An upcoming birthday and the WIENERMOBILE!

It has been over a week since my last post, which I don't like to happen! The boys and I spent last weekend at the dropzone for the first time this season. Elijah and Sammy had a blast seeing friends and running around in the fresh country air, even though it was COLD. We are planning a birthday party for Sammy this Saturday at the dz, so we're praying for warm weather and a fun day for our cute boy.

The boys and I ran into the WIENERMOBILE last weekend! How fun! I don't think I've ever in my life seen a Wienermobile. Elijah and Sammy were able to explore the inside, as well. So fun!

Elijah's last day of kindergarten will be next Thursday. Weird. Super super weird. I cannot believe how quickly time passes! I just finished his application for Heart Camp this summer. He will attend camp for one week, on mornings only. This is huge! I have been looking forward to sending him to this camp since he was born. I am praying that he will form some good friendships with other kids who have traveled similar paths.

I will certainly share photos and stories from the coming weekend. We are looking forward to celebrating our sweet Sammy's third birthday. We love him so much!

Thanks for reading!

Boy tidbits

It has been cold and rainy all week and we feel like we've been catapulted back into winter. It's a bit depressing, but we are looking forward to HOT days ahead! The boys haven't been held back by the rain. "MOM! Can we PLEASE play in the rain?" We have been cooped up for so long this winter that I have no objections to that request. Go! Splash around!

I wanted to write down a few precious memories before I forget them. Some are funny and some not so funny. Starting with the not so funny..

I haven't written an update on this in a long time, but we are still working on potty issues with E. We are in a MUCH better place than we were a year ago, but there is still progress to be made. Unfortunately, Sammy has seen the chaos that has surrounded anything potty-related so that combined with his very independent nature has caused him to be 100% against sitting on a toilet. It is a little bit maddening, but as always we are doing our best as his parents and trying to be patient. When both of these boys are potty trained, Dan and I will invite you all over for a huge POTTY PARTY. I'm not kidding. Mark your calendars for 2016.

Sammy and Elijah are the best of buds right now. It is wonderful (when they aren't fighting, ha!). They do pretend play a lot and have so much fun together. Elijah has a lot of grace with Sammy's independence. Sammy tends to boss him around a bit, and as long as he doesn't steal E's toys away from him they can play in peace for quite a while. Every once in a while they root against each other and we have to separate them. We often hear silly names being thrown around. Sammy refers to Elijah as "Blueberry" and E refers back to him as "Strawberry." In the past few days, I have been called, "Mr. Hoo-Shay," "Mr. Lopart" and many other silly names. These boys are silly!

Elijah is finishing up his kindergarten year, which seems crazy. He has had a really great year, minus a few little hiccups. His teachers, therapists and bus drivers ADORE him. Starting about a month ago, when I would get him off the bus his (very awesome) bus driver and (very awesome) bus aide would be loudly singing songs with him. They were variations of: "DO YOU WANT SOME PIZZA (INSERT ANY WORD HERE)....WAAH-OOOOO!" So the other day Elijah sat down and drew them each a picture with a funny "Waah-oooo!" saying underneath. Today when I got him off the bus, his bus driver showed me that they had hung his drawings on the front of the bus and said, "Now we can think of him all the time!" This boy makes people smile!

Sammy adores his stuffed animals, particularly his cow ("Cowwy Cow Cow Can Cow") and his frog ("Froggy"). He does a lot of pretend play with them, too. Cowwy and Froggy often scream and hit and need to be put in time-outs. Or one of them will burp loudly (Sammy has a sound for this that is very very cute). When Sam is being disciplined, he will tearfully cry out for either Cowwy or Froggy, who he feels will save him from his "harsh" punishment.

Compared to his brother, Sammy is super sensitive and way more empathetic to other people. If any of us expresses pain or sadness, he will bring us his blankie (his most precious possession) and pat our backs. "Are you sad, Mama? Here's blankie!" We have two very different boys, which is a huge blessing and so much fun. We love them both so much.

I will stop here for now! Thanks for reading. Have a wonderful week!

Ear update

Dan brought Elijah to see his ENT doc this week for his post-surgery follow up. He had a little bit of dried blood/gunk in his ear, so we will do ear drops for a week to hopefully loosen it up. We will head back mid-August for his next appointment. Three-ish months from that point will be his prosthesis placement surgery, which puts us at Oct-Nov.

