Liam's New Habit

On days that we are home in the morning (which is most days), Nora and Liam have "room time" where they play independently in their rooms for about 30-45 minutes. Over the past few weeks, Liam has started to do this:

Actually, the pictures I took this day were early on in this new activity. One day, he emptied his ENTIRE toy box into his bed. I guess he has big plans for naptime! Silly, crazy kiddo!

Sassafras

Here's my little Sassafras. Just up from a nap.

Instagram Update

It's definitely been a while since I dumped the pictures off of my cell phone onto the computer. Looking back now, there were so many cute ones of the kids from weeks back that I wanted to share. Here's what's been going on with us the past few weeks as told through the lens of my phone camera:

What's better for breakfast than Cocoa Puffs? Not only are they healhty (ahem, yeah right!), but your milk turns into chocolate milk! One of Nora's favorite special treats for breakfast.

Jonathan and I went on a date last week to Bravo where I got this delicious spicy shrimp pasta.  Divine!

Someone is now big enough and has enough head control to sit in the Bumbo seat!  Where did my little newborn go?

I know this is blurry, but with moving toddlers and babies all over the place, it was impossible for me to capture a good shot.  We met our very close friends, The Webbs, for dinner last week at Cracker Barrel.  Dalyn and Jonathan were residents together and we became super close.  Then they had to move to NC for a few years, but we hope they are able to move closer back to Knoxville within the next year.  We love the Webbs!  Dalyn, Jessica, Finley and Landry!

Many a morning, Liam is the first kiddo up, so he and I will snuggle on the couch watching Mickey Mouse.  I love my snuggle time with my sweet boy.

Liam and Nora can't help but love Stella.  They love to "play" with her on her playmat.  Such sweetness!

Yesterday, we ended up on a spontaneous nature walk at a park near Campbell Station.  We met JB's parents for lunch and then had some time to kill, so we thought we'd venture out to the park.  The kids had a blast!  Here's Nora dancing with a statue of a bear.

Here's Liam taking a break during our hike to sit on a stump.  Liam had so much fun collecting acorns.  His pockets were jammed with all of the "goodies" he found along the way.  Then, he got to throw them off of a bridge into a creek.  Every.boy's.dream.

Look at this smile!  While Nora and Liam nap, I get some sweet one-on-one time with Stella.  We play and snuggle and get in some tummy time.  I love having just a few quiet moments with just her.  I don't know if it is possible for me to love this baby girl any more.   Anyway, I can get a great smile out of her, but she has yet to laugh out loud! 

Our family weakness: Sonic.  We go there at least once a week.  Grape slushies and Cherry Coke slushies are my current addiction.

We've also been enjoying the more fall-like weather.  We have spent many evenings on the Greenway walking/jogging with the kids in the stroller.  They love to ride and then get to play at the playground when we are done.

Can't believe this girl is four years old!

Watching the rain....we've definitely had some rainfall in the past few weeks.

Speaking of rain....a few weeks ago now, we had some MAJOR rain.  It was Labor Day, now that I think of it.  Jonathan's office building had some considerable damage from the rain and water was coming in pretty heavily over his operatories.  Here's a terrible picture of what it looked like once they got some tarps put up to try and protect his equipment.  Thankfully, he is now able to work in all of his operatories, but there are still some things that need to be taken care of.  Stressful week that was!

Going back a ways now.  My mom came in town for Nora's birthday party.  Here she is holding Stella Bella after cooking us a delicious fried shrimp dinner.  She's the best cook!

The kids are really into coloring and markering these days.  Here they are showing off some of their artwork.

There are no words for this boy!  Here he is wearing Stella's hairband.  Silly boy!

Soccer

Guess who's playing soccer this fall!?

Last week, Nora had her first soccer practice and scrimmage.  She is on a four-year-old team this year, which is basically an introduction to soccer.  They learn basic skills and scrimmage the other players on their team.  Next year, if she keeps with it, she will have actual games against other teams.  So far, she is loving it!  Also, Jonathan is one of her coaches.  He played for many years as a boy, so he is really excited to be out there with her.  Should be much family fun this fall as we spend lots of time on the soccer field!

Blessings of a Smaller Home

So, I guess I haven't updated that we have officially taken our home off of the market.  We put it up for sale last February, hoping to sell before Stella's arrival, but after six months with no offers and a dwindling market, we decided to wait.  As Liam says, "It's hard to be patient!"  I was torn (and still am, for that matter) about staying put where we are for right now.  I am thankful that we don't have to deal with house showings, open houses, having to keep the house spit-spot all of the time, and having to gather up three kiddos within a moment's notice if a realtor happens to call for a last-minute showing.  It was a lot to deal with around the time that Stella was born, so when we took the house off of the market, I was able to breathe a deep sigh of relief. 

