As your day is, so shall your strength be.

2009-12-29T11:23:00.000-08:00

2009-11-13T13:03:00.000-08:00

2009-11-08T18:23:00.000-08:00

16 weeks into pregnancy and it all came to an end. We went in on Friday for a regular OB appointment, and the doctor could not find a heart beat. They sent us to the hospital where it was confirmed.
They induced me on Saturday morning and 4am. Twelve hours later, a little after 4pm, Ephesus LaPlante was delivered into the world without a beating heart. A small but beautiful little baby.
We stayed at the hospital until Sunday morning and we are now home.
We are going through a whirlwind of emotions, but are so blessed by God's goodness. We have been surrounded by so many caring people. It is nice to be reminded of how much we are loved. We welcome it with open arms. Though we are sad, we feel great peace and are content to trust the Lord with this.
It is such a blessing to be a Christian in times like these. We get the joy of knowing that this is not the end for Ephesus, but rather the beginning. As Mordecai put it so well, "Ephesus is in heaven eating cookies with Jesus". This we can be certain of.

2009-09-29T13:04:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a long time, but here are some new pictures finally. We were playing in a big puddle outside. My friend, Mandy, took these photos.

His Mercy

2009-07-01T14:42:00.000-07:00

Well, today was one of those days. My two year old, Mordecai, opened the box of tampons that were in my cart at Target. He individually unwrapped eight of them and threw them onto the floor. At home, he climbed on the bunk bed and proceeded to dump an entire bag of guinea pig hay onto the ground, and the bed, and the shelf. He was put into time out sixteen times, spending a total of thirty-two minutes in the corner. He peed on my bed, and smeared poop onto the couch.
My one year old, Noah, had diarrhea and filled twelve diapers. He threw seven tantrums, and bit me during five of them. He also bit Mordecai twice, trying to get his oatmeal. He pulled all of the movies out of the armoire, and half the books off my book shelf. He ate my deodorant and a small portion of lavender lotion. By the time 2:30 came around and my husband, David, got off work, I was physically and emotionally exhausted. Yes, he was home now, but we still had four and a half hours until we could put the kids to bed.
David did give me a fifteen minute break from the kids, but as I laid on my bed with the door closed, the boys sat out in the hall and cried my name. When I finally let them in, eight minutes before my break was actually over, Mordecai jumped on me and head-butted my stomach. Noah remained inconsolable. He was not ready to forgive me for shutting him out.
Six poopy diapers, four time outs, two spankings, and one bath later, it was finally time to put them to bed. We sang them a few songs, read “Good Night Moon”, and led them in a bedtime prayer. I walked out of their bedroom, laid down on the couch, and took a deep breath in. Freedom had finally come!
After cleaning up toys and picking up all the dinner that didn’t make it into Noah’s mouth, we snuggled on the couch for the rest of the night. We talked about God and read the Word together. At ten, it was time to go to sleep. But as we laid in bed talking about how much we love our boys, something funny occurred to me. Somewhere between putting the kids to bed and now, everything bad they had done simply floated out of my mind. I no longer remembered the exhaustion they had caused me to feel. The frustration, the anger, the overwhelming desire to escape the confines of parenthood; they were all gone. And what was left, was love. I found myself missing them, and wanting to be around them. I went into their room, and watched in awe of their perfect little bodies sleeping in bed. I wanted to hold them and kiss them. I could hardly wait until morning to be with them again.
This was not an isolated occurrence. I actually do the same thing every night. No matter what they’ve done during the day, no matter how many times they’ve disobeyed; when night comes, I can only remember how much I love them. I sit in bed and talk with David about all the cute things they said and did that day. I close my eyes and think of how excited I am so see them in the morning.
Only this night, my thoughts returned to the Lord. However forgiving my love for my boys, His love for me far outweighs it. I think I finally understand what He meant when He said: “His mercies are new every morning”. Indeed God, your mercies are new every morning. How thankful I am for that!

2009-05-22T21:55:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures that my friend Mandy took of the boys.

The Grandparents

2009-04-24T13:51:00.001-07:00

The kids and I spent the night at David's parents' house. The boys had a lot of fun.

Rocky Point

2009-03-19T18:55:00.001-07:00

We went to Rocky Point for Spring Break. It was the H.E.L.L.O. beach trip. That is the Hunter's, Ellis', LaPlante's, LaPlante's, and the Osiers. We had a great time. A lot of kids and a lot of fun. It is so beautiful there. I'm sad it's over.

Wedding

2009-03-13T15:12:00.001-07:00

Here are a few pictures of us in our wedding attire.

Fire Station

2009-03-13T15:08:00.000-07:00

We went to North Carolina for my brother's wedding. He volunteers at the fire station there. We all took turns trying on his hat.

Party

2009-02-05T10:04:00.001-08:00

We had a Luau here at the college on Saturday. The kids loved it.

