You may be asking yourself why I am subjecting you to a video of Baby M crying. Well, I thought you might like to enjoy a little bit of my life. In his defense, he's been really gassy and is cutting like 6 teeth at once. But. He cries. All the time. Loudly. In the middle of the night. Did I mention it was loud? And it's not the help I'm hurt, or I'm sad kind of crying. It's the "I want my mom and I want her now!" kind of crying. Which I have less sympathy for. For instance, he refused to go to bed last night. If he were alone, I would have let him cry. But his brother really wanted to be asleep. I had already gotten both of them up once or twice when I decided to let W. sleep. So I finally get M to bed after 9:30. Then he decides he's just taking a nap and is awake from 2-4:30. I can't leave him in his room to cry because of his brother. So he plays very happily until I just can't stay awake any longer and he's had a light snack and cup of milk. And while he slept in, W. was wide awake at 6 am.

In other baby news, they are babies no longer. I officially took away their bottles. I let them go longer than I let P or E. Mostly because it was easier. But the time had come. It is sad and good at the same time. Sad because my babies are growing up and I will miss them being babies, but good because all things must grow and change and it is so much fun to discover these little people as their personalities begin to really blossom.

Baby M has two volumes--happy or screaming. When he is happy he can be really funny. He absolutely loves stuffed animals. I will try to get his reaction on film, because you can't describe it.

Baby W has a range of volumes. He was experimenting with anger at my parents the other night. He tried to stomp off and fell flat on his face on their travertine floor. Someone told him "No" and he didn't like it. He had earlier expressed his frustration with the limits imposed on him with a heartfelt half grunt-half scream. He tries on expressions to see your reaction. And as soon as he figures out how to swing a leg over the top of his crib or playpen, I am in trouble.

Hallelujah!!! It's been raining for three days. My out of state readers may not know that Georgia is in the midst of a severe drought. All outdoor watering has been restricted for some time now. Now there's quite a brouhaha developing between the state and the corps of engineers. Apparently quite a bit of water is released daily from Lake Lanier(our water source) and sent to Florida to protect an endangered species of mussels. Yeah, mussels.

Hmmm, I seem to recall a time in Georgia's past where state's rights were an issue. That didn't end so well.


A few people have made it over to my "me" blog. (Here's a hint if you don't know how to find it--click on my profile). So far it's pretty random. And my goal is to keep this as my family/general blog and the other as my more personal blog. Sometimes it may be a little shallow, sometimes a little deep. It will probably depend on how much sleep I've had.

Yesterday at the park

A Man who's not afraid of his emotions :)

Oops, this is from Saturday at the in-laws. Sorry it's blurry, but it's the best one of them together
This one is hard to keep up with. He has a mind of his own

A peaceful sibling moment--it's always good to capture those because sometimes they are few and far between

In other things: I've restarted my other blog. It will not be about my family, but a place for my thoughts. If you can find it you are welcome to read it :)

Random things

I haven't posted in a while. so I thought I'd give it a try. I've been avoiding the internet the last week or so. I can't pinpoint a real reason, maybe I've been spending too much time on it, I don't know. Since my Sorting post, I've been thinking alot about alot of things. I decided what I am looking for is a life of simplicity. I know that Life will never be simple, but I can simplify the trappings of life. In my baby-step mode, I decided the first thing I would simplify is how many dishes were in my cupboard. So I am down to 4 dinner plates, 4 salad plates, and 4 bowls. Next I will clean out the utensil drawer and keep 4 sets of silverware. Then I will move on to the glasses. Then the childrens cups. Partly it will force me to wash dishes, and partly it should keep my tiny counter space from being cluttered with dirty dishes. The old me would have kept the 12 place settings in the cabinet, just in case(of what? exactly).