On the other hand, we really would like to have more space.  Even typing that makes me grateful for what space we have.  We are more cramped than we'd like to be, but really, we are doing just fine.  I think for me it's just a struggle with contentment and gratefulness with what we have.  I like to think about what I would like to have compared to what we do have.  I like to compare our house to what others have, which only heightens my discontentment.  Some days I am thankful that I don't have more space to keep up because--just being honest--it's all I can do to keep some sense of sanity in the space that we have.  I know that more house means more work, so in this busy season of having three little ones, I am trying to remind myself that less is best for now.

A few weeks ago, I came across a blog post on this very subject on Passionate Homemaking.  The title of the article is "The Blessings of a Small Home."  It was just the reminder I needed to hear to be thankful for where we are and some great reasons why.  I trust that in His perfect timing, the Lord may bless us with a larger home.  But, I think God keeps reminding me that a new house is not where I will find happiness.  I don't need a new house; I don't deserve a new house.  I am blessed beyond measure with what I have right now.  And if it was better for us to be somewhere else, that is where we would be.  I trust in my Sovereign, my Good, my All-Knowing and All-Powerful God!  I just have to keep reminding my sinful, selfish heart that He knows better than I do!

Interview with 4-Year-Old Nora

A few weeks ago (around the time of Nora's 4th birthday), we were sitting around the kitchen table coloring.  I have read on several peoples' blogs where they interview their children on their birthday each year, asking similar questions each year, and record what the kids say.  It is always so interesting and cute to hear what the birthday boy or girl has to say, so I thought I would start that tradition with my kiddos too!  So, borrowing some questions from some friends, here is my interview with 4-year-old Nora:

What is your favorite thing God made? 
Food.
What type of food is your favorite?
Chick-fil-a. And Old McDonald's.  And Wendy's.
What is your favorite animal?
Giraffe. And ponies.  And unicorns.
What is your favorite color?
My favorite color is pink and yellow.
What is your favorite day of the week?
Monday.  Because that's the way that I like it and it's fun.
What is your favorite thing about Liam?
I love how he talks and I love him how he shares with me.
Tell me something funny about Liam.
His deep sound.  When he says, "I love Stella."
What is your favorite thing about Stella?
I love how she talks and how she kisses me.
Do you like having a brother and a sister?
Yes!
Why?
Because I like how they talk and I love them very much.
What is your favorite thing about Daddy?
He's my favorite guy.  We read books, color with him.
What does Daddy do with you that is special?
We ride my scooter.
Tell me something funny about Daddy.
He makes a funny face. (She showed me how he does it.)
What does Daddy do all day?
Goes to work.
What kind of work?
His office.  He works on people's teeth.
What is your favorite thing about Mommy?
I love how her hair is colored and her shirt is pretty.  I love her because she smells good.
What does Mommy do all day?
Clean the dishes and wash the laundry.  Take care of Stella, Nora and Liam.
What is your favorite thing to learn about?
I like to learn about creation.

What is your favorite book?
My favorite book is the Rapunzel book.
What do you want to be when you grow up?
I'm not going to grow up.  I'm just going to stay four.
I want to be a woman.
And do what?
I don't want to be a grown up.  I just want to stay four.
What is your favorite thing to do with the family?
Read books.
What is your favorite activity to do?
To learn about the bible.
What's your favorite thing about the bible?
Mary.
Why Mary?
(Silence).
What kind of things do you like to color?
Princess things.
Who is Jesus?
Our Help.  He's a son.   
Who's son? God's son.
What does he help us do?
Share.
Anything else?
Have fun.
What did Jesus do?
He take care of us and he loved us.  (epiphany) He died!
He's the Lord Jesus Christ.
What do you think its going to be like to be four?
Have a birthday and clean up.
What are you excited about doing now that you are four?
Jumping high in the sky.........(short pause)......
I think that is enough now.

To be honest, she wasn't all that interested in being interviewed.  At first she was answering all excitedly, but she quickly got tired and wanted to resume coloring!  It'll be fun to compare this to what she has to say next year!

Stepping Heavenward

I just had to get up from reading and share with you about this book.  I started reading it last Sunday, and any chance I get, I pick it up to read.  I am absolutely loving this book and am so challenged by reading about the journey of this woman from a young girl of sixteen who is so clueless about a true relationship with God to a wife and mother who through suffering, hardship, and true life learns what it means to be a daughter of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Seriously, I have highlighted about half of the book.  I think this will be one of my all-time favorite books that will be read over and over!

