Potty Training!

We have been potty training Baxter this week...it's gone better than I thought, and yet we have a long way to go! Owen was 3 1/2 when he went through this, so he got it in a day. Baxter still doesn't seem to get it, but he's going in the potty and today he stayed dry all day. I'm very proud of him and can't believe we might be diaper free (aside from naps and bedtime) until January! Here are some sweet pictures.

We need to find some pink!

Here is a video of us telling Owen and Baxter that they are going to have a SISTER!

"My New Bed"

Baxter has made the transition from his crib to a toddler bed in the last week. He has done way better than I ever thought he would do! He stays in the bed for the most part, and we're trying to teach him how to read his clock to see when it turns 7 in the morning and 3 after naps so that he won't call out until then...that is going a little slower, but that is ok! Here are a few pictures from right after we set up his bed, and a few from he and Owen on the bed.









Calling Gramma and Grampa to tell them about his new bed.

Cows

Once again, we enjoyed some FREE chick-fil-a food by simply dressing up as cows. This year, Owen wanted to be colorful cows, so I obliged. They still gave us the free food. I was hoping for a bonus milkshake for creativity, but I guess I shouldn't push it! Here are our two little cows. We didn't get a family shot, but we all had different colors on. Quite a scene!



Owen wrote his own "Eat Mor Chikin" sign. Not sure why I had him write the words correctly - guess I didn't want to get him confused as he's learning these things...

Three

I have been meaning to announce on our blog that we are expecting Purdy baby #3! We are do in early January, and are now 15 weeks along. I have been feeling sick pretty consistently since we found out we were pregnant, so that is why I haven't thought to update the blog! I am STARTING to feel a little bit better, so I'm hopeful that the end of the sickness in near.

We are excited - the boys are too! Baxter always gives the baby (my growing tummy) hugs and kisses and talks to it. Owen talks about "when the baby comes..." and sweetly tells me that my tummy is getting bigger often. He means well :) For those who would like to know, we WILL find out if it's a boy or a girl. I think that is at the end of August.

Please join us in praying for a healthy baby and pregnancy!

VBS goes on

We had a fun and yet exhausting week at VBS last week. Owen was in the Pre-K class and LOVED it. Matt and I were Owen's teachers (along with help from our friend Anne Winston - thanks Anne!) which was really neat. Baxter started out in the nursery, and DID NOT LOVE IT, so he joined the "Black Ponies" with us and did great! I think the highlight of the week for both of our boys was the music. The music team was over the top amazing and the Lord used it to sink the songs and the truths of the songs in their hearts. Thank you music team! Here are a few videos of the Purdy Family singing some songs from "Lost Canyon VBS 2010.""

(As a side note, you will also get to see our boys argue with each other a little bit. But that is all part of our world! Pray that they would love each other with the love of Christ! Patient. Kind. Faithful. Long-suffering. We all need it!)

"In My Father's House are Many Mansions"
(From Hide 'em in Your Heart)



"River of Life"
This is the all time favorite of B especially!



Here the boys are being cowboys (or "yee-haw men" as B says) and riding their horses to another song - "You Shall Go Out with Joy." Part of the theme of the week included cowboys and saying "yee-haw" a lot. It has made a lasting impression on them.

Haircuts

We are all gearing up for Matt's "little" sister's wedding in two weeks! One of the items on our to-do list was haircuts for the boys. We went ahead and did them today and will probably do a small touch up the week of. Matt captured the moment well. Haircuts used to be a DISASTER in our family, but now they done with ZERO tears. Phew!

Here are Owens before, during and after. The during picture is the grace of God at work!







And Baxter's...what a ham! Check out B's tan lines!

Happy BELATED Father's Day!

I had wanted to post something for Father's Day, and the day came and went. SO... a week later I thought I'd still go ahead and post afew pictures of Matt in action as a loving, fun, faithful father. He has energy and creativity that I just can't muster up and it's a beautiful thing. Owen and Baxter are very blessed to have him as their daddy!

