Dancing with a Dog

Okay - so, I'm sure if you're a mom - you've had them...the toys your child loves, and you absolutely, totally, and completely HATE! We have several. Two of them are fire trucks (neither have an "off" switch). However...the toy that takes the grand prize of the absolutely most annoying toy ever created is a singing dog that "woofs" the song Stupid Cupid. Yes, my son adores it - so, Haley and Bekah - you made his day by giving it to him. However, I can only handle so many times of hearing a dog "woof" "Stupid Cupid," a song which by the way took me months of wracking my brain only to finally have my friend Leah come up with it (it was probably bouncing around in her head non-stop for months since she has to have heard it hundreds of times as well while we're on the phone :). Anyway - all that to say...the dog gets hidden about once a week when Mommy cannot handle the barking anymore. However, within a few days (I'm convinced he goes on a dog hunt), low and behold I will be in the kitchen or sitting at the computer and I will hear the dreaded song begin - alas...my son has found it. No matter the hiding place, no matter how high up and hidden the dog is...he will find it.

However, the dog (my nemesis - his friend) has rewarded me with some adorable moments. When I begin to lose my mind over the singing dog, I remember that my son's face lights up with delight and he dances and sways and stomps his excitement in time with the dancing dog. He used to just do a little stomp dance, but he recently learned "The Sprinkler" from Georgia. So, in honor of my son and the most annoying dog ever created, I've posted my son doing "The Sprinkler" below:

Books I've been reading, My First Tower, a Montage with Dad

I love to read, and now that I'm a mom, I find myself less and less entertained unless the novel is exceptional. So, I've been reading some good books, and some I've skimmed and promptly put down because I could tell they were a bunch of mumbo jumbo :). But I have read two books recently that were great.

The first one was called Twinspirations. It's by a twin mom, and she's hilarious. It has all the things that they forget to put in other books - like how do you get the stupid double stroller through non-automatic doors, and can you really grocery shop with twins, etc. So, it was a fun read.

The other one is by Burton L. White and it's called the The New First Three Years of Life. And no, he's not a Christian, but in general, it's a GREAT book. It goes through the developmental stages of the first three years in great detail, and then matches up what toys and household items are the most helpful, etc. It has been a lifesaver with Josh - who has just started throwing massive temper tantrums, and what White did was observe groups of children at various ages and make observations about what types of things stimulated them, upset them, what they could understand, etc. So, it was really good and interesting. And though we still spank Josh for dangerous things, it's given us some more creative ways to teach him too, so it's been great. I highly recommend it! He's also a huge proponent of staying home with your children. It's so neat when you read something that's not even from a Christian perspective, but they prove Christian principles without even realizing that they are doing so. His major push is to raise children developmentally so that they are independent and well-adjusted, but he believes that the parents should be the primary teachers, just like it says in Scripture. So, anyway - there's my tidbit for the day!

Building my First Tower






A Montage of Loving my Dad

38 days and counting...

Okay...for those of you out there who have have husbands in school...we're in the final countdown! Matt's goal for having his dissertation turned in is March 18 (also my sister's birthday :). So, please, please, please pray that he can make it. He has been working around the clock (literally) to get this done before the girls get here. I am just so thankful for my husband and all his hard work and dedication. I can't believe everything that it has taken for him to get this far, and now...we're almost there! I won't know what it's like to have a husband who doesn't have to write in the evenings, or to have a Saturday that we can spend together as a family! I'm getting misty-eyed at the thought :). But, I'm so thankful that we've done it this way. Yes, it's been a really hard few months, but Matt's prospectus was approved in November, and now, a little over 4 months later - he's about to have a completed dissertation! That's INCREDIBLE! We decided that instead of stretching this out for years, I'd take on the bulk of raising Josh for a few months and just get it done. And Matt's been such a trooper. I can't say enough how thankful I am to have such a diligent, hard-working husband. He's juggled two jobs and almost completed writing a dissertation in 4 months! I'm in awe. And God is so good - there's no way he should have physically had the stamina to do this. So, here's a few prayer requests for the home stretch...

1. Physical stamina for Matt
2. That I will be gracious, encouraging, and not demanding at all during this crazy time
3. That all the people involved in reading his dissertation will have the time to get it back with the revisions and grades really quickly so that he can meet his goal

So, here's the goal schedule - pray that we can meet each one...

Feb. 9 – Chapter 2 - revision (this one should be ready for submittal tomorrow night - there were a few more resources left to get from the library)

Feb. 16 – Ch. 3 - revision

Feb. 23 – Ch. 4 - revision (and then, turn these four chapters into his mentor who please pray will have the time to read it that week and return it in the midst of his own busy semester)

Mar. 8 – Ch. 5 - this one is the conclusion chapter and has yet to be written – so pray he will be able to get this one done quickly

Mar. 15 – Ch. 5 returned from Dr. Liederbach for Matt to do corrections - again, pray for Dr. Liederbach's time that this will fit with his schedule

Mar. 18 – all final revisions made and dissertation submitted to be approved and sent out

Love you all!! Keep us in your prayers!

Fun in February

Who would have thought it would be warm enough in February for outside play time without jackets??? Here's a few pics of what we've been up to :)!


I love to read in my OWN rocking chair!



Outside playtime with Georgia and Leah!







My two men!



Playtime with the tractor :)




Helping Daddy put together my sisters' crib...


Whew! I'm so tired after a long day!