Haw-Haw Party, Elisha's 2nd Birthday

Elisha celebrated his second birthday last Friday, and we gave him a Horse/Cowboy party on Saturday at his Uncle Jess's house. All of his grandparents were there except Poppa and Granny. Lucas and Cylia were his special guests. Even though their parents were traveling to speak at a church about their mission work, they got to come with their grandmother, Renda. Cole, Katie, Dave, Tan, Angie, Janice, and little Maddie were also there. I made him a horse cake and sheriff badge cupcakes. I decorated with cowboy hat and boots, but Caleigh stole them from the table. Grandma bought bandanas to make goodie bags. He received a cowboy hat and several guns, tools and a toolbox, a wheelbarrow, shovel, and hoe, and clothes and shoes. He was already putting his tools to use when Uncle Jess went to putting the wheelbarrow together. He wasn't really into opening his gifts. He just wanted to "work."

Lisha riding Nellie with Cole. They look like they are doing a better job than I did. I couldn't get her to go in anything but a circle.

Caleigh and Maddie holding hands in the pasture. Caleigh said Maddie was her best friend on the way home.

Daddy helping Lisha ride on Cole-Cole's shoulders

Elisha with Horse Cake and Sheriff Badge cupcakes. He was quite bashful as we sang. He would glare up at us with an "I'm-rotten" expression.

Getting ready for bed with gun and cowboy hat

(Unfortunately, my camera's zoom is broken, so I didn't get many good pictures.)

• says "holds-ey" when he wants to be picked up
• prays "God help Cole-Cole" every time we pray
• sounds like he is talking with marbles in his mouth
• loves to climb on Josiah
• tattles on Caleigh - "Ca-e hit me!"
• loves to chase the chickens and sometimes tries to kick them
• carries a hammer everywhere
• loves to ride the motorcycle at Geez-Paw's
• calls people on the phone and actually talks
• loves to ride around the block in the car
• wants to put on his work boots as soon as he wakes up
• wants to wear his "boo" jeans everywhere
• calls his milk "choc-choc"
• pee-pees in the potty before bath time
• likes to play guitar...He calls the mandolin his "tar"
• has gotten his last two-year molars
• sleeps 11 hours some nights
• loves to eat everything - raisins, bbq sauce, fruit,
• is learning colors and shapes and numbers and abc's - little progress
• enjoys terrorizing the little girls in the nursery

Josiah's Baby Dedication

It has only been a little over a year since Elisha's baby dedication. My how things change...so quickly. My how our family is growing so quickly.

There were five babies dedicated, including the new set of twins. Someone who videoed it told me Josiah was so sleepy he nodded off during a prayer as he faced the congregation. Then, he did a head jerk when it got loud again. As parents, we joined in a covenant to raise our children in the instruction of the Lord, and our congregation convenanted together that would would encourage us in this task. Rusty preached a very good message on wanting better for your children, but he focused on how better is not worldly gain. Better is a life of service to the Lord, if on the mission field or in a dangerous neighborhood. Better may mean not being held in high regard in the world's eyes. What a great responsibility we have as parents. May the Lord guide us in the endeavor and give us grace as we fail.

Elisha in his Georgia gear the day before... He has on red shoes, even though they are a little too big.

Lishey piled up on Daddy before bedtime

Caleigh showing off her dress from Aunt Katie and Dave

Josiah in the nursery floor before church

All three kids posed together. It is impossible to get two to look at the same time. It will be harder to get three to do so.

Okay. Okay. They are all looking, but Caleigh has her tongue stuck out.

Using his muscles...or rolls

Caleigh taking a picture of me and Lisha making silly faces

Lisha riding the horse like a wild man

Our whole family after the dedication...but doesn't it look like Katie and Dave's wedding picture with them posed so perfectly in the middle? Aunt Meig, Rusty, Caleigh, Geez-Paw Steve, Grandma Mary Jane, Aunt Katie, Dave, Granny Hazel, Cassie, Josiah, Daddy Walt, Poppa Van, and Elisha. Granna Kristy and Poppy John and Cole Cole were on there way back from Disney World.

Elisha really enjoyed the Easter Basket Surprise Pie I made, made from candy from the kids' Easter baskets.

Aunt Katie playing dress-up with Caleigh...She actually wore this get-up out in the yard all afternoon.

Josiah that evening after eating his first bowl of cereal with the help of Caleigh and Elisha

Fatty Four Months

Josiah went to the doctor on April 1 for his four month check-up. I already knew it, but the scales proved it. I'm growing a hefty boy. He weighed 17 pounds and 9 ounces and was 26 inches long. That put him in the 90 percentile for weight and the 75 percentile for height. Of course they asked about his development, and when I said he doesn't do anything but coo and smile, the doctor said he must be a happy, lazy boy. He enjoys chewing his thumb, not sucking, hates being placed on his belly, and likes chewing his blanket as he goes to sleep. The Monday after his visit he started picking up toys and placing them in his mouth. This is convenient since he is cutting his first tooth, the bottom right (and Elisha is cutting his last). He is really is a great baby. It will be hard not to want another little baby after him since he is so sweet.

Picture taken on his four month birthday

Pictures of him smiling at me and eating his hands

A little extra: I found Caleigh growing mold in her jewelry box. What would encourage the child to place strawberries in there? I think she had been hiding candy in there and thought it would be a good idea to hide her strawberries there too. I honestly can't keep up with her.

Resurrection Day

We were blessed as we celebrated Resurrection Day last Sunday, worshipping together with our church family and spending time with family. We woke up the kids and they went to look at their Easter mountain. (We took the idea from Noel Piper's book on traditions). Jesus had risen. The tomb was empty. I also had written a little Easter message on the door window. Caleigh kept pretending to read it.

