But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Since becoming a mother of two, I've been appreciating Mckmama's blog a lot. She just had her fifth baby. I love this post: One Life to Live which is about saying "yes" a lot more and just appreciating the time we have with our little ones. This revelation is true for a lot of moms I know, especially ones I've met lately that have large families. A large family today is three or more children, and I know several mommies who have (or recently had) three under three, or five children 6 and under, etc. I wonder how they do it, but when I watch them do it, it is honestly a sight to see. They're a heck of a lot more relaxed than me, it seems. And some of them let their kids under five walk around the house with a cup of Trix yogurt. Stuff like that. Stuff that's a little shocking to me.

But I'm learning that:

Not everything has to be perfect.

I can take a time out to clean up a yogurt spill. Or Cheerios crumbs.

My family doesn't have to always be dye-free, preservative-free, organic and whole wheat eating machines (they never have been, but it's good to know most families, even the healthiest are not psychotic about it!).

I'm going to get a t-shirt (like the guy on The Wedding Singer) that says in huge, bold letters: RELAX.

Enjoy this time.

You're gonna miss this! ( <-- that's another must-read link for mommies of young children)

Speaking of missing this, I have been thinking of my child-free days. If we had waited to have children, I would probably be working. We'd surely have a blue-ray player by now and probably a super nice camera. We'd have all our debts aside from student loans paid. John could be taking 15 hours of courses in seminary.

None of that seems even remotely appealing compared to the soft baby breaths I am listening to right now as I type at 2 am, waiting for my little man to fall asleep. I hear my almost-two-year old coughing down the hallway. My husband's alarm will go off in an hour and half. He is working so hard. I am tired. We are stretched. We are strapped. But we are blessed, and not one thing would I change because this is where God wants us. And when we were waiting "to have enough money," and when we were planning this and that (silly plans), we were not praying. We were not being patient or wise. We were being short sighted, unfaithful, untrusting.

Not that waiting or planning are things that are wrong. Many times waiting and planning are wise. But praying must accompany. We must be seeking God's will in all that we do. In our finances (ALL our finances!), in our health, in our growth, in the clubs we join and the jobs we acquire. John and I used to do what was wise in society's eyes (wait three years to have children, what?). Save yourself time and energy and do what is wise in God's eyes. Whatever that may be in your situation. Seek Him in all you do.

"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:33

lil peanut :)

A lot of randomness

Look at our daughter. I'm just going to come right out and say it. She's a genius. Or she's just really smart. She's recognizing letters, spelling her name, and imagining up all kinds of fun things. I LOVE to watch her play. Here she set up her felt people and said they were watching TV. Then the little boy got up and used the restroom and the little girl took a break to play some hopscotch.
Here we were doing some journal entries, and Maryn drew a picture of Josiah. She made a circle for his head, some dots (a lot of dots) for his eyes and other features, and a little black tail. She insisted he has a tail (it's the pointy black thing coming out from that circle you see below).
And you'll never believe what Josiah did today!


He slept. And slept. And slept. I know he's always sleeping here on the couch but I'm telling you that's the only place he'll sleep, so don't lecture me on safety. I'm too tired to deal with you.

I don't know how to pronounce a lot of words. Common words. I think this is because I read fairly intelligent material but I don't hang out with extremely intelligent people. Well, not the kind that like to show off their vocabulary skills, anyway. Like the word "digress." Does anyone every actually say "but I digress..." because I see it a lot on blogs. Is it dye-gress or dih-gress? Do you say it slowly or do you spit it out quickly? I feel awkward saying it.

And what about that word "respite?" How is that pronounced? I do admit I feel retarded sometimes. I mean this is 6th grade vocabulary. And "reviled." I know how to say it but it just doesn't sound right, like I don't get it out fast enough and it ends with this dreary, creepy, um-you-don't-know-what-you're-talking-about aroma. Maybe I won't talk for a while. Maybe I'll take a vow of silence.

