nature walk

as part of our day of rest yesterday, we spent time as a family at meadowbrook park wandering around the prairie and gardens. jesse and i really love this place (we have spent two of our seven anniversary celebrations at this place in some way) and it is the first time we have been able to share the experience with the kiddos. i was even more excited to be there at the beginning of the growing season. we spent a lot of time pointing out new growth to luca (green shoots in the soil, buds on the trees), eating yummy trail mix (our son is addicted to nuts people), and otherwise just having a leisurely walk on the trails. gia was more excited about the other people we came across - she didn't understand why they didn't stop and play with her - and both of the little ones loved the pinwheel garden. we plan on making this a regular trip - both for fun and education. although i am a true believer in making learning a way of life from birth, there is something special about luca's age this year. he really understand and remembers much more. we spent part of this morning replaying yesterday's walk. when asked, he remembered, "some tress with paper falling off. papi show me some trees no paper falling." (translation: we saw beech trees with the trunks peeling and then contrasted those with tree trunks that weren't) we opened up seed pods and acorns, searched the wooded areas for animals, and felt the varying textures of leaves.

easter in the burbs

i have been so behind in updating our picasa album over the past 3 months, BUT i have added photos from our easter morning at my parents. click here to check them out.

we were able to visit our old friend nathan's church. sadly his two ladies (wife jessa and daughter jessa) were out of town and we still have not met the little one. but i so loved having the opportunity to worship God through song and communion. nathan also happens to be an amazing worship leader (he and jesse used to be in a band together) and even my younger brother christian was impressed (hard to do with a 15 year old). i feel the past few weeks have been so busy, but during that hour i was able to unwind and focus on my Savior.

what can wash away my sin?
nothing but the blood of Jesus
what can make me whole again?
nothing but the blood of Jesus.

oh! precious is the flow
that makes me white as snow;
no other fount I know,
nothing but the blood of Jesus.

nothing but the blood of jesus by robert lowry

birthday musings

i turned twenty-nine yesterday. happy birthday to me!

i love celebrating - birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, fridays. but i also turn very contemplative and somewhat more somber when march 25th rolls around. not because i am sad, depressed, etc that i am older. more that i want to be using my days wisely and want to take stock.

so where am i at? a daughter of the King, the risen Son of God, the glorious One. trying to embrace my roles and responsibilities as a disciple, woman, wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend. married almost eight years to an amazing, imperfect, loving, hot guy. two beautiful, rambunctious, and exhausting children. a stay at home mom with a bachelor's degree. i often go an entire day without being intellectual or analytical or showered or out of my pajamas. most of my time is spent feeding children, wiping bottoms, cleaning little faces and hands, trying to keep up with the chaos that is my home (toys in every nook and cranny) day after day after day. i love my family but they can still drive me crazy. i love my friends and they too sometimes make me a little crazy. i am sick and tired of being sick and tired - fibromyalgia is not my bff but it may be one of the most important things to happen to me. i need to be more patient, gracious, humble, and disciplined. i have been blessed with creativity and i love to embrace the beauty that God, the ultimate Creator, provided in this world.

i am sure my mom and grandma will tell me i am still young and naive, but i look forward to growing older. yes, i have lines around my eyes and mouth that don't go away with a good-night's sleep. i pluck a few more gray hairs every week. my skin has lost some of its youthfulness. but with time has come experience and maturity and a greater appreciation for God's provision.

last year, jesse and i spent a lot of time developing a family vision (or i should say, discovering God's vision for our family). we have been following a path over the last eight months that has brought us to a new church, a new city, a new home, a new job, new friendships. we are at the beginning of a new chapter and really don't know what is in store for us.

my hope is no longer on things of this world. five years ago, this was not true. i look forward to the time when God restores the earth to His original intention. this Hope is secure and powerful and sustaining. what is more exciting, is how much more i will have been taught and embraced in five more years.

rock out!

this is what luca calls guitar hero and rock band. when we arrive at my parents house, he will ask, "our play rock out?" we give him a guitar or mic or drum sticks and let him "play." can i just tell you that although i a not a gamer - never really have been, give me a book and i am great - i am a tiny bit addicted to these games. nothing like "jammin" to good music while trying to hit all of the tiny colored buttons on a plastic guitar or singing classic rock with a falsetto (well, the guys have to worry about the falsetto more than me i guess - you should hear jesse or my brother cameron) trying to keep a little arrow in the green or gold.

eggbert? eggwin? eggy? he shall be called dragon!

in past years, we have invited a large gathering of family and friends to celebrate luca's birthdays. the more the merrier is usually my attitude for parties. this year, being one week out of a move, living in a smaller rental house, and luca now being old enough to really enjoy games and play with other kids, we decided to invite only children and their parents (central illinois local) to a dragon themed party. about a dozen little (and not so little) kids invaded our place and thankfully the weather allowed for some outdoor play. we had a rousing game of pin the wings on the dragon and also hunted for dragon eggs.



