Happy Birthday Canada!

We began the month by celebrating Canada's 150th birthday.  We enjoyed food and fun with some extended family and then returned home later.  The boys were sleeping in the van so we thought it would be fun to stop and watch the amazing fireworks on display.  An even better idea would be to wake the boys up so that they could experience the thrill as well for the first time.  A special treat.  Apparently we are still newbie parents because it turns out that when you wake up children who are sound asleep at 10:00 PM, things don't go as planned regardless of the incredibly beautiful and artistic fire in the sky.  Suffice to say that next time we'll let them sleep!  They were not impressed.

We remembered the anniversary of Josiah's death by taking flowers to his grave with family.  The lovely yellow mini roses we had planted earlier that week had turned pink!  It's hard to believe it's been four years. 

It was lovely to spend time with Graham's brother's family from B.C.  We enjoyed visiting African Lion's Safari together.  Isaac was especially sad to see them leave.  Isaac slept in a tent for the first time while they were here.  Our last meal together was some delicious Bee Bim Bop!

Isaac enjoyed going to VBS at his friend's church.  He was very happy to be able to sing for us one evening and show us around.  Isaac is also loving riding his bike.  He asks every day if he can go biking. 

I've been helping Isaac organize his Lego the last few days when we get a chance.  I was thoroughly enjoying it tonight and didn't want to stop.  Isaac asked me what I liked best about Lego.  I said, "I like the order and following the directions and finding the pieces and accomplishing something.  What do you like best?"  Isaac: "I like that it's from Italy."  The next day I commented on this and asked if the box said it was from Italy.  He told me that he had read in a book that they make Lego in Italy.

I don't think I mentioned fidget spinners in my last post.  We bought one for Isaac the last week of school.  Apparently he was the last person in his entire class who had one.  Graham was fine with that.  Isaac was excited to show it to his friends.

Isaac has been reading lots of books this summer.  Most are fiction but the other day I heard him call excitedly,
Isaac: "Mommy!"
Me: Yes?
Isaac: The person who discovered the law of gravity has the same name as me!  Sir Isaac Newton.

Graham told me that he was reading the Bible to the boys.  The story was about King Josiah.
Graham: It's surprising that Josiah is just eight years old but he loves God so much.
Isaac: It's not that surprising.  Kohen is three and he loves God.

About a month ago I was at my parents' home with Kohen and Lily-Anna.  I had taken away Kohen's screen time for the day but Grandma didn't know this and she presented Kohen with an exciting DVD.  I decided that I would explain grace to Kohen - about how God showed us grace by saving us through Jesus' death and resurrection even though we didn't deserve it.  I then showed him grace and let him watch an episode on the DVD.  Just last week we were again at my parents' home and Kohen had lost screen time.  He starts whispering in my ear, "Show me grace," over and over until I understood what he was saying and started to laugh.  I asked him what it would look like if I showed him grace and he said I would let him watch a video.  I asked him who showed us grace and he knew the answer.  He received a big hug from Mommy and then I told him he was getting justice that day.

Kohen is never excited to go to his Sunday School class.  Last week he started crying.  I told him that I needed to check on Lily-Anna and that I would come back and look through the window to see if he was okay.  When I came back and looked, I saw that he had stopped crying and was doing something with a leader.  Later when I picked him up he told me that he was crying.  I told him that I had looked through the window.  He told me that he was crying in his head.

Kohen gives me many grey hairs but he is such a sweetheart.  He loves cuddles and randomly telling me that he loves me.  I had told him about someone who couldn't walk.  He whispered in my ear, "Mommy, if you can't walk, I would help you and hold your hand."

Isaac loves making PBJs which Kohen now calls "Bluejays"

Today is July 31st.  I will probably always remember that this is the day (five years ago) I rushed Josiah to the hospital and we ended up heading to Sick Kids for three and a half months.  I was talking to the boys about this today but I also mentioned that I thought it was a nice gift from God that we were able to dedicate Lily-Anna to the Lord on the same day last year.  Kohen said to me, "If I could be big I could say, I love you Josiah."  After chatting a little I think he meant that if he had been bigger than Josiah, he would have been alive to tell him that he loved him.  I told him that he could tell Josiah he loves him as much as he wants because he is alive in a different way and we'll all be together one day.

