The Good Sister

Gillian is finally learning to talk a little bit. One of her favorite words is "hol" or hold... She is always asking to hold Peyton. And, she doesn't want any help from Mom or Dad, either! She wants to do it by herself.

Other favorite words - oameal, app-EE (happy), ba (ball), bu (Buzz), boo (book), bow (elbow)& Coke.

Forget-Me-Not

Saturday was the 3rd anniversary of our son Gabriel's birth & passing. We drove over to the cemetery where we buried his body. That is always a special time for us.

I thought I'd share a favorite scripture passage, that became especially important to me while I was pregnant with Gabriel.

2 Corinthians 4:7-10

"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels,

that the surpassing greatness of the power may be of God & not we ourselves;

We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed;

perplexed, but not despairing;

persecuted, but not forsaken;

struck down, but not destroyed;

always carrying about in our body the dying of Jesus,

that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body."

There's No Place Like Home

We were in Macdoel. Now, we are home. How wonderful. We actually drove home last Sunday. We got to surprise my Mom for Mother's day. That was fun! Scott worked really hard to be able to make it home by Sunday.

This wasn't our best time in Macdoel. We ended up staying more than half of the time in a "bunk" house. Initially, we thought it was only going to be a night or two. Then, it was 9 days... It was one room, beds & a kitchen, with a smaller room with laundry & bathroom. Gillian had to sleep in the laundry/bath. Poor girl. And, poor us, we couldn't use the bathroom, anytime she was asleep...

Gillian, Peyton & Scott all got some sort of stomach bug & were pretty sick. We had only a few days of wellness. Everyone was healthy today, thankfully! Peyton seemed to be getting sick again, after we got home. But, he seems fine now.

I didn't get a whole lot of projects finished. But, I did watch quite a lot of t.v.!

I knitted a hat for Peyton (which he has not been wearing since we got home).

I made a little embroidered felt case for my mom, for wallet-sized photos.

And, I made this sock elephant for a baby gift . Sadly, his ears are a little small looking. I think that is because I cut them too big, and they curl in towards his head too much. Oh well...

A Month Delay!

No time to post... We have no Internet time & we have much sickness in the fam. But, we are fine. I'll blog next week!

Why is that so Much Better?

Gillian no longer likes baths. It is a heartbreak, really. She used to run & squeal with delight when she heard the water running. She would bounce up & down as we tried to undress her, eager to jump in. She would splash & play & swim. Now, I can't even get her to sit in the water. She screams, terrified of the thought.

We tried giving her a shower - maybe she would like that? It freaked her out. Not a chance.

And yet...

What makes the sprinkler so much better? Freezing cold water? Being outside? Not being told to do it?

Pork is a Nice Sweet Meat

Have you ever seen the movie Babe? I have. Many times. We watched it yesterday. And the day before. And the day before. And, maybe the day before that - I don't recall...

We think it is a marvelous movie. Gillian loves animals. My husband loves animals, & he loves puppetry in film. I don't have a particular love (nor a particular hate) for either. But, I love Babe. It moves me. It keeps making me cry. It always has. When Babe's mom is taken, when Fly's puppies are sold... but most especially when Babe & Hoggett are winners at the competition. I wonder why this movie gets me so good? Do I really love animals, deep down inside?!

Here's How You Do It

This is Gillian this morning, showing me how to rock a baby. She holds her hands together and goes back & forth. She loves to hold & rock her brother. But, he's a sensitive lad, and doesn't always handle her swift rocking motion very well...

Outings

This week we went on a couple fun outings. We will probably go on a few more, too - as Grandma & Grandpa Adams are coming to visit, arriving anytime now...

On Tuesday, we went to Hidden Beach park in Rio Del Mar, with my sister Krista & her little guy Elijah. Gillian & Elijah love each other & routinely smother each other in hugs & kisses. The day was beautiful. It was great to get out.

Yesterday we went with my sister Leah & brother Jacob to visit Wilder Ranch. It is a gorgeous farm, right off the ocean. There were goats, a sheep & lots of chickens. Gillian was cracking up over the chickens. That was pretty fun.