Well, my husband received his father's day gift a little early this year. Our oldest little handsome and I picked out one of his gifts together while relaxing and reading before bed. (We kind of have a cute little habit of reading magazine before bed now, in addition to his books, and I love it! The chef-in-training loves looking at recipes, and offers his expertise on how we could make it 'safe' for our cooking.) One day last week, he spotted this book in a circular from Lifeway Christian Bookstore.

                           

source

My husband really enjoys being outdoors, fishing and hunting, and I knew that this would be a book he would read.

After a trip to Lifeway to pick it up, my son could not wait to give it to his daddy! No, we could not wait until next weekend, or even next week! We had to give it right then! In his excitement, our oldest quickly wrote out "Happy Father's Day" on his own little homemade card, and we all presented Daddy with his gift. I also got him a nice 'summery' button down from Lands End Canvas to add with the book. (He can always use a new shirt!)

He loved it!!--book, shirt, and the handmade spellings from our little handsome. Hugs and kisses were also given out with a "Thanks for being a great father" just to top it all off. :)

He was able to read the first story today while waiting for me at an appointment. And he filled me in on all the details...with excitement in his voice. From his reaction, I think my son did a great job picking out a book for his dad! (If you are in need of a book for your outdoors man father, check this one out! He sure seems to like what he's read thus far, and....it's on sale this week at Lifeway for $5.99.)

I will still try to do a little something special for him on Father's Day!

Bird eggs and Mother's Day

Had this post I was going to do for Mother's day, but the time just got away from me. Sorry it's a little late. ;)

Two springs in a row, our house has been a home to mother birds and their eggs. Last year, purple martins built two nest under our deck.

The boys had a blast looking at the eggs every morning, and then loved looking at the tiny baby birds after they hatched.

They would run to the deck first thing in the morning to check up on them!

Night time routine

Our nighttime routine has always been the same: washing up/pjs, teeth, read, pray, and rock (while singing!!).

this is an older picture, but still captures the fun in our little routine

The rocking part is the cuddle time I have with them before bed; not rocking them to sleep, just holding and loving on them. Now that there are no longer the sides of the crib to keep the baby in, both of our little guys like to extend the nighttime routine. Yes, some nights it can get a little late, and everyone is tired and starting to get a bit cranky. But then there are other nights, you would love for it to last forever, just holding and loving on the most precious gifts ever given!

I have always love the singing part, partly because I just love to sing, and then too, because it seems soothing to my little ones! My oldest is beyond the years you would normally think of rocking, but he was my cuddle bug!! I could hold him every time he slept, and as he got older and accustomed to our little habit, it continued for quite some time. There is even the occasional night he comes to me, climbs in my lap, and wants me to sing to him. Just melts a momma's heart! And then there's my baby, who really isn't a baby anymore. He has to have his singing at just the right volume for his cuddle time. "Not too loud" he says with a snarled nose. So I sing softer, right. To which he says "louder" as he nods his head. Ahhh, I love those boys!

But as I sang and rocked to both last night, I thought about the songs that each loved to hear, and how special the songs have become to us. I don't wanna forget these!! So, here's a list of the most memorable songs we sang, and still sing today (and you have to remember that children like familiar things, so often times, it the same songs over and over!...thus the reason for feeling they've become so special)

These are just the naptime/bedtime songs, because sometimes we just sing all day around here! :)

My oldest:

• Jesus Love Me
• Jesus Loves the Little Children
• Somewhere over the Rainbow
• Nana's song (as he calls it. It is a song my mom used to always sing in church, so when I told him that, it just became "Nana's song". But the actual title is Talk to my Father)
• Pa Jody's song (another situation as above...New Kid in Town). This became a favorite during Christmas seasons, and then stuck around for a while)
• Raindrops on Roses (from the Sound of Music)
• I am a Promise (children's song I sang when I was a child, and now sing to my boys. And both love this one)

The baby:

• Jesus Loves Me
• Jesus Love the Little Children (as you can see, I love these classic children's Bible songs for them!)
• You are so Beautiful
• I am a Promise
• Somewhere over the Rainbow
• Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire (which is actually called the Christmas Song, I think??? But you can see this one developed during the Christmas season)
• Deep and Wide
• B-I-B-L-E

and I almost forgot, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star! That was/is a frequent song on the playlist for both.

There were and are many others that we sing too, but these are the favorites that have been sang countless times.

(sighing and smiling) It makes my heart smile to think about these precious moments we have spent together!

-Cindy

Fun times!

Kids eating=messy kitchen floors! :)

So, while wiping up the floors today (on my hands and knees....I know, the broom might be easier to some, but this way is just quicker and easier for me...it's the way I've always done it), my littlest handsome comes over and climbs on my back for piggy back ride. He's laughing, and I'm stuck under the table because I can't get him to climb down. :) He loves it!

You can see just how much fun he was having with his pappaw during a recent visit.

Plumeria

We have a plumeria plant that we bought in Hawaii 7 yrs ago on our honeymoon. :) We planted it in a large pot that sits on our patio. While it goes dormant every winter, summer brings flowers are always a treat. Every time I smell them it takes me back! Ahh...

Well, my little boy picked me one today....it smelled great.

They are so sweet smelling! If you've ever been to Hawaii, then you know plumeria trees are everywhere! Beautiful! And you could probably appreciate the beauty of having a plumeria flower to put in your hair, even if you are hundreds of miles away! :)

Happy Saturday!
Cindy