Truth In Season

Homeschool Field Trip - To the Farm

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 13:03:00 +0000

Homeschooling has been going pretty well the past couple months. I finally feel like I am in a groove (not a deep established one, but still a groove). We were studying farm animals (goats, cows & horses) and when the curriculum suggested visiting a farm, it sounded fun.

After a quick Google search I found a farm I had visited before - Venetucci Farm. They offered free self-guided tours to small groups of ten or less (just me and the kids are five!). I called a friend that is also familiar with the farm and scheduled our first field trip.

Having grown up on a small farm, I desire my kids to experience the joys of farm life. I don't think you can capture that in a short afternoon, but a little exposure is better than nothing. There are times when I wish I could go back to my Dad's small farm - part of me would enjoy raising my children there . . . then I remember I married a city-boy, also the quaint picture would wear off pretty quick as the hard work set in. Farmers work hard.

City kids with sensitive noses - they don't have a clue!

We even fed the horses some apple pieces

Nanny goat

June with her nieces

Stephen is Walking

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 13:02:00 +0000

None of our children have walked early. I can't relate to the nine-month-old that won't sit still, wanting to climb, crawl and walk. I did see a six-month-old like this - pretty amazing.

Stephen has made amazing progress with walking in the past couple days. He has gone from sitting down when you try to let go of his hands (beginning of April) to walking between us and occasionally standing up on his own. He surprised us this last week by getting up and walking. He hasn't mastered it yet, but the progress is very encouraging. He just turned 18 months on Tuesday. (Autumn & Elias walked at 16 months and Josiah waited until 21 months!)

Random Fun Pictures (April - May 2012)

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Sat, 02 Jun 2012 15:18:00 +0000

Cute pictures and great memories that I don't want to forget.

Elias gave himself a haircut (so did Autumn but it wasn't this bad)

Free Comic Book Day

Brothers

Miniature Golfing for my Birthday

Uncle Abe's Visit

Silly kids

Memorial Day Trip to the Zoo

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Sat, 02 Jun 2012 02:09:00 +0000

Don't choke your brother, Josiah!

On Memorial Day we went to the zoo - it was our first time using our family membership. (David and I went to the zoo on one of our first dates in 2001 - we were celebrating his 24th birthday.)

My parents were in town and David's parents joined us for the day. It was helpful to have so many adults to keep up with the kids - we were doing head counts the entire day (I can't imagine going there with all the kids on my own, but with some strict rules, it could be possible). Turns out Memorial Day is a popular day to visit the zoo.

This trip came at an ideal time as we have been learning about many different animals in homeschool. It was a little disappointing that the elephant area was under construction - hopefully we'll get to see some in the fall. Our zoo also didn't have kangaroos or penguins either - which we have been studying most recently.

I would say the highlights were feeding the giraffes (they have longgggg tongues!), the pony ride, and watching the bear do little twirls. The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, is built on the side of a mountain and quite a workout. The view of the city was amazing!

Here are some pictures from the day.

Watch out for that tongue!

We were super close to the giraffes

Getting them to look the same direction at the same time is nearly impossible

Book Summaries (Homeschooling) - Part 4

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Thu, 24 May 2012 04:42:00 +0000

What Your Child Needs to Know When - According to the Bible, According to the State - by Robin Sampson

I liked this book. I was interested in the "scope and sequence" aspect, but found something far greater.

This book is quite diverse in my opinion. It has several helpful sections. She explains the history of education and talks about state achievement tests. In the section on "Teaching Wisdom" I was challenged to make God's Word a focus in our education. "Heart of Wisdom" is a model of educating that she created (she has a book all about it, which I haven't read) and she introduces it in the "Teaching Wisdom" section.

The final half of the book is dedicated to checklists for each subject - Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies, and State History. She breaks the sections first by subject, then by grade and outlines the basic information your child should be learning. I didn't find this to be quite as detailed as the "Core Knowledge Sequence" book I looked at last week.

