4 Months Already!

How can it be...

4 months old!

3 months old

2 months old

1 month old

2 weeks old

Dear Josiah,

Has it really been a month since I wrote you my last note? Are you really closing in on a half-year of life with us?

I was looking at some pictures of big brother yesterday and just about panicked to realize that you are already growing so fast ... you are not such a tiny, little baby anymore (like we always tell Victor)! There's a whole bin of clothes we discovered in the garage that you barely even fit into.

You are a tall, tall boy, already stretching the feet in your 6-9 month sleepers. Lately we've been reading books during tummy time (which we're trying to get in 4-5 times a day, per your physical therapist's encouragement). This morning you had your eyes glued on the books all the while we read Olivia Counts, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Let's Dance, Little Pookie, and Old McDonald Has a Farm.

Your days are still pretty fluid. You get up sometime between 6:30-8am normally and still take several little naps in the morning. Normally you'll take a nice long nap in the afternoon (today excepted...). You do a lot of flexing to accommodate others--so we can go to Victor's "special program" at the library on Mondays or make it to Wednesday Connection picnics or Sup 'N Stuffs.

I'm thankful for your big, full-body grin when someone tickles you. I'm thankful for your peaceful sleep--still pretty much through the night, with just one feeding sometime in the early morning. I'm thankful for how you snuggle against my shoulder to burp and I can kiss your soft head before going to bed. I'm thankful for how you grip Victor's finger (which he loves) and kick your feet while we hang out together.

Pretty much every day I ask God to help me be the Momma you need, and to grow you into a strong, faithful, and humble follower of Jesus. It may still be some time before we see how He will answer that prayer, but I trust that He is already sowing seeds in your heart even now.

You are a precious gift to us, and we love you.

Momma

Feeling Sick

Victor, before bed: Should we have some medicine?
Me: No, I don't think so. God has blessed us with good health right now, so we don't need any medicine.
Victor: I have a cough coming. I should take some medicine for my cough.

Little hypochondriac? (Or, just really likes that grape Tylenol...)

Hard Nights, Sweet Days

We've had some rough nights lately. Victor is still doing phenomenally with potty-training. And that's causing a bit of trouble, since he can call for potty breaks for a half hour or more straight after getting into bed. Then he was also getting up 3-4 times during the night... and sometimes not going right back to sleep. (He wears a pull-up but has never gone in it.) 

Kinda seems like he's potty-trained a bit earlier than he's really ready for, since he got pretty rattled when we tried taking the side off his crib. (If anybody has terrific suggestions, please share.)

Josiah also was having some interrupted sleep, because he's strong enough now that he won't stay swaddled all night, even with the Miracle Blanket. So I was having to check him regularly (lest the bundling get stuck up around his head).

We're getting things smoothed out a bit--Josiah is now in a sleep sack (mercifully, a very peaceful transition), and Victor only got up once before sleep and once during the night last night (plus once at 5:30am). But it was a pretty sleep-depriving stretch the past few weeks.

At the same time, these have been very sweet days.

Even at 12am ... 2am ... 3am ... and 5am ... that's a pretty sweet sight.

And this one too

Setting up house, complete with small chair, rug, and magazines.

The new way to cruise

Victor read enough minutes to get a free book at Half-Price Books. 

It was so great to watch him give the man his card and pick out his own book. 

We are so thankful for these two little guys. They might exhaust, perplex, nettle, and confuse at times, but they also delight us, sweeten our days, give great joy to our hearts,  and give us a little taste of the kind of love God says He has for us.

News from the Past Week

Now that Ben is back in class, it feels like the pace is picking up in general. But these have been sweet days, albeit tiring.

For Independence Day, we enjoyed a fun time at a splash-pad and lunch at Culvers with the Livingstons, and then had a picnic at the park with the Katterson clan. (We did shredded barbecue chicken sandwiches, and I made some blueberry lemonade that was kind of a fun, festive beverage... and of course dribbled it down my pants right away while transporting it to the park.)

Saturday we had a fun trip to the zoo and got to ride behind the tractor to the farm exhibit.

On Sunday, (as already mentioned) we had The First Haircut.

Before

After

Tuesday, we went to Sup 'N Stuff with the high schoolers.

Wednesday was the Connection picnic.

Thursday we got to sing songs and eat ice cream at small group (Victor was a big fan of both!).

Friday morning the young adults met here for their Overflow Bible study in Mark.

Saturday I went on a (very little) run, the first in quite some time.  It was slow.  It was somewhat painful.  But it was good to move a little bit!  Then we met with some friends in the morning and went to a wedding in the afternoon.

And today after church we got to have some other families over for a lunch picnic in the park. (It was such a beautiful day!)

With work and school and trying to keep the house really clean (to get ride of fruit flies, ugh) and make sure everybody has clean socks to wear and such, it can feel like quite a whirlwind.


