The Boy's First Zoo Trip



Gammy, Bobpa and Josiah

Last week while visiting with my family in "the Mount" we took Josiah and Eli to the zoo in Lufkin.  Although it was muggy as all get-out, we had a good time and I was happy that my parents where there to take part in this memory. Plus, it was nice having my mom there to push Eli around in Mr. Bob (a.k.a. our stroller) while I took pictures.  And my dad did a fantasic job of chasing Josiah around who seemed more interested in running as fast as he could from one exhibit to another rather than looking at the animals...

an attempt at a family photo...oh well, maybe next time!

Elijah Neal {2 Months}

My Sweet Elijah,

       Yesterday you turned 2 months old! I can't believe that two months has flown by so quickly...this stage in your life is all too fleeting. It is amazing to me how much you have grown since you were born.  I gave you the nickname "Cricket" because of your long legs and then I realized that "Grasshopper" would have been more accurate but I like Cricket better.  So my little cricket, here is what you have been up to:

Eating- you have a great appetite! You latched on without a problem right after you were born and have been doing great ever since. I love this bonding time.  Right now you nurse every 2 1/2 to 3 hours during the day and you usually go for a stretch of 4-5 hours during the night.

Activity- right now you are starting to get on a good routine that goes like this: eat, activity, and sleep.

After you nurse, we have "play"time which consists of mommy talking to you...and you talk right back.  Your smile is addictive.  I could sit and talk to you all day but I think your brother might get a little jealous! Yesterday you laughed for the very first time...it was one of those laughs where you had to catch your breath. Oh how I wish we could have caught it on video but the memory will forever be in my mind. 

Sleep- for the first two weeks of your life, you did not nap very easily.  But now that we have you on a routine, you are doing great.  Normally, we put you down for a nap about one hour after you nurse. Your naps are about 1-2 hours long. Sometimes, you take your nap in your swing...occasionally, these naps last up to 4 hours! During the night you wake up once or twice to nurse and usually fall right back asleep when you are done.

Eli, we love you so much.  You have brought so much joy to mine and your daddy's life...your brother is coming around! He likes to come up to you and give you kisses when he thinks we aren't watching.  A couple of days ago, Josiah got right in your face and you started to suck on his nose.  It was so sweet!

Elijah, I pray that as you grow you will seek to do as the Lord commands just like Elijah the Prophet. It says in I Kings that the Lord listened to Elijah's voice. I pray that you will never forget that the Lord hears you. So talk to Him and draw near to Him. I love you baby boy.

        

far more precious than jewels...

To me, Mother's Day is not just about being honoured as a mom or receiving gifts and recognition.  More importantly, I like to use this day to reflect on my role as not only a mother, but as a woman in general...to compare myself with the Proverbs 31 woman and see where I am lacking. As I think about the Proverbs 31 woman, three women come to mind.

1) my mom



I am so much a part of this woman, it's not even funny.  Not only do we look like we could be sisters, but we also have alot of the same personality traits.  So, thank you mom, for making me a neat freak! I'm kidding. But in all seriousness, this woman is my best friend. I tell her everything and I do not have to worry about whether or not it will be repeated. And she is a great listener and patient when I need to vent. Though I moved away from home almost four years ago and now live seven hours away, our relationship is stronger than ever. The distance between us has not kept her from coming to stay with us and seeing her grandbabies, even while holding down a full time job. When I think back on memories growing up of my mom, this little statement from Proverbs 31 comes to mind: ^"She rises while it is still night..."..........for as long as I can remember, my mom has always been up-and-at-em early in the morning...sacrificing sleep to make sure her children got off to a good start each morning with the least amount of chaos as possible.  She is one of the most self-less people I know...She has a huge heart that generosity just pours out of. I could type away all day and still not account for all of the ways she is wonderful. I think one of the most important things that she taught me was the importance of sacrificing a career to be a stay-at-home mom. She was always there for us....to cook meals, do laundry, kiss a boo-boo, support us at school events and games...you name it, she was there.  Thank you, mama, for always being there! I love you.



2) my nana

Nana is my rock. Growing up, I would go spend days at a time with her.  When most teenagers were out getting drunk, you could find me with Nana. I will never forget her fixing me bacon and hot chocolate before school and eating icecream with her and Grandpa at night while watching movies. When I think of someone who loves God and seeks to bring Him glory, Nana always comes to mind. Like my mom, she is so generous. She loves with the deepest part of her heart. While she is strong and steadfast, she is equally gentle and kind.  And she has the best sense of humor and loves to laugh.  This is her verse from Proverbs 31: ^"Strength and honor are her clothing, and she can laugh at the time to come."

