New Joisey

This past Monday, I packed Michael and I up into the car and drive to NJ to see Kirsten 'n Co!

We stayed at her mom's house and had a great time hiking in their woods (it was beautiful!) and enjoyed nice relaxing times at home. And of course, true to our form, we went shopping together too!

We packed the kids up in the car. Frankly, if you can put 3 adults side by side in the back seat, 3 carseats should fit right? RIGHT? And we dragged them all around creation with us. Not much different than what we used to do in Paris - except this time - we were in a car and not the metro!

On Friday, we spent the afternoon hiking in the woods and checking out their property. They have 2 cute lakes to look at, land to play in and a cottage to visit too! The boys had fun with their walking sticks, getting muddy, and terrorizing the tree roots of an old tree that had fallen down. After this jaunt through the woods, we had to get some food to feed the kids. Michael and Jonah decided to inspect the sugary cereals:
We ordered pizza in and called it a night! On Saturday, we shopped, ate out, and just played at home with the kiddos. They loved being in this swing, although it sure doesn't look like it right here:

And here's the picture Kirsten and I always get with one another. She's got the longer arm so she gets to take the picture!
I had a great time with my friend, who I miss so much! We spent the evenings talking, watching TV, and eating. It was such a vacation from my normal quiet life in the country! It was an awesome time, but just made me miss our friendship all the more. Jonah and Michael played with relatively few spats to break up and they really didn't interact with Kirsten and I much except to be fed and taken to the bathroom! Our boys have such a great friendship and we do too...and I really miss that more than I can really say. Paris would have not been Paris without them!

And Ella! She's adorable and I hate missing her grow up. We got along so great when she was a baby - which is HUGE because babies don't normally like me. She cracked me up this trip because every time you would set her down, she'd make a run for it. Not in a run to something to play with. More like - FIND THE NEAREST EXIT AND MAKE A RUN FOR IT! It was hilarious. Her pudgy little arms and pudgy little legs would just work and work to get-out-of-here!

I will blog about Halloween soon. And also Brian's parents' visit. And loads of other things on my camera/iphone that I have not downloaded yet. One day, I'm going to catch up. And then I have 3 years worth of blog books to make. And then loads of My Publisher books for my vacations. AAaaakk!

P

Tree Farm

Today, Michael and I visited the tree farm with my MOPS group! We saw our future Christmas tree there:

We rode this wagon. It was Seriously COLD. 48 and windy. All the kids were dressed appropriately - us moms - we somehow forgot about ourselves!

We were told when Christmas comes, we can pick out our tree and they give us a saw to cut it down. SOLD. Brian's gonna LOVE that!

After the wagon ride, we were introduced to their reindeer:But we were not allowed to get too intimate with him:

And here I thought reindeer only existed in stories! What's the difference between a reindeer and a caribou?

Here's a picture of Michael - just because I can:

And they had this play area called "Mulch Mountain." It was hilarious. Lots of mulch with plastic tunnels built into it and different slides/valleys. Michael loved jumping around on it:
We got to make a pine cone craft where you smear it with crisco and then dip it into birdseed. It's supposed to be a bird feeder! They fed us popcorn and hot chocolate - a serious fun time!

Can't wait to go back and take pictures of us picking out our Christmas tree! YIPPEE!

Love,

P

For people who like to save money

Here is a website that was given to me for saving money:

http://moneysavingmom.com/

It has lots of specials and coupons and things of the sort.

On the main page - I find lots of deals/steals/freebies. Some are very useful. And some are very not. And some of them are things I would never buy so I ignore those. And some require me to give my address to websites I do not know - so I don't. So use this at your discretion.

Also useful is a tab for store deals, which you can click on your local grocery store. It shows you what is on special that when combined with a coupon results in a high reduction in price OR being practically free. That is useful too - and not at times. Because even though I can get that Hungry Man Swanson dinner for free at my local Giant - I'm not going to buy that. However, if you are a fan of the Hungry Man Swanson dinner, then it would have been a good sale for you.

Just a tidbit. Next up, pictures from our visit to the tree farm and its reindeer.

Love,

P

Thank YOU!!!

I just wanted to send a shout out for all the people who said we referred them to smugmug this year! Our total annual fee to use the site this year was only $9.99 thanks to you guys!

For every referral, you get $5 or $10 (I can't remember which) applied to your account balance. So I REALLY appreciate it! Thank you for saving me money!

If you are wondering what I am talking about, Smugmug is a photo sharing website, very similar to picasa/shutterfly/kodak/etc. However, it is not free like the previously mentioned sites. There are no ads, the album screens are very professional and it is a pleasure to navigate. I cannot say enough good things about it. We've been members for at least 4 years.

