What I Told Facebook This Month

August 2 - One of the areas in which we're training Tobin is to buckle his seatbelt by himself as soon as he gets into the car. I want that to be a habit for him. But sometimes, he gets pretty creative with his excuses about why he can't do that. :) Like this morning, for example... From his seat in the back of the minivan, he has a great view of Moriah in her rear-facing seat in the middle of the van; and this morning he explained his delay in buckling by saying, "I couldn't get buckled because Moriah was too smiley." :) Well, my dear boy, you still need to get buckled no matter how much your sister is smiling at you. But your excuse gets bonus points for sweetness. ;-)

August 2 - On the way to pick up Josiah and David from their morning classes, Tobin and Shav were discussing what jobs they want to do when they "grow up and be daddies." It all seemed to revolve around driving tractors or trucks...maybe they should be farmers or maybe drive tractors that build a road or that build a house or that - Tobin was getting excited here - help to knock down buildings. "Demolish," I told him. "It's called demolition when they knock down buildings." Seizing the opportunity to add to his education in the area of life experiences and possible careers, I said, "When we get home, I could find some videos on YouTube of demolitions, and you could watch how they do it!" Now it was my turn to get excited. "This is GREAT," I thought. "The boys are gonna love this!" Tobin's response? "I'd rather suck my thumb," he said emphatically. Oh. Well then. Way to burst my bubble. ;-)

August 4 - Moriah is *this* close to rolling over, from back to front. She gets up on her side, but that little ol' thing called an arm gets in her way and keeps her from being able to get all the way onto her tummy. Also in Moriah news: she went with Jeff and I on our date tonight, to a little BBQ place in Bridgewater. She was a PERFECT little angel...sat in her carseat the whole time, just looking around and sucking on her fingers. She did not make a peep or fuss at all. Then she fell asleep on the way home, as peacefully as could be. What a gift she is!

August 9 - Just got Josiah & David out of bed (they weren't asleep yet) to watch an incredible lightning show. It was far enough away to not be intimidating, but close enough to be beautiful. If a lightning storm doesn't make you stand in awe, I don't know what will! :)

August 9 - Moriah fell asleep while I was nursing her, and she's still here in my arms. I can't seem to convince myself to let go of her! Guess I'll keep holding her for a while... :)

August 11 - My sweet Shav...how I love him. He pointed to the number "3" tonight in a book we were reading and told me what number it was. I suppose 3 is an easy one for him to identify since he just turned 3 himself. :)

August 13 - Our first day of school is underway, and I'm reminded all over again that I LOVE SPENDING TIME WITH MY BOYS! I'm profoundly grateful for the privilege of teaching them here at home. We're having so much fun! :)

August 13 - David has one sleeper (footed pajamas) that he LOVES to wear. Last night he pulled it out of his pajama drawer; but before he put in on, he asked me, "If I wear this tonight, will it get washed and back in my drawer before winter?" BEFORE WINTER? For pity sakes, child, how far behind on laundry do you think I am??? Wait. Don't answer that. Maybe I don't want to know. ;-)

August 14 - Quite often when I check on Moriah in the night, she's stretched out on her back, sound asleep, with her legs crossed at the ankles. She's so ladylike, even in her sleep. ;-)

August 14 - It's official: Moriah rolled over, from back to front. The poor girl wasn't one bit happy about it either! We had been out this morning, going by the fairgrounds to drop off Josiah's entry in the baked goods competition, and then going down to the community college where Josiah took a pottery class so he could pick up the things he made. When we got home, I put Moriah in her crib, and she very contentedly laid there. I was sitting on the couch, reading "The Scrambled States of America" to the boys when suddenly I heard an unfamiliar sound: Moriah crying in her crib. She's so easy-going that she almost never cries there - not when I lay her down, not when I get her up. But today she was, so of course I went right away to investigate. I found her lying on her tummy, a position which she DOES NOT LIKE. Hence, the loud cries and supplications. I picked her up and calmed her, but inside I was jubilant. My baby can roll over! Too bad she didn't share my joy. :)

August 14 - Apparently we're under a tornado warning. David's being quite the optimist (NOT!) and going around saying things like, "We'll all be in heaven in a few minutes, I have no doubt." Lovely. If he's more of a prophet than I give him credit for, I guess this is farewell. Love to all! :)

August 15 - Jeff took David out for breakfast this morning. This is where they ended up! :)

August 15 - Tobin just asked me how big his heart is, so we were talking about his physical heart and the way it pumps blood through his body. Then he said, "Is my heart where I keep my hugs?" Ah, sweetness. :)

August 16 - I thought being on the second row of the Michael W. Smith concert at our fair tonight was a great idea...UNTIL I saw the huge speakers pointed straight at us. Yeah, it was a little loud. ;-) The good thing is that even if I had had a heart attack tonight, I'm fairly certain that the bass pumping through those speakers would have kept my heart going in a steady rhythm. ;-) It was so loud and so CLOSE that it literally made my body vibrate. It's been a while since I've experienced that. :) In all seriousness though, it was an INCREDIBLE show...well, not just a show, but a time of worship and inspiration and fun and receiving a touch from God. I loved every minute of it. :)

August 17 - While going through a box of old papers in my garage tonight, I discovered a letter (yes, a real, good old-fashioned, hand-written letter) from Cindy, one of my roommates during my semester abroad in Israel. Apparently, at the time of the writing, she had just heard about my engagement to Jeff (whom she also knew because Jeff and I met during that semester abroad), and she was bubbling. Here, in part, is what she wrote: "I am truly happy for you!! You are so lucky to have the Lord give you such a romantic way for falling in love!! God makes dreams and you get to act them out!!...My goodness, you are gonna make such a loving couple, a witness to everyone!" The part that really stood out to me was this line: "God makes dreams and you get to act them out." Yes, I feel like that sums up my life pretty well. Why has my life been so blessed when others have such difficult situations to endure? I can't understand it, but this I can do: I'll never stop thanking God for His kindness to me.

