Another Full Weekend....

Today Mrs.Laura Barker comes into town! It is always the coolest thing when your childhood friend comes into your town, especially when that town is on the other side of the country from the town you both grew up in. I expect we will have non-stop chats : )
Saturday is when Daniel and April come! On Sunday we will head up to the mountains for another snowboarding round- and I hope my body will be up for 3 days of it! When we got back from this last trip, ooohhhhh my; I was SO sore! I woke up thinking, " This must be what it feels like to get beat up (groan)." It was plenty of fun, especially since I was exponentially better than last time. You might say I DID rip up some snow after all : )

Weekend Fun

Tomorrow Andrew and I leave in the dark-and-early morning on our way to Copper Mountain for some snowboarding fun! We will be gone all day, ripping up the snow. You have to understand that the last statement was really funny, since I've only been snowboarding once before, and was on my rear-end most of the day. I hear that is normal for first-dayers, and I hope that is true, since it makes me feel better : )
Regrettably, I left my camera at a friend's house (ugh.), so you will miss out on some great posed pictures of my cold, red, runny nose. So sorry! But.... in about 9 days, April and Daniel will be coming with us for a 3-day ski trip! There is not a chance that my camera will not be with me then.

Whats in a Name

We've been trying to teach Marcail to say her name. It took her a while before she would even attempt it. Then she started pronouncing it like "Ta-Tell." I knew she could say her "m"s just fine, since she says "Mommy" and other "m" words quite well, so I worked with her through each syllable of her name, "Mmmmmaaaaaarrrrrr" (she repeated that just fine), "Cccccccaaaaaaiiiiiiilllll" (which she repeated as "tell" still. Oh well.). But still, there was some success!
So we tried again:
Anneke: "Marcail, what's your name?"
Marcail: "Ta-Tell!!!"
Anneke: "Lets try again; Mmmmmaaaarrr. Ccccaaaaaiiiillllll. Can you say Marcail?"
Marcail, very excitedly, almost shouting: "TA-TELL-MMMAAAAARRRRR!!!!"

Ok, I give up for now : ) I'm sure she'll get it soon!

His Mysterious Ways

Recently I asked Andrew what he thought the chances were that we would not be able to have any more children. Without hesitating, he answered, "Three." Three? What does that mean? "Is that a chance out of ten?", I asked. "No, a much bigger number." Hmmmm. "So more like out of one hundred?", I tried again. "Ya, more like one hundred."
I had to smile at the way he had answered me. "Normal" people would have said something like , "a small chance," "not much of a chance," something along those lines. But not Andrew. He had a very definitive answer. When we were getting to know each other years ago, I would've called him mysterious for giving answers like that. I loved it. Now after a few years of marriage, I still call him mysterious for giving answers like that. And I still love it!

Do Good Anyway

Yesterday's post was from some heartbreaks I've experienced with a couple of friends in my life. But this morning I had coffee with another girlfriend who gave me some solid advice. What she said reminded me of a poem I heard John Maxwell read to us at a Leadership retreat. I want to share it with you:

“Anyway” Author unknown

People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered.

Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.

Do good anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous.

Be happy anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.

Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable

Be frank and honest anyway.

People favor underdogs but will follow only top dogs.

Fight for some underdogs anyway.

People may need help, but may attack you if you help them.

Help people anyway.

What you spend your years building may be destroyed overnight.

Build away.

Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough.

Give the world the best you have anyway.

Sometimes I think that all-women events have too much estrogen. And all I want is to hang out with Andrew's friends while we play Texas Hold 'Em instead.

The unfortunate thing about having an older sister -when you are a boy- is that you learn to say "flower" before you learn "fire-truck," and you think that wearing hot pink beaded necklaces is very, very cool. No, I'm not going to post any pictures of this.

Its Snowing!!!!

We woke up this morning with a HEAVY layer of snow on the ground, and its still falling! Its beautiful. So, minus Andrew of course, we are just camping out here this Sunday morning. We decorated the tree last night, and the children woke up this morning to a fully laden Christmas tree... this is the year of teaching Donovan to not take the pretty balls off the tree. I know THAT will take some work!!

