Speaking of videos...

Some of you may know that we recently mourned the passing of our 2 laptops- Mr HP and Mr. Gateway. We lost almost all of our photos of Wyndham minus a few CDs from our friend Lisa and some I had saved on facebook. We are now proud owners of an IMac complete with an external hard drive as well as some online storage so we will (hopefully) never go through that ordeal again. So, I've finally gotten around to loading our recent pics and videos onto the computer and found these beauties. Enjoy!

Sophia Elyse



Twinkle Twinkle Little Star...Wyndham put her musical talents to use to soothe "Baby Sophie" off to sleep...Sophie is about 4 days old...




Who is Jesus?




La Bamba




Sophie spits...beware





A mother's first hand view.... possibly boring to the average onlooker, but this is what I do all day... :)

On that note...

So, searching for muppet-themed  videos on Youtube is much more entertaining than I thought... I really need to get a life!

Habenera a la Muppet

So, I know I should probably write a post with some actual information on how the move went, what our new church is like, how we are doing....but I found this muppet clip and thought I'd share it instead. I needed a good laugh today...it's been a long time.

PS: It gets a little redundant...and yet, you can't stop laughing

PPS: Carmen has nothing on Beaker

Wyn says the darndest things

Here are a few recent soon to be classic "Wyndhamisms"...

"Look Mom--It's Bawak Obama (pointing to TV screen)... I want him to come here. I want to ask him some qwestions".

"She just needs more balance in her life..." After a long crying bout by Sophie

"The Israelites were naughty. They disobeyed their mommies and daddies. God told them not to worship any other gods...but they doed it anyway." (doed pronounced "dood" ;)

"Can I go poo poo and pee pee in the sky?"

"I like goin' poo poo in my pull-up. It feels warm.."

"Good jobs buns! Way to Go!"- after a successful go on the potty.

And the one that always brings a tear to my eye---

"Sorry for being wude mommy."

See what a difference 3 years makes?

Labor Day 05

Labor Day 06

Labor Day 07


Labor Day (almost) 08

Here's Sophie in the famous white rocking chair...or should I say-- levitating above the white rocking chair. Who knows how long it will be before I can start adding "Sophieisms" to the list too:)

A Grayslake Poem

So I was doing some research on our new town's history and found this little ditty...hmmm.... My favorite line?
"Electric Lights and things to mate".... Good to know...

A little town in the County of Lake
In Illinois, the Grand Old State,
No one, I am sure can make a mistake
If they buy a home out in Grayslake.

From Chicago in just one hour,
Out amidst the shady bower,
The St. Paul trains will you there take
To this village on the lake.

There you get the gentle breeze,
Wafted through the forest trees
Tidy homes you there will find,
People of the finest kind.

A quiet place where you can rest,
Their stores are of the very best,
Also there is a lively school,
Where they teach the golden rule.

Everything is up to date,
Electric lights and things to mate
Surrounded by lakes and fields so fair,
Better go and locate there.

Churches too, where you can go
And sing the hymns both fast and slow
And learn the ways of truth and right
Which will make your home so bright.

Now I think I have said enough,
All wise men are up to snuff,
The truth of this, my little rhyme,
Is out upon the Saint Paul Line.

—Adolphus Chard, Chicago, Illinois

Poem published in the Grayslake Times in 1911. Adolphus was considered a teamster poet. He was the brother of Fred Chard, former constable of Grayslake, and uncle of Warren Chard, former Mayor of Grayslake.

Information for this page courtesy of the Grayslake Historical Society.

Sticky Hands, Warm Heart

Being a mom of 2 has definitely been a challenge. Couple that of course with moving and the many other stresses of life right now and I might as well be fitted for a straight-jacket!

