Tuesday, August 31, 2010
My Josiah
My sweet, sweet Josiah spends most of his time looking ADORABLE, sleeping and being loved on by his brothers. He's a delight and I love him SO much! Oh, and he rolled over on Saturday- tummy to back and then back to his back!!!
Proverbs Topic #14 Friendship
12:26 "The righteous should choose his friends carefully, For the way of the wicked leads them astray."
17:9 "He who covers a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates friends."
17:17 "A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need."
18:24 "There are 'friends' who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother."
20:6 "A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."
22:24 "Make no friendship with an angry man, And with a furious man do not go,"
27:6 "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful."
27:9 "Ointment and perfume delight the heart, And the sweetness of a man’s friend gives delight by hearty counsel."
27:10 "Do not forsake your own friend or your father’s friend, Nor go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity; Better is a neighbor nearby than a brother far away."
27:14 "He who blesses his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, It will be counted a curse to him."
27:17 "As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend."
I like these verses- we will definitely be referencing back to them as we instruct our children who they should be hanging out with. Choose your friends wisely!!
17:9 "He who covers a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates friends."
17:17 "A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need."
18:24 "There are 'friends' who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother."
20:6 "A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."
22:24 "Make no friendship with an angry man, And with a furious man do not go,"
27:6 "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful."
27:9 "Ointment and perfume delight the heart, And the sweetness of a man’s friend gives delight by hearty counsel."
27:10 "Do not forsake your own friend or your father’s friend, Nor go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity; Better is a neighbor nearby than a brother far away."
27:14 "He who blesses his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, It will be counted a curse to him."
27:17 "As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend."
I like these verses- we will definitely be referencing back to them as we instruct our children who they should be hanging out with. Choose your friends wisely!!
Monday, August 30, 2010
My Noah
It's Noah's turn. This CUTE little boy has been making strides in little boyhood lately. He rides his trike like a star, he's wearing pull-ups and learning to use the potty, he's sleeping in the bottom buck of the bunk beds, he's getting better at playing catch, and he's also getting better learning his shapes and colors. It seems like daily Noah is talking better and better- his sentences are getting longer and he's using more and more new words. Before Josiah was born, I was a little concerned about Noah feeling left out. He was like my little velcro attachment. But with Jonny being home all summer, Noah grew quite a little bond with his Daddy. I couldn't always hold Noah, but luckily he had his Daddy around to cuddle. Also, whenever Jonny would go somewhere, I'd ask that he take Noah along, (Eli & Josiah are the easiest combination of two) so Noah got lots and lots of Daddy time this summer. You have no idea how many times I've heard "Where my Daddy go?" this week. Poor kid. I've been wearing him in the Ergo a lot lately, and now that Josiah is a little bigger, Eli can hold and play with him so that I can give Noah some loves. =)
Sunday, August 29, 2010
We love our church
We are so blessed to be part of Calvary Corvallis! We love the worship, the teaching and the people!!! Josiah's story made the Calvary Connection- check it out! (scroll down to the bottom.)
Saturday, August 28, 2010
My Eli
Okay, its time for me to brag on my boys again. Eli's up first. Here's a glimpse of my big, almost 4yr old, boy! He has such a sweet, kind heart. He's affectionate and loving... always telling me he loves me or that I'm pretty or that I smell good. This one's got my heart, that's for sure!
He's such a go-getter, too! I love this about his personality. He's so brave and ready to be adventurous. Also, Eli is so, so friendly. When we went to Prineville, we went to a big family BBQ. There were tons of little kids everywhere, and Eli just jumped in and made friends instantly. About two hours into the BBQ, four little kids that I'd never seen before that night, ran past me and I heard them say, "Let's go find Eli!". I turned and watched them run over to my extrovert son. =) Later I saw Eli running ahead of the group of kids- leading them in their play. Oh, boy!
These next couple pictures are from Eli's first race! He ran a 500mt run, and got 3rd place for the 3yr olds!!! I was so proud of him.
I tried to get a video of Eli finishing the race, but the finish line got backed up so I missed him running. :(
Eli asked to take the training wheels of his bike this week! I can't believe how quickly he got it. This boy is amazing; I LOVE him!!
