{A Moment Past}

I thought it only appropriate to post a past picture today because our Tru is turning six tomorrow! So I dug through my pictures and I found one of my favorites...

Oh my sweet sweet boy!
*Picture taken by one of our awesome friends, Mandy, check her out over at http://justmandyness.blogspot.com/

Life's a Garden...dig it!

We are not really a gardening type of family. However, a family and life is like a garden, right? And we have been working hard around here on our "garden" and with the help of the original Gardner we are seeing some great results...

Tru's been working hard with school. We only have about six lessons to go and then he will start first grade. We are both looking forward to a change. His sixth birthday is this Saturday and we are throwing him a party at the city beach with some of his friends and J has a special surprise for him. It's a pretty simple party, cupcakes & swimming, but I know he'll have a blast! I'll post pictures of everything later next week.

Also, this past Sunday the twins turned 10 months old. We are getting extremely close the one year mark! It is amazing how quick it has gone by and yet sometimes it feels like years. The boys are on the verge of walking and their personalities are really starting come through and they are like night and day. We have a lot of fun with them!

Lastly, this Summer has been a very trying time for our family. Thankfully we are coming out of it...we've been doing some spiritual gardening in a sense. This has been a season of pruning back the dead, unlovely things in our lives...and though it has been uncomfortable at times, it has been well worth it. There is still more "pruning" to be done, but we are thankful to be seeing the work bloom into healing and restoring of peace in our lives. Our Father is so good to us! Summer is turning into Fall and this season in our lives is coming to an end and only God deserves the Glory! Jesus said it best...

~John 15:1-8
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples."

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Image: Simon Howden / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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Weekend Recap

~Playing in the yard, movie night, super short yard sales, crazy oven fires, firetrucks, family time, The Help, late night coffee,Twins turning 10 months old, hanging with church family, pizza with friends, swimming at the Y, one very flat tire, diaper exchange, oven moving, late night chats, & some Jody time.

CRAZY!

Seriously, crazy is probably an understatement! I took all of the boys grocery shopping earlier today and not the "picking up a few things" kind of trip. I was determined to do a full trip. The plan was to have Tru push the twins in the side by side double stroller leaving plenty of room in the buggy for a full trip's worth of groceries. I usually have a J or a friend watch at least the twins when I go, but Tru had helped me before using the stroller on a short trip and I figured he did so well the last time it would be fine.
So as we entered the store things were going well until my help was sucked into the bakery with hopes of getting a birthday cake...ooh just a week and half before his birthday party. Wouldn't our guests enjoy that?! As I was herding him towards the produce section the distractions only grew louder. Half way through this great idea Tru is not only fully distracted, but now Liam can't contain himself! He was squirming up and down...hanging as far out of his seat as he could stretch himself. And when Liam wasn't hanging out of the stroller he was reaching for whatever came into his reach. He would just let his little chubby hand dangle out the side of the stroller. I was having a hard time focusing on my list and every other aisle we would meet other shoppers. I'm sure we frustrated a few since we were moving at a stop and go kind of pace and every person we talked to would start with the same phrase "Oh, don't you have your hands full..." Really?!
I thought seriously about just leaving my buggy and walking out a couple of times, but then I thought the whole trip would have been pointless. So we trudged on and finally made it to the check out lane. This was actually the easiest part of the whole thing. Everything went smoothly and we checked out, loaded all up, and made it home with out any issues at all. The twins were asleep by the time we got home making it easy to unload and put things away. Needless to say I wont attempt an outing like this for a little while. That really would be crazy!

Twinsie Tuesday--Older Siblings

Ever since we first heard those two amazing words "It's twins!" life has never been the same...for the better of course. It has been such a great journey adding these sweet little boys to our family. But I remember thinking early on about our oldest, Truitt, and how he would adjust to not only adding one brother but TWO. J & I wanted to be sure that Tru would not feel left out or have any negative feelings when his twin brothers hit the scene. There were 3 things that I think helped him ease into being a big brother of multiples...

