Friday, June 30, 2006

It's tough to be so cool...


Henry is constantly cracking us up. Last night I was trying to talk to him about respect and honor after he did something disrespectful to his dad. He was having trouble standing still--in fact he was dancing around like a mexican jumping bean! Here I am trying to have a serious discussion with my three year old, and he is jumping up and down and back and forth with the biggest grin on his face. I was doing a pretty good job of keeping my composure until I looked down the hall and saw Sam standing there smirking at us. I couldn't say anything more, actually I couldn't even look back at Henry--dad had to take it from there so that Hank wouldn't see me laughing!

There is a funny thing that Henry has picked up lately. He lets out this big dramatic sigh at the end of his sentences. He seems to do it worse when he's tired, but it is happening a lot more lately. He'll say something normal like, "Mommy, will you please get me more milk?" but that last word comes out like "milkaaaahhhh." I'm not sure he even noticed that he has been doing it, but Sam caught him yesterday and couldn't quit laughing and then mimicking him. So now Henry knows that it's funny and does it twice as often! He really loves to make us laugh!

Thursday, June 29, 2006

A Boy and His Blanket



Most who know Jonah know that he has a very strong attachment to his blanket. We often take this blanket along wherever we go, just for the sake of Jonah's happiness. It's also absolutely necessary if Jonah wants to fall asleep--he grabs a corner (one in particular) and rubs it along the bridge of his nose until he falls asleep and he usually keeps it wrapped around his fingers even while he is sleeping.

Now the down side of all this is that Joey rarely lets this blanket out of his sight. If he can see it, he needs to be holding it, so it is really difficult to grab the blanket and throw it into the washing machine. Here's my confession: we have lived in Texas for more than a month, and today is the first time I've been able to wash the blanket! It was so filthy, I should have taken a picture of it, but some things you just don't want to document, right? It was a little traumatic for Jonah, because I got caught putting it in the washer. I thought he was down the hall playing, but I heard him scream just as I tossed his blanket in the wash. And I wasn't about to pull it back out!

Monday, June 26, 2006

Elmer is Home!



Praise the Lord! He brought Elmer home to us! We were really so worried, and also feeling pretty guilty. The funny thing is that he was picked up Saturday morning (that's right when he went missing) and was taken to a vet, where he stayed until Dave and MaryBeth picked him up this afternoon. So he wasn't without food, water, shelter or attention.

We are so grateful for the sweet lady who saw Elmer out wandering and didn't want him to get hurt! And also for Dave and MaryBeth and the hours they spent making signs and hanging them all over the place. Elmer would not have been found without those!

We will be bringing him home to the new house tonight. They are working on the neighbor's fence and should be done in the next few days. God is good!

Sunday, June 25, 2006

Sweet Elmer


Elmer is missing. Our wonderful family dog that we have had longer than we have had our children is gone. He has been staying at Sam's parent's house, and yesterday he left. We don't know why he left there--he's been staying there since we moved here--but we have a feeling that he set out to find us. Anyway, nobody has seen him since yesterday morning.

We have been trying to prepare for him here at the house. Sam got the fence finished last week, but one side that we share with a neighbor is going to be a privacy fence (that she is having put up)--and it was delayed another week. So we had planned on bringing Elmer home soon, and it just hasn't worked out yet. And now we don't know what to do. Dave and MaryBeth live about 40 minutes away from us, so we don't even know where to look for him. He has only been out to the house to visit once, so he wouldn't really have any bearings to get here.

Needless to say, we are all pretty sad today. He's such a good dog, and we've already been missing having him around all the time. Now we have to consider that we may not see him again. Last night was especially rough, thinking about Elmer sleeping outside. He hates sleeping outside at night. Always when we would take him camping, he would never be able to sleep until we brought him into the tent or camper. He would pace, back and forth, right near where we were trying to sleep and whimper until we would let him in. And then he would snore and have his good old Elmer dreams and all would be well.

Pray with us that we will find our Elmer and bring him home so that all will be well again. The fourth of July is his seventh birthday, so we could have quite a celebration if we can find him before then!

Friday, June 23, 2006

We Love the Zoo!


Okay, so I still haven't found the cord to my camera! I know it must be here somewhere and I am probably just overlooking it. But wouldn't you think it would have turned up by now? :) Anyway, here's a picture from back in January when we visited down here.

