assurance in the world doesn't take away the heartache, but it does give us hope, and that's enough...most of the time.
Thinking back to Daniel's delivery day is always hard. For years I put off completing his "baby book" because it was just so hard to look at all his precious little pictures and to try to find the words to explain how we were feeling in order to write them down in his album. So his book is mainly photos, with some sweet notes here and there. Some emotions are just too complex to put words to. But boy do we love our sweet son, and we miss him like crazy.
Today I'm thankful for all the sweet people in our lives who have loved our precious Heaven babies and who still love them. As a mother who has lost children it means the world to me when people still remember our children who have passed away. Of course it's tough to have to go through all the sad emotions that a day like today brings, but I'd rather feel like my very soul is a brick in my chest than to try to forget and stuff the emotions.
To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven:
If the laughing and dancing is anything like the weeping and mourning then it's going to be one heck of a party when we get to Heaven and get to embrace our sweet babies again!
We love you so much, sweet Daniel. And we remember your amazingly precious life.
Love,
Your Mommy, Daddy, and little brothers Johnathan & Eli
Thinking back to Daniel's delivery day is always hard. For years I put off completing his "baby book" because it was just so hard to look at all his precious little pictures and to try to find the words to explain how we were feeling in order to write them down in his album. So his book is mainly photos, with some sweet notes here and there. Some emotions are just too complex to put words to. But boy do we love our sweet son, and we miss him like crazy.
Today I'm thankful for all the sweet people in our lives who have loved our precious Heaven babies and who still love them. As a mother who has lost children it means the world to me when people still remember our children who have passed away. Of course it's tough to have to go through all the sad emotions that a day like today brings, but I'd rather feel like my very soul is a brick in my chest than to try to forget and stuff the emotions.
To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven:
...a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance. (Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 4)
If the laughing and dancing is anything like the weeping and mourning then it's going to be one heck of a party when we get to Heaven and get to embrace our sweet babies again!
We love you so much, sweet Daniel. And we remember your amazingly precious life.
Love,
Your Mommy, Daddy, and little brothers Johnathan & Eli
Monday, September 10, 2012
First Day of School!
Well, our first year of homeschooling is off to a good start! Here are my precious boys, all dressed in their new shirts that they picked out for today, ready to go the park. We met up with our new playgroup, that also started today, at a really fun park here in town. It was a beautiful day for several firsts! Here's to a good year full of many blessings and sweet memories!
*Grace*
*Grace*
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