My Christmas Angels!

Oh, How My Babies Have Grown!

Jonathan 2 weeks & Michael 20 months
Having some fun under the Christmas tree.

My favorite picture of Jonathan at exactly 2 weeks old!

MD's first Christmas at 8 months.

Here are some pictures of the boys the last two Christmases. Every stage of their development is such a precious treasure. I'm so thankful to the Lord for these little...I mean big blessings.

A New Baby Girl Fleming Is Born!

Charis Noelle Fleming was born December 19, 2008 at 7:54 am. She was 8.3 pounds and 21 inches long. She is a beautiful little girl! I am so thankful to the Lord for this miracle and especially that I was able to witness her coming into this world. She is a testiment to God's goodness and faithfulness, as Joshua and Joanna have waited for this blessing for 6 years. Praise the Lord!

Thanksgiving 2008

We had a great time having the Edgren and Fleming families under one roof this year. My mom was crazy enough to take on the task, but I'm so grateful she did. It was a blessed day with great fellowship and lots of yummy food. We also went ahead and stuck Jonathan's birthday in the mix even though it was a week early. He was hilarious squishing and smearing his cupcake everywhere...including my mom's hair as she was attempting to clean up some of the mess before the coast was clear.

The Mullet is Finally Gone!

Jonathan was really cute and well behaved for his first haircut! I think the animal crackers definitely helped!

I'm wondering....

is it normal for children to go through a phase where they get completely naked?? Michael David has started stripping down to his birthday suit and keeps surprising me. Although, it was kind of funny the first couple times, it can be quite annoying after already getting him dressed for the day. He seems to always want his Thomas the Train pajamas and is indescriminate about the time of day in which this takes place. That boy never ceases to amaze me! Here's a picture I finally caught of him walking around. He was very emphatic about needing his Thomas pjs.

I tag....

Evie, Kerry and Kelly to write about six things you're learning.

6 Things I'm Learning....

I've been tagged by my friend Rachel to write about 6 things I've been learning lately.

1. I've missed teaching more than I thought. Last Saturday someone asked me if I missed teaching and without hesitation I said, "No!" I love staying home with my boys and wouldn't trade it! Jon and I kept nursery for the twos and threes on Sunday and I had the best time interacting with a small group of children, reading, singing and talking to them about Jesus. The Lord has also taken this love of teaching and allowed me to apply it to Michael David (now that he's old enough). It's been especially rewarding to teach him about God's word and have him understand. Yesterday during breakfast, with his Gideon Bible in hand, he turned around in his chair and told his brother, "This says, 'Moses walked over da Red Sea, Jon Jon!'" He also told me the other day, "Mommy, the bush was on fire, but it did not burn up."

2. That leads to my next item. I must continually take note of God's blessings each and every day. I can so easily become discouraged by MD's disobedience or a cranky, sick baby. But when I shift my focus to what God has and is doing, my attitude quickly becomes one of thanksgiving.

3. My gratitude should also translate into doing things for others and asking, looking for opportunities to be a witness for Him. I have a long way to go on this one, but giving of myself even when I least feel like it also takes the focus off of the difficult days/myself.

4. Being more thrifty is part of my contribution to my family. Jon works so hard to provide for us in order to let me stay home with my sweet boys. He has helped me be more conscious of prices and looking for good deals. I used to laugh at him for buying things just because they were on sale even if we didn't need them. But he's taught me how to be more on a budget and it's actually fun looking for ways to save money for my family.

5. My evenings go much more smoothly if I prepare dinner, cut up food for the baby and set the table during afternoon naps. Five to six o'clock seems to be the busiest and craziest hour of all: Jon getting home, cranky, hungry kids, etc. My house is more of a haven (and I'm much more patient) when I plan ahead and expect the insane to occur during this time.

6. God is continually giving me an eternal perspective and teaching me to daily...and moment by moment surrender all of my wants, selfish ambitions and in turn gain a Holy Spirit empowered/ driven life. May He help me have His perspective, thoughts, words and actions throughout all of my days.

I think I must add a 7th one just for fun: Dove has come out with an icecream called Unconditional Chocolate. I told Jon to surprise me with the kind he picked out at the store. When he arrived home with this and I was able to try some...YUMMMM! Yes, I get excited about icecream! Please try some if you love chocolate and icecream. Tote delish!

