Kids change you

Thanksgiving has come and gone, and the boys and I are anxiously awaiting Christmas. It's always so nice to spend time with family and do all the things that come with preparing for the holidays. One of the things we have been doing most recently is putting up all of our favorite Christmas decorations. As we were putting up the decorations this year, we began to notice how much our decorating style has changed over the years. Adam and I have always been huge fans of simple and elegant white lights and pretty plain decorations, but ever since the kids have come along we have made some significant changes.

It all started last year when Landon decided that we REALLY needed to put colored lights on our tree to make it more fun. We decided that he was right and not only put colored lights on our tree, but carried them over to our garland and the outside of our house. Our house really stood out in the neighborhood, at least for the day the lights actually worked, amidst a sea of plain white icicle lights that all of the neighbors seemed to enjoy.

This year, however, has brought about the most significant change of all. Last week Adam sent me to Home Depot , armed with my 10 dollar off coupon, to find a good deal on some sort of yard decor. They happened to be having a huge sale and I managed to scoop up an inflatable frosty that I was sure the kids would love. Inflatables have always seemed so gaudy to me and I never would have pictured myself owning one, but as I anticipated the kids reaction I couldn't help but fall in love with it.

When I walked in the door with Frosty the kids were so excited that they couldn't control themselves. Just to make sure that it worked we decided to set him up in our living room and the reaction from the kids was priceless. As Frosty began to engulf our entire living room (this thing is HUGE) our kids thought it was the funniest thing they had ever seen. I really can't remember the last time I heard so much uncontrollable laughter coming from BOTH of my children. It was then that I knew I had made a very good choice.

While this really isn't MY style, it brings joy to my heart each and every night when the kids run outside to great Frosty, and I see their sweet faces light up with cheer. And each night as we deflate him, I never tire of the kids silly jokes about how Frosty is melting. I figure, the neighbors may think we are crazy, but our new friend has been a huge hit with our children and it's definitely worth all the eye rolls we may receive because of it. Our kids will be grown before we know it, and there will come a day when they won't be quite so amused by a silly thing like a huge Frosty in our yard. So we are going to enjoy it while it lasts.

Landon's Pirate Party

This past week our sweet Landon turned four years old. Our little man is growing up before our eyes. To celebrate the occasion we had a pirate party at our house and invited some of Landon's buddies. My sis in law made some really cute invitations (that have been edited for blog stalker purposes) and the party was on. In one and a half hours we managed to decorate pirate hats, read; "How I became a Pirate" (fabulous book if you've never read it), walk the plank, pop cannon balls, pick up jewels (marbles) with our toes, paint faces, eat pirate cake and pirates booty, open presents, and bust a pinata. Fun was had by all and Landon made some very special memories. Thank you to all our friends and family who made this day so memorable for our little guy. Here are a few pics to commemorate our day of fun.
















Walk the plank and pop the cannon ball game














Ferocious cousins











Decorating Pirate hats











Picking up jewels with toes









Taylor painting faces











Opening presents

























Don't shoot Papa









Jonah ,in true form, eating all the kids leftovers while Landon was opening presents











All the little Pirates













Landon and his Jolly Roger Pirate Cake














Blowing out the candles












Landon ate his head, poor guy
















Pirates Booty! Yummy













Busting the Pinata

Unwelcome Visitors

We have absolutely been loving the rain and the cooler weather it has brought us these past couple of days. The kids have been doing lots of playing outside and we even busted out the hot chocolate yesterday morning. Fall has arrived!
With the rain and cooler temperatures, however, we have had a little problem with ants coming into the house. I noticed them coming in the kitchen through a little crack in the baseboard yesterday, and quickly bleached them away. Today though, I noticed two more points of entry (one being in the pantry). So, war has been declared by the ants. The boys and I have been combating the little stinkers all morning.
While these ants are a huge pain (as I have so many other things I need to be doing today), I never knew how much fun the boys would have with it. When I showed them the ants coming in they quickly found their army guys and starting shooting at the ants, declaring, " I'm going to get you Mr Rude." They've also been running around the house with swords this morning pretending that the ants are chasing them and trying to bite them. Silly kids.
Well, armed with my bottle of bleach and some caulk filler I intend to win this war of the ants. Wish me luck!

