Happy Birthday Judah

Ok, so maybe it is my pregnancy hormones getting the best of me lately ~ but I could cry just sitting here realizing that our big boy is 2 years old today! I couldn't imagine a day without my sweet man stealing my heart and bringing all of us such joy. One of Judah's best qualities to date is his never ceasing patience. Bless his little heart ~ he will wait on you for anything as long as he knows it is coming!!! I love that he is such a boy ~ we all know how much he loves anything that is a RIDE and he goes bonkers when he sees daddy's car pull in the driveway for his wrestling time ~ yet he has the sweetness to do absolutely anything that makes his sister happy; playing dressing up, putting her baby dolls "night-night", and giving you kisses all day long. What can I say ~ he is the 2nd man that has ever stolen my heart, I love you sweet Judah!

Preschool Graduation

Selah and Miss Ellen (aka....Teacher of the Year!!!)Judah's so proud of his big sister!

Selah and Mag's (aka...Maggie ~ school mate and friend)


So I think this post will tell you all the things I did "NOT" do on Selah's last day of school (or possibly I may have)! I most certainly did not start crying the moment the older class came out in their graduation caps...Nope, not me! I would never start crying when Selah was up singing her songs to Jesus...Nope, not me! I definitely did not start crying when attempting to thank Miss Ellen for the most amazing year with our daughter...Nope, not me! And, I was not that parent in the hallway having to be consoled by all the other mom's (who were crying too) that this is only preschool and we have many "graduations" ahead of us...Nope, not me! Selah sweetheart, mommy and daddy are so proud of you this year for all you have learned ~ to raise your hand in class, to share with others, to write your full name with upper and lower case letters, for all your beautiful art projects, and most importantly for your tender heart towards Jesus our King!

On a little side note (the below is written mostly for you Western DuRoss's):
Last week I asked Selah to hand me a box to throw in the garbage. She said "mommy, we have to recycle this box, see it has a recycle sign on it". I asked "Selah, where did you learn that" she said "Blues Clues mommy"!!! Well, I was amazed and then took the box and proceeded to ashamedly place it in the garbage, she again said "mommy, that doesn't belong in the garbage we have to take that somewhere for them to reuse". Ok, ok, ok ~ so Blues Clues has finally gotten the best of me!!! Any great ideas for helping us "learn" to recycle, feel free to share!! Love ya all.

Easter 2009

Easter brought many fun activities for our kiddos this year. The morning started with church ~ Selah is learning more than I can believe sometimes! Then we had the "Austin" clan over to our house for a wild egg hunt for the little kids and an intense scavenger hunt for the older Petrie kids. Uncle Derek went all out this year with clues like "On the inside sometimes I glow, but in the winter I just collect snow" (answer: our grill), "Monday through Saturday in one place do I stay, but on Sunday to the street I make my way" (answer: garbage can)! Anyhoo ~ you get the gist, we had fun with it!

Stumped anyone????The fun didn't end there ~ we headed over to Mom and Dad DuRoss's for a night with Gammy, Uncle Steve & Aunt Pat. Selah got quite the treat as Nana surprised her with her own intense scavenger egg hunt. She had Selah running all through the house with her clues finding the next egg and as usual ~ Judah just followed right after her. They were spoiled at the end with yummy easter egg baskets in the "hidden closet" at Nana's ~ for those that don't know where it is, you will have to ask Selah! To sum it all up ~ we had a great family day!!! Thanks everyone for making such special memories for our babes!

The Difference A Day Can Make!!

Here's the scoop ~ the picture above was taken today and the shots below were taken yesterday. Yup, we live in OHIO!!! Thankfully we took full advantage of the amazing weather yesterday with the Petrie clan and headed out for a bike riding adventure at Bear Town Lakes, dinner at Yours Truly, play-time at Chagrin Falls park and last but certainly not least, ice cream at the Popcorn Shop! We were astonished at how steady Selah was on her bike this year and braking quite well down the hills. Not long before we try no training wheels! Judah thought he was on his own "ride" (just the stroller really), but he kept shouting with thrill "ride-ride"!!! It was a great day and even though the winter storm has crept back in today ~ it was a great reminder that spring/summer is so very close!!!

Kayla kept Selah busy reading while she wrote chalk messages all down the bike trails!

Logan checking out what fish were in the pond ~ he's becoming quite the man!

Judah's week!

So our little man gave us quite the scare this week ~ with our first (of many I am sure) trips to the ER. Somehow he found the strength to pull down our old 30-40 lb. tv right onto himself. I turned around to see him trapped from chest to feet underneath it! After calling the doctors office, they sent us into the ER to make sure there was no internal bleeding or cracked ribs. God was watching over our boy and thankfully all was well. The very next day we headed out for our weekly playgroup at the park (loving the beautiful spring weather) ~ only to have him flip over half way down the slide and get the nice scrapes you see on his nose. Seriously, how much can one mama take in a week!

p.s. These pictures are taken with our new camera ~ Nikon L100!!!

