Buds

Jeremiah and Maggie have gotten along fairly well since the beginning. Maggie wasn't too sure about this little person at first--he took away a lot of the attention she was used to getting. And Jeremiah pretty much ignored her for quite a while.

But over the last few weeks, you could say that Jeremiah and Maggie have become "buds." On Jeremiah's part, he's just fascinated with this big "toy" that moves. He'll sit there and laugh as Maggie wags her little tail or rolls on the floor. He loves to crawl over to her and "pet" her, which can sometimes be a little on the hard side or involve pulling. We're working on the "be gentle" thing, and are always watchful as Maggie forgets she's big and can get too playful.

On Maggie's part, she's really warmed up to Jeremiah since he made another new discovery--sharing. In particular, the sharing of his food. Jeremiah will sit in his high chair and lean over the side with his hand stretched out with that meal/snack's offering. And Maggie is only too happy to accomodate.

We're trying to nip this in the bud. "Maggie, go to bed" and "Jeremiah, that's your food. Maggie has her own food" are phrases said often during mealtime at our house. But if I turn my back for a second, there they are at it again, both of them looking like guilty playmates when I catch them in the act.

One nice thing--I never have to sweep or pick up the food that Jeremiah drops on the floor.

Good Eats

Food is such an important part of our daily lives--at least it is for me. Sometimes I know I get too much of it, especially that which isn't necessarily good for me. Everything in moderation, right?

This last weekend with Jon's family, we split up who would be responsible for different meals, and let me just say we ate quite well. We had pizza, ice cream, chocolate cake, cinnamon rolls, blueberry French toast, shish-kabobs with steak, chicken and grilled vegetables, turkey, mashed potatoes, brownies, pita chips with hummus or salsa and cream cheese. Yummm. Are you hungry yet?

One thing we had that I'd never eaten before was grilled fruit. Let me tell you if you've never done this, you need to! It is delicious, it only took 4 minutes on the grill, and it's also good for you. A win-win situation.

I also made a flourless chocolate cake so my nephew Isaiah, who's allergic to wheat, could eat dessert along with the rest of us. My mother-in-law and sisters-in-law asked for the recipe, so I thought I would post a link to it here. It's called the Ultimate Flourless Chocolate Cake, and it was super easy.

So, happy eating whatever you're dining on tonight. For us, it's turkey-cranberry salad with pita chips and fudge souffle with Cool Whip.

Family Weekend

Ever have something that you look forward to for months and months, and then it's over in a flash? That was our weekend. Jon's entire family came for a visit, and we have been eagerly anticipating this for a very long time. We had not all been together since last summer. And when I stop and think about it, this was really the first time we had all been together since Jeremiah was born.

The time went by so fast, but it was such a special time. I (Mindy) have several memories that will stay with me--making ice cream with Isaiah. Watching all three cousins play together in the sandbox with Jon. Seeing Isaiah practically bounce off the walls with excitement at the Children's Museum as he ran from one thing to another to another. Hearing Phin cry and cry because he didn't want to get out of the bathtub, and then seeing him try to crawl in later (with his pajamas on) while Jeremiah was getting his bath. Laughing harder than I have in a long time at family rembrances, the "would you rather" game, potty training stories, etc. Eating all kinds of really, really good food. Sitting on the patio furniture in 95 degree heat as we watched the kids have all kinds of fun on the swing set. Just sitting and listening to everyone and realizing how blessed I am to have married into this wonderful family.

Yes, the weekend went by at lightning speed. But I have a lot more to look forward to in the future. A new neice or nephew. Our 9 year anniversary. Jeremiah's first birthday. The 100th anniversary celebration of my family's ranch. Plus, I have every day of this life that my Heavenly Father has given me.

LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup;

you have made my lot secure.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;

surely I have a delightful inheritance (Ps. 16:5–6).

P.S. Would you rather . . . wear wet jeans for 6 months or have a cold drop of water go down your back every 30 seconds for a year?

Omaha Zoo

Yesterday was the big zoo day. We had a good time looking at many of the displays. Jeremiah payed attention to a few of the animals. There were plenty of other things to capture his attention as well. We spent about four hours at the zoo. In the afternoon it got pretty warm and we were ready to head for home. Jeremiah took a good nap on the drive back to Lincoln.

Highs and Lows

The last two days have been hard at our house. Jeremiah is running a low-grade fever and just doesn't feel like himself. Today was better--he actually smiled and laughed a little, whereas yesterday he didn't. But our normally on-the-go, never-sit-still little boy has been most content when Mom or Dad are holding him and has even sat in our laps for up to 20 minutes at a time.

We love the snuggling and together time, but we're looking forward to our normal happy boy being back. We think the fever is due to teething--Jeremiah has a new tooth on top that broke through yesterday and is still biting down hard on anything he can get his hands on (including Mom's toe--though that was a few weeks ago!).

On another note, our household has been busy, busy getting ready for a big visit from Jon's family in a few days. We will have 11 people total at our house this weekend, and we are really excited. We'll post more about that after the weekend, with pictures from the Omaha zoo, Lincoln Children's Museum, and who knows what else. It all starts Wednesday, when Jeremiah and I pick up Amy who's flying in to Omaha.

Well, enough blogging for now. Time to get back to cleaning . . .

Summer Days

So we know many of you check this web site faithfully, anticipating an update, some kind of information or just some new photos. We, however are not as faithful, and for this we apologize. We're not sure how other people keep up with their blog, let alone their life.

Jeremiah is, of course, growing, growing, growing. He is also very adventurous and loves to climb on things. He really keeps us on our toes.