snow day!

it snowed again yesterday.  i love snow.  we've had a total of 8 inches in nashville so far this winter, which is more than we're used to getting in any given winter (or 4 winters combined).  we played outside in it the first couple of rounds, but yesterday isaac wanted to do something inside because he was tired of being cold.  we pulled out our hot chocolate marshmellow stash and the toothpicks we used last week for isaac's cupcakes and made some "creations."  it's one of the only things we've done recently that felt like the joy of the activity lasted way longer than the clean up or prep time (well, honestly, i haven't actually cleaned it all up yet, but it didn't require anything to get us going!).

we made a dog house together, and then isaac made a really great sun.... 

and a super long snake.

meanwhile, ada ate as many marshmellows as she could

and nala, the dog that is not in jail healing tummy wounds, was very pleased when ada snagged the entire bag and spilled them all over the floor.

maybe we'll do it again soon.  though the way things are going this winter, we might be in for some more fun in the snow as well!

lost. and found. again.

we went to the downtown library for story time.  it rocks.  it's been a while since we've gone, and isaac especially liked it yesterday.  while he enjoyed the books and the puppets, i tried to wrangle ada away from the strangers sitting beside us who were feeding their kids pretzels and other yummy snacks.  she was scavenging, maybe in an effort to make new friends but probably in an effort to find a treat.  i really love this about ada.  she's never met a stranger, and she really loves to share.  she's our curious little critter.

at the end of story time, isaac went up to the front with the rest of the kids to sit on the stage and sing "what a wonderful world" in sign language.  ada and i went with him at his request.  it was his first time to express interest in being a part of this tradition at the library, and i was really proud of him.  afterwards we ran into some friends and talked to them while we picked out a stack of 17 new books to read this week, most of which are actually good!

monkey blank came with us, as is common on many of our adventures.  he tags along happily, and all is well until we realize we have no clue where he is.  when we got home with our hands very full of books, i discovered he was gone.  i always feel like we're running out of grace when it comes to monkey blank.  he's been lost so many places--a college campus, a toy store, and an outdoor wedding reception at dark just to name a few.  i called the library repeatedly during nap time, hoping to get lucky and discover monkey blank had wandered up to the information desk.  i didn't get an answer.  i started thinking about how we might replace monkey blank, though i know better.  ruru and i tried that once when elephant blank "went to town."  we found another elephant blank at a store that looked just like isaac's elephant blank and we brought him home, excited to tell isaac the good news.  after taking a quick look at the new elephant blank, he threw the blanket across the room and said, "this is NOT elephant blank.  give this to ada."  he had nothing to do with new elephant blank for at least three days, during which time jeremy gave the new elephant blank a cool voice and a stellar personality.  now the blank imposter is allowed to be part of isaac's life, but is called new elephant blank.  he still insists that old elephant blank went to town.

after naps we drove back the the library and retraced our steps.  because we were lucky enough, we found monkey blank mixed in with the puppets close to where we'd been playing with our friend ayden earlier.  isaac tends to flap his arms when he gets excited.  monkey blank's return definitely got an arm flapping.  i can't believe he's home safe.  again.  hooray.

another sock?

this week our dog, stella, had exploratory intestinal surgery for a third time.  she likes to eat things that she shouldn't.  though i know we have no clue how much stuff she's actually swallowed, we do know what she's downed that has gotten stuck.  so far that list includes four magnets, two toddler socks, and a third sock, also belonging to our 2 year old son.  stella is officially beloved at our animal hospital.  they tell us it's because of her "magnetic personality" but i think they look at her and see dollar signs.  how could they not?  i do, despite my love for her.  we like to call her "Dazzle" behind her back, because we've spent more than enough money exploring her intestines.    obviously the costly procedure is one that we're really grateful for.  it's saved our dog three times in the last two years.  and though the recovery process is hard for all of us, we are thankful to have been graced with our same, muppet-like mess of a ball-fetching, kid-loving, big, goofy dog at the end of it all.

the last two surgeries were within three months of each other.  dirty socks were involved both times.  it seems like getting horrifically sick, having surgery, and then having a long period of recovery should be enough to teach her to avoid eating socks as a behavior pattern.  people say that dogs are like their owners.  i tend to agree. that's why i decided to start this blog.

i am a stay-at-home-ish mother.  isaac, our son, is 2 about to be 3, and ada, our daughter is 13 months old.  when ada was born, i decided to take a break from a job i loved as a youth minister, and though i spend a very large percentage of my day with our children, i forget so many of the details of their young lives and often times what stirs in me as a result.

yesterday i was reading to isaac from our favorite book, The Jesus Storybook Bible.   It says "God wrote, "I love you"--he wrote it in the sky, and on the earth, and under the sea.  He wrote his message everywhere!  Because God created everything in the world to reflect him like a mirror--to show us what he is like, to help us know him, to make our hearts sing."  I know it to be true that God is showing himself to me in ways I can't recognize because I'm changing diapers and filling sippy cups all day long. And i know Him to be showing himself to me in ways I can recognize, but often don't remember for the same reasons.  I wonder if i were to write about our days, if i might know better His faithfulness and delight more in the insight I may have into His heart as He shares with me the unique and wonderful blessings and challenges of our lives.

i wrote this as if i have intentions of others reading my ramblings, which is funny because that isn't at all why i'm doing this.  i have a lot of insecurities about starting a blog, even if it's just for the sake of recording our days so that i might remember them and learn from them.  even so, here goes.  i'm raising my ebenezers, hoping to claim some of the goodness of God's presence in our lives, and hoping, too, that   i might be growing in ways that prevent me from eating my socks a third time.  please, stella, milkbones only.