Happy Birthday, Natalie!

I'm sort of baffled at where the last four years have gone!  Much of them has been spent asking ourselves if there was a mix-up in the hospital.  Everyone always says all your kids will be different.  Well, our first two weren't very different, and they were much like the two of us.  Then Natalie came along.  We love the girl like crazy, but I know that we will spend much of the coming years asking the Lord for wisdom as to how to handle her, since she is so very different than Mark and I.  She definitely acts and talks older than she is.  She loves people {not that we don't, but she's the true definition of an extrovert and we are extreme introverts!} and has been known to count friends instead of sheep in order to fall asleep.  She loves clothes, shoes, and jewelry...anything she deems fancy.  She also has a cute {albiet a tad annoying} habit of collecting things from around the house in grocery bags as she pretends to shop or be a mom. I think I've mentioned that if you can't find something in this house, she's the first person to go to...even if she has 15 bags around the house stuffed with stuff, she knows just where to find what you're looking for.  If you asked either one of us what we think Natalie will grow up to be, we'd probably say something along the lines of a fashion saavy mom to 14 kids or a hoarder.  Seriously, though, I do see some sort of ministry in the girl's future that brings together caring for children and collecting that other people don't need anymore. 

 

We pray that the God uses her sweet and colorful personality for His work...that she will spread the joy of the Lord to all those around her.  

What's new

Here are a few {mostly good, but a couple bad and ugly} tidbits about what's going on in the Hunter house lately:

We're starting off our Christmas break with a sick kid and a clogged kitchen sink.  I've come to expect these types of things happening.  Ethan came down with a fever Saturday night and, since he's had this lingering cough for a bit too long, my first thought was that he's probably come down with pneumonia.  His throat is red, too, so maybe strep?  I called the doctor this morning, but their earliest appointment is later this evening and carries an extra $27 charge.  I made an appointment for tomorrow morning, but he's had no fever this morning and is, of course, running around like a crazy man right now...so, we'll see if we actually keep the appointment!

As for the sink, it's my fault. Once again, I've managed to clog that darn garbage disposal.  In the past couple of years, I've learned the hard way that it can't handle potato skin, large amounts of egg shells, or gobs of spaghetti.  FYI:  it also cannot handle a bunch of month old turkey. {Yes, you can laugh in disbelief at the fact that the rest of the turkey from Thanksgiving was still in our fridge until last night.} Usually we manage to unclog it with a few plunges, and maybe some Drano.  This time it's not budging.  We {well, Mark} plunged, and snaked, and Drano'ed, and used the "zip-it" thingy.  We went to bed hoping the plumbing fairy might work some wonders, but it was still clogged this morning.  I've been praying over it this morning, and so far, I've had to just keep praying for patience, as well.  Mark will probably have a fun afternoon dismantling pipes when he returns home, and I'll be using the rest of the paper Star Wars plates from Ethan's birthday and washing dishes in the bathroom sink today.

Natalie has been making some huge progress in the learning letters/writing department.  She has been quite stubborn about the whole thing until a couple months ago.  She is now writing her name without asking how to spell it.  She is also writing a lot of other words by asking how to spell them.  Here's her shopping list {candy canes, syrup, eggs...just the essentials, right?} from an episode of "house" the other day.  I was impressed that even her "s" was facing the right direction!  

We got a fun {as in the kind where you have to hunker down and enjoy it from the house} snow storm last weekend.  It started Saturday night/Sunday morning, making our trek to church almost impossible.  We were two minutes ahead of the plow, so we couldn't make it up the big hill we have to take to get there.  We backed back down and let the plow clear the way before we tried again.  It was still "warm" on Sunday, so after church we went sled riding.  There is a good kid-sized hill at the entrance to our neighborhood we like to use.  Our neighbors came out for some fun, too, and my friend got a few good pics of the kids having a blast.  

 

 

Last weekend we went to see some movies.  We hardly ever go see movies.  Mark and I just rarely feel like it's one of those things worth spending money on, so it's a special treat when it happens.  Mark took the girls to see Tangled and I took Ethan to see Voyage of the Dawn Treader.  Natalie is SUPER sensitive about villians in movies, so I asked around to see what people who had already seen it thought, and most of them said it was one of the most mild Disney princess movies they'd seen.  So, we decided she should be able to handle it.  Unfortunately, she didn't do so well and cried through parts and wouldn't watch others.  I felt bad that her first movie theater experience was a pretty miserable one.  Live and learn, I guess!  Ethan and I really enjoyed the Narnia movie, and it was the first 3D movie I've seen, so it was a fun time for us!  Our dates with the kids also included some Christmas shopping for siblings.  They exchange names and buy for one other kid in the family, and this year we made it work so boys bought for girls and vice versa, so we could make the movie dates work.  It's always so interesting to see how they choose what they buy for each other.  I loved watching Ethan put some sweet thought into picking out gifts for his sisters (he picked out Levi's gift for Natalie). 