Here's another random question: What is up with this Glenn Beck stuff? I was kind of under the impression that guy was crazy. I guess I need to watch the news and traverse outside of my Southern Baptist bubble. Like who has the time for that.

One more issue. Does it ever feel to you that everyone you know is on a diet, and that when you make cupcakes, you have no one to give them to because you don't want to cause your brother or sister to stumble? See, when I practice the gift of hospitality, I give baked goods. I don't think taking my neighbor a salad sounds appealing at all. Maybe I'll start raising honeybees and give everyone honey. Everyone is always talking about honey. "Use some honey instead of sugar!" they say. Yuck, yuck, yuck.

Last night for dinner we had hot dogs, tater tots, edamame and carrots. See? That's sort of healthy. I'm just not willing to go 100% right now.

Friday Funnies

I don't know if this is funny to anyone but me, but it's true.

You may have just given birth if...

Teaching Our Children to Pray

Maryn: "Dough God, dinku mommy, daddy, Tye better, mommy bay huwts, Kay, Cabe, Dosiah better. Ay-min."

Translation: "Dear God, thank you for mommy and daddy. Please help Tye to get better and heal Mommy's belly that still hurts. Thank you for Kelly and Caleb and please help Josiah to get better, too. Amen."

Maryn's little prayer today before bed time was so cute and thoughtful I almost cried afterward. I pray God cultivates this compassion in her. And it was so sweet of her to think of my "belly" because it has been hurting, and I haven't told her about it. I was actually just telling a friend about it the other day and maybe she heard me mention it to John. But she remembered and she knew she could take it to God. Isn't that amazing? Isn't it wonderful what little kids understand, sometimes more than we do?

"At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children..."
-Matthew 11:25

"[Jesus] said, 'Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." -Matthew 18:3

Maryn receives some great resources from our church and she has excellent teachers who sit with them, pray with them and teach them God's Word. I am so grateful to be at a church where the kids start learning from God's Word as soon as they are born! And they help parents out by sending home some great stuff. In Maryn's newsletter, there's always a section with tips on helping our kids memorize Scripture and also tips on teaching them how to pray.

Today we made a prayer poster for some people we know who are sick. Including Tye, our pastor Dr. Moore, Codey (a boy from Kendra's town who has cancer) and our family (we all have a cold). We stuck Band-Aids to a paper Maryn decorated and wrote each name on a Band-Aid. Now if you know kids, you know Band-Aids are a big deal! Kids just GET that a bandage means, ouch! And a bandage makes everything feel a little better, too. So Maryn is learning to keep these people in her thoughts and also her prayers, obviously. It's so sweet.

I have a picture of our prayer poster and also of Maryn's fun imaginative play that I will post later. I left the camera in Maryn's room...and she is taking a nap...so photos later! I may not take a picture of Josiah today because he has been in the Moby all day. Poor little man has a cold, and I am just making him as comfortable as possible and keeping him upright so that he can get some good sleep. But I assure you, he is as cute as ever.

A helpful link :)

The Chandlers on how to lead your family through suffering.

Afternoon Peace

Mornings are hectic around here. I heart afternoons.

We are back into the school year, which means the home schooling moms in the neighborhood are back to doing recess every Tuesday. Which means we get to go outside and socialize with a bunch of mommies and their kiddos for an hour and a half. And what a beautiful day it was! Maryn completely exhausted herself and Josiah slept the entire time in the Moby.

He loves to be wrapped up in a ball. He loves to be held close, close, close and tight, tight, tight. He is my cuddle bear. But not a lot gets done around here between him and Maryn needing my attention. So today I laid him on the couch in the sun, wrapped tightly and warm, warm, warm.

Maryn liked to be free and cool. Josiah likes to be snug and warm. She is like my fresh, spring time breeze and he is like my warm, afternoon sunshine. She flits flower to flower in her own little girl fantasy, and he snuggles up close and comfy.

