The Talens' Tales

"A little help, please." Joash and I just got back from his 4 month check-up and he is doing great. He now weighs 13 lbs. and 2 oz. So he has put on about 2 lbs the past two months. I didn't catch his length, but he gets all of this done again on Thursday when he goes for his four month immunizations. On another note, it is snowing...again. I will be very sad if there is no Coffee Break tomorrow.

M(om): Joash, you are four month old today. Would you mind sitting down with me and answering a few questions? J(oash): Sure Mom. Not a problem. M: Well, what do you like best about being four months? J: I like that I have lots of strength in my muscles. I can hold my head up with out a problem and I can support my own weight on my feet as well. M: I see. Anything else new right now? J: Well, I just got an ExerSaucer, so I have been enjoying exploring the new toys. I like because I can also look around and see everything that is around me. I really like watching people, especially you, Mom, when you are in the kitchen and you and Dad when you are eating M: Nice. How is your wardrobe these days? J: Well, I seem to fit right into typical sizing for clothes. My new accessory is my bib, since I was getting sick of having wet clothes all of the time from my drool. M: What are your favorite things to do all day? J: Well, I like singing with Mom and reading books. My gym is still pretty cool ...

Imagine your world being turned upside down when you are fifteen years old by the death of four of your closest friends. Imagine knowing that your friends died because of the hate that people have toward you because of the color of your skin. That is the reality that Carolyn Maull McKinstry found herself in as a young black girl growing up in Birmingham, Alabama during middle of the Civil Right Movement .She vividly shares what it was like to be a young girl in the middle of this tumultuous time, sharing both the facts of the story and how she felt as a young girl in this time. McKinstry share what her life was like both before and after the bombing that killed her four friends in an honest and humble way. McKinstry was touched the powerful words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and shattered by the deaths of Dr. King, President Kennedy and Robert Kennedy. It is a powerful story of the breaking and the healing of one woman, one city and ultimately, one nation. And through all of it, sh...

From the start of his life, Joash has not really like baths. When we were taught how to give him a bath before we left the hospital, the nurse said, "All babies love baths." Well, Joash proved her wrong in a hurry as he screamed for his entire bath in the hospital. And the trend continued at home for a long while. We tried lots of different things to try and make it better, but nothing really helped. He just needed to get older. And now our bath time looks a bit like this: Not screaming, but not really sure about the whole thing either. But it is much better than screaming the whole time. I now feel like I am really getting him clean since I am no longer try to do the bath as quickly as possible. Some day I am sure he will not want his bath time to end.

16 weeks ago, this little boy joined our family. He is growing like a weed and fills our home with his joyous smiles. At 16 weeks, baths are no longer a traumatic experience. I wouldn't say he loves them yet, but he is warming up to them. I have had a few smiles in the tub and I am sure the giggles will be coming. Naps are better. He is much better at falling to sleep, which is a welcomed relief to me. However, in this last week, he has gone back to getting up twice (or more) at night, instead of the once I had grown used to. Hopefully, this is a short lived phase, as I was really enjoying getting several hours of sleep in a row. Joash smiles very easily now and coos all of the time. If this is any indication, we will have a very talkative boy some day. He is just starting to roll over. He has rolled both directions once, but he is not doing it consistently. Most of the time he just rolls onto his side and then back on his back. It is so fun to see him grow and change every day. Wh...

I enjoy getting Joash out of his crib these days because you never really know how you will find him. Here is how he was laying this morning: Now, it may not look too crazy, but he moved a lot from where he started. He started with his head on the yellow cloth and his feet facing the right. When I went into his room. he was actually on his back with his feet pushed up against the side of crib. Then he tipped on his side like this. Who knows how I will find him after his nap that he is taking right now.

It was a really nice day outside yesterday, so I decided it was time for this little boy to experience snow. First, we had to get into the snow suit that he got from his great-grandma. It is a little bit big yet, but he will fit in it nicely soon. We love the hat from Aunt Joy. It fits much better than it did two months ago. Once outside, he laid in the snow. It was pretty bright for his little eyes. I just had to laugh though. He looks so cute swimming in his snow suit. He didn't really touch any snow with his bare skin, but he experience a bit of a Canadian winter. At least, more than he has in the past. "Mom? I don't know about this whole snow thing." A few family pictures out in the winter snow. Again it was a bit bright, so Joash wasn't quite sure what to make of all of it.

Your marriage is one of the most important relationships of your life. And everyone strives to make his or her marriage better and better. The book Love and Respect by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs is a widely known book that teaches the Biblically based concepts of love and respect in marriage. Eggerichs says that when these concepts are practiced in a marriage, a couple can experience marriage as God intended it. I found this to be one of the most practical, clear and well supported books on marriage I have read. Eggerichs gives both real life examples and Biblical evidence for the points he makes. The basic premise is that a man desires to be respected and a woman desires to be loved. When this does not happen in a marriage, the couple gets on the “Crazy Cycle,” leading to a break down in the marriage. Eggerichs gives concrete and practical tips on how to reenergize your marriage and get off the crazy cycle. I found that what Eggerichs says women desire rang true with me. And while I kn...

Time for some smiles from the cutest 3 month old on the planet. Joash is doing just great. We are still working on naps and we are trying to wean him off his swaddle since it is getting too small. I just put him down for a nap and fell asleep with out crying at all. We are leaving one arm out of his swaddle right now. I tried both arms yesterday and it did not go well at all. So, we will do one arm out for a bit longer and try again. I think he will want both arms out soon, since he is turning into a thumb sucker. Maybe it will help him go to sleep eventually. And now you can enjoy my first attempt of posting a video all by myself. I took this video and even edited it. Enjoy a few smiles in action and a hand sucking demonstration. Have a great Friday!

I always said before our baby was born that I would much rather have a baby attached to a pacifier than be a thumb sucker. I thought that a pacifier would be an easier habit to break than thumb sucking. Well, surprise, surprise...Joash had a different idea. A pacifier worked pretty good for a the first few months of his life, but he always had issues keeping it in. Now he has discovered his hand and has moved from sucking on his knuckle to getting either his thumb or index finger in his mouth and sucking on that. And really, I am okay with it. I would not say it is a strong habit yet, as it certainly doesn't help him sleep or anything like that. If it helps him out and makes him happy, that makes me happy. It is so fun to see him grow and develop and change. Just thinking about what he can do this week that he couldn't do last week is amazing. What a blessing to be surrounded by the wonders of a new child.

Did you notice anything strange about the sleeper Joash was wearing in the pictures I posted on Monday? Here is another picture for you. Take a look. Nice green color. Nice monkey hanging out in the sun. And what is that word underneath the monkey? Cue? With a big space between the U and the E? Looks like someone in quality control missed this one before it went out. But we don't need a sleeper to tell us that our boy is cute. We know that already.