this and that

Our Happy birthday Jesus celebration went as well as could be expected. Once Matt got home from work we talked about how it was Jesus birthday and then we lit the candle on the birthday cake and sang happy birthday. Then we had birthday cake and ice cream and opened presents! I'm excited to do this every year with the boys! Here are some pictures of eating the cake!

Joshua excited about his gluten- dairy free cake and ice cream... YUMMY


As usual Daniel isn't to interested!


Elijah always asks before he eats something... "What's that?" We told him is was birthday cake and it was yummy but he wasn't very convinced.


I'm looking forward to this year. There is a lot of potential change. I don't really have any "New Years Resolutions". I guess if I had to pick a resolution to work on is to just be that much closer in step with the Lord. That is my highest goal, to be SO close to my savior that everything else just falls into place and that whatever storm or wave may be thrown my way I can say "It is WELL with my soul". Really... this world isn't my goal... this is NOT my final destination. Stuff is just stuff, and it's all going to burn away and rot and be forgotten, but my soul will live on. I think i will always be unrested until I'm with the Lord. I will never feel fully at home or at peace until then, which is okay. I don't want to be comfortable in the world... i don't want to feel like "I never want to die because i love it to much". The ONLY reason right now that I think would be hard to leave this world would be knowing that I would be leaving my wonderful husband and three beautiful boys behind (and various family and friends). But I know that God is a bigger than i can even imagine and He is more equipped to take care of them then i am. So my home isn't here... my heart does have a huge chunk here, but my home and my heart is set on Heaven and being with the Lord.

Better is one day in your courts
than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of the wicked. -Psalm 84:10

Joshua cuddling with a puppy

Happy, active Daniel

Elijah, my little treasure!

I wish i had the time and energy to write a nice long update... but i don't. So here's the short version...
Elijah is walking EVERYWHERE. He is so cute and SO proud of himself. He grows more and more every day and he never ceases to amaze me. He truly is a treasure and a blessing from the Lord.
Daniel has been SUPER busy lately... lots and lots of energy. Today when Matt was leaving for work I was holding Daniel and I said "BYE DADDY"... Daniel waved and said "bu". That was exciting for us because he used a sound in a way that made sense! YIPPIE... talking days are almost here. I've started potty training hard core this week... he sits on the potty every 25 minutes in hopes that i will be able to get him to go in the potty. Once he does i know he will get it.
Joshua is doing fantastic. He is such a sensitive, smart, and loving child.
Well it's time to go put Daniel on the potty! Hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas!!! I'll post on our Happy birthday Jesus celebration another time :)

Chemicals

Since having children who are sensitive to everything i've been doing gobs and gobs of research. My newest passion has been the teflon cookware... check out this article, do some of your own research and start thinking about what chemicals you are putting into you and your child's body...

http://tuberose.com/Teflon.html

There is some nasty stuff out there... call me crazy but I am going to try my hardest to continue to rid my family of as much toxins as possible.

Merry Christmas

We came home from matt's parents hosue to a christmas surprise... 9 puppies!
7 girls and 2 boys!

Done

Due

And just plain cute...


(Daniel using his new PECS (picture exchange communication system)

6 years

6 years ago i married the most amazing man. God has blessed me beyond measure with such a loving husband.