She is my role model.  I wanna be just like her. I love you Nana.

3) my deedee

I could write a book about this beautiful lady.  Though she is no longer with us in this world, I know I will see her again in the next.  DeeDee was one of those people that this world needs lots more of.  You only come across a soul like hers once or twice in a lifetime.  This is her verse from Proverbs 31: "Her hands reach out to the poor, and she extends her hands to the needy." DeeDee never married or birthed any children, but she was a bride of Christ and all the children that she came in contact with were hers.  I use to wonder why God had not given DeeDee a husband. I now know the answer.  She took her life of singleness and poured everthing she had into the lives of everyone around her...especially children. She is the person to whom Paul talks about in Romans...the person who can focus all of their time, energy and resources on the ministry because they are single.  I loved this lady so much and if she were here today, I would tell her Happy Mother's Day. I love you DeeDee.

DeeDee, Nana and Mom

Plastic People

MAD.  That's the word that you could have used to describe me this morning when I got in my car to take Eli to his checkup and discovered that our GPS unit had been stolen.  This is the second time that our car has been broken into while locked and sitting in our own driveway.  The first time it was Josiah's DVD player, Veggie Tale movie and baby mirror.  All kinds of thoughts ran through my head at this discovery...
 
1) It sure would have been nice if this thief would have asked us if we had the extra money to replace the GPS before he stole it.
2) Maybe I should leave a note in the car stating, "We are a four member family operating on one income...please don't steal our stuff!"
3) I must be stupid to have left the GPS in the car anyway.
4) What am I going to do without a GPS? I can't even tie my shoe without directions!
5) What kind of person goes around breaking into cars? This person must have been lost...well, he will get what he deserves!

STOP! I was floored that I actually thought that thought. How could I relish in the idea that this poor soul was probably on his way to Hell...did I think that Him being sent to Hell was revenge for stealing my GPS unit? Immediately, after I had the thought, I felt guilty and ashamed. No, I don't really want this person to go to Hell...I reacted out of emotion.  However, the fact that I even had the thought in the first place revealed an ugly truth about myself. I have been Americanized. I am a plastic person. I care more about my "trinkets and treasures" than I do about lost souls, the homeless, orphans and widows. Have I really forgotten who I am in Christ? I've let the American Dream overshadow the fact God made me a new person when he saved me...a person whose heart is in heaven and treasures are spent there, not here on Earth.  Sadly enough, many of us have this plastic problem...What is even worse is that the majority of our churches are this way too. 

I think that David Platt was right on the mark in his book Radical..."...when we pool our resources in our churches, what are our priorities? Every year in the United States, we spend more that $10 billion on church buildings. In America alone, the amount of real estate owned by institutional churches is worth over $230 billion.  We have money and possessions, and we are building temples everywhere.  Empires, really.  Kingdoms.  We call them houses of worhsip.  But at the core, aren't they too often outdated models of religion that wrongfully define worship according to a place and wastefully consume our time and money when God has called us to be a people who spend our lives for the sake of his glory among the needy outside our gates?"

Does that sound familiar? Here is a story for you...a homeless man was walking down the road on a day when the weather was not in his favor at all. He stopped at a church thinking that surely they could help him some way...at least give him some sort of shelter while the storm passed.  However, he was turned away because the church "had been taken advantage of too many times from people like him." True Story. At this point, maybe you are asking how this person became homeless anyway...surely, it was of his own doing.  IS THAT REALLY THE POINT? God has not called us to help only those who are deserving of His love and blessings...because the truth is, none of us deserve what He has given us.  That's the beauty of mercy and grace. No where in the bible does it say to take care of the widows and orphans who have lived clean lives...and no where in the bible does it say to only help others if it won't cost you anything.  Didn't Jesus say that His true followers lay down their lives for Him? You see, it costs everthing. When we turn our lives over to Christ, we are transformed...a new creation...we have a desire and a longing to bring Him the glory by making much of Him to those around us and all over the world. Have you ever had that desire? Have you been transformed? If so, and like me, you forget from time to time that you are a new creation, haven't you wasted enough time being "plastic" while souls around you are in need and going to Hell? Do you really need that shiny BMW? that $200 purse? Couldn't these resources that God has blessed you with go to more important things such as helping others.  I'm not saying it is wrong to have and enjoy nice things...we just need to evaluate our priorities a bit...okay, we need to evaluate our priorities A LOT! ...thanks for reading.