The funny thing about coming home from the hospital with a newborn in my arms and a 3 year old awaiting is the moment you lock eyes with your first born only to know that "this is it"...the moment her life will change forever. It's not just R and D and Wyn makes three anymore. This is the Ross FAMILY. I remember a similar experience when we brought Wyndham home from the hospital. My parents had kept Ella (our 100lb black lab) for us for a few weeks after we got home to give us some alone time with Wyndham. The moment that Ella galloped back into our yard, I thought, "This is it...our first baby isn't the baby anymore"... I of course, cannot even being to compare Wyndham to our dog (!), but there is a similar epiphany involved...life changes.

I am happy to say that Wyndham has been doing outstanding as a big sis. She loves "Baby Sophie" and can't wait to help, to talk to her, and her favorite, "pet her head". She drags her desk chair up to the crib, leans in and says things like, "It's ok sweetheart. Don't cry. You're ok. We love you." She likes to sit in her pint-size rocker next to me with her baby dolls and feed and rock them to sleep while I do the same with Sophia. It's very cute.

On other fronts though, she has found her three year old stride as every other question is WHY, everything she touches breaks, and defiance is the name of the game. Here is a typical conversation with Wyndham:

W- Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy
D- What hon?
W- Mommy look at me. Mommy, look at my face. I'm going to tell you something. Everybody listen.
D-What is it Wyn?
W- (looking around for something to say...this usually takes 30 seconds or longer)...ummm...Why were we not born when Jesus made the world?
D-Uhhh..well, God knew about us even then Wyndham, but he hadn't created us yet.
W- Why?
D- Because it was a very long time ago...
W- Why was it a long time ago?
D- Because the world has been around a long time and many other people had to be born before it was our turn.
W- Why? Why does Jesus live in Heaven? Can we get wings and fly up and play with his toys?
D- Someday Wyn, When Jesus comes back to take us home to be with Him.
W-Why does He do that?
D- Do what?
W- Why does he take us to heaven?

You can see where this is going...in circles! I will say however, most of these conversations inevitably lead to a four point presentation of the gospel. Even if the conversation begins with something random like, "Why can't giants carry our house to Chicago?"...Somehow we always end up talking about the depravity of man... in "toddlerease" of course:)

Wyndham has been Randy's "special friend" these last few weeks too. As much as he loves this, he is trying to finish the attic remodel before we move...toddlers and powertools don't mix. I can't tell you how many times I am sitting in the nursery downstairs only to hear 30 seconds of little feet running around in our room, followed by the crash of some tool on the floor, followed by a loud reprimand from Randy, followed by 3 minutes of wailing (Wyndham), followed by 3 minutes of silence (Wyndham in time out), followed by laughing and giggling as Randy and Wyn (apparently NOT in time-out anymore) resolve the issue at hand. Story of my life... :)

Yesterday, Wyndham had been getting on my last nerve. She was doing flips on the couch, which knocked her glass of milk ONTO the couch, and then she proceeded to fall and hit her elbow on the coffee table. Later in the day, I was hoping to have some special "mommy and Wyn" time with her to make up for the morning disaster, so I commissioned her to help me to prepare dinner. This turned out to be disaster #2 as every piece of fruit I cut up, she popped into her mouth instead of the bowl. It's a little difficult to make fruit pizza if there is no fruit. When she started getting into the knife drawer and brandishing it as weaponry, I knew we were done.

I occupied her with something else only to come back to my cooking in the kitchen. I was preparing Williamsburg Soup from scratch, and a fruit pizza for dessert. I went on with my recipe which involved making "gravy cream" to add to the broth. Well...mush-brain me didn't smell the jar of what I thought was FLOUR before I put it into the soup...Yeah...it was powdered sugar. Powdered sugar and Chicken broth don't make a great combo.

It had taken me nearly and hour and a half to cut up all of the ingredients for the soup, and in one swift cloud of white, it was ruined. My sugar-cookie fruit pizza dough didn't cook well either. It over flowed from the side of the pan and starting burning in the bottom of the oven. A few moments after the smoke cleared, I cut my finger on a knife and was bleeding profusely all over the floor...I had no option but to bawl like a baby and run to my room.

