Chase's New Tricks

As we are getting closer and closer to Chase being in school (which won't be for another school year, thank goodness!) we are starting to work more and more with him on various things.  He is able to recognize all of his letters, is learning the sounds that go with each letter, can count to twenty and is learning to recognize all of his numbers.  Last week when I was at the store I saw a pad of lined paper and thought this was as good of a time as any for Chase to start learning how to write his letters on lined paper as opposed to plain paper.  He loves the time to sit down and do his writing and it makes him feel so old!   Tonight I wrote out five or six words for him to write and learn and he caught on so quickly!!  After seeing a word just one time it then becomes a sight word which is amazing!  I have a feeling this child may be pretty good in school! :)  He really doesn't have much of a choice seeing that he has a mom and a dad who are both teachers!!!

This makes me so proud and I love to seeing him learn.  Even more I love to see how excited he gets about learning new things and how proud of himself he gets!  I'm thankful for the chance to have him home with me for one more year before sending him off to school.  Now I just need to decide whether or not to send him to preschool next year!!  Decisions, decisions ...

Important Lessons

We set up bunk beds in the boy's room this weekend.  They have done so great with them so far with both sleeping and learning the rules.  The top bunk is within reach of the fan for Chase so that has been one of the biggest things I have worried about.  This morning the boys were in their room reading books... or so I thought.  As I walked past their room I overheard Chase telling Jacob to watch what he can do.  I opened the door (which neither of them realized) and saw Chase playing with the fan, making it rock.  I immediately had images of them doing this with the fan and it falling out of the ceiling.  Long story short Jacob was sent upstairs to play (he had not broken any of our rules about he beds) and Chase was disciplined.  He sat in time out for a little while to think about what he had done wrong and what he should have done differently and when I felt like he had sat there long enough I called him over to talk to him.  The conversation went like this....
Me: "Chase, what did you do wrong?"
Chase: "I touched the fan when I knew I wasn't supposed to touch it."
Me: "That is right.  And by touching the fan when you knew you weren't supposed to, you were directly disobeying Mommy and Daddy, right?"
Chase: "Yes."
Me: "Was that the right choice or the wrong choice?"
Chase: "The wrong choice and a sin."
Me: "Right.  What do you need to do now?"
Chase: "Not do it again.  And tell you sorry."
Me: "O.K."
Chase: "Mommy, I am sorry... for ... for touching the fan when I knew I wasn't supposed to touch it."
Me: "I forgive you, Chase, for that wrong choice and I hope you won't do it again.  You also need to talk to Jesus and ask Him to forgive you for your wrong choice and for choosing to disobey Mommy."
Chase: "Yes... (pause)  But Mommy, Jesus doesn't remember my sin."
Me: "You have to ask Jesus for forgiveness first and then He forgets about it.  Jesus died on the cross for the sins and bad choices to make every day.  He died for your sin when you disobeyed Mommy by touching the fan.  He died for your sin when you talked disrespectfully to Mommy and He died for all the other sins and bad choices you have made and will make. What Jesus wants most of all is for you to ask Jesus into your heart and to ask Him to forgive all of your sins."
Chase: "Dear Jesus, I'm sorry for my sins and for disobeying Mommy and Daddy when I touched the fan.  Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins and for loving me.  In Jesus name, Amen."

There are so many times throughout my day that I am disciplining one or the other, soon to be three, and most times it does not go this way.  I hate to admit that there are times I discipline without following up with this type of conversation (which I know is so important so I always hate it when I let this chance get by me) but then there are times like this morning when this kind of conversation occurs and I know that the Lord is working in Chase's heart and preparing him for the moment that he will ask Jesus to come live in his heart.  I know that these conversations and the things he learns from them are so important and that it is in these times that the Spirit is working and I'm so thankful for that!  Charles and I pray together that the Lord will get a hold of our boy's hearts at an early age and that they will walk closely with Him, learning to love Him and follow Him with everything they have.  I am so thankful that I am able to be a stay at home mom with the boys.  I am so thankful that when opportunities arise like the one today that I am the one disciplining and taking advantage of the opportunity to point them more and more towards Jesus.  Chase is so smart and is learning so much ... his comment today in the middle of our talk caught me a little off guard but then makes me realize just how much he is learning about our Lord and Savior.  Most importantly, he is learning that he is a sinner and will make bad choices... he is learning that we all do.  He is learning that Mommy and Daddy fail daily but that we are loved regardless and that both Mommy and Daddy are children of God, whose sins are washed clean because of what Jesus did on the cross.  He is learning that Jesus loves him no matter what and so do Mommy & Daddy!