I have been keeping E's school nurse/caregivers updated regarding his ear issues, and being the AMAZING team that they are they have formulated an Elijah Plan. To be honest, we haven't noticed that Elijah has been having much difficulty hearing. He seems to have adapted pretty darn well to having hearing in only one ear. When I ask him how his ear/hearing is feeling, he says, "It feels great! It's all better, Mom!" When this prosthesis is placed, he is going to be startled at how well he'll be able to hear!

E's "team" at school is forming a plan for the first part of next year, which made me cry happy tears as I was chatting with the nurse on the phone. We plan to have him on a 504, which assists any student with a disability (temporary or permanent). He will have an audiologist that will work with him and his first grade teacher, ensuring that he receives the best help possible to hear what is going on in the classroom. Needless to say, we are very happy about his team being so proactive. We adore his care team! They have taken such good care of our oldest boy.

That's all for now. Today was chilly and rainy, so Dan was home from work and we all had a pizza-movie night which may or may not have involved Willy Wonka. We are looking forward to the weekend! Have a great one, friends and family! Thank you for checking in!

Summer is here, BLESS THE LORD!

Summer weather is finally here, yay! We have been LOVING our time outside, which has thrown a wrench in our routines (eating dinner as a family at the dining room table, etc.) but we are fine with that. We have been without warmth for so long that we are willing to throw a few rules out the window in order to enjoy the delicious weather.

One of the routines/traditions we established through the winter was Pizza-Movie night every Friday night. It has become a weekly routine that we have all looked forward to every week. 

Now that the weather is getting nicer, I thought it might be a good idea to transform Pizza-Movie night into Picnic-Popsicle night! The boys are very excited about that idea. We tried it for the first time last week and it was a success.

As a family we experienced much growth over this 2013 winter. We now have a very very awesome and spirit-filled church that we can call our own. We have family dinners almost every night with near-proper-ness (ha!). We have implemented "No Technology Tuesdays" and the boys have completely adapted to this with no complaints. We read the Bible regularly and Jesus is an integral part of all of our lives. We have experienced major spiritual growth as a family this winter and we are soooo happy about all of this!

We are excited about what this summer will bring. We have MANY fun adventures in store!

Here is a video from the past few months that makes us all very happy! Bless the Lord!!!

The Mask, and...is spring finally here?!

I had lunch with my sweet friend Sue today and she made me remember that I hadn't written an update about THE MASK and how Elijah dealt with that during his surgery. I've been so caught up with the details that I haven't thought to write an update about that. After all of your prayers, letters, emails and cards, I have to tell you that YOUR PRAYERS HELPED!

(Here's E from tonight, dressed as a dragon and wandering around outside. We had some sidewalk gawkers. :)

We were sure to get E a good heaping dose of Versed before his surgery. He became totally relaxed and loopy, which was a good thing. Dan took him back to the OR, as he usually does (I still can't stomach it after the one time I went) and he said that in standard Elijah fashion he attempted to distract everyone when the mask came out. "Hey guys! I....I have a qu-question!" "Oh, what's your question, Elijah?" "Uhh, ummmm, uhhhh..." After three rounds of this, they finally put the mask on his face and put him to sleep. Dan said he put up a tiny fight, but NOTHING compared to usual. From now on, we will go the Versed route. Thank you all for your prayers about this and your comforting encouraging letters! Elijah and Sammy have adored them and we are grateful beyond words.

We are enjoying the beautiful weather! We're hoping it sticks around this time. It is May, right?!

I tried taking photos of Sammy tonight, and he put up such a fuss which is further proof that he and his brother are such opposites. "NO, MOMMY! NOOOOOO PICTURES!"

Sammy is still sooo independent. He certainly needs control of MOST things in his little life. He is such a funny kid. We love him to pieces!

Dan is back at work at the dropzone now Wed-Sun, so we are beginning to adjust to that. It is a new season!

I will end with a few funnies from the boys. If you're on Facebook, these will be repeats.

Sammy: [fake cough....faker cough....way faker cough..] MOMMY! I have a cough!
Me: I hear that! Are you okay?
Sammy: NOOOooo! I fink I'm DYING!

While waiting for the bus with Elijah one morning last week (in the snowy coldness) Elijah said, "The grass just growled at me, Mr. Slushy!" Not sure what that meant, but it made me laugh!

And here is Elijah, saying, "Mommy! Take a picture of ME!"

Elijah has been using the word "confused" in place of the word "disappointed," which I find to be super cute. He will say, "Mom! You aren't coming to the club with us today? I am very confused about that! I will miss you!" :) I refuse to correct him.

