Seasonal Mix

Snow has stuck to the ground...November has arrived...and I am almost done with our Christmas shopping so I can sit back and enjoy the holidays. Well..enjoy them anyway. I don't think there's going to be much "sitting back" going on anytime before 2020.

October was kind of an exhausting blur. Everyone except Mama took their turns being sick, so that kind of consumed a few weeks. Levi started with a fever, sore throat, and achiness for a few days. Then when he was feeling better, Joanna and Micah got fevers and stomach aches. 

The second Saturday of the month, people were seeming relatively healthy so the kids and I took up my dad's last minute invitation to attend the ABB safety day in Burlington (it was a cold day and it wasn't looking like a very promising turnout). The children loved their day there!

Trying to make Daddy jealous for staying home...got to see a Tesla and watch it in action! 

All kinds of fun on the bouncy toys!

Micah and Joanna got fevers that night that stuck around on Sunday, so we stayed home from church. We had to get out of the house that night so we went on a walk. It was getting cold outside and all three children with their big winter coats on made for a cozy fit in the one-person stroller!

Micah and Joanna felt better for a day or two and then started complaining about their ears. I took Micah to the doctor on Tuesday and Joanna on Wednesday and they both had ear infections. I can finally breathe now that we have officially had our first need for antibiotics since becoming parents. We have been blessed beyond measure with healthy children! 

Daddy's audience

??

Matt is the best Daddy. His lap is getting full and there are lots of wiggles going on! But it is such a joy to fill their hearts with the story of Jesus!  

Everyone was on the mend in time for Matt and I to leave on a two-day getaway to celebrate our sixth anniversary! We went to Peoria this year and spent two nights at an Airbnb house. On our way over on Thursday we ate lunch at GOOD - the new restaurant in Burlington. It was SO delicious and such a fun place! 

We got checked in to our house in Peoria, ate supper at a spaghetti house, then went and had a nice visit with Grandma Knobloch at the Skylines! On Friday, we entertained ourselves at the Riverfront Museum. 

The cozy little house!

By the time we were done at the museum, Matt wasn't feeling very well. We went back to the house and rested a bit, ate supper at a Mexican restaurant, and then went to Morton for the first part of the Cultivating Connections marriage conference at the church. We returned on Saturday morning and enjoyed each of the messages we heard. It was such a nice chance to reflect and focus on our marriage away from the busyness of our life at home! The fellowship with people from other churches was another blessing.

Mom and Dad Schulz cared for the children while we were gone and were kind enough to let us stay for supper when we got back! By the time we got home, Matt was starting to suspect he might have strep throat, so we decided to spend our anniversary on Sunday morning together at Quick Care. Mom and Dad were kind enough to take our children once again. Matt got his medicine and then went home and rested while I spent the rest of the day in church with the kids. 

So, we spent our sixth anniversary with a sick Matt curled up on the couch. I finally had an emotional meltdown as the exhaustion of dealing with sick people and the disappointment of more sickness on our trip and anniversary all came crashing down on me. Yeah, it was the least romantic anniversary we have ever had.

We did redeem our time on Sunday evening by reenacting our wedding for our kids. I put on my wedding dress (I was planning to wear it to church, but then I didn't want to wear it to the doctor or to church without my husband), Matt put on his suit jacket and draped his tie around his neck, and we played our wedding sermon. We even had a "reception" and then showed the kids pictures from our honeymoon while they ate their snack!

Matt slept in Monday morning and ate breakfast with us before going to work.

Our 1-2-3 kids. I needed to make sure I got this fun age stage on camera.

...and, what do you know?! It adds up to 6, which is how many years we have now been married! (In case it is not all the way clear, THIS IS NOT A BABY ANNOUNCEMENT. I got myself into trouble with both families for sending this clever picture out.) :)

I spent the rest of the week waiting to wake up with strep throat...and by some miracle it never happened! Thus ended our two weeks of sickness and we have been able to return to a functioning lifestyle.

Grandma Knobloch sent home this cap for the kids (I think it was supposed to be for Joanna but the boys liked it, too)!

"Hat" is one of the words she is able to say. She loved it! 

So...we finally decided we were healthy enough to meet our new niece and cousin, little Rebecca Karen! Andrew and Hannah's baby was born the night we got home from our trip. She is a sweetie!

I love this picture:)

Hopefully these little girl cousins will be good friends!

That day (Thursday), the guys showed up to cut holes for our egress windows! Matt took the day off work so he could be there. All of the supplies showed up right afterwards so he was busy the rest of the day getting the wells put in!

The kids loved their new tunnel!

On Saturday, Andrew (yes, the exhausted but kindhearted new daddy) spent most of the day helping Matt put in the windows!