If you have not read it, I would highly recommend it.  Here are a few quotes that I just can't stop thinking about:

"If there is any one truth I would gladly impress on the mind of a young Christian, it is just this, that God notices the most trivial act, accepts the poorest, most threadbare little service, listens to the coldest, feeblest petition, and gathers up with parental fondness all our fragmentary desires and attempts at good works.  Oh, if we could only begin to conceive how He loves us, what different creatures we should be!"  page 68

"The more I pray and the more I read the Bible, the more I feel my ignorance.  And the more earnestly I desire holiness, the more utterly unholy I see myself to be." page 90

"...I shall now have one more mouth the more to fill and two more feet the more to shoe, more disturbed nights, more laborious days, and less leisure or visiting, reading, music, and drawing. Well! This is one side of the story, to be sure, but I look at the other.  Here is a sweet, fragrant mouth to kiss; here are two more feet to make music with their pattering about my nursery.  Here is a soul to train for God; and the body in which it dwells is worthy all it will cost, since it is the abode of a kingly tenant.  I may see less of friends, but I have gained one dearer to them all, to whom, while I minister in Christ's name, I make a willing sacrifice of what little leisure for my own recreation my other darlings had left me.  Yes, my precious baby, you are welcome to your mother's heart, welcome to her time, her strength, her health, her tenderest cares, to her lifelong prayers!  Oh, how rich I am, how truly, how wondrously blest!"  page 228-229

Stepping Heavenward, by Elizabeth Prentiss

Signs of Growing Up

Liam is growing up so much.  His vocabulary and language skills keep improving, and it is so fun to have conversations and hear him say fun things.  At the same time, it's a little sad!  Things that he would say that were so "baby-ish" are now turning into full, complete sentences with correct pronunciations and inflections.  It's a sign that our little man is growing up!  Here are some things he is saying:

For the longest time, when Liam wanted to be held he would lift his arms up and say, "Shood you."  That was his way of saying, "Hold me."  "Shood you" eventually transformed into "Shood you me."  "Shood you me, Momma," was something I heard countless times a day.  Not too long ago, my mother-in-law said to me, "My heart broke today."  Why? I asked.  "Well," she said, "Liam walked up to me in the kitchen just a few minutes ago and looked up at me and said, 'Hold me, Granna.'"

It wasn't "Shood you" or "Shood you me."  It was "Hold me, Granna."
Some precious things he says these days that are special to me:

-"I fix bresis"  (breakfast)
-"I play with your phone for a second?"
-"Good Mawnin', Stella!"
-"That a little one."  (In reference to spankings.  He likes to tell us when they don't hurt him, silly boy!)
-"Sing 'Deep'"  (He loves to sing "O, the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus")
-"What you talking about, Willis?"
-"I do it."
-"Pway with me."  (Play with me)
-"I wanna show you sumpin."
-"I show you a cool trick."

This boy blows us away with all that he says....I could spend all day thinking of something funny or silly or surprising that he says.  He is growing up so fast!  Liam loves to get a reaction and a laugh, so many times he will say something that will cause us to laugh and even though he has no idea what he is saying, he'll start repeating it because he gathers that we thought it was funny. 

Having a boy has definitely been a learning experience as he is totally different in many ways from Nora, but there is such a sweetness and tenderness in Liam that is just priceless.  For example, the other day Nora had her first soccer practice/scrimmage.  Liam, Stella and I watched on the sidelines while Nora played and JB coached.  After her practice, the first thing Liam said to Nora as he put his arms around her was, "How was your practice, Nora?"  He did that all on his own!  He is such a sweetheart! 

So, there's a snapshot of Liam and his expanding vocabulary.  I will try to be better about recording more of what this crazy, silly boy is up to these days.  For they surely are going by so quickly!

Nora Kathryn: 4 Years Old

Well, Nora turned four years old a short while back, and today was her 4-year well visit with Dr. G!  It's hard to believe that our girl is FOUR!  One year away from starting school, old enough to dress herself, big enough to have some household "chores," mature enough to ask some deep, compelling questions.  Four is a very fun age!  Nora is such a great helper to me and to our family, and I see how much she loves her brother and sister in the little ways she cares for them.  Anyway, more on what's she up to in a minute.  For now, here are Nora's stats from her appointment this morning:

Weight: 34 lbs.  (55th percentile)
Height: 39 7/8 inches  (75th percentile)

The nurse commented that Nora seemed tall for her age, which is funny because one of her best friends, Layla, is super tall, so I never consider Nora tall.  I'll have to try to compare her to other kiddos.  Wonder where she'd get the tall gene from? Neither Jonathan nor I are tall, but my dad is over 6 feet!

Just for comparison, at three years old, Nora weighed 29 lbs and was 37 1/8 inches tall.  So this year she's gained 5 lbs and grown over 2.5 inches.  Crazy!!