Two Fun Weekends

Last weekend we had a wonderful adventure camping in Brevard, NC with Nee Nee, Poppy, Uncle Joshua and Aunt Joanna. Jon is the type who wonders why anyone would ever sleep in tents when one could rent a hotel and sleep in a BED. Those kinds of comments are on the verge of being sacreligious in my family, since my dad is a manager at The Backpacker! We ended up not getting very much sleep but still had a great time hiking, feeding fish at the fish hatchery and just talking & eating by our tents. I'm glad Jon gave it a chance and I think I even heard him say he may do it again. :0)

Today Jonathan and I went to a birthday party for my friend Kerry's son, Brennan. He and Jonathan are just 7 weeks apart. Brennan is such a ham and just the spitting image of his daddy! I think Jonathan and Brennan will be the best of friends just like their mommas. The pictures of them loving on each other are so sweet!

Michael & Jonathan at 2 1/2 & 10 months

Swinging at Nee Nee and Poppy's.

MD after Chick-fila Family Night...we can't believe he let the girl paint his face!

A classic moment of MD making Jonathan laugh.

Yesterday MD turned 2 1/2 and today Jonathan is 10 months. They continue to grow and change every day. Michael David continually cracks Jonathan up and their new favorite is imitating each other. Michael spits and then Jonathan spits. Jonathan is getting stronger and really does want to run around with his big brother. Soon enough!! He's cruising quite a bit now. He's done with baby food...only wants the real stuff and really does eat more than MD right now. Michael loves running, jumping, blowing bubbles, holding balloons, looking at hot air balloons from a NM website, singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Jesus Loves Me, Zaccheus and many more.

Baby Girls Are So Much Fun!!

Today my mom, Kelly and I threw a baby shower for our daughter/sister, Joanna. It was so much fun decorating with pink, especially when you're used to everything blue! We can't wait to meet Charis Noel Fleming in December. YAY!

3 Favorites: Baskin Robins, Praying & American Flags

Michael, Nee Nee and I went to Baskin Robins for dollar scoop night on Tuesday. I've taken Michael one other time and he just had a ball having one on one attention. He loves "banilla" with sprinkles, and of course wanted to keep picking out the pink ones to eat. I think his favorite part is walking around when it's dark outside because he's rarely up that late. He loves the moon and touching the lights on the bushes. Afterwards, we walked...I mean ran (at his request) holding his hands up and down the sidewalk peering into little shops. One of the sweetest things for me was listening to him pray for Jonathan on the way to get icecream. Before we left I had to get something in the house and noticed JA was not falling asleep but rather screaming his little head off...which is unusual. When I got back to the car Mom and I prayed that he would calm down. Then Michael prayed in a quiet voice three more times, "Dear Jesus, help Jon Jon sleep. Be okay. Amen." Before we arrived to BR I called to check on JA and he was asleep. It was neat being able to share with MD how God had answered his request.

One thing MD and I try to do is find all the American flags when can when driving. Well, yesterday he found one and exclaimed, "Mommy, Amer flag! It's too beeeaaauuutiful, Mommy!" I wish you could hear how he said beautiful. Beautiful and delicious are my two favorite words that he says.

Playing at Poppy & Nee Nee's House

Sugar & Chalk & Everything....NOT nice!

Well, this has been quite a week filled with destruction. I've noticed a pattern that when Michael David gets sick he seems to go into destructive mode. He gets really bad sores all over his body from eczema and seems to be hyper-active b/c when he sits he cries and itches non-stop.

He came downstairs to find Jonathan and me playing and said, "Mommy, Michael made a mess." I asked what he did and he proceeded to say, "Michael spilled salt in the kitchen." I knew right then it had to be the sugar I left out on the counter for my morning coffee. I told him that if he dumped it out on the floor that he would get a spanking b/c we've talked about these kinds of things before (his past time favorite is going into the pantry, retrieving cereal boxes and dumping them out on the floor). He then ran up the stairs and when Jonathan and I found him, he was trying to clean up all the sugar with his play shovel. Really, he was just spreading it all over the floor. "Michael clean up!" he exclaimed. Later that same day he confessed to drawing on the wall with chalk and on my parents' oven with crayon. Yesterday, I thought he was playing nicely downstairs but then heard him in the bathroom trying to flush the toilet. I found the whole roll of toilet paper in the toilet and the water just about to overflow onto the ground. Yes, I had to reach in that nasty toilet to save myself from an even bigger clean up! Friday night Jon also found a puzzle letter in the CF slot of our computer. It will have to be retrieved by a professional...Jon pushed it farther up when trying to get it out. Let's just say mommy had to pray a lot this week for patience in training and disciplining!

Sweet Moments

MD has always been a challenging child. That's why it's so precious to see God changing his little heart even now at 2 1/2 . Even though these moments are sometimes very short lived, I don't want to forget and take note of God's blessings.

