No More Babies

There are officially no more babies in this house.  Judah is two, and while he has believed himself to be every bit as big as his brothers pretty much since he was born, this morning he woke up with a two year old vocabulary and a two year old attitude.  Every time Judah says a new word Luke will say, "Mama! Write that in his baby book.  I promised him I would eventually and that I would blog about it for his birthday.  Which was Thursday. 

I'm reminded all over again that I am going to have to plan a celebration for his birthday early in December every year because if I don't, it won't happen.  Today, at Kris' parents' house, we're celebrating his birthday with a candle in brownies.  He won't know the difference and he won't care, but if we're still trying to celebrate with brownies when he's ten...well, he might need therapy.

Judah's vocabulary is growing every day, his sense of humor is growing every day, his daring is growing every day, his belly is growing every day.  Big, big boy.  Yesterday when we were in the car heading home I heard him in the backseat saying, "Hello! Bye! Hello! Bye!"  I looked back there and he had his foot up to his ear like a cell phone.  Funny!

He's saying "I'nna see" "Want this" "Wanna go" "More please" "All done" and lots of other multiple word phrases.  I'm not sure that anyone else really understands him, but his mama, daddy and brothers do.  He hauls himself over the top of things that are waaaaay too high for my comfort.  He's starting to actually sit down and play with toys rather than only wandering around getting into stuff.  He still leaves a trail of destruction wherever he goes, but he's enjoying making trucks move, putting blocks together and throwing balls.  He loves to make loud noises, fart noises, happy noises...you get the idea.  All. Boy. All. The. Time.

Judah loves a good bath, loves outside, loves his brothers, loves his family.  And anyone who has spent even a little time with him knows he loves to eat.  The boy can put away some food.  He will eat things I would never be able to get the other two to eat.  Heck, sometimes it's stuff I don't even want to eat!  Loves food.

What a treasure Judah is to us.  He absolutely is adored and enjoyed.

Judah, Mama loves you.  Daddy loves you.  Luke and Eli love you.  Grandma, Papa, Grandmama and Grandaddy love you.  You are one of the most loved two year olds in the world!  Happy birthday!

Faith

I have found that while the boys are out of school and we're not running around so much, I'm much more relaxed in the mornings.  I've enjoyed sitting in what feels like the "holy hush" of the early morning, looking at the Christmas tree with the lights burning (minus the strand that is out) and thinking about my favorite Christmas songs "O Holy Night" and "Silent Night".  I can't help but celebrate the sacrifice God made of sending His Son and the sacrifice that Jesus made in coming as a man - a baby even.

I'm grateful for Mary's sacrifice.  She gave up everything.  Everything!  In her day, she risked her life by saying "Yes" to God.  She gave up her dreams, the dream basically every girl has from the time they are little of finding their love, marrying, having children...in that order.  She gave up her reputation.  Then and for the rest of her life she was known as the woman who said "God told her" that she would bear the Messiah.  And when we really consider the story, her claims were never truly validated because the Jewish people thought Jesus would come as a king, not a servant.  She gave up the dream every mother has for her son of a happy, peaceful, long, honored life.  She sacrificed so much. 

I've been thinking a lot about the men and women of Hebrews 11.  Abraham went, not even knowing where he was going. "Sarah received strength to conceive...when she was past the age". Moses "refused to be called the son of Pharoah's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin". Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jepthah, David, Samuel...

"All these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise."

When I think about these people, what they sacrificed, what they went through to obey, all because they believed God to be faithful...When I look at Mary, how she was never truly vindicated in her life time, never saw the promise of her son reining as King...When I look at my life, the places where I'm not seeing God "come through" on what He's promised...

"These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth." (Hebrews 11:13)

If it never happens, if I never see what I've worked for and sacrificed for come to be, I will trust.  Because He who promised is faithful.

You Might Be Behind On Laundry If...

...You find yourself dressing off the growing pile of clothes on the chair in your room.

...Your husband has to walk through the house naked after showering to find clean underwear.  Every morning.

...Your middle child has been asking about the same shirt almost every day since you got back from Thanksgiving break and you keep answering, "I think it's in the wash."

And the saddest way you know you might be behind on laundry is if...

...Your oldest child comes home with a picture he drew at school of the family decorating the Christmas tree, and the dining room table included in the drawing holds the ten loads of clean laundry that still needs to be folded.

The Encounter by Stephen Arterburn

I just finished my second book from BookSneeze.  The first book I reviewed was excellent, and writing a review was super easy.  This time may be a little more tricky. 

I have a healthy respect for how difficult it is to write a story in a way that grabs the interest of the readers.  I know developing the story is a delicate balance between too many and too few details.  I am always very careful in my opinions of other people's work, whatever the nature.  I like to beat around the bush when asked my thoughts.  I never want to seem critical or insensitive to the creator's hard work.  See? Too many details. 

Alas, I have to write a review of The Encounter by Stephen Arterburn, and I did not enjoy this book.

Jonathan Rush was adopted as a child.  As an adult with anger issues, he embarks on a journey to discover why his mother abandoned him at an early age.  Along the way, he meets a woman named Mercy, who knows much more about his past than she is ready to reveal.  He makes an unlikely friend in the form of a tenacious reporter.  And he finds the truth about his childhood as well as the truth about healing and forgiveness.

The book is short.  The development of the characters even shorter.  I had a hard time connecting with the story, although the premise of it was good.  Conflict, both person-to-person as well as the main character's emotional conflict,  was resolved too quickly for my taste.  Even at the risk of stereotyping, I'm going to have to say that conflict was resolved in typical male form.  What's the problem?  How can we most logically fix it?  Okay, we'll do that.  Done. 

Would I recommend this book?  As much as I hate to be negative, no, I wouldn't.