raisins

The other day, Eli pointed at what he thought was a picture of me:

Kids say the darnest things, don't they?

stillness

Eli is asleep, slumbering away peacefully

Chad is upstairs showering and shaving

I have just finished cooking two meals for friends

I am sitting in the living room

Listening to the tap-tap-tap of the laptop keys

Listening to the hum of the baby monitor

Listening to the stillness

It is rare,

seemingly unaffordable,

mostly unreachable

But it is here,

the stillness

Exciting times to come

New journeys unfolding

But for now

I am basking in the stillness.

promise

4 years ago today, at this very moment, I was in a hair stylist's chair. I was laughing, but nervous; excited, but had butterflies. The day had finally come. I was going to make a promise to my fiancee, to love and be completely loyal and devoted to him:

through sickness and in health
through pain and frustration
through joy and excitement
through God's shaping of our lives
through love's growth, endurance and change
through vessels like our children
through financial burdens and blessings
though thick and thin
through God's guidance

On this day, 4 years ago, I promised these things, with Jesus by my side. Jesus is still with us, in between Chad and I:

our cheerleader
our disciplinarian
our connector
our strengthener
our guide
our mediator

Through Jesus, Chad and I have made it this far. And with Him, we will continue to thrive.

HAPPY 4TH ANNIVERSARY CHAD ROBERT! I would do it all again with you a million times over. I am in love with you.

Wow, how things change!! Chad and I are collectively about 50 pounds heavier now than in this picture. I guess that means we are happy, right? :)

Not sure what is going on in this picture, but I am sure Chad said something inappropriate to make everyone laugh.....love you honey. :)

What a great day it was, besides the fact that it was so hot, we were melting away. You cannot beat having friends and family around you, supporting you when you make the best and most important decision and promise in your life. Thanks to all that were there with us. Love you!

fading

Is it just me, or do the days of summer seem to be fading? It seems to be getting darker earlier, it is cooler during the day and even cooler at night. I had to put sweats on Eli yesterday morning when we went outside to color. But over the weekend, we had some last days of summer fun at Mom Mom and Pop Pop's. We went swimming and played basketball. It was nice and I will miss those days. But then I get excited for the Eagles to play, for fall to come, for the leaves to turn colors, for the cool nights with windows open.....so maybe it isn't so bad. :)

Eli is having fun with Aunt Tine. He loves to jump off of the raft....over and over and over and over.....

Cuddle time with Aunt Tine and of course a chip, which is a treat for Eli at Mom Mom's house...that and when his Pop Pop sneaks him M&Ms, or Nem men Nems as Eli calls them.

Eli loves the water, as this picture truly shows.

Uncle Wes helps Eli out with his basketball skills! Eli loves sports more than anything....well, maybe just as much as the drums.

Here I am showing off my mad skills.....who am I kidding, even in my heyday, I called myself the Dennis Rodman of basketball....I was great at rebounding, but couldn't shoot for the life of me. :)


Hope you are spending your last days of summer in wonderful ways!

extreme

Chad and I have a lot of inside jokes. That comes with the package of being married. One of the long running jokes we have is about a lunch bag. Early on in our marriage, Chad really wanted his lunch to be kept cool and needed a bigger bag than an average brown paper bag. So he went out and purchased an insulated lunch bag. I ribbed him about the fact that on it said the words in red, zig zag writing, "EXTREME!". Obviously it was for a kid or maybe a teen, as the tagline for the container was meant to show that the carrier would be EXTREME if they carried it. So I did make fun of Chad's lunch bag....a lot. Whenever I carefully made his sandwiches and put his snacks in baggies to go into the extreme bag, I always had a giggle.

One day, Chad came home from work and I stored the bag in the usual place: on the top shelf of our pantry. As we sat down to eat dinner and chat quietly about our day, I heard something in the pantry hit the ground. I looked at Chad and said "What was that?" and he, without missing a beat, said "Oh that's just my bag being EXTREME!".....the bag had fallen off of the shelf. For some reason, I cracked up about that for weeks. Now whenever inanimate objects mysteriously move, i.e. if wind blows a plastic cup off of a table , we say the cup is being EXTREME! :) Anyway, that was a long story about an inside joke that you probably don't think was even funny, so I will write the infamous words that I hate to hear, but are very true: I guess you had to be there. :)

Yesterday, Chad took the day off work and spent the day with us! It was lots of fun and Eli and Daddy were being EXTREME!

