He is Risen!

He is not here, but is risen (Luke 25:6)

Things that make me smile (2nd edition)

Just a few things that always put a smile on my face...

Like these two climbing into the chair together to read books. 

And seeing them being good sports about a little bit of teasing. 

And how excited the kids get about seeing the sun (we seem to get awfully long strings of grey days in Bremen, so when the sun comes out we get pretty excited!). On this particular day it had been well over a week and Atticus was so excited he ran to get my phone to take a picture.

And then he got caught taking a picture on Mommy's phone without asking....

And when the clouds cleared in time to see the sun setting behind the apartments and trees Atticus couldn't resist asking to take another photo. I love seeing these kids enjoying the beauty around them.

And then there is the excitement that this little girl gets about brushing her teeth. I am so glad she enjoys it so much. We had a period with her where it was quite the fight to get those teeth brushed. It is a nice reminder that (most) everything is just a phase that will pass (sometimes with a needed little push).

And even better is watching Milayla try different kind of smiles for each photo :)

A pretty common camera smile

her 'show me your teeth' smile :)

Then there is this blurry, yellow-bathed photo of my Dancing Blurs at a Family Dance we had at our church recently. Not surprisingly, we all danced up a storm. I'm pretty sure Milayla was ready to fall asleep on her feet by the time we made it home (long after her bedtime...). Atticus really broke out all his dance moves and when we were leaving he remarked that it was "a good thing I (atticus) wore my dancing shoes because I dance a LOT.". Yes, we all did dance a lot!

I love having so many reasons to smile. 

Milayla and her Perch

We have a small marble step that leads up to our big glass door at our balcony. It is seemingly insignificant to many, but not to our little girl. That step is one of her favorite places to hang out. If it's snowing, raining or sunny (the latter seeming to be quite rare around here lately) she likes to check out what's going on outside there. If we are rolling a ball to each other, she runs over the door and sits on the step to roll/kick the ball from there. If she is hungry for dinner but dinner is not quite ready yet, she prefers to sit on the step instead of in her high chair. It's peculiar, but oh so very cute. We've dubbed it her perch, because from that spot she loves to watch everything.

We're not quite sure why she has taken such a liking to her perch; maybe it's because it's the best vantage point to see outside, maybe it's because it's the only step that we have in the apartment (no stairs..) or maybe it's the close proximity to the table so she can make sure she isn't late for dinner. But, most likely, it's for her own reasons that we'll probably never quite know and we're okay with that.

Her favorite thing to do most recently is to stock the activity walker with books, wheel it over to her perch and sit down to read. It's her favorite place to read (next to cuddling under a blanket on the couch with Mommy or Daddy).

Love her silly smiles and creative perspective. 

She'll invite us to come read books with her and we happily oblige her. On this particular day Atticus ran to help with reading. Atticus isn't reading yet but he will point out and name the things in the pictures (because that's what he sees us do with her) and spell out the words on the pages (and even try to sound out a few of them; or at least some of the letters :)! ). 

It's cute. And I am happy they get along so well. 

Mind you, it isn't always this picture perfect, but I am happy to see them learning together, practicing communication, and working on building a very special sibling relationship. Good moments. I love these two. 

Easter is nearly here

Did you know we are only one week away from Easter? Well, actually, if you are like many families out there, you will probably have some special events going on this coming week like we do.

We love Easter around here. We count down to it starting 30 days prior as we read through progressive sections of The Living Christ (which we memorized a couple years back. And we got the idea and the free printables for the easter countdown here). All sorts of Savior-centred music fills our home more every day. We focus our family scripture study on the Saviour, the atonement and the resurrection and what exactly that means for us. We sing more (which Atticus pointed out to me is not such an easy feat as we sing a lot around here). We make bouquets of lillies. We watch video clips of the Saviours ministry. We slow down more. We simplify (at least, we try!).

I love Easter because it is where the feeling of Christmas emanates from. "There would be no Christmas if there was no Easter. The fact that he was resurrected gave credibility to his whole life's mission, and that's the essence of it." (President Gordon B. Hinckley). Easter is where testimonies are fueled, faith reaffirmed, miracles concreted, and a truer realization of eternities realized. My soul seems to yearn for Easter; to revisit the garden, to stand before Christ on the cross, to celebrate that glorious Easter morning and, most importantly, to remember that he did it all for us in an act of unselfish love. 

