Final Update on our Hummingbirds

For those of you who missed it, we had the privilege of housing a hummingbird nest on our wind chimes for about a month or so.  The eggs finally hatched late July but the babies were too small to photograph clearly.  It took about a week for their beaks to be visible from the nest.

After about two weeks of growing, they were full size and ready to take off! 

Buddy and Sweetpea loved watching them through our screen door once we could see the two little beaks poking up from the nest. 

The hummingbirds took off from their nest around August 10th and we've kept our hummingbird feeder stocked with food.  To be honest, I probably most enjoyed watching this process and I secretly hope that the hummingbirds using our bird feeder today are the momma bird and her two babies!

Wrapping My Children in Bubble Wrap

When Jon and I were first married, he used to watch toddlers stumble, wobble, and fall with trepidation.  He jokingly declared that when we had children, we'd protect them from all those bumps and bruises by wrapping them in bubble wrap. 
About two weeks ago, Buddy tripped while running on carpet and banged his elbow.  After a trip to the ER, we were told it was just dislocated and the doctor put it back in place.  But after a call from the radiologist the next morning, we quickly learned that his elbow was also fractured in two places.  Buddy was put in a hard splint and sling that is keeping his elbow in place while it heals. 
Running is something that Buddy and Sweetpea do daily and falls inevitably will occur.  I find myself cringing every time they run but keep having to remind myself to let them be children.  Buddy has hardly been slowed down by his splint and is still an active three year old.  I've thought back to those early days of Jon and my marriage and think how nice it would be to have a bubble wrapped child.  Unfortunately, wrapping our children in bubble wrap is not an option and instead we have to completely trust our Heavenly Father to keep them safe.  When I start to worry about each fall, I remind myself of Philippians 4:6-7, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."  Jesus loves my children more than I ever could and He is watching over them, which, in my mind, is even better than bubble wrap.

Water Sensory Bin aka "a bucket o' water"

Buddy has officially started back to preschool as of Tuesday so Sweetpea and I have been enjoying some time together.  One of the things I am looking forward to doing with her on a regular basis is sensory bins.  Sweetpea absolutely hates touching sand and other gritty things and my goal is to work her up to a sand bin. 

Today we started with something I knew she would love to see how she would handle the bins.  Sweetpea loves to take baths and swim so I knew that a "bucket o' water", as my Dad called it, would be perfect for her. 

I found my largest tubberware and filled it with about two inches of water and gave Sweetpea a few scoops, toys, and a smaller tubberware.  I did not want to overload her with things so I kept it simple. 

She had a blast scooping and pouring water from one container to the next.

The water sensory bin kept her occupied for an entire hour and, of course, by then the entire towel was soaked and so was Sweetpea.  She cried when I told her that she was all done and I know that this will be something she'll enjoy again!

Safely Home

This was not the original post I had intended for today but after spending the last two days engrossed in this book, I had to take the time to immediately recommend Safely Home by Randy Alcorn.  I have always greatly enjoyed Randy Alcorn's writing and have read and reread Deadline, Dominion, and Deception (all 3 I highly recommend as well!) but had never heard of Safely Home until our church librarian showed it to me. 
Safely Home is a book set in China about the house churches that still undergo persecution.  Alcorn takes a wealthy U.S. businessman and contrasts him with a poor Chinese locksmith who is a very devoted Christian.  The book follows the transformation of the businessman as he watches his friend deal with persecution for his faith.  Alcorn does a magnificent job at reminding the reader of the truths of martyrdom.
This book has completely challenged me to rethink about the strength of my commitment to Christ.  Would I be willing to stand firm in the face of torture and even death?  I hope I never have to find out but my hope and prayer is that I would be faithful to the end.  We have it so easy here in the United States, as compared to other nations, to spread the Gospel of Jesus, to own and read the Bible, and to meet publicly to worship.  Let us pray that we maintain that right, although as we've seen already, our Christian rights, even here in the United States, are slowly being stripped away. 
I greatly encourage you to read Safely Home by Randy Alcorn and become more aware of faith in the face of troubles and persecution.  John 16:33 states "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

Announcing...

Our family is expecting Baby #3 to arrive in late February!  We are super excited to welcome him or her to the world in about 6 more months.  I took a break from blogging while "morning sickness" was pretty rough and I felt my family and household was a bigger priority.  I'm now into the second trimester and starting to feel much better so I am glad to be able to start blogging again.
I hope you'll enjoy to continue to read about our adventures in life!  Thanks for being patient with me!