Gospel Truths

I am learning rapidly how impressionable young children are and just how important it is to instill a love for God and the church family at a very early age. In the last few weeks Jacob has demonstrated an amazing ability to take in gospel truths, remember them, and recall them. Nothing brings me greater joy to hear him share these words of truth!

A couple weeks ago after praying at lunch, Jacob asked me why I said "Thank you God, that Jesus was on the cross." "Why was Jesus on the cross, Mommy?" It was such a treat to share the whole gospel with Jacob, from start to finish, and watch him hang on every word as though it was the most amazing story in the world (and well, let's face it, he's right! It IS the most amazing story in the world!). He can now tell us in his two year old terms that "Jesus was on the cross to take all our sins back. And now we can live in Heaven!" We're still working on defining the word sin. That's a tough one to explain on his level, but I have no doubt he will get it soon!

Last week we read the story of Jonah. It was just a one page short story. It took us less than a minute to read it. That's all we did. Then last night, after his bath, I heard him repeating the story to Chris, saying the big fish got Jonah in his teeth! Chris asked him where he learned that story and he said, Mommy taught me!

Today, I kept Jacob home from church to avoid spreading his hacking cough around his class (he really isn't sick, but it sounds terrible, and who wants to be THAT mom?). I wanted to be sure we used our time wisely, so we studied the story of Noah. Today at lunch he told Chris, "Noah heard God and talked to God. God told Noah to build an ark and put all the animals inside! Then it started to rain! Then the sun came out and they said hooray and came out of the boat. God put a rainbow in the sky!" Wow! All that from reading the story once, reviewing it, and doing a Noah's ark coloring page I printed for free off the internet!

Needless to say, I am really starting to see how impressionable his sweet little mind is right now. I think we'll be incorporating more focused Bible time into our days together, as well as a few other skills he needs to learn (number and letter identification, sorting, etc.). He is so hungry and eager now. I hope we can tuck these truths away and keep them alive and growing in the years to come!

21 Weeks

For those of you who desire to follow the growth of the "twin" belly, here you go. I am 21 weeks. I still feel good. Morning sickness has been completely gone now for a couple weeks (praise God!). I can't begin to tell you how wonderful it is to wake up in the morning feeling "normal." Now I'm starting to deal with the general aches and discomforts of just being pregnant...finding a comfy sleeping position, reaching my feet to tie my shoes, carrying Jacob (or even cuddling for that matter) is more difficult, swollen feet, and a new one this time around...lower back pain. A trip to the grocery is about all I can handle as far as time on my feet before the lower back starts to kick in with a lot of discomfort. But it is all worth it and I thank God for each night spent tossing and turning and each moment of my aching back. Thank you, God, for these precious babies! Please continue to pray for no pre-term labor and healthy, full grown babies!

21 weeks, 1 day, October 31, 2010


For comparison's sake...20 weeks and change with Jacob, November 5, 2007. I think I am filling the shirt out a bit more this time around!

Trick Or Treat!

Today is Halloween. This is the first year we've allowed Jacob to go "traditional" trick or treating. Neither Chris nor I are all that into Halloween and aren't really sure how we want to approach it, so we've just tried to mix it up and keep it innocent and fun for him. His first Halloween he was a cow and also in the process of coming down with a nasty ear infection. We just went to Auntie Fred's house and helped pass out candy. Last year he was a monkey and we celebrated at Hallow Him at our church. This year we decided we'd try the traditional route. He got to dress up like a "baseball man" and cousin Andrew came over to show him the ropes. We've been practicing all week saying trick or treat and thank you! He was soooooooo excited. He had a great time and loved the time with Auntie Fred and Andrew! They were quite the pair of baseball men. After each house Jacob would ask if we could go to another door! Andrew was an excellent grown up cousin and sweetly took Jacob to each door and helped with crossing the street (and by the way, when did Andrew get tall enough to almost surpass me??).

Mommy's favorite part of Halloween this year: Jacob does not call his treats candy...they are trick or treats. So cute! He keeps asking if he can have another one of his trick or treats. It's going to be interesting pacing him on the ingestion of the trick or treats...

Joey Votto and our little "baseball man!"


Such a helpful cousin and sooooo grown up!


Getting some "trick or treats."


He wore out at the last corner and asked for someone to "take him." Auntie Fred was sweet enough to "take him."


Showing Daddy his trick or treats!

