Fall 2014

I'm officially a bad blogger. I admit it. I really miss blogging regularly, but by the end of the day when the kids are in bed, I still have the kitchen to clean, laundry to finish and some time to hang out with Aaron. Blogging is the bottom of my priority list. But life continues to move and God continues to bless us. Abel and Belle are loving their 3K homeschool. We do about 3 days a week for 40 minutes - a worksheet (focusing on either letters, numbers, shapes or colors), Bible and reading time, and a craft. Sometimes we throw in some extra things like music or flashcards. If we haven't done school yet, they will ask "Can we do school now?" Haha! The pictures above were taken at a local pumpkin patch on a homeschool field trip with our church. They are dressing up next week for Halloween as a football player and cheerleader. I have mixed feelings about Halloween. I always thought I wouldn't celebrate it with my kids. But then the first Halloween after Abel & Belle were born, I thought "What is the harm in dressing up like something that isn't satanic or evil in nature? And getting candy?" Abel & Belle play dress up at home almost everyday of their lives and they eat candy occasionally as well. Also, awhile back, I read a post from another Christian who said "Every day belongs to the Lord. Why should Satan have a holiday? He doesn't have the right to take what belongs to the Lord. So, take back Halloween to the glory of God." That is what we try to do with Halloween...eat candy, drink cider and be merry to the glory of God! Of course, we respect those Christians who have different opinions too and don't participate in Halloween at all. And we know other Christians who celebrate "Reformation Day" on October 31st, which is the day that Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses. Whatever you're doing or not doing this month, Happy Fall Ya'll!!!

Jennifer :)

Mimi, Promotion and Homeschooling - Updates!

Thought I should give a quick update (Thanks, Ashley for the motivation)!

1) My mom moved to the Charlotte area a month ago, so Abel & Belle have been getting to spend lots of time with their Mimi- which they LOVE!

2) Aaron was recently promoted with his company, LifeWay, as a Market Manager. He will continue to manage his current store but will also oversee 5 additional stores in the market area. Promotion without Relocation is AWESOME! We have lived in 4 different cities and 2 states since we got married 8 years ago. We have lived here the longest (4 years), so we are thrilled to be given an opportunity for advancement without uprooting our lives. We love our church and our life here. We feel very settled for now.

3) Abel & Belle continue to grow up each day. I am going to start some Preschool Homeschool curriculum with them this fall. Nothing too big because I strongly believe that children this age learn best thru play. But, sometimes free play all day equals chaos, so I want to give them a little bit of structure. Maybe just 20ish minutes a morning. I bought some fun Disney workbooks from the Dollar Tree that focus on the alphabet, numbers, colors and shapes.I'm planning to go "School Supply" shopping this weekend when everything school related is tax free. I will get them some new crayons, supply box, washable markers, construction paper and other "preschoolish" stuff. We are excited :)

Below is a picture of our family at Chick-Fil-A's Annual Cow Appreciation Day! And also, here is a link to Aaron's blog about our experience that day and the Kingdom of God!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Abel & Belle!

Abel & Belle turned THREE on June 4th! They had their birthday party with friends at Monkey Joe's on June 6th. Their past 2 birthday parties have just been with our family but this year was their big party with friends! Monkey Joe's is an indoor inflatable playground. They had fun with their Batman and Hello Kitty themes. I can't believe they are 3 - officially preschoolers now! Where has time gone? It seems like both yesterday and forever ago that we were struggling and praying for God to grow our family through embryo adoption. And here we are now...What grace! They have been potty trained since February - WooHoo! Glad to be at the 3 year mark with that behind us now. :)

Abel: Talks non stop now! I recently reread their second birthday post and read how he could say words that weren't clear and definitely no sentences. What a change a year makes! He is all boy - loud and active! Belle entertains herself quietly while he continues to run around like a super hero. He is ALL about super heroes now...he doesn't play with cars, trains, trucks, planes or any other "boyish" toy...only super heroes!

Belle: All girl. She occasionally will play with her Disney princess dolls but is far more into playing dress up and cooking. She LOVES dressing up! Her favorite character is Hello Kitty (which is cool because HK was my favorite growing up too) but she likes all girly things: My Little Pony, Strawberry Shortcake, Lalaloopsy, Disney Princess, Minnie Mouse, etc. Oh and she got her ears pierced for her birthday - with Hello Kitty earrings! She is so proud :)

They are best friends and worst enemies. They are always either chatting away with each other or arguing - But always talking! It is a joy to watch their bond grow as they can communicate more.

Happy Birthday, Abel & Belle! We are so grateful to be your parents!

