The Sickies

Best friends for the weekend:
Nyquil
Dayquil
Children's Cough Medicine
Tissues
Tea
Oatmeal
Soup
Blankets

Yep...we all had the sickies this weekend. =(

More Lessons From Parenthood

Every night Noah prays before bedtime and I love listening to him recount his day to Jesus. I love to hear him say stuff like, "thank you I fell down and didn't cry" or "thank you my daddy read me stories today." It used to amuse me that Noah would start his prayers with "You're Jesus" instead of "Dear Jesus." But amusement has given way to awe and humility as I realize how correct Noah actually is. I need to pray starting with "You're Jesus." I need to recognize that HE is the King, not me. To acknowledge his sovereignty, power, grace, and love...he's Jesus.

You're Jesus...you gave me an incredible child who teaches me about you daily. Thank you for the wisdom you give to small children. Thank you for opening my eyes to see you in new way. Amen.

Random

Sunday night about 11:30 pm...I am so close to being asleep...

Noah: Mom? Mommy?
Jeana: *sigh* What do you need, Noah?
Noah: What sound does a dog make?
Jeana: (thinking I must not have heard that right) What?
Noah: What sound does a dog make?
Geary: Giggle, giggle, snort.
Jeana: Um...a dog says, "Woof!"
Noah: No. Actually, a dog says, "Arf! Arf!"
Jeana: Okay. Thanks.
Noah: You're welcome...good night.
Geary: Giggle, giggle, snort.

Friends Don't Let Friends Eat Friends

Noah: Mom, I'm all done.
Jeana: Um...you need to eat some of your chicken. Two bites.
Noah: I can't.
Jeana: Yes, you can. Just two bites of chicken and you can be all done.
Noah (holding a piece of chicken near his cheek and stroking it lovingly): I can't eat it because...well...the chicken is my friend.

Rules to Live By

This morning Noah and I were playing "Hide the Baby." One of us would hide a small baby doll while the other would go count to 10 in the hallway. Then the hider would give the finder 3 clues to find the baby. When it was my turn to be the hider I told Noah to go into the hallway adding, "And no peeking!" He looked at me with a confused expression and then said, "Oh yeah! Cindy says that. No peeking, no pushing, no biting!"

____________________
For those who have been asking what Noah would like for his birthday, we've finally updated our Wish Lists.

Lessons From Parenthood

When I found out I was pregnant with Noah I bought a plush giraffe and named him Sprinkles. Throughout my pregnancy I would often hold Sprinkles while I prayed for my baby and I hoped that Sprinkles would become Noah's "special" toy. When Noah was born and old enough to have a stuffed animal in his bed, we always gave him Sprinkles and the bond was formed. By the time Noah was a year old, Sprinkles was a necessary part of the bedtime routine and we could tell that he was beloved.

The Easter before Noah turned two, Nila gave him a plush puppy which Noah promptly named Puppy. Noah, Sprinkles, and Puppy instantly became their own little family. Now Sprinkles and Puppy have the same status in Noah's eyes. He wants both of them at bedtime, and if for some reason we can't find one, there is obvious disappointment. But when both animals are present Noah spends a good half hour delighting in his toys and interacting with them and having them interact with each other before falling asleep.

Geary pointed out that it's as if Sprinkles is the Jew and Puppy is the Gentile. Sprinkles was meant to be the chosen toy, the special one that would have a unique bond to Noah. And then Noah adopted Puppy and brought him wholeheartedly into the family. Between Sprinkles and Puppy there is never a "favorite" and Noah even calls them "brothers".

I don't feel that I'm in competition with any Jews or anything like that. But watching my 2 5/6 year old love so unconditionally makes my heart swell. I am intensely grateful for being adopted into God's family and for being made a princess and an heir even though I'm not a "Sprinkles". And, I know that I often compare myself to other people to see whether I'm better or worse, but just like Noah loves his two toys equally, I don't have to worry about whether God loves me more or less than my "brothers and sisters". But the big lesson is: If Noah delights over having Sprinkles and Puppy together, how much more does God delight over having his family together? Colossians 3:12-17

The Quotable Noah James

"Someday I gonna grow up....and then I will be six years old!"
--Noah James Linhart, age 2 5/6

I'm about 5'10'', a teacher, and your father.

This Sunday Jeana spent the day with friends. This left Noah and I to spend some quality time . . . watching football--Seahawks! I bobbed left and right as Noah blocked my view, and laboriously pulled himself up onto my chair. With a lot of uncomfortable bouncing and bruising I got Noah to get out of my way. I kept watching the game as he sat alongside my hip on the big chair. Suddenly, the bundle of two-year-old-energy stopped. In that brief pause I heard this little voice say . . . "so, tell me about yourself." After laughing, I thought that was the best part of the game.

Buca de Bepo

We had a great time celebrating Geary's birthday at Buca de Bepo with John, Ginny, Eric, Anita, Lili, Karissa, Chad, Cindy, Andrew, Nicholas, Clay-Todd, Sara, Lydia, and Sara's mom (sorry, I can't remember her name, now! eep!). After quite a bit a table rearranging and then finally moving to the "party room" we ate a TON of delicious food. It was super fun. But the best part was when the waitress brought dessert and misheard Geary's name. We ending singing "Happy Birthday, dear Larry!"

Thank you, thank you, thank you to John and Ginny for providing this wonderful night out for us! We had a great time and we love you a ton!

Happy Birthday, Geary

To the Love of my Life,

I am so pleased and honored to be married to man who is strong, brilliant, tender, and wise. Yahweh has used you to pour blessings on us. Happy Birthday, Geary. May your day be filled with joy, honor, and blessing!

xoxo,

Jeana

The Pumpkin Patch

On Saturday we (the Linharts and the Carlsons, minus Chad) went to Foster's Produce Farm. They had tons of pumpkins and ugly gourds, an animal barn, a haymaze for little kids (which Noah and Andrew LOVED) and big corn maze (which we didn't do).

One of the funniest things was this goat on a platform. You could put food in this soup can that was attached to a pulley and the goat would pull the can up to get the food. Noah and Andrew each fed the goat several times. I wish you could have heard their giggles. It was a really fun day.

Well, excuse me!

Today in the car I attempted to quiz Noah on his letters by saying, "A..." and waiting for him to say the next letter. He gave me a withering look and stated, "I don't do letters."

Embarrassing Moment

I can't believe that someday Noah will want to walk 10 feet behind me at the mall for fear that I will embarrass him...I think it should be my right to embarrass him after what he did to me today at Target...

Noah: (very loudly) Mom! Mom! Listen to me!
Jeana: Okay I'm listening.
Noah: You can't hit little boys anymore! Got it? No hitting boys!
Jeana: (looks around mortified) Right, no hitting...
Noah: And Mom! You can't say "dammit!"
Jeana: That's right, we don't say that.
Noah: You can't say "shut up!"
Jeana: Okay, let's use our inside voice...
Noah: Mom! Don't hurt me anymore! Got it?

Finally I just asked (pretty loudly), "Noah, do I ever hurt you on purpose?" He happily answered, "No" and that pretty much ended it. But I'm sure my face was still red. Geesh!

Kidney Stone Update

I had my follow up Urology visit yesterday morning. It turns out that I still have a 2mm fragment about 2/3rds of the way down my ureter that I still need to pass. Ugh! When will this end! At least I'm not feeling any pain.

11 more months to go...