Signs of Autumn

Jacob and I took our annual trek out to Boyd Orchards today. It was a perfect fall day with crisp air, blue skies, and a wonderful array of colorful trees on the drive out to the farm. Jacob had so much fun and was so busy looking around at all the pumpkins that it was hard for me to capture pictures of him actually looking at the camera! I got a couple... He was super excited to pick out a "toddler size" pumpkin and get a jug of apple cider! As we were leaving he waved to the various mounds of pumpkins, saying, "bye-bye punkins!" He asked if we could come back to the farm again tomorrow.

Mommy thought the "warty" pumpkins were kind of cool.


This one is a bit reminiscent of last year...



Boyd Orchard trip 2009. Mr. Inspector. He is taller, but other than that, not much has changed! Ha, ha!



FINALLY! He looked at the camera!!!

Father Son Outing

A few weeks back, my big sister invited me on a girls only outing. We had dinner out, gabbed, and bought everything on my "need to buy list" at Meijer (you just never know what Meijer might have). What a great time it was to get out and do girl stuff with my big sis.

My evening out prompted a father-son outing. Chris had been itching to take Jacob miniature golfing again (we went once on our family vacation this past spring). I wasn't all that enthralled with the idea of being hot and on my feet for that kind of time, so I was more than happy when Chris suggested perhaps it just be a guys outing. Jacob had a blast! They played 3 rounds of 18 holes (no kidding). Jacob LOVED it.

Excellent swing...


Amazing form...


Reading the green like a pro...


Celebratory stance perfected.

Yup, I smell a future scholarship. Ha, ha!

Growth

I am a delinquent, but today seemed like a good day to battle the desktop computer and get caught up with some photos. I'll start with the most demanded pictures: growth of the belly.

I have to admit, I don't think the photos really do it justice. I think black must truly be a slimming color. Trust me, in real life, you see me coming. I am definitely not presently struggling to pack on the pounds and I've already had moments of feeling very "full." How on earth will these two babies continue to grow? I already struggle to tie my shoes, my toenails don't get new polish as often as they should, nor do I attempt to shave my legs daily anymore. And I'm only halfway....

On a good note, I have been feeling better! Where my life depended on Zofran to help with the nausea early in the pregnancy, I am now much more likely to have a Zofran free day than one with it (which other parts of my body are thankful for so that they can return to a more normal state of functioning). I still get sick some mornings; mostly the days that I decide to try to go straight to the shower rather than getting something to eat. But even the sickness first thing in the morning is starting to subside and for that, I am thankful.

I'd like to say my energy level has perked up during the 2nd trimester, as it should, but the bigger I get, the harder it is to discern. I can't really say. If I weighed as much as I did early in the pregnancy, I am sure I would be back to more of a state of normal as far as energy goes. However, I have about 15 extra pounds strapped on my body (ALREADY) and I do believe it slows me down. Can you believe 15 lbs? Yikes! I'm only 5 lbs away from what I gained total in my pregnancy with Jacob and there's no telling what the scales will say when I go back to the doctor on the 21st. While "cute" might have been a word I used to describe myself while pregnant with Jacob, it is definitely not a word in my vocabulary now. I just feel....fat and a bit like a beached whale at times. I am rapidly outgrowing my maternity wardrobe and am so thankful for the wonderful ladies at church who have come to my rescue with mountains of maternity clothes in most sizes imaginable.

As far as baby preparation, we continue to see God's hand at work as He provides for us. I'm not sure if I posted this earlier, but we bought a minivan. It is GREAT. A 2002 Honda Odyssey that is going to serve us well. Right now it is "living" at the in-law's farm (thank you!!) while we wait to post and sell Chris' car. Anyone want a well loved 1999 Camry? Ha! I managed to hit some of the fall consignment sales and did well collecting several items: a second high chair and bouncy seat (that match exactly what we have right now with Jacob's old stuff), a second boppy pillow (to prop babies during feeds), and some clothes. I did allow myself to shop the "pink" aisle at the most recent sale. I know the ultrasound was not 100%, but I just couldn't pass up $2 on items that I know will cost me over $10 in stores. So I bought about 5-7 sleeper outfits and a few onesies in the "girlie" shades. I will admit, I enjoyed the pink aisle. It was way more fun than the boy stuff. A wonderfully generous family at church is cleaning out their house to make space for two kiddos they are adopting from Africa this fall, which included getting rid of one of their two cribs. The gave it to us. Yes, you read that correctly. They gave it to us! It is in excellent condition, mattress and all, and will make the best "girl" bed ever!

Throughout this whole experience we have seen God's hand always working and we have been so wonderfully blessed to be a part of a body of believers who truly seek to shower love and kindness upon other church members. What a blessing indeed.

