Big Boy

Josiah has a big boy bed now. He's awesome. He lays down and goes to sleep right away. The tractor blanket that Chrissy made for his birthday fits perfectly which made him love his bed even more. Next step--potty training. There are only a certain number of diapers left. I'm not telling when I'm starting. Only when it is successful---given my situation with child #1! I'd be mortified if I had to tell two horror stories. haha.

Driving Range

We needed to do something this weekend so we decided to take a family trip to the driving range. It was HOT HOT HOT and very close to lunch time. Aliza's mood deteriorated quickly, but Josiah had a ball. There was no one on else on the driving range so we didn't have to worry about anyone else's safety. Check out Josiah's swing in the video below! Maybe golf will be his sport?

So Long, Insecurity

I recently finished reading So Long, Insecurity by Beth Moore. Great book. I highly recommend it to anyone. The message of the book is very challenging and leaves me with a lot to think about. I should probably read it again some day!

One particular portion of Scripture jumped out at me. You know, one of those where you have to look it up to make sure that your Bible has that verse in it.

Psalm 112:1, 7-8 (I'm changing the word "man" to "woman")
Blessed is the woman who fears the Lord,
who finds great delight in his commands.

She will have no fear of bad news;
her heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
Her heart is secure, she will have no fear;
in the end she will look in triumph on her foes.

Beth talks about trusting God with life and the things that make us insecure. Her challenge is to pray, I choose to trust you, God. Period. Trusting God without expectation or demands. Just childlike trust. That has been my prayer.

It works. There is uncertainty swirling around me. I don't know what the future holds. But there are specific instances in the past few weeks where I am keenly aware that I am happy, content and joyful in the deepest place in my heart. I know that I know I am where I am supposed to be and by trusting in God and nothing else I can walk through uncertainty and insecure times with a steadfast heart and a sense of security, free of fear. That's my goal.

In Love with Mud

My children are in love with mud. Water is much more fun if mixed with dirt! I've given up the corner of my flowerbed. It is now the dirtbox. (You would think this would be motivation to get a sandbox.) Aliza and Josiah play for long periods of time, happily, together, in the dirt. It is so fun to watch them interact, communicate and create games they can both participate in. The cleaning up part is a different story altogether. You can only imagine the color of the wading pool water.

I called him a coal miner.

Sheats Lawnmower

We are again the proud owners of a lawnmower. This one came from my Grandad since they are gettting ready to move. I was especially excited to get a Dixon. I know that is a little odd, but my Dad and Grandad used to own a lawnmower repair business in South Florida (where people cut grass all year). This particular style of lawnmower is what my Dad taught me to mow grass with when I was in 3rd grade. We had a very large yard and as I recall he was on one mower and I was on another.

What you have to understand is that because my Dad and Grandad repaired lawnmowers there is never/rarely a NEW lawnmower in the family. This mower is as old as the hills...well...not as old as me, but anyway, it still runs if you know the trick to turning it on properly. On this mower if you don't turn a particular valve before starting it the gas will run into the oil tank which means the oil would have to be changed before you could use it and if you don't realize your mistake soon enough the engine will be ruined. It was pretty funny. The morning after Jeremy used it the first time we both woke up wondering if it the valve had been turned off when the mower was turned off.

The other thing about a Sheats lawnmower is that if it starts on the first try it is a lucky day. I remembered this when Jeremy tried to start the mower the morning after Dad dropped if off the evening before. That evening Dad had started it, explained the whole vavle thing and test drove it in the yard. Seriously, the next morning the battery was dead and Jeremy had to charge it before he mowed. I had to laugh.

Outdoor Adventures

It has been an outdoor week for us. There were a chance of thunderstorms almost every day, but there has been no rain for us. Today we had an at home beach day. It was great fun and a lot less effort than actually getting to the beach!

It must be a pregnancy thing. I've been on a fruit kick. One lunch this week I served at least 3 different fruits. This fruit kick has also led to remembering how GOOD Oregon berries are. Cherries, wild blackberries, blueberries....Yummmm. Anyway, we picked blueberries this week. I wasn't sure how Aliza and Josiah would do. They surprised me and stuck with it. They did great! Both of them carried their buckets and carefully picked the blue berries. They also both eagerly accepted any donations to help fill their buckets.




