a whole new world

Well, life in Murray-land changed dramatically last Thursday when we got a call from CPS that a baby boy needed a foster family. We got the call at 11 am, and they dropped him off at 5:40pm that night. So we went from two sweet boys to three in a matter of hours, and we are still adjusting to our new life as a foster family. We are so thankful for the support of our wonderful friends and church family back here, and so many people have donated clothes, diapers, a car seat, meals, and some ladies have even come over to hold him and allow me to nap. I am also thankful for the prayers of everyone that isn't able to be back here to help. Due to privacy laws and such, I am not allowed to say much about the baby, except that he is a boy and doing well, and I am not allowed to post pictures either. Landon has a cute nickname for the baby, and he is doing great and seems quite accepting of the whole situation. He has been much more gentle with this little guy than he was with Lincoln. What a difference nine months makes. And, I guess he figures he has done this whole "welcome a new baby into my life" thing before. Lincoln, however, is having a little bit of a more difficult transition as he tries to figure out what little thing is in my arms when I should be holding him and walking him around (it is his favorite thing right now to "walk" around...he has yet to officially crawl...he just scoots, cruises on furniture, and prefers to be helped to walk or push walking toys around). It has been interesting for me to see the "other side" as the baby is formula fed, and I have solely breastfed both my boys. I am actually enjoying the freedom to leave him with Aaron and not worry about hurrying home for a feeding, and I love that Aaron can take some of the night feedings- horray! I know that breastfeeding is best, but I can definitely understand why some people prefer to bottle-feed. There are many things that I think that God is teaching us through this experience, but a big thing is just my realization at all hours of the night that I can't do this in my own strength and I have to rely on God. The sleep deprivation is the worst form of torture for me, and it totally humbles me and causes me to depend on God in a real way. I am having to give up (again!) that which is most precious to me- uninterrupted sleep, and God is growing me in that. More to come....it's always an adventure!

video games at chuck e cheese

Here is Grandma Gloria playing video games at Chuck E Cheese's with Landon and his friend, Colton, and Kade Ferguson also makes an appearance.

Get your groove on!

Here are some friends at Chuck E Cheese's at our Valentine party dancing to the tunes. Check out their cool moves.

cheese

I thought this was so funny when Landon and his friend, Ryan, totally posed for a picture when I was video taping them! We trade date nights with the Rivell family, and Landon and Ryan have such fun playing with their Lightening McQueens, or "Speed" as Ryan calls it. Landon actually busted the back wheel off his after only a month of ownership (luckily, Aaron is handy with the JB weld!), and then he busted the same wheel off of Ryan's! Yikes. Our child is very rough with toys (Aaron's mom tells me he was the same way). Notice that Landon is in his diaper, and only his diaper....that is the status quo around here for him. He prefers to be without clothes. Always.

tub time

Splish Splash

Lincoln has really been enjoying his baths lately. He can scoot all of the way across the tub by splashing, and then he goes daredevil on me and tries to stand up holding the edge of the tub. He can do it- that is the wild thing! He laughs and thinks he is something standing up in the tub. Danger, heh?

Glo Glo's Visit

Grandma Gloria came to visit last week for her birthday celebration. We had a wonderful week of fun and thoroughly enjoyed having her in our home. Landon and Lincoln loved all of the extra attention, and I loved all of the extra help! It's so nice to have an extra set of hands (and my mom is just so productive and efficient...a real cooking, cleaning, organizing, weeding, car- detailing machine!), and a loving Grandma to take care of the boys. Aaron and I got to go out on a fun date night with our wondermous friends the Wonderlys at Dave and Busters...go flamin' fingers! And, Glo Glo got to meet a lot of our friends at the Valentine play date we had at Chuck E Cheese's (see the slideshow two posts below). We are already looking forward to seeing Glo Glo, Bob Bob, and lots of friends and family when we travel to CA in March.

First Trip to the Dentist

So we had a very toothy day today. Landon had his very first dentist appointment, and we took our friend Jake along because he was over for a play date. On the way to the dentist, at a stoplight, Jake yelled something like, "oh no!", and I turned around and he had a tooth in his hand and blood in his mouth! He had lost his first tooth while eating pretzels in my truck. Too funny. So of course we called his mom, my friend, Robyn, and she screamed, and it was quite exciting. The dentist we went too was VERY kid-friendly and I highly recommend Kids Smiles Dental in Cedar Park, especially because it is right next to the train store, and a real vintage locomotive is parked behind the shopping center. It's the perfect place for Landon. The pediatric dental office had an arcade, and several different play areas, and movies playing on screens everywhere. The staff was very friendly and helpful, and they even gave Jake a treasure box for his tooth, and both Jake and Landon received dental goody bags. And to top it all off, the whole visit was free since Landon is two!

Valentine's Day Fun