Spring!

We have had a beautiful spring! We were able to go camping the beginning of this month with the homeschool group I'm a part of. This has started to become a twice a year thing and the kids love it! It's so fun when the kids start to remember things you do as a family. The anticipation builds as they look forward to whatever it is, camping in this case. It is so wonderful to get away from all the busyness and noise and enjoy God's beautiful creation. 

 Landon's favorite thing was helping build and tend to this fire. He's really growing up and it's so fun to see him mature and grow.

 These two just bummed around. James loves to have his "bear-bear" wherever he goes. It's so fun to see how he treats him like his baby. Tonight I was reading to him a look and find Thomas the train book and he was grabbing "bear bear's" hand and having him find the items with a squeaky voice (talking for bear bear). He's at such a fun stage, he loves puzzles, Thomas and our marble works set. 

Olivia buddied up with sweet Samuel. They had a great time playing together and I found them holding hands quite a few times :)

 I just liked this picture of our "cool" boy :)

 We've been trying to spend a lot of time outside. The homeschool philosophy that I've adopted is the Charlotte Mason method. A part of her philosophy is spending a lot of time outdoors, taking time to notice God's creation. We do nature study which at this point involves drawing pictures of whatever they find that is interesting and writing a few words about it. The last few days have been so much fun - lots of caterpillars, slugs, worms, birds, and watching our garden grow. I didn't realize how much fun our small backyard could be...

 It's these four that make it so much fun. I love to see the world through their eyes. I love to see their excitement over the many things I take for granted. It makes me slow down and watch that caterpillar and be amazed at the Lord's handiwork. 

 We've had a lot of rain over the last few weeks. Last week I decided to take them to the park and let them splash around in the puddles. They had a blast!

Olivia with her little "Sheila" dog. "Bumpa" (my dad) gave her this puppy when she was 18 months and she loves her. I just loved this picture because I don't know how much longer this phase will last, but I am thoroughly enjoying it right now. She says the funniest things as she is trying to figure out the world around her. 

We had a great Mother's Day together as a family. I am so thankful for our sweet mothers that the Lord has blessed us with. I know it is such a rare thing to have amazing moms like we do. They have both been such an example of selflessness, always putting others first. Their love for the Lord is evident from their lives. I am so blessed and thankful for them.

I always like to go out to the cemetery on Mother's Day. It's the closest I can be to having my five kiddos together. I remember my first Mother's Day. My arms were empty. I didn't feel like a mother, even though my heart was so full of love for my sweet firstborn. I longed to hold him and love on him. I remember singing, "Jesus Loves Me" at church and the phrase, "Let the little child come in" catching me totally off guard. I couldn't sing that phrase, it was too hard. A beautiful reminder that my little Samuel was able to go into Heaven's gates to meet his Savior. I felt so torn, so happy for him and yet aching to be with him.

Anyway, I still ache for him. For my little 8 year old. But I am so thankful. My arms are full, I never would have imagined to be where I am at today with these sweet four children that I have with me today. I know all too well, they are not mine and tomorrow is not guaranteed, so we treasure the time we have and look forward to eternity with our Savior. All things will be perfect there with our perfect Savior and our perfect home and our sweet Samuel. Cannot wait.

Where has the time gone?!

Where do I begin? ONE post last year? Wow... well, I guess I'll start with this past week and hope to go back and fill in some blanks.

My newest nephew was born on March 12th, Judah Nathaniel. We were thrilled to be able to go up and meet him when he was only a day old! He was so tiny and precious! We are truly praising the Lord after a very complicated pregnancy. We are very thankful for him to be here safe and sound! Here's a picture of Logan with his new baby brother.

We were also glad to spend a little time with my brother, Josh and his wife Laura before they move even further north. This will be the first time a sibling besides myself will be moving away from Iowa. A little sad for me because I’m used to going back and seeing everyone when we visit. Hopefully, we’ll be able to plan our trips so that will still work out!

It was just the kids and I who went up. Seth was directing his first Teen Retreat back at a camp the same weekend. Thankfully everything went well. It was an encouraging time for all, a challenging time as they looked into God's word and were reminded the importance of loving the Lord Jesus and each other.

We sadly got sick with a stomach bug a couple days into our trip so, it put a little bit of a damper on things. We made the best of it and had a fun time at my parents. My mom was helping Heidi at her place and my dad left to go work, so we had the place to ourselves. I figured we'd have been alone at home anyway, so it didn't really matter where we were! Sarah started to pull up. Can't believe how big she's getting so quickly. She is crawling all over, I have to figure out a solution to the whole Lego situation, if anyone has any ideas, let me know! They end up all over and she will find them...

The weather was nice after we were better, so I was able to meet up at a park with some friends. I'm so excited for spring to pretty much be here! Landon was thrilled to find a tree that he could climb, he's been wanting to for so long. It was sweet of little Roman to share the pinecones he found with Sarah :)

 And we had fun getting free DQ afterwards! I think it was James' first ice cream cone, he loved it and finished the whole thing! So thankful for so many friends and family that stay close even though we are miles away!