I love how my babies are different. I love their kisses and snuggles and sweet little personalities. I wonder what I ever did without them and I'm so glad they are in my life.

Monday Mayhem

If newborns sleep so much, why do I feel so tired?
They are running me ragged...especially this one:

Just look at her! Not even two and already coloring in the lines, coloring different pictures on the same page different colors. She's also learned how to stall very well before bed time by meticulously cleaning her room. I did say we needed to clean her room before bed times. I didn't really mean that...I guess I'm learning not to EVER say ANYTHING I don't mean to be taken literally.

"What up, Mamaw?!"

I would write about my Monday Mayhem but honestly, you don't even want to know. Let's just say tomorrow will be better.

Urgent Prayer Request

Please pray for LittleTike (whose real name is Tye!) today. He is the little boy I used to babysit. He is two and a half years old and he is having brain surgery today up in Cincinnati. A doctor there believes he can heal him of his seizures permanently. Please pray that this will be so, and that Tye will never have to be on anti-seizure medications again! Please pray that his recovery will be quick and painless and that his parents feel the peace of Christ in their hearts through all this.

..."the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" Philippians 4:7

Sunday Sweetness

Maryn was waiting for John to take a picture in this one, but I love her facial expression. And her cheeks!


I think it looks like they're both smiling in this one!

Daddy's Girl

Since Josiah was born, Maryn and Daddy have been spending a lot of special time together.

It's so sweet! Thank you John for being such a great daddy!

baby love

Yesterday, Maryn and I made a sunflower out of a wooden spoon and made a cute little centerpiece with it.

And here's my sweet little man, with his face all scratched up. He's going to be a rough and tumble kind of kid, maybe.

Mommyhood 201

I think I'm doing better as a mommy to a newborn this time around. I've learned one very, very important thing.

Have NO plan, no expectations of a newborn.

Each night I hope for at least four hours of sleep, but last night it just didn't look like it was going to happen. With each sleep/feeding cycle running into another I grew more and more exhausted, more and more frustrated. Frustrated because I wasn't meeting my goal hoped for 4 hours (and my ideal 6 hours).

But I felt God reminding me as this little one just wouldn't nurse and just wouldn't stop crying that no matter how much sleep I have, He will give me the grace I need for the day. And He did. And thankfully, I remembered His grace in the wee hours of the morning and responded to my baby with patience and love instead of anger and frustration.

As for my patience with Maryn, well, that may be a totally different story. Man oh man. She has been everywhere today. She is busy, busy, busy. She is quickly leaving ONE behind and entering into that second year. A year of discovery, drama, and...discipline. Ugh...God give me wisdom!

Friday Funnies: THE DAD LIFE

I just couldn't wait until Friday to post this one! I love it. Especially since it starts out saying something about gas station sunglasses. Boo! No more Oakleys for John! But he thinks he's "bad." And he does do magic with the checkbook, too. LOL Just watch it.

The DAD Life

Day 2 Alone and First Day of School

I brought out Maryn's cash register today and boy, was she excited. She understands how to use it now and I even gave her some coins to put in it. She grabbed her purse and said, "Bye! I going-a Koger!" (translation: Bye! I'm going to Kroger!)
Then we had some fun with her baby dolls. We made bibs and blankies for each of them. She was sooooo excited. I see some doll accessories in her near future.
Today was John's first day back to school. Translation: I'm back to being super mom. Our day was FULL. I was going non-stop...and I kinda loved it. But I kinda disliked it, too. I disliked the parts where both children were crying. Or when they both demanded my attention. We are still having meals made for us and we're eating on paper plates, so that's a huge burden off our shoulders. Our new friends here have been awesome.

Maryn has been obsessed with the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and the video here. She sleeps with the book at night and has started recognizing her letters. It's insane how she loves to learn.

Josiah seems to be falling into a sleep pattern, and has been taking a long afternoon nap while Maryn naps, giving me a huge break.