There are also six pages of character traits - a definition and scripture reference is given for each trait. In the section about the history of education (both modern & biblical) she seemed to question the philosophy of classical education. She thinks returning to a Hebrew (biblical) model would be better than a Greek model (according to her, the classical model returns to Greek philosophies). I don't entirely understand the classical model, but her perspective made me curious.

It is interesting how little statements can challenge you. A simple nugget from this book may change the way I look at homeschooling (and parenting in general). Robin quotes a book by David Mulligan - Far Above Rubies: Wisdom in the Christian Community. To me, it revealed how I was still segmenting my Christian religion and education. Here is a section of the quote.

"We think of Bible study as suitable for family devotions, church services, Sunday school classes, and if the study gets "deep," in the seminary. How much Bible can children get without detracting from other studies?"

"In asking this question we uncover in ourselves something of the tension that exists in the Western world between learning and religion...We should turn the question around: 'How much secular studies can a student pursue without detracting from his knowledge of God's Word?!'"

This is a radical statement yet I find it resonating in my heart. How this is accomplished and what it looks like in our family will come with time and at the direction of the Holy Spirit. I desire to work towards this - having the center of our education be God's Word.

I am reminded of this scripture and how God is integral to knowledge, yet He is not of part of modern education.
The reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is the beginning and the principal and choice part of knowledge [its starting point and its essence]; but fools despise skillful and godly Wisdom, instruction, and discipline. Proverbs 1:7 (Amplified)

Book Summaries (Homeschooling) - Part 3

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Sat, 12 May 2012 00:18:00 +0000

Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling - by Debra Bell (509 pages)

I found this book easy to read and understand. I would consider it more of a practical how-to book vs. one on the philosophy of homeschooling. She covers the aspects of choosing curriculum, organization, how to avoid burnout, and schooling teens.

My favorite was the section that addresses each subject - broken down into primary, elementary and highschool. She identified the goals for each subject in the appropriate age group. I liked this area because it included some curriculum suggestions and ideas on how to reach the goal. This isn't a scope and sequence book.

I would consider purchasing it for the resource listings. In the "Using the Library" section she lists 150 books that could be found at the library and used as curriculum (organized by subject). In a section on technology recommendations for websites and computer programs are given.

Although she is a believer, there isn't a strong Christian theme (possibly because this book doesn't focus on the philosophy of homeschooling).

Core Knowledge Sequence: Content Guidelines for Grades K-8 - by Core Knowledge Foundation
(218 pages)
David and I went to a one day seminar for beginning homeschoolers. It was put on by Christian Home Educators of Colorado (CHEC). They suggested many different books, including this one.

I found this book easy to understand. It is a scope and sequence book (meaning guidelines for what children should be learning at each grade level). It was written for public schools so there is no reference to the Bible. While I may not agree with all that they suggest, I do feel like it provides a guideline.

Here is an example of Kindergarten Science:
Plants & Plant Growth (They have 7 main titles for Science - Plants & Plant Growth, Animals, Human Body, etc.)
- What plants need to grow: sufficient warmth, light, and water
- Basic parts of plants: seed, root, stem, branch, leaf
- Etc (they have 6 bullets regarding Plants & Plant Growth)

I like how each objective is explained and specifics are given. It also include reading lists of poetry, biographies and stories. Apparently one of the sayings that Kindergarteners learn is "A dog is a man's best friend" - I didn't know these sayings were taught formally! It does not given any curriculum suggestions.

I found this book to be very detailed. For just Kindergarten, there are 14 pages of information (some are half pages). It is written in an outline format (not many paragraphs). It covers Language Arts, History & Geography, Visual Arts, Music, Math and Science.

I also looked at "Teaching Children" by Diane Lopez. This scope and sequence book is written from a Christian perspective. For some reason I didn't find it as easy to understand (now that I have another book to compare it to). Another similar book I need to look at is called "What Your Child Needs to Know When: According to the Bible, According to the State" by Robin Sampson. I am so thankful that our library carries these books so I can review them before I start making purchases.