May Happenings

I had a wonderful Mother's Day. Seth and I are so thankful to have two amazing mother's. We are so blessed to have such a wonderful example of love and self-sacrifice. So thankful that they taught us about the Lord Jesus and lived out a genuine relationship with Him for us to see.

. 

2 Timothy 1:5 "I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also."

For my Mother's Day, we had a nice picnic at the park. After some fun on the swings and slides, we headed for Cherry Berry - I love that place! Then, we took a trip out to the cemetery to visit Samuel. I really wish I could have all my kids together, so, for now, this is the closest thing. It was sweet that the kids picked out the smiley face balloons :)

Olivia was heaping dirt and grass on James... He didn't seem to mind!

Here we are watching the balloons fly away.

James is now eight months old! This month: He got his first tooth! He is also getting around really well. He loves to tip the trash can over, pulls up on everything, and said, "dada" and "ball." He is sleeping really well - 10-12 hours most nights! He's such a happy baby and loves to smile and wave at everyone he sees. He started clapping when we sing to him - he just loves music. He really likes to sit on my lap while I play the piano, it melts my heart. He brings us so much joy!

Here are the other two that bring me so much joy :) We're so excited that it's warm enough for slash pads! They are both growing up so much. Olivia's still really into anything princess and pink. She loves to wear dresses and always carries a purse. She also still loves her "bear bear." She's been treating her bear like her baby. Cheering her bear on when she stands up, trying to feed her bananas, and buckling her in next to herself. James loves his bear too and immediately snuggles and chews on it when I lay him down.

Landon is so much fun. He loves to create art projects that he imagines. I love seeing what he comes up with! We've been trying to spend a little more one-on-one time with each of the kids, he really likes to go on dates with me :) such sweet memories. He loves to dress up like super heroes and always talks about being just like daddy when he grows up.

I'm so thankful for this family the Lord has so graciously blessed me with!

Landon is FIVE!

I can't believe it, Landon is five! He had been talking about having a pirate party since early April, so that's what we had. He actually got two pirate parties, one in Iowa and one here! We had a nice surprise and his cousins, Logan and Halle got to stay with us for a couple of nights and be here for the party. Halle actually drew the picture of the ship on his cake! I think she's going to be quite the artist.

We had a sort of Bible kids club schedule. I shared the story of Achan and about how he disobeyed God and stole the treasures in Jericho for himself. We talked about how he loved money more than God. We discussed how sin has consequences and how Jesus died to save us from our sin. I pray that each one that came will know the Lord and grow strong in Him! We learned the verse, "where your treasure is there your heart will be also" (Matt. 6:21), then we went on a treasure hunt. The kids were really excited when they found the big heart on top of the sand box and the treasure chest inside. 

The kids had a blast on this slide/pool thing. They also shot water balloons with a water balloon launcher. They all got so muddy and wet - and loved it! 

Here is a picture of most of the attendees. This is one of those pictures that ten years from now will be fun to look back on :)

This picture of Landon at two months demonstrates very well how I feel about our little boy growing up so fast..

This face just melts my heart!

The night before his birthday, Landon said, "Tomorrow I'm going to be five! Then, when will I be six?"
I told him, "Next year."
Then he said,"What if I turned five tomorrow, then the next day I turned six, then the next seven, etc..."
I squeezed him knowing it already feels like this to me... Trying to hang on to these quickly passing little years, to cherish his sweet heart and to enjoy each moment being his mama.

My prayer for Landon is that he would love the Lord with all his heart, soul, mind, and strength. I pray that he would not treasure the things on this earth, but that he would look towards eternity and trust the One who gave everything that we might have eternal life.

"He himself bore our sins" in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; "by his wounds you have been healed." 1 Peter 2:24

James is 6 months

James is now six months old. This month he has changed sooo much! I can't leave the room if he's on the floor because he rolls around and shimmies his way to where he wants to go. He is such a sweet boy, smiling all the time and very tolerant for his surroundings (being squeezed, kissed, patted almost continually by his brother and sister). He is just so laid back, I'm not sure if it's by nature or by necessity... I think both because in the hospital he was already so calm, we didn't understand how it was possible he was ours!

Here he has on his, "Samuel's baby brother" onesie that my friend, Brooke, made for Landon, I love that he can wear it too. I wish our little Samuel was here to love on him. I wish James could know his biggest brother. Although I know that the Lord has a plan and even though my heart aches to have our entire family together, I'm reminded that this world is not our home. One day, all things will be made new and the longing of our hearts will be fulfilled, to be with our Savior forever and leave all heartache behind. I can't wait to meet our little Samuel one day. 

Here is James's reaction to his first taste of food (avocado). He didn't look like he liked it based on his facial expressions, but he kept eating it. He really likes bananas and the other day, his cousin Layla (6) fed him an entire jar and the start of a second of banana-strawberry-apple baby food. Landon and Olivia never really liked baby food, but with James anytime we're eating, he gets mad if I don't feed him something. Just as I thought I was starting to figure out this three kid thing, it's changing (who am I kidding, I haven't figured anything out!). He's eating real food and the mobile stage is pretty much here - he's only going to get better at crawling and getting into things. The house is already a disaster most of the time. How am I going to keep this boy away from Landon's legos and small paper crafts, and Olivia's little pink trinkets she takes to every room she's in??