He's such a go-getter, too! I love this about his personality. He's so brave and ready to be adventurous. Also, Eli is so, so friendly. When we went to Prineville, we went to a big family BBQ. There were tons of little kids everywhere, and Eli just jumped in and made friends instantly. About two hours into the BBQ, four little kids that I'd never seen before that night, ran past me and I heard them say, "Let's go find Eli!". I turned and watched them run over to my extrovert son. =) Later I saw Eli running ahead of the group of kids- leading them in their play. Oh, boy!
These next couple pictures are from Eli's first race! He ran a 500mt run, and got 3rd place for the 3yr olds!!! I was so proud of him.
I tried to get a video of Eli finishing the race, but the finish line got backed up so I missed him running. :(
Back to school
Jonny's school starts up earlier than most around here. Teachers were back this last week, and students start on Monday. Since I'm such a structure, list, and routine sort of girl, I decided to make a plan for my weekdays with the boys. I figured it would help me to not go crazy! So far it is working SO well. I feel so much more productive! There is way less chaos and the boys aren't arguing with each other as much.
So here's what I do. Mon., Wed., & Fri. we have a bible lesson and activity during Josiah's morning nap. On Wednesday, for example, the lesson was on worship, and the activity was making music shakers. (See pic to the left.) The lesson is
followed by 'free play'. (I don't know how else to phrase that, so I went with the preschool lingo.) To make their play time more interesting, I organized all of their toys into bins, and put them out in the garage. Each week I'm going to rotate two new bins inside. So far, this has been awesome- the boys are SO much more interested in playing with toys they haven't seen in awhile, and with less toys there is less of a mess. After play time, we clean up, have lunch, and take naps. (Eli has quiet time.) At 2ish we have school time, followed by outside play or errands... something to get us OUT of the house. When we come inside again, it will be Josiah's afternoon nap, and I will make dinner while the boys can watch an educational video like a bible video, reading video, or a Signing Time video. Then its just dinner, baths, bible story and songs with Dada followed by bedtime!
Tuesdays and Thursdays will look a little different. Tuesdays I have Women's Study in the morning followed by soup lunch, so the boys will get to have some social interaction with other kids and also practice listening to a 'teacher' other than Mama. Tuesdays go by really fast because its nap time when we get home, and then we'll probably go to Daddy's cross country practice or home meets. Thursdays are going to be our friends or outing day. We'll either invite friends over to play or go somewhere fun. This last Thursday we ate lunch at the duck pond, fed the ducks our old bread ends, came home for naps, went swimming, and then went to Eli's first race! (Pictures of that later!)
Anyway, that's all. I'm excited about this school year and am looking forward to the fun things I get to do with my boys. I love doing little lessons and activities with them and seeing their excitement! Its so fun being a Mommy!!!
So here's what I do. Mon., Wed., & Fri. we have a bible lesson and activity during Josiah's morning nap. On Wednesday, for example, the lesson was on worship, and the activity was making music shakers. (See pic to the left.) The lesson is
followed by 'free play'. (I don't know how else to phrase that, so I went with the preschool lingo.) To make their play time more interesting, I organized all of their toys into bins, and put them out in the garage. Each week I'm going to rotate two new bins inside. So far, this has been awesome- the boys are SO much more interested in playing with toys they haven't seen in awhile, and with less toys there is less of a mess. After play time, we clean up, have lunch, and take naps. (Eli has quiet time.) At 2ish we have school time, followed by outside play or errands... something to get us OUT of the house. When we come inside again, it will be Josiah's afternoon nap, and I will make dinner while the boys can watch an educational video like a bible video, reading video, or a Signing Time video. Then its just dinner, baths, bible story and songs with Dada followed by bedtime!Tuesdays and Thursdays will look a little different. Tuesdays I have Women's Study in the morning followed by soup lunch, so the boys will get to have some social interaction with other kids and also practice listening to a 'teacher' other than Mama. Tuesdays go by really fast because its nap time when we get home, and then we'll probably go to Daddy's cross country practice or home meets. Thursdays are going to be our friends or outing day. We'll either invite friends over to play or go somewhere fun. This last Thursday we ate lunch at the duck pond, fed the ducks our old bread ends, came home for naps, went swimming, and then went to Eli's first race! (Pictures of that later!)
