Mason

I feel like I need to jot down more posts to remember all the "moments" with the kids or at least some of them. Mason is 1 month shy of 3 and still loves to nap for 3 or 3.5 hours a day. Today, he woke up at 3pm. (only after 2 hours) crying very loudly. I think it was a bad dream. I went up there and told him River and Regan were still asleep and that it was still nap time. I had just put R and R down at 230, and I needed some more "Mommy time." He obeyed and I gave him 3 books to look at and turned his light on and told him I would be back to get him when Riv gets up. He was very happy and when I left, I thought to myself, "When did he grow up? I felt like I was talking to River in a way. Too weird." He is turning into such a little boy too fast!

Back to a quiet house...for a few minutes anyway. Yep, Regan just woke..ha!

Boys will be Boys...

Took the kids to see all the harrisonburg cousins all day Tuesday. For quiet time, I put River and Marley in a bedroom to play quietly. I opened the door to find River laying down, with his legs spread open and hands behind his head laughing. Marley had a nerf gun out and was loading it above R. "What are you boys doing...?" R says, "We are taking turns shooting eachother's penises."

At 1000am this morning, I had already done 2 crafts with the boys to keep them busy. Then I just went outside to check on them and Mason had peed in a cup outside and River dumped it into the sandbox. Lovely.

This morning, River was singing at the top of his lungs..."Oh no, you never let go of me...through the calm and through the storm..." A beautiful thing for a tired Mommy to hear. Then I hear Mason shouting, "No, stop singing..." There went the moment:)

They keep me on my toes and laughing...love it.

Krista

"Blessed are those who mourn..." I have been comforted by this verse as we heard the news this weekend that Belle, Krista's Mom, has pancreatic/liver cancer. She has been having odd, unexplained symptoms for awhile which reached a new level of concern and landed her in the hospital Friday. They found the mass then. She was jaundiced from head to toe and not doing well at all. My heart absolutely breaks for Krista and the entire family. I am so glad Chris and Kevin are so close since Kevin and Dia have gone through this with loosing Dia's Mom recently to cancer. I spent so much of Saturday crying and praying and trying to wrap my head around what was to come. Mason caught me crying Saturday morning, put down his toy and walked over to me. He looked so concerned and asked me, "Mommy, are you sad?" I told him my friend was sick and I needed to pray for her. He climbed up onto my lap and hugged me so hard for the longest time. Then he positioned himself next to me, grabbed my hand to hold and put his head on my shoulders. Like Dia said, "he just paused to be there with you." I was reminded that he is just shy of 3 and already thinking outside of himself. Chris and Krista's faith has been inspiring. They are keeping there eyes on Jesus! They were told most likely her cancer was stage 3/4 due to the mass and her symptoms. With pancreatic cancer, the symptoms usually do not show until the later stages when it is too late for any treatment. It is a cancer that is very aggressive. We all prayed and waited to hear how her surgery/biopsy went today (Monday). My prayer was that there would be a miracle Lord willing and that Belle would have more time with us than the doctors think and they we would be surprised with good news. After phone tags with Chris and Mom today, Mom called to say, her cancer is TREATABLE and that they are going to send her to Johns Hopkins in Baltimore. Her earlier test did not match what they found in surgery today and the cancer had NOT progressed beyond a treatable level. Praise God! This was the great news we all had hoped for. We are also so happy to hear that Belle has Jesus in her heart and that when the time comes for the Lord to take her home, she will be in heaven and Krista will see her again. This was Krista and Chris' prayer going down to WVA for the weekend. I wrote Chris and Krista this past weekend an email. It basically said that I cannot imagine their pain now and no words can help. That life is not fair but that God is good. That we are to trust HIM even when we do not understand why horrific things happen! But how, when the pain is so deep and new??? I turned to the bible and was reminded of some verses for times like these in life....
"I waited patiently for the Lord, he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire, he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord." Psalm 40:1-3

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." Psalm 34:18

"Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." 1Peter 5:7

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in me." John 14:1

" Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Matthew 5:4

Movies

River just started a story with..."You know Mommy, back in the old times like when you and Daddy were born or when you were kids..." I mean seriously? I had to laugh.

Last night, we loaded the kiddos into the minivan and took them to see Winnie the Pooh. They all loved it! Including Regan:) Hard to believe it was Regan's 2nd movie and she turned 4 months yesterday. Mason ate popcorn for the entire movie and asked for more when it was all gone. That boy can put it down. I even caught him lifting his shirt up and patting his growing popcorn belly. He would dance and laugh in his chair every time music would play during the film and say, "Mommy watch me." River just starred at the movie smiling and in amazement. He even laughed at the jokes and then of course, Mason had to copy him and laugh out loud. We shared the entire theatre with 2 others. So it was nice for the boys to move around a little and for Logan and I to take turns holding Regan. Mason kept asking, "why is it getting dark in here." Logan only had to leave the theatre 2 times for pee pee breaks:) When the movie was over, we let the boys run up and down the isle. L and I were talking about what movies the boys have seen and I wanted to jot them down.

River at the drive in theatre when he was a baby-The Jungle Book

Toy Story 3

Yoggie Bear

Rio

Winnie the Pooh

Mason Rio

Winnie the Pooh

Regan Rio

Winnie the Pooh

Next on the agenda, Cars 2. The boys cannot wait. We'll get a sitter for Regan for that one...

Bumbo Seat, Rolling Over, and Loving Her Bros

I was able to capture Regan rolling over for the first time after church last week. She was 3 1/2 months old and very proud of herself. Momma was too. Regan is teething like a champ and eating very often during the day and night now. Must be a growth spurt along with the teething causing the night waking. She loves her bumbo seat and is learning how to hold objects better. She continues to love her brothers so much. She just lights up when they talk to her and she talks back now along with many smiles.

Summer Fun

Crabijeans pics from the 4th!

July 4th 2011

We celebrated the 4th at Crabijeans this year again. It is hard to believe that it will probably be our last time visiting crabis since it is for sale:( So many great memories. Nothing can compare to the celebrating the fourth of July on the water! Our kids got to stay up 2 nights in a row very late to enjoy fireworks. Saturday night we went to Kinsale to sit on top of the bridge over the water and watch the town's fireworks. The town shuts down the road and bridge for the event. It was Mason's first time seeing fireworks, so it was so amazing to watch his joy and eyes light up saying, " ohhh I like that one and I like that one and..." Regan slept through the whole thing in the stroller. Then on Sunday night we put the kids to bed but soon after we started to hear fireworks across the water. Logan and I ended up getting the boys up b/c the display outside was spectacular. There were like 8 different firework displays and two others, one on each side of crabijeans. We took the boys out onto the dock at 1000pm to watch them and see all the reflections in the water. They were so excited we got them out of bed. They weren't sleeping anyways:) River enjoyed fishing a bunch and caught about 12 fish with Logan. He even had 2 double catches! Needless to say, he was a very happy boy. Regan got to experience Crabijeans for the first time and probably the last. We also enjoyed tying the tube to the dock and floating on it with the kids. River and Mason loved jumping in the water from the dock. Doah had a quick swim too. Logan was our cook on the grill both nights and we enjoyed delicious dinners. Although we did return with a ton of bug bites, we made some nice memories.