Easter (belated)

Sorry it has taken me so long to get up pictures from Easter. We had a great weekend celebrating with family and friends. We spent Saturday at JP's dad's place enjoying the sunshine and dying eggs while JP helped finish their lower bathroom. On Sunday we enjoyed a powerful service at The Quarry Community Church in Monticello, followed by brunch and an egg hunt at JP's aunt and uncle's. From there we went to my parents for dinner, more egg hunting, and a big hug from Micah, who has been home for the past week!
Being the horrible mother that I am, I neglected to get a picture of Ruby in her Easter dress! I'll never forgive myself....
BUT I did get a few cute pictures nonetheless. Enjoy.

Dying eggs with Gammy & Ava

The hunt is on...
Wait a minute! These have candy inside!Malachi's lootRae waters the flowers in her new apron from GrandmaRuby bonds with Uncle Micah

Deja Vu

I took this photo of Israel today and it instantly reminded me of another picture of her from when she was only about 4 or 5 months old.
Crazy, isn't it?

Then...

And now...

A Good Friday

We are having a good, Good Friday, and I hope you are as well! We're so very thankful for a beautiful, "warm," sunny day to enjoy, and even more thankful for a beautiful Savior who died in our place, even though it was us who deserved the punishment. We'd have no hope; but now we have Hope. We're so thankful.
But there are even more reasons we are having a good Friday!
Today we took our first trip of the season to Como Zoo & Conservatory. Our dear friends Brenda & Abigail accompanied us, and it was wonderful to see them. We love Como, and Rae was so excited to see all of the animals, especially the giraffes (her favorite), the sea lions, and the penguins.
Later in the day, my sister and her family showed up and we re-visited some of the exhibits with them before having to go home for naps.
The third reason we are having such a good Friday is because my brother Micah is home from his Special Forces selection course. For those of you who haven't heard, HE MADE IT! He was one of 120 men selected from more than 300 candidates to be one of the Army's best of the best, a green beret. We are so proud of him, and so happy to have him home and reunited with his family.Unfortunately his stay will be short. He only has a couple weeks to pack his family and belongings up and move them all down to North Carolina, where he will continue his Special Forces training. He will be trained as a medic and learn Arabic. Eventually they will assign him a country or region (he's hoping for Turkey) and that will determine where they will be based.
Right now, I'm just trying not to think about them moving so far away! (Today is GOOD Friday, right?) :) We already have plans for a road trip to visit them this summer.
And finally, to make your Friday even "gooder," here is my new favorite picture of our handsome nephew Vinnie. Can't help but smile...

Family Photos

Our family photos are all up and available for viewing. They are GORGEOUS!!! I'm warning you, though: there are a lot of them!

To view the photos:
Click here
Password: KF_Charlebois

Karen also put some of them on her blog with a very sweet lead-in. Click here for that.

Ruby - Six Months

Really? Six months? Half a year? My baby is that big?
Believe it or not, it's true! She had her 6 month checkup yesterday, and was as healthy as ever. Her ear infection is all cleared up. She was 27 3/4 inches long and 17 pounds, the same percentages she was at her 4 month checkup (97% and 75%, respectively).
Ruby is so happy and sweet. She is learning how to bounce in her jumper, can *almost* sit up by herself, chews on everything (although she hasn't cut any teeth yet), and chatters constantly. She loves watching Rae and laughs at almost everything she does. Rae loves holding Ruby's hand, and Ruby is ok with it until she gets tired. Then she cries a distinct "Rae's about to get me" cry when Rae even approaches her.
Thank you Jesus for our healthy baby, Ruby!

Sneak Peek!!!

We had family photos taken a couple weeks ago, and today we got a sneak peek of how they turned out!
Click here for the sneak peek (2 posts)!
I will post another link when our photographer has the full album posted.

Grandma Dellas' 90'th Birthday

On Friday, JP's grandma Dellas Bowar (his mom's mom) turned 90 years old. We celebrated on Saturday with a huge celebration with the whole family, including out-of-town family and friends. Grandma Dellas is the sweetest woman in the world, and although she'd disagree, we all know that if anybody deserved such a celebration, it's her. She continues to remain cheerful and positive even through difficult phases, and we applaud her strength and resiliance.
We love you, Grandma! We hope you had a wonderful birthday!

