Christmas Tree 2011

Every year we go pick out our Christmas tree the weekend after Thanksgiving. For the last few years we have bought our tree from our neighborhood fire station to support them. But this year we went the economical route (we justified that we longer live in that neighborhood anymore) and picked one out from Home Depot. They are crazy cheap there and you can pick out any size tree! So we came home with a monster tree, for half the price of what we've paid in the previous years. 

While Ryan took care of getting our tree on the truck, the girls found some puddles to jump in. 

Godfrey Farm

Our good friend, Alfred, grew up on a farm on the eastern shore of Maryland. And recently his father had an accident that left him with two repair surgeries. So in an effort to help him maintain his farm, we brought the Grossman crew out on a Saturday to help. It was such a fun way to help out friends that are constantly helping us, and letting us borrow heavy machinery, taking us out on their boat, watching our kids, etc.!

And here's the happy couple. Aren't they cute? And before I go on any further, Bailey is expecting! Her due is January 25. And we couldn't be more ecstatic to have them join us on the journey of being parents! 

Jenna and I somehow ended up doing the most back-breaking work of weeding the holly trees. And I'm pretty sure our husbands cruised around on ride mowers the whole day. Sipping sweet tea and eating bon bons. Not really. But they probably could have and we never would have known. We worked alongside Bailey as she pruned the trees. 

And don't hate that Jenna and I requested headbands because sweat was dripping in our eyes because of the fierce sun and the fierce manual labor going on. 

And here are some of the dearest women in my life! 

Bailey is from Jackson, WY (and proud of it) and we prayed for her long before we even knew her as we prayed for God to bring Alfred his perfect wife. She has graciously adjusted to Maryland after leaving her beautiful west coast paradise. And Jenna, my sis-in-law (married to Ryan's brother), was immediately a friend I could talk with into the wee hours of the night, over coffee of course. And the three of us have been meeting for the past year weekly, going through Beth Moore's study on the fruit of the Spirit. A special gift of our friendships, is that our husbands are intimately part of one another's lives as well. Ryan and I are so blessed!

Back to the farm. The girls even got in on the action. They harvested raspberries with Grandma. And got their share of freshly picked berries. 

And the rest of the crew. Logan, Ryan's youngest brother:

Little break from the heat:

And a good friend of Ty's, Caleb, went to the same high school as the rest of the Grossman kids (and Jenna too!) in the Philippines. 

And by the afternoon, the girls were ready to go home.

And ready for nap.

It was fun to get out and do some work, be together with friends and family, and then come home for a family nap.

Hosting a Theobald Mini-Reunion

We hosted our first large gathering at our house. I've been waiting for events like this one to create memories in our new home, to help it feel like home to me.

So starting on Friday afternoon, four (out of twelve, yes, twelve) of my mom-in-law's siblings and their families (totaling to approximately 30 people) all came and crashed at our house. It might sound intimidating or daunting, but the thing to know about these Theobalds is that you will always do less when they're in your home. I'm talking, when they left, my house was much cleaner than when they came. Meals were planned and prepared and a clean-up crew helped after meals. It was so much fun to see so much life going on in our home. Unfortunately, some type of bug got the best of me over the weekend, so I was at a loss of energy for much of the weekend.

The activities that kept most entertained (besides the great conversation and mealtimes), were backyard pick-up soccer games (that left a few injuries), wrestling, and lots and lots of games. I am still sore from the brief time I played soccer on Saturday.

Ryan and I have concluded that Alexia is officially a night owl. She's always been one of those people that feels like she is missing out on something if she goes to bed while people are still here at our house. Doesn't really matter to Naiya so much. Probably one of the few ways Naiya and I are alike: sleep is so much more important. We've fought the good fight with Alexia on many occassions prior to this weekend, and we let our guard down so she could have fun. And what time did she end up staying up until, you ask? Midnight. I'm talking, blissfully happy and playing until midnight. Even when it was just her and Grandma preparing breakfast for the next morning. And what time did our three-yr-old-turned-teenager wake up? Ten in the morning. Thankfully, she is back on a reasonable schedule today.

It was so fun to break in our home in that way. I loved seeing the long line of tables for each meal, full of family members catching up, and getting to know some ones we just met for the first time!

Here are some pics from the weekend:

There was a root beer float stand, which the girls loved:

And Uncle Darryl diligently organized a game show for us on the last night. Contestants were made to wear blindfolds and guess food items using different senses. 

And here are the contestants. I won't name anyone that was taking the game a bit seriously. Here's the clap to get himself ready:

A little stretch before game time:

And the onlookers:

Kari and Kevon are godsons of Uncle Paul and Aunt Colleen, who we get the pleasure of spending time with every summer as they come stay with their godparents in D.C.

Some cousins:

And the fun begins. Smell.

Taste.

And the final round each contestant had to eat what was in this cup and guess the nine ingredients. As well as guess one ingredient that does not belong in the salad.

Again, someone took this final round very seriously. I am not lying when I tell you that he chewed the food for a good five minutes. He was even switching the food to different parts of his mouth. Oh how I love my competitive man. He did crack a few smiles when he felt me taking numerous pictures of him. 

Thank you Theobalds for the memories!

Quirky Thursday: Squeaky Treats

I am a huge texture person. My textures of choice are chewy and crunchy.

Flan? No way.

Scallops? Not a chance.

Raw oysters? I think I just puked in my mouth.

