I read this quote by J.C. Ryle on another blog today.
Though our trial hardly compares to the suffering of others we love, these words bring helpful perspective to the troubles that come in this life. My ever-increasing hope is as this quote ends, "we shall be at home forever with the Lord."
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Therefore it is that God's people pass through great tribulation; therefore it is they are often called upon to suffer the sting of affliction and anxiety, or weep over the grave of those whom they have loved as their own soul.
It is their Father's hand that chastens them; it is thus He weans their affection from things below and fixes them on Himself; it is thus He trains them for eternity, and cuts the threads one by one that bind their wavering hearts to earth.
No doubt such chastening is grievous for the time, but still it brings many a hidden grace to light, and cuts down many a secret seed of evil; and we shall see those who have suffered most shining among the brightest stars in the assembly of heaven.
The purest gold is that which has been longest in the refiner's furnace. The brightest diamond is often that which has required the most grinding and polishing. But our light affliction endureth for a moment, and it worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. The saints are men who have come out of great tribulation - they are never left to perish in it.
The last night of weeping will soon be spent, the last wave of trouble will have rolled over us, and then we shall have a peace that passeth all understanding; we shall be at home for ever with the Lord.
Oct 19, 2011
Oct 18, 2011
5 Year Stats
So much to say... simply no time... not if I'm going to enjoy my just-five boy, that is!
But I have to post his stats from the doctor's visit last week so that I don't lose them completely. Sorry for no pics and no fun stuff... just the facts, folks, just the facts.
James weighs 40 lbs (50th percentile), is 44 3/4 inches tall (75-90th percentile), has 20/25 vision, blood pressure of 90/54 and a resting pulse of 84. His BMI is 14.
That's all for now. There is so much life to live and so little time to blog about it!
But I have to post his stats from the doctor's visit last week so that I don't lose them completely. Sorry for no pics and no fun stuff... just the facts, folks, just the facts.
James weighs 40 lbs (50th percentile), is 44 3/4 inches tall (75-90th percentile), has 20/25 vision, blood pressure of 90/54 and a resting pulse of 84. His BMI is 14.
That's all for now. There is so much life to live and so little time to blog about it!
May 21, 2011
18 months
Our baby girl isn't so much of a baby these days.
She loves to play outside, running around, chasing balls. She picks dandelions. Her favorite thing ever is to put on a helmet and go for rides with her big brother on the little electric four-wheeler or in the side-by-side that Grammy has for all the grandchildren. When it's time to come inside, she is most unhappy when we try to take off her helmet.
Inside, she is beginning to enjoy books. Unlike her brother who sat still for books from his very earliest days, Madelene Kate has not had the same exposure and has not enjoyed sitting still much at all. She far prefers to be busy, getting into things! She loves holding small things (like the "babies" in a collection of 3-inch plastic dolls that Ben's mom has). We recently began to sit her up to the table with a sketch pad and crayons. She fills the paper with her scribbles. And then she tosses the crayons on the floor! She's also been enjoying the nesting/stacking blocks that I give her while she sits in her chair. She has no trouble stacking four blocks while sitting. I think she can do even more when she plays with them on the floor.
She can easily point to her eyes, nose, teeth and tongue. We're still working on ears. And when she's in the bath and I ask for her foot, she immediately pokes her toes out of the water. Yesterday when I was giving Grammy an update on our doctor visit, and I mentioned that skill, Madelene Kate kicked her foot in the air to me!
My girlie is really into "pretty shoes" lately. She has several pairs now, since a generous friend gave us her daughters' hand-me-downs. While James had one pair of shoes when he was this age, Madelene Kate has at least four that she regularly wears. Whenever I change her diaper, I can easily distract her by holding up a shoe and saying, "pretty shoe" or "pink shoe."
Her one vice continues to be her pacifier. Thankfully we only have one. So if it ever disappears or breaks, that will be the end! I try to reserve it for bedtime. But there have been a few occasions when I've been out and needed something to keep her quiet. And on Sundays it provides a comfort when I put her in the nursery. She falls asleep very easily with it in her mouth - in fact, she'll generally fall asleep anywhere if she has the pacifier.