Listening to Michael play in his room right now...
"I'm sorry Jesus. Make Jesus sad. Make Jesus happy!" (not sure what he did to make Jesus sad...he seemed to confess it and turn away from it though!)
"Be sweet to the puppy. Pat the puppy. Go to sleep puppy." (whispering to the stuffed puppy he was holding)
"Twinkle, twinkle little moon, Mommy!" (on being proud of the fact he made up a "new" version of the song)

What a treasure he is. How I pray the Lord takes hold of his heart and uses all of MD's energy for furthuring His kingdom.

Car Talk... Going to jail & Electing Barack Obama???

Yesterday on the way to Piggly Wiggly Michael exclaimed, "Michael going to jail!" I asked him why, but he kept right on, "Policeman come get you...gonna give you a ticket!" I again asked, "Why, Michael? What happened?" He answered sadly, "Michael naughty. Hit Jon Jon." I then thought of Daddy's conversation with Michael when he got out of his bed the night before. Jon thought it would be funny to tell Michael if he got out of bed that the policeman was going to come get him and take him to jail. Guess this line of thought transferred onto being ugly to his brother. HA!

Then, on the way home from lunch with Aunt Joanna and Uncle Joshua, Michael kept saying, "Mama, Marack Omama!" At lunch Joshua taught his nephew to tell me the name, Barack Obama. Well, since everyone (including me) laughed, Michael just kept right on hamming it up. On the way home he wouldn't stop saying these new funny words! Finally, I said, "Michael, ..." and he finished my sentence by saying, "you too much!"

Fort Swimming!

Aunt Kim, Ye Ye and the kiddos

Today, Ye Ye took us to Fort Jackson to swim. When we arrived a bunch of soldiers were undergoing training exercises in the pool. Thankfully, we were able to jump and play in the kiddy pool, and Ye Ye treated us to a Burger King lunch. There's nothing like a good Whopper on a hot summer day! Thank you, Ye Ye!

The Zoo...I'm no poser!

We had an adventure at Riverbank Zoo & Garden today. It was fun taking the boys now that both can enjoy different aspects. Michael David was enthralled by the birds you can feed. One landed right on the back of his shoulder! He gave Daddy a plesant surprise...a nectar filled shirt! MD and Jon Jon loved listening to the monkeys yelling back and forth to each other. You'll notice in most of the pictures MD is doing something crazy. It's so hard to get a good picture of him because he always seems to be on the move.

My two boys...

Jonathan turned 9 months old yesterday! He's such a delight, although he's teething at the moment and has been quite fussy this week. Jon Jon, as Michael calls him, is content to sit and play with toys set before him. He does enjoy a change of scenery, but it's funny b/c his brother was never content to be still. Michael's just now starting to play by himself for 10 minutes at a time. They are so different in looks and personalities.

MD has very fair skin, blonde hair, light blue eyes and a long, muscular body. He's been into everything going one hundred miles an hour from day one. I think he'll acheive a lot with all of his energy! He started out as a serious child and was always wary of strangers or faces he hadn't seen in a while. Even though MD has always been active, he is cautious (which I'm thankful for...it scares him to go toward roads or crossings without holding my hand). He is now a really funny little boy and loves joking around, just like his daddy.

Jonathan has a medium complexion, brown hair, dark blue eyes, and a long, chunky body...although I don't notice that he's long b/c he's soooo fat! He is content to sit, watch and giggle at MD...yes, he's 9 months old and doesn't crawl yet. My neighbor was shocked that he can't rise to a sitting position or crawl. I told her my doctor doesn't seem to be worried. He told me at his 6 month visit, "If you were that fat and long would you be able to role over easily?" I'm convinced he'll walk before he crawls. He likes to stand and cruise around a bit...but not much. I think Jonathan's favorite thing to do is talk. He loves to babble and tell you his opinion on things. He gets this serious look on his face and goes on about things...who knows what! Michael and I just look at each other and laugh, and then Jonathan goes crazy too.

My boys are such a joy even though some weeks and days are harder and more challenging than others. I can't imagine my life without them!

Summer of Cousins

We have had a blast playing with all of our cousins this summer. First, in June, we went to the beach with my whole family. Michael & Jonathan loved playing with their grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. It was great having Gabe, Kelly and the girls visit from NM! It's also been so nice to have Aunt Kim and Uncle Andy and their 4 (soon to be 5) children move closer...they used to live all the way out in...Irmo! We usually get to see them at least once a week now. We are mostly excited about our new baby girl cousin. Uncle Joshua and Aunt Joanna are expecting Charis in December. She is a little miracle, and we praise the Lord for giving her to all of us. Michael David can't wait to meet her! I must note he's jealous of all the pink things she's receiving. If you give him a choice of color he says, "Michael wants pink, pweese!" On Fridays we now have our cousin, Emma Rose, coming over. She is the biggest helper and loves the boys.