Can we build it...

Yes we can!!! Finally! Apparently in the world of baby information they are supposed to be able to stack things at 12 months...not in this household. I bought Micah foam blocks when he was 8 months and then bought him mega blocks for Christmas. They might as well have been chew toys because no block building went on at all. Oh well!

This week he finally decided that he would start building with his blocks. Yay! We sat down one night and he all of a sudden started stacking away. I know this picture shows a rather advanced tower but that's just because we were playing together. I'd love to say it was a product of his imagination but no one in their right mind would believe that! Since this night he has gotten better and better at putting his blocks together. Check that milestone off the list!

Zoo Atlanta

Yay! Saturday Micah and parents enjoyed his first trip to the zoo. We had an amazing time at Zoo Atlanta with just the three of us. I couldn't even remember the last thing we had done (besides go eat!) just our little family. How sad is that!

Our day started with the tigers of course...War Eagle! She was frisky that morning. She kept running and jumping into the water right in front of the glass. Micah loved it! He kept saying "tider tider" so cute! Unfortunately Zach was changing lenses and didn't get a picture of it but thanks to our friend Adam's zoom lens we got great pics anyway!


Next we continued through the Asia section to see the Pandas. Of course they were all sleeping! Micah loved them because they were laying really close to the window and he could see really well. They are such beautiful animals.


While we were walking around we kept reminding Micah of the animals names and the sounds they make (at least the ones we know!). He is best at the monkeys so that was a definite highlight in the day. We saw Orangutans, Gorillas, Spider Monkeys, and Golden Lion Tamarins which were so darn cute! They were really quick and would chase each other back and forth along the trees. What was really cool is that they weren't really enclosed. They were right in the open of the kids sections. You were close enough to almost reach them, but we didn't!








To get away from the 94 degree weather (yes that's hot!) we hid in the Reptile House for awhile. I looked at a few things but since all those slimy scaly things give me the willies I let Micah take Zach around and show him everything. They had a blast being boys and staring at colorful and oddly shaped frogs, snakes, turtles, lizards and iguanas.




At 11:00 every morning the zoo has elephant training in a special room. We got there just in time to see Tara doing her daily exercises. It is amazing how huge those animals are in person! On the way out Micah wanted to go look at the little elephant statue in front of the viewing area. He did a great job pointing out the little elephant's ears, eyes and nose.


Before lunch we finished the African section of the zoo with my personal favorite...Zebras! Along with their giraffe, rhino, and ostrich friends. We also HAD to see the lions. The new lion cubs weren't out that day but we got to see (and hear) the daddy. He perched himself on his own Pride Rock and bellowed for all the zoo to hear. WOW! I do not see how you can't see God glorified in those creations!






After we devoured our packed lunch (the zoo makes me hungry!) we headed to the kid zone for the petting zoo and train ride. I really thought Micah was going to need a little encouragement to get down amidst all the animals but not at all! He went straight for the goat and petted away. He even tried the brush for a few minutes and of course had to point out the ears, eyes and nose of the sheep.





One of our last events for the day was riding the train which was very fun for our choo choo lovin' boy! He was so big sitting in the seat between us. Gosh when did he grow up!?


It was a fun, hot, family filled day and we all had a blast! It was definitely worth it but we were definitely worn out by the end...can you tell??

hmmm??

**Disclaimer...I promise no children were hurt during this activity. Despite how you read his face he was in fact DELIGHTED to have mustard bottles stuck to his cheeks.

"M"elmo

When I was young I LOVED Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. There's just something warm and fuzzy about those two programs. I actually cried the day Mr. Rogers died. He did so much for kids during his lifetime. Very cool guy! Anyway Micah and I have gotten in the habit of snuggling on the couch every morning and watching Sesame Street after he wakes up. I don't know what it was about yesterday, but he suddenly got real excited when Elmo's World came on during the show and just started saying Melmo Melmo and pointing to the screen. So cute!

After it was over and I had turned the TV off we went to the back of the house to do whatever it is you do in the mornings and while I was making the bed I heard the TV come back on (I'm still not sure how he did that) and then heard him run to find me. When he saw me he tilted his head and asked Melmo? So cute again!! So off we went to Target to find an Elmo's World dvd. We will be purchasing the rest through ebay or Amazon, but he was just so cute asking for Melmo that I wanted to get one that day.

After our successful Elmo's World search we came home and I popped it in the dvd player...immediate excitement. I captured a few pictures of him staring at his beloved Melmo and wanted to share them with you all.

Isn't he just too cute!

**He just finished watching the video again today and has now starting picking out Dorothy ("fish") and Mr. Noodle ("noole")! Such a smarty!

When it rains...

It pours! On Friday my brain was full...I mean packed to the brim with tiredness and responsibility. I know you may not think that would make your brain full but it does. The constant concentration of being in charge. Last week was a loooonnnnngggg one. My living room was trashed for many days in a row because of the construction Zach was doing, I had to attend a funeral for the mother of a precious friend of ours from church, and make dinner for another friend from church who delivered her baby boy 5 weeks early! Zach had three nights of music stuff and the one night he was home we were finishing up the built-in entertainment center (which is awesome, but I'll post pics later) By Friday I think I just snapped or something (not in a mean wenchy way, but in a I don't think I can handle being in charge of everything for one more second way)

Micah and I had just gotten home from attempting to pick up my hair straightener from Leslie's (which is where I got dressed for the funeral) with no avail because she had stepped out for a few minutes. On the way home it started pouring and that's when I started praying...finally. I still don't understand what possesses us to wait until we're at our wits end. When will we learn we can handle NOTHING! Oh well, maybe one day. When I drove into the garage I felt an urge to just sit and enjoy so Micah and I sat at the edge of the garage and just stared out at the water pouring from the sky and rushing down the streets. Instantly a song came to my mind. Mr. Dan, our beloved music minister and great family friend, sang this a lot at church when I was growing up and the words just washed over me this particular afternoon.