Daughters

I have boys. Not one, not two, but three loud, energetic, testosterone filled boys. Everyday is filled with super heroes, cars, pirate ships, exploring,wrestling and wars. At night after my little warriors are asleep for the day I breath a sigh a relief for the calm refuge of the night. I go through each room and discover knights and dragons dispersed among cars and marbles, and know that tomorrow will be another big adventure for them. Each morning i wake up to the sounds of laughter and yelling and running and jumping and even sometimes screaming. My boys are ALL boy and I love them SO much. But there are times like last night, where my heart just grieves. I so very much want a girl. I want a daughter. I have a couple of friends who have had little girls and i envy them. Some people try to make me feel better and tell me all the reasons that girls are hard to raise. Yes i understand that girls are different, but that does not stop the longing in my heart to have a daughter. Last night I was praying and talking to God and i just felt him loving on me. I know that he has a purpose and a reason why he gave us boys. I'm not sure if that means that he is opening our heart to adoption some day or what.. but i feel like he is telling me I will get a chance to have a daughter. I love the prospect of adoption, but I've seen how hard it can be on families especially when there is special needs involved such as FAS. God is a big God and I'm sure that if he wanted to we would be able to have more children biologically, but that's ENTIRELY up to Him. I think that he has many daughters in store for me... maybe none will be biological or have our last name, but they will be spiritual daughters. The Lord knows His plans and i just need to rest in His peace that He knows what He's doing and TRUST in His unfailing love. So until the day that he puts a daughter in my path (however it may be) I will continue to love my boys and raise them to be follows and warriors for the Lord the best way I know how.

Things are coming together for a move to Minnesota... we're hoping to have a job, sell the house and be moving out there in March or April. There is A LOT to do before then but I'm confident that we will get it done and I'm just SOOOOOO excited to be moving back to my home state! I am going to miss the northwest, but i know that we will be able to visit often with Matt's parents being out here. Please continue to keep us in your prayers about job stuff.

Brr it's been cold here lately... brrr.. getting us ready for the Midwest!

Roxy is down to the last stretch of her pregnancy... we are expecting puppies within the next 5 days! Maybe sooner...

Hmm i was going to write more but I'm just to tired... so enjoy some pictures and maybe i will muster up enough energy tomorrow to share more!


Elijah has discovered his brothers superman doll and now is one of his favorite things to play with.

New camera pictures! :)

December

In honor of my very best friend who I could not survive day to day life without....

Oh sweet December filled with cold and snow
And Christmas carols ringing through the air,
You bring with you warm thoughts of hot cocoa
Beside the fire in a comfy chair.
Outside there is a frozen country pond
Just perfect for some ice skating and fun;
The season's foods of which we are so fond
Will soon be coming from the oven- done!
The icicles outside are beautiful
All hanging from the houses' snowy eaves,
And inside are the bulbs so whimsical
That decorate each branch upon the trees.
Here with each other we can share the love
Of Him who sent His Son from up above.

-Maria Taylor 2003

Miss you friend... can't wait to see you again!

Now that Joshua is older and understands things better, he has been very interested in birthday's and Christmas. Matt's family is big on Christmas... I should say they are big into the gift giving. Each person gets many gifts... also a stocking FULL of gifts. It can be quite overwhelming. I am very thankful that Matt's parents are so gracious and giving and like to lavish their grandchildren with gifts, but i fear that it will turn my children into present monsters and in turn turn them away from the true meaning of Christmas. On my search for a good way to explain Christmas to Joshua i found a book that explains Christmas to a preschooler SO well. It is called " My birthday, Jesus Birthday" written by Holly Davis. The book talks about a child's birthday and and how her parents had planned for her to come ect. and while it is doing that it explains Jesus' birthday and the events that surround it. It's well written and I highly recommend it. The only sad thing is that I didn't find any new books.. they seem to be out of print so i had to order a used one (which isn't bad). If you are looking for a good book that describes Christmas to your little one... look into it!
Upon thinking about how we want to establish traditions with our boys and really instill in them values and love for the Lord I think we have come up with a great holiday celebration. We celebrate our family Christmas on Christmas eve. SO every Christmas eve we will have dinner and then we will have birthday cake! A Happy Birthday Jesus cake... and then we will celebrate Jesus' birth by giving presents to each other. I'm super excited about this because i think that Joshua will really enjoy it and i think it will help to keep perspective into the holiday's for the boys.

For our anniversary Matt ordered me a new camera! It should be coming on Monday! Cannot wait to take pictures with it! Speaking of anniversaries... we'll be married 6 year now on the 19Th. time flies.

