Monday, January 31, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011
What have we been up to?
The past several weeks around here have been a whirlwind! Well, maybe I should say the past month! Elise was sick with an ear infection and a touch of pneumonia the week before Christmas. After lots of antibiotics, she recovered, but in the process, she gave up nursing! It seemed like overnight she became a "big girl"! She also started talking (babbling, really) in sentence form about that same time. She'll look at us and just babble for about 30 seconds before taking a breath! Stay tuned for a video where she does a little of this babbling. And singing! She sings "Baa Baa Black Sheep" and "Twinkle Twinkle" pretty well now! She can carry the tunes and adds in a few words here and there. Isaac is also singing much more lately. He likes to sing along when we sing to Elise or when we sing in the car. He has even started telling Steven and me that he likes certain songs on the radio and that we should "do them at church!"
Back to the past month... after some awesome holiday celebrating, we had a little bit of a normal routine before the big snow of 2011 came. Then we were cooped up here for four days. After that, though, both kids got sick again and we continued to stay at home since they weren't feeling up to going out. They both now seem to be on the mend, but they still have coughs and runny noses. Right after the snow/sick week, I made the decision to start a new home-based business (in addition to Juice Plus) by becoming a Consultant with Thirty-One Gifts. It's a faith-based company, based on Proverbs 31, with products for women and families such as totes, purses, wallets, organizing baskets and the like. I love the products so much that I pretty much want one of everything in the catalog! Anyway, I'll be selling these products through home shows and on my personal website. I am really looking forward to seeing how God uses this business in my life to help me grow personally and also impact women as I facilitate an encouraging and uplifting atmosphere at my parties. SO, as you can imagine, we have indeed had an eventful past month!
We have lots to look forward to in the coming months, too! Isaac will continue with his preschool, but Steven and I will be praying and making a decision about where/how often Isaac will go to preschool in the 2011/2012 school year. We'll also be making plans to get Elise started in preschool a couple days a week. In addition, we'll be attending the annual North Carolinians for Home Education conference in Winston-Salem to help us make our decision on whether or not to homeschool. We are heavily leaning towards it, but we know God may have other plans and are definitely open to them.
So, back to those sweet and awesome kids of ours... Here is Elise, discovering that she likes to look out the window!
And Isaac, who still loves to vacuum. In fact, he always asks if he can use my big vacuum before I put it up!
He is such a big helper around the house now! His chores are clearing the table after meals, making up his bed each morning, and helping me take laundry to the washing machine (or switching laundry from the washer to the dryer). He also loves to help feed Elise, retrieve her thrown sippy cups, or just eat off her tray! We are working with him on being gentler with her, though, since he recently has been doing more pushing, shoving, and hitting her. Any ideas on how to handle this type of behavior between siblings would be greatly appreciated!! If not, though, please pray that we will have wisdom on how to most effectively handle each situation! And although this is our current challenge, he still shows incredible love to his little sister - hugging her, wanting to play with her, wanting her to play with him, kissing her, and playing games trying to get her to laugh! What a blessing they both are!
We are so grateful for this fun [and exhausting] season of life! Oh, Lord, help us to embrace every moment, for they truly will be gone before we know it!
Back to the past month... after some awesome holiday celebrating, we had a little bit of a normal routine before the big snow of 2011 came. Then we were cooped up here for four days. After that, though, both kids got sick again and we continued to stay at home since they weren't feeling up to going out. They both now seem to be on the mend, but they still have coughs and runny noses. Right after the snow/sick week, I made the decision to start a new home-based business (in addition to Juice Plus) by becoming a Consultant with Thirty-One Gifts. It's a faith-based company, based on Proverbs 31, with products for women and families such as totes, purses, wallets, organizing baskets and the like. I love the products so much that I pretty much want one of everything in the catalog! Anyway, I'll be selling these products through home shows and on my personal website. I am really looking forward to seeing how God uses this business in my life to help me grow personally and also impact women as I facilitate an encouraging and uplifting atmosphere at my parties. SO, as you can imagine, we have indeed had an eventful past month!
We have lots to look forward to in the coming months, too! Isaac will continue with his preschool, but Steven and I will be praying and making a decision about where/how often Isaac will go to preschool in the 2011/2012 school year. We'll also be making plans to get Elise started in preschool a couple days a week. In addition, we'll be attending the annual North Carolinians for Home Education conference in Winston-Salem to help us make our decision on whether or not to homeschool. We are heavily leaning towards it, but we know God may have other plans and are definitely open to them.