Books Summaries (Homeschooling) - Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 03:48:00 +0000

I have fallen in love with the library! They have so many resources available. I currently have twenty-two items checked out, most are for the kids and correspond with our weekly unit study. Our library is very "homeschool friendly" and has a good selection of books for me to read and learn more about homeschooling. (I'll also excited about the PPLD library app I got last week. It makes putting books on hold, renewing items and managing my account so easy!)

I have been especially interested in magazines, so here is what I thought of my recent check-outs.

Home Education Magazine (Sept-October 2011) (47 pages)

I didn't like this magazine. It comes from a secular perspective and I disagreed with the points many of the authors were making. Christ (and relationship with God) is key to my reasons for homeschooling and this magazine is missing that perspective.

There was a section in the back summarizing children's books on bees that I found helpful.

The Old Schoolhouse (Fall 2011) (176 pages)
This magazine is okay - for some reason I don't "love" it, but it is better than the one above. It is written from a Christian perspective and had articles for all the different seasons of homeschooling. It has a lot of advertisements and, while somewhat overwhelming, I liked seeing how many different Christian curricula are out there. They didn't have as many book suggestions/reviews or activities to do with children as one I read last week (Homeschooling Today).

I did see that they have an iPhone/iPod app. I am able to read the magazine digitally on my iPod or through their website - http://thehomeschoolmagazine.com. Actually after further review, I see that the Fall 2011 issue was their last print magazine, they have gone completely digital. The more I look at their digital version, the more I like it. I am able to skim over the article titles and choose what interests me. I will be looking into this further.

I did like their website. They offer free items and seem to have a lot of helpful resources in their store. It looks like they have written a lot of their own curriculum and it is reasonably priced. I may want to come back when I have a better understanding of what I am doing!

Books Summaries (Homeschooling) - Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 18:52:00 +0000

I have always enjoyed reading. As a child I would sit trying to read by the light from the living room after my bedtime. My school bus rides were long and I would often read the entire 45 min to 1 hr trip. While I love curling up with a fictional book, these days I have too little time and still so much to learn about the different seasons of life I am in - therefore I read nonfiction.

I have read my share of marriage and parenting books. During my pregnancies I have poured through childbirth books and personal birth stories. Online there are a plethora of blogs of all sorts of interesting topics.

My biggest problem is that I can't seem to retain all this information. While reading I have discovered some great nuggets. So, I am going to try to write a little summary about the books I've been reading. The primary purpose is for my reference, but maybe someone else would benefit from my experience.

The topic of all these books is homeschooling -

Formation of Character - by Charlotte Mason

I am trying to understand Charlotte Mason's approach to education, so this was the first book written by her that I tried to read. Honestly it was difficult for me to read and quickly understand. She lived from 1842 - 1923 in England. While I am sure her books are well written, it required too much attention and analysis. I am returning this book with only one chapter read. I may return to this in the future.

Homeschooling For Excellence - by David & Micki Colfax
The Colfaxs moved to rural California when their children were young. Having spent their professional lives in the educational system, they decide to educated their four boys at home while homesteading in the 70's! At least three of their four sons went on to study at Harvard.

What I gleaned from this book (and many others) is that educating your child at home isn't a segregated endeavor. Homeschooling becomes an integrated part of the family's life. School doesn't just start at eight and end at four - training and teaching is 24/7 - no beginning and no end. Everyday there is an opportunity to teach them outside of the confines of "school-time".

They also mentioned having their boys keep a daily journal - starting before they were proficient in reading and writing. It was a factual account of the day - not a private journal. They would record happenings on the farm and the parents would call on the information in their journals. The journals had a purpose - not just mindless writing for the sole purpose of writing. The information had value to the family.

They cover each subject, some of the resources they used and their approach to learning it. While it was effective, I didn't get the impression there was a focus of becoming a scholar - but creating an appetite for learning while living everyday.

