Hard to believe that our little man will be one year old in 4 months! At 8 months, Isaiah continues to be one of the happiest baby boys in the world.  He typically goes to bed around 6 until I wake him up for his pre-bed feeding, and then he sleeps until about 6:30 in the morning. He naps between every feeding. He loves eating sweet potatoes and would eat them every day lunch and supper if I let him.

Isaiah’s two bottom teeth came in around Christmas time. The teething process didn’t seem to have any negative effects on him.

Our little man was sick the third week in January. He had a fever for three days and wasn’t his happy self the rest of the week. But even then he enjoyed playing with his new toy from Christmas.

Isaiah continues to do well with going to the potty about twice each day. A few times this past week during meal times I’ve wondered what’s wrong with him. . . food just doesn’t seem to be satisfying. Then I put him on the potty and think “Oh, he wanted to go potty. . . how was I supposed to know!”

Two weeks ago Isaiah started saying “dadadadada.” This week he started saying “mamamamama.” He also makes repetitive kissing sounds. (He loves his frog from Uncle Dan & Aunt Isabelle – picture to the right. The other night I had trouble making out Isaiah’s head since he had pulled the frog over himself.)

People are always asking about crawling. . .no crawling or scooting yet, [Or algebra! I’m so disappointed! -Josh] which makes things easier for me and calmer for Becca.

At Christmas we looked at Josh’s baby pictures to see if Isaiah looks like him . . . no. Later I was showing Becca my baby book and was shocked to open it up and see Isaiah!

I was teaching Becca how to wrestle the other day. We thought we’d let Isaiah in on the action . . . .

“Being a mommy is hard work,” Becca told me as she nursed one baby while bottle feeding another (picture on left). I laughed. Yes, being a mommy is hard work. Mommy-hood comes with tons of joys – loads of laughter, craziness, playing, singing, dancing, learning – moments of pure joy. But it’s hard work. I have lots of “loser-mommy” days; days when I feel like I should have “Loser Mommy” tattooed on my forehead. (I don’t post pictures from those days . . . yes, our cute kids cry, but taking pictures on those days is one of the farthest things from my mind.)

I’m finding the hardest thing about being a mommy is myself. I am a sinner – an impatient, prideful, selfish sinner. I’m a sinner saved by grace trying to teach a little sinner how to love and obey God when I’m struggling to do those things for myself. I told Josh the other night. “I have enough [sin] problems to deal without having to deal with Becca’s.”

Being a mommy of a 3-year-old means I’m always putting the Bible into simple terms. We talk about loving and obeying Jesus. Sounds simple, but have you ever consciously tried to love and obey Jesus all day long in word, thought, and deed? The more I talk to Becca about her need to have Jesus rescue her from her sin the more I am aware of my need for Christ’s forgiveness on a daily basis. Now at breakfast I pray that Mommy will love and obey Jesus.

Yes, Becca . . . being a mommy is hard work because I am a sinner struggling against my old nature while trying to serve my family. I’m far from being a super-mom. I am a mommy who desperately needs Jesus every day to fulfill the role He’s called me to. Lord willing we’ll both learn to obey Jesus and love Him more than anything.

This year we had our 5th annual MLK Day traditional getaway at the Country Inn & Suites north of the DFW airport. Our two criteria were a heated indoor pool for Becca and complimentary breakfast. We all had a lovely time and it was a nice break after Josh’s long days of writing.

Thanks to everyone who prayed about Josh’s dissertation deadline. Last week he completed a rough draft, and since then he has been editing and revising. Monday evening he submitted the draft to his committee. Soon they’ll decide whether Josh can defend this semester, and hopefully they’ll send their revision comments by mid to late February.

January 10th Becca had a follow-up MIBG and MRI to check for any traces of cancer. Becca did great with the MIBG injection the day before the procedure. She also woke up from the procedures in a pretty good mood. We found out last week that Becca continues to be cancer free. We continue to thank God for His care and healing of our little girl. Becca’s next MRI will be in April.

The Sunday after we arrived back from PA we drove to Keller, TX, for a few days of house-sitting. Becca loves being at the Woods’ home – she always requests that we watch Snow White there. Josh was able to have “office” space to work on his dissertation while Becca and I enjoyed having the use of a washer and dryer.

