Michelle's Blog

This monumental moment happend to take place two months ago, but I think it's still worth blogging about. Ian Joseph joined our family on March 11, 2009. He weighed in at 7 lbs 10 oz.


Sleeping like a baby.

I still have fun with the others, too!

Tabitha, big sister, little mom.

The parents!


(Hanneke, I finally got it done!)

It's a little hard to tell, considering Tabitha's front gap is just about as big, but TABITHA LOST HER FIRST TOOTH!
She didn't even need the dentist's help ;). She noticed it was loose Tuesday night right before bed. And then in the morning it was suddenly in her hand. She said there was no pain and there wasn't even really any blood.
I enjoy telling my kids the truth about things. Immediately Tabitha started talking about the tooth fairy. When Seth asked if the tooth fairy lives in the stars I replied, "Well, since he's fake, he can live where ever you want him to live." Tabitha pouted and said that he isn't fake and I was hurting people's feelings by saying that. Later Enoch told me that I should just let her be a kid.

I did put a dollar under her pillow (is that the going rate?), and I will "allow" her to believe, but I can't bring myself to say he's real.

Many of you are aware of the "100th day of school". It's the latest thing to celebrate. Usually children bring in a project of some sort. Maybe 100 pennies glued into the shape of the number 100, or 100 pieces of candy. Well, for Tabitha I came up with this brilliant idea (I'm being sarcastic here!) to take photos of her trying on 100 different outfits. When I started I didn't realize how time consuming of a project this would be. Today was the day. Here she is holding her complete album. She told me she didn't have to smile for this picture, because the album did it for her.
The following are a few of my favorites. Oddly enough I don't think they're my favs because of the clothes, but because of Tabitha's personality which shines through! Enjoy. :)








If you do dare to try this at home, I must ask: What are you doing with 100 outfits at home?? Maybe you should consider downsizing. :) We did most of these photos in store changing rooms.

True love:

Every once in a while Seth asks me when I'm going to take my costume off.

Any day, Seth. Any day. :)

Patricia is a big 2 year old now! She easily brings a smile to those around because of her oh-so-pleasant personality.
Sometimes Enoch and I say she's our Latin American daughter. She loves to dance, clean and take care of baby dolls. What more could we ask for? :)
If you ask me, I'd say Patricia is doing quite well with her vocabulary and communication in general. When she puts on a dress shes says, "princess". She says, "thank you" and something along the lines of, "nice to meet you." She greets everyone and readily asks for "more" of what she wants.
Having two older siblings, Patricia picks up older behavior. She tells us she's going to school. When she goes she makes sure she has a bookbag and usually a pair of princess play shoes. She lets us know that she has her lunch and she always asks for her keys, because she needs to take the car. Before she "leaves" she wants a hug, a kiss, a high five and to shake your hand.
The other day she made me very proud and made me realize that she understands more than I give her credit for. Tabitha was coughing at night. As a last resort I poured close to 2 tsp of cough medicine into a medicine cup for her. She was too tired and apparently the coughing bout was over so she didn't take it. I left the cup on the nightstand. The next day Enoch asked me why Patricia was giving him cough medicine. I flew downstairs and inspected the cup. She didn't drink any of it, she knew what it was and made sure it was given to an adult. She may sneak candy on occasion and swallow her toothpaste on purpose, but she knows the boundaries.

Patricia is a delight to all who know her and we're happy that she's a part of our family. Happy Birthday, Princess!

Recently I had the privilege of reading Karen Linamen's book titled, "Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight". It was quite relaxing to be able to read something as lighthearted as this. Most of my reading lately has been commentaries or parenting books, so this was a nice change.

Karen has a great sense of humor. You may not burst out laughing while reading her book, but her humor does put you at ease. When she pokes fun, it's mostly at herself not at others. An example of a chapter title: "Very funny, Scotty. Now beam up my clothes: sometimes traveling light isn't such a bad idea." Just silly little things that make life not so serious, something I really need more often than not.

So, what exactly is the book about anyway? Well, its about change. Is there something in your life that you would like to be different? Then this is the book for you. Karen sets out 52 different ways for you to accomplish that change. You don't have to follow every step and it probably wouldn't be good to only chose one or two things, but they work together. You don't have to start the book with a plan in mind already. The beginning of the book gives you a few steps to help you establish what changes you will want to make, before she gives you the tools to actually change them.

I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this book from a Christian perspective. The Lord is not mentioned at all in the first couple of chapters until you get to the questions section at the end of chapter two. Then suddenly, out of nowhere, some Bible references are mentioned. However, later in the book, Karen devotes a whole chapter on our relationship with God. She does lay out the Gospel clearly enough. After that she seems more comfortable speaking about Biblical things.

My favorite thing about this book is Karen's use of examples. Never once will she make a statement without giving at least one good example. She either will give five or so short examples or a 2-4 page detailed one. Here's an example :

"Dumping the stuff that's holding us back isn't just about progress. Sometimes it's about survival. Like a spaceship in crises, we're losing power fast, and if we don't jettisoning the unnecessary weight and burdensome baggage slowing us down, there's a good chance we're going to crash and burn." -her statement

"I know a woman who ate herself into a size twenty-four and stayed there. One day we were talking about regrets and she confessed..." -her example (which you'll have to read the book to find out!)

Now that I'm finished reading the book, my job is to change! One thing that I've committed to and would like to see improvement in is my photography. I set a goal for myself and I'm going to work towards that goal. I guess you'll have to stay tuned if you want to see any progress in that department. :)