The day started off nicely with some cuddling in the bed.

Then it soon became EXTREME tickling!

EXTREME kid throwing!

EXTREME camera angle!

EXTREME volleyball!

EXTREME sliding!

EXTREME.....not sure what this thing is. :)

EXTREME fun!

We had an EXTREME day! Hope you have one too!

shameless

Ok, every mother thinks her child is the cutest of them all. I am no exception. See evidence above. :)

time

Things we have been doing to pass the time while Daddy is away.....

concentrated coloring

deliriously drumming

blowing bodacious bubbles

happily hamming

when all the while, we are missing daddy a TON!

Sunday cannot come fast enough! :)

family

I have a semi-large family. I am the oldest of four children. There are times that having a large family has been a bit difficult, as far as vying for the attention of our parents as youngsters or now having Sunday family dinners with Mom making a feast for 12! :) But I would not trade being in my family for the world. Of course we have our problems and squabbles. But mostly, we all adore each of our significant others and we all adore each other. We are all good people and love to have fun. And we have amazing parents. Parents whose sole purpose is to make sure we all stick together, through thick and thin, through fun and hurt feelings and through love, as a family. So here are some pictures of family from our trip. This post is very photo heavy, so whenever you get sick of looking, feel free to stop! I just love my family too much. :)

Uncle Wes taking Eli down to the beach.

Chad showing off his pitching abilities....or lack thereof. :)

Aunt Tine
Mom Mom and Pop Pop

Cousin Nathan

Uncle Dee Dee
My brother Dee Dee and his wife Kristin, my sister Christine and her husband Wes
My Mom and Wes competing in the annual Quoits tournament.
Wes showing some mad pitching skills.
My bro Dee Dee pitching too!

My Mom getting ready for some lobster, her favorite!
My Dad, Christine and me playing boccie ball.....my new favorite game even though I never got above 2.
Christine making a sand castle.
Nathan buried.....don't worry, he asked to be buried.
Aunt Shell and Eli taking a stroll.

try

I am one of those mommies that lets my son run around in a fountain at the park, fully clothed and has no qualms about it.

I am one of those mommies that you see bolting out of a fitting room of a department store, with a dress half on, chasing after a giggling toddler that thinks it is a fun game to run around the clothing racks and play peekaboo.

I am one of those mommies that when on a walk with friends and their kids, I am trying to keep my tantrum throwing son from hurting himself when he collapses onto the concrete in a pile of tears and frustration because he cannot throw rocks in the pond because it is time to get into the stroller.

I am one of those mommies that is putzing around at home, thinking it is too early to leave for a play date, but when in reality have to grab my son and head out the door in lightning speed because I got the time wrong.

I am one of those mommies that when online at the post office, receives stare after stare because my child is running around the place, jumping, skipping and pointing out Mickey Mouse on the envelopes they sell because he will not be confined to my arms.

I am one of those mommies who cannot stand to hear my son cry so loud and long that he is coughing and about to vomit, so I always answer his cries, every one, even when he calls for me 8 times a night since birth.

I am one of those mommies that is still nursing her son at almost 2 years of age and mighty proud of it.

I am one of those mommies that desperately wants my son to grow to know the Lord as his savior.

I am one of those mommies that basks in the perfect joy of multiple kisses, hugs and eskimo kisses every day, always initiated by my cuddly, loving son.

I am one of those mommies that after putting her son down for a nap and munching on lunch, realizes that I completely forgot about playgroup that morning and missed it entirely.