New Year’s Eve Becca and I put together her gingerbread house. She did a great job decorating it. (Though Josh nearly ate all the decorating candy: photo at left.) Afterwards we had popcorn and played with the train set. (Thank you Uncle Joey for the Christmas pj’s!)

Looking back, 2012 was an adventurous year for us. I spent the first few months of the year wondering whether Isaiah was going to follow in his sister’s footsteps or if he was going to be a full term baby. Right about the time we were adjusting to Isaiah, we found out about Becca’s tumor. This pretty much sums up our year. . . pregnancy, Isaiah’s birth, and Becca’s tumor, along with Josh’s dissertation progress.

This new year holds a lot of exciting changes for us. Lord willing, Josh will complete his degree this semester. We plan to move to SC sometime in June, after which we will start deputation for Cambodia. CPBC has graciously allowed us to live in their mission house starting in July. It will be a year of change and adjustment and we appreciate your prayers for us.

I’m also wondering what “unplanned” events the Lord has in store for us this year. Looking back over our first 4 years of marriage it seems like each year God has allowed some big unexpected event: 2009 – Becca’s premature birth; 2010 – Miscarriage; 2011 – pursuing a domestic adoption which ended up falling through; and 2012 – Becca’s tumor. I’m not sure what God has in store for us this year, but I do know that He is a faithful and unchanging God. I know He will continue to work His will in our lives and will continue to purge our dross in His refining fire. Our prayer is that He will continue to work in us for His glory and that we will grow in our faith and that He will help us in our unbelief.

Books Read in 2012
(all links are Amazon affiliate links: if you click and buy, we get a small percentage of the sale, at no extra cost to you; be aware that some of these books are available for free in digital form: Chesterton, Monte Cristo, and Piper in particular)

Books read together: The Dragon’s Tooth: Ashtown Burials #1; Sense and Sensibility; Shepherding a Child’s Heart; Leepike Ridge; One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich; The Count of Monte Cristo (Abridged Edition); The Drowned Vault: Ashtown Burials #2; & Manalive.

Books Josh read (not counting all his school reading): The Mind Doesn’t Work That Way; The Ambition: A Novel; Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of God; The Resolution for Men; Future Men: Raising Boys to Fight Giants; Jesus Among Other Gods: The Absolute Claims of the Christian Message; Men Made New: An Exposition of Romans 5-8; A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards; The Code of the Woosters; Eugenics and Other Evils; 1 & 2 Kings (Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible);  Black & Tan: A Collection of Essays and Excursions on Slavery, Culture War, and Scripture in America; Missionary Patriarch: The True Story of John G. Paton; & The Future of Justification: A Response to N. T. Wright.

Books Amy read: Scandalous: The Cross and Resurrection of Jesus; The Resolution for Women; Loving the Little Years: Motherhood in the Trenches; Give Them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus; Don’t Make Me Count to Three; & Building Her House: Commonsensical Wisdom for Christian Women.

Hymns Memorized in 2012

Chosen as His Children; Before the Throne of God Above; Behold Our God; Come Thou Almighty King; His Robes for Mine; Holy, Holy, Holy; Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise; O God, Our Help in Ages Past; O Worship the King; & This is My Father’s World

We had a white Christmas in PA. It started snowing Christmas Eve. Christmas morning the first thing I did was take Becca out to play in the snow, since I was afraid it would melt by the afternoon. We had a great time making a snowman and having a snowball fight. When Becca got cold, Josh came out and built two more snow-people with me. It was a lovely way to start Christmas Day, and yes, the snow melted by the afternoon.

We started the family Christmas festivities by getting the picture-taking out of the way. Both kids and adults survived the ordeal.

After picture-taking, we began the Sutter Family Christmas morning (or should I say almost afternoon…it takes a while for 18 people to get ready in the morning) traditions: 1) Cinnamon rolls and carol singing – this year we had piano and trumpets accompanying our singing; 2)Reading the Christmas story with flannel graph – it is fun to see the grandchildren do the flannel graph; 3) Gift exchange – we are each assigned one family member to buy gifts for; 4) Omelets made by Sam – I think he’s been doing this since he turned 12; 5) Rest – naps, reading, games; and 6) Dinner. This year Uncle Joey ended the day with giving all his nieces and his nephew Christmas pj’s.

