Trip to the Beach

One of the best parts of our summer was our family trip to the beach. The four of us went to Galveston Island for a few days, July 10-13. It was a wonderful time for us to enjoy spending time together. We had no agenda or plans, just go to the beach and the swimming pool when we felt like it. Joshua had looked forward to this trip for a month and a half and I really hoped it lived up to his very high expectations. I was nervous to take a three year old and almost 5 month old but they both were excellent.

We had lots of walks down to the beach where were played in the waves and built sand castles. One parent played on the beach with Joshua and the other got to lay out while watching Bethany on the shore. She had a little tent and would take naps or play, perfectly content. She makes it very easy for us to do fun things for her big brother.

We also spent time at the pool at our condo. Actually, Daddy and Joshua spent the most time there because they would go down to it while Bethany napped. It was a family pool that had a wade in area, a mushroom fountain and a crocodile to ride. Joshua loved it, especially the mushroom.

We made two trips to The Spot, a favorite restaurant from when we would go to Beach Camp with the youth group. It is a fun little place on the beach with excellent food. We also had a Sonic right by our hotel. Joshua loves their orange slushes and orange sodas so a Sonic at the beach was pretty amazing in his book.

We couldn't have asked for a better time and have wonderful memories of our time together. Here are some of the pictures from our trip.

Mama and Joshua

Playing at the pool

Time at the beach

Lounging at the pool

Joshua at The Spot

This is how we went down to the beach every day. We could hardly go 10 feet without someone commenting about how cute they were.

Summer 2011

I must apologize, I have been absolutely horrible about keeping up with the blog! We have had a very full summer where we traveled at least every two weeks. We had two family weddings, a trip to the beach and a few family visits in there too. Plus Vacation Bible School, swimming lessons, and normal life with a three year old and a now almost six month old!
It has been a summer with lots of memories so I am going to start posting lots of blogs this week to try and catch up. They might not be in any kind of order but I don't want to forget these moments and stories. Not to mention wanting to share them with you all! So enjoy seeing our summer!

Bethany at 3 months

I realized that I never posted Bethany's 3 month picture and updates so here it is several weeks late.

Bethany is growing so quickly! At a quick weight check on her 3 month birthday she was 14 pounds, 1 ounce. I don't know her length but based on her toes now trying to poke out of her pjs, she is getting much longer.

Her sweet personality is even more apparent now that she is more vocal. She babbles and sings a lot and with such expression! She has the sweetest voice and giggle. She will often greet Mama, Daddy and Joshua with an easy smile and most anybody else can get a smile from her too. I just can't get her to smile for the camera very often! She is still very snuggly but likes to "stand" a lot and now looks around for one of us when she hears us talking. She likes to watch what is going on around her. At the 3 month mark and the surrounding weeks, she has had a little harder time relaxing with anybody but Mama but she likes to play with anybody. She has begun grabbing for toys and bringing them to her mouth and chews on her hands a lot. She is sleeping pretty well at night and napping pretty well too. She still needs to be swaddled to be able to relax enough to sleep and likes her pacifier, though is using it a little less. She still would rather Mama hold her than anything but will play for longer periods of time with the toys on her bouncer and swing. Aside from a few occasions where she doesn't want to nap well, she is a very easy baby and such a joy.

Night Night

Joshua has had the exact same night time routine from the day he turned four months old. He is very much a routine child in many aspects of life, as most little kids are, and that definitely applies to night time.
Bedtime has never been super easy with Joshua. He went one night from the time he was 4 months old, until he was at least 17 months old, without crying when we put him into bed. Often he only cried for a moment, but it still was not easy to put him in his bed crying. Naptime has also remained difficult. Joshua just does not like to stop to go to sleep. When we moved to our new house, we decided to try him out in his toddler bed because we had friends who had success when they did that with their difficult sleeper. There have been hard nights here and there but for the most part, it was one of our better decisions.
Nightime is a breeze now! And tonight was one of the best ever...the kind of moments when you physically feel your heart becoming mush.
Here is Joshua's routine:
Bathtime- tonight I think I was more wet than he was! Bathtime is easy and usually fun for all of us and he is having fun choosing what toys he'll play with and putting them up when the bath is over.
Getting in pjs- Joshua has always had sensitive skin, which has helped with his routine. He gets coated in lotion and a special cream for eczema spots. He gets in pjs and then immediately takes off to the living room, where the parent who didn't do bathtime is waiting.
Drinking milk- this is the time where he is supposed to be calming down and it requires all of us to sit in the living room so that he'll wind down.
Bedtime- this is our absolute favorite (well, at least Daddy and Mama's), it provides for some very sweet moments. We read a book together (though Joshua is usually an active participant in reading books, he is mellow by this time) and then talk to God. It is the sweetest scene. He clasps his hands (sometimes with his thumb in his mouth if he is really tired). Side note, he used to start crying when we got to "In Jesus' name we pray, amen" because he knew what was next but now he joins with a sweet "amen" every once in a while. Then, we hug and turn out the lights and he quietly falls asleep.
He does not like this routine altered. He has his "nineties", which is his word for "night night", more specifically his word for his blankets. Those both have to be available to him in his bed and if not, he won't relax. One night they were in another room and I went to get them and he was very upset that I didn't go straight from the living room to his room when it was bedtime. A few nights ago, Daddy went to turn on the fan outside of his door that we use to break up the noise in the house. This was right before prayers and Joshua called after him "God"- making sure Daddy didn't forget that we still needed to talk to God.
Back to what I mentioned earlier, which was the whole point of the post but had a lengthy buildup...Tonight we went through the normal routine and it was all very smooth. We read Brown Bear Brown Bear, a favorite. We talked to God and as soon as I said "amen" Joshua lifted up his arms to his daddy and said "hug", gave him a big hug and then I got my hugs. We walked out of the room, our hearts already full from our son asking for hugs and then we heard a sweet little voice call "night, night." We just melted on the other side of the door.

