pumpkin picking

our kids may not know the ins and outs of an official pumpkin picking hayride, but they do know where the best road side stand is for getting pumpkins!  and because we're not paying an arm and a leg, we can get a whole bunch in all different sizes!  we love supporting these local farmers and benefitting from cheaper pumpkins!  

round the kitchen table...

pregnant!!

yes, it's true.  we are pregnant again.  in some ways, i knew it had to be.  in other ways, i'm still in surreal-can-this-really-be-true world.  that plus sign came up quick and strong!  there's no doubt about it! i've already had many thoughts running through my mind with this pregnancy.  in some moments, i think of course we'll have four.  the next one will fit right in and our family will be complete.  in other moments, like tonight, when utter chaos is erupting, i wonder how it will all work out.  but to be honest, the first set of thoughts win out most of the time.  with each addition, there's been a sense of ease that's come with it.  not that it's been easy per say, but a sense of comfort, familiarity.  it makes me look forward to the arrival and introduction of #4 to the rest of the family, with excitement and not fear, joy and not anxiety.  

though i had to admit there is already cause for some potential anxiety.  as many will recall, the two older kids and i got hand, foot, and mouth disease last summer (aka: the coxsackie virus).  because of it, i was deemed high risk and went through quite a roller coaster of emotions, wondering if i'd ever meet my little boy at all.  i can't tell you how many times i rock maurice now, holding him tight against my chest, and praise God i get to hold him.  God protected him from that virus crossing the placenta.  Yet, now, nearly 11 months later, my little reese has the horrid hand, foot, and mouth, as does isaac.  reese has it worse though.  but the thought occurred to me tonight...God spared him from it in the womb, and allowed him to get it now, that he's strong enough to fight it off.  what a wonderful God we serve!  and yes, the inevitable thought is then...what?  do i have it?  so far, so good.  i have no signs of it.  i'm praying it stays that way.  whether just exposure to the virus or actually getting it AGAIN while pregnant...at least the Lord has already walked me down this road once before.  i pray i don't lean on a self-sufficient mindset and think i can get myself through all by myself.  but there is that familiarity again, that God has given in holding my hand down this road once before.

i can't wait to see this new little one in my belly...and just catch a glimpse!  june (or may) will be here before we know it.  until then, i pray my boys heal quickly from this blasted virus, the rest of my family is spared from it, that God would prepare all of us for the transition of another baloche, and for tonight...that all would sleep uninterrupted until morning.  good night all.

new favorite

can't get enough of this stuff...

it's been a while

as for updates around here, here's the latests in pictures...

justin has been working with Trader Joe's for two months now...

don't you love his cabana wear?!  seriously, he does look handsome in them, but then again i think he looks handsome in anything.  the job is going very well.  the schedule is the hardest part to get used to, which we knew would be the case, but it still has been tough at times.  but he is enjoying working with food and interacting with customers again.  it's so fun going in there and getting to see daddy!  what a blessing God has given us in this job.

this about sums up isaac...climbing, throwing, building, knocking down, wrestling, you name it...he's all boy!

still love this camera!!  isaac and i went out one morning early to water the plants and found dew and bugs everywhere.  it was a sweet time with him.

oh my baby girl...where have you gone?  elise is transforming into a little girl before our eyes.

she sings, she dances (and i mean dances...everywhere!  in the grocery store, at church, in target...everywhere!), she loves school, loves her brothers (most of the time)...she's so smart and observant, she remembers everything, she loves to color and create, her imagination is busting at the seams, she loves to help cook, i could go on and on.  what a gift to have her in our lives.

oh my izie boy!  you're a nut!!!  and i love you for it!  he truly is all boy...i am amazed at how children just lean towards interests and hobbies, without them ever being fostered.  he came down from a nap a week or so ago, and found justin watching football.  he jumped up and down, ran over to the chair, and asked, "i watch football dada?"  he was genuinely excited!  he spots every baseball or football game we drive by, every sports field we pass...not to mention every dog, bike, motorcycle, horse and plane too.  but the unique balance of boy rough and toughness balances out with a gentle, sweet, kind, caring side too.  he's the first to ask, "you ok mama?" if i hurt myself.  he loves taking things to people and helping.  and many times he's content to just snuggle in my arms.  someday, that won't be the case so i try to soak it up now :)

justin and i joke at what an outdoorsman he has become since we got married.  here's our heat source for the winter.  i feel like little house on the prairie as we tell people he has to split wood to get ready for winter.  i feel like i should be canning and preserving things...

after the hurricane, we found out it was a fallen tree that took out the power on our street.  fallen tree = more wood for us!  so the day before we left for vacation, he took two trips down there with his chain saw and came back with this...

it should be noted, he's getting the rest of it (which is still there) tomorrow :)  he takes such good care of our family and works so hard.  i couldn't ask for a better man!

her first day of school this year!  how did she grow up so quickly??!!

first day of school photo shoot!

i like taking pictures while they're eating...guess it's because they're actually sitting still...

reesey boy...he's moving, crawling, standing, laughing, teething, smiling, playing, eating...the best word to describe him is joyful.  i pray that word marks him for the rest of his life.  he finds joy in everything and rarely cries.  it's hard to remember what life was like before him.  what a treasure he is.

mama's gotten lazy with the third...he either gets a shower with one of us...or ends up bathing in the sink :)

playgroup the other day.  what a blessing to get together with so many wonderful moms and dear friends.  and what a blessing to have our children grow up together.

new way to have fun, learn, and pass the time...homemade water table (aka: the bathroom sink)

round here

round here...

summer is in full swing,

we are enjoying lots of time home,

kiddos are growing, changing, (fighting), playing, hugging, creating,

justin is loving his new job working with food and people once more,

we are spending lots of time with family as one of the patriarchs is in his "twilight days",

and mama...

well, mama is watching it all,

soaking it all in,

trying to enjoy it all,

trying to wrap her arms around it all,

trying to see her Savior in it all...

 flowers elise picked for me from the front yard

isaac when his poor eye swells up.  he has allergic reactions to stuff and just rubs, rubs, rubs...

elise discovering we have dolls from nanny and when i was a kid...little girls and dolls...

drawing a picture of her beloved cousins, eva and mara

reesey doing what he does best...chillin'

isaac banging on stuff.  doesn't matter what it is, he'll bang it 

justin found him like this one morning, not long after moving to his big boy twin bed.  if you can't quite tell, he's sleeping horizontally inside the headboard

and another one caught sleeping...elise fell asleep while actually coloring.  the marker lid is still in her hand!

and yet another one found sleeping in an odd place.  went up to check on him after putting him down for a nap...yup, found him in his chair.

rock band with aunt mare mare (elise put that costume together herself!)

love this face!

kissing daddy as he leaves for work.  we are so thankful for his new job at trader joe's.  what a blessing.  God's hand and planning are all over this.  within two months of being laid off, he was starting at tj's.  after years of applying for job whenever he'd get laid off and never hearing anything back from companies, this opportunity came through in less than two months!  Thank You loving Father.  it's so nice to see my husband enjoying what he does again.  there is no price tag on that.