It's beginning to rain rain rain hear the voice of the father Saying whosoever will come and drink from the water I will pour my spirit on my sons and my daughters If you're thirsty and dry look up to the sky It's beginning to rain

I/We need to remember that when it feels like it's raining on us and we can't get out it's because God wants us to focus on the fact that He is reigning. Usually when I feel overwhelmed with the constancy of life it's because I've forgotten to look up to the sky and see His Spirit that pours down on me. Wow! Anybody else like this...ever? Surely I am not the only one.

So I wish I could say that I immediately learned my lesson and felt better, but I didn't. It's only tonight, as I am again sitting listening to the rain that I understood completely what God was trying to tell me Friday afternoon. Now I can look through the pictures I took of Micah playing in that rain and see the glory of the reign. Thanks for listening!

Andrew Peterson

Zach here...this is my first blog post, so here we go! This might be long...just wanted to throw that out there.

As some of you might know, I'm a huge music fan in general. I really love artists who can tell stories with their songs, and who not only are great writers, but talented musicians and singers too! Last night, I got to fulfill one of my goals in life...I met Andrew Peterson!!!!



I promise, I'm going to try to write this without sounding like a stalker.

Rockdale Community Church, (where we have a monthly worship night that I co-lead), has been hosting Christian musicians during the summer for the past few years. When I found out that Andrew Peterson and Ben Shive were coming this year, I flipped. Of course, I try to play it off like it's every day that my favorite musical duo comes to my backyard, but as I was standing there talking to Andy (that's what I call him now by the way), it took all of me not to start doing the sprinkler dance...that would have been a little weird.

One of the highlights of the night was getting there early to "help set up", and meeting both Andy and Ben. I know that they were probably tired from the drive, stressed after the sound check and setup, and wanting to eat and prepare for the show, but after the sound check, Andrew stood and talked to us for a while, just about music, recording, and lots of other geeky stuff:)

I went home to pick up Sarah, and we headed to the church to get seats with all of our other friends who were there...Justin, Steph, Adam, Mandie, Michael, Krista, to name a few, and my good friend Mark, who was visiting for the night!

The cool part about the concert was that Andy told stories about certain songs, which made the actual lyrics make much more sense! He started out with a couple familiar songs, a song off of his new album, and then I heard it...the 7 sweet notes of "Canaan Bound", one of my favorite songs. It was such a great evening, sitting with Sarah singing along to familiar songs like (in no certain order) canaan bound, pillar of fire, lay me down, far country, let there be light, shiloh, family man, clear to venus, and high noon.


The concert was very moving, to say the least. We laughed at his stories about his life in Florida and fun times with his family. I had tears in my eyes (hey, so did all the other girls) when he told us the story about the Queen of Iowa, and sang his song about her. Finally, the closing of the concert was deeply rooted in the Gospel and the powerful love of Jesus. He played a song called Hosanna, off of his new album, which set the stage for probably my favorite song of his, High Noon. I'll have to post the words some day, but you can check them out here. Those two songs, combined with an acapella version of All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name, led us into worship to close the night. What a perfect way to end a great evening, singing all together with renewed spirits!


So yeah, it was a huge blessing, a great time with Sarah and friends, and an amazing chance to meet one of my favorite singers.

Next on my list is John Smoltz...one day...one day.

I'll try to post more often...maybe not as long...but maybe :)

brownies and boxers

Yes I am very aware brownies and boxers is an odd post title and scary combination depending on what you are talking about. However when they concern Micah it can be nothing but adorable.

Yesterday morning Stephanie called to see if we wanted to have dinner at their apartment with her, Justin and her parents, who were up from Louisiana helping with their new house. Cindy (Steph's mom) had apparently been craving dessert and I volunteered/was volunteered to make it, which I totally didn't mind because I too love me some dessert. I decided to make brownies for the chocolate lovers (me, Cindy and Justin) and cherry Jello for the others (Steph and Zach). I pulled a chair up to the island for Micah to stand on so he can watch/help (p.s. Auntie Stephanie Micah might want a mini-me apron for Christmas...just sayin!) I kept telling him what I was putting in the bowl and he was repeating the words (he now knows what eggs are when he sees them). After I had the batter in the pan I turned to check the oven and the dear boy was putting his finger smack dab in the middle of the baking dish. Of course I didn't get it on camera so I told him he could do it again which he definitely had no trouble with. He never got a finished brownie though, sad for him because they were yum-o!!




Now for the boxers! This morning Micah was helping me sort laundry and by sort I mean taking the dirty clothes out of their respective piles and dragging them around the house. At one point he was walking in and out of his room carrying a pair of Zach's boxers. After a couple trips he brought them to me and said "awwwwwnnnnnnnn" which mean 'on' in the world of his adorable southern drawl. I put them on him and then twisted the back and tucked it into the back of his diaper. So funny and cute! He wore them for about 5 minutes and kept looking at his back trying to figure out how they were staying up. I guess once he was confident they weren't going to fall he ran up and down the hallway in them. He is so cute...but he is such a goober!