Wyndham, ever so concerned with mommy, ran after me. "Why you cry like a baby mommy?" she asked as she tenderly stroked my hair. "Let me kiss your boo boo". I told her it was more than that, Mommy was stressed out because nothing seems to be going right and she is worrying about life. I went on to share that God tells us not to worry though, so mommy needs to pray to ask Him for help.

"I will pray with you mommy" she said and she grabbed my bloody finger and bowed her head and closed her eyes. "Dear De-Jus, please help mommy's boo boo and make her not to worry. In De-Jus name, Amen."

Could this tiny little being who had been annoying me all day have such insight, such awareness? Toddlers are fascinating people. I'm so thankful that God communicates with us through our children...tiny, sticky hands and all.

The problem with pain

God has provided a clear path for our family..so why do I still hurt?
I have been experiencing something very new and very real lately-- pain. Pain so deep, there are times it takes my breath away. I know that we have much to be thankful for, and it is comforting to know that we will soon begin a new chapter in our lives in Chicago...but I can't erase the last year of our lives so as to avoid thinking of everything that "almost was".

We moved to Minerva ready to serve, ready to connect and ready to settle. I never in my wildest dreams imagined living in a small country town in the middle of Ohio...but everything seemed to be coming together so perfectly, it was the obvious step. We had been married several years, had started a family and were ready to settle down. I was ready to step away from teaching for the time being and support Randy in any way that I could while doing the other most underpaid job in the world- being a mom:)

Something I have learned about myself over the years is that I struggle with trusting and a voracious desire to control. In the beginning of our marriage, this played out in my ability to teach and have that "stable" salaried job. This caused a lot of contention between Randy and I..thankfully, that has changed a great deal..especially over the last year. Needless to say, it was something I could do- something I could control..something that gave me "safety".

My perfectionism has also been an out-working of the same inward issue--everything has to be done a certain way...every detail of my job, my life...even my house and how I organize certain things. Life has always had a certain "order" to it.

Living with family- having half of our earthly possessions in storage for almost 2 years was quite a challenge for a person like me. Trying to be a self-sufficient family when you live with 3 other adults was a challenge and not having any marital privacy tends to wear on you after a while. I think that it was tolerable only because I had a healthy hope for the future..the idea that, "it will all be worth it when this is over."

I still have this hope...but am carrying some battle wounds. Having relationships and your hopes and dreams for the future ripped away from you in such a cruel and unjust way is painful. What makes it worse is that we have committed to walking away in the most Christ-like way that we can. This means...we are leaving quietly. Not only does this drive me insane because I want to shout from the rooftops the truth of what happened at this church, but also, because almost all of our relationships, our ministry, our whole world was cut off at the knees before it had really gotten started.

It's an inescapable pain. The kind that causes restless sleep and hits you like a brick wall the second the dreams have cleared from your head each morning. My heart aches so much there are times my chest actually hurts.

This pain has manifested itself in more than one way... the birth of our beautiful Sophia was quite eventful if you've read the previous blog. The birth was so fast, there was no time for any medical intervention. Now, I know that women have been doing this for thousands of years, but when you are truly caught in a situation like this, panic sets in. I think I have been struggling with a bit of "post-birth" trauma since then. The pain was so intense, and no one could do anything for me. I just had to... endure it...I stared into the faces of the doctors, nurses and Randy and suddenly knew...this is it. I have to fight.

Even as all of the details of our move are worked out, I still have days where I feel that we are just "enduring" it...Randy keeps reminding me that that is exactly what Christ did for us...The other night before bed, I was sharing all of these connections with Randy, and he reminded me of who I called on for help during the birth...It was Jesus. Over and over again... I called on Jesus. I couldn't save myself, Randy couldn't...even the trained professionals couldn't... He was right.

It was the deepest most profound experience of my life. A situation where there was truly nothing left except dependence on God. I say I have faith...I call myself a Christian...but until I had nothing left, I still was trying to face life on my own strength--alone. I'm embarrassed to say that it took something so extreme to learn this lesson, but I am so thankful that God cared enough to allow it.