Duthie Park and Winter Gardnens

How fun is this??

Apparently, pretty fun!

This is Duthie Park- it is on the edge of town and we passed it on our way to that beautiful castle (Dunnottar) we went to last fall. Anyway, it took us 15 minutes to get to the park and it was well worth it! The park borders a huge green space and another play area. the Winter Gardens are also right there.

I took these mostly for my dad because he'd love the flowers and lagoons!

Stop to smell the roses...seriously, she loved gettin' down there and sniffing...she also was delighted that "The flowers match my coat!" That's my girl- knowing what matches!

Other funny things:

The other day, R says, "We can go to the park (shrugs her shoulders coyly and tilts her head) if you want."

We have had to have several conversations recently that not everyone (especially strangers) loves her. So, a few days ago she says to me, "What does God not love me for?" My heart breaking, "Oh, sweetheart, God LOOOOVES you! He made you! There's no one like you (I went on to describe her sweet self and why she was unique..." She replies, "There's a Bekah just like me at church- she's a big girl!" Well, we missed the point, but that's great that someone has the same spelling! So, this morning, as I'm brushing my teeth, Rebekah and Josh had a great conversation- "Does God or Jesus love me?" Josh explains that they both do. She says, "When I smile, God laughs." Yes, little friend, I am sure He does.

In exciting news- I was approached by some ladies at church that R was too mature to be in the baby and toddler room (They were sure she was at least 3). So, she advanced to her big girl class, which is upstairs (very exciting) and involves a story and crafts!! It also involves sitting thru the children's sermon in big church- silently...I knew this would be an impossible feat, so I sat with her. ..Shh, Rebekah!...No, I need to talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk! (after which she shoves my hand off her mouth and gives me a big grin and a smooch right on my mouth, as if to say, "It's okay that I'm disobeying." I am thinking we will leave her in the play area with the other little ones until the church part is over and then have them grab her as they walk thru....BTW- She is sooooooo proud of herself that she made a craft and is in her big girl class. :)

Christmas Pics

I have been meaning to share these with you! Our friend, Rachel (her blog is Rachel and Mark in Aberdeen on my list), took these for us in November. The kids were not super-cooperative, so I was pretty impressed she got any good ones at all! Rachel is a GREAT photographer and I am and was really appreciative of her time and work!

This was my favorite family pic (it's in front of Josh's campus).

Luke couldn't sit yet, so we had to be creative to get some of him.

We framed this next to our family pic for our parents. This is such a Luke expression.

I thought this was sweet- it was Josh's favorite of them. I won, tho, b/c I did the ordering.

Negotiating obedience...kind of an oxymoron.

And we framed this on the other side of our family pic for our parents.

Thank you, Rachel! You're a rock star!

Malone Family Fun Week, Part 2

Well, the last two days were kind of a wash. Sadly, we had a flat tyre (aka tire) this week that we way-overpaid to get patched at the dealership. On Thursday it was flat again. Sigh. So, Josh had a hilarious day: he drove the car to the dealership to get a new tyre (they greatly discounted) and biked back home. Then, he went on campus to get videoed for a how great is our University for internationals promo video. Then, I dumped grease down the sink and he got to take the pipes apart and fix it. Then, he rode back up to the dealership (uphill!!!!) to get the car. On the way home, he noticed the headlight was out (oops- did I forget to tell him about that before Christmas?), so he bought and changed the headlight. So, all in all, he was a cyclist, a model, a plumber, and an auto mechanic. Not bad!

The kids and I hung around for him and went to the HUB. these were the sweet faces there:

(side note: an older man liked R so much, he gave her a pound to get a treat! She was delighted- not only did she get a bag of M&Ms and Skittles, she got 5 coins back- all for giving ONE coin! When she ate the Skittles, she said, "Mom, these taste like Skittles." Sad, but not surprising, that my 2 1/2 yr old daughter already knows that.)

My shoes kept getting untied- this was the sweet face of the naughty culprit. Can I tell you how infatuated I am with this kid?????? Just look at him!

Today, we had the car and wanted to go to a super-cool new park, but it was cold, drizzly, and very windy. So, we hot our favorite Italian haunt, Rustico, and took advantage of their cheap lunch fare- amazing to say the least! (I do have TWO earrimngs- one is just always turned!)

We topped both afternoons/evenings off with lots of Madeline DVDs (a new fave) and special treats, such as popcorn, chocolate, and/or ice cream. A pretty glorious week.

I have to say- I love seeing Josh look at Rebekah this way. Many, many times this week, he has looked at one of our kids (ofetn after Rebekah has said something hysterical or crazy-smart) and said, "I really love that kid." After all the hustle and bustle of Christmas and travel, it was truly great to get some family time of our own.

