Goodness, it's been forever since I sat down and wrote something for my blog... The days just pass by so quickly and life is passing by so fast. Sometimes I think about writing a post and updating a little on life and our sweet kiddos but then I think of ALL I'd have to write and I end up doing something else instead. Well, I think if I just came on here from time to time and wrote what I can - even if it's something really short - then I can at least get back into the habit of writing and recording some of these moments... So here I am. Now we'll see what I can share.
First of all, I have got to share this adorable picture that I took of my handsome hubby and our adorable 9 month old daughter, Joanna Beth! Look how big she is! I took Daniel and Lydia to some friends' house today for their weekly gymnastics class (a college student who I disciple has been teaching them each week on the gym equipment that our friends have and they LOVE it). When we got home - loud and excited to see their daddy - we walked into the downstairs living area and saw this... a tired little girl (working on getting her fifth tooth in and thus not having the greatest napping experiences lately) sound asleep on her loving daddy's shoulder. ADORABLE! :)
Oh, Joanna Beth! I have failed miserably at writing her monthly letters to her... I guess I shouldn't be that surprised because I do have three kids and we are in full-time ministry and I homeschool two kids and... But, it still makes me sad at times when I think of how much scrapbooking I would love to get done and how much I would love to be better at memory keeping. I feel like my memory just continues going away... mom brain is a little scary at times. Lol. ;) But, I have now switched my thinking somewhat to telling myself that even if I can't have everything written down and photos kept somewhere nice, one of the best things I can focus on is our kids and memory building as a family! And we have been able to do that so much lately! Even in the midst of craziness and busy schedules, I love that we make family times one of our top priorities each week. We love spending time together going out to eat, having coffee dates, playing outside, going to the park (when it's nice out), going to the mall, and lately visiting the Nature and Science Museum and the Zoo since we received a family pass for the year for Christmas presents to each of those! I love spending time with our family even though some days are CRAZY and I am definitely reminded that we have VERY energetic kids aged 4, 3, and 9 months who wear me out... And that is when I have to ask myself the question, "Do I really want another baby sometime soon?!" Lol. But then there are these days when the kids are busy doing things and I tell myself how amazing life is and how much I LOVE this time of life! I think I'll share some little glimpses of those times...
Daniel: When he's sitting in his weekly Classical Conversations class with the other six students listening intently to his teacher or reciting the memory work for the week with them... The joy he has on his face when he is in a classroom learning whether at home or at CC... Watching him be goofy and lean his head back laughing and laughing - he's a bit of a class clown at times... Hearing him talk about his sisters with such large amounts of love - he said tonight that he needed to spend lots of time with Joanna because he was going to grow up fast and not be able to spend tons of time with her later on in life... Having him come out to give "one more kiss and hug" over and over some nights half to be able to stay up later and half because he loves being hugged and kissed and loved on... Getting so excited to play his guitar and show his skills... Watching him build Legos and almost anything else where he uses his brain and designs or draws amazing things... Hearing him talk about baseball... Seeing him hug Lydia and sit shoulder to shoulder with her watching a movie... Hearing his laughter... Hearing him pray to God and believing completely in God's power... Seeing him check the mail every chance he gets just to see if he got anything and it reminding me of when I was little each time doing the same thing... Seeing his excitement whenever we go to the library and watching as he sits in there looking at books by himself... Watching as he reads his first ever books and seeing how proud he is...
Lydia: Hearing her prayers and seeing how quickly she goes to God in prayer, even in the middle of a conversation if needed... Seeing the joy on her face when she is able to go on girls' nights with me especially since she gets to "stay up late" and "be part of the big girls"... Seeing her excitement and the love she has on her face when she talks about her friends and how much she loves them... Watching her put on make-up at a just-mentioned girls' night and having to be told that she had put enough on... Watching her play in the sink bubbles after I'm done washing dishes measuring out water and making pancakes, biscuits, etc. - she'll play for close to an hour if I let her... Watching her play dress-up and walk in her "hike-heels" all over the house... Seeing her carry her sparkly silver purses around stores and in restaurants because we let her take it out for the day... Seeing her excitement the day she was able to get her ears pierced just two weeks ago - she looks even more like a big girl now... Taking her to the store with me to go shopping and seeing how much fun she has just hanging out with mommy... Letting her push the little shopping cart at Whole Foods - definitely the cutest "customer in training"... Seeing how much she loves her daddy and even seeing how sad she is when he leaves for work makes me happy because I know the love she has for him...Watching her paint and draw - she is so talented in that way and loves art...
Joanna: When she plays happily with her toys looking over at me from
time to time with the biggest smile on her face... When she crawls
around and around the coffee table in our living room "chasing" Daniel
who has something she wants... When she "tucks" in Daniel and Lydia for
bed, hiding under their covers or standing up and looking out their
windows before she gives them kisses and giggles... The way she looks
when I nurse her as she smiles with her eyes and seems so content... Her
smiles and laughter the other day when Daniel and Lydia pulled her
around the back yard in the wagon... The joy on her face when her "dada"
comes home or whenever I come pick her up after being gone for
awhile... The proud look she gets on her face when she stands lately
without holding onto anything - she is SO close to walking... How
excited she is every time she sees another baby - she thinks every baby is like her new best friend...
Well, there are some brief glimpses of life. Things have been good and I'm excited to be able to share more another day... hopefully not too long into the future this time. :) Thanks for reading!
