Just Call Me Henny Penny

I cannot stop myself.  The sky, y'all.  The sky!!

Oh, Tennessee, I love your skies. Don't feel like I am cheating on you when I snap some NC skies later on this week, though, ok?

More Tooth Fairy Truth for Anna

Anna has turned out to be a teeth-pulling warrior!  She is not at all nervous or jumpy or afraid of yanking those bad boys when it's time.  She's had a loose tooth for a few weeks now.  

Today I noticed her working it BIG time while watching a movie.  Later in the movie, Noah asks me where Anna went.  I knew, I KNEW, she was taking care of business.  I prayed it would be so because I could not take much more of that snaggly thing waiting to pop out.  So I call up the stairs and ask what she's doing.  She starts singing before she even opens the bathroom door and descends the stairs, "All I want for Christmas is my TWOOOOOOO front teeth!"  

I mean.  Could a little girl beam any more?!?!?  I don't think so.  The only thing cuter than this moment and this girl was this man who dressed up as a make-shift tooth fairy for his baby girl.  Scarf, fairy wings, and a tutu around his arm.  Sadly, the tooth fairy wasn't feeling camera-ready and would only cooperate so much. No worries - it adds a magical filter to the whole thing. :}

He literally flapped his hands over her in her bed as he slid $5 under her pillow.  And wouldn't you know, she was already asleep!  She had choreographed how she wanted a tooth fairy visit no matter who had to dress up.  And we laughed as we imagined it actually happening.  And the moment of truth came, the father-turned-fairy is waiting to be spotted, and she is asleep! He even tried to whisper and wake her.  He kissed her and fluttered a bit more.  I was actually afraid my busting out laughing would ruin the whole moment.  He {thinks} she opened her eyes, but I think she was too exhausted from the bedtime meltdown and manhunt for  - get this - her precious tooth that she MANAGED TO LOSE somewhere in that space.  She put it under her pillow (which we never did before this night) and then took it out again, for whoknowswhy, and somehow it got flung. Oh, the weeping and gnashing of teeth ... minus one tooth - HA!  Daddy tore her room apart to save the day, going so far as to take her bed apart too, but that tooth is so lost.  You just can't make this stuff up, y'all! And all this right after the last lost tooth kerfuffle where I blew the whole tooth fairy secret.  Please don't make me rehash those memories...  

All this to say - it's been another lost tooth drama, but I think we have all survived.  And we'll call it a win.  Daddy?  As the TOOTH FAIRY?!  Bless it.  That's a winning moment.

Journaling Ephesians

I don't know what happened, but after April I dropped off the radar in terms of finishing up any Bible journaling I started.  Yesterday, while Lasa napped, I tried to get back on the wagon.  Got all of Ephesians done and a bonus entry below ... 

And a note I added to 1 Timothy from a sermon not long ago...

You better not still be laughing at my armor of God drawing. :} I tried!

Big Brothering

That Noah Brown  

 

 has just the right heart

 

 

for big brothering.

I wuv him.

VBS Survivor

I am too exhausted from teaching in my first ever VBS to now blog about the VBS.  Suffice to say it was total chaos (we were working with the YMCA's Day Camp kids), total activity, totally great PROOF Pirates curriculum, totally way too hot, and totally wore me out.  I had 28 second graders.  That is too many second graders. I have promised to never do VBS again.  HA!  

Things we learned about God's grace from Ephesians 1-2 this week:

P - Planned grace - God mapped out salvation for his people.
R - Resurrecting grace -When we were dead, God made us alive.
O - Outrageous grace - God gives us Jesus as a free gift.
O - Overcoming grace - God changes our rebellion into surrender.
F - Forever grace - God's people never drift away from his love.

Some pics of much ado about GRACE at VBS this week.

Aaaaaaargh!

Brace Yourself!

Brace yourself ...

 because this handsome fella picked up some braces this week. 

An even more handsome smile is under construction!

Sprouts and Sky

A backyard summer view from above my head in the cool of the early evening.  We love how the shade falls over our back patio for this part of the day. It's the only way to enjoy our backyard in the summer heat!

Some cloud views that Derek, a dear friend from small group, shared with me that I swooned over and insisted he text me right away.

And some sprout shots from our slowly coming along garden.  Zucchini...

Cukes....

Maters.

I am sorry to report that Anna's carrots never came up.  That's twice now that carrots have been a dud in our yard.  Oh well!

ELEVEN Month Lasa

Lasa marked 11 months today!  Whaaaaaat?  

This month she enjoyed her first ever baby function - Wigglers Storytime at the library. She was the only one still crawling, but she didn't let that keep her from participating.

We got good news this week in that our amended tax return that claimed Lasa as a dependent was accepted and a nice check was cut and delivered sooner than we thought we should expect it.  Thanking the Lord for this favor he allowed!

Our Lasa is a happy heart.  Like, almost always.  But I took this pic just to prove that our sweetheart does sometimes disapprove of parts of her day.  Here, she was quite offended when Anna got up and left the table without her.  Which reminds me, that is a note I made to share for this month's quirks.  She gets more and more upset when we leave a room that she is in.  It's possible she is just more annoyed that she can't keep up with us, though.  Ha!

