For the Boys

I've been falling so far behind on my kids' updates that I've just started avoiding it all together. Ever have that happen? Something seems overwhelming and I get paralyzed by the thought of even starting, so I don't.

That works well. (note the sarcasm!)

And, so, we have a million pictures and very important information to document. I'll start with the info:

Peter:

• During our move, Peter "helped" bring things up and down and up and down. He was so proud and really a great helper. Unfortunately, this gave him a sense of freedom that he'd not had before. (Please note, I am sharing these stories merely to document them...not so that you can tell me how dangerous this is! I know!!) For example:
• One morning while we were still in limbo between 201 and 306, I left 306 to shower in 201 before the boys woke up. As I was drying off, someone tried opening the apartment door (which was locked). They tried again and then I heard a, "Mommy?" I opened the door to see Peter in his pajamas and green frog rubber boots.
• Another morning, after we were fully settled into 306, Peter was awake bright and early. Awhile later, David woke up. I went in to get him up, changed, etc. Peter HAD been playing happily in the living room but when I came out with David 5 or 10 minutes later, Peter was nowhere to be found. Trying not to panic, I grabbed David, my keys and dashed out the door. Where did I find Peter? OUTSIDE on the playground!!!!!!!! My heart nearly stopped. We had a little visit and fortunately, he hasn't left the apartment or even opened the door since. 
• He loves his wooden train set with Thomas trains. LOVES.
• One day I found him sitting on the toybox in front of his window, pushing on the screen to see outside better. Again, trying not to panic, I explained how dangerous it was to push the screen, since we live on the third floor directly overlooking the parking lot. He'd surely die if he fell! Later that day I asked him to do something for me and he calmly replied with, "I can't. I'm dead." :)
• We're working on potty training again. Here's how it works now. Sit on the toilet. For a long time. Nothing happens. Get up and put on underwear, go start playing and then I hear a, "Uh-oh! Accident!!"
• He helped pick strawberries for our jam. He'd pick one, take a bite and then toss it into his bucket. :)
• He LOVES going to G&G Prigge's cabin. He'll even jump off the dock into the lake (with help, of course) in the shallow area.
• When we moved to 306, he was pretty confused and sometimes rather devastated. For a few weeks, he cried every time we got to the second floor and kept going up. One morning he came into my bedroom before I was up and said, "Mommy, go back to big apartment." If only he knew how badly I wanted to be able to do that. Fortunately, he has adjusted now.
• He loves to mimic David, even when (or should I say especially when?) David's doing something naughty and Peter knows better. Boys! :)
• He's still dramatic and cautious.
• His favorite playground toys are: swings, slides and the spiral climbing thing. That was where I found him the morning he escaped to the outside. I still don't even know how he managed to open the outside door. It's HEAVY.
• Still asks periodically if we're going to BSF. Two more months!!
• He can put on his rubber boots and flip-flops alone. So big!
• He, obviously, talks a lot. Hmmm...must be his father's son. ;)
• One day when were out for dinner with my family for my brother Brad's birthday, Peter leaned over to me, rubbed my arm and said, "Mommy, you are so wonderful." I cried.
• Likes hotdogs now. Will eat carrots and green beans. Will try just about anything and automatically says, "Mmmmm! Good!" The true test of his feelings is to offer more. Typically he'll give you a, "No, thank you!" without even missing a beat!
• Rode the motorcycle ride at the Spudfest carnival 3 times. Free. What fun. He'd been drooling and dreaming about that ride all week.
• Hates fireworks!
• Loves to be tickled.
• Loves to play with and boss his little brother. The other morning, David was pulling books off a shelf and Peter came over. Very gently he said, "No, no David. That's VERY dangerous." Peter put the books all back and stayed to make sure David wouldn't take any more off. Occasionally I'd hear a, "No, no" and then a, "Good job, David! I'm so proud!" He is learning and I'm so proud of him!

