The Lawrence Year in Review!

So, it's clearly difficult to get a great picture of all the kiddos at once, but this was my one attempt at a Christmasy photo! Anyhow, we've had a busy year beginning with the birth of our sweet little Darien Elliot! AJ is 7 now and this year we have watched her overcome every challenge put to her as she completed first grade and entered second. She has had an eventful year, from losing her two front teeth to being thrust into the role of big sister to two very active boys. Keenan is now 3 and is as funny as ever! He never ceases to make Don and I laugh at his random comments and his obsession with Cars, Spider Man, Batman and even Robin. He knows about Robin because my husband has him watching 1960's episodes of the original Batman and Robin show! Darien is one! WOW! Fully walking and grabbing things off of tables, he is a joy to watch. He is our most cuddly baby and is quickly learning to talk. He has two siblings that never stop talking, so it is no surpise that he is getting a good dose of the English language every day! :)

The love we have for Alyssa, Keenan, and Darien will only grow more wonderful in our hearts as we embrace the daily joys and challenges of training them in thw way they should go!

As you might imagine, our adjustment to having three has been a roller coaster, but we know this is not uncommon. However, throughout all the many challenges of a hectic and busy household, we can still say that the Lord IS perfecting that which concerns our family!

Don has had a great year at Pepperdine, which included a promotion to Director of Intercultural Affairs and the opportunity to serve as an adjunct professor of Intercultural Communication. He also started his doctoral degree at Cal Lutheran. I can't say he has really been enjoying his doctoral work...but it's work and it's for a doctorate...can it really be enjoyed? It is a tall order to keep it all in balance (and that in and of itself is a work in process LOL!) but I am so proud of him for all his efforts. I sure couldn't do it! He manages to golf a couple times a month and this truly helps him cope with the responsibility of family, work, and school. He has three guys he considers his best friends - all of whom golf.

As for me, my involvement in various support systems for moms in the area serves to help me grow in this journey of motherhood and enhance my identity as more than just "MOM!" My organizing business has been extremely enjoyable as I have had many projects with various clients. Many of these dear people have become good friends. I honestly foresee only good things to come for this new year as the Lord is sending people who need what I can help them with!

I cannot write about this year without mentioning the significance of seeing the first African-American voted as President of the United States. No matter your political persuasion, I firmly believe that it was awesome to watch history take place in my lifetime. In a country with a rich and mostly negative racial history. In the US, it was not too long ago that it was univerally considered taboo be in an inter-racial relationship/marriage. It is awesome to see our progress. It is wonderful to see how one man seemed to transcend race for just a moment in order to bring people together. We know Obama is not perfect, but we truly lift him up in prayer as he steps into one of the most historic eras of all time. May God be with him.

God Bless all who read this blog and if you blog as well, please resend your blog site so I can add it to my page! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! May He continue to look upon you, bless and establish the work of your hands and perfect that which concerns you and your family!

Getting Ready!

