Nature is Weird...

I've been waiting for this all summer long...

Now, on October 15th, my Gerbera Daisy decides to bloom.  Why now?  I guess it doesn't know that in about 3 weeks Daylight Savings time will end.  Or, that fall began about a month ago. Better now than never I guess.  It sure surprised me! 

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At Work with Red Shoes

During snack time yesterday Red Shoes seemed really hungry.  I gave him some graham crackers and he kept coming back for more.  Imagine my surprise when I found this...

In My Bed!!!

Thanks Red Shoes...



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Swoosh Meets Leona...

Over the weekend my mom and I went and visited our friend Leona.  She has been a friend of our families since before my existence.  My mom and dad bought the farm from her and her husband about 38 years ago (give or take a few years).  That marked the beginning of a beautiful friendship.  Leona turned 99 this summer. Ninety-nine!  She never had a family of her own.  Our family is her family. 

Because my sister Jessie was nice enough to watch Happy Feet, and Red Shoes was helping harvest, we were able to make the visit and introduce her to Swoosh. 

Leona was thrilled to meet him and especially hold him.  She lives in a nursing home now, and every time we visit I think about how the people who live there (or by themselves) must miss hugs so much.  I think holding Swoosh and having someone to love on filled that need for Leona for a while.  There's a neat connection that takes place between the young and old.  It did my heart good to watch Leona's face light up that morning. 

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Autumn in Mom's House and Yard

It's a beautiful fall morning here.  It's raining and oh so cozy.  One of those mornings where your coffee tastes extraordinarily good.  And for the first time in a long time I have just a little free time to blog. 

We spent this weekend in Nebraska visiting my parents.  It was nice.  Red Shoes and Happy Feet got to help with the pigs and Red Shoes got to ride in the combine. They also got to play with their cousins. They didn't want to leave.

While we were there Red Shoes and I made this cake for his pre-school class.  They have been learning about rainbows and colors, so I thought they might enjoy it.  It had been a while since Red Shoes and I had cooked together so that was a nice treat.  It was also wonderful to have the help of my mom with the other two so we could actually cook.  The cake looked beautiful when we left, but by the time we made it home it had done some MAJOR sliding and some cracking.  That made for one more can of frosting...upping the number to 4 cans!  Red Shoes' teachers and the other parents might not be too happy with me today. 

Here's some pictures of my mom's house and yard.  She's got such a gift for celebrating seasons and holidays.

I think I've mentioned before that mom's a very good gardener.  The proof is in the pumpkins.



We call this the "batkin"

Mom made this jack-o-lantern banner last year.

This was made last year too.

This is a vellum Halloween lantern that mom made.  You can find the directions here. 

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A Little Less Crazy

Red Shoes and Happy Feet are enjoying their new brother so much.  I believe they would tell you that life was pretty dull before he came along.  Let me tell you...no dullness here.  With three kids age 4 and below it's just a tad bit CRAZY!  With each day it seems like things get a little bit easier.  I'm not burning dinner as much, I'm yelling less, and the kids' behavior is getting better. 

Last night Swoosh finally slept much better.  Thus, so did his mom and everyone else in the house. 

Red Shoes is such a sweet big brother.  He's so gentle with Swoosh and he seems to relish brotherhood.  =)  Every night without me asking him he brings me a diaper, wipes and pj's for his brother.  Such a good helper!

Happy Feet is a pro at knowing when Swoosh needs his pacifier, and she's pretty good at giving it to him without making him gag.  She likes to hold him, but usually for just about 4 seconds and then she's off to the next thing.  So much to do when your two. 

This baby has to be feeling the love.   

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Introducing...Swoosh

I want to introduce you to Swoosh, the newest member of our family.  After trying to come up with a blog name for him, my mom came through for me.  Thanks Mom!

Swoosh has a grey streak or a grey "swoosh" in his hair.  It resembles the Nike Swoosh and keeping with the theme of Red Shoes and Happy Feet it seemed like the perfect name.

The streak is a family trait on my mom's side of the family.  Grandpa, mom, me, Happy Feet and now Swoosh all got it.  It was apparent on Happy Feet before she had much hair, but now it's not too noticeable unless her hair is parted just right. 

It's pretty cool little family marker, and my grandpa was so proud when I told him that Swoosh got it.

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Baby Bowen

From the blog, "Bowen's Heart" written by his father, Matt Hammitt...after almost losing his newborn son Bowen to a serious heart condition. 

"As I lovingly stared into Bowen’s eyes just before midnight, my face only inches from his chest, I thought, “this love is an awesome mess.” I know I’m not the first person to think or to say something like that. Many great works of art have titles that are reminiscent of those words. I believe it’s because tension is the place where the worst of life and the best of true hope meet to unveil our eyes to God’s artistic work of redemption. What a mighty and creatively loving God we serve. He allows us to know great pain, so that we can know the greater pleasure of trading it in for purpose."

Please check out this blog.  It is written by Matt Hammitt, singer for the Christian Band, Sanctus Real.  Matt and his wife Sarah just became parents to Bowen on September 9th.  They new early on in Sarah's pregnancy because of an ultrasound, that Bowen would be born with Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). This occurs when parts of the left side of the heart don't develop completely.

This blog follows Bowen and his parents as they make this journey.  Their faith is absolutely amazing. 

I don't know if it's because I just had a baby, or because I've been a parent sitting in that NICU full of uncertainty, but this story has really touched my heart.  Please pray for baby Bowen and his family. Pin It