happy birthdays!

yesterday was a fun-filled day of celebration. grandma darlene's 80th birthday and joshua's 2nd birthday. and plenty of joyous chaos to go all around...

the kids always love playing together and the family always enjoys the times to catch up... and to remind chad that he is not allowed to touch the green bean casserole. i feel so blessed to be surrounded by such a wonderful family. love you guys!!!

and happy birthday to uncle jim in california. wish we could celebrate with you too!

teeth time

the name nastia is actually starting to grow on me. i'm not going to name my child this or anything, but i am quite a fan of the amazing, beautiful, graceful gymnast that just won the gold for the US. last night was not the best night for the girl's gymnastics all around event. the reason: it was so much fun to watch and so exciting to see the USA take gold and silver. and it was after midnight before it was finally over. not a good combination with an early, early morning to get us ready for a very exciting, much anticipated family outing. ella's first dentist appointment.

ella had a great time at the dentist. yes, it was a very fun place complete with video games and very cool sunglasses. i'm sure they thought we were nuts that we made it a family affair and also, when i pulled the camera out of my purse to capture these moments. the hygienist asks, "is this her first time at the dentist?" hmmm... is it that obvious?

i must say, pediatric dentistry has come a long way. i still have very vivid memories of visiting dr. j's office as a child. it all began with an incredibly long wait in a very boring waiting room with almost no color and elevator music playing in the background. they had one Highlights magazine that, i kid you not, was completely written and colored in and remained the sole source of child entertainment for at least 4 years. the same exact one. i always wondered why the wait was so long (seriously, an hour) and there was no one coming or going. what were they doing back there? my sister and i would both go at the same time. they did pass out stickers at the end. i escaped cavities as a child but angie, unfortunately, did not. my poor sister would often walk out with a sticker plastered on the front of her shirt that said, "i will brush better." who makes stickers like this?!? what a way to motivate a child. she still talks about this. it scarred her for life.

well, ella did great and her teeth are beautiful. and she is excited to go back again. next up... bennett.

colds and golds

"nose wunning adin." (nose running again). i have heard this countless times over the last few days. poor little bennett has had a miserable cold that hopefully will be over soon and won't make its rounds through any of the rest of us. fortunately, bennett is now at the "please wipe my nose for me" stage instead of the "i'm going to let it run down my face and all over the place" stage. aside from a couple nights of not so good sleep, it hasn't been overly terrible and he is a cuddly little sick boy. oh, and he loves his train.in other news, we have been thoroughly enjoying the olympics, even if they wait to show the best events way, WAY too late at night. but of course, there are a few thoughts which have arisen. allow me to share them with you...

1. when did the silver medal become the equivalent of losing? i think those female american gymnasts are quite amazing and deserve a little more credit for getting second place in the entire world. it seems to me the media (and especially those obnoxious sport commentators) need to back off and say something nice. you go, girls!

2. does it disturb anyone else that these poor chinese gymnasts are ripped from their parents arms at the age of three and shipped off to train to be olympians? i mean, isn't this like slavery or something? seriously, that's like sending ella off right now to train and seeing her maybe once a year. no wonder those poor girls never smile.

3. michael phelps is very fun to watch. its kinda funny to automatically expect not only a gold medal but also a world record every time he swims. even when his goggles fill up with water and he can't even see. yes, that boy makes us proud to be american. (as do all of the other superb athletes we have seen this week)

one final note... we can now add synchronized diving to the things we hope bennett never comes home and tells us he wants to try. i'm sorry, but those boys in matching speedos... a little too much for me.

opening cermonies

we love the olympics around here. and we love the opportunity to put on our cool chinese clothes and have our own opening ceremony performance.

and of course, we love america. we live in the best country on earth. so... go USA!

some grammy and poppa fun

highlights at grammy and poppa's house:

1. learning the pledge of allegiance (well, at least learning to put our hand over our heart, look at the flag, and giggle)

2. a friend's garage sale where the kids scored all kinds of fun little treats (thanks maureen and meghan!)

3. date night. fun for us, fun for the kids, fun for grammy and poppa. (my parents were amazed at our children's ability to pack away the pizza. they can almost polish off a large pizza on their own. this is true. we have to cut them off before their stomachs explode. we are very serious about pizza around here.)

4. skinny dipping in the pool. (ok, well just the kids in the wading pool out back.)

5. ella and bennett slept in the same room together. we asked her if she liked that. her answer: "yes, it was fun. but it was sometimes hard to be quiet. i would feel a funny coming and i couldn't keep it in any more so i had to laugh."