Levi has expressed some interest in potty training, on the condition that we purchase some "choo-choo train" underwear.  So, last week, I took him to the store and he picked out some Thomas and some Diego undies.  Next morning I optimistically put them on him, but shortly after saw him heading for a private place to do his "business".  I quickly sat him on the potty in time for a tiny terd to plop into the pot.  He did sit for a few minutes and ended up tinkling.  I rewarded him with some of the gummy worms he had also picked out...and then he promptly refused to put underwear back on and his been in diapers since.  I had a feeling he wasn't really ready, and I'm a firm believer in not pushing training.  All the other kids were SOOO easy because we waited till they were ready {Natalie did it in like a day without ANY help from me, three months before her third birthday}.  I don't want to be mommy trained...asking him every 30 minutes if he has to go and constantly worrying about accidents.  The years are too short to spend any portion of them on that kind of a headache!  I know he'll do it when he's ready, and I'm more than content to wait for it.

We are so ready to enjoy this Christmas break.  We're done Christmas shopping and have been for weeks.  We're hoping for some more sledding, making some birdfeeders {once the sink is fixed}, baking, imaginative play, visiting with family, celebrating Natalie's fourth birthday, reading good books, watching good movies, and thanking God for giving us His son.  Hope you all have a Merry Christmas!            

Which is Your Favorite?

So, {for the sake of doing a seasonal post when I'm not feeling extraordinarily creative when it comes to blogging lately} I'm wondering what your favorite Christmas season tradition is? 

Cutting down your tree?  A cookie exchange?  The Christmas Eve service?  Maybe carolling?  Is it a tradition from your childhood or your spouse's that you've decided to carry on?  Is it one that you and your spouse have started for your family?

I think I've mentioned before that my favorite tradition has become our Christmas Story Advent Calendar.  Ethan and Karis love this one, too, and Natalie is growing to enjoy it.  Niether Mark or I really did the "Advent thing" growing up, so this is one that we've started for our family.  Granted, there are some nights that we forget and have to do two {or even three!} the next day, but I so look forward to hearing the kids take turns reading the verses {minus the times they fight over who's turn it is}. I like that this spreads the Christmas story out over the course of the month because the Christmas story didn't all happen on Christmas Eve...it was centuries in the making.  I pray that in the coming years our children will grow to understand {and that I will renew my understanding again and again} that what Christmas gave us isn't a one day a year thing...that Christ came for everyday that we live and breath...and for our eternity.   

Well, I'm kind of hoping I'm not just talking to myself with this post...that my "peeps" will humor me and comment...and that you lurkers might come out of the shadows on this one :O).

I've been following...

I added a new blog I've been following to my sidebar...one you might be interested in checking out if you're into reading about culture, society, religion and how they all intertwine in our changing times.  It's called Challies Dot Com.  I've linked to him before in a post about schooling.  I really love reading through his "A La Carte" every morning {that I have time to}.  It's either good, sound stuff or relevant comic relief, in my opinion.

Two songs I can't stop singing

I am addicted to these two songs.  Seriously, I could listen to them over and over and over.  I almost can't contain myself when I listen to them!  If no one is around...I don't bother trying.

That first Christmas

I love hearing stories that tell the first Christmas story from the different perspectives of those who experienced it.  Obviously, we're limited in what we really know about what the innkeeper, or Mary, or even the sheep in the manger felt and saw that night.  It's something fascinating to imagine about, though, and I love when word artists paint the picture for us through song or story. 
One perspective that I wish I would hear more about is that of Heaven's {actually, I've been really interested, lately, in looking at more things from that "heavenly realms" (Eph 6:12) viewpoint}.  Maybe because it's more difficult for our human minds to grasp what Christmas was like in the spiritual realm, we hear less about it?  I'm not sure, but I did actually blog about it two years ago here (scroll down to the "on another note..."section).  I'm not sure if my thoughts are theologically sound, but I believe there's a good chance that they're not completely off-base. 

One of our pastors taught on this topic yesterday morning {you can imagine my excitement as I read the sermon title on the bulletin} and I learned there is more to the Heavenly story than what I imagined...

