Thankful Thursday....

Today, I am thankful....

1) That my hubby is home this week! He had a great trip to Haiti.... I'm thankful that he was able to go.... but I'm thankful that he came home safely, too. It was really hard to have very limited amounts of contact with him (less than 7 minutes all week).... I missed his voice!
2) For pharmacists at 9 PM! Scott seems to be having a pretty significant allergic reaction to his "malarone" (AKA anti-malaria meds). I'm really thankful that the pharmacist was still at the store when I walked through the door to answer all of my questions!
3) For amazing temperatures and sunny days. We have had two incredible days, enjoying the great outdoors!
4) That Aaron has a great coach for football! He is learning a ton about the game and having a great time, too!
5) For a great new job for a good friend of ours! We've been praying for you, and we're excited for you! ;)

Have a blessed day!

One fine day....

The weather in Indiana was about as close to perfect as possible today. Ahh, I love fall! After a fabulous and fun birthday party at the park today, we ran home, grabbed a quick dinner, and headed out to hike in a woods that is close to our house. We had a blast. It's amazing how therapeutic nature can be.... it's nourishment for the heart of our family!

This was a precious and priceless moment for me as a momma. Aaron was sailing back and forth across this log, and it became evident that Isaac wanted to try, too. Completely unprompted, Aaron started helping his little brother, too. I often talk about "glimpses" on my blog.... yep, it was a glimpse. So thankful that my man cubs can occasionally get along! Aaron was so tender and sweet with him!

And.... I thought you might enjoy another little glimpse into the not so glamorous part of the trip. Scott spit on the ground during our hike.... and this is what Ellie did for the rest of the time in the woods....

Oh dear, the influence of boys on my little darlin'....

Our birthday girl!

This post could probably also be called "Birthday Cake Mega Post!" Of course, we had so much fun at Ellie's 1st birthday party a few weeks ago. And, woa, did that girl love her cake!

Just getting started

And then, she started to get slap happy! I've seen quite a few kiddos eat their first birthday cake.... I've never seen one get giddy and slap happy like our Ellie Lyn did...

Taking a little break.... eating sugar is HARD WORK!

And yes, I am pretty sure that she was making monkey noises at this point!

Sharing with my niece, Abby!

After a full dose of chocolate = happy and content! :)

Heading to the tub

All cleaned up and better.... until next time....

"Young Mother of the Year"

So, one of the biggest blessings about being in Fort Wayne has been the amazing people that I've gotten to know in the past year while we've been here. Really, the people here are incredible.... and have warmly welcomed me into their circles. I am so, so grateful. Thanks to those of you who are reading this right now.... you know who you are! ;)

One of those people is my new and dear friend, Sheri. I loved Sheri from the first moment that I met her when she delivered us a wonderful, hot meal in our little 3 bedroom apartment the week that we pulled into town. She said something along the lines of "I've been praying for you.... and I just kept picturing you rocking your little baby in the hospital last week...." I am pretty sure that everybody loves Sheri as soon as they meet her (she probably just sighed if she read that....) I love that Sheri is my friend and walks beside me in this journey called life.... and she also is so full of wisdom and encouragement and readily pours that into my life, too. Love her.... love her.... love her.

A pretty cool sidenote about Sheri is that she is THE National Young Mother of the Year. Seriously.... you read that correctly, THE National Young Mother of the Year.

I still remember when she read her speech to me over the phone.... it blew me away.... it blessed me.... and I cried. I just was messing around online tonight and happened to find it.... be blessed. Click here.

If you'd like to enjoy some of Sheri's fabulous writing, click here.

(yes, Sheri.... I just did a whole blog post about you.... are you blushing?!)

Thankful Thursday....

Today, I am thankful....

