Monday, December 22, 2008

The sweetest baby ever.....

...and no, believe it or not, I am not talking about either of my own children. I am talking about my friends' baby Kelsey. Many of you know Doug and Valerie Kurtz personally, and many of you have found your way to the blog about their daughter Kelsey (Our Sweet Pea) from the link on my blog. So many people have been encouraged by this family. I have known them for several years now, and our oldest sons (Caleb and Brady) are the same age. The Kurtz's newest family member is little Kelsey (7 months old). She has had numerous health issues - some temporary and some that will most likely last a lifetime (but we still trust that God can heal!). She was only a month old when we moved to Montana, so I never had the chance to meet her until this past weekend.

She is the SWEETEST baby ever! There were a lot of people at their house playing games and yelling and laughing (very loudly) and she just calmly took it all in, watching everyone and smiling away. I held her for a while and she lovingly looked at me as we talked, just so content. I asked Valerie if this was her normal demeanor, and yes it was! As I drove home that night I started crying - just praying for healing on her little body, and thanking God that he has blessed them with a beautiful baby girl who is truly an absolute joy to be around.

Thank you God that I had the opportunity to meet the little one I pray for. Thank you for giving her to the most loving parents in the world (ok -maybe that's a overstatement - but you know what I mean) - to parents that will pour into her every moment of every day to help her fulfill all that you created her to be. Thank you for the example set before us of parents who have true faith in you - and for giving them the desire to share their story so that others may be encouraged and see your love even through the difficult times.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Stuff Caleb Says

Caleb and I like to sing while I give the boys a bath. We often sing "ba ba black sheep". When we get to the part about the little boy we sing "One for the little boy who lives down the drain" (something my sister used to sing when we were little). The last time we sang it we got to that part and Caleb sang "One for the little boy who poops in the stream" - so hard not to laugh at that one :)
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So we've been having a lot of "talks" with Caleb lately about not saying poop and pee as a joke. I went to change Ethan's diaper tonight and this is how our conversation went:

JULIE: Ethan do you have poopoo? (sniff sniff) Oh yes you do, you have poop.
CALEB: Momma.....you can't talk about poop.
JULIE: Caleb, it's ok to talk about poop if you have poop in your diaper, or if you want to put it in the potty.
CALEB: No Momma....we don't talk about poop.

about 20 minutes later:

CALEB: Momma, change my diaper.
JULIE: Ok Caleb, I just need to pee first, then I'll change you.
CALEB: Momma you CANNOT talk about pee.
JULIE: Yes we can Caleb, if we're talking about putting it in the potty.
CALEB: No momma, you can't talk about pee.

So at least something we're saying is sinking in. I guess I'm going to have to watch the words I choose more closely :)
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This morning Jon watched the boys while I had coffee with a friend. Ethan loves to climb on our entertainment center which is a big no-no. Jon went to grab him and lightly tapped his hand as he told him no. Caleb came over and said "Don't ever hit Ethan again" and then punched Jon in the leg. Ethan climbed on the entertainment center again, so Jon tapped his hand and said no, and once again Caleb said "Don't ever hit Ethan again" and punched Jon.....so nice he's becoming protective :)

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Christmas Spirit

We love the elf yourself videos, so we decided to finally do one ourselves. The expression on Caleb's face is perfect for the video :) Check it out:


Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Thanksgiving in Oregon

We just got back from Thanksgiving in Oregon. We decided to drive rather than fly, and with the recent drop in gas prices, it cost half as much as we thought it would....Thank you Lord!! The boys did pretty good considering. It was 15 hours each way, so we broke up the trip and stayed the night in Coeur D'Alene on the way there and back. Praise the Lord for portable DVD players!!! We went to the coast for a few days with Jon's best friend Vaughn and his family, then went back to McMinnville (Jon's hometown) for a few days. Here are a few pics from our trip:

Caleb is making sure the stuffed cheetah has a heartbeat:
Here's Ethan with Grandpa Gross who he met for the first time on this trip:

Caleb and I with Vaughn and his youngest daughter Ellie, watching the day after Thanksgiving parade down Main st.:

Believe it or not, that's Jon and Caleb up on the bridge at Multnomah Falls:

Jon with the boys at Multnomah:

We went to a small aquarium at Seaside where they had seals that you could feed. Here's Jon and Caleb with the fish:

We caught Caleb in action throwing the fish:

Here's a few of the very happy, well fed seals:

Jon and Caleb at the beach in Seaside:

Caleb and I finding shells in the sand:

Caleb ran at the birds and scared them away:

Caleb's favorite part about the beach - laying down in the sand and playing with sticks:

The Best Park Ever

On our drive to Oregon, Jon remembered this park that he helped build as a highschooler in Hood River. We thought it would be a good "stretch the legs" break. Caleb had a ton of fun, and so did Ethan in the swings:





cute boy

Here's a few random pics of Ethan: