April is here!

(Ok, so I've been editing this post for so long that I just had to change my title from "March is here" to "April is here". I think that means it's time to post it no matter what!)

Graham and Eliot are enjoying their time together more and more as Eliot gets older and more interactive. He is scooting around at a slow crawl now, and is thrilled to be taking part in things. His favorite thing is "wrestling" with Graham, and he already holds his own, grabbing Graham around the neck and shoulders and, of course, pulling his hair, both of them squealing with glee all the while. I am wondering how many million times I will say "be gentle guys!" in the next few years. More than I can count, of that I'm sure.

Graham is at that wonderful age where he is full of questions and observations about absolutely everything, but of course has no sense of propriety yet. He is very used to seeing me breastfeeding Eliot and is quite enamored with the process. A few days ago though we were with a friend who began breastfeeding her baby. He looked over and said in a very polite, conversational tone, "Oh, (insert name here) I didn't know you had boobs!"

The other morning our washing machine's load got out of balance and it started making a loud banging noise while we ate breakfast. Jon was surprised and asked "What was that?" to which Graham responded "Don't worry Daddy, I think it's just me crunching my cereal."

Eliot had his 9mo appointment a few days ago and he seems to be doing great. His most recent stats: 28 1/2in tall, and 21lb5oz which means he's still been gaining over a pound a month! He has finally begun to accept solid foods in the last couple of weeks, which makes me happy and seems to be helping him rest a bit better. He continues to have the most laid back personality, and laughs at pretty much anything, especially anything that Graham does.

We only have a couple of weeks left before we leave for Africa- it's coming quickly! We're all excited about the adventure and can't wait to get back to the continent that holds such a huge place in our hearts. We appreciate your thoughts and prays as we prepare ourselves and the boys for this journey!

Much love to all, and I promise to put some pictures up soon, once I get them downloaded...

Fun times

A recent trip to Detroit's Renaissance Center (GM's headquarter's)

Sweetness

I love these guys!

First day of school

We're having so much fun with boys now that we're all healthy again and back to our routines. Eliot continues to grow and fill out- I didn't know it was possible to have shoulder blade rolls, but he has somehow managed to grow them! His favorite activities include watching Graham do anything, having his hands or feet kissed, and pretty much any kind of direct interaction with other humans. He is so outgoing, I can't believe it. He recently weighed in at 20lbs6ozs and 27 1/2 inches, so he's very big and heavy for his age. (My arms and back are well aware of this!) A few days ago he did his first independent movement when he scooted backwards while lounging on the floor with Graham and I. The goal was to go forwards but he didn't seem to upset with the opposite result! He now frequently moves in circles, or backwards/forwards a few inches at a time. He thinks Graham is the funniest thing in the world, and I'll post a video at the end of him giggling at G's antics. Sorry, it is shaky and blurry at times, but it's hard to hold a baby while also trying to get him in the picture!

Graham has recently started preschool at the University's Child Development Center, and his class of 18 has 14 different first languages within it. He was very excited to try this new experience, and loves painting, playing with cars and tool boxes, doing crafts, playing outside and helping with clean up time. Most of the time we're all still home together, and we love to do everything from grocery shopping to trips to the science museum to sledding and winter hikes. Graham is a real natural with the sled, and can't seem to get enough.

He continues to crack us up with his wise sayings and wonderings. Last week's sermon at our church was a great one about the redeeming power of God's love. Our pastor used an illustration of a conversation he had had with his young son. He had asked him whether he thought his parents loved him as much when he was bad as when he was good. Jon decided to pose the same question to Graham on our way home from church. He paused for at least 30 seconds, obviously contemplating how he should answer, then said, brows furrowed, "Daddy--that's a bad question I think".

He is still so sweet and sensitive, it is (most days) a joy to be his parents. I am learning all over again to be very careful about what I say, as I now hear "Mommy, how many times have a told you..." He also repeats the nicer things, like last week when he came downstairs in the morning, gave me a hug, looked into my eyes and said, with great seriousness "Hey Sweety. Did you have a good sleep?"

He loves his brother Eliot, although already enjoys NOT sharing with him, and showers him with lots of hugs, kisses, and toys (those that aren't interesting or enviable in any way). They are quite a pair and they keep me busy and happy.

In other big news, Graham is officially potty trained, which has been a long time coming! We are so proud of him and happy to have only one in diapers.

Even bigger news, is that Jon got a Fellowship to study abroad this summer, so we will be in Africa (Uganda) for 3 months! His research there will be focused on Congo and we'll be near the border. We're so excited to get back and find out first-hand how our family will fit in on our "home" continent. Pray for us as we prepare for this big trip. The boys get their passport photos taken tomorrow!

I'm sorry our posts have been so sporadic... I really wish I was better at taking pictures and documenting like I was in Graham's first year of life. I guess that's second child syndrome, right? I hope Eliot knows we love him just as much, even if we have a few hundred less photos of his cute little face. Much love to all!

Funny Sayings and Winter Fun

A few weeks ago now Jon and Graham sat down in the coffee house chairs at PCC to "have a chat". Jonathan asked what he wanted to talk about. He pondered a moment, then said "There's so many problems- in the newspaper and stuff. And when we're driving we have to be careful not to hit anyone" all with a very serious look on face. A while later we asked how we should solve all of those problems in the newspaper, and he concluded "Everyone should have more cars, more race cars". So, there it is world leaders!

