Fun pictures and bad news

Esther playing in a puddle in the driveway. Am I a terrible mom for not caring about some mud on my kids? We needed the rain so bad, we weren't the only ones playing in the puddles.
Olivia looking HOT with her hair flipped back - girls, you know you did that as a kid!
Garrett and Gideon's room decor. We've decided to re-do the boys room before Gideons arrival. The choice was between a Chicago cubs themed room, or an Incredibles themed room. When I brought the pictures home of the two choices, there wasn't even hesitation, Incredibles were the hands down winner.

Now the bad news - we will have no pictures of the room in progress (like yesterday when all three kids were painting in their underwear and diaper) or the finished product. . . b/c we have no camera again. The other camera that was given to us pooped out too. We knew it was on it's last leg when it was given to us. Oh well. Here's to saving for a new camera!

Fishing Pro

We went out to a friends camp ground the other day for a couple of hours and Garrett was intently watching the other boys while they were fishing (I don't know if he really thought it was interesting, or if he was tired of playing with the girls!). Anyway, our friend, Amber got her daughter's fishing pole and taught him how to fish. He had a great time. So this is Garrett's first fish. And yes, that is a Barbie fishing pole, they have three girls, what do you expect? He didn't quite get the casting part of it, but jerked the line a lot, I think that's why he caught a fish every time he threw the line out. Amber and I weren't too thrilled about having to touch the fish to get them off the hook, but she handled it like a pro. This mom won't be fishing without a dad to do the dirty work!

Erik Mongrain

I was introduced to this guy's music at the Leadership Summit that Willow Creek puts on every year. He is from Montreal and he calls this type of guitar playing airtapping, but I find it so innovative and creative. Just sit back and enjoy, may be one day I'll learn how to do this.

25 weeks

The kids decided to color the blocks the other day. My first reaction (in my head) was, "Great, they ruined their blocks." Then I thought about it and decided that it wasn't that bad, it actually made the blocks more interesting. So, I affirmed the creativity, but told Olivia and Garrett that if they ever wanted to color on anything other than paper they NEEDED to ask. Then I jumped in on the fun and started decorating too. It was a fun time with the kids, and now they play with the blocks a lot more!

I can't believe that 25 weeks is already here! I'm feeling pregnant, that's for sure. He's a really wiggly guy when I finally slow down, He's still not quite strong enough for the kids to feel him, but Olivia frequently comes over and puts her hand on my belly and waits for movement. We started addressing my belly as baby, so that Esther will know she's not the baby anymore. So far she wants to kiss the baby all the time, lets hope the love holds up after the birth.

Beach Day

Esther hangin' in the sand.  Right before this picture was taken she was face down in the sand.  I think she was ready for a nap.
Garrett digging in a hole.
The kids playing SO well together.  There was no knocking down of castles or anything!
Sun Kissed cheeks the next morning.
Morgan and Garrett after the beach.  

We had a GREAT day yesterday at the beach.  Morgan was visiting from IN this weekend, and Josh was at conferences all day yesterday, so we took the kids to the beach.  We packed a lunch and plopped our stuff on the beach a little after 10.  It was gorgeous, the water was warm, and the kids were awesome.  I thought it was going to be fun, but 45 mins of uninterrupted sitting time for me was a huge surprise.  Morgan was a big help, of course.  Taking the kids in the water and playing in the sand with them.  But most of the time, they just wanted to be alone with their new friends they made.  I tried to go out to the water with Garrett and he wasn't interested in playing with me!  I thought we'd be leaving around 2 because the kids would be getting fussy and tired, but we didn't leave until 3:30!  Even at that time, they were still really good!  I was so relaxed, I was ready for a nap!  It was a great day - hopefully the next time will be just as great!

Reading time

Josh and I have been reading a lot lately.  Of course the kids want us to read to them whenever we have a book in our hands.  Josh had just gotten done with a marathon reading to the kids when he picked up his book and began reading.  Garrett, wanting to be just like daddy, picked up Josh's New Testament, sat down next to Josh and began reading.  He was asking him questions like, "Is it a good book, Dad?" and "What's yours called?"  What you can't see in the picture is Garrett's mouth moving, silently, just like he was reading to himself.  SO CUTE!  Esther couldn't be left out and plopped herself in the midst of the reading.  

Just in case you care, Josh is reading In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day.  As I mentioned before, Garrett is reading the NT. And Esther is reading a Horse book.  Olivia and I were working on an I Spy book (left by her cousins last weekend) before I paused for the photo op.  When not reading to the kids I am currently reading Soul Cravings, by Erwin McManus.  I just finished Sex God, by Rob Bell this morning.  It's a pretty easy but thought provoking read.