I don't have a nice conclusion, so...the end.

First Day Alone

Today was our first day without John here and without my mom, and it went surprisingly well! Praise the Lord that it was NICE (75!) outside this morning, although it did reach 90 later. All the neighbors were out playing, so Maryn ran off energy while I had mommy talk time with 4 other moms in our neighborhood. Super! Josiah hung out in the Moby Wrap and slept the entire 2 hours. He likes the heat and it puts him to sleep immediately, especially with the Moby Wrap keeping him snug. The Moby also helps him keep in his pacifier. We got him to use a paci now, but it's nice because he isn't dependent on it at all. We just use it when he clearly cannot be hungry and wants to suck. ;-)

I remember these days with a newborn all by myself were pretty lonesome. This time around though, it's a lot more fun. I have my little friend Maryn to play with and talk to, and somehow that makes things a lot better. We still had a few meltdowns, but it went well. I was operating on 4 or 5 hours of sleep most of the day but was able to pick up two more hours during nap time.

Then the Duncans stopped by for about an hour to bring our dinner for tomorrow (barbecue pork sandwiches-YUM!) and the Martins came by to drop off our dinner for tonight (lasagna #3!). And Hope is coming by soon to drop off "some presents," she says. All such encouraging, lovely people! I wish they could stay for hours. Seriously. I LOVE having visitors! Even though our house is a mess....

So, this having two children thing is going really well. I love it! I can't wait for baby number three. :)

YOU should comment!

Oh, they are so cute.

One neat thing that's happening since Josiah was born is some major Daddy-Maryn bonding. She is turning this guy into mush. Look, she even has him doing her pigtails.
She loves getting her hair done, believe it or not.

I love my little man's profile. He is so, so, so cute. I can't believe my babies can look so different and still be so adorable.
Look at his little overbite. It's so stinkin cute. And his perfectly round head. Gotta love c-section babies.
Today was Josiah's first day at church, and he was a big hit. Our pastor/teacher almost brought me to tears as he prayed for the Lord's protection over our sweet little boy who will one day be a grown man (*tear, tear*).

It was also moving up weekend, meaning the kids all moved up to their new "grades" or classes. Maryn isn't even in the "baby hallway" anymore! She goes into a big kid classroom with new big kid toys. The classroom even has a little door she enters and exits through just for kids. Maryn has two new teachers, Miss Lauren and Miss Sarah, who taught her about Elisha today. And Maryn really did remember parts of the story when I asked her, and she could even sing the song they sang in class ("Thank you God for my toys!" lol).

I am so grateful for these young women that teach in her class every single Sunday. They take the time to teach little 2 year olds big truths that a lot of people don't think little ones can understand. But these teachers help John and I build up a strong foundation in her little mind so that someday, hopefully, when Jesus presses on her heart, she will come to a full understanding and knowledge of His love.

First Trip Out

Our friends Chris and Kelly offered to take Maryn tonight since it is our usual date night. We knew Maryn would love to have a break from our house to go see her little friend, Caleb. Caleb and Maryn have such a sweet relationship. He is almost exactly a year older than her and when she looks at him, it is easy to see how much she adores him. And they "fight" like a married couple. He tries to tell her what to do, and she does exactly the opposite, in a cute way--not in a mean or bad way. We love to watch them interact with each other.

John and I needed to look at a hundred things at Target. We have an ongoing list of things to keep an eye on as we wait for sales and clearances to pop up. This is easy to do since John works there.

Doesn't it seem like when one thing goes in your house, everything goes? We are about to buy a Sit and Stand (a stroller) with our gift cards our lovely family and friends sent. But on top of that, we will need to get Maryn new bed things. Also, our food processor is broken, and we'll need one for when Josiah starts eating solids. We need night lights for when I'm walking around with a sleeping baby in the dark (I've already tripped more than once). Then our shower curtain broke, our trash can lid is broken, I need a new coupon box, John needs some new clothes, and there's just more and more. The longer we wait, the longer the list gets and the more things break or get used (diapers, diapers, diapers!). I don't like adding things to my lists. I want to cross them off!

