I'm back

(Sorry, every picture on this post was taken with my cell phone.  Many times it's just so much more available, even though it does not take great pictures.)

Dick had a three-day weekend off, so it was nice to have him around the house on Friday to play with Austin, since I also had packing to do for the weekend.  Austin is starting to enjoy books, and for a long time they were on the floor with one book.  Dick would press on a certain page and it would make a noise, Austin would turn the page, Dick would press that one, producing another noise, Austin would page back to the previous one, Dick would press that one.....  You get the picture.  Just back and forth between those two pages!

Of course, the Baby Einstein videos still light up his world!

Friday evening we drove to our Lititz house for the weekend.  We did not go to Reading for Destiny this time, because of the plans we had for Saturday.  Of course, with our extreme temperatures, the house was rrrrrreally cold, but I just kept my coat on all evening, and by bedtime it was warmed up.  

On Saturday I went to Destiny's home in Reading and spent the day helping her to organize her bedroom - her clothes, toys, books, etc.  We had a very productive day together, and I was so very disappointed afterward when I realized I had not taken one picture, not even with my cell phone.  I just couldn't believe it.  I told her she has to keep it nice for the next two weeks so I can take a picture the next time we come!

She and I left there around 5:00 to head to a family gathering held at my sister Doris's church.  It was kind of a belated Christmas gathering for my family members who live in Lancaster County.  We had a fun evening together, and got to hear about and see pictures of my step mother's recent trip to Sarasota, Florida.  She had some really funny stories about her trip down on the "Mennonite bus."   By the way, both Jeremy and Lisa were privileged to spend time with her while she was down there - very special for them all.  

Here are the not-so-great pictures I took that evening with my phone.  I'm posting them for the sake of you family members who could not be there.

Sunday morning I led worship at church and we had a good time catching up with everyone again afterward.  I kind of like the way things are right now.  I really do love leading worship, and being able to still go to our church every other Sunday gives me the chance to fulfill that passion.  But on the weekends in between it is wonderful to go to Anthony and Lori's church and just be a worshiper and receive.   I missed out on that part for  many, many years.  

Sunday afternoon Dick took Destiny and her friend Elizabeth from church to the pool at the Lititz Rec Center.  I told him to get a picture of them swimming, because I always like to send reprints to Destiny from her weekends with us.  He said,  "What would that look like, an old man taking pictures of little girls swimming?"  We decided he shouldn't.  You just can't be too careful these days, with all the perversion everywhere.  

Here she is back at our house afterward, drying out and warming up.

We took her back home in the evening.  This morning we did our early morning trip back home to State College.  We have really been blessed with good driving weather on Dick's weekends off so far this winter.  Thank you, Lord!!

Did I ever have a busy boy today!  First of all I discovered he has a big, old molar in the back of his mouth, and another one poking through on the other side (that would make number 10!)  I guess he has every right to be mad sometimes with all that teething going on!   As he made his rounds in the kitchen, I discovered he was able to open the little drawers that do not have child locks (we thought they open too hard for him, hahahahaha!)

Hmmmm.  Sazon seasoning, anyone?

Now if I could just figure out how to get it back into the drawer.

I wonder what happens when I press on this big button right here?  

Wow, is this cool, or what???  I could climb into this thing!

Look where he put his pacifier - right on top of the microwave!  I am so thankful that as much as I love express buttons on microwaves, this microwave does not have them.  Can you imagine if it did and he discovered what happens when you press on them?

In case you wonder about his bare feet, it is absolutely impossible to keep anything on his feet.  He just pulls everything off.  In fact, today at lunch he was tugging violently at his bib, like it was driving him crazy or something, so I finally took it off.  Next he started tugging at his shirt.  I thought,  "Oh, great, is he going to one of those kids that is always taking his clothes off?"   What a guy, what a guy.  And I'm just crazy over him.