Some of our summer fun...

We've been enjoying our summer break mostly hanging out together at home. We've read lots of books. Christopher has now set a record for himself by reading the biggest book he can in the fewest number of hours (6 hours)--the book was Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, which he says he liked as much as HP and the Sorcerer's Stone, though the second was even more exciting. The books will continue to get bigger, but he wants to keep reading, so we'll see what else he reads before summer is over. He has also enjoyed The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, The Horse and His Boy, Mrs. Piggle Wiggle, Mrs. Piggle's Wiggle's Magic, MPW Farm, Tibet Through the Red Box, a few chapters of the Book of Revelation (he enjoys discussing what he's learning so ask him if you have a chance! :) ) Natalie also enjoyed a couple of the Mrs. Piggle Wiggle series, The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, three books from The Princess Tales and several stories for Andrew's benefit. I've also been re-reading several of these books, so I can have the conversations with the kids and a few others you can check out if you're a goodreads connection... :)

Darren has been keeping himself (and the rest of us) busy by digging around in our backyard so that we can someday have a real yard! He has now installed the entire irrigation system for the lawn and all of the trees, vines, garden, etc. we are considering--it takes a thorough master plan and plenty of digging, but I think it will all be worth it in a few years! :) Come visit sometime and see! We're laying sod on the 4th of July--how's that for a party?!

So now that I have a camera (and a husband) again, we captured the little guy playing his latest game....

Wistful and happy

My heart is really full right now as I think about the blessings I have, even as many of them have been unexpected. I was checking out a post about my sister's new baby and realized that we live in such an amazing time. I had been a little nervous when I knew she was getting ready to have him; just knowing of all the things that could go wrong-- though they often don't, thankfully.

Childbirth really is a big deal and each aspect of it, from conception to birth, requires a Higher Being who is overseeing it all, and ultimately decides how it will all play out. I have wonderful people in my life who have experienced the gamut of trials dealing with babies, including no conception happening, unplanned pregnancy, miscarriage, stillbirth, health problems for mom during pregnancy or after, health problems for baby, tearing, c-sections, prolapsed cord, multiples, birthing experiences that don't go as planned, and more. Some of these experiences I have dealt with personally and they were heart-wrenching for me even if I was able to eventually be at peace with the outcome.

Seeing my beautiful little brand-new nephew safe in his mommy's arms made me wish I could be there to get to hold him and smell him. :) It also caused me to remember my own moments with my babies and how I never have been able to hold them until they were at least a few hours old! My wonderful husband did get to hold them and comfort them, and my aching need to have each child in my arms was always eventually fulfilled. I feel so lucky that each of my children has made it through the harrowing experience of birth unscathed.

I know that our experiences happen for a reason and that we can grow from them, and that we can share each other's burdens. I hope that each of you know that you're not alone, and that you can be grateful for the amazing experiences life has given you too, even if it often doesn't go as planned, and especially when it actually does.

Missing someone

This video isn't exactly what I was trying for, but it will do. Whenever I ask David to say Mama, he says Dada. In the video, he says "Da" the first time, and "Ma" the second time, but he really just wants to grab the camera. His other favorite word right now is probably Andrew. He'll crawl around the house loudly calling out "An-duh, An-duh." We're pretty sure he likes the rest of us too though! :0 He's still not walking, though he can; he just doesn't feel confident and prefers to speed crawl.

We are missing our "Sponsor" around here right now (if you scroll down the side our blog, eventually you'll see a photo of our sponsor)! :)It's tough doing it all without someone to say thanks, let's talk about this, do you want to watch a movie?, let's call it a night or is just around. I was up late working on a project, partly because there was no one to say, "C'mon, it's getting late." I'm also not feeling good because I did something to my lower back. Shan, I feel for you before you had your operation.