Wyatt

Last night, Wyatt woke up around 10pm. Not sure why. I think he might have stirred when we put Henry to bed - and then never went back to sleep. Back up... he didn't eat much dinner b/c he didn't like what I made. Nothing new. I didn't cater to his desire for something different. So by 10:45pm when he would not go back to sleep, we thought, hmmm... maybe he is hungry. So we brought him down - after 3 bowls of goldfish and grapes, and plenty of devious smiles, he went back to bed at midnight... happily. It actually turned out to be a very special time with him.

And then today, another bump. I've already resigned to the fact that life with boys will just be rowdy. I always thought my boys would not be that way. You know, I'd be that mom that amazingly has boys who don't want to run, jump, tackle, or rough house. But it just happens. Seriously. We never taught them how to run circles around the house and then just pummel each other. While we like boys to be boys, we do also believe in self-control. So after they played this tackling game for about 10 minutes, I could tell we were entering the danger zone where eventually someone would get hurt. So, in good wisdom, I told Henry NO MORE. He asked if they could play tag instead... "no tackling Mommy... that's a good idea. Only touching." B/c I was busy trying to finish a grocery list, it was almost bedtime, Jonathan was gone, and they were having fun, I conceded. However, somehow in this game of "just touching" Wyatt went face first into the corner of the ottoman. Apparently he is fine. He cried for a bit - but then seemed fine. Henry has a permanent bump on his forehead - and I guess Wyatt is traveling the same road.

Uh Oh

I was recently bitten by a spider (at least we think it was a spider). I'm sure it looked something like this... which we found crawling inside our window the other day. Jonathan keeps trying to convince me the spider bit me in bed... which totally creeps me out. Anyways, my leg swelled up and in the end, I had to have drained... I know, disgusting. If you want more details, email. That was the first uh-oh. The second one was Wyatt's head. He fell off a chair at a local bakery face first. His head looks much better now. We opted to keep him home and hope for the best! He seems to be completely fine.

Reuben made a surprise visit the other day! It was nice to see him since we haven't spent much time with him yet. Henry loved holding him and Wyatt even enjoyed peering over the couch curiously.


We have been trying to take in summer as much as we can. It has seemed peculiarly busy... Jonathan brought home a race track from the physics class he is teaching. Henry loved it and we had fun keeping him up late one night to play. Today I took Henry to do a swim lesson, and when we got home, we found Jonathan mowing the lawn with a helper... :)

Welcome Reuben!

Meet Reuben Wallace Stewart Berry! Henry was the happiest & proudest cousin ever! It was wonderful to see Devon and Beth and to finally meet Reuben. What a blessing.

the Weekend Update

Today we had a pool party for the youth group. Who would have thought we'd plan a pool party for the middle of July and get 68 degree weather and no sun?? No fear though... the Evan's were kind enough to turn the pool temp up to 88 degrees! That made quite a difference -- and I think it really forced everyone to stay in the entire 4 hours - the water was so pleasant! Henry loved it -- he especially loved the water slide and he went down it several times once he conquered his fear. And amazingly, Wyatt stayed in for quite awhile too.


After we left the pool party, we headed to the hospital to see Devon and Beth. They have a baby this wknd!! There is a 72-hour waiting period before he is actually theirs... well, actually 6 months... but to keep it simple, let's just say in 72-hours (Monday), the adoption will feel more official. It's a boy! 8lb. 5oz and 20 3/4 inches long. His name is Reuben. We've already come up with several nicknames that we haven't told them about yet. Henry's is probably the best though... He told us he didn't like the name Reuben. Who knew a 3-year old would even have an opinion on a name? When we asked him what he'd rather them name him, he said frog. Then he said 'little froggie.' Oh my. Welcome to the world Reuben - enjoy your new nickname! B/c of the adoption agency's policy, we couldn't see the baby today. But, Devon and Beth took turns coming out to see us in the waiting room and we hoped that helped break up their day a little. 3 days in a hospital with no visitors is LONG! We'll post pictures as soon as we have any.

Church Picnic

We have the best church picnic's. Every July, we got to this wonderful campground for fun and fellowship. There is an enormous pool, miniature golf, sand volleyball, basketball, tennis, a bowling alley... and of course, lots of good food. It is always a wonderful time of fellowship. The boys each had their fair share of sugar today. Henry played really hard. The car ride home was peaceful!

a special visit

After July 4th, Jonathan went home and I stayed on at my parents to visit with my sister Tabby -- she lives in Grand Rapids and I only see her about twice a year now. It was a special time -- getting to see the kids play and get to know each other more and also getting to spend hours upon hours talking with each other. My other two sisters came out one night (the last pic is all four of us with my mom... do we look tired?) and we talked until 3am. That was the night after Tabby and I stayed up until 3am talking! Yikes! But as you get older, you begin to understand that losing sleep is OK and you'll survive. Sometimes it's just worth it. And, of course, other times it's not!
Javin and Henry were great together. Javin is 6, so he basically just taught Henry everything he needed to know. We walked in the bathroom one night and he was giving Henry instructions on how to brush his teeth. It was so darn cute. Henry also learned about the devil and the lake of fire and hell... all in one lunch time. Pretty remarkable! Oh yes, and asked Henry if he wanted to join God's army. It was so darn cute! Callie enjoyed our visit too -- and the girl time. I think that was so special.

Independence Day

We spent the holiday wknd at my parents house in Grabill, IN. What kid wouldn't flip when they pull in the driveway and see a moonwalk??? :) All of the kids (& adults!) had a blast! We had grilled out, roasted marshmallows, did fireworks... it was a great day! It was 11pm before anyone left, and Henry had just run out of steam! We also had some veterans in our midst. It was great to hear their stories and be thankful for the Lord's protection over them. And of course, it reminded us of how grateful that the Lord has put us in this free country.

Pool at the Cooper's

Jonathan's parents have a pool - we were there last wknd for a family reunion, but then also had a great day of sun to be in their pool. It's amazing how much a life jacket can change the life of a 3-year old in water. Henry could do everything by himself. He had so much fun! And then there's Wyatt... Wyatt, you don't really prefer water, sun, heat, cold, wind, and anything else that makes you uncomfortable. We definitely don't have you completely figured out yet. And we're always wondering what you are going to be like when you get older, little boy! But for now, we're just enjoying you as you are.

Tiling

We decided to take on a small project of tiling our bathroom. It just had the orinal linoleum down, and we are ready for a change. So, with no real timeline in mind, we just took out the floor... the boys helped of course. And then we left for out of town, and then we came back, and then life happened this week... :) We do have the concrete board down, so next step is tiling. Whew... maybe we'll have our toilet back on by the middle of July!