So Good for My Heart

My friend Julie and her family came to visit this week.  They left today and I was so sad to see them go.  Julie and I became friends just days after we moved to Louisville.  We worked together as speech pathologists, had babies one after the other, and walked our husbands through seminary together.  It has been a joy to see each other transition after our guys graduated, even if it has meant we are much further away from one another than we would like.  We spent hours talking in the short days they got to be here.  I so miss having that friendship just down the street!

We let Silas and Jonah have a slumber party in Silas' room both nights.  The first night was a little rough, what with all the excitement of something so new.  But naps and nighttime on the second day were excellent.  It was fun to hear the boys' little conversations over a monitor as they woke up.  Here we are attempting to wind down on day 1...  

We took the children to play at the park the next day.  It was gorgeous outside...

Our three littlest: Lieren, baby Silas, and Simeon...

Then this morning before saying goodbye, the boys playing together...

Silas, Simeon, and Lieren were exhausted after they left.  We watched a video, took a quick walk, had lunch, and they were as ready for naps as ever.  I have to admit I took one, too. 

I have to thank Julie and Mike for being such great photographers during the visit.  I let them take all the pics and just sat back to take it all in.  It was fun for a change!

I loved our time together.  Don't know when we'll get to do it again, but hope it's soon!

Farewell to Summer

I've been a little reminiscent-y lately.  I've been archiving photos and videos and wondering where the past 14 months... 3 years... even 11 years have gone.  And I've been reminded of God's faithfulness.  He has been good.  He has allowed much into our lives to remind us He is faithful, and we have given Him ample opportunity to prove it with our own shortcomings.  As we sing with Silas, glory to God, glory to God, glory to God forever.

It seems like just yesterday that I was pregnant with twins, leaving a job that I loved, and writing this post.  Perhaps it's another reason that I'm a bit thoughtful about these days:  I am starting back to work.  Just a day a week, maybe a few hours here and there beyond that.  Not too much, but enough to get me out of the house and to break up the routine we've been loving for the last few months.  In many ways I am looking forward to using my skills again, being in the lives of families, and ministering in a very practical way.  In another way I feel stretched by the change and sort-of just want things to stay the way they were.  But the Lord has been very clear and has given me an incredible opportunity with a great company.  So we follow.  

Shane will get to be with the children while I am gone.  And we keep saying what a great season this is for me to be going back to work.  Things at home are relatively easy.  Our three are on virtually the same schedule with rising, meals, playtime and napping.  They eat the same things and if you just keep them occupied, all is well.  This week they were all still napping when I got home (ended up sleeping more than three and a half hours) then were exhausted for bedtime.  Daddy must be doing something right and I must take notes!

School has also started in our little town.  The pool is closed.  Gone are spontaneous weeknight gatherings with students at our house.  So perhaps the change here in our home is timely with the impending change in seasons;  summer is coming to a close and fall is slowly breezing in.  I know it is months away, but I keep wondering what in the world we are going to do all winter!

When we are iced in, I will so miss the days like this one we had not long ago when my sister was here to visit...

Girly

I am lovin' this sweet girly hair these days...

And then a friend of mine gave Lieren her first pony tail last week after I was lamenting that the front is starting to look a little funky with a headband...

But the pony right on top isn't my fave so now we're just putting little bows on the side with a barrette.  So cute, and I think she's a little happy about it...

And yes, this was the same day as the video I put on of her walking last week.  Although, based on the amount of laundry that needed to be done today, I wouldn't be surprised if my children have been having to wear the same clothes days in a row!

Aaaaaaand she's off...

Random Thoughts, Recent Happenings

Shane was gone to camp the end of last week and through the weekend.  Hence the blogging hiatus.  We are both still trying to catch up on sleep but were set back last night when about 15 students from church came over to hang out.  Until very late in the night.  School starts next week so these spur-of-the-moment get-togethers will soon end.  We actually love having kids over so I'm a little sad we will now be confined to just weekends.

This is going to be a rare post without pictures.  And it is going to be a lot of random thoughts and happenings from recent days that I don't want to forget.

• We went to the park with friends tonight.  The weather was gorgeous and is just begging us to dream of fall.  The low point was when Silas fell hard from one of the climbing apparatuses.  He didn't have on good shoes for climbing, which was a parenting fault.  We are grateful the Lord was gracious and he only came away with a few scratches.
• Simeon is near running in the house these days.  He is such a funny kid; totally in his own world most of the time, happy to keep himself occupied getting into everything and trying to climb anything he can.
• Lieren (what a sweetheart) is saying all kinds of things now:  hi, night-night, uh-oh, ball, baby, pat-pat, up, help, Elmo, more, all done, Daddy, wa-wa (water), and a different sounding wa-wa for walk.  She is so proud to be saying Daddy.  She will randomly point to Shane and say it or call it out to get his attention.  
• Lieren is taking about 6 steps at a time at the most and trying so hard to do more.  She wants to walk terribly but just doesn't quite trust herself.
• We kept ourselves busy while Shane was gone.  I journaled every day so I could remember the adventures from our first lengthy time home without Daddy.  We played at the park, did water play at home, visited the animals at PetsMart, had dinner with friends, went to church all by ourselves, and I took Silas to Monkey Joes while Grandma and Grandpa kept Sim and Lieren.  I was definitely tired when it was over and was more than a little overjoyed when we saw those vans pull into our church office parking lot!
• One of my favorite memories from our long weekend was after dinner the first night, while I cleaned up the kitchen and the babies played in kitchen cabinets (feel free to use your imagination to get the real feel of that one), Silas requested we sing songs from a video we have by Steve Green called "Hide 'Em in Your Heart".  The DVD must be circa 1983 because the clothes are a riot, but the Truth is exceptional and all three of our children love it.  So we sang till we could sing no more.  The picture in my mind of Silas sitting at the counter, his little voice singing about encouraging one another, the fruit of the Spirit, the mansions in our Father's house, a happy heart being good medicine, and loving Him because He first loved us, is beyond precious.  Kinda makes me want to get online and order the whole Psalty series or something.
• Yesterday or the day before I had Sim and Lieren in their cribs for naptime while I shut their blinds and closed the curtains.  When I turned back to them, they were reaching over to each other, grabbing hands and giggling.  One of the best twin moments in this house ever.   

Ok, I think that's enough for now.  Bedtime.  No matter how tired I am, more happenings will happen tomorrow.  And I'm learning again that I need to be ready.  So g'night.