Our flight home on Thursday was cancelled, so we had an extra day in PA. Mom took the remaining families (us and Sam-Ashley-Colette, plus Emily and a friend) to the Whittaker Center in Harrisburg. The little girls enjoyed all the activities.

One funny story from Christmas – we bought my dad some pistachios for Christmas. After my dad opened them up, he and Becca spent the next several minutes eating them…and then the next several evenings eating them. Pretty sure Becca ate most of the pistachios — and perhaps even more than we gave Dad for Christmas!

Left-to-right, by family: Emily; Colette (19 months), Ashley & Sam; Amy, Josh, Isaiah & Becca; Dad & Mom, Jon, Ashleigh & Megan (6 months); Dan & Isabelle; Joey & Lauren (girlfriend).

This Christmas we gathered in Dover, PA, for a Sutter Family reunion – the first time we’ve all been together in two years. Josh and I (and the kids) arrived the Wednesday before Christmas. My parents had a little birthday party for Becca to welcome us. We had to have the party twice since Becca fell asleep at her “first” party.

Thursday we drove to NJ to visit Grandma Sutter’s. It was Isaiah’s first time to meet his Great Grandma Sutter and Great Uncle Johnny.

My brother Jon and his family arrived from SC Friday evening. Jon’s & Ashleigh’s daughter, Megan, is 3 weeks younger than Isaiah.

Sunday evening we went to Rocky Ridge park and saw lights and Santa Clause. It was freezing cold. Becca was so excited to see Santa that she was speechless when she finally sat on his lap. Dan & Isabelle arrived Sunday evening.

Christmas Eve we celebrated my dad’s birthday – he was born on Christmas Day, but we usually celebrate on Christmas Eve. My brother Sam and his family arrived late Christmas Eve.

One of the highlights of Becca’s trip was playing the trumpet with Grandpa. My dad has started practicing the trumpet every night. He had a cornet for Becca to play with him and she loved playing every night before bed with him. She also got to play his drums and harmonica.

We enjoyed our time with my family. I enjoyed getting to know my sisters-in-law a little more . . . not sure how my brothers got themselves such nice wives. We’re very thankful to my parents and Emily for all the cleaning they did before and after — it takes a lot of work to have 14 extra people invade your home! We’re also thankful for all the food, heat, and hot water . . . as we know the water/electric/food bills are greatly increased for the month of December.

A very happy 7-month birthday to our adorable little man! Isaiah continues to be one very happy, smiley boy. He enjoys sitting up, watching and playing with his big sister, eating sweet potatoes, and laughing. He’s doing an amazing job using the potty, and I’m enjoying the lack of messy diapers to clean up after.

This Christmas Isaiah met a lot of Sutter family members for the first time. He, of course, charmed them all this his sweet smiles.

I feel like we’ve been going non-stop all week. Josh continued intense work on his dissertation while the kiddos and I are in the midst of Christmas celebrations. Thursday morning we delivered Christmas cookies to our doctors. Thursday evening I decided to take the kids up to Plano to see Gordon Lights. The traffic turned a 45 minute drive into a 1.5 hour drive…Isaiah made a huge messy diaper and wailed through the first few minutes of the show. Becca loved it – so it was worth it.

Friday Becca and Isaiah had check-ups. Both got glowing reports. Becca told Dr. Raine that she didn’t want to hear Isaiah cry when he got his shots, so Dr. Raine took Becca to his office to play while Isaiah had his shots. Dr. Raine has framed the card Becca (and I) made for him to thank him for helping find her tumor – it’s a hand-print painting and photo of Becca. Becca weighs 27.5lbs (17th percentile for her age) and is 35.75 inches tall (19th percentile). The doctor predicts that she will be 5’2″. Isaiah weighs 17 lbs 11 oz (47th percentile for his age) and his height is 26.5 in (33rd percentile for his age).