But another texture that I'm not quite sure how to categorize, goes on my black list of food textures:

Squeaky.

Like what Lucky Charms marshmallow-y delishnastiness do when you bite into a big spoonful of them. Those little marshmallow nightmares just squeak across your teeth. Does anyone know what I'm sayin'?

Gives me the heebie-geebies if I think about it too long.

Meringues are a close second with the squeak factor. I don't think about those too long either. {shiver}

Daughters of the King.

I've been reading Beth Moore's blog this morning and found my way to a website As Our Own that is countering child exploitation and slavery.

There is a line in one of the girl's stories that touched my heart this morning. Although the story belongs to a girl whose life was redeemed from the darkness of a brothel her mother was kidnapped to be a slave to, it is very applicable to life as a Mama of two girls.

"She's grown up to be a lovely young woman with a strong sense of her identity in Christ as a daughter of the King. She exudes a steady confidence in God's loving care."

It forced me to gain some perspective in my life. God is rescuing little girls from tragic horrors. He is working miracles to turn their little lives from ashes to beauty.

He is giving them life through identifying with Him and not the life that is surrounding them.

It made me have a lump in my throat as I looked over my laptop at my girls playing with crayons and coloring books. So innocent. Unaware of all the things that will soon compete for what they base their identity in. And I had to try and explain to Alexia why tears were streaming down my face. I think they were tears of sorrow, but also thankfulness of being made aware of the the importance of this identity issue. Because I know one of the biggest impacts on who/what they find their identity in will be my example of who/what I find my identity in. First Peter 3:3-4 came to my mind, because it is a painful reminder of what I battle being the source of my identity:

"Don't be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God." (New Living Translation)

And encouragement comes to me from the reminder of Proverbs 31:30:

"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised."

Lord, help me to have for myself, as well as teach my daughters, to have a strong identity in Jesus by being made beautiful on the inside, a result of being a daughter of the King. To have steady confidence in God's care for me, rather than inconsistent confidence that comes and goes by how I feel about my appearance. Thank you that you desire for me to have a story that has a praiseworthy ending!

Healthy Popsicles.

I love when I'm reminded of healthy ideas for my girls. Ideas that I'm aware of, but need to be re-inspired by friends every now and then. So in honor of my friend who convinced her husband to go on a smoothie cleansing diet.....

I made smoothies. Masked as popsicles!

I let the girls help me with what they wanted in their smoothie popsicles and they came up with:

Strawberries, bananas, blueberries, apple juice, and yogurt. And I threw in wheat germ, fresh kale and fresh spinach. 

All into the blender, and then into the popsicle molds for the next morning. I promised the girls they could have a popsicle for breakfast.

(A trick I like to do is throw bananas on the verge of being overly ripe, I peel and put in a ziplock and store in the freezer. I've started doing this with other fruit that is about to go bad as well. It's also saved me frustration for the times when the girls ask me for a banana, but only for the fun of peeling it. And then I just use for smoothies!)

And the results?

No melted, spilled popsicle left behind:

Quote of the Day.

"I'm happy. It's not happy to be sad." 

Happy 2nd Birthday Naiya!

Oh, Naiya where do I even start?

You were the surprise of our lives, when we found out you would be joining us with just one year (and two weeks) between you and Alexia. My pregnancy with you proved to be just as miserable as the first, and many vows of never going through this pregnancy thing again were made. I might have even tried to convince your dad to agree. But he refused to have the conversation, convinced my tune would change once I was not pregnant.

And right he was.

You have been such a joy. Your easy going spirit has been so refreshing. Your ability to make people laugh has been so fun to watch. Your Daddy and I have thought countless times that we should change your name to Joy. You have no inhibitions, taking delight in entertaining yourself as well as others. People laughing with or at you just makes you laugh. Which then makes us laugh even more. I can't count how many times I've heard what an amazing little personality you have and how much fun you are to be around. You quickly win people's affections because of your love of life.

I'm pretty sure you are a verbal genius. And you have shocked so many with your well annunciated sentences coming out of such a tiny little body. You're like the Doogie Howser of talking. There have been so many times where we have directed a question to Alexia, underestimating your awareness, and you have piped in with the correct answer! You have an amazing ability to observe and comprehend. I wish I could take credit for it, but I'm sure it's pretty evident that is not my strength!

You also win the teeth award. Those suckers came in with full force. It felt like you and Alexia obtained a full mouth of teeth around the same time. And you are never afraid to show them:

This one, I just might take credit for though.

You are fearless, crawling into the waves, climbing up onto things, jumping off of things. You keep me on my toes! You want to do things on your own, I can hear you saying, "I do it! I do it!" 

I love how cuddly you still feel. And that you still have baby cheeks. I check in quite frequently to make sure you are still committed to staying a baby forever. You're still on board as of now.

You love to sing and will dance to any kind of beat, even me saying over and over, "Go Naiya, go Naiya, go!" 

On your actual birthday we celebrated you over breakfast with Grandma & Pops. And surprised you with an honored seat at the table:

You were showered with gifts from your grandparents near (Grandma & Pops) and far (Grandma & Grandpa Griff - my aunt and uncle in CA).

I imagine a day will come where it will be hard to believe that you were as tall as the bottom of the windowsill. But I will not think of such things right now.

We love you so much Naiya. You are truly one of the best unexpected gifts from the Lord to us. I am honored to be your Mama. Happy 2nd Birthday!