Rock of Ages

Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood, from Thy riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure; cleanse me from its guilt and power.

Not the labor of my hands can fulfill Thy law's demands;
Could my zeal no respite know, could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone; Thou must save, and Thou alone.

Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress; helpless, look to Thee from grace;
Foul, I to the fountain; fly wash me, Savior, or I die.

While I draw this fleeting breath, when mine eyes shall close in death,
When I soar to worlds unknown, see Thee on Thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in Thee.

Thank you, Oh my Savior, for washing me and giving me undeserved eternal grace!

My 'Crafty' Project

I am by NO means crafty. I like having a creative outlet, but that outlet usually takes me a long time. I love to scrapbook, but that's the extent of my creativity. Even in scrapbooking, it's a rare occasion when I haven't copied a page. Isn't that what scrapbooking magazines are for? In any event, craft time came at MOPS and I shuddered. We were about to make a flower arrangement. I'm not a big flower person, nor do I have the gift of creativity, but I was supposed to make this project fun (yeah ok). I was going to do my best. I just started grabbing flowers, greenery, and other 'fillers' for the arrangement. Before I knew it, I was getting really into this craft. I LOVE fall, especially the colors, so it worked.

And this is my prize creation...

I can't believe I actually put that together. I was really happy with it. When I got home I put a table cloth on the table (a rarity in our house), and later set the table nicely for dinner. Of course, we had Macaroni and Cheese for dinner....but at least there was some sense of elegance to our home and our meal.

In the Genes?

So, I was planning on posting a picture of a fun project I completed at MOPS, however there are other pressing matters I must post about first. The crafty project can come later.

Yesterday, my cute son found his hands. Cute, right? The problem is...

Will I really have a thumb su*cker? I su*cked my thumb until I was way too old, and I don't want to see that for my children. Today he's been non-stop with the thumb. *Sigh* I think braces are going to be inevitable. We'll continue swaddling during naps and overnight just to keep those fingers out of the mouth, in hopes that he won't become dependent. Looking on the bright side...there's a blessing in the thumb su*cking, he won't lose it. However, I dread the day when we have to break him of the habit.

Tiny Talk Tuesday

Audrey is the talker in this house, from the time she wakes up to the time she goes down. She's 3, and has much to say.

Daddy: Audrey, why don't you listen to Mommy and Daddy?
Audrey: Because I'm a grown-up!
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Every time Audrey sees the Penn State paw print...



Audrey: Look! It's a clue.


Being in PA we see these all over. So, does the clue mean she's going to Penn State?
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Anytime we tell Audrey she can't do something she says, "When I'm...
...7 I'll drive a car
...6 I can have my own camera
...9 I'll wear deodorant (what is the rush?)
...6 I can cross the street without holding Mommy's hand
...7 I can wear make-up
...6 I can use a knife
(generally, she thinks she'll be able to do anything when she's 6 or 7)
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The reason Audrey shouldn't go out into the street without Mommy or Daddy
Audrey: If I go into the street, cars will make me flat like a pancake, and Daddy will throw me like a Frisbee.
(Daddy painted such a nice picture for Audrey...but it works!)

Head on over to see more Tiny Talk at Mary's.

Dressing up

For the THIRD, yes 3rd year in a row Audrey has been a ladybug. The same ladybug costume has been used for three years. It was so worth the $8 spent on the outfit! This was definitely the last year as I struggled to take the outfit off anytime Audrey got hot...often! And since it is now in the hands of Goodwill, we have made sure someone else can enjoy the outfit next year...but NOT us.

We had a great time this year. In the morning we met my grandmother for a fun walk around Willow Valley and some pictures in her apartment. That was BEFORE Audrey couldn't resist pulling the emergency cord, after I had told her not to, and having a nurse come make sure everything was fine. Thankfully the nurse was pleasant (I'm guessing this happens with grand & great grandchildren often), and stayed to see our little ladybug and pumpkin man. Does it count if Liam just wore a pumpkin shirt? :)

After our visit with G.G. we were off to a costume party with friends. What a great party! There were songs, games, crafts, candy, ghost shaped pb&j sandwiches, and lots of friends. After the party we were home and enjoyed the beautiful 65 degree day by playing outside.

We set off to the mall late afternoon to meet up with our good friends, and get the candy. It was a little confusing for Audrey as she wasn't sure who to ask for candy. Once she understood that people were just handing out candy she started going up to multiple people in one store, holding up her bag and waiting for more candy to be put in. After going around the mall it was still hard to understand, but she had a bag full of goodies, all of which she wanted to immediately inspect. "What's this, Daddy, can I have it now?"

It was a fun day, even without a nap for Audrey. Liam was happy to be carried in the front pack the whole way around the mall, even sleeping most the way.

2 Months

Liam is unbelievably two months old! How could he possibly two months old already? Where is the time going? Make it stop, just for a moment!


The boy is so sleepy, so I thought it appropriate to put up a sleepy picture. I truly never thought I'd have a baby fall asleep on the floor. Audrey was away for the morning with a friend so that I could get some work done. I placed him down to have some floor play time while I worked. I turned around a few moments later and there he was asleep, hands raised and all.

He is starting to "talk", but to get a good conversation you must be a bear. He seems to like the Gr*aco mobile bears the best. This is convenient as they are placed on his changing table. Makes the lovely job a little more fun as we hear him chatting away. As soon as he makes eye contact with anyone (even a bear) he beams. It's the cutest thing ever. Audrey loves to get in on the action, and Liam is very happy to give her smiles too.

A Night to Remember

Last night was a beautiful night in this house. Audrey AND Liam were in bed and quiet (Audrey probably wasn't asleep) by 8pm. I was determined to get to bed soon after them to catch up on some much needed sleep....right after I folded the mountain of laundry. Unfortunately, an hour and a half later I finally finished a last minute bit of work and folded the last bit of laundry. I headed up to bed fulling expecting to close my eyes and hear the cries of sweet Liam ready to eat.

It certainly felt that way, but rather than saying 10pm the clock said 5:30am!! I did a double take, even a triple take. Had he really slept through the night?? I rolled over, nugged Albert, "Hey, can you get Liam? He slept through the night!" I think I was more excited about telling him about Liam sleeping through the night, than really needing him to go get Liam. Albert willingly did so, even though his alarm was set to go off in 30mins (don't you hate that feeling?). He's such a great guy. Liam ate and went right back to sleep until 8:30. I was able to get up a little after 7, Audrey was still sleeping, get myself ready before little miss woke up. What a great night. I don't know if this is the start to our dream of sleep filled nights, but I'm thankful for the grace God has given me. It's the first night Liam slept through the night!

By the way, Costume pictures will follow (as soon as I get them onto the computer).