Rae's Recital

Last night, Israel participated in her very first music recital! As I mentioned before, she has been taking little "musikgarten" classes. This was the grand finale for the winter/spring session. We plan to sign her back up for the spring/summer session because she did so well and had so much fun.
I've managed to get one video posted of the first song they did, "Wake Me, Shake Me." Rae is front and center, the smallest one (the class is for ages 2-5). They also did one other song and a poem. If I have time later I'll post the other song, but its not as cute as this one.
Sorry for the video quality. We recently sold our video camera because we hardly every used it (go figure), so this was recorded on our digital camera. JP was struggling to video one-handed while holding Ruby and dodging the head of the gentleman in front of him. I'm up front as one of the parent helpers.
Enjoy!

Box Elder Infestation

As spring approaches, we are learning that our new place has a serious box elder bug problem. It started with just a few in the basement...then it was more downstairs and on the main level...then small groups on the outside of the house and workshop. But on Sunday it culminated in the grossest display of box elder madness I've ever seen. SWARMS of box elder bugs covered the East side of our house in massive clusters. DISGUSTING! It will give you the heeby-geebies just to look at these pictures. '
After doing some research, we heard of a couple different methods of getting rid of them. We are experimenting. On our house we sprayed a highly toxic pesticide called "Buggslayer" (that's what JP is doing in the picture below). So far it seems to be working, but its hard to tell since it has been chilly out since we sprayed and the bugs usually come out when its warm. On the workshop we sprayed a simple mix of laundry detergent and water. We've heard from a few people that this works, so we'll give it a shot as a safer alternative to the pesticides. Any other tips are accepted!

Slumber Party

Tonight Rae and JP had a slumber party in her room. She got to stay up an hour past her bed time as they listened to music, ate popcorn and watched The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything in bed. Things that make this picture even sweeter are the fact that she's wearing her favorite Dora pajamas and her head is resting on a pillow that belonged to JP when he was a young boy.

Deggorating

JP came home with an egg decorating kit the other night. So who cares how far away Easter is? We're deggorating!
The first night we all did our own eggs with our names on them (well, I helped with Ruby's). I think they turned out pretty cute. (Sorry for the poor quality photos -- they were taken on my phone)
The next day, we did a couple more eggs, but one in particular stood out from the rest. I made a smiley face on one of Rae's eggs, and we put green glitter on his head for hair. Rae loved it, but seemed to quickly lose interest and left the table. Moments later, however, she returned to the table with my hairbrush and started to brush the egg's glitter hair!

Next she left the table again and came back with a spray bottle...

Then a detangling spray (not pictured), and finally some scissors to give it a hair cut.

The end result:

Cute little fellow, if you ask me...

Ruthie

We have a name

Ruth Kaye Peterson.
A.K.A. "Ruthie"
:)

New Niece!

As of yesterday, I have a new niece! And as of today...she still doesn't have a name. But she will soon, I'm sure.
Baby girl Peterson was born around 9:45 last night. She's small -- only 6 lb, 2 oz. Amber sounds happy, but tired.
Here is a picture my dad took on his phone. She looks just like Elijah and Naomi.
Welcome to the world, sweetie!

"I'm doing kids."

We all have those days, right? Maybe those weeks? When you just feel tired and at the end of your fuse all the time. Poor JP takes the brunt of it.
Lately I've been stressed out about a number of things, but mostly selfish things. I get angry when my days have been so busy that I realize I haven't showered in three days, and rarely get dressed up or do my makeup. I get mad that I have to get up with the kids in the morning whether or not I feel rested. I feel victimized when I don't get to have "me" time. I get frustrated that I can sweep and mop the kitchen floor and then a half hour later you can't even tell. (holla for me, moms)
The other night after the kids went to bed, JP and I sat down and watched the show Kids by the Dozen on TLC. We love watching that show and 18 Kids and Counting. Believe it or not, I would LOVE to be one of those families. Call me crazy, but it just looks like so much fun! Even on the crazy days, nothing is better than family, and lots of it.
Now, on 18 Kids and Counting, the Duggar family household seems to be ALWAYS put together and organized. Their HUGE house and its industrial-sized kitchen are never messy. The kids are all dressed nicely with their hair neatly combed. It's great and something I applaud, but not something I could picture in my future as being realistic.
This night, however, we watched the Jeub Family on Kids by the Dozen. They have 13 kids, 11 of which live at home -- a 3 bed / 2 bath house in the country (That's what we live in right now!). The kids looked normal...dressed in play clothes with grass stains on the knees, boys with tossled hair or ballcaps. Their house was cluttered (hard not to be, I would imagine) and they always seemed to be bumping into someone or something. But they were HAPPY, and more importantly, the mom was happy. A cluttered house, a messy yard, grocery store nightmares, laundry nightmares, and kids needing something every time you turn around didn't seem to phase her. "How does she not just freak out," I thought.

