Yikes!

The high today was 107.
We went swimming.
I didn't want to leave.


Enjoy your snow.

Hold Tight

When Caden wants to ride on the rope swing he says, "I wanna hold tight!" Then as he swings back and forth he exclaims, "Wheee!"

I kinda feel that way right now. I know I've got to hold tight while life swings me up and down. Now if I can just learn to exclaim "wheee" on the ups and the downs.

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials many kinds" James 1:2
"Rejoice int he Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" Philippians 4:4

February Family Newsletter

You can read our latest newsletter by clicking the following link:

http://www.harvestfields.net/kabiye/Feb_08_Newsletter.pdf

Feel free to send it on to anyone else who might want it, or send us an email if you would like to receive it in your inbox each month.

Love and blessings,

BACC

Three Months

Corban is such a fun baby! He is very ticklish resulting in lots of smiles and laughs. He is weighing around 13-14 lbs. (we don't have a baby scale), is 25 1/4" long, and is wearing some 6 month clothing. He almost always smiles at Caden. He can spot his daddy from across the room and often smiles more for those two boys than he does his mommy. But I'm not jealous, he still prefers to be held by me and greets me each morning with the sweetest smile as I appear over the edge of the cradle :) We have also enjoyed comparing the similarities and differences between our two boys (and even their cousins) as they grow and develop personalities. They say that kids grow up too fast, but we are enjoying Corban thoroughly everyday and think that he is growing up just right!

One Of Each

Caden is my brown eyed little boy (with a hint of green).
It appears Corban is going to be my blue one.


You're welcome Emersons!

Warning

If you come over to our house and leave your color coded post it notes behind in a place where Caden can reach them, this will happen:Sorry Nicole!

Hmmm, like father like son?

I Can Spell...

This video is especially for my Uncle Allen.
(and no, I'm not naked...I have on elmo underwear!)

Uploaded by emersonstogo

(FYI: I am really smart, but I can't spell that long word by myself. My Mommy let me borrow her shirt with all the letters on it. I think maybe I need my own shirt...how about it Uncle Al?)

Yeah!

Life is back at full speed here in the Emerson home. That's right, everyone is well and doing great. Thank you to all of you who prayed for us and sent us emails! After starting Caden on malaria medicine, he was feeling better within 24 hours. Corban stayed healthy through the whole adventure and has continued to smile and laugh...sometimes when he was the only one.

Check out those dimples!

Never again...

I am writing this post as a reminder to myself that never again will I feel bad about what I do all day. I know I'm not the only Mom/Wife that sometimes feels guilty about getting "nothing" done all day at home. The last few days, God has opened my eyes to a realization: I'm pretty good at what I do! As the previous posts have shared, we have been through a round of the sickies here at Chez Emerson (the Emerson home). It started with Caden, then I got sick, and now it seems Brett is taking his turn. Lord willing, Corban will be spared.

So as I spent lots of time by myself in bed yesterday, I had lots of time to think. This turned into lots of time for Jesus and Satan to battle control of my heart and mind. I had moments of "I don't want to be in Togo anymore" to moments of "I know this is Satan attacking my family". Several times throughout all these trials (beginning with Caden's middle of the night illness), I have heard the Lord say to me, "I will fight for you; you need only to be still."Through the walls of our bedroom, I heard my sweet husband trying to be mommy and wife for a day. I don't think he wants to do it again. ;) I asked him this morning if I could tell him something that I didn't want him to take the wrong way. I said, "after yesterday, I realized I'm pretty good at what I do." He replied with, "I think you are great at what you do."

I am so thankful that Brett and I have each other as helpmates in our family. I am thankful for a husband who respects who I am and appreciates the job I do as a mommy. I am thankful for God showing me these truths amidst a time of difficulty. This may have been the yuckiest Valentine's Day for us...but it has turned out to be one of the most memorable.

Oh No!