The boys and I went to the Caldwell zoo in Tyler today. It was a beautiful day for walking around outside! Unlike the picture here, we were all wearing sleeveless shirts and shorts and still felt overdressed! Phew! Air conditioning sure feels good when it's 90-something outside!

Jonah rode in the backpack most of the time we were there, and he loved the penguins. Didn't want to move on. Henry rode in the stroller part of the time and raced around at full speed the rest of the time. He loved all the animals, but was especially fond of the giraffes. He always thinks they're looking right at him--what a thrill!

We had a picnic lunch and then ran around Tyler finishing up our errands. Sam had told me about an interesting place near Home Depot (one of our destinations), so we drove by and checked it out. Very fun! It is called something like Brookshire's Wild Animal Museum, and it is completely free. (Brookshire's is a local grocery store.) They have hundreds of mounted animals set up in various displays. There is also a whole room set up like an old fashioned grocery store. That part is pretty neat, but a little too uninteresting for my boys. They loved the animal part and didn't want to move on! We went back and forth through the rooms at least three times! The best part was outside where they have a huge park--great toddler type toys and some things like a full-size fire engine, tractor and caboose for kids to climb on and explore!

It was a pretty full morning, and the boys and I had a blast! I'm thinking staying home with these kids is going to be a pretty good thing! :)

Thursday, June 22, 2006

Hooray for Family!

We had such a fun time today helping to celebrate Brian Smith's birthday! The science center was great--I think we'll probably have to get a family pass so we can go more often! After that we went to the park in Lindale to have lunch and play. Amy and company made a really fun lunch for the kids, and they decorated the picnic area with fun balloons.

Henry was so excited to open his very own lunch sack, and he was completely thrilled to find a really cool pair of sunglasses inside! He wore them the rest of the day, of course, and also took them to bed with him. It really is the little things that count, isn't it? Jonah was desperate for a nap, but unwilling to take one in his stroller, so he spent most of the afternoon dragging his special blanket through the dirt around the picnic area. Special thanks to Ashley Hasz, who kept reigning him in for me!

The real highlight of the day, at least for the boys was just to spend time with their cousins. Every time I tell Henry that we are going to do something (anything, even going to the store) he says, "Oh, my cousins will be there?" with this hopeful little look in his eye. It's pretty sweet, and such a good reminder of one of the many reasons God wanted us to be here in Texas at this point in our lives.

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

And Baby Jordan

Forgot one little thing. For those who don't know, Jordan is Henry's cousin--Jonah's age--but she and Henry have a great bond. They really love each other. Anyway, Henry got to see baby Jordan last night (he never calls her Jordan, it is always "baby Jordan") and that is all he can talk about today! He spent the first part of the morning looking for her, because she was here when he went to bed and was sure she would still be here this morning!

Our House and the Birds

The fun thing about a new house (at least for my husband) is all of the projects that go along with it! He has started a wonderful new job at Teen Mania, and he LOVES it. However, every spare moment he can squeeze in is working on something around the house. Today it is the sprinkler system, building forms to extend our back patio and building forms for the shop concrete pad. He'll probably get all that done and more, if I know this guy! Last week it was the chain link fence, the fifth wheel privacy fence, hanging the blinds that we bought and creating our built-in desk area. It's so nice to have a husband who is so resourceful!

Today we are going to the sceince center with the Smith's to celebrate Brian's 4th birthday! Henry is so excited. He picked out a little gift from his own toys and wrapped it all by himself! It was pretty sweet. I'll have a picture of that posted soon, hopefully!

We put up a hummingbird feeder two days ago, and we got our first hummingbirds yesterday! I am so amazed by these tiny little creatures--and so excited to have them in my backyard! I also saw a bright red cardinal in the yard yesterday. That was motivation to get the other bird feeders put up! I really love watching the birds, and there are such pretty ones around here!

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Welcome to my blog!


Okay, so here goes. My first attempt at "blogging," which I had not heard of until a few short months ago! My mom is very excited as this will be a great way to keep in touch, especially now that we live so far away!

Thanks first of all to Beth Hasz, who sent me a link when she started her blog and got me hooked on the concept! Now I really enjoy reading Hasz Blahs and all the other family sites. What fun!

In all of the unpacking and chaos that goes along with it, I can't find the cord that connects my camera to the computer. I'm sure it's around here somewhere, but I can't upload any recent pictures until that turns up. So until then, here's a picture from last summer in Bozeman.