I feel a deep sense of gratitude to my Saviour for what he did for us so that we could live with our Father in Heaven again. Yet even with my gratitude, my service, and my testimony I know that it will never be enough to repay the sacrifice he made for me to become my Redeemer. Though, even with that in mind I will continue to thank him and do my best to live my life in a way that is representational of my gratitude (and there are certainly some days where I need a merciful hand extended to me from my Saviour more than I would like..). 

As Jason and I try our best to create a home (and experiences) that will plant seeds of testimony into the fertile soil of our children's hearts I pray that those seeds will take root, and that wonderful memories will be made; not memories of the crafts we did or the food we ate but rather of the feelings we felt and the love that abounded for each other and for our Saviour. It's a large order, I realize that, but I know that it can happen if we give it all we can and put the rest in His hands, our Saviour and Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

We hope everyone has a wonderful Easter Week; celebrating the life, death and resurrection of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. 

To help you get into the Spirit of this coming week, please listen to this song below. It is from one of our favorite CD's from composer, Rob Gardner, that we love to listen to, particularly at this time of year. The CD is called 'Lamb of God'.

 Enjoy!

Happy Birthday, Jason!

Jason's birthday starts a plentiful string of holidays and birthdays for our family and friends so there is a lot of extra excitement surrounding his birthday as we usher in many more cakes and parties to come.

Of course, birthdays are about a lot more than cake; they are about celebrating a person's life and all the incredible ways that they bless your life. And boy, does Jason bless us in so many ways. We're pretty lucky here!

So to kick-off the celebration of Jason being one year older (and wiser too) we, the kids and I, put together 31 reasons why Jason is just plain awesome (and why we love him :) ).  

Here we go!...

31 Reasons Jason is Awesome!

1. He is extremely patient.

2. He is really good at knowing when to take things lightly and to laugh at himself. (Like when his wife and kids pick embarrassing childhood photos to put on a birthday blog post all about him...)

3. He is a great Daddy

4. Because he is BIG like I am (this one is 100% curtesy of Atticus)

5. He is super forgiving.

6. He has great work ethic and always does everything in his power to see something done

7. Because he is a great bike rider (the kids came up with this one! I love the way they think; it gives way for more childhood photos :) ). 

I loved Atticus' reaction to this photo... "THAT's Daddy? He has no clothes on! That's silly."

8. He is a great example to me and the kids in so many facets of his life.

9. How well he speaks french. It is so impressive that he has kept it up since his two-year mission for our church in Paris.

10. Because he is awesome (yes, he is awesome because he is awesome...it seems to be a continuous feedback cycle)

11. How willing he is to try new things (new foods, languages, cultures etc.)

12. His love for learning.

13. His love for reading.

14. How dedicated he is to following the Saviour

15. His mischievious smile that gives away any trouble that may shortly come around due to his actions. Both children seem to have inherited that smile...

pretty sure he's got a little "crazy" in there...

16. Because he gets to spend Saturdays with us. 

17. He can bake some pretty awesome cinnamon buns (and Lemon Meringue Pie!!)

18. He builds good towers

19. He has great hair (and when/if it all falls out...he'll have a lovely head :) ). 

20. He has awesome eyes!

21. He is a talented Piano and Organ player (even though he hasn't had time for much practice as of late..)

22. He is crazy handsome!

23. He's kind to everyone (even when it sounds like they are saying something mean in a foreign language...)

24. He sings songs with us

25. He's a good climber

He's the one up top...

26. He is genuine and cares about everyone. 

27. He is determined and goal-orientated

28. He knows how to make the most out of otherwise icky weather.

29. He has a great smile.

30. He gives awesome hugs, kisses and cuddles.

annnnd

31. He is just the best person that we could have ever prayed/wished/hoped for to be husband and father in our little family. He's awesome. We love him. And we feel so blessed to have him as the head of our household and all the incredible ways he blesses us and the world around him.

Yep, reallllly grateful he can laugh at embarrassing photos. I love him :)

Happy Birthday, Jason! We love you! Thanks for being so awesome!