And now........the long awaited pictures. Remember, they do not do me justice and black really is a slimming color....

September 11, 2010-14 weeks

October 10, 2010-18 weeks, 1 day

What We've Been Up To

Despite endless morning sickness and being overwhelmingly tired with this pregnancy, we have been a busy little family this summer making all kinds of special memories with Jacob. I apologize for not posting all these pictures sooner. Our desktop is very slow these days and I have to be in the right frame of mind to attempt to download photos.

In late July, right after we found out we were expecting twins, we took a day trip to Louisville to go to the zoo with another family (you've heard me mention my dear friend, Donna, and her family before). They have a three year old daughter and she and Jacob are big buddies. They had so much fun checking out all the animals together!

Jacob and Daddy sitting on a turtle display at the zoo.


"Look, Daddy! I see an elephant!!"


Enjoying a chance to cool off in the zoo's super fun splash zone!

On probably one of the hottest days in August, we took another day trip out to Cave Run Lake. They have a "sandy" beach and a great swimming area on the lake there. Jacob had so much fun digging in the sand and swimming in the lake! He actually sobbed when it was time for us to go home, but then immediately passed out in his car seat before we were even out of the parking lot! We wore him out!

Digging in the sand. This was dump truck heaven! Jacob didn't care it was close to 100 degrees that day!


Enjoying a splash in the lake with Mommy.


Ta-da! I'm swimming in the lake like a big boy!


This was a highlight of Jacob's time at the lake. "Do it again, Daddy! Do it again!"

At the end of August we took Jacob to his first ever Circus! He was captivated by all the animals, most especially the tigers and elephants. He did get a little antsy at times, but overall, he had fun, we had fun, and it was a nice family outing.

Captivated by the circus and sitting in a big boy seat at Rupp Arena for the first time!


This is one satisfied circus-goer on the ride home in the car! "The circus (or marcus as Jacob calls it) was soooo COOL!"

This year Jacob began the Puggles class in our AWANA program at church (if you aren't familiar with AWANA, you can check out more info here: http://awana-ky.org/home/?q=node/1). I am a teacher in the Puggles class and it has been fun to have Jacob in my class and see him interact with the other kids. I love watching little two year olds tucking precious gems about God's word into their hearts at such a young, impressionable age. Jacob has already mastered our first precept (they will learn about five through the whole year) and can boisterously shout, "God....made....EVERYTHING!!!!" He looks so grown up in his sweet little Puggles uniform. I will have to get a picture of the two of us in our uniforms one of these weeks (before I outgrow mine).

My big boy Puggle. How did he get this big? Sniff.

On the grown up front, Chris and I have enjoyed this summer so much with Jacob. The other night Chris just looked at me and said, "You know, Jacob is just such a sweet boy and a joy to be around." He is right! We have so much fun spending family time together. Aside from enjoying Jacob, we've been busily preparing for the coming bundles of joy. Our guest room is a disaster area as we clean out to make space for that room to become Jacob's big boy room. Jacob's current room will become "nursery central." It is going to be a tight fit, but we can make our sweet family of five quite cozy in our little house. I've had two successful trips to consignment sales and bought the second high chair we need for the twins and the second Boppy pillow I wanted. I've got my eye on a double stroller at Target...watching it for a sale. Yesterday, we picked up our new to us Honda Odyssey minivan! I LOVE it. Chris did all the shopping, test drove it, and made the deal. I didn't see it for the first time till we drove out to pay for it and pick it up yesterday. I got to drive it part of the way home and really, really enjoyed it. It is going to be a great family vehicle and I can already see God's hand steadily providing for us exactly what we need, when we need it. Next week we will close on the refinancing of our house. Rates are just too good not to take advantage of them and the monthly savings is needed for our ever expanding family! All summer long I have just been blessed beyond measure. God is so good......even to a sinner like me.

The Burri...Five???

I have been on a bit of a blogging hiatus. Not on purpose, but for a good cause. On July 3, 2010 Chris and I found out our family was going to be expanding! We were filled with excitement (and a little anxiety) about the new life God had blessed us with.

Then, on July 28th, we had our first ultrasound to ensure the baby had a heartbeat. I was seven and a half weeks. The ultrasound showed a strong, healthy heartbeat, but also revealed that our family expansion was going to be a bit larger than we initially anticipated. We were told we are having TWINS! Of course my initial reaction was fear...how can we afford this, how will we have the room, how do you care for two babies at once? Chris' initial reacion was, "YES! This is awesome!" I am so thankful for such an encouraging husband to lean on. As I've processed the concept of having two babies, I have had my moments of sheer panic and Chris has been diligent to patiently build me back up. The forty week due date is March 12th, but we were told 37 weeks is term and we would likely deliver around that time.

