A night to remember (A post from Daddy)

Saturday, September 30^th was shaping up to be a relaxing day around the house with mom and all you guys. I actually wasn’t too surprised that Mom-mom and Grandpa showed up in the afternoon, and mom mentioned that she had planned a surprise date night.  We casually decided to head up to Frederick for the evening. Although I was interested in checking out a French restaurant, Mom suggested we go back to one of our favorites up there, the Wine Kitchen.

When we arrived they first told us that there were no tables available Then the host did a quick check, and said they would actually be able to squeeze us in the back of the restaurant.  As we headed towards the back I noticed a good friend of mine, Devon Kauflin, sitting with his wife Kristine at a long table.  When I panned to the right, next to Kristine was Aunt Stephanie and Uncle Kevin.  It turned out that this evening was a surprise 40^th birthday celebration with some of my closest friends.

These folks were gathered together to celebrate my life, 40 years on this earth.  Each of them I’ve learned much from- how to be a better son, a better husband, a better father and a better friend.  They have poured themselves out into my life and served my family in ways that I just didn’t think were possible.  They’ve walked with us through various seasons of life from the time we got married up until now- through marital bliss and conflicts, through the joy of having 4 kids and the pain of losing one, and all of life’s ups and downs in between...

Through all of this,they have been faithful to point us back to our Savior, our Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

Proverb 27:17 states, “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.”  They have kept us sharp through wise counsel and have compelled us to learn and love God's word more. 

Hebrews 13:8- “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

They’ve reminded us repetitively that though our feelings and circumstances fluctuate, Jesus Christ our rock never changes .

1 Cor 6:20, 10:31- “for you were bought with a price.  So glorify God in your body…So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”  Our goal in life is to glorify God and they have modeled this well for us.

I would be remiss if I didn’t call out what an amazing job my bride did in organizing and planning this special evening.  The food and drinks were excellent! (How can you go wrong with a ribeye, and mom would point out that it was local and grassfed).  Most importantly the friends and family that were present completed the night.  Reema – thank you for this special night.  Every day with you is a gift and I can’t thank God enough for bringing us together 9 years ago.  I’m a better son, husband, father and friend because of you. I love you.

Every once in a while an event takes place that you know that you’ll remember for the rest of your life.  For me, this was a night to remember.

our baby girl is 6

Chloe, 

Right now it is 8 pm and you are whistling in your bed. You are so excited tomorrow is your birthday that you can't sleep. You want to to know when I am going to put the streamers on your door, and I am waiting for you to fall asleep! 

This past year you have matured into a little girl that it's hard to believe you aren't a little toddler or preschooler anymore. You lost your training wheels off your bike, went to your first Orioles's game with dad, lost your 2 front teeth, and you finally started Kindergarten.  You have been so ready, but your September birthday held you back. You have been reading and reading and reading hoping to surpass Noah's grade level. You get frustrated when you don't sound the word right, but my goodness, you are so persistent! You are even already trying to teach Eli how to read and you have prepared him well for all that he has to experience in Mrs. Ellis's class. You have grown so much in loving kindness towards your siblings and have been a really good helper for me, especially with Eli and Grace. You (most times) are quick to share and like to bless your friends with your things when they come over. You also have a drawer full of card and pictures you want to give to people. You love arts and crafts and making things for people. 

You are a very happy and ENERGETIC child. You honestly sometimes seem like more than I can handle. And while you deplete me of all my energy, your joyful personality is uplifting to my soul. You can talk for very long times and ask a lot of questions because you are very curious about things and want to know everything about everything. For your birthday we got you a trampoline to help you exert some of the wiggles out. You also love gymnastics and are working on learning how to do a cartwheel. I can't wait to see your face in the morning when you discover your gift, daddy's flowers and some chapstick of course! We love you so much Chloe and are grateful for the daughter and sister that you are! Happy birthday my little love!

I'm thinking that might have been the last time you will fall asleep a the table :(

 She's starting to warm up to a big sister

 You were so excited you lost your tooth at school, so you get a special tooth necklace.

 A little camping celebration, family celebration at Chik-Fil-a to follow!

