The Hillebrands

goal #4

2012-01-22T22:12:00.000-05:00

We've been making some progress on our fans. This is the one that was in our guest bedroom. Just lovely.

My brother had some gold fans they took out and gave them to us so we could use them. We could have kept this one and just spray painted it but I wasn't really in to the wicker fan blades and the shape of the base. Oh yeah, and not to mention the non-matching globes.

We primed, then painted it all with a flat black. We ended up keeping the original brown blades that came with it.

Then my husband, and his trusty sidekick, put this beautiful like-new fan up.

One down, three to go!

entertained or entertaining

2012-01-20T15:17:00.000-05:00

She finds it hilarious when anyone puts things on their head.

But I find it more amusing when she tries to do the same thing.

This time it happened to be my scarf.

She was working so hard you can see the determined look in her eye.

It doesn't take much effort to get her to smile (at home that is.)

And it doesn't take much for her to melt my heart.

it's been a long week

2012-01-13T10:16:00.000-05:00

We stopped by my friend Jessie's place for a little bit while we were on our way to visit AJ's sister. We have been friends since the 4th grade when I moved next door to her. She also went to Butler but after graduation she moved to the Chicago area for grad school. She got married this last year and now they live relatively close to AJ's sister. Hopefully we will get to see each other more often now that we will be visiting Illinois a little more frequently.

Then Erin's friend came to visit with her son Lev. He is only a month older than Evangeline but you wouldn't know it because he has eight teeth, crawls like a champ, and is practically walking. Maybe next time she will be a little more social...and maybe more mobile. But I won't hold my breath.

The rest of the week can be summed up by this last picture.

We have just been taking it one day at a time, where sleep has been few and the days have been long. I think we are on the mend so hopefully we can enjoy a three day weekend with daddy.

Goals for the House

2012-01-10T13:14:00.000-05:00

I have a list in my head floating around somewhere about things I would like to get done. I figure if I put it down then maybe they will actually get accomplished. These are in no particular order.

1. ~~Find cheap night stand and refinish it for our bedroom.~~ This got accomplished before I could post it! We could have refinished it but the wood was so pretty we decided to just use it the way it was for now. Maybe we'll change it later on but for now it works.
2. Spray paint ceiling fans and re-install (there are 4 total).
3. Complete Ari's bedroom. Right now there is a bed and a dresser. We painted it a year ago and never did anything else. We are thinking about getting a bunk bed and rearranging his room and adding some fun decor.
4. Replace carpet in spare bedroom. Once that is done then we can actually put it together and have an extra room.
5. Replace wall art in kitchen with something else. I'm still trying to figure out what that something else is. Maybe scripture wall decal, maybe a different framed art, who knows.
6. Make a wreath for our front door that can hang there in the spring and summer.
7. Reupholster the kitchen chairs. There are 4 of them.

8 months

2012-01-04T08:16:00.000-05:00

There are no teeth in sight, but she has enjoyed squash, potatoes, peas, green beans, applesauce, avocado, and peaches. She refuses cereal by itself and is not as picky about texture as she used to be. She still wakes up several times at night for unknown reasons, but we have just come to accept this as her usual routine. We prayed for a healthy baby and when I wake up in the middle of the night I try to remember how our prayers were answered. If we never have a full nights rest again because of this child that is ok by me.

There is no interest in the transportation department. She doesn't even try to roll around to get to things.

She is only in this position when I put her that way and then suddenly realizes the urgency to get out of that position.

You can tell by the look on her face that this is not what she was wanting to do.

The situation must get worse before it gets better.

Almost there.

Ahh, relief.

Ari's nickname for her is Squeaky Cheeks. People comment on how big her cheeks are, but you will not think that until you see this next picture. I even used to think she was a chubby baby until I went back and looked at old pictures of myself.

Don't mind my sister on the right, she is just as darling as can be. I on the other hand have some chub to be reckoned with, in all my 3 month old glory. I'm pretty sure Evangeline never had chins like that either.

our Christmas

2011-12-29T21:40:00.000-05:00

Meet my little Angel.

He sang at our Christmas Eve service. I was so curious to see how he would do! I did not suspect him being more interested in the other singers. Thankfully he turned around for some parts and did some of the motions. He was so excited to dress up as an angel. He practiced singing the songs all week and surprisingly did really well with learning two new songs.

All I wanted Christmas morning was to get a picture of my two babies, sweet and cuddly.

Instead, I got this.

And this.

It was a very relaxed morning, with not a lot to do. But somehow we still managed to run a little late to my brother's house for lunch. Maybe we were a little too relaxed. Ah well.

Ari helped daddy make a fun dessert.

Reindeer nutter butters. I don't know which is cuter, the reindeer or my little nutter butter. Haha. Ok, I win cheesiest-mother-of-the-year award.

And here he is in his own make-shift manger. The Bible says we are to be imitators of Christ. My son is taking this to a whole new level.

Conversations with Ari

2011-12-28T16:02:00.000-05:00

The moon! The sun! That's not the right deal! (Apparently that was the first time he noticed both of them out at the same time).

He was staring out the window while eating his lunch so I asked him what he was thinking about. "The world...and Jesus...and God." Not expecting that at all I asked him what exactly about. "Who made God?" Even in more shock I explained how God has always been and nobody made him. "Oh, he made himself?" Not knowing how deep this conversation should go for a 3 year old I simply said no and explained how he made everything else. After this conversation I was feeling a little inept for not thinking more deeply about life. I was just trying to get through lunch trying to feed myself while nursing a baby.

Another time at lunch he asked me if I understood God. Basically my answer was no.

During this Christmas season we have talked a lot about Mary. Well then when we started saying Merry Christmas I think he was confused and thought we meant "Mary Christmas". We also talked about the angel Gabriel and since he has some friends at church with the name Gabriel, I think he started wondering if we meant they were actually angels.

Ari has no sense of time and most days when he wakes up from his nap he'll exclaim "I slept for 20 hours!" He will also get phrases confused like "yesterday", "last year", "the other day", "last week", etc. So some conversations go like this "Last year when I brushed my teeth..." or "How's your afternoon?" Which that one would seem completely normal except he always asks me that in the morning.

His new thing is asking how to spell words. He wants to know how everything is spelled and sometimes it gets exhausting for me and AJ that we take turns spelling things out. I know that sounds silly but just think about spelling words for 10-15 minutes straight. It makes me tired just thinking about it!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T09:24:00.000-05:00

weekend festivities

2011-12-19T21:33:00.000-05:00

We had a pretty low-key weekend compared to the last 49 few.

AJ took Friday off so we had a fun day of running errands. Eating out is a real treat since we don't do it very often.

Ari couldn't keep himself from dancing to the music and Evangeline enjoyed watching him.

We had been planning on going to the zoo on Saturday for several weeks with our friends Rob and Carly. Unfortunately they got stuck in a parking garage downtown for 45 minutes because of traffic! We didn't think we were going to make it in either because the line to get in to the zoo was all the way past Victory Field! But I'm glad my husband pressed on because we got to see this reindeer. Plus I don't think it would have gone over well with Ari if we weren't able to go to the zoo. We had been talking about it all week.

Ari wasn't as impressed with the lights as we were, but it was still an enjoyable time together. (We missed you Rob and Carly!) Being out in the cold meant we had to come home to some eggnog and hot chocolate. Mmmm.

why we don't do santa

2011-12-17T15:07:00.000-05:00

I hope you don't find this offensive or judgmental. I am only sharing this because some people don't understand why we don't do santa. As Christians we strive to live holy lives that are pleasing to the Lord. First Corinthians 10:31 says "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." I don't believe there is anything about santa that can bring glory to God.

Ari is 3 and still doesn't know who santa is. Last year he called him a snowman and this year he calls him an elf. Not because we told him that but just from what he has deduced on his own.

Ari has recently picked up a new habit. Lying. It's funny how children know to lie, even when they've never been taught to do that. It's called a sin nature. We all have it. But more importantly we are trying to teach him not to give in to the sinful nature - not to lie. Leviticus 19:11 says "Do not steal. Do not lie. Do not deceive one another." So why would I tell him anything about santa? It is deceitful and a lie.

I want my children to grow up knowing God's Word and what He has done for us all. Because we all have sinned (Rom. 3:23) God had to send His own Son to die on the cross for us, to pay that penalty that we deserve. I want my children to know that Jesus was the penalty for us. How can I teach them about Jesus and also tell them about santa? How will they decipher which one is real? And why should they believe me about Jesus if I am telling them a lie about santa?

We believe that everything we have is a blessing from God, and telling our children that it is anything but that just seems like a slap in the face to Him. If we do presents on Christmas, I want them to know how special it is and not that it was because they were "good" all year but because we have been given the means to do it. I want them to be "good" based on Biblical principles, not because they think a fake man is going to get them gifts if they obey. I want them to be grateful for the abundant blessings He has poured out on us, and not become self-focused on what they did to deserve the gifts.

I want my children looking forward to Christmas each year. Not because they know they will get presents (because maybe they won't always) but because it is the birth of our Savior. We should be doing all we can to help them understand the sacrifice He made for us, which first starts with His birth...the true meaning of Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!

baby, it's cold outside

2011-12-10T21:39:00.000-05:00

This was a long week of being couped up inside. The kiddos resorted to ~~torturing~~ playing with each other since they were needing to get some energy out (more so the 3 year old).

He insisted on keeping the blanket over her so she would look like Mary.

"Smile Mary!"

"Move over Mary!"

I think she was a little fed up with him.

It's pay back time.

After the fingers made it in his mouth, I had to break up the party.

So on to a new game they went.

It's brilliant, really. Ari gets his energy out by pushing her around, and she is thoroughly entertained by the ride.