i made a dragon cake, complete with fruit roll-up wings, chocolate covered graham cracker spines, and hershey kiss nostrils. deciding to make the cake was a hard decision for me - the tired, worn-out and possibly wiser me wanted to buy a pre-made cake from the grocery store or bake a 9x13 and write a simple "happy 3rd birthday luca" on top. the creative, ambitious and super-mom wannabe me pushed for the homemade dragon creation. seeing luca's eyes widen in awe as the dragon took shape made it all worth it. (there were a few muttered and not so muttered curses as the dragon hump began to crumble and lean, but these were soon replaced with sighs of achievement as it transformed from a yucky mess to an ash covered dragon sitting amongst lava rock - totally to cover up all the smeared and crumbled frosting.)




(title roughly borrowed from the backyardigans tale of the mighty knights, a beloved show in this household - i am often found belting out the power ballad, "i'm not an egg anymore!")

happy st. patrick's day OR (more importantly) happy birthday luca!!!

it sounds so cliche to ask, "how did time fly by so fast?" but that is truly how i am feeling today. my baby boy is not so much a baby. today he turns three! (don't you love the milk dripping off his chin in the photo above?)

we had a low-key party for him yesterday, which was super fun, but still managed to be tiring. (something to do with moving, unpacking/settling, jesse still adjusting to a new job, buying a new home, closing on our old home, going to a one-day mom's conference, and having a birthday party all in 8 days while managing my chronic illness - sometimes i wonder what i am thinking when i plan these things). i will (try to) post on the festivities later today or tomorrow.

living in champaign, kinda

we arrived yesterday around 2:30pm. we finished unloading the truck about 6:30pm. we were in bed by 9:30pm. more details, pics, and such later. just know we have survived part one of the transition. oh yeah, the time changed too.

teachable moment at 6:45am

the last few days we have been packing like crazy and otherwise removing all personal items from the walls and closets. but yesterday afternoon, i began to feel ill with stomach cramps. not uncommon in my life and i just assumed it was another example of my stomach hating me. i have to be careful with what i eat and drink, but sometimes it doesn't make a difference. well, by 8pm i was beginning to feel nauseous (also a pretty regular occurrence). jesse was heading out of town for the night (meetings in carbondale the next morning) and i decided to camp out on the couch for the rest of the night. i slept pretty fitfully and awoke suddenly a little after 6 to luca's cries from upstairs. i ran upstairs, almost falling over from the wave of nausea, and found him coughing violently. he was burning up (temp 102.8) and kept crying, "mama." i dispensed the tylenol, disrobed him from the footie jammies and we rested together in his bed while i stroked his back. when i began to hear gia noises coming from the next room, i asked luca if he wanted to stay in bed or if he wanted to relocate to the couch downstairs. as expected, he wanted to get up. i was grabbing some lightweight clothes to put on the boy, when i he began making miserable crying sounds. i turned from the closet and luca had this awful look on his face. he walked towards me so i could hug him, but part of me wanted to keep him at arm's length. good thing - the throw-up only partially covered my pajamas. he was so upset and confused. i threw some towels on the ground to clean-up and took him to the bathroom. while luca began drinking water from the sink faucet, i started to explain that next time he felt sick, we would try to throw-up in a bucket/bowl/bag or best yet the toilet. now i am all for teachable moments. after several years in a child development program at the u of i and three years of motherhood, i am convinced of their value and usefulness. what i was not expecting - to teach my son the importance of vomiting in a toilet by actually demonstrating the act. we shared some mother-son bonding for sure. i think he was slightly mollified by the extreme empathy.

luca was so sick that he fell asleep on the hardwood floor with the sun shining brightly. the bowl was for accidents.

(3/04 i wrote this yesterday and forgot to post it while fighting back sickness. thankfully, we all woke up this morning feeling normal. 24 hour flu bug i guess. we are still tired and weak, but no illness. during bedtime last night, luca threw-up again all over himself, his papi, and his bed. only fair that jesse share some of the joy!)

ohhhh nooo!

this is luca's verbal reaction everytime he notices another thing taken off the walls (shelves, mirrors, pictures) or a piece of furniture has been cleared off and taken to the garage. don't fret - he is not upset. when he cries, "OHHHH NOOO!" he is smiling and dancing a little jig. he cracks us up.

approaching quickly

i have so many thoughts bouncing around my brain, so many emotions overwhelming my heart, so many stories i want to share, but so little time to write it all down. we will be moved out of our home one week from today. in order for that to happen, i need to pack like crazy. when i need breaks from boxes and bubble wrap and my children are sleeping or not in need or want of my attention, i will try to post.

experiences to countdown in our beloved house:

6 more breakfasts
7 more lunches
5 more dinners
5 more bedtimes
1 more grocery store run (hopefully)
countless tickle fights, temper tantrums, hugs and kisses, glasses of spilled milk, books read, loads of laundry, dance parties and so on and so on . . .