Taking a Walk

Since Ethan has learned how to walk that is all he ever does! He absolutely loves to go outside and just walk around. It's amazing that he knows to walk down the driveway then turn onto the sidewalk. Here is our little walker trying to get his steps in for the day...

Thanks to all of you who prayed for us while we were at youth camp. Ethan was such a little trooper and handled the traveling and trip very well. He stayed on his eating/sleeping schedule without any trouble and enjoyed being around all of the people! He even made friends with a 17 month old boy named Colt. It was cute to watch them chase each other around the lobby.

Ethan also helped out with the drive....

Raced Daddy at the conference...

Went bowling...

Played in the sand...

As you can see, he had a busy week!

Fun Times

If you need a smile then I invite you to keep reading...

For the past two days I have had to wrestle bugs out of my son's mouth. He puts anything and everything into his mouth so bugs that he finds on our sunroom floor are fair game. For the past two days I've noticed him chewing, as if he's chewing gum. When I pry open his mouth I see little bug parts. Disgusting, isn't it? Try getting them out! You might be thinking I need a cleaner house. I clean all the time, at least it feels like it, but our sunroom needs a new floor (I assume) and little bugs/spiders find their way in then find themselves in Ethan's mouth. Fun times.

This next story is a little grosser. Yesterday afternoon Mark got Ethan up from his nap while I was reading in our bedroom. Right after Mark gets Ethan up I hear the bathtub running, which I think is strange so I get up to see what's going on. When I reached the bathroom doorway there is Ethan, standing naked, with poop covering his back. That's not all, it gets worse. I walked into his bedroom and found poop covering the crib, the walls, and all over one his books. (That book was promptly thrown away!) I guess his diaper was full, leaked, and he then got it all over his hands, which explains the poop handprints. Disgusting. So I cleaned his room while Mark cleaned Ethan.

Hopefully, I've made you smile. And maybe you can say, "at least I didn't clean poop off my walls this week."

Happy Friday!

The Beach and Johnny Hunt

Sunday night we are leaving for Panama City Beach to go to the Xtreme Summer Conference with the youth. Last year I stayed home to care for our then one month old son, but this year Ethan and I are tagging along! I know, we are a little crazy for taking our 13 month old son to youth camp, but we think he's going to be just fine. He loves people and loves being outside so he should have a great week! My only concern is the 12 hour van drive....I apologize to all the youth ahead of time!

The major downside to the week is our lodging situation. Remember last year I posted pictures of the Edgewater Resort where Mark and the youth were staying? Well, that is where the conference is held again, however, our group has been assigned to stay at a different hotel. This is a hotel we have stayed in before and it's not too bad, but it's no Edgewater, which means no full size kitchen to keep Ethan's milk and food.

And what is really unfair about this situation is that some groups are staying at the Edgewater! Even though Parkwood was the second group to sign up, we were still randomly selected to stay elsewhere. Oh well...we're still on the beach and we will still have fun.

Personally, I am looking forward to hearing Dr. Johnny Hunt. It's been a while since I've heard him seeing as how I haven't been to any of the conferences in a year! I am also looking forward to seeing/hearing Jeremy Camp in concert. (And possibly seeing him on the beach....just kidding, Mark!-I love you!) Speaking of-Hey, Mark, we said I'd leave the conference early so Ethan could get to bed, but what about the night of the Jeremy Camp concert?

Thankfully, I don't think I'll get to hear much of Tony Nolan. I'm sure he is a fine man, but I don't like/agree with his presentation style. I'll leave it at that.

So as you have probably already guessed, I won't be posting anything next week! Not that I've been posting much anyway. I'm losing interest in this whole blog thing and even Facebook. Not surprising.

Please say a little prayer for us next week as we travel. Pray for safety for each of us and pray that Ethan does well during the trip. We'll have plenty of stories and pictures to share soon!

Bridal Shower

Yesterday I hosted a bridal shower for my sister Ashley, who is getting married this September. It was a little early for a shower, but she has a slew of friends getting married within the next several months so we had to plan around other weddings and showers! We had a great time playing games, eating, and talking. We also got a glimpse of everyone's artistic abilities when they were asked to draw a picture of the bride!

Thanks to all who were able to celebrate with Ashley!

My cousin, Autumn, attended with her soon-to-be 8 month old son, Dugan. Dugan and Ethan (are they 2nd cousins?) met for the first time yesterday and neither of them quite knew what to think of the other. Here are some incredibly cute pictures of them hanging out on the couch!

Ethan also welcomes his new baby cousin into the world. Kate was born June 20 at 9:41 p.m., weighing 6 pounds 15 ounces. Mark and I were able to meet her this morning and we all look forward to watching her grow!