David:

• Is ONE!
• We had his birthday party the day of our big move back to 201, before we moved to 306. I kept the boys out of the way for awhile by taking them to the Spudfest parade in the morning. Then we had lunch, got everything unloaded from the trucks and I made him a cake! It was a memorable birthday party, to be sure. Everyone was there, he got to open presents, and he loved his cake! Perfect!
• Cannot have dairy. He gets a red rash wherever it touches his skin. No milk, yogurt, butter, kefir, ice cream, whipped cream...sad! It has been suggested to me that he might be okay with homemade kefir and yogurt, though. I'm going to try!
• He's (almost) walking! Without any coaxing, he'll stand up and take a few steps before he falls, gets up and tries again. We're guessing he'll be an old pro within a week.
• Loves Peter.
• Loves Daddy.
• Loves Lucy.
• Has a huge sense of humor. He laughs a LOT and often has a very mischievous grin/smirk/face scrunched look on his face. Funny boy!
• Climbs on whatever he can reach. His favorites, currently, are Peter's bed, the kids' rocking chair and my beloved yellow chair.
• Knows how to climb off the couch the "right" way - feet first, on tummy, although he prefers to attempt face first.
• Says "uh-oh", "mama", "dada".
• Still mostly takes two naps, but often because of where we are/what's going on, he only gets one.
• Loves fireworks! On the 4th of July, he said, "ooohhhhhh" over and over. :)
• Getting picky about foods, but will eat a lot of the foods he does like! Likes: pancakes, fruit, toast, eggs, hotdogs, muffins, cake, crackers, cucumbers, burritos, beans & rice, spaghetti (until he gets a big chunk of hamburger).  He's not a fan of pizza (probably the cheese), meat, most veggies.
• At his 1 year checkup he weighed 17.8 lbs. He fell off the bottom of the chart for weight. We need to work on beefing him up, I think.
• He has developed quite the little temper!
• Is ALWAYS busy doing/going. Never stops moving except for sleep.
• Loves to be tickled!

Settling In

I must begin this post today by letting you all know that we are settling in quite nicely into 306. Yes, it is snug. Yes, I do have to haul the kids and dog up to the third floor sans elevator several times each day. But, such hauling is not without its exercise benefits! And what's not to like about being able to vacuum the entire house from one outlet? Without stretching the cord? Other blessings:

• We have fabulous NEW carpet in the living room (it is soooo soft!)
• We have beautiful laminate hardwood flooring in the kitchen/dining/entry/hallway areas. With a little one who likes to throw food on the floor at each meal, this is a true, true blessing!
• TWO bathrooms! I've never had a master bathroom before. It's pretty nifty!
• We have an incredible view...well, once you get beyond the parking lot and neighboring apartment buildings.
• Laundry room is just down the hall! No more stairs for me!! I will admit, though, to being rather attached to the other one...so on Monday I lugged our laundry down the hall, and down to the first floor. Why? The dryers work better. The third floor dryers don't dry everything all the way.
• I have a HUGE island in my kitchen. I love it!
• Tons of more storage space in the bathrooms. These have large closets in them. Our old one had bare minimal storage space.

Things at "the house" ended peacefully, too. We visited with the landlady who, by law, could have charged us more rent money, but chose not to. She was content to keep the whole deposit and money we had already given her. We were GRATEFUL!

I visited with my BSF teaching leader today, Lynn A., who said that God always has a place for His people. And He always has a way of getting them there. Such comfort, even in these bizarre circumstances.

Thank you, Father, for having a place for my little family.

Big Changes

I've been pretty quiet for awhile. We've been busy, I guess.

The past month has been a little crazy.

This past week has been close to pushing me over the edge. I can't stop crying.

We thought we'd try to find a home to rent that's closer to Luke's work - GVGH - as well as to Trott Brook. We found it. We negotiated the price, the move in date. There was just a funny smell in the house, but we passed it off as a closed up, older house, lived in by many sort of smell.

We signed the lease, paid the deposit (that the Lord alone provided!), paid half of the first month's rent and started moving in. The smell got worse. I cleaned the carpets. It didn't go away.

