Just a random pic

This is not really for any real reason, I just LOVE this picture, and now that I've finally figured out how to upload them (and I've finally gotten our pics off of our camera and onto a disc) I just feel like posting a random picture! So, here you go- this was taken in August, we all went to Ski Beach and Brayden rode his bike all over the place and we played on the playground... It was a lot of fun...

My kids love HORSES!

Last Tuesday my mom, kids, and I went up to Descanso to my friend Gillian's house to take the boys horseback riding... Selah had never even seen a horse before, and she was so brave- she kept reaching out to try and stick her fingers in Robin's (the horse's name) nose! Josiah was fine until the neighbor's horse came up to the fence and breathed on his neck... After that it was all over- anytime the horse came near him, he would scream his head off... But what was weird is that after all that, he still was brave enough to actually get on the horse's back and ride! And of course Brayden had the best time, he's always been my little cowboy... What I didn't get a picture of (I'm so bummed!) is the boys riding in the wheelbarrow filled with hay to feed the horses, and then feeding them hay from their hands... Even Josiah was doing it, because somehow, after he rode Robin, he wasn't afraid at all anymore... We had so much fun! (That's Gillian in the picture with Brayden)

Josiah's CT Scan

Josiah had his CT scan at Children's Hospital yesterday... He did so good! We had to wait for about 2 hours before his appointment, and he was just playing and running around like crazy, in the best mood... Then when it was time to take him in for the CT scan, I laid him on the table, and asked him if he wanted to go night-night, and he said "yeah, mommy, I wanna go ni-nite!" He laid down like a big boy and picked what flavor he wanted in his mask- he picked strawberry... And just laid there till the excitement phase kicked in, where he started fighting it a little bit... Then he just fell asleep! Before he fell asleep, I heard him yell to me through the mask, "Mommy! I got Stawblelly!!" He woke up pretty quickly, and we were able to go home 30 minutes later... God totally answered our prayers- I wanted it to be no anxiety for him, I asked that he would be safe, and that we could get out of there quickly... And the Lord answered EVERY prayer! The nurses and even the anesthesiologist couldn't believe how calm he was! And the first thing he did when he woke up was ask for a popsicle!

@#%@#!!!!

I bet you'd never guess how dangerous a simple rhyming game could be... Let me just tell you... The kids and I were sitting around on Saturday, when Brayden asked me if I wanted to play a rhyming game. I said, "sure, how do you play?" And Brayden told me that we take turns giving a word and the other person has to find words that rhyme... Simple enough, right??

We went through several sets of words, and then when it was my turn again, I said "duck..." To which Brayden said, "Guck..." So I nicely told him how silly he is and how "guck" isn't a word... So he said, "okay, F@#%!" I just about peed my pants trying not to let on to what a bad word he had just said!! I just said something like, "oh Brayden, is that really a word? Have you ever even heard anyone say that?" And he just said that, no, he had never heard it and it wasn't really a word... How silly of him!!
All of this conversation is happening in the midst of my little innocent Josiah, yelling over and over at the top of his lungs, "F@%#!! F@#%!!

Thank goodness there wasn't really anyone around to hear all this, I would have been mortified!

Another thing Josiah has been doing is asking us to kiss his booty when he falls on it, and when we're unbuckling him from his carseat, he asks us to "unbuckle my penis please..." (the crotch strap- gotta love these literal minds...)
GEEZ! You'd think we were the most vulgar parents in the world (or that our children have Tourette Syndrome)!!

Sheriff Update!

Bobby went to his 4 hour orientation last night for the Sheriff's Dept. We thought that this would basically be a time where they would give him and the other possible recruits information about the hiring process, to let them know kind of what they are getting themselves into...
So, upon arriving, Bobby found that the orientation was actually an interview, and a whole questionnaire about his past (you know, have you ever done drugs, stolen anything, whatever...) The orientation is basically the stop right before you really get into the hiring process; if you don't pass the orientation, the door is closed for quite awhile.
But, praise the Lord, he passed! So, now we're on to the next step in this journey: the background check. We now have to gather a million documents from near and far, like birth certificate, marriage certificate, insurance info, school transcripts...

I just keep thinking that the Lord is so CRAZY! I'm amazed at His hand that opens doors so wide, wider than we could ever open them ourselves.
Now we're just praying for wisdom and diligence, that the Lord would prepare Bobby (and the rest of us) for the stretching that we know is going to take place in all of this... And we're (in the words of my lovely mother-in-law) gonna walk by faith until God closes the door!

Update on Josiah

So, unfortunately, last time we went in to see Josiah's craniofacial surgeon, he checked him out, and said that he wants to do his surgery all over again... Apparently there is a 5-6% rate of children who have had the surgery that Josiah has had that have to have it repeated... And he falls into that 5-6%.
He will be going in for a CT scan next Tuesday, the 11th, so please be praying for him because they have to put him to sleep for it.
Also, please pray for wisdom when we talk to the doctor again, I have lots of questions and I really want to be asking the right ones... Also, for the right timing of when to do the surgery, since it's not really a medical urgency, it's more like we'll schedule it at our convenience; but we want Bobby to be able to take a few days off to help me in the hospital with Josiah and with Brayden and Selah too, and he just started a new job only about a month ago...
We've been through this surgery before, so I kind of know what to expect, but he's older now... So my prayer is that the pain won't be too bad, that the Lord would be his comfort and strength, even if he doesn't understand... And that the Lord would also comfort and give peace to our hearts as we have to watch our baby go through this all over again...
We know that God is sovereign, and we trust Him... His grace is sufficient for us, and His strength is made perfect in our weakness...

If You're Happy And You Know It...

CLAP YOUR HANDS! Or at least, that's what Selah must be singing in her head constantly these days... She just learned to clap her hands yesterday! Yes, I know, a small step for mankind, but a HUGE step for a little baby! It was adorable- I have been trying to get her to clap for a few days, because she's been hitting everything, so I figured it would just be a matter of time... So, anyway, we were at the park yesterday playing with Gramma Sandra, and I took the boys potty... When we were walking back, I see from far away Sandra clapping, and Selah copying her- it was soooo cute! So now everything is clap-worthy to her, she claps over everything!
Also, she just had her 6 month check-up yesterday as well, except it's a month late- so here's an update on how she's growing:
She is 17 lbs, 8 oz, she is 27 inches long, and her head is 16 1/2 inches around... So, she is in the 50th percentile for weight, 75th for height, and 25th for her head... And the doctor thinks she is crazy because she's doing everything so early... crawling, pulling up to stand already, clapping, blabbing... She's a growing girl!