February from the iPhone

I know, I know, February is looong over but I couldn't resist smiling about these photos on mine and Jason's phones and wanted to make sure they made their way to the blog.

Like this anonymous "heart attack" that we came home to one night.

There are some pretty stealthy people around here, I tell you; we really are curious how they got into our building. (Anyone willing to spill the stealthy secret?)

Or this photo of the kids and I conked out on the couch having a verrrrry sick day. We had a few too many of those in February. And while I certainly enjoy all those extra cuddles, I sure don't like seeing these kiddos feeling under the weather. They are so sweet, positive and thoughtful - even when sick. I really am one lucky Momma.

And then there is the incredible slide at the movie theatre. Jason and had been to this particular movie theatre on two occasions when a friend mentioned to me that there is a slide at the theatre that goes from the top floor to the bottom floor (that's 3 cinemas high). To be honest, I was kind of in disbelief that it existed - how could we have missed it!? Well, lucky for us we had a date night planned the next night to go see the premier of Les Miserables (it took a little bit longer for it to premier here than in North America) and we could not wait to hunt out this apparent slide.

Well, it was certainly there. And we had certainly missed it on the previous occassions that we had been there. How did we miss it? I have absolutely nooooo idea. Perhaps Jason and I were just too infatuated with staring into one another's eyes that we never thought to observe our surroundings ;). (perhaps not :) ). In any case, it does exist and we had lots of fun topping off our movie night with a run down the slide.

A tad scary (and fast!) going down that many levels. Looking forward to our next movie night.

And finally, there is Milayla and her Brotchen. There is certainly no mystery about which country this girl currently calls home because she loves her German bread. On this particular day she has picked out a brotchen (german bread bun) at the grocery store and when we got home she couldn't even wait to get to the table to start eating it. While I was taking off my shoes and coat, she dug right into the grocery bag and started enjoying her big chunk of bread.

I can't even begin to describe how happy I am to see Milayla progressing in her eating skills. It is pretty awesome.

And that concludes the photos from my phone vault for February. On a very different note: I am rather looking forward to spring :).

Valentine's Day

We had quite the countdown to Valentine's Day going on around here. I was pleasantly surprised at how excited the kids were about it coming. Of course, the decorations, the valentines that the kids and I made and their knowledge of there being a surprise awaiting them certainly helped to fuel the anticipation. 

The day kicked off with a special valentine breakfast with the kiddos (Jason headed off to work eeaarrrly in the morning so he missed breakfast, but he was back shortly there after. I love flex-time. It has been a much needed aspect when we live so far from family.). I had planned to keep everything pretty low-key and to try to focus on the feeling (rather than trying to put together perfectly-pink heart shaped pancakes with dancing cupids on top, or something equally over-the-top for us) and served up some muesli with homemade raspberry milk. It was a hit. And tasty. 

Jason was home shortly after breakfast to help out since I had injured my foot a couple days prior and was supposed to be resting on the couch. The morning was nicely filled out with Valentine coloring sheets, mazes and little games. Nice and easy which made it totally manageable with an injured foot. And we all enjoyed ourselves just the same.

After nap time was when the real celebration began. I had seen an idea for a family celebration over at The Power of Moms that looked perfect (and so easily customizable for every family) and so with a little creative brainstorming we put together our 1st Annual We-Love-to-be-a-Family Day! 

Looks certifiably cheesy, doesn't it? On the outset, it definitely does but don't let that dissuade you. It was perfect. Here is the idea in a nutshell: come up with different activities to do together as a family, hide clues for each activity around the house, find clues, do activities, have fun, make memories. So simple. So easy. So fun. And so very memorable. I hid the hearts while the kids were down for nap and so they were pretty excited to stumble upon a few hidden hearts when they woke up and to see our special banner. 

Our activities were nothing extravagant as we knew doing it on an afternoon would not allow much time to fulfill the activities, but the extravagence certainly did not make a difference. We did things like performing acts of service for another family member (in our case we each cleaned someone elses room), group hugs, taking a valentine and a treat to a neighbour, making (and eating) pancakes together for dinner, learning about the Saviours love (a personal favorite) and opening up our valentine mailboxes while having a few special treats. 