Then Wendy Jeub said something to the effect of this:

"I'll probably never have a beautiful yard, but I'm not doing beautiful yards. I'm doing kids."

Her quote hit me like a ton of bricks, because I knew that was the big difference and the change I will need in my life if we want to see our dream of a big family come true. If I can't be stylish, if I can't have a huge, pristine house, if I don't get the princess sleep I want, I hope I can look at life as Wendy does and realize that those things aren't what I'm doing in life. Even when it's just JP, Rae, and Ruby. I'm not doing fashion. I'm not doing perfect. I'm not doing "me" time. I'm doing family.
Thanks for the reminder, Wendy.

Speaking of family --
Enough with the chatter. Here's what you really want. Pictures. :)

Scraping the snow off of Daddy's truck.

My little helper

Ruby is all smiles

Could those curls be any sweeter?

The Power of Prayer

Whenever I find myself getting stressed out, easily irritated and/or bitter, I know its because I haven't been spending enough time praying. This has been the case this week. So to remind myself of its importance, I pulled out some old quotes I keep stashed in a recipe card holder. Here are some good ones that I thought you might find encouraging as well.

"The meaning of prayer is that we get a hold of God, not of the answer." -- Oswald Chambers

"Avoiding prayer is a sure prescription for anxiety, a certain way to avoid peace. Often we do everything but pray. We tend to want something more 'substantial.' Even studying the Bible, going to church, talking to the pastor, or receiving counsel seems more tangible than prayer. (Satan) would rather we do anything than pray. He'd rather see us serve ourselves into the ground, because he knows we'll eventually grow resentful without prayer. We'll never have understanding and power to live what we've learned without prayer." -- Beth Moore

"Next to the wonder of seeing my Savior will be, I think, the wonder that I made so little use of the power of prayer." -- D. L. Moody

"On a typical day I am charged with the pastorate of three congregations. I teach regularly at the seminary. I have students living in my house. I am writing three books. Countless people write to me. When I start each day, therefore, I make it a point to spend an hour in prayer with God. But if I have a particularly busy day, and am more rushed than usual, I make it a point to spend two hours with God before I start the day." -- Martin Luther

"Have you ever noticed that it's really hard to ask God to help someone and still hold a grudge against that person? Praying for that person melts the bitterness, resentment, and dislike that we may otherwise feel." -- Cheri Fuller, When Families Pray

"For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." -- Hebrews 4:15-16

Israel's Stats

Israel had her 2-year checkup yesterday. She's 30 lbs (80th percentile) and 36 inches long (97th percentile). She did pretty well -- she didn't even cry when they pricked her finger. But she did not like Dr. Spencer trying to look down her throat!
Other than that -- not much new. Israel has been taking some music classes every Wednesday, and she seems to be loving it. She comes home singing and dancing every time. It's called Musikgarten. They get to play little instruments, learn about rhythm and patterns, and of course, dance around. I'd highly recommend it to any moms looking for some activity for their kids.

Here is my new favorite picture of my loves

Rae is 2!

Happy birthday to our sweet Rae!

So cute...So happy...

such a blessing!

We thank God for Feb. 3, 2007!!!

Ruby - Four Months

Ruby Ann is 4 months old!
She had her checkup on Thursday. She is 14 lbs, 14 oz, which puts her in the 75th percentile for weight. She is also 26 inches long, which puts her in the 95th percentile for height! Our big girl!
These days she is smiling, squealing, and laughing all the time. She really is our sweetie girl.
You can choose to believe me or not, but she really did have a tooth break through about a week ago, and then one day it just went back in! Rae is in love with her, and they make each other smile whenever they are together.

