Ugh

Ugh is how I feel about the fact that I have been really slacking in my blog posts. Ya know what would really help? Leave me a comment! Let me know you are reading! It will nudge me to post more often. I haven't stopped snapping cute pictures. I just need to actually put them on here. I have started doing a lot more with photos and videos for work, so essentially I have turned my hobby into a job and then lack the energy to keep up my hobby. Ugh.

But, here is an attempt at an update and maybe this will encourage me to get caught up on everything else.

Ben created his first self portrait!

He also gave me this lovely pose. 

 Zoo trip.

 The mother seriously followed Ben around. It was pretty cute.

 Trying to get a pic - Ryan wasn't with us.

 The boys were annoying this lioness. She was happily gnawing a bone and after the boys came along, she walked off. 

 For future embarrassment.  

 We have been introduced to 'helicopters.' They are little seed pods that fall from the trees and if you throw them up they come down like helicopters. The boys love it! We always get Maren to stop and play and often have gotten others to play too!

 

Nate sniffing the pretty flowers while we all do a little yard work.

 We had an awesome work group of high school students come help us in our yard. They added dirt to level our yard, planted grass seed and doubled our sand box. They were so sweet to let the boys help. And the boys did a great job of staying out of the way when they had to.

 Double the fun!

Here is a quick video I put together as a thank you to the group. Pictures of the boys are in there a few times helping!

 My handsome little man in his new shoes and shades. Thanks Aunt Kim!

 Messy eater!

 Watching tv. Nate is just now starting to notice the tv and Ben is allowed one show a day and he knows if something in our routine causes him to miss his show!

 Friends!

Nate - He is already running and he has only been walking for a month. He is everywhere! When Ben is in timeout, Nate is on the step too. When Ben is sent to his room for whining (a frequent happening), Nate runs along behind to join him. You get the picture. Nate is also very smart! He knows that Ben cannot get up from the timeout step or leave his room if he has been banished there. So, like a great little brother would, Nate gets a toy and runs off with it leaving Ben screaming for his return. Ah, the joys of brothers! I am sure sisters would do this too, but never as loudly as my boys do! He is also talking up a storm. He tries to repeat a lot of words. His first word was ball, followed quickly by dog. Anything round is a ball and he hollers dog at the tv at every animal commercial. He also says mommy and daddy and said Nate once. He makes a bah sound for bath, brother and Ben. He says shoes and puts his finger to his little lips and says shhhh when we are trying to sneak out of his room without Ben hearing us. He says Bob, as in Bob the Builder! There are probably more, but I can't think of them now.

Ben - He has been on a hunger strike for far too long. It drives me crazy, but I don't have a solution yet. He will often choose to skip a meal rather than eat what is given, almost never breakfast though so that makes me feel a little better. I don't know the reason and I don't know how he does it and keeps up his energy. He loves to read - to be read to and to sit and "read" alone or with Nate (although they can't share the same book or someone will scream). He loves to help with anything and everything still. He helps cook about every meal, he will put away his things as well as ours. He can often be found picking up things that have fallen off the shelf at a store. He remembers everything! It is sometimes hard for us to get the connections he is making. Tonight a friend brought stir-fry for dinner and had soy and teriyaki sauce on the table. Ben said, "that sauce is like the last time when it was in the middle of the table." My brain went searching for the connection and remembered that we visited our old church plant for Easter Sunday and they had Asian food and the soy sauce packets were in the middle of the tables! How did he remember that? Actually, I am about to turn 30! How did I remember that? ha.

Ben's first time shaving! He is growing so fast :)

Myself and Ryan - We may not be as cute as our kids, but just maybe you want to know how we are doing too. We continue to feel like we are right in the middle of what God has for us and there really is no better place. We will have been with World Impact for four years on July 1. Wow! This past weekend we hosted the first (of many) Christ the Victor Church Plant School. It was an intense weekend of training, worshiping together and unifying ourselves. Four teams were commissioned to begin or continue planting Christ the Victor Churches. Ryan was on the planning committee and had huge input into the conference. He also did a few teaching times and preached the Sunday sermon. AND he ran the sound and visual for the whole conference. He is pretty awesome. I know I'm married to him so I may be biased, but God has really given him a gift of teaching and I love hearing him preach. Childcare was provided for our kids - 8 toddlers ages 3 1/2 - 1 1/2 years old. My boys are never in childcare since we don't have family here and our personal lives and work lives mesh so much so that they just stay with me. It was hard for all three of us. The boys cried almost every time I left them (and I cried once) but it was reported to me that they always calmed down within ten minutes! That made me feel good, but still made me sad. I am thankful for amazing volunteers and the intern from the St. Louis ministry that cared so well for my sweet boys.

Here is a video summary of the weekend that I made for the conference attendees.