That first Christmas was a declaration of war.  A declaration of war. I guess it's possible that this sounds morbid, but I love that statement.  Read Revelation 12 and work your way through the symbolism.  When Jesus Christ was born to Mary on earth, Satan set out to destroy.  The battle between God's angelic and Satan's demonic forces was taken to the next level.  I picture a scene resembling one out of Lord of the Rings or The Chronicles of Narnia.  An embrace between a Father and Son.  The Son walking a path to earth, lined with angels, swords raised in reverence and awe.  Angels turning to take their place in the ranks.  On the other side of the battlefield are the demons jeering and scoffing with an "enormous red dragon" poised to sound the battle cry.  Not the typical peaceful Christmas Eve we often picture, is it? 
While we must come to grips with the fact that this war will have casualties, we can rest assured that the victory is, without a doubt, the Lord's.  Because I know this battle is still waging around me everyday {and, I believe, becoming more deadly by the day...as we near the war's end}, this is where I'm choosing to focus this Advent season.      

Scrooge...or Excessive Christmasness?

Is anyone else annoyed with Christmas?  I should rephrase that.  Is anyone else annoyed with what the world is doing to Christmas?  I love Christmas, but I also love Thanksgiving. So, I love Christmas starting December 1st.  I'm a huge fan of celebrating Advent more so than Christmas, I guess.  I know I should be used to the fact that the world takes everything overboard, and, for the most, part I am...and I just ignore it.  Excessive Christmasness {yah, totally made that word up} is kinda hard to ignore, though.

I mean, really, do we need to put up Christmas decorations the day after Halloween?  Do we need to send out the Black Friday ads three weeks early?  As if they don't bombard us enough with all the things we should be doing and buying for each other to make Christmas magic and memorable, they've got to start doing it a month earlier?  How are Mark and I supposed to teach our kids to find the magic in the ultimate gift that was given to them in this environment?  Seriously, I'm asking. 

I feel like maybe if we took the time to focus more on Thanksgiving and how much we really have, then maybe we wouldn't feel such a need to be so excessively materialistic at Christmas. I keep hearing people {including myself} say they're going simple, but it sure doesn't look like it.  I feel the pressure to have gifts for teachers {school and church}, busdrivers, mail carriers, neighbors, etc.  Am I scrooge for opting out {cuz I feel like one sometimes}? Is a kid-made card and a couple homemade cookies enough to spread the joy of Christmas?  Again...seriously, I'm asking.

I do love to give at Christmas.  I just love to give to people who aren't getting.  I love taking the $100 we could have spent on gift cards for the above mentioned people in our lives and putting it into 4 Operation Christmas Child boxes instead.  I love that mine and Mark's siblings are all either in situations where they can't or don't want to exchange gifts, and we can put that money towards buying goats and chickens for a starving family in another country or to buying some gifts for a child in our own town whose family needs help.

Reading over this, I feel like it sounds prideful.  I'm not trying to toot my horn about how much we're giving, or say that if you give gifts to your kids' teachers you've got it all wrong...or even that if you break out the Christmas lights and music pre-Thanksgiving your messing with the meaning of Christmas. 

I guess I'm just venting about what feelings the season stirs up in me, and, once again, trying to find that balance between scroogeyness {how in the world should I spell that?} and excessiveness.  Have you found it?    

My confession...

At our MOPS meetings this year, members of the steering time are taking turns confessing some of their mothering mishaps, inadequacies, imperfections, etc.  We stand silhouetted behind a white sheet of anonymity.  It's really quite comical.  This past Tuesday was my turn and my confession wrote itself into a nice little blog post.  I got plenty of laughs...I hope the girls were laughing with me and not at me, though!?!?  Here goes...

Before I gave birth to our first little babe, I made the mistake of convincing myself that I would never be "that mom".  You know the one.  She's got four kids going 80 different directions and loses more of her mind with each passing week.  She locks her keys in the car {while it's still running}.  She forgets about doctor's appointments and goes to the grocery store unshowered and in sweats.  Yah.  I was never gonna be that mom.


Oh, how naive was I?


I can say I haven't locked the keys in the car...yet...


But I've had my share of that mom moments...beginning just weeks after my first, not my fourth was born.


I am that mom who, early one Sunday morning {after 6 weeks of sleepless nights} put my breast pump parts in a pot on the stove to sterilize them, then lay down to rest my eyes for just a minute, only to awake 45 minutes later to the smell of burning plastic.


I am that mom who brought a basket full of dirty laundry and two poopy diapers, an infant, and a barely one year old down the stairs and forgot the diapers were in the basket by the time a had a moment to toss the whole load into the washer.


I am that mom who has lost birth certificates and car titles, forgotten parent/teacher conferences and show & tell days, and paid $15 in library fines on late DVD's.


