A little more personal...

I have recently been so inspired by some Christian woman who are on line and sharing where they are at. I love the idea of this being a place where I can completely open up and reflect; not only on my family but everything. I've been particularly encouraged in my walk with God through hearing other women's journeys. I've waffled on my purpose for this blog. I think I have many hopes for it. I take great joy in documenting my families journey, milestones, small moments and more. I've hoped it can be a place where I can decompress and sift my thoughts at the end of the day. I've dreamt of it being a means to sharing where I am at with God and what he is teaching me. This all takes vulnerability and that is a bit of a challenge for me. So bear with me as my posts may seem a bit scattered. Stay tuned, it should be an adventure!:)

John Deere Gator

It's pumpkin cleaning time! Tomorrow night we have "Pals Pumpkin Night" at school. We bring our cleaned out pumpkin and carve it there. Then all the kids do a costume parade and have treats. It's a fun evening. So last night we cleaned out our pumpkins and enjoyed caramel apples that we made earlier in the evening. Daddy is off on business so we tried to fit this in before he left because he has to miss out on our carving night at school.

Our costume? Well, this year Collin has requested to be a John Deere Gator. It's homemade of course because there is not such thing as a John Deere Gator costume. Here it is...done for the most part. It's not perfect but one of the really great things about four year olds is that they think it's amazing no matter how it turns out. Kyle is working with one of the guys from his lighting team to make us some headlights and back up lights.

Don't know how I feel about this whole Halloween thing. I think I would be just fine with enjoying the season without it. How things look so different when you got little ones of your own!

Rubber Boots

Don't you just love rubber boots??? It's like unwritten permission to throw all the momma rules out the window and have fun. Yesterday the boys and I headed to the store and picked up a pair for each of the boys. Brody's still figuring out how to walk in them since they take up half his legs. Collin loves the fact he can put them on and off in a snap. We broke them in yesterday after we got stuck in a down pour during our walk. Collin thought it was hilarious to dance in the rain while Brody took great pleasure in splashing in the puddles. We were completely soaked but it was so much fun. The night ended with cereal for dinner (captain crunch - shhhh, don't tell anyone, it was a special treat while daddy is out of town), bath and book. Daddy comes back tomorrow. We are all very excited.

Autumn

I LOVE Fall! The trees changing colors, the cool breeze, pumpkin pie, apples from the orchards and of course the pumpkin patch. We made it last weekend between Kyle's business trips. It was great family time as you can see from the smiles. Brody was a little too small to enjoy it last year but was full speed ahead this year. Collin thrived in all the excitement and particularly enjoyed the hay maze and inflatable pillow. Brody was most enthralled with the corn pit. Unfortunately, that means momma goes in too. Note to self...must tuck in shirt. It's not so fun picking corn kernels out of your pants!! I don't know if it's Brody's squeal when he sees the farm animals, or the delight on Collin's face when he sinks into those apple cider donuts but it almost seems magical. One of those precious outings I anticipate every year due to the joy we receive out of it! Sadly to say...we spent as much on the food there as we did on the admission! LOL!

Humbling Parenthood

I don't think I've ever had such a close association with humility until I became a parent. Just when you think you've kind of got it down, they throw another curve ball at you. Our latest curve ball is another bite while nursing...actually it was an almost bite. Brody was about to chomp down and to my amazement stopped. I looked at him and gave him a big smile but he obviously had flashbacks of the first biting experience where I yelled "ouch". He just began to cry and cry and wouldn't nurse. I tried again later that night...nothing. He hasn't nursed at all today. So...guess we are weaning. Or more like, weaned. I had visions of it going so smoothly like Collin's and we would cut out a feeding here or there and before I knew it we would just be doing it once before bed and then poof we'd be done. But nope, it was all or nothing with this little whippersnapper.
Good news is, without me caving to nurse him at night to go back to bed once I got him down he slept for longer than he has in months. Maybe it was God's provision.
Brody's baby dedication is tomorrow at church. We have the family coming and then over to our house for brunch. It's always quite an endeavor to get things ready for a gathering with two little ones. Collin is so excited to have people come to church with him and has been looking forward to showing off his church and choosing who he is going to sit by. I love that he can participate in the baby dedication and see the emphasis on God in our lives.

Kyle is off on a business trip this week. He returns tomorrow night. This one was only three days. At the end of the night, we always ask Collin what made him happy that day and what made him sad. The last two nights, what made him sad has been that daddy went on a trip...tonight what made him happy is that tomorrow is day number3!
It has been so wonderful soaking up the sun the last few days. As blinding white as my legs are right now it still feels good to slip on those shorts and run around with the boys. We've spent time at the park, running around the yard, bike rides and just having a popsicle. Brody sunk his toes into the sand at the park and loved it...wasn't as fond of the taste!
Collin is mr. talkative these days. He has the knack for engaging just about anyone (particularly adults) into conversations. It wasn't long ago he had the whole post office discussing why people speak different languages...do we have a politician on our hands??? Some of his highlights: after thanking Collin for helping with Brody he said, "it's my pleasure"...."look mom, it's a fly wearing a yellow jacket"...."wow, that lady is BIG" (this stated on a very quiet city bus)..."mom, why don't girls have a penis" (this stated in a very quiet park restroom)..."how did Whinnie (our dog) come out of your tummy?"...the list goes on and on. It's not only the words but the demeanor. It's so grown up and professional.
Brody is physically changing. His third tooth came in last week. Yesterday,he decided it was time to try giving me a bite while nursing. After my quick "ouch" he looked at me with a smirk and quickly give it another try. This time with a much louder "ouch" he melted into tears and hurt feelings. He refused to eat. I thought I had found the worlds fastest way of weaning. But, after a walk with the family, bath and PJ's everything was back to normal...and not another bite! He not only is crawling but he's crawling like a mad man! It's like he's been looking at all these things for the past 10 months and now he's bound and determine to explore every square inch of the house. Look out world here he comes! I wish his sense of adventure would spread into his eating habits...I think he will be happy with yogurt, pear puree and sweet potato puree for the rest of his life! Oh well, I guess it could be worse.
Well, off to get into some cozy clothes for this weary mom and relax. Signing off.

Growing Up

It wasn't long that Brody stayed that little baby stage. He's growing up all so fast...just a couple days ago he moved from the up on the knees stage rocking back and forth to putting one leg in front of the other and crawled a little bit. Another tooth has popped out too. Where has the time gone! He's got opinions about what he wants to do and is finicky about what food he chooses to eat. And whoever came up with those "puffs" (they didn't have them when Collin was born) is a genius! They are a wonderful gift to be able to get through my own meals while he has fun with his first finger foods!
Kyle and I went to Collin's first conference last night. It was so great to hear all the things he is doing in school and to see that growth. He's turning into such a little man! He's cutting, writing, making friends, participating in circle time and obviously has the teacher enamored.
It is such a treat to see them as they turn into their own person. It's also a bit heartbreaking as they venture off without you to make their own life decisions (however so small at this age) as well as having to face some of life's successes and failures.