Last Week of February 2008

I LOVE this look on Simon's face!

Could he look more mischievous than this?

"He will keep in perfect peace, him whose mind is steadfast, 

because he trusts in you."

Isaiah 26:3

We included this picture and verse in our newsletter last month.

I remember first learning this verse as part of our college Bible study by Beth Moore (?) on the Mind of Christ.  That group, not of our choosing, was great because it was the beginning of one of my greatest blessings, my friendship with Kellie :)

The past two nights Evie Grace has slept from 8 p.m. until 7 (or a little after) a.m.

It has actually made me a little sad because it is a sign of growing up. 

I'm not expecting the 11 hours of sleep to be a habit necessarily, but it is still a milestone.  And when we went in there after 7 those days to check on Evie Grace she was kind of awake, just content in her crib, so who knows how long she really slept...

Simon was proud of his above pattern.

He was even particular with which direction the pigs were facing.

With mine and Matt's poor eye-sight, Simon and Evie Grace are almost destined to a life of glasses and contacts :)

Mr.PotatoHead Style

Simon and friends on a beautiful sunny February day.

And yesterday, I think the high was in the 80s.  Gorgeous.

(Today is very windy and in the 50s)

Gigi asked me to indulge her 'grandmother' instincts as she tucked an extra blanket around Evie Grace.

First official double-stroller ride as we enjoyed Saturday's pleasant temps.

We walked around the park and then to Target.

As we walked along the outdoor shopping strip to Target, Simon remarked, "This is like the mall, too."  I can't even think of the last time I have been in the mall, much less with Simon.  His mall history stems from frequent Sunday afternoon trips there with Gigi and Pops to ride the train and eat at McDonalds :)

I commented to Matt last night that one of my goals this week was to make homemade cinnamon rolls.  Apparently, although undiscussed by us, this was also one of his goals.  He replied, "No way, that's one of my goals this week.  I'm going to make them."  So, we deliberated and have concluded that we will make them together.  We have both been secretly inspired by Dave C. and his report of his amazing cinnamon rolls.

I'm sure we'll post an update on that.

Evie Grace.

We are trying to move into calling our daughter Evie Grace.

Birth Certificate reads:  Evelyn Grace and we LOVE her name; it's a very special family name for us.  We've always planned on calling her "Evie" as a pretty official name/nickname, but lately we've been wanting to call her Evie Grace.

Simon remembers better than all of us.

Aren't these lips adorable?

Simon drew a cross (originally on his etch-a-sketch, but then on his Doodle-Pro) and told us that he drew a picture of God.

I remember a few years ago hearing a sermon on the cross by John Piper that completely changed the way I viewed the cross.  Piper commented that his generation did us a disfavor by somehow teaching that the cross is a measure of our worth.  That when most people look at the cross they see it as an image that makes them think of how precious they were to God that he would die for them.  Not that each soul isn't precious to God, but the cross should make us think of the holiness and righteousness of God that it took something as drastic as Christ's death to make us right with a holy God.  

So, the cross is primarily a picture of God's holiness, righteousness, and power... not of our worth .

Simon shooting birds with his "scaring thing" (his term for guns)

Matt and his war with our neighborhood birds.  

The birds started the war, as you can see by the white stain on Matt's shirt, about six inches below his wrist.

Two guns and a sword.  Arrghh!

I am horrible at only choosing a few pictures to post.  It's hard to leave out pictures because to me, every facial expression is priceless, unique, and delectable.

This week our menus are very cancer-fighting friendly.  Blueberries, asparagus, squash (acorn, butternut and spaghetti), avocados, oranges, grapefruit all due to an amazing sale on produce at Kroger's!  Sad story, the Kroger's closest to our home is closing.  Apparently this is old news but since I haven't been out in a while, I was surprised when I drove there, loaded up Simon, and walked in the store only to find a few items on a couple of shelves.  

It was like a ghost-town and kind of sad.  That was mine and Simon's "Cheese Store" (he would hunt excitedly for the picture of cheese in the bakery and dairy section, even though they were always in the same spot)  ;)

So, we trekked to another Kroger's which was only a few miles down Frankford.