And you love all your cousins

special gifts

This week Daddy was gone and it was a bit crazy with you guys.  But when Dad came home, you guys were really excited to give a special gift to Dad and myself.  You guys often do this and it brings us so much joy. It's a pretty big deal. You guys have us come together and take turns opening the stuff inside a box. Sometimes you wrap every item with tissue paper. I personally enjoy this time, because I don't have to sneak in your rooms and steal the crap you hoard as it's freely given to me :) (Hopefully you are old enough to understand when you are reading this.) Thank you and we are really grateful!

So here's what we get...

A box of crayons for Dad!

 2 bracelets, a golden egg with stickers and jewels, 2 organic! lollipops,  2 homemade candy cane ornaments, and of course a few pictures and your love notes...

Here was my personal favorite from Chloe this time. We've been working on self-control but perhaps we should start talking about greed :) At least you started the card off right!

I love you too, Chloe.

Chloe says, "Mom, that's a really pretty necklace you're wearing." (pause) "When you die it will be mine!"

my boy

Noah comes in after being outside playing basketball all evening, and I told him to go shower and get ready for bed. And he responds, "What?! Mom, why do I need to shower?" 

"Because I can't tell if you look or smell worse..."

Happy Rainy July 4th

Who needs fireworks when you have great dads and great friends? And the rain didn't stop them...

Mr. Dave & Daddy putting on a firework show for you guys. I can't say I or my ears were overly happy about it, but it went really well and you guys had a ton of fun.  

sparklers were a favorite 

Noah, still my most cautious kid standing in the back (with the mommies and the babies). How grown and handsome you are!

Gracie is 1!

Just yesterday, daddy looked at me and said, "Now, the fun begins." It's so true. We are really enjoying life with you and are starting to see more of your personality. You are so playful and love being included in everything. You are social but only with your family. You still scream and cry when a stranger approaches you and cling tightly to my sleeve.  You can just sit near your siblings and are content watching them. You love when I crawl and chase you and tickle you, and I love to see your big dimples. You love to sit and eat what we are eating. You actually observe everyones plates and refuse anything that doesn't look like what we're eating. You love being outside and going on walks. You are crawling everywhere, getting into things and tasting anything you find :) We definitely keep the area you play in clear of legos, but soon you will be building too. You are pretty determined and make your will known at times, but also still relaxed and easy going other times.

The past week you have been sick and not feeling great, and I have thoroughly enjoyed holding you every moment that I could and snuggling with you.  Every night either Dad or myself had to lay next to you to keep you comforted. It pained us to see you so uncomfortable. I love that you are small with lots of chub and so easy to cuddle with. I love how you love me and how quickly you stop crying when I hold you. People say you are like a light switch when I appear. You are a very sweet and pretty little girl, and we are looking forward to more giggles and snuggles with you. I am so grateful for your life and can't imagine it without you.

Happy first birthday, our dear little Grace! We all love you so much!

Love,
Mommy & Daddy

Those dimples!

I am so bummed it came out blurry, but I love your little face adoring your daddy, and he adores you too.

The things you say...

  We were all wrestling on the family room floor,  and Chloe got really scared at one point and started crying when daddy pretended to wrestle me. And daddy stopped immediately to comfort  her and assured her that daddy would never hurt mommy. And Noah chimed in with all seriousness and all wisdom, "Chloe, why would daddy hurt the person who cooks all our breakfast, lunches and dinners and folds all of our laundry?"

  I was telling Chloe we need to pray to Jesus to ask for patience.  With a smart look on her face, she responds, "Can't we just call God? Why doesn't he have a cell phone?"

And then there's Eli who will  periodically throw in a a big vocabulary word. There was quarreling over who was going to sit where for dinner, and Eli proudly responds, "Noah, Chloe, sit in your assigned seats!" 

Right now the big thing with Eli, is every time we leave or you have to go take a nap or pretty much anything, you always ask (and sometimes cry) "Can you go fast? I really like you! Can you set the timer?"

  You guys are all actually pretty hilarious. I really couldn't keep up with all the things that you say, but every once in a while I like to jot it down. I know there are many laughs to come...

Happy Father's Day!