VBS

This past week has been VBS at our church. Last year at this time Ethan was a mere 3 weeks old so he didn't do much except eat and sleep, barely aware of his surroundings. This year is a different story...Ethan has been very active and curious. Not only has he 'helped' daddy get things ready beforehand, he has been singing and dancing with mommy in the opening, and he started walking Tuesday night while hanging out in the nursery. For the past few weeks he has taken one to two steps on his own, but he is now taking several steps at a time. Of course, he did this while mommy was out tutoring and daddy was taking pictures of the other boys and girls, but Ethan did show off a little for us both later!

Here are some pictures of Ethan...some are from last year's VBS and a few from this year. Can you tell which is which? :)

Hooked On Phonics

Okay, so I'm almost embarrassed to admit it, but I bought Hooked On Phonics for babies recently. As Mark and I were perusing Waldenbooks last weekend we saw it on clearance for $9.99. I asked Mark if we could buy it because the teacher in me was insanely curious about the contents since I'm very skeptical of any programs that claim to teach your child to read at an early age. I think the best way to teach a child to read is to read with him/her and discuss/ask questions about what you are reading. By doing this, I believe a child will learn to enjoy reading, develop vocabulary and concept of print, and begin developing critical thinking skills and an active imagination.

So anyway, on the way home I opened the box to read the parent's resource book. I was not surprised at all by what I read. It basically said to do everything I just mentioned above-read to your child everyday, point out the pictures, ask questions.

So there really isn't any magic program-just involved parents.

Before Ethan's naptime this afternoon, I popped in the DVD that came with the kit to watch with him. Let me just say, I thought it was lame. And I think even Ethan thought so. He looked at the t.v., looked at me, then crawled away. Tomorrow we'll listen to the cd. Maybe he'll like the songs. If not, at least we got four books for ten bucks.

Even though I'm not impressed with Hooked On Phonics for babies, I am curious about the versions for the older kids. While I'm not a fan of programs for babies or toddlers, I do think some programs can be helpful to older kids, especially those who are struggling. Maybe I'll purchase a couple of kits as Ethan gets older. Even if he doesn't use them, at least then I can know whether or not to recommend them to parents if/when I return to teaching.

Adopted for Life

Last night I finished reading an amazing book, Adopted for Life by Dr. Russell Moore, the dean of the School of Theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Moore and his wife, Maria, dealt with infertility which led them to the idea of adoption. They adopted two little boys from Russia. In his book, Dr. Moore explains the importance of Christians adopting and encouraging the adoption of children based on the fact that we as believers are adopted into God's family.

Since high school, I have had a desire to adopt. I always assumed that I would adopt children rather than have my own. I once had a high school friend tell me that adopting over having biological children was a very selfish decision. (I don't miss high school, do you?) Anyway, it breaks my heart to think there are so many children in our country and throughout the world that don't have loving parents, grandparents, and extended family to care for them. Tears streamed down my face as I read about Dr. Moore's sons lying in their own vomit and excrement in the Russian orphanage. How could anyone treat a child that way?


After all, the Bible says that true religion is to look after widows and orphans. Why those two groups in particular? Because those were the two groups that could not take care of themselves. I believe the same principle applies today as it did at the time James wrote it.

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.-James 1:27

I will admit that there were two parts of the book in particular that made me angry. Not because I disagreed with what was being said, but because I strongly agreed with what was being said. Here is one example:

"The way we see such things has everything to do with the way we see our family responsibilities, including the joy of adoption. Speaking of the family, Wendell Berry laments the fact that so many crucial aspects of familial life have been outsourced to corporations through such means as institutionalized daycare, preschool, and nursing homes."

Can you guess what I'm going to say? Yep. I believe it is important for me as a mother to be at home with my children rather than send them to daycare or preschool. (I have not dealt with sending parents to nursing homes so I cannot really speak to that, but I do believe the same principle applies-the family should take care of those individuals if at all possible.)

So you might be wondering why I was angry when I read it. I feel it is what Scripture teaches, yet I also feel that the God I serve is making it a very difficult for my family. Don't get me wrong...Mark and I are okay for now, but our current situation is not a long term plan. We have been praying for over a year now that God would provide us with a long term solution and we haven't received that answer yet. So for me, it is very frustrating and aggravating to read such quotes as above because I agree and I want that for my family.

Okay. I'll leave it at that. I could say more, but you've read it all before.

I highly recommend reading Dr. Moore's book, whether you want to adopt or not. He mentions several times that you may not be the one who adopts, but you may be used to encourage others to adopt. My prayer is that one day in the future God will lead Mark and I down the road of adoption.

I'll leave you with one other quote from the book that really touched Mark and I. This is Dr. Moore talking about wearing a birthday hat on his son's birthday.

"I'm the man with the plastic birthday hat on my head. And I'll wear it all evening, even after the kids have taken off theirs. It's my theologian's cap; it's taught me far more about my God and his gospel than the tasseled formal scholar's hat on my shelf ever has."

How true.