Catch-up Post

I feel like there are a lot of happenings that I have failed to blog about lately...so here's a super-random post:

(In no particular order)

*Anna Bell got this great, girly, life size dollhouse for her birthday from Grandpa and Grandma. She loves playing in it and although my plan was to move it upstairs to her room, I think that I'll leave in our dining room turned playroom. (Who needs a formal eating area over a place just for toys when your kids are 4, 3, and 15 months?)

*Joshua and AB got new fishing rods a couple of weeks ago. J upgraded to a big boy rod and AB picked out her first one (it has Tinkerbell on it and lights up when you cast). We took them fishing for a few minutes after dinner one night and they both did great! It was so fun; they both did a super job casting on their own and didn't get bored, even though they didn't catch anything. We're gonna have a blast this summer! Joshua's rod came with a little tackle box and the other day, he said "Hey mom, do you know where my fish killer box is?" HA!!!

*I've had a few ministry opportunities lately at church that are a little out of my ordinary for this stage of life. God has given me great peace and pleasure at this point in ministry to serve alongside Fred a lot of times in the background, as our kids are young and are my main ministry. With a husband who is a pastor, I feel like a lot of times, my greatest service to him and our church is to keep our home in order. I love to get to know our leaders, love on our students, and pray for them- but I just don't do a lot of things that I can't leave if someone gets sick or we have to leave early. However, over the past few weeks I've served in a few "up-front" roles. I got to speak to the girls at two of our father/daughter events and challenge those little girls to love and serve Jesus above anything else. I was really nervous (haven't done that in a while!) but it was a lot of fun! I also got to sing backup for our worship pastor in one of our new evening service that targets a more "edgy" crowd. I felt completely inadequate for this role; I haven't done much like that since college and there are SO many more talented singers at our church. But it was really fun helping lead other's into an intimate time of worshipping our Amazing God!!! Of course, 30 minutes before the service started, someone from childcare came up to tell me that Caleb was sick with a fever-- which reminded me of the serving season that I'm in. (Thankfully, Fred's sweet and wonderful assistant came and took C home! Thank you DD! We love you:))

*I continue in my sewing endeavors. I never expected to enjoy it so much! My sweet friend Amanda and I got together one night after our kiddos were in bed and ended up "sewing" (okay, mostly laughing and talking) until after midnight! She taught me how to follow a pattern and this is what I ended up with:

My dad, mom and ash came to visit this past weekend and she taught me how to applique as well! We (okay, mostly mom) made a little flower shirt that matches these pants. (I ask again, dear mid-western friends, have I gone crazy?!!?) I'm working on another dress right now that requires things like zippers, bias, and slipstiching...I'll post pictures when I get a chance.

*While the fam was here over the weekend, we drove to Savannah on Saturday. It is so great to live somewhere that you can drive to and from the beach in one day! We had a wonderful time while they were here. Mom got some sweet pictures that I'll post when she sends them to me:)

*Confession: I'm not a good couponer. Ahh...it feels so good to admit that to all of you frugal blogging friends. They stress me out. I get so mad at myself when I mess up and forget to use some. I typically grocery shop with my children, which requires enough multi-tasking without a handful of paper! ...All that to say, I did pretty well at saving at Kroger yesterday and there was a bit of a rush in knowing that I saved so much money. Kroger is a great store!

*We've had some major sickness at our house lately. All three children have ear infections and allergies and we just found out yesterday that Joshua has mono! Isn't that crazy?!? I was pretty sure that he did when I took him to the doctor. He was really drowsy acting all weekend and then on Tuesday he fell asleep at around 3 in the afternoon and didn't get up until 8:30 the next morning! He also has had a terribly congested nose, so we kept thinking that he was just worn out from that. But when he slept for 17+ hours, we thought we should probably get him tested. A lot of people have had it around here and even quite a few young children at our church. He fell asleep again yesterday and around 3 and here he is at 8:30 when he woke up to eat some dinner. He was up for about an hour and then went right back to sleep. Poor little guy...the best thing we can do is encourage him to rest...and when I asked our doctor how to keep a 4 year old resting, his answer was "lots of movies and games." So there are some upsides to mono: nap time revisited and guilt-free (for mommy) movie marathons. The downside is that we have to be careful to protect his spleen for the next few weeks; which mean no bike riding or jumping off of things. Please pray that none of the rest of us get it!