So, back to those sweet and awesome kids of ours... Here is Elise, discovering that she likes to look out the window!
And Isaac, who still loves to vacuum. In fact, he always asks if he can use my big vacuum before I put it up!
He is such a big helper around the house now! His chores are clearing the table after meals, making up his bed each morning, and helping me take laundry to the washing machine (or switching laundry from the washer to the dryer). He also loves to help feed Elise, retrieve her thrown sippy cups, or just eat off her tray! We are working with him on being gentler with her, though, since he recently has been doing more pushing, shoving, and hitting her. Any ideas on how to handle this type of behavior between siblings would be greatly appreciated!! If not, though, please pray that we will have wisdom on how to most effectively handle each situation! And although this is our current challenge, he still shows incredible love to his little sister - hugging her, wanting to play with her, wanting her to play with him, kissing her, and playing games trying to get her to laugh! What a blessing they both are!
We are so grateful for this fun [and exhausting] season of life! Oh, Lord, help us to embrace every moment, for they truly will be gone before we know it!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Icicles!
With snow and ice come icicles! I love them! These were hanging from our house a couple weeks ago.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Our table decked out for the season!
I'm loving using tablecloths on our new table! It gives such a country look, which I love. :) Here's what it's looking like right now: (thanks to my Mom for the tablecloth!)
I just throw it in the wash every few days with a scoop of Oxy Clean, and it looks brand new again!
I just throw it in the wash every few days with a scoop of Oxy Clean, and it looks brand new again!
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Our kids' silly faces!
I guess every child has a silly face! Isaac has lots of them, but here is one he made last week...
Elise has one and only one right now. And it's this...
She'll literally stop whatever she's doing and make this face. Randomly at any point in the day. Her eyes are completely closed while she's smiling, and it's the cutest thing ever!
Elise has one and only one right now. And it's this...
She'll literally stop whatever she's doing and make this face. Randomly at any point in the day. Her eyes are completely closed while she's smiling, and it's the cutest thing ever!
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Be-be!
Elise can now say "be-be" for baby, and she is just starting to seem drawn to her baby doll...
Monday, January 17, 2011
Our kids love strollers!
Check out the flipped bib! I don't know how that happened, but I saw it and it was so CUTE! Like a little cape!
Napping in Mommy's arms...
Such a sweet girl! Sometimes after her afternoon nap, Elise will fall back asleep in my arms once I've gotten her out of her crib. She is so cuddly!
Sunday, January 16, 2011
First snow days of 2011!
Here are some pictures of our adventures outside our house in the first snow storm of 2011!
Check out our "Snow boots". Yeah, apparently Elise is the only one in our family who actually has real snow boots...
Sledding down the road!
Elise loves the snow!
One of our sweet neighbors had pity on us and gave us her son's old snow boots: (Isaac loves them, but he really really loves sledding!)
Our little lady loves walking in the snow! (check out those cool snow boots! Thanks Ash!)
And she really loves sledding just like her big brother! (thanks to our neighbor Amy for sharing this really cool toddler sled!)
SNOW DAYS!!!!
Check out our "Snow boots". Yeah, apparently Elise is the only one in our family who actually has real snow boots...
Sledding down the road!
Elise loves the snow!
One of our sweet neighbors had pity on us and gave us her son's old snow boots: (Isaac loves them, but he really really loves sledding!)
Our little lady loves walking in the snow! (check out those cool snow boots! Thanks Ash!)
And she really loves sledding just like her big brother! (thanks to our neighbor Amy for sharing this really cool toddler sled!)
SNOW DAYS!!!!
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Fun with Ba!
Gramps (Ba) came to our house last week and played with Isaac and Elise. One thing he did was to work with them on stringing beads. Here they are, playing with the strings and beads:
Elise tries to do it:
So does Isaac:
Then Ba took Elise on a ride on his shoulders:
We love Ba!
Elise tries to do it:
So does Isaac:
Then Ba took Elise on a ride on his shoulders:
We love Ba!
Friday, January 14, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Meeting our new dinosaur!
Thanks to our little friend Lydia for passing this along! Our kids love Dino!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Such a fun season!