Here are some of my favorites: some sweet ones and some products of "boy time" (which are sweet in their own way!).

Ways to beat the heat

We've been spending a lot of time inside because it's been SO hot. Here are some of the ways the boys are beating the heat.

Projector fun

So, our TV and DVD player were fried in a recent lightening storm :( My grandparents gifted us with their old DVD player and we are currently borrowing a TV from my parents (THANK YOU BOTH!). Before we were able to borrow the TV from my parents, we needed something to watch a DVD at home group on Sunday night. Thankfully, church had just bought a projector for Sunday School classes and Home Groups to use. SO, Matt set it up during naptime, and the boys were able to watch Curious George on the projector after naps. They were in awe.

School is out for summer

We have taken quite a break from school at home since O got out of preschool in mid-May. I plan to do some fun activities from time to time over the summer (like making popsicles), but won't do our normal school stuff until the fall. I think :) Here are the last few letters that we did. I am missing a picture of H (Honor your father and your mother), but here is G, I, and J. It stands out to me as I look back a month at these pictures that there is nothing too spectacular or creative about the picture themselves, but I hope and pray that God uses them to impress His Word on the hearts of our boys! That is what would be spectacular!

G - "Go into ALL the world and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15. I printed out a simple map with the verse printed on the bottom. I then printed out some pictures of missionaries we are friends with. I drew a shape on various parts of the map near where they serve and drew the same shape on the corresponding picture. Owen matched the shapes and glued the pictures on.



I - "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Phil. 4:13. I had written out the verse and drawn a cross on the paper. MY plan was to take the shapes Owen had cut out and write different things that we can do in Christ's strength (obey mommy, love Baxter, be kind to my friends...). OWEN'S idea was to glue all of the shapes on a write numbers on them...big numbers and little numbers...like something we had done a year ago. SO...I chose to be flexible and we went with O's plan. Sometimes a mommy has to flex a little bit, as hard as it is!



J - "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life.'" We talked about what the way, the truth and the life were, and how Jesus is all of those things for us. Then, we made these "compasses." The directions on the compass are not your typical North, South, East and West, but rather The Way, The Truth, and The Life.

Good reminder

I was reading todays "Morning" entry in Charles Spurgeon's "Morning and Evening" devotional book, and was encouraged by this simple reminder of why we are here. He was answering the question of why doesn't God just take us to heaven the moment we are saved through Jesus? Why do we remain to do battle on earth? Here is a brief excerpt. To read the whole thing, click HERE.

"We live unto the Lord."—Romans 14:8

"The answer is—they are here that they may "live unto the Lord," and may bring others to know His love. We remain on earth as sowers to scatter good seed; as ploughmen to break up the fallow ground; as heralds publishing salvation. We are here as the "salt of the earth," to be a blessing to the world. We are here to glorify Christ in our daily life. We are here as workers for Him, and as "workers together with Him." Let us see that our life answereth its end. Let us live earnest, useful, holy lives, to "the praise of the glory of His grace.""

Books to Suggest

Just wanted to suggest a few books that we really love. Owen is just old enough for them, and we don't read the whole story in one sitting. But they are so great in telling the gospel story in a story. Enjoy!

The Prince's Poison Cup by RC Sproul



The Lightlings by RC Sproul



Psalm 23 Sammy and his Shepherd by Susan Hunt

Camping

I went camping for the first time this weekend! I was very nervous, but it went very well - I'd even look forward to doing it again! The occasion for this trip was with our home group. There were a few more experienced campers, so that was helpful! We ate well and just enjoyed time around the fire relaxing and chatting. The boys stayed home with Matt's parents (Thank You Grams and Grampop!) so that Matt and I could enjoy this time without trying to figure out how to sleep two boys in a tent! Someday we'll try that! Here is a picture to prove it!