*Okay...I guess that "in no particular order" isn't quite accurate, because I definitely saved the best news for last: my sister and b-in-law have an adoption referral!!!! You can go to Laura's blog to read the entire story, but really, it's so amazing how it all happened: way earlier than expected and clearly what God has planned for them. She is a two year old, BEAUTIFUL little girl from Ethiopia. I love her so much already from just looking at two pictures. There is a sweetness about her that I can't wait to get to know. Please join me in praying for Luke, Laura, and Maddie Grace as they wait. Please pray for my little niece: for her protection and provision and that God would prepare her little heart to know that she is dearly and deeply loved by her family and her Father. I will post pictures as soon as we can-- we're not allowed to until the adoption is final. Praise Jesus!!!!

The Word is Good

"Satisfy us in the morning with Your steadfast love,

that we may rejoice and be glad all our days."

Psalm 90:14

Maybe I've lived in the south too long...

I completed my second sewing project last night (while watching LOST-- holy cow, can that show get any more confusing?!!?). I have been wanting to make a "pillowcase dress" for AB for a while now-- and have to ask my Midwest people: if this is what I like to dress my little girl in, have I lived in Georgia too long?!!? Seriously, I'm not to the point of putting Joshua in saddle shoes and rompers, but I know that my style has changed since living here. I love the sweet little dresses, big hair bows, and even monogramming. Anyways- I looked at a couple of instructional websites and called mom to talk me through some of the details. It really is a very easy dress to make. There are just a few simple steps, and because it's loose fitting and the ties bunch it as much as needed, you don't have to worry about getting it exactly right measurement wise. So here it is, folks- Belly in a pillowcase (yeah...she'll definitely give me a hard time for this one when she's older:))

Thank You, Dear Husband!

Growing up, I have vivid memories of my mom sewing. She would stay up all night making me and my sisters' Easter, Christmas, and First Day of School dresses. I wish that I had pictures here of some of these outfits; some were quite "impressive". We're talking Christmas dresses with lacey placemats as the collars. We even had designated colors; my dresses were often times country blue (can we say 80's!!!) Laura's colors was mauve, and Becca was cranberry. This was a childhood nightmare for the tomboy girl that I once was. I wasn't a fan of dresses to begin with, let alone those with lace and smocking on them! (At least my color was blue, right?!) Well, anyway- my mom is a really gifted seamstress. She can make just about anything. She even made Anna Bell's crib bedding. As I was growing up, I had absolutely no interest in learning how to sew. It wasn't at all my thing. However, now that I'm wife/mom/homemaker with a daughter (that I want to put in pillowcase dresses-- for which she'll someday make fun of me for), I want to learn to sew. My sweet, thoughtful husband surprised me on Sunday with this super-cool sewing machine!

I was so incredibly excited! I pulled out the manual (and I'm not really a manual type of person, but I was so determined to figure the thing out.) I learned how to thread the bobbin and the needle and practiced some of the stitching options. Then I finished my very first sewing project:

I wish that my mom wasn't hundreds of miles away and we could sit down and she could teach me. We intend to do those sort of things when we visit, but the days are so jam-packed that we never get around to it. However, she's coming next month, so I have every intention of planning a big sewing party while she's here!

Cabinets Shnabinets

So I just searched through old files and found some before/during pictures of our kitchen cabinets. ...And then I spent way too much time looking at old pictures of our precious growing babies. Holy Moly, they grow up too fast! Check out a few of my favorites that I came across....

Precious, sleeping, less than 2 weeks old Caleb.

Sweetness.

