Bluebonnets and Fun at the Park

I have been a bad Texas mommy this year, and I nearly let bluebonnet season pass us by without getting any pictures.  I promise there are a few bluebonnets in the pictures, although nothing like the usual overabundance.  But, at least I tried. The unseasonably warm weather really brought them out early and then they vanished before I could get to the park for the pics.  I really like these red shirts I got for the boys.  They look good against the few bluebonnets!

And of course, since we went to take pictures, we had a picnic lunch and played at the park.  We ran into our church's playgroup and also some other good family friends completely unintentionally.  Our therapy schedule got rearranged and so we were able to get to the park sooner and we ended up with a little treat!  So both boys had a great time.  Justin crawled all the way up these stairs, and he even alternated feet!  (He prefers leading with his left.)  He got so good I didn't even need to stand by him.  He scurried up the stairs and then slid down the slide.  About 10 times!

Then he wanted to swing, and we have perfected the double swing.  Justin can hang on without any assistance and he could swing all day like this.  If I try to hold onto him, he gets upset and pushes my hand away.  It's cool how strong he is getting!  Travis enjoyed playing with his friends, Justin loved swinging and sliding, and I was able to visit with a friend.  It was a great park day for us all.

Another Endochrin Appointment

These appointments are becoming so routine that they hardly aren't even worthy to note, but I thought I would tell about it anyway, just because this week ended up being Dr. appointment week.  Monday was endochrin and we went through the usual measuring and sizing routine.  Since thyroid influences growth they are really watching his growth.  His head circumference is the biggie since the can only grow his head, not shrink.  Justin has been wearing 18 month clothes for about a year now, and he only got new orthotics because of the girth of his foot, not the length or width.  The only thing that seems to grow is his belly!  He is just getting into 24 mo/2T shirts, and he can't fit the one piece 18 mo. outfits, so we're into the next size of those too.  We are just now getting into the clothes Travis was wearing when Justin was born.  Kind of a cool milestone!  Anyway, his head grew sufficiently that the doctor was satisfied.  We had to do more labs to monitor his thyroid.  We don't know the results yet, but they did get him on the first stick!

Family Pictures

We had our family pictures taken and these are some of the best.  Travis was not in a picture mood but somehow the photographer managed to get some smiles.  Justin was his usual hammy self!

This is my favorite of the boys.  It completely shows their personality.  We have a few cheese balls in the family!

Justin is Three!

Can you believe it??  This one is hard for me to believe.   Justin had another birthday and he keeps getting bigger every day.  We celebrated by going and getting some family pictures taken (that's another post) but I got a few "making of" pictures to share.

I didn't really want any "real" pictures with the number blocks, but they let me borrow them while we were waiting for our pictures to load.  This was at the end of the session and the boys were beyond "cheese".  This was the best one I got.  Travis wouldn't smile and you can see Justin wasn't too thrilled either.  But I still think they're cute!

After pictures we went to a paint-it-yourself pottery place.  Justin picked out a letter "J" to paint and he and Daddy worked on that while Travis painted a football box and I worked on a family plate.  We'll show the finished product after they bake.  We let Justin pick out the colors and he chose white and red so they painted the background all white and then Justin smeared on some red after that dried.  It kind of looks like he bled on it, so we're anxious to see how it turns out.

Then we ate a yummy lunch at Pei Wei.  Justin ate his lunch, my lunch, and Daddy's lunch.  I guess the morning's activities made him hungry.  This is when we're done and ready to go home for nap.  I love guys in polo shirts and this just makes me smile.

We were almost ready to call it a day and head for bath when we got a call from Ami wishing Justin a happy birthday.  She was bummed that the gift she had ordered had not arrived but while we were talking, the doorbell rang and as if on cue the present arrived.  So then the guys spent some time perusing the new Elmo books Justin received.  They are great and you can tell which ones Justin likes the best.  He is turning into quite the reader.  When he's serious about something, he gets on his stomach so he can see it better.  I love the boys enjoying a little "Where is Elmo's Blanket?"

