A Joyful Week

Wow, so many blog posts this week!  For one thing, I'm trying to get my new blog figured out, and for another, there seem to be lots of blog-worthy things happening in our household.  My kids have been saying and doing a lot of cool things lately (at least I think they're cool!) and I want to have a record of them.  This week my blog is like a journal, and you have access to it (if you care to put up with my stream-of-consciousness rambling).  So, here goes...

First of all, apologies for the trouble viewing videos.  I'm working on getting this problem fixed, so keep checking back, and feel free to leave me comments or email regarding any technical difficulties.

This Tuesday, N's playgroup (hosted by our local Birth to Three Center) visited the fire station.  BIG excitement.  Huge.  As we were getting ready to leave, N was jumping up and down with excitement.  Here's some pics:

Exploring the fire truck with our friend Z

New hat!

Fireman N to the rescue!

At what other age than 2 could you find so much joy in such a simple thing?

On a side note, I've figured out that a lot of N's bossy-ness is a result of her mimicking me.  At library story time this week, she found a "baby" (who was probably only a couple of months younger than N) and followed her around, telling her to "Be quiet and sit down" or "Listen to the story."  It's funny that I rarely have to discipline N for normal 2-year-old things... but her bossy tendencies have earned many a reprimand from me.  And I often get those reprimands right back from her.  It's like a vicious cycle.  Just the other day I was changing L's diaper and I threw the dirty diaper across the room to the trash can.  N said, in her best motherly tone, "Mama, don't throw things.  Might hurt somebody."  Touche.

Speaking of the library, I can't say enough about how much joy we find there.  N loves story time, and to top it off, every week we get to pick out new books and movies.  She practically runs upstairs for nap time after we get home from the library and I tell her we can read some of her new books before she falls asleep.  I'm so glad she enjoys reading as much as I do.

Another joyful thing for Mama is the beautiful fall weather we've been having this week.  How can you help but be joyful when you see this every time you open your front door:

Our camera doesn't really do justice to the colors, but you get the idea.  A friendly neighbor gave N a scarecrow, so now we have a cute little fall scene in our flower bed out front.  N affectionately calls the scarecrow "Girl."

The beautiful weather also means that Mama can get out and go running.  I'm training for a 5-mile Thanksgiving road race, which has been a great motivator to get out and shed the pregnancy pounds.  Every day this week it has been nice enough to strap the girls in the double jogger and get in a couple miles.  That certainly brings me joy, and they seem to enjoy it too.  L usually gets a little snooze in, or else coos happily and enjoys the fall colors.  I usually bring a little snack and some books for N to enjoy along the way.  The other day while we were out in the midst of our jog, N said "This is fun Mama."

And lastly, the big news for the week: L rolled over for the first time!

Nice surprise at the end of that video, eh?

It seems like a silly thing to be joyful about... and really, she's just developing normally and doing her baby thing.  But the day it happened, I felt so happy and proud of her all day long.  I guess, for me, it feels like she's no longer just "the baby" but she's developing into her own individual person with her own individual accomplishments.  I can't wait to watch her grow up more and see what kind of a little girl she will become.  And it's going to be so fun when N and L start playing together-- each individuals, but also a team-- our little girls.

I praise God for these gifts he has given us!