Since last time

We had beautiful weather last weekend. We spent a good bit of time soaking up the sunshine.


I've tried hard to get the boys outside a little bit each day this week because they love being out there so much. I always liked playing outside as a child, and I still love being outdoors even in the winter.

I don't have the pictures to prove it, but this has been the week of playing with the "stomp rocket" and riding the tricycle. I have to get in the habit of grabbing the camera when we head outside!

We also had a day when we played with some leftover dry oatmeal.


I let them scoop and pour, and hide little dinosaurs in it.


They are cozy in their beds right now and I'm listening to some freezing rain come down while I wait for Greg to get home from teaching his class. It's been a good week and I'm surprised tomorrow is Friday!

Winter days & experiments

Today is another cold, wet one. I turned on Vivaldi early this morning and decided it could be an "art day." We put on our paint shirts and got busy. We started with paint brushes and ended up using fingers. I needed to clean out my craft supplies, which led to playing with yarn and various odds and ends for a nice, long time.

Here are some photos from the past few weeks...

Making noodle art - I was pleasantly surprised Mark didn't eat the noodles!



Running the Thomas Trains



On a side note, Nathan had an interesting observation about God yesterday. We were sitting at the kitchen table, about to eat lunch, and he says, "Mama, I think God has a big book of experiments up in heaven!" I bet Nathan has a whole list of questions to ask Him! He's constantly inquiring about batteries, electricity, why orange peels taste bitter, etc., etc.

Let's Tell Stories

Packing up the Christmas decorations usually leaves me feeling a little empty. As Nathan says, "It looks so bare!" when the Christmas tree no longer stands in its corner of the living room, and our home returns to the normal routines of daily life. It's like you don't know what you've got till it's gone, in a way. After a few weeks, I won't really think about Christmas that much because I'll be on to the next thing, be it sick children or running or meal planning or the next holiday. But this year, I want to hold on to the peace and light a little longer. All but our advent candles have been put away. These slender flame-bearers have moved into individual candle holders on the mantle. There they stand, telling me the story of the eternal Light of the World that burns with a hard, gem-like flame.

We tell the stories of our family's Christmas celebration time, too, so the memories become etched in our minds. I'm all for looking back at the pictures and reflecting, but I think there is something about curling up on the couch and telling the story out loud, highlighting the best parts and leaving out the whining or road-weariness or upset tummies that might have been part of it, too. It helps me practice gratitude and makes me smile to focus my thoughts like that. I think the little boys love it, too. As often as I invite them to read a book with me, they ask me to tell stories...about "when we slept in the hotel," "the trip to Easy Banana (Louisiana)," and "when it snowed at Nanny and PopPop's house."

Here are some of my favorite visual reminders of the Christmas trip to Louisiana (more to come from the Cheraw visit when I have a little more quiet time to upload photos). They help a lot during the week of "returning to normal," when the boys are testing the limits and we clean the house and we come down with January viruses. It's good to tell stories.

Taking in the Mighty Mississippi River.


Post-gumbo at Aunt Amy and Uncle Cole's house.


Making ourselves at home at Gram and Gramp's house.


Uncle Cole's fire truck...Nathan has decided he wants to drive one when he grows up.


The beautiful 75 degree Tuesday when we sat by the garden all morning...I drank hot apple cider and watched the pine trees sway in the breeze and looked at ladybugs with Mark.


Nathan got a little tongue-tied and said "Let me think a minute" when Santa asked what he'd like to have for Christmas.


It has been a very long time since we've taken our own picture like this...date night in downtown Natchitoches.

Christmas is coming...

And the children are still delighted to play in cardboard boxes! This was the one that held the Christmas wreath. There was a top and bottom, so both boys played with them all day long.


We baked cookies with Aunt Melanie last Saturday and had a delightful time.



Nathan napped with his snowman yesterday while I listened to The Messiah and addressed Christmas cards. I LOVE The Messiah. The music has been a soul solace for me in the past few years. I still see my babies whenever I see the boys asleep. This was such a peaceful moment for me.


