Today was great!

It rained all day. I only stepped outside one time and that was to see how cold it was. But you know what, we are all starting to feel better....Micah took naps today...Victor and Kerry Johnson brought us some BBQ Ribs that were absolutely out of this world! We almost ate every last one of them! And I have to say that one of the best part was being with my wife and kids. We have been couped up in this house all week, but it has been well worth it.
The kids behaved so well today. I know that sounds simple, but this has been a real tough issue for us this past week. It has actually been an issue for quite a long time. Especially with Abigail. I know she behaves so well when we are in public and when guests are over. But there are some days where she just does not listen to Mommy or Daddy hardly at all. We have struggled so much about how to train her and guide her heart in the right direction. Well, today was definitely a very positive confirmation that she is taking strides in the right direction. I did not have to correct her but only ONE time today. Other than that she listened the first time, every time! And she did it with pleasure and gladness! While I take little credit for this I will say there are two key factors....consistency for one, and prayer for another!
Thank you, Lord for softening the heart of our little girl. You have softened ours and taught us a valuable lesson about faith through all of this. May we be good parents to all our children and train them to be mannerly, respectful, but more importantly than all of that, may their hearts honor and glorify YOU! For our tasks as their parents will never be finished, but will only change as they grow. May we be good shepherds while they are in our care.

It Just Fell Into Place - Literally!

Well, it may not have fallen into place exactly where I wanted, but the retaining wall project has come to a solid half-way point. Well...hopefully solid. Check out the pictures as I recount how the day went.

On previous days, I dug the trench for the foundation. Then I staked out the grade with some new stakes and mason line (all from Ashley's Dad as a gift to help me get this project started right). Ashley's Dad helped me level the line and set the stakes. He also dug in the trench in his nice clothes. Without his help and the materials he provided, this project would have taken so much longer.

That was a few weeks ago...well, I've been purchasing a few blocks of stone here and there. I'd purchase as much as I could fit in the van just for the first couple of rows. Then today, I made the big purchase of all the rest of the stone, and here's how it unfolded...

This is where I started this morning. I had done this much in the previous month. These first few rows were crucial. If they were not level or straight, then the top would look awful. The turn never did "turn" out as I had hoped. So, overlook the flaws if you will.

Look level? Well, it was! So, it was off to Lowes to get the rest of the stones. All I had to do at this point was lay the rest of the layers. Simple enough! By the way...wonder why there is cinder block down there? That's going to be the part of the wall that no one will see. This helped us shave some of the costs of building the wall, and helped me ensure a nice, level foundation.

Everything looked great! How does it look? Well, here's where I began to acknowledge the fact that God does have a sense of humor. You see, I had just completed the half-way mark on the top and last row (there are 9 layers) when I thought to myself, "Hey, maybe I should pack in some dirt to stabilize the wall since it is getting quite tall now." Good thought, huh? Well, I figured I'd finish off the row and then pack in the dirt since I only had about 3 more stones to lay. So I laid one more down and just as I turned to get the last few stones....well, take a look.
I had just thought that the wall needed to be stabalized, and I guess I didn't think fast enough. I probably should have been frustrated, but I honestly couldn't help but laugh. I was building the wall Jericho style...it's the newest rage!

Okay, so take two. I'll let these pictures tell the rest of the story. But wall 2 certainly wasn't as nice as wall #1. Just after the wall fell (without the aid of trumpets, priests, the ark of the covenant, or the children of Israel!) it began to rain (in more ways than one). Then Nathaniel woke up from his nap fevered, crying, and soaked in pee pee. And Micah was screaming because he would not go to sleep. So, all the attention, time, and care that Wall#1 received was definitely not granted to Wall #2. Here's the rest of the pictures...





I learned my lesson the second time around. I packed in the dirt as I went. With every two rows, I stopped to shovel and pack. And here's the final result! I'm glad that one's over...but there's still more to do. I need to brick up the back of the bed, fill it with dirt, then trasplant the rosemary bushes. After that...I'll take a break!

All I heard was "Abigail, oh no!"

I was doing something, I'm not sure what, but I was about to walk into our bedroom this morning when I heard Ashley (who was in the bathroom getting ready for the day) exclaim, "Abigail, oh no, honey." Well, the pictures tell the rest...