Worth Fighting For?

My husband has been watching Band of Brothers on tv. I like to see shows from the beginning so I haven't stopped to watch it with him but I did stop for a moment tonight. This episode was called "Why We Fight" and it involved the struggle the WWII soldiers were facing as the wondered if their sacrifice to fight was even worth it. They weren't sure exactly why they were fighting the Nazis, and if it mattered at all. And then they came across a concentration camp, not knowing those camps existed. Suddenly it was disturbingly clear to these young men why they were fighting. Their lives would be forever altered by the atrocities they saw, the evil they witnessed and the worst of humanity. There was not then and is not now many who question whether or not WWII was worth fighting for when thinking of the Holocaust alone. There was evil being done on the other side of the world and our country, as a strong nation, had the moral obligation to stop the harm being done to weaker countries and prevent the danger from coming to our land. The history books do not tell of wide spread dissention. Instead there are stories of sacrifice both from the soldiers and the people at home.

What will history books read about the United States and the fight we're in now? Likely that we pulled out before the task was complete and that Americans questioned the US' invasion and work being done in the Middle East during the entire war. But is the difference between why we were in WWII and why we are in Operation Iraqi Freedom? Why doesn't the US still have the moral obligation to defend weaker nations and prevent attacks on home soil? The cruelty done to the Jewish people, and people of other nationalities, during the Nazi reign is unimaginable and will hopefully never happen to that extent again. But it could. Why would Sadaam Hussein, or any one else, be less capable that Adolf Hitler of causing inhumane distruction? So why is it so horrible (according to so many Americans) that the US stepped in to prevent the escalating evil? Not to mention stop what was already happening? Mass genocide happened in Iraq, not only in Germany. How easily forgotten that is.

Thank you to the committed soldiers who are sacrificing, and whose lives will be forever changed by what they are going through right now. May you be protected from danger, honored for your work and know "Why We Fight."

At the Table

The dinner table is a pretty special place in a family's home. I was reminded of this thought during this past weekend.

My family had the opportunity to spend time in the house my grandparents lived in for 41 years. It has been beautifully converted into a bed and breakfast and will continue to be a place where people are welcomed and memories are made for years. I spent a lot of time in that house as I grew up and it is a precious place to me. The new owner has been so kind and gracious to my family, honoring that this was home to them. On Saturday, she invited us to visit the house and share a breakfast. We enjoyed touring the home and the food was delicious but what was the most special happened after breakfast. The owner of the home was curious about the house's and family's history so the family spent time around the table sharing memories. I love to hear my family tell stories, there are wonderful story tellers in the group, but what I really enjoyed was thinking back to the hours I have spent in that house around the table listening to stories. We enjoyed Sunday afternoon lunches, holiday meals and other meals "just because" in that home and no time around the table ended just because we finished eating. Rather, we sat there for a long time afterwards just talking...like they did on Saturday morning. Someone always said, "lets go sit somewhere more comfortable" but it would take awhile before we moved. The dining room table is now in a different room, but the stories were still there. I really missed Meme that morning, knowing she would have loved being in the middle of it (and probably telling us a story she'd told us a hundred times...but I would give anything to hear them one more time).

Right now it is pretty difficult to have a peaceful mealtime with a 16 month old. But, Saturday morning reinforced to me the importance of making it work. I want years for our family of spending extra time at the table, just because we enjoyed being together.

Look Ahead

Tonight the three of us were driving home as the sun was setting in the direction we were heading. I love sunsets, clouds and pretty skies and my husband, knowing this, does a good job of appreciating those with me. Tonight's sunset made the clouds pretty shades of pink and orange and as we were admiring them, my husband invited our son to look at the sky. He encouraged J to look forward, pointing and using a tone that indicated that what he would see would be pretty neat. Now, we were driving on the interstate with lots going on around and in front of us so a 16 month old in the back seat was probably not going to recognize that his daddy was pointing out a sunset. But, J immediately got wide-eyed and smiled and said "ohhh" like it was absolutely amazing what he was seeing. I looked at my husband and said "now that is trust." J probably had no idea what he was looking towards but because his daddy told him it was great, he completely believed it.

I wish I had that reaction when God was pointing out a direction to me. Even if I'm not sure what I'm looking at, that I would get wide eyed and excited just because my Father said it would be great.

"Look at the nations and watch— and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told."

Habakkuk 1:5