Some fun movie shots for you

What we do at night for fun : )




Going "around" (this is what she's saying at the beginning)




His vocabulary... he has a universally understood way of saying "no" : )

Wonderful Thanksgiving

Yesterday was perfect. Everyone was healthy! Yay! We celebrated at a friend's house, and the children were AMAZING. Marcail didn't get a nap all day and although we left for home at 11 p.m., she was very happy and playful the entire time. We were so proud of her. Donovan went to sleep right away, after lunch, in his pack 'n play. We had such a great time playing games, watching a Christmas movie, and laughing a lot.
I had talked on the phone with Andrew's family that morning. Without any doubt, I am most thankful for family. God has given me such an amazing family, and wonderful memories of times together. Having them in my life makes me feel the most richly blessed person in the world.

Wise thoughts for the Day

*One thing worse than throwing up, is cleaning it up.
*The only thing worse than cleaning up yours, is cleaning up someone else's.

This is spoken from experience. This week. We're praying for EVERYONE to feel better soon!

Baby Time

Last night Marcail cuddled in my arms and said she wanted to play baby. So there she was, lying snug in my arms, across my chest, and I almost started crying.... mostly because I was trying to remember what she looked like as an infant and I couldn't remember! Then she asked for her milk, which she drank lying down in my arms. It was so sweet, especially if you know how busy this little girl is. Seriously, where does the time go? I wonder if 2 years from now I'll find it difficult to remember these days....

Just Hangin' Around the House

Wow, he totally got his handsome face from his daddy.



I can't believe how much of a "big girl" she is becoming. Isn't there a pause button somewhere in this growing up stuff?



Here, Marcail is "helping" Donovan with his buttons... I'm not sure, though, if she was helping him button or unbutton them : )

She said what??!

About 2 days ago, Marcail walked up to where Andrew and I were chatting on the floor. She turned to me and asked, "Anneke, where's my phone?" Too funny! Andrew and I could not stop laughing.

Wow

Mama was right in her reply that there's no stopping Donovan now that he's started walking; the boy is now walking all over the place! Apparently he's concluded that its the cool thing to do : ) You can see the look of pride on his face as he successfully tours the whole living room and kitchen on his feet. He is such an amazing little boy.

Last night when I heard the outcome of the election, I have to admit that I cried. Andrew suggested that I start praying right away, and I had to explain to him that a woman needs time to rehash over things before she can decide what she's really thinking. Or maybe that's just me. I can just see how so much of what the next president wants to implement will only further tear down the little bit of this America that we have left-the America under God, the America that thrives on capitalism instead of decaying under socialism, the America that will stand with Israel and not side with its enemies. What have we left for our children and their children? Last night I explained to Andrew that its not that I don't trust God- I trust that He is faithful to give us what we as a nation deserve and what we have asked for. I'm just not ready to live through that.

I forgot to mention

that Andrew's name is in the latest Desperation CD release "Overcome." I thought that was pretty cool : )

Just a few recent pics

Here it is: Walking Video

Finally Walking!!

Donovan has finally started walking! Marcail was walking at 10 months -without any persuasion- so with Donovan at 15 months still crawling contentedly, I thought it was high time I tried something different. I used treats to convince him that it was worth the effort : ) otherwise he wasn't even interested in trying! After a couple of days of bribing him, he's beginning to take steps on his own without even convincing him. Sometimes I'm not sure if he's super stubborn or just too chill for his own good : ) But I am relieved and proud that he's "stepping out on his own" : )

Sicky

One thing about when the seasons change is that everyone gets sick. And one thing about being part of a family is that when one person gets some kind of sicky-stuff, its just inevitable that the rest of the family will too. That's where we've been the past week! The children are still so amazing with being sick-- I guess no one has told them yet that when you're sick you're supposed to be miserable instead of laughing and smiling : ) So we have been really blessed in that respect.

Day in Denver

I woke up before the crack of dawn this morning, to SNOW on the ground! NO way!! But it's Colorado, after all... why am I even surprised, right? : ) I slipped into Tiffany's car with warm zucchini bread and 2 steaming travel mugs full of coffee and off we went to Denver, in a car full of packed boxes, to her new place. Such a fun time to see her new place and unpack! Of course I am a little bummed too; she is moving to Denver, after all. In this picture we are in her kitchen after emptying all their Kitchen boxes. Goodbye, sweet friend... come visit often!

Singing in the Car

Little Toy Soldier

Bath Time

Our camera is acting up on us, so no pictures as of late!  We have been busy with life, as everyone else is, for sure : )  Andrew and I were in Denver for a wonderful time last weekend, and got dropped back into the hub-bub of life.  I find myself just relishing the moments I have with Andrew and children, more and more.  How time does dance by at an ever increasing rate!

