Dog Days of Winter

The winter was just too long. We had to implement new activities into the daily routine. Uncle Ryan was kind enough (or just doesn't know it yet) to leave his Wii at our house for a while. Rowan has caught on to the game, but doesn't weigh enough to really play, so Kyle helps him out. It's actually hilarious to watch. They generally do the bike riding or ski jumping on Wii fit.



The sun has finally come out! We took a long run as a family (with Tanner too!) yesterday and have enjoyed the 45 degree weather. It seems like summer compared to the cloudy, snowy days of winter. We are so thankful for the change in seasons as it was draining our spirits to have to endure another day inside :) We have enjoyed mall-walking and grocery runs, but we need a change in scenery.



I have recently switched jobs and will be working only Thursdays for a few months. On Tuesdays and Thursdays Rowan gets to play with Whitney all day! Our calendars are filling up as the spring creeps in and we're excited for all of the great adventures that lie ahead!



Rowan playing dress-up with his new swim trunks, sandals and my shirt :) We might need to invest in some boy costumes :)

Truth in Love

Where do you draw the line between speaking the truth and avoiding the issue? I have to be brutally honest here. I am having a hard time with certain ideas being "acceptable" and Christians worrying more about being tolerant than truthful. We are told over and over again in God's Word to speak the TRUTH in love. Not avoid the truth in hopes that we never hurt anyone's feelings. It's so frustrating for me because I feel like I am stuck in so many circumstances where I should speak the truth IN LOVE, but I end up not saying anything because I might offend someone. For God's sake, SPEAK THE TRUTH. Literally. I'm totally convicting myself, but I hope that more Christians are convicted to speak the truth than to avoid ever confronting anything/anyone because we're afraid of hurt feelings. And the hardest thing is that it is a fine line because we're human, we have no right to judge, and we all need to be accepted... or would like to be anyway. I firmly believe "hate the sin, don't hate the sinner" but I just can't accept the lack of confrontation/accountability in the Christian community. I will be the first one to admit that I am guilty. Any thoughts? Where do we draw the line? Have we gotten too tolerant of sin?

A Few Updates

This winter season has definitely been packed full of adventures and a lot of changes have been happening in our home. Rowan is, of course, the main event these days. Every day is something new and he's constantly learning new words. I keep thinking that this is the best stage ever, but it does keep getting better. This morning we learned the words "moon" and "sky" as it was still dark outside after he finished breakfast and the moon was positioned perfectly outside our big front window. So we stared for a while and learned new words, while Tanner paced continually trying to see what we were looking at. Rowan just had a 15-month check up and measured about 24.8 pounds and 30 or so inches. He's pretty much in the 50th percentile for everything :) We're still waiting on a growth spurt!

Rowan and his friend/neighbor Whitney. Crazy hair before he got his professional haircut :)Always happy in the bath :) Getting ready for lake season- a permanent life-jacket for my half-fish little boy!Playing in the snow! We pulled him all the way down to cousin Brady's house! He loved it! First professional haircut. He did amazing & Kayla was so good! The BOAT show!! Oh my word, he LOVED this place. Could be an annual trip...He said "vroom, vroom" while driving every boat he could get in! Such a great way for us to spend a cold winter day.... daydreaming about the lake :)

You do not have because you do not ask.

Beth Moore writes a bible study called... When Godly people do ungodly things... and I am currently enjoying this study every Wednesday with a group of amazing women. This week's study was on accountability. Well, what I focused on anyway. I have been craving accountability and a "see through life" for some time. I suppose going along with my last post, it's just that I want to live a REAL life. Not some facade that people see and go right by. Beth challenges the readers to become see-through with their accountability partners. Well, first, the challenge is to be vulnerable enough to ask someone to step into your life in that way. Second, you must humble yourself and boldly admit your struggles and successes in life. NOT AN EASY THING TO DO. Believe me. I've had a ton of thoughts go through my head and played the waiting game on certain things and this week was the final nudge (not sure how to spell it) that I needed to move into action. Two of the most inspiring words from this week and what I am now constantly praying for are: discernment and accountability. Look them up. Read what they mean. Study the Bible to see what God says about them. If you're lacking either of them, PRAY for them. And if you don't feel that you need them (which I'm sorry to tell you that you do...) then pray that I gain discernment and accountability in my life. Because I need them. Both. All the time.

Small Talk

I've never been one for small talk. Put me in a room full of people I don't know and I'm bound to be the quiet one. I'm not sure why, but small talk kinda turns me off. It's not that the people are bad or anything, but I always feel like it's uncomfortable and that there's no real purpose. I know it's a way to start relationships and whatnot, but does the person really care how I am doing? I've been in a few situations recently where small talk is the name of the game and it's so AWKWARD for me. It makes me extremely anxious and longing for more, deeper relationships. Ahh, I feel better. Just had to get that off my heart.

Setting goals...

I have committed myself to participating in the 2010 Pokagon Triathlon..... olympic distance. Somewhere around a mile swim (still can't figure out the coversion to meters or yards), 25-mile bike and a 6-mile run. Part of this goal is to make up for the lack of exercise and training from last year when life was really hectic and I failed miserably in the workout department. So, we joined the Y and I am well into training. Ok, so I'm definitely not fast, but I just set time goals in order to accomplish something and feel good about it. Along the same lines, I have set more goals for the new year. I was never one to make a New Year's Resolution and actually KEEP it, but I feel like it's not such a bad idea after all. I need motivation and reminders to make goals a habit but so far it's going well. I will share my NWR to hold myself accountable and to get reminders when I'm not doing a good job.... no gossip and being committed. There you have it. I feel like in this day of cell phones and internet messaging it's SO EASY to not be fully committed. Waking up and feeling like "I don't feel like going out today" or "I would rather do it another day".... I'm so tired of the lack of commitment these days. No more facebook messaging to break plans or a text message to say I'm not showing up because I don't feel like it. Unless sickness or some major conflict arises, my yes is yes and my no is no. Riding the fence is uncomfortable and sometimes rude. No gossip. Well, that's another story. It's SO easy with facebook and blogs, but it's not the purpose of either of them and I remind myself of that daily. So please help keep me accountable. :)

'Tis the Season.... 'Tis the fun.

I can honestly say that I tried to post just after Christmas and my computer was not cooperating. In order to not throw the computer out the window, I decided to step away from it and return later to post. So here I am about 1.5 weeks later. Like most of you, our last few weeks have been jammed full of gatherings, family time, gifts, roadtrips and chasing Rowan. It's kinda crazy for me to think that last year things were a lot different. No moving baby, not much traveling, a lot of sickness, etc. This year was so good in that regard! Besides having to travel a lot (which is fun, but gets old) we were all healthy for the holidays and Rowan was a ton of fun as we opened gifts and gathered with family. I'll get right to the point and start posting pictures that document our holiday weeks. :) The pictures are in backwards order b/c the blog isn't cooperating again with me. Or maybe I'm just that much of an amateur. :( Enjoy!

Capping off a great break with a weekend trip to xcountry ski in Valpo. Great friends, great weekend.

So thankful for the past 8 yrs. A lot of memories have been made!

Rowan banging on pots and pans with his Grandpa Pattison.

Rowan's first time playing in the snow. Kyle pulled him around the yard in his new sled!

Ally, my niece, sporting her new boots I bought her!

Rowan on Christmas morning :) My favorite time....



I can't help but love that face. And his elf outfit!

My handsome nephew Brady & my beautiful, PREGGO, sister Michele. Baby boy Vince to arrive in May :)