The Picture

I have been dreaming of this picture. It has been very odd not to have one picture of my children together. I have millions of Robbie and thousands of Eveley. But of course I have no picture of Robbie and Eveley together. I am excited about getting some pictures of Eveley and Caleb together, but this has been much harder than I expected. Eveley does not want to cooperate. She insists on making goofy faces, hitting Caleb, or crying. I finally was able to calm her with a pack of Curi*us George fruit snacks. These things work wonders -- which is why I just bought a jumbo pack of them at Sam's. Anyway, after about 50 attempts, this was the best I got. So, I decided to divide and conquer. My angel Caleb is 12 weeks old. Can you believe it?




I can't get enough of him!

Milestones

I am not one who thinks you should compare children or their accomplishments or talents. Just as each person is an individual, each child has his or her unique set of likes and dislikes and strengths and weaknesses. And it is just not fair to compare the spelling bee champ with the artist or the lego enthusiast with the math wizard.

BUT, this blog is meant to journal my thoughts and precious memories. I say that I will never forget when Robbie got his first tooth or when Eveley started to crawl. But I am realizing this may be a lofty goal. So, indulge me for a few moments.


When Robbie was about 9 months old, we went on vacation to Clearwater, Florida where some of our extended family lives. My great aunt brought us a slew of the small, hardcover Dr. Seuss books including several ABC books. She encouraged us to read these routinely to Robbie as she had done to her children and grandchildren. We accepted this advice and barely missed a day of reading these over and over and over again to him. My husband particularly made this a priority.

Well, lo and behold, when Robbie was about 17 months, he began saying his ABCs. And not just saying them, but pointing them out everywhere we went. While driving down the road one day, I heard Robbie from the backseat saying “M. M. M.” I looked around and there were the golden arches from McDonalds! He did this in the grocery store, on cereal boxes, on our clothes. He knew every letter. And when we thought he could only count to 10, he surprised us by going to 14. GENIUS, we thought.




We continued this with Eveley, although not as regularly. We would show her the A and go over that letter multiple times. Then, we would point at the A and ask her what it was. “B,” she would loudly respond! So, we weren’t sure if this would work again!

We have several sets of flashcards that we go through and books that we read. But it has never been something that we required of the kids. Seriously, I let my kids be kids. There is plenty of time for school!! But both Robbie and Eveley LOVED books and the flashcards. Eveley will jump on the window seat in the playroom and yell for her “cards.” And we often find her sitting inside her "book box."




In the past month, Eveley has begun putting words together. She now tells me she wants pink milk (milk in her pink cup) or a purple hairbow or her red jacket. She loves to help me with the laundry. She’ll pull out a piece of clothing, says, “daddy’s black sock” or “mama’s pink shirt,” and hands it to me to fold. (I’m working on teaching her to fold it! Just kidding.) Then, she’ll pull out another and say “more black sock.” It’s been fun to actually have a full-blown conversation with her.

And our favorite milestone -- Eveley is now saying "I love you." As you know, Robbie was 19 ½ months old when he went to heaven. Eveley Joy will be 22 months old tomorrow. So, we are entering new territory -- experiencing new things with her and watching her hit new milestones. I think hearing her say "Li luv you mama" at night may be my favorite yet!

In My Daughter's Eyes

Princess Eveley sure knows how to make her mama smile! And knowing the realities of this harsh world all too well, I don't take it for granted.



We had a beautiful Sunday. After having a sad morning, it was very therapeutic to take the kids outside in the sun and wind and relax. This is not what I had in mind. But she LOVED it. Nothing a good bath couldn't fix.







We found these wonderful popsicles while on a scavenger hunt with Marmee [shout out to UGO]. They are 100% juice and are awesome. Eveley had a hard time eating them because her hands got so cold. So, I decided to try this! Genius!!



Then, Eveley had her first sleepover with Luke (or Ook as she calls him). Well, not really a sleepover, but we thought they looked so cute in their matching 'Grandma and Grandpa' pajamas. Eveley LOVES Ook!

This World Stinks!

I really don't know a better way to say it. But this world stinks. Pain. Disease. Cancer. Abandonment. Evil. Death. I hate it!

And sometimes I just can't take it anymore. I don't watch the news. I don't click on that terrible headline on the internet to read the sad story. It makes my body ache.

This morning, beautiful 11-month-old Cora left this earth for Heaven after being diagnosed with cancer only 3 weeks earlier. I hate it! I hate the journey that this young family has just begun. It is a hard one. It is long, and it is full of twists and turns. My heart is breaking.

But I am reminded:

Jesus said, I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have tribulation. But take heart, I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Without Christ, this world stinks. There are questions without answers. There are unexplained and unfair events. There is never-ending pain and sadness.

But with Christ, there is joy unspeakable. There are answers that are just and true and pure. There is grace. And there is a peace which cannot be explained.

I am Homesick!

Thankful Friday

Yes, I know that it is typically referred to as Thankful Thursdays, but my week has been terribly busy and I couldn't find the time to post this before now! And because of this crazy week, I am very THANKFUL IT IS FRIDAY!

In any event, I want to take today to count my blessings!
I am very thankful for my beautiful children and that Caleb has started to smile. That can make my day!

And I am thankful that even though Caleb is his own person, he often sends me sweet reminders of my little Robbie.

(Here is Robbie at Caleb's age - 8 weeks)





I am thankful that we had some lovely, warmer weather on Sunday and were able to take the kids out for their first walk together. I think Caleb will love the outdoors just like his brother and sister.


We had to pull over to the side for Eveley to talk to the neighbor's horse.



I am thankful that we woke up to this on Tuesday morning.



Our first snowfall this year (just 2 days after the warm Sunday)! And I am very thankful for my sweet husband who is a wonderful daddy. When he saw the snow, he decided to go into work later so he could take Eveley outside. She had a blast!


Eveley loves to eat crushed ice. When she realized that snow was really white ice, she was so excited. Daddy made her a snowball for her to eat! The only way we could coax her back inside was to let her bring the snowball inside. We put it in a bowl for her. Soon, I heard her saying, "Uh Oh. Snowball, where are you?" It was hilarious. We had to look for the snowball for ten minutes. I didn't know how to explain that it had melted . . .!