First my big brother got malaria, and now my mommy has a stomach bug! Caden is getting better now that he has medicine, but please pray for my mommy now as well! Good thing God gave me a daddy too; he is holding down the fort until the team is all healthy again! As you can see from this pic taken today in my shirt that mommy and daddy's college sent me all the way in Africa, I am still doing great :) Love, Corban

Pray for Caden

The test came back positive today that Caden has Malaria. This is the first time for him. Many of you may be wondering, "Is that serious?" The quick answer is yes, unless you have medication to treat it. We have started Caden on meds, and he should start feeling better within 24 hours. For more frequently asked questions about Malaria, you can visit the CDC site. It all started when Brett was out of town and I had the boys on my own. Normally, this is no big deal and I'm definitely getting the hang of it.
I had just gone to bed when I heard Caden open his bedroom door. I guided him back to bed only to have him throw up all over the floor. I spent the rest of the night being afraid of falling asleep and not knowing how sick my child was. Needless to say, when Brett came home I was SO glad to have my helper back. It is possible that he has a stomach virus on top of the Malaria, but we'll deal with that once the Malaria is gone. We have dealt with fever, throwing up, and general puniness over the last 36 hours.Three Sleepy Boys

Please be praying for our little guy...that the Lord would heal his body quickly and rid it of all malaria parasites. Pray for us as parents to be patient with him and know how to make him as comfortable as possible.

Caden's ABC's

The "expert" on BabyCenter.com says this:

• Most children begin recognizing some letters between the ages of 2 and 3 and can identify most letters between 4 and 5. This means that you can start teaching your child the alphabet when he's around 2 — but don't expect full mastery for some time.

Today Caden is exactly 2 years, 3 months, 2 weeks and 3 days. A proud Momma has a right to brag on their own blog, right?!

ABCs
Uploaded by emersonstogo

We're All Smiles

Corban is smiling non-stop now it seems. He loves to be tickled and has the cutest little laugh. Corban will smile spontaneously at his brother, Daddy, and Mommy! I think he likes his brother the most. Now if we could convince Caden to not jump, dance, or play on or around Corban when he's on the floor....seriously, it's an accident waiting to happen.I love this picture because you can see just how much he loves his Daddy already!
This would be Caden's finger pointing out Corban's nose...
he's a little obsessed with naming body parts.

and here's our happy baby.... (click to enlarge)

He smiles with his whole face!

And lastly, who doesn't enjoy real footage of smiling and laughing??

AllSmiles
Uploaded by emersonstogo

i LOVE my boys

More Singing

Spider_med
Uploaded by emersonstogo

Our Little Soccer Player

This is what I do when I have too many pictures to choose from.
It works for me.
Also, you really should open this up big to appreciate some of the Caden faces I captured.
Enjoy!

Hard At Work

I'm sure Caden was trying to be very careful when he decided

he could pour a few crackers onto the container's lid.

Corban is...

Two months old and has been tagged by his cousin Cullen to write his first blog post.

Hi everyone! I'm supposed to write 8 things about myself, so here we go...

• My name is Corban Stewart. Corban comes from the Bible (Mark 7:11) and means, "A gift dedicated to God". Stewart is my Mommy's grandparents' name. My Mommy and Daddy say they are very special people who love God and that's why Stewart is my middle name. I can't wait to meet them in April!
  
• I was born in Africa...pretty cool, huh?!
  
• I am learning to smile and laugh right now. I'm the best at this first thing in the morning. I love morning time!
  
• I love my brother and think he is very funny. He likes to play peek-a-boo with me, touch my hands, feet, and head, and he's always asking if he can hold me.
  
• My favorite place is my baby swing. Sometimes I wish Mommy would let me hang out there ALL day but she says I have to spend time on my tummy and other places. Other places really aren't that bad...but don't tell my Mommy. :)
  
• I am 2 months old but have outgrown almost all of my 0-3 month clothing. I'm really tall, just like my Daddy.
  
• Size 2 diapers are almost too small on me but Mommy says we still have a several packs of them so I have to wear them a bit longer.
  
• Sometimes I sleep six hours at night, but sometimes I get hungry sooner than that. If Mommy would just let me sleep in my swing, I would probably sleep even longer than that!
  

There's not a whole lot a two month old can write about...maybe I can do this again in a few months. I'm supposed to tag my friends now. I haven't met many people yet, so I'll tag some people my Mommy says are my friends. I tag Gideon, Nathan, Zoe, and Caleb (I actually know him!).

Baby Einstein

Caden is now trying to sing along with every song he hears, whether it's the first or millionth time he's heard it. A lot of fun for all of those involved.

Head
Video sent by emersonstogo

Caden's 1st Hair Cut

That's right...our two year old had his first hair cut today! You may be surprised it's not longer than it is, but that's because his hair didn't start growing until he was almost one.

So here's the setup:

• plastic mat
• special seat
• water bottle
• comb
• scissors
• Finding Nemo DVD
• cameras
• clothes not necessary
  

Before:

After:

Don't look too closely, it's not perfect, but it will work.
I'm sure we will continue to snip stray hairs for the next few days.

