Christmas is Almost Here!

Here at the Benton House, we are ready for Christmas. Here is a finished picture of our tree. This is also only a small portion of the gifts that I have been able to wrap. I think that God has really blessed our family this year and we have obviously been very good.





















Here is precious Luke. He is about to be three and he is so excited for Christmas...
















Here is Evan and he is 7 months now. He simply loves tearing up all the gifts and taking the tags off of them. So I just want to apologize if Granny ends up with a toy!!














And finally, this is the story of our lives....two kids fighting over the presents. I am looking forward to many years of this!
















I hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas and remember the reason for this holiday (The birth of our Lord and Saviour). God Bless!

Short update

Well it has been a long time since my last blog and there is so much to update on. I only have a short time so let me be brief. Luke is one month shy of 3 years old. I honestly can't believe how he is growing. He is so excited about Christmas and has started working on his list for Santa(boots, belt, and a BB gun)! He will have to wait on the BB gun!! He is in the why stage and has learned how to throw a fit. So we are having a good time with this stage. We did make a big step this week, he has started watching TV! Praise the Lord for something that does not require me to entertain him 24/7.

As far as Evan goes, he is about to be 7 months old and I am going to attempt to put a video on here to update you on what he has been up to. I have a little trouble getting pictures/ videos to show up where I want them so I apologize. As you can hopefully see, he is crawling and has started pulling up on everything. He now has three words in his vocab: dada, mama, and bub-bub. He weighs 19.12 lbs(68%) and is 28 1/2 inches long (88%). He is growing like crazy and has two teeth. He has decided that sleep should not occur for 8hours straight which is starting to wear on us but he is so precious, we forgive him.

Well that is all for now. Hope to get things caught up so I can blog more but life is crazy. One last note, since having Evan and starting a new job, have managed to drop 16lbs. I still have a ways to go but I am very excited at my progress and very thankful for Jeff holding me accountable.

Well so much for video. I will update later with video! With any luck, I have figured out how to add a video. Hope everyone enjoys.

GOD is Great

It's been a little while since I posted last. Life has been quite interesting. I am starting to settle into my new job but with that new job has come many challenges. As a young woman in an administrative position, i have found that respect is not necessary given but rather, it must be earned. I am working very hard and learning that concept and relying on God to guide my steps so that I make wise decisions that reflect well on the schools I represent and the Co-op that I work for. This job, even though I love it, has been one of the most challenging experiences in my life. Everyday, I am given a new challenge and I have learned more than anything, that I must rely on God and always do what is right in His eyes. Thank you God for giving me this wonderful challenge and helping me to grow as a person.

On another note, the kiddos are doing well. They both have a little cough but I am hoping that they are on the mend. Evan has been sleeping very well and I am starting to feel like I am catching up on sleep. It's kind of funny that the more sleep you get, the more you seem to need. Luke has been really learning a lot at church and at Killion's. The other day he told me that "it rained for 40 days.". He is starting to prayer for people when they are sick or in need and it just warms my heart. He has finally started to count and can do so to 6. He has also been saying a lot of his ABC's. I know most kids his age are already doing this and as a teacher I am a little embarrassed but Luke has just not been that interested and I want him to love to learn not demand that he do so. Luke loves the farm and tools and I really think if pa needed him to, he could run that tractor all by himself and probably will be before long. Evan now has two teeth and is drooling everywhere. Let me tell you, those teeth are sharp! I love these angels so much and I am so blessed that God trusted me enough to be their mom.

Jeff has finally finished photo shoots for the most part. We are so thankful to have him home more often. Jeff truly is a good hearted man and I am so thankful for him. We recently went to watch the movie "courageous.". I highly recommend that all fathers watch this movie. It is very inspiring and really tugs at the heartstrings. Jeff watched so intently while I attempted to fight back the tears. I know that he is committed to our family and raising these gifts from God in a manner that would be pleasing to the Lord. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

God bless and I hope each ofnyou have a great week filled with his blessings. Let your light shine for Him.

