Nate = hot and cold

(I started to write this LAST Wednesday and never finished it...so here is an incomplete story; it probably was going to go on and say how Wednesday was a bad day or something...but now I don't remember...overall the week went well though!)
Monday was a SUPER day with Nathanael...probably one of my best days with him in a very long time. He excitedly completed his school work, played quietly in his room, and helped with kitchen duties. It was just overall a good day!

our Ian is THREE!!

On January 23, Ian turned 3-years-old. It's amazing how fast he's growing up into a big boy! He has really started to talk more and more and definitely is a sweetheart at times! He LOVES puzzles and picked out three 24-piece Veggie Tales puzzles for his birthday, passing up many toy options. He LOVES his puzzles, that's for sure! We had a small birthday celebration with my parents and my grandma. It was great!


Here is a slide show from when Ian was a newborn!

I feel so blessed and get all teary-eyed looking at these pictures. I truly am amazed by God's workmanship, how He knit Ian together in my womb. Wow! God is so awesome!

Washing the blanket

Ian has a blanket that he sleeps with and takes almost everywhere. When it comes time to wash it, I try to do it at a time when he won't notice that it's missing. Well, this week, I had no such luck. Check out this video. (this had already been going on for about 15 minutes)

Presidential Candidate Survey

If you're not sure how you line up with the candidate beliefs, here is a quick and easy survey! I found it very interesting!!

http://minnesota.publicradio.org/projects/ongoing/select_a_candidate/president.shtml

It's been a WHOLE month!

Yes, my family and I are all still alive and doing well. Things are just busy, and honestly, I haven't been feeling like blogging. Crazy as that may seem...but after several, "are you okay?"-type phone calls/emails/messages, I am going to make another go at it! I'll give you one hint as to why I haven't been blogging. It can be summed up by this sentence from the book Your Six-Year-Old, Loving and Defiant,"Your typical six-year-old is a paradoxical little person, and bipolarity is the name of his game." Well, Nate will be six next month and Ian's speech pathologist recommended this book because Nate has REALLY, REALLY, REALLY been acting up, at home, at church, at the YMCA, etc. Then, he can be as sweet as pie and be very loving and compassionate...oh the frustrations! Later on in the first chapter of this book, it compares his behavior to that of a 2 1/2-year old. Well, I have one of those also, so the crazy BIPOLAR-like behavior is doubled in the Lowry home at the present time. Needless to say, this momma has been spending a lot of time praying to Jesus lately. Praise Him for strength and peace and comfort.

Okay, well here is a very concise update of the last month...I definitely have some blog-worthy moments.

We did get some snow in December. Here is a video of the kids playing (sorry it's sideways, I thought I figured out a way to fix it...oh well!):


Despite the $1000 van repair the week before Christmas and our washing machine going up in smoke (literally) on Christmas Eve, Christmas was wonderful. It was relaxing and enjoyable. I even got to take a nap on Christmas afternoon! Here are some pictures from Christmas Eve (before the washing machine mishap):

Here is a picture of the back of Caden's head after Nate somehow managed to dump yogurt on him.

Here is Ian doing his new "chore" that he loves!! They actually fight over who gets to clean the floor...seriously, the best $10 day-after-Thanksgiving purchase ever!

We also celebrated Mike's 30th birthday on January 4th. It was a day FULL of surprises, including Pastor Mike from Maine flying here (a TOTAL surprise...Pastor Mike delivered us our bread at a restaurant in Tulsa...it was so great that we pulled it off), a book of memories and well wishes from many loved ones, his baby photo album (I had never seen his baby pictures, so it was a real treat for me!), and a surprise party. It was great!! I sure do love him!

Well, I will try to post more often...I promise!!