(I'm gonna develop this one and hang it in this bathroom:)

Our little faux hawk man.

Who cares about cabinets with priceless pictures like these?

(Almost) Finished!

These pictures are a little fuzzy for some reason, but here are our "new" cabinets!!! I'm going to have to look through pictures on our old computer and find some before pics- but I love the difference. It's amazing what $40 of gel stain and $75 of new hardware will do! I still need to touch up a couple of places and add a coat or two of polyurethane (sp?). Does anyone have any experience with that? The stuff seems so runny- I'm afraid I'm gonna mess them up by leaving drips all over the place. I'd love some tips, if you have em!

Recent Conversations

Some sweet/funny recent conversations in the Broome house:

**AB has had some behavior issues at school lately...ugh- you wouldn't think that a 23 pound three year old would take it upon herself to be the class bully, but I guess she has. We're working on it. (Any godly advice would be appreciated.)

Me (on the way home from school): Anna Bell, did you have a good day at school?

Anna Bell: yes mommy.

Me: Did you obey your teachers and were you kind to your friends?

Anna Bell: ummmm....no- i went to time out.

Me: And why did you have to go to timeout today?

Anna Bell: I took toys from Sarah and pushed her. (*Sarah is one of her dearest friends...and thankfully Sarah's mommy is one of my dearest friends who understands and loves my little darling AB)

Joshua (has been listening intently up to this point, but now decides to chime in with a stern voice): Anna Bell! That is NOT good and that does NOT honor God!

...oh boy.


**Anna Bell is seriously the BEST daddy greeter in the world! I mean, we're talkin no matter where that child is in the house or what she is busy doing, when she hears her daddy walk through the door, it's over. She RUNS and yells "DAAAADDYYYYYYYY!!!!!" until she sees him and then proceeds to leap into his arms. It's great. I love that she adores her daddy like that. Lately, after the initial greeting, while softly patting Fred's face, she then says things like:

"So. How was your day at work, dad?"

Or, while laying her head on his chest, closing her eyes, and sighing:

"I sure love you daddy."

She may be a bully at school, but she sure knows how to sweet talk her daddy.



**Last night, as Fred was talking with Joshua before bedtime.

Joshua: Daddy, I don't want to get any bigger.

Fred: Why not buddy?

Joshua: Because I DO NOT want to start loosing all my teeth!

(This was after we stopped by our 5 year old neighbor's house who had just lost her first tooth. This was very disturbing to Joshua...I guess we've never explained that process to him!)

If only it could be that simple

Like many of you, we have been greatly burdened for the people of Haiti since the earthquake. We've had a lot of conversations (especially with Joshua) about how we can help and what the needs are of the people there. We've been praying that the people would receive needed food and water, for the many children that are orphans, and that these people would know the love of Christ for them. After one such conversation, here was Joshua's matter-of-fact response:
"Well, why don't they just go to IKEA and get the things that they need when their houses fell down? ...and they even have food there for them too!"
I wish it was that easy, buddy.

What Great Weekends Are Made Of

*Dinner with friends followed by the guys and bigger kids

roasting s'mores out back in the fire pit.

*Starting a trial membership at the gym. I don't know if we'll join, but it sure makes working out better when you have childcare and all that fancy equipment at your fingertips:)

*Playing outside while daddy mows up leaves and fixes things with his new nail gun.

*Running errands that aren't necessary at that very moment but still productive.

*Buying a new computer. (Yay!!!! We've put it off forever and used the other one that hasn't really worked well in years-- wow, it's nice to be able to just turn it on and be ready to go!)

*Daddy and big kids going to get doughnuts for breakfast. (and even bringing one home for mommy!)

*Getting a lot accomplished on refinishing the kitchen cabinets. (I love them! Pictures soon to follow!)

*Reading/telling accounts from the Bible with the kids in bed.

*Lots of playdough creations.

*Movies on rainy afternoons.

*Sitting under Fred's teaching at church on Sunday morning. And hearing what the kids learned about in their classes.

*Sunday lunch at Firehouse. (Kids eat free and Fred and I split a combo- so it's less than $10 for us all to eat plenty...and I don't have to rush around cooking when everyone is starving!)

*Sunday evening Bible Study with dear friends-- challenging and encouraging one another in the way that we love/discipline our children.

*2 hour premier of this season's 24...so exciting...go Jack!

*And I know that Monday doesn't count as the weekend, but we played hard for a good 4 hours outside-- which always makes for a great day!

Cookbooks Are In!

Most of you know that my sister and her husband are in the process of adopting children from Ethiopia. They have completed all of the paperwork and are about 5 months into the period of waiting for a referral. We are beyond excited as we think about our sweet little babies coming home! If you think of it, please pray for Luke, Laura, and Maddie Grace during this time of waiting and preparation. They have walked a difficult road to get to this place of, but have walked it with grace and trust in the Lord and His provision.


I'm writing this blog to let you know about another way that you can help. As you can imagine, international adoptions are very costly. It has been amazing to watch the Lord provide for Luke and Laura as they step out in faith and completely trust the He will provide the finances thus far. Laura has put together a fabulous cookbook for which all of the proceeds go towards the adoption. They are $15 (shipping included). Please let me know if you are interested in getting one. The best way would probably be to email me at lindseypbroome@yahoo.com. Please include your address so that we get it to the correct place.

Just to give you a window into Luke and Laura's heart, here is an excerpt from the forward of the cookbook:
"It is because of His faithfulness that Luke and I walk on this side of infertility- grateful for the ways that the Lord has taken care of us. Not only is He healing our hearts, but He has provided for us a passion for adoption- something that could only have come from Him as we were originally quite opposed to the idea! While we wait for our children, it is my desire that our adoption story be a testimony of how graciously the Lord has taken care of and blessed our family."

Thanks everyone! I CANNOT wait to be able to post pictures of our sweet babies on this blog!!!

Caleb Judson

Our littlest baby turned one on Thursday. Unfortunately, he woke up with a cold/teething issues that morning so we barely made it through dinner let alone birthday cake. After the first official Broome birthday party for Joshua in September, we've pretty much decided that parties aren't for us. From now on (at least in this stage of life) birthdays are pretty low key around here. Now don't get me wrong, birthdays are still a huge deal and we greatly celebrate in our home...just without all the hoopla of cleaning the house, sending invites, decorating...and so on. So Caleb spent his first birthday playing at home, eating lunch out, taking two good naps (poor guy was sleepy all day) sharing a spaghetti dinner with the fam, playing with the balloons that daddy brought home, and tasting a couple of bites of cake (before his head practically fell asleep in it!!!:)

Here are just a few descriptions of our little guy:

*Caleb Judson is pretty easy-going so far. (I say that, yet I'm remembering the little fit that he threw at dinner tonight when I was placing cheese in front of him when he'd already seen the grapes that I pulled out of the fridge and continued squawking until I got him the grapes!)

*He is definitely a mommy's boy at this stage. I think it's because with the third, I've 1. realized that this stage of having a baby is so fleeting and I don't have the feeling of needing a break as much and 2. taking just one to the store or out to eat is a break!!!!

*Caleb is a really good eater. I've mentioned in a previous post that we didn't do baby food with him. I did steam and blend some things at first, but he quickly got to where he could just eat normal soft foods like avocado, sweet potato, beans, peas, small pieces of chicken, bananas, peaches, and so on. Now, he's able to eat most anything and seems to enjoy most foods. I'm sure we'll hit picky stages with him, but I feel like he's off to a good start.

*Caleb is crawling, pulling up, cruising, and beginning to stand for a bit on his own. I would guess it will still be a few weeks before he walks, but once he does, he'll be all over the place!