Then somehow mommy got recruited to push them both around. I guess it was time for me to work off some of those Christmas cookies!

7 months

2011-12-07T13:24:00.000-05:00

I would say that she is at an age I love, but I have come to find that I say that at every age. She brings so much joy, her smiles and laughs are contagious.

She thought that taking pictures was hilarious. Maybe it's because it was just her and mommy. Or maybe it's because her brother wasn't standing in front of her taking all of her glory.

As you can tell, she is in to grabbing anything and everything in sight. I think my hair ranks in the top 2.

She also likes to pull her own hair. If she starts to go bald behind her ears it's not my fault.

Sticking the tongue out is a must, especially when I am trying to feed her cereal. She has been doing better about eating it when I make it really soupy. The girl doesn't like texture.

Waking up at night is a normal ritual. We have just learned to cope with broken sleep.

She is becoming more comfortable with other people, not being so serious all the time. When she is excited she will either squeal with delight or straighten her arms and grunt.

Squealing usually comes when she is watching Ari and grunting usually comes all the other times.

tis the season

2011-12-05T14:23:00.000-05:00

This year has been a lot of fun getting ready for Christmas.

Ari was thrilled to be able to help decorate the tree. He would hang all of his ornaments on the same limb. So it might have taken us twice as long to decorate (or should I say redecorate), but it was fun getting to explain what Christmas is all about.

Every time he sees a Christmas tree now he exclaims "A Christmas tree for Jesus' birthday!"

We tried to capture Evangeline watch all the commotion but Ari was more interested in getting his picture taken.

AJ and I enjoyed our 8th year of going to his banks holiday party. It was the first date he took me on so it's fun to have the same tradition every year.

Saturday was an all day occasion of making cookies. All of my family came over and we baked cookies from 9a until 5p.

The kids are at the ages where they entertain each other. They wore themselves out from playing so hard the afternoon was quiet for 3 hours because they all took good, long naps.

This was the best shot I got of them. Ari did a good job at smiling, Lynlee refused to smile, Nolan wanted to hold the baby, and Evangeline was focusing on not getting squeezed too tightly.

It's easy to get wrapped up in all the activities that come along with the season and let time get the best of us. My goal is to be intentional with how I spend my time this holiday season, helping my son understand that Christmas is about celebrating the birth of our Savior and not about anything else.

Thanksgiving {Pokagon}

2011-11-29T22:46:00.000-05:00

We had a mini vacation at Pokagon State Park for Thanksgiving this year. Even though it doesn't seem normal to me to go out of town and not cook your own turkey meal, it is a Hillebrand tradition and one that I look forward to. Surprisingly it is one of the busiest times for this park.

We got to spend lots of time with Aunt Erin and Uncle Chris. Ari was spoiled rotten by them and now he won't stop talking about all the fun things we got to do. It all started with this Thanksgiving cookie from Uncle Chris.

You can tell Ari is thoroughly enjoying the candy corn.

Thankfully we were able to walk off all the food on the beautiful trails. We took a picture at this location two years ago and Ari was riding in the baby pack.

The weather was cooperative and even stopped raining just enough for us to enjoy the campfire with s'mores one night.

Ari liked hiking but his little legs tired easily so he hitched many rides on Papaw.

He even got one from daddy.

Pokagon is known for its Toboggan run and opens the day after Thanksgiving. You know it's serious business when it gets you going over 35 mph.

I was so nervous for Ari to go down but he was fearless and sat in front. He would yell "Wee-haaa!!!" all the way down and when we got to the bottom all he could say was "I want to do that again!"

This little peanut finally decided to roll from her belly to her back. What better time than Thanksgiving, right? (Ignoring the fact that she's almost 7 months!)

One day we went to Shipshewana, also known as Amish Country, and ate at the Blue Gate Restaurant. There were several little shops to go in and this one had a carousel that Ari was intrigued by. A lady saw him and gave us two tokens to ride (costing $4)! We were thankful for her generosity and used 1 token for a ride and passed the other one on to someone else.

As innocent as she looks, she has been on strike and not wanting to eat solids. So I gave up the cereal while we were gone and have still yet to successfully have her eat more than the size of a dime since we've been back.

We visited more shops and stopped to take a picture with Curious George, one of Ari's favorite characters.

This store was one just for kids, but to no surprise I was able to walk through the kid door without ducking. At a recent Dr. appointment it was confirmed that I have shrunk 3/4''. I was banking on keeping this height for at least another 30 years. So much for that.

Being in Amish Country there were lots of horses and carriages.

We were waiting for our driver and the horse kept swishing its tail back and forth. Ari thought it was hilarious and exclaimed to the horse "Stop spanking your bottom!"

Another adventure was at the pool back at the hotel. Ari learned to do cannon balls which he wildly exclaimed were "caaannndddyyy bbaarrrrsss!" Eventually he realized we weren't calling it a candy bar and started saying cannon ball.

Sunday rolled around and we all had to say goodbye. Vacation always goes too fast.

I wasn't exactly ready to come back to the hustle and bustle of life, but I guess that's what makes vacation so special.

life this past week

2011-11-15T21:49:00.000-05:00

This is a frequent look on her face at the dinner table. She is anticipating Ari running from side to side. She thinks he's hilarious.

I think his snowman is melting.

Lynlee always asks to hold the baby, so I took advantage of them sitting still for .5 seconds.

Sorry if this next picture looks gross. I promise it was delicious. Most food is not picture worthy but after Ari saw this piece of chicken on his plate, he immediately proclaimed "Look! It's Oklahoma!"

It's fun having both of them bathe at the same time. Ari enjoys dumping water on her head to help rinse her and I enjoy not having to get her baby tub and haul it downstairs and back.

This past weekend AJ was out of town so I was trying to think of ways to make the time go more quickly. Since the weather was nice I took the kids to the zoo. The walrus was very cooperative in having his picture taken.

Ari on the other hand was a little hesitant in getting much closer so this had to do.

Then Sunday I visited my friends Laura and Shawn. Their little bambino was born on 11/11/11 at 11:07 pm. Only 4 minutes away from 11:11 pm! He was so precious. And I didn't want to give him back.

some photos {breana}

2011-11-10T15:14:00.000-05:00

Let me introduce you to my cousin, Breana Whitaker. She is a photographer, and a fabulous one at that. In case you are in need of one she can be found on Facebook. (Which is where I stole this photo...is that legal?) Even though she has no idea I'm plugging her on here, I don't think she'll mind.

I wanted to give you a visual in case you wanted to find her. Just so you know, I am not plugging her because she is my cousin. She is creative, artistic, fun, great with children, and a very hard worker. So here is a glimpse of what she did for us. I am going to have a hard time narrowing down which ones to print for our walls. Any suggestions?

lost in translation

2011-11-07T13:06:00.001-05:00

This morning Ari got up unusually early and came running down the hall in to our room. AJ was up getting ready for work and turned around right in time to find him coming in the room. AJ said "Whoah! You scared the begeezes out of me!" and Ari quickly replied with some confusion "I scared Jesus out of your heart?"

Note to self: Don't say words like begeezes that might sound like Jesus. This could result in some theological misunderstanding.

6 months

2011-11-03T21:13:00.001-04:00

She's had a lot of firsts this month. We started cereal in hopes to get her to sleep better at night. She was a great sleeper until about 4 months, so hopefully we are on the upswing of things now.

But with the cereal came some unexpected "backup". Which then lead to this.

First bath in the sink...with clothes and diaper. I'll spare you the other pictures but at least we ended up with a squeaky clean babe.

As you can tell the rolls speak for themselves. She is a chunker. At 16 lbs. 13 oz she has no problem gaining weight.

She doesn't have any motivation to roll over any more, but she is doing really well sitting on her own. She is becoming less serious, but saves the big smiles for her brother and her daddy.

my baby is 3

2011-10-30T23:09:00.000-04:00

According to Ari, he is "free" now. He has been anticipating this day for the past 4 months. The only thing he wanted for his birthday was a goodie bag with chocolate in it. How precious is that?

His love for his sister has grown leaps and bounds. He looks forward to playing with her and dances around to get her to belly laugh.

These next few pictures really sum him up. He is all about having fun.

Whenever I get the camera out he asks me to take pictures of him doing silly things.

I really can't resist, especially when he pretends to be a lion using the boppy pillow.

These faces never get old. I just hope he doesn't get stuck like that. :)

He loves his friends and talks about them all the time.

We lit all the candles three different times for him to blow out. Mostly because people were trying to take pictures, but hey he really enjoyed it.

(I know you're jealous of my mad owl drawing skills.)

He has a great memory and surprises me when he talks about things that happened 6 months ago. He has a large puzzle of the United States and puts it together every day. He knows where they are all located and the majority of their names. He can write his name and write all the letters of the alphabet. Some days the only questions he asks me is how to spell different words.

He has 6 Bible verses memorized. He uses a funnel as his microphone and will stand on our couch proclaiming "Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins." He insists on praying for every meal and corrects us if we say "amen" instead of "in Jesus' name, amen." Our prayer for him is that he continues to learn about what Jesus did for us and that he comes to know the Lord at a young age. I hope that he stays bold about preaching the gospel and continues to want to study God's Word.

a new trick

2011-10-20T16:06:00.000-04:00

She's been thinking about it for a while.

Oh she's making a move...

and voila!

Ah, that's much better!

If you watch the video, Ari is really in to making up words in case you were wondering what he was saying.

annual trip {brown county/nashville}

2011-10-17T22:33:00.000-04:00

AJ and I have taken a trip down here every year since we were dating. This makes year #6 for us and now we have two kiddos that get to come along.

After our first trail we were already hungry for some lunch. Picnics are the way to go.