1) That my husband is on a plane headed to Detroit right now.... assuming that all goes smoothly, I will wake up in the morning with him beside me! HOORAH!
2) That my AMAZING church family and neighbors have cared for my kiddos and me so wonderfully this week. Seriously, they have gone above and beyond and have totally blessed my socks off. Y'all, I haven't cooked once this week (beyond warming up leftovers in the microwave) and I've had some great fellowship in the midst of it, too. So, so grateful! So, so blessed! Thank you to all of you!
3) Speaking of blessed, my neighbor and friend, Myah, blessed me in a huge way today. If you are a long time blog reader of mine, you know that my least favorite thing to do at my house is mop. Well, Myah knows that. She also knew that I wanted to clean up my home a bit before Scott returned (not that he is demanding.... rather, I just want to BLESS him with a home that feels peaceful when he walks in the door at 2 AM!) Myah came over and cleaned my kitchen floor on her hands and knees today during her son's naptime. Seriously, who does that?! Isn't that awesome?! AND.... my floor is no longer sticky! HOORAH! Thank you, Myah!
4) That God is in control! As the highs and lows of life come our way, I am BEYOND GRATEFUL that our God is good and trustworthy!
5) For access to phones and computers. Scott didn't have either this week, and I SO disliked not being able to communicate with him on a regular basis. It was a great reminder to me about how blessed we are!

Have a great day! Love ya!

Pardon me...

...I'm feeling sappy. When my friend, Jenna, posted this on her FB page this morning, I cried. I miss him. While he is not my everything because that is the place that only God can fill... I do miss him like crazy... I do long to hug him like crazy... I can't wait to wake up with him in bed beside me... I can't wait to "do life" together... I want to process life together... and for sure, for sure, I am missing the best parenting partner the Lord has ever created....

Not long now... we're on the downhill, and I am thankful...
(if the video isn't working here, just click on it to go directly to Youtube....)

"Lead Me"

Sanctus Real - Lead Me (Official Music Video)
Uploaded by EMI_Music. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

I am so thankful for Scott. A fallen and imperfect guy who truly does attempt to always give us "the best of his life...." He loves us well.

I am always floored by the gap that is left in our home when he is gone. Yep, the book of Ecclesiastes says it best, "Two ARE better than one...."

I miss him. I am thankful for him. In the good times and the bad....


Click here to hear the story behind the song.... I am always so thankful for couples in ministry who are honest about the real life struggle.... about the real life effort of marriage....

Fall = FOOTBALL!

We had a big debate at our house this summer...

#1- Will Aaron play football this year?
#2- Will he be able to play tackle football?
#3- Where will he play?

Well, we landed on a decision, and we couldn't be more pleased! Aaron is playing Upward flag football for the first time (ahem.... "Jesus Football", as my husband likes to call it!).... and loves it! He was pretty bummed that there isn't a tackle option around us, but Upward has been a great fit as he is learning so much about the game!

It's a little blurry.... but how fun that the kiddos get to run through a "tunnel" before the game!

Playing QB

Going out for a pass.... but Aaron informed us that his favorite position is running back!

The siblings seem thrilled, don't they?!

This was PRECIOUS! Look at this picture carefully.... Aaron was on the bench and had NO idea what was about to hit him!

Doesn't Aaron look thrilled? I loved this moment though.... Isaac was SO proud of Aaron.... out of the blue, he said, "Mommy, can I go hug Aaron?" I wasn't about to say NO!

Hey, Dad....

....we want you to know that we are doing JUST FINE here....

Scott is in Haiti. We talked for 2 minutes and 28 seconds this afternoon. Just long enough for him to tell me that he arrived safely. That they were in front of the "palace" in Port-au-Prince when he called. That they made it there in time for church this morning. And long enough for me to tell him that we are doing just fine today....

In fact, because Isaac woke up at 5:50 AM this morning which gave us 4 hours and 40 minutes before we needed to leave for church, momma even had plenty of time to make a hot breakfast...

And we also had plenty of time to enjoy Ellie's latest skills.... why walk on your feet when God invented knees?!!

"Seriously, Dad.... am I cute or what?!"

And Ellie's latest new skill.... "helping" me in the kitchen. This is a pretty regular occurrence when I am cooking these days.... look at how proud she is of herself!

We miss you, Scott.... but know that we'll be "just fine" until we see you again.... :)

We are at war....

.... with our culture! It's not news to anyone that our culture defines beauty in one way.... a way that is completely contrary to Scripture.

