The Naked Escape...

Ellie has begun to crawl! She has been close for awhile now, but today Matthew was changing her diaper, and right in mid-change, she rolled over and crawled away! She's still a little wobbly, and luckily she doesn't go too far yet...but it won't be long! Here are some pictures I caught of her naked escape!

Happy "Half" Birthday, Ellie...

On Tuesday our sweet Ellie turned 6 months old, and I cannot believe how quickly this time with her has gone! She has been such a joyful addition to our family, and I love spending every single day with her! I can't wait to see what adventures the next 6 months hold! I love you, my little Ellie!!!

My Crew...

I am the proud mother of two! But what some may not know is that I actually have four kids! (During the week, that is.) Since August I've been keeping two little boys who are brothers--Bryson is close in age to Mason, and Brennan is close in age to Ellie. The kids are great, they keep me very busy, and there is never a lack of excitement or silliness in the house! My favorite thing is to take them on outings. We get some curious looks from strangers, mostly wondering how I could have two babies only 6 months apart. I have yet to come up with a witty comeback for their inquiries, but believe me, I'm still working on it! Here are some pictures of my crew on our outing this week:

Going It Alone...

Ever since Mason was a baby, he has loved the water. From a very early age, he loved taking baths, and he has always loved to swim....in the kiddie pools...where his feet can touch the bottom, that is. Because in addition to his great enthusiasm for swimming, he has also always had a very healthy respect of the water--which equals fear of the deep (and by "deep" I mean 4 feet.) So last summer I signed him up for his first swimming lessons so that he could gain more confidence in the water. He did well, although he vehemently refused to do half of the things his teacher wanted him to do. And when Matthew and I took him swimming, if he couldn't touch the bottom with his own two feet, he clung to us like a little leech! And forget about "the noodle"! No way was this kid going to let his fate lie in the hands of a one-dollar, long, skinny, tube-like floaty! So that being said, he stunned us when, this past weekend at a friend's birthday swim party, he decided that he wanted to get in the pool on his own. He then proceeded to pull out every life jacket and floaty that we own, and outfit himself in all of them. Slowly and hesitantly he got into the water until the steps became deep enough that his assortment of floating apparatus took over. He then began to splash and kick around, hollering to us over on the side, "Look at me! I'm swimming! I'm swimming!" I truly believe that he could've had bricks tied around his feet and he still would not have gone under for all the floatation devices that he was wearing. But nevertheless, HE was swimming, and HE was doing it by himself! As I watched him for nearly an hour, I didn't know whether to chuckle at him, or shed a tear of pride for my son who, just 8 months ago would not have gotten into that 4 feet of water without my hands being on him at all times. And it warms my heart to think about, as mothers, how much we take delight in the great victories of our children...no matter how small those victories may be.

Six Month Look Alikes...

I always enjoy comparing Ellie to Mason when he was her age. Although they certainly have some differences in appearance and personality. Ellie is so reluctant to eat cereal and baby food, as she's very content keeping the status quo with her milk-only diet. While Mason would pretty much devour anything placed before him (except green beans, which he still won't eat). However they are so much alike in many ways too! For example, Mason didn't sleep through the night until 2 weeks before his first birthday, and I'm starting to think that Ellie is on her way to breaking his record, as she is also still waking about every 3 hours during the night. And just like Mason, Ellie is very determined, opinionated, longs to be cuddled, and is very content to ride around on my hip all day long! Here are pictures of them both at approximately 6 months of age:

Happy Easter...

Here are a couple of pictures taken of Mason and Ellie on our way out the door to church on Sunday. Happy Easter!

Let's Go To The Circus...

Yesterday Ringling Bros. came to town, so we took Mason on his first trip to the circus! He had lots of fun seeing all the acts, but his favorite was when three motorcycle riders, and one very brave stand-alone lady, were all enclosed in a sphere-shaped cage all racing around each other, giving high fives and managing not to collide. He also enjoyed the man riding the tiny bicycle in the picture below. Here are some additional pictures we took of Mason. (The other boys belong to some good friends we went with. Their family has four boys--the youngest two I babysit).

Feeling Productive...

Without a doubt, being Mason and Ellie's momma is the most rewarding thing I've ever done! In caring for my children, I feel more pride and fulfillment than in any other job I've ever had or any other task that I've accomplished. But so many times I can allow myself to get caught up in the day to day tasks of managing my home, that I can overlook the great things I am accomplishing in my children. For example, I tend to feel that it was a productive day if I managed to vacuum the floors or wash the towels, on top of caring for my children. But why? These household tasks of cleaning are really so irrelevant and meaningless. So why is it that I determine the productiveness of my day according to how much extra "stuff" I can get done, and not just in the great interactions I have with my kids? Perhaps in completing the household tasks there is some sort of instant gratification. Because after all, I may not see the fruits of my labor with my children for years. Last week, Mason wanted to build a hotel with his construction set and legos, and of course, I was to be his "right hand man". But not only did he want to do this once, but he wanted to knock it down and rebuild it every single day. By the end of the week I was in awe of how this was still amusing to him, and quite sure that our hotel could not be rebuilt any better! Then I realized that the continual rebuilding of the hotel itself was not what was was important to him, but rather the time that I was spending with him to work on it every day. And sadly, I do know that a day will come, much quicker than I can imagine, when he will discover that spending time with Momma is not as cool as it used to be. So for today, let me not worry so much about my chores. They will surely still be here tomorrow. But for today, let me soak up every single minute with my little ones. Let me find my joy in all the small things we do together. And let me remember that if quality time was invested in them, diapers and little hearts were changed, mouths and little souls were fed, hugs and kisses were given in over-abundance...then TODAY was a productive day!!!

