Friday, November 20, 2009
and more
Thursday, November 19, 2009
photos
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
It's Christmas!
At least in our house! Put up the tree yesterday and had the perfect weather for it - after a hot week it suddenly cooled down and rained yesterday so I had fun putting up decorations, feeling cold and listening to Christmas music. Love this time of year with candles and being able to cuddle without getting all hot and sticky!
This is our third week back and the boys have settled in well and have been way less challening these past few days. Maybe it's partly my attitude, too. I felt like I was just reprimanding and scolding them all day so I deliberately decided to enjoy them again and do fun things with them so that has helped.
Dylan is starting to enjoy helping me in the kitchen, chopping vegetables (he's only nicked his finger once so far!) and setting the table so that's cool! And Elliot does whatever Dylan does so he's underfoot in the kitchen, too.
Last week we celebrated Elliot's 2nd birthday and Ayden's 2 month birthday! Elliot is so cute, stubborn, still runs into doors or trips over things at least once a day, loves the cat and his brothers and is so sweet and gentle with Ayden even though he's usually not very careful. He's so different from Dylan and it's fun to watch his personality come out more and more!
Ayden is growing well and is still the easiest Baby, so contend (except when his tummy is bothering him) and very cute. He's smiling and responding and I'm glad he joined our family!
Here's a funny story about Dylan that I finally remembered long enough to write down somewhere: I took him and Elliot to the "supermarket" one of two places where we can buy fresh milk and dairy products and all other food items that delight our foreign heart. I just wanted to quickly run in and get some frozen chicken so they waited in the car. But the packets were all stuck together in the freezer and so it took longer than expected. When I finally got back into the car I explained why it had taken so long and that it was hard for the lady working at the store to get the chicken out of the freezer for me. And Dylan says: Yes, it needs a mens (a man) to do it. Mens are strong but ladies aren't. A mens could do it but a lady can't. :)
Photos will follow!
This is our third week back and the boys have settled in well and have been way less challening these past few days. Maybe it's partly my attitude, too. I felt like I was just reprimanding and scolding them all day so I deliberately decided to enjoy them again and do fun things with them so that has helped.
Dylan is starting to enjoy helping me in the kitchen, chopping vegetables (he's only nicked his finger once so far!) and setting the table so that's cool! And Elliot does whatever Dylan does so he's underfoot in the kitchen, too.
Last week we celebrated Elliot's 2nd birthday and Ayden's 2 month birthday! Elliot is so cute, stubborn, still runs into doors or trips over things at least once a day, loves the cat and his brothers and is so sweet and gentle with Ayden even though he's usually not very careful. He's so different from Dylan and it's fun to watch his personality come out more and more!
Ayden is growing well and is still the easiest Baby, so contend (except when his tummy is bothering him) and very cute. He's smiling and responding and I'm glad he joined our family!
Here's a funny story about Dylan that I finally remembered long enough to write down somewhere: I took him and Elliot to the "supermarket" one of two places where we can buy fresh milk and dairy products and all other food items that delight our foreign heart. I just wanted to quickly run in and get some frozen chicken so they waited in the car. But the packets were all stuck together in the freezer and so it took longer than expected. When I finally got back into the car I explained why it had taken so long and that it was hard for the lady working at the store to get the chicken out of the freezer for me. And Dylan says: Yes, it needs a mens (a man) to do it. Mens are strong but ladies aren't. A mens could do it but a lady can't. :)
Photos will follow!
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Home, sweet home
Well, we've been back for a week now. The moment we got off the airplane we felt at home - familiar sights and sounds, familiar weather, familiar faces. Yet at the same time there is the thrill of seeing things as if seeing them for the first time.
We have arrived back in my favorite time of year - the days are amazing with beautiful blue skies and pleasant temperatures while the evening cools off and the nights are cold.