I have a little girl now.... this issue breeds anger in me to a WHOLE new level now.... it's always made me angry.... but the mommy in me has been awakened now, too.

It's been an interesting week.

A sweet, four year old girl made a comment to me this week that made me sob.... not only for me, but for her. The message of our culture gets to little minds quickly.

Then, I read THIS ARTICLE about the sexualization of children, and some more righteous anger brewed in me.

But then, a beautiful thing happened at my house tonight. A glimpse that we CAN go to war.... that we can fight the battle. Our little sweet pea was in bed for the night.... and her big brothers and I were watching HER birthday gift from Aunt Debby (thank you, Auntie!).... It was beautiful. And I am so thankful to the creators of VeggieTales for taking our culture to the mat on this one (if you have little girls, you MUST get it).

I don't know if it's possible to grow up as a little girl in our culture and then into an adult woman without this being an issue. But what I know is that we CAN and MUST fight the battle with our little girls (Read "So Long, Insecurity" by Beth Moore to be inspired on this one....) We MUST always have this issue on our minds; what messages are we sending? I don't want my little girl to "fit" in this culture.... I want her to be a fully devoted follower of Christ. I will pour truth into her life.... and I will pray that she will be a confident, secure woman in Christ, too!

You know, I think that we need to enlist others in the battle for our little girls, too. I had an AMAZING conversation with my sweet pea's big brothers after the movie tonight. We talked about how neat it is that God makes all of us different. And even though they are only 7 and 4, I told them that they have a big job in Ellie's life.... to always treasure her and her beauty.... to help her to know that God did an awesome job when He made her. They were excited to participate (yeah, I know it looks a little different when they are 14 and 11).

An interesting part of the back-story to this.... when I first had Ellie, and she was only three weeks old, I asked a precious friend who grew up with all brothers, "What is one thing that I need to know about raising a little girl with brothers?"

At first, she said, "Be prepared for her to have a crush on ALL of Aaron and Isaac's friends" (yikes!)

And then, she said some words that have totally stuck with me, "Never, ever, EVER let them tease her about body image stuff. My brothers teased me about the size of my butt, and I never forgot it.... I still think about it."

Noted.

The power of our words.... to harm or heal.

I am not naive enough to think that my little girl won't battle this issue. BUT.... I am going to believe that as our family battles with her, she will end up in a good place.... knowing that she is an imperfect person loved perfectly by a perfect God....

"But the LORD said to Samuel, 'Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart'" (1 Samuel 16:7).

This beautiful song is at the end of the video....

Thankful Thursday....

Today, I am thankful....

1) For a great morning and a great MOPS team! After a crazy summer, I am now coordinating our MOPS group at Sonrise. I couldn't be more thrilled to work with such an amazing team of women.... and it's SO fun to connect with other moms in the process!
2) That Scott has an amazing opportunity to go to Haiti. He is leaving soon.... they will be working with a great ministry, Jesus in Haiti.... they will be building houses/shelters and working on teeth (Scott assures me that HE won't be working on teeth!) I am sad for us but excited for him.... therefore, I am thankful!
3) That sometimes, I can see the evidence of the Holy Spirit in my life and responses (and can recognize spiritual growth in my heart). Yesterday, someone said something incredibly hurtful to me that made me question my worth.... I immediately dove into the Word.... God met me.... again.... HE was the lifter of my head!
4) That we had an awesome birthday celebration for Ellie on Sunday. It is fun to live close to family again so we can have big birthday parties!
5) For the thoughtfulness of others. One of my friends and one of Scott's coworkers recognized that today was a crazy day for our family and offered to bring us dinner. It was wonderful.... and her thoughtful act made me tear up throughout the day! I feel so blessed to be a part of this community!

Hope that you have an awesome day. With much love.....

Another classic....

Okay, so I'd love a good caption for this picture.... can you help me?!?!

Have I mentioned that Ellie loves to put her whole hand in our mouths these days and pull on our lips? I'd like to say that it's cute.... it's not, really....

The good, the bad, and the ugly....

Aaron and I have had some interesting conversations recently, too.

First, THE GOOD....

