The Fun (and the not-so-much-fun)

I have this sudden and almost insatiable desire to document these days. I can't take enough picture and I had to clean off everything on our camera because there were so many videos that I was about to run out of memory space. All three of our little ones are changing so much right now that I truly can't keep up. Ah, well. Most of the best memories are saved in my mind and not on a memory stick anyway.

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Today I took Silas, Simeon, and Lieren to Kroger for a few things. We decided to stop in at the church offices, "Daddy's work", and say hi. Prior to leaving I thought, what a perfect opportunity for Silas to wear underwear. He always wears a diaper out because with me and all three, going potty is one concern too many. So he went right before jumping in the car and I was sure he would be fine. Wrong. No more than 11 minutes after we left the house, right in the middle of Daddy's office, Silas had an accident. It wet all the way down to his socks. So we cut our visit short and went out to the car to change, which is when I realized I only brought a pair of pants. No underwear. No diaper. No dry socks. I had to laugh out loud in Kroger as Silas kept hiking up the pants threatening to slide down his bare bottom. At least no one could tell he wasn't wearing socks either. Real classy, I know. But I chalked it up as a great learning experience and went on. It could have been worse. It could have happened with me and the three alone in the middle of Kroger.

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On a different note, we did have great fun on Monday at Monkey Joes...

One of these days Lieren is going to get her own set of videos on the blog! She is thinking about crawling but still can't quite stay up on all fours. In the meantime, here is the fun that Simeon's been up to...

A Grace that Saves

Shane's mom, Judy, didn't get to come spend part of the day with us today. It's Wednesday so she should have been here. But she is sick today and we decided it best that she not come.

I was just talking with a new friend yesterday about how the Lord is so gracious to plan ahead for us. When He asks us to do something that is going to be difficult (like already having a two-year old then having twins and moving and saying goodbye to your parents for a long time all in less than 9 months), He is working out the details to care for us long before we even know what we're going to need.

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And the Lord knew we needed to be close to family. So He brought us here.

After my parents left at the beginning of December to spend some time with my extended family, and after the hustle and bustle of the Holidays, and after we returned home to changing routines (which felt like no routine at all) and sickness and lots of nights with very little sleep, I was in desperate need of some kind of rescue. I really needed help.

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And here's where the Lord had already provided. Judy was more than ready to come spend time with the three little ones in our home. So for the past couple months she has been coming for a few hours (or half a day, depending on the day) to play and feed and cuddle and vacuum here or there and put a dish or more in the dishwasher and let me run to the grocery store during naptime.

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Having Judy here has set my heart at peace on more than one occasion.

I know I shouldn't be surprised. It's just like the Lord to already have just what (or who) we need in place before we know we'll need it. Yet sometimes, I still am surprised at how thoroughly He comes through.

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So maybe it's not so much surprise as wonder. Awe.

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Our God not only has the grace to secure our eternity, He has the grace to become intimately involved in the details of our lives.

Thankful today for a grace that saves...daily.

Appointments and Such

Simeon and Lieren had their 9-month well-baby visit to the doctor on Wednesday last week. We made it a family affair. Simeon is still a good 3 pounds bigger than Lieren; he is almost 21 pounds and Lieren is almost 18.

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I have to admit it was not the most tranquil doctor visit we've ever experienced. The babes were only able to have a quick 20-minute morning nap before we went so they were tired (poor decision on my part to make the appointment at the time I did!). The room was also unbelievably hot, which didn't help any of us. And the whole thing just takes longer with two...undressing and weighing and temps and looking in ears and such...one baby inevitably gets bored while the other has his or her turn.

I am so glad we decided for Shane to go with me. The babies needed the attention for sure! And having Daddy's touch-screen phone for Silas to play games on was a life-saver.

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Silas himself had an appointment recently. I took him for his first visit to the dentist. I was super glad I decided to go to a kids' dentist. They were completely set-up to make going to the dentist fun. He loved the waiting room, the video playing in the dental room, the sunglasses he got to wear for the "really bright light", and the prizes he got to pick out. He didn't protest once, even when the dentist brushed with the loud electric brush and flossed his teeth.

