Teeth wonderful teeth

Phinn has grown not one but two gorgeous little white teeth.  And he is putting them to good use.

The boys are loving getting their hands on food, and getting stuck into eating.  As before we are going down the baby lead weaning route, but I have to say it is not the relaxed easy going style that we had before.  There's a lot so prep involved in getting food for 4, bibs on 3, drinks for 5, and a wet cloth for whoever is finished first. They are still at the frustrated stage of not being able to get it in quick enough.

But that said to date they have tried,

Brocolli
Carrots
Pancake
Avacado
Banana
Carrot and lentil soup
Cream of wheat
Porridge
Fish
Scones
Tomato

I will get some pics, but right now the juggling act is too much to include a camera :)

Induction date.......

Well, there's a plan.

Sunday morning 9 am I am going into the hospital, to have an induction.

The good news from the consultant appointment on Tuesday is that twin 2 has turned and so both are now head down. How he turned without me noticing is beyond me:)

The two little ones may not be so little. When the consultant was doing the scan she was unable to measure the femur length as it was too long for the screen! We shall see how long the legs really are. I think that was the point she took pity on me and offered me the early induction.

So please pray for us. We have prepared as best we can I think, but there is still all the unknowns. There are no unknowns for the Lord and we are grateful that the babies birthday is known to Him as are all the days of their lives before anyone of them has come to pass.

I aim to get some of our summer pics on the blog before sunday so I can clear them out the way ready for the big unveiling. Snuggly twin pictures are too cute.

Looking good!

This was taken last weekend, so at 33 weeks. Not doing too bad!

The doctor will see me again at 37 weeks and then book in for an induction at 38 weeks. They are pleased with how well they are growing, and the position, and no one seems that bothered by my moaning about how bulky and sore my body is! I keep getting told I'm doing great and I'm carrying 2 normal size babies for their gestation :)

A maximum of 4 weeks and I get to meet my little men. Hurray.

And in a miracle turn of events, the Hindles have decided on names weeks before the delivery date. Sadly no white board tally chart this time the night before!

Still no news.

Another week has started and the post has come and gone.

No work permit.

The clock is ticking, there is no one I am allowed to contact yet, and the struggle to strive for joy continues.

I was sorting through my diary, adding in scan dates and making consultant ones, all in the uk this morning, and as is far too normal these days was having a small cry by myself. (My sweet girls are merrily feeding cows and pigs and horses and donkeys and chickens and sheep blissfully unaware of anything but the beauty of a summer spent on a farm.) My diary is one with a bible verse for each week and this ones it beautiful and pertinent to this week.

'We may boldly say: "The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?"' Hebrews 13:6

For some reason I flicked on to the verse for the week the babies are due. And laughed loudly and long. It begins, 'In peace I will both lie down and sleep'. I hope that makes you chuckle too.

We are calling out to the Lord to please show us what he would have for us. Not knowing is so hard, and yet, we only have 3 more weeks to wait and we will know for sure. Then the planning begins of how do we get organised to have them here, and then get them back to Canada........the possibilities and difficulties seem vast. But today is not for worrying about tomorrow, today the sun is shining and my small girls will need a Mummy who is there to guide and teach and train them in following Christ. Please may my life show what that is to follow him where ever he leads me.

Picnic supper while burning all the cut fern. Salmon, garlic bread, bananas and chocolate all cooked on the bonfire. Mmmn

Summer road trip

The girls and I have been in Maidstone these past few days and had a LOT of fun.
Playing with cousins in the park, and trying to get the perfect picture!

Sisters loving one another. I wish this had been a video and you could hear the adorable way Hope says her sisters name. Just as well she can say Heidi as she has no idea what her name is. Any time you ask she's called Heidi too!

Getting ready for a princess party for Becky's 6th birthday. Complete with real princess who ran all the party games! It was a lot of fun.

We have had a full time, a fun time, and a good visit with family.

Tomorrow we head to Poole for a few days at the seaside with good friends.

I had plans today.....

Today is the day of the year I get up super early.

And wake my children early.

We find jeans, and button down shirts in the second drawer down in the white drawers in their bedroom.