August 18 - How much do I love the fact that, before he left to go to the barber shop to help Jeff by sweeping hair off the floor, Josiah went around to each member of the family and gave them a hug and kiss? SO MUCH!! :)

August 18 - Pondering this today... "Don't base your hopes for your child on what you believe is the norm; base your standards on what you know to be right." - from the book On Becoming Preteen Wise

August 20 - Yesterday when we got home from a church service, we discovered that the electricity was off. It just so happened that it came back on when Tobin was turning on a light switch, so that apparently led him to believe that he had a little something to do with the return of our electricity. A little later, while we were eating lunch, he suddenly spoke up, "Why didn't anybody say thanks for me turning the electricity back on??" Uh, maybe because you actually had nothing to do with it. ;)

August 21 - I've been slowly going through a box of old papers from the garage, and tonight I found a real "treasure" in it: a 3-ring binder from high school that contained my notes from my English Literature class and my U.S. Government class. :) I looked through the whole thing and only saved two pieces of paper. Twenty years since I was a senior in high school, I finally got around to throwing out those notes. ;)

August 21 - Josiah and David asked me last evening why I haven't worn a dress in a long time. I suppose they've never thought about the logistical difficulties of nursing a baby while wearing a dress. ;) I am, however, wearing a skirt today. :)

August 22 - My newest prayer for my children (inspired by one of my favorite parenting books, Small Beginnings by Barbara Curtis): "Lord, help me see my children the way You see them. Help me to see in them what You need me to see."

August 22 - "The most precious jewels you'll ever have around your neck are the arms of your children." - from Hip Homeschool Moms


August 23 - The boys are eager to get their school work done today so we can get going with our grape project. When I asked David to do his reading from the Bible (he's reading The Picture Bible this year), he said, "But that will take FOREVER because you know I ALWAYS get carried away!" :) It's true, he does. If I suggest that he reads 6 pages, he might read 12 or 18. What a problem to have. What a good, good problem!! :)


August 23 - Our grape harvest kept me busy all day; and as evening approached, I realized that my original plan for supper wasn't going to happen. I emailed Jeff and asked him if he could pick up some pizza before heading home, and I fully expected him to reply with an "OK" or "sure." Instead, this is what he wrote: "I would love to..." And I smiled. He could have just said "OK," but instead he took the time to let me know that he "would love to" help me in that way, and I felt blessed. Sometimes a simple choice of words makes a huge difference. :)

August 24 - "Are they all yours?" asked the lady on the elevator at the library today as she watched me steer Moriah's stroller on and off the {small} elevator and then gather up my boys who were waiting for me at the top. That is such a routine question that I don't even blink when I hear it...just answer "yes" with a big smile. But then she went on, "I have 12 children...and 11 of them are boys." Then I blinked. "Really?" my mouth probably gaped open, "You have 12? And 11 are boys?" (As if she's never heard that before...) "That's great!!" I said. Then I had to ask, "Where does your girl fall in the birth order?" "She's my fifth," the lady said. Hmmm...sounds familiar. ;)

August 27 - During my mommy/son date with Tobin at Sweet Bee last evening, I discovered a few things. He really likes his middle name (Ezra). Buying a pail and shovel for each of our boys at the dollar store was a huge hit, especially in light of our upcoming trip to the beach. Tobin thinks he might have 11 kids (or, as he reminded me, his wife might have them, because he's a boy and can't have babies). And last but not least, he's a delight to be with. :) The one-on-one times when Jeff and I get to have one child with us at a time are really a treasure. (Although technically, I had two, because I took Moriah along...but she didn't talk much.) ;)

August 29 - This afternoon, when we were riding home from Josiah and David's violin lessons, David told us that if he has daughters, he wants to name them Nevaeh and Rose. And then he added that if he has a son, he'll name him Banana Peel. Who wants to join me in prayer and fasting, asking God to only give daughters to David??? ;)

August 30 - I've been snatching bits of time here and there to go through boxes of my old papers, some of which haven't been looked at in 10 or 15 years! Jeff calls me an information hoarder, and it's true. :) Because I really don't want those boxes to hang around for another 10 years, I have been, however, doing pretty well at getting rid of those papers...UNTIL tonight when I started going through the notes from the poetry class I took in college. My goodness, what memories! I think the only thing I could bring myself to throw away was the syllabus! Everything else was so fascinating: the papers I wrote, the journaling I did about various poems, even the notes from lectures. One of these days, I'll have to get stern with myself and make myself get rid of most, if not all, of those papers. But tonight? I JUST COULD NOT DO IT. So there. ;)

And so long, August.  You've been a treasure chest filled with all kinds of special moments, and I appreciate you!  :)