a murray family vacation...

traveling with a two year old and a three year old is always interesting. this year kyle and i decided that we would take a nostalgic vacation to myrtle beach. both of our families traveled to myrtle beach frequently. my family went there every summer until i was in high school. we thought it would be fun to recreate some of those memories with harper and calvary. kyle and i both had awesome childhoods and those summer vacations are fond memories for us---and we only want the best for harper and calvary!

we stayed in a resort that had a room with a king sized bed, a bathroom, a kitchen, and a living room area. after traveling all day we spend about 3 hours on the beach (no nap for the kiddies) and then went to eat and explore. after all of exploring and eating and playing we felt sure that the kids would pass out from the excitment...we put on a movie at 8 and by 10 0'clock they were still going strong--laughing and giggling because they were having a "sleepover".

day 2 was recovery day--calvary was not happy anywhere and harper was having a tough time too---everyone enjoyed a nap this day---we also played putt-putt!

day 3 was the best day of all... everyone was rested and ready to have fun. we played on the beach all day and when naptime came for calvary, harper and i stayed on the beach for a couple more hours of sandcastles and ocean time. later that night we went to broadway at the beach and the kids rode the rides from the pavilion that kyle and i rode as little ones! they were completely fearless. and that night they were both so exhausted that they fell asleep before their movie went off.

day 4 and 5 went basically the same. the whole time harper was incredibly sweet and both harper and calvary just seemed completely satisfied. they rarely asked for more than they had and if they did ask they were content with whatever answer they were given! calvary had his moments as a 2 year old little boy. sometimes it was all too much for him and he would get frustrated and nothing could satisfy him but being held (despite his best efforts to convince us otherwise he is still a baby and it is times like this that we are reminded that he needs to be treated as a baby and not as a preschooler). i had to remind myself a few times that the vacation was not ruined by a few meltdowns. i had to work hard to pull myself together and not let my attitude or stress ruin all the fun for everyone. tantrums only last a few minutes and most of the time they are nothing that a good quality nap can't cure.

this is the face of a little boy in need of a nap (also my foot in this picture is the only evidence that i was actually on this vacation):

Calvary's superman board...the only way he would go near the ocean (harper had a princess one of course):

pretty girl on the beach...

Harper jumping over waves...she would do this forever:

calvary having fun on the beach:

knitting...

okay, at the risk of sounding like i've completely lost any attachment with who i once was and who i am now becoming, i've decided to post something that has completely taken on a new meaning for me. i have recently taken up the art of knitting. i have always had an interest in sewing, crocheting, and other areas in that vein but i never had anyone that could show me how to do it. i taught myself how to crochet when i was in middle school and i bought my first sewing machine in college. my friend mariel and i tried our hand at making our own clothes but i never could figure out the patterns and had more luck just sewing without a pattern...i distinctly remember one pair of pajama pants i made that turned out horribly wrong...in spite of all of this i decided that i would pick up knitting. how sweet, i thought, to knit my precious little one a baby blanket.

so after 4 nights and 3 days of knitting i have 20 inches by 20 stitches. i learned relatively quickly but my mother in law warned me that the process was slow; and boy is it slow. as i sat there one night i looked at kyle and told him that all of this gave me a new perspective on the verse psalm 139:13 "you alone created my inner being. you knitted me together inside my mother." knitting is meticulous work. when i think about how much attention to detail i must have when casting on stitches and all of the other little steps i think about how perfect the verb "knitting" is to describe the process in which God creates us. God does not haphazardly spur on life; he spends time on each and every single cell that goes into each and every single person. that is amazing to me. God has personal interest in each of us before we are born because he took up the painstakingly slow process of knitting in order to create us! he must love us to do all of that and what an amazing thing to remember.

a simple reminder of the wonderfully intimate God we serve...

Little Jokesters

In regards to a previous post, we have recorded Harper and Calvary delivering their jokes. To ensure clarity read the post first, then watch Harper's and then Calvary's.

swimsuits, summer, pregnancy and cellulite!!!

ahhhhhh...what a wonderful thing 95+ weather is...well, it probably wouldn't be so wonderful if we weren't able to spend most of those days at a pool. the only draw back to the pool is having to get into a swimsuit. there was a time when i didn't care about putting on a suit and walking around without a care in the world. those times are gone. i can no longer sit peacefully by the pool reading or listining to music...now i have to bend and dip and swim on my knees all over the 6in to 2ft side of the pool. as if having to wear a bathing suit was not insult enough. on top of that i am now pregnant...and not quite the pregnant where people know that i am pregnant...just where i look like have gained quite a bit of weight and i am still trying to squash flesh into a bathing suit that used to fit but now reseambles sausage wrap. sigh. i keep trying to tell myself that all is not lost. i will be healthy and fit once more. being a mom does not mean that i have to neglect my health...in fact...i can send a healthy message to my children by making sure that i make good choices and exercise...i keep telling myself this...

baby update:

so far i've gained 6 pounds.
13 weeks along ( yay for almost done with the first trimester!)
i heard the little one's heartbeat and saw the little squiggly body on the ultrasound...
a strong heartbeat of 160+ beats per minute
little fact: tiny fingerprints have already formed on this little one's fingertips! how awesome!

harper and calvary are extremely excited. harper a little more so. calvary just keeps trying to look up my dress or down my shirt and see the baby. he has no interest in holding, feeding, or diapering a baby. the idea of a baby inside of mommy is neat, but outside of that, nothing. harper tries to take care of me and she reminds me that i shouldn't drink soda because the baby drinks what i drink and tells me that if i have a headache then the baby has a headache because that baby has what i have. she keeps trying to practice feeding calvary, diapering calvary, and holding calvary...but he fights her every step of the way.

all is madness and i love madness!

thanks!

i just wanted to spend a minute or two thanking everyone for their sweet comments, both on this blog and elsewhere, about the recent addition to our family! we wanted everyone to rejoice with us as we were celebrating what we see as a true blessing...but so often times people are blinded by age, financial situations, and other situations to celebrate and instead criticize. we thought that people may see us as irresponsible when we really are just two people that have so much love for harper and calvary that we couldn't imagine not sharing that love with more children. our lives are so much richer with their laughter and silliness (and even tears and grumpiness). i am far from the perfect mom; i question if i was too strict, too lenient, not spending enough quality attention, spending too much, feeding them the wrong food, letting them watch too many movies, the list could go on and on...but every night i pray that God will make me a better mother the next day and that my children will grow up strong in this world and steadfast in the ways of the Lord and being men and women of integrity...
i thought sleeping through the night and teething would be the hardest struggle with this early, formative years...
anyway, thanks for the continued support and sweet love for our family! we are learning and growing in love every day!

our family secret....

well for 8 weeks now kyle and i have been hiding something...

we are expecting our third precious little baby!!!

we are so excited (and yes, it is planned!)

this little one is due december 18th, so true to the murray form, we are already contemplating christmas names for this one...perhaps myrh murray or yule...we haven't settled on anything yet, but the possibilities are really endless...

please keep this precious little one in your prayers as our family continues to grow and change.