We are making Christmas plans (YAY!!!) which consists of a snowboarding trip in the Colorado mountains with Daniel and April, and then a road trip back to the Carolinas to hug the rest of the  family!  I will tell you that there is just nothing like a Makinson Christmas!!! : ) 

Fun Days

So after the past weekend, where Andrew was super busy with another conference, we have soooo much enjoyed some down time together. At least 3 times a week we are going for runs together, working out at the gym, and we've just started swimming.... or trying to, at least : ) Neither of us are great swimmers- we can get around just fine, but to know how to do a stroke for a couple of laps is a challenge. Mostly, its trying to get a hang of the breathing pattern. I drink in most of the water. But we've got the pattern down enough that we know if we practice enough, we'll quickly become better at it.

Lazy Day at Last!

I feel like I have been burning the candle at both ends for over 2 weeks... Today I woke up at 10:00 and stayed in bed another half hour, just because I could! And then I've been chilling out all day and not feeling guilty about it a bit. I do have some errands to run later this afternoon, but I am having fun postponing the inevitable for now : ) What I would give for a week on the beach!!! Right now it sounds like heaven.

Weekend with April/ Gil's Wedding

It was fabulous having April here for the weekend! She's just so much fun to have around and talk with- I don't remember a time of silence at all the whole time she was here : ) We both agreed that it is very nice to have little visits like these where we get each other all to ourselves : )

What's the Chance

....that Biden will step down from the Obama ticket, in the near future, citing "health problems," and be replaced by Hillary - as it has become apparent that McCain's pick of Palin has been a huge success? April and I were discussing that possiblility, just as a "what if" scenario. But today I find that it may not be just an imaginary situation, it actually may be in the works. October 5th is the date I heard for this announcement. Wow, I hope that this is just a bad rumor. Otherwise its just plain old dirty play.

Weekend Tales

Gil and Candace are getting married tomorrow! Andrew and I are getting another "date night" with the rehearsal dinner tonight, as Andrew is honored to be one of the groomsmen. April is coming out for the wedding and we are picking her up from the airport tomorrow! It feels like a holiday when family comes into town : ) I'm so excited!
Today we were all having fun outside with the sidewalk chalk. Andrew, mom, and I were drawing beautiful pictures : ) and Marcail was furiously scribbling- I mean drawing- inside of ours. Donovan became extremely excited and forgot how to crawl in his haste. So he did a painful face plant in the unforgiving cement. It is his worst boo-boo yet. He was a happy boy in about 5 minutes, but he still has a nice cut in his mouth and a swollen upper lip to prove it. Anyways, it is amazing to me how messy children get with chalk! I walked away from 20 minutes of drawing and only my hands were dusty. Marcail and Donovan had blue, green, purple and pink all over their clothes, faces, legs, and hands! It was bath time for them, for sure!!! Plus they got hair cuts. Now they are sleeping after an exhausting morning of hard play. Such a rough life for them, I know : ) Now Andrew and I are off for a run in magnificant autumn weather!

Playing with the Children

I can't explain it; sometimes just rolling around on the floor with Marcail and Donovan and hearing their squeals of laughter makes my heart want to burst with joy. They are so precious to me. Do you ever feel like time is slipping through your fingers like sand? Sometimes it feels almost like an urgency to just soak up every moment and relish it, because it slips away and is gone, never to return again. Live it up!

What I've Been Waiting For!! : )

Its a Date

Andrew made reservations earlier this week for a magnificent Italian restaurant in Denver. We are going on a date next Wednesday night! Now, you have to understand that this is a restaurant that I've wanted to go to since before Marcail was even born- its finally going to happen! Since Andrew and I have very busy schedules till Wednesday, it ended up working out perfectly that we'll have a relaxing romantic dinner date that evening. And here's the icing on the cake: today he said I could buy a dress for it! So I get to go shopping, too : ) He is so good to me.

What We Did on Labor Day

On Labor Day we packed a light picnic and headed for a lovely walk downtown. Downtown Colorado Springs is so beautiful and charming. It is full of little shops and restaurants on clean swept streets and sidewalks, and gorgeous little green parks and fountains. It very much has a small town feel to it- not urbanized at all. To top it off, the weather was as perfect of an autumn day as you could possibly imagine. We will have to go back when the shops are open, though : )

More words!