Other updates:

This week, we decided 2 are enough. We can't imagine having a 3rd child. :)

Luke seems somewhat interested in crawling- not even close to doing it, tho...yes, he's 9 1/2 months. He is also a big fan of his socks. LOVES pulling them off. Obviously, still a big fan of sleep! Now that he can get his own paci, the second I put him in bed, he rolls and lunges for one. Oh- my new favorute thing about him is when I pick him up from naps- he grins at me from behind the paci and looks for his bottle. The moment he sees it, he tongues out his paci and opens his mouth like a little bird. Love it! Okay- one other awesome new development- Luke shakes his head "no" at me when he is done eating or when he doesn't like something. It's HILARIOUS. I keep forgetting he's a little person, with likes and dislikes, and not just a baby anymore (even if he is stationary). And one more thing- Luke has been eyeballing our popcorn. He spit out his paci and opened his mouth. Never one to pass a moment to share treats with my kids, I gave him a kernel-free tiny bite. He was a BIIIIG fan.

Rebekah is...well, Rebekah. We got her a bunch of plastic food for Christmas, complete with pots, pans, and dishes. Besides Mickie, maybe the best money I've ever spent. She has fed us countless numbers of meals and even served us tea. There are 3 ice cream cones and we each get one every night. When she feels Luke is getting too much attention, she picks a favorite toy and puts it in front of him and says, "Here, Buddy," so she can have me all to herself. Sweet and selfish. :) Today at the restaurant, i didn't realize she hadn't pulled up her pants and we walked back to our table with her pants and panties around her knees. Awesome.

I am doing better with work- I have worked my tail off and am on-time, slightly early so far. Yea! Granted, I have almost no feedback yet, so major revisions might be in my future...

Things we are working on:

Sign language with Luke. Did I mention he's 9 1/2 months old? Better late than never.

First time obedience with little R. A good number of bottom pops for blatant disobedience. She's a quick learner, tho, and has even learned a polite, "No, thank you" instead of throwing something. She also asked today "What are my options?" I am seriously afraid she has already outsmarted me.

Something I want to share:

Somewhere in this chaotic 2 weeks, I found a sweet satisfaction with my life. Maybe it was all the sweet "Mama grins" I get from my son, or the verbal, "I looove you, Mommy!"'s from my daughter, or the "Have I told you how proud I am of you?"'s from my husband, regardless of where I found it, the Lord has planted a seed of contentment in my heart. I am so thankful for my Lord, my husband, my children, my family not with me, my old friends, my new friends, and even my work. Someday I will be thankful for Scotland. Not right now, but someday. For sure, this is a refining time of great stretching for me in many ways, but of real dependence upon the Lord and Josh for the first time...a time for me to become the woman, wife, and mother God designed me to be.

Well, back to life...have a great weekend.

Malone family fun week

Since Josh is off this week, we decided to use the kids' awake time for Malone Family Fun Week. We wanted to explore close places and see what kinds of things the kids would enjoy.

Day 1: revisit the beach

Since the beach was such a big hit, we felt Luke was really missing out seeing as how he didn't get to go last time. So, on another glorious day, we all went!

Note how devotedly Luke looks at his big sister! He ADORES her big time! Honestly, never thought I'd say it and mean it, but it's mutual- she loves him, too.

Love all the hand-holding and bonding time. Luke and I had some fun times, too.

Day 2: The Satrosphere

This is a children's science museum. Not as good as the Children's Museums in the States, but my 3 kids, I mean my TWO kids, had a ball. Seriously, Josh is a big kid- he and Rebes explored EVERYTHING! I had to remind him to keep his eye on her (we were the only ones there) instead of playing! ;)

Luke is very much into his feet these days- thought I'd make it more of a challenge with camo...

This exhibit was hysterical- you watched the sheep eat, pee, and poop. Definitely Rebekah's VERY FAVORITE exhibit.

Day 3: Banchory

Today we headed out to Banchory- a quaint and sweet town about 20 miles away. Sadly 20 miles means 45 minutes of driving. We had a great lunch at Dudley's and the kids did not fuss at all! Even tho we kept them both out and awake way later than usual, they did great!! Luke still took his 3rd nap, too (currently)...bless his sleepy heart- takes after his mama...

Did I mention he was like 4 times the size of his infant seat, so we bumped him up to his big boy seat? We weighed him on the luggage scale at the airport and he was 19 pounds. The weight to change front-facing here is 18 lbs, so we went for it. He really seems to like it...I LOVE seeing them both!! Plus, R enjoyed having a playmate, who giggled at her quite a bit just today. In fact, R said, "He's too far away (grabbing his hand)...Can we scoot him over next to me?"

Wanted you to be able to window shop with us...

These are my parents' dishes, so I wanted them to see!

As usual, R loves benches and steps...

Love how they squat and walk alike. Rebekah is alllllll Malone.

R has been cracking us up:

Can we just pop out there and come right back? (referring to revisiting the museum)

Flipping thru a catalog, "Here, let me show you what I want for my birthday," (in July) pointing at various princess items. "Lukey wants this," still pointing at princess items.

(knowing she's not supposed to pick the scab in her ear that she has from picking at her ear) "I just pick my ear at bed in my room and no one tells me not to pick my ear." Fair enough.

"I want to walk because I don't want your back to hurt, Mommy." I think I'll carry you forever with that attitude, sweetheart.

"Shall we read this book?" Upon losing something, "Shall we walk around and look for it?"