And last but not least, a few Elijah-isms to wrap up:
"Mom, you are the chocolate chips in my cookie."
"You are the elbow on my arm."
"You are the peaches in my oatmeal."
"You are the lobe on my ear."
"You are the woodpecker sitting on my long nose."

Have a good week! Thanks for checking in! xo

Healing ears and an exciting journey

We had a nice week, and we hope you did, as well. E's ear is healing nicely. The only time he complains about it is when we put on/take off shirts and even then, the complaints are minimal. He's such a tough kid. We will head to his post-surgical check-up on May 13th. Until then, we continue to take it as easy as possible! He has been so good about taking it easy when we ask him to.

Within the past few days I have planned a MAJOR summer vacation for the little boys and myself. Unfortunately, Dan will have to stay at home and work since that it his very busy time. :( We plan to travel to 15 states within 18 days! I must be crazy! But get this, we will (hopefully) meet fifteen heart friends and their parents, most of whom we have not yet met. It will be an amazing experience to bond with children and families who have walked similar paths. I cannot imagine what will be in store for us!

Until then, we continue to enjoy snow and cold weather. Isn't Minnesota wonderful? Thanks for reading and thanks for hanging in there with us.

Perspective

If you live in Minnesota, you are likely as happy as we are today! It was a GORGEOUS day! Prior to today and after E's surgery on Tuesday, we were feeling a bit like anxious, caged lions. We were all bickering and wanting out of our cage! We have had to take it extra easy since surgery, so we haven't gotten out much. Today was really good for us. We were able to visit Grandma and play outside and go out for frozen yogurt together (thanks, Grandma!).

Elijah's ear is healing nicely. We are almost totally weaned off the pain meds. He never complained about pain, but we stayed on top of the meds just to be on the safe side. The steri-strips are still intact (you can see them peeking out a little bit in the above pic), but we will let those fall off on their own.

For the past few days I've been dealing with the post-hospital/surgery junk. It happens every time, and I never expect it. Shouldn't I know by now? This time around was mild compared to past times, thankfully. It is always a period of heightened emotion and gratefulness. It's also a period of time when I am given a good dose of perspective. The things I thought were a big deal last Saturday are not a big deal today.

Elijah has endured a lot. When I consider the magnitude of it, where he is at today is nothing short of a miracle. The potty and behavioral issues we have struggled with are totally understandable, and honestly, it's a miracle that we aren't dealing with a multitude of other things. We feel extremely blessed. Not that I would EVER wish anxiety or pain on either of our boys, but time in the hospital always gives me a HUGE dose of grace and perspective and patience and love.

Thanks for checking in! I hope you are all having a GREAT weekend! Enjoy this beautiful weather! Love to all of you from all of us. xo

Ear surgery

I will tell you the good news up front to keep you from wondering! We are HOME (all except Sammy, who is at Grandma's house tonight--thank you, Grandma, for taking such good care of our boy tonight)! Elijah is soundly sleeping in our bed after a long day at the hospital. He was given lots o' drugs today, which makes for a sleepy boy. He has to wear a headband (that you will see in the below photos) for 24 hours to hold the gauze in place. The gauze is fairly bloody, but we are hoping for no fresh blood hereafter. Elijah is not in any pain, but we are staying on top of the pain meds just to be safe. He came out of surgery groggy but doing really well. NO CROUP, praise God! NO VOMITING, praise God! A little crabbiness, which is totally understandable! But feeling good, considering everything. One of the very thoughtful things he has received in the past few days was a Target gift card from my cousin Trevor (that I had placed safely into his little red wallet). The first coherent thing he said to me after surgery was, "Where is my wallet, MOM?!" "Uhh, it's safe at home!" "Well when can I go to Target!!" :)

The surgery took about 4.5 hours. When the surgeon came in to speak to us, the first thing he said was, "It was a sad day for Elijah's ear." :( The cholesteatoma (mass) that he removed had been growing in there for a while. He confirmed that this WAS the congenital variety as opposed to the acquired variety, so who knows how long it has been so big. And it was big! He called it "extensive" a few different times. It was so extensive that, get this, it actually DISSOLVED almost all of the bones inside his ear. I found that to be crazy! So the doctor removed the mass, the tissue that had grown into the mastoid and any bone remnants that were still floating around. Sadly, now Elijah is minus any ear bones in his left ear. The good news is that his footplate was totally intact, which means that hearing is possible! We will bring him back in for a prosthesis placement surgery in about six months, and after that there is a very good chance that most of his hearing will be restored. This is GREAT news, and it almost took away the sting from the rest of the news we received today.

