Funny Things

Yesterday was a warm day. So we were all outside in our backyard, working on the soon-to-be garden. Isaac was digging post holes for the fence that we are putting up around said garden. For some reason, Phoenix was outside in his diaper with no shoes on. All of a sudden we heard him screaming...and then we saw both of his legs sticking straight in the air, kicking like mad. He had fallen head first into one of the post holes! It was so funny. When Isaac pulled him out, his hair and eyelashes and everything were dusted with dirt. It's not as funny typed up. Way funnier in person.

Then today, we were getting ready to eat dinner. I made Phoenix a quick peanut butter sandwich since we were eating fish, which he won't touch. At the table I was holding Joslynn and Isaac said "What IS THAT on your shirt?" My white shirt was smeared with peanut butter all across the front. I had no idea how it got there...until we heard Joslynn sucking away at her fingers. I was holding her when I made Phoenix's sandwich, and I guess she stuck her hand in the peanut butter jar when I wasn't looking and then smeared it on my shirt...she then proceeded to lick the rest off her little hand and she seemed to be enjoying it very much. Peanut butter...her first taste of solid food.

Hello 2011

We just got the internet at home a couple days ago, so now I can start blogging again!

When I woke up this morning, I was surprised to see that it snowed. I haven't seen snow since I lived in Salt Lake. I miss it! Isaac, Phoenix, and the dogs are out playing in it right now. Yes, the dogs. We recently got a black lab puppy we call Mack and a yellow lab puppy we call Charly. Except for the many accidents on the carpet and the constant chewing on everything, they have been a lot of fun. It is nice to finally have a yard with enough space for our dogs to run and play all day.

Life in Thorndale is going well. Isaac just returned home from a long business trip. First he went to Illinois for a week and then to El Paso for a week. It was a long two weeks! I did a lot of things I thought I'd never do, like go to the grocery store by myself with the kids (that was interesting). I am grateful he doesn't have to take these kinds of trips all the time anymore, like he did when he worked for VitaMix.

Phoenix is still a wild bundle of energy. Chasing the dogs around is his favorite thing to do, and he does it almost non-stop. He also likes to spend time in the "classroom" we set up for him in our spare bedroom. It's full of educational toys and books and fun activities. We have a class fish (a betta) and we spend a couple hours a day in there, learning and playing. He is still the pickest eater ever! Recently he has been saying the CUTEST prayers. Like when he got out of the bath a couple days ago, he was laying down while I dressed him and he said "Dear Jesus, thank you Mommy and Daddy...thank you bath...thank you boat. Amen!" and just now, he came inside and said "Dear Jesus, thank you snow. Thank you trucks. Amen!"

Joslynn goes in for her 4-month check-up on Monday. Wow, has she gotten big and chubby! Let me tell you, she is so sweet and so precious. There really is a big difference between baby boys and baby girls. She is very social and loves to just stare into your eyes, then gives you a huge smile. We say her eyes are as big as Texas because she is wide-eyed, always looking around. She sleeps through the night (whew!) and her favorite thing is for me to hold her and carry her with me everywhere. And I don't mind a bit.

Catching Up

Wow, it has been so long since I've blogged. I miss it! With so many major life changes going on I've just let it slip. I will try to highlight some of the more important things that have happened lately...

Joslynn Rayne Smith was born October 6 at 11:19 AM. She weighed 7 lbs 3.5 ounces, was 19.5 inches long, and I was in labor for 8 short hours. The real scare came when I almost had to have a c-section because her heart rate dropped extremely low. That was intense and scary. All sorts of doctors and nurses rushed around me within seconds, stuffing me with medicine and fluids to prepare me for the c-section. My husband was dressed in scrubs within seconds, ready to go with me to the operating room. We were both anxious and worried about our little baby...but thanks to the grace of God, her heart rate came back up and stayed healthy. Yay! I had a great delivery, recovery went very well, and she is now 7 weeks old and is a very happy baby.

Scare #2 happened when Joslynn was 2 weeks old. After nursing her in the wee hours of the night, I noticed she felt very warm. I took her temperature, which was 101.9 degrees. That seemed way too high so in to the emergency room she went. The next 48 hours were a blur of IV's, a trip in the ambulance, and watching Joslynn lay in the hospital crib. She had meningitis, and until they were sure it wasn't the life threatening kind, we had to wait and wait and wait...2 days later they told us she was healthy and good to go home. Whew...praise God again that she was okay.

We bought our first house in Thorndale, Texas. We live in a very small town with 1, 278 people (1,282 now with our litte family!). Our home sits on just over 2 acres and it is surrounded by trees and wildlife. We love it!

Phoenix has been doing great with baby Joslynn. He calls her "Jos-lit" and loves to softly rub her face or tickle her toes. Phoenix has grown really close to his Daddy since the baby came...maybe a little too close even! Every night now, Phoenix wakes up in the middle of the night, leaves his room, and crawls into our bed to sleep next to Daddy. I used to say I would NEVER let my children sleep in the bed with me. But I am realizing that Phoenix will only be 2 for so long, and I want to just enjoy the time I have with him. So for now, we don't mind snuggling him in our bed each night, even though he sweats a ton and takes over most of the bed.