Friday evening we had dinner with the Rylands. We enjoyed singing Christmas carols with them after our meal. Saturday we went to the children’s Christmas party at our church. Sunday evening our pastor had a open house. Monday we went to Anna’s for lunch and then I surprised Josh with an evening out – thank you Meridith for watching our kids. (Picture on the left is Becca’s gift from my piano students. Pictures to the right show Becca climbing “The Daddy Mountain.”)

In other exciting news, Isaiah has had 4 successful potty experiences. It’s been nice, since it saves me from having to clean a very messy diaper.

I’ll close with two pictures of one of my favorite activities…. I have the most wonderful husband in the world!

About a week before we traveled for Thanksgiving Josh found out that in order to graduate this May he has to have a full draft of his dissertation in by January 20 (so the committee can read it by January 30 and decide whether to let him enroll in “dissertation defense” credits for the semester). The pressure is now on to have a full draft . . . not the best time of year to have this kind of deadline. After we arrived back from SC, we decided to buckle down for the deadline, and Josh started going back to school in the evenings, as well as working all day Saturdays on his dissertation and on his other school responsibilities (which also got busier!). It doesn’t make for a very festive Christmas season, but we’re doing what we need to do to make the deadline. Presently, Josh is about 50% sure he can make the deadline. We appreciate your prayers as he works on his analysis. (Picture on the left is of our garden last week when it still felt like late summer…not sure what it looks like since we had some snow on Monday.)

Sunday evening we had the Pawley Family over for dinner. Eric and Mee-Sun are missionaries in Cambodia and are working with the same language group (Jarai) that we hope to work with. There is a possibility that we would join the Pawleys’ translation project.

Monday afternoon we had the pleasure of meeting up most of the Bixby family during their layover at the DFW airport – I think it has been the highlight of my month. We were really glad to be able to see Tim and Ruth, since they are on furlough, and depending on how long our deputation takes, we’re not sure when we’ll be in the came country again. The last time we saw Tim and Ruth we had just found out I was pregnant with Becca – a lot has happened since then. We enjoyed our time with the family. Becca immediately hit it off with Zach. They were crawling, running, jumping, and shouting HALLELUJAH all over the little area we camped out in. On our way to the bathroom, Becca told me she was going back to play with Zachary: “I call him Zachary,” she told me.

Isaiah is enjoying eating sweet potatoes. I had hoped to delay solids until after Christmas, but this little man just couldn’t wait! Wow – the way he eats you might think I’ve been starving him for the past 6 months. He loves sweet potatoes, but is not so sure about squash or green beans yet – actually I’m pretty sure he dislikes them, but this perhaps has something to do with the fact that the sweet potatoes are homemade and the other foods were from the jar. The picture below shows my first batch of sweet potatoes. I thought the blue-lidded container would last a few days . . . he ate half the container in one meal!

Becca is now sleeping in underwear. She’s been wearing underwear during the day for about a year and is potty-trained, except for in the nights. We ran out of size 4 diapers, so I told Becca that I wasn’t going to buy any more. Becca didn’t like wearing big fat cloth diapers to bed, so we tried underwear and she’s done pretty good, with a few accidents here and there. She LOVES being able to get up any time she wants to use the potty . . . like 10 times in a row! The amazing thing to me is that she wakes up in the middle of the night (somewhere around 3am) and goes potty all by herself.

Becca really enjoys acting out the Nativity with her animals and the Little People Nativity set. This week she realized that she could be a character too . . . then she ended up calling me Joseph for the rest of the evening!

What with traveling to visit family during the holidays, Christmas has been a tricky as far as starting our own family traditions. This year we’re putting our focus on celebrating Advent. We’re reading John Piper’s Good News of Great Joy (free pdf) each evening after dinner. During that time Becca also gets to pull and put one more Little People on her new advent calendar. Becca really looks forward to taking a new piece out of its pocket each night. We’re also using the Advent calendar and readings Christmas Opened Up. My plan is to also have a special meal each Sunday night – it worked this past week, but we’ll see what happens the next few.

Of course, we’re also doing all the other “fun” Christmas stuff. We put up our tree last Friday (thanks Aunt Rita!). Saturday night we went to Arlington’s Christmas parade (in shorts!). Becca loves singing Santa Claus is Coming to Town.