Well our tree has been up since a few days after Thanksgiving and the kids are still making their lists and checking them twice! Keenan is pretty obsessed with Cars and Spiderman and Hot Wheels! And AJ has her eye on some cute clothes and some Barbie clothing design computer software. We were blessed with several ride on toys for Darien that a client doesn't need right now, and since there isn't really a place to hide those...he's been having fun playing with them already. He is not only walking but running after his siblings to keep up! He is kind of fussy but we think he is cutting more teeth and much earlier than his brother and sister did. He has 8 already! Hmmm...what else? I have had a few good clients but also some who cancelled last minute which is always a bummer! Donnie is still busy with his job and some classwork that he is finishing, but we are all looking forward to a visit from his parents who come in on Wednesday. We have been to a few great parties and have the kids school celebrations left and then two more adult functions! It will be nice to get out without the kids too! We are going to make every effort to really keep this year's celebration focused on doing things together more than buying a bunch of things. With what I have seen in my business this year as well as our own home is that our kids would rather go places and do things together than really play with a ton of toys. Keenan will of course get some of his major wish list items, but we are grateful to have an opportunity to teach our kids that the gift of family time is the real blessing. We have to be so intentional about reminding our kids in this affluent community where we live that there are so many kids in other places with soooooo much less than what we have. I think the biggest thing that the Lord is teaching me latley is to try to Let them be Little! ( not easy for this neat and quiet freak!) We continue to seek God's direction about our kids and the entertainment industry. Everywhere we go we get stopped about how stunning our kids are...nothing new to us, but sometimes it would be nice if they could just get one really great paying job out of all those adoring fans! Maybe someday!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This week the kids have off all week and we are enjoying some time just relaxing and doing playdates and sleepovers! AJ had two this week already! What fun! I remember having sleepovers all the time as a child with one particular friend and they hold many special memories for me! It is so nice for AJ to be able to get away and have girl time because she rarely gets an more than an hour or so to herself as I need to put one of the boys down for a nap in that same room. So...my mommy heart feels so good that she has had some nice time with friends this week. We will watch A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving tonight and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade tomorrow morning. Then Daddy will fry the turkey and we will cook a bunch of our favorite dishes and have a relaxing day of eating and being together. This is our first year not going somewhere or having anyone over, but with the busyness of the last few months, it's nice to not have to take food somewhere and just be in the comfort of our own home...at least for one year! It's not like us to not want to be with lots of people, but I know we can definitely use some just us 5 time! Darien has been walking now for a few weeks and he is almost ready to run and keep up with AJ and Keenan! He has 8 teeth already and is babbling lots. He'll probably have a few words by his first birthday which is quickly approaching! This year has just flown by but we have really enjoyed watching our babies grow and learn new things every day! Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! We truly have so much to be thankful for...miss all of you on the East Coast, but are so glad not to be in those frigid temperatures!

Family Photos

Okay so maybe I am a glutton for punishment but we keep being offered some kind of great deal for family photos, so here is another bunch of us! Dana Fineman took them and she is a great photographer here in Malibu who has taken lots of celebrity's portraits of the likes of Celine Dion. And while these may not be the absolute best of each of us, who can get 5 people looking perfect in one photo anyway?! Keenan has a crazy face in nearly every one of the 50 photos we have on a CD. These are some of the ones I felt were BLOG WORTHY! You can totally tell on my face that I have had enough of his boyish not-so-timely antics! He was so funny that day...he started sucking his thumb of all things...during some of the shoot. I would include those, but alas I did not look so BLOG WORTHY myself! LOL! I have to say that I do believe my oh so handsome hubby is truly the most photogenic of all of us. The tender look on his face in the photo on the very top is absolutely the reason he still gets to be married to me! No, seriously...that is a very special photo and I am very grateful to have had that particular look in his eye captured forever! Hmmm...I really do forget sometimes how very blessed I am to walk beside a man like him.

Harvest Season

We had a rocking good Harvest season this year! We carved pumpkins with Daddy which was so fun and the kids just loved seeing it all lit up! AJ was obsessed with wanting to plant the pumpkin seeds in a butter container filled with dirt! They had such fun being dressed as their favorite superheroes! Batgirl and Robin to the Rescue...and a cute little baby giraffe too! I borrowed this costume from a dear friend whom I had told that Darien was dressing up as his big brother since everyone comments that they look so much alike! Alas, she had something that fit him so perfectly, I couldn't argue! We attended a fun Halloween party given by the MOMS club of Calabasas, a Pepperdine Harvest event where the kids did lots of fun crafts, and a really great party thrown by a fellow MOPS mom who took us trick or treating in her totally hooked up neighborhood after some good food and fellowship! It was a night to remember for sure! Even Daddy dressed up ...he was Tiger Woods...and well...mom was Reese Witherspoon of course...only wish I had even a few of her dollars for every time someone said I looked like her. Wonder if I should be her stunt double! Anyway, we feel blessed to have watched the kids enjoy good, clean fun with some wonderful friends and well... maybe we had some fun too!