Today we visited my Grandma, and we shared candy canes with the other residents on her floor. That was a sweet time for all of us.


And Nathan and I had a flashlight conversation this morning. I was drinking coffee and reading my Bible by Christmas-tree-light, and he was with me. We have an early morning routine these days (and it sure beats the crazy midnight screaming we had before).

Anyway, he was holding his flashlight so I could read. It started to flicker.

He said to me, very calmly, "Mama, I'll just have to take my flashlight to Daddy, because he's the one who knows best about how to stop this flickering and make it shine strong again." What faith in his Daddy.

And isn't the same true for us, when our light begins to flicker? HE can restore it.

Good morning, Lord

I found Mark standing at his window with the blinds pushed to the side this morning.

He said, "I see pink, Mommy!"

He was watching the sunrise.

The next words out of his mouth were, "I have stinky diaper, Mommy," but the reminder of God's new mercy captured my attention far more than the stench in the room.

The next blessing was a Christmas wreath waiting on our doorstep .

Greg discovered it on his way out.

The boys squealed with delight as I hung it by the door.

Now they are playing with the packaging.

Thank you, Abba.

Christmas Flashlights

This is a post about choosing our Christmas tree and the boys playing in the leaves while I decorated in the house last weekend...but before I get into all of that, I have to share a story about two flashlights.

It was a dreary Monday-after-Thanksgiving. I had PMS, a cold, a sore throat and almost no voice left. Mark hadn't had a nap since before Thanksgiving. Nathan made an incessant "buzzing" sound all morning, and Mark came up with a dozen reasons why he couldn't do each and everything I asked him to do ("My nose is runny again!" "My tummy hurts again!" "I need my blue blanket!").

There was whining and much grumpiness. There was time spent in our own rooms. There was a grocery store trip squeezed into all of this. There was television time, to try and ensure some quiet moments when I wouldn't have to strain my voice to correct someone.

And then, at the end of that very long day, there was personal pizza night at Mrs. Staci's house. Let me just say that those were THE BEST little Pillsbury Grand biscuit pizzas I have ever eaten. Nathan even told everyone they were better than any pizza I make at home!

The after-dinner entertainment was what really lifted my spirits. Mr. Jason has a particular love for flashlights of all shapes and sizes. The children had already spent most of the evening running around the house shining them in all the dark corners and laughing hysterically as they went. Well, Mr. Jason took the kids outside after supper (with their flashlights) to look at Christmas lights.

The giggles and running around and overall happiness was contagious. Even in my sore-throat-worn-out state, I found myself laughing and loving every minute. Something about it took me back to my own childhood, when we'd play with the Mullis children. It was special like that.

Turns out, our friends gave us the flashlights to take home - and keep, much to the boys' delight! They have been playing with them non-stop - together - and the best part about it is, they don't fight while they're checking out the dark places in our house.

When I opened my Advent devotion book this morning to read about John the Baptist, who bore witness to the light of Jesus Christ, I knew those little flashlights have a deeper meaning for me this Christmas. They are a constant reminder of Christ shining in all my dark places. I pray the boys one day bow down and worship the Light of the World.

And now for the pictures from the tree farm and leaf pile...

Daddy's Day Off

Greg was home from work yesterday, and it was a glorious day! We spent the morning at Reedy Creek Nature Preserve. We visited the Nature Center first, and then took a walk on the Dragonfly Pond Trail.

The boys were so enthusiastic, and very good little hikers. Mark and I hung back and checked out the leaves...

while Greg and Nathan scouted out the path ahead.

The pond was a wonderful, quiet spot with beautiful hardwoods surrounding it.



The boys kept running back and forth from a gravel area to the pond, tossing their pebbles in.


After the hike, the boys played on large xylophones set up among the trees.


I think we have found our new favorite outdoor adventure, and it's only 30 minutes from home!