Teeth, Love Lump, Australia, Decks and more

All weekend Dominic, Isaac and my dad have been working on building us a new deck. It is a beauty and coming along nicely. I know they wish it was done already but they have the railing and steps to do and we can finally, safely enjoy some quality time outside on it! I am so excited to see it completed. Thanks dad for being willing to make this project possible and mom for letting dad be away from home for 2 days!

Today I decided that Gabriel and I needed a little "alone" time together so we arranged for grandma to watch Elijah so that we could come to Sioux Falls and find new shoes and a backpack for school. Right before we left I was helping Gabriel brush his teeth and he was complaining that his tooth hurt. I looked inside and noticed that not one but two teeth are wiggly and you can see one of the new teeth coming in behind. Needless to say Gabriel is so excited and can't wait to see what will happen with it!

As we drove to Sioux Falls Gabriel started doing this strange counting. He started at his feet by his ankles and counted up to the top of his head. He then exclaims "18 licorice whips long mom". What?? So I ask him to repeat himself and he says the same thing again. Not sure where this came from but he proceeds to count his legs and his arms. I am afraid to share that Gabriel is quite out of proportion because his right arm, from the wrist to the elbow is 13 licorice whips long and the left is 10. Compared to the entire 18 for his whole body he must have enormous arms!

Our little "love lump" as Grandpa Johnson calls Elijah has colic. Most nights he cries for up to 3 hours at a time. Usually it is a little over an hour but a few nights ago it was 3. I feel so bad for him when this is happening because you would really think he is in pain during that time. We struggle to try and console him and often the best I can do is sit with him in my lap singing "You are my sunshine" and rocking him. The carrier we have also works and I have him in it tonight. At least then I have use of my hands! But he will sleep for awhile and I can sit and once he starts fussing I have to walk around with him. The good news is that this period of the evening wears him out and he has been sleeping for up to 4 hours for the first part of the night. Please pray that we can all get on a good schedule before I have to return to work in 3 weeks - that is my biggest concern right now!

On Saturday we got some exciting information in the mail. Isaac has been selected to participate in the People to People ambassador program and has been invited to spend a portion of his summer in Australia next year! Can you believe that? Where were these trips when I was in school?! At this point we don't know much and have a parent meeting in late August to find out more details and how much this will cost. Isaac is REALLY excited and is hoping we can make it happen and we are so very proud of him that he is eligible for an opportunity like this one!

We are very excited about the upcoming week because my brother Mark and his wife Mindi are flying from CA for a visit! They are coming Wednesday and staying until Saturday and we are excited for them to meet Elijah. Also my grandparents are coming down for the weekend to see both babies for the first time too!

And finally I want to leave you with a little something that came to my mind a few nights ago. I was driving home from Sioux Falls one evening and for this huge stretch of road I noticed that there were thousands of lightening bugs in the ditches around the interstate. It was probably one of the most beautiful things I have seen because all of these little lights were flashing all around me and seemed to be lighting my way home. I started thinking about the lightening bug - if you have ever caught one and looked at it you will know that they aren't very "pretty" bugs. What bugs are - I know. But for something that produces such a beautiful, neon glow you would think it would be nicer to look at. But it isn't. And I thought isn't that a lot like I often perceive myself? I have always wanted to be more beautiful, never satisfied with how I looked and how often do we strive for this image of perfection that we see in all the celebrities? But what is really important in this life? Being one of the world's "Most Beautiful People" or being a light in a dark world? I would hope that like the lightening bug I am shining a light. That the light of God can be seen from me in a world that at times seems so dark. And that regardless of how I feel about my "outsides", I can find contentment in striving to be the best "light" that I can be to those around me. "This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine....."