an oldie {needing a little help}

I was looking through some old posts and came across this one that I wrote for Ashley's 10 in 10 series a year and a half ago. This post was pre-Griffin and Levi was just a baby himself. It is crazy how different life is now! I hope you enjoy this oldie. Have a great weekend!

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Do you have a little helper around your house? I do. His name is Levi. Levi is nine months old and he *thinks* he can help his mama with everything. It seems he is always by my side. And if he is not by my side, he is sitting on my feet, crawling up my pant leg, or wiping Cheerio slobber on the shoulder of my clean shirt. But I wouldn't have it any other way. 

As moms we often long for a little time to ourselves or even just an hour of quiet. I do too (because I'm only human you know). But over the past two years I have learned a lot about cherishing the everyday moments. There are amazing moments like when I first heard the words ma-ma again...this time coming out of Levi's mouth. There are difficult moments like when my little guy decided that standing up in his crib and screaming was more fun than taking naps. And there are moments that can be exhausting, like when my helper comes along and whatever I am trying to do takes twice as long. But, these are the moments I love. The everyday moments.

So in sticking with Ashley's 10 in 10 theme, I thought I'd let you peek into some of our everyday moments to see ten ways my little guy is so helpful...

He helps me wake up in the morning--sometimes a little earlier than I had planned. But, I would rather wake up to this sweet face peeking through the slats of his crib over the annoying beeping of an alarm clock any day.

He helps me get ready. No long, relaxing showers for this mama. Can you relate? My little guy is usually at my feet as I scramble to find ways to keep him busy and try to fix my desperately needing to be washed hair.

He helps me do the dishes. I think Levi is as amazed by our new dishwasher as I am. Yes, having a dishwasher is a new thing for us. I just have to be careful not to wash his toys along with the dishes!

He helps me feel like an amazing cook. This is the face I get when his bowl is empty. Apparently the way I prepare his squash is so fantastic that he wants more ALL THE TIME. Or else he is just a really hungry little big boy!

He helps me in the yard. Levi LOVES to be outside. And he loves to crawl around and pick up anything he can find. I am suddenly becoming a pro at digging things out of his mouth...and prying dirt out from under his fingernails. He is all boy.

He helps me put away his clothes. Sometimes I end up refolding the clothes three times. Sometimes we end up with a bigger mess than we started with. But we have fun doing something mundane together.

He helps keep me company in the car. I love peeking over my shoulder and seeing his eyes peering around his car seat when I am talking to him. He is a great traveling buddy.

He helps me do the grocery shopping. I'm pretty sure he likes Walmart more than I do. And usually by the time we make it back to the front of the store, he has managed to eat my grocery list. Nice.

He helps me keep his daddy entertained in the evenings. I think they are going to be good buddies. And pretty soon I am going to have to watch out because now I have two ornery boys in the house.

He helps bring me to my knees. Being a mom is one of the most challenging yet amazing jobs I have ever had. And there is nothing like a child to cause you to fall on your knees at the feet of our Heavenly Father pleading for help. Sometimes I get so overwhelmed with my responsibility as a mom. It is a job that no matter how good my intentions, or how hard I try, I can't do on my own. I will get tired. I will get frustrated. I will mess up. I need the help of my Heavenly Father. And I need it everyday.

I lift my eyes to the hills--

where does my help come from?

My help comes from the LORD,

the Maker of heaven and earth.

Psalm 121:1-2

Our children are an incredible gift, entrusted to us by the Lord. Will you seek His help today for whatever challenges you are facing with your little ones? And as Ashley reminded us a few weeks ago, don't forget to celebrate the everyday mundane moments.

griffin {seven months}

Dear Griffin,

Month seven has been a big turning point around here. I think we are finally figuring each other out...or at least I am finally figuring you out! :) This month has marked big milestones, finally getting on a schedule and more sleep. Yay! 

Sleeping. We are finally doing more of that around here. In fact you have even slept through the night a few nights which has been such a gift to your mama. You are definitely not consistently sleeping through the night, but when you do wake up it is usually only once or twice. I can deal with that. You are also taking more consistent naps. We had to do some sleep training and Levi and I had to plug our ears while you cried yourself to sleep...but everyone is so much happier now! You are taking two naps and the second one even overlaps with your brother's nap...awesome.