Kohen has been waking up a lot tonight.  The last time I took him back to bed and was praying for him.  He interrupted and said, "I want to say something.  And thank You for Daddy, the best buyer ever!"
Me - The best buyer?
Kohen - Yes.
Me - Buyer of what?
Kohen - Of toys and things like Lightyear (big smile).  [He was cuddling Buzz Lightyear that Graham bought for him when was away at a conference in May.]  Earlier in the day when Kohen was in the washroom he yelled out, "Mommy, thank you for buying me new underwear."  I bought him some dinosaur underwear about a month ago.  He's a thankful boy!

I'm sure I'll have lots more Lily-Anna stories when she is three years old.  She loves the Happy Birthday song, the Hallelujah song (think 1980s Pentecostal church slow version), pretending things are telephones, saying 'Dada' with so much excitement (oh, how she loves her Daddy), exploring and pulling things out of bins, saying "I-yuh' for Isaac, having a bath, and walking while holding onto someone's hands.  She now has a "whale spout" on the top of her head to keep the hair out of her eyes.  She refuses to drink cow's milk so far.  She did enjoy her first ice cream though. 

Time for bed.  I'll post and then look for some photos quickly.  Thanks for any prayers!

Blessings,
Elizabeth

1 Peter 4:8-9
Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.  Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.

    

Hello summer

Today was the first day of school holidays.  We had our first play date of the summer this morning and then this afternoon we took the bike, scooter, and stroller to the cemetery.  My oldest nephew became a teenager today.  Tomorrow we'll be with family celebrating Canada's 150th birthday (and thinking of my cousin celebrating her birthday).  I still need to make a salad so this post may not be long.

I feel a little down.  I'm not sure if it's due to Josiah's death anniversary coming up next week or not.  I was able to look at some pictures of him today and remember.  We'll plant some flowers at his grave on Monday and probably take flowers for the vase next Thursday.

Sadly, my Uncle Moffit passed away this month in Northern Ireland.  Thankfully my dad was able to go over for the funeral.  I remember he and his family coming to visit us in Canada and I remember he and Auntie Violet taking us out

for the day when Graham, Isaac and I visited in 2011.  He was very kind and generous to us.

I am looking forward to seeing Graham's brother and sister-in-law and family next week.  The whole family was last here when Josiah passed away and Isaac doesn't have memories of playing with his cousins so we're going to make some good memories the next couple of weeks.

Thankfully Lily-Anna sleeps through the night.  We sleep-trained her at the beginning of June and it didn't take long for her to figure out the new routine.  The longest she had to cry without us was 7 minutes and I think that was only once.  It seems like such an amazing process to me - it's sort of like seeing her brain learn the new normal.  I remember feeling the same thing when we did it with Kohen.

I borrowed a book from the library about trying new healthy foods and getting your kids involved with choosing recipes and preparing the foods.  I was amazed at the difference this made in attitude.  Isaac chose bok choy as his first dish and then cod and the boys later helped prep brussel sprout chips.  After preparing the recipes, Isaac was excitedly telling me how good the food was going to taste.  Kohen was a little too eager with the salt on the "chips" but other than that the boys enjoyed the dishes.

Kohen and I had a coversation during lunch that demonstrates how well the boys listen to Graham's Eugene stories.  Eugene is a bunny.

Kohen: I wish I could be a rabbit because then I could climb trees.
Mommy: Rabbits don't climb trees.
Kohen: Yes they do.
Mommy: No, rabbits do not climb trees.
Kohen: Rabbits can climb trees.  Trust me.  Eugene is a bunny and he has climbed trees.
Mommy: Eugene is a very clever bunny and he does things that other bunnies cannot do.  [Like inventing robots to help the police, for example.]

The kids and I were playing downstairs one day and I asked Kohen what superpower he would like to have.  He chose flying.  Then Isaac said something like, "I wouldn't choose to fly.  I would choose to have all my Lego organized."  That made me laugh.

Lily-Anna loves to pull herself up to standing now and sometimes walks a little if she's holding hands or holding onto a stool she can push.  She loves to explore and she loves the bathroom whenever she can get past me to make it inside.  She likes it when Graham or the boys chase her when she's crawling.

Last weekend I was very happy to see the one cousin whom I grew up with (as in, the only cousin who lived in Canada).  She now lives overseas so it was nice to have lunch together.  It was of course a pleasure to see my aunt and uncle as well but thankfully they live closer so we can see them a little more often.

It's time to say goodnight.  Thanks for any prayers.  I'll post and then change to the computer and try to add a few photos.

Blessings,
Elizabeth

Romans 8:37-39
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.  For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Goodbye May

May was a busy month with four family birthdays to celebrate and a fun long weekend with family.  The transition to Graham being back at work went well.  We haven't been late for school once - except when we purposely went as a family to see Graham off at the train station for a conference out of town. 