I think to myself, what a wonderful world

Warning: Political Rant Follows

Imagine a world where every single American has health care. This health care would not only be available to each person, but also run by our friend, the government. In order to achieve this absolutely wonderful task we will tax the doctors who have worked very hard to attain that profession and then we'll kick them while they're down. You see, doctors will be forced (by the government) to see patients (who will come to their offices in droves), and the government will pay them little to nothing for their services. Just like Medicare and Medicaid payments are today. So, the doctors will have to work double or even triple time to make sure that they can keep food on the table for their own children. Between paying off medical school loans, donating a huge chunk of their salaries to malpractice insurance, and the tax raises, these doctors will be rewarded handsomely for their 8 years of schooling and sacrifice. That is, if you call extra hours, the government as your boss, and a huge dent in your paycheck a reward. American citizens will be fleeing in droves to see just how they too, can earn the status of Doctor. After all, the perks are appealing aren't they?
Obama/Biden 2008, you can keep your change.

Reactions

It's always funny to me how differently people respond to the news that a couple is expecting a new baby. Sometimes you just catch people off guard with the announcement, and they don't know quite what to say. Here are just a few of the funnier responses we have heard from people about the announcement of baby Stewart #3 (coming May 26, 2009)

"I wasn't sure if that was a baby bump. You never know, some people just get fat."

"Are you serious?"

"Well that's interesting news."

"I thought you had been putting on a little weight, but I didn't want to say anything."

Terrific Two's

I can't believe that Jonah is already two. It seems like just yesterday I was carrying that little bundle around in my belly and now he's just all grown up. This buddy sure has been a blessing to our family these past two years. Here are just a few things that I want to remember about Jonah at this age:

Right now Jonah is at the stage where he is just soaking up the world around him. Everyday is a new learning experience and an adventure ready to be had.

He is definitely ALL boy. If there's an ant or bug crawling around you can bet he's ready to stomp it till it's dead.

One of his favorite things to say right now is , "that's poo poo", mostly to get a reaction out of his brother.

Physical tasks seem to come pretty easily for Jonah and he has an amazing throw. We're still not sure what hand is dominant as he uses both with ease for different things.

He has this sweet little laugh and is always trying to get people to laugh at him and his antics. When he's being disciplined he is very good at trying to "change the subject" and make us laugh at something else. Sometimes we cave because he's just too cute. (I think we're getting lax in our old age:)

He's started saying prayers at meals and bedtime and it's the sweetest thing I've ever heard. He makes sure to thank God for our family as well as each item on his plate. If he has three strawberries that day he will thank God for each and every one as he touches it.

He loves his big brother and wants to do and say everything that Landon does.

If you ask Jonah what he wants to be when he grows up he will tell you one of two things: "I want to be ophthalmology," or " I want to be superman." (both of which are admirable professions)

When people ask him how old he is he always says "I'm four."

He's already planning for the future. Last week he said, "When I get bigger, can I have some gum."

Here are a few pics:

First Birthday

Second birthday

3D Motorbike Cake (by special request from Jonah)

Motorcycle cousins in do rags

Conspiracy Theory

I've never really used my blog as a political forum before, but I am just so amazed by the audacity of the left wing media that I have to comment on it. Those of you who watched the GOP convention last night saw the party leaders publicly criticize the media for their biased coverage and I must say that I absolutely agree.
The media was very quick to give Palin "pseudo praise" last night in an effort to seem unbiased. Their praise centered around the the fact that the speech was good. "Palin delivered a great speech," they said. This was an obvious attempt to portray Palin as a good speech deliverer rather than the real person who is behind the speech. We all know that Republicans and Democrats alike have speech writers, but Palin is more than just a puppet behind a teleprompter, and she has already proved that with her record as well as her lifestyle.
I have also been watching the different public opinion polls lately, and have been feeling a sense of sadness and defeat in the fact that Obama is still in the lead. Today however, as I was looking at the Rasmussen reports I noticed in small print at the bottom of the page were statistics for the target audience that is being polled. To my astonishment these were the stats:

For September, the targets are 39.7% Democrat, 32.1% Republican and 28.2% unaffiliated. For the month of August, the targets were 40.6% Democrat, 31.6% Republican, and 27.8% unaffiliated.

It's no wonder these polls have Obama slightly leading when the target group is easily made up of 7-9% more Democrats than Republicans. My theory is that the Democratic media are doing all they can to convince Americans that Obama is "the guy." After all, most people want to be on the side of the winner right?
Well, I'm just not buying into these media tactics anymore. From now on I will be considering the source of my information (and its affiliation) and taking it with a grain of salt. I encourage my readers to do the same.

