A Quick Trip

I spent a fast weekend in Oregon. It was great, although short. But I wanted to share a couple pictures of the fam.

This is Solomon. Look at those baby blues. He and Lewis are only a couple weeks apart in age.

And this beauty is Mira. She's a doll. When I started taking pictures of her she was posing for me every which way and when we started laughing at her, she finally gave us this sweet smile.

Here they are, the cousins. Lewis is a bit out of focus, but you get the idea. Pretty sweet little guys.

Can't wait to see more of you all at Christmas.

Sufjan Stevens: Put The Lights On The Tree

Fleet Foxes - Tiger Mountain Peasant Song (Cover)

Advent: The Coming of Christ into the World

JOHN 1:1-5
1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was in the beginning with God. 3All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

When this Spoken God, this Word, comes into the world, He shines in the darkness of this world. And as He does so, the darkness cannot comprehend what is going on. But fortunately, the darkness is not there to be persuaded, but rather to be banished by the arrival of the Light.

And so this is what we anticipate every Advent, and this is what we are privileged to see celebrated yet again. The Word was with God; the Word was God. The Word is with man; the Word is man.

Prepare the members of your family to think of Advent and Christmas in very material terms. This is not a season that celebrates vague spiritualities, but rather the season that celebrates God taking on flesh. The instinct to give gifts, to eat chocolate, to cut down a tree in the woods to bring it home, is therefore all very healthy and in line with the holiday. Matter enables us to give, and not just to grab.

—Pastor Douglas Wilson, Christ Church

This is taken from an advent devotional/study put out by the pastors in our denomination. To read it in full, click here.

Reach for the O's

Colson Quotes

Me: Colson, are you ready for some breakfast?
Colson: Some breakfast? or....a cookie?

hmmm, trick question?
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Colson: You're a lollipop, Mommy. I could eat your face off.
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I served alphabet soup for lunch. He asked me what letter I saw on his spoon.

Me: That's a P.
Colson: Good job Mommy. I'm very proud of you.

make a lesson of it.

I'm having a ball with my new lens. Thanks KC. Now I can record my favorite Christmas memories all season! This one has kinda captured our hearts. I can't wait to see his personality mature.

I told Colson I'd give him a chocolate raisin if he would hug his brother. So, I bribed him, ok? And no, they aren't usually sitting in my living room together like this. ha.

Flying Planes. He loves to pretend.

Look at that toothy grin! I think he's got a top one trying to poke its way through as well. I'll keep you updated.


Today I spent some time with Colson reading in Luke about the Angel Gabriel coming to Zacharias and then to Mary. I'm going to try to take time everyday this month to spend time looking ahead to Christmas. We don't want to just celebrate presents for presents sake, we want to celebrate the greatest story in the world!

Today I was talking to a girl friend and we were talking about joy in parenting. Your children will love what you love, if only you take the time to share it with them. If you want them to love church, do you? If you want them to love the Bible, do you? If you want them to love Jesus and his people, are you? Does it show? Can they see it in your facial expression, in your excitement, in your quiet joy, in your solemnity, in your diligent work, in all that you do? What a calling!

Do you love Christmas? Why? If you want this season to be meaningful for your family, take the time to sit down with your children and talk to them and read with them about what it's all about. Some of you, I know, have youngsters that won't get a whole lot. But still try. Get creative. Last year we made just a couple ornaments to hang on our tree that told of a story that lead to Jesus. We kept it very simple. Let them glue something. Let them help you bake and make a lesson of it. The bread we eat is a picture of bread from heaven. or, let them help make cookies and talk about eating sweet things during this sweet time of year, because of Jesus' entrance into the world, to save the world. Give them to a neighbor and help them to see the joy in giving. Last year we hung lights up in our home and we emphasized that Jesus is the light of the world. He shines his light into dark places. Our Christmas tree (that children are fixed on), we used to teach about the tree that Jesus hung on to take our sins from us and to give us life.

Start simple, start small, but start something. But don't do it if it's too frustrating for you because if they see that it's not a joy to you, it won't be a joy to them either. Don't have too high an expectation. Do something simple enough for them to enjoy. Get creative and do something they can participate in, more than just dig into presents. Presents are great, but they are only great because of Jesus. And if we're thinking about Jesus today and tomorrow, the presents will be all the more great in light of God's gift to us, in His Son.

Deut 11:18-19 "You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, talking to them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise."

May God bless these efforts!

Colson Quote/

KC: Colson, it's time to give me your ears.

Colson: I can't give you my ears because they can't come off.

Sunday Celebrations

This is Camille. Today Colson told her that he loved her. She is spirited. Think Spicy Chocolate. That's Camille. And, just how in the world do her parents resist those brown eyes and pouty lips?


Camille's brother and Colson are buddies. They are really good at weilding sticks together. of course.

Giving Thanks For...

Post-Holiday Crash

Hope you all are as fat and happy as this one is after a wonderful Thanksgiving meal.

She Makes Autumn look Really Good

My little neighbor girl is just precious. I was so thankful to be able to snap a couple of these photos of her today. She is everything Colson is not, and it's so precious to observe.

something Goo, somethings new.

Sometimes we call Lewis, "Gooey." Look at him. That's why I left his head cut off in the pic. He is Gooey. And yummy. He's butter. He's chocolate. I'm altogether in love with this little Gooey munchkin man. Seriously, almost too much for me to handle.

Colson took this picture. Not too bad eh?