Today, August 24th, I had another pre-natal appointment and was able to meet with the doctor who will be following my pregnancy and handling the delivery. I found out that I get to have an ultrasound once a month throughout the pregnancy. That is a definite perk! Seeing the babies again today was so much fun and they are definitely beginning to look more like "real" babies rather than lima beans. Both babies had healthy heart rates (157 and 161). Baby A was content to just rest peacefully where Baby B was going nuts all over the place. Baby B did not want to have pictures taken today.

My doctor is great and is also the mother of twins. She has been a great resource to me. She had some encouraging things to say and then some other things that are hard to hear, but definite things to pray about. We'll start with the positives: things are going great so far, I had a great first pregnancy with my first child, and there is a good chance I can have a "natural" birth. Now onto the things to pray about: my size. The doctor is concerned that I am too little to carry two babies so pre-term labor is a very real risk with bed rest highly likely. Please pray for my body to endure! The doctor told me today that if I can make it to 35 weeks, she will consider it a victory and allow me to go into labor at any point after that. So, my personal goal is to make it to that 35 week accomplishment, or February 5th. Please just pray to God to protect these babies and keep them inside me as long as possible. Of course, I personally pray I don't end up on bed rest either, but I'll do whatever I need to do in order to ensure these little ones have the best chance once they are born.

This pregnancy has already been much different from my pregnancy with Jacob. I have been quite sick and extremely tired. The doctor has been helping me with the vomitting with some medication and Chris has been amazing about ensuring I get the rest I need. I have been so blessed by the kindness of my sweet friend Donna (also expecting and due in November). She has been busy keeping me stocked with items in my freezer for those many days of just being too sick or tired to prepare a meal for my family. My mother in law has been feeding us on Tuesday nights and it has been such a tremendous blessing to come home from work to a prepared meal and not have to try to prepare something quickly. We have had endless offers from people at church to come keep Jacob for us when we need it. My sister has already started buying me boxes of diapers. When I think about the kindness and generosity that has already been extended to my family I am often brought to tears and completely humbled. I am so thankful to each one of you and do not have the words to fully explain it.

We covet your ongoing prayers. I will do my best to keep everyone up to date.

We love the bank!

The sweet drive thru lady at the bank has discovered Jacob is big enough for lollipops now. We love going to the bank...

Mmm...an orange one!

Fourth of July Festivities

The fourth of July weekend this year kept us all pretty busy! We had so many different events and we had so much fun with each one!

We kicked off the weekend with our first ever Burris Family Movie Night. We borrowed Horton Hears a Who from the library and popped popcorn and snuggled on the couch to watch the movie. This was Jacob's first full length movie and he did well...lasting about an hour or an hour and ten minutes. He got up to play then, but kept an eye on the movie and did cry once it was over. We enjoyed it so much!

Saturday was Watkins Family Reunion Day. The Gould family joined us this year since their usual plans had been cancelled this year. Jacob and Ella had so much fun playing!

Sunday we joined the Gould's for BBQ, a refreshing swim in the neighbor's pool, and a gorgeous fireworks display (the first time Jacob had seen any!).

Monday we had a day off and decided to spend the day in Hustonville with Chris' family. Jacob had so much fun that day with Granddaddy! He helped him work in the yard and showed him his awesome t ball skills!

Burris Family movie night!


Jacob got really into the movie!

Jacob, Kate, Ella, and Granddaddy at the Watkins Reunion.



Mom Burris and I at the reunion.



Chris and Breck having fun at the reunion.



Enjoying the Gould's neighbor's pool!



Ella and Breck splashing around.



Playing t ball in Hustonville.

Rain, Rain...

It is the first "real" rainy day today in a very long time. We've had our share of short lived pop up summer storms, but not enough rain to keep the grass soft and green or the plants happily hydrated. Today it has been a steady rain much of the day. We needed it so badly!

I had planned to take Jacob to the pool today, but the rain put a damper on those plans-no pun intended. So instead, Jacob and I went to the library to play there and refresh our stock of backhoe library books. Turns out half of Lexington decided today was a good day for the library. After a fun hour or so at the library, we headed to McDonald's for a mommy-Jacob lunch and some fun on the indoor play area. Then we came home and I did what any other amazingly wonderful mom would do with her kids on a rainy day. Nope, we didn't bake cookies, color pictures, or do crafts.

No, we did this instead................