This is my little buddy. He is our entertainment wherever we go.

These two pictures crack me up. The one on the left was taken first but AJ wanted Evangeline to be looking at the camera so he turned her head. Well apparently she didn't like it and protested the rest of the photo shoot.

She is getting old enough to be entertained by her brother, and also to entertain him. He has started enjoying her more. He will play with her and even comfort her when she is crying by saying things like "Aw it's ok baby, I am right here."

We always stop by two places in Nashville. The Daily Grind - an overpriced coffee shop that we splurge on one time a year and the fudge shop next door (I can't remember the name!). But I do remember their fudge and it is de.lic.ious.

Appleworks

2011-10-12T13:27:00.001-04:00

I love hanging out with my brother and his family. It just so happened that we all had Saturday morning open so we could take the kids to the orchard.

This one is exceptionally fun because there are animals to see...

animals to feed...

and animals to ride.

We played on ropes and went down the slide.

We went through the bamboo

And had a little dance party too.

(Can you tell I've been reading lots of Dr. Seuss lately?)
Ok, I'll stop.

The pumpkin patch was as far as the eye could see.

This picture was hard earned as they were not happy with who sat on which pumpkin.

But hey, despite their differences they still love each other anyway.

5 months

2011-10-03T21:13:00.003-04:00

Even though we get sweet smiles and giggles, she has somehow earned the title as the serious one. We'll be out in public or even with family members where people take turns trying to get her to smile and all they get is a dead stare. Really, it's not you. It's her.

She loves watching her brother play and will be entertained by him for quite a while. This is usually what she looks like when watching him. Utter amazement.

She loves her daddy and will always give him smiles.

She isn't much for pacifiers unless she is ready for sleep. But she will go for just about anything else if it is within a few inches of her face.

She is a rather large baby. The rolls are endless. We can barely keep clothes around that she can wear. There are some things that I couldn't wait for her to wear, and lo and behold she can't fit in them. Like these boots. They have been waiting for her since the day she was born. Her feet fit in them just perfectly. But those ankles...there's just something about those rolls that will not allow me to zip the boots. Poor girl. At least I know she isn't starving.

Oh yeah, she might be making an appearance in her Christmas dress a few months early.

random events

2011-09-29T07:40:00.008-04:00

My dear friend Laura from college is going to have a baby! It was so fun at her shower to get together with the girls. It had been a long time since I had seen them all. Laura is due mid November and we are so excited for her little bambino to get here! She is the sweetest person and will make a fantastic mommy.

This little baby has a new hobby...and thankfully it doesn't involve her thumb!

The Wednesday night program started up again at church. AJ and I work with middle and high schoolers. Here AJ is having them play a game with marshmallows. (Sorry Gretchen!)

Here is my little cowboy. He is still talking about his upcoming birthday. I can't believe my baby will be 3 in a month.

I love this picture of my honey. This just sums him up. It doesn't matter what time of day it is, he is always like this.

The race AJ and Rob were training for went well. I know I said it before but they are so fast.

Carly took some great pictures of the kids while we were there. Looks like we will have the winter hats out for good now. Goodbye summer, hello fall.

a day with Aunt Erin

2011-09-20T08:59:00.009-04:00

Aunt Erin came to town and we celebrated Pat's birthday. For some reason I don't have a picture of Pat in all her birthday glory! But I do have pictures of a little boy who was spoiled by his aunt. Here he is licking his first icing batter for the cake.

And here is his first apple cider slushy. Yum!

He also relaxed in a hammock while being fanned and eating grapes. Ok so there was no fan or grapes. But he was enjoying himself. Evangeline on the other hand was not. She wasn't so sure about the hammock...

or the fort...

or the fake apple tree.

But she was happy in mommy and daddy's arms.

Ari thinks his daddy is a playground...without a slide.

So sometimes we have to resort to this. And AJ gets a little break on the sidelines.

Visiting the orchard was a lot of fun. But it doesn't beat spending time with Aunt Erin. Thanks for all the fun memories!

fun-filled weekend

2011-09-15T09:00:00.001-04:00

For several weeks now Ari has been talking about his upcoming birthday. To say he is excited would be an understatement. Even though he has several weeks until his celebration, he was able to celebrate his friends birthday this past weekend. Since the party, he has requested goody bags for his birthday. You can see how excited he was to receive this at Miss M's party.

Here is AJ and Connie with the girls. It will be fun when they are old enough to run around and play. (They are already growing up too quickly so I don't wish that to come any sooner!)

Here's the birthday girl in all her glory. Ari was right by her side through it all. No really, he was practically sitting on her lap when she was opening presents. Like I said...he's really excited about his birthday. Gretchen and I get a good laugh at their relationship. She is a little bossy and Ari goes with the flow. Earlier in the summer she was over swimming (they were both in the pool freezing) so Ari decided to get out and play in the sprinkler. She told him no he didn't want to do that, he wanted to keep swimming and he stopped right in his tracks said "ok!" and came back to freeze some more in the pool. It was cute. So before we went to her party AJ was asking Ari if he liked to be bossed by Miss M and his response was this "Yes! But not by mommy." I guess it always sounds better when coming from someone other than a parent.

Saturday night was also fun because we got to spend it with Rob and Carly. I think this might be our first group shot. AJ and Rob have been training for an upcoming athletic event for the bank they work at. And let me tell you...they are stinkin' fast. They each can run 200 meters in less than 30 seconds. Yes, I am proud of him as you can see, but I am even more in awe. My body doesn't even recognize what a "sprint" is. It only goes one speed. It's called slow.

I will leave you with some random sayings from Ari.

"Don't take monies out my pocket"- sitting at the dinner table, not even talking about money

"I'm not Ari, I'm Jacob"- in response to me asking him to do something

"I'm a good boy like John the Baptist"

He also likes to pretend he is David with a slingshot and goes around slaying the giant.

hot to cold

2011-09-08T20:44:00.006-04:00

We've been to the zoo so many times this year I have lost track. But no matter how often we go it is still just as amusing as it was the first time.

The only difference now is that Ari can tell us what exhibit is coming up next. And sometimes that comes with an impersonation (see photo above).

My dad came along this time and Ari filled him in on everything there was to see.

It was already getting extremely hot so we cut some of the animals out in order to spend some extra time at the splash park.

Ari was so timid to get in he just watched all the other kids play for a good 15 minute before he decided he was ready.

Within 24 hours the weather decided to take a turn for the cold. So we had a few guys over from the youth group and started up the campfire.

I have never been a fan of s'mores...that is until now. These s'mores were so much better because they were made with reese's cups instead of a chocolate bar. Talk about melt-in-your-mouth goodness.

But don't take my word for it.

This little man gave it two thumbs up!

4 months

2011-09-03T09:00:00.000-04:00

Went to see the doc the other day. He says I'm a good eater. At 15 1/2 lbs I am in the 95 percentile. If anything comes near my mouth, I am eager to get a little taste.

These hips don't lie. My big brother can get in and out of this Bumbo easier than I can!

He also likes to play with this new toy with me. Mommy already had to adjust the height setting because I am in the 95 percentile for length as well.

She loves putting me in dresses, but sometimes it gets a little out of hand.

As if this outfit wasn't ridiculous enough...mommy had to put the hat on.

Daddy thinks this picture looks like my Aunt Erin's "goober" pictures when she was a babe. Oh hi Aunt Erin! Can't wait to see you soon!

cousin cookout

2011-09-01T13:40:00.001-04:00

A few weekends ago we got together with all my cousins on my mom's side. They are so much fun and half of us have toddlers so it is fun to see all of our kids get together and play.

My brother really takes his play time seriously. Can you see him with his daughter?

Here's a closer look.

It's a new game called human croquet. He cracks me up.

I will cherish these special moments all my life.

Apparently she has the most comfortable seat in the house.

All the kiddos together took a surprisingly good picture. It only took about eight attempts.

for the love of Andrea

2011-08-30T18:31:00.001-04:00

This year the fair had a little different feel to it after the stage collapsed. Unexpected tragedies are always difficult to hear about, and obviously even harder to deal with. Hundreds have their own personal story on how this has affected them and one story in particular I have been following has been Andrea. Her dad is AJ's coworker so we have been following her since the beginning. Andrea suffers from critical head trauma and has been in a coma since the accident. Her story hits very close to home as we sat through weeks of watching ICP levels of a close friend of ours who was in a motorcycle accident and had head trauma four years ago. Every day I read her update and have flashbacks of being at the same hospital, looking at the same machines, and hoping for the same outcome.

Thankfully Andrea's family has their hope in the Lord, who has graciously spared her life. Tyler, her brother has done an incredible job of expressing the emotional, physical, and spiritual support they have received across the United States.

One of Tyler's posts was talking about how we naturally want to ask the question "why". Why do things like this happen to me? But then he goes on to say how we should be focused on the "what...do you want me to do with this?" A verse he has reflected on several times is John 9:3 "...but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed." God has been using Andrea's situation in mighty ways and I encourage you to read her story and all the updates from the beginning. Be prepared to shed some tears as you see the mighty work of God unfold right before your eyes.

She is only one of hundreds that need our prayer, so let's not forget all who have suffered on account of this tragic accident.

state fair

2011-08-25T09:00:00.002-04:00

There was lots of things for Ari to do this year at the fair. The goats were very entertaining as they were excited to be fed by so many people.

There's just something about tractors that makes them so fun to sit on.

She just had fun sitting in the stroller watching all the action.

We didn't do this last year but Ari really enjoyed being on the "farm". He got to collect corn and take it to the cattle.

He also got to milk a cow, plant seeds, collect fruit and wool.

Then there was an area to take your items to the store where you got "money" for them.