Keenan's 1st Day of Preschool

Keenan started preschool in Malibu by an amazing provision from God! His first day was just a few days after his third birthday! He already knew lots of the kids and even some of the teachers from Vacation Bible School. He was very excited and walked in with his friend Austin and then went to see Sugarfoot, the class bunny! Before we left we sat down with him by the toy cars and he was pretty much like "okay, see ya!" We are very proud of how well he is making friends there and feel very blessed to have such a wonderful opportunity for him. His new best friend there is Amanda, a little blond girl who told him the first week..."Keenan, I love you" to which Keenan said "thank you." The two of them had the teachers cracking up as they paraded around the playground holding hands like an old married couple. He can't wait to see her everyday and says he loves all the girls' "pretty flowered dresses!" He is going to make some lucky girl a very good husband! Yeah AJ and mommy! We are doing a good job preparing Keenan to be a sensitive young man!

Keenan's 3rd Birthday

Remembering September 19th, 2008!

Keenan's 3rd Birthday was sooooooo fun! We went to Fo Fo Figglies ( a glorified McDonald's playplace) where the kids had a total blast! There was even a room for Darien and he was climbing all over the place! He was so fast getting up the stairs to go down a slide...he is trying to keep up with the older kids. Anyway after that, Keenan was surprised with a Baskins Robbins Ice Cream cake that my mom and aunt brought home. We had a really special dinner and opened presents. He got a basketball hoop and a Robin costume from us. The real coveted items were his Dinoco Queen and Queen get New tires Cars cars...(these are his descriptions of the toy cars he wanted soooooooo badly he wouldn't quit talking about them until they came in the mail. ) Donnie's parents bought him those. My mom and some of the guests at his Cars themed pool party got him lots of other great gifts like a favorite talking McQueen shirt, a drill and more CARS!!! Pictured below is something else we did for his birthday which was go to an Open House at the Sherrifs Station. We went last year too but the line was too long for this zip line that the kids begged to do, so of course we got right in line first thing this year and the kids were so excited to fly through the air together! They weren't afraid at all! Next year we are all going to go up together...mom and dad too...but maybe not the baby yet! Keenan loved sitting in the helicopter and fire engines and thought it was fun to pretend he was a real hero! We had a truly wonderful time celebrating him and he enjoyed every moment of Fo Fo Figglies, his cake, his presents, his ROBIN costume, his cars, his really cool pool party and most of all...his family and friends! I can't believe he is THREE! My baby boy is growing up sooooo fast, but he still loves his cuddling time and always says...I want you momma...you are my special momma! I love this boy!

Dedicating Darien

On September 6th, we dedicated Darien at our church. We had invited several couples who at

last minute were not able to come, so our dear friends Thomas and Becca and my mom were the only ones to attend and we had tons of leftover cake from Costco...those of you who know me will remember my magnificent obsession with Buttercream frosting and cake! The leftovers weren't "left over" for long! Darien remains our sweetest little thumb sucker EVER! We know God has great plans for our little guy whose name Darien Elliott means "upholder of the good" and "the Lord is my God."

Travel Town Museum

In honor of the first day school, we took the kids to the Travel Town Museum in Griffith Park. It's a really neat place in the setting of an outdoor park where dozens of old steam engines and other vehicles are on display for kids and adults to explore and pretend they are conductors and passengers. It was the perfect place for our train fans! And like a playground too with all the ladders to climb! It's a great venue for kids to learn about history and we enjoyed seeing everything as much as the kids did! I wanted to share a few pics of the memories we made there. The boys were wearing their matching I am Speed Lightning McQueen shirts that Grammy Pat sent them! The last photo is a classic shot of Keenan twirling his hair...a signature move of his!

Back to myself again

Ok, so before I add these other posts to update everyone on what the kids have been up to the past several months, I have to say that I am back to myself again. I had my thyroid levels checked a few weeks ago and my numbers came back like 15 points higher than normal. For hypothyroid, that is a HUGE jump and so that is why I have been ridiculously dizzy, tired, emotional and severely irrational these past few months! I have lost 5 pounds in two weeks and feel like I have way more energy that I can't believe I didn't realize just how "not okay" that I was. It has been a really busy last few months with school for both older kids, Donnie's doctoral program and my business! So, for those of you who read "my rambings" and had your concerns that the Trina you knew had 'left the building'...I have returned and feel ready again to tackle motherhood with a refreshed perspective, eager to show the Lord that I will not try again to do anything in my own strength...clearly I had been coming up way too short!