*He loves his brother and sister. And they love him. Joshua is a big helper and very loving towards Caleb. There is no question that Anna Bell adores him too...she just has a more "hands-on" way of showing her affection-- like by trying to push his face into the carpet or attempting to pull his arms off. We're working on it. He loves his daddy too-- his face completely lights up when Fred walks through the door after work. He's also getting into the mix when Fred wrestles with Joshua. Probably like most younger siblings, he thinks he's just as big as his brother.

*Caleb is a good sleeper. Not fabulous but pretty good. He goes to bed around 7-7:15 and wakes at 6:45 to nurse then goes right back to sleep until around 7:45-8. I think that I could have stretched him to wait and eat at 8, but our house is pretty crazy by that time, so that routine worked for us. Now that we're weaning, I'll probably stretch him to drink his cup of milk with breakfast at 8ish. He still takes two naps at 9:30 and 1:30. The first is between 1-2 hours and the second is 2.

*Caleb is affectionate. He gives kisses, hugs and really loves to cuddle. It takes him longer than J and AB to warm up to people....which is hard when grandparents/aunts/uncles live far away (sorry grandpa--we will be talking to a picture of you everyday from now until Christmas!!:))

*He still rides in his sling when we are at church, occasionally at a store or somewhere that I need my hands free. People are starting to give me a hard time about it at church, but he's still pretty content as long as I keep moving. It works for us.

*Caleb's words are "momma" "dada" "bubba" (joshua) "dankdu" (thankyou i think) "bye bye" and "more" He can sign "all done" and "more."

*He has 6 teeth so far- two on bottom and just got all four on top in the last few weeks

*Like each of our children, our name for Caleb is intentional: a biblical hero for the first name and a missionary/modern hero of the faith for the middle.

Caleb

"Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, 'we should by all means go up and take possession of it (the promise land), for we shall surely overcome it.'" Number 13:30

"But My servant Caleb, because he has had a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land which he entered, and his descendants shall take possession of it."

Numbers 14:24

Judson

Named after one of the first missionaries to the people in Burma, Adoniram Judson. He was a man whose passion to share the love of Christ with people who didn't know Him was second only to his passion for Christ Himself.

Here's a little info on Adoniram from a manuscript by John Piper. (You can read the rest at desiringgod.org)

When Adoniram Judson entered Burma in July, 1813 it was a hostile and utterly unreached place. William Carey had told Judson in India a few months earlier not to go there. It probably would have been considered a closed country today - with anarchic despotism, fierce war with Siam, enemy raids, constant rebellion, no religious toleration. All the previous missionaries had died or left.
But Judson went there with his 23-year-old wife of 17 months. He was 24 years old and he worked there for 38 years until his death at age 61, with one trip home to New England after 33 years. The price he paid was immense. He was a seed that fell into the ground and died. And the fruit God gave is celebrated even in scholarly works like David Barrett's World Christian Encyclopedia: "The largest Christian force in Burma is the Burma Baptist Convention, which owes its origin to the pioneering activity of the American Baptist missionary Adoniram Judson"

Adoniram Judson "hated his life in this world" and was a "seed that fell into the ground and died." In his sufferings "he filled up what was lacking in Christ's afflictions" in unreached Burma. Therefore his life bore much fruit and he lives to enjoy it today and forever. He would, no doubt, say: It was worth it.

Caleb, We pray that you would be bold and have a "different spirit" that follows God fully like Caleb (the son of Jephunneh) and possess the passion and single-mindedness of Adoniram to obey our Saviour in life or death- whatever He calls you to. We love you, sweet son. It is a privilege and blessing to be your mommy. Happy Birthday. Love, Mama

You have GOT to be kidding me...

All I want to know is HOW HARD could it be to get ONE good picture of three kids....apparently it's next to impossible for the Broome gang. Here a few pics that didn't make the Christmas card cut.

TAKE ONE

yeah...I thought that suckers might keep them put and end up being kind of cute...hmmm...not so much. (check out the massive amount of drool on Caleb!)

