Vacation Time!

All last week we were visiting Papa and Nina (my folks). We stayed over a week and had a blast. It was hot (average temp that week was mid 90's F and high humidity), but we tried to make the most of it. I sat in front of a fan most of the time (my folks don't have AC), but Papa and Joel built a tree house (way cool pictures to come! stay tuned!). Nina and the kids had a blast with the sprinklers, the garden hose, playing with the kitties, munching on veggies from the garden, going to the grocery store to cool off (I'm serious), and oh so many other fun things.

Joshua and Papa grinding coffee (yes, that's a hand grinder, it's over 20 years old and works great!)

It seemed like Papa and Nina really bonded with the older kids this time around. I hardly saw Josh all week! He was usually out watching Papa or playing with Nina. And Rachel warmed up immediately, giving Papa a big hug the moment she stepped out of the van upon arrival. The only good pictures I have of Rachel involve the tree house, and I have promised Joel I would not post any tree house pictures yet. You'll see why later. So here's some great ones of Madelynn in the baby swing.

Madelynn became more clingy once we arrived. Whenever Mommy was in the room or in sight she demanded to be held. If I wasn't around, she was fine and she let Papa or Nina play and hold her. Well, it turns out she was teething. She received two more teeth towards the end of our visit, to make a grand total of eight teeth! Madelynn is actually still there, at Nina and Papa's house. The four of us (five with Bean Sprout) are home now. Nina will be bringing M back here to our house early next week. Don't tell Joshua this yet, but he's next in line! Nina will drop Madelynn off and return home with Joshua for a week or so! (Isn't summer vacation fun?) (Nana and Grampa: don't worry, he'll be back in time to see you!)

We all miss Madelynn but we know that she is in good hands and I'm so glad my parents can enjoy this special time with her.

I must also mention another part of our vacation. Joel and I (w/o the kids) were able to travel a few more hours to visit our friends Joshua and Stephanie! Hurrah! We had a great time with them and it was so great to see Claire and Sophia and how they have grown so much. Joel had the opportunity to sit in on a few morning classes with Joshua and we both saw where Josh is learning to roast coffee. It was refreshing to catch up with them and see where they live and work and play.

So that's all for now!

Summer Strawberries

A few weeks ago we five (six with Bean Sprout) packed up and headed out to a Strawberry Farm. It was beautiful weather, 80 F and sunny. The heat wasn't too bad, it was 4:00 in the afternoon. We began our picking with gusto but with several breaks throughout the adventure.

Joshua picked nearly a whole ice cream pail himself! Rachel had about 5 strawberries in her bucket, and Madelynn was stuffed full!

We came home, and after the kids went to bed, Joel and I stayed up late freezing some berries and mashing others to make jam out of later.

A few days later I made several pints of rhubarb strawberry jam and regular strawberry jam. So yummy!

This next photo I'm just adding on for fun. Rachel is a great big sister and helps feed Madelynn:

Sometimes Rachel begs me to let her feed Madelynn!

Madelynn's First Birthday

Here she is, the Birthday Girl! She turned ONE:

Eating pizza for supper.

Oh Madelynn! Over here, yoo-hoo!

Happy Birthday Madelynn!!

Yummy apple pie! (Gluten Free of course!)

One of her birthday cards, this one from Great Grampa and Gramma E.

The pictures below are just for fun:

She's just sitting there looking cute. No actual riding yet. :)

Peek a boo!

Sprouts and Sprout

The First thing is I've been growing alfalfa sprouts in the kitchen. I was a little hesitant it would work at first but it's quite easy to do. Now we have fresh sprouts in the fridge for the family! So tasty!

The Second thing is that we are expecting Baby #5 at the end of January. That makes me about 7 weeks along. So come along Bean Sprout, go easy on your momma, and we look forward to meeting you around January 22!

Two Years Old Today

This is a blog post announcing the birth of Emily Grace, our third child, on June 2, 2008 written by Joel:


She Cried!

Thank-you Jesus for that little voice!
Emily arrived at 1:27 today, June 2. She was taken immediately to a NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) next door to the delivery room. We could hear her screaming through the thick door. After a few minutes I (Joel) was allowed to see her. They placed a breathing tube down her throat. She doesn't always remember to breathe they told me. Into her bellybutton went a tube that goes right into her heart for medications and taking blood. Just before she got trollyed over to the Children's Hospital Renee got to see her for a moment. I went with her through the tunnel. Eventually she was placed in the Pediatric ICU. The x-rays and fetal ECHO (ultrasound) showed that her heart is still abnormal. She will stay on the breathing machine and medication to keep the bypass that still allows blood to get to the lungs open, for a few days. Then they will take her off the medication and see what happens. If she can't push blood through the proper avenues they will surgically place a shunt in her heart. Renee was eventually wheeled over to Children's (a ten-minute trip). She was pretty weak so we came back to Abbott and placed in a recovery room. I think Renee will heal very well. But she is feeling kinda lost and lonely being separated from this girl she's spent the last nine months with. Emily is so wired up we can't even hold her yet. But hopefully we'll have a lifetime to connect with our daughter. Thank you for praying us through labor and delivery. We'll keep you all posted. Grace, Joel
P.S. Renee reminded me of some important things to share! Emily Grace was 19 1/2 inches long (just like Joshua and Rachel). She weighs 5 lbs 15 oz. She's got dark fuzzy hair - a little more than the other two did. And despite all the tubes and wires and stickers, she's adorable - looks very much like Rachel did as a newborn. Even the rest of her body and the way she lies is just like the other two. Back to Renee - bye.



If you would like to see pictures of Emily, there is a slide show on the right hand side of this blog, scroll down some until you see it.