It's been a tiring week in some ways and it does not feel like we've been back for just 7 days. It feels like it's already been a lot longer...While we were in Germany we had various people staying at our house so our days have been filled with unpacking and reorganizing our home, looking for things that have been put in a different place and readjusting to life here. Plus, we had to catch up with all that has been happening at the Day Care Center. And have a new team to take care of. So we've been busy.
The boys have been very challenging. I'm not sure if it's due to our transition back and on top of all that having a new baby brother. They have never been openly jealous but really love him and yet it is a huge change for them and they too have to process it all. At times I forget just how much must be going on in their little heads. Elliot still can't verbalize all of it but Dylan does come up with things that give us a glimpse of what he is thinking about.
I guess us being so busy has not helped them to feel relaxed and settled and so I hope that next week will be easier and better as we ease back into a routine.
Before we left for Germany we were exhausted and often contemplated if we should return at all. The last year was difficult in many ways for all of us and I wasn't sure if I was ready to face it all again. But having time to relax was good and it helped to just be away in a totally different place for a while to regain some perspective.
Now that we're back I have had moments when I wondered why we are doing this to ourselves. But my overall feeling is that our time here is not yet over. I can't imagine living anywhere else at the moment and even though life here REALLY challenges me at the same time I love it and marvel at the opportunity I have of living here and raising a family here.
I have been encouraged by Psalm 84: "Blessed is he who sets his heart on pilgrimage...". I am learning that what really matters in life is to have an eternal perspective and that in the end it all boils down to attitude. No matter how bad things are or how difficult my kids are or how hard life is, it's a matter of my attitude towards it all and how I react to all of these things. And most of all I have to ask myself: do I trust God to give me the strength that I need and the right attitude or do I try to handle it all on my own?
And so I rejoice in another day here and another opportunity to try and live a joyful and content and meaningful life focusing on the eternal. And that is what I hope I will be able to pass on to our boys. I hope that they too will see this adventure as a privilege and that we will not only survive but thrive.
We have arrived back in my favorite time of year - the days are amazing with beautiful blue skies and pleasant temperatures while the evening cools off and the nights are cold.
It's been a tiring week in some ways and it does not feel like we've been back for just 7 days. It feels like it's already been a lot longer...While we were in Germany we had various people staying at our house so our days have been filled with unpacking and reorganizing our home, looking for things that have been put in a different place and readjusting to life here. Plus, we had to catch up with all that has been happening at the Day Care Center. And have a new team to take care of. So we've been busy.
The boys have been very challenging. I'm not sure if it's due to our transition back and on top of all that having a new baby brother. They have never been openly jealous but really love him and yet it is a huge change for them and they too have to process it all. At times I forget just how much must be going on in their little heads. Elliot still can't verbalize all of it but Dylan does come up with things that give us a glimpse of what he is thinking about.
I guess us being so busy has not helped them to feel relaxed and settled and so I hope that next week will be easier and better as we ease back into a routine.
Before we left for Germany we were exhausted and often contemplated if we should return at all. The last year was difficult in many ways for all of us and I wasn't sure if I was ready to face it all again. But having time to relax was good and it helped to just be away in a totally different place for a while to regain some perspective.
Now that we're back I have had moments when I wondered why we are doing this to ourselves. But my overall feeling is that our time here is not yet over. I can't imagine living anywhere else at the moment and even though life here REALLY challenges me at the same time I love it and marvel at the opportunity I have of living here and raising a family here.
I have been encouraged by Psalm 84: "Blessed is he who sets his heart on pilgrimage...". I am learning that what really matters in life is to have an eternal perspective and that in the end it all boils down to attitude. No matter how bad things are or how difficult my kids are or how hard life is, it's a matter of my attitude towards it all and how I react to all of these things. And most of all I have to ask myself: do I trust God to give me the strength that I need and the right attitude or do I try to handle it all on my own?
And so I rejoice in another day here and another opportunity to try and live a joyful and content and meaningful life focusing on the eternal. And that is what I hope I will be able to pass on to our boys. I hope that they too will see this adventure as a privilege and that we will not only survive but thrive.
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