Wedding Day

Saturday morning two of my boys were up at their normal time despite going to bed so late.  It worked for me though because I needed to shower and get ready before breakfast and I wasn't sure how I would do that if everyone slept in.  I took the two down for breakfast while Charles waited for Jacob to wake up.  Chase ate a huge breakfast and around 9 Jacob woke up and joined us downstairs.  After breakfast I put Luke down for what would be his only solid nap of the day and then took Mom and Aunt Wanda through downtown to the reception site.  Our hotel was within walking distance of where the reception was held but because it was Artisphere that weekend in downtown Greenville many of the streets were closed and the boxes were too heavy to walk.  Once the boxes were dropped off we headed back to the hotel to finish getting ready.  We all piled into the cars around 11:45 and drove to Clemson where Anna and Emma were getting their hair done.  We took Luke with us into the hair salon while the guys took the boys to eat lunch.  Anna arrived at the salon only to realize her veil was at the church, a good 15 minutes away.  I immediately offered to go with Mom to pick it up since I knew my way around and left Luke with the girls and Aunt Wanda. 

Just after we returned with the veil we then headed to the church to get the boys and ourselves changed.  We got to the church around 1:15 and the next few hours went by so quickly.  Charles and I got the boys dressed and then they stayed with Charles while I helped the girls with whatever they needed.

Emma was one of the sweetest flower girls I had ever seen.  The dress that Anna had picked out was so pretty and the flowers and curls in her hair were adorable!!  You could tell Emma thought she was a real life princess! :)

The ceremony was short but super sweet!  Chase could not have done better at his job of ring bearer.  He walked slowly down the aisle and waited for Emma when she would stop to throw her flowers.  He stood so nicely through the whole ceremony and was even so careful to shut his eyes SUPER tight during the prayers.  He took Emma's hand as they walked back down the aisle and was such a gentleman, waiting and making sure his cousin didn't fall.  This is such a short video but it shows how much of a gentleman he was after the ceremony was over!  (Sorry it is a little shaky... I had Luke in my arms and it wasn't easy juggling it all!) :)

The reception was beautiful!!  There was a chance of rain but the Lord was good and kept it away... the temperature was cool and it was a beautiful evening to be outside!  Anna looked gorgeous and Jake definitely made one handsome groom!

The boys ate dinner and then enjoyed being outside.  There was a nice patch of grass in front of Marys and it was perfect for the boys to play in.  There were so many people there to give them attention but they especially loved the attention they got from Mr. and Mrs. Q!!  Mr. Q is now retired but that didn't stop him from having cute little UPS truck toys for the boys.  What a lifesaver!!!

Anna and Jake headed out by 8:30 and it ended up being such an amazing wedding and reception.  You could tell that Anna had put a lot of thought, time and effort into that day and I don't think it could have gone any better!!

Anna, we are so thankful that we were there to be a part of your special day!!  You made a beautiful bride and I know you're going to be a wonderful wife!!  Jake, welcome to the family!!  Can't wait to see you both when you get back from Italy!

Rehearsal Fun

This past weekend Charles' sister, Anna, got married up in the upstate.  We drove up to Greenville Friday morning, saw a few close friends and checked into the hotel for naps before heading over to Seneca for the rehearsal.  The boys were so excited to get to the hotel that it was pure torture to have to go pick up Chase's tux before checking in.  Once we were checked in the boys ate Chick-fil-a in one room while I set up their room for naps.  We originally were going to all stay in one room but a few months ago we had a small taste of sleeping in the same room with Luke and I knew that if it went like it did a few months ago no one would be getting sleep.  Thankfully they still had rooms available when I called and we were able to get adjoining rooms.  I have to say that having two rooms made such a difference... and I'm so thankful we spent the extra money to do that!!  It was so much more relaxing for me knowing that if Luke didn't sleep it wouldn't affect the entire family!  And in the room that we set up for me, Charles and Luke there was a perfect corner to put Luke where nothing really affected him!!  Naps were surprisingly successful and later that night, as the dinner lasted well past 10, I was thankful that the boys had a little sleep that day!  It was so hard missing Anna's graduation but there was no way the boys could have handled that long of a day!!