That money then was used to buy one item; milk, oj, or a granola bar.

They also had an area for kids to ride these little tractors. I think he had just as much fun on these little ones as he did the big one that didn't go anywhere.

Fortunately there were still animals to see. The horses we saw were gigantic and made Ari a little nervous. We also saw elephants and chickens.

We always enjoy seeing the sow and all the baby pigs, but this is my favorite little piggy of them all.

my sweeties at 3 months

2011-08-18T11:46:00.005-04:00

I like to see how similar and different they are at the same age. Ari was always very mellow and cheery. He was content doing just about anything. This is a fun age for any baby because of all the rewarding smiles you get.

So far the biggest difference is their chub. Ari was a little chubby, but she definitely takes the cake. (And literally she probably would if I let her!) She is so chunky her ankle rolls droop around her feet. Her wrists are the same way and the other day I found syrup stuck between her wrist and hand. It really baffled me because I found it there later in the afternoon and we had syrup on pancakes for breakfast. She wasn't even in the same room with us when we ate!

Our baby girl loves to squeal when she wants attention or wants to be doing something else. She has found her feet and is constantly holding on to them. She enjoys sitting up in the bumbo now but gets frustrated that her hand coordination does not allow for her to actually get to her toys. She'll bang her hand on the tray right next to the toy, but never manage to get there. Then she'll give me a look like I've played a cruel trick on her. It probably is more entertaining for me at this point then for her.

more traveling

2011-08-18T08:52:00.004-04:00

Last week AJ was in Boston for work, so my mom and I took the kids back to Florida to visit my grandparents. My grandpa's health is declining and it had been nearly a year since I last saw them so I figured I better go.

The traveling was a little tiresome seeing that the last four weekends we have spent either going to or coming from Florida.

And three of them we drove. Yeah...I might have been crazy.

Surprisingly the trips went well and the kids did great riding in the car for so long.

Who knew tasty fingers could go such a long way?

It ended up raining every day, all day until our last one so I got to spend lots of quality time indoors.

Chasing a two year old.

And constantly saying "No, Ari." "Don't touch that." "Stay in here."

For being stuck in a car for two days, then stuck inside for another four days straight he did extremely well. I on the other hand was exhausted.

The rain was really a blessing in disguise because that allowed a lot more time spent with my grandparents then doing anything else. I am thankful they let us invade their house all week.

The last day we woke up to the sun shining bright and decided to spend the morning at the beach. Ari finally got to swim all of his energy out that day before we had to make the trip home.

a remedy

2011-08-16T15:05:00.002-04:00

I was putting Ari down for his nap and he kept coughing. He looked at me and said "I need some medicine." And my response was "Well, I don't know what medicine you need."

Silly me forgot what the cure for everything was.

He instantly replied "Chocolate!"

More celebrating!

2011-08-07T21:49:00.012-04:00

So much happened in July I am still catching up on posts! As you know we traveled to Florida to make it just in time for another wedding. But it wasn't just another wedding to us. To be completely honest, I don't think there are words to express how much this couple means to us. Nathan and Kristina are more family to us than anything else. (Nathan's mom and my mom are best friends and have known each other since before they were ever married. So all of us kids were raised together since birth...and have been there for each other through pretty much everything.)

This couple has waited a long time for this special day and we were so happy to have witnessed the marriage covenant they made to each other.

It was hard to get a good shot of them with my camera because of the sun :( but it was beautiful and the weather turned out great for a beach wedding. This was the best beach wedding I have ever been to and definitely the best reception food I have ever tasted. It was very low-key and relaxing. So happy for you two!

We got to spend lots of time with my brother and his family that week too. Lynlee is always so cute. She didn't want anything to do with sand.

We only had 2 full days of sun because it rained the rest of the time, but we still were able to squeeze in some beach and pool time.

Ari learned how to swim around all by himself and he is so proud of it!

It was nice to have some time to relax since this summer has been so busy.

All of these weddings remind me of how exciting it was when we got married. We have now celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary and I can honestly say life has just gotten more exciting. I never thought I could love AJ any more than I did back then, but I have found there was more room for that love to grow. He is perfect for me and I am so proud to call him my husband.

3 months

2011-08-04T13:17:00.005-04:00

If my scale doesn't lie then it appears she is 14 lbs right now. She has rolls and rolls and more rolls. She also has a killer double chin. (Well, and cheeks apparently.)

She has a serious look to her, then cracks smiles when you least expect it. She even laughs when you laugh.

Ari still likes to hold her but doesn't ask as often since she seems to be growing by leaps and bounds.

She also gets special attention from her cousin. Lynlee is so sweet with her I can already tell she will be a big help to her mommy when her baby sibling comes along this winter.

Evangeline still sleeps extremely well at night. She eats at 9p then won't eat again until around 6a. She has developed a habit of wanting mommy to hold her during afternoon naps though. Either she will sleep for 30 minutes by herself or will sleep for 3 hours if I give in. I thought it was sweet at first when she would sleep on me while I napped too...but on days I'd rather stay up it's been hard staying productive when she wants to be held.

She is so precious and has made the transition of having two kiddos extremely easy.

28

2011-08-02T08:09:00.004-04:00

Oh how the years go by so quickly. When I first met AJ he was 21 and I was 19. He would always joke around that he was dating a teenager and it made me sound so much younger than I really was. Back then it was unimaginable to think what our lives would look like 7 years later.

Well here we are...celebrating his 28th birthday. (It was actually 1 week ago but we were in Florida and didn't have internet access.) Since we were down there for the week I did not plan ahead and prepare a gift in advance to take down there. Bad, bad wifey. But because he is so wonderful he didn't care the least and was thrilled to have gotten a Snickers ice cream candy bar instead.

Seven years later he is just as dreamy now as he was back then. I am so thankful for the person he has become and am looking forward to celebrating many more birthdays with him. Happy late birthday AJ!

Weekend of Weddings

2011-08-01T13:35:00.003-04:00

Last weekend was extremely busy. We left Friday for Kentucky because AJ was in a wedding and we had to get there for the rehearsal dinner. The wedding was on Saturday and then we had to drive an hour and a half to the airport Sunday morning to fly to Florida for another wedding that same evening. Phew!

It was totally worth it because this was the best wedding I have ever witnessed. From the day I met Rob & Carly you could just see the love they have for God. Everything we experienced that weekend was just overflowing with a love for God I have never seen. From his parents, his siblings, his close friends, her close friends, her parents and brother; it was so clear that all of these people were like-minded in that they wanted to bring glory to God in all the festivities that took place in uniting this couple. I have never been around so many strong believers at one time. It was infectious. It was refreshing.

Rob and Carly are just fun people and I am thrilled they both will be living in Indy now. These are the type of people you never get tired of being around.

Although I'm not sure why anyone would want to leave Lexington. It has places like this castle and miles and miles of horse farms. Absolutely beautiful.

AJ's mom came along for the ride to help out with the kiddos while AJ was in the wedding.

Not sure why we didn't get a picture with Evangeline. Oh well. At least we got one with Ari. It was difficult enough pulling him away from the dance floor. He sure loves to dance!

trying to stay busy

2011-07-12T21:28:00.003-04:00

AJ has been gone since early Sunday morning so we have been trying to stay busy around here. We stayed at home all day Sunday and Monday which made the time go by extremely slow. So Monday night I took Ari to Chic-fil-a so he could use his ice cream coupon.

I think his expression explains it all. Then he went down the slide in the play place one time. It makes me nervous letting him play in there when I can't control the other kids he is playing with. He is so polite to them and says "excuse me" with a sweet little voice. But he doesn't understand when I want him to leave because other kids don't play the way I would want them to. Then I have thoughts of him going to school and what he will be exposed to then. I can't bring myself to think about it for long because I know I can't protect him from everything, even if I chose to homeschool. Good thing I have a few years to decide.

Then there's sweet baby girl. She really has just been hanging out.

She loves taking baths and watching her brother.

While we were at Chic-fil-a, Ari was just eating his ice cream and looked up at me and said "I will take care of you, mama." At that moment I could have just cried. It amazes me the things he thinks about saying on his own.

The other day we were on our way to church and Ari said out of the blue "Papa is a real man. He's my favorite friend." The kid cracks me up.

This morning we spent a few hours out back in our luxurious pool. Ok, maybe not to me but Ari thinks so. Evangeline is still just hanging out.

Then Ari took a 3 1/2 hour nap. No joke.

was

glorious.

I was resting as well and was thinking I should be up cleaning the house while I had a chance. But then I thought about it again and decided that was a terrible idea. So my house is still unclean.

My friend Gretchen is wonderful and invited us over for dinner. Her husband is wonderful too since he manned the grill. The kids had a lot of fun playing in a rigged up sprinkler.

Ari just loves his friends. It is neat to see him grow up with such a great group of kids.

The Fourth and Before

2011-07-10T13:15:00.003-04:00

This summer is flying by because we are so busy. July is a scheduling nightmare. We have 3 weddings in 3 different states (2 of them in the same weekend) and AJ is gone 6 days with the youth group. I've barely had enough time to catch my breath. And it's only the 10th.

I am so behind on the times I haven't even had my camera out since the Fourth of July. So here are some pictures from a while ago.

Since AJ was going to be gone we managed to take another trip to the zoo the week before the Fourth. This time with some friends.

Ari is becoming such a big boy. I wish I would write down more of the things he says because he is so funny and sweet. Now he asks me "How is your morning, mama?" For some reason he has gone back to calling me mama. That's what my name was at first, then it was mommy, then it was mom, then it went back to mommy, and now it's back to mama. He's so silly.