Just to prove a point:

Liberal Media Bias on Display

Thankful

This week I have been hit pretty hard in the face with persecution for some of my beliefs. Unlike the persecutions that some face, mine is one that I may never have been aware of had a brave friend not confessed her part in it. The Lord has truly been working in my heart through this experience and I wanted to share some things I am thankful for because it:
I am thankful for the gentle voice of the Holy Spirit that whispers into our hearts and nudges us to action.
I am thankful for Christian friends who walk in obedience to that nudging.
I am thankful for persecution and how the Lord draws us closer into his presence and sustains us during those times.
I am thankful for the example we have of forgiveness through Jesus Christ. A forgiveness that stretches as far as the east is from the west.
I am thankful for the power of our God who is so strong and mighty that he crushes the head of Satan and his attempts to gain a foothold into our lives.
I am thankful for Jehovah Rophe (the Lord who heals).

Sleep Stealer

For the past few nights my husband and I have been having a lot of trouble sleeping. All through the night we hear these intermittent thundering sounds that make the walls in our house vibrate. Consequently this causes the pictures on the walls to vibrate and it's incredibly loud. Last night it was so bad that I actually thought I might wake up to the news saying we had been bombed by the Russians. We've noticed this "thundering" off and on during the year that we have lived here, but it seems to be getting worse. Does anyone who lives around here have an idea as to what this phenomenon that has been stealing our sleep could be?

Too good to be true?

I was playing on the Internet this afternoon looking for unfinished furniture for our living room. The glass top pieces we have were great until we had kids, but now they are getting scratched up and are too hard to keep clean. So, I was checking out prices just to see how much some new furniture would cost and I came across a website called Archbold Furniture Co. I started looking and was adding items to my cart to try and see what the pieces cost. I never could get any numbers so I figured I had to fill out the form and they would e-mail me a quote. Well this is a copy of the confirmation e-mail that I received:
Purchase Details:
Item # Product Size Weight Options Qty. Price Total
ARC663U Pine Queen Anne Coffee Table 47x23x16 - - 1 $ 0.00 $ 0.00
ARC661U Pine Queen Anne End Table 23x18x22 - - 2 $ 0.00 $ 0.00
ARC662U Pine Queen Anne Sofa Table 47x15x30 - - 1 $ 0.00 $ 0.00
ARC667U Pine Queen Anne Hall Table 31x12x30 - - 1 $ 0.00 $ 0.00

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Order Subtotal: 0.00
Sales Tax: 0.00
Shipping: 0.00
--------
Your Grand Total Is: $ 0.00

I guess this must be my lucky day!

More Pics

We decided to plant a garden this year as an educational experience for the boys as well as to save some money. Unfortunately something was eating our basil. We took a leaf to the local nursery and were told that slugs were the culprit. The boys and I set out beer traps (as instructed by the nursery) and in the morning we had bowls full of the nasty slugs. Just to make sure they were good and dead the boys decided to pour salt all over them and watch the slugs disintegrate. Talk about your teachable moment, it doesn't get more educational than that.

Putt Putt Made Simple: By Jonah

Landon and daddy at the races.

Past Due Pics (more to come)

It's been a while since I've posted so I thought I'd give a quick picture recap of what we've been up to the last few months:

The boys have been flying rockets in their free time (supervised by daddy of course). This particular rocket has a spaceman named LaLa on it that the kids made for the launch.

Being so close to family has been such a blessing. Our kids get to spend so much time with their grandparents. This is a picture of Papa and Landon right before a rocket launch.

Two new favorite pastimes: playing doctor and the piano.

Landon decided it would be fun to surprise his dad with a singing telegram on his birthday. (Yes, I know that was back in Feb. but I told you I was behind). We watched you tube videos and he practiced for several days before the big event. He was super excited about it. On the big day we got all dressed up and went to his office. So many people were telling him how cute he looked that he got really embarrassed. By the time we got to Adam, Landon looked like Ralphie from "A Christmas Story" being forced to dress up in that silly bunny costume. I'll never forget this sweet moment.

Quick Cooking Tip

Fresh garlic is a must have for just about every recipe we make around our house. I have this useless little garlic press thing that is supposed to mince my garlic, but I find that it's so much more trouble than it is worth. Cleaning out the little holes is such a pain that I rarely pull this gadget out of my drawer. I have tried to mince garlic with a knife like they do on all of those cooking shows, but I don't think I have the skill or the $150 knife that they use. Their must be an easier way!

So I was watching an episode of Rachel Ray the other day and discovered that their IS a much faster and easier way to mince garlic. I don't know why I didn't think of it before. All you need is a cheese grater. You take your bulb, peel it, and grate away. This can even be done right over the dish that you are making it for. It's fast, it's simple, and it minces the garlic way better than cutting (or the garlic press) ever did for me. You have to watch your fingers when you get down to the woody tip, but I usually just throw that part away anyway.

I hope that this tip brightens your day as much as it did mine. Happy mincing!