New Book

Matt and I are reading a book called "Respectable Sins" by Jerry Bridges with an "older" couple in our church. The book points out the need for the gospel to be at work in our hearts as believers, ESPECIALLY in those places where we easily tolerate our own sin. "I'm just an anxious person" or "all young parents get angry at their kids" etc. etc. We have just gotten into it and it's neat. It doesn't say "oohh, look at all of the things you do wrong!" in a condemning way. It's more of a convicting "we are called to live in a way that honors and glorifies God, here are some areas that you are not allowing the truth of His Gospel to get to. Let's reveal those and let Jesus work." I feel like we're in a bit over our heads, it's going to be challenging. But I'm thankful at the same time.

Here are a few verses from the "Ungodliness" chapter I just read. (Just to note, he describes "ungodliness" as "...living one's everyday life with little or no thought of God or of God's will, or of God's glory, or of one's dependence on God." (p. 54) That certainly describes a lot of the parts of my days!!)

Psalm 42:1-2 "As the deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?"

Psalm 63:1 "O God you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water."

I'm praying that those statements would be MORE of what defines my heart and mind each day - longing, thirsting, seeking after the Lord - fellowship and communion with Him, rather than pursuit of my own idea, control, peace, order... What joy and wonder would follow! How much would my kids lives be blessed if I was more concerned with meeting with the Lord than with them behaving just how I'd prefer. How much more would mu husband feel loved if I was loving him with the love I have first received through Jesus? Why do I waste so much time an energy on other things? This is where life is really found!

Thanks for bearing with my thoughts today. I'm sure this book will prompt more thoughts and blog entries. I'm looking forward to how He'll be at work!

Rest Time Boxes

We started something new today for Owen at nap time. He hasn't taken a nap consistently for over a year. Instead, he does rest time. This looks like being in his room from 1:30-3:00 reading/listening to music/playing with toys, etc. This typically goes well. He goes through phases where it seems to bore him or he seems so tired but won't let him sleep. Those days don't go very well.

So today we started "Rest Time Boxes." I bought three rubbermaid storage bins, 16 qt size. I filled each box with some toys/activities/books. Each day, he can choose one box. That will hopefully focus and direct his time. If he wants to switch boxes, he can, he just has to clean up the first one and then move on.

We're only 20 minutes in, but it is quiet so far. I will keep you posted! I am hopeful that this is just what he and I have needed to help this time.

Any other thoughts on 4 year old rest time activities?

Owen's Class Trip

We went on a field trip last week with Owen's class to one of our favorite parks in Richmond, Crump Park. At first when I told him that I would be going with him he said, "No thank you mommy." Then when we told him that all of the other mommies were also going to be there, he was ok with it. Phew!

This is a picture of the two 3 year old classes and the 4 year old class. I'm thankful for how much he's grown up this year - in the fall he wouldn't sit without me for the picture, but this time around he sat still and smiled without thinking twice! That gives me hope!

Williamsburg

We spent a few days this weekend/week in Williamsburg to celebrate Mother's Day and our Anniversary (8 years today!). We "won" this trip through one of those time share companies - give them 90 minutes of your time and they pay for 2 nights stay and give you some gift cards. SO... the "pitch" to buy was harder than we thought, but we succeeded in saying no. After that, we enjoyed some time away from home, doing pretty much what we do at home. Vacation with a 4 year old and a 2 year old looks a lot like life at home, just away. But it was joyful to be able to spend time together without the distractions of laundry, work, email, etc. Here are some pics.


Lunch at a yummy spot, "The Cheese Shop."





Anything can be made into a drum!






Even with all that there was to see, the boys just loved RUNNING around! It was a beautiful day and a beautiful place to run and play! Their favorite was riding in the stroller over the bumpy rocks! Who knew! In a few years we'll have to go back and enjoy more of the history that surrounded us.









We went down the Colonial Williamsburg Parkway and found a great spot to walk on the beach and throw rocks into the river. We stayed for about an hour. It was awesome, peaceful, fun, etc. I am not sure who had the most fun though, Matt or the boys! There was a stick out in the middle of the water that Matt was trying to reach. He tried valiantly! He came close a few times, but it was fun to watch him try. If I had known ahead of time how peaceful this was going to be, I could have brought a chair and a book! That is how great it was!