Another day we had lunch with a friend from church. She has named the chipmunks, blue jays, and squirrels that live in her yard. She actually feeds them peanuts out of her hand. Aliza and Josiah threw peanuts on the ground for them and loved watching the animals grab the peanuts and carry them to their nests. Later they shelled peanuts to leave a special treat for the chipmunks, Elliott and Winston. The greatest part was hearing Josiah call Elliott and Winston (he couldn't quite pronounce the names with his 2 year old language skills) and watching him got SO excited when he spotted them.

Wet Puppies

In a million years my Mom would not have allowed me or my siblings to put our stuffed animals in the swimming pool. In fact my Mom would not allow her grandchildren to do this today. I questioned my judgment and sanity all day yesterday after this incident.

Here's my problem. Josiah. He is too cute and has me wrapped around his little finger. I admit. I know it's a boy thing. He came out cuddling these two puppies and proceeded to give them a drink of pool water. They played with those puppies for over an hour. Gave them baths. Josiah was laying in the grass with them. The saving grace is that I can throw them in the washer and they look better than they did before the pool.

Smile!

This is another Highlights High Five magazine project that Aliza HAD to do. She reminded me to buy the apples, cream cheese and mini marshmallows and couldn't wait until supper to make our apple smiles.



Aliza didn't even take a bite before she decided that she was not eating cream cheese. It couldn't even touch her lips for a picture. After a few minutes of fussing she had the idea of using yogurt instead of cream cheese. I thought that was a reasonable idea so we tried it...and we got a picture before the marshmallows slid off the apple.

Maybe we will revisit this project in another year or so. I think it might be a bigger hit with elementary school age children.

Small Victories

On a blog I follow, Keeping a Quiet Heart, Heather challenged her readers to list some little things or small victories to encourage others who are in this battle of every day living. Um...that would be everyone! Don't we all struggle and need to be reminded of important things that happen all the time that are often overlooked because we are too busy (running in circles) to notice?

Here are a few things that I thought of from the past few days.

• Jeremy went golfing with my uncle on Sunday and I had a good attitude about it.
• This same uncle made one little comment that gave me a new outlook on a situation we are currently facing.
• After one very intentional discipline tactic Aliza has stopped herself repeatedly from saying Oh my gosh.
  
• I've been choosing to just sit and hold Josiah instead of feeling frustrated that he wants to be held so much that I can barely get the dishes done. It's amazing how stopping and holding him for what amounts to only a few minutes makes him happy and then I can work on those dishes again.
  
• I'm genuinely happy, content and feeling good about life.
  
• I can still sleep on my stomach at night.
  

King Kountry Resort

This weekend we visited my Aunt and Uncle in Pennsylvania. Their home is located in the mountains and across the street from this serene stream. We now refer to this getaway location of ours as King Kountry Resort. I did not take nearly enough pictures to represent our time with them. It is refreshing to spend time with a couple that I respect. Laurie prepared a child dinner and an adult dinner (grilled shrimp, yum!) one evening. It almost counted as a date! The children played in the basement and I ate without anyone climbing on my lap.

Aliza had a grand time playing with my cousin's daughter. There is 3 years difference in their ages, but they exchanged ideas and interacted very well. It was thrilling to watch Aliza be completely engrossed and absorbed in her play. She was just happy over everything from playing on the trampoline to cooking with the play food in the basement to throwing rocks in the stream. She even declared that she "very liked" every meal Laurie prepared.

There was a John Deere tractor waiting for Josiah to play with when he arrived. That was perfect for him. He carried those tractors with him everywhere. They went to the stream and church and distracted him from a nap until I realized I had dozed off and put the tractor to bed. He wasn't so crazy about the stream, but I bet next time we visit we won't be able to tear him away from it.

Throwing rocks in the stream.

Laurie and Aliza had an adventure. They were walking in the water and Laurie lost a flip flop. While she went to rescue it down stream, Aliza waited for her on a rock in the middle of the stream.

My little "extra" was that Aliza and Josiah stayed in children's church during the entire sermon. The first sermon I have listened to in its entirety in 4 years! Jeremy's "extra" was a golfing afternoon with Dan.