The boys had a fun time with Graham and Grandpa Ray at the Blue Jays' game last weekend while Lily-Anna enjoyed a Mommy date and a lunch out with Grandma Betty. 

The day after my birthday I made a commitment to go to sleep at a reasonable time (aim for 10:30 but lights off by 11:00 - unless a child is in need of me) and to stop eating the mounds of junk that I had been eating.  Things are going well so far.  I've definitely been doing more with Kohen during the day. 

Thanks to a Youtube video, we were able to fix our freezer at the beginning of the month.  The drain was clogged with ice but we followed the instructions and met with success.

Isaac lost his first tooth.  He's been waiting for that for a while so we were all excited. 

Soccer starts this weekend for Isaac and piano is almost over, with a recital this weekend.  One more month of Grade One for Isaac!  He's really growing up.  He loves telling jokes he has made up based on a play on words. 

I bought the boys a couple of placemats.  Kohen was looking at his ABC placemat and the following conversation took place:
Kohen - What!?!  It's really not true though, right?
Mommy - What?
Kohen - This shows eyes and a mouth on the moon.
Mommy - No, it's not true.  Some people just talk about a man on the moon.
Kohen - A man on the moon!?!

Kohen and I were in the washroom washing our hands and he started making up a story that included Josiah crying.  I reminded him that Josiah doesn't cry anymore because he's in Heaven.  He told me he'd like to send a card to Josiah.  I asked him what he'd say in the card.  He said, "I'm glad you don't cry any more."

Well, it's past 10:30 so I'd better try to find some photos quickly.  Thanks for any prayers as we try to raise these children for God's glory.  It's challenging most days.

Blessings,
Elizabeth

Isaiah 26:3
You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.  

Happy Birthdays!!!

We celebrated Lily-Anna's first birthday yesterday and Graham's birthday today.  I think this is the first time that Graham has shared his birthday cake with someone else.  I offered to make him his own but he decided to just use Lily-Anna's cake.  She actually enjoyed it.  I was surprised because the boys didn't eat much when they turned one but she had a good sized helping.

I would love to write more but I have committed to myself to do my best to get to bed by 11:00 PM which means that I don't get as much done as I would like but I am more awake and engaged for my kids during the day.  I may even be nicer (says Isaac), but I think the verdict is still out.  I will write tomorrow night.

Blessings,
Elizabeth

“And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, "Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!”
‭‭Revelation‬ ‭15:3‬

New Towels!

April has felt like a long month but it has been productive.  We now have some new flooring, baseboards, paint, a bathroom vanity, and a bed frame with drawers (with lots of help from the grandparents and tons of work from Graham).  Let's just say that there was no funeral for the original bathroom vanity from the 70s.  I do not miss you at all, though I am thankful for your faithful service.

I am very pleased to inform you that there are no more hand towels on the floor in my bathroom as each of the Faulkners now has a different colour towel within reach that never needs to leave its hook.  How can I possibly thank you enough, Ikea, for towels with hanging loops?  Isaac chose red and Kohen chose navy blue and we assigned Lily-Anna yellow as she is like the sunshine.

Speaking of our little sunshine, she can now do a real crawl and pull herself up to her knees and support herself when she is placed standing beside something.  She is now quite adept at getting into things and finding small things on the floor.  We are sweeping more often.  She turned 11 months old today!  She's also had a cough for about a month and a half.  Thus, she has not been sleep-trained as she needs to be well.  She has thrown up many times after coughing or crying.

I believe I mentioned last month that we now have a three-year-old.  Did I mention that I find three-year-olds especially challenging?  He

decided to try his graffiti on Grandma and Grandpa's walls (thank you Magic Eraser), and he thought the basil in Grandma's glass container would be better situated on her white carpet beneath not one, but two beds in her home (I'm thankful for vacuums).   I guess he thought the diaper cream would also be better on the bathroom door handles.  (After all this, they still think he is an angel!)  He was being a little too quiet one day and I found him with the baby Advil and Tylenol on top of Isaac's bunkbed.  Thankfully nothing went in his mouth but the Advil was dumped out on Isaac's bed. (Yes, we do have a locked box and I'll be more careful.)

Of course, he also regularly tells me that he loves me and that I'm the best "cooker maker" and he gives nice cuddles.  He is definitely a very sweet, cheeky monkey who has yet to figure out what an inside voice is.  We were driving in the van one day and I was singing as I often do and it must have been a quiet stretch of road with no other cars because I guess I clapped to the music once or twice.  Kohen told me that our van could drive itself.  I told him that we don't have one of those vehicles but he said we did and told me that the van drove itself when I clapped my hands.