Aunt Meig joined us at church during which Rusty preached on the power of the resurrection, how we have new life in Christ, and she joined us for a mini lunch at Raphael's. We went to Aunt Katie's for the Philyaw get-to-gether. I made my first homemade ice cream, which was a success. There were a bunch of babies with six great-grandchildren in the family, all under 4. The kids hunted eggs, and Caleigh and Elisha both won 8 dollars in prize money. After that, we went to the Langfords where we enjoyed another meal of ham and chicken and dressing. Some friends of the family came over, and Caleigh got to play with their little girl Maddie. She had a few sharing issues, but she was happy to have a friend.

Caleigh and Elisha digging in their Easter baskets from Grandma and Geez-Paw

Josiah and Granny in the recliner. The near-2o-pound dude has almost out grown her.

Caleigh and Maddie after hunting eggs

Josiah at church

Caleigh with her friends, Annika and Kylee, from church

Elisha looking for eggs. He spent more time checking out the horses and lawnmower than he did searching for eggs.

Granna and Josiah and Caleigh not wanting to share the attention

Aunt Meig telling Caleigh the Widemouth Frog story. She asked me not to put up this picture, but it was a memorable moment.

Our Easter mountain. It wasn't beautiful, but it was functional. We didn't make the chenille people. Instead, we just used little blobs of salt dough. Jesus is purple. The gray ones are the guards who fell down, and the pink one is Mary Magdalene.

Window Marker Message

Caleigh kissing Josiah. Caleigh loved her sponge rolled hair. It was the first time it actually worked.

The didn't really want to cooperate for the picture. Elisha's shirt was already dirty. It didn't make five minutes at church after Mr. Doc gave him a cinnamon candy.

Caleigh...I'm not sure if she looks older or younger here, but she looks different than she usually does.

PRAISE THE LORD! JESUS IS ALIVE!

Scarecrow and Dye

The Langfords are agricultural. After much time working on the belts on the tiller, having to take it to Mr. Donnie's, Rusty finally got our garden planted with the help of Uncle Jess: corn, green beans, tomatoes, peppers, squash, zucchini, potatoes, and onions. We still need to plant the okra, watermelon, and cantaloupe. We will only now pray that the Lord grows it. Every year we are amazed that those little seeds turn into food.

Because the birds ate all our corn the first year we planted despite our attempt at a scarecrow, Rusty decided a to make a more real-life scarecrow. We decked him out in Rusty's work shirt and jeans, cowboy boots, and a cap and stuffed him with pine straw, and so far he is doing his job. But, I know he is eventually going to scare/surprise me.

With all the action in the yard, it took me all day to get both kids ready to dye eggs. When we finally got to it, Elisha was more interested in trying to stand on the table than dyeing eggs. He also tried to drink the dye...Caleigh was excited she made Poppy a Crimson Tide Easter egg (a brown egg dyed red). And, Josiah was just happy that he got to get out of his winter clothes.

From scarecrow to scary...Caleigh ran around all day in her oh-to0-short skirt, a green crocodile shirt, striped knee highs, and her (beep-beep) boots. (I am raising the Queen of Tacky!) So, Elisha had to deck himself out in his blue jean jacket and Caleigh's Hello Kitty boots before getting in the bathtub.

March...Madness

March was another wild month for us, but all I remember was the stomach bug and the True Woman Conference. I was surprised that my kids ended with the stomach bug a second time in three weeks. Caleigh had diarrhea first, and I simply thought she ate too many grapes. Then, Elisha started throwing up. He threw up for four days....He wouldn't stop eating. It didn't get better, so I took him to the doctor. He also broke out in awful hives that lasted for two weeks. I couldn't decide if it was the virus or an allergic reaction to the Bounce stick-on in the dryer. The doctor finally told me lots of kids had some virus that caused hives.

At then end of the month, I (and Josiah on Friday) went to the True Woman conference here in Chattanooga. No one from church was able to go with me. Thankfully, my mother-in-law and her friend went, so I got to spend some quality time with them. I enjoyed the conference, especially the Gettys who led worship. I don't know who wouldn't love singing wonderful hymns with an Irish twang that have such Christ-centerd lyrics.

I had never heard Voddie Bacham speak before, and I like what he had to say. "Don't think your circumstances are special. The Lord can do more with what you don't have than you can do with what you do have." Nancy Leigh DeMoss, Mary Kassian, Kay Arthur, James McDonald, and Jennifer Rothschild also did a nice job encouraging the women present to be biblical women.

I had already shown the True Woman manifesto to the ladies at church, but I was glad such a solid document was presented to the diversity of women there. I don't know if everyone there realized what they were promoting, but I definitely heard the message that ladies need to fulfill their roles as mothers and wives, not career women. They need to be submissive to their husbands and build up with their tongues instead of tear down. They need to support the ministry of the local church. I have been truly blessed to have already been exposed to such theology (which seemed close to reformed theology, considering the speakers present), but I'm glad they are spreading the message. I would encourage any woman to go if she was able at one of the other locations - Dallas/Fort Worth and Indianapolis.

Elisha's Hives

Caleigh and Rusty on the little motorcycle. She was probably tired after chasing them during Elisha's turn.

Elisha and Rusty on the little motorcycle. He wouldn't get close to it if he wasn't riding it, but he loved it when he was on it.

Josiah, bib only

Second attempt at sponge rollers - failed

Rusty made Elisha a board with screws and nails. He quickly went to work, and Caleigh joined him. And yes, he is holding a real hammer and a play hammer.

Smile! I love you!

Hello Kitty boots

Josiah sticking out his tongue

Geez-Paw's glasses upside down