Natural Bridge, KY

We recently visited Natural Bridge State Park with our friends, Jason, Cara, Gracie, and Allie Meyer. We had a great day hiking and spending time together.

The kids were troopers, as we hiked around 1.5 miles, up and down mountains and hills.

Andrew, rounding the bend enthusiastically.

This is the entrance to a cave we all ventured in to with one flashlight.

And this is all of us emerging victorious at the exit of the cave.

The beautiful Natural Bridge.

Happy Birthday Micah!

Yes, it is that time again... where we celebrate the arrival into the world of Micah Martin Childs. His official birthday was yesterday, but we have been celebrating for a week! "You are the best Micah/Daddy we've ever seen!" (so Andrew says... and I, Tiffany, agree). What a handsome man. It's hard to believe that this time next year, he will be the big 3-0!

Childs at the Zoo

Micah had a whole day off this past Monday and we all went to the Louisville Zoo. Andrew was fascinated...

Elijah was just glad to be outside.

Andrew posing with the rhinoceros.

Our new gorilla friend... Apparently, evolutionists haven't compared the primate to my very handsome boys. This picture disproved their whole theory! We told Andrew to talk to him, and he immediately told him a, "Why'd the chicken cross the road?!?" joke.

The new baby elephant~

Andrew really thought the flamingos were funny.

This bird was in love with Micah. Much to our amusement, he wouldn't leave his head.

Blessed be the Name of the Lord

We all have been very busy these past several weeks. The boys and I went to North Carolina to visit family for a week. We met Andrew and Elijah's second cousin, Caleb Wesley Lantz, and spent time with grandparents, aunt and uncles, and good old friends.



Since then, our time has been spent working and playing- not always in equal combinations of the two. Andrew has added worm-collecting to the things he enjoys doing outside as I work in the garden. He loves the song "This Side" by Nickel Creek and asks to hear it over and over again. He dances in circles, sings, and plays air guitar when he hears music- or really when he hears "good" music... he has very sophisticated taste in music. Elijah has learned "DaDa and ByeBye" and army-crawls all over the house. He is fearless and into everything. He is like one of those wind up babies who runs into a wall and just keeps crawling forward, hitting the wall over and over and over.


On a serious note, we have been, through personal and church relationships, around a lot of sickness and death lately. Deaths of young people; from just weeks old to an almost two-year-old to a man in his mid forties. My dear pastor and husband has reminded me lately in his preaching through the book of Genesis on Sunday mornings of the effects the fall brought- even on our bodies. I know there are days I feel very frail and weak. I have always known that my body was not made to live on this earth for very long. The Easter season reminded me that Christ conquered sin and death at the cross and in His triumphant resurrection. I have asked myself through all of this though, what do I do with all this tragedy on this side of eternity? God is clearly trying to teach me something. Well, I know I will not be taking for granted the wellness of my husband and children today or the responsibility I have to love them. I also am reminded that they are God's before they are mine and I desire His will in their lives above what I want for them. I pray that if faced directly with such sadness and difficulty as the families we have been so touched by, I will echo my dear brother in Christ in Germany who lost his baby girl, "Blessed be the name of the Lord, Blessed be Your name. You give and take away, You give and take away. My heart will choose to say, Blessed be Your name." and be reminded that Weeping is for the night, but joy comes in the morning.

"These Are Days"

Thanks to 10,000 Maniacs, appropriate words are added to these pictures... except for "lucky". I have no reason to attribute any of life's blessings to luck, but the rest of the song is right on.

These are the days

These are days you’ll remember

Never before and never since, I promise

Will the whole world be warm as this

And as you feel it,You’ll know it’s true

That you are blessed and lucky

It’s true that you

Are touched by something

That will grow and bloom in you

These are days that you’ll remember
When May is rushing over you
With desire to be part of the miracles
You see in every hour
You’ll know it’s true
That you are blessed and lucky
It’s true that you are touched
By something that will grow and bloom in you




These are days
These are the days you might fill
With laughter until you break
These days you might feel
A shaft of light
Make its way across your face
And when you do
Then you’ll know how it was meant to be
See the signs and know their meaning
It's true
Then you’ll know how it was meant to be
Hear the signs and know they’re speaking
To you, to you

Finally, An Update

I know it has been a while... It is shocking the way time speeds along, especially in the winter months when the days seem short. The most real judge of time I have right now are my boys. They grow daily. At night, I have been trying to hold each of them just a few seconds longer realizing that in the morning, they will have grown in some way.