I've nervous and excited all at once. As you know i have been talking about a move to Minnesota. There is SO much to do... find a job, sale of home, ect... but i know that everything will happen in the Lord's timing. I'm just ready to move now... ready to start in a new place, make some new friends, find a new church and get much needed support.

WHY JESUS IS BETTER THAN SANTA CLAUS

WHY JESUS IS BETTER THAN SANTA CLAUS

(author unknown)

Santa lives at the North Pole ...
JESUS is everywhere.

Santa rides in a sleigh ...
JESUS rides on the wind and walks on the water.

Santa comes but once a year.
JESUS is an ever present help.

Santa fills your stockings with goodies ...
JESUS supplies all your needs.

Santa comes down your chimney uninvited ...
JESUS stands at your door and knocks, and enters your heart.

You have to wait in line to see Santa ...
JESUS is as close as the mention of His name.

Santa lets you sit on his lap ...
JESUS lets you rest in His Arms.

Santa doesn't know your name, all he can say is
"Hi little boy or girl, what's your name?" ...
JESUS knew our name before we did.
Not only does He know our name,
He knows our history and future, and
He even knows our hearts & how many hairs are on our heads.

Santa has a belly like a bowl full of jelly ...
JESUS has a heart full of love, grace, mercy & forgiveness.

All Santa can offer is HO HO HO ...
JESUS says "Cast your cares on me for I care for you."

Santa's little helpers make toys ...
JESUS makes a new life, mends wounded hearts,
repairs broken homes and builds mansions.

Santa may make you chuckle but ...
JESUS gives you joy that is your strength.

While Santa puts gifts under your tree ...
JESUS became our gift and died on the tree,
For you & for me.

It's obvious there is really no comparison.
We need to remember WHO Christmas is all about.
We need to put CHRIST back in Christmas,
Jesus is still the reason for the season.

Yes, JESUS is better,
He is even better than Santa Claus.

For Mom

Here is another video of Elijah's birthday party. As you can see Joshua doesn't like when people sing!

I love winter. The sparkling soft snowflakes gently wafting down to the earth. Ahhh.. peace and joy. I miss winter and snow. Here in the northwest we have rain in the winter. Lots of cold blustery days of rain. I do enjoy that rain, but i miss the snow. I'm so excited to move back to the midwest and have real winters. Minnesota, I can't wait to come home!

Elijah's first Birthday Party

Even though it's Elijah's birthday today, we celebrated it yesterday! Here are a couple of pictures and some video of him eating his cake! I actually had gotten some better video then this but Matt's parents only sent me this one.
(Matt's mom is talking in the background)

Ape Caves

Today we went to the Ape Caves (an old lava tube) near Mt. ST.Helens. It was my first time. Honestly, I don't like caves... wet, dark, rocks. I would much rather hike out in the woods. The boys did well and they enjoyed the little bit of exploring that we did. I think next time the caves will just be a daddy and the boys outing. After we went down into the caves we went on a hike to enjoy the snow! I love snow and we don't get it down here often since we live near sea level and so close to the ocean. Here are a couple of pictures from today. The first is of Joshua looking down into the caves before we went down there. I didn't get any more of the caves because i was to busy making sure children weren't falling into holes and smashing their heads into rocks!

a mostly successful family picture! It's hard when you have it on a timer to get a 4 year old, 3 year old and an almost 1 year old to look at the camera... but i think we did well. yay for a Christmas card photo!

This curious little boy will be one in a week! Time flies!



And this little boy is getting SO big!


on a different note...

How would you tell family that lives in the same town as you that you are planning on moving 3000 miles away?

My oh my...