Spring Fever!

Seriously ~ it has been WAY to long since I blogged last. So, I thought I would recap the past month or two and catch everyone up on our lives! Selah turned 4!!!! I know everyone says the same thing, but truly "where has the time gone". She is practically a grown-up already! Her days mostly consist of preschool (obsession with everything about Miss Ellen ~ her teacher), reading, and telling us either stories or singing us a song through0ut the day. Literally ~ she even sings most of her prayers!!! The funny thing is the other day she was singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in the car and everytime, right before she would say "Star" ~ Judah shocked me and he said it for her!! Really sweet and amazing, because he ISN'T an "on-demand" talker ~ I mean, the boy knows many words, but if you ask him to say it, you can forget him doing it (hmmmmm, where would that stubborn streak come from???? ~ ok, yes, it is the Austin blood in him!!!).

As for Judah ~ besides the fact that he is holding out on us with his chatting, he actually can be quite the talker, just on his terms! His latest saying is "night-night" ~ and he giggles tremendously over this one, not sure why! Besides the cranky spout here or there with teething ~ he is just such a happy little guy. He LOVES trying on shoes, boots, heels ~ whatever he can get his little hands on. We just bought him his first pair of crocks and he was beside himself! Mostly ~ he just loves imitating his big sister, Derek got the best video last week and if I can figure out how to post it, I will.

My favorite thing about the two of them is their love for one another. Don't get me wrong ~ there are times it can be a love/hate relationship ~ but there is something so amazing about watching how they're growing in their bond to each other. Judah would follow Selah to the moon and back if he could ~ and nothing makes me want to cry more than sitting back and thanking God for the both of them.

As for me ~ I am now 10 weeks pregnant and still a bit in awe that we're going down this road again (one last time!!!!). I have been really nauseous this round, which I wasn't with the other two ~ but hopefully that will pass in the next couple weeks. Our due date for those that don't know is October 10th ~ so we're really excited to have the summer with just the two, before our world turns upside down once again! We have lots of names twirling around in our heads ~ but feel free to give any suggestions!!

Ok ~ that is about it for now, I will try and be more dedicated to keeping all those we love updated in the future. And, no I didn't leave Derek out ~ he has just been super swamped with work and anything besides that is him being the most AMAZING "family-man" that I know. He is a testimony every day of demonstrating a true servant's heart and reminds me why I am so blest to have him as my hubby.

Love ya all.

Christmas 2008

Before I start our Christmas photo celebration ~ I couldn't resist posting these two shots from our time w/ the Western DuRoss clan over Turkey Day. Chip and Audz already made a great post from our time together, but these were two adorable shots I had to put on here! Finn ~ we miss you buddy and the kiddos do too! And to all those Western Clan DuRoss's ~ we miss you too and hope you had a great time with your family over Christmas!

Below is a shot of our sweet Selah as she just discovered that Santa really did come to our house this year and ate all the cookies and milk she left out. Even Rudolf enjoyed the yummy carrots she remembered to put out for him! This was an awesome year with both our kids ~ Selah was REALLY into the idea of Santa and all those fun tales we told her, but even more than that ~ there was never a doubt in our minds that she completely understood what Christmas was truly about and the great sacrifice that Christ gave to each of us as a humble child coming to this earth. If that doesn't bring a parent joy, I don't know what does! As for Judah ~ he may not get the meaning yet, but he certainly did get the idea of ripping open presents!!!

Selah got a baker's outfit from Mommy for Christmas this year. I love our time in the kitchen together and now she is all set to dig right in there with me!

We spent our Christmas Eve over at NeNe Heather's home. As the years go on, I just love the traditions we're establishing for our children to not only count on but come to love as much as I do. This year Heather and I did a CRAZY amount of baking cookies and even made Grandma Hoy's marshmallow log roll. What's so special to me about making this, is that Heather was the one w/ the sweet memory of my Grandma making these many many years ago ~ but it wasn't until we actually cut into it that my memories came flooding back and even now it makes me want to cry.

Uncle Gordy, Alexa & Selah

Is my man cute or what???

The three amigos "Leah, Kayla & Selah" ~ yes the beat red faces are from playing non-stop!

On Christmas Day we got to spend the whole day over at Nana & Papa's which the kiddos couldn't wait to do. Little did Selah know that they had quite the Christmas surprise waiting for her! This picture isn't Nana sneaking her some spoonfuls of Cool Whip (although she does that plenty!!!), but one of the hidden clues for the scavenger hunt she went on to find her AMAZING dollhouse!!! Our girl has quite the imagination ~ so I can't wait to watch and listen to her through the many years she is going to love this special gift.

We were also excited to spend this Christmas with not only Nana, Papa & Gammy ~ but Susan, Stephanie too! My only regret is there wasn't more time to spend with you two. I am hoping for next year though and Dave can come along too! Selah loved getting to put on her "performances" for you guys ~ hopefully next year Judah will join in on the fun!