The picture above was him waiting for the dentist to come back with yet another prize. She returned with a free pass to one of his favorite places: Monkey Joe's. He was thrilled and wanted to go right away, of course. That was the low point of the day. To curb a fit I had to remind him that we were going home to play with the airplane he got (his first prize) and would go to Monkey Joe's another day when Daddy could go. I could tell he was a bit disgruntled about it but agreed. And as we walked to check out he said, "Are there any more surprises?"

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So today, when everyone wakes from naps, we're heading off to play at Monkey Joe's for free! If you've never been there before, here's a glimpse from when he went the first time. I didn't get any pictures of him on the really big blow-ups. This was just the 3 and under area. It was the day before my parents left...

What did you do with your afternoon?

With two teething babes in the house, this is what I did...

We Are Nine Months!

All Too Soon

I ventured out with Si, Sim, and Lieren on a walk this morning. It was gorgeous outside. Silas and I wore light jackets. I didn't even put jackets on the babies, just used the blanket attachment that came with our stroller. Then this evening we all played out in the backyard after Shane got home. It was perfect.

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I took Simeon to the eye doctor on Tuesday. Since birth he's had a blocked tear duct resulting in a chronic eye infection that persisted into February. We had visited the pediatric opthalmologist at the beginning of last month and had planned for Sim to have surgery at the end of March if it did not clear. I was so thankful when one morning he woke and the infection was gone. I had been massaging the duct area and praying that we wouldn't have to do surgery. So I was more than grateful to get to cancel the surgery after consulting with the doctor.

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Being out with just one is always fun for me. Gives me time to really see that child and reflect on them individually.

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Simeon is all over the place these days. He is crawling well and fast and enjoying every minute of it. He is pulling up and cruising, albeit slowly. He lets go and stands holding on to things with one hand or, if he can lean just the right way to keep his balance, he will let go of both hands. He has discovered the stairs...

Yikes! Twice he has crawled up the first step with Shane or I sitting there. I keep telling myself that I am entering the world of "No, no" all to soon. We have a whopping total of 6 gates in our house now (one each at the top and bottom of the main stairs, one at the bottom of the stairs to the finished attic, in the doorways to both children's rooms, and at the bottom of the stairs in Silas' room that lead to the loft...whew...did you catch all that?). But the entire main floor is still a free-for-all...
What's great is that when Sim is heading for something he probably shouldn't, he lets out a gleeful squeal. It's so cute. And a dead give-away.

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Just today I said to him, "Sweetheart, how am I going to keep you alive through toddlerhood?" He is fearless, this boy. He recently dove head-first, flipping over the toy he's standing at below...
Lieren lets out quite a cry when Sim takes a toy away from her. Because she's not moving she can't really defend herself. And Silas is not sure he likes the idea of a brother who can get at things. So I'm teaching Silas to move away, climb on the couch (where it's safe for the moment) or ask me to help. Honestly, they don't play together that much right now. So when I walked in the other day, it was sweet to see this...
Oh, Simeon. You are making time move quicker than I would like. Your fourth tooth is cutting through today and your growing hair makes you look like such a big boy. But the way that you need me to rock you back to sleep almost daily reminds me that you're still a baby. You're not the smallest, but you are, by 6 minutes, the baby of this family.

Moments Around Here: After They Left

My parents left for Singapore on Friday. They had been with us for the whole week before they left. We didn't do too much, but were together, which was pretty much what we wanted.

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Their leaving was a reminder that the seasons are indeed changing.

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It was the proverbial page turn that marks the end of one chapter of our lives and the beginning of another.

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When my parents arrived last summer, I was about 50 pounds overweight and hadn't met the two littlest members of our family quite yet. We still lived in Kentucky. And Silas wasn't even 2.

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Much has changed in the months in between. Now our babies are not so little anymore. In fact, right after my parents left on Friday, Simeon began clapping. Lieren claps toys together and I thought I caught her clapping on her own yesterday, but I haven't seen it since. So I am skeptical. It's not that great, but here is the best I have been able to do at getting this new skill on camera...

Moments Around Here: How Different They Are

Lieren has finally decided that she would like to get on the move. She is rolling all over the place now. I love that she is completely in her own world and doesn't feel like she needs to keep up with the boys.

Simeon, on the other hand, is trying to keep up with everyone! He is not only crawling all over the place, but now has decided that this is fun too...

We have teething, non-sleeping, somewhat fussy babes these days. If you think to pray for us all to get some rest, we would sure appreciate it!