We really wanted him to see some fireworks so we trekked 15 minutes to a park after driving 25 minutes to get there. He played on the playground for a while, ate a snack, took a potty break, then started to see some random fireworks people were shooting off. He asked about this dog sitting next to us and why the people were leaving. Well I must have made the mistake of telling him the dog was scared and that it was too loud for his ears because he became panicked afterwards and wouldn't uncover his ears. He was crying and scrambling around to try and get out of there. So we packed up camp and trekked back 15 minutes to the car. He kept his ears covered the whole way and told lots of people who were on their way to the fireworks that he was scared.

We ended up stopping and watching them from a distance while we sat in the car. It actually worked out really well because we were one of the firsts to get out of there and didn't have to sit through crazy traffic. Next year we will skip the 30 minutes of walking and just watch from a safe distance.

I love this sweet moment Ari is having with Evangeline. He is getting better at being gentle on his own without being told, but we still have to remind him frequently that she can't play the same way he can. These two months with her have flown by. I am loving all the smiles and coos she gives us now. She is doing a great job with holding her head up and even strains to get in a sitting up position.

Now I must get back to my house. It has been neglected since last Thursday because of my sisters wedding and looks like a tornado went through it.

his first song

2011-07-07T12:04:00.002-04:00

Ari was playing his guitar and decided to come up with lyrics to a song he was playing. He said "This is a Jesus song. Say Jesus on the water. Woohoo on the walking. He cares for me!" And then he threw his arms up in the air after his last strum on the guitar.

STOP! hammertime...

2011-06-23T20:34:00.002-04:00

Who needs TV for entertainment when you have kids?

Father's Day Weekend

2011-06-20T15:10:00.002-04:00

Thanks to Qdoba for having buy 1 get 1 free coupons for Father's Day, we took advantage of it and spent Saturday morning enjoying one of our favorite foods.

Breakfast burritos.

I think I'm salivating.

Then off AJ went with his dad to spend some quality time out in the middle of nowhere. Just shootin' the breeze.

No really. That's all they were doing.

And so I spent many an hour just taking this in.

And making cookies with Ari for Father's Day.

(no pictures of that :( bad mommy)

Then Sunday came all too quickly and we went to church, made blt's for lunch (with lettuce from the garden), took a nap, then packed up.

Thankfully it dried up enough that we could still have a picnic at the park.

I am blessed beyond measure. But aren't we all?

I love my husband so much. He is a wonderful father and a great example to our children. He makes us a priority and that means so much.

6 weeks

2011-06-14T20:39:00.004-04:00

This little babe is growing like a weed!

She is starting to crack more and more smiles.

And when she does it just melts my heart.

She sleeps EXTREMELY well at night...ranging somewhere from 5 to 7 hours each night. It's glorious.

She also has a striking resemblance of her brother. His picture is below.

Oh how fast they grow up!

a nightmare

2011-06-08T14:18:00.002-04:00

I have this thing about fair cups. I use one every day because it is convenient to carry lots of water in, it has a lid and straw, and it is much larger than our other cups. This cup goes with me everywhere (except church): the store, friends houses, it goes on walks, and is even used at night so I have something to drink during these late night feedings.

Anyways, this afternoon I grabbed it off our bed, took a swig and instantly realized there was something else in my mouth other than water. I spit it out all over our carpet and looked down to find out what it was. It was a SPIDER! Not just any spider...a live one...one that was scurrying away as I tried not to scream, gag, and drop the baby all at the same time.

I wish I could say this was just a nightmare but I can't. My obsession with using this cup might have to end since drinking out of a straw will be out of the question for a while. I might be scarred for life. Oh yeah, and I'm still gagging.

enjoying the weather

2011-06-06T15:34:00.004-04:00

I'm sure I'm not the only one enjoying the heat, but I always prefer 80-90 degree weather over anything else.

This little guy doesn't seem to mind it much either!

He loves going t o the park, especially with his cousin Lynlee.

It has become a daily ritual where he comes up to one of us and says "I have a question for you. Are we going to the park today?" In fact, he asks that several times each day.

This little babe could care less what we do. She's pretty easy going.

If we can't make it to the park, Ari would gladly settle for the sprinkler and baby pool in the backyard.

This little cutie pie was enjoying it as well.

Isn't she just a doll?!

Fun in the sun makes for very happy children.

the zoo

2011-05-24T15:36:00.003-04:00

AJ took off Friday so we could go to the zoo. I thought it would be ideal since school wasn't out yet and the weather was going to be perfect. However, I never thought that every school would be taking a field trip to the zoo on the same day. It was still a lot of fun but we were ready to go in to solitary confinement for a while after we left.

Have I mentioned how much I love my husband? He is Mr. Wonderful and it is so fun to see him as a dad. Ari is WAY in to him right now. Everything is all about daddy.

If they keep the bat exhibit for a while, it would be fun to get a picture each year of how much he has grown.

Evangeline slept the whole time and was happy being carried around.

She even slept while we picnicked. Ari loves the zoo and I think he would be happy going every day.

I hope Michelle Obama doesn't read this

2011-05-23T15:20:00.003-04:00

I've never seen anything like this...

a big

GIANT

donut

I have to say it was a big hit with my firstborn...

and that it didn't last long.

2 weeks

2011-05-17T21:13:00.005-04:00

Believe it or not we are alive and well. We are having technical difficulties with our electronics so there have been minimal updates.

Two weeks ago I was in the hospital just in awe of another miracle God has blessed us with. It seems that AJ and I have waited a long time for her and it's hard to imagine she is finally here. I am still in awe of her. Since Ari was an easy baby I had been mentally preparing myself for one that was the complete opposite. So far she has proven me wrong and is just as easy (if not easier). She eats and sleeps very well.

Her two week check up was yesterday and she seems to be growing very well. She is 9 lbs .5 oz in the 75% and 21 1/2'' long in the 90%. Nice and sturdy.

She has spent lots of time being loved on by Ari.

He asks to hold her frequently.

Even while riding in the car.

He helps me change her diapers and has even offered to feed her :)

We are in love all over again.

how she fit

2011-05-05T22:04:00.002-04:00

When I heard she was 8 lbs. 5 oz. I was in complete shock myself. To answer some of your questions as to how she fit, I didn't have a clue until I saw this picture.

Can you see the three crease marks on her belly? I'm no doctor but it appears she was folded in half! Even the nurse admitted she had never seen that before. Glad she was only a day late!

Some pictures...More to Follow!

2011-05-03T13:25:00.005-04:00

Evangeline is our little 8 lbs 5.5 oz bundle of Joy!Ari is absolutely all smiles and loves kissing on his new baby sister!

Thanks to everyone for your prayers! God has truly blessed our family today!

Good Morning Precious Daughter!

2011-05-03T10:35:00.002-04:00

Evangeline Christine Hillebrand

Born on 5/3/11 @ 8:49 am

8 lbs 5.5 oz

21 inches long

Healthy, Happy, Beautiful!

Angel is doing great!

Will post some pictures soon but haven't slept in 30+ hours!

We love you all!

I'm due!

2011-05-02T10:25:00.005-04:00

I'm due today...but yet I still managed to make it in to work. I shouldn't be surprised at all seeing that Ari decided to come a week and a half late. I will find out tomorrow if I have been making any progress. I have contractions but they are few and far between and not painful. Nothing to get excited about.

On to more exciting news...we have the internet at home! Somehow I have still managed to not get any pictures up because of our computer situation at home. But we are working on getting that fixed so I can update more often.

Hopefully I will have an exciting update soon!

her name

2011-04-18T11:11:00.002-04:00

In case you were wondering...

her name will be Evangeline Christine. It seemed like a long process trying to figure out a name. But after calling her Evangeline for a few weeks now I think it's safe to finally put it on here. She has my middle name, and technically, my first as well. We liked that this name had angel in it but didn't sound like angel. Evangeline means good news and Christine means follower of Christ. It is our hearts desire to see all our children come to know the Lord and the work that Jesus did on the cross for us.

The waiting game continues as we anticipate her arrival. You can't rush perfection, but we are hoping for sooner than later!

An update and old pics

2011-04-11T12:28:00.006-04:00

I'm in shock right now that I am even typing this. Without internet at home it has been nearly impossible to update. We are looking in to getting internet at home once the baby comes, so hopefully the posts will not be few and far between. Besides, I will need some kind of contact with the outside world.

We have been busy with lots of random stuff: work, dinners, church, yard work, organizing the nursery, and re-screening our windows. It will be nice when the baby gets here because I will actually just get some time to sit. Ok, well maybe not sit, but at least no obligations to go anywhere or do anything for at least a week while AJ is home. I actually look at this like taking a vacation.

And since I'm so far behind, here are pictures from 3 weeks ago when we went to the zoo.

He loves his daddy SSOOO much.

This is my brother and his daughter. They are so much fun!

This is the best we could get of them looking at the camera and smiling. NOTICE: neither of them are looking at the camera or smiling. What can I say? They are 1 and 2 years old.

6 weeks to go!

2011-03-21T14:09:00.003-04:00

We are so ready for her to be here! Ari has been practicing praying with her and singing her to sleep. It will be fun to actually see them together.

Reasoning with a 2 year old

2011-03-17T13:42:00.002-04:00

This past week Ari has not stopped talking about going to a park. He even told me to turn the car around when I pulled in to our neighborhood so we could go to the park. We have been trying to tell him that the weather has not permitted us to go so we will have to wait until it gets warmer. Well a few nights ago it had rained all day and was still drizzly outside, we were eating dinner. Here is how our conversation went.

Ari: Go to the park

Me: Well we can't right now because it is too rainy.

Ari: Wear shoes!

Me: Your shoes will get wet.

Ari: Wear boots!

Me: Your clothes will still get wet.

Ari: Wear jacket!

