We miss you daddy!

Eric left yesterday to Venezuela on a short mission trip with our pastor and another person from our church. He'll be back next Wednesday. I got word the group arrived safe and sound with all their luggage in tact. I've been talking to Cadence about daddy getting to ride in an airplane and that the airplane will bring him back in a few days. I have a feeling I'll be repeating this very often in the next week!

I'm excited for him even though I'll be a little lonely in the evenings. In the meantime I plan to make the most of it...I ate mac and cheese for dinner tonight with Cadence and have a date planned with some local Chinese take out Eric doesn't really care for. We'll see what other things I can come up to do while he's gone...like watching some chick flicks and hanging out with friends.

Cadence

These days Cadence is quite the active little girl with an ever-expanding vocabulary. At times I am so amazed at the things a 2 year old can do....while at other times I am completely frustrated at the things a 2 year old can do! Cadence has mastered doors and locks pretty well....resulting in mommy being locked out of the house one day after taking some trash out. She enjoys coloring and drawing happy faces. I recently introduced her to the world of painting as well. She attempts to sing the A,B,C song....you can at least recognize the tune and some of the letters. She can count to three, which is as far as she will go so far, despite my coaxing to learn to say "four". She can also now change out DVD's and turn them on, turn on the radio and CD's, as well as turn on the microwave (all no-no's). On day she tried to microwave her magnetic alphabet letters...that could've been ugly!

She loves to be involved in everything we are doing and is constantly asking to "help". A toddler's help can be great at times, and not so great at others. For instance, when my phone is ringing in another room, or I need the baby's pacifier, she is usually eager to fetch those things for me. However her "help" today also resulted in her freshly prepared lunch plate getting dumped all over the kitchen floor...which she got to help clean up. But most of the time we do try to find ways to include her in our daily activities in age appropriate ways...even if this means the task will take 2-3 times longer to complete than if we had done it ourselves. This allows Cadence to learn new skills, but also increases her self esteem, and her sense of belonging. The joy she expresses at being able to be by our side and accomplish something new is so priceless.

I can't help but think this is how it is with us and God. He includes us in His work, though he really doesn't need our help, and could probably get the job done better and more quickly without us. Instead He chooses to relate with us...He allows us to learn and grow and builds our confidence and sense of worth by this inclusion in His plans and purposes (and I'm pretty sure God's patience is far more endless than my own too).

What's more is how often Cadence also recognizes some of her own limits and asks us to help her with something. Granted some of these requests for help are whiny, tearful expressions of pure frustration...sometimes after throwing a toy across the room, but then again...how often do I approach God with my problems in a similar manner? What we aspire to teach Cadence is that we will be here to help her. We are trying to teach her it's ok to be frustrated and to come to us when that happens rather than throw things and hit. Sometimes I watch her in a tantrum and can't help but chuckle to myself and think that's how I must look to God at times. I'm just so thankful for His endless patience and unconditional love towards me in those ugly moments. I'm so glad He's a God I can approach in all sorts of ugly...and I hope we can be like that as parents for our children...to give them a little glimpse of God here on earth, to help acquaint them with the ways of their Creator.

To Cousin Malorie

Cadence is excited for the day she gets to meet you and play with you!

We love you!

Butterball

Our son is fat and happy....he's now 6 weeks old but already weighing in between 13 and 14 pounds! One of my friends recently joked, "What are you eating, sticks of butter?" He really is a pretty happy baby...eats, sleeps, poops, toots, coos, smiles and of course cries when he needs to. He can bat at toys somewhat now, as well as our faces. He is often captivated by the activity of his sister as his vision is improving. He is lifting his head up off the ground briefly during tummy exercises, and has already pulled one of daddy's chin hairs out with his grasp. And joy of all joys...he sleeps from 5-7 hours at night! He's fun little guy, we are definitely enjoying him...even Cadence!

Birthday Fun

Cadence is 2! Her birthday is July 12th, which happened to be on a Saturday this year, so we planned a day of fun in her honor. Here a some of the pictures from throughout that day:

We started with a pancake breakfast, she's checking out the happy face I put on hers.

After we all got ready for the day we headed to Storyland in Fresno, a fun spot I remember going to as a kid where you get to explore some classic nursery rhymes and stories. Here's the caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland.

I was going to get a cute shot of Cadence crawling into the maze...instead I got

this:

Here she is in the maze:

The old woman's shoe:

A cool part of Storyland is getting to hear the stories. You can purchase a plastic key that when inserted into these boxes at various stations, will begin the story being read. The park has been upgraded since I was small and each story can now be heard in either English or Spanish...your choice.

Stained glass in Noah's Ark:

Captain Cadence, "Yo-ho!"

Three Bear's chairs:

A castle complete with moat monster!

Fun on the merry-go-round:

Slides are good for kids of all ages!

Lunch at the wonderfully retro Chicken Pie Shop. A vintage spot in Fresno's Tower District with old fashioned lunch counters and great food.

That night we had some family over for a yummy lasagna dinner, presents and cake and (home-made) ice cream!

Happy Birthday Cadence!

Sticky Fun

Peel it: Stick it:
Ta-Da!

One of Cadence's birthday cards had a fun sheet of stickers inside. Cadence loves stickers as you can see. So far that's the only other place she puts them other than on paper. :) She recently had her 2 yr. check up and did the same thing with the stickers the doctor gave her...the doctor had a surprised expression and then laughed. Cadence has grown 4 inches since November and is exactly 3 ft. tall now. I guess she'll be needing all new pants this Winter...at least some of them work as capris now since it's summer!

All Boy

Duminsani has started smiling and cooing now! I haven't captured a really good shot of it yet, so this will have to do. I got my first real smile from him the morning of Cadence's birthday, before the day began. I was changing his diaper, and all was quiet throughout the house when a glorious emission of gas from my son broke the silence...followed by a big smile on his face. Definitely a boy!

Growing Boy

Baby Sani had a 2-wk check up Wednesday where I learned he has gained 2 pounds already and an inch and a half in length! No wonder I'm so hungry all the time!

Family Resemblance?

Me just a few days old: My brother as a newborn:
Baby Sani today:

Just pix