Here is the website in case you are interested:

http://www.smugmug.com/

Let me know if you are going to join. I will send you my e-mail to use when you sign up (it's not my standard one!). The best part about this is YOU get a discount too for having someone refer you. Here's the quote from smugmug:

"Save a friend $5 on a SmugMug subscription and earn $10 on your renewal.

Simply have your friend enter the email you use at SmugMug."

And if you are wondering if there is a huge difference between smugmug and the free sites - I truly believe there is. Navigating smugmug, as a viewer, is very easy and a real pleasure! I can see the pictures however I want to see them (as thumbnails, enlarged/etc) and I can do it very easily.

Family Devotional

Michael's preschool sends out a family weekly devotional, which I love. Here was the most recent one that I'd like to share because I need it as a reminder too!

Scripture: 1 John 5:3

“This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome…”

Why is obedience so difficult? We try to teach our children from a young age the importance of obeying us, obeying other adults, and obeying God…but it’s not always easy!

I recently gained some new insight into the inner struggle of obedience…

My two-year-old has developed a very strong personality and a mind of her own. I know I certainly did not expect her to have such strong personal opinions at such a young age! I find it so fascinating to watch her in moments of decision. Maybe she is running away from me and I ask her to stop. I can almost see the inner turmoil on her face as she decides if she’s going to listen to me or continue doing what she wants. And, in the moments when she chooses to obey, I can often see a begrudging look on her little face, as if to say, “I’ll do it, Mom, but I am NOT happy about it!” Watching this on a daily basis has helped me realize that we all live with that inner struggle every day, even if we don’t show it quite so openly!

We often misinterpret the concept of obeying God. God doesn’t bark orders at us or make us do things just because He can. Rather, God knows what is best for us – always – and He wants us to live our lives believing that. He wants us to trust Him enough to say yes to whatever He is asking us to do. The struggle comes when God’s plan for us does not line up with what we want. In those moments, we have to make a difficult choice. Those moments are crucial. Those moments say a lot about who’s really in charge…

Obedience is really all about a love relationship. We love our kids and ask them to obey us because we know better than they do what is best. When they do choose to obey, it shows their trust in us. God loves us and asks for obedience because He wants to bless us. Our obedience is an amazing way to show God how much we love Him and trust Him.

If you find yourself struggling with the idea of obeying God, that’s okay. Just don’t give up! Start with love…

Do you love God?

Do you believe that He loves you?

If you can say yes to these two questions, then you are well on your way! Just like we keep working with our kids, He’ll keep working with us. Have faith in His love for you and His desire to see you choose what is best for you.

Parenting Challenge

Based on all that we know of God, I seriously doubt He would ever use the phrase, “Because I said so!” If you find yourself using this phrase a little too often these days, make a commitment to parent your children in the same way God cares for you. This might mean giving your kids a second chance, or taking a little extra time to explain to your kids why you have said yes or no to something. When you are faced with a situation that requires obedience on behalf of your children, remember that it’s hard for all of us to obey sometimes, and lovingly guide your child in the right direction. And, if they choose not to obey, keep working with them! After all, God doesn’t give up on us either!

My Michael

At four years old, My Michael has lots of spirit. He loves to make mischief and will do anything that will result in destruction and disorder:
He is extremely playful and when you tell him to throw leaves at you, he WILL do it:
Best of all, Michael is loving. He has a big heart but stands up for himself when he is wronged.
He loves mazes, connect the dots (with numbers/ABCs), workbooks, Wii Super Mario Brothers and Mario Kart, and his family. He hates to eat, which is tough being in THIS family! :)

He loves his preschool - has started singing us lots of songs, pledges, and telling us about Jesus and God.

Michael loves trains. Seriously loves them. And he loves anything with tracks!

He likes the color pink a bit too much for our taste.

He is pretty good at soccer. At least for a 3 year old that is. :)

I'm not being too eloquent about how much we love our little guy. After 4 years, we see a little person who makes us so proud to be his parents. We love his spirit of adventure. We love his willingness to learn. We are thrilled to see how much he loves all his family and tries hard to show us. We love watching who he has become. :) And we can't wait to see what other surprises he'll have in store for us in the years to come.

Fall at our House

We are spending our first fall here, and so I am presenting to you a look into what fall is like at our place:

Walkin' up to our door:
Next to my front door:
Fall mums by my mailbox:

Next up, pictures of Michael with leaves. Yesterday, it RAINED leaves in our yard. So we raked for 30 seconds and got a HUGE pile of leaves. Pictures galore. They are coming next!

I started shooting in Raw so I am learning how to process all these pictures. It is delaying some things - but let's be honest here, I'm not awesome about uploading anyways.

