Allergy Season in Central Oregon

I have to preface this post with an apology to Tahlia for exposing her misery, however, I couldn't help but think of Will Smith in the movie "Hitch" when I looked at her. This time every year we seem to get hit with allegies, but obviously Tahlia suffers the most. Below is a picture of her allergic reaction (to pollen I think?) I wish I had a photo from the previous day, much worse . . . would have been better for the blog!

Now for those of you who have not seen "Hitch" click on the link below to see how I draw the comparison.

images.search.yahoo.com/search/images;_ylt=A0S0201VGiJKIFYApbqJzbkF?p=will+smith+hitch+allergic+reaction+image&fr=yfp-t-501&ei=utf-8&x=wrt

Although, I find the whole thing amusing, please know allergy medicine does amazing things. She is much better now. I thank Tahlia immensely for her sense of humor and her joy even when feeling miserable.

Bedtime Fun

We put Tahlia and Mikaela to bed about 8 pm every night. Rarely do they fall asleep straight away, but I love how their relationship grows each night as they talk and play on their beds. I know some parents are firm on having their kids go to sleep, and not come out of the room once they are tucked in, but I clearly remember my childhood, and the bonding time I had with my brother when we were supposed to be sleeping.

I love the laughing, singing, and storytelling that occurs as soon as we walk out of the room (we know this because we have kept a baby monitor in their room for our listening pleasure). I'm not really frustrated by the need to get drinks of water 14 separate times a night, or the statement "I just wanted to kiss you one more time" uttered on multiple occasions in a night, or the sudden urge to go pee six times in an hour. However, the last few nights have been a little crazy. Here are the highlights of our last several weeks:

Walking in and finding Mikaela asleep on the foot of Tahlia's bed.

Walking in and finding the pajamas they were wearing an hour ago are now being worn by their stuffed animals.

Walking in at 9 pm and finding them both standing on their bed wearing nothing but panties and who knows what they were playing. At 10 pm I checked again and was advised they would be staying up all night long, to which I replied "great, if you do you can have candy for breakfast." (Both fell asleep by 10:30 and had oatmeal in the morning!)

And then tonight, Mikaela walked out and told Ashley, "Mama. Tahlia's asleep and I want her to wake up so I can have lots of fun."

I wonder what the boys will be like in a couple of years?

Our Crazy Girls!

A Lunchtime Treat!

I have the privilege of working in the city we live in, and therefore I often try to get home and have lunch with the family. The picture below is what I was privileged to come home to, the whole family on the front porch! They were so cute I had to snap a photo (which is saying a lot, since I rarely photograph anything!).

It reminds me of that country song by Lonestar, From My Front Porch Looking In. Several other things also crossed my mind as I pulled into the driveway and saw them all sitting there. First, I thought "wow, our family seems huge." Secondly, I thought "wow, Ashley's job is huge." She is an incredible mother, and if you know our kids then you know Ashley is doing an amazing job! On this upcoming Mother's Day I thank the Lord for a mother who modeled biblical womanhood as I grew up, and I thank the Lord for His provision of my wife - who loves me selflessly, and who is rearing our children to be set apart for the glory of God.