Frustrated

Some days I just find myself with such a short fuse, and I don't know why. I can't explain why today I just don't have as much patience with my children as I normally do. They are napping right now so I am trying to regroup for the afternoon. David has decided he wants to go diaper free but he doesn't want to actually use the potty. So I could really use extra patience today instead of less. I want to encourage him to be free of the diaper but today I would rather not deal with the fight of actually getting him to sit on the potty. Then I start thinking well, what kind of mom am I?? I am going to have a 4 year old in diapers because I am too lazy or short of patience to deal with it? Then I stopped and prayed and started thinking about what my actual goal is. My goal is not to have the cleanest house, no laundry piles, no dishes in the sink, or no stains on the carpet. The goal is ultimately to have strong Christian adults who can function securely in the world because they know they are loved not just by us but by their Creator. So when I put potty training into perspective, I guess it isn't a big deal one way or the other. He will eventually get it and I don't need to get upset with him or myself. Still, I really wish I had more patience today...

catch up through pics

There is too much to write about over the past few weeks since I posted last, so I am just going to sum it up in pictures.

Wii Guitar Hero night with my small group


The next 4 pictures are from Peggy's birthday party at Babe's Chicken House!








Cameron's introduction at church


Jon and my dad finishing the arbor on the deck


Luke came to visit


The next two pictures are from small group at our house.




Jacob's 1st birthday!


The next 4 pictures are from Katie's baby shower.







The next 3 pictures are from Astro's opening day in Houston





The next 3 pictures are from Easter.
(this is Cameron -he is getting so big, almost 4 months now!)





The last few pictures are from the Arboretum

Lent...but why?

I had several people approach me in college about observing Lent. I didn't even know what it was at the time and I am ashamed to say but I thought it sounded kind of lame. So I didn't observe it and really didn't think about it again. But last year I stumbled across a friends blog and she had written about Lent and her decision to fast from a couple of things in her life that she felt were eating into her ability to spend time with God. What she wrote caused me to do quite a bit of research on Lent, what it is, and why it is observed. I then observed Lent last year for the first time and it really changed my view of Easter. I have been trying to decide exactly what I would fast from this year and I threw a couple of ideas out to a friend of mine and she asked me why I felt the need to observe a Catholic holiday. That is actually what prompted me to write this post, to explain why I choose to observe Lent and why I think it is so powerful.
Lent is supposed to be a time to focus on Christ and his suffering. D. Maddalena says on his website, "Jesus took our place on the cross to appease God's righteous anger. He went alone to be punished: separated from God and deserted by his friends. The drama of how this happened is the story of Lent. ... Before the Resurrection comes crucifixion; before crucifixion comes prosecution; before prosecution comes betrayal, doubt, fear, rebellion, and sin. Lent helps us experience our part in the suffering of Jesus." Lent is designed to mirror the 40 days that Jesus spent in the wilderness being tempted. It gives us the opportunity to fast from something/s in our lives that will help us refocus or minds on Christ. What is so great is that when you deny yourself of something for 40 days and you spend time really focusing on Christ and the anguish he experienced leading up to his death, you have a whole new perspective on how joyful Easter truly is! Last year was the first time I felt like I really understood the relief and joy of Christ's resurrection and the true purpose of Easter because I had focused so much on his experience and spent so much time with Him.
This year I am going to fast from two things. The first is Internet specifically blogging and facebook. I spend a lot of time on these two things and honestly many days I spend too much time on them. I will focus on spending more time in prayer and reading my Bible instead. The second thing I am fasting from is sweets. This might sound trivial but I find myself eating them all the time! If they are in my house I eat them and I don't have very much restraint. I know my body belongs to God so I am trying to focus on having a healthy temple for Him to dwell in.
I like what D. Maddalena writes, "We are more comfortable with the joy and celebration of Easter than with the darkness that preceded it. But Lent is a chance to remember the dark before the dawn, the sin that sent Jesus to the cross. In the Orthodox Church, Lent is called the season of Bright Sadness, because it is a time of both celebration and mourning."
This is so true. I mourn that Christ had to die for my sins yet I celebrate with extreme joy that he did and that I am now saved!!
I pray you all have a reflective Lent season and I will post again after Easter.
In Him,
Erin

My Amazing Husband!