Thursday, August 26, 2010
My first garden
I was never really interested in gardening; I always told Jonny if he wanted one, he could do it. Now that we have our own house, Jonny built these garden beds and bought the seeds, but asked me to plant them. I kinda liked planting them; then once they started growing, I got really excited! Now I actually like to go outside and water and weed my garden- I find it relaxing. Anyway, we've got all sorts of veggies growing now!! We have different types of lettuce, cucumbers, beans, sugar snap peas, carrots and watermelon!
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Praying
The night before I left to Cali I was praying for my boys and for my trip. I was nervous about leaving them, since I've only ever been away for two days. I let my mind wander to those worst case senerio thoughts... What would they do without me? What if something happened to one of them while I was gone? Then I started feeling convicted- for a couple of reasons. First of all, I was worrying instead of trusting that God has everything perfectly laid out in His master plan, and our days and trials are safely in his hands. Second, I felt that I wasn't praying in a mature way. Here's why- I was mostly praying for things like safety, health, and ease. I'm not saying its necessarily wrong to pray for those things; but for me, at that moment, I felt it wasn't right.
I think that too often my prayer life involves me praying for myself or others along the lines of... please help them, may this trial end, make it go away, let it be okay, keep them safe, keep them healthy, may it be easy, fix it, heal it, stop it. I'm still sorting through these ideas and need to search the scripture to find examples of this kind of prayer being okay or not okay. The first two verses that come to mind are:
"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." -Heb. 4:16
and
"Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord." -James 5:14
So I think its okay to ask for help and healing. But then I think that maybe a more mature prayer would be asking for strength and guidance to walk in whatever He has for me. "Lord, please lead me today in the things you have for me. May I glorify You in everything I do. Point out anything in me that offends Your Name."
The most famous scripture on prayer is in Matthew, when Jesus is teaching His disciples how to pray.
"In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen." -Mt 6:9-13
I don't at all see Jesus teaching the disciples to pray 'make the pain stop' or 'the suffering to end'. Instead, He instructs them to honor His name when we pray. (I DEFINITELY don't do that enough!) Also, for His will to be done, strength for the day, forgiveness of our sins, and for us to forgive others. In His model we are to be asking for help before we've even sinned- lead us not into temptation. And here's a whopper- break any bondage or hold that the enemy may be gripping us or entangling us with. And then, lastly- its all about You, Jesus. His kingdom, His power, His glory. Eeek! I get so consumed with me and my world.
As I'm typing this out, I'm thinking its okay to come to him like a child would come to his father and ask for help and to ask to 'make it go away'. But I want to start remembering this model when I pray and make it more about Him. Its interesting, too, that all of the disciples who were living hard after him encountered suffering, AND they were all martyrs. We will endure hardship. Scripture tells us this. Why am I so bent out of shape and surprised when it happens? Hardship brings us closer to the Lord. It grows us up in Him.
"Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter." -1 Peter 4:12-16
Lastly, I just want to share this excerpt I found on the line, "Your kingdom come. Your will be done."
I think that too often my prayer life involves me praying for myself or others along the lines of... please help them, may this trial end, make it go away, let it be okay, keep them safe, keep them healthy, may it be easy, fix it, heal it, stop it. I'm still sorting through these ideas and need to search the scripture to find examples of this kind of prayer being okay or not okay. The first two verses that come to mind are:
"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." -Heb. 4:16
and
"Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord." -James 5:14
So I think its okay to ask for help and healing. But then I think that maybe a more mature prayer would be asking for strength and guidance to walk in whatever He has for me. "Lord, please lead me today in the things you have for me. May I glorify You in everything I do. Point out anything in me that offends Your Name."
The most famous scripture on prayer is in Matthew, when Jesus is teaching His disciples how to pray.
"In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen." -Mt 6:9-13
I don't at all see Jesus teaching the disciples to pray 'make the pain stop' or 'the suffering to end'. Instead, He instructs them to honor His name when we pray. (I DEFINITELY don't do that enough!) Also, for His will to be done, strength for the day, forgiveness of our sins, and for us to forgive others. In His model we are to be asking for help before we've even sinned- lead us not into temptation. And here's a whopper- break any bondage or hold that the enemy may be gripping us or entangling us with. And then, lastly- its all about You, Jesus. His kingdom, His power, His glory. Eeek! I get so consumed with me and my world.
As I'm typing this out, I'm thinking its okay to come to him like a child would come to his father and ask for help and to ask to 'make it go away'. But I want to start remembering this model when I pray and make it more about Him. Its interesting, too, that all of the disciples who were living hard after him encountered suffering, AND they were all martyrs. We will endure hardship. Scripture tells us this. Why am I so bent out of shape and surprised when it happens? Hardship brings us closer to the Lord. It grows us up in Him.
"Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter." -1 Peter 4:12-16
Lastly, I just want to share this excerpt I found on the line, "Your kingdom come. Your will be done."
"Jesus taught many things about the kingdom of God, but one seems especially appropriate in this context--that the kingdom of God is within us [Luke 17:20-21]. If we are children of God, who can call Him "Our Father," we have the kingdom of God within us, for Jesus has sent His Spirit to live in us. He promised that as He is in the Father, we will be in Him and He will be in us [John 14:16-20]. Jesus taught that He is the true Vine, and we are those who are to abide in Him as branches that draw their very life from the vine.
Jesus’s life in us puts the kingdom of God within us. For His kingdom to come in us, day after day, we must be filled with the Spirit [Ephesians 5:18]--and this happens only to the degree that we are surrendered to Him, emptied of self. As part of our daily prayer, we must surrender all that we are."
A week away
This post will probably only be interesting to people who share a history with me in CA., but I had to post pics and share about it, so that I can have this as a memory when I print it.
Josiah and I had SUCH a fun trip. It was quite a first vacation for a little guy. =) I was gone for a whole week without my husband and big boys!!! I thought I was going to be missing them miserably, but I didn't... okay, that sounds a little bad. I missed being with them, but completely enjoyed myself and the lighter load of responsibility. I am so glad I was able to have this little trip. And now it'll probably be another four years before I leave my boys for this long! =)
My friend, Julia, (friends since we were toddlers) invited me to drive down to CA with her to visit family. We drove down to my grandma's house in Keno (outside of Klamath Falls) on the first day. My sweet, sweet grandma let Josiah and I have her master bedroom. Her house is right on the Klamath River and has an incredible yard. For Josiah's 5am feeding, I woke up to a beautiful view of the sun making its way over the horizon and casting its rays over the shimmering water. (I tried to take a picture, but it didn't turn out and I was too tired to try again.) The next day we drove 5hrs to my sis Becky's house in Concord, CA. We stayed with her for three days, and then headed down to Templeton, to Julia's brother and sister-in-law's house. I left the next day with a family friend and spent two days at her lovely home in Solvang, Ca. Solvang is right next to Santa Ynez where I grew up and just south of Santa Barbara where I was born. Then, my amazing and generous sister paid for my plane ticket back home.
Josiah was EXCELLENT the whole trip! Never freaked out with all the driving; he is such an easy baby. We had such a relaxing, great time. Here are lots of pics...
Jacey and Josiah did a lot of sitting in their car seats, but they were so great!!
Josiah helping Nana and Papa Ted make breakfast.
This pic didn't turn out great, but this framed artwork in Nana's house is painted by Eli!
Getting some loves from Nana.
View from Mt. Diablo.
Josiah enjoying the view. (Don't worry, I wasn't holding him over the ledge!)
My surveyor (Sr. Land Tech) sister found this median point thing of interest. =)
Hiking around some strait... I don't remember the name...
Josiah slept like an angle every night- going to be between 6:30 and 7pm.
We girls painted our toes and sipped margaritas!
Little monkey boy fits in good at Becky's house. (She has always loved monkeys and has a huge collection of monkey stuffed animals.)
Eucalyptus grove- so pretty!
Josiah starting laughing the day we left.
Oh, and the boys were just fine. Jonny did a great job! I was so happy to be home again and squeeze them. =)
Josiah and I had SUCH a fun trip. It was quite a first vacation for a little guy. =) I was gone for a whole week without my husband and big boys!!! I thought I was going to be missing them miserably, but I didn't... okay, that sounds a little bad. I missed being with them, but completely enjoyed myself and the lighter load of responsibility. I am so glad I was able to have this little trip. And now it'll probably be another four years before I leave my boys for this long! =)
My friend, Julia, (friends since we were toddlers) invited me to drive down to CA with her to visit family. We drove down to my grandma's house in Keno (outside of Klamath Falls) on the first day. My sweet, sweet grandma let Josiah and I have her master bedroom. Her house is right on the Klamath River and has an incredible yard. For Josiah's 5am feeding, I woke up to a beautiful view of the sun making its way over the horizon and casting its rays over the shimmering water. (I tried to take a picture, but it didn't turn out and I was too tired to try again.) The next day we drove 5hrs to my sis Becky's house in Concord, CA. We stayed with her for three days, and then headed down to Templeton, to Julia's brother and sister-in-law's house. I left the next day with a family friend and spent two days at her lovely home in Solvang, Ca. Solvang is right next to Santa Ynez where I grew up and just south of Santa Barbara where I was born. Then, my amazing and generous sister paid for my plane ticket back home.