We find boots and hats by the back door and in the shoe cupboard. We even have some for the baby.

We put beautiful blonde hair in braids, and make sure the picnic breakfast is packed.

We pile in cars, park at a friends, load children into wagons and strollers and slings and walk and then run across the bridge, calling for everyone to keep up.

We stand on the pavement and wait till the whistle blows at 7.30, then we pile onto the road, and set up chairs in a long line.

Then we crack open the picnic and Nicky goes for coffee. I have a good excuse ready every year as to why it is her turn to go and get them! None as good as this year I may add.

Then the fun begins, the bands begin to play, and the horses come on by. The sun-cream is applied, we peel off layers of clothes, and try not to get too hot.

When it's over, we do it all in reverse, except that there is less energy for getting back up the hill and into the cars.

I guess the reality is that my plans for the day are not going to happen.

I am learning a little more each day that my plans are not important.

I must trust. The Lord has His plan, and it is for me to spend the morning in the house in the pouring rain, playing hard to keep the girls amused and trying not to cry when Heidi unknowingly tears at her Mummy's heart by playing parades this morning. I had plans! and I need to trust that we are in exactly the right place for this season.

Dying to self and living for Christ is the key to joy. Today I will fight for that joy, and trust. He is faithful.

Another big helper!

This was the tail end of her concentration, she did nearly half the load!

It came.

Our new toy arrived!

Drifts and dunes of brilliant white powder, just right for getting the bucket and spades out for!

Perfect day for baking, rolls,coconut bread and cornbread muffins. Yum.

Calaway Park

Today was the Thanksgiving holiday. Our local theme park (more of a fair ground meets theme park) had their appreciation weekend, which meant that we could attend for free with a donation to the food bank and showing a Co-op card.
Never ones to pass off a bargin we set to, and took our little girls the park.
I have to say I did not expect too much of Heidi. The carosel for sure, perhaps a tame ride with a parent.

Well I was wrong. While Tom went on the rollercoaster with some bigger kids, Heidi was game to try the kiddy rollercoaster.

Take a look at her face she loved it. In fact she rode it over and over again. Around 13 times in all!


This is not nearly as high as it looks and there was someone else with her.


So in the spirit of her new found need for adrenaline we took her on the log flume. Wow was it high and we got soaked, but it was fun.
Here was are at the top of the big slide.

The first time she rode it she wasn't sure if she should laugh or cry, but after hearing us all laughing about how fun it was and how funny it was that we were wet she was desperate to go right back on.

Fun fun fun.

Precious moments

 

Our living room this Sunday afternoon. Precious times.

Mummy and Heidi's guide to baking

First, you have to pick a scrummy recipe. We went for
That's courgettes for the rest of us!

Then you need to mix together the ingredients.


1 medium zucchini
2 cups of grated Cheddar cheese
2 cups of plain flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 tsp salt (or not if you intend to feed to small babies)
1 cup milk
1 egg
4 tbsp olive oil.

Mix the dry ingredients into the zucchini and cheese.
Then add the wet ones and mix till just combined.

Then spoon into greased muffin plans. Beware that when you turn to get your camera you may discover that your 3 year old is more than capable of spooning mixture into the pans.

All done and into the oven at 375F or 190C or GM5 for 20-25 mins.

Then leave in the pans for 10 mins to cool a bit and solidify a bit.....there's a lot of cheese in these!

Serve them for lunch.... (we also had pears and a glass of milk)

And the smile says it all. They were amazing, and so was she!

A normal Wednesday

Today we helped 3 bears slide down a rainbow, gave several creatures rides on the back of the horse with a bride(bridle) made out of a belt, pasted meatballs to spaghetti, kites to strings, flowers to stems and ball on a seals nose, sang songs, tries to holler as loud as we could, wrote our names and Daddy's name, ate yoghurt tubes curled up under a blanket, dressed up like a cowboy and fireman and princess all at once and when we could stand the rain no longer got into our wet weather/snow gear and splashed in the puddles while avoiding the worms!
What did you do today?

