No No

So what has Levi been learning besides how much we love him?

After watching that video one might think he experiences that scene often....YEP!

We could just kiss the skin off of those cheeks!

Violin Recital

Isaiah had his first violin recital last Sunday and he was absolutely adorable. He played his song well which he attributed to the fact that he was wearing his suit and tie. It was fun to see him so confident. When he got done he sat back down and winked at my mom! He is such a joy.

Most wanted toy of the year? The broom.

I usually post smiles. Here is the other fun side of raising preschoolers.

Fun trip and a fat lip

Today we made the drive to Iowa City to meet Emily (dear friend that I can tell any deep dark secret or stupid little thing and she will love me anyway and/or tell me that I am being stupid) and two of her girls, Julia and Noelle. That is the halfway point between our homes and so we decided to visit the Iowa Children's Museum and just goof off.

It was great to introduce Levi to Emily who has been and continues to be a huge support spiritually. We played hard and then ate Chick-Fil-A, Levi's first taste. He devoured every morsel of food that he did not spill on his shirt. Later, Naomi and Noelle collided and Naomi got the biggest fat lip I have ever witnessed. Poor thing. There was lots of blood. Anyway, after a trip to the Stuff store, we hit the gas station for the kids to pick out their very own drink and variety of M & M's. I felt like such a fun mom.

Every attempt to get the kids to sit still for a picture was in vain. Sorry. You could probably check out her blog here if you are interested cause she will probably have some pics knowing her.

I listened to a great sermon on long drive by John Piper about parenting. That, combined with some giggles with my friend and watching my kids have a blast added up to a day of renewal. Praise the Lord. He is always faithful.

Newsflash

The Lord has revealed that I have been trying to control things that are out of my control. This has been a painful truth to uncover.

In other news...

The kiddos snuggled up for a few episodes of Superfriends after bath time tonight. Aren't they just too precious? It was fun to see these two being sweet toward each other this evening since they spend most of everyday battleing for the baby position in our family. At one point I caught Naomi kissing Levi on the cheek when she didn't know that I was looking. Hehe.

Micah is out of town for the week. We miss him. Isaiah devised a plan for him to begin working only on weekends so that he can be home on the weekdays. Sounds good. What do you think, Dad?

Rub-A-Dub-Dub

Three kids in the tub.

And tons of giggles.

And cuteness.

And fun.

Did I mention cuteness?

Papa John and GG

Papa John and GG made the trip from NC to visit our circus right here in Dubuque. I think my mom stated a million times "Jamie, I just think Levi is so precious!". They were so excited to meet their new grandson.

Sunday Cuteness

I snapped these quick as we were running out the door to church because I thought that Naomi looked so cute in this outfit that she got from her friend Eva. Levi has learned what to do when he sees the camera camera so he ran over to join in with his sister. Is that cuteness or what?!

Adoption Video

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God has been so generous to bless us with another child. Praise His Name.

Click below to view/download the video.

http://micahsteele.net/Videos/AdoptionVideo.wmv

True Colors...

Just wanted to give you a glimpse into the absolutely precious personality of our new wild boy.

2009 Year In Pictures

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Click below to view/download the 2009 Year In Pictures video.

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http://micahsteele.net/Videos/2009YIP.wmv

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New Videos

Levi is good at giving kisses!

Isaiah declared on Sunday night (after hanging out with some older boys) that he was done with training wheels. He talked about it quite a bit and we found time last night to go to the church parking lot and do some practice. He took right off!

Another favorite thing for Isaiah now is playing baseball. Anytime it is nice out he is in the back yard practicing. Micah loves playing with him.

Easter Sunday!

It was wonderful to relax and take time to consider what our savior has done for us. Our church has an alter call of sorts on Easter Sunday and it was wonderful to see all of those who chose to walk across the stage giving a public confession of faith. It is so interesting to consider that those who made that decision chose to give up their lives in order to gain the scandalous gift of our Lord. It is so exciting to think about what the cross means for me. Have you considered what it means to you? I urge you not to waste any time in doing that!

We just hung around the house after church and the kids colored eggs and then we hid some eggs for the kids to find. The hidden eggs contained M&M's. Levi ate all of his treasures but Isaiah and Naomi saved some of theirs for later. Levi decided to go on the prowl trying to steal some additional treasures...

Here are some pictures from the day:

Easter pic on the front steps of our house.

All of the little kids from our small group posing at church after the service. Aren't they just precious? They all love each other so much.

After the egg hunt in the back yard.

We were free and made alive...

Cutie Pie

Last weekend we went over to our beloved neighbors, the Berstlers, for a campfire. Levi had a great time bringing sticks over to the fire and giving sticks to Mr. Berstler. It is so fun to watch him explore and experience things that we are quite certain he has never done before.
I caught Levi and Naomi rocking and just cackling at each other and ran to grab the camera. It was soo cute! In over Levi news:

• He is sleeping in his crib in the room that is his and Isaiah's. He wakes up several times a night but settles quickly when Micah goes to comfort him. Yes, Micah. He is enjoying being the night time comforter since Levi still has a hard time connecting with Micah during the day.
• He loves to give us all kisses and understands when you say "give me a kiss" what that means.
• He eats more than Isaiah and Naomi put together.
• He likes to play "rodeo" with dad and I and N.
• He loves to ride in the car and when you ask him if he is ready to go bye bye he finds his shoes.
• He did test positive for and intestinal parasite so we are looking forward to getting that treated and GONE! We are hoping that none of the rest of us has picked it up.
• He tries to imitate what we are saying but mostly just succeeds with getting the melody of the words.
• He has an appointment at the University of Iowa Children's Hospital in two weeks and I am looking forward to that even though I know he wont like it much.
• He is such a sweetie and it is fun to watch him learn what I means to live in a family who loves him all of the time!

Lake House Construction

We made a trip to the lake house today to check out the progress on the construction. It is located on Lake Delhi in Iowa and it is really just the Makoqueta River dammed up. It is a nice quiet place to go we think and we hope that we can have some quiet and relaxing time with our family there. It is a duplex/condo so we don't have any maintenance or upkeep to the grounds. Today we took the kids bikes and let them explore a bit. We are scheduled to close on the house on July 1st but we hope it will be sooner so we can get out there and start enjoying it!