Evie Grace in the cutest brown dress with teddy bear's on the collar and on the tights!  I put this on her just for fun one night before bed.  Matt and Simon were both enamored by her adorable-factor that evening as we sat down to our now traditional Sunday night meal of 'loaded' sweet-potatoes (real butter, cinnamon/sugar, raisins, walnuts).

I have noticed life is different as a mom of two, but I couldn't quite come up with a word that described the change.  I've seen it in other mom friends and the other day the word struck me.

Deliberate.

With two children, every decision and activity has to be more deliberate.

How sweet it is to be loved by you!  (Is that a James Taylor song?)

There have been at least two times that squirmy Evie Grace in her crib has turned on the crib-aquarium with her foot.  So cute!  She is SO CLOSE to turning over.

I am thankful for friends who keep me on track with my goals.  Most recently I almost wavered in a very important goal of mine.  I want to be the "mint lady" for showers and what not ... I almost deterred, telling a dear friend Rachael that I had a punch recipe I wanted to try for an upcoming shower.  She gently reminded me of my commitment to mints and to being the "mint lady."  So, there you go, friends who keep you on track with important life goals.

Matt is trying to get Simon to go to the "man store" with him as I write.  

(Home Depot)

An exposition on what it means to live deliberately with a second child:  a few weeks ago it was an hour before we had friends coming over for our blueberry pie feast.  I needed to get Evie to sleep, buy whole bean decaf coffee for our coffee-connoisseur friend who was coming over, and I had yet to exercise that day.  So, I walked Evie to Target in her stroller to buy coffee.  Exercising, nap for Evie Grace, and coffee purchase all in one hour!  Oh, and I visited with dear friend Kellie on the phone pretty much the entire time.  She even helped me make a coffee decision and coached me back to our home in safety as the night turned dark earlier than I thought it would.  Kellie has been living in a closed-country in Central Asia known for violence since September so I felt silly being a little frightened as I walked in our North American suburban neighborhood a little after dark.  

Daddy-daughter bond.

Evie Grace has this amazing smile (not in the above picture) 

that will just spread across her face.  

It is precious.  We haven't been able to capture the 'perfect' smile in a photo ... yet.

Aw, look at her precious left hand.  Gorgeous fingers.

Evie Grace having a playtime on her blanket.  Simon entertains her well, but I definitely have to keep my eye on their interaction ...

Simon spells, Hi !  

Lately Simon has enjoyed hearing stories at night by Daddy, the best raconteur in the land!  He has an elaborate on-going saga involving Johnny who lives on a mountain.  Speaking of mountains, Simon has asked several times lately upon waking up if he can go to Nana's house :)  Today he told me he wanted to go to Nana's house to eat.  (Milk was the specific thing mentioned)  And he wanted to play there.

First Half of February 2008

Above picture was taken on Saturday February 16, 

the very day that Cousin Alex turned two!

Evie amazes me with her ability to be flexible!

She exudes contendedness...(for the  most part).

Such a sweet little bundle.

Current favorite baby body part:  the hands

This picture is taken just two days before Evie turns 16 weeks.

I have lost count of her 'weeks,' but thankfully, I have dear friends with babies who are more up to date with their daughter's age (in terms of weeks).  So, depending on the friend, I can ask them how old their baby is ... and then subtract 5 weeks (from Ruthie's age) or add 5 weeks (Landry's age).

The above picture makes me laugh.  I was holding Evie and I noticed she had her arm around my neck.  I asked Matt to take a picture.  

I felt like Evie's "trophy mom."

I can imagine Evie being interviewed,

Evie:  "Yes, this is my mom.  Mmmhhh, absolutely."

(I'm just throwing in the word absolutely here because it seems like EVERY INTERVIEWEE on television is always using this word.  When asked a question, the response will usually begin, "ABSOLUTELY, .... bjdljsdlsjld."

An unplanned visit from Evie's two "valentines" on Valentine's Day - Hosea and Timmy.  Hmmm...I guess Simon and Timmy were too busy playing for me to catch them with the camera!  The two moms had a fantastic time catching up and continuing the now traditional Valentine's Day visit.

So sad that the above picture is so dark ... but I must post it for proof that Simon and friends can and sometimes (breathlessly) do cease running around and can have calm moments!

On IKEA, Matt remarked to Simon that IKEA was like "STUFFMART," but Simon didn't seem to understand the Veggie Tales allusion ...