Yes, that's lipstick on those cheeks.

Now, you have to admit, the earrings really do match the lipstick, you gotta give her that much! I'm holding on to this one until that husband comes along. He better realize that she was MY princess first!

Thanks Davis Family!

Just wanted to let thank Dan and Rachael Davis for bringing over some delicious calzones for us. We devoured them last night. It was so much fun. I haven't had a good calzone in a long time. Thank you guys for everything!

Thank you, Lourcey's!

A special shout out to Rob and Emily for all they have down to help us with meals for the next few weeks. Last night they brought us chicken pot pie and we enoyed their company as they stuck around to enjoy it with us. Rob even made some awesome chocolate cupcakes. It was the best meal I've never tasted (I'm sick right now so even though I ate it I couldn't taste a thing). But coming from Ashley and everyone else, it was delicious. Question: If you can't taste a chocolate cupcake is it still bad for you? I personally don't think so.

First Smile

Micah smiled for the first time yesterday morning. He smiled at Mommy just as we were all getting ourselves together before church. Guess he knows a good thing when he sees it! This is the earliest any of our children have ever smiled. He smiled again yesterday evening at Nathaniel. Pretty soon we'll be able to catch one on camera and post it. I told Micah he could stop growing any minute now.

No More Moms

Well, reality has set in. Here we are, just us and three kids under three. For the past few weeks both of our moms have come and gone. Ashley's mom helped out for the first two weeks while my mom helped this past week. Now that they are gone we are left defenseless against the schemes of our children. Okay, well, I guess its not that bad. AND we survived taking them all to church today. One thing's for sure, they were both a huge help and already miss their company greatly! Life just isn't the same when Mom isn't around. Guess I've realized that more than once in my life. BUT it's one of those lessons God teaches us when he wants us to rely on him more. He has truly blessed me with an incredible wife and awesome mother to my children. I don't know how she does it! She constantly puts all of us before herself. She will tire herself and starver herself to death before we ever grow tired or hungry. (And she wonders why she's so exhausted by 8 pm every night!)
Well, here goes nuttin'. Guess we're in it for the long haul now. I let you know in 18 years or so how things turned out. If we survive that long...or if the kids survive that long! ;0)

A Collegiate Bermuda Triangle?

I was having a highly intelligent discussion with a coworker today. He happens to be an NC State fan, and was absolutely disgusted at the sight of my Carolina hat. He got no sympathy from me since we are, umm, winning. But that is beside the point. We came to a very interesting conclusion. Those who refer to themselves as Duke fans absolutely despise Carolina, but don't mind State too much. Those who refer to themselves as Carolina fans absolutely despise Duke, but don't mind State so much. And those who refer to themselves as NC State fans absolutely despise both Carolina and Duke.
My brother, Andrew is a true testimony to this. As is any other State fan I've ever met.

SO...the conclusion of the matter is, when it comes to NCAA basketball, being the Carolina fan that I am, anyone but Duke! Duke fans will also say, anybody but Carolina! But State fans always say, Anyone but Duke or Carolina!

Of course, not a single one of them holds a candle to Coastal Carolina football! GO CHANTS!

Happy Valentine's!

One day is simply not enough to show my wife how much I love her. So I guess I'll just have to spend the rest of my life showing her. I think I can live with that! I remember our first Valentine's Day together....

We were not yet married, but were certainly heading in that direction. In fact, if my memory serves me correctly, it was that first Valentine's that convinced me that Ashley was crazy about me! It was pretty early in the morning (well, early for a college student) and I was sleeping-in (as most college students do), but was awakened by some noise in the kitchen downstairs in my little townhome in Lynchburg. My roomate was quietly talking with someone, and the air was full of the delicious smell of breakfast. I got my act together, so to speak, then went downstairs to investigate. Sure enough, Ashley was downstairs fixing breakfast for me. Scott (my Texan roomate, who was the best roomate I ever had in college) was helping Ashley get everything set up for me.

Now, as if that wasn't enough, sometime that day I was not allowed to go into my bedroom upstairs (although I don't exactly remember the time frame). Ashley was setting something up for me. Once I was finally allowed to go in, I was instructed to find all the Hershey's kisses that were hidden around the room.

