Sixteen Months

 Levi is 16 months! What a time he's having this summer.  He's changing so much and growing into himself, discovering aspects of the world all the time.  Some of his new favorites include picking raspberries off of the bushes ("baybays") and eating them as fast as possible. He's also fallen in love with books, which is always a delight to watch.  He looks for books with moons, tractors, kitties, rainbows, airplanes and bunny hop hops.  He loves to give kisses to everyone.  He still loves to drive his car and tractor, to hammer like Papa, and to taste cookies.  Sleep is still not something he's fond of, though he does ask for "pat pats" in his bed and likes to hold his pacifier in his hand.  Finally he's found a stuffed animal he loves, a kitty cat, and he sleeps with Titty every night now.  Levi is so chatty, telling us about everything and everyone.  "I see a tractor", "I see a hop hop", "Shut the door now", "Eww yucky" and "Aww aye aye" are some of his phrases we love.  So far he's not a big fan of the pool but does like playing with water in pots on the deck.  Levi loves his sisters so much and his face lights up if he hears them in another part of the house.  He also loves Papa's truck.  This month Levi had lots of scrapes and bruises.  He really hurt his nose and his parents wonder if he needs an ER subscription.  How time is flying! We love you Levi. 

Fifteen Months

 

Our boy is 15 months old today! He is busy as a beaver and loves to go outside and push his lawn mower or ride in his car most of all. His favorite is still the tractor, but he is also discovering things like clouds, air planes, trains and rain. He loves to sing and sings "Humpty Dumpty" and "Rain Rain Go Away" as well as his lullaby "Moon, Moon, Moon".  He talks in complete sentences and has an outrageous vocabulary of over 70 words.  He has just recently discovered books and loves pointing things out and naming them. He loves construction books best of all. Imagine his delight when a cement truck came by our house!  Levi has a new laugh and says "girls" like "guls" and it is the sweetest.  At church he likes to attempt a run down the aisle to get to Papa playing music. He loves door stops, vacuums, doors, brooms, shovels and whistles. He loves wearing shoes.  He does not like walking on grass or touching sand with toes.  He does not like sleep and still prefers to wake up many times a night.  He has gotten so many more boo boos than the girls at this age. He loves to eat meat and mashed potatoes, asparagus, blueberries and raisins. Corn on the cob is a new found delight. He discovered his belly button and doesn't want to let it go.  He likes to check the pond for "ribbits" and thinks ants are funny.  He says "no no kitty" most days when a cat walks by.  He opens doors and takes things out of cabinets. We find tongs and cookie scoop, a spatula or potato bag throughout the house.  He is a little imp! But oh how we love Levi and can't believe he is growing up so quickly. 

Emmeline is 11.5

Our dear Emmie B is eleven and a half and I want to pause and remember many things about our girl! On the cusp of womanhood, Emmie, who seems to have been born an old soul, is blossoming into quite the little lady. She's a capable cook, a great babysitter, homemaker in training, ballerina, pianist, cellist, violinist, writer and artist.  She seems ever so much older than her 11 years, but I don't mind saying that she doesn't need to grow up quite so fast. She loves to spend hours creating artwork or paper dolls, gifts for friends or family and listening to audio books.  She is a tender hearted and thoughtful person who has a servant heart and is willing to work hard.  We've been sharing books, as well as clothes and shoes and I'm getting a taste of a new stage of motherhood, one where your children are your dear friends.  It's delightful. She knows her perennial flowers and medicinal herbs, has an amazing aptitude for maps and languages and is the adored leader of our little clan.  "Mamie" is one of Levi's other mamas and brings a sense of calm and peace to our home. She's level headed and oh that is a gift.  She does not like meat or mushrooms but loves to create new concoctions in the kitchens. She made a profession of faith this year and joined the church, which brings deep joy to our family! Happy half birthday (a little late) to our dear Emmie.  
 

Lena is Ten!