I'm excited to start doing some CVS and maybe some Rite Aid deals again. I hate paying full price for a bottle of shampoo when I know how easy it is to get it free.

Okay I'm rambling. I know you all want to know how Josiah and Maryn are getting along, right? And here I am going on about groceries.

Maryn loves her little brother so much. She always says, "Ohhhhh Josiah!" And gives him sweet hugs. I thought she'd be all over him and I expected her to be trying to give him toys and whatnot, but she doesn't. She asks to hold him about once a day and she gives him light hugs and kisses. But for the most part, she kind of ignores him. He sleeps ALL the time and if he's not sleeping, he's nursing. So we are able to pay special attention to her throughout the day.

John has been getting home pretty early from work, as early as 9 or 10 am. And we've already had lots of meals brought over to us, and there are lots more to come. We'll have a total of 11 meals brought to us, and we are so grateful and blessed by that.

Josiah loves the car and the heat. As soon as we walk outside, no matter how upset he is about being in the car seat, he falls asleep immediately. He isn't sleeping that well at night. He did sleep in his bed for a couple nights at first, but I can't get him to do it anymore. So I usually try to get him to sleep in his bed or in his little chair but by 2am, I end up falling asleep with him while nursing. It's okay though...we're making do for now. I always get about 4-6 hours of sleep each night and I'm always able to pick up 2 more hours during afternoon nap time.

So life is pretty good. We are doing well and loving our two babies (and each other) to pieces.

Loving on Daddy!

The nurse warned me that I might be more emotional this time after the birth of our baby because I was such an emotional basket case during my pregnancy. She was right! But I've cried nothing but happy tears since this precious little guy was born.

He was staring at me today, and we were nearly nose to nose. This is rare because the child sleeps 23 hours a day. I told him about the day we found out we were expecting, and that I've loved him ever since that day. He gave me kisses on my nose as tears rolled down my cheeks. He is my little man.
Josiah sleeps so much! I guess this is supposed to be normal for newborns. Since Maryn was in my belly for so long, I think she skipped this stage. You know, I think she just wanted to tell us everything she was thinking about back then and she couldn't, so she cried a lot then. So now she's making up for it by talking. And talking. And talking.

About three times a day, she brings me her brush, her hair ties, and a spray bottle so that I can put bows in her hair. So today we bought some bows at the cute little consignment shop across the street. The bows are made by someone here in town, I believe. Maryn had a blast picking out some new bows. I splurged and let her get a new little duck pull toy, and we had a coupon for a free pair of jammies. I got Josiah the cutest newborn jammies! We have almost no newborn stuff and he just SWIMS in 0-3 months, so it was a good buy! Babies can only wear newborn clothes until they are 8.5 lbs., so I guess it's good we don't have too many.
Maryn is adjusting well to being a big sister. I know a lot of you reading this blog are the mommies of toddlers and you are expecting your second baby soon. I want to encourage you! It really is going well. Better than I expected, for sure. I think if I hadn't had a c-section, things would be a lot better. 2nd time c-sections are actually more painful than first times because of the scarred tissue. Plus the doctor did a bit of "plastic surgery" on me and CUT OUT my old scar. It looked hideous from my previous two surgeries, and now it looks like it will be much better. Hey, if someone wants to give me a tummy tuck, I ain't gonna argue.

Josiah is practicing for home school.
"Teacher, teacher!"

Josiah's doctor appointment was today and he is just perfect. He weighed 7 lbs. 3 oz. at birth. When we left the hospital he was 6 lbs. 8 oz. and he now weighs 6 lbs. 14 oz. He eats all the time. He is a lazy eater, just like his sister. Sleeps and eats, sleeps and eats. So the doctor gave me some tips on how to try to get him to eat a little more efficiently. I was a little more patient with Maryn but this time I have a two year old, so we need to get this show on the road sometimes, you know what I mean? He's an Erdman, so I know he can work a little harder. ;-)

I love my babies!