First, we made sure that Tru was involved with just about everything we did when it came to the twins. He was with us when we first found out we were having twins and at every sonogram after that. Later, he went and registered for baby stuff with us. He enjoyed zapping stuff with J, when he could get the gun from him, and helping make decisions on what he thought they would need. We also made sure he was included in the baby shower where he received a big brother book and helped open the gifts. We also took him to an older sibling class at the hospital where he learned about new babies and got a tour of where we would be.

Secondly, we had "brother time" with just him after the twins were born. What I mean by that is we wanted Truitt to be with us as soon as possible after having the twins. I had a C-Section and after they got us back to the recovery room we had alone time with just Tru and the twins. We wanted that time for him to get to bond with the boys right away and show him that he was an important part of such a special moment for our family. It's making me teary eyed just remembering his sweet face when he came tip toeing in the room. He was so gentle with them. It is such a precious memory for me.

Last, we made sure that he had plenty of loving & attention when they came. Especially, the day we went in to have the twins. My parents were able to come down and they payed special attention to big brother while J & I were tending to newborn twins. I wasn't sure what to expect the first couple days after they were born and wanted to be sure he was taken care of while were adjusting. The morning of the C-Section, they took him for breakfast, then after they came for the first hospital visit they took him to the park and treated him to his choice of lunch. We were in the hospital for a couple of days and they loved on him the whole time!
Now once we came home and we all began to adjust. There were a few issues, but it was mainly Tru testing some boundaries with us. He never had negative opportunities with the twins. We still made sure he was involved with them and praised him for the help he would eagerly and sometimes not so eagerly provide. I also never put the twins in a negative light, like saying we couldn't do something because of them. These were just a few things that worked for our family during such an awesome time in our lives.

The thing that I believe helped the most was praying and believing for a smooth transition all through my pregnancy. I would confess over Tru as often as I could that he would adjust well. I still confess that all my boys have a strong and healthy relationship with each other and I believe they will grow up to be great friends...don't get me wrong I'm not saying they wont ever have sibling opportunities arise. I just trust what the Word says that there is power in our words and I'm a believer of the Living Word! But that's a blog for another day.

Raining Change

Well it finally rained! It has been a very long hot dry summer with out any rain. There were a few spits of it here and there, but finally on Friday evening it came pouring down and then again early Saturday morning and carried on till lunch. Saturday was a wonderfully rainy day. It was nice to play with boys and watch it rain from our front door.



With August coming quickly to an end Tru and I are working on him finishing kindergarten and starting 1st grade next month. We used My Father's World kindergarten curriculum and it worked out great for us. I supplemented a little more math than it had, but all in all it was great. I think for first grade we are going to piece together different curriculum. I'm looking forward to this new season and school year. I've put together a schedule for all of us during the week and I'm setting myself some goals for the house. I've had my challenges keeping house and staying ahead of the laundry for as long as I can remember. But bad habits can change and I'm excited for change.
Speaking of change, the twins are doing something new every week! Liam is working on standing up on his own...



and Levi has two more teeth coming through on the top. I know my days are numbered until they are walking. They are already into everything. They are serious movers and when they are going it's not always in the same direction. So I've made their bedroom a "baby free zone" where they can play and move however they want and I can watch them much better that way. Like I said every week brings something different and I'm just learning to adapt quickly. It's good times here in our house!

{A Moment Past}

So I apologize for neglect to my blog this week. It's been a little crazy and let me just say I'm so glad this week is over. We had a yard sale Friday and we're finishing it this Saturday or rather today. So there is no moment this week. Dont get me wrong there were a lot of precious moments that I want to pause and enjoy, but I didn't take any pictures this week. So how about one from a moment past...


J & Levi...oh my they were so little. There's something so beautiful and strong about a child in their daddy's arms.