It was such a fun family day.  These are the days I will treasure for always.  Justin had a great day.  He giggled and played.  He is so expressive that there's never a doubt what he's feeling or thinking.  He is learning more every day.  He has picked up more signs and he uses them perfectly.  We're trying to get him to do three fingers to show he is three, but that's one of the really hard things for him (finger isolation).   So now he just holds up all his fingers and laughs at us when we ask him to show us three fingers.  Justin says that it's good to be three!

Friends From the North

When my mom started chemo, one of our fabulous family friends made a point to offer to come and entertain/care for/sit with my mom sometime.  This past weekend was it!  Mary and her daughter, Rachael, made a quick visit from the cold, snowy north.  They were able to combine some fun and sun for a very successful trip.  We went to Galveston one day and checked out the Tall Ship Elissa.  Travis is very into pirates these days so a pirate-looking ship was first rate for him.  (He didn't even seem bothered by the fact that it is really just a cargo ship...)

Here the boys are standing by the water line marks from the storms that have come through Galveston.  The top line is from Hurricane Ike, during Justin's surgery.  I missed the Hurricane of 1900.  That line isn't even in the picture.  I was concerned about getting the boys in the picture and I missed the top line!

Inside the ship in the crew bunk area.  Not very spacious!

Down in the engine room.

Justin wanted to slide down the pole.  He actually held on very well!  I even sent the picture to Miss Penny.

Not to be outdone...

Travis formed quite a bond with Rachael.  She played pirate, fishing, hunting and every other game he could invent. 

Not to be outdone...  This required two hands though!

Of course we had to do a little steering.

Travis thought this was great!

We decided that if we ever had to work on a ship, we would want to be the captain.  Much better sleeping quarters!  And a lounge area included!

The spare cabin wasn't even all that great, but at least it was private.

This picture we took from across the ship.  Justin loved checking everything out.

The whole gang from afar.

And up close.  I love Justin's "I am looking into the sun and I can't see" face.

Inside the museum there was fun stuff to see...

Like cannons!  Just like on pirate ships.  (Did I mention Travis has decided that he wants to be a pirate when he grows up?  What do you do with that one??)

Justin was checking out the cannon and the fun sound it made when you yelled into the barrel.  He cracked himself up!

There was even fisherman's gear for dress up.  The reflectors kind of messed up the picture.

After a bite to eat, we hit the beach!  It was a little chilly (especially the water) but there was no stopping these northern girls from enjoying a little sand and surf!  It reminds me of a picture from when we visited my aunt in Florida.  She is sitting wrapped up in pants and sweatshirt, and the four of us kids were all in bathing suits playing in the sand!  We weren't quite that bad.

Randy and I didn't bring our suits, because we really didn't think the boys would go in the water much beyond knee level.  Silly us!  Both boys enjoyed the water full force, and after a few attempts to acclimate himself, Travis even went wave jumping with Rachael.  Fortunately, she was happy to go in with both boys.

The mark of a perfect Spring Break:  A picture at the beach.  Great memories for sure.

I was trying to hold Justin a little away from me so I wouldn't get wet.  I am not sure why I tried, by this point he had already peed on me!

After the photo session Justin decided to throw the seaweed back into the ocean where it belonged.  It was quite the losing battle.

We had to leave when Justin started turning purple and we knew he wouldn't stay away from the water long enough to warm up.  We wrapped him in a towel and sat him on my mom's lap while we coaxed Travis back in from the water.

We haven't been to Galveston in so long and this trip was perfect.  The fact that my mom felt good enough to go was a huge blessing.  Both boys fell asleep on the way home and after dinner and a movie they tumbled into bed.  Randy and I got a date night out of Mary and Rachael's visit too!

Community

Last fall our church rolled out a new vision statement that focuses on the community and our responsibility to the people around us.  After the DS meeting in January I began thinking more about that idea and my role in the community.  For the past two months it has has been rolling around in my head.  God has taken this in so many different directions that it has been difficult for me to understand.  I am still not sure that the process is complete, but at least I am beginning to grasp what God is trying to get me to understand.

We all live in community.  Not just one community, but a variety of groups that consume differing amounts of time and energy.  That's what has been my focus: time and energy expenditures.   We each only have a limited amount of each and I want to spend each in the best way possible.  The way that honors and pleases God.  I have learned that "good" things aren't necessarily what God wants me to do.  The time that "good" things consume may be at the loss of "better" things, or worse, the "best" things.  It's a process though, to move from "good" to "best".  I don't think God stops me from doing "good" things, but he nudges me onward when it's time to go to the next step.