The other day, when I was driving carpool to school, I said to Aaron, "Do you know that I love you?" And he said, "Of course, mom. You tell me every day" (Hoorah.... one mission accomplished!)

Then, today, Aaron had his first Upward flag football game. We were so proud of him, but for reasons that had nothing to do with football. Yes, he did score two touchdowns for his team, and yes, he did a great job on defense, too, and made some great plays.... but that's not why we were proud. After his second touchdown, his coach asked him if he wanted a break. He said that yes, he did. However, when I asked him about it later, he said, "I wasn't tired, but I knew that if I didn't go out, one of my friends on the sidelines wouldn't get to go in and play, too." Seriously.... that blew me away. A glimpse. A glimpse into my child's heart. A glimpse that he MAY be starting to "get it".... that the world isn't all about him....

So, please keep those beautiful stories in mind as we move onto the section which I shall label THE BAD....

Aaron has a "chore chart" that he works through every morning before school (really, it's just a task list. Take a shower. Check. Comb hair. Check. Hang up wet towel. Check. Get dressed. Check. Make bed. Check. Etc. Etc. Etc.) The last thing on the list is: Ask mom and dad what else needs to be done.

Well, on Friday, I asked him to wash the windows on the front and back doors. No big deal. I had worked with him all summer, giving him instruction on how to do the job relatively well, and I knew he could do it. Friday was another story. He was in a hurry because he wanted to go and ride his bike with friends on the cul de sac before school, so he rushed and did a really, really crummy job.

And I said, "I'd like it if you'd honor mommy and honor God by doing your personal best as you wash the windows."

To which, my little cherub paused and yelled, "Well, I'd like it if YOU would honor ME by DOING IT YOURSELF!"

And then, we have the section of this post labeled THE UGLY....

Well, NEARLY ugly. Thank goodness. I, at that point, did what EVERY good mom would do.... I told him everything that I had already done FOR him that morning! "Oh.... and by the way.... would you like for me to tell you what I did for you last night while you were sleeping?!" Amazingly enough, God overtook my mouth at that moment, and I sent my cherub to his room (so I could accomplish some deep breathing!) Amazingly enough, too.... Scott was still home. And we were able to discipline and teach Aaron about respect together.

Whew. It's been quite a week. Isn't that the way most weeks in this journey called parenting are though?! There are certainly high-highs and low-lows. I'm so thankful that God continues to meet me (and Aaron!) on both ends of things!

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up" (Galatians 6:9).

Isaac funnies

So, Isaac, Ellie, and I were just hanging out at the swingset, and I had two very meaningful (and hilarious....) conversations with my boy-child in less than three minutes....

The first:

Me: I saw on your paper that you have a memory verse at school! That's exciting.... "Nothing can separate us from God's love!"
Isaac's entire face lit up, and he said, with confidence, "Nothing and the United States of America!" (I think he combined all of his learning from the day into ONE sentence!)

Second:

I: The grass is wet because it peed a lot.
Me: Who peed?
I: The clouds. They just peed and peed and peed.....
(I found out later that Scott had told Isaac that the clouds leaked. I guess that "peed" was Isaac's 4 year old translation!)

I love kids. Mine, specifically!

(for the record, I just googled the past tense of "pee" for this post.... just thought you'd want to know....) :)

Isaac's first day of preschool

Yes, a lot of posts today.... it's been a BIG day around here! Ellie's birthday AND Isaac's first day of preschool! He had a great day! He said that he got to do TWO crafts, and he got to go outside for recess! Other than the fact that he was bummed that another kiddo didn't share the square magnets, and the fact that he was mortified that his teachers took the glue sticks out of his backpack (when he was looking for them once he got home, he said "They are nowhere to be found!").... it was a great day!

Look at how SWEET our darlin' is!!! :)

All ready to roll

Excited in the drop off line!

I LOVE this picture.... I yelled "bye" out the window as Isaac was walking in with his teacher, Ms. Chris, and he turned around to holler "bye" back.... look at the precious expression on his face! He was GIDDY and EXCITED! I'm so thankful for that.... AND.... I managed to choke down the tears until I pulled away in the parking lot, as I thought, "Well, there is no turning back now....." I told a friend today that I just wish I could, for once, find a pause button for life.... and capture it.... but I can't.... so I guess I'll just keep livin' it! :)
A little interview from this morning....