Teaching Children - by Diane Lopez
I haven't read this entire book and probably won't. It is set up as a curriculum guide, giving age/grade appropriate educational goals. "A Curriculum Guide to What Children Need to Know at Each Level Through Sixth Grade". I am seriously considering purchasing this as a reference book. Having a reference book with benchmarks/goals seems pretty helpful. In Colorado testing is required for students after they have finished the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th & 11th grades. While I assume this will be easier as we have more experience, I currently haven't a clue what a 3rd grader should know.

She follows Charlotte Mason's philosophy. It starts with 1st grade.

Homeschooling Today - Practical Journal of Home Discipleship (March/April 2010) - Magazine

What a cool magazine! It seems to provide two months of activities which seemed to cover art, science, geography and reading. They have hands-on activities for inside and outside. It would be a great way to supplement your current lessons and appeared to be based on the time of year?? It also had lessons plans for Easter. The entire magazine is written from a Christian perspective. They also gave reviews and made suggestions on good books for children and parents. I believe they are also coming from a Charlotte Mason philosophy of learning.

I enjoyed the articles - especially the one on the model of the "one-room schoolhouse". It helped me understand how I can school my four children at the same time.

They also have a free email newsletter - http://www.homeschooltoday.com/ I signed up and received the first one this morning. I found it encouraging. One of the newsletter options is especially for homeschooling in their first year.

This magazine seemed rich with resources. I plan to see if more issues can be checked out at the library. I am not ready to invest in a subscription until I have reviewed more magazines.

Hopefully this is just the beginning of my book summaries. I still have half a dozen books left to read and think about! Writing this has helped me digest the information.

Have you read any of these books? I would really enjoy your thoughts on them. I am also interested in suggestions you would have on other books/magazines to read.

Stephen - Still a Baby

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 19:43:00 +0000

So Sweet

15 months old

Stephen is slowing growing up. In usual Moore fashion, he is taking his time. At Christmas he finally got some more teeth - his first and only tooth arrived around 11 months, but it took a couple more MONTHS to get three more teeth. This slowed down the transition to table food - poor guy choked because he couldn't chew! In January he made amazing progress - eating table food, drinking milk, weaned from nursing, pulling up to a standing position and weight gain (at 12 mos he only weighed 17 lbs, by the end of January he was 20 lbs).

In February he starting crawling up stairs and is crawling on all fours more often (still prefers the army crawl). He loves to walk holding our hands, but isn't interested in walking alone. I do think he looks younger because he doesn't have much hair - David & I were both bald babies and all our children have been too.

He is a fairly happy baby although we have noticed a strong will that we didn't have in the other kids. As parents we have some training to do with him. His strong will can be an asset if directed by the Lord!

Stephen's "nest" created by Autumn and Elias - complete
with Weeble "eggs" and blankets for padding.

Mod Podge Discovery & New Prints!

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 03:57:00 +0000

I heard been reading about Mod Podge for years now, but never tried it. It honestly sounded a little too crafty for me. But an idea was presented by my dear friend June that I couldn't resist - crafty or not, I had to try it out.

I love canvas prints and I love taking pictures of my kids, but I can't justify spending that much money on canvas prints. With thousands of pictures on my computer it is a shame that I don't have any pictures of my kids displayed around the house. So when June mentioned putting a picture on a canvas with mod podge, I was interested. I already had a bunch of 16 x 20 blank canvases and a big empty space above the couch.

I took some fun pictures of the kids and with some professional help, had them edited. (Bought the letters at Michael's and painted them.) Ordered the prints from Sam's. Today I started working on one. Gluing them to a canvas started sounding a little scary.

Taped the Pictures up for Inspiration

Here is how Autumn's canvas came out today. I have since painted the sides black and added some shading around the edges, not sure which I prefer.

