Grant's Farm

We took advantage of a beautiful fall day this past Saturday and went to Grant's Farm with the Porters. You'll have to ask Ben for the full history behind Grant's Farm, but it is the homesite of Ulysses S. Grant that was bought by the Busch family in the early 1900's. They kept rare animals on the farm and later turned it into a public park. You can get a tour of animals roaming around, walk through exhibits, feed baby goats & chickens, and of course, sample 2 free Anheuser-Busch products. No wonder this is a favorite for seminary wives & their kids!

You pay by the car to get into Grant's Farm. Since the birth of Josiah, it's been a bit trickier for the Porters and us to get around in one car, yet we didn't want to pay for 2 cars. Here to save the day - the Volvo Wagon! Anna & I each took a turn riding in the "way back". Fun when you're 6 years old...a bit awkward now. Especially facing all the other drivers...one guy was definitely laughing at me.

The kiddos buckled up and ready to go!

Enjoying the free beer

Family pic


Bigger family pic!

It was a little chilly, so Josiah wore this hat my mom (Mimi) knit for him. Isn't it sweet?

Fall Break - Party Time

We have had a busy weekend here in St. Louis. The seminary is on Fall Break, so Andy has been home each day and night...such a treat! We've taken full advantage of the break - resting, hanging out with lots of people, and of course, finding any excuse to have a party.

Party #1 - VA Tech versus Boston College - We had a few people over to watch the game on Thursday night. We're not going to talk about the last few minutes of the game...

Josiah sporting his VA Tech gear!

Ella in her VA Tech cheerleader outfit. She loves hanging out with her Lindenwood boys - Tyler & Brandon. Unfortunately, Josiah fell asleep before the Porters came over, so we didn't get a pic of both of them in VA Tech apparel.

Party #2 - Tyler's "The Office" Birthday Party

I am sure there are people who look at this blog who do not know what "The Office" is...it is a TV show that pretty much everyone out here is addicted to, at least in our age group. It's pretty stinkin' hilarious. Anyway, for Tyler's 20th birthday, his friends threw him an "Office" party. we all had to dress as one of the characters, we played Office games, watched episodes, it was great!

Josiah & I as "Future Pam" & "Jim, Jr."

Tyler & Shannon, aka "the I.T. guy and Angela"

Cake time

Andy as "Andy Bernard" and Ben as "Michael with the burnt foot" playing the Diversity Day game

Hannah & Lauren, aka "Pam" and "Kelly"

Ella & Josiah decided to have a pajama party towards the end of the night...I don't mean to brag, but aren't the precious?!? As you can see from the pictures, Josiah is mostly mesmerized by this cute older woman...


Party #3 - Dinner at the Wood House

Who knew eating rice cereal could be THIS much fun?!?

More 4 Month Old Pics

Josiah here...after taking a break from snapping pics for a couple weeks, my mom finally decided to pull out the camera again and capture how cute I am these days!

My Aunt Emily made me a "taggie" and I love holding it, grabbing all the ribbons, and chewing on them, of course. You'll find it in my hands most of the time these days!


I have started eating rice cereal! I had no problem learning the whole "spoon" thing (surprise, surprise...no problem with something associated with eating) and am learning to use my tongue well to swallow the cereal. I smile and laugh the whole time...I even open my mouth in anticipation of the next spoonful! Here I am with a cereal beard and a big grin.


These are just some pictures of me getting out of the bath a couple nights ago. I still love my baths. Mom & Dad might have to start wearing rain ponchos soon because I kick & splash the whole time, spraying water all over the bathroom. It's fun, though!

4 Months Old!

Josiah is now 4 months old! I can't believe we've made it this far...hopefully the Lord will continue to have mercy on us as we bumble through this parenting thing!

He had his 4 month check-up yesterday...here are his latest stats:
He weighs 15 lbs 2.5 ozs (58th percentile)
His height is 25.75 inches (80th percentile)
We've got a healthy, growing boy on our hands!

He now loves his exersaucer, as it allows him to bounce and be on his feet...


Please be praying for us over the next few nights as we do some "sleep training", as recommended by the doctor. Josiah has been waking up multiple times a night, just wanting his pacifier or to say hi to us. The doctor said we should let him cry it out and encourage him to sleep 10-12 hours a night. The end result would be great, as some of us haven't had a full night's sleep since June, but I fear this weekend is going to be not so fun. I know it seems like such a silly thing in light of what some folks are going through, but I do covet your prayers for us, as we operate on little sleep, but still try to love each other and our son.

Nashville

Josiah is only 3 1/2 months old, yet he has already been to 4 states and through a few more! This past weekend we went to Nashville, TN for a seminary class trip and to see some great friends. On Friday night we met up with Heather, one of my TCU roommates. She took us around town and to a famous place for dinner. She's a songwriter and singer...she'll be real famous soon, so we had to get Josiah's picture with her! Now he can say, "I knew her when..."

We also met up with the Bentons (our old pastor & his wife - our adopted St. Louis parents) on Sunday. We spent the afternoon and night with them and had so much fun! They loved on Josiah quite a bit.

Josiah has a new trick! He has discovered his toes and is now constantly grabbing them and playing with them. He laughs at himself the whole time, which is pretty fun too.

Hearty, Healthy Kid

Apparently, we raise healthy, hearty babies in the Wood family. We had an inadvertent trip to the doctor's office yesterday. We were convinced something must be wrong with Josiah. He had woken up multiple times during the night for 3 nights in a row & was not eating super-well. What loving, happy child wakes his parents up multiple times unless there is something wrong?!? Certainly not MY son, who is soooo close to sleeping through the night...I can almost taste a full night of sleep coming...perhaps that led to my frustration and certainty that something was wrong with him. Anyway, we took him to the doctor and he was declared "perfectly healthy & normal". I kept asking the doctor to double-check, but there was no explanation and we were basically told that he's just a baby and babies do things like this. To top it off, Josiah smiled, giggled, and played with the doctor the whole time...not a tear in sight. What a turkey! We did find out that he now weighs 14 lbs, 11 oz. He's gained 2 1/2 lbs in about 7 weeks! Must be the gobs of peanut butter I eat daily :) So, we had our first trip to the doctor where we truly felt like "first-time parents" just searching for an answer. Oh well, I am sure they see plenty of people like us. YAY for parenting, not much sleep, and unpredictability!