Eating. You had a rough start with solids. You refused to eat cereal or vegetables. You wouldn't even open your little mouth. I finally decided to throw in a few fruits and it did the trick. Now you will eat anything and you eat a lot. You definitely let us know when you are hungry. And puffs are your favorite. You get so mad when you realize you have eaten all your puffs and your tray is empty. 

Sitting. You were so wobbly for a long time because you wouldn't sit still. Now you are sitting up like a champ. You love to sit in the living room and play while watching your crazy brother run all around. You also love sitting in the walker. You just started scooting yourself around the house a little. You are sitting up in the bathtub and highchair too.

Teeth. Yep, you have two teeth now. Maybe that had something to do with how cranky you were last month...and maybe how little you were sleeping too??

Waving. One of your first "tricks" was waving. You waved at your cousin Ellie but I thought it was just a fluke. But the next day you waved at your gramps. I can't always get you to wave back, but you are definitely waving!

I am so thankful for the changes this month has brought along with it. Getting more sleep has definitely been a bonus too. But most of all I am just so thankful for you. 

Love, Mama

And we can't forget the monthly picture.

Levi was trying to help me get Griffin to smile. He was doing a pretty good job until Griffin found the 7 month flash card. Then it was all over. He either wanted to be eating the flash card or would roll over to his tummy. Levi even tried to throw in a snake for a little entertainment...he thought it was a great idea.

 He was pretty much done with the photo shoot here...and then the fun began.

 Levi loves to play with Griffin in his crib. Usually he attempts some type of wrestling so close adult supervision is definitely required.

 You would think Griffin would not like to be mauled by his brother...but he loves it. He just laughs and laughs.

Griffin watches Levi so closely. Seven months has also brought along with it lots of fun with his brother!

sarah + abraham winners {finally}

I have been googling, searching through Blogger forums, emailing smart blogging friends, talking to my blog designer and no one seemed to know how to fix my comment problem. I really can't believe that I can't do anything to see all the comments again...but it is what it is. A few days ago I had a very smart blog reader ask me if I had tried looking under customize, published comments. Of course, I hadn't. And of course I could see all the comments that way. Thank you, Marsha! This definitely was not an easy or fast way to pick the winners, but it worked for now. In the mean time, I have been working on some blog changes that will be coming soon...and allow me to host more giveaways AND see the comments!

So, I know you have been dying to know who the winners are:

The winner of the 2 plate + bowl sets is:

I love the olliegraphic prints and also the plates and bowls. Cute stuff! -65 Roses for Marcia

The winner of the 4 placemats is:

I don't even know where to start. Everything is on my wish list! I'd say the pillow is probably my favorite, then the print. I have lots of friends having kids and this would be the PERFECT shower present! -Kathryn Jasper 

Congratulations! If that is you...hopefully it was worth the long wait! Please send me an email and I will get you in contact with Sara.

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So, since I am making some big changes to this little blog...is there anything you would like me to add/change...any information that I don't have that would be helpful to you...any tabs/buttons that would make it easier to look around?? Now is the time to give your suggestions! What do you want to see?

watching the garden grow

We planted our garden this weekend. Levi has been helping his papa in the garden for several weeks now, so he is really into gardening. The weather was beautiful...it got me really excited about our garden and all the fresh vegetables we will soon be picking. Hopefully that excitement will last long enough to get through those hot summer days when I need to be pulling weeds and watering. :)

We planted sweet corn, potatoes, onions, tomatoes, peppers, jalapenos, cucumbers...and I am hoping to plant a few more things in the next couple weeks. We planted everything on Saturday. On Sunday while we were outside Levi pushed Griffin over to the garden to check on his plants.

 Then he pushed him back over to the house.

 And back to the garden again.

 Levi talked to Griffin about going to the garden and all the plants while he pushed. He was just talking away. I love listening to the conversations that Levi has with Griffin. Won't Levi be surprised when Griffin can actually talk back...hopefully he will let his brother get a word in!

 He parked Griffin right on the edge of the garden so he could see.

 Then he walked to the very edge and put his hands behind his back as he looked. It was so funny. We have had many talks about how we can't play in the dirt or ride his four wheeler through the garden any more. Bummer. It is hard work keeping your two year old away from the plants so they can actually grow!

 Levi wanted to put dirt instead of water on our new plants. He thought it would help them grow bigger.

 Each plant got a little handful of dirt and then it was back to pushing his brother again.