Isaac wants to know if Star Wars will continue when we are in Heaven.  We enjoyed listening to him at his spring piano recital and in the kids choir on Easter Sunday.

So, after a lovely four months, Graham heads back to work tomorrow morning.  We'll see what time I am able to get Isaac to school as I don't think I've done the morning run since before Christmas!  Actually, we've picked out the boys' clothes for the morning and I think the schedule will run quite smoothly.  Isaac has been using

headphones when he practices piano in the morning and that has helped him to focus.  I had always said no screen time in the mornings but I discovered that this little ten minute reward has decreased the morning drama.  If Isaac is all ready for school by a certain time and if Kohen dresses himself in a certain time, then they are able to watch a short show or video.

We celebrated Josiah's birthday.  He would have turned five on the 13th if he were with us.  We enjoyed some ice cream cake after taking some flowers to his grave.  We then celebrated Jesus' death and resurrection over Easter weekend.  It will be incredible to one day celebrate with all of the redeemed together in the presence of Jesus.      

Well, Isaac needs a lunch made.  Thanks for any prayers.  I am definitely going to miss having Graham home.  What an incredible blessing this time has been.  This week we start a new Bible study (after a month off) on the names of God.  By the way, I think Lily-Anna is going to be a Daddy's girl.  She lights up for Graham.  She seems to be able to say 'Mama', 'Dada', and 'Bye'.  Her favourite sound is Ba-ba.

Blessings,
Elizabeth

Isaiah 35:10
And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

 

March

I need to type fast as Lily-Anna keeps waking up.  She has a cold and her coughing has made her throw up for three nights in a row after I try to nurse her to sleep.  We're getting better at having towels ready at least.

Lily-Anna is now ten months old.  She still does the army crawl but she certainly gets where she wants to go - to the boot tray in particular as she enjoys trying to eat what she finds there.  She just has her two front teeth but eating is improving little by little.

It's been a busy and enjoyable March.  Kohen turned three years old.  On his last day being two years old he talked about Josiah a lot.  He asked me, "When I was born did I see Siah?"  I explained and then I showed him the photo taken of Josiah after I told him that he was going to be a big brother (because I had just found out that Kohen was on the way).  He later asked me, "When will Siah come and visit?" I explained a little about heaven.  He replied, "I won't say hi to Jesus, just Siah.  Did Siah die on the cross?" Oh, it's so much for a small boy to process.  Another day he said, "It's really really sad that Siah died."  He brings him up quite often.

*

Isaac: "Lily-Anna's the most beautiful baby I've ever heard of."

*

Isaac to Lily-Anna: "Lily-Anna tu es tres tres tres belle.  That means you are very very very pretty."

*

Isaac: Are we going to have infinity days with God in heaven?
Mommy: Well, the new heaven and the new earth.
Isaac: That's what I meant.  It's sort of like always living in a hotel.
Kohen: And then Josiah will come and shake our hands.

*

In the morning both boys climbed into our bed and Lily-Anna was there.  Kohen gave her a big hug and said, "You're my best baby in the whole world."

*

I was with Kohen in Home Depot looking at a few items and he was ready to leave.
Kohen: Mommy we have to pay.
Mommy: Yes we do (walking in the other direction).
Kohen: If we go that way we can't worship Jesus.  God said go this way.

*

We were in the car and Kohen started praying so I asked him if he'd seen an ambulance (as we pray if we see emergency vehicles).  He said he hadn't but he was just praying for anyone who was bleeding that God would help them.

*

We travelled to Stittsville for part of March Break to see family.  The boys love being with their cousins.  On the way back we stopped at a hotel to give Isaac a little piece of heaven on earth - "cartoons, swimming pool, and a breakfast that includes 'coloured Cheerios' (he has now discovered these are called Fruit Loops).  After a couple of nights at home we went to spend time with Graham's parents and his brother from B.C.

On the Sunday before school started I saw a note on the calendar that read, "Isaac wants to eat Italian Wedding soup."  I remembered that we'd happened to do that last year and Isaac thought it would be neat to make it a tradition ... so, that's what we ate and it will be on the calendar next year.

We've been fitting in doctor's appointments and eye appointments and dentist appointments before Graham heads back to work.

We've also pulled up the flooring in the kitchen, bathroom, and hallways and today the subfloor was screwed down to get rid of all the squeaking.  That will be a treat!  A great big thank-you to our parents for all of their help!

