Late Night Tea Party

Andy took the boys to the park to play some baseball while I stayed home with the girls, which is a very common occurrence these days. (Our yard is too small for baseball, but we are so thankful we have so many fantastic parks so close to our house to enjoy).

While they were gone Annabelle and I decided it was a great night for a nice quiet tea party. So we played with Rosie a bit, did some other stuff and then put Rosie to bed. We got all set up and of course just as we are sitting down to enjoy our tea the boys come trampling home. We had a decision to make... warmly welcome them to join us or request that they let it be a girls only tea party that night.

When we noticed the smiles on their faces and saw how ecstatic they were that a tea party was about to start and they hadn't missed out, our decision was made. We told them they were more than welcome to join us, they just had to not be smelly and dirty :) So as cute as they possibly could be, they quietly went upstairs. They then came down hands and faces washed and completely dressed up in collared shirts and dress shorts! It was adorable. They were beaming - speaking so prime and proper to top it off. We got the extra tea and snacks all set up and laughed the evening away. We even found time to get through another chapter of Little Town on the Prairie.

I've retired to my room for the night to start a friend's second book that was just released yesterday, and I even just ordered myself my Mother's Day gift, a new sewing machine! It's quite simply an ideal way to end a wonderful evening.

The dishes didn't get done, a-gain, but I'm certain they will be patiently waiting for me in the morning. For now, I'm cherishing a rare, quiet and restful evening alone (Andy is out running with a friend) and thanking God for the gift of motherhood that not all who desire get to enjoy.

Is it possible I get to call them all mine?!

The Best of Days

There are just those days in life that I never ever want to forget. In the grand scheme of things, there was very little noteworthy news to outsiders, but it was salve for this mama's weary soul. After a very full couple weeks of schooling, housework, errands, and a million other things, I was just craving a day to relax with my family.

Joe had an early baseball game this morning, so it forced us to be up and out the door by 8:40. This is not typically smiled upon by any of us, but we did it and once we were out the door, I was glad to have even more of the day ahead of us to just be together on such a beautiful day.

We stopped at Whole Foods on the way home from the game, then the boys went to the park to play some more baseball after Joe's game, the girls and I took a nap, we read, we played, we sang, we cooked out. Then after dinner the boys cleaned up and then did some building project together while Annabelle and I went to the fabric store, then had some frozen yogurt. Now Andy and I are off to watch a movie.

My life is simple, and I wouldn't trade it for the world. I am so grateful that God has given me Andy and through us has created this precious little family to love and raise to serve Him.

***************

Some highlights of the day:

~ Watching Joseph and Rosie play together as I did the dishes. They were so content and just eating up the time together. Nothing was really different or unique about their interactions, but I was able to pause and cherish it a little more today.

~ My time out with Annabelle. She is growing up so fast. While she is still very much my child, she is becoming a friend. We laugh, we joke and we just get each other. I love just enjoying life with her.

~ Seeing Samuel and Joseph just love playing baseball together. They have really gotten into it at the same time and it brings my heart a lot of joy to see their friendship find new hobbies to share together. Plus, Andy loves playing with them, too.

Greensboro Gymnastics Invitational

Sam put on quite the performance! He did so well. He could not contain his excitement. I got comment after comment from complete strangers saying that he looks like he's the happiest boy there and how much he just makes people smile looking at him. He is such a joy and it's so contagious.

I am so proud of him for how hard he's worked and how much he has improved over the season.

Nana and Poppy were just beaming the whole weekend!

Greensboro Science Center

Nana and Poppy met us in Greensboro, NC for one of Samuel's gymnastics meets. It wasn't until the evening, so we spent the day at the Greensboro Science Center. It was fantastic! A zoo, aquarium and science center all in one!

Annabelle giving us her best penguin pose.

This was the strangest thing. This fish was completely smitten with Rosie. He would swim right up to her and just sit there watching her. She would put her hand up to the glass and he would put his nose on the glass. We would walk away and the fish would swim away. There were so many people standing and looking into the tank, but this fish showed no interest in anyone but her. Very cool.

VA Beach Gymnastics Competition

Box 'O Fun

It's amazing what enjoyment a box will bring to a family. Not what comes in the box, but the box itself, completely empty. Andy and the kids, Rosie included, spent an ENTIRE evening playing with a box. For the boys and Andy it included taping each other up, tipping the box on it's head and then timing how long it took to get out. For the girls, it was a simpler version of that.

Rose Owl

Aunt Juju got Rosie this owl hat for Christmas. Best. Hat. Ever.

There Are No Words...

Winter

Winter was full of lots of tea parties, reading, snuggling and games. We did attempt to go out on one of the coldest days and try to make bubbles freeze, but didn't have much luck. Blowing bubbles indoors ended up being much more enjoyable.

Candlelight Dinners

I found 100 tea light candles at IKEA for dirt cheap, so I bought them and we have been having regular candlelight dinners. It adds such a special touch to our dinner time. The kids just love it.

A Great Day Indeed!

I was just really having a hard day one day, very emotional about stuff, overly dramatic, etc. I was mostly disappointed that I had taken a pregnancy test well into the time when it should have shown a positive and it came back negative. I was sure I was pregnant, but oh so let down by the results.

The next morning, I get a delivery of these gorgeous flowers with this note. As I'm discussing with Andy how emotional I've been and how confused I am about stuff, he encouraged me to take another test since he was certain that I was pregnant. And this one came back positive! So, on New Years Eve, we found out that our 5th miracle was growing in our womb. Indeed it was a VERY great day.

Since then I keep this card on my refrigerator and read it each morning and it always gets my morning off to a great start.

Rosemary Turns One!

Time is a strange thing... days seem to often drag while the years fly. The more the Lord adds to our nest, the quicker the hands on the clock seem to move.

