Congratulations Keith & Kristi!
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Long Time No Post
We've been busy around here - with my parents visiting, a trip to Vancouver Island, Canada Day, Erik's birthday, keeping up with my transcription work and getting ready for VBS next week... It's felt a little bit crazy. I uploaded a bunch of pictures on Facebook, but I wanted to blog about some highlights from the last couple of weeks.
We've been enjoying lots of our suppers on the patio these days. Keziah especially appreciates not being strapped into her high chair.
Granny & Keziah checking out the new baby calves:
Making supper on the fire:
Grandpa helping Micah fish (they didn't catch anything):
Erik & Keziah throwing rocks and grass into Comox Lake:
We've been enjoying lots of our suppers on the patio these days. Keziah especially appreciates not being strapped into her high chair.
Granny & Keziah checking out the new baby calves:
The Nathan Toews memorial cross Erik made (displayed at the Mark Centre):
We decided with my parents to spend a few days on Vancouver Island. We were able to use our friend's family cabin (where we were last year). Here we are leaving Horeshoe Bay on the ferry with my parents:
Making supper on the fire:
Grandpa helping Micah fish (they didn't catch anything):
Erik & Keziah throwing rocks and grass into Comox Lake:
Yummy yogurt:
Dirty kids + no bathtub = baby bath in a bin
Micah doing some solo fishing (still didn't catch anything):
My parents left half-way through the week and then Rosanna joined us for the last couple of nights. We had some rainy weather, so we took the time to watch our VBS music video and practice our song actions:
Micah made us nervous walking back and forth on the floating docks but he never fell in!
Getting ready to leave:
On Sunday I wanted the kids to hug for a picture, but it turned into more of a wrestling match. Keziah was crying immediately after this picture was taken :)
All but 1 of our 5 kittens have been shipped off to their new homes. They were getting a little bit too rambuctious, so now it's nice to have a few less to look after.
Keziah taking a break in the shade on a hot day:
Wednesday was Erik's birthday We had a little pre-birthday party on Canada day with a couple of friends (before heading to the fireworks) and then a family supper on Erik's actual birthday:
Now I'm off to do some more transcripting and VBS planning...
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Daddy Day
I asked Micah what he wanted to get Daddy for Father's Day and the first thing he said was, "A bee-ooo-tiful card!" When I prompted him for what else we could get Daddy, Micah decided that Daddy needed a basketball. Micah has noticed several times that this is one of the only sports items that his Daddy doesn't have so he figured we should get him that. I found a small basketball at Canadian Tire and showed Micah where I hid it and then explained that this was a secret from Daddy. As soon as him and Erik were alone, he promptly took him straight to the spot where it was hiding! Oh well. I guess it was the thought that counts.
Micah and I still surprised Daddy with breakfast in bed on Sunday morning, our bee-ooo-tiful cards and a brand new Starbucks mug :)
Micah and I still surprised Daddy with breakfast in bed on Sunday morning, our bee-ooo-tiful cards and a brand new Starbucks mug :)
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Fun with Kitties
This past week or more, the weather has felt no different from February in Abbotsford - overcast, rainy, cold. I was beginning to wonder if summer would show up, but thankfully the forecast is looking a little more promising for the coming week. Good thing since my parents will be visiting. They have always visited in the fall - the start of our dreary rain days - and I am hoping to show them a little more BC sunshine this time around!
To add to the "winter" feeling we were experiencing, Micah randomly got the flu last weekend. He woke up Saturday night with a fever and started throwing up. It didn't last long and the rest of us managed to ward it off, thankfully. But interestingly, the last couple of times that Micah has thrown up, his face has broken out in these little red freckles - burst blood vessels I guess. They are quite prominent, but we think they are also kind of cute :) It's been almost a week now and the freckles have almost faded, but I wonder if this will continue to happen as he gets older...
It's hard to see them in pictures, but this was the day after he got sick:
Micah's sleeping is about 98% better than it was last week. After talking to the moms at playgroup I felt justified in the spanking approach - warning him that he would get a spanking every time he came out of his bed. I think we spanked him a few times that first night (and there were some tears), but he has been going to bed like an angel ever since. Last night we put Keziah down at 7:30 but I was going to let Micah stay up a bit yet. I found him sitting on his bed and asked him if he wanted to go to bed already and he said yes! I wish it was always that easy :)
Keziah is growing up fast, expanding her vocabulary and getting increasingly mischevious. Her soother-free sleeping continues to go well though I think she may have some teething issues waking her up the last couple of nights.