Around 4:30 we left to head over to the church.  The drive from our hotel to the church was a solid hour and so the boys had a little more time in the car to relax.  The rehearsal went great and although it was dinner time the boys really hung in there, thanks to goldfish crackers!

Chase was a great listener as he was told what to do, where to stand and who to watch.  He was so proud to be in Aunt Anna and Uncle Jake's wedding and he really took his job seriously!!

He had a great time walking down the aisle with Emma.  Jake's best man, Jordan, was so good with Chase.  He would talk to him and explain things to him.  He would occasionally put his hand on Chase's shoulder as if he was saying to him "I'm here, you're not alone.".  I was so thankful for that because I wasn't sure how he would do standing up there with a bunch of big people he didn't know but Jordan made him feel so special!!  At one point we told Chase to do just what Jordan did... and that is just what Chase did!  If Jordan put his hands in his pockets, so did Chase!  If Jordan folded his hands in front, so did Chase!  It was so cute to watch as Chase really looked up to Jordan and as Jordan took Chase under his wing!

Anna was so cute throughout the rehearsal... you could tell that she was just so excited for Saturday to be there and so thankful that so many people were there for her.  Aunt Wanda (Charles' mom's twin sister) did a great job directing and making sure everyone knew what to do and where to be!!

From there we drove to the rehearsal dinner at an Italian restaurant.  By that time it was past the boy's bedtime but they really hung in there!  Jake's mom had thought ahead and ordered cheese pizza for the kids, which came out pretty quickly once we arrived.  The kids ate and then enjoyed getting attention from everyone around!!  Anna had put together two super cute baskets of gifts for her special ring bearer and flower girl and Chase loved opening up all the presents Anna and Jake had bought for him!

Chase loved all the special little gifts that Anna and Jake found for him.  They know just what he loves and found some great things for him!!  They even gave little seersucker bow ties to all the boys, which they wore the next day for the wedding.  I can't wait for the boys to wear their bow ties to church soon!!

The evening was just perfect and my boys surprised us all with how well they did.  Luke had only one nap that day and hung out like it was no big deal!!  It was after 11:00 before we got back to the hotel and we couldn't put pajamas on fast enough and put the boys to bed.  They were out before the lights were turned off and slept great that night!!  We had a long day ahead of us and I was hoping that they boys would do just as great as they did on Friday!

Handsome Little Man

When Chase was 10 months old my brother got married in Virginia.  At that time, there were only two little boys in the family, Chase and my sister's son, Noah.  She and I got together before hand and bought little tuxes for the two little boys.  I bought the smallest one they made and it worked great for Chase and he looked so handsome!!

Horrible picture, I know!!  I don't know who took this picture or with what camera but it's the best one I have of him in the tux.  This next one is a little bit better... he danced with my mom briefly before being changed into his sleeper! :)

Well, as I started planning on what I would put the boys in for the wedding I knew that Chase would be in a tux and then I remembered that Chase was not much older or bigger than Luke is now when he wore the little tux and that it would probably fit Luke.  Sure enough, it fit and he looked so stinking cute in his tux.

It was a little bit big on him but he was so cute!!!  It took me forever to get a few pictures of him wearing the tux the week before the wedding.  He has gotten so active in the last few weeks and it was so hard to position him where I wanted, fix the tux, focus the camera and snap the picture before he would move or slide down.  I even recruited the help of the big boys which helped with making Luke smile but every time he would smile he would fling himself back or scrunch around.  Anyways, we finally got a few good shots of my handsome little man in the tux that he would wear for his Aunt Anna's wedding... the same tux Chase wore for his Uncle Dan and Aunt Ashley's wedding almost 4 years ago!!  I love hand-me-downs like this one where I can look back and have great memories of the boys wearing something in particular... my only regret with this tux is that Jacob never had an opportunity to wear it. 

