Faithfulness

I have to tell you how God has been proving Himself faithful to my sweet little two-year-old son. I love this story so much! A few weeks ago, as Drew and I were driving home from my parents house in Gobles, Drew tells me that he wants to see a police car. I respond that I can't make a police car appear, but that he could pray and ask God to show him a police car. He responded, "No, not God, Jesus" (a concept that is easier to explain than it is to understand) so I said, "Okay, Jesus." So we prayed. A simple prayer that went something along the lines of:

Dear Jesus, please show Drew a police car. And not one that is pulling Momma over. Amen.

Drew uttered this prayer as we were turning onto a back, country road on our way home and I started praying that God would show Himself to Drew, that He would reveal His faithfulness to Drew ... I must confess that I was worried that Drew would be disappointed because it is not often that I see police cars while traveling to and from my parents house. As we are driving down the road, the miles and my silent prayers passing by, I start to slow down because there is something in the road ahead of me. I can't quite make out what it is ... as I draw nearer, I see that it is a downed tree -- and it is completely blocking the road. I pull up closer to it to turn around, and start to get excited. "Drew, look!" I say, "Look there, through the tree ... do you see what that is? Drew, it is a police car!" And sure enough, our faithful God, had timed our trip just right to see the police car through the tree. It was so exciting and amazing! I just kept thanking God for revealing Himself. Since then, Drew has gotten into a habit of just praying to see something ...

Dear Jesus, please show Drew-bug a police car ... Dear Jesus, please show me a ambulance ... a fire truck ... a hummer ... Amen.

Whatever it is, ole' eagle-eye Liby (that is my nickname for Drew these days) is on the lookout and is going to spot it soon. Sometimes, I forget we are looking for something, and then Drew will spot it and yell, "There's a hummer!" or "There's a fire truck!!" followed by, "Thanks God. Thanks Jesus." I am not exaggerating when I say that I can think of only two times in which Drew hasn't seen what he prayed for -- and he has prayed to see something no less than 20 times. It is amazing. God is already showing His faithfulness to Drew ... and to me.

He Had a Dream ...

So sweet! Today (okay, this really happened in May - I am so far behind, I am just typing it like I recorded it then), when Drew woke up from his nap, I asked him if he had any dreams while he was sleeping. He replied that he did. When I asked him what his dream was about, he simply said, "Jesus." I just love that!

My Favorites!

In June, we began the "favorites" stage ... which is the stage in which Drew declares what his favorite things are (and yes, we are still staunchly stuck in this stage ... my favorite). Anyway, at the beginning of this stage, we were sitting at the table eating breakfast and we had this short conversation:

D: "Momma, these are my favorite grapes." (As he holds about five grapes in his hand.)
M: "Okay, you need to eat your favorite grapes."
D: "No, Momma! They are special to me."

Hilarious. I totally laughed out loud and went to change over laundry. When I came back, he was eating his "special grapes".

A Whole Lot Older

Last month, Drew says to me like a regular ole' 10 year old kid: "Momma', I want to learn how to drive." Yeah, he is only two. I had to tell him that he would be able to once he gets bigger and turns 16. :)

These Are A Few Of My Favorite Things ...

I decided the other day I was going to ask Drew periodically what a few of his favorite things are ... here are his answers from August 17, 2011:

Animal: "Horsey" and "Elephant"
Food: "Macaroni" (and Cheese) and (Peanut) "Butter Toast"
Color: "Green", "Brown" and "Black"
Word: "Horsey Poopy"

The "Horsey Poopy" response is because we saw a horse, er -- well, going number two when we went to the combine derby at the local fair. Since then, we have talked about the horsey pooping a lot. :)

Hopefully, I will remember to keep asking him these things so we can see how/if he changes.

I Love ...

Today, at Christy's (Drew's daycare provider), as they were eating breakfast, Drew said the following to Christy:

D: Christy, do you know what?
C: What's that?
D: I love my Daddy.

How sweet is that?!

"Yeah! I went poopy in my big boy potty!!"