Notice in the picture below that even the dinos have been included in the Christmas celebration!

Sunday afternoon we celebrated Chikoo’s 3rd birthday. Chickoo’s parents live on UTA campus and we met them while walking outside one evening. The party was informal and very enjoyable for both parents and children. I think the highlight was playing in the dirt!

Becca and I made playdough this week (h.t. to my good friend Johanna at myhometableau.com). This was my second attempt at making playdough – the first was a disaster (one of those loser-mommy moments)! Becca enjoyed making it and playing with it. I made snowman and she made snakes!

Our happy boy is 6 months today! He continues to be a sweet, smiley little man. He’s now rolling over both directions and enjoying his new found freedom. He also has a fixation with tags.

Now that Isaiah is 6 months, we’re discontinuing his week birthday blog post and will just do special posts for his month birthdays.

This Thanksgiving we traveled to Georgia and South Carolina to be with family for the holiday. Both kids did great on all our flights. We first flew to Atlanta, Georgi,a to be with Grandma Martin (Josh’s maternal grandmother). We enjoyed our time at the Martin Thanksgiving and spent the night at Grandma Martin’s house before we drove to SC Friday afternoon.

Becca ended up getting sick on our trip. She’s had a cold for over three weeks and once we were in flight to GA she seemed to shut down. I knew something was wrong when our very active girl actually fell asleep on the plane. Becca came down with a fever once we got to GA and spent several hours sleeping in my arms. On Saturday we took her to a doctor and she was given antibiotics for a double ear infection. Unfortunately, Becca wasn’t herself until Monday. We’re very thankful that Becca was feeling more herself to celebrate her birthday.

Becca enjoyed interacting with her cousin Bella.

Saturday we were able to spend time with Rene, Yani, and Amaris. If we hadn’t had a sick girl to get to the doctor, a wedding to attend, and family to see we would have spent all day with them.

Saturday afternoon we attended the Pinner/Parker wedding. Since getting married we’ve prayed almost every Thursday morning that God would lead Brian to the right woman to be his wife. We were delighted to be able to celebrate God’s answer to our prayers with Brian and Tessa.

Monday we went to the zoo for Becca’s birthday and then had a family party for her in the evening. We were able to meet cousin Megan for the first time – she’s 3 weeks younger than Isaiah.

Happy Birthday to our precious Rebecca Grace! We thank God for the wonderful gift He is giving us in you. We thank God for the many ways He’s protected you these past three years. We love you!

Our little man started rolling from his back to his stomach this week and is now becoming a little roller as he rolls around the living room. He continues to be a very happy boy who loves eating, sleeping, and social interaction! He also seems to be attracted to Becca’s sparkly Hello Kitty purse (see picture on right).

This week we had lunch with Anna and Adam Martin – as you can see Adam and Isaiah are growing boys!

My Husband – for a godly man who loves me and our children and desires to point us all to Christ. I’m thankful for all the time Josh spends with our family. I’m thankful that he makes us priority and not just an obligation. I’m thankful for the gift God has given to me in my best friend – my man. (And I’m thankful for the popcorn Josh makes us several nights a week!)

Becca  – for our precious little girl who was born three Thanksgivings ago. We’re thankful she has no negative effects from her premature birth. We’re thankful for her sense of humor, love for books, and energy.  We’re thankful that Becca is  healthy and cancer-free.

God’s work in Becca’s cancer –  we’re so thankful Becca’s neuroblastoma was caught early and that the doctor was able to remove the tumor (containing all traces of cancer) during the surgery. We’re thankful for a complete recovery. We’re thankful for a wonderful hospital system; thankful that every morning I drove to the hospital (in Fort Worth) I was headed west instead of east into the rising sun; thankful every morning that the traffic was all headed to Dallas while I breezed into to Fort Worth; thankful that Becca never developed a fear of hospitals; thankful for Children’s Medicaid; and thankful for the many people who prayed and ministered to our family. (The picture on the right is Becca with her surgeon, Dr. Miller.)

