Trip to AZ

Best Friends

The Gang

So mom braved taking my sister and I on a plane ride to Phoenix, Arizona to visit Aunt Prisilla and her family. We did so many fun things. My sister and I behaved so well on the plane while mom stuffed our faces with goldfish and cheerios. I got a window seat and loved looking through the window and shouting, "wing!" and "plane!"

Holding my sister on the plane

When we were there mom stayed up till like 3 am every night having "girltalk" with Prisilla. We went to some fun parks, we fed ducks at the park, we went to the Children's Museum (which was THE COOLEST PLACE I have ever been.....seriously!), and we went to a park where we got to ride on a train! Prisilla cooked up a storm all week and I got to eat yummy treats that mommy doesn't usuallly give me. Prisilla's house is sooooo fun! There is a huge backyard with tons of toys, a swing set and slide, little boys everywhere to play with. I had so much fun getting to know all the huisman boys. It was like chaos with 6 kids under 6 at her house for a week, but sooooo much fun! I already miss them. Prisilla threw a party the first day we got their with all mom's old high school friends. It was fun to meet you all! One of my favorite parts of the trip to AZ was playing outside in the yard in the warmth of the evening. Here is a bunch of fun pictures of our trip. Enjoy!

On the Train

Playing at the park

Mom and Tina

Painting a cardboard house at the Children's Museum

Having breakfast as a family :)

Too many boys in the tub (Malachi, Levi, Josiah, John, and Judah)

Levi reading to the kindergarten teacher. Mom was so impressed!Feeding the ducks at the park 3 blocks from Prisilla's house

Saying goodbye at the airport :(

Happy Easter!

Jesus Lives! I hope you all had a blessed Easter! Here are some pics of the fun Easter Egg hunt we had at our church.

Faylen in her new Easter dress from Gma Jill

Mom and I did some fun Easter crafts too.

Happy Easter,

Love,

Li'l John

In Escrow and Praying

As most of you may know, my parents have been house hunting for quite some time. It has been a far off dream to own a home here in Northern California. Well, now that dream is not so far off. After putting offers on over ten houses and getting denied, they finally heard the good news that their offer was accepted! They seem to be in shock at how smoothly the escrow process has been seeming to go. There is no way that God doesn't have his hand in every step so far. Amazingly enough, the house is NOT a foreclosure. It is owned by a really sweet Christian couple who held Bible studies in their living room for over 25 years (a tradition my parents plan to continue). This couple owns the house outright and are selling it to by a new house in Salinas to take care of their aging parents. When mom told the wife that we are Christians too, the wife cried in happiness and told mom, "This house is soooo blessed and always has been and now will continue to be". The house iis in Prunedale and has the most amazing views. Dad has always said he wanted to live on the top of a hill.

So I'm publishing this post to beg you for your prayers as the banks decide to give us the loan or not. We are all waiting on the edge of our seats here. We will let you know when we find out what will happen. Lord willing, we will be moving in just over a month! That means I will have lived in 3 houses before I turn 2! My parents are so crazy.

Over the next few weeks, whenever you think of us, please send up a prayer that God will bless our family with this house that is 10 times better than we could ever have imagined being blessed with.

To see a virtual tour of the house click on this link:

http://tours.imagemaker360.com/Viewer/MostourlargerView.asp?ID=86901

To see pics of it click here:
http://www.coldwellbankerahr.com/properties/7561CHESTER.html

Thank you for your prayers,

Li'l John

Introducing......Magnus!

,

never thought you'd see the day, huh

Here is our newest member of the family. Welcome, Magnus! Yes, mom finally gave in to dad's dream. Mom's just happy that he doesn't shed. His name means "great" in Latin. He's an American Bulldog. He's really cute and laid back for a puppy. We found out his birthday is Dec 6th, the same day as my daddy!!!!!! So he's about 3 months old now. He is my new best bud. All we do is wrestle. Since I've always had to be gentle with my sissy, it's like I have all this pent up boy aggression and I finally get to take it out on the dog. We spent lots of time outside running around and chasing each other through the orchard.

Click on this link to watch a video of us playing in the orchard:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIC0-tibPjc

He's pretty much potty trained but he likes to chew on all our toys. He's already popped all my bouncy balls. The first thing I say every morning when mom opens the door to get me out of my crib is, "Doggie!!!". It's been a bit of a transition for our family, especially for mom having to deal with three babies in the house, but well worth it. That's not to say there aren't days where mom looks like she's about to explode if she has to clean up another mess, break up another wrestling match, yell at Magnus to stop chewing on something, or scoop up another living room poopy surprise. The dog and I can quickly whip through a room like a tornado causing much chaos and wreaking much havoc! But, Magnus couldn't be more perfect for our family. American Bulldogs were bread to work and live on farms so it's a good thing we live on one. I love to feed the dog. (both his food and mine) Magnus is pretty gentle with Faylen. He tries to give her lots of kisses and sometimes it knocks her over. Then I yell, "NO, Doggie!" Click on this link to watch a video of Magnus, Faylen, and I chillin together: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWiwf0HB_4Y

First day at the beach with Mags

Speaking of our farm. Check out the picture of our big oak tree that fell down down in the middle of the night, just missing our house by centimeters! I cried when I saw my sad little tree swing lying on the ground. :( We thought it was an earthquake when it fell.