I'm praying for protection for this sweet boy and strength for me. I'm thankful that in our weaknesses, the Lord is proved strong. I'm continually asking the Lord to remind me to keep my eyes fixed on Him and the purpose He has for me, which is not to have a perfectly clean house all the time. His purpose for me is to raise these children in His ways and to model a close relationship with Him. To snuggle them and show them I love them, and that they are more important than a clean house. Not to neglect my house and training these kiddos to help take care of it, but to realize the MOST important things and not get caught up in the temporary. I'm realizing more and more how fleeting the moments are with these sweet ones and I truly want to enjoy them even through the difficult times.

Life is crazy right now (hence the lack of posts)... But it is wonderful and I feel so blessed to have the job of raising these sweet kiddos.

James is 5 months old

Another month has passed already since our sweet Jamesy boy joined our family! I just can't get over how much faster this first year is going by than with the other two. It must be because my time has be divided by three, which is the way it has to be. I just wish sometimes there could be three of me to fully enjoy each stage with each child! I am so grateful for these three kiddos, they truly fill my life with such joy. 

James was 14lb 1oz (17%) and 26 3/4 inches (89%) at his appointment this month. Maybe he'll be a basketball player like his daddy.

I love this first picture of our sweet boy - it really captures the wonderment in his eyes that is so often there! He's just taking everything in. Sometimes I wish I could get inside his little head and see what he's thinking, just how he processes all of the information thrown at him everyday - Landon would tell me he's thinking, "wooshe gaga" (from one of their favorite Olivia the pig books) 

I love this sweet gummy smile :)

That sweet gummy smile I know won't last a whole lot longer as the whole teething process has definitely begun. He's usually sucking on a finger or his fist and there's lots and lots of drool :)

Today it snowed! This is the first time this year that it actually stuck for long enough to make a snowman. The kids loved throwing snowballs at James and playing with him through the window. 

And the older two goof balls. Here's Landon with a peanut butter tongue :P

Landon is starting to read! Well, sort of... He has all his letter sounds down and is starting to read three letter, short vowel words, he's so excited about it. It makes me slightly less afraid of beginning kindergarten this year! Ever since Landon learned how to fold a paper in half and cut out a heart, he's been obsessed with cutting.out.everything. It's amazing some of the things he will make, so I try to not get too stressed out about the paper that fills the floor while he's at work. He's also been doing so much better with other kids, and controlling his temper. He still has his moments, but it's so encouraging to see him maturing and learning how to handle his emotions.

We're in the process of potty training with Olivia... It hasn't been easy, but we are sort of getting there. I will be thrilled when we are on the other side of this! She's such a sweet girl though and such a girl! She just loves anything pink and princess related and has very strong opinions. I think one day she'll be giving me fashion advice ;) I have treasured her prayers lately, she still prays for aunt Donna (who went to be with the Lord last June), and many others and thanks the Lord for sweet things like bananas, Halle's birthday party (that we got to be a part of thanks to iChat!), and going to a Thunder game with daddy (six weeks ago). I just love her sweet tender heart.

Psalm 127:3 

Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him.

James is 3 months old!

Our sweet little baby of the family is already 3 months old. A couple weeks late on this, but I have come to accept that I just can't keep up on these things like I used to. Having three little ones has made things a little crazy :) but I truly am enjoying every minute of it! I'm just realized that we need to stay home a lot more than before and it's been nice spending so much time with these sweet kiddos. 

Here are some stats: on 12/3 he was 11lb 6.5oz (25%) and he was 24.5 inches long (85%) - he's really growing! He is always staring intently - it really seems like those wheels are turning. I really think he's going to be a deep thinker. He's starting to laugh more, I just love to hear that sweet sounds and see his precious smile - it just melts my heart! He's been sleeping from about 10-6:30 so that has been wonderful! Although last night he woke up at 11:00pm and was wide awake until 1:00am. I think he has his daddy's tendency of being a night owl ;) 

Here's our little reindeer 

and our Livy girl

and our sweet Landon 

Jamesy boy staring at his mama :)

and this was so cute - they fell asleep watching Thomas together <3 br="br">

I am truly blessed...

Christmas Tree Farm

We had a great time getting our Christmas tree. We have continued the tradition that I had growing up. That is, going to a Christmas tree farm to pick out our tree, riding the hayrack ride, and drinking hot cider. The kids had a blast! Olivia did not want to get off the hayride. The kids loved looking at the trees and trying to pick the perfect one. The weather was gorgeous too! It doesn't quite feel like Christmas when it's 70 degrees, but I am not complaining :)

Family picture - Too bad Olivia's not smiling, it's so hard to get a good shot of everybody!

Here's the tree the kids picked out!

Landon helped daddy cut the tree down

Watch out Olivia! She said she liked the trees with the pink on them, 

unfortunately those are the ones that are sold...

Daddy and James - I love this picture!

Olivia wanted a picture with the "rabbit" ;)