We are in Mesquite for Thanksgiving. It has been a great holiday so far. Phoenix has really enjoyed running wild with his cousins, and I enjoy sharing Joslynn with everyone. We fly back home to Texas next Tuesday. The flight here wasn't so bad at all, except for the cranky old man that sat in front of Phoenix and kept accusing him of kicking his seat. I wanted to ask him "Do you have any kids? Don't you know what it is like to sit for over three hours on a small airplane with a rambunctious 2 year old and a newborn baby? Chill out please!" But of course I just smiled and tried to keep Phoenix as calm as possible. Yeah, right.

The Lord has been good to us.

I will praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything He does is right and all His ways are just. Daniel 4:37

AWESOME

I have been worrying. I hate to say that, but I have had feelings of anxiety for a couple of days. This is hard for me to admit because as a believer in Christ, I have His Word hidden in my heart to help me through times like these. Scriptures about trusting in God and giving Him all my burdens come to mind, but I just couldn't seem to lay it all down at His feet, and the feeling of peace as promised in Philippians 4:7 was not there in my heart and mind.

So, very late last night, Isaac and I prayed together about what is going on in our life, seeking the Lord's wisdom for our life. I felt the Spirit bring to mind the parable Jesus says in the gospel of Luke, when He says "Consider the lilies of the field..." the parable that reminds us that if God clothes the flowers with such beauty and splendor, how much more will he take care of His children? I also felt a strong urge to go to church in the morning, sensing that God had something planned for me there. And He did.

The worship was sweet, bringing tears to my eyes. I just love singing praises to my Creator. And instead of a sermon, we watched something called "Indescribable", which was so neat. We got to see several pictures from outer space of things like galaxies, stars, etc. It helped me realize how small I am. Just one small person in a huge world, on one small planet in a HUGE universe. There is more out there than just our nine planets and billions os stars. Our telescopes cannot even extend far enough into space to get a picture of what is really out there. Wow...and to think that as small as I am, God loves me. God loves ME! The last image we saw in the video was of Jesus on the cross. Wow, what a moment of silence. Jesus, the Creator of this universe, so vast and powerful, came to this little speck of a planet because HE LOVES US. Death on a cross, so that we could live with Him forever, so that we could have a personal and intimate relationship with our God.

So I realized that the worries of my life are nothing compared to the awesomeness of God. If my Creator could create the universe, so big that astronomers haven't even begun to touch the surface of it, then surely He will take care of me. God looks through the galaxies and vastness of the universe, and sees right into my heart. He knows the name of every star, sees every leaf that falls, and knows every thought in the mind of every person who has ever lived. The same God that created planet earth also created the baby inside of me. Try to wrap your mind around that...I sure can't! He has got it under control! And life is about so much more than me, anyway. Thanks for the powerful reminder, God! And now I have peace.

"Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10

"Wait for the Lord. Be strong and take heart, and wait for the Lord." Psalm 27:14

Birthdays

Phoenix celebrated his 2nd birthday on August 24th. We had a small celebration, since we aren't near family or friends right now, so it was just me, Isaac, Phoenix. He was more excited about the candles on his cake than actually eating it. In fact, after the candles were all blown out, he asked us to light them again. And a few minutes later, he proceeded to put a candle in his mouth, eat the wax, and spit out the wick. Yucky. He did all this while I was cutting the cake, so praise God he didn't choke on it or something. I guess he thought the candles were edible...after all, they were covered in yummy tasting frosting.

Isaac turned 25 a couple weeks later, on September 4. He had to work on his birthday, but that night we had a little barbecue complete with confetti cupcakes, one of his favorites. He bought some new undershirts for work as his present. Holidays can be a little lonely out here in California, but at the same time they are wonderful because we are starting traditions that include just our small family of three (soon to be four).

Our anniversary was on September 8th. Four years of wedded bliss! We celebrated a week early by spending the night in Las Vegas at our favorite hotel, the Red Rock. Phoenix spent some time with Gamma and Papa, and stayed the night with his cousins, Weston, Andrew, and Madison. It was so nice to enjoy some time with my husband without Phoenix screaming or running around the restaurant. What a nice surprise and blessing that trip was!

I am 35 weeks along, so there is only about a month left until this little baby is born. I feel great and have been blessed tremendously with a healthy pregnancy. This summer has been such a learning experience. We have learned many lessons, mainly to trust in the Lord even more than we have in the past. In a world of suffering, economic uncertainty, and just the trials of day to day life, the Lord is our Rock and He will never change. Praise Him for His faithfulness! No matter what happens here on earth, if we trust in Jesus Christ as our Savior, then we are given an eternal inheritance to look forward to. This life is just a mist, a vapor. But life for believers in Jesus will go on forever.

"Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ." Philippians 3:20