A Photo Shoot with Larissa

We were blessed to get a personal (and free to boot!) photo shoot from my neighbor and friend, Larissa, yesterday.  These are a few of my favs.  I thought they turned out beautiful.  Thanks so much Larissa for trying out your new camera lens on my kids!

A Very Veggie Birthday Party!

Joel & Elianna had a Veggie Tales party this year and it was a blast!  Noah, Lucas, Austin, Madeline, Grace, Johanna, and Isabella came over to celebrate with us.  It was a beautiful sunny day here on Whidbey Island (low 50s!).  John decided to do outdoor games and had potato bowling and a potato spoon race, parachute fun, and a treasure hunt for the boys.  They seemed to really enjoy the adventure!  Great food and thoughtful gifts...the kids were so blessed!  So glad we could share the day with friends =D

Elianna at 2

Likes:  DOGS are still #1 with her when it comes to what to play with, talk about, wear for clothing...cats, horses, bears, and bunnies all take a backseat in her mind!  She still is completely smitten by her blue blankie.  Loves her baths and the pool.  She expresses a special love for each member of the family.  Daddy get's the biggest smiles and exclamations of joy that he's home.  She still insists on being held by Mama quite often.  She's grown to enjoy movies, puzzles, and books more this year...but she still only sits to hear a few pages of a story and then wants to roam around or be in control of the book. 

Dislikes:  dolls, most veggies, sitting still for reading, not getting the "right" breakfast right away in the morning, any clothes she views as uncomfortable, diaper changes.

Personality:  she can be a ball of emotions like any toddler/girl I suppose, but mainly she is a cute, cuddly ball of happiness, smiles, and joy!  I see a girly-girl within her...she enjoys coming in the bathroom when I'm getting ready in the morning and getting pretty with Mama...brushing teeth and hair, picking a hair clippie and maybe some chap stick or lotion.  She also enjoys being a "super" with her brother...she likes a lot of his boyish toys, too.  She has started going through the "MINE!" phase, which puts her promptly on a 2 min time out now that she is 2 years old.  She understands the whole discipline thing, as her brother has had plenty of it over the course of her short lil life!  She is quick to look sad and give me a hug to make things right after a time out...very sweet!  So starts the process of learning to share and be a nice friend!  Everytime she looks out of the window in our living room or we go to get in the van she shouts "Ki Ki" (that's the name of our neighbor's dog) at the top of her lungs...if she didn't enjoy watching that dog so much, I might wish it an early death b/c it's one of those dogs that barks early in the morning for 30 min stretches at seemingly nothing at all and then does that all throughout the day.  For the first 20 months of her life, she has been pretty much fearless to stay up in our church nursery...until the last few months!  For some reason, she's now going through the seperation anxiety thing...wailing as I leave her and causing quite a raucous.  Hopefully this stage will pass quickly and she'll get back to her calm, easy-going self.  We look forward to this new year of life for her, as we know she will be talking soon with sentences we can understand better and so many other developmental milestones.   We pray that the Lord will continue to grow her and make her a worshipper and rejoicer in His presence, give her a desire to know Him and His Word from an early age, and give her wonderful friends and great relationships with her family.  We are so blessed to have our little sunshine to brighten our life with her love and big hugs!

Happy Valentine's Day Hunny!

John & I met Jan 1999 at the Minot, ND, train station.  My Mom pointed him out and noted that he had a Bible...he approached my parents & I a few minutes later.  We learned that we had both gone to Wesley Acres Bible Camp as kids but must have missed each other by a week!  We sat on the train together for another 16 hours getting to know each other...and well, the rest is history!  We've had our share of bumps along the way, but God has made our life together better and better as each year goes by.  Marriage has taught me so much and grown me up in so many areas.  I'm so thankful for the blessing he is to my life.  He is a wonderful provider, doesn't get offended easily/slow to anger, and sacrifices for the good of his family, church and country.  I love you and appreciate you...Happy Valentine's John!

Wow, I've Been a Mommy for 4 Years!

Happy Birthday To My Big Boy!!!

Joel at 4 years...

Likes:  pretending he's a superhero (like Bibleman, Batman, Superman, etc), playing with his action figures, reading (anything & everything...but esp. his devotional book these days), doing puzzles, doing preschool stuff, helping Mommy bake/cook and fold washclothes, playing with his friends and Eli, playing outside (esp. with rocks, sticks, and his bike),  helping me at the grocery store, picking up any conglomeration of small toys and saying it's a sword, busting out some fighting moves, watching movies, cuddling with Mommy & Daddy, wrestling with Daddy, doing tricks (aka jumping off of things)!

Dislikes:  being laughed at when he wasn't purposely trying to you make you laugh, getting his hair washed or water in his eyes,  cleaning up his toys, being told it's naptime/bedtime (but what kid likes that...ok, besides Elianna atm!)

His Personality:

We see Joel as an outgoing, friendly, fun-loving, creative, strong-willed 4 yr old.  Some days he seems to be constantly pushing the limits to make sure our boundaries haven't changed.  The importance of self-control, patience, and how to be a good friend are lessons he's been learning about this year..especially now that Elianna is expressing herself with the word, "MINE!" daily and enjoys all his boyish toys.  And well, he's a boy, and has a fair share of testosterone to deal with already!  We know God has an awesome plan for his life and it is a joy and privilage that we get to guide, teach, and walk with him as he grows up.   On the eve of his birthday, with tears (his), he has assured me that he doesn't want to turn 4 and that he always wants to be my baby!  How I love him: cuddlebug, spitfire and all!