Remembering AJ's First Day of School

Our sweet girl was so nervous about her first day of school because she found out the day before that the woman who would be her 2nd grade teacher was the same teacher who had corrected her in the school yard last year! She was like, "oh, no, she's not going to like me." Then she saw the class list did not include her closest buddies from last year...not a single one. There were two kids from last year's class, but not her nearest and dearest! Tears flowed the entire car ride home and she would not be consoled. However, a few short hours later, we were able to convince her that the very things we fear are usually not so bad and that her new teacher would probably end up to be her most favorite (which she is already) and that she might even make friends with some new girls that she would end up enjoying even more! Alas, she was quick to bounce back to her normal adventurous, optimistic self! The purple first day of school outfit she is pictured in here was a Walmart special that after one small thread was tugged on during that wonderful first day...came apart! LOL! (Needlesstosay, we took it back.) She was so bummed, but her Dad and I took her to get a replacement and she chose a pink cheetah print sweatsuit which seemed to asuage the pain of losing that really cool first day of school outfit! She is reading wonderfully now and is getting into the groove of her new classroom routine very well! She boasts of a wonderful new friend that we look forward to having over for a playdate soon! She begs to take gymnastics again and is dreaming of being an Olympic gymnast, swimmer and wants skating lessons too! She continues to love all things High School Musical and Hannah Montana and is a wonderful help with her brothers. She is teaching Keenan how to write his letters...that is another aspiration of hers...to be a teacher! We love to watch her dream about what plans the Lord has for her and encourage her to seek Him about His direction for her life!

My ramblings...

So this has been a summer of lots of "pool fun" for us, but lots of stressful, "I don't know how to be a mom of three kids" and "I think I am losing it" summers also! I think I have had my fair share of shining moments but a lot of not so great ones too. Keeping everyone healthy and happy during the school year is tough enough, but even though summer is nice in that I don't have to get AJ up and ready every morning, she and Keenan are squabbling about something from morning til night. Don't misunderstand me here, they love each other like crazy, but man do they work each other's nerve and mine... most hours of the day! We are happy here in our two bedroom townhome but I can tell you it is not easy to provide the space that AJ sometimes needs away from the boys and that I need to separate them so I can have some peace. I am learning how to try to be in the moment with them and not be so concerned about all the housework and business emails I need to attend to, but it's hard sometimes...very hard! The balance of getting the "got-to's" done, playing with the kids, keeping up with clients, and trying to have time for us a couple and as individuals is dizzying! I want so much to be a good mom, a great mom really and to provide the things my kids need. This school year my goal is to just really love and encourage them and find creative ways to redirect the mischeivous energy they have!
I have had some difficulty with vertigo the past several months and honestly just in the past few days have I finally been feeling better. Nights are the worst as the dizzy feelings I experience are compounded with waking up to tend to one of the children's needs (ie...teething, potty training, sickness). This last month I have just been really wiped out and just plain old tired of everything that has to do with being a mom and I fear it has probably shown way too visibly way too often. I know there have been reasons for it, but it feels really good to be able to say that some of my strength for life and the adventures of mothering are returning. I am thankful to God that no one in our family has suffered anything close to being severe, but I definitely have not shown my best colors during this rough season. I am looking forward to leading a table of great women in our local Malibu MOPS group and eagerly anticipate a three week visit from my mom in early September. I hope to get into the routine of posting more regularly now that I am able to spend some quiet time on the computer instead of needing to lay down by 8:30 at night! We look forward to a great last few days of the Olympics as it has been a lot of fun to cheer on all the team USA athletes. Can't believe we will have a 2nd grader in just a week! Here's to a happy, healthy new school year for all!!!

AJ's 7th Birthday!!!

AJ turned seven on July 20th! We had a really great Hannah Montana themed pool party for her with some of the girls from her class and some neighborhood friends as well. The guests enjoyed hotdogs and hamburgers grilled and served by Daddy who was quite the host! I took care of pool safety and a Pool Olympics game along with mingling with some of the parents who stayed on to keep an eye on the kiddos and relax by the pool as well! AJ was really excited about her special cake with a guitar shaped lipgloss and a picture of Hannah Montana's face too!