Family Photos

I know its been a while, OK a very long while, since I've posted, but we've been taking some much needed town time. I thought I'd reintroduce our family to the blog world by posting some pics.

I have to brag on my sweet is law for a minute. She came down last month and took some pictures of our family because we hadn't had one made in over a year. The weather was incredibly windy and Jonah was NOT cooperating with our picture taking idea. We only had about 45 minutes to take pics before the sun set, but despite all of this she did such an amazing job. She's about to move to the Dallas/Fort Worth area this summer so if you need an AMAZING photographer, she's your girl. Here's a link to her blog: http://takethepicture.blogspot.com/

Do Less in 2008

When I first heard the title of this "New Years" sermon I wasn't sure where the youth minister was going with it. But what he had to say really made me stop and think:
Many new years resolutions consist of ways that we can do more (work out more, get more organized, spend more time keeping the house clean). While all of these things are great, it can be so easy to get wrapped up in "Doing More", and loose focus on being still and enjoying our relationship with Christ. We tend to wear our busyness as a badge of honor, saying things like: "I'm sorry I haven't called you back, but I've been sooooo busy this week. " Why is it that "Doing More", even if it is for a good cause, can become such a burden? The busier we are, the more Satan loves it, because if he can keep our attention somewhere other than on Christ, he is the winner.
So I resolve to do less in 2008. It may seem selfish, but I plan on being still and enjoying the beauty of God's creation. I plan on taking some much needed time to recapture my zeal for Christ. I will be doing less trivial things, but spending more time on the eternal ones.
(It's funny how God works, but I just received an e-mail that really drives home this point)

SATAN'S MEETING: (Read even if you're busy)

Satan called a worldwide convention of demons. In his opening address he said,
'We can't keep Christian out of church.''We can't keep them from reading their Bibles and knowing the truth.' 'We can't even keep them from forming an intimate relationship with their saviour.' 'Once they gain that connection with Jesus, our power over them is broken.' 'So let them go to their churches; let them have their covered dish dinners, BUT steal their time, so they don't have time to develop a relationship with Jesus Christ..' 'This is what I want you to do,' said the devil: 'Distract them from gaining hold of their Saviour and maintaining that
vital connection throughout their day!' 'How shall we do this?' his demons shouted. 'Keep them busy in the non-essentials of life and invent innumerable schemes to occupy their minds,' he answered. 'Tempt them to spend, spend, spend, and borrow, borrow, borrow.' 'Persuade the wives to go to work for long hours and the husbands to work 6-7 days each week, 10-12 hours a day, so they can afford their empty lifestyles.' 'Keep them from spending time with their children.' As their families fragment, soon, their homes will offer no escape from the pressures of work!' 'Over-stimulate their minds so that they cannot hear that still, small voice.' 'Entice them to play the radio or cassette player whenever they drive.'To keep the TV, VCR, Cd's and their PCs going constantly in their home and see to it that every store and restaurant in the world plays non-biblical music constantly.' 'This will jam their minds and break that union with Christ.''Fill the coffee tables with magazines and newspapers.' 'Pound their minds with the news 24 hours a day.' 'Invade their driving moments with billboards.' 'Flood their mailboxes with junk mail, mail order catalogs, sweepstakes,and every kind of newsletter and promotional offering free products, services and false hopes..' 'Keep skinny, beautiful models on the magazines and TV so their husband swill believe that outward beauty is what's important, and they'll become dissatisfied with their wives. ' 'Keep the wives too tired to love their husbands at night.' 'Give them headaches too! ' 'If they don't give their husbands the love they need,they will begin to look elsewhere.' 'That will fragment their families quickly!''Give them Santa Claus to distract them from teaching their children the real meaning of Christmas.' 'Give them an Easter bunny so they won't talk about his resurrection and power over sin and death.''Even in their recreation, let them be excessive.' 'Have them return from their recreation exhausted.' 'Keep them too busy to go out in nature and reflect on God's creation.Send them to amusement parks, sporting events, plays, concerts, and movies instead.' 'Keep them busy, busy, busy!''And when they meet for spiritual fellowship, involve them in gossip and small talk so that they leave with troubled consciences.' 'Crowd their lives with so many good causes they have no time to seek power from Jesus.' 'Soon they will be working in their own strength, sacrificing their health and family for the good of the cause.' 'It will work!' 'It will work!' It was quite a plan! The demons went eagerly to their assignments causing Christians everywhere to get busier and more rushed, going here and there. Having little time for their God or their families. Having no time to tell others about the power of Jesus to change lives.
I guess the question is, has the devil been successful in his schemes? You be the judge!!!!!