The Intense Helper

Maryn is very, very serious when it comes to helping.
Here she is making sure Mamaw does everything correctly.
Sorry about her toplessness...this was too cute not to post.

She helped "Handy Granny" try to replace the batteries in the bouncy seat.

Since our furniture has been moved, Maryn discovered a new seat.

Josiah says, "Woe is me!"

Both my children have been taking their naps since 1:00. It is 2:30 now. My husband is doing my 5 minute clean up in each area of the house that I asked him to do. I've read a chapter of Radical Womanhood and I've done my Bible study time. I also wrote two thank you cards, and even stamped and addressed them. I feel spoiled!

And I slept 8 hours last night.

Life is good.

We went to our neighborhood BBQ last night. What a treat! And what great food we had. We met lots of new neighbors, since a new semester is beginning and there are lots of new seminary families. It was kind of a bad idea, however. It was just a building over but we walked there, stayed an hour, and walked back. I was in a lot of pain afterward, exhausted, and ouch...my incision hurts today. Ouch, ouch, ouch. Plus I'm trying to take less oxycodone because I'm running out. Last c-section I hardly took ANYTHING. This time things are a little different!

I wish there was a pain killer for my abundance of milk.

Maryn has been much better behaved today and showing less signs of jealousy or acting out. Yay!

My mom left for home at noon today. It was sad to see her go, but we were so grateful for her help!

Josiah is LOVING the chair that goes with our swing even though we don't have the parts for the swing to be a swing. So maybe we don't have to borrow or buy a swing after all!

Mrs. Maria Moore is bring us dinner tonight and our sweet neighbor Betsy brought us over a homemade pizza and salad for dinner tomorrow.

We are blessed! Thank you for all your prayers. I'm pretty sure they are being answered!

My Two Children

I have been the mother of two children for 5 days now, and it's an interesting task. So interesting, in fact, that I'm not sure I want to reflect on it too much right now here on my blog. There's a sweetness between Maryn and Josiah that is too sweet to put into words. And there are challenges that break my heart. It's a really, really hard thing to describe as well.

Josiah slept a total of 4 hours in his bed, in his own bedroom last night. Yippeeeee! Do you remember all the issues we had with Maryn sleeping? Well, she started sleeping in her bed when she was four months old because she could roll over onto her belly. She had to be a belly sleeper. So I just skipped the whole four months and laid him on his belly last night, and voila. A sleeping baby. He would have slept more hours in there but I was having issues sleeping, and by the time he woke up a second or third time last night, I was so tired! I fell asleep with him on the couch in a reclining/nursing position. So I slept in my bed two hours last night and the rest of the night was kind of just...dozing in and out. I gotta get better at this!

I still have mommy adrenaline, which keeps me awake. And I'm just having the normal post-op and post-natal issues that make me generally uncomfortable. It's hard to sleep. I'm pretty EXHAUSTED today, so hopefully I will fall asleep tonight early. The past two nights I haven't fallen asleep until about 2 or 3 am.

So in short, Josiah is a great sleeper and I am not!

Another thing about Josiah is that he does not like the bouncy seat. He likes the swing. The swing that was at the hospital. We don't have a swing. We actually have one but parts of it are still at my mom's house. Arrrrghh! So...I have no where to sit him down. He lies in his bed for naps. He sleeps in everyone else's arms but mine (he wants to nurse when I hold him). He likes a pacifier now and then but not enough to keep him content in the bouncy seat. And I can't just lie him in a Boppy on the floor or couch because Maryn is a little...excited.

Sooooooo we may ask around and see if someone has a swing we could just borrow til we get the parts we're missing. Or we may check the consignment shop.

