Another couple of reasons he makes me smile...

On Sunday morning, I had put on a worship CD while we were getting ready. The hymn, "Fairest Lord Jesus" was on and Ethan comes walking into my bathroom where I was doing my hair. He says, "And I'm crying." I looked down at him, and he was kind of smiling. I said, "Why are you crying?" He says, "This song is so 'bootiful'" and then does the cutest nose-crinkling *sniff* I've ever seen and walks away. Awww.

Every morning I hold him and pray for him before we start our day. This morning, Chris was taking him to school, so as I grabbed him and sat with him, I said something along the lines of, "Come here, my handsome boy. I'm so proud of you!" He says, "Will you still be proud of me when I'm 5?" "Of course!" "OK, so you still have to pray with me when I'm 5. And when I'm 6. And when I'm 10." My precious....I will pray with him until he's 100!

And one of the silly things he's been doing lately is "speaking" for Audrey and Norah. The babies and I could be near or far from him, it doesn't matter...he will still answer for them. For example, I might ask the girls, "Are you sleepy? You wanna take a nap?" and from across the room comes this squeaky, high-pitched voice, "No, we don't wanna take a nap. We want to plaaaay!" Or, "Are you hungry? Are you ready to eat?" and that squeaky voice says, "Yes, we want some milk! Feed me!"

Oh How He Loves Us

We sang this at church this week. It was the first time I had heard it, and I can't get the lyrics or the meaning out of my head. This is one of the more powerful songs I've heard in sometime, and the chorus, with five simple words, nails the bottom line.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16

First Days of School

2006
Young 2's Class
23 Months

Ethan NOT a fan of waking up early

2007
Older 2's Class
Still NOT a fan of the morning wake-up call

2008
3's Class
Getting so old

2009
4's Class
We're so proud of you, Ethan!!

A&N 7 months

(Thanks, again, to SARAH, for this wonderful picture!)

Our precious miracles turned 7 months this week! Just before 7 months, our little peanut Audrey weighed 12.5 lbs and our little pumpkin Norah weighed 13.14 lbs.

I still have moments where I just laugh out loud in joy because the reality hits me---"God gave us twin girls! Twin Girls!!!" It's still sometimes too wonderful for me to comprehend. Some people know, I've prayed for twin girls since I was a little girl. It has been a desire of my heart for as long as I can remember. To think that God CARES. He cares about those desires. He puts them in our hearts and HE CARES enough to fulfill them in His time.

I've been reflecting on a couple verses over the past few days regarding our family and how God has been ever present along our journey. In the darkest valleys, when I could only grasp at hope in desperation, He was there. His plans are perfect, and He perfects that which concerns me.

"Delight yourself in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

"Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning...You have turned for me my mourning into dancing." Psalm 30: 5, 11

He has given us "beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified." Isaiah 61:3

Jesus, thank you for entrusting us with three amazing children. Give us the wisdom to raise them to know you and bring You the maximum glory. Thank you for being perfect in all you do!

I couldn't capture the full moment (my camera really does stink!), but Ethan was tickling Audrey with a long, bendy pole, and she was cracking up.

Our lil' Chub-a-nub is cute as a button!

I love that our girls can sit and play with toys...how fun!
(they still need someone nearby to intercept those wobbles!)

This is the end of a very, very long day. I often think, "If I love my children SO much, how is it that I love them EVEN MORE when they are sleeping peacefully??"

My sweet Audrey girl. I love to hear my babies breathe when they are fast asleep.

I was trying to take a couple pictures of the girls at the zoo, but my camera battery died after only three shots. This is as good as it gets ;)

OK...that laundry pile is seriously calling my name...I'll do my best to do an Ethan post tomorrow!

What's hiding in the closet???

It's the E-man's Christmas present (or birthday present, because I almost can't stand to wait until Christmas)!!!!! If it didn't weigh 30-something pounds, I'd get it down off that top shelf and play with it at night. I can't wait. He's going to go craaaazy!!!

And, no, I'm not telling what it is :)

Confession about my attire

This is making me giggle right now.

It's 12:15 and I'm JUST now getting dressed...I know, I know, pretty pathetic, but until you've walked in my shoes..... I digress...

So, I'm picking out my outfit: Workout pants, workout tank, tennis. Why? I haven't worked out since the girls were born. My secret? I sometimes pick this type of outfit so I feel more "put together" when I'm NOT wearing make-up ;) I figure when I go out in public, if I look all shabby in the face and hair, it's more acceptable because, "Hey, that girl just came from the gym!" :)

I need some advice

I'm thinking ahead here, but I need to solicit advice so I'm prepared....

Ethan is into rhyming lately. So, we go down lists of rhyming words...Red, Bed, Said, etc....and sometimes we through in a silly non-word or two...Ked, Ped...

Coincidentally, one of his new favorite words is "Pluck". What happens when he starts to rhyme "Pluck" with the f-word? Not just once, but over and over again? Ignore it? Will ignoring it lead to public embarrassment on my part? Point out that it's not a nice word? Will that make him want to say it in secret?

What do you think? Personal experiences? Insight and wisdom, please :)