The kids and I went to Abilene for the weekend to visit my grandparents and give Jon time to paint our living room. When I walked in the door yesterday I could not believe what I saw!! Jon had not only painted our living room, but also the entire entry way and down the hall to our room, the small bit of kitchen we didn't paint red, and he put a new color in David's room. He left me a really sweet note that said why he had decided to take on such a huge project and it came down to just wanting to see me smile. I cried because it made me feel so special and it was such a surprise. All of the colors look great too!
Thanks sweetie, I love you!

Here are a few pictures from the past couple of weeks...



They both fell asleep while Sarah and I were walking.

Watching TV with Daddy.

Grandpa needs a bigger lap!



She loves corn on the cob!





David's big boy room!

Bathroom Antics

I had to post this for everyone to see. Excuse the mess in the bathroom, I was working on laundry. And I would not normally laugh at bad behavior but I just could not help it when I saw what they were doing! Hope everyone else finds this as funny as I did :)

The many do's of Alex (as in hair)

My sweet baby girl has the craziest hair! It is so curly but it has not grown in evenly yet and the curls are not consistent. This makes for some really bad hair days! I was looking through my pictures and realized I have a lot of different shots of her cute but crazy hair. So I thought I would just share a few with everyone.

her hair after pig tails


This is how it looks once she has played. It gets really flat on top.


This is what it looks like after she gets up from a nap.


The next three pictures are what her hair looks like after a bath if I just let it dry and I don't brush it.






Another after nap pic

Lots of ground to cover...

I didn't realize how long it had been since I posted! So much has happened in the past month I know I can't get it all covered.
We had a really great Christmas. My parents and sister came over for Christmas Eve and we had a nice dinner and then opened presents. The kids were so excited! Everyone spent the night and then we did stockings the next morning. Then we packed up and headed over to Plano to have spend Christmas Day with Jon's family. The kids enjoyed ripping the paper off of any present they could get their hands on, they really didn't care who the present was for.
All of Jon's family came in the next day and we had a lot of fun playing games, talking, and of course caroling on the carriage ride!
Then we spent New Year's with The Morgan's, their five boys!, and Jon's family. It was so much fun! We played cards for hours (not exaggerating) and a few other games like taboo. (It's a Spouse House!!)
When we got home we took David's crib and changing table down and put a twin bed in his room instead. It was a sad day! David even cried when he saw his bed in pieces. He had a hard time adjusting to the bed at first but he is doing good now.
We also tried potty training this past week. He isn't quite ready so we will try again in a month or so.
Alex is climbing on everything! She climbs more than David ever did. If she thinks she can get on something then she will try any way to get up there. She is also making lots of animal noises. I didn't even know she could make them, and one day I was reading a book to her and she made all of the noises as I pointed to the animals. It was great! She has her 15 month checkup on Monday so I will report her stats next week. (we are a month behind schedule for well visits)
The day after we got back from New Years we had to make a tough decision. We decided it was best for us to get rid of Sam. He tore up our bathroom and he kept peeing and pooping in the house. He also destroyed a few things at Peggy and Larry's so we couldn't take him with us to their house anymore and he would only let my parents keep him. When he was outside for too long he would jump the fence. So, it was a Really hard decision but one that had to be made. I cried a lot the first couple of days but I am getting better now.
I have a few videos and lots of pictures from Christmas. If you only look at one thing, watch the video of David's Christmas Dance. It is hilarious! He even does some break dancing.
Blessings!

Christmas Dance


David with Alex's Dollhouse


Packing Peanuts