Over the past month or so, it seems like Isaac has grown so much! He has become so articulate and is able to carry on longer conversations with us and also with people over the phone. This stage of life is so much fun! He is asking lots of questions and also forming many of his own opinions. For example, here are some things he's said recently:
"Mommy, I tell you what to do!" (which prompted this response from me: "No, Isaac, you do not tell me what to do. I tell you what to do because I'm the Mommy and you are the child. He didn't argue with that...at least not yet!)
"Did this chili come from the cul-de-sac?" (after tasting some chili I made this week. Apparently the last time he had chili was during the Chili Cookoff on our cul-de-sac in October. Good memory, Isaac!)
"Are you done with your poo-teh Daddy?" ("Poo-teh" is how Isaac references the computer!)
"What's the peanut butter up to?" (He also likes to ask this when he talks to people on the phone: "Nana, what are you up to?" "Daddy, what are you up to at work?")
"No!!! Elise might get it!" (Isaac is very concerned about Elise getting or touching things like his tricycle or his alphabet puzzle or his stroller or his train set...)
"Daddy, are we gonna do zip today?" ("Zip" is what Isaac calls his footed pajamas. I guess because they have a zipper. So, when he asks this question, he is asking if he is going to wear footed pajamas to bed.)
Isaac still really likes to sing. His favorite songs continue to be "Jesus Loves Me", "Hallelu, Hallelu", and "Let the Redeemed Say So" (performed by Israel and New Breed). Today he burst into the room and said, "Let the 'deemed of da Lord say so! There's a river in my belly!!!" out of the blue. There is another song he likes which starts out with "There is a river in my belly...", so he was referring to this song. This song also has a line that says, "Let the redeemed of the Lord say so", so he refers to both songs as "Say so". He'll say, "I want to hear 'Say So' Mommy! Can we listen to 'Say So'?" And he's referring to either of the two songs.
Lately Isaac has really taken an interest in playing with Elise. And she seems to love to play with him, too! They like to play behind our couch where there's a tiny hidden area with some toys for them. They'll go back there and play for long periods of time. Then they'll come out, push their strollers around, and then go back behind the couch. I think mostly they play side-by-side (or parallel play). It is so sweet, though. Isaac asks every day now, "Can I go play with Leese?"
And Elise loves her big brother! When it's time to go get him up from his nap, she heads for Isaac's room, pushes the door open, and says, "Hey I-E!!!" It's way obvious that she totally loves him! She lights up when we talk about him and when he comes into the room she gets excited. Of course she'll also scream and/or cry when he takes something from her or pushes her down (which is a big no-no!), but overall she thinks he's the coolest. Today she was sitting beside him and he was "reading" her a book. Then she laid her head on his lap and he pushed her off. She laughed and did it again! Then he pushed her off and she laughed some more. I told him to be gentle, and he said, "Mommy, she's laying on me!" But then he laughed about it too! :) It's so fun to watch them together. It is like therapy for my heart!
I am so thankful for these two babies that God has given us! They bring us more joy than I could ever have imagined!
"Mommy, I tell you what to do!" (which prompted this response from me: "No, Isaac, you do not tell me what to do. I tell you what to do because I'm the Mommy and you are the child. He didn't argue with that...at least not yet!)
"Did this chili come from the cul-de-sac?" (after tasting some chili I made this week. Apparently the last time he had chili was during the Chili Cookoff on our cul-de-sac in October. Good memory, Isaac!)
"Are you done with your poo-teh Daddy?" ("Poo-teh" is how Isaac references the computer!)
"What's the peanut butter up to?" (He also likes to ask this when he talks to people on the phone: "Nana, what are you up to?" "Daddy, what are you up to at work?")
"No!!! Elise might get it!" (Isaac is very concerned about Elise getting or touching things like his tricycle or his alphabet puzzle or his stroller or his train set...)
"Daddy, are we gonna do zip today?" ("Zip" is what Isaac calls his footed pajamas. I guess because they have a zipper. So, when he asks this question, he is asking if he is going to wear footed pajamas to bed.)