Lasa met her first Bass Pro trip this month with Josh while the kids and I were out of town.  

Her Noah continues to be her biggest fan.

She is the apple of everyone's eye at Noah's orthodontist's office where this pic was taken.  They spoil her rotten and, as a result, she is a handful to manage while there. :S

She is now into her last month of bottles and formula.  CANNOT WAIT for whole milk and sippie cup freedom to follow. PS - this is how we feed her lately, so as to avoid more ear infections.  As it happens, she hit up the pediatrician today to be checked for another one anyway. She is always cupping her ears so I am always worried about it.

In other 11th month highlights:

• She has learned to give kisses - she presses those wet open lips to your cheeks and calls it a day.
• She now say Da (daddy) and Buh (bye) in correct context. Her first two words!
• She knows how to wave goodbye ... by basically opening and clenching her fingers shut.  It's precious.  We are trying to teach her to sign "more" and "all done". 
• After waving bye bye, she loves to do her other hand signal - clapping. :)
• She has taken to wiggling left and right to dance when she hears music.  Add that to the list of preciousness.
• She has tiny ear canals and much ear wax.  I know this from the comments of our many ear checks at the dr. 
• She has a new favorite thing to play inside - climbing and clamoring all over the couch cushions we throw in the floor for her.  Heck, she loves climbing on the couch itself, too.  
• She may wait many months to finally walk, but climb, climb, climb she will do in the meantime. Lately, she has climbed the step on the stair before the gate, her slide, and the brick hearth in the living room.
• She is hovering at just over 20 lbs still.
• She hates it when I scoop crap out of her mouth.
• She will let me wipe her face in peace anytime.  But wipe her nose and she loses her temper!
• She shakes her head No at things after we tell her No to those things. We are so pleased that she has a compliant spirit.  So far, she has been quite obedient when corrected.  
• Lately, he most common correction is "No bite!" She love to test ev.er.y.thing on those 8 teeth of hers.
• She thinks ice water is the best thing ever.  She drinks sip after sip after sip from a sippy cup with a big grin on her face.  This bodes well for shifting to cold milk next month from room temperature formula.
• She loves lift-the-flap books.  Namely, she loves to rip flaps from lift-the-flap books.  Sigh. : /
• She is almost entirely a one-nap-a-day girl.  
• She has enjoyed trying more and more table foods this month. I enjoy knowing we are almost to the end of the baby foods routine.
• And finally, she loves, loves, loves to be chased/pursued.  Oh the squeals of delight and invitation to keep coming for her. 

See ya next month when you turn a WHOLE YEAR, Lasa!  We are so delighted to be sharing these days and moments with you!

Father's Day

In between beautiful gusty downpour weather, we made our way back to TN to celebrate our favorite guy on Father's Day.

The kids worked together to personalize a picture book called When Dads Don't Grow Up with notes and memories they have shared with him that matched the pages and pictures inside.  It was precious!

We got the Daddy a hammock to chillax in....

... which ended up looking more like this sort of pileup chillaxing.

He also scored some XMen movies to start the Marvel superhero collection we have been meaning to build.  It was a Happy Father's Day!  Josh's first as a father to THREE.  Quite a special year. Hoping for more of the same to follow.

Precious

A pic that needs no wordy post.  It's just my new fave shot.  It's Evie's feet.  Beyond funny and precious. I love!

Summer o' Splash

Somehow, this summer has been been well-represented by splash (Lasa's fave).  There was the White House splash pad we visited a couple weeks ago.

Later that same week, we tried another new-to-us splash pad about half an hour away in Mount Juliet. It's called Ava's Splash Pad and it did not disappoint.  This time I took just the big kids to meet up with friends and left Lasa at home with Josh to avoid her getting trampled and over-splashed by the crowd.  It ended being a better splash pad than I expected and I think Lasa will LOVE it.  We'll definitely go back this summer.  

There was an excellent playground right across the sidewalk from the splash pad as well. 

The splashes continued last weekend when we visited my sister to meet this tiny one, my new niece, Evie.

We hit up Dublin Park in Madison and let the cousins do what they do best - play hard!

 

Check out my brave girl on the high diving board!

Noah had to be bribed, but he did it.  Just once. :}

That's him scaring the life out of Emily and me as he flailed hard right to be nearer to the wall.  Too near if you ask us! He splashed the lifeguard big time. 

Back at home this week, the kiddos kicked off the first day of VBS at a pool party for Jonas afterwards. Lasa made a splash with her psychotic meltdown, so I ended up running for home with her.  Thankful for friends who don't mind keeping my kiddos around without me.  Thankful for kids who are easy for other parents to have around. 

And not to be forgotten is Lasa's new homegrown splashpad/mat.  It makes her day, as all splashing opportunities do.

There are some splashes to be had in Nashville with all my babies before the summer is over at Bicentennial Mall Fountains that I have seen several friends get to as well as Russell Sims Waterpark in KY.  Those are next up on our list.  And any we can find around Franklin, NC when we get the heck out of town this weekend!