Elijah did his first baby sign during lunch yesterday (he said/signed "more"!!!). He is the most curious child I have ever seen. He has to know what is going on at all times. He loves to laugh at Andrew- and Andrew loves to make him laugh.

Andrew is such a smart little boy. He is meticulous and opinionated. His favorite game right now is hide and seek. Everyone who comes over ends up either playing hide and seek or Nerf basketball. He will sometimes hide in the same room where the "seeker" is counting or announce where he is headed to hide~ we have a great time with him. We recently went to the Train Show in downtown Louisville. This is a picture of Andrew on a kid-sized train.

A couple of weeks ago, we had a beautiful snow and Andrew got to play outside in it for the first time. I quickly turned into one of those Moms who over-dresses their child. He may not have been able to move well but he was warm! Poor kid- He did enjoy sledding and riding his bike through it. When it snows, we all really miss the mountains of North Carolina. My Dad always wanted to take a drive when it snowed growing up and I am just the same.

We all hope you all who keep up with us have a safe rest of the winter season.

For the past month, we have been here and there and everywhere.

Andrew turned 3 years old on January 12th, but celebrated for weeks! He had visits from both sets of grandparents and really enjoyed all of the company. We took him bowling for the first time on the actual big day. He is such a big boy! Every time we go in Target now, he asks for a toy "for Andrew's Christmas present for my birthday!" He still loves to sing and dance. You haven't heard Swithfoot's "Stars" until you've heard Andrew sing it! On our way to church tonight, he composed a tune to his life verse right now, Ephesians 6:1, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right." Micah and I were laughing encouragingly as his voice rose and fell, up and down, high and low ending with a grand ol' Southern Gospel whole note rit. (in other words, he held it out for a long time). It was masterful!

Elijah continues to grow and change. He is very vocal these days and is almost able to sit up on his own. Crawling will not come soon enough for him. His brother's toys are very tempting and he is sure they taste yummy!

Micah is well... getting prepared to dive into another semester of school. He will be preaching through the book of Genesis at church beginning this coming Sunday- which is no small undertaking. I just asked him how he is doing... and his reply, "Doing well". I hit the nail on the head with that perceptive observation:) We celebrated the night we met on January 15th- or at least we talked about it. 13 years! Wow! What a blessing he has been to me for such a long time.

I am attempting to get it together these days. I fell into the "stay at home and forget that there is a world outside" pit recently and am slowly making my way out. It is so easy, especially in the winter to stay snuggled up at home, and un-engage the world outside. I have started attending a bible study at a neighboring church and organized a play group that meets for the first time in my home tomorrow morning. I am thankful God has given me women in my community to meet with regularly and friends for Andrew and Elijah (Andrew can't wait for "the kids" to come and play in the morning). The answer to my problem, though, wasn't in reorganizing or adding to my schedule. I have been reminded (more like seriously convicted... like a big smack in the face) that nothing is mundane or ordinary when it is done to the glory of God. Whether I am in a Bible study or cleaning off Elijah's highchair for the 4th time during lunch, I can engage the best part of me- Christ in me, the hope of glory. Through the ministry of the Holy Spirit am being made new and in the end, it is all to the glory of God.

Christmas Season Fun

I wanted to share some pictures of the boys and what they have been up to this Christmas season. Enjoy! Andrew was a shepherd in our Christmas Program. He also played a chime with the children's choir.

Elijah is very strong, even though he is still so little! He loves playing with toys and rattles.

Andrew and I have been working on a gingerbread house. Andrew likes the icing!
Elijah is fascinated with his feet right now. He is quite limber!
Here are the boys at church this morning. We had a very worshipful service and are thankful for a place to serve God's people. We hope you all have a wonderful, worshipful Christmas!

Christmas Season

Christmastime greetings to you all!

This is the first year that Andrew is really excited about Christmas. We have been reading regularly stories about the birth of Jesus. Andrew's favorite part is when the shepherds are told by the angel "Do not be afraid," and then say "Glory to God in the highest! And on earth peace, among those with whom He is pleased". Andrew is very aware of the gift-giving process, but has remained conservative in his asking for presents. "Lightening McQueen trucks" are at the top of his list.

Elijah is growing so fast and is enjoying the Chrsitmas lights. He has found his voice and will sing along with us... usually in a one-tone "Ahhhhhhh". It is a beautiful sound.

Micah and I are so thankful to be settled in to our new home this year. On Friday, December 15, we are hosting a open house for all our friends and church family here in Kentucky. We are so thankful for the people in our lives here~ but still think daily of those close to our hearts in North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, and Louisiana.

