Our little fish...

It is amazing how quickly August passed.  I looked at my calendar two days ago and realized it was September 1st.  Where had the time gone?  Well, much of this month was dedicated to Zeke's swimming lessons.  We registered him for a program called ISR (Infant Swimming Resource).  It is a program created by a physician to teach babies and children survival swimming skills.  Infants learn how to float on their backs and young children learn how to "swim-float-swim."  We attended every week day, and each lesson lasted between 6 and 10 minutes.  It took Zeke 4 weeks to "test out," which means he was able to float and swim wearing summer and winter clothing.  This is because most drownings happen when children are fully clothed (I know it's scary, but it's a sad reality).  Here are some pictures of him in action:



Perfect float!



Getting ready to flip over...



Flipping over to a swim



With his instructor, Michelle, on the last day (notice the trophy!)



Practicing later in the month at Wynna and Granddaddy's pool



While Zeke was busy swimming, my mom and dad spent half the month in Alaska (and Canada).  They had a great time and hope to take the whole family back when the kids are a little older.  Here is a glimpse of their trip:

Zeke and I were blessed to have Gina and Bethany Sides over for a visit.  We don't see them enough, but we cherish the time we get to spend together.  They are a cherished part of our lives!

Our friend, Mollie, came over for an afternoon visit.  She is SO good with Zeke.  He had her reading books to him right away!

Later in the month, Zeke and I went to visit our friends Elizabeth and Bryan's new baby boy, Dex.  We were in a small group Bible study with Elizabeth and Bryan and prayed alongside them as they asked the Lord to bless them with a child.  They adopted Dex this summer, and could not be happier.  It's amazing to watch God's plans unfold.

In closing, I've included some photos of Zeke lately.  He are some ideas of what he is doing these days:

• Added "boo" (balloon), "shoe," "Hey," and "Da" (dog) to his vocabulary)
• Still wearing cloth diapers, although I've had to add more inserts during the day since he is such a big boy
• Doesn't really like getting his hair cut unless it's Sarah at Famous Hair in Acworth!
• Tries his hardest to pull stuff out of the refrigerator if he can, then runs away with his loot
• Loves swimming, bath time, and being outside
• Has an amazing aptitude for puzzles
• Enjoys wearing my socks and/or shoes around the house
• Still loves hats
• Tasted a Lara bar (Mommy made the mistake of giving it to him to expose him to nuts) and tried boycotting mush.  After talking to Madia Bowman, author of Dr. Denmark Said It, we decided to go back to mush solely until he's 24 months old and/or has all of his molars!
• Only needs one nap (3 hours is best, but he doesn't always sleep that long)
• Wears 24 month and 2T clothing (2T pants are still too tight sometimes!)
• Wears a size 6 shoe
• Loves to dance (and has his own unique style...heehee!)
• Has a way of detecting in my voice when I'm getting of the phone and starts saying, "Buh-bye" over and over
• Loves people and is eager to offer a smile and a "Buh-bye" to everyone

As you can see, it has been a busy and fun month.  We look forward to cooler weather as the fall arrives.  We thank God every day for all that he has blessed us with, and know that each moment is a gift!

Stargel/Hall Birthday and Anniversary Extravaganza!

July and August are busy months in the Hall and Stargel families.  Gregg turned 40 on July 26th, just two days after my parents' 40th wedding anniversary on July 24th.  Jared turned 36 on July 25th followed by his and Jami's 8th wedding anniversary on August 2nd (today).  My dad will turn 65 this Friday, August 5th!  That doesn't even include the Florida Halls (Gregg's parents' anniversary, Jimmy and Maria's anniversary, and Krissy, Nick, and Chella's birthdays are all in July and August as well!).  Because Gregg is not big on being the center of attention we decided to throw a joint celebration for all of them.  It was a surprise to Gregg, but not the others.  First, Gregg, Zeke, and I celebrated at home on Gregg's actual birthday.  He had fried rice and cookie cake, watched a movie montage I made him, looked at a memory book I put together from friends and family, and watched a rented movie of his choice.  It was a quiet night at home and he said it was perfect!

 
The following weekend was our big family celebration, although Gregg thought it was an anniversary party for my parents.  I was able to surprise him with his buddy James Keener and his family, Kris (Dave's girlfriend), and several other friends that came to support all of the guests of honor.  We had the event catered at the Rivermont (Colony Club) clubhouse, which was wonderful.  Zeke had fun running around visiting all of the guests!