We had a monumental event in the Liby household tonight ... a huge poopy in the "big boy little potty" (as Drew likes to call it). It was a shock to all of us. Usually, Drew will sit down on his potty before he gets into the bathtub so that he can "go pee". He has been doing this for the past six weeks, or so, and has never had so much as a drip come out -- but he insists on doing it every time. Tonight, he sat down and then told Tim that he had to poop. Tim asked him if he was pooping -- which Drew confirmed, and I quickly joined them in the bathroom where we celebrated ... well, poop. LOL! As soon as he was done, we wiped and then we gave him a surprise to celebrate -- another "chugger" to add to his collection (from the TV show, Chuggington -- a Drew Liby favorite). It happened to be a really cool chugger, so Drew is super excited. We called Ma-wrose, Auntie Anne and Grandma Liby to share the big news. Even when he was in the bathtub, he was still celebrating and yelled out with his hands in the air, "Yeah! I went poopy in my big boy potty!"

It was so much fun to celebrate as a family this event in Drew's life. Drew is so proud of himself, and he can't wait to tell his daycare provider tomorrow. I like teaching my son new things, and one of the things I like to teach him the most is how to celebrate achievements. I am not going to lie ... the past few weeks have been ... well ... challenging to say the least. Drew is becoming more independent (not a bad thing in and of itself) and defiant. Sometimes after he is in bed, Tim and I are just worn out. But tonight ... tonight was so much fun! We laughed and giggled and celebrated right up until the moment we laid him down to sleep. Even as I type, I am still so proud of Drew. Below is picture of Drew showing off his chugger:

What a joy it is to celebrate. Proverbs 23:25 states, "May your father and mother rejoice; may she who gave you birth be joyful!" I cannot find the words that fully describe how blessed I am by Drew Liby -- even when he is being a stinker. These verses are a great reminder to rejoice, and tonight that is exactly what we are doing. Way to go, Drew Liby!

Smart as a Whip

Man, this little boy is so stinking smart! Just a bit ago, when I was in his room getting him from his nap, Drew bent over to pick up the cars he always sleeps with (on any given night, you can find two cars in Drew's crib with him -- usually the two most recent acquisitions). I told him that while he was doing that, I would open "his blinds" to the window in the room. While I am opening them, I am thinking to myself, would it be blind or blinds? Singular or plural? Hmmm. I hadn't quite figured it out, when I hear Drew pipe in, "Dere's only one bind in the room. Not two binds. Just one bind." He totally was correcting me. It was so funny. I never expected my two and a half year old son to correct my grammar! :)

Because of the Wonderful Things He Says ...

I know, I know, I know. I say the same thing all of the time. But it is true. Drew Liby is so stinking funny. Tim and I laugh out loud regularly at him. On top of that, he has the sweetest little heart. He is sensitive and compassionate, and I really love that about him. One of the things we need to work on: he isn't the most outgoing. That is fine, but he is getting to the point where he will start missing out on some really cool things if he doesn't step out of his "safe zone".

I only wish that you, my family and friends, could see him in his most relaxed and funny states that Tim and I are so blessed to experience. Here are a few of those moments from the past few weeks: Tim and Drew took a walk in the Wildlife Arboretum behind our apartments the other day. While walking Tim and Drew heard a very loud bird calling that sounded similar to this ... Dooo-doo. Dooo-doo. Dooo-doo. Tim stopped Drew and said, "Drew, do you hear the birds talking to us?" Drew said, "Yes, Daddy. They're saying, Drew-bug. Drew-bug. Drew-bug." He even said it in the same cadence as the bird!

I said to Drew, "Drew, you are my favorite little boy." He replied, "Mama, you are my favorite big boy."

Tim is riding in his first mountain bike race today. I am so excited for him, and I really wanted to go and watch him ride. However, with the weather (it is freezing outside!) and Drew's schedule, it wasn't possible for me to go. After making the final call this morning that Drew and I wouldn't go, I told Tim I was sad. A few seconds later Drew is crawling up in my lap to give me a snuggle. I said, "Oh, a snuggle. What is that for?" Drew said, "You sad, Mama." As he is crawling down he said, "You feel better, Mama?" How stinking sweet is that?