Much love,

P

The Holy Power

Yesterday, Michael told me about:

"God, Jesus and the Holy Power."

He tells me this with a smile on his face and says, "YEA!"

Hmm...

Today, Michael told me about:

"God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit gives you power! YEA!"

And he tries to hold up 3 of his fingers.

I still have no idea what is going on but I'm sure he's learning it in his preschool during worship class! I wonder what this is all about.

Love,
P

Four YearS Old

Sunday, Michael turned 4 years old and so we took this opportunity to celebrate the day God brought him into our lives...by bowling!

That's right...not just any type of bowling - COSMIC bowling.

We are starting to make friends out here! But Michael has told me he doesn't like anyone at school. Fair enough. But he does like the kids of some of our friends. So THAT'S who we invited to the party! Our friends and his friends and we had a great time:

I suspect next year, our party will probably include our home group too as one of the kids in our home group told her mom that she "wanted to have a sleepover with Michael." Yup. A she. Luckily, her mom squashed that idea. And I would have too since Michael's latest antic that I have to discourage is yelling, "BOOBIES BOOBIES BOOBIES!" and running towards my boobs to grab them. Jeez, I wonder where he got that behavior from. Hmmm:

Here's Michael demonstrating his bowling technique of running as quickly as he can to the lane and chucking the ball:
Because when all else fails, if you hug the bowling balls, you might get a strike:

Here is Michael staring lovingly at his carousel cake:
YES...I made that. And NO, the bottom of the cake is not made of playdoh even though it looks like it. I had to seriously research how to make that cake and even still...I was glad it was a bit dark so you couldn't look TOO closely at it!

All in all, a super fantastic time! Michael spent the day doing whatever he wanted and we loved watching him play with all his new toys. I am going to do a four year old photoshoot with him this weekend with the gorgeous weather and his Grammy and Grandpa around too. Can't wait! And then, I will post about what Michael is like at 4 years old.

On the Web

We are on the web in an embarrasing way. Click on the link and just wait for the slideshow on the homepage:

http://www.cfarestaurant.com/elkton/home

YEA!

P

Blog by Rapid Fire

Downloaded the pics from my iphone. 15 pictures. ARE. YOU. READY????

Sept 27, 2010 - Michael had to go under anesthesia to get the caps on his front 2 teeth:
My poor little guy. Had to get 6 (SIX) crowns on his back teeth too. And some kind of tube shoved up his nose and then had a bloody nose:
Poor little guy! Him waking up from anesthesia was THE WORST. He was crying, didn't know where he was, his mouth was all bloody and he was parched. Finally got him to drink some apple juice, which calmed him down a little bit. It was a traumatic day for both son and mother but nothing a whole day of playing Super Mario Brothers did not cure.
Saturday, Sept 25: Soccer pics. Is this not the grumpiest team you have ever seen?
Sept 17: Went to Milburn Farms. Michael wanted a picture of this cow. Don't have to ask ME twice:
Sept 15 - Children's Museum. Michael loved this train and with indirect window light - it was an easy peasey lemon squeezey kind of deal:
Sept 10: You telling me you wouldn't 1) give your kid the strainers when asked or 2) take a picture of it:
Aug 23: Michael does a lot of straddling playground equipment:
Aug 19: After work trip to home depot for lots of manure, topsoil, and mulch:
Aug 14: Ya think he'd be a little happier with a balloon, but he's just NOT:
Aug 13: Every giraffe needs a hug. At one of our favorite toy stores:
Aug 11: Ya definitely need goggles for swim class. Unless you never put them on again after THIS picture:
Aug 5: This is how far I was in front of him while we were walking around:
Aug 4: For those of you teaching upper and lowercase letters, we love this game:
July 23rd: Trip with Grammy to Dutch Wonderland! It was HOT - but AWESOME.

Michael on a horse, CHECK:
Michael on a self-propelled choo-choo, check:
Grammy dominating small children at Whac-a-Mole and rubbing it in their face and winning a stuffed black dog which would one day become Tick-Tacker, CHECK:
Carousel, CHECK:
Dad riding on preschooler rides, CHECK:
Jul 9: Dressing up to get free food. I'm sure if he was older, it would be filed under, "Things my Mom made me do for Free food that resulted in needing therapy when I grew up."
It has been raining. A LOT. Almost a week's worth! I kind of like the excuse to stay in and make soup and watch TV.

Fall Has Come Upon Me

I have an unnatural obsession with fall. The leaves, the cooler weather, the pumpkins, the squashes, the pumpkin spice latte...it inspires me to no end. So here's the first of many fall pics to come:

MOPS visit to the farm. Don't have to ask me twice. And I gave away one free 8x10 per family for the moms in my group. How am I ever going to make a profit when I keep doing what I love for free?? :)

Tony Hawk

I was reading the October 2010 issue of Traditional Home (yes...) and on the last page was an interview with Tony Hawk.