Okay! I'm rambling!

Now there are two

Doesn't he look like a cute little BOY?!

The big sister thought that reading him a story might calm him down.

Kisses!

"I think you have a future swimmer on your hands..."

"I think you have a future swimmer on your hands," is what Dr. Grady said this morning as he was explaining exactly what happened during my "labor" and delivery of Josiah.

John and I went into the hospital at 7:20 am yesterday morning to be induced. After my induction, I planned to have an epidural and maybe watch a movie or something during my labor. :)

Well, the doctor wanted to break my water first because apparently this speeds things up and helps make it so that less pitocin is needed. A person who is trying to have a VBAC can't take too much pitocin because it increases the risk of tear, and it also is just a yucky, painful drug. Well, the dr. was a little surprised ("This is bizarre," I think were his words) that he really could not break my water ("OUCH!" is what I think were my words). But eventually, after much rebellion from Josiah and after a lot of pain/prayer/panic, my water broke.

And sweet baby Josiah went straight into a transverse position, head to the left. Then he went transverse to the right. By the time of my emergency c-section, the doctor said he was folded in half, his hands touching his feet and his head below his knees. A perfect diving position. John says he was in a great flipturn position. Flipturns are one of the hardest things John had to teach his swimmers, so we're glad Josiah already knows what he's doing.

Anyway, the doctor said he has never delivered a baby in that position. But leave it to me to deliver an um...unique baby.

When I found out I was having a c-section I must admit I felt a bit of relief. No labor! I kind of hate labor. It just doesn't end well for me. But I was dreading that recovery time I experienced in Naples. But this hospital did things completely differently. Although I was totally under and didn't get to see sweet Josiah immediately after birth, he was in my arms and nursing as soon as I woke up and mommy and baby were happy as could be.

So Josiah was born at 8:27 am and weighed 7 lbs. 3 ounces and is 20 inches long. To me, he looks nothing like his sister but has his daddy's strong brow, nose, and maybe his daddy's chin. He has a mouth that's kind of like an overbite that is just so cute. And he looks very much like a boy. I think it's the strong brow.

Josiah seems to have a sweet, laid back disposition so far. He likes noise and sleeps best when things are busy, so we've had him in the nursery at night. He doesn't like the dark silence of the hospital room at night. Josiah hasn't had a pacifier and we are so grateful for that.

Maryn LOVES her baby brother and is nearly obsessed with him, always wanting to see his "tiny toes." She checks to make sure he has his ears, eyes, chin, nose, etc. every time she visits. She gives him LOTS of hugs and kisses and pats him saying, "Don't cry, baby." She also likes to say, "It's okay, baby," and "Yuh-you Yosiah!" (Love you Josiah!). It's pretty cute.

I just posted pics on facebook....more tomorrow...computer is about to die and internet connection is bad so talk to ya'll later!

Thanks for all your prayers and encouragement. We wish we could have some visits with ALL of you!

Ready Now!

I have completed all my lists. The lists have been thrown away. Tomorrow is the day. We just go into the hospital at 7:15, walking in like nothing is happening and then...we'll have a baby. Just like that. :)

Time to relax.

Bluuuuueberry Pie!

Maryn was alive, alert, awake and enthusiastic this morning!
Thank goodness because she was a bit sick the last two days.
When I walked in her room, she shouted, "Mommy! Pretty! Purple!"
I was wearing a purple shirt. And Maryn has chosen purple as her favorite color now, when her favorite color isn't pink or gold.

Here she is LOVING her blueberry yogurt. Which she insists is "bluuuuueberry pie."

What do you do with a sick two year old? I had trouble trying to keep her calmed down. So we tried Candyland. This was the second time she's ever played, and she does pretty well! We didn't finish our game because she decided she needed some candy to go with it. So we had Smarties instead of finishing.