Isaac still really likes to sing. His favorite songs continue to be "Jesus Loves Me", "Hallelu, Hallelu", and "Let the Redeemed Say So" (performed by Israel and New Breed). Today he burst into the room and said, "Let the 'deemed of da Lord say so! There's a river in my belly!!!" out of the blue. There is another song he likes which starts out with "There is a river in my belly...", so he was referring to this song. This song also has a line that says, "Let the redeemed of the Lord say so", so he refers to both songs as "Say so". He'll say, "I want to hear 'Say So' Mommy! Can we listen to 'Say So'?" And he's referring to either of the two songs.
Lately Isaac has really taken an interest in playing with Elise. And she seems to love to play with him, too! They like to play behind our couch where there's a tiny hidden area with some toys for them. They'll go back there and play for long periods of time. Then they'll come out, push their strollers around, and then go back behind the couch. I think mostly they play side-by-side (or parallel play). It is so sweet, though. Isaac asks every day now, "Can I go play with Leese?"
And Elise loves her big brother! When it's time to go get him up from his nap, she heads for Isaac's room, pushes the door open, and says, "Hey I-E!!!" It's way obvious that she totally loves him! She lights up when we talk about him and when he comes into the room she gets excited. Of course she'll also scream and/or cry when he takes something from her or pushes her down (which is a big no-no!), but overall she thinks he's the coolest. Today she was sitting beside him and he was "reading" her a book. Then she laid her head on his lap and he pushed her off. She laughed and did it again! Then he pushed her off and she laughed some more. I told him to be gentle, and he said, "Mommy, she's laying on me!" But then he laughed about it too! :) It's so fun to watch them together. It is like therapy for my heart!
I am so thankful for these two babies that God has given us! They bring us more joy than I could ever have imagined!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Christmas with Michelle, BJ and Carly!
A few days after Christmas, we were able to have dinner with Michelle, BJ and Carly to celebrate with them. We met up at the Sports Page, one of our favorite family restaurants, and had a great time visiting with each other. Our kids absolutely love BJ and Carly!! (AND Aunt Michelle, too!) We had a back room almost all to ourselves, so the kids ran around and played together after we ate. It was a sweet time; the kids had a blast and Steven, Michelle, and I enjoyed catching up and sharing our hearts with one another. Here are some pictures Steven got on his iPhone (the lighting was bad, so the quality isn't that great. But we're glad we at least got some pictures! Thank goodness for iPhones when you forget your good camera!)
Michelle and Elise:
BJ and Isaac:
The girls!!
Carly said, "Elise looks just like me when I was a baby!" We agree, sweet Carly, we agree! :) Thank you Lord for the blessing of family!
Michelle and Elise:
BJ and Isaac:
The girls!!
Carly said, "Elise looks just like me when I was a baby!" We agree, sweet Carly, we agree! :) Thank you Lord for the blessing of family!
Friday, January 7, 2011
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Christmas Snow 2010!
On the day after Christmas, we woke up to this:
And so we had to make snow cream... It was Elise's first time to try it:
Notice how mad she is that I'm feeding some to Isaac instead of her: (I intentionally blurred us out so that you could really see how put out she is!)
Now it's time to go outside and play! Elise's first time ever to walk in snow:
Isaac is a pro at playing in snow now! He loved it!
FUN!
And so we had to make snow cream... It was Elise's first time to try it:
Notice how mad she is that I'm feeding some to Isaac instead of her: (I intentionally blurred us out so that you could really see how put out she is!)
Now it's time to go outside and play! Elise's first time ever to walk in snow:
Isaac is a pro at playing in snow now! He loved it!
FUN!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Christmas Day 2010!
Christmas Day for our family this year was a wonderful, quiet, and simple day of celebrating Jesus. In the early morning, we spent time telling Isaac the story of Jesus' birth, and then Elise woke up in time for all of us to go downstairs and open presents. About mid-morning, my parents and grandparents came over to visit. We exchanged gifts and had a sandwich lunch (which is something my Nana (my Mom's mother) used to do on Christmas. It keeps the meal simple and allows for plenty of time to relax and enjoy each others' company. I'm not sure if that was her reason behind having sandwiches on Christmas, but I love it and think it'll be a tradition! Of course, we also had yummy dips, chips and desserts!) After that, our company went home and it was naptime. Once naptime and a light dinner were over, snow started falling outside! It was a truly White Christmas, which is so very rare here in the piedmont of North Carolina! We loved watching the snow, and all of us stood on our front porch for a little bit to take it all in. What a truly blessed day!