A highlight of the party was a skywriter airplane who wrote the word "PLAY" right above us in the sky not once, but three times! The girls thought that was so neat! It was a neat way for us to share with AJ how God blesses us in some really special, unexpected ways! I'll bet none of her other friends had skywriting performed for their party!




AJ showed off her wild child personality and all the girls seemed to enjoy themselves immensely! I can't imagine who she got such traits from! LOL! She received some nice gifts from her friends and family including a session of gymnastics classes from us! Her favorite new things are a Hannah Montana dress, Hannah Montana purse, Hannah Montana singing pen, a couple of diaries and some craft kits. She doesn't like Hannah or anything, right?! So, we felt like proud parents that day...we pulled off a great party in fancy Calabasas for like maybe $60...a far cry from the $600 it seems some of our friends will spend on their kids parties! Hey, if you got it...that's great, but we felt really good and so did she with our small but very fun backyard celebration!

AJ

AJ has had a wonderful year as a first grader! She has worked very hard to acheive grade level reading status and continues to learn new things everyday. She has many great friends and is such a prized companion! All her classmates begged for playdates with her on a regular basis. We tell her often what a great strength it is to know how to be such a fun loving and caring friend. She is keeping busy this summer with lots of playdates and swims almost daily with our wonderful neighbors. Her birthday is fast approaching and we are surprising her with a long awaited session of gymnastics classes! Her party will be a small gathering of some neighbors and classmates at the pool. She is excited about enjoying my "pigs in a blanket" and her all time favorite...CAKE! We feel so blessed to be the parents of such a beautiful, fun-loving girl and look forward to watching her grow. She made a public commitment to accept Christ...she prayed with us when she was very young to ask the Lord into her heart...but Wednesday, July 2nd at church she really was touched in worship, knelt on her own, and raised her hands in worship without any cue from me. Pastor gave an alter call and she nearly bolted down front to my heart's delight! In the prayer room she asked the woman counselor to pray for her Papa Phil and Uncle Phil that they might come to accept Christ someday as well. It was the same request I had as well when I gave my heart to Jesus when I was also 7. That has been the most special news we can share about our special daughter! I look forward to continuing to keep family and friends updated with all our family news! Thanks for reading...remember..."the Lord will perfect that which concerns me" (Ps. 138:8). We have been praying this over our lives for over a year now and are watching God do really neat things daily. Praise the Lord...my business is growing...3 new clients this week! Sorry so random and fragmented but that is my brain at this late hour...almost midnight right now! Check back soon for more fun stories from the chronicles of our lives!

Keenan continues to bless us with his love for life and cars! He and big sister AJ play that old game about Volkswagen bug cars in the car. They call them Herbie cars and will say when they see one..."punch bug, no punchback!" I remember kids playing this game when I was young as well. Clearly it can cause some sibling rivalry battles of "I saw that Herbie car first...no I saw it first..." You get the point. They became obsessed with Herbie cars upon watching the Herbie Fully Loaded movie on Disney several months ago and it became a close favorite right up there with Disney Pixar's Cars movie. I cannot stress enough how funny it is to see my boy so excited about seeing a Herbie car or race car...and now he is even really good at calling out the colors of cars...something I thought was taking him forever to learn. I guess it's true what they say "kids learn best through play." Keenan has learned his colors by relating them to something he loves...I couldn't be prouder of my little boy who is truly "all boy."

The joy of being a mother

Darien is our little guy and what a joy he is to our lives! He is such a sweet, snuggly baby and though we were terrified at first to enter into being parents of THREE kids, God has just increased our capacity to manage our household and we are loving life with this amazing blessing, priviledge and miracle of another baby to love and raise as a part of our family! Becoming a mom of three has actually helped make me more content as a mom. I finally feel I have accepted this role as God's supreme destiny for my life and am now embracing it and feel much more at peace than when I was constantly feeling like...what's next Lord, what now...clearly this is my forever and anything else is just never going to fill our lives like loving our kids. It's still not easy to find time for other things that we enjoy but we are committed to just making our kids feel loved and as though they are our #1 Priority!