Drew loves to put his stuffed animals to bed. He will go and get them all out of his crib, on his own -- which is a task that if funny to watch, and pretty ingenious of him to come up with -- and then he will lay them on the couch or the floor and cover them up with his blankets. He will even bring out his pacifiers and cars to put with them. When we did this the last time we were playing, he was putting his doggy to sleep. He said, "Oh, Doggy wake up!". I pet Doggy on the head and said, "No, Doggy is sleeping. Night-night, Doggy.". Drew picks up Doggy and looks at him in the eyes and says very sternly, "No snoring, Doggy!". It was so funny -- of course, Tim and I busted up laughing and I had to call Ma-wrose to tell her.

The other day, we were driving and I saw a bunch of wild turkeys behind a building. I thought it would be cool for Drew to see, so I turned around and pulled very slowly into the parking lot so we could watch them. There were a ton of them. There were five males, and then a bevy of females. The females were mostly laying on the ground and taking dirt baths. The males, however, were in their full glory ... chests puffed and tail feathers spread out, strutting their stuff (can someone say mating season?!). After watching for a bit, I told Drew we were going to leave. I said, "Bye, turkeys." Drew followed with, "Bye turkeys. See you. Love you.".

Tim announced that it was sunny out. Drew replied, "That means I can wear my sunglasses." Pretty cute, huh? This child of ours is amazing and we are blessed parents because we get to walk through life with Drew Liby. I thank God for that little boy daily!

My Best Friend ...

On Thursday night, as we were arriving in Streetsboro, Ohio to visit with the Vanderheide family, I was telling Drew how excited I was that we were almost at my best friends house. I proceeded to ask him who his best friend was. I asked him if it was Maddox, his sweet little friend from church and my dear friend Kelly's son, and he said, "Noooo". I asked him, "Well, who is it then? Who is your best friend?" His response: Daddy. He said Daddy. You know that Tim about melted right then and there. It was so sweet!

He Just Makes Me Laugh

Tonight, as I was giving Drew a bath, we were joking around and he said something and I said, "No way, Dudes!" He replied, "Yes way, Mama Dudes!" He is so funny!

Funny Moments with Drew

This little boy is just killing me lately -- he is so funny! Here are a few examples:

Yesterday, I walked into the apartment and found Tim washing dishes and Drew sitting at the table eating lunch. I said, "Hi, Boys!" Drew responded, "Hi, Girl! Hi, Mommy!"

At Christy's the other day, Drew was telling Evelyn (one of the other kids that Christy cares for) that she couldn't get into a drawer that she was trying to open (a drawer, mind you, that Drew gets into all the time). He kept saying to her, "No, no, Evie. No, no.". When he finally "scolded" her into "obeying" (read: she's one and got bored so she decided to move on to something exciting) and she crawled away Drew said, "Good boy, Evie!".

Tonight at dinner, I told Drew that I was proud of him because he ate such a good dinner and tried everything on his plate. He looked at me and said, "In my bowl, too!". It was so clever - Tim and I both laughed out loud. He did have a plate of food and a bowl of fruit -- and he did try everything on his plate and ate all of the fruit in his bowl.

The other day, Drew and I met Tim for lunch. As we were drawing near to finishing, Tim let Drew have a taste of Pepsi. Drew took a drink and said, "Tat epsi hurt my tongue!" And then he asked for another drink.

And, just because I think this is pretty monumental, this past Saturday Drew said the following sentence: "Hold on, Mama. I put my pac in my crib. I commin!" That is 12 words! I think that is pretty good, don't you? :)

My Colors!

I asked Drew this morning if he wanted to color -- always a favorite past time in the Liby house. He immediately said yes and ran to his booster. I went and grabbed the supplies for him and brought them to the table. As I was sitting his notebook in front of him, he exclaimed, "My book!". As I set the crayons in front of him he yelled, "My colors!"

My colors ... that is funny stuff!

