My Big 6 Year Old!

Way back on June 25th Joshua had his 6th birthday. Sorry I haven't written about it before now, but I'm going to do my best now! To begin with, I can't believe Joshua is already 6 years old. He seems to have grown up so much over the last year. He's still as smart as ever, and it often feels like you're conversing with another adult when talking to him. He finished Kindergarten with flying colors and absolutely can't wait to start 1st grade; he thinks he is such a big boy to be in 1st grade already. His reading ability has just grown by leaps and bounds lately, and he loves books. He will sometimes read to his little brothers, which is very nice for me. And he's really enjoyed weekly visits to the local library which is just 4 blocks from our house. Getting new books every week has been a great bonus while living in America! His writing has also improved greatly this summer as we've been focusing on that to prepare for the upcoming 1st grade curriculum. Besides loving to read, he really seems to show a bent toward math. I love to watch his brain at work when we're discussing some math problem. You can just see it ticking, and then he pops out some answer that a 6 year old is not supposed to know how to figure out, yet. Amazing. Joshua's also learned to do so many things even just this summer since we've been in America - things like ride a bike (with training wheels), hit a baseball off a tee, as well as some swimming skills. Though he definitely leans toward the cautious side, his Daddy has been teaching him ways to brave and courageous, and he's really responded well to that. Lately he's really into "baking" as he wants to open a bakery (which he wants to call "The Dessert Factory") when he grows up. He actually is a good helper when I need to bake something for real, but he also loves setting up his pretend bakery shop, making every dessert known to man, and then "selling" the goods to his customers. He'll even make chocolate desserts even though he absolutely abhors chocolate.


Joshua is somewhat of a perfectionist, following true to the first born patterns. He seems to have a strong sense of justice, as well, though often blind to his own faults (aren't we all). He wants others to do the right thing and will not hesitate in telling them how/when to do that. He's also a good teacher and likes explaining to his little brothers how to do things that he has already learned. Joshua makes friends very easily and pretty much never meets a stranger. He seems to really enjoy people. He is a good big brother to Luke and Micah, and he can't wait for his little sister to be born. I think he will be a good helper to Mommy in the hectic days to come.


We had a very fun day on his birthday, celebrating with a Superman theme (Joshua's current favorite superhero). We started off the morning with orange (still his fave color) frosted donuts at Joshua's request.


After opening some presents and playing a while, we had some family come visit for some more presents and playing.


Unfortunately, shortly after lunch Joshua started feeling a little under the weather and ended up with a fever. So, after the family left, he got to watch some new movies he got on DVD and just rest. We had planned to meet friends out for dinner at IHOP (also Joshua's request), but ended up not going because of the way Joshua was feeling. We got to go to IHOP the next evening for yummy pancakes, one of his favorites. Though it was a bummer that Joshua didn't feel so great, I think he still had a good day all-in-all. He's proud to be 6 now and we love him so much!


We ended the day with giving the two bigger boys their new underoos. They kept saying how they wished they could have seen Mommy and Daddy's underoos when we were little. I totally had Wonder Woman!


We are so proud of our Joshua boy. Proud that he's 6 years old now, and proud of the little man that he is becoming. May God grow him and use him for His glory!

Summer Fun

I really want to get these pictures posted before time gets away from me. We have had such a fun time this summer here in OK. First here are some pics of the boys at home in their swimming pool and at the local pool when they took swimming lessons for two weeks back in June.

On the last day they let all the kids go through the big slide. The boys had such a fun time going to the big pool every day!


We also let the boys go to two different Vacation Bible Schools this summer. That was such a big part of our own childhood that we really wanted them to have the experience. Both boys had a blast each week.


And finally, last but certainly not least, you must see pictures of the boys playing t-ball this summer. I'm so glad they got to have this chance! The next time we come back to the States these two boys will be too big to play t-ball and they really won't have been able to keep up any kind of little league skills. They got to learn basic baseball skills while playing, but they also learned more perseverance and endurance than anything. The teams were non-competitive (meaning there was no score and everyone got to bat each time), so it really was all just for them to have fun. The perseverance came when they had to endure standing out in the sun while the other team would bat and just wait for the ball to come their way. I was really proud of the way they both tried hard and did their best. When asked what their favorite things were about playing t-ball, Joshua said being able to hit the ball (which he worked very hard at so he could do it). Luke replied that he just liked the snacks that they got after the game. :o) At least we all had fun!


One time Micah got away from me and ran out on the field to where Daddy was helping. :o) He just wanted to do what his big brothers were doing! And he wanted to be with his Daddy.


This is what the other two boys would do while their brother was playing. I took two towels each time for them to sit on and color or do workbooks while they waited. For the most part, this kept their attention and they did well at the games.


All-in-all there were only 6 games and about 4 practices for each boy. They learned a lot and got to spend some good time with Daddy in the process as he helped out on the field every time. So glad we did this!

Still Waiting...