Here is the photo journal of our holiday!
Steven and Isaac on Christmas morning, while we were talking about Jesus' birth: (and still in our jammies. Which the kids stayed in all day. And yes, Steven now has a pair of footed pajamas. And I'm the only one in the family without any. Might have to do something about that...)
Isaac's big gift from us was his first bicycle! He loved it, and spent much of the morning riding it around our downstairs:
Elise got a stroller for her baby dolls: (Although, Isaac seems to like it just as much as her! Thankfully our friends Donnie and Hallel passed along their daughter's stroller just in time, so now we have two - one for each of our kids. Isaac is going to be a great Daddy!)
Isaac and me: (I love that little man!)
We had sausage balls for breakfast (a Christmas morning tradition for us, passed on from my parents!), and Isaac ate his while on the bike:
Once my parents and grandparents made it, Daddy and Pawpaw wanted a picture with Pawpaw's blog book. His blog includes his entire life story, which he's worked on since 2007, and now he has it in a published form (I have also published my blog posts in book form. Since I don't scrapbook anymore, this is a great way to capture memories in a tangible form.) We are so proud of Pawpaw! (and Daddy, too, who has been a great help throughout the entire process!)
Here is our tree, with all the gifts underneath:
Elise is excited about present time!
My sweet grandparents! (Love them so much!!)
And this face is just the cutest!
Isaac was a big helper, passing out all the presents:
Granny was in the midst of all the action with my babies:
Pawpaw, wearing the necklace that Isaac made for him with some glow bracelets he'd gotten in his stocking:
Look at this sweet couple! If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be here! :)
After lunch, my mom helped Isaac decorate some gingerbread men, and they had a blast!
Here are the cookies, all done:
Our family, right before naptime (can you tell the kids have really enjoyed their Christmas so far?! So much so that they are ready to hit the sack!)
My handsome and rockin' awesome husband and me, by the Christmas tree:
And, finally, evidence of our first White Christmas since 1947! (Which means it was our family's first White Christmas ever!) Hopefully it won't be that long again before we have another one!
Happy Birthday Jesus! We love you and thank you so much for such a wonderful day in Your Presence!
Here is the photo journal of our holiday!
Steven and Isaac on Christmas morning, while we were talking about Jesus' birth: (and still in our jammies. Which the kids stayed in all day. And yes, Steven now has a pair of footed pajamas. And I'm the only one in the family without any. Might have to do something about that...)
Isaac's big gift from us was his first bicycle! He loved it, and spent much of the morning riding it around our downstairs:
Elise got a stroller for her baby dolls: (Although, Isaac seems to like it just as much as her! Thankfully our friends Donnie and Hallel passed along their daughter's stroller just in time, so now we have two - one for each of our kids. Isaac is going to be a great Daddy!)
Isaac and me: (I love that little man!)
We had sausage balls for breakfast (a Christmas morning tradition for us, passed on from my parents!), and Isaac ate his while on the bike:
Once my parents and grandparents made it, Daddy and Pawpaw wanted a picture with Pawpaw's blog book. His blog includes his entire life story, which he's worked on since 2007, and now he has it in a published form (I have also published my blog posts in book form. Since I don't scrapbook anymore, this is a great way to capture memories in a tangible form.) We are so proud of Pawpaw! (and Daddy, too, who has been a great help throughout the entire process!)
Here is our tree, with all the gifts underneath:
Elise is excited about present time!
My sweet grandparents! (Love them so much!!)
And this face is just the cutest!
Isaac was a big helper, passing out all the presents:
Granny was in the midst of all the action with my babies:
Pawpaw, wearing the necklace that Isaac made for him with some glow bracelets he'd gotten in his stocking:
Look at this sweet couple! If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be here! :)
After lunch, my mom helped Isaac decorate some gingerbread men, and they had a blast!
Here are the cookies, all done:
Our family, right before naptime (can you tell the kids have really enjoyed their Christmas so far?! So much so that they are ready to hit the sack!)
My handsome and rockin' awesome husband and me, by the Christmas tree:
And, finally, evidence of our first White Christmas since 1947! (Which means it was our family's first White Christmas ever!) Hopefully it won't be that long again before we have another one!
Happy Birthday Jesus! We love you and thank you so much for such a wonderful day in Your Presence!
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