Me: (trying not to laugh at this point) Well wearing a jacket is a good idea but we will still get wet.

Ari: Use umbrella!! (as he demonstrates holding an umbrella over his head)

I was at a loss at this point so we changed the subject quickly.

This kid is determined to get some play time outside. I think we will have to arrange something now that it is warmer and not so wet!

neglectful

2011-02-10T11:48:00.007-05:00

Sorry for those who have noticed how behind I am. This post was originally titled "28 weeks and such" but since I never got around to posting practically this whole month, this will have to do.

At my 28 week appointment I was measuring 3 weeks behind so I had an ultrasound this week at 30 weeks to make sure all is well. She is right on track at 3 lbs 5 oz and is already showing signs of hair. She is head down and will hopefully stay that way for the duration. She was so sweet with her hand up by her face and was pouting her lip out. I can't wait to squeeze her chubby cheeks. This little babe is as wild as ever and if that is any indication as to what she will be like outside the womb, then I am going to have my hands full.

Ari knows there is a baby in my belly and he will ask to feel her and says "get bigger" knowing that she won't come out until she gets much bigger. Then he quickly pulls my shirt down and says "close". This is a HUGE improvement from the reaction I got the first time I showed him my belly. He was extremely appalled and would practically scream "No!!" with this horrific look on his face as if I just exposed him to the most absurd image and would quickly lower my shirt. It definitely wasn't what I expected so needless to say we have made lots of progress. I think he is getting more excited about having a little sibling...although he really has no idea what that's going to bring.

Ari has recently hit an independent stage where everything is "ARI DO IT!" If it keeps up I will be taking advantage of that when the little babe comes.

Have I mentioned how much I love these two? I can't tell who was entertained more...Ari, AJ, or me!

creative?

2011-02-03T13:36:00.004-05:00

He's already found a better use for these...

any suggestions?

2011-01-27T10:13:00.002-05:00

We have been telling people for a while that we are open to any name suggestions. To our surprise we were brought this DELICIOUS ice cream cake over the weekend with a suggestion from a friend. Little did he know that ice cream cake is my absolute favorite! I am much persuaded by food these days, so if you have a name suggestion feel free to bring it on something yummy.

And if you happen to ask Ari what the name is going to be, he just might tell you her name is Baby Pink. (I don't know where he got this from but it has been her name all week.)

entertainment

2011-01-17T10:52:00.003-05:00

I did not have intentions of posting this photo until Ari saw it and exclaimed loudly in the waiting area of a restaurant "BREZA!!!!" (His version of ZEBRA!) AJ and I couldn't stop laughing. I might be somewhat paranoid of my clothing choices from now on around my 2 year old.

From the time he wakes up (and lays in bed with his eyes closed and a huge smile on his face saying "yummy blueberries" as if he were just dreaming about it) until the time he goes to sleep at night (and randomly says "no swipey no swipey"), he provides me endless hours of entertainment. This was a recent car ride and since AJ happened to be driving, I could finally capture some sing-a-longs with Ari.

an uneventful New Year's

2011-01-13T12:53:00.007-05:00

We kind of missed the New Year and all since Ari was sick. I suppose it came whether or not we were awake, but nonetheless we stayed in and had our own little party.

Ari had been requesting for several days to "build the house" so it worked out well. As you can see he was feeling much better at this point and I was about to fall over from nearly pulling an all-nighter the previous night.

After Ari went to bed, I had this urge to make some lemon poppy seed muffins. YUM! AJ felt the need to document such a thing. After I devoured said muffins, I couldn't stay awake 1 minute longer and we ended the 2010 year by going to bed at 10:30.

Extremely uneventful, I know. It probably didn't even deserve this blog post.

the new babe...

2011-01-10T12:57:00.004-05:00

I am 24 weeks now and have not really posted about the new babe to come. To be completely honest, I didn't have any information to post until this week because everything was up in the air for so long (such as due date, gender, doctor, etc.). But if you are at all interested, I have included it in this post.

I officially have a due date of 5.2.11. Based on how they normally set due dates, mine would have been 4.16.11. Yes, I know. Two weeks is a big difference but I knew it would at least be the last week of April because I ovulated late. So an early ultrasound has made a new guess that the baby should be due around the beginning of May.

I have switched doctor offices and will have my first official appointment this Friday with a mid-wife. I intended on switching long ago but I had reasons to believe that our insurance would be changing as of January 2011. Since it did not, I finally was able to make this switch. This will be the 3rd (different) OB office I have visited within the last 9 months. Hopefully there will be no more change!

And last not but least...we have evidence (or lack thereof!) that says we will be welcoming a baby girl into the family. We had zero intentions to find out this soon, but I couldn't help but get excited when my doctor last week referred to the baby as a boy, multiple times. I was confused, mostly, because I wasn't sure if she meant to refer to a specific gender, and also because I was convinced from the beginning that I was having a girl. But since I didn't want to ask in fear of finding out the truth, I waited until AJ got home from work to open the envelopes that contained the answer from two different ultrasounds.

If it were a boy, I'd be happy to share the name. However, since it is a girl (so they say) I will have to refrain until we are 100% that the name isn't going to change.

My belly is probably twice as big now compared to when I was 24 weeks with Ari. I am (surprisingly!) still wearing my regular pants, but have a feeling it won't be much longer until I have to give in to those stretchy things (that make me cringe!). Or maybe I've just been missing out and I'll have a change of heart and fall in love with them and want to wear them 24/7. Who knows. Time will only tell.

things he says

2011-01-03T15:03:00.006-05:00

I love it when kids mispronounce words or have their own version of the word. I started making a mental list of Ari's because he doesn't have that many. He speaks very clearly for a two year old and despite the fact he puts sentences together and says long words like "decorations", "armadillo", and "quacamole", he still has a few words that he doesn't say quite right. He also has a short list of words he knows in Spanish, such as nino, hola, gracias, adios, and abeula. I believe that comes from Dora or Diego. Here's the list I can think of.

His version vs. What he means to say

da-y=daddy

good boy bed=big boy bed

bapper=diaper

stirfy=thirsty

hummingbrand=hillebrand

breza=zebra

sorry I HONK the baby!= "sorry I woke the baby!"(a saying from a Veggie Tales song that he sings at the top of his lungs)

a quarter is worth 21 cents, not 25

hu-mon=come on (usually saying this while he grabs your hand to lead you to his toys)

I have graduated from momma to mommy now. I hope I don't graduate to just mom any time soon!

We have been working on potty training (not consistently-oops!), but when we do he does great. Although...after a little while of not wearing a diaper he goes around whining for his "clean bapper". He has tried to put it back on himself. I can't say I blame him, it's got to be a little drafty! We haven't made the switch to his big boy bed yet because we didn't want to potty train, change rooms, and change beds all at once. Besides, he really likes his bed and prefers to still sleep in the crib. He has never attempted to crawl out and usually runs up to it and asks to take his nap. I'm not ready for him to grow up so fast...although I have enjoyed each stage more and more. He is SO much fun right now, it's hard to imagine it could get any better than this.

Our Merry Christmas Weekend

2010-12-27T09:49:00.003-05:00

AJ had Thursday off work and was extremely productive playing handyman all day. He fixed our dresser drawer, our clogged sink, and even helped me bake and cook (not that that needed any fixing at all!) :)

Ari was also a huge help. After mixing the ingredients for quite some time, he was ready to play in some bubbles.

Friday was extremely busy with getting things together for Christmas. AJ got off work early which inevitably saved me from forgetting to make potatoes for Christmas...just in time to make it to the Christmas Eve service at our church.

AJ's mom was the insurance policy for the baby in the manger...

And AJ's dad "was reading a book" according to Ari.

Ari on the other hand was playing with candles (not lit!) and clapped after every performance.

We then headed downtown for some dinner with AJ's family and my mom. We took a carriage ride then walked around the circle while it flurried.

Saturday morning we spent just the three (or four if you count baby) of us and then headed over to AJ's parents house.

We had to get a family photo of us in front of the Christmas tree. What? That's not a Christmas tree? Well it was for Pat and Jim. This plant has been overtaking this room for a while and there was no place for the normal tree. So Jim set out to get some decorations that would not weigh down the limbs. And successful he was. It was the best looking Christmas tree I had seen in a while.

This was an attempt at the end of a long Christmas day for AJ and I to finally get a picture of just us together. I thought our red walls were fitting.

Sunday evening we went to my mom's house and had another Christmas with my siblings and their family. I had to include this picture...that smile pretty much sums him up.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T11:25:00.000-05:00

Using our most recent flex spending purchase...he is practicing some building skills. And yes, he is sitting on our counter and frequents that spot daily.

Cheese-heads sitting around the Christmas tree. I love them so much.

He loves getting his picture taken and will happily pose every time. He then quickly requests "I see? I see?"

I will be sad when this has to come down and the radio doesn't play Christmas music anymore. It has been fun seeing Ari so excited about the little things in life. He calls the manger a house and when I ask him who is in there he innocently replies "Jesus". Oh yeah, and he still thinks that a cross is "Praise the Lord".

Merry Christmas!

air guitar

2010-12-22T11:10:00.002-05:00

This is a frequent occurrence around our house, or even in public for that matter. The other day we were out to dinner and he wanted AJ and I to participate in air guitaring as well. Well apparently I wasn't doing it correctly because he kept placing my hands in a different spot and saying "tar tar!" He is serious about his music!

Wintery Weekend Events

2010-12-20T11:34:00.005-05:00

We started off the weekend with an early celebration of my niece's 1 year birthday.

Ari had lots of fun with daddy assembling one of her gifts using his Handy Manny tools.

He was so helpful that he managed to stick some toys in the holes that were not plugged up yet, resulting in a somewhat longer (and slightly more difficult) assembly.

