Additions to the annoying sleep disturbance list

Doorbells during nap time was just the beginning. Here are three more that we've experienced in the last 24 hours:

In the morning: Today the garbage truck decided to arrive BEFORE 6:30 a.m. My toddler boy has ears FINELY tuned to the sound of any heavy machinery, so I got an excited visit in my bedroom to, "Come take a look, Mommy."

At nap time: People seem to love to mow their lawn in the early afternoon. Don't these people have jobs to be at??

At bed time: Fourth of July is coming soon. It will be nice when it's over!

Hope for weary parents

I don't know about all you other parents, but once 9:30 p.m. rolls around in our house, the two parents present are exhausted. We normally sit on the couch and attempt to have a conversation for awhile, abandoning that goal since our brains are too tired to think. We waste a little time before concluding that we really must sleep or we'll collapse. It's a happy exhaustion, being the parents of two young boys, but exhaustion nevertheless. When I read this passage in Isaiah 40 this afternoon, it reminded me where I need to go when I am exhausted (which is at least once a day).

Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.

He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

(Isaiah 40:28-31)

Updated: I wrote this in the early afternoon today. This evening I checked my email and found a fitting quote that I thought is appropriate to add. I do not know the author:

"These are the never years. Never enough money, never enough time, never enough sleep - but always enough love. The sweetest kiss of a baby the tooth-paste-flavored kiss of a child on his way to school; the sleepy kiss of a husband who is just as tired as you.

These are the busy years, the wonderful, hectic, impossible years. Soon the children will be grown and I'll have plenty of time to organize my house, to sew and to cultivate outside interests. I wonder if it will be as wonderful as I sometimes dream it will? Or am I in the middle of the wonderful years... right now?"

Photographers

I took the boys to get pictures at the Sears Portrait Studio this morning (thanks to J & R for the Christmas gift). We got several nice shots - not a small feat with two boys this young! My only gripe was the attitude of the photographer after I had finished choosing the poses and the quantity of my order. I ordered $62 worth of pictures - definitely not enough for her. She was obviously miffed that I did not order more of the pictures. It's not so much that I don't want to spend the money as I just don't need that many pictures. Let's be realistic - there are very few of you who really want a hard-copy picture of my boys, much less several different poses. (If you do want a picture, by all means, let me know - I am more than happy to mass distribute photos of the Loh boys!) Sorry Ms. Photographer, I'm just not going to buy pictures that will all sit in my drawer at home.

Happy Father's Day

Daddy and Zachary (June 2007)

Daddy and Benji (October 2005)

Obviously, Daddy's boys love to snuggle with him!

Happy Father's Day to the best daddy ever.

Family evening at the park

We are fortunate to live a few blocks from a Catholic school and church with two nice playgrounds that we make good use of on a regular basis. Here are some pictures from earlier tonight.

Uncle Kyle, Auntie Belle, and Benji-boy

My favorite way to start the day

Yesterday (Sunday) I slept in until 10 a.m. (!) This is the latest I have slept since Benji (not Zachary but Benji) was born. Thanks Shearn Yoong - you're the best! And then I got the aforementioned massage in the afternoon. It was an altogether relaxing and pampering kind of day.

This morning we were back to reality though. Shearn Yoong was out of the house by 6:15 a.m. and both boys were up by 6:30 a.m. One of the perks of early rising kids is that we can go for a morning walk before it gets too hot. We were out of the door by 7 a.m. and enjoyed an hour plus walk around the neighborhood. We ended the walk by saying hello to the horses that live a few blocks from our home.

Though yesterday was fun but it's also nice to get back to our daily routine. A fresh walk, little chit-chat with Benji, a morning cup of hot coffee, morning snuggles with Zac-man, listening to "All things considered" on NPR - these are the things that make my morning fun.

If I were rich...

I would get a professional massage every week.

I cashed in on my birthday gift from Shearn Yoong yesterday afternoon and got an hour massage at Nu-U Spa. Lovely - just lovely.

I think we need to start saving now so I can have one massage every month of my next pregnancy!

Benji's first picture

Another good quote

I found this quote in an article in the most recent La Leche League magazine from the book "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding":

"The comfort and security extended by your loving arms is never wasted."

There are times as a mother that you feel like you have been touched all day long - and enough is enough. But that quote was a beautiful reminder that every time I hold my little ones, they receive comfort and security which yields a eternal reward for them - love.

Good quote

When women--sometimes well-meaning, earnest, truth seeking ones--say "Get out of the house and do something creative, find something meaningful, something with more direct access to reality," it is a dead giveaway that they have missed the deepest definition of creation, of meaning, of reality. And when you start seeing the world as opaque, that is, as an end in itself instead of as transparent, when you ignore the Other World where this one ultimately finds its meaning, of course housekeeping (and any other kind of work if you do it long enough) becomes tedious and empty.

But what have buying groceries, changing diapers and peeling vegetables got to do with creativity? Aren't those the very things that keep us from it? Isn't it that kind of drudgery that keeps us in bondage? It's insipid and confining, it's what one conspicuous feminist called "a life of idiotic ritual, full of forebodings and failure." To her I would answer ritual, yes. Idiotic, no, not to the Christian--for although we do the same things anybody else does, and we do them over and over in the same way, the ordinary transactions of everyday life are the very means of transfiguration. It is the common stuff of this world which, because of the Word's having been "made flesh," is shot through with meaning, with charity, with the glory of God.

- Elisabeth Elliott

Wanted: another baby

Beginning last night Benji has requested 4 times or so that we have a new baby. And yes, he knows what he's asking for. He pulls up my shirt and points to my belly while asking, "I want a new baby." We told him that since our current baby is not quite 8 months old, it'd probably be better to hold off for awhile. He saw the reason in this request, so now he's asking for a new baby once "Benji's baby" (a.k.a Zac) is older. I guess that means Benji enjoys being a big brother. Now if he could just be a more GENTLE big brother. :)

It's 3AM. Do you know where your kid is at?

Woke up this morning to the noise of some knocking and scratching noise coming from the bathroom. Went into the room to find out what's going on, and wide-eyed Zachary looked up at me with the expression, "Ooops.... you caught me, daddy!"

We've removed our bed frame and the box springs a couple of weeks ago because we fear Zachary would one day fall off our bed and hurt himself. We now have our mattress on the floor, beside Zachary's crib mattress. Apparently, little dude woke up in the middle of the night and quietly (at least not noticeable to his sleeping parents!!) army-crawled into the bathroom for some personal play time.

It's 3AM, if your 8-month old is not in his bed, check the bathroom!