Dearest Lena Lu,

    You are ten years old. Single digit days are behind you now and what a young lady you are becoming.  It's hard to believe so much time has passed since that day you decided to be born so fast that even Papa barely made it in time! And yet, I would not trade all of the years with you and all of the ways you are growing in grace and beauty.  This year has not been your easiest, but you've pressed on with courage through health struggles and stressful seasons.  You are finding ways to voice your fears and trust the Lord, which is a mark of great maturity.  And oh how proud we are.  At ten you love many things. You do many things so well. You are musical, playing two instruments and singing your sweet bird like voice throughout the house.  I want to remember these years as your "collecting" years. You see beauty and you gather it. You like rocks, shells, flowers, feathers, keys, glass jars. You are quite the big sister and can handle not only diapers, but a fussy baby and toddler all at once.  You love your kitties and are a good chicken mama too.  (If only they would stop eating their eggs) Your favorite times are spent in the Forest Bakery, in the woods, or perhaps your fairy garden.  Your imagination is just as wild as I hoped it would be and it is fed by good books. I now have two book girls and it's quite lovely.  Your favorite color is pink but you are not afraid to get muddy and do hard work outside. You love your sisters fiercely and your baby brother you dote on.  You do not like asparagus. You love listening to audio books as you go about your day and have discovered the classical radio station.  I love hearing you and your sisters tell me that you must be back for the 1 pm broadcast of Madam Butterfly.  You have strong opinions and you're not afraid to share them! You are a bit of a philosopher, always asking deep questions and thinking about things. You are feeling the already but not yet state of this post-Edenic world but you are learning that just like Esther, God has chosen you to be here for such a time as this. You love babies and caring for people and your heart is very tender.  I can't wait to see how God will lead you in the coming year. Keep looking up dear heart and may God bless you always. Happy Birthday! 

 

Levi at Fourteen Months

Our little man is fourteen months old! Levi is such a busy little boy and has entered the era of black and blue.  Having been a girl Mama thus far, I am completely at a loss concerning how many boo boos and accidents he has. This is because he has no fear and dives off of our couches and chairs at his heart's content. At fourteen months Levi is a chatter box and has a vocabulary of over 50 words. Perhaps his favorite words are: Nana (Lena), Mamie (Emmie) and Babie (Phoebe). He says "no no kitty" hundreds of times a day.  His most beloved thing is tractors and we've learned that anything with a wheel is a tractor. He finds them in books, on his jammies, driving by and dreams of them in his sleep.  He loves bubbles and hammers, brooms and shoes.  He will only eat if he can feed himself with a fork. He loves yodeling music and dancing to almost everything, including the metronome. He does not like sleep, grass, high chairs, diaper changes or going inside.  He loves frozen blueberries, meat of any kind and peaches. He is the most high energy child I know. He is learning to count and knows some ABCs and thinks speaking in french is really funny.  He also "blows his nose" but often times it's his ear he is covering.  He is a hoot and firecracker and our darling boy. How we thank God for him.  

 

Catching my breath

April was a whirl of busy days, many of them very normal and some of them especially hard.

As we journey with some who are walking through the valley of the shadow of death, each day can feel like waiting with a heavy burden on your back. We trust in the Resurrection but we still grieve for those we love as we wait for a fully redeemed world and bodies.

We have been busy as beavers finishing up our school year and the girls have loved making ocean lap books and pioneer journals.  We love history so much in our household and these things (dressing up like pioneers and cooking outside) are the things memories are made of. So in spite of the exhaustion, I want to see and remember their faces. I want to remember Levi exploring dandelions for the first time and Phoebe's glee at biking without training wheels, up and down the driveway like a flash of glory. I want to remember how Lena loved to find herbs with me and noticed the chickweed before I did. I want to remember her fairy garden village. I want to remember that Emmie at age 11 was happiest painting or creating her magical paper creations. There is no way around it ,dear friends, this life is hard sometimes and so we press into Jesus, our Rock and our Salvation and hold tight. 

 

He is not here. He is risen!

Easter has come and gone- we remember and rejoice! He is risen! As we try to live each day in Easter Joy and be a Resurrection people we scatter joy amidst the gloomy rainy days and choose to remember that hope must be fed, tended to and nurtured. We think of Jesus's words from Luke 24 "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself." We've had busy days and mundane days. We've painted eggs and practiced piano, learned and danced and now we wait for a warm spring. We see a fresh green paint the trees as they come alive and the blooms poke up through the dirt after a long rest. But oh we are so ready.