This sounded really fun because it involved chocolate, but I was not ready for what I was about to find. With each and every one of those kisses was a little piece of paper sticking out of the top (as is usually the case with Hershey's kisses). But these were not the papers Hershey put in the kisses. Ashley had removed every last one of those papers and replaced them with little pieces of her own paper. Each little paper was a quality or trait of mine that she admired. She had diligently unwrapped and rewrapped all of those kisses (there were at least 30 or so) and put her little notes in them. (I don't know which was more difficult, unwrapping and rewrapping all the candies, or coming up with 30 or so qualities of mine).

I'll never forget that first Valentine's.

What did I do for her? I'll never forget that either...

I had it all planned out...beginning on February 1st, she got one rose with a handmade card. She got one every day for fourteen days. The last day was very special because it completed the whole bouquet. She had those flowers on her dorm room wall for the longest time.

I actually still have the crayons and envelops I used for the project. Actually, I think the kids have used the crayons by now...they may be non-existent. Anyway...she loved it.

And then I had to top it the next year. I'm not sure what I did that year. I do remember what we did our first Valentine's together as husband and wife. We drove down to Lynchburg from Clifton Forge and biked on the Blackwater Creek trail. We biked about 6 or 7 miles without thinking about how we had to turn around and bike back. So it ended up being about 12 or 13 miles. We were absolutely worn out, but we had a blast!

Ohhhh, sweet memories. I love you Ashley so very much, and am so proud to be your husband. Happy Valentine's Day, my love!

Carolina vs. Duke

Contrary to what some critics may say, last night's game was NOT just another game. This matchup is probably one of the biggest and best in all of college basketball. What other rivalry out there compares to such a one as this. Personally, I am glad that Carolina beat Duke (as I always am). What made last night's game so exciting was the fact that both are ranked in the top five in the nation. As any ACC fan knows, anything can happen in the ACC. I mean, State could beat Wake Forest, for crying out loud! Who would have imagined a thing like that. I'm just very proud to belong to a state like North Carolina that has several of the nation's top rated schools within its borders. UNC, Duke, NC State, Wake Forest, and even Appalachian State are some of the most well known schools in the country. The first three schools are so closely located to each other, which makes their rivalry all the sweeter.

My brother, Andrew (here's your 90 seconds, man!), graduated from State, and so has been brainwashed to hate Carolina. He was also taught to hate Duke (but this does not fall in the brainwash category since it comes so easily to most people). I called him last night to congratulate him on the Pack's victory over Wake Forest. I asked him who he wanted to win the Carolina/Duke game. I was actually baiting him to see if he would reveal some hidden love for one team or the other...but he didn't take the bait. In response to my question of who he wanted to win, he said, "Personally I hope the roof caves in...but since that probably won't happen I think Carolina will win by 20."

He was close...Carolina won by 14.

Ohhh, sweet North Carolina. Does anyone else get as excited when March rolls around? Maybe they do, but I know we had the brackets in our laps and pencils in hand as early as we could write. I think it's just in our blood. North Carolina basketball will always be a legacy regardless who is #1.

(PHOTO: Carolina vs. Duke, 2006 at the Dean Smith Center. Photo by Anders Brownworth. Courtesy wikipedia.org. Used by permisssion.)

Chicken Parmisan

Okay, so I guess we weren't exactly prepared for this sort of thing quite yet. As you have probably seen by now, Abigail turned three years old this past Sunday. Well, she has certainly wasted no time at all on growing up. A question she posed at the dinner table Monday night was nothing short of a curve ball. It was one of those dreaded questions like, "Where do baby's come from?" But that wasn't the question. Are you ready? Any guesses yet?

We're sitting quietly at the table, struggling to get the kids to eat their dinner (nothing new about that one!), and Abigail, as innocent as can be says, "Mommy, Nathaniel's bottom has something sticking out of it in the front. What is that?" I was in histerics! We all laughed at that one. Being the totally supporting husband that I am, I looked at my intelligent wife to whom this question was addressed and said, "Yeah, Mommy, what is that?"

And as if the silence then laughter wasn't enough to deter little Abigail, she was honestly wanting an answer. She kept on, saying, "I don't have that."