Missionary Kid #2

Check it out! Corban has a passport and his birthplace says GHANA. I still can't believe he was born in Africa!
I always think that baby passports are so funny. You do your best to get a picture of your newborn with his eyes open and looking at the camera. Also, he doesn't have to get a new one until he is 5 years old...how would anyone recognize him at 5 by this picture?! When filling out the application we had to guess on his hair and eye color.
Oh the adventures of a missionary kid....

This Pretty Much Sums It Up

This pic is a good snapshot of our family life right now: our first born wearing a napkin on his head while strapped into a chair with a feathery boa so he won't leave the dinner table while asking to hold his little baby brother while laughing and smiling and being silly the whole time. Meanwhile, our newborn baby boy sleeps through it all!

If you can't relate, then you've never been the parents of 2 young boys!

Crazy-Faced Caden

This is hard work keeping posts up about two boys instead of just one. My mom captured Caden making this face...who knows what he was thinking. And don't you just love the big cloth diaper with short-sleeved pajama top in addition to the Christmas tree in the background....all obvious things that indicate we live in Africa!

Happy Face

Corban has started smiling! He has a great smile where he uses his whole face, but of course I couldn't capture that one on camera. Here are two little grins for you.


Also, you might be interested to know that Corban is 11 lb. 4 oz. now. The pediatrician at Tsiko said he is in the 90th percentile for weight and height (I'll have to get back to you on this measurement). Go Corban!

Birth Announcement

Obviously, it's too difficult (not to mention expensive ) to send out birth announcements. But if I was, I would choose one of these. Since I don't have to choose, I'm posting all of them. Feel free to click on your favorite (this will give you a big, high resolution version), save it, and have it printed at your favorite film developing place.

(the first and last pictures are 4x6 format, the middle is 4x5)

1 month old

Our little Corban is one month old this week. His favorite things include swinging in his automatic swing (we've already had to put new batteries in it), looking around while being propped up on anyone's shoulder, and the usuals...sleeping and eating. He tolerates being held by his big brother and is sure to let us know when he is uncomfortable. He is starting to smile a bit and we've even heard a few coos. He's growing fast and is about to outgrow any newborn clothes he has.

Christmas Cuties

Corban's 1st Christmas

A sweet smile is the perfect gift!

I imagine Caden is telling Corban all about Santa.

Brothers

Thanks to Gamma for the "I'm the big/little brother" matching shirts!

All I want for Christmas...I already have!

Fun With Gran'Pa

Gran'Pa is in the process of building Caden and Corban a new play structure. Meanwhile, Caden is enjoying "testing" a few pieces before they go up. This is a rope that will be attached to a climbing wall. Caden thought it made a great swing and didn't understand why Gran'Pa wanted to take a break after swinging for only a few minutes.

Updates

I hope everyone enjoyed our little guessing game as much as we enjoyed reading your comments. Your wait is finally over! (If you haven't had a chance to guess who is who in the next post, stop reading now and scroll down!)

Before I post the answers...are you aware that this is post #300 for our blog?! We began this blog with the announcement of being pregnant with Caden three years ago. What a joy it has been for us to share our family with all of you!

I should also mention that our internet has been very inconsistent since we arrived back in Kara. For those of you trying to reach us on Skype, thank you for your voicemails, but we will not be able to talk to you until our internet is back to some kind of normalcy. Please understand that we are just as disappointed about not being able to talk to our friends and family.

OK, OK...here are the correct answers:
1. Corban - 3 weeks
2. Corban - 3 weeks
3. Caden - 1 month
4. Caden - 3 weeks
5. Caden - 1 week

God has blessed us with two beautiful little boys! I look forward to watching them develop into their own personalities with individual characteristics.

Guess Who?!

Each picture is numbered below.
Leave a comment with your guesses on who is who....
Caden or Corban.
I'll post the answers in a day or so.

1

2

3

4

5

Sorry, there is no prize for the winner...just the satisfaction of knowing who my children are.

2 weeks old

Yes, he's a good eater and sleeper...can't you tell?!

Blue Laundry

And what do you do with the baby while moving clothes from the washer to the dryer?....
Yea for blue laundry!

Don't Worry, We're Alive

It's just that our phone line, and therefore our internet, has been down since we came home to Kara one week ago. You might have been thinking that we were not posting because our new baby is a handful, but that's definitely not it...Corban has been an absolutely amazing baby so far, even easier than Caden was. We'll update everyone on everything as soon as it is back up. For now, here is pic of Caden and Corban, best brother friends!

Brotherly Love