Then Saturday we ran and did lots of errands, took a nice (and much needed!) nap, then came out to play in the snow. Last year Ari did not like it at all and only lasted about 10 minutes.

He couldn't get enough of it this year, and kept telling us he wasn't ready to go in (despite the red, glowing cheeks that said otherwise).

He attempted to throw some snowballs, but it was just too fluffy and wouldn't pack at all. We will have to attempt a snowman another time. He was already requesting to put gloves on the snowman.

Sunday we were greeted by this reindeer at the Zoo. Ari instantly wanted to give it a hug...but as he got closer he decided that a high-five would be good enough.

We stopped by the splash park, which was a light show with music, in order for him to bust out his air guitar. I will have to get a video of it because pictures just don't do it justice.

He was excited about all the lights and was happy to pose for a picture by the peacock. Sometimes he sees wild peacocks at his nanee and papaw's house when they go for walks.

We did see other animals besides the sharks, but those pictures did not turn out very well. The polar bear was very active and we also heard the seals "barking" from their cave.

We had such a fulfilling weekend that I will be spending all of tonight getting our house back in order. We came and went so often that I didn't touch a dish or pick up our snow clothes yet. Ah! I guess a little hot chocolate and Christmas music are in order to make it more enjoyable. Mmm...

a silly video

2010-12-16T14:57:00.003-05:00

Ari has been learning his abc's and frequently starts saying them randomly. He was very distracted in this video and did not say them as well as he normally does. I just like this because he gets so cheesy in pictures and always wants to see them right after we take it. Please ignore the scattered toys...and the fact that my child was videoed once again in just his diaper...I promise this isn't the only thing he wears around our house. :)

Ari's Antics

2010-12-10T11:00:00.000-05:00

Ari has been saying the most funny things lately. I wish I could remember them all, but within the last week here is what I can recall. These probably won't be as funny since you can't hear his little voice, but I at least wanted to note them before I forget them all.

He is constantly putting his face in dark places and saying "It's dark in here". The other night we ran a few errands and he insisted on wearing his sunglasses. Since the sun had already gone down, it was obviously dark out. But since he had to wear his sunglasses into Hobby Lobby and Bed, Bath, and Beyond, he noted every time we got outside and every time we went in the store that it was "dark in here". He got a few compliments on his glasses.

When he hears a noise that he does't know the name for, he simply states "noise". This ranges from sounds he hears outside, to sounds that come from bodily functions. He is so serious when he says it, it's like he wants you to recognize that he heard it.

He doesn't know who santa is, so when he first saw decorations in a store he would just say "a man", now he has somehow turned into a snowman and that's what he calls him. I don't have any plans to correct him.

We were eating noodles the other night and all of a sudden he bursts out saying "Praise the Lord!". AJ and I look over and his noodles are in the shape of a cross. We just looked at each other and were completely speechless. We have never explained what a cross stands for so it was amazing to see him associate praising the Lord with a cross.

Christmas Party's

2010-12-07T12:34:00.003-05:00

The holiday party that AJ's bank hosts is the most fun outing of the year. Our first date (seven years ago) was to such party and so it holds a special part in our heart of remembering where we were sevens years ago to where we have come today.

The night started off better than usual-our waiter asked me if I was old enough to drink in which I smiled and said "yes I am but I am pregnant and will have to pass" (although I would have passed on that anyway!). I don't know if it was because I looked younger or because he didn't notice I was 19 weeks pregnant. Then we had a delicious dinner, had our caricature done, then off to play some black jack (with fake money). The fake money is cashed in at the end and turned in to the appropriate amount of raffle tickets in which you can choose from a hundred gifts to win. We ended up winning a membership to the zoo with 2 additional guests! I was astounded and so glad we were able to come home with a such a nice gift.

AJ has worked there nine years and they have always treated their employees great. They like to show appreciation to the employees and make that night so special for everyone. When we left it had already started to snow and our view from the top of the parking garage was just breath-taking.

Then Saturday morning came and it was time to bake all day long. AJ and Ari went to breakfast with Jim at Denny's and had a great bonding time.

Cookie Day is something my aunt started with us cousins when we were young. Now that we are starting families and having kids, we thought it would be fun to continue the tradition with them. We seriously baked cookies from 9:30 am until 7pm.

Ari had a blast helping and of course sneaking a cookie here and there off of our table.

This picture does not do it justice (maybe a picture of my hips would) the amount of cookies we made, consumed, and still have left lingering for us to finish off. We usually make these right before Christmas so we have them for Christmas Day, but since we all have very busy schedules we had to fit it in when we could.

I had to throw in this picture of my sister-in-law and her daughter Lynlee who will be celebrating the big 1 in just a few short weeks!

more from Thanksgiving

2010-12-06T12:05:00.003-05:00

I am behind on my pictures so I figured I would throw in a few from Thanksgiving weekend.

My brother had the honor of cutting the turkey.

Then shortly after we couldn't resist all the delicious food just staring at us. We enjoyed this day with my brothers family, my mom, sister and her fiance, and my cousins from my moms side. Then that evening we went to a family-friend's house who we usually see on Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Then the next day was filled with lots of Christmas decorating.

We are not ones to procrastinate on the decorating and I was itching to put it up before Thanksgiving, but we just didn't have any time.

Ari was having a blast putting stuff on the tree. Now he requests for all the lights to be turned on every morning.

We have been extremely busy since then with AJ's holiday party at his bank, cookie day/Christmas with my mom's family, Pacer's game for AJ's work, and so on. Even though we have been so busy this year, it has made this pregnancy go much quicker. I can officially say that there is a little bump becoming more noticeable and I have been feeling REALLY good since Thanksgiving. More on that to come soon!

organizational skills

2010-12-02T12:00:00.000-05:00

This child has been known, on a regular basis, to organize his toys into some kind of order. He has never been shown how to do any of this, so I find it intriguing that he naturally wants to keep his things in line.

Here you can see his animals in a row. He also lines up his Lego blocks, cars, and piggy banks- all in which are lined up nicely by size, largest to smallest. I hope this is a glimpse of how he will like to keep his things when he is older. We might have to work on different organizational techniques seeing that this isn't the best space-saver. However, this is a good start!

Christmas Cards and more!

2010-11-27T19:43:00.004-05:00

Every year we send out Christmas cards to family and friends. We have always had the greatest experience with Shutterfly and wouldn't think to use any other company. They have such a large selection of cards it is hard to choose a favorite because they are all so great. Shutterfly is also known for their other products as well, such as invitations, stationery, mugs, and calendars. What makes this company so special is that you get to customize your products with as little or as many pictures as you want.

Here is the picture from the first card we sent out a few years ago. Not bad for a self-timed picture! This year we will be using professional pictures we had taken in the fall. You will just have to wait and see those!

Here is where you can find the Christmas cards. Trust me, you will have a hard time choosing your favorite because they have such a great selection.

We have also used Shutterfly for photo books. This is the easiest way for us to organize pictures from the last year. Since all of our pictures are kept on the computer, it is easy to upload them to Shutterfly and have them put into a book. Shutterfly makes it so easy to share our memories with other family and friends.

Shutterfly also offers discounts throughout the year. For example, just for blogging about the experience I have had with them, they will give me 50 free cards to use this Holiday season. If you would like to get in on this deal as well, go here. Happy Shutterfly-ing!

so thankful

2010-11-25T08:00:00.001-05:00

So thankful for these two...

they bring much joy to my life...

and many smiles to my face.

Happy Thanksgiving to my loves!

tis the season

2010-11-22T10:41:00.003-05:00

I can hardly believe Thanksgiving is just a few short days away! I can't wait to have some of my moms pumpkin pie and lemon meringue pie. These are the only pies I like so I will indulge my self a few times a year when they are available to me. Despite the fact that Thanksgiving isn't even here yet, I am itching to put up our Christmas decorations. It will just have to wait until Friday. However, we (or should I say AJ) managed to put up our lights outside on the house this past weekend. It was literally a few degrees above freezing and we somehow survived. (I survived the cold weather but AJ survived climbing a two-story ladder. Ah!) But somehow this crazy Indiana weather has already warmed up and will nearly hit 70 degrees today despite the clouds and passing showers from this morning.

Since it is Thanksgiving season for a few more days, I might as well list some things I am thankful for (not in any particular order).

-an extremely healthy child (there are many families who can not say this and I do not take it for granted)

-being pregnant (I thought this would have been on our list last year, but I am even more thankful that it is this year!)

-of course, my husband (he is perfect in every way!)

-our jobs (that provide us with necessary things and unnecessary things)

-close friends that encourage me every week (especially Gretchen)

-knowing that Jesus is my Savior (and I am just thrilled to know that my holiday season will be nothing short of reflecting His birth and what he has done for us)

Obviously this list has been simplified and there are many more things I could go on about. However, I will spare you and end this post without any pictures, again. Hopefully I will get some up soon!

The Mayonnaise Jar and Coffee

2010-11-18T12:31:00.003-05:00

My mother-in-law passed this little blurb on to me this morning. I thought it was a good example of prioritizing our life-and if we do it correctly we will even have some time to spend with a friend. I believe this came from www.catsprn.com/mayonnaise_jar.htm.

"A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes'.

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor, as the laughter subsided. 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things-God, family, children, health, friends and your favorite passions-things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car. The sand is everything else-the small stuff.'

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the tings that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled. 'I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'"

I do think it's important to realize that some of the small things can just wait. But at a certain time you can't always go out to dinner, or play another round of 18. Sometimes the time to clean the house and fix the disposal is now. Or in my case to fix the dryer. (Yes, it's been nearly 3 weeks since it first broke.) But I suppose we managed this long without it and I could really go for some hot chocolate or coffee...anyone care to join me? Anyone? Bueller?

random update

2010-11-08T10:45:00.003-05:00

This post doesn't really have a purpose, except to entertain you daily blog readers who have noticed it's been a week since I last posted.