Here are some winter shots:


Here's a picture Graham took of Kate and Eliot, all by himself!

Another fall post, before fall is gone...

Hello everyone!

The warm days are disappearing fast, and there has been lots of fun action at the Shaws to catch up on! Here is a picture of Graham in part of his Halloween costume. Along with his buds Dash and Emmanuel he was a Michigan marching band member. I spent a lot of time making the hat which he unfortunately refused to wear for the most part. Oh well!


Quick updates on growth and development: Last week Eliot had his 4 month check up and shots, which went much better than his last set! No hospital stay for us this time, although he did still seem kind of miserable for the day. He has continued to grow very quickly. He's now 24 1/2 inches long, and weighs 16lbs11ozs, right around 80th percentile in both fields. He started rolling over two weeks ago, much to our surprise; he is so laid back we didn't think he'd have such a strong desire to get moving already. It might have something to do with the fact that he loves to watch everything Graham does, and Graham very rarely stays in the same place for more than a minute.

Graham still loves his little brother very much, and showers him with hugs, kisses, and all kinds of toys and affection. Today I walked in from the kitchen and found this scene (btw Graham is laughing, not crying):


I started to scold Graham, but Eliot had a huge smile on his face. As it turns out, they were both having a jolly time.

Our dear friends the Rippys were here to visit last weekend, and we had an amazing time. Graham was so excited to have them both around, and continually asked "John Wippy" and "Charwotte" to "set the race" (his favorite car game). The guys got to see an amazing football game, and we all had a great time around Ann Arbor.



Graham's current passions are the movie Cars, any related paraphernalia, other cars and trucks, painting with water colors, snuggling his babies, and reading books to name a few. Tonight I asked him what story he wanted to read before bed and it took me a while to figure out that he wanted to read about "Jesus' Last Lunch". He continues to be enthralled with Bible stories, and really loves the Easter story, beginning with the Lord's Supper. What fun to watch him soak it all in!

I'll leave you with a quick video of Eliot laughing. He is so full of sunshine, he's just a joy.



Love you all!

Fall Fun!

We're getting into all kinds of fun things here in Ann Arbor now that the leaves are starting to change color and a hint of crispness has entered the air. Actually, we've had beautiful weather so far, so it's been easy to get outside and enjoy some fun stuff. Sorry, I think I did something wrong with the photos, they look kind of compressed (although Eliot's cheeks really are that chubby!)

First off, the boys and I went to a nearby petting zoo one afternoon while Jon studied. Graham loved feeding the little goats carrots, although his favorite thing was watching the chickens and ducks march around. The hayride was also a big hit, where he enjoyed stuffing hay into every nook he could find. Sorry, no pics of that!

Next we partook of the delicious fall treat of fresh cider and homemade donuts at the Dexter Cider mill--embarrassing how quickly that 1/2 dozen was gone! Eliot has become a champion smiler and is starting to giggle quite a bit. I'm thinking I got two very extroverted boys somehow-such fun to see them interacting with others!

I hope you're all enjoying some nice fall days to. Come visit if you get a chance! We miss you!

A few more

I've gotten better about taking pictures lately so I have a few more I wanted to share. We're starting into the fall season here in Michigan, and so far it's been beautiful, and thankfully not too cold! Jon has been working very hard at school, reading lots of books and articles and studying French alongside his history classes. We've been feeling very welcome in our community still, and are very impressed with all of the opportunities that the University has to offer, both for Jon and for our fam- it's been great! If any of you want to come for a visit, please do! This time of year there's lots of fun to be had picking apples, drinking cider, and enjoying the town. And Graham is already looking forward to this Halloween! On to the pictures. The first one is to show off the great onesie from Aunt Emily's New York trip (a hand-me-down from Maya). It's actually fairly accurate as Eliot tends to wake up to eat right about 2-3 am most nights; however, from my side of things it doesn't really feel like a "party". He's actually doing better all the time with sleeping, and is such a sweetie when he's awake that it's hard to complain. In #2 Graham is showing off his bike gear- he loves to wear his goggles and ride around the house pretending to be Diego or Emily Elizabeth (Clifford the Big Red Dog's owner). Too funny! #3 is just a cute brother pic in their Sunday clothes. What a pair!

Finally, some more pictures!

I had to get some new pictures up of my darling boys--even looking at these I'm overwhelmed at how much I love them! Graham loves Eliot and is so sweet to him. Eliot already thinks Graham is hilarious and wants to watch his every move. He loves to sit and chatter back and forth while giving many gummy smiles, and is up for pretty much anything while we're all hanging out during the day. Here they are playing on the couch.






And here with scared faces!











Graham cheesing it up.












Here is Graham with his best bud Dash- don't they look like they could be related? Dash's mom Nelleke has been amazing friend to me as we've gotten settled here; we've spent many hours chatting while the boys play cars and our younger ones sit with us. Dash's dad Mike has also been a great friend for Jon; we're feeling very blessed to have found such an awesome family of friends!