Her favorite toy is a Build-A-Bear dog named Millie. Millie has a sweet face and long, soft ears. After awakening in the morning or from her nap, our sweet girlie will spend good parts of an hour, sitting in her pack-n-play, sucking her pacifier and rubbing Millie's ears between her fingers. More times than I can count, I have come to get her up, thinking she is still asleep, and found her completely silent, pacifier in place, contentedly playing with Millie.
I wasn't thinking that Madelene Kate had much of a vocabulary yet. So when the doctor asked if she has 10-15 words, I told him no. But on further reflection, I think she might. And when asked if she puts two words together, I replied, "Well - not generally, but she does say, "Ah-ha-dat." or "Ah-ha-nanni." which Grammy pointed out a week or so ago to sound like, "I have that/I have banana." Since we have trained James to ask respectfully, Madelene Kate frequently hears, "May I please have...?" So I guess it makes sense that she would ask for things that way. I don't know what the doctor wrote down, but it is gratifying to think that she has picked up a good habit from her brother!
For the record, here are Madelene Kate's words:
Mommy, Daddy (both with perfect diction, but "Daddy" always comes with bright eyes and delighted smiles)
ba - ball
nanni- - banana
dat - that
guk - book
ah-oooph/goggie - doggie
ah-weesh - water (this one confounds us, but has been consistent for months)
ha-yo - hello (when she picks up a phone and puts it on her ear)
ba-bee - baby
buh-bu - brother
MaMee - Grammy (it often sounds like Mommy, but there is a bit of a distinction)
Bapa - Papa (always said with great happiness!)
uh-uh = uh-oh
James has always been a great eater with few preferences (green beans were the only thing he consistently refused). His sister has expressed a few more opinions. But generally, if I repackage something, she'll eat it down with no argument. The one thing she has rejected multiple times is egg salad made with mustard or vinegar. She happily eats salted scrambled eggs or hard boiled egg whites. The really odd thing is that she LOVES pickles! Her other favorites are banana, tomato, rice, broccoli, peas and corn. She eats black beans, kidney beans, hamburgers, chicken (if it's ground) and salmon, among other things. She has preferences about how her cheese is served - not in slices, not crazy about shredded, but if it comes melted on a tortilla shell or rice bread, she gobbles it right down! Silly girl.
Size-wise, we find her mostly in the middle of the charts. Her cloth diapers can sadly give the appearance of being bigger than she is! (Speaking of - she regularly expresses excitement when I talk to her about not wearing diapers any more. And she has sat on the real potty several times for more than a minute or two. Nothing so far, but a positive step in the potty-training direction!)
So here are her measurements as of 18 months and 2 days:
Weight - 23 lbs, 6 oz (25-50th percentile)
Height - 32 1/4 inches (50th percentile)
Head - 47 cm (50-75th percentile)
And with that, I sign off to go make my children some pancakes.
She loves to play outside, running around, chasing balls. She picks dandelions. Her favorite thing ever is to put on a helmet and go for rides with her big brother on the little electric four-wheeler or in the side-by-side that Grammy has for all the grandchildren. When it's time to come inside, she is most unhappy when we try to take off her helmet.
Inside, she is beginning to enjoy books. Unlike her brother who sat still for books from his very earliest days, Madelene Kate has not had the same exposure and has not enjoyed sitting still much at all. She far prefers to be busy, getting into things! She loves holding small things (like the "babies" in a collection of 3-inch plastic dolls that Ben's mom has). We recently began to sit her up to the table with a sketch pad and crayons. She fills the paper with her scribbles. And then she tosses the crayons on the floor! She's also been enjoying the nesting/stacking blocks that I give her while she sits in her chair. She has no trouble stacking four blocks while sitting. I think she can do even more when she plays with them on the floor.
She can easily point to her eyes, nose, teeth and tongue. We're still working on ears. And when she's in the bath and I ask for her foot, she immediately pokes her toes out of the water. Yesterday when I was giving Grammy an update on our doctor visit, and I mentioned that skill, Madelene Kate kicked her foot in the air to me!