FAYLEN IS CRAWLING!!!!! She looks sooo adorable when she's crawling. Click on this link to watch her crawl for the first time! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnQiKYigQ6s

She's now 9 months old and is very happy and content crawling around the house to get to her toys. It's really fun to play with her. She just started pointing at things with her little pointer finger. Every time she does it mom and dad say she's soooo cute and then pretend to bite her little finger off. They are sooo weird, every time they get overwhelmed by our cuteness their first reaction is to try and EAT us! Parents.....they're so unpredictable. Faylen's hair is getting long and curly. She speaks a lot in her own little goo-goo gah-gah language. She likes playing with her toys and playing outside. She pulls herself up and stands while holding onto furniture and stuff. She's got two big bottom teeth that makes her look like a cabbage patch doll. We call her "Crazy Tongue" cuz she's always got this wild little lizard tongue that she's spinning around or sticking out of her mouth like a frog catching a fly. Click on this link to watch a video of Faylen in the swing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYaUZXrlbHE

pony tail

my new Valentine's sweater from G-ma

wearing mommy's old overalls

nudist

my latest trick

Faylen also was dedicated in church. It was a really special day to have our pastor lead the church in a commitment to help raise Faylen to be a woman of God. Grandma, Shosh and Josh got to be there too. I pray that I can be a good example to her as a big brother and teach her about Jesus. I do my best to read her my children's Bible at night before bed. (I refuse to go to bed with out reading my Bible).

We had a really fun Valentine's Day. Dad planned a whole day of surprises. First he got up and made us all a fancy breakfast of omelets. While dad cooked up a storm, mom and I baked and decorated heart shaped cookies and Faylen and I got to open our new Valentine's mailbox that had some fun little treats and surprises in them. Then we went bowling in monterey, (I loved bowling.....the bumpers were helpful), then we went to Denis the Menace park (a huge, really fun park) and ate the picnic lunch dad prepared (including wine glasses and wine), then we came home and got all dressed up and went out to dinner at a fancy French restaurant in downtown Santa Cruz. Everyone there was giving mom and dad funny looks bringing in two babies to this little quiet romantic restaurant, but we behaved ourselves. It was a fun day full of love and surprises. I know mom was really happy.

We had lots of visitors in the last month. First Grandma, Shosh and Josh came. I became very attached to uncle Josh. In fact, after they left I was asking and looking for Josh for weeks. Whenever I see another man that looks remotely like him I call out, "JOSH!!!" I sure hope he comes to visit again so we can play some ball together. Then Uncle Jason, Auntie Rachel, and Cousin Sophia came to visit. We went for walk and picnic by the beach. It was fun to see how much Sophia has grown. Click on this link to watch a video of Sophia and I:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AL5ad2MN52o

Then Grandma Jill and Grandpa Paul came to visit. We had fun taking our new puppy to the dog park and having a picnic. They took my sis and I on a Valentine's shopping spree at Target. We got to pick out whatever toy we wanted. Faylen being the girly girl that she is picked out cute clothes. I picked out my very own little drum set. (complete with a tambourine and harmonica) I never miss out on my daily jam sessions. I sure miss all my family. I wish they all lived closer. But we are blessed that they want to come and visit pretty often.

I am now almost 22 months old. I still love music. I love it when we crank up the music in the car. If you peeked in the window you'd see me bobbin my head to the beat like Stevie Wonder. I have a confession...I love Barney. (but please don't tell my dad) I learn new words every single day. Mom's trying to start teaching me French. Click on this link to watch a video of me eating breakfast: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdLFmcbcH34

I love to take care of my sister. She is my security blanket. (other than my real blankie that I call "Mimi") I can't believe I'm turning two soon. I hope you can make it to my bday party. I think this year I get to share a party with my sis. That'll be fun! Watch this video of me brushing my teeth like a big boy:

eating cookie dough on Valentine's

Story time at the park. Can you find me holding my sister?

Sharing Toys

Sorry for the delay in this Post. Mom's new camera broke. Remember to feel free to leave a comment. I love reading them!

Love,

Li'l John