And in the midst of it all, I look at these precious gifts that God has given us and see how they are growing so fast and their little personalities developing, and I just pray that God will help us to make the most of our time... because the days are evil, and because life goes so fast.

Josiah is getting so long!

And he has a great full-body smile

Victor is doing really terrific with potty training. No accidents in 10 days!

Josiah has been doing great with tummy time and neck stretches. He is a strong boy!

So, my prayer as we start into a new week...
Teach us to number our days aright, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom.--Psalm 90:12

First Haircut

Another milestone today... Victor got his first haircut.

Before:

After:

Not super dramatic, but I do feel braver to keep trimming away now, and it's a bit easier to see his fine eyes!

Must confess, I love those curls...

Look Who's 2 1/2...

2 1/2 years old!

2 years old

18 months

One year old

11 months

10 months

9 months

 
8 months

7 months

6 months

5 months old

4 months old

3 months old

2 months old

1 month old

2 weeks old

Dear Victor,


You are 2 1/2 years big today! And we are seeing so, so many ways that you have been growing up lately...

- You regularly amaze us by things you pick up (somewhere?). Such as kindly mentioning that I should have two hands on the steering wheel while driving.

- You continue to be a pretty gentle and very considerate big brother to Josiah. You give him (generally) soft snuggles and enjoy lying next to him on his play mat. You put some little cups in his bath for him to play with. You help carry his carseat (you on one side, and Daddy on the other) and push his stroller. And you help me make his toy sing a song and rattle during his neck stretches.

- Occasionally, little fits are popping up. Your little 2-year-old will is definitely not a pushover. But you continue to respond well to clear, calm, and consistent instructions and follow-through. Your twos have been much more delightful than terrible so far.

- You are always watching and imitate lots. Such as nursing ducky (with a blanket tossed his head for modesty!), running like Daddy (complete with heavy breathing, which is hilarious!), reading your Bible story books, doing stretches, driving your cars to the Downtown Church (like Daddy going to class), typing emails on your computer, doing tummy time like Josiah, and taking "smiles" on the phone.

- You are in big boy pants! To be honest, I have been dragging my feet for a long time, knowing you're close to ready for potty training and dreading it. But this week we dove in, and you have picked it up amazingly fast. You even woke me up at 1:15am this morning to ask to go potty. We even went to the park, out to eat, to the zoo, and to church... and no accidents! I definitely know it is not because we are so great at this potty training stuff... God is just giving you a great understanding of how this all works!

- Speaking of church, you have learned so much about sitting quietly and being a part of the worship service before you go to your own special class. I know that you are still watching and learning, but it was sweet this morning to look over during the singing and see your little hand up in the air. May God give you deep and true worship of Jesus all your days.

- It is so, so fun to see you interacting with your cousins. You just loved the time you got to spend with Hudson and Adelle ("Where's Delly?" you would ask, so gently and concerned all the time...) and Silas in Iowa. And when we had a picnic with the Kattersons this weekend, you and Toby started playing catch with a ball, and all the cousins were having a great time together in the sand.

We love you, we are proud of you, and we are so glad God put you in our family.

Big kisses for you, my big boy,
Momma

3 Months Old!

Hard to believe Josiah is already...

3 months old!

2 months old

1 month old

2 weeks old

Dear Josiah,

You have had a busy month, this month. To be honest, it's been a bit of a whirlwind.

Some hard things have come.  We started physical therapy to help strengthen and stretch your neck, so that you can turn your head to the left naturally (treatment for torticollis).  We said good-bye to some of our closest family friends, who moved out of state.  We made it through a big work transition time for Mom (and you weathered quite a few long days of meetings and trainings in the process!), and we are praying for God's leading about some other possible changes on the horizon for our family.

Some wonderful things have come.  You have become so smiley and responsive; it's a delight to talk to you and hear your expressive little conversation back.



We have enjoyed some special family times, with Daddy out of classes for a bit. And you have been a sweet, patient, laid back little fellow through just about everything.

You are falling into a bit of a routine now.  You generally wake up around 6:30am (oddly synchronized to Victor's emerging from his bedroom!), and you'll have cheerful awake time for an hour or so before snoozing a good portion of the morning.  Then we normally see you again in the middle of the day for some more awake time before a good afternoon nap.  You'll head to bed between 6:30pm and 7:30pm, get one more feeding before I go to bed, and then you generally sleep until about 4am for another meal.  How often I have thanked God for giving me a sleepy little boy for this season of life!

I cannot say that these weeks have been a piece of cake.  Many times a day I feel my inadequacy to be all that you and Victor need.  But those times are opportunities to ask for God's ever-present help and rest in His sufficiency.  He knows your needs better than I do, and He has no limitations or deficiencies in His care.  And what a privilege it is to be your and Victor's mother and Daddy's wife.  My cup runs over!

What a joy you are to us, little mister!  We love you and pray that God will continue to guard and keep you and shape within you a heart to love and trust in Jesus all the days of your life.

Love you bunches,
Momma