I had a little fun with mod podge on Monday and decorated a shoe box. This will be my "pencil box" for homeschool. It is a great place for glue sticks, scissors, erasers and the pencil sharpener. I grabbed some random scrapbook paper (I haven't scrapbooked in years.) The mod podge made the paper seem like wall paper.

The Homeschool Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 19:17:00 +0000

Painting with Supplies from Mimi & Papa Hice

With Autumn becoming school aged, the decision about how we would educate our children became more important. After prayer and consideration we decided that homeschooling was the direction we wanted to take (read more about that here).

I spent a lot of time last summer reading about homeschooling: methods, benefits and curriculum. I am finding that even though I believe homeschool is best for us, it doesn't mean that it is easy. I don't feel like one of those super creative, super patient mothers that I picture as the perfect homeschool mom. I struggle to be creative, and "crafty" just doesn't come natural. Oh, and patience, it is a challenge to juggle four children and maintain patience. It seems like a four-ring circus at times.

Valentine's Day Craft

Regardless of my personal feelings of inadequacy, I know this is the course God has set us on and that He will enable me to fulfill this calling. My prayer daily is that God help me embrace a selfless role as a mother. I believe that being a mother is a calling that has the potential of influencing tons of people that I will never meet. My children will go out into the world as arrows - regardless of our training. Our influence/training determines their success.

³ Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him. ⁴ Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. ⁵ Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court.
Psalm 127:3-5

We have just begun this journey. It is marathon, not a sprint. I am determined to press on even when it is hard!

We love puzzles!

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 07:36:00 +0000

Last Fall Autumn (6) and Elias (4) started doing harder puzzles (25 piece). At Thanksgiving they got a 100 piece Buzz Lightyear puzzle. It was challenging at first, but once they got it together a couple times they were putting it together multiple times a day. They began pulling out more 75-100 piece puzzles and were given a couple more at Christmas.

These days it is hard to get the table cleared for breakfast, lunch or dinner because they usually have 2-3 puzzles out - some done and others in progress. Josiah likes to think he can do them and dumps his out on the table too, but Autumn or Elias do it for him and there are no shortage of pieces on the floor.

I hope they continue to enjoy puzzles - it is a fairly quiet activity and it seems to be a reasonable challenge for their brains.

Josiah Turns Three

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 05:58:00 +0000

Josiah with Nana Moore
Chocolate Cake with Mint Frosting

Josiah turned three this year. And we finally got organized enough to have a small party for him!! (This beats the after-thought attempts we've made in the past. December 26th is a tough day! Read more here - Josiah Turns Two.)

This year we celebrated December 11th - a few friends, presents, cake & ice cream made the day complete. We celebrated during his normal nap time and he had just dozed off in Nana's arms when it was time for cake. Sorry, Josiah, we can't let you sleep through your own party!

Josiah with Cozy Coupe

He did get a rather long birthday celebration this year. It started over Thanksgiving when Papa and Mimi Hice gave him a little Cozy Coupe car while they were in town. He started saying - "It's not your birthday (pointing to someone), it's not your birthday (pointing to someone else), it's MY birthday (pointing to himself)! This played out for several days after getting the car as proof to his siblings that the car was his. Then we had his birthday party in mid-December and finally his actual birthday the day after Christmas. It seemed to him like everyday was his birthday! I can say that he had a great birthday month!

The month before turning three he was potty trained. I hadn't thought he was ready earlier, but when the time came he learned very quickly - in big-boy underwear within a day or two and night trained within a week or so. I have loved the results - one child in diapers is much less work!

Josiah is a fun little guy, FULL of passion. Check out the video Uncle Dude did with clips and photos from Josiah's first year.

Stephen Turns One

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 07:00:00 +0000

Oh, poor boy!

November 29th was Stephen's first birthday. As celebrations go, this one was not so great. It turns out that a stomach bug was just starting to attack our family and Stephen was first (what a week!). Autumn also had a fever and wasn't feeling well.

No cake was eaten and Stephen even cried as he opened the gifts. It was a good thing that we didn't have a big party!