So after Donovan discovered "dada" and "mama," he started saying "milk," "no," and "ball." I am so amazed at how quickly he's starting to talk! He also has been determined to learn how to climb up and down our flight of stairs, and accomplished that two days ago, and has been traveling up and down with much entertainment and ease. Now if we can only convince him to walk! He is so content with crawling that walking doesn't seem to appeal to him in the least, even though he'll feel secure enough to walk when he's gripping my pinky. I keep telling him that he can do it all on his own : )

Realization

Yesterday marked another month gone by without a new pregnancy. I keep trying to not hope too much, but find that I am, in spite of my efforts. On a lonely drive in the car, I let the tears fall, and told God about how I was feeling. It was a mixture of desiring to trust Him, feeling incapable of doing so completely, having a deep pain of knowing that if my last pregnancy hadn't ended, I would be over halfway already and getting kicks and tumbles from the child inside of me. And at this point I realized that there was a subtle hint of shame that I've felt, without realizing it. I think it comes from the fact that my body wasn't able to keep the baby.
At that moment, God spoke to me, gentle and deep, "Anneke, you are trying to ease the pain of your loss by hoping to quickly replace that child with another one. Anneke, you cannot replace a life." I sucked in my breath sharply and my eyes widened as I realized it was true. Of course I sobbed all the more as I allowed myself to grieve again over my child. There is a line in "Facing the Giants," where a mom who is trying to get pregnant, says in tears,"How can I miss someone so much, that I've never even met?" And that statement is so well expressed.

Here's More

Birthday Videos!

The Birthday Party!!!

Birthday Party Prep...

So tomorrow is the big day for Marcail and Donovan; finally they are getting their birthday party! With the move into our house, and many other changes, the celebration had to wait until it would be exciting for me to put a party together instead of it being grueling work. And for good reason.... I had thought, "No big deal, I'll just make them a summer dinner with lots of guests, bake a cake, buy some fun stuff for the children that show up (bazookas, bubbles, and sidewalk chalk) and it'll be easy, right?" Hmmmm..... I'm just going to say that its 12:30 in the morning and there's still more to be done! Regardless of the energy spent on this, I'm having a lot of fun with it. I think the main thing that motivates me is that 1.)birthdays were not a huge deal in my childhood, and 2.) I think about all the fun pictures that I'll have for them of their parties and one day they'll realize that not every mom makes "crayon cakes" : ) ....and now I know why - its a LOT of work!!!!

Finally!

At last Donovan has spoken some English words!  And his first word was the best sound to my ears....yes, it was "Mama!!" And he said it repeating after me, so I know that it was not just babble.  I was soooo thrilled!   Then I was bragging to Andrew that "Mama" was his first word (Marcail said "daddy" long before "mommy"), and turned to Donovan and said, "I bet you can't say 'daddy' yet, can you?" and he smiled really big and said, "DADA!!"  

Forward Rolls

I came across this video yesterday; I had taken it just a few days after moving into our house. She can be pretty energetic!!! The other day we were in Goodwill and she was getting the itch to run around a little bit instead of staying in her stroller. I laid down the deal that she could run around if she stayed close by. She did a perfect job of it, and was thoroughly entertained by running around the clothes rack and crawling under it. She was giggling in the contagious way that little kids do, and playing peek-a-boo as she explored. Sometimes I can't help but think of her as a little adult since she understands so much, but her playfulness that day reminded me that she's a little girl, the world smiles at her, and everything's a game and full of fun : )

Patience

I have been finding myself amazed at how impatient I've been feeling to have another child. Since we were not even trying to get pregnant with Marcail and Donovan, it has thrown me a little that now that we are "trying," it hasn't happened right away. I constantly have to tell myself that I've given the timing over to God and it all rests in His Hands. He orchestrates purposes that I am not privy to understand. Nor does He come to me and discuss why He's doing it, and ask if its alright with me. Most of the time I am content with that, and can actually find relief that it is not up to me, that it is not my burden to bear. But sometimes, in the stillness of the night, in the quiet places of my heart, I yearn for more little babies to hold and touch. More little Makinson pattering feet and heart-melting smiles and laughs.
Of course, I also realize that even if it is 2 more months or so before we are pregnant, it would still mean that I would have 3 children under 3 years old. And then I think to myself that maybe I need to reconsider that yearning : ) and just thoroughly enjoy only having 2 children for now.

Sunny Days are Here Again

And so we went to the park! My mom came into town on Thursday (she is living with us right now), and she is very much enjoying cool weather, as she has just come from hot Texas. She is also thrilled with being around the children. They are plenty of fun, I have to admit : )