6. i have always wished that bennett's hair was thick and curly so he could grow it out. instead he got my thin, straight hair. a little glimpse of what might have been:

candyland

we have a new addiction in our house. no, i'm not referring to ben and jerry's cinnamon buns ice cream which is incredible (yeah, i didn't think so either when i first heard it, but trust me). i'm talking about candyland. ella can't seem to get enough of it. we maybe played 80 times today.

ella's goal is not to win. actually, winning is the last thing on her mind. her goal is that every "fruit" person is drawn. and it doesn't matter who draws them or even if she draws plumpy, located at the beginning and i draw queen frostine, located near the end. she is excited either way. she even does the candyland dance around the room where she marches and pumps her arms up and down saying, "hooray! hooray! hooray!"

ella plays candyland with me, with daddy, and with any poor soul who comes in our house and doesn't have the heart to turn her down. she also asks for it during naptime and bedtime and plays with it before she goes to sleep. i have even watched her put the cards in her grocery cart and push them around the house. yes, she is obsessed. the other day we were playing and i noticed she couldn't stop doing the pee-pee dance and i was worried about an accident. "do you have to go pee-pee?" i asked. "mommy, i just can't even think about going pee-pee right now." this is one serious candyland player. (she did eventually bolt for the bathroom and fortunately made it in time.)

the other day, she was carrying the game around the house and asked anthony if he wanted to play. he politely told her he unfortunately had some work to do so he couldn't play right now. her response: "but daddy, how about just once. you can work after you get some game in you."

i love it. i love that she really just enjoys the process and hasn't yet discovered the greed of winning and wanting it all. i love that she is sincerely delighted with the good fortune of others. i love that when we are setting up and she sees one of these "fruit people" she excitedly hands it to me and says, "put this one in a good hiding spot!" i love how her eyes light up not just for "fruit people," but even for a single, plain old colored square. she is thrilled. i can learn a lot from her. i'm trying to apply her 3 year-old wisdom to how to live life... enjoying the big things that God blesses me with, and also what he blesses others with that i get the opportunity to be a part of. and not only the big things, but all the fun little colors along the way. bennett also likes playing candyland. his rules are different. i refer to this as "tackle" candyland. its slightly more violent and ends when every single card and gingerbread man is scattered across the living room. ella no longer asks him to play with her.

questions of a 3 year-old

why does all the people have belly buttons?

how many squares of toilet paper do i use?

am i bigger than curious george?
what does the sun taste like?
how does the baby in your belly take a bath?
why is daddy taking a break from his sunglasses?

i love ella's questions. so innocent and also a little window into the workings of her mind. she seems to come up with something every day that makes me giggle or gets me thinking about just how amazing it is to be a mom and watch my little girl begin to understand the world. it got me thinking about one conversation we had that was especially memorable:

ella: "does God have to yell to stop the wind?"

me: "he doesn't have to, but he can. or he can whisper. or he doesn't even have to say anything. he can just make it happen."

ella: "does he have to go outside to stop the wind?"

me: "ummm...."

ella: "when he goes outside, does Jesus stay inside with maddie?" (maddie is our dog who died earlier this year. maddie is in heaven. not sure about the theological correctness of this, but hopefully we can work that out in a few years.)

me: "well... i guess he might." (i'm still trying to figure out how to guide this conversation.)

ella: "why doesn't Jesus have to feed maddie?" (because maddie's dog food dish was here long after she was, ella has always been concerned about maddie eating in heaven.)

me: "well, we don't need to eat food in heaven. its a perfect place. but although we don't need food, there still may be a feast of amazing treats just for fun. i'm not real sure on all the details i just know its going to be really, really great. but i've never been to heaven so i don't really know."

ella: "oh, i've been there."

me: "really?" never had this conversation before.

ella (looking out the window like no big deal): "yeah, when i got made." long pause. "but mommy, i don't really remember it because it was a long, long time ago."

precious sleep

there are a few things i simply cannot make it through the day without... God, a smile from my husband, a latte, and nap time.

i love that ella is on this kick now where she sleeps with her backpack on. (she tells me its something to do with curious george...) and i love that bennett often sleeps with his hands behind his head, just chillin'. but most of all, i just love that they sleep.


i do love my children. very much. but there is something about the break in the day that makes me appreciate them even more. this may sound bad to some of you, but i know you fellow mothers of little ones know exactly what i mean.