So as some of you may know I've been having heart issues. For the past three weeks solid I've been very tired and my chest has been sore. I've been having issues with numb limbs and also shortness of breath. Yesterday the doctors hooked me up with an event monitor to see what my heart was doing. So an average heart rate is 70. when they hooked me up my heart rate was 90 and has been jumping anyway between the low 80's to around 235 (that's the highest I've seen it on the monitor). After the episodes of the 200's my chest is sore and my arms are numb. I know this sounds terrible but I'm SO excited to FINALLY know what's going on. My heart is going crazy (and mind you it does this random jumping around while I'm sitting and doing nothing). The doctor believes that it is SVT. Here is a link to the explanation to what SVT is.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supraventricular_tachycardia
I know some of you read this website.
www.mycharmingkids.net
(sorry i haven't figured out how to do that whole link thing yet!
It is the same thing stellan has. I can't imagine being a baby and having to deal with this. I'm not worries or concerned. I know that my life and heart are in the Lord's hands and i trust that my doctor will choose the best course of treatment for me... if SVT is what i am struggling with. (Which all the symptoms fit and my doctor believes that's what i have.)
So besides crazy heart issues. what's new here? Not to much... still thinking dreaming and working on a move out to Minnesota. I'm super excited to be closer to friends and family, but nervous about the process.
Anyway it's late and i need some sleep! I'll try to get on and post some pictures tomorrow! Night!

I spent most of the day today cleaning out closets and going though clothes. Many garbage bags later and well organized closets i'm a happy woman. I'm not going to lie, I love having a clean and organized house. We have far to much stuff! I can't wait to condense down more in the future for a move to Minnesota. Lord willing of course. Right now our goal is to move to Minnesota. It would be great to move by the summer, but it may be another couple of years. We can get so much more for our money there, and we just really feel that Matt would be able to grow his business bigger there, then he can here in washington. We do love washington and we will miss living so near the mountains and ocean, but minnesota offers up it's own beauties. We are looking into possibly buying a small farm so that we can raise some cattle! That's exciting to me... i've always had this strange like for cows. I grew up in the city but really my heart is in the country. I want to learn to can my own veggies and make jam and just live a more "home grown" life. We'll see were the Lord leads and how he guides us. It's really in his hands.

As for the cleaning thing, it fell through. A little dissapointing, but life happens and things are always changing.

I enjoy weekends and having Matt around. The boys are happier and I love being a family! I wish the weekends lasted longer!

ANd now some pictures! The first picture is what happens when Daddy watches the baby outside... LOTS of mud! The second is just Elijah being cute and the last is an attempt at a family picture!

Changes

There are possible changes coming... some sooner then others

Sooner: a new cleaning job for me (Kristin)
Later: Moving to Minnesota (at least this is a dream and tenitive goal to work towards right now).. still not sure if it will happen, but something to look forward to!
That's all i have for now... oh.. and some pictures

Fall Days

I found some pictures i took a couple years back when Joshua was just a baby. we were visiting the Oregon Coast. I love taking pictures and i love lighthouses. My dream one day is to drive the coast and visit as many lighthouses as we can!

I never thought i would hear the word "pirate" spoken so much in one day. I guess it comes from having boys... pirates, monsters, dinosaurs, ect... It would be strange to hear about princesses and flowers and girly things all day.



Today has been a longer day. I'm ready for the boys to be sleeping but they aren't yet. Daniel and Elijah and in bed but not sleeping and Joshua is outside with Matt.



So i've been reading this book written by a man who has autism. He has such an interestingstory and it's been encouraging/enlightening to read it. I don't think that he ends up being a christian but he had a couple of observations on christianity that i found interesting and wanted to share...



"I was on shaky ground with all these christians, I could never tell what the rules were with them. Every Christian you meet has a different interpretation of God's word, a tottaly different view of mortality and they all think they're right."



How true is that?

Our first visit to pick pumpkins. Overall it was okay.. Joshu enjoyed it the most. Daniel wasn't to thrilled about being in a new place and also i think the hay from the hayride was bothering him. Anyway... here a a couple of pictures i was able to snap of them.

New Rig

We got a new vehicle! Hopefully we'll put many many miles on it exploring and making memories!