I am one of those mommies that people may judge and look at strangely because I try to give my son more independence than a usual toddler might have. But I also try very hard to teach him manners and respect. I see other mommies that boast good control of their children and that come when they say to come, the very first time. The bottom line is I try. I try every day. I try to be a mommy that God would be proud of, a mommy that my husband can compare to the Proverbs 31 woman, a mommy whose efforts I can be happy with. I will always fall short and always need God, but I try every day. I may be a flaky scatterbrain, but God has blessed me with a child, and every day I try to make Him proud. Every day I try.

faces

kite

At the beach, we flew a kite with Eli for the first time. And as with everything else, he wanted to do it himself. He is becoming so independent, always wanting to do everything himself:

blow bubbles

use the stairs

drive the car (ignition off of course :))

carry the basket at the supermarket

walk in stores (will not sit in stroller anymore)

You get the picture.

So we let him hold the kite, to see how he would do.

And he did wonderful! The kite was very high, but he still held on, walking around the beach with it.

Daddy, always present, watching and teaching the ins and outs of flying a kite.

And Eli drank it all up......until.......see video below.

new

And smile we did! What a great vacation! In true Denise fashion, I took over 350 pictures....wow. Don't worry, I won't be posting all of them here. But all week I will post some pictures from our trip. This post is about Eli's first experience with the beach this year; the first that he remembers, I am sure.

We got to the house at around 3:30 so Chad, Eli, myself, our nephew Nathan and my sister's husband Wes all went down to the beach (see them in the background of this pic) in our street clothes. I didn't put a swimsuit on Eli because I didn't think he would go in the water. So here he is making his way down to the water.....do you see the look of trepidation on his face?

Here is looking at the shells, I believe. He still wasn't going in the water at that point.

And I think this picture sums it up. Once he really saw the water he went in full force! He loved the water the first day. It was so new and refreshing after a 3 hour car ride.

Look how wet he is......he got even more wet, played in the sand with a shovel and then we were off to the house.....we knew we had many more days of fun on the beach to come:

morning walks on the beach

boardwalk rides

funny faces

kite flying

boccie ball

body boarding

sand hole digging

quoits tournament

lifeguard boat sitting

napping on the beach

burying cousin Nathan

dance off with another kid

home

beachbound

This is the true story... of 12 family members... picked to live in a house...vacation together and have their lives taped... to find out what happens... when people stop being polite... and start getting real...The Real World: Sea Isle City, New Jersey.

Look at that beach....it is calling to us and we are answering the call. We are off to the beach for a week of fun filled gluttony, laziness, ice cream and rip currents!!!!!!! Woo Hoo!!! I know I am usually very picture heavy, so get ready for more pictures than usual, if that is possible, when we get back. Have a great week! :)

brownie

cakewalk

On September 6th, my sister Michelle is getting married! We threw a bridal shower for her on Saturday. The cake was done by The Bakery at Chester Springs and was delicious!

The color scheme for the wedding is balck and white, so the favors were black and white cookies done by Cookies By Design. I wrapped them in tulle.....

...and added a little personal message from the bride and groom.

Here is the fam, from left to right: Denise, Mom, sister Michelle, sister Christine and sister by marriage (but sister nonetheless!) Kristin.

Michelle's married name will be Robinson. It is funny because that is my other sister Christine's married name. Their husbands are of no relation. :)

technical difficulties

My laptop is having internet issues, so I don't have anything to post today. Sorry. :(

temporary insanity

Elijah and I had a very interesting day yesterday. It began with a nice finger painting session outside in the gorgeous morning weather.

He sat at his little picnic table and finger painted for about a whole nanosecond.

Apparently art does not interest him when he could be.....

.....sitting the grass half naked.....or....

....kissing an apple from our apple tree.....

So after we played outside and cleaned up what little mess we made, I put Eli in the bath. Even though he did not get much paint on his body because he lost interest pretty quickly, he did manage to rub the paint in his hair.

So we napped (he did, I worked), had lunch, went to a friend's house and played, came home and started dinner. Eli and I were playing football in the family room when we heard Daddy come home and begin to come up the stairs. At first I saw something shiny on this big object he was holding....then I realized what it was and exclaimed "Oh my goodness!" while Eli exclaimed louder than me "DRUMS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Chad went to Goodwill and found a kids' drum set for a whopping $12! Of course Chad, never willing to pass up a good buy and the utter and complete happiness of his son, bought it right away. It is missing a stand and the cymbal doesn't work very well, but it is perfect for a child that will probably bang it to the ground anyway.