Fat Tuesday Surprise

Well, as my Catholic family members know, yesterday was Fat Tuesday. One of the best things about this day is the Paczki -- a delicious, high-calorie treat. In honor of this, I decided to purchase a couple for our family as a special Fat Tuesday treat. I purchased them on the way home from work, once I had picked Drew up from day care. I told him that I was buying a special treat that we could have our yummy special treat after he had napped, after daddy got home and after we had dinner. He was so excited. After we had dinner, and put away the groceries, Drew just kept asking for his "special treat in the bag". I told him that after he got a diaper change, we would eat our special treat. He ran to his room to get his diaper changed (unheard of for him to practically volunteer for a diaper change!). Tim was changing Drew's diaper and I stopped in the room to ask a question. Drew said something that neither Tim nor I understood, so Tim asked Drew what he said. Drew looked at Tim and said, "I talkin' to Mommy." It was pretty funny.

Fast forward a few minutes, and I am in the kitchen cutting up the packzi. Drew and Tim are in Drew's room finishing the diaper change and talking about our special treat and this is what I hear:

Drew: I want special treat! Special treat!
Tim: Do you know what it is?
Drew: Special treat!
Tim: It is a paczki.
Drew: Paczki! (slight pause) I LOVE PACKZI!

Tim and I busted up laughing. Drew loves packzi's -- and at that point he had never even seen one. Hilarious! Then, he gets to the table, where I have placed a few pieces for him on a plate, and he tells us he doesn't want them. I actually had to coax him to try to eat a sugar-covered, jelly-filled donut! After one bite, there was no going back! I guess he was right, he does love packzi's!!

I Won!

The other day, Drew and I were playing "cars" and were racing his Hot Wheels across his room. After one run, I said, "I won!" Drew replied, "I two! I laughed out loud for a long time after that. So funny!

A Sweet Heart ... Take Two

Okay, so no sooner did I publish my previous post then Drew just said another sweet little thing that just melted my heart ... we were playing a new game where I sit on the floor and he runs to me to give me a hug and I am "pushed over" by his strength so I fall back and we laugh. He loves this game! It is so funny because he just cracks up laughing. Once we start, he just wants to do it over and over again. Tonight, as we were playing, he runs into me, I fall back and we are laying on the floor giggling and he says, "I just love you". It was adorable and precious and not something I will soon forget.

A Sweet Heart ...

The other night at dinner, Tim was re-warming food to get a second helping. As he was standing, he came over to me at the table and began rubbing my shoulders (it felt wonderful). Drew looked at Tim and he said, "Ub my ack, Daddy. Ub my oul-ders." (Translation: Rub my back, Daddy. Rub my shoulders.) Tim told him that he would in a minute, when he was done rubbing mine. At this point Drew looked at me with his sweet little face and said in a sweet little quiet voice, "It feel good, Mama?" It was so sweet ... I wish I had a recorder handy so that I could record the exact way he said it ... writing it out on a blog does not do it justice!

We closed on the sale of our house on February 11 and with the help of family and some sweet friends (very specifically, Trevor Landon, plus a few others), we moved that weekend into our apartment. We are back at the same apartment complex we were in when we first got married, and Drew has transitioned very well. He likes the "partment" because we have to go over a bridge to get to the door. It has been nice because Drew is able to play in his room more since we are all on the same level so his toys are more concentrated to that are verses the living space. Not sure how long we will be here, but it will work until God leads us on our next adventure.

We Have the Long-Awaited Clear to Close ...

... And the close date of February 11, with the change of possession occurring on February 13 or 14 -- that is yet to be determined. That means that by this time next week, we will no longer own the first house that we purchased together, the house we brought Drew home to, the house Drew first took his steps in, the list could go on. Basically, we are leaving our first house ...

Very bittersweet.

Postponment of the Move ... Ugh!

So, we had all of these plans to move this weekend -- and they have been postponed until next weekend. This whole time we thought our tentative close date was February 9, and we just found out that it is actually February 19! So, all of our plans to move have been postponed to next weekend -- which does give up more time, always a wonderful thing to have -- but it means that we to live out of these boxes for an extra week ... yikes! We are looking for help to move, so if you want to help, let us know!

12 Days and Counting ...

12 days. That is the number of days until we are no longer owners and residents of our beautiful historic home. That is not too many ... less than two weeks. Wow.