Like Father, Like Son...

...in so many ways, even down to the hooded jackets.

A Child's Optimism

This little interchange between Seth and me happened a while ago, but I still remember it clearly and think of it almost daily so I thought I'd share it. A little background...whenever we go somewhere, do something or see someone, Seth always says it's ____ day (fill in the blank with names of family, friends, places, etc.). So say we're going to the park...it's "park day." As we drive up the hill towards our house, you can, on a clear day, see Mt. Rainier off in the distance and what a magnificent sight it is. So one day in the car, as we're driving up the hill:

me: Seth, do you think we'll be able to see the mountain today?

Seth: Yah! It's mountain day!

(as we get to the top of the hill, the mountain is hidden behind low clouds and cannot be seen at all)

me: Oh no! We can't see the mountain! It's covered up by all the clouds!

Seth: Yay! It's cloud day!

How I wish I were always able to see the good in every situation this same way. So we couldn't see the mountain. So what? We got to see some lovely clouds in all shades of gray. :-)

Here's my little shining star:

And here's his pretty little sister at 5 weeks, all ready for church.

Life is good.

Extreme Family Room Makeover Revealed!

I've taken advantage of the generosity and talent of my parents to get some home improvement done while they're here. Most of our time is spent in our family room, so that was the place to tackle first. I mentioned at Christmas time that my ever-talented and expert craftsman brother built a new fireplace mantel for us. Here's the before...

Seth was dying to help out, running around shouting "Seth paint too!" between verses of "Bob the Builder." So here he is "helping" Grandpa with the roller.

And ta-da! Here's the after...
It makes me smile whenever I walk in the room. What's next? Maybe we'll actually have furniture in our living room someday. For now, I'm loving our cozy little nest we call home sweet home.

What a difference a week makes...

Lydia is almost 3 weeks old, but I finally have a few minutes to post a few photos of her at about a week old. She changes every day and is starting to look like a little lady!

I managed to capture this little moment that I love love love. For the first few days we were home with Lydia, Seth kept his distance and wasn't sure what this little noisemaker was doing in our house. He started warming up to her but was really acting out toward me. Through my tears, I thought, "Where, oh where, has my sweet little boy gone? Oh where, oh where can he be??" In just a few days I seemed to turn another 180 and he's back to his cute self, albeit with a few more outbursts than before. Seeing him love his sister makes me love him all the more.

And, we love reading stories with Seth, especially since now he can complete the sentences. He loves story time with Dad just before bedtime. His new favorite book is I Love You, Stinky Face and Does a Pig Flush? which sends us all into a fit of giggles. He picked it out himself at the library. Could he be telling us he's ready to flush (aka use the toilet)? *sigh* Am I ready for this?