Best Friends

Chase and Jacob have gotten to the point where they really love being with their friends.  The boys love sharing their toys and love playing out back with their friends.  There is one family in particular that we love to see every week... they were the first friends that we made when we moved to Columbia.  Irene and the kids moved away to D.C. for a while just before we moved into our house but they are back now and we are taking advantage of having them back!!  A few weeks ago I kept Emily & Caleb for Irene while she went to run a few errands and the boys had such a great time!!

The kids enjoyed having a snack together while coloring at the kitchen table.  They loved playing soccer outside and swinging on the swing set.  Then when it was time for lunch we pulled the picnic table over and put up the umbrella.  They sat there together and had lunch.  Their conversations were so fun to listen to... they had a blast!!! 

The times we get together with the Jones family is great for the boys but also so great for me because their mommy is one of my closest friends, who understands me and loves me for who I am.  She is such an encouragement to me and I'm so thankful for her!!  When we were new to Columbia we were living with Charles' parents, we had not found Shandon yet and didn't have many friends.  I ended up going to a morning Bible study at Northeast Pres and that is where I met Irene.  At that time I had a 8 month old and a two year old.  There were a few times that just getting to Bible study and getting the boys where they needed to be was all I could handle... Irene was right there to give me a hug and offer encouragement.  It was no mistake that I met Irene when I did... her two kids are also 15 months apart and the Lord really used her in my life at that time to help get me through!!  Thank you, Irene, for all the time we get to spend together and for being the kind of friend who challenges me as a mom and as a child of God, who is always there to listen and offer advice when needed and for loving me and my family the way you do!!  You are such a blessing to me and my family!!!

Luke's Biggest Fans

Luke has many fans but I would have to say that two of his biggest fans are his big brothers.  They live to make him smile and laugh and they can't wait for him to get up from either night time or nap time to do things with him.  They both spoil him rotten... he makes one sound of being sad and they are right there trying to find something to make him happy with.  Luke looks up to both of his big brothers and he loves all the attention they give him!

Chase has loved Luke with every ounce of him since Luke was born... from the very first time he saw his baby he has loved him and wanted to be near him.  He wants to hold him all the time and has now started getting into playing with him.  One of Chase's favorite things to do with Luke right now is read to him.  It makes me so happy when I look over and see Chase sitting next to Luke on the floor with a book in his lap.

Jacob has always been enamored with his baby brother but just in the last few months he has realized that he can make Luke smile simply by looking his way and can make him laugh by just talking to him.  It is so sweet to see how happy Jacob makes Luke... if Luke is fussy in the car Jacob will often find a way to make him happy.  One day in particular Luke was extremely upset and wanting to get home to eat and nap and without me having to ask Jacob leans over towards Luke and starts to sing "This Little Light of Mine"... immediately Luke calmed down.  It amazed me just how much Jacob is tuned in to his brother and how he knows just what to do to make him happy!

These three boys love each other so much and it makes us so happy to see how close they are.  We hope and pray that they go through life encouraging each other and supporting each other in all they do.  I want them to be each others biggest fans, pointing each other towards Christ and challenging each other in their daily walks with Him.  I want them to be best friends and to be there for each other, always!  The Lord knew just what He was doing in giving these boys brothers and we pray, as their parents, that we will do everything we can do to help foster their relationships with each other!!

Lots of Brother Time

Having a brother (or two brothers in our case) has to be one of the best things.  To always have a playmate around, to always have someone to laugh with or run with, to have a brother to go through life with is something that I hope my boys will grow up to appreciate.  The boys have had so much time these last few weeks to be together and they have been having such a great time!!  They go outside every chance they get so it's nice that we have a fenced yard, with grass and a nice play set.  The big boys have gotten to an age where I can open the door and let them go without having to worry about much.  They know the rules and most of the time stick to them!

 Luke gets to go out in the mornings or the evenings when the sun isn't so strong.  He loves to swing and when he's not in the swing he is super content to sit in the shade in his exersaucer.  He is no different from the bigger boys in that going outside will make him happy when nothing else can!!

The big boys have also really gotten into having picnics outside for lunch on the nice days, which lately have been almost every day.  Some days we pull the picnic table over to the patio and other days we just lay out a blanket.  I love how the little things in life (like having picnic lunches with each other) make them so happy!  I hope it stays that way and that they will appreciate everything, from the little things to the big things!

Luke was just as happy to watch from the shade... as long as he is able see his brothers and watch what they are doing life is good! :)