November 30, 2009 · 1 Comment
I am so excited about christmas this year! Our boys are such fun ages to really get into traditions, baking cookies, and making ornaments. My current project to do soon….is to bead colorful noodles on string with Caleb for our christmas tree. Don’t you remember doing that???
I know there is so much hype around christmas with the shopping and buying. I fall victim to that OFTEN and want to prayerfully go about this season in a different manner. I want to make memories and traditions instead of stressing about what to buy and how much money everything costs. An awesome friend (ahem…Maddie) told me about a tradition she does with her family every year.
They make each other a present! We are doing that with Matt’s family this year…and I am SO excited about it! What an awesome illustration of love to devote time to something for someone you love. I have been rereading the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan. This book rocked my world a year ago…and I am praying it does the same this time around! I will tell you this…I read a page a few days a go and I still can’t shake it from my head. Here is a snip-it from it…
Did you know that a caterpillar has 228 separate and distinct muscles in its head? That’s quite a few, for a bug. The average elm tree has approximately 6 million leaves on it. And your own heart generates enough pressure as it pumps blood throughout your body that it could skirt blood up to 30 feet. Have you ever thought about how diverse and creative God is? He didn’t have to make hundreds of different kinds of bananas, but he did. He didn’t have to put 3,000 different species of trees within one square mile in the Amazon jungle, but he did. God didn’t have to create so many kinds of laughter. Think about the different sounds of your freinds’ laughs-wheezes, snorts, silent, loud obnoxious. How about the way plants defy gravity by drawing water upward from the ground into their stems and veins? Or did you know that spiders produce three kinds of silk? When they build their webs, they create sixty feet of silk in one hour, simultaneously producing special oil on their feet that prevents them from sticking to their own web…
I could keep typing, but I will stop there so you have to get the book and continue reading! 
My point in this long message is that we serve an awesome, creative God. The creativeness he spent on all creation is mind blowing-yet he calls us, humans, his masterpiece (Eph. 2:10). What a crazy love he has for us!
It is my prayer that I will be able to love others with that crazy love….friends that I have known forever or am really close to and fallen into crazy ruts of no longer investing and pursuing the relationship, neighbors that I love…and also those neighbors that are hard to talk to and let in, strangers that I meet while out with my family, my boys-that I can be patient and intentional with them throughout the day, my husband whom I adore, and my extended family…even when its breaking and you might not agree with everyone’s actions, words, or ways…
God loves us with a crazy love. Let’s love others the same way!
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November 18, 2009 · 1 Comment
About a week ago J got his first hair cut! I was very hesitant to cut it before we returned from our “big trip”, but it got to a point where we had to cut it!! I kept waiting for it to curl like matt’s…mine…and Caleb’s…but it looks like he might be the only one of us with straight hair! There is something about your baby getting a hair cut…where they don’t seem as much like a baby! I can’t believe he will be one in a week!! The year has flown by! Here are some pictures from J’s first time in Daddy’s Barber Shop:
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November 10, 2009 · 1 Comment
This last week has been so much fun! It was my birthday and my sister, Annie, came and stayed with us for a night! I felt so loved by family, the team and friends back home! I’ll post more pictures soon…but for now….
I can’t believe this time tomorrow we will be in the car on our way home!!! It is so exciting and unreal all at once!
Please enjoy these cute faces from an outing in the park the other day…
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I don’t really like the dark part of Halloween with all the crazy decorations and scary costumes, but I love the dress up and candy part!!! So, Happy Dress Up Day!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think I have the cutest little (ok…maybe not so little) Tigger and Superman EVER!!! Please admire their cuteness…
Although I can not claim the bee holding J…I’m pretty fond of her as well…and think she is the cutest bee
Today was so much fun! Ha ha it feels like we drove ALL over Indiana looking for a pumpkin patch/corn maze/hay ride only to find the pumpkins were ALL gone!! We were all a little astonished-thinking they should be out till Thanksgiving! I guess we were too late to get the itch for a pumpkin!! So, we drove to Wal-Mart hoping to at least find one there that we could get for the boys to get pictures with…they were all gone too! Poor Caleb had his little heart set on a finding a pumpkin too…so I could not completely squash his little heart and brought him back a plastic pumpkin…do you see the joy in his face holding his pumpkin???? Hahaha it is so sweet and then a little sad too. The poor guy didnt get a real pumpkin! He did take his plastic pumpkin to bed though! Haha in spite of our lack of pumpkins today-we really had fun!
- we drove through some beautiful corn fields
- got settled in a new room
- practiced trick or treating on Maddie’s door…where she gave out Nemo fruit snacks and granola bars
- went trick or treating in a local mall (all the cool stores were giving out candy)
- ran around at a park by a river-which was the perfect fall landscape
- had dinner at a local italian place
- and now home in bed!!