I am that mom who made a meal plan and a detailed grocery list and still forgot the mozzarella cheese, but never realized it until the lasagna was already started and so resorted to peeling a few sticks of string cheese to complete the dish. 


I am that mom who, just two weeks ago, talked to a friend about our kids' hour early dismissal from school the next day, only to receive a call from the school office the following afternoon while I was out running errands wondering if I'd forgotten about my kids.


Yep...I'm definitely that mom. 

**Oh stink.  As I was reading over this I realized I lied.  I just remembered I have locked the keys in the car.  After grocery shopping I somehow loaded the groceries and my purse, with the keys and cell phone in it, in the trunk of our car and closed the hatch.  All doors locked.  I had to go back into the store to call Mark, who had to make the 20 minute drive into town with the two little ones and no carseats because they were in the car I had.  At least the car wasn't running, right?

Score another one for that mom.  :O)

Our Pumpkins

I just had to post these pictures of our "pumpkins" carving their pumpkins Sunday.  We had a beautiful day, and for the first time ever in my life {at least that I remember}, we carved our pumpkins out on the driveway. You'll note Natalie's {fancy} shoes in the one picture and understand why she spent about 12 seconds participating in the carving process.   

I look at these pictures of these beautiful kids and know, without a doubt, that God is in the business of creating masterpieces.  We know that we are blessed every day that He gives us glimpses of the destiny He has for them and allows us to partner with Him in the process of fulfilling it.

Busy, Busy, Busy

Well, true to my expectations, September and October have been incredibly busy.  Aside from a few days here and there when I've been moments away from an anxiety attack, we've had a lot of fun.  Here are some of the highlights and a few pictures:

• Wednesday Adventure Club is off to a good start.  I love the kids in the small group and love that Mark has decided to join me in serving them.  It's not free of challenges as we try to adapt the material to their maturity level some weeks and keep a couple ornery little boys in line, but I love to hear their sweet and faith-filled prayers!
• Ethan had a great time at his "Minute to Win It" birthday party.  It was great to see him interact with his friends...some of whom we met for the first time.  
• It's been a great soccer season.  Ethan loves the game and has an amazing sense of it.  He handles the ball like a pro and can play any position well.  It's so exciting to watch him play.  Karis does not love soccer...in fact, multiple times she has said she does not like it.  It's crazy {and somewhat disappointing} because the girl has great ball control and is faster than probably 97% of the other girls she's played against.  She easily scored 4 goals in Saturday's game against a team that evenly matched her team.  She's good, but she doesn't have that competitive instinct. {It will be fun to see her go back to gymnastics instead}
• I was able to go in and eat lunch with Ethan and Karis during Family Lunch Week.  After lunch I got to spend recess time with them.  Although it was a bit disturbing to see what elementary recess looks like these days, I was proud of our kids and their responses to what was going on around them.  
• Natalie, Levi and I have enjoyed some good times at the Library Family Story Time and Nature Center Mommy and Me class.  While I hate that Ethan and Karis aren't here to participate in these things with us, I love having the time with our two little ones. 
• We kicked off our MOPS year.  I love being back on steering team.  There are days when I wonder whether I should have committed to it or not, but I am always reassured when I see things come together and see moms needs being met.  I love the team and I love our children's pastor, who invests so much in this ministry.  I'm excited about what the Lord has in store for our group this year. 
• We've had two weekends full of the stuff Autumn is made for. One weekend we went to Mt. Geez (a big hill that over looks miles of rolling hills) to watch the sunset and then hit up DQ one last time before it closed for the season, rode bikes/ran on the bike trail {Natalie's first trip riding on the trail and she went 3.5 miles!}, and hiked a trail at Mohican State Park {during which 875 rocks, leaves, and sticks were thrown into the river}.  This past weekend my family came down to visit and enjoy staying up way past bed time, blueberry pancakes, soccer games, picking out pumpkins and jumping in leaf piles with us, and we went to a Harvest party with some friends for hayrides, decorating pumpkins, and a super intense soccer game involving kids...and middle aged adults...:O).    

Happy Birthday, Babe...

On this day, 32 years ago, before you even took a breath, God had numbered and designed every single one of your days...placed everything inside you that would make you who you are today...an amazing husband, daddy, teacher, coach...I am amazed and so thankful that, in those moments of creating you, He had me {us, these kids, this life} in mind. He's given me more than I could have asked for or imagined. Love you, babe, and so do they!

{Well, I couldn't not post for Mark's birthday after doing Ethan and Karis'. It'd be too much work for me to pull out and scan his baby pictures this morning, though, even though I'd love to show this one we have...so you could see that, at one point in his life, my husband was chunky.}

Deep Thoughts...

