For Grumpy & Grammy Curtis ;)

 

Found these today when I was looking at some pictures taken of church on my little kodak and thought you guys would enjoy them.  Maybe as much as they enjoyed their ice creams...though, by the looks of their faces {and clothes}, that's debatable. 

We miss you guys!  Thank you for the SWEET memories!

Oh that Men would Praise the Lord!

"Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"

Psalm 107:8, 15, 21, 31

As the kids and I were recently reading this chapter in Psalms, I noticed this same verse 4 times!  The girls and I talked about how God longs and desires for us to praise Him.  He has been so good to us, yet how often do we thank Him for His goodness?  May He create in me a more grateful heart!  It has been an area I have struggled in the past few weeks even amidst all of His wonderful works.  One day in particular I allowed myself to wallow in my self-pity.  Here I was, a missionary wife.  Surrendered to God's will.  I already gave Him my life and separated myself from everything I knew and loved to serve Him.  Because of all that I had "done for Him", it was not fair of Him to separate me from my love and our children from the papa they needed.  After the last time we were separated for 3 weeks, we vowed to never do that again, but here we were.  Knowing my frame, He in His lovingkindness did not leave me alone, even though it was what I deserved.  Instead, He again showed me His goodness.  While I was still sulking, I received emails and phone calls from people telling me that they were praying for us and cared.  He truly has been good to me and I know His heart aches when I neglect to praise Him and thank Him for His goodness.

Time is passing and it won't be too much longer now until I am in the arms of my love.  As you can see by the little counter on the sidebar, the tentative countdown has begun...only 10 more days!  This first picture is especially for you, my love, as you requested to see me as well as the kids.  Not my best photo, but here I am in my ever-growing state.  This photo makes me wonder how the midwife could say that I am very small and need to eat more. ;)   

That is another blessing...my Christian midwife.  I met with her and absolutely love her.  Not only is she completely workable to whatever I feel comfortable with, but she also prayed with me.  I praise the Lord for how He worked things out.  Not too much longer now!

Today was the first holiday in 5 years that we have been in the states for and we enjoyed a relaxing day with Eric's parents, brother, grandmother, and Uncle and Aunt...and also a BIG piece of blueberry pie.  I don't think I've ever tasted ANYTHING so good!  I hope we are around for blueberry season next year!

Just before lunch, Sammy stole Grampy's hat.  I love his big smiles which reach even his eyes!  Makes me want to kiss him!  {Though I will resist the urge because I want him to stay asleep.}

Before we sat down to enjoy dessert, this little guy caught my attention.  There he was hanging only by his back feet, upside down enjoying his stolen bird food!  It was so funny!

After lunch, the guys sat down for football while the ladies sat around the table and fellowshipped.  This caused me to jump from the table and snatch my camera...isn't it absolutely adorable?

We miss you, Papa!  Anna is praying for you to come back to us safely and soon {we all are}.  I need to make a calendar for the girls so they can count down the days until you are here.  LOVE YOU!

Silly Girls

Lydia "planting" her flower.

All of these pictures are a little old.  It seems like we have long since left the "coat-less" stage.  I wanted to post these anyways though since they bring a smile to my face...though I am a little embarrassed at how messy my little princesses are.  As soon as Anna saw my camera she started doing a million silly poses...guess she is just copying her Auntie Bree.

Auntie's monkey face

Two crazy girls.  Poor guy.  Don't worry, you won't be alone soon.

Adorable Sammy

Isn't he adorable?  I LOVE the little foot!

 On our way to church last Wednesday night, Sammy and I did a quick photo shoot while Eric and the girls were at the little store.  I can't believe how big he is getting!  He looks even more grown up in the pictures!  Wish he would have flashed me one of his heart-melting smiles but he was too interested in the cars going by and just being able to sit on the log.

 (The village school is in the background.)

 

I think God gave boys a special type of cuteness to make up for how rascally they are.

Not My Brightest Idea

Last week while the girls and I were making bread, 

Sammy was dying to get his hands in the bowl with us.

So...I decided to give him a little bit of flour to play with 

to keep him busy while I "quickly" washed the dishes. 

I kept glancing in and everyone was playing nicely,

but a LOT can change between washing spoons...

Let's just say, this was not my brightest idea.

(And, yes.  The girls looked about the same.)

First of Fall

Light gentle breezes...

Crisp skies...

Leaves falling...

Enjoying the last "fruits" from the garden...

 Digging holes...

 Making soup...

 First Oreo...