And one of the things he said, that really struck me was:

"I get paid extremely well to do something I would gladly do for free."

I don't think I EVER felt that way about being an engineer at Samsung. In fact, I AM SURE I never felt that way.

SO here is my attempt. To just get paid piddly beans to do something I would gladly do for free:

La Lumiere Photography. For those who know and those who do not know, I am launching my portrait photography business. It is scary. It is overwhelming. It keeps me up until 1am MANY nights.

But I love it. Even if it just pays for a special meal out every now and then. SO here I go. Wander over to my website if you like:

www.lalumierephotography.showitsite.com

The blog is still a work in progress...but I think that's how I will always be. A work in progress.

Last Minute Paris Moments

Somewhere in the hub-bub of moving back, I forgot to post about some of my favorite last memories in Paris. And since Kirsten took the pictures and they were on her camera, I forgot to ask her about them!


Our last couple of days was spent in slushy Parisian snow. It was pretty cold, wet, and dirty - oh wait - that was kind of normal. :)


On our 2nd to last day (I think...I'm not sure!), we went over to Kirsten's house for dinner. A last supper...*sniff*...but of less historical significance than THE LAST SUPPER.


Anyways, we helped Kirsten make those Hershey kisses cookies. Guess who LOVED unwrapping (and eating) those?
Ok, so ALL of us liked doing that.

Anyways, I convinced Kirsten to come with me to the toy stores by her so I could pick up some last minute Christmas gifts for Michael (to send with the air shipment!). And because she's my very good friend, she came with me. And we wore the same colored hat:
And we dragged our boys with us in their matching coats:

And you BET they were happy about being dragged through the Parisian slush to go to a toy store with their moms. Don't you love the snow stains on Michael's pants?


We had an awesome dinner of pork roast/caramelized fennel and enjoyed one of our last meals with a special family who made our stay in Paris feel like home. When you are away from the States, there is nothing better in the world than the "family" you make where you are.


That family decided to meet me for yet another suicide mission: Laduree on Champs Elysees in December. I should have known it was a madhouse. ALL OF IT. Laduree (with it's line out the door), Champs Elysees (with its Christmas market and ridiculous crowds), and all the subway stops which were all 15-20 rows of people deep.


But here's a family picture of Jonah and Michael with the Christmas lights of the Champs Elysees behind them:
And a very cool family picture of us (and a Parisian lady in a white coat) with the lights:

Thank you to them for forcing me to take this picture.

I am wearing my red coat because I got wet paint on the sleeve of my "Parisian" coat that I wore all the time. They were painting the interior of our stairwell and I brushed up against it.


So I ran immediately to the best Dry Cleaners in Paris: PRESSING DES GOBELINS. It is on Avenue des Gobelins, next to Jacadi, across the street from Monoprix. I have taken the following to them and they have removed all successfully:


1) Grease/oil stain on my silk dress
2) HUGE stain from my foam facial cleanser on Brian's very expensive suit (took them 3 tries but they got it out)
3) Paint on my wool jacket.


If that does not constitute a good dry cleaner's. I don't know what does. And no remarks about our obvious lack of keeping ourselves clean.


Also another funny memory for Brian - when we were on the metro platform (15-20 rows of people deep) - Brian was playing with Jonah/Michael - kind of picking them up and swinging them around. They were taking turns. Michael gets fed up with this and tells Jonah, "Jonah - YOUR dad is over there. THIS IS MY DADDY." HILARIOUS to Brian.


Somewhere in our last 2 nights, I had Picard's Blanquette de poulet for dinner. LOVE that. That's right, FROZEN food as one of my last meals in Paris. I like it that much. And then Brian invited himself over to another friend's house to say goodbye. THAT was a bit awkward to me...but fine.


And that was it. Morning of our flight, we get up at 6:15 am - ready to go out the door. Michael falls down, but he's wearing this puffy coat, so he can't catch himself - bangs his nose on the floor. BLOOD EVERYWHERE. We're supposed to leave in 5 minutes on the RER for our flight. Luckily, it stops.


Sorry this is such a ramble. This is for me because I can't believe I didn't blog about this and I want to remember.


Love,
p

Ansty In His Pantsy

Because I don't want to wait for the 30% off and maybe not get his first choice costume. Because I'm THAT excited that we get to be in America and have an honest-to-goodness trick or treat. Because my son is about as patient as I am for this whole American Halloween shindig:

That's Right. We R Ready to Rumble. Are you?