My girlie is really into "pretty shoes" lately. She has several pairs now, since a generous friend gave us her daughters' hand-me-downs. While James had one pair of shoes when he was this age, Madelene Kate has at least four that she regularly wears. Whenever I change her diaper, I can easily distract her by holding up a shoe and saying, "pretty shoe" or "pink shoe."
Her one vice continues to be her pacifier. Thankfully we only have one. So if it ever disappears or breaks, that will be the end! I try to reserve it for bedtime. But there have been a few occasions when I've been out and needed something to keep her quiet. And on Sundays it provides a comfort when I put her in the nursery. She falls asleep very easily with it in her mouth - in fact, she'll generally fall asleep anywhere if she has the pacifier.
Her favorite toy is a Build-A-Bear dog named Millie. Millie has a sweet face and long, soft ears. After awakening in the morning or from her nap, our sweet girlie will spend good parts of an hour, sitting in her pack-n-play, sucking her pacifier and rubbing Millie's ears between her fingers. More times than I can count, I have come to get her up, thinking she is still asleep, and found her completely silent, pacifier in place, contentedly playing with Millie.
I wasn't thinking that Madelene Kate had much of a vocabulary yet. So when the doctor asked if she has 10-15 words, I told him no. But on further reflection, I think she might. And when asked if she puts two words together, I replied, "Well - not generally, but she does say, "Ah-ha-dat." or "Ah-ha-nanni." which Grammy pointed out a week or so ago to sound like, "I have that/I have banana." Since we have trained James to ask respectfully, Madelene Kate frequently hears, "May I please have...?" So I guess it makes sense that she would ask for things that way. I don't know what the doctor wrote down, but it is gratifying to think that she has picked up a good habit from her brother!
For the record, here are Madelene Kate's words:
Mommy, Daddy (both with perfect diction, but "Daddy" always comes with bright eyes and delighted smiles)
ba - ball
nanni- - banana
dat - that
guk - book
ah-oooph/goggie - doggie
ah-weesh - water (this one confounds us, but has been consistent for months)
ha-yo - hello (when she picks up a phone and puts it on her ear)
ba-bee - baby
buh-bu - brother
MaMee - Grammy (it often sounds like Mommy, but there is a bit of a distinction)
Bapa - Papa (always said with great happiness!)
uh-uh = uh-oh
James has always been a great eater with few preferences (green beans were the only thing he consistently refused). His sister has expressed a few more opinions. But generally, if I repackage something, she'll eat it down with no argument. The one thing she has rejected multiple times is egg salad made with mustard or vinegar. She happily eats salted scrambled eggs or hard boiled egg whites. The really odd thing is that she LOVES pickles! Her other favorites are banana, tomato, rice, broccoli, peas and corn. She eats black beans, kidney beans, hamburgers, chicken (if it's ground) and salmon, among other things. She has preferences about how her cheese is served - not in slices, not crazy about shredded, but if it comes melted on a tortilla shell or rice bread, she gobbles it right down! Silly girl.
Size-wise, we find her mostly in the middle of the charts. Her cloth diapers can sadly give the appearance of being bigger than she is! (Speaking of - she regularly expresses excitement when I talk to her about not wearing diapers any more. And she has sat on the real potty several times for more than a minute or two. Nothing so far, but a positive step in the potty-training direction!)
So here are her measurements as of 18 months and 2 days:
Weight - 23 lbs, 6 oz (25-50th percentile)
Height - 32 1/4 inches (50th percentile)
Head - 47 cm (50-75th percentile)
And with that, I sign off to go make my children some pancakes.
May 3, 2011
Capturing the Moment
How I wish for a way to instantly capture those priceless and fleeting moments that vanish the instant you reach for a camera.
There is no way that anyone else can now appreciate the precious view I had as I looked out the front door over the expanse of Grammy's deep green lawn to see my darkly red-headed boy in a long-sleeved white t-shirt and orange track pants darting furiously here and there as he followed a little yellow butterfly in an attempt to hold it for even a minute.