This next year will be an exciting one for Nora.  She's signed up again for ballet, which she loves, so she'll continue to have lessons once a week with another recital in the spring.  We have also signed her up for a 4 year old soccer program called the Mighty Mites.  Jonathan is one of her coaches, and everything starts tomorrow evening.  We are so excited!  We've bought her some cleats, shin guards, and her very own soccer ball.  I can't wait to see what she's like out there on the field!  Will she be competitive? Clueless? A bird watcher?

We are not doing official preschool with Nora this year, but I am trying to work with her each week at home.  We are currently trying to do a letter a week where we work on recognizing each letter and learning their sounds.  She can recognize all of her letters, for the most part, but there are only a few sounds she knows so far.  We've also been working on her tracing skills, cutting skills, and glue skills.  Some things we do include:
*cutting things out of magazines and pasting them on construction paper.
*work in some preschool workbooks that I've bought that focus on numbers and basic math skills, tracing the alphabet, and other preschool skills like matching, sequences, similarities/differences, etc.
*I made homemade alphabet "flashcards" and she likes to play a game where I scramble the flashcards on the floor and she has to find them and put them in the correct order.  She's getting much better with that!

Another book I have started going through with the kids is a fun family workbook/coloring book called "The 21 Rules of this House."  It's a really neat parenting/family book I came across a few years ago that helps you teach your children just some basic Christian principles.  Most of the principles are rules already implemented in our household, but it's good to put them into words and phrases that we can talk about and use as a reference point.  Some of the rules include:

*We obey the Lord Jesus Christ.
*We obey our parents.
*We do not hurt one another with unkind words or deeds.
*When we have work to do, we do it without complaining.
*When someone is sad, we comfort him.
*We take good care of everything God has given us.

Each "rule" comes with a coloring sheet that helps the kids understand what the rule is.  It even has a big printout of all of the rules that you could hang up in your house somewhere, but we haven't done that.  Anyway, we aren't very far into it.  We've just talked about Rule 1 for the past two weeks, so we will probably move on really soon.

Nora also likes to play on the computer with some educational websites such as Starfall.com.  My mom is a first grade teacher and has given me lots of great links for educational websites that I'll have to share if anyone is interested in printing stuff off for their kids or anything like that.

Nora loves to ride her scooter around the neighborhood.  She can ride her bicycle with training wheels very well, but we've been trying to teach her to ride her balance bike, but she won't get on it.  We don't want to force the issue, but I hate that we bought this bike that she won't use!  Hopefully we'll get one of the kids to get some use out of it!

This summer has really shown Nora to be an improved swimmer.  She took swim lesson in early June and after much working with her in the pool, she can now swim by herself without a life jacket, and she can put her face in the water and come up for air while swimming.  She's definitely a little fish!

Princesses, Barbies, and her Calico Critter house are Nora's favorite toys to play with.  She's still really into books, but I'll say that pretending has taken over more than her "reading" has.  I can't wait until she's really reading and when we can read great, classic books together! 

Every day, Nora seems to be growing more mature and more wonderful.  I cannot believe she is four!  We love her so much and look forward to the continued work of God in her life this next year.  I pray that Jonathan and I grow in our dependence on the Lord for how to nurture her and raise her and care for her.  We are so blessed to have Nora Kathryn as our first daughter!

Came to My Rescue

Just being honest, it's been a rough week this past week parenting-wise.  I love my kiddos so much, but sometimes I get overwhelmed by the constancy of tending to a four-year old, two-year old, and three-month old.  It's a very busy season, but such a precious season.  I am so thankful for the time I have with them, almost every minute of every day, but I get very impatient at times and don't do a great job of displaying kindness, gentleness, and patience.  It's like I know in my head the kind of mother I want to be all of the time, but because of my sinful heart I am not that mother.  God has been showing me that I am completely dependent on him to be the Momma that brings him glory and shows Christ to my kiddos.  I have been very aware this week that I can't do this job by myself.

While driving in the car yesterday, I was listening to Pandora and found myself listening to a familiar song:  "Came to My Rescue" by Hillsong United.

Here are the words:

Falling on my knees in worship
Giving all I am to seek your face
Lord all I am is yours
My whole life
I place in your hands
God of Mercy
Humbled I bow down
In your presence at your throne

I called you answered
And you came to my rescue and I,
I wanna be where you are

In my life be lifted high
In our world be lifted high
In our love be lifted high

 The words "My whole life I place in your hands.  God of mercy, humbled,  I bow down.  [. . .] I called, you answered, and you came to my rescue and I want to be where you are."  That's my prayer.  My whole life, my kids' lives, their hearts, their salvation, their attitudes and behaviors, their education, their relationships with each other, my relationship with Jonathan, my chaotic house, my relationship with You.....I give it all to you.  I know in my sin I'll continue to take it back, thinking that I can handle it when indeed I cannot, but right now, I am going to choose to let go and give it to you.  Help me to keep doing that.  Give it up, give it you.  It belongs to you, anyway!