Nana and Papa Moore were there - they helped celebrate and nurture sick children.

The next day we cut the cake and sang "Happy Birthday" - Stephen still wasn't feeling well, but he didn't throw it up! I don't know what is up with first birthday's! On Elias' the whole house had a 24hr bug, on Josiah's, Autumn wasn't feeling well and when we did celebrate with cake Josiah couldn't keep it down. Now Stephen's was less than ideal. :(

Autumn Turns 6

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 02:37:00 +0000

New Pajamas

It has been over 6 months since I posted something on this blog. I have been desiring to journal some of what the kids are going through right now and the blog is a perfect place to preserve these memories. So now I just need to decide where to start. :)

My baby girl turned six years old this month. I am in awe of how much she has developed and grown in the past year or two. My baby turned toddler, turned preschooler, turned kindergartener is growing up right before my eyes. I may be partial, but I think she is one of the sweetest little girls ever.

Princess Blanket

I remember talking to her on the phone recently when I made a week long trip back to Iowa (traveling only with Stephen). I don't talk to her often on the phone because we see each other face-to-face all day long. I was stuck by how sweet her voice was and her genuineness. During these conversations we spoke of missing each other and how she was also missing her brother, Stephen. (I think she may have missed baby Stephen more than me!) On the phone, she seemed just a sweet and innocent as could be - I loved every minute.

Autumn's birthday was special in another way - ALL her grandparents were there to celebrate with her. My dad, mom and step-dad along with David's parents were all there. We haven't all be together since our wedding day. I honestly couldn't have imagined us all together - it was a special time for our family.

The cake had to be pink!

Birthday trip to mountains & Garden of Gods with Grandpa

Free Comic Book Day!

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 17:30:00 +0000

Fun trip downtown Colorado Springs to Free Comic Book Day; complete with a picture with a Storm Trooper.

Moore Family Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 17:00:00 +0000

Pictures taken on Mother's Day - May 8th, 2011.Getting everyone to look in the same direction is a fun challenge. The tripod and automatic continuous picture taking function are tremendous!

Josiah's Stool

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 16:00:00 +0000

Josiah has recently discovered the bathroom stool and how it can help him experience a whole new world. I remember when Autumn was doing the same thing. Josiah has been carrying this stool around the house the last couple weeks. Here he looks very cute trying to reach the kitchen counter. One day soon he will be tall enough to see/reach without any help - it will be here all too soon.

Josiah is developing well. He is high energy and doesn't like to sit still, but we still see the sweet lover emerge. He has been our cuddliest child and often tells us "I love you". Today in the middle of playing he plopped down on my lap for a hug before heading off.

Josiah is speaking better all the time - in February I noticed him making great advances. He tried so hard to communicate and he talks with such emotion and force. Many times it is a sentence of babble, but at other times he knows how to put the words together. He reminds us to pray before eating, doesn't want David to leave without me in the car when I am the last to get in the car, is happy to share what Autumn or Elias are doing that isn't right and recently has joined the effort of keeping Stephen from spitting.

Big Move, New House

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 15:00:00 +0000

There is a reason my blogging has fizzled out in the past several months. Our family has been deep in the process of organizing/sorting, packing and moving (then unpacking, sorting and organizing all over again!). I don't remember our June 2009 move being this difficult - I don't know if it is the extra child or we somehow acquired more junk, but this recent move wasn't fun.

Finding and buying this house was a testimony of God's goodness. We found a huge house that had been a foreclosure. It was in good shape, with only minor repairs needed. Our offer was low, but the bank accepted it and March 31st we closed! The next two weeks was spent painting and laying tile in the kitchen. April 16th with the help of many amazing friends, we moved.

Since moving we have been busy settling in. One project as been seeding the yard and planting flowers. I am very excited to report that baby grass has started emerging!

Front Yard Flower Bed

Backyard after seeding, before grass came up.

Painting Kitchen - still trying to find the right green color

Stephen is Happy!