So, just to prod her a little bit I intervened and asked Abigail, "Honey, what do you think it is?" She said, "I don't know." Then I looked at Ashley and asked, "So, what exactly do you want to call that thing?"

I mean this is a big deal! Whatever you choose to call it will imprint a label on a three year old's mind for a very long time. AND it will most definitely be repeated at the most unfortunate and embarrasing times in the future.

As Ashley and I were discussing quitely amongst ourselves what to call "the thing" Abigail said that she knew what to call it, and said it was....get this...."chicken parmesan."

I haven't the faintest clue what the connection would be, but you can imagine the roaring laughter that erupted after this. I'm afraid I laughed the loudest. Ashley was a close second.

SO....we resolved to call "the thing" a "Pee Pee." AND of course, this was not enough. SIDENOTE: As most of you who have ever been around a talking 2 or 3 year old know, there is never only ONE question. There are probably about 100 why's to follow one main question, and as if it were some strange phenomenon, you feel somewhat obligated to have an answer for every last one of those why's.
So then she asked, "Why does he have that? Why don't I have one?"

And we ended the discussion with simply, "Because God made him a boy and that's how he made boys."

Now, there are two things I have learned from this most intriguing discussion with the flowering youth of my home. ONE - my innocent little girl is growing up too fast. And TWO - I will never look at Chicken Parmesan the same again!

Happy Three for My Dear Abby

That's right, yesterday was Abigail's 3rd birthday. I can't believe how quickly she has grown. She has been looking forward to her birthday for so long now. She was so excited that it had finally arrived. She helped pick out her birthday balloon, her flavor of cake, and flavor of icing. We asked her what she wanted to eat and she said PIZZA! So of course, you know me, I couldn't resist!

It's nothing short of amazing to be able to watch her grow up. She's a very bright little girl, and is way too smart for her own good. I told her she needed to slow down and that she was growing up too quickly. I also told her that no matter how old she gets, she will always be my girl.

Happy Birthday, my sweet Abigail!

Love,

Daddy

House Project

We've taken advantage of the warm weather to put the rosemary bushes in the ground that have been sitting on the porch since Christmas. They're looking good, and they smell wonderful.

Spring Fever

I don't know about everyone else, but all this warm weather has gotten me really excited about Spring coming. When is the first day of Spring anyway? Well, we took advantage of the weather this past Saturday to head out to the park. It was Micah's first park visit. I don't know why Ashley wouldn't let me go down the slide with him?

TGIF!

I have a new found appreciation for Friday's since I began my new position on the weekday shift. In a nutshell...Friday's are awesome! Today was no exception. It was such a beautiful, sunny afternoon drive home, and I wouldn't rather be anywhere than home today with my incredible family.
I have gotten into a sort of after-work routine. Everyday, when I arrive home, the kids are usually napping, so everything is very quiet and still. Micah has usually just finished eating and is ready for a snooze himself. So I shed off my layers from work (it's a cold warehouse) and happily place Micah on my chest and kick back for a snooze of my own. For the past several days we have napped for a couple of hours like this. There's nothing like it in the whole world!
Simple pleasures are some of the finest treasures!

Thanks, Mom!

Mom recently posted an awesome post on her DIL. It brought tears to my eyes and joy to my heart! Check it out at her blog... confessionsofanerdmom.blogspot.com.

Little Boy Blue

Life with Micah is in full swing, and we are enjoying every minute of it. He has been such an easy baby. Everything about him is so adorable. I can't get enough of him. From a caretaking perspective, he is sleeping very well, eating well, and is beginning to be alert of big sissy and brother's presence. I'm amazed at how strong this little guy is, especially with his head. I tell everyone he came out looking around. One the MDs at our pediatrician's office said that it's usually the runt of the litter that is the strongest. But of course! They have to be!
I was just pondering Abigail's future with these two fine young men as her protector-brothers...her poor gentleman callers. They will have to meet the approval of so many of us Erdmen (grandparents and uncles included!) which will NOT be an easy task. Oh well...too bad for them. But then, I have a feeling the lady-friends of these two young men will have quite the difficult time as well. BUT thank the good Lord that those days are a loooooong away from now!