Josiah was EXCELLENT the whole trip! Never freaked out with all the driving; he is such an easy baby. We had such a relaxing, great time. Here are lots of pics...
Jacey and Josiah did a lot of sitting in their car seats, but they were so great!!
Josiah helping Nana and Papa Ted make breakfast.
This pic didn't turn out great, but this framed artwork in Nana's house is painted by Eli!
Getting some loves from Nana.
View from Mt. Diablo.
Josiah enjoying the view. (Don't worry, I wasn't holding him over the ledge!)
My surveyor (Sr. Land Tech) sister found this median point thing of interest. =)
Hiking around some strait... I don't remember the name...
Josiah slept like an angle every night- going to be between 6:30 and 7pm.
We girls painted our toes and sipped margaritas!
Little monkey boy fits in good at Becky's house. (She has always loved monkeys and has a huge collection of monkey stuffed animals.)
Eucalyptus grove- so pretty!
Seacrest Resort Hotel at Pismo Beach. This is where my family would go for 4 of July's sometimes with the Barragans and Ulricks. And then, where Jonny proposed to me... the beach is right on the other side!
Speaking of the Ulricks, me and Josiah with sweet Debbie in her lovely home.
Debbie drove me all around so I could see my old town. This is the turn off to Los Olivos- toward Santa Ynez, off of HWY 101. Feels like home!!!
Well, the 'S' is hiding behind those bushes, but this is my town!! Beautiful SANTA YNEZ!
This is the house my dad and grandpa built and I grew up in as a little girl. Its crazy how one little house can stir up so many feelings inside of me. My mom planted the pine trees in front, (I used to be taller than them!) but now there is only one left.
Short video of our house and the Barragan's house. (Julia's house.)
And here is our apartment building two blocks down from our house. After my mom and dad divorced, we lived in apt. #2 (bottom left) for four years while my mom went to school.
Another house my grandpa built and my parents lived in before I was born.
El Rancho Market- a store my mom briefly worked at. 
The Longhorn. This old building is in a cute part of town. We used to have yummy pancakes here.
Okay, this is a little strange, but right next to The Longhorn, is the Maverick. Its a bar my dad and grandpa used to hang out at. Strange to post it, but I have memories here and its part of my history. I remember poking my head in to stare at all the dollar bills tacked to the ceiling.
I never made it to the beach this trip, so I will be back! Bye Bye Santa Barbara- I love you!
My happy baby in the plane.
Speaking of the Ulricks, me and Josiah with sweet Debbie in her lovely home.
Debbie drove me all around so I could see my old town. This is the turn off to Los Olivos- toward Santa Ynez, off of HWY 101. Feels like home!!!
Well, the 'S' is hiding behind those bushes, but this is my town!! Beautiful SANTA YNEZ!
This is the house my dad and grandpa built and I grew up in as a little girl. Its crazy how one little house can stir up so many feelings inside of me. My mom planted the pine trees in front, (I used to be taller than them!) but now there is only one left.Short video of our house and the Barragan's house. (Julia's house.)
And here is our apartment building two blocks down from our house. After my mom and dad divorced, we lived in apt. #2 (bottom left) for four years while my mom went to school.
Another house my grandpa built and my parents lived in before I was born.
El Rancho Market- a store my mom briefly worked at. 
The Longhorn. This old building is in a cute part of town. We used to have yummy pancakes here.
Okay, this is a little strange, but right next to The Longhorn, is the Maverick. Its a bar my dad and grandpa used to hang out at. Strange to post it, but I have memories here and its part of my history. I remember poking my head in to stare at all the dollar bills tacked to the ceiling.
I never made it to the beach this trip, so I will be back! Bye Bye Santa Barbara- I love you!
My happy baby in the plane.Josiah starting laughing the day we left.
Oh, and the boys were just fine. Jonny did a great job! I was so happy to be home again and squeeze them. =)
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