I really wanted to feel connected to this group.  I cannot explain how much I wanted this for our family.  All of our previous contacts with the DS group in our area have been through the main offices and meetings at the building, which is just too far for us to drive on a consistent basis.  I wanted to spend some energy on this group since it is closer and it feels like I can be more involved.  I wanted to be a part of this community in a more personal way.  But it just didn't seem right.  I asked another DS mom if she wanted to come with us to this group and she said that she had stopped going to meetings because she left the meetings more discouraged than when she arrived.  It made me want to cry because that's exactly what I felt!  I needed to talk to her and ask her why we felt that way because I didn't get it.  I wanted her to tell me what I was feeling because I wasn't sure what or why I was feeling.  It seemed at least like a "better" thing!  But she helped me clarify my thoughts and explain that there is also an aspect of timing in the "good"/"better"/"best" process.  I have never been very patient (don't laugh out loud if you are reading this and you know me that well!) and when something comes up I am ready to jump in with both feet.  This might just be a "wait" kind of thing.

It has taken a while for me to be okay with this.  Because of this inner conflict I have begun to examine the other "communities" in my life, the things that consume time and energy, and it's made me think long and hard about what I do.  I heard once of a women's minister quitting her job, that she did very well, because she realized that she was getting more satisfaction from her job than caring for her family at home.  She had young children who needed her, and she was giving her "best" time to something God called "good" and neglecting her "best" calling at home.  So I am thinking, is that what I am doing in some areas?  I quit going to Bible Study last fall because it is a major commitment of time for my family.  I say "my family" because it takes all of us to get me there.  The planning and organizing begins the night before and even though Randy doesn't physically assist in preparations, he is left to fend for himself so I can make lunches and pack all the bags necessary to make it through all of our stops before we finally make it back home for nap.  It almost feels like my day is half over by the time I collapse in the chair and attempt some level of discussion in Bible Study.  And when I overheard Travis say "Mommy is always in a hurry" it broke my heart.  I felt like I was neglecting the "best" (my family) for "better" (bible study) or maybe even just "good".  I have heard over and over that "your family is your mission" and I can be confident that no matter how many other things come up, if it takes too much away from the family, I know that it is not the "best" thing for me.

Today at therapy when we walked in the door of the office building a man was walking out with a large piece of drywall.  I went back and held the door open for him because it was clear that there was no way he was getting out without major effort.  We continued up to the therapy office and I left the kids in the waiting area while I ran next door to the bathroom.  (We are all friends at therapy!)  When I came out, one of the mothers was waiting to go down the elevator and she stopped me and said, "I just have to tell you what a wonderful boy you have!  He jumped up and held the door open for me and my stroller and he was so polite."  She raved about Travis and asked how old he is.  She was very impressed that a five-year-old would do something like that.  It was a proud mama moment, but I wasn't surprised.  That's the kind of thing that comes from time together.  I don't want to lose that on someone else.  Not because someone else isn't worthy, but because God lent Justin and Travis to Randy and me and after God and Randy, those boys are supposed to be my next priority.  How I decide to make that work is the challenge.  Thank God he promises to help me!

It's an issue every day.  Some days go better than others.  But that's when I thank God for grace and another chance the next day.  I am trying to slow down.  Travis is trying to speed up, and so is Justin!  That makes me smile.  God is so good!

The Golden Calf

This morning's lesson (quick version) was on the story of Moses going to Mt. Sinai and the people getting impatient and asking Aaron to make them a golden calf to worship instead.  So then Moses comes down, gets angry, throws and breaks the tablets, grinds up the calf to powder and throws it in the water, and makes the Israelites drink the water.  So we made our own calves out of edible play dough, and then ate them.

Justin really got into this!  He didn't even wait to make the calf. 

He licked the dough to test it.

He did a little smacking and pushing.

And then he dug right in!

Travis took a little while longer to decide how to make his calf.  It took some effort and a little tongue hanging out!

Then it was completed and ready for eating.  He decided that it didn't taste very good.  I had to explain that that was kind of the point...