We had to fight against feelings of anger today. Another major thing? Really?! What has he done to deserve all of this? But, we have to keep it in perspective. It could be so much worse, and we totally understand this. We never want him to have to endure MORE, but I have to believe there is a reason for all of this. He is one strong and STEADFAST boy. We will love and support him forever in every way that we can.

SAMMY! We love you so much, too! We will love and support you, as well, our very precious boy! You are an amazing little person and I cannot wait to squeeze you tomorrow morning!

Toothless in the snow

Doesn't he look adorable with his two front teeth missing?

Sammy is adorable, too, sword sticking out of mouth and all.

Today was just depressing! The temperature and wind chill outside felt like it was the beginning of January. It sleeted and snowed and we have a fresh layer of white on the ground. We are supposed to get MORE snow tonight! And Saturday! I wonder how many Minnesotans are depressed after this winter.

Other than THAT, we had a pretty normal day! Ha! We recently joined a gym, so we have been going there as often as possible. When Dan and I don't have to work in the mornings, we bring Sammy to the gym with us while E is at school. There is an awesome daycare area with kid-friendly activities. This is good for all of us! Dan and I can squeeze in a workout and Sammy can get used to being around other people in a safe environment. He is slowly getting more comfortable!

That's all for now! Thanks for checking in! I had best get back to saying curse words to the snow under my breath. :)

Warmth, snow, letters and stones

We are back in the frigid cold state of Minnesota. It is freezing outside! This is ridiculous! Needless to say, we enjoyed our vacation thoroughly. It was WARM and wonderful and tons of fun. Dan and I were able to sneak away to South Carolina by ourselves for two days. As always, the time passed too quickly. We are very thankful for my dad and stepmom's generosity, hospitality and help with our boys.

Fort Sumter!

The boys had a blast with Grammie and Gramps. They were able to do some pretty fun things while they were there, like go to an animal ranch where they fed animals from inside the car. The llamas tried to steal Gramps' bucket and Sammy's favorite animal was the cow.

Gramps' freezer is NEVER short on ice cream. :)

And every morning the boys helped Grammie feed the birds.

I spent my entire childhood getting onto airplanes in order to fly away from my dad. I'm still doing it, and I still hate it. I love my dad and stepmom so much! We all do. We have sad hearts today. We miss them.

My dad is having a small surgery next week sometime, so could I ask for your prayers for him? He is going to do AWESOME. Pray for a calm spirit for him, and of course for total success, as well.

We are gearing up for Elijah's ear surgery on Tuesday. I've been doing a good job of keeping it out of my head. I'll worry about that tomorrow. Isn't that a line from Gone With the Wind? :)

THANK YOU to all of you who have sent cards and letters and other fun things for the boys. They have been so thrilled about every single piece of mail they've gotten. I sincerely want to hug each one of you for the amount of comfort this barrage of mail has provided for ALL of us. Thank you thank you thank you! Maggie, your card was particularly moving and thoughtful.

I have to share with you this one special gift we received right before we left for vacation last week. A friend (Hi, Christine!) of a friend (Hi, Alise!) sent us some worry stones that she makes herself. (Check out her website to see more!) Some of the stones have Elijah's name on them. Some have fun drawings. And some have the word I have always used to describe Elijah in medical situations--STEADFAST. Whenever I need to turn off my fear and start focusing on positive thoughts, that is where I start. It holds a lot of meaning for me. Thank you, Christine! The boys have treated the stones like they are precious jewels. In fact, there is a batch of them in a glass jar in my refrigerator right now. I asked Elijah what was going on and he said, "Oh, PLEASE don't touch those! My stone soup is cooking." :)

One more piece of news and I'll sign off. Elijah lost his fourth tooth last night, literally 5 minutes after we had gotten home! The Tooth Fairy was very nice to him, and he looks adorable with his two top front teeth missing. That will be my next picture! Thanks for checking in..

Cardiology appt

Elijah had his 6-month cardiology check-up yesterday with Dr. G. It went great! His heart function is perfect and his pressures are low. I asked when his next heart cath might be and he said, "Not this year!" A year without a cath? We'll take it. We go back in six months and we will go from there. Thank you, God!

