little boy's first

before buzzcut:



his hair grows fast, unevenly, and is always a little sweaty so daddy cut it all off today.

he looks so grown up to me which makes me a little sentimental. i ask him to stay my little boy and he says he has to grow into a "tall, tall, tall daddy!"

i like it because i can see more of that sweet kissable face and those dreamy chocolatey eyes!

harvest and hips

we harvested our first cantaloupe! it was yummy and i'm thankful it is a favorite of the kiddos. besides the few tomatoes graham and i ate right off the vine, this is our first yield from the somewhat neglected garden. as it turns out, you have to water your tomatoes. as usual, time is just so short and i am generally distracted.

in other news, marit had her annual orthopedics appointment to check her hips. as usual, our patient doc said "it doesn't look normal, but it looks really good." that means no surgery or brace wearing for the near future and we will just continue to watch them as she grows. we are thankful, thankful, thankful.

birthday footage

goals for celebrating marit's birthday this year: love on her and celebrate her precious life, while keeping it simple in the wake of a busy wedding week.

results: individual special time with daddy for birthday breakfast and mommy after dinner.
we went to our favorite book store and picked a few titles to add to our library and then stopped to share a big cookie and an izzie at sundrees

the next day we shared a picnic dinner at a local park with water and painting (two of her favorites) with two close families and adam's parents. i let her decorate her own cupcakes.


miles got lots of love too




paint is messy, but it's worth it sometimes



all in all she had a blast. she keeps saying things like "i'm four you know, so i can buckle my seat all by myself" and actually she can. little miss independence is growing up and i'm finding i need to slow down and get out of the way and let her do that at times.

brotherly frosting-face kisses


grandparents:)

just for fun is a muscle shot...one day these guys will come in handy:)

on sisters

all these wedding festivities and preparations have caused me to reflect a lot on sisters, and specifically my sister charlotte. these thoughts are to in no way diminish the beautiful and precious relationships i have with women who are not related to me. rather, it is to notice grace and honor the gift of my dear sister-friend. i was so thankful that the weeks leading up to the wedding were so busy and joyful that i did not take too much time to think about the reality that char is leaving and cleaving in a major way and going with her man to the midwest...hours away from here (though i did get a little weepy at times...during my rehearsal dinner toast for example). she moved here originally to be near us when graham was born...entirely unselfishly and God in His goodness blessed that unselfish decision with the gift of a husband. all along i hoped to get her married to a man from here so that we could live in the same city forever (or at least for a while), but then she went and fell in love with an army man! alas, my plan was thwarted...and i'm glad because jeremiah is just right for my sister. my dad dug up some old pictures for char's reception and i will say that we have both improved in the fashion department, even if char is still cooler (and probably always will be) and i'm ok with that. all this sister talk has also caused us to think about how we are not finished having children and maybe biologically or by adoption the Lord will gift Marit with a sister one day. and maybe she will have the privilege of sharing life with her and the honor of standing by her at important moments...like wedding days. i cannot even really describe all the emotion and joy that it is to share that with such a dear one.

charlotte is cuddly and cheesy and thoughtful and i love that about her.

she has always been about the accessories. i need to get an iphone i guess so i can continue to get her constant fashion advice...

here she is fresh and new. i am so glad my parents did not stop at 3 kids! what a gift that baby was and is as my built-in best friend and a loving and faithful friend to so many others!

she still has that adorable smile and the cutest nose ever

being cold and miserable is somehow made bearable with a sister

this one is just cute.

congratulations beautiful sister now a wife...looking forward to how our friendship will continue to grow as marrieds, but my how we will miss you being close! i love, love, love the amazing and creative person that you are. i am so thankful for you!


jeremiah and his treasure...he knows he is the luckiest guy in the world i think. i'll make sure to remind him occasionally

marit is four

birthday daddy date at new moon

it is hard to believe how fast she has grown (doesn't every parent say that?). she is slowly becoming a girl and less toddler as baby fluff and down are replaced with the feathers she will need. we love this treasure we are blessed by every day. she is a delight. we praise God for her life and for the work He is doing in her heart and life already. marit loves conversation, expression, details, pink, babies (animal or human and especially kittens), flowers (my garden help), baking, BOOKS, painting, swimming, dancing, singing, daddy dates, and surprises. happy birthday sweet snuggle bug!
newborn

one

two (graham is pretty much always at her side)

three


four (waiting for her flower girl debut!)

a little pre-wedding

my incredible sisters-in law and i threw the bridesmaids brunch on friday morning. bethany and kelly made wonderful scones and quiche from scratch and we gathered, stopped, ate, and prayed for sweet char and her marriage. it was such a delightful time. we were thankful to use a neighbor's house for this event since ours was a little busy already...thanks diane!

my brother abe and bethany came from india and stayed with us all week to help get ready. they were in charge of music so abe sat around like this a lot and organized the other musicians and such while bethany helped out pretty much everywhere cooking and cleaning and decorating and below choreographing the first dance. side note: it was SO fun to be able to spend so much time with the incredible women who are my sisters-in law. i am so thankful for you!

as it turns out, the couple ran out of time to practice their dance so they opted for a more simple version of swaying and spinning.

abe and bethany brought back 12 pairs of hand-made shoes from inda for the groomsmen.

wedding short-film

this is probably better than pictures...talented videographer

cleaning

we are slowly resuming normal life after my sister's amazing wedding. it was a quite a frenzy of a week with our house being the hub of sorts for family and friends. it was so much fun. we are so tired. char is the last of my siblings to get married off and it was a privilege to stand by her. it was also a privilege to hose down all those dishes and wash six loads of table cloths! now we are catching up on rest. more pictures to come hopefully:)

8-9 months

miles will by 9 months on the 15th and i missed his 8 month post so here is a mish-mash of updates on this bruiser. we won't have new stats until he is nearly 10months, but i am guessing he is around 20 lbs. he is heavy and strong. i'm sure he and graham will be wrestling each other in no time. his new nickname is "butternut" and he is simply a delight. he has his first tooth and i hardly knew he was teething, though looking back, i guess he has been a bit on edge. he is my earliest teether thus far. he eats all manner of smashed up stuff and lots of rice puffs and still nurses 5ish times a day...piglet, but i love it!

he can't seem to get his knees up underneath him, but he is fairly mobile with the army-crawl and he can get to lots of things. soon he will be learning the word "no" from mommy...

he gets super grungy being all over the floor and i love to give him sink baths. the other day he was fascinated by running water. oh to hold on to wonder!



these two bffs are my kitchen help. sometimes i put miles in his walker, but he just follows me around and rams the thing into my legs.

popping in today for a few updated pictures before i take a little bloggy break until after my amazing, beautiful, dear sister's wedding in 10 days! i'm hoping to get some up of miles too. the kids and i took a trip to see my parents this weekend while adam worked a good bit. it was my first by-myself trip with all three little peeps and it was not easy, but not as hard as i expected either. i'm thankful! my parents occasionally lament that people (mostly grandkids) don't visit often enough...not in a guilting sort of way, but in a welcoming...we'd love to see you and for you to use the pool sort of way. we were glad it worked out. my brother, sister-in-law and kids were there too. it was a really fun visit! marit and graham shared a bed for the first time:

fort-building

here we are with all the kiddos and kel is due in august for SIX grandbabies for my parents.

look who has been helping me out lately!

when i ask her if she can stay little and be my little girl forever...she giggles and says "nooo, i want to grow up and get married and be a mommy." she'll be a good one:)