I was the best mom ever today!

Potty Training Progress

The day has arrived. We have decided to tackle potty training with Jacob. Four weeks ago he showed us he was ready. I was not ready, but knew I needed to follow his signals in order for this to go smoothly and easily. So, the week after that (three weeks ago) we put ourselves on Potty Training Lock Down. For three days we did not leave the house and Jacob spent the majority of that time in nothing but a t shirt and big boy underwear. I was totally dreading the day as it approached. But let me say, I have been so pleasantly surprised! Jacob just took off with it and has done so well! Now don't get me wrong, we still have accidents occasionally and we still have a long way to go, but we are definitely off in the right direction! He doesn't know enough yet to tell us when he has to go, but he seems to successfully hold it until we take him (most times) so that seems to be working out. We're even reaching the point that he seems disinterested in our M&M reward system, which is fine with us. He's just doing it like that's how it always was! I had no intentions of training him this early at all. Boys are usually later to develop in that way and have less interest, so I really didn't plan to focus on trying to train him until early fall. But, here I am with an almost trained 27 month old! Go Jacob! We are so proud of him!!

Fun in the Sun

We have discovered our public pools and also discovered how kid friendly/toddler friendly they are! Jacob and I have gone twice in the last two weeks to soak up some rays and splash around! First, we took Andrew and Chris along with us and then this week we got to have Grandma join us! Such fun! The toddler area is really amazing. They have a HUGE pool that is no more than 1.5 feet deep and has two slides, all kinds of water fountains and steering wheels to control the sprays, and animals to climb on. The "adult" pool is great too. The main area has a zero depth entry so you feel like you are on the beach and even when you go all the way out it isn't much deeper than 2.5 feet. There's an area for kids to jump in and swim that is about 3.5 feet, a lap lane that is a little over 4 feet, a deep end with two diving boards, and a HUGE slide for the adults/older kids to go down! We love it and will likely spend many more summer mornings at the pool!

Controlling the water with the steering wheel.




The frog slide. This is a Jacob favorite.




Fun with Grandma...who forgot to put on any sunscreen. I bet Grandma will regret this mistake later tonight or early tomorrow.




Swimming with Mommy.

Father's Day Fun

I am a bit behind, but want to wish my husband a wonderful Father's Day! Chris, you are the most amazing Dad: patient, strong, fun, hands on, playful, teacher, disciplinarian, helpful, kind, compassionate, loving.... I could go on. I am such an amazingly blessed wife to have you to help me raise our fantastic son. Thank you for all you do to support our family and keep us all grounded on the truth of God's awesome plan for us. I love you! To my Dad, I am so thankful you raised me to be independent, to think for myself, to love my children, to be strong in discipline, and to seek counsel when needed from those wiser than myself. I love you and am so thankful for all you poured into my life to make me who I am today!

With that said, we had a GREAT Father's Day in the Bluegrass! My parents arrived in town that day so The Burri hosted a barbecue. We played corn hole in the backyard and gave Jacob his t ball set (earned by doing such an awesome job with potty training--but that is for another post). It was a great evening with family.

Here is a peak at our fun....

Jacob figured out his new t ball set after one or two tutorials from Chris. He loves it!




Swing batter, batter, batter.....




Jennifer and Chris creamed Dad and I!




Chris and Dad creamed Jennifer and I... Hmmm...I sense a common thread. I stink and Chris rocks.




Mom and I had a fun non-competitive round (she won, but who's keeping score?).

Take Me Out to the Ball Game!

We took Jacob to his first ever Lexington Legends Baseball game over the Memorial Day weekend. You can bring lawn chairs and buy tickets for the lawn for super cheap. We thought that might be the way to go with a two year old, rather than attempting to keep him in a seat in the stadium. It turned out to be perfect. We were the only people on the lawn that night so Jacob could just run and play in the grass. We packed trucks and he played in the dirt a long time. Then we caught a foul ball, so he played "catch" with Daddy and himself for quite a while too. He was so excited to watch all the "bayball" men! Lucky us, it was also Kids Eat Free night, so we spent a whopping $8 on a great family evening! The Legends lost, but we still had fun!

Jacob enjoying the dirt for his dump trucks!

Jacob watching the pitcher warm up!



Jacob thought the mascot was pretty cool!! He giggled nonstop!


We caught a foul ball!!



He did not want to let the baseball out of his sight...



Jacob and Mommy enjoying the game.



Our frugal family loved that it was Kids Eat Free Night! Mmm....ballpark hot dog, chips, and a drink!



Checking out the signature baseball on our way out.