Meanwhile, the kids kept busy "mixing their eggwhites." Whatever keeps them occupied... (it was water, by the way.)

Hannah and Rebecca came over for a bit so we got to see them again! (Levi was extremely amused at the rumbles he was feeling from her diaper when he held her.) :)

Matt, Andrew, and Zach then ran on over to Peoria for the rest of the afternoon and evening to go car shopping. They were successful at finding a new car for Andrew and Hannah! I spent the evening cleaning up the window mess in the basement bedrooms and putting the kids to bed early.

A few days later...SNOW! On October 29th. I love the delight in a young child at their first sight of snow! Micah was absolutely THRILLED. Once I put on his boots, he went out and started jumping all over!

Micah and Joanna were in awe!

We got all bundled up and pulled the sled around outside.

Even got a little snowman built before it melted!

Thursday, we went to story time at the library. Friday evening we went to the nursing home singing. Saturday the boys went to Mom and Dad Schulz's for the day while Matt and Dad went to help Grandpa Schulz. Joanna and I went to a baby shower and then spent a quiet afternoon at home. The boys got home just in time to race through supper and run off to testimonies at Mediapolis. Once we were able to settle down and focus on the evening, the testimonies were such a blessing! It was refreshing to hear the testimonies of three souls who the Lord never gave up on! Praise God! On Sunday, we attended Mediapolis church in the afternoon for the baptisms, and then went home and crashed for a couple hours before going back to Burlington for the singing.

Joanna must be a girl. She loves accessories...hats, shoes, and now she has glasses too!

Monday I felt like doing zero housework, and it showed by bedtime. 

We decided to paint our last few pumpkins instead of cooking them! Paint is so stressful with children. It went pretty well though.

Matt had to finish the project they were working on at Grandma and Grandpa's, so we brought the kids and we spent the evening inside with them. 

Quote of the evening:
Micah: I'm going to Iowa City.
Grandpa: Iowa City?! What do you know about Iowa City?
Micah: Oh, it's by Jerusalem.
(He must have picked up on that word from his Bible stories!)

Have a blessed week!

Fall Fell

Well hello there, friends! I know, how dare I call you my friends when I can't keep you updated for two months on our super duper exciting lives. 

Today is our area's annual "Shop 'Til you Drop" day...or, the path I am taking today: the "Just Go Home to Flop" day. Some very sweet mothers from church spend the day watching the young children so the mothers can have the day off. We are so blessed! I decided it is more difficult for me to get anything done on the computer with children around than it is to go shopping, so this day has been set aside for a couple "computer" projects. This blog update was one of those projects. However, the flies seem to be taking the place of my children today. They keep buzzing around my head while I sit at the computer and every time I get up to swat them they suddenly disappear! Hehe. Sorry, my beautiful children and the pesky flies really have nothing in common.

We have been busy. Typically, I expect the outdoor projects to start winding down when September and October get here (obviously we aren't farmers), but this year the projects are all in highest gear until winter arrives.

Namely, the landscaping. I don't know when I agreed to this project, but I obviously wasn't under the impression that it would be three years and counting before it got done. We hired Jesse to help Matt over the summer to force ourselves to work on it regularly. Since then, we have had several good work days and some of Matt's family has helped as well. Now the one wall is finally coming together and we hope to see this phase completed come spring.

 

Matt's dad came over to help one night.

 

It is so good to see progress!

Then we decided to put in two egress windows on the other side of our house before winter. So that's our other side project. I spent a week getting the rock out of the landscaping along that wall, then we got the holes dug with a backhoe. Now we are waiting for supplies to come in so we can cut the holes and install the window in the next couple weeks.

These kids are falling in love with all the dirt and mud!

Meanwhile, life has been happening too. The last weekend of August, we traveled to Morris for Keegan and Callie's wedding. We went part way on Friday night and then enjoyed visiting Alice at her apartment on Saturday, where she made a Chinese meal for our lunch! We spent Saturday night with Caleb and Heidi, where the boys had a great time playing with their youngest boy, Collin! The wedding and weekend were very nice, and we were thankful for safe travels both ways. 

The following week, we tried out another Chinese food: steamed eggs for breakfast! Alice said it is what she liked to eat for breakfast growing up, so we gave it a try. Given my supplies and resources, it worked best to mix the eggs and water (2:3 cup ratio) in a pan, cover it, and cook it on the stove without stirring until it is cooked through. It wasn't the method described in recipes, but I think we got the basic experience. It is kind of custard-like in texture and then you drizzle a bit of soy sauce on top. We thought it was pretty good, but Matt hasn't let me make it for him yet because he likes his cheesy scrambled eggs.

