Trick or Treat!

Here Comes Curious George! A great Halloween Night was had by our family tonight. We trick-or-treated here in McKay's Mill, just the three of us, for about an hour and a half...and then Lincoln was plum tuckered out. Here are a few pics of the night getting started:


Here are a few of him in action, attempting to say clearly "Trick or Treat", "Happy Halloween", & "Thanks for the candy!":





Towards the end of our trek, he got very tired & just wanted to be held by Ben.


Enough with the monkey hood! He had had enough of it:



All in all, we had a great time with our boy, & he had a terrific Halloween. Did I mention the first house we went to, he took the lollipop, sat down on the cement & unwrapped it immediately? It was a night of magic for him.
xoxo

Camp Cissell's Face-Lift

Hey guys. Y'all like my new pimped-out blog? It was in desperate need of a renovation...she's way overdue for a make-over. A girl named Jennisa did it, & you can click on her link at the bottom of my blog to be directed to her information & website. She's got some really cool stuff going on.

On another note, Lincoln crawled out of his crib yesterday. For the next few hours, I walked around in a shocked state, wondering how my life had drastically gotten harder, now that the little curtain climber can crawl out. But last night, we told him "Stay in your crib, don't get out..." and the same thing this afternoon, & so far so good. We'll see how long this lasts. For those of you who know Lincoln, you know he's quite the rambunctious character...wish us luck.

Meet Fancy Blue! She's the newest addition to our family

Here she is, friends. Here's our new car that we got in Atlanta this past weekend. We made a family road trip of it & drove to Atlanta early Saturday morning & came back on Saturday night. It was a very fast trip, but oh so fun. Lincoln was so funny on the trip out there...we watched Shrek 4 times. Ah, good times. You can never hear too much of a donkey screaming, "Don't be a jackass!"



Until next time...

gentry's farm

Today we went to Gentry's Farm. My parents are in town, so we decided to brave the masses & join the fun. The only thing that is not so fun is trying to keep Lincoln still enough to get a decent picture. I think it is impossible. So many attempts & still nothing. Oh well, he is 2 1/2. My parents loved spending time with Lincoln & playing with him. Here's him & my dad:

Having fun in the kitchen...

my sweet parents...

playing with the corn with my dad...


It was a good day.
Happy Fall everybody.

six months & growing...

This week marked my being pregnant six months. It has gone by so fast this time around. With Lincoln, every month seemed like an eternity. Now, I suppose I'm too busy chasing after Lincoln, sweating, & breathing heavily after climbing one flight of stairs to even count the days or months of this pregnancy. There's something freeing about looking down at my calendar & saying, "Wow! I'm 6 months pregnant already!" With that freeing sensation & feeling, there also comes a somewhat surprising emotion I am also feeling these days. It rose upon me today in the car while driving Lincoln home from school: Grief. I am grievous that my time with Lincoln, just the 2 of us, day in and day out, is narrowing to a close. It brought me to tears this afternoon when I thought that no longer will I be looking back in the van to just one sweet boy anymore. How do I have room in my heart to love another when my first love, Lincoln, takes up every piece of space & time? Don't get me wrong, I am thrilled to be having another darling boy in our family (and I know Ben can second that) & cannot wait to kiss him & call him by name. This new son calls for more room in my heart, more space in my spirit, more love in my arms, & more tears on my face. How can this be? I so easily forget that I am not the one who can provide more, more, more, but Jesus Christ himself. The pendulum swings wide & far of His love for His own. The psalmist says, "You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound." I feel that Lincoln is the beginning of our grain and new wine...baby Levi is the greater joy that is added to our bounty. So my prayers these next few months will be just what the psalmist claims. Fill my heart with greater joy, Lord.

It's the day of the show, Y'all.

Friday Night Lights premieres in just a couple short hours. Don't get me started on how excited I am. Go for the Gusto! Break out the bubbly! Put on my party dress! Dust off my dancing shoes! Boot-Scootin' Boogie! Not quite sure the reason for the old-fashioned sayings, but it goes with the territory when I'm watching a TV show that is designed for a typical 14-year old.
To that end, I hope it's the bee's knees.

Lincoln...a fan of Damien Rice? Yep.

We've reached the stage. It's the stage that I used to laugh secretly about, snicker altogether about, & just blatantly take as a joke. But no joke it is. It's the stage (in what I'm assuming is the never-ending stage at this point) of your kid absorbing every single word & action you say & do. Oh dear Lord. I'll set it up for you so you can get the full effect of its volume. For those of you who don't know me or my musical taste, I'm secretly in love with Damien Rice. This is no secret to Ben either. So I've been listening to his latest album frequently of late. We were running errands, it was just me & Lincoln in the car, & the song ended (it was #1 on the CD, if you care to wonder) & Lincoln screamed, "song again!" I looked back & he has this horrified, offended look on his face, clearly wanting me to play the song again. So I obliged, secretly thinking he didn't say what I thought he said. The song started again, & all of a sudden, I hear Lincoln start singing the words, word for word..."Leave me out with the waste, this is not what I do..." Um...I'm no scholar or teacher, but I'm gonna take a leap & say these are not the words he needs to be learning. Anything that involves "throwing people out with the waste" are not for a toddler's ears. I looked back & said, "Oh my gosh, you know the words?!?" He looks at me & says, "Oh my gosh mama! Lincoln's singin!" I called Ben immediately, & by the time I got home later that day, he had a compilation CD made with awful sing-a-long songs on it. Some of these include "Big House" sung by a girl whom I can only presume to be tone-deaf, "This Little Light of Mine", which is sung by a choir of kids who, let's face it, are just screaming loudly, & "Deep and Wide": there are no words to describe this one. A part of me died yesterday...no more sweetheart Damien to soothe my weary soul. It also makes me scared. No longer will I be a calm driver...I'll be clenching the steering wheel with bleeding eardrums & a longing to veer my car off the new McEwen bridge as Lincoln sings, "It's my father's house..." in the background.

landscaper lincoln

Psalm 18:30-35

"As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is flawless.
He is a shield for all who take refuge in Him.
For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God?
It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.
He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights.
He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me;
You stoop down to make me great."

He stoops down to make me great. The God of All Things, the Creator of Time, the Life-Sustainer...He stoops down to make me great. What a welcoming notion & what a beautiful truth...

The cheese stands alone!

That's right friends. The Cheese is me. I will be outnumbered in this family...we just found out this morning that we're having another boy! Praise Jesus that he is healthy, normal & measuring right where he should be. I guess I should get used to wrestling, football, soccer, hikes, fishing, recreational sports of all kinds, & big appetites. I love boys.
To those who were praying this morning during the ultrasound: You are like cities built on a hill, lights that cannot be hidden.
Thank you so much.
Toodles from Big-Mama's-House-and-teeny-weeny-boy