Thursday, March 28, 2013

Smart Girl

Me: "Ellie, why didn't you want to get in the shower with Luke and Adalyn?"

Ellie: "Because I knew there was gonna be too much naked in there."


Sounds reasonable to me!

Monday, March 18, 2013

Let Me Clarify

Two nights ago, after Dan and I had given the kids their baths, Dan put Adalyn in these super cute and snuggly warm footie pajamas.  Luke was oohing and aahing over her, so I said, "Adalyn! Luke really likes your pajamas!"

To which Luke replied, "No, I don't like her pajamas, mom. I like HER, in her pajamas."

I love that boy. He is sweet and kind, defined.

Thursday, February 28, 2013

A Decade in the Making

That was surreal to even write that blog title...

Anywho, happy 10th(!!) anniversary to the love of my life, my best friend, my confidante.

Tomorrow I will go to work for 9+ hours and then I will drive to my parent's house, kiss my kids goodbye and head to a hotel with my hubs.

I had big grandiose plans of how I'd write an eloquent and romantic blog post about our journey as a couple through the highs and lows of life. And I would post pictures of our premarital wooing, our one-of-a-kind wedding and the blissful travels life has taken us on in the last 10 years.

But then I remembered that I don't have time to do that. And not only that, I know there is great intimacy and joy in cherishing our time together just between the two of us. So, I'm committed to being offline for the next couple of days...being in the moment, NOW. With my husband.

You are my better half Dan, truly. I love you. I picked a good one.

Here's to 60 more...

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Hermiz Family Update

This mama has been so neglectful of this blog! My hundreds of followers must be lost in despair over my absence. Be hopeless no more, I'm back!

Life has been so busy since Karis arrived. First, we were busy adjusting to our new life as a family of six. Then we were busy adjusting to life with a working-outside-the-home mama.Then there was Luke's birthday (he's SIX!), Thanksgiving, Christmas, our weekly home group, John's 60th birthday party and Adalyn's birthday (she's TWO!).

 In the midst of all of that, Luke has been continuing his homeschooling; mainly focusing on phonics, writing and math. For his writing practice, Luke has starting writing and mailing letters to various people. We've all really enjoyed this practice, as writing letters is quickly becoming a lost art. Luke is doing amazingly well learning to read. We're using the book, "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons." Dan and I have made a deal with him, promising that when he finishes learning to read, we will take him out to a restaurant for a burger (grass-fed beef;), sweet potato fries and a shake. He's really excited!

Luke and Ellie have joined the Kids Choir at church. They go every Sunday evening to rehearse, and they will have a concert in March. They sing the songs incessantly so enthusiastically! They will have no problem memorizing all the words! They're also going to AWANA on Wednesday nights. We are so thankful for the positive influences they have in their lives at church and the strong emphasis on scripture memorization at both of these activities. They are also doing gymnastics again at the Vinyard...busy, busy, busy!

Adalyn has started saying a lot more words since I last posted. She'll try to say just about anything you ask her to. Although, with the exception of thank-you, bye-bye, and combining words with "please" ("milk please"), she has difficulty combining words and saying words that have more than one syllable. Sometimes it's hard to tell if she's struggling, or is just little lazy. I think it might be a little bit of both.

Karis is doing so well! She is our best sleeper yet!! That has been such a great blessing, since I had to return to work at 8 weeks postpartum. By 7 weeks old, she was sleeping 8-9 hours straight! Now she sleeps anywhere from 10-12 hours. She's been healthy, which we are so thankful for. She has a bit of a flat spot on the back of her head, so I've been trying to position her differently and keep her off her head (lots of tummy time!)...hopefully we can avoid any other type of therapy.

Life is very busy and full, and we are incredibly blessed. It's definitely a blessed kind of busy. We are anticipating some changes in the near future which need prayer. We have been praying about and discussing Dan staying home to homeschool the children and me going to work full-time. I have a heavy heart as I want to do what pleases the Lord and brings peace into our home and family. Between homeschooling, having 4 children and the possibility of me working full-time, we are definitely not fitting the world's standard for what is "normal" or reasonable. But if the world thinks we're weird, than maybe we're doing it right! :)

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

She's Official!

Karis has her very own monogrammed towel! :)

The big sibs.

The little sibs.
I was hoping to get Karis a peach-colored towel, but no such luck. Instead, she got "sunburst," and it's bright!

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

October 25th, 2012



Our sweet Karis Alethia. Her names mean "grace" and "truth" in the Greek language.

So special that my mother-in-law could be at Karis' birth! And my mom delivered her! My mom has delivered 3 of our 4 children--what an incredible blessing and joy!

Our girls are so blessed to have Luke as a big brother.

Sweet big sis!

Adalyn loves her baby sister!

Family of six! We are so blessed!
Karis Alethia was born on October 25th, 2012 at 3:06pm. She was our biggest baby, weighing in at 7 pounds 13 ounces and she was 19 inches long. I am so thankful that God blessed my desire for a vbac (vaginal birth after cesarean). Karis and I both tolerated labor well and we were both safe and healthy. Praise God! It was a joy to have my mom deliver her. It is really an incredible experience for us to share together.
We are now adjusting to the busy life of a family of six! More pictures to come...someday. :)