Teaching Sammy to pray... 

"Let's pray, Sammy."

(Closes his ears so he won't have any distractions when he's praying...right?)

Fall Flowers...

(My lack of color is giving the impressions that Americans are boring...

but I do so LOVE all the white and cream!)

Creeping creatures joining us in our home...

(We are up to three of these ugly, hairy guys so far.  And they are HUGE.  With his legs, he's about the size of my palm!)

 

Helping Papa build a dog house...

AHHHH!  Sammy NO!  

I think he's been hanging around the dog too long.

As I was snapping, I noticed what he was doing...

They don't have a problem with being in the dog house. :)

I just love the refreshing fall days, even if they are a bit unpredictable!

Breathe In and Out

It's been so long since I've actually typed a post that I'm at a loss for words...or maybe it's just I have too many words floating around my head.  Things have been pretty busy so computer time has been limited.  

For starters, we "officially" started school 2 weeks ago.  The girls and I woke up Monday morning very excited about our "first day of school".  We rushed around quickly so we could get started by 9 AM.  I pulled out the folder with that day's activities and the new car box we had for Sammy.  Everything was going smoothly - Sammy was entertained and the girls and I were having fun with our Alphabet board game (from Confessions of a Homeschooler).  Doesn't Lydia look like she is having fun? :) 

 

My perfect "plan" lasted about 2 minutes.  After that, everything was a blur of chasing the dog to get Sammy's toys, picking up a few "presents" she left me...by that time Sammy was bored with his toys and the girls had decided to look inside the folder, which ended with it all on the floor.  The second day, I was a little smarter - I put the dog in her kennel and gave Sammy a snack.

 As you can see, Sammy decided to make it a science experiment to test how far he could fling his soggy muffin.  Add to all of that a discouraging doctor's visit, leaving me wanting to cry for mama to come get me.  There were many days that I rushed around like a mad woman cleaning, only to come in and find this...

 ...all of the summer and winter clothes in one big pile on the floor (though you can't help but notice the smiling boy in the midst of it all).

I knew that something needed to change.  There had to be another way.  The next week we didn't accomplish as much school as I wanted but focused instead on building some good habits that would help us and just tried to quiet my spirit so that I wasn't continually rushing - both mentally and physically - but never accomplishing anything.  The things that we learned last week helped us to have a great beginning to our school week today.  Not only is it helping me balance house-keeping and school but it is also helping me be more relaxed and have some blogging time.  Here are a few of the things that we learned last week.

1)  Sammy started mat time.  What is mat time?  For us, it is a blanket on the floor with a few toys/books.  During the allotted time, he is not allowed off of the blanket.  Last week it took a lot of discipline to get him to stay there and it was hard work, but it all paid off today as he sat at least 30 minutes quietly playing while I did school with the girls!  I could go on and on about mat time.  My girls are already very good at it.  Since we don't have a nursery, it has taught them how to sit quietly in one spot during church.

2)  The girls help with dishes right after meals.  I wash, Lydia rinses and Anna dries and puts away.  Sammy sometimes helps too by passing the dishes between Lydia and Anna.  They are doing very well at it and I already don't know what to do without their help!  Not only are they a big help, but they also LOVE helping and talked forever about how "we were friends and sisters".  Before I tried to do it by myself "quickly" so that I would have time to spend with them, but it seemed like my time was always rushed.  Now, we do it together in about the same amount of time (maybe quicker) AND have a fun time.  This has been a HUGE blessing to me as we have started boiling even our water for washing dishes because of the continued parasite problem (it has been at least a year), making dishes an even bigger task. 

3)  I have learned that rushing around like a mad woman from one task to another does not help me accomplish more, it only makes me more stressed.  SO, breathe in and out...I don't have to do it all.  The funny thing is - things are more in order when I take it easy then when I go through the house like a whirlwind!  I'm also trying to not go so much by the clock.  It's not the end of the world if I am 10 minutes late getting to the dishes.

Well, the kids are all awake, Eric is coming home early today and we are having Yuri and Kristina over for supper tonight so I guess I better get moving - slowly of course. ;)

Boys Will Be Boys

And boy!  Do does my little guy LOVE to get dirty!

Yes.  It was "clean" sand...then it rained.

Even when they are dirty, I still LOVE baby feet.

Look at me, Aunti Bree!

I'm walking!!!

But wait!  Are those girly-feet?

My girls are training him well.

(My shutter was stuck closed, thanks to sand {Sammy}, but a little editing makes it unnoticeable.)