For Labor Day, we went to Francesville, Indiana for Jared and Chloe's wedding. It seemed like a short ride after our trip to Morris the previous weekend. We enjoyed getting to know Phil and Steph's family and appreciated the love we felt in the church out there. The bond of Christian faith is a wonderful blessing!

We've had several baby showers the past couple months, as we have many first time mothers around here! Hannah's baby shower was one of the highlights, and the other was Rachel and Liezel's shower that we hosted here. It was quite fun and went well!

Angela did a great job on the woodland-themed decor!

Then, we've had family nights, potlucks, singings, evening plans, and even squeezed in a date night in September. I love the nights when our calendar is blank...though that usually means we are working on the landscaping.

On the home front...

Joanna was quite fussy the month of September. I was hoping it wasn't her new personality emerging, or a preview of the "terrible twos," but, alas, four of her molars popped through and we are seeing her smiley self coming back. She has also been done nursing as of the past couple weeks. Joanna is becoming quite a handful as she spends a good portion of her day digging through drawers and cupboards and climbing up on tables, counters, desks, or whatever looks appealing. Last week I ended up on the phone with poison control after she drank my dishwasher detergent and was choking/gasping for breath for several minutes. Fortunately we use all-natural Shaklee so I wasn't terribly worried about it killing her. I am failing at training this child. But at least she is happy. 

Micah is as cute as can be now that he is talking in full sentences. The things he says, along with his expressions, are so funny. He tends to get bossed around by his big brother, which can cause some fits, but he is starting to relish his role as big brother to Joanna. He is so sweet and sensitive!

Levi can be a handful, but I can tell he is growing up. His eyes shine whenever he learns something new. And he loves to read - he is pretty fluent up through 2nd or 3rd grade reading level. It is quite convenient for everyone around here.

Every week seems to have its ups and downs. One day I feel like everything is under control and everyone is loving, kind, and cooperative. The next day everybody spends the day wailing and getting into mischief and I find myself questioning whether my children will ever turn out. But such is life. It teaches me to lean on God's grace and I am often reminded that it is my example that is going to teach the most to my children, not my words or my discipline. Raising children is such a long-term journey; it takes faith to believe that we are ever going to end up where we are trying to go...especially when the days get long and difficult. Thankfully, God does grant us a glimmer of hope now and then when we see our children say a kind word or help someone in need.

Now...a lot of pictures.

We went to the park one day for lunch!

I went through my first aid cabinet as one of the final steps of my whole-house declutter project. I gave the boys some of our excess items and they had fun playing vet the rest of the day! (I also have declared that I am basically done with my house overhaul.)

We stopped for ice cream after our last strings performance in Burlington!

The new swinging bridge at Seth and Brenda's

Lunchtime after Baby Joy! 

Someone got an owie on her nose.

Young couples wiener roast! Matt took the boys there while Joanna and I went to Princeville for Sandi and baby Colt's baby shower.

The second Sunday of September, the Bloomfield church hosted the area churches for a potluck and singing at the old church in Bentonsport. The turnout was very good and it was a nice evening!

The apple cider press is complete and made it through a couple test runs! 

We're trying to get a more efficient process down for "grinding" the apples.

 

The bee project is ongoing...

So far this year, our garden has produced two watermelon and four pumpkins. It seems like the perfect amount of produce to me! Nothing else that I planted came up, and I didn't bother replanting. I took it as a sign that I didn't need a garden this year anyway. :)

I got the basement carpets shampooed because they were very stained and dirty. The guy had a great audience. 

This girl. She apparently forgot to put the lid down before she climbed up to get more toilet paper...

And then I have another problem on my hand called my boys. Not sure what gave them the bright idea, but they have been into pulling off mattresses and bedding lately...

Joanna and Adrienne at Schulz family night!

The kids had fun with all the costumes!

My family took Christmas pictures the next weekend. Levi was suddenly in one of his moods when we got there, so he was frowning in every picture. I'm not going to spoil our Christmas cards by posting the big family pictures, but here are a few of the extras.

This is what Super Daddy looks like. These kids are so blessed.

Then we celebrated September/October birthdays.

One morning the boys walked out carrying the changing pad and told me they were having a funeral.

Cookies with Uncle Jesse!

All the "Grandmas" at Lanz Nauvoo

Levi was sick earlier this week, so I was explaining to him about germs. Then I looked over and Micah was giving his cup to Joanna saying, "Want some germs, Joanna? Here's some germs for you. Drink the germs..." Not sure he got the right message.

I have officially run out of time, so that's all for now. Have a wonderful rest of the month!