Jason and the kids went to the market and came back with some gorgeous tulips. I can't wait for Spring! And see that Valentine's Day Banner up there? That was Atticus' handiwork. Man, is he proud of it. 

Visiting our neighbour is always lovely so we enjoyed that and you certainly can't go wrong with pancakes for dinner but I think everyone's favorite part of the day was opening up our Valentine Mailboxes. 

The kids really put a lot of work into their valentines and they did such a great job. Atticus was so proud of the message that he came up with for my Valentine and the family pictures that he drew along with them. He is such a thoughtful kid. 

And Milayla was so excited to let everyone know which Valentine was from her. When we would ask who the Valentine was from that we were opening, she would raise her little finger and give us a big, cheeky grin to let us know if it was hers. I love the way her eyes sparkle. She has such an incredible little personality. 

I loved the kids expressions and reactions as they opened up their valentines. Milayla even gave her valentines each a little hug. And Atticus made sure to say 'thank you' for each and every Valentine. 

And once all the Valentines were open, Atticus wanted to try taking a photo of Mommy and Daddy. Not bad for his first go and his little, toddler hands. Not to mention, it's kind of nice to have a picture with both Jason and I in it. 

And with that, a very successful Valentine's Day had come to an end (at least the family part). After the kids were in bed Jason and I enjoyed a little chocolate tasting and some Singing in the Rain. I love that Jason is so patient with me as I sing along to absolutely every song. Life really should be a musical.

I feel pretty lucky to have enjoyed such a great day with the ones that I love. Looking forward to our second annual We-Love-to-be-a-Family Day next year!

Valentine's Day Mail

The kids had so much fun making valentine cards to send to grandparents and a few of their friends in the weeks leading up to Valentine's Day. There was also a lot of suspense about the Valentine cards that we made for each other.

Those were all finished about a week ahead of time and I am happy to report that there was no peeking before Valentine's Day (despite some two little ones who were verrrry excited to open up their mailbox). Thankfully, the Valentines that they received in the mail seemed to quench their desire to open up their mailboxes. Atticus couldn't even wait to get his outdoor stuff off to open up his Valentine card from Great Grandma and Grandpa.

I love Milayla's eyes. They are so expressive and always filled with so much joy.  You get a really good view of that little chipped tooth of hers here as well. It certainly did not dim her smile at all.

 I'm sure glad that we put these together and made those valentines because it was a huge success and we all really enjoyed making, giving and receiving the valentines. The kids were so proud of the valentines that they had made and loved the ones they received (Milayla even gave one of her Valentines a hug!).

I'll post some more on the mailbox valentines with the rest of the valentine stuff later though. For now, I need to take advantage of nap time and try to get some work done on a certain little girl's birthday dress.

Just another normal Saturday

We couldn't help but laugh one Saturday morning when we woke up to two happy kids at 730 (that's a pretty successful sleep-in time around here) and discovered how they kept themselves busy as we were pretty certain they hadn't been sleeping the entire time. Atticus, being a bit more mobile as he is in a normal bed, took the liberty to use the toilet, make his bed and get dressed. Milayla, who is still sleeping in her crib, did the best she could and took the liberty to get out of her sleep sac and pyjamas. She was so proud of herself (as well she should be, those are hard pyjamas to get out of!) and couldn't contain her excitement when we came in. It was nonstop giggles and laughter.

It's a little burry from all that giggling (and a poorly lit room), but you get the idea :)

Oh, I love happy Saturday wake-ups.

Living My Dream

A few weeks ago after lots of sick time on the couch, first with each of the kids and then as a sick person myself, I had plenty of time to think about life and process all that was going on.

Amidst all of the doctor, dentist and physiotherapist appointments that filled every nook and cranny of our week as we took care of ear infections, a chipped tooth, colds, flus, stomach infections and blood tests I had a moment of stillness where a potent realization sunk deep into my being, right to the heart. It was the moment that I looked at my children, playing nicely together in the doctor waiting room in the blur of sick children that were intermingled into the colorful decor, and thought to myself, 'this is awesome'. No, that wasn't some bizarre sarcastic or cynical comment that I was making to myself; it was a sincere, whole-hearted, personal thought.

