Stand and Consider

I just couldn’t resist playing with the look of this blog again! Don’t be surprised if there are more changes in the near future. I liked the look of the last theme, but I wanted a header that I could change. Eventually I will probably put a picture of the kids, but I couldn’t find one that fit in this header. In the meantime, enjoy the current picture…David took it during his last trip to Africa.

Later today or tomorrow I will post the next installment of the kids’ interviews…All About Abigail! 

I thought it would be fun to “interview” each one of the kids, so you can learn a little more about their interests and personalities. Since it seems she hasn’t had as much “face time” on the blog, let’s begin with Isabel!

Name: Isabel Faith
Age: 3 1/2

Her name means: Consecrated to God

Some of her favorite things:

Book: “Marlin” (I had no idea what she was talking about, so I asked again a little later and she said “There’s a Cat in God’s Tree.”)

Bible Story: Jesus

Color: Purple and Pink

Toy: Pig, Little People, Pony

Song: “Wake Up, Isabel” (This is from a CD of songs her grandparents gave her for her third birthday. Each song has her name in it…very cute!)

T.V. Show: ”Arthur because he has one girl in the house. D.W., that’s her name.”

Movie: “Marla” (Again…have no idea what she is talking about.)

Game: Candy Land

Food: Animal Crackers (she happened to be eating these at the time I asked the question!)

Snack: Cereal

Dinner: Kiki (what?); after giving a few suggestions she came up with Noodles and Pizza (I don’t think she means together!)

“Talk about breakfast”: (this category was her idea) waffles

What do you want to be when you grow up? A make. (What’s a make?) You know, like you and daddy make. (Make what?) Pizza. (Oh, do you mean you want to be a cook or a chef?) A cook.

Isabel does love to be in the kitchen. I’m sure someday she will become an excellent “Make!” Anytime I am doing something in the kitchen she grabs a chair or the step stool and brings it over to see what I am doing. Here are some pictures of her on Christmas day. David’s mom found this adorable chef’s hat and apron and bought a set for each of the girls along with cookie mix, a little rolling pin, wooden spoon, and cookie cutters. Isabel made some sugar cookies while the older kids went out to try Micah’s new tennis racket. She was right in her element!

Ah…sweet success!!!

Isabel is our fun-loving child, full of life and drama! She loves to be silly and uses funny voices, faces, and hand gestures when she talks. Even though she didn’t mention it, she likes to watch Barbie movies and Mickey’s Twice Upon a Christmas (much to her siblings’ dismay). She enjoys books, puzzles, and playing games.  And, of course, she loves to do anything her big brother or big sissy are doing.

Our sweet girl…

So, a couple weeks ago our washing machine died. It was not completely unexpected since it had been making some strange noises and slowly dancing it’s way across the floor during the spin cycle. Finally, on Tuesday, our new front loading (yea!) washing machine was delivered. Just in time too…we had piles of laundry, which was becoming an issue (Micah kept telling me all he had to wear was his swim trunks, although it wasn’t quite that bad) but also gave us the opportunity to put the new machine to the test! During one of the loads the kids were looking through the glass watching the clothes get washed and the next thing I know Micah and Isabel were gathering chairs to do this…

Soon Abigail joined in the fun (Micah is looking a little too mesmerized)!

Well, we have been trying to cut down on the TV watching…

Yesterday Abigail was gathering up her markers to color and she asked me:

A: “Is this real or is someone telling a story?”

Mom: “Is what real?”

A: “Us. Or is someone just telling a story about us? That would be weird.”

Mom: “Uh yeah, that would be weird.” (That was about the extent of my philosophical response.)

Whoa…where did that come from?

This week Micah has to memorize a Psalm for his weekly Scripture memory at school. He was able to choose any Psalm and we decided on Psalm 100. So even though I didn’t quite get last week’s verses memorized I thought it would be fun to memorize this psalm with my son. Knowing Micah though, he will have it memorized long before I will!

Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!
Serve the LORD with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.
Know that the LORD, He is God;
It is He who has made us and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.

Apparently the pictures I put in my previous post are not showing up on the blog, at least for some people. I’m not sure what is going on since I can see them just fine when I open the blog myself…I am fairly certain these pictures are not merely a figment of my imagination! : ) I will see what I can do. Since I obviously am not able to tell whether others can see them, maybe some of my faithful readers (all two or three of you), could let me know if you can see them. Just when I thought I was getting this blogging thing figured out…

Something funny for Friday...

For all you visual learners who might need some advice on basic baby care, here are some instructions you might find helpful.

My favorite is "Bonding with Baby."

“For God so loVed the world,

         That He gAve             

              His onLy              

             BegottEn                   

                   SoN,                 

                       That whoever 

         Believes In Him         

         Should  Not perish,       

        But have Eternal life.”

~John 3:16

Praying you experience the greatest love of all this Valentine’s Day!

Abigail went to a birthday bowling party on Saturday. This was her first time at the lanes and she loved it! All week she was looking forward to the bowling “tournament.”

She wasn’t too sure about the bowling shoes, however. Just before I put them on her she looked at them and said, “Mommy, am I going to look good in those?” She cracks me up! But despite the ugly shoes, she enjoyed herself and can’t wait to take her brother and sister to show them how it’s done…because of course she is an expert now!

 

After my last post I started thinking about a book that I came across last fall. A group of moms from Micah’s school got together for coffee and muffins and the director of the school read this story to us. It is actually a children’s book but it is also a great book for moms. Until yesterday I couldn’t remember the name of the book or the author, but was able to find it after a quick search on Amazon.  The name of the book is Let Me Hold You Longer by Karen Kingsbury.  I’m not great at effectively summarizing books so read this summary on Karen’s website along with her story of how this book came to be. Keep the tissue handy! When I first heard this book I am pretty sure there was not a dry eye in the room. It is a beautiful reminder of how quickly our kiddos grow up, but with a little twist. Instead of merely enjoying and savoring all the “firsts” our kids accomplish, she encourages us to slow down enough to recognize and savor their “lasts” as well.