Now is the time to get things done...
Wade in the water, sit in the sun,
Squish my toes in the mud by the door,
Explore the world in a boy just four.

Now is the time to study books,
Flowers, snails, how a cloud looks;
To ponder "up" where God sleeps nights,
Why mosquitoes take such big bites.

Later there'll be time to sew and clean,
paint the hall that soft new green,
To make new drapes, refinish the floor--
Later on...when he's not just four.

--Irene Foster, "Time Is of the Essence"

Ellie's New (Almost) Trick...

Over the past several days, Ellie has surprised us with a new (almost) trick. She's been getting up on her hands and knees and rocking back and forth like she's trying to crawl! Mason crawled at 6 months, but I can hardly believe that my baby is already to a stage where she can be attempting this too. But like her brother, she is an opinionated and determined kid! It's very exciting for us to watch her develop into this new little person, but I just keep wondering...where does the time go?!

Play Ball!...

This weekend Matthew bought Mason his first leather baseball glove and ball. Until now, Mason has had little interest in sports (as he's always been more of a train/truck/construction vehicle type of guy). But now he's taken a liking to it a little more, and he's actually starting to listen to Matthew's fatherly coaching. He surprised us with how well he can throw the ball too! Here are some pictures of Mason "smokin' the ball" as he calls it. We may have a future pitcher in our midst--either that or a little comedian who just likes to wear the glove on his head!

The Other Side Of The Camera...

When I was growing up, my mom was (and still is) an avid picture-taker. But yet, she always complained that she was never in any of the pictures with us. She was always the one behind the camera. I always dismissed her concerns, because you know, that's just what we do as children...until we have children of our own, that is. So as I was lying in bed last night I realized that, I too, am never in any of the pictures with my kids, and that I'm always the one behind the camera now. This thought hit me hardest when I realized that the last time I was in a posed photograph with my sweet Ellie, just the two of us, was when I was lying in a hospital bed on the day of her birth 5 months ago! So today my very kind and cooperative husband agreed to take some pictures of us. Hopefully we can do this again before another 5 months goes by!

Lessons From Yardwork...

Today was a beautiful day outside, so Matthew and Mason decided to do their annual re-mulching of the flower beds. I helped by ridding the porch and flower beds of all the pollen and leaves that had accumulated over the past several weeks. Ellie helped by showing moral support. As we were working Mason kept saying, "Momma, how does my job look? Momma, aren't I doing a good job with my shovel? Momma, isn't this such a big pile of leaves that I raked?" I think it's safe to say that, like most males, Mason's 'love language' is affirmation. So as I stood there repeating, "Yes, Mason, you are doing a great job! Yes, Mason, what a big pile of leaves you raked!, etc." it occurred to me that he is finding so much of his self-worth from these small day to day tasks that he helps us with--whether it be yardwork, cooking, or cleaning around the house--all of which he loves to take part in. And then I felt a twinge of guilt as I thought about the times that I refuse his offers to help, because after all, I can get things done twice as fast when I'm not supervising his little helping hands. So now as I think of him enjoying the day, working in the yard with Mom and Dad, and taking pride in his own hard work, I pray that I'll never forget to slow down and savor every moment that I have to build my childrens' self-worth.

Ellie vs. Rice Cereal....

Since Ellie is 5 months old and still waking every 3 hours to eat during the night, we decided to go ahead and start her on cereal. (How quickly I forget that cereal and solid foods didn't help Mason sleep through the night any better--however we'll try again for round two!) Here are some pictures of me trying to introduce it to her. This isn't Ellie's first attempt at cereal, as we've been trying it for several weeks now. However despite our futile efforts, the end result, as well as her negative expressions, have not changed.

God Probably Eats His Veggies...

My sweet Mason has always been an inquisitive kid. But recently he has begun asking many deep questions about God. For example, two weeks ago at bedtime he asks, "Mommy, how are God and Jesus the same person?" (Hmmm, try explaining the trinity to a four year old.) Then he asks, "How can God see everyone and everything all at the same time?" (And again, try explaining omniprescence to a four year old.) So as I sit and think about all of his questions, and try to struggle through accurate explainations which he can understand (because after all, in my mind, God is opening a huge door for me to teach my son about Him), Mason interrupts and says, "I know, Momma! God probably eats lots and lots of carrots, so His eyes are very strong! THAT'S how he can see everything at one time!"

(Sigh) ...Well he may not yet fully understand the power of our Creator, but at least I can rest assured knowing he understands the power of eating his veggies.