Easter 2014

Since we will be with family this Sunday and this past Tuesday was a rainy/indoor kind of day, we decided to go ahead and give the kids their Easter baskets. We don't do the "Easter Bunny", as in Abel & Belle know their Christmas gifts and Easter baskets are from us (although, we do sit with Santa and EB at mall just as we would Disney characters as DisneyWorld). Sorry that I have neglected this blog for so long...I just find it hard to have time to sit down and write. I really wish I did though because the kids are talking like crazy now and saying hilarious things - NEVER A DULL MOMENT!!!

Happy Easter, friends! So thankful that Christ crucified absorbed the wrath of God on our behalf...and rose again to confirm the validity of His work on the cross!

Merry Christmas 2013!

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and celebrating the incarnation of our Savior!

Candy Cane Glasses

Daddy made Abel some "candy cane" glasses out of pipe cleaners. He kind of reminds me of "Where's Waldo." Abel thought he looked amazing and stylish - LOL! :)

Fall Fun 2013

For "Halloween," Abel and Belle dressed up as Peter Pan and Tinkerbell. We don't celebrate the scary and demonic things of Halloween, but like all kids, we like to dress up and get candy! Aaron and I took them to the mall "trick or treating" and they got lots of candy - too bad that mommy wouldn't let them eat anything but the chocolates (I have a great fear of kids choking on hard candies). If you notice in a couple of their pictures, they are wearing glow necklaces that were given to them as their trick or treat prize from one of the mall stores- they thought those were awesome! They are getting at such a fun age now - I am loving it! :)

Congratulations to Jeff & Tracey!

Sorry this is a little late, but please head over to Jeff & Tracey's blog and congratulate them on the birth of their daughter, Brielle Isabelle! Brielle is Abel & Belle's genetic sister. They were all conceived and frozen in 2006 but adopted at different times and into different families. We are grateful that Abel & Belle will be able to grow up knowing Brielle. Praise God for writing such a beautiful story!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Abel & Belle!

Abel and Belle had a BLAST this year celebrating their birthday. I can only imagine how much fun they will have next year when they turn 3! They had their 2 year old check-up and shots on Tuesday. Below is what is going on with each of them.

Abel: Loves his Lovey, balls, cars, dogs, Veggietales, Mickey Mouse, Cat in the Hat, and playfully exercising his strength over his sister while she cries and he laughs. He is clearly all boy and while his sister joyfully pushes her dolls in a stroller, he rams his wagon against my kitchen table and house walls...over and over again (and I secretly love it!). His vocabulary has picked up a good bit in the number of words he says, but many words are not clear. He calls both mommy and a monkey "ma-he." Yes, mommy and monkey are one in the same ;)  I talked to the pediatrician about this and he still isn't worried about it. There is a chance he may have to attend speech therapy in the future, but for right now, this is still within normal for some two year olds. Abel used to love food. I mean love it! However, I noticed that for the past 2-3 months, he has become less interested in eating and more concerned with playing. I thought it must be a phase that would pass and Aaron nor I were too worried. However, his check-up showed that he is only in the 9th percentile for height and the 10th percentile for weight and he has only gained .4 lb in six months. The pediatrician said that he wasn't in the danger zone by any means, but would like him to begin drinking 1-2 bottles of Pediasure each day to help him grow since he isn't eating well. He also has recently been diagnosed with asthma and has to use two inhalers each day. The pediatrician said most toddlers grow out of this by the time they are 4, so Lord willing, he will too. Other than that, he is a happy and playful little boy who loves his family! He is always running to grab my legs to hug and kiss me. When Belle cries, he always brings her a toy to comfort her. When Belle is in time-out, he cannot stand to watch her sad so he brings her a toy too. Poor Abel also had to go into time-out for giving Belle a toy while she was in time-out because I warned him not to and he disobeyed anyway. So sad to be disciplined for loving your sister ;)

Belle: Loves her Lovey, dolls (finally!), dollhouses, tea cups, stuffed animals, blankets, Veggietales, Hello Kitty, Minnie Mouse and Strawberry Shortcake (she calls her "pancake."). It has really been fun to watch her become more of a little girl as of late. She has gone from liking gender neutral baby toys to little girl toys. She loves to tuck in her stuffed animals and dolls and put her hand to her mouth and tell everyone to "shh!" Her vocabulary has exploded and she can pretty much say anything she wants to. Her words are very clear. She hasn't really begun sentences yet, but she does say things like "Help me (which Abel says that too)," and a few other phrases that I can't think of right now. She saw a picture of me wearing my wedding dress and said "Princess Mommy!" Too sweet :) She is in the 30th percentile for both height and weight. She also has a mild case of asthma and we have an inhaler on hand but we don't use it everyday as we do for her brother.

Aaron and I love these two sweet children so much. I say it on almost every blog post, but it is just the truth. Every day, I look at them in awe and can't believe that God has given them to us. We are so blessed and thankful!