Evan

Today you are 4 months and 23 days old. You went for your 4 month shots and check up today. You only cried for a few seconds after getting your shots and Killion said you acted great today. I am so thankful that your shots don't seem to bother you. I remember Luke being pretty grouchy when he would get his. Here are you stats from your appointment:

Length: 28 inches- 98%
Weight: 17 lbs- 71%
head: 17 1/2 inches -88%

Things you are doing:

You can roll over from both directions but occasionally get stuck on your belly. You smile all the time. You chatter all the time and it sounds a lot like you are saying dada dada. Every morning when I drop you off at Killion's, you get so excited to see her. You occasionally sleep through the night but you like your food so you usually wake up long enough to eat. You just got your first tooth and I think you are working on another. You like to play with toys and you like to play music on mommys I-pad. You find it so funny when your bubba is getting in trouble lol.

We all love you so much and we are so thankful for you.


PS. I wish that in had this blog when Luke was little so that I could compare their stats but oh well.

Just a few Pics of Evan!

"Jesus is in my heart"

I know that everyone thinks that their child is the smartest, most amazing child on Earth, but Luke really is!!!!! This post is mainly so I never forget some of the things Luke has been saying lately. First, let just say that luke's Sunday school teacher have certainly been teaching my boy about Jesus!!! On our way home Sunday night after church and after dinner with the Huskey's, Luke Said to me, "mom Jesus is in my heart". I said, " yes son he is!". He then asked, " why is Jesus in my heart?". I just told him that if we loved Jesus, he was in our hearts. I also told him that Jesus loves us. He then said, "I love Jesus and I want to see him!". I told him that Jesus was in heaven. It was at that point that my little baby boy started crying and screaming, " I want to go to heaven, I want ti see Jesus!". He said this over and over again till we got home. By the time we got to the house, I was nearly in tears. Part of me was amazed at the conversation and the level of understand he could have of these sometimes difficult topics but the other part of me kept thinking " I hope this is not God preparing me for something.".

Since this time, we have continued to say our morning prayers on the way to the sitters, at meals, and at night before bed. Each time, he has said, "I love Jesus and/or he is in my heart". I just melt each time. He has a lot to learn about the love of Jesus and what it truly means to have Jesus in your heart but I know without a doubt that the kiddo loves Jesus as much as a two year can love anyone.

Luke tries my patiences sometimes and has become quite a smarty pants but I love him so much and I know that he will grow into a wonderful man, husband and big brother. God has blessed this family in so many ways, but one of the best ways was when he gave us Luke.

Oh my!!!!

Sorry, still no pictures but this is because life has been so busy!! Since starting my new job, I have been traveling between schools which cover a span of 6 counties. I have also started my college classes which consist of 4 assignments per week. And let me say, life has been a bit of a whirlwind. The kiddos are doing great and growing so quickly. Evan is so much bigger than Luke when he was this age.

Luke seems smarter everyday. His favorite thing right now is to ask everyone (me, Jeff, nana, pa, grandma, and Killion) to tell him stories. He gives us a topic and then we make up a story. He usually adds to the story as we go along. I think this is a great teaching tool for him; however, I hope it isn't teaching him to lie, lol! He also had his first slumber party (1kid lol) last night.

Evan is starting to mimic us when we make sounds. He is eating fruits and veggies now! He loves to eat which is obvious given his size. He laughs often and is so much calmer than Luke was. He will just lay on the couch or sit in the swing and watch tv. He likes to watch me cook, of course I am crazy while I cook.

Both boys love their babysitter and we are so lucky to have her. She is amazing and she thinks my kids are so well behaved. God has been good to us in finding her.

Jeff is still busy at work but that is getting close to slowing down, thank the good Lord.

Also, our childrens program starts again on September 14th. If you want fun and learning for the whole family, join us at 7:00 on Wednesday nights.

Hope everyone is doing well and God bless you all!