 Being a mother and raising children is something that I dreamed of and wanted more than anything else as I was growing up and there I was, in that doctors' office, in the thick of living out my dream. And while my dreams certainly didn't get detailed enough to include things like the shoulder of my shirt constantly covered in snot because of all the extra "I'm sick" hugs with the added feature of a runny nose or the doctor office receptionists knowing each of my children by name because we have been in there so frequently as of late, they were realistic enough to know that there would be sick days, trips to the doctor, extra hugs and kisses to give and tears to wipe away and I looked forward to those moments with almost as much anticipation as all the happy, healthy moments because those moments would mean that I was finally living out my dream of being a mom - and well - that is awesome. And boy, am I grateful for those two little blessings of children, that I get to be there for all the good and the sad times to support, love and encourage. I am grateful to be living my dream and grateful for this little family of mine that make it all possible, because they're awesome and I love them.

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For another great article about living the dream as a mom, be sure to check out this one from Saren Eyre Loosli on the Power of Moms. Love that site and all the incredible and inspirational moms who contribute to it.

Things that make me smile

A feel like my phone is always filled with all sorts of little treasures that always make me smile. It seems like every time I turn on my phone, there is something new awaiting me and (don't tell the kids as I am trying not to encourage them taking my phone without asking) I kind of like the unexpected surprises that make me smile. 

Like these pictures of Milayla. Man, I love that smile and her front that is always covered in drool lately. Wearing bibs are not her thing and don't last long, so the dress needs to do the job. But with a smile like that, I'm not sure anyone would notice all that drool. And see the blurry picture of her with the chair? She is constantly on the go these days and it's awesome, especially when she uses that energy to help clean up like she was doing there. But when she uses it to dance, that's pretty spectacular as well. I must try to get the latter on video soon!

Artwork like this makes me smile. In part because none of us have arms, and in part because of all the things Atticus could have chosen to draw while he waited for us to talk to the teacher at a Kindergarten we were touring, he chose to draw our family with the biggest smiles that he could fit on our heads. I'm pretty impressed at the appropriate size proportions as well.

The treasures that I find in Milayla's activity walker always make me smile. Lately, it is usually filled with an assortment of books while she will wheel off to her favorite book reading spot of the day (which tends to rotate between the kids' play table, a corner by the book shelf, on the couch with Mommy and Atticus, or surrounded by her books on the living room carpet). I love her love for books.

The fact that Atticus already knows how to do functions on my phone that I don't know how to do. Like screen shots and voice control, and screen shots of him doing voice control. Smart kid. Tech savvy.

I love how excited the kids get about showing off our new Book of Mormon reading charts (that we printed from here). We've been reading the Book of Mormon every morning as a family for some time and it finally occurred to me that giving the kids a visual to see the progress we are making would be beneficial and, boy, has it worked wonders. The kids get pretty excited about getting to color off more chapters and we'll have a little celebration once we finish so I'm sure that helps too ;).

Other things that make me smile::: getting tackled with hugs and slobbery kisses from two energetic toddlers, going on date nights with Jason, listening to Atticus' perspective on things (he never ceases to amaze me), hearing Milayla call for Momma, seeing Milayla set to work to build her own train track after Atticus politely asks her if he could play with his own for now, seeing Atticus and Milayla work together, play together and laugh together, the sound of Jason's key in the front foor at the end of the day, the sight and sound of little feet running to the door to greet Daddy, goodnight hugs and kisses, lullabies, family home evening, how Milayla points out Jesus every time she sees a picture of him, how the kids love to show off when we facetime/skype with grandparents, aunts/uncles and cousins, the gentle squeeze Jason gives my hand to communicate a million words into one tiny little action that reminds me he's there and he understands (at least most of the time), the incredible encouragement and support I get from Jason and the kids as I start dancing again, giggles, being able to be a stay-at-home mom and focus on being a part of raising these awesome kiddos, hearing my children say "I love you" to each other,and to us, and I could go on but I'll just get to the point - I feel pretty blessed to have so many reasons to smile. I always dreamed of having my own little family and I just want to make sure that I drink it all in and enjoy the journey.