Today will be a busy day for us as we pack and prepare to fly to North Carolina very early tomorrow morning. We are all excited! The new snow on the ground makes us even more excited to get the heck out for a bit. :)

Thanks for checking in! I will certainly have photos to share post-trip!

Sammy funnies and another missing tooth

Elijah lost his third tooth! We are pretty sure he yanked it out, as he did the other two. He sure loves his letters from the Tooth Fairy! :) He left her a letter under his pillow tonight that said, "Dear Tooth Fairy, I lost my third tooth. Get Ready. Love, Elijah" I'm sure she is "getting ready" as we speak.

This is going to be a quick update, but I want to type out some Sam super-funnies from lately.

I was chatting with Sam on the phone a few mornings ago on my way home and I said, "Sammy, are you having a good morning with Daddy?" He said, "No, I'm just pickin' my nose right now."

Sam got a bloody lip the other day in the bathroom. :( He's still such a cutie, isn't he though?

More funnies:

Dan was walking down the stairs, so Sammy turned to me and said, "Here comes the BIG GUY!"

His arm was asleep after a nap one afternoon this week. He kept describing it as being "farkly" (sparkly).

He is such a huge eye itcher. The other day after itching his eyes vigorously, he looked at me and said, "There. Now mine eyes are fresh."

That's all for now! Elijah has a cardiology appointment on Tuesday, so I will write a post after that.

We just got a letter! We just got a letter!

Thank you sooo very much to everyone who has sent a letter or card to our boys. Look at their loot! They get so excited every time there is something in the mail for them. And every single letter that mentions E's upcoming surgery helps him (I believe). He has received some pretty creative words and photos to help ease his anxiety about the scary mask. I'm impressed!

Wait, those look like scary masks!

That's right, they are masks. Our friend, who happens to be a "scary" doctor, and her husband sent the following book and accompanying masks to Elijah. This was super creative and thoughtful and just about made me cry. 

Tonight while the boys were taking a bath, Elijah said, "Oh! Mom! The masks! Z said to play with them in the tub, so will you get them?" It's a step! Maybe?

Although he still typically makes this face when the mask is in his hand.

Thank you for the love!

Easter 2013

How has it been a week since my last post? Last week was Elijah's spring break, so we took the boys on a few fun outings. We joined a gym (finally), so Elijah was able to enjoy the pool and play area (daycare, which is like kid heaven). Sammy did not have a single bit of interest in enjoying the pool or the play area, unfortunately, although we did put him in the play area one day. I returned to find him sitting by himself, nearly in tears, sucking his thumb. When he saw me he ran to me and burst into quiet tears. Every time we ask him if he wants to go anywhere at all, he says, "I want home!" Poor guy. I know that feeling! That was me when I was his age. We continue to encourage him to try new things while still being sensitive to his feelings.

Easter was busy and fun! Church was awesome. Elijah was able to "sing" in front of church with his friends (he actually had his head turned away the entire performance, as he looked at the giant screen). It was seriously cute, though. Here is a very brief video clip of one of his little friends, ushering him out of the church after their song was over. The little girls adore him!

This video is from part of the song the kids were singing and doing sign language to. You can barely see the top of E's head behind the little boy in the front. I LOVE this song and have not been able to stop singing it since Sunday.

Dan's sister Christine snapped this pic of us on Easter. Handsome boys! And don't forget Lamby!

This was the best photo of about 25 I took of the boys. As is the case most of the time with picture-taking, Elijah is in full cooperation mode and Sammy is in anti-cooperation mode. E preferred that his tie be on the outside of his vest. :)

Dan's grandma and eight of her (many) grandchildren. These are all of the boys' cousins on Dan's side. Cute bunch!

My boys, me and of course Lamby!

I had some boy funnies to share, but I can only think of one of them!

On the way to church on Sunday, Sammy said to Elijah, "Elijah, what was your favorite part of the morning?" Without hesitating, Elijah answered, "I like being handsome and awesome!" :)


I hope you all had a nice Easter, as well.

Deflecting attacks from darkness

Have you ever noticed that when you become more spiritually tuned in, you also get attacked with extra negativity (the Devil)? Yeah, so that happened to us yesterday. Dan and I felt a HUGE spiritual breakthrough for our family on Sunday. Then on Monday? Attacked. Big time. Elijah was telling me about some visual disturbances he was experiencing, which sent me into a dark place of fear and panic. My mind was sent to terrible places. His behavior became more than Dan and I felt we could handle yesterday. Content on my food blog was stolen (again) and that turned into a vicious fight with a lunatic thief and liar. At the end of the day, we all felt weary and disheartened. I am beyond thankful to have a husband who knows me well enough to know exactly what to say to me. He said the perfect things as we fell asleep last night.

