Spaghetti Night

Daddy Time

A little bit of chasing...

A little bit of tickling...

A little bit of cuddling...

A good, loud raspberry...


A head rub...


And an apple?...


Makes for one happy daddy!

Sunny Mornings

The first thing I do every morning when I come downstairs is open up all the blinds in my house. The sun is just beginning to peek through the trees behind our yard and it's not enough to light up my little house but I want the blinds open for the when the sun is high enough to send light pouring into my breakfast room.

The aqua color on the walls is so cheery with the sun rays bouncing around the room as the blinds cast their horizontal shadows on the white tablecloth. It's certainly my favorite time of day. Everything about the morning reassures me that even if today turns out to be no-so-great, I'll always have tomorrow morning to look forward to.







Because of the Lord's great love, we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. - Lamentations 3:22-23

Run Paulie, Run

Paul ran in the Port to Fort 6K race this past Sunday in Baltimore. He did very well and the girls and I were so proud to be waiting for him at the finish line!

This is the first of many races Paul plans to run as part of his training to run the Baltimore Marathon with his friend, Ben in October. So, I guess this is the first of many races I'll be attending as a spectator.

I have to say, as proud as I am of him, and as happy as I am to be a cheerleader for him, it's a bit intimidating to be out there. I stood there at the finish line watching as each trim, muscular, svelte runner crossed and I'm sure it should've been motivating...but it really just made me want to go eat ice cream.

Is that bad?

Ice Cream Quiz

Alright girls. Are you up to the challenge? How well do you really know you're beloved Ben and Jerry?


Click here to take a fun quiz!

P.S. I scored an 80. I'm still not sure if that's something to be proud of or not.

Born To Worship

Paul and I went to church last night. We've been attending a rather large church about 20 minutes away due to an invitation from some friends and we're really enjoying it. The music is great, the Sunday night service is low-key and relaxed (and not-so-large) and the lessons are interesting and practical. For example, the last few weeks, we've been discussing the topic of evolution and actually getting into the science behind both the theory of evolution (as it pertains to Darwin's Origin of the Species) and the fact of creation. Paul and I have walked away after each service with something to think and talk about. I love that.

Eva is having a great time in the toddler room too. The three times she's stayed back there, she's come out with a new project that she immediately pushes in my face with exuberant pride.

Izzy on the other hand...not so much. She is the throws of the dreaded "separation anxiety" and each time I've left her in the nursery, I've been paged to come calm her. The first night I was paged, I stayed back in the nursery with her and she eventually calmed enough to get down and go explore, but still turned around to look for me every few minutes. The second night I was paged, the service was almost over so I just took her out of the nursery and we stood in the back of the sanctuary to sing the last few worship songs and wait for Paul. And then, I was paged again last night toward the end.

The lesson in the service was so good that I decided to just pull Izzy out of the nursery and bring her back into the sanctuary, praying that she would be quiet and plugging her up with a pacifier just in case. She was great. A few "ada's" and "mama's" but nothing to be embarrassed over.

The service was drawing to a close as the worship team approached the stage and took their positions among their instruments. The lead guitarist and the keyboardist(?) began playing some soft intro music as the pastor led the closing prayer and Izzy seemed to sense that something fun was about to happen. She immediately scooted to the edge of my lap, balancing on my knees and peered over the seat in front of us (which was empty, thank goodness), her body tense with anticipation.

The pastor said "Amen" and Izzy squealed as the band started playing the first song of the closing set. The played "Heart of Worship" and Izzy bounced up and down and waved her arms around (as is customary for her brand of dancing). The second song began and this time, I let Izzy stand in my lap so she could see the band a little better. We sang "From the Inside Out" and she threw her hands up in the air and squealed again with excitement. She waved her hands around some more, and at certain points during the song, she would get so worked up that she would ball her little hands into fists and her whole body would tremble. Paul and I giggled at her and I reveled in the moment.

As I stared at my overjoyed little girl, I pondered the topic of the service. How could anyone deny a Creator? Just look at my baby. Look at what He did. She was so perfectly formed, every part of her little body working together so intricately so that she could do exactly what she was created to do...praise her Maker!