I went to a tea party today. It was held at a very lovely house and I only knew a few people. I sat with the hostess and 2 other girls my age. They are getting ready to read the book Captivating and have a bible study. So we talked about Romance and being a woman. It was very interesting, because even though we were the same age, we were at different places in life. There's me, then one of the girls lost her husband in a car accident last spring and is pregnant with her 5th child, and the other girl is unmarried and about to complete her MBA. So it made for interesting conversation. What is interesting is how similar at core we all were in our desires in life. One of the things I've been thinking about in the last few days is Romance. Not as in romance novels or soap operas, but a mixture of the Divine Romance and it's shadows and types on earth. I have considered the question(hypothetically)--if I told my husband I needed more Romance in my life, what would I mean by that. Would it mean I want him to bring me flowers, or take me out, or buy me furs, or just spend time listening to me. I haven't reached a conclusion yet. I think that there is a myth that can be perpetuated that women should consider it romantic if their husband does something around the house for them, or keeps the children, or etc. But that isn't romance. It is certainly a way to show love to your spouse, but it is not romance. I guess I have been thinking more about what Romance is not. And if we have love, do we still need romance?(I think yes). The world seems to equate romance with sex. I definitely don't agree with that.
I think for true romance to occur there has to be an intimacy involved-not physical, but more of a mental/spiritual. My husband has to know me well enough to know what I consider romantic, just as I have to know him well enough. Where I might find a candlelit dinner on my finest china romantic, he might think a picnic lunch on a mountain more romantic. So if I plan a romantic evening and plan it around my likes and ignore what he likes, then am I romancing him or myself?
How does the Lord romance and woo us to Him? By ministering to our individuality. Some may be wooed by God the Father, because they have never known a father's love and that is their deepest desire. Some may be wooed by the sacrifice of Jesus, because the thought that someone loved them enough to die for them stirs their heart. Others may be stirred by the power of the Holy Spirit and be wooed by the adventure His presence in our life promises. Then, after their hearts are stirred towards God there will come a moment when they accept the love He is offering and turn their hearts to Him through salvation. While the reality of who He is and Christ's sacrifice never wavers, every one has their own story of how God wooed them. There is no ritual or formula that God performs to win hearts, because no two hearts are alike. He meets us where we need Him most. And he continues to woo us even after we are His. He sends me thunderstorms to say He loves me because He knows how much I enjoy them and he knows they stir my heart towards Him. To some he sends beautiful sunsets, or the sound of crashing waves. I imagine there is something that each of you can think of that stirs your heart again to where you remember that first rush of love you had towards him. Just as a married couple, past the early days of being in love, have some memory of those heady days that can be stirred by a song, or a smell, or just the sight of their beloved across the room.
These are the memories that can keep us going through the hard times. When we feel that God has forgotten us in the midst of our trials, or when we aren't getting along with our spouse and we wonder what we saw in them in the first place, we have those memories to remind us of how our hearts were once romanced. And in considering that love our hearts can be stirred again.
So think about what things remind you of God's love for you, whether it be something natural or man made, then keep an eye out and watch for it. And the next time you see your spouse, remember what made you fall in love with them and give them a hug(or kiss, whichever you prefer).

Mornings and skies

I am not a morning person. Some people just need a cup of coffee or other stimulating beverage to get their mornings going. I need 10 am. But I have almost come to enjoy the mornings this past week. The weather has finally changed. When the boy and I leave for the bus stop in the mornings it is a little bit chilly, the sky is dark, and there are still a few stars shining, and the moon is still out. We set off, hand in hand in the dim light, watching his new shoes spark with each step, talking of random and sometimes silly things. This morning we talked about astronauts and satellites. I had pointed out the clouds that stood out in the moonlit sky, and told him how the sky and the clouds are my favorites things because they are never the same. Every day there is some new beauty to discover.



Some days the sky is tall and reminds me that I am but a speck on this great planet. Some days the clouds press down heavily, weighted with their unshed tears, and I am reminded that no matter how heavy the rain, the sun will come again. Some days the wind blows down and teases me into laughing at myself as it blows my hair into a whirling dance. Some days the sky is filled with sparks and rumbles and the electric wind makes me feel alive. Some days the sky is quiet, and it reminds me to be still.



As a child I was not a nature lover. When we lived in Florida, I spent many hours playing outside, but the idea of nature never occurred to me. I began to understand a little better when we lived in New Jersey and for the first time experienced the four seasons in all their glory. Then one day in high school, we had been in Georgia for several years, I remember stepping off the school bus and being suddenly assaulted by nature. It was like a veil had been removed from my eyes. I heard all the birds singing, every rustle of the leaves in the wind. And all the colors practically shouted at me. From that point onward I began to take notice of the world around me. When I moved to the mountains to attend college, I practically lived outside. I would take a blanket to the front lawn and nap or hang out with friends. My roommate and I would walk around campus singing hymns. After I was married and attending a different school, I still went outside at every opportunity. When I worked at the college, I would volunteer to run errands as much as possible. My office was an interior one and had no views of the outside. If the secretary across the hall had her blinds open, I could almost see a tree. And now, I sneak outside with a bag of garbage in hand, and take my time walking back to the front door. If I see a storm brewing I linger even longer in the wind. I have seen my love of the wind in Baby W. He giggles and tries to grab that thing that is blowing his curling(!) hair around and taking his breath away.



We went to the park again this past sunday. I put the babies in the grass. W.(in the blue) had a wonderful time walking in circles, while his brother(in the red shirt) tentatively touched the grass like it was some alien going to devour him.

Baby M is walking now, when he doesn't know he's doing it. I wanted to get some video of him walking at the park, but he wouldn't walk on the grass. His sister used to have the same aversion to grass, so I know he will grow out of it.

Well, the morning has progressed, and I must go grocery shopping. Woohoo. Have a beautiful day.

Oh yeah, my mom has started a blog. If you are interested she can be found at Patti's Ponderings(no, her name isn't patti, my husband suggested the name and it stuck).