Our veggie garden is starting to grow. The peas and radishes poked their heads up last week and the tomatoes are doing ok. Just waiting for the beans and beetroot and 7 of the 10 strawberries to do something!
Must learn patience.

I so love this picture, of Hope and her Daddy.


Is it any wonder that I am battling a dandelion problem. If a small blonde girl came to ask 'Please may I blow it?' what would you say?


Not looking too happy!


Is it because her parents do this kind of thing to her?


We have been enjoying spending time together these last few days and taking the time to work on a few things done.

Our veggies are almost completely planted, that may seem late to the Brits, but our risk of frost is only just past, and bar a freak snow storm (like last june) we should be home and dry. This year is the same a last, with the addition of beetroot, raspberries, and strawberries. Yum. I wonder if they will grow.

We also rearranged the girls room getting ready for Hope's cot to go in there in time for Heidi's birthday. It is looking really good, just a few more things to do and they are ready to embark on a long lesson of 'preferring others before yourself'!

And I am starting to get the bits ready for some one's third birthday party! It seems amazing that is here already. She really gets it, and if any one asks about it she is quick to say 'I'm having a teddy bears picnic party'. And so the planning continues but it is so much fun to do :)

Where have we been?

Well,

We have had guests, Mum and Dad were here for a few precious weeks. It was wonderful to see the girls interacting with grandparents, and is such a blessing that the Lord can preserve relationships and even cause them to grow stronger and deeper when you live on 2 continents.

Life if full and fun.
There doesn't seem to be any time to blow our noses, but it is exciting to see the girls grow and develop. Heidi's verse of the week is 'O give thanks to the LORD for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever'. It is a wonderful verse to think over during the day when helping her to remember it, and to hear her pronunciation of some of the words is super cute.

Hopie has popped through not one but two bottom teeth in the same 24 hours, so all in all it was manageable. I think one at a time will be simple enough. She is a joyful bundle and we enjoy to watch her face break into a huge smile if you will smile at her, or any time Tom comes into the room. Her eyes are hovering around dark smokie blue and green, but have a few brown flecks, and her hair has started to grow in, same as her sisters, straight up!!!

So I guess my ramblings sum up life right now. Watching our girls grow, and rejoicing in what the Lord is to us.

Easter Wreath

 

It seems so hard to keep this week in perspective. I don't want to let it pass and find that I skip to Sunday's celebration without fully realising the cost of Friday. But I am looking forward to Sundays celebration.

And how do you couple it all with the commercial things. We do Easter eggs, and use them to decorate our home, I guess in a similar way to we decorate a tree at Christmas, but how do we ensure that they don't take away from the truth and seriousness of Easter and why we have it. I desperately don't want to do things because I think they are fun(egg hunts) or pretty (egg wreaths), if they take away and belittle Easter, I want to be willing to loose the things that take away from Christ.

And in writing all this out I am realising, that I want to let them know that this is a very special time of year. We decorate at Christmas and at Thanksgiving, and at Easter because it it a very special time of year. We are not having an egg hunt because the Easter bunny left them, but because we want to mark days as special, making a special effort to give our girls and ourselves a special event, as a celebration. Because the finished work at the cross is worth celebrating. I am praying about how to put in place good traditions, and am excited to see how our Easter celebration pans out over the years.

Somedays it just seems like a good day to have Micky mouse shaped pancakes :)

One of lifes simple pleasures

I got 2 loads of washing out on the line yesterday, out and dried! I am continually a source of amusement to my Canadian friends, the joy I get from seeing a load of washing on the line is hard for me to contain. What made yesterday so fun is that I was out in my snow boots trudging through some drifts to get to one end of the line, and I managed to restore Hopes white vests to white vests rather than white with slight orangy greeny stains. Result!

Notice a difference. Yes it's true, those are eyes and eyebrows. Heidi had here first hair cut today, a fringe cut in. She is so pleased with it. Big smiles all round, and a slight tear from her Mum!

Christmas Crafts

We had a lot of fun this afternoon, at least Heidi did! And her little sister Hope got to 'watch me doing crafts!'
Needless to say a shower was in order afterwards. Happy times.