Words of affirmation....

....from my hubby.... mean the world to me.

Scott got a sweet birthday card for Ellie today.... but in it, he wrote....

"Deanna-

I love you. Thanks for sacrificing so much for our family and especially our kids. Today, I am reminded of all the shots you endured, the meals you have eaten cold so you can feed our kids, the playdates you've scheduled, canceled & rescheduled. The messes, diapers, prayers, garage sales, baths, coupons, & socks. It's Ellie's birthday, but it's a day to celebrate you as her mom! I love you and I'm thankful for you.... my princess! Love you! Scottie (Ellie's Dad)"

Yep, words of affirmation mean the world to me.... and today, I'm going public to tell the blogging world that.... :)

Happy Birthday, Ellie!!!!!!!

Our girl! What a gem! She is so fun! Hmm.... what do our days look like with Ellie at 1....

* She is crawling at a rapid pace (most rapidly when the boys forget to shut the bathroom door and the toilet seat is up, forget to cover the stairs with the cardboard box, and forget and leave the dog's water accessible to her!)
* She loves pulling up to stand while holding onto an object and JUST has started to scoot around objects a little bit.
* She also loves pulling up to her knees in the middle of a room. It is so cute!
* She is getting the hang of her little walker toy.
* She has 7 teeth.... and has had a harder time with teething than either of our boys ever did. She popped all four of her top teeth over the 4th of July weekend.... and it was TORTURE around our house! Yikes!

When she was in the tub tonight, Ellie wanted to make sure that you could see ALL of her teeth!

* When she popped those teeth, she gave up her pacifier on her own, cold turkey. Kind of nice that we'll never have that battle with her.
* We both made it to a year with this nursing thing! That was always my goal before, too.... but my independent little boys weaned themselves at 6 and 9 months.
* She tried whole milk for the first time today.... wasn't too sure about it (even in a bottle)!

* She probably weighs around 18 pounds.... everybody still comments about what a peanut she is! I think she is PERFECT! :)
* She LOVES spaghetti.... she loves cantaloupe and bananas.... she loves meat.... she loves peas.... she loves almost any form of pasta. The boys and I call her our "carb carnivore", just to be silly! :)

Because spaghetti is her favorite, of course, that is what mommy made her for her birthday dinner tonight!

And a big bowl of ice cream makes the celebration complete! She will have her big cake to tear into on Sunday with our families here!

* She loves bath time.... which is a good thing since she loves spaghetti so much! :)

* She makes the CUTEST little kissy noise by clicking her tongue.... she does it most often when we take Ollie out, and she wants him to come back in.
* She knows the signs for "more" and "all done."

Here is a little video of her making the kissy sound and signing "more".... please forgive the annoying mommy voice in the background! HA! :)

* We're pretty sure that she said "Da-da" a few weeks ago.... but we haven't heard it again since.
* She has had the worst diaper rash imaginable for the past month, and I can't get it to clear up.... any advice?!?!
* We say that she has brought a new PITCH to our house.... this girl can SQUEAL.... happy squeals AND unhappy squeals! :)
* She started sleeping through the night, LITERALLY, the first night that we moved into our house in June. She has done great ever since. She typically goes to bed around 7:45 or 8 and sleeps until 6:15 to 7:30.
* She still takes two naps, and the morning nap is usually the longer of the two.
* She is CRAZY about her daddy! I will have to try to capture the moment that he gets home from work on video sometime.... her expression is awesome, and she always lunges for him! She is definitely a daddy's girl.... and he is pretty crazy about her, too.

Look at how happy she is with her daddy (and in her awesome new socks from our friend, Myah!)

* Speaking of daddy, she LOVES when he pushes her on the swing.
* She is a pro on the stairs.... but we don't let her do them too often!

What a girl! What a blessing!

Thought you might enjoy this little glimpse into our circus.... ahem.... I mean lives.... from tonight....