Fourth of July Camping

With the fourth of July falling over a weekend this year coupled with the beautiful weather we had, we decided to go camping.  It was Zeke's first camping trip and a great opportunity to test out the new tent we bought last year.  We packed up our boat and ventured out on the river to our spot.  It was a quick and simple one-night trip but was great to be outside and build some memories together.  Some pics from our time:

First s'more ever

It was a hit

We're looking forward to many more camping trips in the future!

Juneau!

Last week I had a meeting for work in Juneau, so the boys came along and we made a mini vacation out of it.  Juneau is a beautiful city that feels much more quaint than most capital cities.  The first thing we noticed: trees, green, and mountains!  It still amazes us that one state has such different geography.  We live in flat open tundra with a massive river, and Juneau has something very different.  

Our first day there was Saturday, and was typically rainy.  So we shopped.  No disappointment for these Bethelites with that.  People in Juneau still feel somewhat isolated because its still off the road system and does not have everything.  For us, though, Fred Meyer, Walmart, and Costco are more than enough.

On Sunday the adventure really began.  Our Father's Day opened with the Mendenhall Glacier

Later in the day we went to the Shrine of St. Therese.  It's a cathedral on a beautiful peninsula that was clearly built with God's handiwork in mind.

 

At the end of the day we went to a restaurant downtown on the water called The Twisted Fish.  Crab and salmon tacos.

 

Afterward we went to an awesome park we had seen while driving.  Zeke didn't even need the equipment.  Just give him some green grass and a hill to run up and down, and he's a happy camper.

On Monday, our big splurge was to go whale watching.  It was well worth it, and we got a half price discount for being locals so it was hard to pass up.  We saw three different sea animals while out on the boat, and we had another unusually nice day with no rain.

 Hump back whales

 Stellar sea lions

 Orcas

 Needless to say, it was a busy trip that tuckered us out everyday, but such a memorable last trip as a family of 3!

A Parenting Devotional

I am reading a weekly pregnancy devotional just like I did with the first pregnancy.  This time around, different things are sticking out to me.  This is a piece of one devotional that I have really been pondering and trying to focus on during the past few weeks.

Mothering

It is normal to feel some bit of nervousness when you are being faced with a new challenge, and mothering is no exception.  Many women find themselves concerned with how they will handle the stress and demands of mothering.  How are they going to feed the baby, change the diapers, get the baby to sleep and all the other things that must be done.  In many ways, we let how efficient we are at completing these tasks be the gauge of our success at mothering.

It's not that these physical needs are unimportant, they are important to your baby's health.  However these things are eternally insignificant.  There is no test in heaven for how easily you can get a baby to fall asleep, how long your baby can go without eating or how quickly you are able to change a diaper. 

Instead, as you think about the challenges awaiting you as a new mother focus your energy on the eternally significant mothering skills.  How effective are you at modeling love and serving God?  How good is your ability to love unselfishly?  What example do you give your child for forgiving and seeking forgiveness?  These are the important skills of mothering.  These are the skills that are going to make a difference in your child's life.

It is so easy to get caught up in the physical demands of parenting, especially when your child is a baby and has so many physical needs and is helpless to fulfill any of them on their own.  To also have a toddler that still has many needs only amplifies these demands.  Both Aaron and I have wondered how we are going to do it all.  We have no doubt that we can and will do it well; however, we are already putting pressure on ourselves to figure out how it is all going to work.  

This passage is comforting because it reminds me in such a simple way that there are other important things in parenting that will have far more impact on our kids' lives than eating, sleeping, bathing, and the like.  Even as a toddler, Zeke is already picking up on how Aaron and I react to certain situations.  He mimics us and responds to the things we do.  To think that our impact on his spiritual life will come down the road when we can communicate by means of a two-way conversation is wrong.  We are already impacting how he sees the world, the people in it, and ultimately the importance of faith and God in our lives.

This is why it's important that Zeke sees us praying and reading the Bible, even though he doesn't understand everything about it.  It's why it's important that we don't yell or react harshly when responding to conflict with others, with him, or within ourselves.  It's all important because he sees it and processes it even as a 17-month-old child.  It will be the same with our second from the start of his or her life.

And so this is on my mind as we embark on a new journey with another child to look after.  In the midst of the sleepless nights, constant feedings, double diaper duty, and tears and probable tantrums from a newborn and toddler, I want to keep our children's spiritual lives in the forefront of our minds.

Enjoying the Sunshine and Good Things to Come

Spring, and even summer, are in the air here in Bethel.  We have thoroughly enjoyed a season with many sunny and unusually warm days.  This makes for a good combination with a busy toddler who loves the outdoors.  We have spent many afternoons on our deck letting Zeke run around with Kiah and ride his "bike."  It's on the best side of the house to have the sun heat up the temperature just a few degrees warmer than the rest of the air, and it's blocked from the North wind.  So even some of the cooler days can feel nice and summery on the deck.  We have also been riding our bikes more than ever this year.  Last year we bought a chariot at a garage sale for Zeke to ride behind us, and it has worked out great.  He enjoys the ride, whether long or short, and we get some exercise.  I also got a new camera last week, which explains the multitude of pictures.  It's been fun to experiment with and was definitely worth the upgrade to capture more non-blurry photos of a very busy little boy.  We're not at 100% with the non-blurry photos, but it's much better than before. 

The river broke up a week ago, which is about a month earlier than last year.  Aaron is working on getting a different motor running for our boat with the goal of being out on the river by next week!  We've thought about selling our boat but every time we do, we remember how much we love to get out on the water for some downtime in the outdoors.

When we are at home, Zeke has found a keen interest in the pantry.  If we leave the door open for a minute, he will rush in and find a snack as quickly as he can.  The third shelf up just doesn't cut it anymore.  We often walk back into the kitchen to find this:

Some days, the snack choices are healthier than others, but we usually let him indulge for a few minutes no matter what after all the hard work of getting the package down and opened.  Otherwise when at home, books are always customary, and Zeke and Kiah have found a playful kinship recently.

We had a fun, relaxing Easter with friends that included some grilling, soaking in the sun, and of course, an Easter egg hunt with a basket full of goodies.

Perhaps the biggest news of all, which is really not news at all anymore:

Baby makes 4 in August!  Baby "A2" is well on his or her way into the Anderson family.  This pregnancy is flying by and all is going well.  When I questioned Aaron about all his sweet and salty cravings lately, fatigue, nausea, and headaches he replied, "Well, someone  has to have some pregnancy symptoms around here!"  All that to say, no major real pregnancy symptoms to bring us down beyond the first few weeks.  The third trimester could be different, but I am hoping the long days and summertime activities will keep the energy high.

Two years ago on Mother's Day we found out we were having Zeke.  We bought the Alaska Grown shirt with no baby to show for it yet, and now we have a little one that can actually fit into it and another one on the way!  It's crazy how quickly time passes.

This is how Zeke feels about becoming a big brother

Okay, really he doesn't understand, but we say the words baby, brother, sister, and big boy a lot these days.  Boy or girl, we're as excited as can be about adding a new little one to the family.