Isaiah –  we’re thankful for our delightful baby boy. We’re thankful for my safe pregnancy and his safe birth. We’re thankful for Isaiah’s sweet happy spirit. We’re thankful for a boy who sleeps through the nights, eats well, and loves social interaction.

Arlington Presbyterian Church – we’re thankful for our new church family who has been so kind in welcoming us into their body.  We’re thankful that the church is only 5 minutes from our home.

My two boys spending some quality time on the couch. When Josh told Becca what Isaiah’s shirt said, she disagreed with a “no – girls rule!” Isaiah continues to be a very easy, very happy boy. He does cry and get upset, but those times are usually associated with being hungry or wanting to be in his bed for sleep.

Several weeks ago I noticed that Isaiah was having the same trouble Becca had with processing milk proteins in my milk. I’m now off milk products (fortunately, he seems to handle soy) . . . oh ice cream and cheese, we shall be friends again someday.

Several weeks ago Becca and I talked about saying bye-bye to her bottle nipple. I got the calendar and let Becca choose and circle the date – Becca chose November 4th. We had a little ceremony and Becca did a great job throwing her bottle nipple away (in the photo above she’s kissing it goodbye). She still drinks her morning and evening milk – now from a cup (not as enjoyable as her bottle).

In October Becca received a “party” dress from her Uncle Jon and Aunt Ashleigh. I was surprised how much she enjoyed wearing it, so I got out my party dress and we had a lovely tea party. And as everybody knows, tea parties always include dancing! (Let me add that all our tea party pictures were taken by me – I’m pretty pleased with our action dancing shots.)

A few other random shots: 1) Our garden – Josh pulled up most of our summer crops and planted lettuce. 2) Tent time with popcorn. 3) Becca’s birthday countdown calendar. Each day she gets to remove a sticker for a special birthday treat.

I saw a picture of my older brother, Sam, when he was a baby (4 weeks) and decided to try the same thing with Isaiah. Once Isaiah was inside the pumpkin, he really enjoyed sucking on the pumpkin. Getting him out was a bit of a challenge.

We carved our pumpkin October 31st. This year we let Becca stay up and help.

We were able to see Dad J during his layover in Dallas on Wednesday. It’s nice that we’re only about 30 minutes from the airport.

Last weekend Josh and I took a vacation to San Antonio (half a day’s drive). Typically our vacations are holiday visits to family, which means less time together as a couple (and with our kids), because we’re visiting with everyone else. When we finally go to bed at night our conversation starts something like: “Hi, how are you? What did you do today?” It was really nice to get away for two nights and have lots of time to spend together as a couple. Becca stayed with the Ishams and had a wonderful time. Isaiah was a great baby and didn’t mind the sightseeing or all our talking.

The idea for our vacation sprouted when Josh realized that I (and we as a couple) needed a break after all that’s happened the past 5 months. After I thought about it for a while I asked if we could go to San Antonio to see The Alamo. I was a bit reluctant about leaving Becca for two nights (my girl!), but I knew she was in good hands. We really enjoyed seeing The Alamo, and we were able to get a lot of family shots (sorry Becca), since people were all over The Alamo taking pictures — all we had to do was offer to take a photo of another family, then they would return the favor.

We enjoyed some local Mexican food and a morning stroll on the Riverwalk. We attempted the Riverwalk at night, but after trying to maneuver in the crowded night atmosphere, we decided to try again in the morning. The morning proved to be less crowded and more relaxing. Josh and Isaiah posed under the statue of Saint Anthony.

On our way back to Arlington, we stopped at Natural Bridge Cavern and went on a 70-minute tour. On the tour we saw the largest cavern in Texas – beautiful. When we told Becca about the cave she seemed glad she got to stay at the Ishams and not go into the “creepy crawly cave” – as she calls them per Patch the Pirate in the Jungle.

We had a lovely vacation. It was nice to be able to spend time with Josh and just enjoy each other. It was a treat to have extra time to talk. Sure – we talk every night, but with our schedule (and Becca!) there’s not a lot of time for quality talking. We missed Becca and were very glad to get her back Sunday night.

Thanks Josh for spending the weekend with me and for being my wonderful husband!