There's a Lesson Here Somewhere

Do you ever get that feeling that you are right in the middle of a lesson?  Like it's all around you and you're starting to grasp for it, but it's just evading you?  I don't know, I get that feeling sometimes. There's this big word floating around right now... it's not actually huge as far as words go, but I think its meaning may be vast.  PERSISTENCE.  Maybe it didn't wow you with it's letter count or pronunciation, but think about it for awhile and I think you'll be impressed. I know I am.

See I'm surrounded with persistence... I have a two and a half year old.  "Why, Mommy... but why?  I know but why?..." " Please, Mommy.... I need it...Mommy, now! PERSISTENCE.  Then there is this baby who cannot yet persist in words, but definitely can in actions.  She's learning to crawl and she will grunt and groan and grasp until she gets where she wants to be. PERSISTENCE.  And as I watch these sweet, persistent girls the word reverberates in my mind and I think, "God, you're up to something aren't you?"

I want to persist in my asking like a toddler.  There are things I know God has in store for me, and for you for that matte,r that will only be given as I ask.... and ask... and ask... like some tenacious little girl I know.  I want to persist in my actions like a crawling baby.  There are things I'm sure God has in store if only step out and step into them like some baby girl I know that won't give up until she gets there.  PERSISTENCE.

I'm tired of saying I can't have it even before I've asked.  I'm tired of thinking it's out of reach only because it may take a little work to get there.  PERSISTENCE.

My Kitchen Floor

I could maybe write a book about my kitchen floor, with all the time I've put into despising it, cleaning it, standing on it, cleaning it again, despising it some more. The thing is, I'm pretty sure it doesn't deserve so much thought. Now the things I've learned while dealing with the kitchen floor maybe deserve more attention. I cleaned it today, like swept all the dirt up and then got down on my hands and knees and scrubbed that thing clean. I always feel so accomplished after I do that. Then the great tomato juice debacle happened (another story for another day). Oh well. The moral of the story is that it's just a floor, an old, white floor. And while I agree that it's probably sanitary to continue washing it every so often, it probably doesn't deserve so much of my attention ("don't walk on my clean floor with those shoes", "do not spill that milk", "ugh, there's milk on my clean floor", etc.) Lesson trying to be learned....

Here's a picture of my used to be spotless floor. There's a lot of life lived in this house - I would have to say that's more important.

Easter

We had a wonderful weekend celebrating Easter with our families. What a wonderful thing to celebrate... a Lord that is alive and at work within us!

Here are some pictures.... one of these times I'm actually going to write a thought provoking post.

Natalie came down to color Easter eggs in her swim suit and hat. We just threw a shirt over top and went with it! She makes me laugh.

Here is some of the Lehman crew after that big hunt. Such a picturesque setting :)

Natalie found her Easter basket!

Our sweet Brielle!

Pappy and his girls. As you can imagine, this nap didn't last long.

Homemade Baby Food

I'm feeling so proud of all the homemade baby food Brielle has been eating. And let me tell you, she's been eating a lot! This girl loves to eat! She growls until you get that spoon in her little mouth. So far, she's readily eaten everything we've given her. The only problem is, as you can tell by the prunes in the picture, she tends to get a little constipated :( I wanted to add a picture of my little eater, but I don't have a recent one. I guess I'll put that on the agenda for tomorrow.

The beach ... in March?

We just got back from a week at the Outer Banks with the Lehman crew... and what a crew it is! I have been blessed to not only have been born into a wonderful family, but to have married into one as well.

I'll have to admit when I first heard of the idea of heading to the beach with 8 kids in the middle of March I was skeptical. All I saw was a bad case of cabin fever from being stuck inside a beach house all week with nothing to do. However, I warmed to the idea and the weather warmed as well. We had the most beautiful week. The kids were on the beach (and in the water I might add) in their swim suits and loving it! What a blessing. Here are some pictures from the week.

As soon as we hit the sand at the dunes, Natalie was grabbing handfuls to put in her bucket. She was so cute. This was a huge step because last year she didn't want to touch the sand!

Natalie loves her cousins! Anytime we ask her if she remembers someone else she'll just say, "no, I like my cousins."

Brielle definitely missed her crib and any resemblance of a schedule, but she loved all the attention she got from everyone!

Little Miss Personality

I just love these pictures I took of Natalie yesterday. She is little miss personality these days. She keeps us on our toes with her ideas and questions. She is also showing us the beauty and challenge that is all the emotions of little girls. It is eye opening to me as I explain to her the control we have over our emotions. Definitely an area where I'm being challenged to act, not just speak! Here's my beauty...

Six Months

Well, my baby girl is six months old already. I love the stage we are heading into. There is something about the playfulness of the next few months that I absolutely love, but there is a part of me that already misses the teeny "tinyness" of those first few months.

Brielle is a delight. She is most often happy as long as she is caught up on her sleep. And this girl loves sleep. She has been going to bed at 6:30 for the past couple of months - I always thought that sounded ridiculous but when it works, it works! She still gets up once to eat and then sleeps until 7 or 7:30.

She's still a little thing. She weighed in at 13 pounds last week. The doctor is really pleased with her development though. The silly girl rolled over a few times around Christmas and now won't do it again. The doctor said it seems like she's just laid back because she has plenty of strength to do whatever she needs to do. I'll take it.

When I think of where we were last year at this time, I am amazed and overwhelmed by God's goodness. This girl has been an adventure, one I wouldn't trade for anything. She's truly our gift "of God".