Giving God Glory
Jesus Lives! ~ It's so mind-blowing to think that God became one of us in the man known as Jesus Christ! Jesus lived a perfect life, died a death that He did not deserve to, and in 3 days rose again from the dead! To think that Jesus entered this world humbly as a BABY when He deserved to come as a glorious king! Quite amazing to think about...only God could devise this kind of plan for salvation. As I have been caring for our baby son lately, I have often thought about how Jesus, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, was a dependent little baby! I am grateful that He clearly demonstrated His power over sin and death through His resurrection at the end of His life, even though His power was not clearly evident at His birth. Jesus lives! He is risen indeed!
*Video ~ Josiah singing the boys' favorite song this month ~ "He Arose"
We enjoyed reflecting on Christ's great sacrifice and powerful resurrection through Resurrection Eggs, which include symbolic objects that help teach kids about the last week of Jesus' life.
What's on the Harrisons' Hearts
On my own with 3 boys... oh my! :) ~ Wes went back to work April 1st after taking 3 weeks off of work to help me as I recovered from my C-section. My greatest concern with caring for 3 boys on my own was how Noah and Josiah would do while I was nursing Samuel...would they fight with each other? hurt each other? be patient when I wasn't able to help them right away? resent Samuel for taking up a lot of my time and attention? Oh my... Praise the Lord that they did wonderful! The ladies in my Bible study were a HUGE help because they blessed Noah and Josiah with a lot of fun activities for them to do while I was nursing. I kept theses activities in a special tub and brought the tub out the day Wes went back to work. Noah and Josiah got to each pick out one activity every time I nursed Samuel. This made the transition go really well! Noah even excitedly said, "I really like when you feed Samuel! When are you going to feed him again?" ;)
Noah & Josiah getting along & working on their activities! :)
Noah's favorite activity was Legos
Josiah's favorite activity was giving Samuel kisses ;)
Praises & Prayers
Friend - Prayer for a friend's father-in-law who was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor that is cancerous. Praise that my friend's sister-in-law shared the gospel and led someone to Christ!!!! who was in the waiting room with her during some of the father-in-law's medical testing.
Christina - Praise for the transition for Wes going back to work and my having all 3 boys on my own going so well! Please continue to pray for wisdom, grace, strength, and contentment in this season of change (James 1:5).
Noah - God would graciously save him at a young age and lead him to walk with the Lord all of his days, if that be the Lord's will. Praise for Noah being a wonderful helper with my needing extra assistance when Wes is at work. I asked Noah what he would like loved ones to pray for him - "Pray that I grow in my relationship with Jesus."
Josiah - God would graciously save him at a young age and lead him to walk with the Lord all of his days, if that be the Lord's will. Praise for the Lord giving us wisdom about timing with stopping Josiah's thumb sucking. Please pray for the Lord to grow Josiah in using his words to communicate when he doesn't like something rather than biting or hitting (Psalm 19:14).
Tami - Continued prayers for the Lord to give my dad and other loved ones His perspective and that God would heal Tami, but ultimately that His will would be done. Prayer of Galatians 5:22-23 that the fruit of the Spirit would abound in Dad's & Tami's lives during this trial. Also, prayer of James 1:5 for wisdom with this trial.
Wes - Praise for the Lord growing Wes during the 3 weeks he was at home serving our family and giving him a renewed perspective of work when he returned. Please continue to pray for the Lord to give Wes wisdom, grace, and strength as he seeks to be faithful in his roles at home, work, and in ministry (James 1:5).Christina - Praise for the transition for Wes going back to work and my having all 3 boys on my own going so well! Please continue to pray for wisdom, grace, strength, and contentment in this season of change (James 1:5).
Noah - God would graciously save him at a young age and lead him to walk with the Lord all of his days, if that be the Lord's will. Praise for Noah being a wonderful helper with my needing extra assistance when Wes is at work. I asked Noah what he would like loved ones to pray for him - "Pray that I grow in my relationship with Jesus."