The kittens are getting cuter, not to mention a lot more active these days. When they see us, they start mewing and trying to climb out of their box. A few more weeks and they'll be ready to move to their new homes.
Keziah is such a mother to these little guys. Yesterday Erik found her 3 separate times in our room with a kitten on her lap. She tries to be gentle, but... oh, those poor kitties.
The camera comes out a lot these days when we take the kittens out - but the combination of kids and kittens is pretty irresistable!
The kittens are growing on Erik too, I think. Mama Cat, however... not so much. I think she must be eating more to feed her growing brood, because she is also using her litter box more often and leaving quite a stench in our small space. Interestingly, since Micah's flu he has "suddenly" developed over-active scent glands and has been very sensitive to smells - particulary Oreo's. We are generally quick to clean up the litter box, but even more so now with Micah whining and gagging over the smell!
This poor kitty is getting a ride in Micah's hat:
Kittens anyone??
Anyway, I should be off. Micah is thrilled that Granny & Grandpa are coming. We are counting down the days!
To add to the "winter" feeling we were experiencing, Micah randomly got the flu last weekend. He woke up Saturday night with a fever and started throwing up. It didn't last long and the rest of us managed to ward it off, thankfully. But interestingly, the last couple of times that Micah has thrown up, his face has broken out in these little red freckles - burst blood vessels I guess. They are quite prominent, but we think they are also kind of cute :) It's been almost a week now and the freckles have almost faded, but I wonder if this will continue to happen as he gets older...
It's hard to see them in pictures, but this was the day after he got sick:
Micah's sleeping is about 98% better than it was last week. After talking to the moms at playgroup I felt justified in the spanking approach - warning him that he would get a spanking every time he came out of his bed. I think we spanked him a few times that first night (and there were some tears), but he has been going to bed like an angel ever since. Last night we put Keziah down at 7:30 but I was going to let Micah stay up a bit yet. I found him sitting on his bed and asked him if he wanted to go to bed already and he said yes! I wish it was always that easy :)
Keziah is growing up fast, expanding her vocabulary and getting increasingly mischevious. Her soother-free sleeping continues to go well though I think she may have some teething issues waking her up the last couple of nights.
The kittens are getting cuter, not to mention a lot more active these days. When they see us, they start mewing and trying to climb out of their box. A few more weeks and they'll be ready to move to their new homes.
Keziah is such a mother to these little guys. Yesterday Erik found her 3 separate times in our room with a kitten on her lap. She tries to be gentle, but... oh, those poor kitties.
The camera comes out a lot these days when we take the kittens out - but the combination of kids and kittens is pretty irresistable!
The kittens are growing on Erik too, I think. Mama Cat, however... not so much. I think she must be eating more to feed her growing brood, because she is also using her litter box more often and leaving quite a stench in our small space. Interestingly, since Micah's flu he has "suddenly" developed over-active scent glands and has been very sensitive to smells - particulary Oreo's. We are generally quick to clean up the litter box, but even more so now with Micah whining and gagging over the smell!
This poor kitty is getting a ride in Micah's hat:
Kittens anyone??
Anyway, I should be off. Micah is thrilled that Granny & Grandpa are coming. We are counting down the days!
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Inspired
This week the inspiration came to take some action with certain parenting things. The first change I wanted to make was dealing with Micah's nighttime wetting. I decided to put away the pull-ups for good and just go for it. Erik and I still pick him up and put him on the potty right before we head to bed, but so far we've only had a couple of accidents. Hopefully this will spur him on towards dryer nights!
Micah at one of Daddy’s hockey games:
The second thing I wanted to do was start weaning Keziah from her soother. One afternoon before her nap I felt suddenly inspired. Before I could question it too much I got the scissors out and cut the tip off of her soother. My mom tells the story of how my brother loved his soother so much and she kept cutting it off a little bit at a time until she took the whole thing away and told him that he must've swallowed it. He totally believed her and never asked for it again. I thought I would try that with Keziah, but after two nights of unsatisfying sucking, she has decided to banish it altogether! For the most part she has been going down easily and sleeping through the night, but when she has woken up I've had no choice but to rub her back a bit and then just let her cry. In a few moments of exhausted desperation I even offered her the "in tact" soother I still had, but she didn't even want to try it. And that's a good thing in the long run. Overall I've been really surprised how easy it's been and I pray it continues. It just seems so strange to put her in her crib with just her blankie. I told Erik that I think I was more addicted to her soother than she was :) Knowing that we had the option of popping it in when she woke at night or whatever was kind of nice. But after the struggle we had with taking Micah's soothers away, I'm glad they are gone!
