Did You Feel the Mountains Tremble?

Named in honor of my Husband, who suggested the title.

Wow. I feel like I have a lot of little things to tell you about. I hope I remember them all...yeah right!

Judah

I think he's getting his top two incisor teeth. His first year molars aren't even done coming in! Perhaps he's a kid where the teeth come in fours? Today was our first official day of trying no morning nap and a longer afternoon nap. I haven't seen him as happy (and wild) as he was today in several weeks. It was so much fun and so nice! So we'll keep trying out this new routine and see if it is what he's been needing. And to have 3 solid hours in the afternoon to get things done and nap...wow! We learned a lesson at Target today. Well, two lessons in one actually. Some of you have been following the "blankie" saga. It's official. The satin trim, solid color, soft blanket is what Judah loves. Lesson number 1 -- It doesn't HAVE to be the blue blanket he has. Matt spotted an adorable light green furry blanket with satin trim (that had a LION in one corner! so cute!). I gave it to Judah just to see what he would do. He looked it over once or twice, stuck his thumb in his mouth, and laid his head on it. And stayed that way for a couple minutes. Lesson number 2? Know the risk you take in giving your child something you don't intend to buy him but you think he might like. Yeesh. I think we escaped screaming pretty easily...this time. I do hope that maybe we can get him that blanket sometime. Good thing I'm budget conscious, otherwise I'd have the time of my life gifting (nicer way of saying spoiling) my Judah! ;-)

Elijah

The boy doesn't care that he's running out of room. He pushes and kicks so forcefully! I've been able to actually grab onto a limb a few times because he pushes it so hard against my belly. We got his pack-n-play tonight (the one off the registry), and boy is it nice! Poor Judah...the second-born isn't even born yet and already the stuff is nicer. The things you learn on your first that you fix for the rest! This pack-n-play has a basinette insert and an attached "changing table." It will be very nice to have while Elijah stays in our room the first month. (We would have borrowed the basinette again, but it was given away after we returned it to the lender. And we knew we'd need two pack-n-plays anyway...) We also got a new baby bathtub that, again, is so nice compared to what Poor Judah had to go through. I think the tub we were given was made for girls...it has a little "saddle horn" that comes up between the legs. Not so comfy looking for a baby boy! And in all honesty, they seem to improve baby items very quickly -- even in just a year and a half. I'm just thankful that God has provided for us to have the things we need with a little more comfort than is absolutely necessary. He is the Great Provider! :-) Pretty sure I've had several Braxton Hicks contractions this past week. Harmless, but kind of a good mental preparation and reminder that it is SOON!

Our Anniversary

What a wonderful day we had! Three years seems so pitiful in comparison to all that has happened in those three years. We spent last night before bed telling each other all the reasons why we'd marry the other all over again, now that we've spent three years together. This morning, we got a babysitter from church to come to Salinas. We went to the Duck Club Grill for breakfast. It was SUCH a beautiful and clear morning on the bay, and we got a window seat. It was so nice to just be together, the two of us. We both hope that we'll have more opportunity to date in MD since we'll live closer to others in the church (aka babysitters) and places to go for dates. We came back and fed Judah lunch then went swimming together. I think Judah is getting a tad more used to the pool, and we plan to go tomorrow and Wednesday as well. Then Judah napped for three whole hours! During that time I gave Matt a haircut...and the mountains trembled!

That's right, a bonifide earthquake. It took us a few seconds to even realize what was going on. They're working on the vacated apartment below us, so my initial thought was that they did something that made our floor bounce...but it kept bouncing. Finally, we both figured out that um, this was an earthquake. So Matt jumped out of the chair, tore off the haircut cape, and opened the front door to stand in it's frame. I just stood there trying to figure out if it was even worth it to get in a door way -- was it going to last much longer or get worse? At that time, Matt said we needed to get to Judah. So I started walking down the hallway and by the time I was at his door, the quake had stopped. So we both stood there, feeling each other's heartbeats and nervously laughing at our silly, stunned reactions.

After the haircut/quake, we laid in bed and watched Hoodwinked, an animated movie about the "real" story behind Red Riding Hood. Cute, I guess. A one timer movie. Interesting concept in hearing four different versions of the story (Red, Wolf, Granny, and Lumberjack). Meh, if you can watch it without paying for it, it might be worth it to you.

Then we had dinner and went shopping. Part of the shopping involved obtaining a few things to make a gift for someone. I SOOOO wish I could go into detail and post pics, but I can't due to the fact that some of my readers know or may BE the receiver of this gift, once it's finished. But rest assured, when all is said and done, pictures WILL appear on this blog. I'm very excited about it! We also got the above mentioned pack-n-play, bathtub, and a few other assundry items.

Again, such a good day to just be together as a couple and as a family. No work. No computer dealings. No phones until the evening (that was especially nice...to ignore all calls until later in the day). I love my husband. He's so patient, creative, smart, funny, generous, servant hearted, understanding, sensitive, growing...I could go on and on! I realized last night that several guys who I thought were right for me were FAR from it. Matt is PERFECT in every way for me, both for my strengths and especially my weaknesses. And we both know it is because of Christ that our marriage is what it is after three years -- strong and maturing, ever increasing in oneness. I love you, Love!

Happy Birthday, Autumn!

I hope you had a wonderful day galavanting! Can't wait to hear all about it -- and whether or not you bought half of Target! ;-) I love you!

Pictures

Enjoy these random pictures! And then, goodnight!

I hesitated to post these, but then remembered that stretch marks are badges of honor. And it's precious to see a little guy with his hand on his little brother's temporary home (for only 27 more days!).



Our cutie-tootie, Judah-man. Alot of people are starting to say he looks like me, especially while we were in MD. I agree, though my jaw isn't as defined as it usually is due to pregnancy. ;-) That toy in the background is the one we bought as his "car seat" toy in MD to help make the constant in-and-out-of-the-car more bearable. Yeah, the blue blankie ended up going with us everywhere. He'd look funny with long hair, huh? And today, after I took my shoes off, Judah decided he wanted to try them on. He got one on and then walked from the living room to the bathroom...dragging the shoe behind him.



When Matt gets in the kitchen...surprising, tasty things happen! Tonight he concocted MattE's Cheesies. It's just Safeway brand seasoned fries broiled up with some cheddar and 6-cheese Italian blend. Next time we'll throw on some bacon...it seriously tasted just like Outback's cheese fries! I desperately wanted some good ranch to go with it!



The flowers my mom sent last week -- what I describe as a smile sitting on my dining table!



On our third anniversary!