(Can you see Joel's "big garden" in the background? His corn is just coming up. Levi checks on it everyday too.)

Griffin loved riding to the garden...Levi kept him quite entertained as they watched the garden grow together.

**For those of you who are wondering...No, my boys do not usually where nice clothes to play outside and tromp through the garden. We were just lazy and hadn't changed out of our church clothes yet! :)

four wheelin'

This little four wheeler has been on loan to us from some sweet friends. It is the best toy that Levi has and we didn't even have to buy it! He seriously rides it ALL THE TIME. We are constantly plugging it in to charge the battery. We were joking the other day that we are going to end up buying a new four wheeler for our friends when they need it back AND buy the boys their own four wheeler. Levi has definitely put the miles on this one. Lately he has been riding the fields to check out the growing corn...just like Daddy.

 But someone else in our house discovered the four wheeler the other day. I plopped him on the four wheeler while Levi was off playing somewhere else in the yard and he thought he was such a big boy. Pretty soon Levi noticed and he wanted to ride too.

 Levi told Griffin that it was actually HIS four wheeler.

 Then he tried to show him how to make it go.

And I'm really not sure what he was doing here...I had to intervene quickly. Let's just pretend it was a little brotherly love.

 Levi moved on to something else and Griffin got to try riding solo again.

I think he preferred riding by himself. Maybe because he didn't have to worry about any surprise attacks from behind!

I have a feeling four wheelers are going to be a major part of my life for a very long time. If Levi isn't riding around our yard, he is begging to ride the real four wheeler at the farm with his daddy. My boys love to go four wheelin' (and that includes the big boy in my house too!).

Have a great weekend!

puffs

Can you believe how big he looks sitting up in the highchair? Me neither. All of a sudden Griffin is seeming like such a big boy. Keep your eyes on the cute baby...just pretend you don't notice the very dirty floor. It looks like I should add sweeping to my to-do list tomorrow.

All of the kids have had sweet potato puffs for their first finger food. Cora loved these things. She went through many, many cans. It was awhile before we let her have Cheerios. I was a first time mom and was so worried about her choking. I'm pretty sure that Levi only got one can of sweet potato puffs and then it was straight to Cheerios for him. He ate tons of Cheerios...and they were much cheaper.

We will see how long Griffin gets the special puffs over Cheerios. He sure likes the puffs.

And they keep him busy for a really, really long time...at least a long time for him. Thanks to the puffs I might actually start getting something done around here. Maybe I should start with sweeping. :)

Don't you love how the puffs stick all over their face and hands when they are first learning to eat? So cute. I thought Levi might want to eat Griffin's puffs too, but he informed me that they were baby food and he was a big boy. He told me that big boys eat pizza and apples and ice cream (it's from his I'm a Big Brother book). But the funny thing is that he doesn't even like ice cream! :)

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A few people were asking about the sara + abraham giveaway. I have not been able to come up with a solution to the comments problem...seriously, no one seems to know what to do. Isn't that crazy?! Right now it is looking like I might have to do some major blog changes which will take me a little while. But hopefully in the end I will be able to see all the comments and finally chose the winners. And then I can host more great giveaways too! I am so, so sorry about the LONG wait. Thanks for being patient with me.

sitting at the park

**We are safe. Thank you to those who left a comment or sent an email to check on us after the tornadoes. It was definitely crazy weather here in Kansas. We are so thankful for the Lord's protection and are praying for those who are dealing with the aftermath of the many tornadoes this weekend.

Before grocery shopping one day last week, we took a little trip to the park.

Going to the park is a big treat for Levi. We don't go into town very often just to go the park.

 Don't feel bad for Levi. Instead of playing at the park he is usually busy driving tractors with his daddy or riding his four wheeler through the fields. You know, normal kid things.

But when we do make it to the park, Levi thinks it is pretty great. He was running and climbing everywhere.

 And Griffin was just chillin' in his car seat watching his crazy brother run circles around him.

But that didn't last long. Griffin got tired of being trapped in his seat, so I plopped him down on the ground and he was a happy little boy.

 This was one of the first times he had sat up by himself for a long time without toppling over.

He was smiling and talking away. I think he likes the park too.

Before I know it he is going to be chasing his brother around the park. They both will be running circles around me. I hope he stays immobile for just a little while longer. I'm okay with just sitting at the park.

 Have a good week!