Mommy & Keziah watching Daddy’s game:
Micah has also been having a tough time staying in his bed these days. Recently I commented on how well sleeping was going for him, but of course he decided to change things up on us again. I felt like I was floundering a bit in this area with no clear game plan as to how to handle things. Some nights we'd be really firm, other nights we'd end up sitting in his room until he fell asleep or let him sleep on the floor in our room. I decided this week that I needed to make a deicision and be really firm. So we are currenlty implementing the Supernanny technique - repeatedly putting him back in his bed with no communication or eye contact. And I mean REPEATEDLY. It's been about 45 minutes of hauling him into his bed over and over for the last several nights. Erik is having a tough time being patient with this plan but I really believe it will work if we are consistent. Short-term pain for long-term gain, right?
Micah creating cards for our playgroup birthday party last week:
The kitties are increasing in their cuteness now that they are growing and have their eyes open. We’ve been holding them a bit more which is exciting for the kids. We've actually had several people interested in taking them home, so I don't think we'll have a problem getting rid of them when the time comes.
“Kitty!”
I pulled out a hula costume I bought for Keziah in Hawaii. It's too big for her but Micah was willing to give it a try (minus the mini coconut bra). I thought he looked like a little polynesian fire dancer:
Granny & Grandpa Harder called Micah the other day and he happily chatted with them for a long time, asking questions about all sorts of things. It was really cute!
Micah at one of Daddy’s hockey games:
The second thing I wanted to do was start weaning Keziah from her soother. One afternoon before her nap I felt suddenly inspired. Before I could question it too much I got the scissors out and cut the tip off of her soother. My mom tells the story of how my brother loved his soother so much and she kept cutting it off a little bit at a time until she took the whole thing away and told him that he must've swallowed it. He totally believed her and never asked for it again. I thought I would try that with Keziah, but after two nights of unsatisfying sucking, she has decided to banish it altogether! For the most part she has been going down easily and sleeping through the night, but when she has woken up I've had no choice but to rub her back a bit and then just let her cry. In a few moments of exhausted desperation I even offered her the "in tact" soother I still had, but she didn't even want to try it. And that's a good thing in the long run. Overall I've been really surprised how easy it's been and I pray it continues. It just seems so strange to put her in her crib with just her blankie. I told Erik that I think I was more addicted to her soother than she was :) Knowing that we had the option of popping it in when she woke at night or whatever was kind of nice. But after the struggle we had with taking Micah's soothers away, I'm glad they are gone!
Mommy & Keziah watching Daddy’s game:
Micah has also been having a tough time staying in his bed these days. Recently I commented on how well sleeping was going for him, but of course he decided to change things up on us again. I felt like I was floundering a bit in this area with no clear game plan as to how to handle things. Some nights we'd be really firm, other nights we'd end up sitting in his room until he fell asleep or let him sleep on the floor in our room. I decided this week that I needed to make a deicision and be really firm. So we are currenlty implementing the Supernanny technique - repeatedly putting him back in his bed with no communication or eye contact. And I mean REPEATEDLY. It's been about 45 minutes of hauling him into his bed over and over for the last several nights. Erik is having a tough time being patient with this plan but I really believe it will work if we are consistent. Short-term pain for long-term gain, right?
Micah creating cards for our playgroup birthday party last week:
The kitties are increasing in their cuteness now that they are growing and have their eyes open. We’ve been holding them a bit more which is exciting for the kids. We've actually had several people interested in taking them home, so I don't think we'll have a problem getting rid of them when the time comes.
“Kitty!”
I pulled out a hula costume I bought for Keziah in Hawaii. It's too big for her but Micah was willing to give it a try (minus the mini coconut bra). I thought he looked like a little polynesian fire dancer:
Granny & Grandpa Harder called Micah the other day and he happily chatted with them for a long time, asking questions about all sorts of things. It was really cute!
Keziah says "baby" now and loves everything to do with clothes and dolls. It gets quite exhausting putting diapers on and off her babies over and over, but she never tires of asking for it :) She loves the Praise Baby video that we (repeatedly) borrow from the church library and has lately started settling into her foam chair and pointing at the TV saying, "baby! baby!" It’s pretty hard to resist.
Erik & the kids made brownies together yesterday. Keziah is starting to want to participate in baking & washing dishes.
She also enjoys participating in chocolate beater-licking :)
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Rest
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.
Matthew 11:28-30
Westminster Abbey, Mission, BC - May 24/08
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