Vacation, Part 2

And now, the part without the kids (our first overnight trip away from the kids since before Andrew was born-- maybe even longer!):

We saw 3 lighthouses in the course of 24 hours. (And we took silly pictures of each one.) Not many people were around at any of them, but we managed to find people to take our picture at at least the first two. First is Hatteras.

Then later we took a 40-minute free ferry to Ocracoke Island. It took about 15 minutes to drive to the part of the island with civilization, and then 1 minute later, we were at the other end of the island-- it's that small! We didn't find much to do besides the lighthouse, so we got back on the ferry within an hour.

Dinner that night was an adventure! Nothing is really open during the off-season on Hatteras, but we managed to find a dive not far from our beach house. It was actually a bar, and there was maybe 4 other people there the whole time. We paid way too much for fish sandwiches. The atmosphere was crummy. But-- we didn't have to cook or clean, or feed anyone else! And we have a funny story to tell.

The next day on our way home we headed to Bodie Island Lighthouse. Apparently they are doing some construction on it right now, but that didn't stop us from getting out in the freezing cold wind to take some pictures!

We had such a fun, relaxing, and renewing time! We are so thankful to Mom & Dad for watching the kids for us (and they did perfectly fine-- maybe just a little whiny for them), and to Sharon for loaning us the beach house for the weekend.

Vacation, Part 1

The part with the kids:

The day after we arrived in the OBX for our long weekend (Brett took off a week between finishing at our old church & starting at Newton Grove), we headed to a beach house in Hatteras, about 1 1/2 hours from my parents' house. It belongs to a member of their church, who rents it out during the summer season. Since it's February, we got to stay for free! And it was an awesome house. Mom, Dad, and the kids stayed Sunday night, then headed out Monday, leaving Brett and I more than 24 hours to enjoy the place on our own.

Sunday was a beautiful day and Leah couldn't WAIT to get on the beach. No sooner had we gotten out of the car than she was dying to run to the beach. Since it is, of course, February, we were the only crazy people braving Hatteras and there was miles and miles of empty beach. It was so pretty!! (The top pic of Leah shows our house in the background.)

[This little man, who hasn't slept through the night in months, slept from about 7 until 4 am. In a bed that wasn't even his own!]

We enjoyed hanging around the house some that evening, eating dinner, enjoying the hot tub, and playing games. The next morning Mom & Dad packed up with Leah & Andrew and Brett & I headed out to Hatteras Lighthouse to do some sightseeing.

Andrew @ 7 months

Andrew's growing up so fast!! He has definately been doing some teething or something lately, because he's grumpy often and not sleeping well. He will usually go to bed around 7:30 or so but then wake up once or twice within the next couple hours. He's easily consoled with a minute or two of rocking and he'll go back to sleep until 3:30 or 4, when he wakes up wanting to eat. (And it's difficult to let this kid cry it out, because when he cries, he CRIES!) Then he's up again for the day by 6am. He's been napping pretty well in the mornings, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, but then in the afternoon, he'll sleep maybe 30-45 minutes then wake up, want to "snack" then play and then maybe will eventually sleep another 30 minutes, or fight it even though he's tired. It's a little nerve wracking, but hoping it will pass.

"Napping is overrated."

He's up to 3 meals a day of solid foods, although with the teething he hasn't always been so hungry. He's tried almost all the fruits & vegetables and we've even tried some chicken (pureed, of course). Ideally I'd like him to have his "solids" just before nursing, but his schedule doesn't always work out that way (especially with his lack of sleeping) so often it feels like he's eating all day long. He still nurses about every 3 hours-- lately more like 2 1/2.

Sic 'em, Bears! (Showing off his Baylor jammies from Aunt Karen)

He's still not sitting up well on his own, but can do it if he has a toy or something to occupy him. (He did ride sitting in the seat of the grocery cart the other day-- he looked so big!) For the sake of time the other day, I tried bathing him at the same time as Leah. I had to hold him the whole time, so it was a little tricky, but still fun! We'll probably wait a little while to do it again.

It doesn't take much to make him laugh, as seen in this video, where I kept putting the paci on my head and letting it "accidentally" fall off...

Andrew is already very energetic, always has to have something in his hands, and-- like his sister-- he's extroverted. Both my kids are energized by being around other people. They act completely different, and then when the other people are gone, they're wound up. It's an interesting personality trait to see develop, especially since I, for one, am introverted. Andrew is very determined about a lot of things-- when he sees something he wants, he tries really hard to get it. And if I take a toy out of his reach, he will stare at it, almost willing it to come to him!

Valentines Day

Valentines Day was unseasonably warm, so we enjoyed some time outside. It was Andrew's first time really "playing" outside without being in a car seat or stroller. He wouldn't smile for any of his pictures, but probably just because he was too busy taking it all in. He does seem to love being in the fresh air.

When Daddy got home from work, both kids got a box of chocolates (Mommy & Daddy enjoyed Andrew's, but Leah is definately my girl and has already eaten almost the whole box!) and opened their cards from both sets of grandparents. Leah seemed to understand at least that it was a holiday, and loved coloring a card for her Daddy-- she was so excited to give it to him.

Brett & I didn't really do much to celebrate, but we'll have some time together on our upcoming trip to the OBX!

A House Filled With Laughter

Let it never be said that we don't have any fun around here!

