Nathan's Prayer

Our Pastor is preaching through the book of 1 Samuel in our evening services. Since Nathan's favorite Bible character is David, he has been listening and absorbing a lot of what Eric says. Here was Nathan's prayer on Sunday night before bed:

"Dear God, thank you for the Bible. Thank you that David wrote part of it. Please help David not to die in the next chapter that Pastor Eric talks about. Please help Saul to die. Amen."

Fun With a Box

It's good to remember that children don't *need* expensive toys. They can make anything into a fun toy!

Nathan and Andrew had a blast pushing Evan around in a simple cardboard box. Evan smiled and laughed as his brothers did lap after lap around our kitchen and living room.



Nathan and Andrew fighting over whose turn it is to push...



Hold on Evan!

Flashback Friday - Nathan 4 Years Ago

I'm going to start a new feature on our blog called "Flashback Friday". I'll post a picture of a different family member each week.

Here's Nathan exactly 4 years ago. He was 5 months old. Looking at him in this picture, I can see a lot of similarities between him and Evan. It's fun to think back at all the changes that have occurred in these past four years. This picture was taken a few days before he tried rice cereal for the first time. Now, his favorite vegetables are asparagus and spinach!


Now, more than ever, I realize that "The days may be LONG, but the years are SHORT."

He Really Does Love His Brother

Yesterday, Andrew woke up from his nap crying. I went in there to find Andrew with tears in his eyes and Nathan still soundly sleeping.

I asked Andrew why he was crying. He said, "Because Nathan has his eyes closed already."

He was upset because Nathan was still sleeping!

Visiting with Nai-Nai and Yie-Yie

Elbert's parents visited us for a day last weekend. The boys had a lot of fun with Nai-Nai (Elbert's Mom) and Yie-Yie (Elbert's Dad).

Evan smiling with his Nai-Nai...



Andrew made Yie-Yie read to him A LOT!

Mr. Incredible and Playing Together

Nathan loves his Mr. Incredible costume. He often "gets into character" when he puts it on.



Andrew and Evan usually play very well together. Here is a series of pictures of them enjoying each other.

Daddy's Little Helper

Andrew loved sitting in the kitchen watching Daddy work on our new room. He was especially excited to wear safety glasses and use a measuring tape.




Before painting...

After painting...

At Grandma and Grandpa's

A hat that Grandma found in the Lost and Found...Daddy didn't like it very much.


Andrew and Nathan playing with the chess board. Nathan was so excited that Grandpa and Daddy taught him how to play chess. We were impressed at how well he understood the game. He was thinking through moves and wanted to keep playing.

Random Thoughts from Nathan

Today in the car on the way to Meijer Gardens:

Nathan: "Mom, I've never had an invisible cousin."

Mom: "No, Nathan, you've never had an invisible cousin. We can see all your cousins."

Where does this stuff come from?

Our Trip to Minnesota

Evan and Daddy at a stop during our drive to MN.


Evan is thinking..."Mommy and Daddy got a milk shake, but all I got was milk..."

We actually got the 3 cousins to sit still for a picture.



Until Evan wanted to eat Caleb...



Enjoying time outside...



Look closely at Elbert's and Josh's faces. Elbert threw Brennen (the blob in the middle of the picture) and then worried looks appeared on their faces. Brennen had a blast.

Fun at Grandma and Grandpa's House

We took a trip during Spring Break at the beginning of April. We drove to see my parents in Elgin, IL. We *left* Nathan and Andrew there for some "Grandma-and-Grandpa-time" while we took Evan with us to visit my sister Deb and her family up in Winona, MN. Deb and Josh just had their second son in January, and we were anxious to meet Caleb. It was a really fun visit. It was so different (and quiet!) with only Evan.

While Nathan and Andrew were with Grandma and Grandpa, they were able to do many fun things.

- They went for long walks with Grandpa in the "Big, Big Woods". Grandpa made each of them a walking stick which they used during the walks.
- They went out to dinner at McDonald's and played in the Play Area.
- They went to a park to play.
- They listened to books on tape that Grandma got from the library.
- They made Snickerdoodles with Grandma. They measured, mixed, and formed the dough into balls. They rolled the balls in cinnamon sugar and/or sprinkles. They were so excited to share the cookies they had made with us!

Here are a few pictures of the cookie making adventure (courtesy of Grandma).

When I Grow Up...

On Saturday, Nathan informed me, "Mom, I don't want to be a firefighter anymore."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because they have to go into burning buildings and that's scary."

"Ok," I replied.

"I want to be a policeman instead. Then I can help out at the fire, but I don't have to go inside."

The wheels in his mind are always turning!

Our New Room

We are in the process of turning our former 3-season room off the dining area into a 4-season room. We are going to have our office out there as well as a playroom for the kids. The windows and new slider are in place now. The drywall is mostly up. And, the slider from the kitchen came out! It looks so much more open now. We are very excited to get this done!




The view from the kitchen.
















The view from the new room.
















And, it's OUT!















The boys were amazed when they woke up the next morning to find a big hole where the door used to be.

Pizza is scary??

In the middle of the night on Sunday, Nathan started crying. Elbert went in to see what was wrong. When Elbert came back to bed, he said that Nathan was crying because he "was afraid that Andrew was going to make him a pizza." Elbert assured him that Andrew, in fact, was not making him a pizza, and Nathan went back to sleep.

In the morning, I asked Nathan about his dream. He told me that he dreamed that Andrew was going to make him into a pizza. Andrew was also going to make Evan and Elbert into a pizza apparently.

It's funny how one little word can change the whole meaning.