We had a request for video

What does Isaac do these days? Well he does small chores.

Next up.... Lawn mowing this Spring.

He talks and talks and talks.

A Walk in the Snow with Dad

Reflections before my child turns 2

To this point in Isaac's life, things have been basic: Up and Down, Run and Walk, Good and Bad.
Why do I all of a sudden fear that things will not be basic for too much longer...that we will be teaching him soon that even though life has it's Up's and Down's, we must always Run after those things that are Good.

What is our standard as parents? For those of us who operate by reaction, it is to be better than our parents or to measure up to our parents. For others, we have created our own definition based on our world view, our faith, and our opinions.
However we define it, my hope is that our definition would be ALSO shaped by who each of our children are. What does your child need in order to thrive at his/her current stage? Are we content to fulfill the needs of our children as they were as infants...fed, check...nap, check...clean pants, check. This stage is only for a short while...where is your child now?

Let us pay attention. Let us love our children with attentiveness and a desire to understand their amazing hearts.

Playing Trains With a 2 Year Old

Isaac loves to play trains. If you let him down in the basement where the wooden train set is by himself, then every few minutes he will come to the foot of the stairs and yell up "Dada you comin to play trains." We had a little problem a couple of days ago. We could not find the black engine. The black engine is definitely Isaac's favorite. Interestingly he was perfectly willing to play by himself with the other trains while he let me look all over the house for the black engine. The funniest thing about playing trains with Isaac is that he is very picky about what he lets you play with. The train cars consist of a black engine, a blue car, a yellow car and a green car. Isaac always plays with the blue car and the black engine. He does not even want the yellow and green cars in the same vicinity as the blue and black ones. He will pick up the blue and black ones and move to a different part of the track if you come to close. Also I stopped playing with the trains on the track and started playing with a tennis ball. He promptly took the tennis ball from me and hid it behind a filing cabinet. Then came back and says "Dada play with trains." He is lots of fun.
-Tim

Isaac is Almost 2

So we need to start planning a birthday party. This year should be fun. He may actually pay attention to the people that are around and eat his cake with a fork. Some of you may recall last year (video). The seeing eye dog in training underneath Isaac's feet did not know life could be so good.

Also with two on the horizon Isaac has been starting to display some attitude (though sometimes subtle) when he does not want to perform something he has been asked to do. Last night he was sitting nicely on the couch with me. I said, "Isaac it is time to get your PJs on." He turned and looked at me for a moment. Did not say anything. Got off the couch. Walked over to the loveseat. Sat by himself. I nearly laughed out loud, but I did not want him to think he was funny.

-Tim

Home Alone

It happens very rarely, but I am currently home alone. I sent Tim and Isaac to the grocery store. I am currently (still) painting the upstairs hallway. I can't finish all of it because of the tall ceilings, but I've gotten enough done to where it doesn't bother me to live with it.

I have just paused to eat the rest of my Subway Tuna sub which in infinitely better on Italian herbs and cheese bread. So while I am eating my supper, I am also watching the Steelers vs. the Chargers game. It is very entertaining, but I thought for fun, I would record the commercials that pique my interest:

American Idol debut: this Tuesday at 8pm. I'll be at Ten Fold, but you can be sure I'll be watching the 2nd half.

Nextel: push to talk in a school to find a child who is skipping class. I thought it was good.

Chevy Silverado: did a good job of demasculinating the extraneous and ridiculous features that some manufacturers are putting in trucks (i.e. heated steering wheel, a flatbed step, etc...)

My sandwich is finished. If you can picture me thoroughly licking the last of the yellow mustard off of each finger , that is how I feel about the sandwich. Yumm.

Must go paint.

Blessings to you as you start your week. I wish you all could be a part of Pillar Church today. We had a very nice Sunday morning together.

How do they know?

Isaac opened his Christmas gift from BeBe and Uncle Chris today. It's the Geo Trax Grand Central Station (i.e. a super train set with a remote control). This is Isaac's second train set. The first wooden set we got thanks to Jennifer Davis pointing it out at our church's Indonesia Yard Sale.

With the first train set, Isaac immediately favored the black car which happened to be the engine. I didn't know if he knew it's function or just thought it was cool, or maybe even just liked the black color. But now that we've moved on to a bigger and better train set, guess what happened? Isaac immediately favored the engine. This makes me think that somehow children just know where the power is. How do they know?

Kissin' Cousins

Well, a surprise visitor appeared at our doorstep just before the new year and we couldn't have been more pleased. Nana (Amanda's mom)brought with her our oldest nephew and Isaac's oldest cousin, Stas (4 1/2). We were so proud of him for taking that long drive from South Carolina up to Virginia and I think he is having lots of fun with his cousin, Isaac. Here are a few pictures to capture the week so far:
1) We gave the Polar Express in 3-D a shot. It lasted a good 3 minutes before the boys gave up on the glasses.
2) We read a book together in our PJ's.
3) Isaac and Stas help me build a fire. It has been very cold..the lows in the 20's.
4) Isaac and Stas read a book together in the office.
5) Isaac and Stas play their Leapsters.