2009-01-12T09:12:00.000-08:00

Parenting

2009-01-12T08:44:00.000-08:00

Well, I haven't blogged for a while. Life has seemed kind of busy lately. But, a good kind of busy. We find ourselves tired a lot, yet so happy with the life God has given us. We feel so blessed to have our 13 year old neice living with us. It is teaching us so much about God's faithfulness. David and I are so unprepared and illequipped to be raising a teenager, yet God always knows exactly what He is doing. We find ourselves continually having to give things over to Him, and what He returns to us always leaves us in awe of His goodness. I am learning that parenting has less to do with what you do, and so much more to do with how much you trust the Lord to do for you. I'm learning that it's not about the right rules or lectures. It's about love, and letting the Lord do it through you. Parenting is a lot of work, but trusting the Lord makes it so I'm not afraid of it. I'm not overwhelmed by it.

The Ball

2008-12-16T09:54:00.000-08:00

David and I went to a ball at the school. We got to wear costumes from the theater department. It was fun. Julianne came too, and looked so cute. I don't have any pictures of her, though.

Christmas Pictures

2008-12-16T08:29:00.001-08:00

I don't have the best camera, but I took a few christmas pictures of the boys. I love how cute my kids are. I know I probably just feel that way because I'm thier mom, but still...

Julianne

2008-12-10T21:25:00.000-08:00

This is Julianne. She is my 13 year old neice, and she is living with us now. She is so much fun. She thinks it's great to put stickers on Noah's face. He doesn't really seem to mind.

Boys and Hats

2008-12-10T21:21:00.000-08:00

I like to put things on my childrens' heads. I'm not so sure they like it as much as me, but the do what their mommy tells them to.

Thanksgiving

2008-12-01T11:29:00.001-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving. This was the first year I got to spend it with David's whole family together. Up until now, his parents have lived in Oregon. So, I really enjoyed myslef this year. I love big family get togethers. Especially when there is a lot of food involved. My niece, Julianne, lives with us now. She is 13. So, she got to be there as well. She took it upon herself to take a lot of pictures. So, here a few of them.

Harvest Party

2008-11-04T14:49:00.000-08:00

We went to the church harvest party on Friday. It was so much fun. I made the kids' costumes, and they looked so cute.

True Love

2008-10-22T21:37:00.000-07:00

Only 5 months old, and Noah is already cuddling and playing footsie with the opposite sex. This is Lydia, our neighbor. Aren't they cute together. I think it could turn into something serious.

Growing Up

2008-10-21T10:48:00.000-07:00

Noah is growing up so fast. He just got his first tooth on October 18th. He also is sitting up somewhat on his own.

HEELYS

2008-10-21T10:40:00.001-07:00

If you're thinking those look like Heelys I'm wearing, you're right! I actually found a pair in my size. Can you believe it? I was so excited.
This is me learning how to use them. Our living room floor is a perfect surface for them.

Audrie

2008-10-09T13:12:00.000-07:00

Mordecai's best friend, dare I say...."girlfriend", is named Audrie. She lives next door to us, and they play together almost every day. Sadly, however, she will me moving to Alaska right after Christmas. I feel so sad for Mordecai, because it's not like I can really explain it to him. One day soon, she's just not going to be there. He'll call her name, like he always does, only she'll be gone. "Audrie went bye-bye", I'll explain, but he has no concept of what that really means. For all he knows, she's just gone for that moment. Poor Mordecai. I feel so bad for him. What's a mom to do?

On My Own

2008-10-03T11:23:00.000-07:00

Well, David went to Mexico for the weekend. We're becoming one of those couples that does things separately, I guess. I'm home with the kids, and he's off serving the Lord. So sad! I think I'm going to rent a bunch of movies that I know he wouldn't watch. That way, when the kids are in bed at night, I can veg out. Hmm, that sounds nice. I wish it was night time already. I still have 7 hours before the kids go to bed.

splash pad

2008-09-29T21:50:00.000-07:00

We had the Ellis kids over the other night. We took them to a cool splash pad by our house. They had so much fun.

Hello Grandma

2008-09-29T20:21:00.000-07:00

COSTUME

2008-09-25T22:22:00.001-07:00

I've been trying to put together a costume for Mordecai. He is going to be Joseph, and his friend, Audrie, will be Mary. He gets annoyed at me trying things on him. But, Halloween costumes are very important. I think I like the green and brown one better.

SLEEP

2008-09-21T11:07:00.000-07:00

Well, it's Sunday morning, but we're not at church. We both feel like we've been behind on sleep for about a month. So, we're trying to catch up. We've been taking turns resting this morning, while the other one cares for the kids. At the moment, however, everyone in the house is sleeping. Everyone, but me of course. Oh, how I love the quiet. It is rarely present in our household, and I am thoroughly enjoying it.

My Boys

2008-09-18T13:50:00.002-07:00

2008-09-18T13:50:00.001-07:00

This is my smiley little Noah. He loves to laugh and does not like to be set down and ignored. That makes cleaning the house, doing homework, and taking care of his older brother quite challenging. But, I love him to death.

My Blog

2008-09-18T13:50:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally broke down and started a blog. I don't know how much I'll be able to maintain it, but I'm going to try. Life is a little crazy with a 23 month old and a 4 month old. I spend most of my time being really tired. I also spend much of my time saying: "Mordecai, stop doing that! Mordecai stay out of that! No, no Mordecai! Do you want to go into time out?" But, life is good, and God is faithful. And as my day is, so shall my strength be.