When the baby becomes the big brother...

I have to admit that I was a little bit nervous about how Josiah would react to his new brother.  I even thought to myself that it might be safer for Eli to just stay in my tummy a little while longer! After all, Josiah has gotten all the attention to himself for all of his 19 months. Now that Eli has been here for 3 weeks, Josiah is finally starting to warm up to him...let me take you through these past 3 weeks in pictures...

Week One

As you can see, Josiah didn't want anything to do with Eli when he first arrived.  He wouldn't even hardly look at him!

Week Two

After warming up to him for a couple of days, Josiah started to acknowledge Eli a little bit (with a little coaxing). However, shortly after I took this picture, Josiah pretty much ripped Eli's hat off his head...it was then that I decided that there would be no leaving these two in a room together by themselves for awhile!

Week Three





I took these pictures last night...It thrilled my heart to see Josiah taking an interest in his little brother without any coaxing from me or Jordan. Josiah even lays his head down gently on Eli and gives him little love pats every once in awhile.  And if you know Josiah, this is a big deal for him because he hardly does anything in a gentle manner...this next picture melts my heart...

and just because, take a look at how much Eli resembles Josiah when he was an infant...

Josiah

Elijah

Enough Love to Go Around

As I hold our precious Eli in my arms, I am brought back to the day that Josiah was born. On that day, I remember thinking that there was no way I would ever be able to love another baby as much as I loved him...I thought that if I ever obtained more love then I might explode... 

Mommy and Josiah

But after having Elijah, I realized that that just wasn't true.  When my eyes first met his, I instantly felt that same love that I felt when holding Josiah for the first time...Jordan and I will forever cherish the memories of holding our baby boys for the first time...





Mommy and Elijah

Daddy and Josiah

Daddy and Elijah



Everyday I thank God for our boys...I thank Him for granting us enough love to go around...I thank Him for the opportunity to raise our children up for Him...I thank Him for being the ultimate example of love.

Josiah Neal (8/26/2009) 12:58 am
9 lbs 8 oz
20 3/4"

        

Elijah Neal (3/23/2011) 1:55 pm
9 lbs. 5 oz.
22"

                              

                                          

Elijah Neal {birth story}

Elijah Neal Rogers entered our world on Wednesday, March 23, 2011 at 1:55 pm.  He weighed 9 lbs. 5 oz. and was 22 inches long.

        I will start off by saying that this birth experience was completely different from our first.  Although they were both beautiful and miraculous, Eli’s birth was much less stressful, shorter and trauma free compared to Josiah’s birth.  Let’s start from the beginning…

        Jordan and I decided to get a hotel Tuesday night in Wichita Falls because I had to be at the hospital for pre-admissions and lab work at 4 o’clock that evening and then back to the hospital for the induction Wednesday morning at 5:30 am.  My parents and grandparents also stayed at that same hotel Tuesday night to take care of Josiah (they have been such a blessing!) So Jordan and I arrived at United Regional Hospital at 5:30 am on Wednesday morning and by 6:00 am the nurse had already started me on Pitocin…boy, does that stuff start working fast!  I have a very high pain tolerance but by 8 o’clock, my pain level was already at a 7 so they gave me some pain medicine (I can’t remember what the name of it was so I will just call it “wonderful”) that made the contractions much more bearable.  At 8:30 am, Dr. Lamar came in and broke my water and I was 3 cm dilated.  This was music to my ears because with Josiah, it took 17 hours to get to that point! By 10:15 am, the pain meds had worn off and I was 4-5 cm dilated so I went ahead and got the epidural…it was also “wonderful”. At 12:15 pm, I was 6 cm…12:30 pm, 7 cm…and at 1:20 pm, I was 9 cm dilated and Dr. Lamar was on his way. I pushed about 15-20 times and our beautiful Eli greeted us with his strong lungs at 1:55 pm.  I cannot explain the joy that I felt when he was placed in my arms or when I got to nurse him shortly after…pure bliss!

        I could sit here and make so many comparisons between Josiah’s twenty-six hour birth and Eli’s eight hour birth, but to me, what matters most is the outcome…God has blessed Jordan and I with two beautiful boys that I just can’t get enough of.  I’m literally at a loss for words right now…some may call that writer’s block, but I prefer the term “humbled”  I am completely humbled that God has chosen me for something so amazing- bringing children into the world for His glory.  I can think of no higher calling that to raise our boys up for the Lord to further His kingdom…what an unbelievable blessing! Thank you Lord!