Nothing new or exciting has really happened. AJ has been working hard on replacing our mulched landscaping with rock instead. We also added a fire pit in our back yard so hopefully we will get to enjoy that soon. Pictures to come when it is all complete!

I always love the holiday season but for some reason I am looking forward to it more this year. I just want to eat or buy anything with pumpkin or peppermint. I think this year will be a lot of fun with Ari. He gets so excited about the little things. I know he will go nuts over Christmas lights, the decorated tree, all the baked goods, and even snowmen. And maybe by then I will have a little baby bump to get excited about. For now it looks like nothing (to most) but to me it just looks like fat. (I know, I know). But just to make you feel better, I am pretty confident I will be wearing maternity jeans this pregnancy.

I am really excited now because I can feel the baby move already. But at 15-16ish weeks, that is much earlier than what I remember with Ari. I was at least 20 weeks when I first noticed some action with him. This makes me less worried. We really don't know a due date, but the least I can say is that it is due towards the end of April. Since Ari came 11 days late, I will just assume this one will be late too. So we might end up with a May baby. As of right now, we are not planning on finding out the gender. We should have an ultrasound some time in December just to make sure all is going well. We are not sharing any potential names at this point, but are very interested in suggestions. We are in need of a girl name, so please share if you have an idea!

a party to remember

2010-11-01T12:00:00.007-04:00

This little guy enjoyed his birthday very much. It started out with dress up, like Mr. Potato Head.

And then his very own cupcake.

I think he was in a sugar coma by the end, he couldn't even finish it.

Being a cheese-head, which we often call him because of this cheesy smile he likes to give.

Sometimes he will even call himself a cheese-head.

Oh, deliciousness.

This little one also got to enjoy a new gift from grandma, even though her birthday isn't until Christmas Eve.

Signing "thank you" to everyone for the awesome gifts. You can never have too many guitars!

This is his buddy, Wil. Ari just LOVES him and can't wait to play with him during our Bible study on Thursday nights.

And this...this is my brother.

He's hilarious and enjoys entertaining everyone. Especially Ari.

The night ended with a nice cold, glass of milk. Mmmm. Ok, not for many of us, but for this sweet little cousin that Ari just adores. He often talks about Lynlee throughout the day and will sometimes carry her picture around off of the fridge. I think he is preparing himself to be a big brother.

And what a good one he will be!

Two Years

2010-10-29T01:08:00.003-04:00

My mom taught Ari a new song this week. It goes something like this...

"Back-y birt-day to you, back-y birt-day to you, back-y birt-day to you!" Quickly followed by "Again!"

I really have to get that on video...

Happy birthday Ari!

Homecoming

2010-10-28T11:00:00.002-04:00

This past weekend we celebrated Butler's Homecoming for a few hours. I don't think Ari had been there since he was born so we were way overdue to visit.

Our first stop was the giant Bulldog that Ari couldn't keep his eyes off of. The rest of the day he was talking about the BBBIIIIIGGGGG DDOOOOOGGG.

Then we made a stop at the bell tower where AJ proposed to me in 2006.

After several hours of running around campus and catching up with old friends, Ari was ready to take a nap. And apparently he didn't care where because the corn hole board was good enough for him!

some news

2010-10-25T11:56:00.005-04:00

Since I am not creative and it is probably not a surprise to many people anymore, I am just going to say that...Ari is going to be a big brother!

I am relieved to have finally said it so that people know it's not a secret, but at the same time I have been dreading this post for a while. (Which is why I have procrastinated for so long!) That probably sounds absolutely ridiculous but for the past year I have been dreading the question that so many people found necessary to ask us "Are you pregnant?" With them naturally assuming it was our decision to not have another child yet. It's a hard thing to swallow when you know things don't go as you planned. Fortunately we have the hope that God's plan is much bigger than ours and just have to trust in it. But that's not easy either. It's just something we have learned to do month after month, negative test after negative test, after a miscarriage, and an entire year of trying.

To be completely honest, it's easy to think God's plan is so great when it is going my way, or at least how I thought it should go. It is shameful how much I struggled this past year...not trusting God. I got to the point of questioning whether it was even worth praying about because I figured God was just going to do whatever He wanted anyway. I was so stubborn and hard-hearted. I was jealous and heart broken.

I am reminded in Isaiah 55:8-9 that God does have a plan and it is much more than we can imagine. '"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways", declares the Lord. As the Heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.'

On the other hand, I feel so guilty even writing this because I know there are lots of women out there who have struggled with infertility for many years, or who have lost a child. And I just think that my situation could be so much worse than it is. I should be happy with the one healthy child I have.

Jeremiah 29:11 says '"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'

I have no idea what God is trying to accomplish in my life, but I can't let one year of it go to waste because it didn't turn out the way I wanted. He is the only one who knows what our future holds, whether it's a large family that I always dreamed of, or not. So I will continue to hold on to His promise in Proverbs 3:5-6.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight."

the moon and some ramblings

2010-10-21T12:43:00.007-04:00

It would be a complete understatement if I said that Ari was infatuated with the moon. The kid LOVES the moon. It really just came out of nowhere, and now it is a daily discussion about where the moon is. Whenever we are driving in the car, it's "moon? moon? moon?". Whenever it's time for bed, it's "moon? moon? moon?" It was the most depressing week when the moon was gone and I had to explain to Ari everyday that the moon was not out. He would then quickly reply with "clouds in the sky?" That seems to be the most logical reason for not being able to see the moon...at least for a two year old.

For a while I just couldn't figure out what the big deal was about the moon. But after hearing Chris August's song "Starry Night" over and over, I would start to think of Ari and his love for the moon. The chorus says,

I'm giving my life to the only one who makes the Moon reflect the sun.

Every Starry Night, that was His design.

I'm giving my life to the only son, who was and is and yet to come

Let the praises ring, 'cause he is everything

'Cause he is everything

I then realized how there is so much more to God's creation. We should be in awe of it. We should take care of it. We should appreciate it. This is God's design.

It just so happens that we are talking about Creation with middle schoolers on our Wednesday night program at church. I was surprised to find me learning something from it. Yeah I understood the actual creation of everything, but not necessarily the part where God made man in his own image. What exactly does that mean? I never really thought about it before. After exploring lots of verses, we talked about five attributes that we share: love, will, emotions, and two others that I can't seem to think of off the top of my head. But the point is that I am still learning things that I thought I already knew.

Our Wednesday night program for the middle schoolers is new. It is challenging on a physical, emotional, and spiritual level. Mostly spiritual because I am required to do daily quiet times and memorize a verse every week, just as we require the students to do. I find that when someone is keeping me accountable I actually do the work when I am supposed to (especially when that person is 10 years younger than me!). I can see the wheels turning in the kids head as we approach new topics every week. It is amazing the thoughts and questions they share each week. They are so much farther in their spiritual walk than I ever was at their age. My prayer for them is that they actually put into action what they are learning from these studies, and not wait until they out of college, or married, or when they've made a huge mistake and reaping the consequences. We are all going to make mistakes, we're sinners. I just know that I could have avoided many in my life if I would have applied God's Word to my life much sooner. Now I want to take the opportunity to share that with these young people and hopefully make some kind of a difference.

Nashville and Brown County

2010-10-18T15:17:00.003-04:00

Every year we make sure to visit Nashville and Brown County, preferably in the fall. My grandparents just happen to live near there so we stopped and visited on our way.

Our favorite place in Nashville is the Daily Grind, a quaint little coffee shop that also serves breakfast and lunch. Ari had a blast eating the whipped topping off our mochacino. Mmmm...

He also had a blast hanging out with this little girl. They were in awe and wouldn't stop staring at each other. Then it was time to meander into some shops, specifically the fudge shop that just happened to finish making fresh peanut butter fudge as we walked in. I can still smell it now...

We had to make a pit stop and it just happened to be full of rocks, one of Ari's favorite things. I'm sure he is giving some speech about it while AJ snapped the picture.

We happened to pick the busiest day of the year for the State Park. We parked here for a good half an hour while we all napped. The last few years we had missed the leaves so it was nice to see all the colors.

After our rejuvenating nap we headed to the playground for a while. Daddy loves to take him down the slide. Over. And over. And over again.

Then off to some trails. Ari did surprisingly well (to me). I was too worried that he was going to trip on all the rocks and sticks and roots that stick out of the ground.

That was not the case. He nearly stopped at every one in such amazement that they were stuck in the ground. This rock was just too "hard" for him to pick up. I had to break it to him though that it wouldn't have fit in his pocket anyway. Did I mention that he loves rocks and collects them every chance he gets? He's such a little boy. I love it.

what do you think?

2010-10-16T08:00:00.001-04:00

Ok, so what do you think? Future trendsetter?

Well maybe not...but the kid sure loves his boots! He was wearing his brown hiking boots* with a Colts jersey and a diaper the other day. Too bad I missed that photo opportunity!

*Yes, I know. They are necessary. And so are his rain boots. Boys don't get accessories, but that doesn't mean they can't have variety. :)

I did it!!

2010-10-14T15:21:00.003-04:00

I updated! Yay! Ok so you aren't as thrilled as I am...but I have pictures!

AJ's sister came in town this past weekend to celebrate her upcoming birthday and Ari's. She will be 30 on the 23rd and Ari will be 2 on the 29th. It has been fun having a celebration with her the past two years. We look forward to many, many more!

This was our attempt to show he was going to be two. Do you like our math?

Happy early birthday, Erin!