Gregg seeing the Keeners and realizing it was a surprise for him too!



Kris (Dave's girlfriend) and us

The Keeners (and Kariss at the bottom!)

The only picture of my parents together...oops!

Gregg and I also went to the wedding of one of my sorority sisters this weekend.  It was fun to see so many of them.  One friend counted 19 of us Alpha Chi Omega's there!

We are so thankful to have so much to celebrate, and look forward to many more years of special occasions like this!

A year and a HALF!!!

First, I wanted to write a little bit about something that has been on my heart. Zeke is at an age where he needs to be disciplined, but it's hard to know the "right" way to do that. I've been reading several books about it, and love a book I'm listening to on CD called, "Shepherding a Child's Heart" by Paul Tripp. The core of the teaching is that we as parents need to give formative Biblical instruction to our children as a part of our daily routine. We can change a child's behavior with discipline, but if we are not getting to the underlying sin in the child's heart, it will not matter, eternally speaking. So...how do you do that with a toddler? Instead of TV, we use music and books.  We feel this is the best way to teach him about the Lord at his age. We listen to hymns and praise music during the day and read Bible stories. We pray together after a spanking. Gregg and I also pray with him every night before he goes to bed. Recently, I bought a couple of scripture CDs for children. It puts verses to music to help young children memorize scripture. I have to admit that I am not very good about memorizing it myself, so I'm excited to learn these verses with Zeke. When he gets older, we will do longer passages together. This was something I did with my students at Perimeter Christian School. We as staff members were required to say the passages for the principal. I still remember all of those verses, and am thankful for that "push" to memorize them. We would greatly appreciate your prayers as we begin this journey in shepherding Zeke's heart toward the Lord, Jesus Christ!

Your word I have hidden in my heart,

That I might not sin against You. (Psalm 119:11)

 

Well, it is official...we have a one and a half year old!  Zeke turned 18 months old last week.  He is walking like a pro, running (a little out of control), and trying to create sentences.  When he talks, it's usually a few gibberish words, then a word that makes sense.  For example: "Bleya bele ba hat."  That's, "I want the hat." 

Here are some of his "Zeke-isms:"

• Says "Uh-oh" a lot (even when it doesn't apply to the situation)
• Loves to say, "Buh-bye" (with a southern drawl, of course)
• Hangs his daddy's baseball caps on all door handles to which he has access
• Wears baseball caps and puts them on us a lot
• Loves to bring us books and sit in our laps as we read to him
• Still can't get enough of his Dadda (especially playing on the couch together)
• Still can't get enough of his Wynna either
• Chases the cats and says, "Key-da" for "kitty cat," although he says that for Browning, our dog, too
• Enjoys puzzles, shapes, and figuring out items that fit together
• Loves climbing on our bed, but he's not allowed to stand up on it, which isn't quite as fun!
• Loves climbing on anything, really
• Every time he sees his lovey, he sucks his thumb
• When he gets caught doing something wrong, he looks down, closes his eyes, and gives sheepish smile.  I think he thinks I can't see him!
• He likes to grab things from the refrigerator door, then run away with his loot (usually a glass bottle...eek!)
• Would play outside all of the time if I'd let him (and it wasn't so hot!)
• Dances and claps his hands (to the beat) when he hears music
• Continues to enjoy playing Peek-a-Boo
• Is a joy to be around and I'm so thankful I get to spend my days with him!

 

Daddy's little mimic

Playing inside the toy box



A hat on the door handle (as mentioned above)

 

Two hats!



Three!



Shoes from cousin Pat!



Look at those legs!

In other news, Zeke will be starting swim lessons through Infant Swimming Resource (http://www.infantswim.org/) next month.  This is an organization that teaches survival skills to babies and young children.  He will learn how to float on his back in the water and swim to the nearest edge.  They call it swim-float-swim.  To "test out" he has to be able to do that in summer and winter clothes.  Once he starts lessons, I'll write a post on how it is going.  I'm a little nervous about it, but I believe it could save his life.

I apologize for the large volume of posts in the past two days!  I think we're caught up now, so look for another post at the beginning of August.  God bless!