Josiah - God would graciously save him at a young age and lead him to walk with the Lord all of his days, if that be the Lord's will. Praise for the Lord giving us wisdom about timing with stopping Josiah's thumb sucking. Please pray for the Lord to grow Josiah in using his words to communicate when he doesn't like something rather than biting or hitting (Psalm 19:14).
Samuel - God would graciously save him at a young age and lead him to walk with the Lord all of his days, if that be the Lord's will. Praise for the Lord's grace in Samuel being an easy baby! He is continuing to eat and sleep well, so there are no major prayer requests presently. :)
Marriage Memories
We went on our 1st date after having Samuel, and he got the privilege to come with us!
Samuel did great as we went to Costco for Wes to shop, opted for the drive-thru & parking in the parking lot at Chick-Fil-A rather than sitting down inside since it seemed easier to feed Samuel in our van than in the restaurant, and finished our date going to Kohls for me to shop for a dress for Mother's Day.
Family Fun
1st Easter as a Fam of 5 :)
The boys had each been given a suit at some point in the past, so we busted them out for the special occasion.
Handsome Bros
Noah ~ 6 * Josiah ~ 2 * Samuel ~ 1 Month
Our dogs snuggling ~ Dozer - 1 year old & Sierra - 8 years old
Having fun with Daddy!
Noah News
Age - 6 years old
Cute Communication
*Noah has been working on the "th" sound, and he needed to use the word "thankful" in a sentence. Noah states, "I am thankful for God blessing me with another brother."
*One evening Noah and I were playing a boardgame together with the radio on in the background, and I - with being the competitor that I am ;) - was focused on the game, while unbeknownst to me, Noah was contemplating the lyrics to the song, "He Knows" that was playing.
Noah remarks, "God knows everything!"
Me - "That's right! God knows who is going to win this game."
Noah - "He knows what my favorite color is."
Me - "Yep. He knows the number of hairs on your head."
Noah and I continued to dialogue about all the things God knows... You just never know when these precious conversations are going to occur. ;)
*I sing the boys each a song of their choice before bed, and Noah asked me to sing the song, "Up from the Grave He Arose." I remembered the chorus, but I told Noah that I forgot how the song started. Right away Noah started singing, "Low in the grave He lay..." I asked Noah how he knew that, and he said, "I learned it in Sunday school." Wes and I are grateful for others who invest spiritually in our children alongside of us!
Latest Likes
Song ~ "He Arose"
Berenstain Bears books
Growing in independence ~ ex. Making Lego sets by himself (without any help from us) & getting the mail
Noah's 1st Lego set that he put together all by himself
Noah sound asleep
With my getting up in the middle of the night to feed Samuel, I started having Noah "Rest & Read" (so he could either look at books or rest) in the family room for one hour while I read a little in the Bible and then took a nap on the couch. One time I woke up and realized that Noah had put his books down and fallen asleep too. I guess 6 year olds still need a little nap every once in a while. ;)
Noah was super excited to master the monkey bars!
*Video - Noah on the monkey bars
Josiah Joys
Age - 2 years old
Cute Communication
*Josiah answers with "Welcome" when I tell him good job for doing something well. He's transferred the "Thank you... You're welcome..." exchange into his own exchange of "Good job... Welcome." ;)
*Asking questions of curiosity - How does that work? What is that?
* Josiah enjoys encouraging & cheering others on, even in the simplest of tasks with - "Good job _______!"
Latest Likes
Meat!!!
Playing with balls & water
Songs ~ "ABCs," "Jesus Loves Me," "He Arose," & "Oh Samuel" (which we made up our own lyrics for Samuel to the tune of "O Christmas Tree" ~ "Oh Samuel... Oh Samuel... Oh how we love you, Samuel!"...)
A couple of his favorite things - playing with water & balls and wearing his pjs
Excited about his art project :)
Sacked out ;)
*Video - Josiah singing his ABCs
Samuel Sentiments
It's amazing how much babies' looks change even within the same month...
