All Grown Up...

Much to our delight Ethan has really expressed his interest in writing and spelling lately. Our nightly routine now includes some spelling and writing exercises. Josh has been really good at helping and encouraging him. Ethan loves it!

Look at the concentration!

When we went to Zios one Sunday after services, Ethan was sounding out and then writing the words down all by himself!

Some of the words were mom, yak, dad, and cat.

I am so proud of my baby!

Prayers

Its so cute that Ethan is saying our prayer at mealtimes. Its wonderful to hear what he thinks is important to talk to God about. Such random things for a four year old sometimes and the way he words things is very sweet! He's actually been doing it for awhile now but today was extra cute, not because of what he said, but of what Ellie prayed about. This is how it went:

Ethan: "Thank you God for my mom and dad and Grammy and Papa and Kyle and Lauren and baby Avery. And please God help us to be healthy and thank you for my brother. And God thank you for Jesus and the Bible and Noah and all his animals. Amen"

Ellie: "Thank you for my mom and daddy and for my Josh! Amen"

AAWWWW! She is such a sweet girl!

Isaiah isn't praying yet (he's a bit young still for that :) ) but when we bow our heads and Ethan (or sometimes daddy or mommy) starts to talk, I peek over and he just smiles so big. Even though he can't speak words, he definately knows what we are doing! I can't wait to hear one of his prayers!

Monster Truck Jam

Several weeks before Christmas Jennifer had this idea of sending the guys to the Monster Truck show in January. I'll be honest, my first thought was NO WAY!! I didn't think Josh would be interested in something like that and I thought Ethan was too young to enjoy it. Well I called my mother-in-law and asked her what she thought and she had no doubt that Ethan would love it. She said that dad took Josh when he was a kid and he had a great time. I was concerned that due to Ethan's high aggression he already had, going to the show would only encourage that. She thought just the opposite...that he would be able to express it freely and he would have a blast. Well I decided to ask Josh and he gave me an "I don't think so...that sounds like a waste of time" look. So I kinda blew it off. Well, Jenny kept asking me and I finally decided to go ahead and do it.

We had plans to spend most of the day over at the Harrison's house before the guys had to leave for the show so I packed for the day/night and we were off. Well, once we got over there Jenny asked me if I brought the tickets....and of course, I had forgotten them! Why couldn't she have called me that morning?? Good thing the show was over by our house... so we had to change our schedule for the afternoon to give the guys enough time to drive to our house, then back to the AT&T center, then find parking, and then get to their seats.

They ended up having great seats, which were VERY cheap, and the guys and boys ended up having a great time (especially after someone handed them a ball of wax for one of the boys to use. They had several pairs of ear plugs but none really fit the boys' small ears so Josh took Ryan's hearing protection ear muffs because he was sure that they would need it. Only problem was the boys had to share, so once they both had some protection it was much more enjoyable for them). Josh took our camera and took a few pictures...more of the trucks than the boys but that's ok! :)

I'm pretty sure he will be wanting to do this again! :)

Mama, Mama, Mama!

Yes!! Isaiah is FINALLY saying mama!! I have been waiting for this for a LONG time! He has been saying dada for months now and I've been very patient...but to be honest I was starting to get my feelings hurt...I know its stupid! But deep down I knew it would happen one day and that day has come! I first noticed it when he ran up to me holding something that he wanted me to open saying, "Mama, Mama, Mama, Mama"!! I can't tell you how big my smile was!

Meeting God...

We were driving home from lifegroup tonight and Ethan asked a very suprising question. He said, "How many more days until I die and see God?" Josh and I just looked at each other and smiled...(and I secretly got tears in my eyes). We told him that none of us know when we are going to meet God but we hope that its soon. He said, "I don't want to die. I want to stay in this world." We were a little taken aback as to how we were going to try and explain to our 4 yr old that being with God is much better than living in this world, so we simply told him that God would take care of him and we hoped he would live for a long time. It makes my heart smile to know that our son is thinking about meeting God...I bet that made Him smile too.

Raisins

We have a raisin lover in the house! Sometimes he can't get enough...which is not always a good thing for Josh and me if you know what I mean! I'm glad he prefers this snack to less healthy snacks. Hopefully he will like them for a long time! When he is upset or being a little impatient for dinner I get the secret weapon out! Although, I have gotten into the bad habit of just handing him the whole container...which is cute to watch him carry it around or set it on the ground and pick the raisins out one by one, but not so cute when we take it away!

Mouth full of "ra-ras"...what a cutie pie!

Airplanes

We live very close to Randolf Air Force Base and everyday, morning and afternoon, they are flying planes right over our house. Isaiah has really taken a liking to airplanes, more and more each day. We have been stuck inside because of the cold weather lately, but this week was a little warmer and it was such a beautiful day that we were able to go outside and play for a little while.

Luckly, the planes were out and flying! Everytime he sees or hears an airplane he points to the sky and and starts yelling! Sometimes its hard for him to see them in the car (the planes can be really small) but at the house you can't miss them. He just gets so excited to see them! Its the cutest thing! We might have a future pilot on our hands!!

Understanding Isaiah

Isaiah has really been talking (babbling) alot more in the past couple of weeks. He's been saying "dada" for a while now but that is really the only word he is expressing. We are working on "please, thank you, mama, and E (for Ethan)". I have been very jealous that he has been saying "dada" for months now and "mama" is no where to be heard! I'm trying not to get my feelings hurt! :) He understands what we say to him or ask of him and he gives us answers! He shakes his head for no and can't say please yet so he throws his chin into his chest (kinda like on that old show Bewitched). Its so cute! He points at alot of things and when he gets excited about something his voice gets really high and loud and he just babbles like crazy! If he wants something he comes to get me and I follow him and he points to what he wants! He is such a smart little boy! I can't wait til I hear more words...especially "mama"!

Maybe I Should Stick to Cookies...

Its good to laugh at ourselves every once in awhile right?

Well my favorite new thing are these wonderful, delicious cake balls!! I was first introduced to them when Jennifer made them for our friend's holiday party and I was hooked! I asked her to make them again for our New Year's Eve get together because I just couldn't get enough! After that I thought maybe I should give it a try! How hard could it be, right? Well I didn't decorate them as beautiful as she did but as you can see that is not the only difference....



Now take a look at mine...not only are they not decorated pretty but they are definately not smooth and they are also twice the size!!!

Believe me, regardless of how they look, they sure tasted wonderful!!