Well, for those of you who are wondering if we've had this baby yet - we haven't. So far I've carried her for at least a week longer than I did any of my boys. She is certainly taking her sweet time and seems in no hurry to greet the world. I told my husband that I think I've given up hope that I'm ever going to give birth and not be pregnant anymore. He assured me that wasn't true and she was going to come, you know, sometime soon (we've been saying that for 3 weeks now). I've gone through the gamut of emotions over the last week ranging from being just downright discouraged to doing what I can to distract myself and just not think about it. I've had so many pre-labor signs that nothing my body does seems to phase me anymore. Sure it all means she's coming "soon", but that could be tonight or next week. Tuesday (July 20) is my actual 40 week due date; I seriously never thought I'd still be pregnant after having the first 3 children at 38 weeks.

So, today I woke up (after another night of not going into labor) and started thinking/being anxious about our return overseas at the end of September. See, I made this huge list of things I wanted to get done before the baby arrived. Check. We did everything on that list already (thanks to Grandmother and Grandfather's help). Naturally, we thought we'd be in baby mode right now, so I've just been thinking that I'll consider all the stuff-to-do-before-we-return-overseas AFTER the baby. Well now that time is marching on and our time with extra hands around the house is slowly diminishing, I'm starting to wonder how we're going to manage to get everything sorted and packed and prepared while just doing normal family stuff... with a new baby. So, I'm laying in bed at 6:30 this morning not able to go back to sleep (after arising for a bathroom visit) thinking of all that has to be done. I had this sudden urge to do everything I absolutely could TODAY (as if there's that much I could get done in one day by myself anyway). I went ahead and got up to take a shower and finally settled down to read my Bible...

I've been reading through the Bible this year, reading passages from 4 different sections each day. My Psalms reading today was 139. After asking the Lord to calm my anxious heart and help me focus, verses 1-5 stuck out to me immediately. (This is the HCSB version, by the way, which I'm really enjoying.)

"Lord, You have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I stand up;
You understand my thoughts from far away.
You observe my travels and my rest;
You are aware of all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue, You know all about it, Lord.
You have encircled me;
You have placed Your hand on me."

Isn't that marvelous? The Lord knows when this baby is going to come and He knows all that has to be done after that and before we leave. He knows how much we will do ourselves and how much we will have help. He knows when we travel and when we rest. He knows what my emotional and physical limitations may be. But He has encircled me and has placed His hand on me. None of this negates the fact that there are things I can do today to prepare, but the thing I don't need to be doing is worrying and being anxious about it all. He will work everything out according to His perfect timing. Verse 16 says: "Your eyes saw me when I was formless; all my days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began." He knows the first day this baby will enter this world; He's already planned all her days. What a beautiful and loving reminder for Mommy to be patient for the Lord's plan. Thank You, Father! I needed this today.

A Little Anxious

We had our home visit from the midwife this afternoon. I'm 36 weeks today - still hard to believe. The end of this pregnancy has sort of sneaked up on all of us, I think. I've started having Braxton Hicks contractions more often lately, particularly today. The midwife says everything looks great, but kept making the comment that I need to keep this baby in for at least one more week. In OK, it's not lawful to use a midwife at home if the baby comes before 37 weeks. So, as long as I make it one more week, then we can proceed as planned with the home birth. There's not necessarily any indication that I would deliver this early, but she certainly seems to think that the baby will likely come soon. Since my first 3 were all born in the 38th week, that would make sense for us. However, I just don't feel prepared well for this little one to come - hence the anxiety, I guess. There are just things that I want to get done before little bit arrives that I haven't been able to get to until now. And now I'm really supposed to be resting this week so she doesn't come earlier than 37 weeks. If you're reading this fairly currently, please pray with us that the baby will at least wait until 37 weeks, but also that I'll be able to get these last few things done before her arrival. Pray that I won't be anxious for anything, but in everything with thanksgiving present my requests to my heavenly Father! No matter when she comes, His timing is perfect for us all.

