The Kids

I thought I would take a minute to give specific updates on the kiddos and let you know how to be praying for each one of them:

CARTER

It's hard to believe, but Carter is close to finishing his first year of school! This fall, he will begin Clasă Întâi (First Grade) at the public Romanian school.  This will be a big change for him!  Grădiniță (Kindergarten) in Romania is a bit more like Pre-K in the States; they have a very loose curriculum and lots of play time.  First grade in the public school will be much more structured and "school-like."  There will be 25 kids in his class rather than 10.  And he probably won't get as much help with translation into English.  He is making good progress with the language and occasionally surprises us with words and phrases we had no idea that he knew.  One day he stumbled upon a mess made by his little sister and without thinking twice said "Ce ai facut, Kamryn?!" which means "What did you do, Kamryn?"  I'm guessing he has heard that directed towards himself a few times at school! :)  Over the summer, we want to get him involved in a soccer program.  We aren't sure exactly when, where & how to do that, but we are working on it! 

Carter is a typical boy and loves playing sports, playing outside, climbing trees, and helping his dad around the house.  As would be expected, he has had ups and downs since we arrived in Bucharest, but overall has done an amazing job adapting to our new culture.  Please pray for him as he prepares for school next year.  Here are some specifics:

• That God would provide the perfect teacher for him (even if it doesn't match with my own preconceived ideas of what Carter needs)
• That God would provide a special friend in his class next year
• That he would make even more progress over the summer with his language learning
• That God would direct our steps in finding a soccer team or other special activity for him this summer

KAMRYN

Kamryn is...Kamryn!  She is full of energy and personality and brings so much laughter to our family!  It is so fun to watch her discover new things and see new parts of her personality each day.  She is extremely independent and loves to do everything herself: brush her teeth, feed herself, choose her clothes, etc. With that energy and personality, however, comes a lot of drama when she doesn't get her way!  We are working our way through the "terrible twos" and praying that it passes quickly!

Kamryn loves to sing and dance and watch cartoons!  One of her favorite movies is "Tangled" and we love to watch it with her because she copies most of the dances and tries to sing along with the songs - it's so cute!  She is a great big sister to Alexa; she loves to hug her and give her a pacifier and gets very concerned whenever Alexa cries.  She shows her love for her big brother in different ways...like chasing him, stealing his toys, banging him on the head...those type of loving gestures.  :) 

Things to pray for:

• In the next few weeks, we plan to begin the process of potty training.  Honestly, I am not looking forward to it, so please pray that is goes smoothly for all of us!:)
• Also, in the next month or so, we are planning to move her from the crib to a "big girl bed."  Another big milestone...please pray for a smooth transition.

ALEXA

Alexa Joy is truly a little bundle of joy!  She is a happy baby and usually content to sit and watch the craziness going on around her.  She loves to smile and laugh, and as long as she is fed and her diaper is clean, she just goes with the flow.  She is becoming more aware of her surroundings; her latest fascination is taking her pacifier out of her mouth, examining it, then trying to return it to her mouth. This can also be a frustrating process for her, but that doesn't stop her from trying.  She also just mastered the art of rolling over!  It kind of changes everything...no more leaving her unsupervised while I chase the other kids around, but it's exciting to see her develop new skills.  She first rolled from her back to her belly, then just a couple days ago figured out how to get from her belly onto her back.  We also think she may be working on getting her first tooth!

Prayer Requests for Alexa:

• That she would continue eating and sleeping well...and maybe even start sleeping through the night consistently!
• That she would continue growing strong and stay healthy!

God has blessed us with three amazing children.  We are so thankful that He has given them us and trusts us to raise them.  It is an overwhelming responsibility and one we never want to take lightly.  Along with these specific requests, please pray for us as parents; that God would daily give us the strength and wisdom to raise them according to His Word.  And most importantly, that their hearts will come to faith in Christ and  they will live for His glory!