"...Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame
And the cry of my heart is to bring You praise
From the inside out Lord, my soul cries out..."
-Hillsong United, From the Inside Out

Confession

Okay, here it goes...

I don't like to scrapbook. If that makes me less of a wife, home-maker, mom, artist, whatever...well then just call me Peg Bundy.

I've tried to like it, I've tried to force myself to be creative and to not think it's obnoxiously cutesie.

I'm sorry. I just don't like it. Please don't hate me.

More Spring Pics

I'm so sorry guys for all the pics of the girls outside but I'm lovin' Spring time up here. I cannot get enough of the dandelions and green grass and the cool breeze. Minus some very wet, rainy days, the last week or so has been very nice.


I love watching Eva wonder around our yard in search of another fuzzy dandelion to blow into the breeze across the grass. She sings to herself and slowly drifts her gaze back and forth just taking it all in. She's got an adventurous spirit, I can tell. It may not be the Indiana Jones type adventure that she'll seek in her life, but I sense an overall appreciation for the things around her and a true contentment when she's exploring. She loves nature. Animals, bugs, grass, flowers, rain, clouds, snow, dirt, fences, trees...if it's outside, she likes it!


Izzy loves nature too...she loves to put it in her mouth. That little stinker!

Heart for Missions

I don't know what it is, but in recent months, I've not been able to stop thinking about the short missions trip I went on to Peru when I was 16. Ever since returning from that life-changing trip, I've had the desire to go back and I've never felt the desire more than now. Which is odd and a bit frustrating because this is the worst possible time for me to do something like that. With two small children at home, I feel it would be almost irresponsible to up and go, even if it was as short as 2 weeks.

So, for now, I'm taking it as a calling that I'm meant to answer in a different season of my life. A season when my girls are older and my finances would support such an endeavor.

But I hope until I get to that point, you'll join me in praying for Scripture Union in Peru and the amazing ministry they have there to the young street boys of that country. There is a big part of my heart that has stayed there in their small hands since I first held them 10 years ago.

Shoe Obsession

*** I would just like to preface this post with an apology for all of the pics of my child with a runny nose. As a second time mother, runny noses are just part of the gig and pose no threat to my post-partum, non-squeamish tummy (after all, I change about 10 gazillion diapers a day). But if you are not a parent and this grosses you out, I'm sorry. Please don't allow the slight glisten under this adorable baby's nose detract from her all around cuteness...proceed.***

Izzy is crawling. Izzy is crawling and I love that Izzy is crawling because she is usually crawling in my general direction for a quick cuddle and then off to follow her big sister around. However, when babies start to crawl, you find out very quickly what it is that interest them, because they now have the freedom to go get it.

Eva loved the DVD's that we used to keep on a small bookshelf. I would turn around from loading the dishwasher or cleaning up whatever mess she left in her wake, to find her completely surrounded by DVD cases as she had pulled them ALL off of the bookshelf. After learning that Eva loved DVD's we soon started storing them in a drawer with a child proof latch.

Izzy loves shoes. She gets this from Paul. Paul loves shoes about as much as Carrie Bradshaw loves them, if not more. If Paul and I are ever separated in a department store, he can almost always be found in the shoe department...that or the electronics. He is still a man after all.

Anyway, back to Izzy. Since Izzy has started crawling, her favorite thing to get into is the shoes that we leave by the front door as we are a "no shoes in the house" family. It's a tradition that we've happily brought back with us from Hawaii. That and it's just much cleaner, especially when you have a crawling baby. But, it seems to not even matter because if I can't find Izzy, it's safe to say that she is with the shoes.

Of course, I don't allow her to linger there in her pile of dirty shoes for obvious reasons, but no matter how hard I try, she always finds her way back to the shoes. I think we may have to start putting them in a closet or leaving them outside. Here, just look at what I mean...

I've spotted her in the shoes...again...


So, like any good mother, I remove her from the filthy, germ-infested footwear and place her on the opposite side of the room with a new "shiny object"...


It holds her interest for a measly 10 seconds and then, she spots them...


Off she goes...


In sight...


Almost there...


Home at last...


And again, it starts.