"The joys of motherhood are never fully experienced until the children are in bed." - unknown

what shall we do today?

good news... joshua's surgery went well. thanks for your prayers.

here at our house we were discussing what we would do the rest of the day. i mentioned that daddy has a softball game we could go to, although it is at 6 pm and will still be absurdly hot at that time of day. bennett would be happy to never have to be at home and instantly repeated over and over "dada's game" "dada's game" "dada's game."

as i listened to him and saw his excitement i began to question the wisdom of announcing this option to them. last week daddy had a game at 6 that we went to and i was thrilled when ella urgently had to pee, which found us in a freezing cold, overly air conditioned bathroom. i think we maybe spent 3 innings there. its hot, i'm huge and i'm not quite sure i have it in me to try again this week.

ella can read minds. as bennett is still repeating "dada's game," she eagerly offers, "mommy, don't worry. if it gets too hot i'll just blow in your face."

well, that should help. looks like we are going to the game tonight.

joshua...

please pray for my precious little nephew. he heads to the big scary hospital early monday morning for surgery to close his cleft palate (on the interior of his mouth). he then has to be in full arm restraints for 10 days, morning and night, and can't have any solid food, sippy cups, or eating utensils in his mouth. so come to think of it, you can pray for my sister and her husband too. sounds like a long 10 days for the poor kid. please pray it goes fast for all of them.

water fun...

yesterday...

went for an ultrasound yesterday morning, just to check on a few things and everything looked great. and seeing our newest little baby is so exciting. "only" 10 weeks to go!

instead of chasing the kids around the office, anthony opted to stay home and watch them. when i told ella where i was going, she said, "oh, the place with the school bus toy." yes, that's the one. "ohhh," she said, sounding disappointed. "they have an elevator. and can i ride it again sometime before i die?" i'm sure we can work that out.

so as i pulled into the driveway, i envisioned what it might be like inside as the kids hear the sound of the garage door opening. because every time this plays out, i am usually the one on the inside watching the kids faces light up with excitement when the realization hits that, YES, daddy is home! its like he is bringing the entire disney parade with him based on the sheer excitement erupting from within. i have to hold them back from the door to keep them from getting run over in the anticipation to greet daddy as soon as he opens the car door.

imagine my disappointment when the door didn't open from the house and my 2 kids didn't come tumbling out in a frenzy to greet me. hmmm... is it possible that maybe daddy is just far more exciting than i am? as i opened the door (all by myself) i was faced with the cold, hard truth. daddy is definitely way more fun. this is what greeted my eyes.

so what does one do with a tent up the middle of the family room? endless opportunities await. make the most of it. crank the music up, dance, play with toys, read stories, picnic lunch, attempt nap time...

"lazarus, come out!"

pink bathrobe for jesus... check
toilet paper for lazarus' grave clothes... check
play tent for tomb... check

our bible lesson for the day...

happy birthday to my hot husband

today is a special day to honor anthony. while i feel that many of the reasons i love my husband are obvious, such as his love for the Lord, his love for me and our kids, the way he sacrifices for us and serves us... i was thinking this morning of some other reasons i love him that maybe i don't tell him often enough. so here goes... (this list is not all inclusive)

1. he killed the scorpion in the kitchen last week (and all other bugs that terrify me)
2. he gets up in the morning with the kids even when i say, "no, honey, i've got them," from under the covers
3. he really is a deep sleeper and not faking it all the other early mornings and in the middle of the night
4. he doesn't mind cleaning up after the kids when they have the stomach flu (maybe this should be number one)
5. he turns off the tv anytime i start talking to him. well, except when it is the end of a really good game and then he mutes it. but he always turns and looks directly at me
6. he doesn't even glance at my rear end when telling me that i am "all baby" with my weight gain this pregnancy
7. he cleans the bathrooms... and the rest of the house
8. he watches the office with me, even though steve carell humor isn't exactly his
9. to copy from ella's father's day list: he goes to the grocery store. oh, and of course the changing of bennett's diaper as well
10. he never rolls his eyes, groans, or even appears to ignore me when i fill him in on my latest really good book and all the characters and plot lines that i know he really couldn't care less about. last night he even asked me about a book i read a couple of weeks ago that i had told him ALL about. and he didn't laugh too hard when i told him i still really missed those people.
11. he plays games with me... cards, rummikub, etc... even though it must get really old to lose all the time :)
12. when we go somewhere as a family, he always drives us. this may sound silly, but i tend to think it a bit odd when i see women driving their families around with the husband sitting in the passenger seat. obviously there are exceptions like broken legs, blindness, and raging drunkenness. but i do appreciate that anthony always drives. i think it is very gentlemanly.
13. he has this ability, when he is being really, really annoying, of still making me laugh. come to think of it, i kinda hate that...
14. when i have spent time with friends or family, he always asks me all about them. and remembers past details about them. he really cares about what (and who) is important to me.
15. he does all the yard work, car maintenance, finances, takes out the trash, feeds jake, etc... i never even have to think about it.
16. when we have steak for dinner, he always gives me the best cut
17. he gives the kids baths. really, it is very difficult to bend over and bathe the squirmy children while in my 3rd trimester.
18. he is a fantastic father (even though i'm pretty sure i'll have an ulcer someday from all the daredevil tricks, flips and stunts he does with the kids)
19. he really and truly is my best friend