I woke up at 3:00 a.m., as I usually do, worrying about a million different things. I started going to those dark places about Elijah's eye complaints. Then I stopped myself because I just had to. If I didn't, I would have lost my mind. I reminded myself about a dream God gave to me a few years ago, showing me my oldest son as a 30ish-old adult, perfectly "normal" and healthy. Then I thought of the word that has come into my mind every time Elijah has soared through yet another ordeal. STEADFAST. Peace flooded me and I fell back asleep.

More on this in just a minute.

I got out of bed this morning and decided that we needed to have a much better Day #2 of spring break. I thought it might be a great idea for all of us to go see a movie together in the theater. Sammy had never been to a theater before today!

It was so nice to get out together as a family, and also to give Sammy this first theater experience! Both boys loved the candy and popcorn, of course. The Croods was a very cute movie.

Dan brought E to his opthamology appointment this afternoon, which we had coincidentally scheduled months ago. I was admittedly too afraid to go. I told Dan the exact words that Elijah had used to describe his visual disturbances. He is such a kind husband and such a good dad. He promised me that he would repeat every word to the doctor.

The doctor told Dan that strangely, with kids around E's age, he hears this A LOT. They start to anticipate their eye appointment (uhhh, Elijah anticipates EVERYTHING a little more than most kids) and suddenly strange visual symptoms pop up. It is a hyper-awareness of their vision as they anticipate seeing the doctor. Today I asked Elijah periodically how his eye was doing and he described much different "symptoms" and used different words each time. So for now we will assume it is a case of silly-kid-itis! I think Doc McStuffins would agree with that diagnosis! :)

Tonight we are all feeling much better. Hopefully the Devil leaves us alone for a bit. Thank you so much for those of you who sent emails about writing letters to our boys! I received a few very kind messages and they made my day. Thank you!

Wishing a wonderful week to you all! Thanks for checking in!

Letters and cards and prayers, OH MY.

I wrote this on Facebook earlier, but thought I would share it on our beloved blog, as well!

I was thinking today, after Elijah received two very thoughtful cards in the mail, how excited he would be to receive even MORE mail as encouragement for his upcoming surgery (April 23rd). He LOVES receiving mail. He plays "mailman" in our house every single day. Dan and I write him back and forth constantly and he carefully reads through each sentence about 20 times. 

Would you consider sending a letter in the mail for him? Maybe tell him that the "scary mask" isn't so scary or give him encouragement about this surgery? Or maybe suggest that he be kind to his brother? :) Anything would be so cherished. Send me an email if interested (mmporta@gmail.com) and I will give you our mailing address.

Also, so that Sammy feels just as loved (because he IS!), perhaps consider sending him a letter, too? THANK YOU! Thank you from the bottom of this mama's heart!

Silly boys and a new church

Hello from the fluffy-haired Sammy! :)

We had a good weekend. We hosted a Salad Party in preparation for my next cookbook. It was a success! We enjoyed time with friends and ate LOTS of salad. We still have plenty in our fridge, so please come over tomorrow if you are hungry!

This photo is the story of our lives. I love my boys! (Lamby, too.)

Dan's and my excitement for the weekend is that we FINALLY feel like we found a church to call home. We have been "searching" for years in this arena. We have tried many different churches that have just not felt right for us.

A few weeks ago we revisited a church that we had been to before (2+ years ago) and that we didn't give much of a chance. This time around, we loved it! The children's program is AMAZING. Last week a few little girls swooped Elijah up and took him under their wings. This morning I barely stepped foot into the children's worship area before one of those little girls put her arm around Elijah and ushered him in. Dan's mom was standing with me (sooo glad she was with us today) and said, "Who was that?!" I said, "I have no idea. The little girls love him here." We watched a couple other girls hug him as he walked past. He is very cared for and loved! It is one of the many reasons we know it is our place to be.

Sammy still does not want to go to Sunday school, so he has been hanging out with Dan and me during worship. Which is fine. He does great. Eventually we would love to get him involved in children's worship, too. He is a reserved little guy, so we will continue to work on it but we won't push it. We are just happy to be in a wonderful place that suits our family well.

This week is our spring break, so hopefully we will find a few fun things to do with our boys. Thanks for checking in! Have a great week!