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October 28, 2009 · 1 Comment
****Jeremiah’s version****
- I like food!!!
- Meals are a lot of fun!!
- Always open my mouth when something edible is coming towards it!
- I like kiddie rides and carousel rides-why did I use to sleep through this fun?
- Rolling a few times in a row is fun and gets me places…but I still don’t want to crawl
- My squeals and shrieks sound a lot a like-but neither make mom and dad very happy when done in the middle of the night
- Throw a fit every time I get into the car seat-cause sometimes I’m stuck in there for a while
- Glow sticks are amazing at 10:00pm on a long car ride
- I like my pack n play travel bed!
- Roll when I am getting a diaper change-its fun to see the frustration on mom’s face
- Real food makes for some hard poops
- I like my bottle even when the water has to be cold
- Grab Ben’s beard, Maddie’s earings, and daddy’s glasses as often as I can
- Turns out I might be the only one with straight hair in my family-even with it way past my ears…mom isn’t ready to cut it
- I’m very interested in Gavin, so I don’t get placed close to him to often
- My blanket is my most prized possession! With all the craziness and change-it is the drug that calms me!
- Pacifiers are chew toys-I like to put holes in mine
- I miss Napoleon, so I love to play with plastic water bottles like he does
- I can defend myself when Caleb takes something from me-a Jurassic Park shriek tells them I can’t be walked over
- My constant tooting when I am asleep makes my parents laugh
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****Caleb’s version****
- While riding the “alligator” (elevator) it is ok to press the button with a star next to it (for the lobby)…never press the button with a bell or phone…and NEVER EVER press the fireman helmet button
- Always ask for prizes in the car, because mom usually has one
- Watch Cole in the review mirror at all times, so I can keep him in line…and correct him at all times…and its pretty cool to ask for whatever he is holding and playing with aswell
- Wake up before mom wants to get up, so I can crawl in the big bed with her
- Mickey Mouse, Pooh, and Handy Manny aren’t always on TV like they are at home (ahem…missing DVR)
- Run into every new hotel room and find the pen and paper beside the phone on the nightstand
- The small pools at the hotels are the “hot ones”
- Offer J my chicken, so I don’t have to eat it (besides I only eat ‘muscle chicken’…Ben’s brillant method of getting Caleb to eat his dinner)
- Do not go O.C.D. no matter how many times mom wants to hand sanitize my hands in a day
- Do not freak out (tantrums) because I will have to calm down, count to 5 (3, 6, 8, 9, 11-hahah its different every time), and say I am sorry
- “Please” doesn’t always mean I get what I want oh wait I haven’t grasped that one yet
- Every “new room” is a “cool new room”
- Some of my favorite new phrases are “check it out” and “I’ll be right back, mom”
- Do not EVER let mom style my hair
- I seem to always mix up the terms breakfast, lunch, and dinner
- Do not attempt to sleep in a hotel bed-I will wake up with a bump on the floor…I’ll just stick to my Spiderman bed
- Be thankful I’m a deep sleeper and don’t wake up to J’s nightly wailing
- Put things in all the dresser drawers (makes mommy do a scavenger hunt when we pack up)
- Ask for cinnamon rolls at breakfast-cause they are “so good!!!”
Special Edition: An interview with Caleb
Mommy: Who is your friend on this big trip?
Caleb: COLE!
Mommy: What is your favorite thing to eat?
Caleb: Cheese dip!!
Mommy: What is your favorite thing in the “new room”?
Caleb: Mi’rowave…I put things in it
Mommy: What is your favorite thing at the park?
Caleb: Slide
Mommy: What was your favorite animal at the zoo?
Caleb: I throw this water on you, mommy
Mommy: Ok, I think we are done with the interview
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October 25, 2009 · 1 Comment
****Matt’s version****
So Erica has requested my lessons from the road. I’m not sure I can come up with the kind of blog caliber that she is used to producing, but here goes…
- Do 10 push-ups every time you stop the car for food or gas – it helps you not feel like a worthless blob on the long travel days
- Get down to the complementary breakfast early cause the cinnamon rolls go fast (more reason that the push-up thing is a good idea)
- When you are staying in a city for one night book a roach motel through priceline.com for $35 so that you can save and book a nicer hotel for the cities where you are staying for a few days
- When sharing a room with your kids confirm that they are fully asleep before attempting to enjoy “mommy & daddy time” ahem…
- Become good friends with the guy that has the night shift at the front desk. They aren’t thrilled with working through the night yet they have equal power as the daytime guy – can you say UPGRADE?
