Gosh, how do I find the time to post on a blog in the midst of everything else?  Here I am, it's been a while.  A little update of the Painter's...Matthew is now a little over 6 months and growing so fast.  I can't believe he's in 12 months close already...double what is age is!  He just weighed in for his 6 month appointment at 18.1 lbs and 27.5 in long.  We don't make them small!  He has started reaching for toys, well for anything in front of his face anyway.  Today we just gave him his first sippy cup of water and he loved that too!  Anything he can put his mouth on! He's talking or baby jabbering a ton and just about to learn to roll over onto his tummy from his back.  He'll master that one of these days.  Oh, and he just got his first tooth too and working on his second! Just love that little boy.

Isaiah on the other hand, cracks us up every day! His newest line is, "Bunny Rabbit...phtheeh"  It's like a farting noise at the end.  He says daddy taught him, but I sort of doubt that :).  We just started leaving his door slightly open, well just not shut so tight he can't open it, and he comes into our room every morning now and cuddles with us in bed.  He sneaks in so quietly and crawls right up there.  The other night he found his way to our room at 2 in the morning, crawled in bed, and tried to go to sleep, it was the most precious thing.

Mommy and daddy our gearing up for our first trip away from the boys since Isaiah was 6 months old.  We will miss them like crazy, but we can't wait to get some mommy and daddy time in Vegas with some friends!

Gosh, since the last post we've had Easter, gone to visit Bok Bok and Bok Gook, a little photo shoot of the boys, and plenty of other things that we've taken pics of, take a look...

Children's Ten Commandments to Parents

Just a little reminder for myself from good 'ol Kevin Leman:

1. My hands are small; please don’t expect perfection whenever I make a bed, draw a picture, or throw a ball. My legs are short; please slow down so that I can keep up with you.

2. My eyes have not seen the world as yours have; please let me explore safely: don’t restrict me unnecessarily.

3. Housework will always be there. I’m only little such a short time—please take time to explain things to me about this wonderful world, and do so willingly.

4. My feelings are tender; please be sensitive to my needs; don’t nag me all day long. (You wouldn’t want to be nagged for your inquisitiveness.) Treat me as you would like to be treated.

5. I am a special gift from God; please treasure me as God intended you to do, holding me accountable for my actions, giving me guidelines to live by, and disciplining me in a loving manner.

6. I need your encouragement, but not your praise, to grow. Please go easy on the criticism; remember you can criticize the things I do without criticizing me.

7. Please give me the freedom to make decisions concerning myself. Permit me to fail, so that I can learn from my mistakes. Then someday I’ll be prepared to make the kind of decisions life requires of me.

8. Please don’t do things over for me. Somehow that makes me feel that my efforts didn’t quite measure up to your expectations. I know it’s hard, but please don’t try to compare me with my brother or my sister.

9. Please don’t be afraid to leave for a weekend together.  Kids need vacations from parents, just as parents need vacations from kids. Besides, it’s a great way to show us kids that your marriage is very special.

10. Please take me to Sunday school and church regularly, setting a good example for me to follow. I enjoy learning more about God.

So, Isaiah is reaching the "scared" stage of life and wakes up often crying because he's scared.  I go in and assure him everything is ok, lay in his bed and sing him a little song...usually "Jesus Loves me" or "You are my sunshine."  Today I went in and he wouldn't go back to sleep, but I made him read books on the floor until his clocked changed colors.  As I was finishing things up downstairs, I hear, "Mommy, my cwock changed colors!"  So I went up to get him and I opened his door and said, "Good job buddy, your did it!" And he starts to head out of his room saying, "I'm so proud of you!" followed by his new line (to work it with mommy) "You're beautiful!"  and he rubs my face...Keep it up buddy, you'll make your wife happy someday! :)

 

"Mommy, you're beautiful!" 

Ugggggh!! I love these boys!!!

Little boys doing big things...

I posted something like this the other day, but we have yet reached another milestone in Matthew's life.  We introduced him to real food today and, as Isaiah always has, Matthew too, LOVED it...In fact, he screamed when we would take it away.  AND...of course, Isaiah was right there with to help us, or feed him if we stopped, although, he would tend to shove the spoon a little too far.  Oops!  

 Nom nom nom... 

 Big brother is always right next to little brother! Especially if there is a camera involved!

Can't forget to document the first hair cut! 

                    Before...                                                            After...still long, but I tried

 Yet another picture of my little helper, helping mamma clean!  What am I going to do when my little side kick goes off to school, that will be a sad day for me!

And this is how I get ready in the morning.  No wonder why my getting ready time when from slow (as Phil would say)...to REALLY slow :)

 LOVE this face!!

Nap Time Talking

I love listening to my boys wake up and talk to themselves or play by themselves...Even when they are teeny tiny and just coo in their crib.  Today, Isaiah is waking up from his nap and I'm cracking up..."Mommy?  I need to go potty before we leave! Moooooommy?  You hear me?  Mooomy, I have a boogar!  Mommy?  I have a boogar and I wipe it on da wipe!  Mommy, you hear me?  I suppose my quiet time is over. 

Reflecting God's Heart

A prayer that I've prayed often for myself and for my family...Dear God, give me eyes to see people like you do, give me your heart to have compassion like you, give me ears to hear and listen to people like you would. Help me God to really be like you!

Tonight, while trying to enjoy a much needed relaxing bath, I was skimming through a magazine Thriving Family and came across several good articles, but one imparticular that reminded me of the prayer I pray so often.  It had several good reminders that I took to heart.

Our hands, unsterilized - Help me to teach my sons by my actions how to work for Christ.  Jim Daly spoke it perfectly when he said, "If my boys are going to learn to show God's love to our culture, I must be the one who introduces them to those needs."

Lord, help me to be a doer of Christ's works and show me where those needs are in our community...


Our eyes, focused on others' humanity - He painted a perfect picture, "If a blind man stepped on your foot or spilled hot coffee on you, would you get upset?  Of course not! He's not fully aware of space and the proximity of those around him. The same is true with those in the culture who do not embrace the truth of Jesus Christ...We meet people of different beliefs and different backgrounds.  They often act in ways we don't like...But we are still called to love those people, and it makes our job much easier if we see them not as evil doers, but as fellow imperfect humans who are loved by God.  They are NOT MALICIOUS, but MISGUIDED."

Lord, help me to remember this when we get frustrated and assume things of other people!  Give me that compassionate heart that is like yours. 

Our hearts, driven by values, not victory - There's an old saying "Winning isn't everything."  I, like most moms I know, want to teach my boys to have a Godly character.  It's my job as a parent to hold my kids to high standards too.  Perfectly said in this article... "It's not if you win, it's how you play the game!" 

Lord help me to remind and model to my boys that we don't always need to win, but whether we win or loose, we will do it with a Godly character that puts others before ourselves.  It's ok to be competitive as long as we do it right!

I Wanna be just like daddy...

 Taking a bath in daddy's big bath...

 Getting dressed like daddy

 How do I look?

 Shaving like daddy...

 Hmmm...watching TV with daddy!

Something common in our house right now, the little boys wanna be just like daddy, well at least Isaiah does so far and I'm sure Matthew will be there soon...I guess it's better to be like daddy than mommy...Someday our girl will come and she can be just like mommy!