Blinds fell.

Other blinds were all busted up.

Closet doors fell.

Closet door knobs came off.

Door knobs came off.

Doors didn't shut all the way/dragged hard on the carpet because they weren't properly installed/fitted to the door frame.

Towel bars fell off walls.

Shower head didn't work. Just a trickle.

There were bats in the walls.

The carpet radiated a putrid cat urine smell. That we couldn't. get. rid. of. And believe me, we tried. We pulled out the big guns.

We felt sick. Literally and figuratively. What did we get ourselves into?

Oh, but then a quail strutted across the front yard and a deer was in the back. It took two minutes to drive to GVGH and Trott Brook. A plethora of babysitters was a mere moments away! It couldn't be that bad...

And then we all woke up the next morning feeling sick to our stomachs.

What DID we get ourselves into?

So we called the landlady to mention our concerns about the MANY broken items and carpet fragrance issue.

"Open up the windows. The carpet just needs to dry. The smell will go away."

Really? I'm sorry to say that the carpet WAS dry. And we had the windows open. Constantly.

"Make a list of the repairs that need to be done and we'll just slowly start chipping away. But not this week. Maybe next week."

Really?

What did we get ourselves into?

Now I know that the Lord allows all things to work together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His good purposes. I also know that He does not give us more than we can handle. I also know that my joy is not to be found in my circumstances, but rather in Christ alone. I also know that we have a responsibility to take care of our children. So, we called our apartment management company to see if we could stay here. And we can!

But not in our current apartment. The guy already signed his lease and he doesn't want a different one. He wants this one.

And so now, I get to test my head knowledge and see how well my heart knows it. So far it's failing the test. We'll be moving up a floor (no elevator), down to the middle of the hallway and losing 122 square feet. And I cry. We barely fit here. How will we fit there? And I cry again. No, I sob. Hard.

Then the Lord gently reminds me of His constant faithful provision.

So tonight and tomorrow our faithful, loving family will rally around us to move our things back here to 201 and next week when 306 is clean and ready, we will haul it all up there.

The Lord has also gently reminded me of many possible ways this trying circumstance could be used for His glory. And a large chunk of that is utterly dependent upon my attitude.

While I still do not know how this story will play out, I do know that the joy of the Lord is my strength. And I love my sweet precious little boys and darling husband.

Sometimes I wish things would work out differently than they do. But, then I suppose I would miss out on the Lord's best for me. And my family.

The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

Just a couple quick thoughts

1. We stopped potty training the very same day we started. Peter is just not ready yet, I think. I will, however, give it a whirl again in a few weeks. Hopefully he'll have some success!

2. The last time I went to the grocery store? So much better than my "Freedom" post. So much better.

3. I LOVE garage sales.

Mother's Day 2011 @ the CABIN!

Minus Dad.

How sad.

But we sure were GLAD to get that overtime check! :)

And now for some pictures from that weekend!

Peter loves playing outside so much that on Sunday I caved and let him play. In the rain.

David and Grandma P.

He loves that old boat.

Sam and Heidi rescuing a ball.

Gramma Geri and David (and his blanket!)

Brad trying to stay out of trouble. :)

Auntie Kerri chatting with Uncle Jim while Peter joyfully plays in the sand.

Potty Training and a Flat Tire

Today began a new chapter.

Potty Training.

Ugh...but more on that in a minute. First a few updates on my quickly changing and growing little boys!

Peter:

1. Is so sad that co-op and BSF are done for the summer. (Amazing, right?) He asks to go frequently. I have to remind him that co-op is done and we won't go to BSF for 4 months. Hard to wrap your mind around that when you're only 2!
2. Has recently started watching Thomas the Train videos again. Loves them. I haven't allowed him to watch the really "scary" one yet, but maybe sometime...
3. He's really into playing with his trains and tracks again, too. Mr. Potato Head is a thing of the past. It's all about trains these days! He loves to reenact what he sees in the videos. It's really fun to watch.
4. He kissed me on the lips the other day and remembered to close his lips. He was so proud for remembering that! (5/2)
5. He occasionally will walk up behind me (when I'm sitting on the floor) and give me a hug or rub my back a little bit and whisper, "I love you" in my ear. Oh, it just melts my heart...
6. He used to say, "mom, mom, mom, mom, mom...." and when I'd ask what he needed he'd just start saying mom all over again. So I started teaching him to respond more appropriately with "I need..." (fill in the blank). His favorite response is "I need MOM!" Normally said with a smile and a little giggle, of course.
7. Occasionally I'll let him "brush" his own teeth. He instructs himself what to do as he goes along, "say 'aaahhh'" and then he says "aaaahhhh", and "eeeee" and "llllll" (to brush inside of teeth, front, tops, and tongue).
8. One day he was playing with a hairbrush and so I showed him how to use it. (we rarely brush the boys' hair!) Later when Luke got home from work, Peter climbed up onto the couch behind him and said, "Dad, no fuss" and started brushing his hair. Hahaha!!!
9. Talks a LOT! He's saying more 4 and 5 word sentences all the time. He also is pretty clear, too, so I am able (and so are most other people) to understand most of what he says. Yay!
10. Potty training started today!!! So far (he's napping right now) this is what has happened: visit the toilet for 5-10 minutes every 20ish minutes. No toilet action. Two accidents that he doesn't even seem to mind. Ugh........

David:

1. Is 10 1/2 months old!
2. On 5/2 saw a picture of Luke and said, "Da!" (did he really?)
3. Has 6 teeth. Three on the top and three on the bottom. The middle two front on top and bottom and one side tooth on top on opposite side tooth on bottom. He's got at least one more (other side top tooth) coming. No hurry here, though, it seems!
4. LOVES to walk holding onto someone's hands. Or a toy. Or piece of furniture. Will stand on his own for several seconds. Has tried taking a step a few times, but lacks the confidence to really try. We're hoping he walks before summer is here. (although maybe having a crawler outside is better?)
5. Is eating more and more foods. This morning for breakfast he at all but a few bites of both a pancake and banana. Wow!
6. Will guzzle water from a bottle but will not drink milk from one. Funny boy! Also learned how to drink from a sippy cup.
7. Adores his older brother. Even when said older brother takes toys away, knocks him over or hits. :)
8. Has recently developed a massive love for mommy. He doesn't love it very  much when I leave him anymore...but he's still more easy going than Peter was!
9. Has become attached to his blue fleece blanket that I made. Awww....
10. Is starting to show a temper! :) He likes to throw himself backwards when he gets mad. He will also go limp if I try picking him up when he's mad. Oh, boy.

I'm sure  you've been wondering if I'm ever going to say anything about a flat tire since that's part of the title of this post. I want my sons to know what kind of a daddy they have. I want to remember for them the things that he does to serve others. To serve God.

Last night as we were driving home from an impromptu visit to my parents' house and cabin for the day, we saw a lady on the side of the road, trying to change a flat tire. Alone. After dark. On the traffic side of the car. With her 10-year-old son in the backseat. Right in front of the St. Cloud prison!!! Not exactly the spot I'd like to have a flat. We stopped and Luke got out to see if he could help. She was so grateful! They were 5 hours away from home and still over an hour away from their destination. Aaahhhh! What would I do? She didn't have AAA, didn't know anyone remotely close to St. Cloud or anything. And did I mention that it happened right in front of the prison?

If we had gone a different way home, left earlier or later, stopped for gas elsewhere, not heeded the Holy Spirit's leading to stop, we wouldn't have been able to help.

Thank you, Luke, for being a good example to our sons.

Thank you, Lord, for giving my husband the sensitivity and ability to stop and help. Thank you for giving him to us.

He IS Risen!

Just a few Easter pictures to share on this gorgeous April day! Hope you enjoyed your Easter day as much as we did. In no particular order:

Here's Peter on the way home, sleeping, clutching one of his prized eggs. :)

Proof that we were there. (tee hee hee)