The Story of Evan

About a week after we celebrated Ella's first birthday, we were "surprised" to learn that the Lord was blessing us with another child. Evan Joshua Vogt was born April 26, 2010 at 10:42 am. He was 8 lbs 6 oz and 21 1/2 inches. Now he is just over 4 months old, and he's one of the happiest babies I've ever seen. I feel like if I sit and look at him long enough, I can actually see him growing . . . it's hard to believe how big he's gotten already! He has brought us much joy, and I'm so thankful that the Lord gave me a son.

Kids are Sinners . . . and Parenting is Not about Me

You know those moments you have sometimes as a parent--when people compliment you on how cute or sweet or well-behaved your kids are? And you say "thank you," or "I know," and you feel so proud of your kids, and comfortable with your life, and you feel like you're starting to get the hang of being a parent?

Beware those moments.

I think I was starting to get a little slack in my parenting--not that I wasn't disciplining or training, but that I was only disciplining and training. I felt pleased with the results when Ella obeyed . . . and that was pretty much where I stopped.

Recently, this thing called sin has reared its ugly head in my home, and for some reason, it shocked me.

If you'd asked me, I would have said, Sure, my daughter is a sinner. So why was I so surprised when she started sinning?

I'm saddened and ashamed to say I hadn't been dealing with her heart, or preaching the gospel to her, or praying for her soul the way I should be.

Anyway, today was another one of those displays, in a very public setting. We were shopping, and I instructed Ella to do something, and she threw an unbelievable tantrum for someone so small. The kind where everyone in the store turns to stare and whispers things like "my kid would never do that," forgetting that their child did the very same thing just last week.

I could have distracted her, or pacified her, or given in to her demands. And everyone there would have viewed me as a better parent because she stopped screaming. But is that the goal? To make myself look like a good parent? Just to avoid the display of the anger and rebellion that is very clearly in her heart? I felt humiliated . . . but raising Ella is not about me.

Parents, let us persevere in prayer for our children, and continue to sow God's Word in their hearts, and be faithful to train and teach and discipline and nurture them! They need Christ!

Ella...from 1st birthday to 2nd birthday

Wow...I can't believe how much changes in a year. It's been over a year since I dropped the whole blogging thing, and in that time Ella has gone from a baby to a toddler, and my son was born, and a whole host of other things have happened.
I decided to start by posting pictures of Ella from her first birthday until now. She turns two on the 27th!!Her first birthday.
Playing guitar with Daddy. (This was when we lived with his parents for a few months.)
December 2009...as you can tell, she's got a passion for her milk!!

January 2010...wearing Daddy's t-shirt. :) And watching the snow with Coda.

March and April:

June or July:



I'll post August pictures after we've had her birthday party.

Back on the Blog-Wagon

I have not posted anything in over a YEAR! Not because nothing has happened, but because life intervened and I was just busy or tired of blogging or what have you.

Back when I used to post frequently, I never really knew if anyone was reading. Most of my posts were about mundane things like making baby food. :) But since the birth of little Evan, many many people have asked "do you still have a blog?" or said "I miss that blog with all the pictures!" So I decided to give it another try.

Now that I have two little ones, I have even less time than before...so I'll probably do a little less writing and more of the "good stuff," i.e., pictures of my adorable little children. First I have to go take some...I usually try to make sure I have decent pictures of both kids from every month, but I am WAY behind on that.