Watching this bundle emerge from the womb and develop into this vibrant, enthusiastic and sweetest little one year old has been a gift.

Joseph put it so well when he said that Christmas comes everyday in our house. I couldn't agree more. Because we have "Posie" as he so affectionately calls her. His love for her is contagious. All of them do. They love her more than themselves. There is nothing more I desire than to have my children know who made and sustains life and to understand it's a gift.

I do a lot of things wrong. A LOT. I am on my knees staring into some baby blues or greens more times than I wish to admit. But, I find grace. Every. Single. Time. They understand grace. And for that I rejoice that I feel like I have already earned my reward.

This parenting thing is getting easier. And harder. I'm learning. I'm growing. They are learning. They are growing. But, we also enter new challenges with every rising of the sun. Each day brings with it it's own opportunities. Opportunities to love deeper, to slow down and truly learn to fully embrace these souls around us, and to learn more about this world we've been placed in.

As I was debating whether or not to make a big deal about Rosie's birthday a friend that has one child that has never been able to conceive again commented... "you never know... this could be your last first birthday celebration".

Those words sunk deep.

NO! Please no, Lord. If it your will, I hope to have many more of those.

But, what if she's right. What if this is my last opportunity to celebrate a fresh and new life?

And with that thought in mind, I decided that no matter where their birthday's fall on the calendar, I would not let a birthday pass without a to-do. Not like I ever have, but the temptation was there being so close to Christmas. Even if it's just our family, we will celebrate BIG. We are to celebrate life as a gift. Not let an opportunity pass us by where we don't rejoice in Him. And that we did.

End of November

 

One Saturday morning I took the girls to a friends home for a Tea Party. A friend snapped this phone without me looking and sent it to me after the party. I am so happy that she captured this moment between the two of us. 

 

Nana and Poppy came for Thanksgiving. A lot of time was had in the hotel pool. It's always a highlight of their visits.

I've never seen Poppy happier.

Random Thoughts

I've been compiling a list of random thoughts that don't have any pictures associated with them so haven't ever been blogged about. Here's the list.

Horton Hears a Who - I was never a big Dr. Seuss reader when I was a kid, so reading all of the Dr. Seuss books now with the kids is quite new to me. I just loved the book, Horton Hears a Who. "A person's a person, no matter how small." What an excellent way to express the support of life in all it's stages.

Baby Bird - One day we were studying birds and  I was short on dinner ideas. I made some rice and beans and tried to pull it off that we were going to eat like birds that night. The rice would be the worms and the beans the bugs. They totally bought it! It didn't even have sauce or cheese. I feed them all their dinner just like Mama birds do and they flew around the house and then would come back to me when their mouths were empty. It was a blast. Well, every time Annabelle doesn't enjoy a dinner and is having a hard time eating it, she asks to play baby bird!

Question Time - As a way of building communication with our kids and giving them opportunities to share their thoughts on different things, we came up with the Question Game. Someone asks a question to the whole family about something and then everyone has to answer. It cannot be a yes or no answer. It has been so much fun! I have learned so much from my children and Andy that I did not know. It's also been neat to see what they want to know about us, too. Many times a day it is asked "Can we do question time?"

Parts of Rosemary That are Fat Game - The kids came up with this game. Someone starts first and then everyone goes around and around naming the different parts of Rosie that are fat! Hahaha! It's quite hilarious. I'm well aware that this won't be able to continue forever, but for now it's adorable.

Rosemary's list of nicknames is hilarious... I wouldn't have expected anything less from our family. Daddy is most often the initiator of the names and this time it is no exception. It started with calling her "Rose Puppy" and then it morphed into "Rose Pappy" then that was expanded into "Pappy Lee Lau from the South" and now it's stuck! How ridiculous!

The kids think Rosie's favorite color is white since milk is white. They choose the color white for her whenever there is that option and we joke that she doesn't understand when things don't come in the color white.

End of October Through Beginning of November Photos

Rosemary is getting really into family worship. She's a pro at playing Fred the Egg!

She never snuggles when she's awake. But, Andy caught her in the act. I cherish this photo!

That FACE!!!

The kids set up the tent for Rosie with all of her favorite toys inside and then had her climb through the tunnel to get to her prizes. She had a blast! They love her so much.

This just about sums Joseph up to a T! He is ALWAYS writing notes, making us cards, gifts, you name it. He decided to put a sticky note up on our fridge to each person in our family. I got such a kick out of Rosie's. All the hair on it and the spell. Then he made one for himself.

My precious little Ebba Sue.

I was out one night and came home after the kids were in bed. Joseph had run out of tape so he clipped a clothespine to the picture and then hung a string between that and another clip to the door. He's a genius in my eyes. Then he wrote "Joseph did." So I knew he did it. Haha!

We don't celebrate Halloween but while the kids were outside playing that night a neighbor offered them a piece of gum. Samuel has been asking us recently about if we thought he was old enough for gum or not, and we said sure. Then he gets some from a neighbor. I think they were more excited about this gum than just about anything else in their lives. Oh to find this much joy in the little things in life. Not sure how Annabelle got away with having a piece too, but she did. Lucky girl.

 We played scrabble with scrabble cheese its. A HUGE hit.

I cannot get over this picture! It looks like she is really thinking hard about her next move. Look at the rolls on her arms!!! I just want to EAT HER!

I made a bag for a friend for a shower gift.

Sporting a new sweater from my Mama.

Joseph decided to take his quiet time downstairs with me one day and I ended up falling asleep on the couch. He must have gotten tired too. The little couch had some things on it so he went into the school room, read some books and then took a nap. Haha! I have no idea why he just didn't go into his bed to sleep.

Me and my precious girls! I love this photo so much.