Update

It is amazing how time flies... the year has come and almost gone. We in the Childs household are looking forward to good holiday food and the basketball season (go Heels! ~don't tell Micah!!!). We have also enjoyed the cool weather and beautiful fall foliage. Anticipating the business of the approaching holidays, I recently pulled out my Christmas decorations so I could get ahead. Andrew loves the nut"crackers" and lights. ~Yes Cara, it gets earlier and earlier every year!


Micah has just a couple of assignments to complete and finals and his semester will be over. Yeah!!! Until he begins again in the Spring~


Andrew's favorite phrase right now is "I know, Mommy". He really does think he knows just about everything, so he says. How does he have such confidence? I know from experience, it must be in his genes. He had a good time at our church's fall festival last week. He enjoyed the cake walk and winning prizes-- one prize was a pack of plastic bugs. He loves these ugly bugs. If you don't already know, I am terrified of bugs and having these things greet me in random places around our home is making me crazy. I am sure that soon I will pick one up, thinking it is a plastic one when in fact it will be real. No girls besides me in this house, that's for sure!



Elijah is growing and growing. When he smiles, he smiles with every inch of his little 13.5 pound body. He is at a precious age.



The boys and I will be traveling to NC the day after Thanksgiving to celebrate my brother, Matt being recognized as an Eagle Scout. Congratulations Uncle Matt!

We're Back to Blogging!

To all of you, five or so, faithful members of the Joy In Our Journey fan club, I will begin by apologizing for my lack of updating this blog. To be honest, the latest news will be to most of you, I imagine, will be kind of, well, boring. Anyway, the big Childs news is that Andrew has been making steps toward becoming a young man this past week. He has almost mastered the fine art and skill of using the lavatory... or as he understands, the potty. I know at this point, I have probably lost most of you, bringing down our number of fans to maybe 2. Just hang in there with me for a minute, while I attempt to, as faithfully as I can~ with sentiment, explain why this has been such a big deal.

Apparently, learning successful ways to appropriately handle this need and necessity of ours to... well... use the potty is something whole books, websites, and parenting classes are focused on. I had no idea why... until now. From toddler (or sometimes baby) boot camp to "Oh, he will learn before he is twelve, so don't worry" opinions, come a plethora of advise for training. I will spare you the details of our specific journey, but will say that after four days, things are looking hopeful. I have acquired a new position in my home, one that doesn't hit far from past experience, the potty cheerleader. Thanks to grandparents, I do not hold this position alone (Thanks Mimi and Nana!!!). This has been pretty consuming the last few days, and I am sure it will continue to be for a while. In the life of our young Andrew, this change has been drastic and life-altering. He now has a major responsibility~ one he has to perform on his own. One more step toward independence... and leaving. Maybe mellow-dramatic for you, but for me the implications are all too real. I train, teach, and cheer for him to get it and move toward being a big boy, and then a man; responsible and socially acceptable. The hard part for me is that I like him being dependent on me. I have seen how quickly children grow. But what honors God is that I prepare him for independence- and at the same time dependence on his Creator... the One who designed all the growing up in the first place.

Our sweet Elijah is doing great. He is so sweet and can be talked into almost anything easily- which is a good thing for a three month old. He loves to smile and laugh. He has his brothers heart. Andrew can't wait until he is old enough to wrestle. It is amazing how quickly he has changed.

In contrast- I am taking Greek class for Seminary wives on Thursday nights. I am not sure how these two things have entered my life at the same time, but I find it interesting and quite humorous anyway.

Last, but most certainly not least, Micah is almost finished with his fall semester. He has been taking a class challenging him to be more spiritually disciplined and a class on developmental psychology. Both so profitable, they have offered he and I many topics of conversation as he attempts to reconnect me with the outside world at the end of the day. We will be celebrating the 13th anniversary of the day we met in a few months, and I am so thankful for his friendship and devotion. I give God the glory for sustaining us this long, and pray we have much time to go.

Time Away from Home

We were all so glad to have some time together, uninterrupted. We drove through the tourist haven of Pigeon Forge, TN on to Gatlinburg, a somewhat less touristy area in the beautiful Smoky Mountains. It was a beautiful place to spend a few days.

One of Andrew's favorite places we visited was the Aquarium. Yes, it is an odd combo, mountains and salt-water creatures, but it was perfect for us; mountains for the adults and sharks and "nemos" for the kiddos.

We spent the better part of a day driving to NC where we visited family. The boys and I stayed on and then returned safely home via airplane, much to Andrew's delight. I heard "Mommy, this is excited!" many times on the way home.