TAKE TWO

TAKE THREE

TAKE FOUR

Maybe I'm being too picky, but I kind of think that if I'm going to spend the time and money to send out cards, I'd like it to be a good pic. Does anyone agree? Any solutions? ...I ended up just doing 3 separate shots. BTW: for those of you who have moved recently, PLEASE email me new addresses!

For This I Pray

At about this time last year, I gathered all of the nativity Little People (from the massive collection of these beloved figures that we have collected!) and arranged them on a cabinet at the top of our stairs. And naturally, I placed them in the traditional order: Mary and Joseph on either side of baby Jesus, with the angel above and the other characters spread out on each side. However, this is the order that I found them in after Joshua and Anna Bell had played with them. I was in complete awe and amazement as I sat there wondering what was going through their little minds as they arranged those figures. I know that they probably didn't fully understand what they were doing when they placed each figure focused completely on Jesus, but it sure did challenge me! *This is my prayer for this Christmas season and every one the follows in the Broome household- that we would train and model and teach our children that amidst such tradition, Christ is Who we celebrate! He is God with us! He humbled Himself and came here as a baby, and (in the words of Shane & Shane in my favorite modern Christmas carol) He was born to die.

In My Opinion...

...Sand angels beat out snow angels any day.

What's Been Goin On...

I finally transferred pictures to the computer this morning, and realized that I have missed posting a lot of blog-worthy pics. Our computer is sadly dying. She's been a good ol girl-- nearly 9 years old which is apparently ancient where technology is concerned. All that to say, it took me FOREVER and a year to download all of these shots. (thankfully, I had an endless supply of laundry to fold while waiting. lucky me.)
So...in no particular order whatsoever...

I actually took these this morning. Look at that sweet little boy! Overalls, camo shirt, and cord hat. You really can't beat that.

Joshua and I went on our first official field trip last week with his preschool class. I have to be honest and admit that I wasn't totally looking forward to the trip. This may make me sound like a really bad and ungrateful mommy, but j and ab going to school 2 mornings a week is just as much for me as it is for them. The break does me good. I get things done. I rest and relax and by noon I usually really miss them and am ready to see their sweet shining faces. However, we ended up having a wonderful time and I'm really glad that I got to go with him and his class. I was able to meet some of the other parents. I got to see how he interacts with his teachers and classmates. It was really fun. Here are just a few pics of me and my Joshua...and sweet Caleb tagged along too.




This is Fred's intern. Do you think that he knew that loving our kids was in the job description when he got the job? They adore him and love it when he comes to our house.


One thing we have learned about our sweet AB is that if it's really quiet she's definitely doing something she's not supposed to. ...Like getting an entire batch of cupcakes off of the counter and plopping down to eat as many as she can. ...And like the good mother and discipliner that I am, I stopped to take a picture before we had a little chat:)


Who needs Disney World when you have a big hill and a stroller? Seriously one of our kids' favorite things to do. And it's a really good work out too!



I LOVE it when they show love to each other!


This is just one of the MANY piles of sheets/towels that I washed 2 weeks ago...when all five of us got a stomach bug. It was terrible. I've never done so many loads of laundry or sprayed so much Lysol in my life!!!


I love rainy days. I really do. They're so relaxing- we've had tons of rain lately but it hasn't really kept us inside. We've spent many mornings in and out of the garage in our messiest play clothes. I love it!






My kids love anything having to do with water. And they're really smart...because when they ask "mommy, can we wash each other's feet like Jesus did?" how can I refuse?!!?


My friend Becky blogged about doing cheerio art at her house so we gave it a try one morning. J and AB loved it! Thanks for the idea, Becky!



J has become obsessed with letters, words, sounds, spelling-- anything pre-reading really. So we pulled out a big pan and some cous cous (sp?) and spelled things out. It was really fun!


Whew...sorry about the long post, people. But like many of you, I want to be able to look back on all of these entries in the years to come and remember what life was like. I think that if I don't blog about it, I'll forget so many of these sweet treasured moments with our little family. And I don't want to forget any of it...even when I washed a bazillion towels in one week:)