Maybe by writing it down I will be able to recall it in years to come, if I close my eyes tight and try hard to imagine that lean little body that will have been transformed seemingly overnight...
It all goes so fast - every bit of it. I'm trying to capture each moment. But they slip away without warning.
There is no way that anyone else can now appreciate the precious view I had as I looked out the front door over the expanse of Grammy's deep green lawn to see my darkly red-headed boy in a long-sleeved white t-shirt and orange track pants darting furiously here and there as he followed a little yellow butterfly in an attempt to hold it for even a minute.
Maybe by writing it down I will be able to recall it in years to come, if I close my eyes tight and try hard to imagine that lean little body that will have been transformed seemingly overnight...
It all goes so fast - every bit of it. I'm trying to capture each moment. But they slip away without warning.
Apr 18, 2011
Sunday Afternoons
One fine Sunday in February, our family tuned in to watch Chevrolets, Dodges, Fords, and Toyotas speed around a paved track in Florida. And we've been hooked ever since.
At five minutes to race time, we turn on the TV. Together we stand while we listen to the Invocation by a local pastor, salute the flag as a country star sings our National Anthem (correctly!) and get goose bumps while military jets roar overhead.
and then those famous words, "Gentlemen, Start. Your. Engines." followed soon after by DW's "Boogity, Boogity, Boogity. Let's Go Racin' Boys!"
Sometime in the middle of the race, I make popcorn. And toward the end of the race, I make dinner.
Even though they drive Chevy's, we root for Jeff Gordon, number 24, and Junior in the 88 car and number 48, Jimmie Johnson. (James loves the M&M Car - Kyle Busch #18).) We gasp at crashes and feel for the drivers they take out.
And we yell at the screen on the final five laps as every driver in the top ten has a chance to finish on top.
Yesterday, we witnessed true sportsmanship. Junior has not won in more than a hundred races. But he decided that pulling one for the team was more important that winning for himself. So he put his teammate, Jimmie Johnson, in front, and pushed him across that finish line just .002 seconds ahead of the #2 spot, taking 4th place finish instead.
I never would have expected it, but we've had a lot of fun these past few weeks, watching stock cars zip around an oval!
At five minutes to race time, we turn on the TV. Together we stand while we listen to the Invocation by a local pastor, salute the flag as a country star sings our National Anthem (correctly!) and get goose bumps while military jets roar overhead.
and then those famous words, "Gentlemen, Start. Your. Engines." followed soon after by DW's "Boogity, Boogity, Boogity. Let's Go Racin' Boys!"
Sometime in the middle of the race, I make popcorn. And toward the end of the race, I make dinner.
Even though they drive Chevy's, we root for Jeff Gordon, number 24, and Junior in the 88 car and number 48, Jimmie Johnson. (James loves the M&M Car - Kyle Busch #18).) We gasp at crashes and feel for the drivers they take out.
And we yell at the screen on the final five laps as every driver in the top ten has a chance to finish on top.
Yesterday, we witnessed true sportsmanship. Junior has not won in more than a hundred races. But he decided that pulling one for the team was more important that winning for himself. So he put his teammate, Jimmie Johnson, in front, and pushed him across that finish line just .002 seconds ahead of the #2 spot, taking 4th place finish instead.
I never would have expected it, but we've had a lot of fun these past few weeks, watching stock cars zip around an oval!
According to James
On Saturday, we celebrated Grammy P's birthday at a special restaurant about an hour from home.
According to James, on our way, we "went across the McToemick River on a HUGE bridge and saw TONS of planes."
According to James, on our way, we "went across the McToemick River on a HUGE bridge and saw TONS of planes."
Mar 16, 2011
From James
While I took Madelene Kate upstairs to change her diaper this morning, James typed an e-mail to his Daddy all by himself:
Daddy i Love you THANK you for the picshrs you
sent for me Grammy is comeing doun Love James
Daddy i Love you THANK you for the picshrs you
sent for me Grammy is comeing doun Love James
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