Sweet Babbling

It was hard for me to surrender to the fact that Ethan didn't need a morning nap any longer. I guess it happened sometime after Christmas. Morning nap time was always "my time" to read the Bible or get ready for the day. I think Ethan needed a break from me too :-) Giving up a morning nap also meant that Ethan wanted to crash for his afternoon nap before or around lunch--not too ideal for the schedule. So taking the great advice of my sister, I tried putting Ethan in his crib for quiet playtime in the morning around the time he usually took a nap. I left the curtains open or the lights on, put toys and books in his crib, and let him play. It worked GREAT!! At first he would play for a few minutes, fuss, and then fall asleep. Now, he usually stays in his crib without fussing for 30 minutes. He comes out a happier, less-fussy boy than went in :-) My favorite part of this is listening to his sweet babblings. I hear him reciting names of people he knows, "reading" his books as best as he can and singing at the top of his lungs ("singing" consists of the word "la" put to his own melody). He does also throw all of his toys & books out of his crib one by one, but hey, it keeps him entertained! My favorite was last week when I heard him say "tittle-tittle" (tickle, tickle) and then giggle. I guess it's amusing to tickle himself :-) On rare occasions, he still falls asleep during these morning "break" times.

(yes, his wet diaper is protruding through the bottom of his outfit :-( Bad mommy!)

Spring Flowers

Welcome to Marhsalltown, Iowa!! Ethan is having a blast exploring the parks and fields around the church. His cousins have taught him about picking flowers. Mommy only made him pose for these pictures... maybe I need a little girl....

Trying Out New Things

I've thought about blogging ever since I started reading blogs about 2 years ago. I just didn't think I had anything interesting to blog about and I thought "How in the world will I have time to do that?" After Ethan was born, I tossed around the idea a little more so that I could get my creative juices flowing (sometimes you need a little more that daily "conversation" with a baby to keep your mind challenged :-). But I never had time then to explore how to create a blog. Now it seems more time is at my disposal since I don't have to cook meals or clean up much while we are traveling. So...now the question of subject matter... I love reading blogs about saving money, child rearing, cooking and biblical womanhood, but I don't feel I am qualified to write about those things. I have been encouraged by various friends & family members to keep a record of how the Lord provides for us as we walk by faith as well as the fun and exciting events of our little toddler. I want to be able to look back and remember the goodness of God to our family. I want my children to know what God did for them even before they could understand that there is a God who is a faithful provider.

So here we are... hopefully, I'll be faithful to writing!

Here are a few recent pictures...

Visiting a Children's Museum in La Crosse, WI

Visiting the monkeys at the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago (don't worry, we did see real monkeys too)

Excited to try blogging for the first time :-)