Longing for Fall

There hasn't been much time this week to blog and I'm taking an opportunity during nap time. With the summer coming to an end I am so ready for a new season, in more ways than one. I am looking forward to Fall and all that comes with it. It's not just the cooler weather and the colors. It's the feeling of Fall and it seems like the best stuff happens when the leaves start to change colors. So while thinking about this post I had to dig up a few of my favorite Fall photos...






I think thing I'm looking forward to the most this Fall is adding the twins to this collection of favorite Fall photos!

{A Moment in Our Week}

~A single moment in our week...


They were watching J pull in the driveway. My lovely boys.

Turning 28!

So yesterday was my 28th birthday and today starts my 30 things before 30 list. It was a nice day. It all started Tuesday night with cards and presents from my guys. J got me exactly what I wanted this 2 Tone Messenger Bag/Purse from Maurices...

(You can check it out here:http://www.maurices.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1162291)

It's a great bag that has plenty of little pockets and the cutest inside lining. I haven't really been using a purse since the twins were born and this bag has plenty of space to fit a couple diapers and some wipes for a quick trip to the store. It was a perfect gift...he did good.
Then a good friend treated me to an adult only lunch which in itself was a pretty good gift. After that the boys and I made a trip to the library and by this time the twins were a little off schedule. I used their double side by side stroller and wheeled them around looking for certain books while Tru played with Clifford on a computer game in the children's area. Liam, who is my busy body, attempted to pull a row of books off a shelf from his stroller. The aisles were wide enough for a single stroller, but a double stroller put the books in perfect reach. All the while I can feel people watching, some smiling and some not, because we were making a little noise.
Once we got home is when the real birthday fun began. I layed the twins down for their afternoon nap. During this time I changed their bedsheets twice! Levi managed to pull his diaper off and get his poop all over the bed sheets. Do you know what's more fun than one baby covered in poop? Two babies, that's right! So after cleaning both babies up and changing the crib sheet I layed them down again. They finally went to sleep but it wasn't long because of all the extra nap time fun. When their nap was over Levi's diaper had come off again and he had soaked the crib sheet this time. Good times! It's really comical when I think about it today. All in all it was a good day. J and I have plans to see a movie this weekend and take the boys out and about together. I am so thankful to get to spend these days with my kiddos and so it makes each birthday sweeter than the last!

Twinsie Tuesday--Say What?

So you're minding your own business, while pushing a cart full of groceries and babies, when all of sudden you're stopped by a total stranger.
"Twins?" they ask curiously.
"Yes..." you smile politely and wait...

This waiting after the polite smile and nod can be followed by an array of statements and/or questions and can put you in what I like to call a "Say What?" moment. Ranging from inquisitive to just plain weird these moments are common when taking your twins out in public.
I once had a lady argue with me in a check out lane about whether the twins were actually twins! Levi is a little bigger than Liam and they are fraternal, not identical, and with that can bring two completely different looking kids. Most people expect twins to look the same. Then there are the people who will say things like "Oh my you poor thing." or "Double trouble, huh?" and my favorite "Better you than me!" I had a person when seeing I had 3 boys and no girls say right in front of my boys "But didn't you want a girl?" She didn't mean it to be rude and I just replied with a smile "We have so much fun with all these boys and we couldn't imagine it any different."

I have read about other parents of multiples and the remarks they receive. Sometimes it's a little comical. Like asking if boy/girl twins are identical...really identical. Then there are questions that are, I think, no ones business but still get asked by total strangers. Like whether or not your twins were conceived naturally or with medical help. Most people might wonder about it, but usually will not ask. In these situations I always try to be polite, answer questions if you want to, and if I'm trying to get "In & Out" of somewhere I just don't make eye contact. Eye contact is like a tractor beam, it will pull you in and then you're compelled to stop. It's really a little funny when I think about it.

Thankfully there are more polite interactions than weird ones. It makes taking the twins out easier when people are polite and not negative about having twins. I do believe most people, even when making the not so positive remarks, mean well. I would love to hear about other parents "Say What?" moments, so please feel free to leave a comment.

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Image: Michal Marcol / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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