HAPPY VALENTINE'S !

Yesterday Simon was licking the back door (glass) and he explained to me that he was "making a picture with his tongue."  Hmmm...

Simon and Evie took turns holding a valentine they received in the mail from Gigi and Pops.  They also received valentine from Nana and Papa and have heard that their Aunt KayKay also sent them a Valentine!

Fun tip for mixing natural peanut butter:

Sometimes it is difficult to get all of the oil mixed in ... leave it sitting upside down over night which will help the oil distribute itself ... AND ... use a hand mixer (with only one beater in it) to mix the jar.  Caution:  hold peanut butter jar VERY securely...we tried this and though it mixed well, we were cleaning up peanut butter from odd kitchen crevices later that day.  Also, I can't remember if our jar was glass or plastic, so ...

Some quality daughter/daddy time :)

We continue to be blessed with Simon's sweet disposition towards his little sister.

I took this picture because I felt like I was getting to look back in the past to see how Matt might have looked as a child.  His facial expression, sitting position, even the little orange part on his socks all combine in a most youthful way.  

And he REALLY LOOKS like Simon  ...

Making valentine candies together for our peanut-butter lovin' hubbies :)

Skills:  "distribution of clean silverware"

The other day I walked into Simon's room after naptime to wake him up.  He said he was "thinking of a story."  (dream)  

I asked what it was about.

Simon:  "I was shopping with dad."  

Mommy's thoughts:  "Why is my son dreaming of shopping.  That's a bit of a gender mix-up."

Simon:  "We had to get the bears."

Mommy's thoughts:  "Ahh...that's more like it.  Hunting bears in the store."

Simon:  "The yellow bears.  In the box."

Mommy:  ???

Simon:  "Gigi said I can have them.  I need them."

Mommy mystery solved:  Golden Teddy Grahams

Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside ...

Simon and Daddy

(Believe it or not, Matt is playing at the request of Simon who loves to watch.  Lucky Matt.  He gets to have fun AND be a fun dad!  Matt usually sets Simon's timer for 5-10  minutes, and they have a fun little techy break together.) 

Matt commented the other day, "I'm into finishing books now."

Overheard telling our friend Heidi, "I finished a book."

Heidi remarked that the book must have 'primed his pump,' as he immediately began another book with the intention of finishing it.

The book he read was a children's biography on John Wesley.  

225 pages.  Fairly large print.  Smaller that a 4 by 6 postcard.  

Matt was online trying to find out where to buy more of these children's books - he wanted one on Watchman Nee and Hudson Taylor.  We were laughing together that he likes the children's books so much, but I really am the same way.  I prefer the children's version of Operation World rather than the adult one (thankfully I discovered last weekend that one of my adult friends shares the same preference for "You Can Change the World"._  Matt is currently reading C.S. Lewis' Mere Christianity and when he is finished, we're going to read Tozer's The Pursuit of God together.  I've been reading Tozer's collection of essays/sermons entitled I Talk Back to the Devil which I unintentionally 'borrowed' from Matt's parents over Christmas.  I was reading it from their bookshelves, and I guess Matt thought it was ours and packed it.  So, I might as well finish the stolen good before its return.  

Every child and mommy has "their song."

For Simon, I always seemed to sing, "We Fall Down" when I was hugging on him in his nursery during pre-nap moments.  For Evie, her song is "Come Thou Fount."

I didn't purposefully choose either song, it just came to be.

We also have a "family song" for Evie.

During her first sleepy, sleepy days we sang, "Wake up, Little Evie."  (to the tune of "Wake up, Little Susie)

BUT, her "family song" has pretty much been, for a very long time, as follows,

"Evie, what you wanna do

I think I could stay with you

For a while, maybe longer if I do."

(taken from the chorus to Pure Prairie League's song "Amie")

Matt's blueberry pie as described in the last blog post.

Funny story:  When calling upon friends to share our pie feast with that evening, one friend (Heidi) already knew it was going to be a blueberry pie as she'd read earlier that day of its creation in our kitchen from the blog post!

Fun after Pie.

Matt had Simon's shirt tucked into his boxers,

 and I couldn't resist immortalizing that moment.  

(Simon helping load the dishwasher.)