Cookbooks

I'm in the middle of reading a book called The Table Comes First. It's the history of food and why we eat the way we eat. So far it's been about how the idea of a restaurant came about and why recipes exist. I can't wait to read the rest of it. I'm more of a fiction girl but this book is pretty good.

The recipe didn't even come on the scene until the late 19th century because before that cooking was a skill that was passed down from parent to child or from cook to apprentice. I've been thinking a lot lately about how to pass down some family traditions on to my kids. This book is inspiring me to collect recipes that are a part of our family life. I'm hoping that by the time they leave home I will have had time to write stories to go along with these recipes so they know why they are so important. This seems to be a good way to chronicle our family history since most of our memories seem to center around food. Tim and I cooked a lot when we were dating. I craved different things with each baby. Each boy has different favorite foods that they like best.

I'm back

After a four month hiatus, I'm back! My baby J is now 4 months old! Thank God for a quick and safe delivery. He was 9 lbs 7oz when he was born and now he is over 16 lbs. Lets just say he is a very healthy baby.

This baby has given me so much joy. I can't tell you how much he has added to our family. He wakes up in the morning smiling. Though he is serious like his daddy, he is also pretty easy going. He loves his brothers and wants to be with them all the time. I have a feeling he's going to learn to walk and crawl much faster than the others because he wants to keep up.

Adjusting to three kids has been a trial, but it's not as hard as I thought it would be. I think adjusting to a second child was much harder. We are all getting used to a new rhythm of life.

And now we wait...

Well, the baby was breech until sometime Monday night. He finally decided to flip at 38 and a half weeks! So now we just wait for him to come out on his own. I'm so relieved that I don't have a c-section looming over my head.

memory verse

I know that everything God does will remain forever; there is nothing to add to it and there is nothing to take from it, for God has so worked that men should fear Him.

- Ecclesiastes 3:14

Suffering

This week a friend of mine prayed for my soon to be born third son to be a Joseph. She spoke of how he was a leader to his brothers. He was also a Godly man who helped lead Egypt in a time of crisis. He knew how to forgive, he was full of wisdom, he loved his own sons...there are just so many great qualities about him. As she prayed, I eagerly yearned for those same things for my little guy.

The thing that made Joseph so great was that he knew how to suffer. Throughout his life he had many horrible things happen to him. Without these things he never would have risen to a position that was just below the Pharaoh. God's hand was on him from the beginning through all of those hardships and misunderstandings. Not once does the Bible say that Joseph threw up his hands in anger yelling at God about how unfair life was. He just suffered through it.

This story drives home for me the importance of teaching my boys how to suffer. Life is not fair and there is always going to be some suffering. I want them to learn that it's okay to suffer, that good comes from suffering and they will grow from it. I want for them to run to God when suffering comes and not away from Him. I also want them to know how to suffer with others when they are going through tough times.

This is a hard thing for me to want for my boys, but the fruit that will come from it will be worth it in the end.

The two phrases I hear the most...

"I need a nose blow!" and "Look at me, Mommy!" are the two phrases I hear the most during the day. The first may seem a little strange to an outsider, but S uses this phrase a lot when he's in trouble or upset about something. I think he does it to be reassured that we still love him enough to take care of him even though he did something wrong. While it is frustrating to be interrupted when I have goal in mind to get something done, I have to remember that I didn't become a stay at mom so that I could keep a clean house. Now I treasure those moments when they are calling for my attention.

Nurturing my boys has been a learning process for me. I did not start out a kid person to begin with, but God has definitely given me everything I've needed to care for you family. I've held a few jobs outside the home before my kids were born, but nothing has me depending on God as much as being a mommy. Whether its needing more patience, worry, or just strength to get through another day, He has always been there.

“But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

Jeremiah 17:7-8

Summer Time

Today was R's last day of music class. Soon we'll be in full swing summer mode where each week is different and there won't be much of a schedule until school starts in the fall. This summer will be especially crazy with the new baby boy coming at the end of June.

As much as it's going to be chaotic, I'm really looking forward to it. I'm getting to that point in my pregnancy where I really don't want to be busy and summer lends itself to staying home. My boys love their backyard and walks in the neighborhood (which really won't happen until the end of the summer). I also am excited about all the visits from family we have coming up.

I have a feeling that even though we don't have anything huge planned this summer is going to go by fast and we're going to enjoy every minute of it.