Benjamin at 7 months

Don't you just want to squeeze those cheeks?  It's amazing how fast Ben is growing.  Thankfully we are blessed to have an abundance of 12 month size clothes.

Ben is not really interested in crawling yet, but loves to sit and soak in his surroundings.  He is our people-watcher and will usually smile at anyone who talks to him. 

Ben has definitely discovered he has a voice and sometimes likes to see just how loud he can get which of course drives his Sister nuts.  Along with talking, we can tell that Ben is a listener.  He loves to listen to music and gives a belly laugh whenever he hears the horn on our van. 

Here's Emily's 7 month picture.

More flowerbed pics.

I am reminded of Matthew 13:5-6 when dealing with our flowerbeds.  Year after year Mom and I would plant new flowers in the beds as our Mother's Day tradition and each year the flowers would look like they were thriving, but soon after being planted they would stop growing.  This year we had the idea to uproot the old soil, add new and the flowers are definitely doing much better.  Thank you Mom for all your help!!!

"Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away."

Emily - 3 years, 9 mo. - May 16

Oh, where to begin.  Let's just say Emily keeps Mommy on her toes at all times.  I am more thankful than Emily, I'm sure, when rest time rolls around so I can turn my brain off for a little while.  I do get a chuckle quite often though with some of the things that comes out of her mouth.  These days she has not been dealing well with her brother since he recently found out he has a voice and likes to use it.  She is constantly saying "I can't hear" even if there is nothing on to be listening to.  However, she is so sweet...the second she finds out he's asleep in the van, she wants the world to be quiet so he can rest.

Emily really enjoyed playing in the dirt recently when my Mom graciously came over and helped me "rebuild" our flower beds.  We're hoping to incorporate her help more with our garden this year.

You'll notice a stuffed cat in the picture this time.  This is her newest "pet" Stripy.  Yes, this stuffed animal actually has a name rather than just Kitty.  She now has quite the collection and all of them usually go with her everywhere, but Stripy is notably her favorite.