Sesame Street Live

For the second year in a row, JP's parents gave Rae and Ava tickets to Sesame Street Live at the Target Center. And for the second year in a row, they LOVED it! Thanks to G & Bompa (& G's friends with the hook-ups!) for the wonderful day!

Are they going to prom???

DancingThanks, G!

The stage

So, about this last picture...
Last year, G bought both of the girls Elmo balloons and Rae's flew away to the top of the Target Center. This year she got them balloons again, and YET AGAIN Rae's balloon got away from me. Kindly, Lisa bought Rae another balloon. I tied it to my wrist and got it all the way back to Lisa's house. Then I took it off my wrist, put it in the far corner of the van, and as I buckled Rae into her car seat...the wind sucked it out and it blew off into space. Rae almost started bawling until I started cheering, "Yay! It's flying!! Look at it go! Elmo's flying away to find Big Bird! Go, Elmo, Go!" Rae was quite confused, but kind of liked the idea. And she DIDN'T cry. So...I was pleased.
Next year, let's just skip on the balloon. :)

Don't feel neglected

I am quickly losing the faith and motivation to send out Christmas/New Years/Baby Announcement/We've Moved cards, so don't feel bad if you didn't get one. I didn't send any. :) 

That being said, if you DO want or need our new address, send me an email and I'll send it to you. 

Honest Blog Award

My dear friend Bethany awarded me with the "Honest Blog Award." Much like she said, I'm not sure I'm always 100% honest on this blog. No need to weigh all of you down with the nitty-gritty details of everyday life. 2008 has been a hard year, though you couldn't tell it by reading the blog. Still, we've had a lot of blessings, and I choose to focus on those and "cast all my cares upon Him."
Anyhow, along with the award I'm supposed to post 10 honest things about myself. Oh Lordy -- here we go...
1.) I belong to a facebook group called "I judge you when you use poor grammar" for a reason. I'm a grammar nut, even though I don't always hold myself to the same standard. And yes, all of you fellow bloggers, I am editing your blogs as I read. ;)
2.) Sometimes I will go most (if not all) of the day without brushing my teeth. I'm the type of person who doesn't like to brush until after I eat breakfast (It makes your food taste funny!). But if I get busy with the kids, skip breakfast, etc. I will put it on the back burner until about 6:00 pm when JP is going to come home. Then I'll do it so that he'll kiss me.
3.) My house is almost always dirty and/or messy.
4.) I have a serious listening problem. My actions and expressions will give you every indication that I am listening to what you are saying, but my mind will completely shut off. If I do "hear" what you're saying, I'll have a hard time retaining it. I have to purposefully focus on each word you say if I want to ingest it. This drives JP crazy.
5.) I also have serious texture issues. I cannot eat things like seafood (shrimp especially), mushrooms, water chestnuts, and anything else with an unusual texture.
6.) I hate shopping, especially for clothing and groceries. I almost always leave frustrated. I think the clothing part is because I can never find anything I like that I can afford, and the grocery part is because I can't cook and can't create any good ideas.
7.) If I am not instantly good at something, I give up. With the exception of parenting and being a wife, since I have no choice. :)
8.) I have a hard time admitting when I'm wrong and apologizing.
9.) I am NOT a feminist and have a LOT of issues with feminist thought. I think it is probably one of the leading causes of divorce today. I wish women would get back to submitting to, honoring, and serving their husbands with him as the leader.
10.) I'm embarrassed to put all of this out there! :)

I'm not going to tag anybody else. I'll spare you the pain of scrutinizing yourself!!!!!

3 Months

Ruby Ann turned 3 months old on the 29th. She is such a sweet blessing to our home. She's always smiling and content, only crying when she needs to go to bed. She has learned how to suck her thumb and can roll from her tummy to her back. She is very smiley and gets very excited when you talk to her, kicking her feet and cooing. She's a big girl, too. I don't have a current weight on her, but she is already wearing 6 month clothing.

We love you, Ruby!

Anna Malia Harpel

I am the happy new aunt of a beautiful baby girl. Anna Malia Harpel was born on the 29th. 6 pounds, 15 ounces, 19 inches long. She is so tiny and sweet!
Missy wasn't due until January 6th, but was induced so that Micah could be home for the birth. Everything went very smoothly and quickly. Micah has to go back to Georgia for more training on the 6th, so they only have a few precious days to enjoy together. Please keep their whole family in your prayers!
Here is the little sweetie...