My friend Mandy posted this question on her blog over the weekend:
Moms, I Need Your Opinion

Moms, are you more content when:

A) You know all you have to focus on is your kids & your home?

B) You have additional passion outside kids & home to focus on?

Why?

I was struck by the fact that I didn't have an immediate answer. It took me a while to think through where I am at on this spectrum. Here is what I posted in response on Mandy's blog:

...I’ve determined that I am really most content when I’m doing A, although sometimes I’m called to B. I am most passionate about knowing and serving Christ, and there are times when He calls me to focus outside of my family/home in service to Him. There are seasons when He gives me rest, though, and allows my focus to go back to home/family. I feel like my other “passions” (running, teaching, etc) can easily be set aside with very little impact on the contentedness of my soul.

If you're a mom, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Do you think it's possible to be only A or only B? Is it a spectrum? Are there seasons for each? Post your thoughts!

Happy Birthday, Karis!

A {short} year and 16 days after Ethan came along, Karis joined our little family. She was sweet and gorgeous from day one...and all three of us fell in love with her.

It seems that Karis has spent much of the first six years of her life being "Ethan's little sister". She learned ABC's with him, potty trained with him, laughed with him, loved Star Wars with him, shared a bedroom with him...sometimes because she wanted to...and sometimes because that's just the way life is when you're born that close together.

I love that in the past several months, Karis is finding herself. She's strong and great at gymnastics. She creates amazing abstract art. She loves broccoli, but not asparagus. She has an eye for making beautiful jewelery. She can catch fish likes it's nobody's business. She loves animals and wants to be a veterinarian. She doesn't like soccer so much, and wishes there was cross-country for elementary school. She is embracing her role as big sister more and more every day. She's still painfully shy, but her friends are starting to number two hands instead of two fingers. She can share the gospel story {even if it is only with her little sister at this point} like she just graduated from seminary.

Although there are days our personalities clash and I'm much too hard on her, I love this girl like crazy. I don't know what I'd do if God hadn't surprised us with her. Lord, please guard this little girl's heart, mind, and body as she grows into a young woman in the coming years. We pray that she will continue to cherish things that are pure and innocent, and that she will gain the confidence to share Your Love Story with everyone that she meets.

I did it!!

Well, I ran my half-marathon this past Sunday. Don't look at me funny, but...I really enjoyed it!! I know it sounds so weird to run 13 miles and say that you've enjoyed it, but I did. I think I might officially become a half-marathoner.

(my cheering squad...that's one of my high school track coaches in the yellow jacket :O))

Seriously, though, I had the "perfect" experience.

I could train while my hubby was home with the kids or they tagged along on bikes. {There were two times I left the kids with a neighbor friend for quick work-outs, and I managed to get over the guilt of that. I mean, how many times have you left your kids with a friend so you could get to your hair or doctor appointment or whaterver. I've convinced myself it's not any different...}

I experienced no injuries and never even got a blister until my 12 mile run.


All the kids started sleeping all night for about the last month, so I was well rested.


The training plan worked step by step. {I did alter the last week a bit since our schedule was crazy, I had that wonderful monthly visitor, and the mileage just seemed really high to me.}


I don't think I could have asked for a better race morning. The weather was overcast and cool. The crowd wasn't overwhelming. My nerves settled after my second "potty" stop before the start, and I didn't have to take any potty stops along the way. Everything went smoothly.


Once the horn blew, I just settled in and had almost two hours of "church". It was really an amazing feeling. I was doing what I feel like God created my body to do in a place that He created for me to enjoy while quietly singing prayers and praise to Him.


My goal was to cross the finish line in 2 hours or less, with no walking. At about 9 miles I knew that {unless something crazy happened} I was going to finish under 2 hours. At that point my goal became to get as close to 1:50 as possible. I finished in 1:51 and some seconds (official times haven't been posted yet)...and I didn't have to walk at all!
It felt good accomplishing this goal. I still think, at some point, I'll try a full marathon, but I'm waiting till the time is right...and I think I'll only put myself through one of those, just to say I did. But this half-marathon thing I could definitely see myself doing on a somewhat regular basis. That's okay with you, Mark, right? :O)

Happy Birthday, Ethan

Today our first born {strong-willed, athletic, intelligent, emotional, stubborn, hard-thinking, germaphobic, reasoning, thrill-seeking, handsome, never wrong, family-loving, scientific, quiet} son turns eight years old. Lord, we pray that You will use the foundation we've partnered with You to build these past 8 eight years and grow this boy into a man that loves You...brings others to love You...and chases hard after You.