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 05:27:00 +0000

Stephen is doing great. He is such a joy to our lives. At this point I don't know if having 4 children has really set in. Autumn, Elias & Josiah keep us pretty busy while Stephen does a lot of sleeping. Once he gets mobile then life with 4 will really set in. For now Stephen is an easy keeper.

He has continued to sleep through the night. He started earlier than all my other kids. It almost seems like he knew how much I needed my sleep and decided to make it easier on me - whatever the reason, I am grateful. Stephen does spit up quite a bit - it is so inconvenient! I do think he has improved recently - maybe this season is coming to an end. He really likes to make a mess right after I have changed his clothes. Sunday morning we were going out the door to church was a great example of this. I had just changed him, put a new "church" outfit on him and snapped him in the carseat when breakfast came back up. Perfect timing! Josiah was my other spitter-upper. I don't remember Autumn or Elias having a problem with this.

11 Weeks Old

Hanging out with Josiah

Autumn the Artist

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 05:27:00 +0000

Autumn has been using water colors. She loves them and would be happy painting everyday. We have really seen her show interest and skill in more creative things. She enjoys coloring and is getting better all the time. She got a couple bead kits for her birthday and has made some beautiful necklaces. She likes to go outside and is such a mess when she comes in - the dirtier the better! She is also a big helper and does her best to help with Stephen. When I ask for a diaper she wants to bring him a new outfit too!

Stephen - 8 Weeks Old

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 03:26:00 +0000

Nothing new to report concerning Stephen except that we are totally in love!

Here is a video from tonight.

Stephen - 6 Weeks Old

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 05:22:00 +0000

January 12th - 6 Weeks

On Monday Stephen turned 6 weeks old. Time has gone quickly even though we are trying to slow down and enjoy having an infant. Unfortunately that season is slipping away all to quickly. My little boy is leaving the infant phase and entering the very cute chubby stage.

His weight gain is great. Today he weighed 10lbs 14ozs. He is an amazing sleeper at night - for a couple weeks he has been going between 6-8 hours between feeding. He is so calm and easy going - our only child that didn't scream during his first bath. He gets fussy in the evenings but it doesn't last very long. Stephen has a beautiful smile and we occasionally hear some baby coos - it melts my heart every time.

December 22 - 3 Weeks

December 29 - 1 Month

January 5th - 5 Weeks

January 7th - 5 Weeks

Go Redskins!

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 15:00:00 +0000

The football season is coming to an end. I personally won't miss 6 hours of football on Sundays. I also won't miss the disappointed look in David eyes every time the Redskins lose. It has been a rough year (record currently 6-10). We beat some tough teams and lost to teams we should have easily defeated. We have high hopes for next year!

But regardless we are Redskin fans!

Happy Birthday Josiah!

noreply@blogger.com (David and Dwell) — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 21:54:00 +0000

Josiah turned two December 26th. I made a cake and we hung the birthday banner (a family tradition carried from the Blobaum/Hice side). Nana and Poppa Moore came over the celebrate with us. This is the second year without a party or memorable celebration. We need to step up our game in the coming years as he gets older and recognizes that his birthday is a bit overlooked. My thought for next year is to celebrate with friends 1-2 weeks before Christmas and then a small family celebration on his birthday.

Josiah is a pretty cute kid. Absolutely expressive and emotional. A momma's boy. A bit small for his age. His hair is still blond and his eyes have changed to a blue/green hazel. He got his first haircut December 31. In the summer his hair is pretty curly with the heat and humidity but in the winter it is straighter. He has 16 teeth in various stages of growth - I noticed some big bumps on his gums in July but they didn't pop up until this fall. His mouth seemed to explode with teeth around the beginning of November.

I think Stephen's arrival has been hardest on Josiah. He is quite a bit more emotional and needy - I am sure this is just a season, hopefully a short one! He is very gentle with his new little brother and loves giving him kisses.

There are so many changes between the ages of 2 and 3 - it will be a fun year!