Age - 1 Month
1 Month Stats:
Weight - 7.7 lbs. 16%
Height - 20 in. 15%
Head circumference - 14.5 in. 71%
1sts - Celebrating Easter, smiling, cooing/talking, bottle
Latest Likes
Snuggling
Being in the Moby wrap
Interacting ~ Cooing/talking & smiling
These photos were right after :( Samuel's 1st smile at 5 weeks. Wes was making silly smacking/popping noises at Samuel, and he liked them & smiled back. I was hoping Samuel would smile again so I could catch him on camera...
1st bottle ~ Samuel did well! :)
Cooing / talking to Daddy
Some of the sides of Samuel ~ Serious * Sweet * Silly
Looking cute after his little bath
Hanging out on his monkey gym
*Video - Samuel holding his head up
Bro Bonding
Bros
Saying good morning to Samuel * Josiah giving Samuel a kiss
Noah & Josiah having great fun playing with bouncey balls together
Noah & Josiah playing in the sandbox * Splashing in water in the street
Noah & Samuel doing some tummy time together * Samuel looking up to his big bro
Noah giving Samuel a kiss * Samuel sticking his tongue out at Noah ;)
Josiah lovin' on lil' bro
*Video - Josiah doing the fist bump from the movie ~ Big Hero 6 ~ with Samuel ;)
Homeschool Highlights
Click on these links if interested in seeing more info about the K-8 skills/benchmarks books I use:
Core Knowledge Sequence: Content guidelines for K-8 (Fyi ~ This is not the same as Common Core.)
What Your Kindergartner Needs to Know ~ Obviously, this book is specific for Kindergarten. :)
AWANA
Art
Noah completed the extra credit book for Sparks. He also received the Clubber of the Month Award for Sparks ~
"Noah Harrison is always ready with verses and is helpful and kind.
Coloring together * Watercolor painting
Chalk designs
Math Art ~ Using shapes to create something ~ Noah made a dinosaur
P.E. ~ Jumping rope
Lots of Life Skills
1st time lacing shoes & wrapping a gift all by himself
1st time mowing!
Raking up dirt plugs after getting the yard aerated
Helping Daddy get the sprinklers going
Letting Daddy know when a zone turned on * On the look-out :)
Teaching Josiah how to "wash" his bike ;)
Helping Daddy fix the rust spot near the front porch stairs
Field Trip to Pioneer Museum Children's History Hour
History of Teddy Bears
Story time about how teddy bears got their name
Luke & Noah with their teddy bears * Josiah showing his muscles during interactive part of the story * Noah & Josiah wanted to make sure Samuel brought his teddy bear ;)
Making their teddy bear ears craft
Showing off their finished products ~ Luke & Noah * Josiah
Tami & Shirley joined us for the hands-on activities in the Journey to Pikes Peak Children's Exhibit
Noah running in & out of the teepee
Josiah playing the drum
Samuel snuggling with Nana
Memorable Moment of the Month
Our LOUD baby boy! :) ~ I was feeding Samuel at Bible study while we were taking turns reading the passage we were studying, and I quickly had the realization that Samuel is a LOUD eater. I never noticed before since I had been feeding him at home with Noah's and Josiah's noisy play overshadowing my loud little eater. When the ladies at Bible study finished reading the chapter in Philippians, they all started laughing and commenting on how sweet and entertaining his sounds were, as well as joking about how I must never feed him. ;)
More Memories
These action photos take me back to this childhood game I remember playing (but can't remember what it's called)
Jacob, Xavier, & Noah getting some air as A.J. circled the ball around
Another round with Jacob circling the ball!
Papa & Nana stopped by one night & read the boys their bedtime story * Nana enjoying some Samuel snuggles
Proud Daddies with their babies! ~ Wes & Samuel and Ed & McKenna
Noah & Dylan proud of the fort they built in the basement
Tripling up in the Double Bob after the tire blew out in Adam & Wendy's stroller
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