Annie Laughing

Mr. Sneaky

It's amazing to me that kids just seem to inherently know how to be sneaky. They don't have to be taught, they just know that they want something and they go about getting it by any means necessary. At least they're BAD at it, so it makes for some pretty good comedy.

Case in point: Josiah now drinks whole milk and juice from a sippy cup; he's been off the bottle for a few months. He's perfectly content with his sippy cup, and is even making headway with the "big boy cup" but as soon as he sees Annie's bottle of formula, it's like a moth to a flame! I can't imagine that the formula tastes very good, but he runs toward it.

We tell him "No" of course, but he always finds a way to sneak around. I'll hide it or put it just our of reach, and Josiah will stand up on a toy, grab it and start kicking it back. When I catch him, he runs away, drinking faster so that he can get more before I inevitably take it away.

The other day, my Dad had just finished feeding Annie and he put the half used bottle in he couch cushion next to him. Josiah wandered over and pretended that he wanted to climb up and hug him, but he was eying the bottle suspiciously. He climbed up, gave my Dad a hug and reached for the bottle!

It was an obvious tactic, and we all got a chuckle. But I was beginning to see the innate sin nature firsthand in the inherent selfishness of my own child. I realize that my job is bigger than just taking pictures and making sure he isn't hurt. We've responsible for shaping and molding these tiny people, training them in the ways of life and the ways of God. I just pray that I'm up for the challenge.

New Look

I've been meaning to get some of the newer photos of Josiah and Annie in the title bar and I finally had some free time. Big thanks to Andi who gave provided the subtitle.

Pointing, Strumming and a Snake

Josiah, Annie, Amy and I went for a walk the other day. We took a different route to mix things up and found ourselves strollering over a shaded gravel road amidst some new houses being build in our community. We were commenting on the various houses when something caught my eye on the gravel below. I told Amy to keep walking and I froze in front of a small snake between the stroller and me. We quickly identified it as a harmless garter snake, and Amy turned the stroller around so that Josiah could see it. I contemplated picking it up so Josiah could get a better look, but decided against it, not wanting to risk a snake bite (even it is was harmless.) Josiah watched as it slithered away, its body keeping a perfect S-shape as it sped along the gravel and into the thickett.

In other news, Josiah has been pointing at specific objects to let us know that he finds them interesting. (Now all we have to do is teach him that it's impolite to point.)

And probably my favorite moment came today while J and I were watching Tom Petty on TV. Tom was playing acoustic guitar on one of his slower songs when Josiah looked at me and made the "strumming" motion on his belly! It was priceless! he held his left arm out and moved his right hand p and down like he was playing. As a father and a musician, I was never so proud!

Escape Artist

The weather was much nicer today, so the kids and I went to the local park since Amy was working. The sun was really beating down, and with all the running around, both kids were prtty warm when they got home. I decided to let Josiah nap in just a diaper since he was a little sweaty; I figured the cool breeze from the open window would be a nice change.

A few hours later, when I went in to get him, I opened the door and found Josiah standing naked in his crib looking very pleased with himself. His diaper was lying in the corner and had obviously been removed at some point during the nap.

I scooped up my little exhibitionist (laughing, of course) and took him to the changing table only to find NO DIAPERS! Amy and I don't always communicate when there's a need for a "diaper run" and I guess we let it get away from us. I ran down the stairs will the still-naked Josiah (who was also laughing) and found a diaper in his size in the diaper bag. It was a good thing, too, because I was eying up Anne's diapers thinking, "could a #1 work on a 14-month old?"

Easter Gathering

We've been looking forward for quote some time to get together with my Dad's twin brother and their family out in Lancsater, PA. the picturesque setting is a lovely place for the kids to run around and find eggs and have a blast together. Amy and I were particularly excited because no one had met Annica yet due to the medical restrictions. This was the first big gathering that she was able to attend.

Josiah decided to serenade us (as if he had a microphone) Good Friday evening as we were getting ready to make the 2-hour trip to Lancaster, PA. I think Annie tried to sing along.

Josiah and his cousin, Christian. I love this shot because they look like two old souls sittin' out on the front porch telling stories . . .

I absoltely love this shot! I got down on the ground with the camera and had Josiah run toward me. This shot captures the joy and the ferver in his running. His smile is huge beneath that arm covering his face.

"Is that Kojak?"

Josiah got his 2nd haircut today. You may remember that I did the first one at home and wasn't too excited about the results. I decided to try a professional this time around.

We had asked around, and an AA friend recommended a salon in town. I tried calling yesterday and this morning, but there was no answer. I wasn't sure if they were closed or just too busy to grab the phone, so I decided to find another salon; one that I could call before I went. I searched the local area for "A barber shops" and found one nearby. When I called, the gentlemen I spoke with sounded black and even commented that "Josiah was a cool name." I was excited to take him to his first "real" barbershop experience! I had vision of Ice Cube and Cedric the Entertainer (from the movie Barbershop) in my mind the whole drive over.

I was less excited the moment I stepped into the salon. It was run by two Russian guys that clearly didn't do AA hairstyling. Crap! I had already made the appointment and wasn't about to bail, so we went ahead with the haircut.

They basically did what I did last time around; they used the clippers on the shortest setting and just took everything off. I was hoping for a little finesse, but I clearly wasn't going to get it from the Brothers Karamazov, so I smiled, paid them and began getting used to the "new do." the good news is that Josiah LOVES it! He keeps rubbing his head with his hands and giggling. Amy think he looks like a leukemia patient, but it's growing on her. I think he looks super cute, but I do want to find an AA barber next time around.

Easter Egg Hunt

Every year, our church hosts a community-wide Easter egg hunt. We collect plastic eggs from the congregation filled with various candy and scatter it all over our campus and watch the kids have a blast. Last year, we collected 50,000 eggs. This year, we had 65,000. The event has become so large that traffic was backed up for a few miles just to get into the church parking lot!

The weather was somewhat uncooperative this year as that particular Saturday was windy and cold. Yet Josiah managed to find one egg amidst the thousands. He was actually stepping on them and, at one point, tripped over one. He didn't quite get the "hunt" but he enjoyed meeting other little kids.

Later that evening, we introduced Annie to our friends at church for the very first time. The doctors cautioned against taking her out before 4-5 months, so we waited; it was great to finally show her off, though. She did really well, although she doesn't seem to be a fan of loud music like big brother Josiah. We'll have to work on that . . . [grin]

Adoption Tax Credit

I finally got our taxes done (with thanks to TurboTax). It was a pretty eventful year in retrospect; I mean, how many people can say they had two babies in one year?

The best part of this year's taxes is that we could finally claim the Adoption Tax Credit, which refunded nearly all of our adoption expenses. Adoption is famously expensive, and many people don't move forward with their adoption plans because they find the cost prohibitive. But there's help out there, and you should never let finances stand in the way of adoption if God has placed it on your heart.

In our case, we paid a few thousand dollars out-of-pocket at the beginning of the process for our application and processing fees. However the bulk of the needed funds came in the form of an adoption loan from West Michigan Community Bank (www.wmcb.com). It's setup as a 15-year loan so that the monthly payments are low, but it's designed to be paid off in a year once you receive your tax refund.

It was amazing! I put in our adoption expenses and attorney's fees in TurboTax and when I clicked "next" the Refund tally kept rolling and rolling and finally landed in the five digits! As soon as the refund is deposited into our account, we'll be able to pay off the WMCB loan and we'll have paid all of our adoption expenses.

Now we're saving to adopt Josiah and Annie's little brother or sister! [grin]