Elijah was so excited and started banging away as soon as Chad could give him the drumsticks.

Look at the serious face....he is really concentrating on honing his craft.

And of course Eli wanted Daddy to join in and Daddy happily obliged. In fact he had bought 2 sets of drumsticks. Daddy knew he was going to have some fun with this gift too! :)

There is the smile I know and love!

How sweet is my husband! He also saw a jogging stroller at Goodwill for $20 bucks and bought it for me to jog with Eli! So apparently the Goodwill in Chadds Ford has some really cool stuff in it! :)

And this is what happened when it was time to go to say night-night to the drums and go to bed.......poor kid. This morning, as I type this, he is banging away on his new drums. We need to have a talk with our neighbors and make sure the drums are not waking them up in the morning. Are we insane for doing this? Time will tell. But right now, I love watching Eli play his drums and love every minute of it!

worry

To say I struggle with worry is a vast understatement. It consumes me and sometimes can break me down into a bundle of nerves and frustration. The worry radiates from my mind into my body, causing me to grind my teeth and have stomach issues. Ulcers are an inevitability for me later in life, if not in the next few years. And what do I have to worry about, I say to myself. I am truly blessed with:

with a wonderful husband

a healthy and happy child (though tantrum prone....yikes)

the ability to be a stay at home mommy

a nice home

a strong marriage

a healthy body

a church that has everything we need

a family that loves me deeply

friends at every corner

Why worry, right? Good question. I would ask my mind that, but it is too busy worrying. And in the last few weeks, the worry has increased exponentially and has gripped me, like a vice around my chest, squeezing and squeezing until I cannot breathe.

At church yesterday, Calvary Chapel Chester Springs, Pastor Chris did a sermon in Luke, chapter 12, verses 22-34. Our pastor, I felt, was speaking directly to me. Little old me, sitting in the back, in case they buzzed us to come and settle an upset Elijah. Sitting between my husband and our friend Clifton, with every word our pastor said, tears were coming down my cheeks like waterfalls. It was amazing how God was speaking to me through our pastor. I am sure I am not the only one that struggles with worry, but I truly felt God wanted me to hear this sermon at the perfect time (of course when I was more gripped with worry than ever). If you want to hear the sermon (it is about 20 minutes long, I believe), click here. Pastor Chris said so many powerful things and here are only two of them:

1. The phrase "o ye of little faith" is not meant to chastise. Another way to put it is, "if you only knew". We don't know the plans God has for us. We could be crying out the Lord, asking him why He isn't giving us this one thing that we desire the most, when if we only knew, it is in His plan to give it to us the next day. We have to remember His timing is perfect.

2. Worry is a poor substitute for prayer. Once worry creeps in, we need to stop in our tracks and pray....pray it away. It can be a little prayer, a long prayer, anything to get us to focus on His plan and not ours.

I am a poor substitute for our pastor's God given words and God given talent in expressing them in such a powerful way. If you have a chance and struggle with worry, please listen to his sermon. It spoke to me so deeply and I hope it speaks to you.

peace

fruit

nourishment

juicy

bite

savor

healthy

We have a fledgling apple tree in our backyard. Now, I am not sure what season it is that the apples are supposed to appear, but we have three growing on the tree as I am writing this post. Here is a picture of one of them. They are little and green at this point and the apples have never really grown to full ripeness in the past. There is one low enough for Elijah to touch and he does pull on it, but I am trying to teach him to respect the fruit. :)

Our neighbors/good friends Ben and Eileen went to pick peaches over the weekend and lovingly offered us some to devour. There is nothing better than eating a room temperature, ripe, soft peach! If you haven't tried it, please do soon. So yummy!

And this picture is just a shot from yesterday. As I am looking at this picture, Eli looks more like a little boy than a toddler. He will be 2 years old in October. Just a proud mommy of a growing boy. :)

Have a wonderful weekend! Mine will be busy: my sister's bridal shower, a date night, in-laws coming over, church and a BBQ. But I should have lots of pictures and stories to share. :)