I'm afraid that the days of Kohen napping are over.  The other day we just let him sleep about an hour and he was still wired at bedtime.  Today he asked me to let him nap but I was able to keep him awake with the help of two Grandmas.  I realized today why Kohen just jumps up and down when he needs "to go" instead of telling us.  He just wants us to run after him.  He loves it when we do this.

This is my last month with Graham at home.  It's been such a blessing.  I am not looking forward to May and school mornings.  I haven't taken Isaac to school since before Christmas!

I'd better see if I can figure out how to add photos.  If I hear Lily-Anna wake up, I'll just post this and add photos later.

Thanks for any prayers!

Blessings,
Elizabeth

John 16:22
So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

Fun February

It's always fun going on Mommy dates with my boys and I try to do that with each of them around Valentine's Day.  I think the last cake pop Isaac had was during last year's Valentine's date so it was time for another one.  I take them out separately for a special time.  I also found heart sprinkles in the store so Kohen helped me make some cookies and both boys helped deliver them to a few neighbours.

Graham and I even went out for dinner and dessert after putting the kids to bed at my parents' home.   I think this was our first time out alone since Lily-Anna was born.  Now that restaurants have to post nutritional information, we were well aware of the number of calories we consumed in our chocolate peanut butter cheesecake - it's a good thing we shared it.  Thankfully Lily-Anna only woke up five minutes before we returned and she waited patiently with Grandma until I could put her back to sleep.

Lily-Anna in her new dress

We spent Family Day (an Ontario holiday) at Graham's parents' property where we had an outdoor picnic and helped Grandpa tap some maple trees in great anticipation of delicious maple syrup.  We were able to pull Lily-Anna on the sled after we bundled her in, with the help of a bungie cord.  She fell asleep in there on the way out.

Lily-Anna has her first dress from Sierra Leone as my cousin was there recently and very kindly bought it for her.  She sported her new style this past Sunday (along with a long-sleeved onesie and tights to keep her warm).

Both Graham and I have enjoyed spending time with various friends this month and we're actually both reading books so it's quite clear that Graham is on parental leave.  Graham takes Kohen to a library program and a swimming lesson and Isaac to swimming and skating.  All of those will soon be finished.

Lily-Anna performing for the camera

I just finished reading the memoir Lion about a boy who became lost in India and ended up being adopted by a couple in Australia.  Twenty-five years later, with the help of Google Earth and Facebook, he found his way back to his birth family.  I'm also making my way through a book about divorce and remarriage in the Bible due to a friend's situation.  The author claims that in the Bible, Jesus and Paul allow (though do not encourage) divorce on the basis of broken marriage vows, which would include abuse and neglect in addition to unfaithfulness.  I still have a lot to read.    

Graham and Lily-Anna hiking into Raybeth

 Sadly, Isaac had to have a cavity filled today.  Now that we know how much this costs, we will not be forgetting to floss his teeth anytime soon.  We thank the Lord (and the university) for some health coverage.  Isaac was given laughing gas (this was never an option at my dentist when I was a child) and he told me that it was really fun.  The worst part was that he couldn't eat this morning before his 8:00 appointment.  Graham used this as an opportunity to remind Isaac about people who are often hungry and this helped calm him down.      

Lily-Anna is now fully sitting and army-crawling more often.  I was getting a prescription filled and saw a small princess frame that I couldn't resist buying for her.

I was pleasantly surprised when Isaac prayed that I would only have to be up once with Lily-Anna in the night.  I told him this morning that I was with her four times, though the fourth was just an earlier wakeup than I would have preferred.  She might as well get it while she can because I think sleep training is coming in April before Graham returns to work - if I'm brave enough.

A winter lunch at Raybeth

Lily-Anna's new trick is waving goodbye.  I've been able to leave her in the nursery at church the last four or five Sundays so that's been a nice treat.  This is also the first Sunday that Kohen hasn't cried when I left him at Sunday School so we're making progress.  It's hard to believe Kohen turns three on Sunday.  I do however remember that with Isaac we found age three more challenging than age two, though that may have also related to Josiah's death when Isaac was two-and-a-half.

I'm facilitating our Bible study tomorrow night on 2 Peter 2 so I'd better sign off and add some photos to this post and January's post.

Thanks for any prayers!

Blessings,
Elizabeth


2 Peter 3:8-9
But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.  The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

Kohen and his beloved Elmo and Mommy

The boys tapping a maple tree with Grandpa Faulkner