Pregnancy and Popping

My midwife told me that around 32 weeks pregnant women seem to "pop". This was intriguing to me as I had never heard or noticed that before. She said that somewhere around 32 weeks the pregnant woman's body changes shape and all of a sudden she looks like she's going to have the baby any day now. Or it just looks like she's going to pop. :o) This totally happened to me, maybe because I was watching for it, but I really seemed to change around 32 weeks. After my difficulties in the first trimester (including being sick to my stomach 24/7 for months), I've had a terrific pregnancy. I've really been watching what I eat and have significantly limited my carb intake in order to keep my blood sugar under control. I've eaten more salads in the last several months than I probably have in my whole life. Not to say that I haven't enjoyed yummy American foods that I don't normally get to have, but I have just limited the amount that I take in and I really have felt great. For months now everyone has commented how I didn't look like I was going to have a baby anytime soon and how small I looked. So much for my vanity. I hit 32 weeks and the most common question I get now is, "Now when are you due?" And though not everyone says it (though some actually do), they all mean, "Wow, you look like you could be having that baby any day now!" Yeah, even at 32 weeks, I still had at least 6-8 weeks left and people were saying that to me. Now I'm in week 35 and looking pretty pregnant, which is to be understood. My first 3 babies were all born in the 38th week, so I really could be looking at just 3 weeks now. Wow. The reality of that has not quite set in yet in the busyness of everyday life around here. As a matter of fact, I only started reviewing the natural birthing techniques yesterday. :o) We're planning on doing a home birth with a midwife. I've done natural every time, but this will be my first home birth, so I'm excited about that. I just finished ordering the birth supplies to make sure we will have everything we need. At least I don't have to worry about packing my bag! And though my body did seem to "pop" around 32 weeks, I have felt better in the end of this pregnancy than I have with my others. Of course, I'm uncomfortable a lot of the time and have a hard time getting around sometimes, but overall I'm feeling pretty good/healthy to be this close to the end. I'm so grateful! And now that it's after midnight, I'm going to eat a little snack and head to bed. No problems sleeping here, by the way. I'm so exhausted by the end of the day that when I lay down at night, I'm out. Good night!

I'm Thankful For...

One of the things we want to instill in our children is gratitude and gratefulness. So every night each one of us says something that we're thankful for from that day. It can be as simple as what we had for dinner to something really special that happened that day. Recently Micah has decided that he is big enough to join in this ritual. It's not possible to skip over him because he will get this adamantly angry look on his face and say, "No Mommy! Micah's turn! Micah thankful!" So, we ask him, "Micah, what are you thankful for today?" And he always says, "I'm thankful for..." then he pauses to think about something. The thing is, he pauses so long that he forgets what he was saying and we have to ask him again. Then he starts over, "I'm thankful for..." pause. We go through this several times. Every. Night. If you try to suggest something to him, he gets the angry look again because he wants to come up with it himself. It can be really cute, but it can be really painful as we wait every night for him to think of something he's thankful for. He used to get on a roll and say the same thing every night. For example, for weeks he was thankful for Uncle Mike. Now he's more into a varied response that takes forever to come up with. Oh well. We press on in our pursuit of grateful children, I guess.

Happy Birthday, Luke!

Luke is the first of our summer birthday season. He turned 4 on May 12th. It's strange to think that the last time we came back to stay in America for a while was to give birth to him. That was 4 years ago now! Luke is my energetic one. Not that all 3 of my boys are not energetic at any given time, but Luke seems to possess a greater amount of energy than seems humanly possible at times. He just can't contain himself sometimes. I used to think it was just the age that he was at, now I just think that's the way God made him. :o) Along with the energy God has given him, Luke also possesses a sweetness about him that so often blesses my heart. He will often just walk up to me and tell me how pretty my shirt is or that he likes my hair. And he loves to give hugs and kisses as well as snuggle. If you're reading a book to him (which he greatly enjoys) he will snuggle up next to you and twirl your hair as you read. When he's not in Tasmanian Devil mode he can be very gentle and tender, especially around babies. He's often a very good helper to Mommy when the table needs to be set or cleared; he can rise to the challenge to do a good job for me. Luke's favorite color is still yellow and he likes pretending that he's a super hero. Sometimes he'll just be running back and forth and tell me that he's Flash. Or if you want to engage him in some wrestling, watch out! He loves to beat up bad guys like Superman or Spiderman do. Luke can be very silly, too, making up words and "jokes" that don't really make sense but crack him up at least. :o) Lately he's shown a real interest in t-ball and will hopefully be able to show his stuff next month as his games begin. He likes playing outside and getting dirty. When we went to the amusement park in Branson, Luke was the first of all the little kids to ride some of the "scarier" rides. He can be very brave. He also likes to do school with Mommy or Daddy. We've been going through some preschool workbooks as we spend time together each afternoon. His tracing and coloring skills are impressive and he's really getting into cutting and pasting these days. Recently he's discovered "Tom & Jerry" and can't get enough of it. He just sits there and giggles and giggles as he watches it. It's really fun to watch him. He also likes Super Why, which is a cartoon that comes on PBS. It's a great cartoon as it teaches them skills to read. Luke likes to pretend that he is Super Why with the "power to read"! That's the theme we went with for his birthday party. Here is Luke dressed in the Super Why costume he got from the Morriss family.


Since the cartoon is kind of not well known we couldn't find any party supplies, so we had to improvise a little. Aunt Stacey came through with the cake decorating again this year. The cake was a book with a little Super Why figure on it. And we decorated the walls with "super letters" like the cartoon. Luke loved it all!


We had a fun party with family and friends and Luke's favorite foods. Luke enjoyed every bit of it. Here is Luke with one of his new Super Why puzzles. He got several new puzzles and loves putting them together. He's still a puzzle fiend and will do them several times every day.

Happy Birthday, my sweet Luke! I'm so glad that you're 4 now, and I'm so glad that you were born!