And this picture was taken with my new camera lens. I'm entirely pumped to have it. KC bought me an early Christmas gift. I'm so thankful. I waited for it all day today to come in the mail and it didn't come until 3:30ish. It gets dark at 4 around these neck of the woods so I was shouting at colson to get his jacket on and come climb the hill behind our home so I could test this bad-boy lens out. Look at the depth of field! ***Insert singing**** You can see I missed the focus on this and it's hitting his jacket rather than his face. Oh joy! That's how touchy this lens is. I can't wait until the sun rises tomorrow morning.

Colson Slayes the Alligator: Saves His Baby Brother

This is an everyday taste of Colson. I don't know if any of this is intelligible to anybody outside of our home. Let me know if you'd like a translator. Enjoy this little peek into our everyday.

A Fleeting Moment: Little Piggies

Colson Confession

(He knows he's not to use potty talk, unless we're in the bathroom.)

Colson: I said poop and pee in my room when you were feeding Lewis. I'm sorry. Do you forgive me?

the ol truck

the Ol' Truck

We found another truck! After church today I pulled over and let Colson go check this old boy out. He enjoyed it. This just might become a habit.

I just love a fresh baby.

Miss Avery Gail
Congratulations friends. She's beautiful. and perfect.

Evening Introspection

Sometimes I feel as though my life was imagined for me.
Things I couldn't have chosen - better than expected.
Trials turn to glories,
apprehension to affirmation.
I am just a child in the hands of a living, loving Father.

And I am humbled.
And I am thankful.

Check out the rubber-band wrist:

Brothers!

Hard Workin' Man Motivation: Strength to fight Darth Vader

This morning Colson sat at the table for 1 hour and 7 minutes before he finished his english muffin. Seriously, one english muffin is not too much to ask. Is there some kind of "slowest-eater contest" we could enter him into? The kid just is not into it, hardly ever, unless graham crackers are involved. We have removed distraction, we have offered a small reward, but the boy just is not motivated.

But for lunch today I tricked him. I served him soup and named it, "Hard Workin' Man Soup." When he'd take a bite I tried to get creative to encourage him on. I started with a "manly" growl, or grunt, (I couldn't think of anything else) after the spoon hit his mouth. But it got his attention. It was working! He furrowed his brow. He dug back into the soup. The next bite, I growled again, then he growled too. It went on like this for awhile. Then I exclaimed in excitement, "You're getting bigger!" With eyes lit up he responded, "YEAH!" Next bite: "You're getting stronger!" "YEAH!" "You're like a hard workin' man!" "Yeah! Like Daddy. So I can fight Darth Vader!"

Wow, success at the table. He loved the soup, even the "green" (peas and green beans). And it didn't take an hour and 7 minutes. Hmmm, I wonder how far this "Workin' Man" title could go?

our ABC's

We've been working on our letters around here. We're taking it slow, but colson drew all those letters you see on his wall. I helped with the coloring. He knows A, B, C, and D. and he can even sound them out. What a sweet monkey-face.

currently living with:

Food: raw almonds, honey crisp apples, cheese

CD: radiohead: Ok Computer

Movie: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (although I've fallen asleep two nights in a row).

Book: the Biography of Dorothy Day

Indulgence: cookie dough ice cream!

The Business of Standing - The Business of Mom

I'm finding that one reason taking pictures of my boys is so much fun for me is that it allows me to take a step back from the work, not even that, but to really enjoy the work. There is so much joy in this work of mother, I mean, look at these faces. This is my work! These children. These beautiful boys. It's wonderful. Photographing them allows me to step into the beauty of their little lives and to enjoy the magic of raising them and making our home lovely. It's easy to get used to them, to get accustomed to little voices and stories and silliness and standing babies. We are a forgetful people. And these little munchkins I get to spend my days with are absolutely magic. The lens of my camera, oddly enough, helps me to look into that color and magic and joy.
Speaking of joy, it's something I have to work on. Who doesn't? But we are seeking to raise our boys steeped in a joyful and sweet aroma. Jesus has given us jobs to do and much to be awed by along the way. If we close our eyes to the beauty around us, for me, the tasks before me look more like drudgery. That's not what I want them remembering about their childhood. I don't want them ever feeling like a burden to Mom. Maybe a camera is simply a mercy for aiding me in giving my life away, and doing it willingly, cheerfully, in remembering that I am God's. And God is good. My job is to obey the Lord in this way. And if this is not what my children see in me, then there is no reason they should receive instruction from me without rolling eyes and stomping feet.

Mater.

We happened upon this old truck on our adventures today. To his delight, Colson insists it's Mater from the movie Cars.

the boys.

Delicous Lewis. This boy is very emotional. It's true that he is very cheerful most of the time, but when he falls, or if you take something away from him, or if he sees me walk out of the room, he will let you know that he does not approve. He throws his head back and wails. KC and I look at each other and share humored and nervous laughter when he does this. Firstly, he's so cute when he cries and it's oddly charming. However, we're wondering what challenges this little emotional person is going to present to us. oh how we love him!

And then there were two. hmmmm, what's in store for these brothers, and for their mother?!

Colson can be so sweet sometimes, even though he struggles to understand what gentle means. I can say this though: he loves Lewis and is not afraid to tell him so and to kiss him and to bring him toys. (it's usually one that he doesn't mind not playing with). He doesn't understand why Lewis can't sleep in his bed with him at night or why I won't let him carry Lewis off into his room. He makes sure to remind me that "we don't want to leave Lewis" when we're about to run errands. I'm looking forward to these two being able to cruise together.

Out for a stroll

Have you been enjoying the fall? If not, get out there for an autumnal romp in the colorful leaves above and below.