Danny,

I was going to write you a card, but I need to organize our card box right now and it's pretty full. Plus I thought it would be fun for the kids to read the things I appreciate most about you in this season...

In this past year most of my time and energy was committed to Gracie. And I was most grateful for the dad that you were to the kids during what felt like a mental absence combined with physical exhaustion.  So when I think about what I love about their daddy, here are a few things that come to mind....

how you include whoever is available in your errands just to spend time with them, 

how you teach them to bless me by cleaning the house and picking up flowers (and they do it joyfully), 

how you faithfully worked on Noah's memory verses and spelling words on the car ride to school, 

how you taught Chloe how to ride (and stop) her bike and respond to all her "tickle me! tickle me!" 

how you let Eli handle all your tools and let him help you fix things and mow with you,
how you work wonders and get Grace to sleep and eat when I can't!, 

how after days of travels you come home with more energy for us and are intentional with the time you have with the kids,

how you never tire of playing (competitive) games and wrestle with them,

how much you love to coach them in whatever sport they are learning, 

how you patiently train and instruct them when they are lacking self control,

how you tuck them in and pray for them at night,

how quickly you are humble to ask their forgiveness when you've sinned against them,

how you teach them to pray for each other,

how you model that reading Gods word is priority in your days,

And to sum it up, how you show them Jesus in your heart through all that you do for them!

You love them so much and pour all of your self into our family, and in this past year you often took on a part of my load to give me rest.  I often ask you, "Aren't you tired?" or "Where do you get the energy for all this?!" Your response is pretty much the same- "I love coming home and coming home to you guys."  I love hearing that. I am so grateful for the way you love us unconditionally and how joyful you are when it comes to serving your family. I love the leader that you are and the man that my boys have to model after. Happy Father's day!

I remember picking out this rug with extra padding, 8 years ago when we bought our home, for this reason! You've made all my dreams come true :)

Yummy Father's Day dinner at Vintage

Lots of love,

Mom

Sutton OBX trip

super heros and sweet sisters

wanting to pause

Now that Grace is sleeping through the night, I wish I could slow down the time...

 

Not my ideal set up for our foyer and formal living room, but I'm loving it.

Ying did a great job capturing some fun in our only real snow day.

 These 2 use to be much closer in height, but Noah hit a MAJOR growth spurt. You don't eat much for lunch, but you sure make up for it during dinner.

 Over Spring break you guys named yourselves the "polar bears in underwear" and ran around the house chanting it.

 I think this has happened before...

 These 2 melt my heart. I love their relationship. Eli loves spending time with Chloe when she comes home from preschool and Chloe does a great job caring for him. 

 And I love this relationship too. Gracie loves. loves, loves how Noah plays with her. He is so sweet and gentle with her.  She too is very excited when he comes home from school.

S'more time with our dear friends! We are blessed with wonderful neighbors!

We got hit pretty badly with sickness for 3 weeks straight in March. Danny was the first to go down and this was Noah's "get well" notes for him. I really appreciated Noah's gospel message to him!

 So this is Noah and Chloe's toothbrushes suctioned to the bathroom ceiling. I'm not sure how this came about. Maybe mommy has been to OCD about keeping them away and separated after 2 rounds of strep?

A busy spring break. Easter craft, egg coloring, and our first fairy garden (thanks to Ms. Lauren.)

 First Costco trip with 4. 

 You guys picked and arranged all these flowers for me after being outside on a cooler morning. Noah said, "Mom we picked so many because you are so beautiful." You guys are so sweet. You made my year! 

 Snuggling with Eli on the porch swing because he wanted to wait for the recycle truck.

And last but not least, this baby is 10 months old!!  I can't get enough of you and your dimples!!



After a post like this, I want you kiddos to remember that I blog all the wonderful memories and graces in our lives. These are just times that I am grateful for, and it is very helpful for me to appreciate and remember these things in the midst of our craziness. We are blessed, but our lives are not always picture perfect. I obviously don't have pictures of the name-calling, pushing, throwing, yelling, complaining, and the list goes on... Our hearts are messy, but God is greater than our heart. His love compels us each day in the midst of ALL the joy AND in ALL the times were we feel like we are striving for each moment.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,  to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls."  -1 Peter 1:3-9