- Confirm with the hotel that their indoor pool is indeed heated cause nothing is worse than cold indoor pool
- Take cues from your kids – their simplicity, innocence, and imagination is inspiring.
- Do not ever fully trust your GPS. It’s correct 87% of the time – but that 13% makes you want to shoot someone. Do a Google search before you leave and write down addresses and phone numbers.
- Along with that, go and read restaurant reviews before you head out for the unknown - it’s the difference of getting an ok meal and a meal that is a local legend.
- When you have to leave for morning events before the kids are awake you better have all your clothes laid out in the bathroom the night before…because God help you if you wake the kids on the way out
- When your 2-yr-old is still awake at 1:48am while driving, just go with it – turns out he’s the best conversationalist at that time of night anyway.
- Hand Sanitizer is always a better choice than washing up in the gas station bathroom in Mena, Arkansas – ALWAYS.
- If the city you are in has a “hands-on” children’s museum you should go to that – it reminds you to dream, play, and imagine in ways you forget while being an adult
- Starbucks Via (instant coffee) is pretty handy for the drives in the middle of nowhere and the hotels that have crappy coffee
- Leave for your meetings and events way too early and you’ll never be stressed about time. And always way overestimate how long it will take you to travel between cities and you won’t be frustrated when you are pulling in at 3am.
- When you have a chance to experience another world – like a cow roping or livestock auction, you do it because it’s awesome and you’ll be glad you did.
- Hotels that have complimentary breakfast end up saving you a lot more money than you’d think
- Check everything in your room – AC, water, smells, whether or not the carpet is soaking wet (yes that is real example) – before you start unpacking and getting settled.
- Get used to host and hostesses looking at you like you are satan himself when you say, “7 adults & 3 highchairs please.”
- Make sure to have an incredible wife like Erica Deuel who is willing to go on the road with our kids for two months otherwise you’ll never make it!
Thank you babe for making this trip so easy for me and so awesome for our family!
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On Thursday of last week all the girls and kiddos went to the Texas State Fair!!! It was so much fun!! It was crazy huge!! We spent three hours in the kiddie ride section and then left to see a dog dance show and the sheep. We were in one tiny corner of the fair-we could have spent days there…except not with our kids. They were melting down when we left….tired boys from not getting naps.
Caleb LOVED the rides!!! He wanted to do every one and after each ride he asked to do it again! For the sake of $$$$ we limited him to five rides. he definitely got Matt’s love for the fast and thrill of rides. I took him on his first roller coaster and I got him to put his hands in the air! Granted it was a kid roller coaster…but as a two year old he LOVED it!
J’s favorite ride was the trolley back to the car! He was bouncing and babbling the whole time!! Super Cute!!
We are enjoying finding stuff to do in each city…we were so glad we stumbled along the fair!
***I know it’s a ton of pics that I upload each time, but I’m guessing my family of bloggers likes that!?!
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Ode…hahaha I don’t really know what that means…but love letter didn’t seem really appropriate when addressing my sister, so it seemed like a good word to use in my title.
Olivia…amazing!!! She did so so much to make our time so fun and special while we were in Arkansas! We felt so loved and cared for by her and Cody!
It was so good to meet the people I knew only names of, see the places i had only heard of, and spend some good quality time with the two of them!
I continually looked at my sister and said some times to my self…sometimes out loud “who is this???” She is a cowgirl!! I was so impressed with what she knew of horses, life there, ropings, etc. She could saddle and unsaddle horses, use the special call signals to move cattle, get the dogs to heard the cattle, open and close fences, give her calf shots, get up early to go feed, give directions, knew hours of the stores and the closest ones, knew all the langauge of a roping…
She has not only moved there…she has taken up life there! Embraced things and fought to learn things that once was only foreign language to her! I so wanted to understand the ways…and i asked so so many questions, but still don’t understand all the verbage she was throwing out there as she took money and set the ‘ropers’ up for the rodeo. She is a smart one! I love how she knows it!! I think it would have been so easy to get there…be so frustrated and have the attitude “I don’t get it, I have never had this…I’m from the city” and never try to learn it…and want Cody to just accept her as she is. She has not done that at all! Cody could ask her to do something-and she would do it!! She is “part” of it and not just an onlooker!!
There was nothing the made her stick out like a ‘city gal’ as I am sure every time I opened my mouth it was an onbvious thing for me. I love that she knows life there-she fits right in and I could not be prouder of her! It’s hard to have my sister, one of my best friends, live so very far away…but I think its been really good for her…and for her and Cody. I loved to see them interact in ‘Cody’s world’ and they really have something special.
You two aren’t going to just make it…you are going to be a story that passes on for generations to come. I know I bawled like a baby leaving you two…and that is just because I love you so very much!! I can’t wait to see you again!
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