After Tub Red Cheeks

After his tub, Evan's cheeks were so red. He's started sticking his tongue out a lot, too.




A very nice kiss from Dad...


And pushing Mom away when I tried to kiss him...

Reading Together

I caught Nathan and Andrew reading a book together (peacefully!). They were so engrossed in the book, they didn't even realize I took a picture.

Happy 7 Month Birthday, Evan

Evan was 7 months old on the 27th. Where has the time gone?

These trains are mine, all mine!

Artwork

Here are some pictures that Nathan and Andrew drew this morning.

In case you can't read what I've written, here is what Andrew said:
There is a "rainbow on top."
The red blob on the left is "People riding on a donkey to the city."
The city is on the left in purple.
There are two snakes.
On the right, "There is a dragon peeking out of the snakes."

Nathan drew three boys on the way to school.
The one on the right "Is enjoying the sun on his back."
The one in the middle "Ate too much so he has a bump in his throat."
The one on the right (my favorite!), "He's going to school and doesn't need a backpack. He can carry it all in his invisible arms!"



This is Nathan's picture of the Dawn Treader. We have been reading the Chronicles of Narnia series to him at night. We are on the 4th book right now, and our whole family enjoys listening. The picture he drew is similar to one he remembered seeing in the 2nd book, "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader". See below for the picture from the book. You can see the face of the wind on the top right and the sun on the left. The ship has a tail just like the one in the book. The circles along the top of the boat are the people. The lines coming out from the boat are the oars.

Nathan's Prayer

At breakfast this morning, we were talking about someone we know who is pregnant.

Nathan said to me, "I think you'll have a baby in your tummy but it's not there yet."

I asked, "Why?"

Nathan said, "Because I prayed for that. Maybe God says not until Evan is older and can eat big food."

Andrew Loves His Brother

Yesterday morning, Andrew was up before Nathan. As Andrew was eating breakfast he said, "Mommy, I don't feel so well."

I said, "Why don't you feel so well?"

Andrew said, "Because Nathan won't get up."

Happy Easter

Easter morning before church... (Don't worry, that is a neck-hold of love.)


Dad is explaining to the boys the "rules" of our Easter Egg Hunt. Even Evan is listening intently.


After the hunt, they opened their eggs to find candy inside.


And, after all that excitement, we were in the car on the way to church by 8:30am! Quite an accomplishment.

One Last Sledding Hurrah

On Saturday, we went sledding for our last time this year (we hope!). It was a beautiful morning...warm and sunny with about 5-6 inches of snow. The boys had a blast. Nathan went down the "big hill" for the first time all by himself. Andrew just as much fun, if not more fun going down the hill on his bottom than on the sled. He would lift up his legs and slide down (quite fast) on his rear. Evan even got in on the action. He came down the hill twice. He seemed to enjoy it.

Nursery Rhymes

At church tonight, Andrew was in the nursery. He was sitting on a child-size table. The mom in there said "Andrew, you better be careful sitting on that table. You don't want to fall off and break your crown like Humpty Dumpty!"

Andrew replied, "That's Jack!".

The mom said that she thought for a minute and realized he was right. Jack (with Jill) fell down the hill and broke his crown - not Humpty Dumpty.

More of Andrew's Hair

I don't know if it is the length of his hair or the way he sleeps, but Andrew *frequently* wakes up with "rooster hair". Here are a few examples:


In this one, he was upset that I woke him up from his nap:

Evan's Tub

Evan loves tub time.

Morning Hair

Here's Andrew's hair in the morning.

It Wasn't Even Posed

Evan was sitting in his boppy this morning. Andrew came up behind him to "hug" him. Nathan wanted in on the action, so he came up behind Andrew. I had to get out the camera to capture the "love".

What's on Nathan's Mind?

Nathan and I were cuddling in bed this morning. Out of the blue, he said, "If you have another baby, and I go to the Suwyn's [our friends who took care of him and Andrew when Evan was born], they have Battleship!"

He LOVES Battleship ever since he played it at his Nai-Nai and Yie-Yie's house. He talks about it a lot.

A little while later, after kissing Elbert good-bye, he told me: "Mom, I love Daddy more than you do." I told him he couldn't because I've known Daddy longer. He said, "But, when I was in your tummy, I loved Daddy."

Chew On?

Our pastor is preaching through the book of Mark in our morning services. This Sunday, he preached on Mark 10: 13-16 which says:

People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.

At one point in his sermon, Pastor Eric said, "Jesus was holding babies in His arms. That's something you can chew on."

Nathan looked at me and said "Chew on? Chew on babies?"

Teddy Bear Picnic

The Grand Rapids Symphony puts on several "Lollipops" Concerts each year. The concerts are 45 minutes long and are geared toward 3-6 year olds. We have been to several, and the boys love them. On Saturday, the concert was called "Teddy Bear Picnic". They encouraged all the kids to bring their favorite bear. They played bear-themed songs and told the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. They gave each child a kazoo upon entering, which was a huge hit. The kids "kazooed" along with one of the songs.

Evan enjoyed the show, too.

We had front row mezzanine seats. They were perfect.

Look at Me Sit

Evan just learned how to sit up. He loves his new "point of view".

Parenting Class

Elbert and I just finished our last Growing Kids God's Way parenting class on Wednesday night. It was an excellent class, and we would heartily recommend it to anyone! It's a 17 week class, and the boys usually get really excited on Wednesday nights because they LOVE having babysitters. But, this Wednesday was different.

Nathan had lied to me earlier in the day and was punished for it. At dinner, I found out that he had lied to his dad while I was gone running errands. So, we told him at dinner that he would be punished for his second lie after dinner.

Nathan at dinner after hearing he would be punished: "I'm sad that you [mom and dad] are going to parenting class tonight."

Mom: "Why are you sad?"

Nathan: "Because I don't want you to learn how to parent God's way!"

Krispy Kreme

We had a fun morning today at Krispy Kreme. I found out recently that they give tours for preschoolers. So, I called and set up a tour for our boys and some friends. They explained to us all about how the donuts are made. We got to go behind the counter and see the machines. The "chemical engineer" in me was impressed!




At the end of the tour, each child got to dip a donut in a HUGE vat of chocolate and then dip the donut in sprinkles. That was the highlight of the tour, I think.






Nathan was so excited about the donut that he made.






Andrew's turn...







Even Evan got in on the fun...


Don't forget about eating them...

Spiderman Slippers

Our friend, Silas, came over on Friday to spend the night. Nathan was excited to discover that Silas had Spiderman slippers that were similar to his. We couldn't resist taking a slippers and jammies picture of the boys before bed.

Flashlight Fun

Elbert created a new game with Nathan and Andrew today while I was gone working out. He made the room dark and shined the flashlight on the floor. The boys had to run and try to jump onto the light as it was moving back and forth. Nathan and Andrew were laughing so hard that they couldn't talk. Nathan told me it was "the best game in the whole wide world." Who would have thought that a simple flashlight could bring so much joy!?!

Brotherly Love

Here are some shots of the boys together. Note Evan and Andrew's matching outfits in the first picture. I didn't even know we had the same shirt in those sizes until I accidentally put them on both of them one day last week.

Happy 1/2 Birthday, Evan!

Wednesday Evan was 6 months old. It's very hard to believe how fast the time has gone. He has changed so much in the past 6 months. See for yourself: