My Reedlings

I admit it. I've been slacking on my blogging lately. So much to say, but so little time to say it in. :/
I'm amazed at how much change and growth I see in all of my Reedling Seedlings lately. It's really sad and rewarding to look at them all and see how much they are growing up. It dawned on me the other day, that when our bebito in utero is Josiah's age, Josiah will be 18 years old. Say what?! How does time go by so quickly? Babies truly are only babies for what feels like minutes, and the harder I strive to soak up the moments...they really can't be saved and they can't be slowed down. Life keeps on ticking, just as it's supposed to.



Josiah will be nine in February. I am amazed at this kid's imagination, creativity, passion for justice, and tender heartedness. When Josiah came into the world, he really brought a ton of life and joy with him. The other day, as I rambled on and on about an idea I had to Danny, it dawned on me how alike Josiah and I are in that regard. When he gets an idea- he's going to find an invention, plan or scheme to see it through! He loves animals! Loves them! He adores exploring and learning. Recently, he picked up an un-assigned chapter book and read it front to back on his own will. He has to read from chapter books every day, but he just decided he wanted to read something that he wasn't 'made' to read. He finished the whole book in two days, reading it in his spare time.

Shhhhh....don't mention that I told you. I'd hate to disrupt something good.

While it has been impossible for me to carry around Josiah for a while, now it's hard to hold all of him in my lap. He still is very insistent on certain routines and things we've had since he was a baby, though. Even if he is just going outside to play for a couple of hours, he usually runs up and hugs me, kisses me on the cheek, and tells me he loves me. If I'm running behind on tucking the kids into bed, he does everything in his power to keep his eyes open until I get there to hug him and tell him good night. I just love this kid so much.



Isaac will be 7 in January, only a few days after my estimated due date for our newest baby. He is Mr. Tough guy these days. A macho exterior, but a bundle of scratchy, 'Frogger' sounding laughs, and hugs underneath. He loves to do anything that "men" do. He will run with Danny on any errand regardless of its entertainment factor...because, that's what big men do. He likes to try to fix things, and gets very embarrassed over mushy-gooshy-lovey talking.

He is doing super in reading and math. I'm so proud of him! He's trucking right along as a 2nd grader!



Amaus is our family clown. This boy is a hoot and a half! I have no idea where he comes up with the hilarious stuff he comes up with, but it keeps us all entertained. Last night he asked me if I could turn the metal coin in his hand into chocolate. Ha! If only, son! He does anything to get his brothers to laugh. If he gets a laugh out of something, he's going to pull that trick out later and try it out for more laughs. (Preferably in a large group of people, and in very crowded public places.)

He was asked at church recently if he ever loses his temper. His response: I don't lose it. They take it from me!

His best buddy is his cousin Elizabeth. He pretty much adores playing with her and exploring with her. They like to put on their backpacks and walk around outside. Not long ago, Danny spotted them putting a hat on Grandmama's yard decor bear, and pointing at it and talking to it as if they were giving it a scolding.

Amaus still wants me to hold and snuggle and rock him, which I love! When he's hurt or sad, he still wants his mama..which I also love. But he's growing into a big boy quick, and he certainly prefers being outside as much as possible, just like his older brothers.






Camila is growing like a weed and doing so well! I compared her weight and height today from her doctor visit we had while in Peru, and she has gained 5 lbs and grown 4 inches! I could hardly believe it!

Camila loves toys. She will play and run from sun up until sun down. She still loves building and stacking toys. We are working on naming and identifying colors and objects. On two random times, she has pointed to things and told me "purple" or "yellow". Camila is saying more and more words. Sometimes I can't make them out, other times they're as plain as day.
I am eager to see her putting sentences together, but unlike a child who simply just knew one language and is learning a new one, Camila is pretty much learning to talk. She spoke only around 3-5 Spanish words, so she is basically starting from scratch. However, she now understands most of what I say to her in English. "Let's get your shoes." "Pick up your toys." "Put that back." "Time to eat/take a bath/go swimming/go bye-bye/go potty." etc, etc. She will clean her entire room when I tell her to, and she knows just where everything goes! The baby doll in the bottom picture above was given to her by a friend, and she loves it. She likes to take it for a stroll through the house, and she laughs her head off when I make the doll have a voice and say, "Gracias Mama! Thank you!" Then she begins making the dolly tell her thank you for the stroll, in her own sweet little voice, "Gracias! Thank you!" (She always pairs 'gracias' and 'thank you' together when she says them on her own!)
Camila adores being chased, tickled, crazy horseplay, and being snuggled and rocked. Those are probably her faves.


Reedling Seedling #5 is growing quite nicely. He kicks me and moves all day now, which is such a crazy feeling that I don't think I'll ever find mundane. It's miraculous! We are trying, bit by bit, to get things in order for his arrival in January. I'm now a few days away from being 22 weeks pregnant, and I feel pretty great. I've been swimming laps for exercise lately, which makes me feel super. I'm going to see how long I can stand the water before it freezes me out. While I feel like I'm growing rather rapidly, I'm behind my normal weight gain at this point in pregnancy, compared to the previous ones. I gained pretty quickly at first, and now it seems to be slowing down. No complaints there- but I can feel the appetite growing. I'm doing my best to eat right, with a little splurging here and there.
We can't wait to meet our little man. It's hard to imagine what he will look like and how his little personality will be! All of our kids are so different!

-Life is good. We are still planning to head to the beach this upcoming weekend, Lord willing. Yes, Hurricane Isaac is supposed to be hitting tomorrow. We leave Friday. All of us are hoping there is no real damage or harm done with Isaac, and also hoping the weather is nice for this beach trip we have had planned for around 12 weeks. We are really looking forward to a weekend of playing in the waves together!