Coming Soon: Big Changes

Since even before we got married, Brett's goal has been to become a pastor of a church. It's not necessarily the reason he went to Seminary, but it became his calling while he was there. It is something we've been praying about the entire length of our marriage. Since music is his background, he's gotten stuck in worship pastor positions (not that we don't believe that was where God wanted us at the time, it just seemed like it wasn't our end goal). We really both wanted to stay in the Raleigh area, because we love it here-- it's where we like to call home, now. But because we're so close to the Seminary, he's had to branch out some and look in surrounding areas. And now, at long last, our prayers have been answered. Last week, after 2 months of waiting, Brett was called as senior pastor at Newton Grove Baptist Church.

For now, he will be working there part-time/ bivocationally, making the one-hour trip (each way) south on Sundays, Wednesdays, and whenever else he's needed and still working at the Credit Union full time, until we can sell our house. We've already contacted the realtor that sold us our house and it will go on the market within a few weeks. Once it's sold, we'll look for a place down there (probably to rent) and move down full time.


We both have a lot of fears, and yet we're also really excited about this new opportunity. I dread the moving process, selling the house, packing up, and especially the kids' adjustment to a new place. I don't really fear that the house won't sell-- we have a lot of confidence in our realtor and he has a great success rate- I just dread all the cleaning & repairing and such that goes along with selling a house-- especially the part where I have to keep it almost like a showroom while still maintaining a sense of normalcy for two small children who don't really understand what's going on. We're praying that the next few months will be a calm and easy transition for us and for the kids.

We're honestly not in a huge hurry for it to sell-- although the hour-long drive will be taxing (not to mention the fact that Brett will essentially be working two full-time jobs), it will be nice to have two full-time incomes for a few months to catch up on debts and bills. We're praying that we can find the extra money to make the necessary improvements our house needs to at least break even on our mortgage, and then that we will be able to find a place there without much overlap in payments.

This house also has a lot of memories for us. We were working on fixing up this place while we were engaged and moved in the day we returned from our honeymoon. We spent our first years of marriage in this house, sometimes barely able to pay the mortgage. We had both our children while living in this house and it's all they've ever known.

I fear moving to a new place, not necessarily because I have a lot of people that I will miss here in Raleigh (although there's that, too), but there are a lot of conviniences here that I've grown accustomed to as a stay-at-home-mom. I like that I can drive just five minutes to get to the nearest Walmart. I like that we are really close to the library, the museum, the mall, the hospital (a biggie seeing as how my babies come fast!) and plenty of other entertainment options for the kids. In Newton Grove, the nearest big city is a thirty-minute drive. I'm sure I'll get used to that, or adjust to being at home more, but I have just enjoyed the big city life. We're praying we make some friends there quickly and find things in which to get involved.

Of course there are also the fears about pastoring a church. As a pastor's kid, I'm no stranger to the "glass house" phenomenon pastors' families experience. I know we will be in the spotlight, but hopefully, it will challenge me to be a godly wife and mother and to keep our family above reproach. Brett will face many other challenges as the leader of a small rural church, but we pray that the congregation is even now opening their hearts to his leadership and preparing themselves to grow in the Word.

We have no idea what the next few months may hold, but it is with mixed emotions that we face them head-on. We do know that God has called us to Newton Grove, and because of that, everything will fall into place.

Sweet, Kind-Hearted Leah Grace

As Leah gets older, I love seeing her personality develop, and as a part of that, I love seeing how kind and tender-hearted she is toward others. I thought about this yesterday when I had to take her to the doctor with me for Andrew's 6-month check-up. Leah always shows great concern for Andrew. She helps him with his paci or his toys if he can't get them, she hugs him if he's crying, saying "It's okay!", she asks me to bring him along when we go upstairs to change her diaper or put her to bed... If we go someplace and other kids are looming over Andrew's carrier, Leah will run over and hold on to it protectively. But yesterday at the doctor, she cried when he was crying because he got his shots.

She is very perceptive about when people are sad or upset. Many times when I ask her if she had fun someplace like Sunday School or AWANAs, she'll tell me "A boy was crying... He was sad..." She can recognize a "mean guy" on TV. And if Brett and I are "discussing things" a little louder than usual, she will usually yell, "Guys! Guys!" In the same manner, she's also very bossy. She knows what she wants people to do, and she has no hesitation in telling them! And she will command that we do something until we do! She especially loves to boss Andrew around, and we're monitoring that to make sure she doesn't become his second mother!

I also love to see how smart she is getting. Now, I'm not around a lot of 2 1/2-year-olds to compare her (which I'm actually grateful for), but I regularly check websites that show what your child should know & how they should be developing at various ages. Leah usually surpasses the milestones. She can recognize all the letters of the alphabet (uppercase only), all the numbers 0-9, and almost all the basic shapes & colors. (In fact she is always telling me what color something is, and is way more observant about the colors people are wearing than I.) She also draws straight lines and circles, and is beginning to learn how to spell her name (although usually she spells everything L-E-A-H-H-H). She speaks in three-to-five-word sentences, although I am beginning to realize that sometimes I am the only one that can understand what she is saying. It is really funny how she gets her pronouns mixed up now, like "She has blue on she's shirt."

She is starting to understand age and size differences ("Andrew's too little. He's a baby. I'm too big. I'm a kid."), as well as the difference between boys and girls (physical appearance, I mean). She has not yet reached the "why" stage, but she is always asking me "what's that?"-- even if she knows what it is, or "What's that sound?" She has always had a love for books and now will sit down in front of Andrew and "read" him a book like she's seen the librarian do at storytime. She enjoys "helping" with household chores and imitates daily activities ("Elmo's sleeping, Mommy." or "my baby's taking a bath"). She opens doors well, climbs stairs well, hops, runs, and can even stand on one foot.

Like I said, I don't know if she's advanced compared to other 2-year-olds or not, but all-in-all it is fun to see her develop and grow and learn. Every day is an adventure and she always makes me laugh.