Where's Maryn?
Whenever we can't find Maryn, this is where we usually find her:

She always says, "Mommy sit here," patting the area to her right, and "Daddy sit here," patting the area to the left. And we have family cuddle time. Which is actually more like Jump On Parents Time.

cruel world

Sometimes reading books can be bad for a person's health.

John and I have been reading a book for his ethics class called Evangelical Ethics. In it the author discusses common ethical issues of today and offers Biblical views on how each ethical issue should be handled or if and how each thing is wrong. So we have been reading about abortion, divorce, remarriage, euthanasia, capital punishment and infanticide.

Infanticide? I can't get this one out of my head, and rightly so. I should be bothered by it, and I believe, so should you. Did you know that some of the very same doctors that work so hard to save baby's lives also turn a blind eye to some babies in need of care? Yes.

Take "Infant Doe," a baby born with Down's Syndrome. His parents didn't want a baby with Down's Syndrome, so the doctor's orders to the staff were to not feed him. Could he eat? He may have needed an IV, but surely he probably would have learned to eat in a few weeks or maybe even days. A man stood outside the nursery, begging to adopt this little Infant Doe. But the biological parents were not interested in adoption. Infant Doe died within days. Of starvation.

This happens in America.

Several Down's Syndrome babies and other babies with malformations or disorders, in fact, are killed after or during birth. Whether it's starvation or withholding simple (SIMPLE) medical procedures, these babies are left to die.

ALL other opinions of mine aside on this issue, my main question is this.

Who are you to decide who lives or dies?

This world is one messed up place. And I'm going to hold my tongue now.

NUMB3RS....

John has mentioned more than once that Maryn is going to grow up to be like Sheldon from that show The Big Bang Theory. It's not true, because she is very sweet, compassionate and social. But I guess he's just saying she may grow up to be a genius. I have always blown him off completely on this issue. And I don't think I want any of our kids to technically fall into the genius category. It's tough being a genius! I don't know if I want our kids to have that kind of life.

Anyway...

As I was trying to rock Maryn to sleep today (she has a fever of 102), she was soothing herself to sleep. She was soothing herself by staring at the number poster on her wall and whispering

"N U M B E R S....N U M B E R S..." slowly, softly, repetitively, and rhythmically.

Honestly, the child freaks me out sometimes.

Our last week as a family of three!

Maryn has been so silly and SO verbal lately.
She makes us laugh all the time.

John is nesting, too!

Saturday, John really got to work. I asked him to move a few things and he ended up totally rearranging three rooms of our house! I guess this is one of the reasons I miss him so much when he's busy with school and work. He can get SO much done in so little time. What would take me an hour takes him 20 minutes. Now I'm feeling much better about things and more prepared for Josiah. Our new living room set up allows me to see more of our house, so I can keep a closer eye on Maryn if I'm tied up with Josiah.

We rearranged Maryn's room to maximize her play space and rotated some toys. Maryn has been more girly lately, so we were able to put away some of her dinosaurs and things like that, which I had from babysitting days. We made her a cute little kitchen center, and she's been ecstatic about the things we pulled out of storage. Her favorite train has been away for a month or so, so I can't wait to pull it out after Josiah is here! It'll be a special surprise.

Here's my girl and me posing before church on Sunday. Our last Sunday as a family of three!
Maryn posed like this all on her own and kept asking me to take pictures.
My cold is really terrible today. I hope I am better by Thursday, and that Maryn and John don't get it. If Maryn gets it, she's not allowed in the hospital to visit. That would be awful.

I think Maryn is getting the idea that a baby is coming to live with us. She knows and points out what belongs to "Jo-sigh" and talks about tickling his toes all the time. She has been taking a special interest in taking care of her babies, helping me fold diapers and do other things to get Josiah's room ready. Without too many temper tantrums, signs of jealousy, or possessiveness. I thought she'd be wanting to sit in the bouncy seat, but she seems to understand it's not for her to sit. Shwew.