Just because

She is so cute! I can't get enough of this sweet little face.

6 years ago today . . .

. . . I married my best friend!

I can't believe it has been 6 years. I don't feel old enough to have been married 6 years let alone have 3 kids and one on the way.

We were only 19 and 20 when we got married, just kids! God has done a lot in our lives the past 6 years and I'm so excited to see what he has for us in the future. There's no one else I'd rather be on this journey with than you, Joel! I love you!

To read more of our love story that I wrote last year you can click HERE.

Manti

One of my cravings during this pregnancy has been the Turkish dish manti. Love, love, love it! 


Manti is a spiced meat mixture, wrapped in dough and then boiled. It is served topped with plain yogurt and garlic, and spiced with red pepper and mint. It is delicious! I could seriously eat it all day long.


It is very time-consuming to make, but our friends love us so much and will do just about anything to fulfill my pregnancy cravings :) So they invited us over one day to make and eat manti together. I love them!

It was dark in their house and many of the pictures didn't turn out so well, but here is the meat mixture (on the left)  and my friend making the dough.

The spectators

Rolling out the dough

Next the dough had to be cut into tiny little squares

Then filled with a pinch of the meat mixture

Then wrapped up just like this, aren't they so pretty?

Gender roles are definitely more defined here and our friends thought it was funny that Joel was helping out with "women's work," so they put a head scarf on him. I love my husband!

After we tediously wrapped up all those little dough balls (it took about 3 hours) we boiled them and then it was time to eat! Our 3 hours labor made about 3 trays of Manti. Yum!

This is how our friends eat, sitting on the floor and sharing from the same dish.

And that, my friends, is how manti is made. Just writing this post is making me hungry!!

Quotable Colson

"Mommy, when I turn 5 can I be brown?"

He certainly does love his big brother and wants to be just like him!

Way to go, Colson!

Just two weeks after Yohanis started riding bike without training wheels, Colson decided it was time to learn too. He caught on really quickly and was riding without Daddy's help in no time!

It's so much fun for me to see the boys learning new things and to see the excitement on their faces when they accomplish what they've set their minds to.

The longer Yohanis is with us, the closer him and Colson become. The first few months their relationship was a little rocky, but in the last few months they have become the best of friends. Yes, they still have their moments, but they really do love one another and have SO much fun playing together. 


When Yohanis was learning to ride bike Colson was right there beside him yelling, "Come on, Yohanis! You can do it!" And you should have heard his squeals of excitement and seen the HUGE hug he gave Yohanis when he finally learned. He was so proud of his big brother. 


And it was the same way when Colson learned to ride his bike. Yohanis was right along side of Colson, encouraging him and sharing in his excitement when he did it!