Starting a New Adventure

Dear Friend,

We will stop posting on this site, and start posting at chrisandlilijames.com, our new website. Yes, we have a new website! Please check it out and learn about the ministry opportunity I talked about in our latest posts.

You can sign up on our new website to automatically get our new posts. We want to keep in touch with you!

(You will also find all our previous posts on our new site.)

See you at chrisandlilijames.com!

Haley is 2 years old and Amy Started Kindergarten!

Hi there,

Haley turned 2 years old today! We are glad to have a big two year old! She started to speak in short sentences and is a very happy, goofy baby. She loves to play with baby dolls and pretend to be a mom. :) She likes to color, play with others, and loves to snuggle. :) We love to watch her grow. She is very loving and caring. And yesterday she decided a 2 year old shouldn't wear diapers anymore, so she is potty trained! :) Yay! 

Amy went to Summer School for two weeks before Kindergarten started. She loved Summer School and she loves Kindergarten (she just finished her first week of Kindergarten this past Friday). She goes to school by bus and leaves around 7:40 am and she gets home (also by bus) around 3 pm. She likes her class, she likes her teacher, and she even likes the food. :) We are so happy she is having a great time at school!

Last month Amy's second tooth fell out (the one in the middle on the bottom, next to the one that fell out early last month) and the permanent tooth already erupted in the place of the one that fell out early last month. 

Chris started a new semester at his university yesterday. He is taking two courses this session, and another two next session. His semester ends in December. After that he has two more semesters next year and he should be done with college. We can't wait! 

I started watching a 3 months old baby boy, Lane, this month. He comes over 4 times a week from Tuesday to Friday. He is a very happy, smiley baby. Haley loves to play with him, take care of him, cheer him up when he isn't happy, and Amy's first sentence every day when she gets off the bus is, "Is Lane here?" :) Amy asked if we could keep Lane the first day we had him, and both her and Haley love Lane ever since. We are glad we have the opportunity to watch him. It will be neat seeing him grow up!

August is always a fun month, with my mom, Haley, and Chris' birthday. My mom turned 60 on the 12th, Haley turned 2 today, and Chris will be 28 on the 21st. It's nice to be able to celebrate another year God blessed them (and us) with.

I mentioned in our last post that we will soon update you regarding our future ministry. Unfortunately we are still working out the details, so we weren't able to do so just yet, but we will do it as soon as we have all the information we need before we can share it with you. :) We hope to have our own website up and running by the middle of next month, so hopefully we will post our next post from there. That means we will stop using blogger for our future posts, but we will be sure to update you when it happens and leave a link of our own website here on blogger for all of you. We are excited for what God has in store for us!

Have a wonderful week!

The James family

Summer Fun

Hi there,

Abigél Pál

Let me start with the most recent news! My dear friend, Hajnal, gave birth yesterday to her second daughter, Abigél. She was born past her due date, but the birth itself was very fast. We are thankful to God for this new blessing in their lives.
And since we are on the topic of babies, my other dear friend, Fáni, is expecting her second child. Five of us were very good friends in high school (and ever since), and so far we have 7 girls altogether, the baby in the womb (or as we say it in Hungarian "bellydweller") is the first boy!
One of the five of us, Noi, just got married last week, so now we are all married. I am eager to see how many more babies we will have in 5 years. From 2011 to now (2016), we had 7 + 1 bellydweller, so hopefully we will keep up the next 5 years, as well. :)

Last week we had VBS at our church. We used the curriculum from Answers in Genesis called Ocean Commotion. We learned about Noah and the Ark. Click here for more info on the curriculum. We really liked the lessons, and all the activities (songs, games, snacks, crafts, and science experiments) neatly tied in with the lessons. The kids really enjoyed it, too. I am so glad I could be a part of it. What a privilege! 

Chris and I are grateful for our amazing church family. They are so dedicated and always ready to help.

Amy lost her first tooth the "old fashioned" way. (She had to have the top two front teeth extracted last year due to a bad fall, so technically she is missing three teeth now.) She just turned 5 in February, so it is a little early to be losing teeth (especially since she was late with getting them when she was a baby), but that didn't stop the tooth. :) The other bottom middle tooth is pretty loose, too, so we may have both top and bottom middle teeth missing soon. 

She will start school in a week and a half. (She will go to Summer School for two weeks, and then Kindergarten starts.) She is super excited. Hopefully she will love it!

Haley started to say "thank you" every time someone does something for her. Even when I change her diaper. :) She is so cute. She says more and more things and is able to tell me exactly what she wants most of the time, which is a big help. She still loves to read, play with dolls, draw, and play with playdough. She knows exactly what she wants, and won't accept it until it is exactly the way she wants it. She is very stubborn that way. :) 

Father's Day gifts to Daddy

Chris was diagnosed with narcolepsy (a.k.a.: excessive uncontrollable daytime sleepiness), so he got medicine and finally after many months, he doesn't feel tired all day. He is actually doing very well since he's been taking the medicine. I am so happy for him and he is obviously very excited to be back to "normal." We are thankful to God for the right medicine!

We visited Aunt Becky at the Farmers' Market
Look at all the beautiful bows she sells! Click here to see her online store.

And last but not least, we will have exciting ministry news soon! We are waiting for a few details to be worked out and once everything is done, we will have a special post about where and when we are going. We are so thrilled!

God bless!

Hello Summer

Dear friend,

Hope you are well!

Chris has been suffering from extreme sleepiness for a while now. His doctor tried several things, but when none of those worked, he referred Chris to a specialist. The specialist said Chris either has narcolepsy or idiopathic hypersomnia. He had a day time sleep study this week, where he had to take several naps during the day, and they monitored him meanwhile. We will hear back from the doctor in the coming weeks. Please pray that Chris would be finally able to get the medicine he needs, so he wouldn't feel so sleepy all the time. 

He is still enjoying a little break from school, and working at the Allstate office as well as from home. 

Amy and Haley are in love with their daddy. Haley cries every time Chris leaves and is so super excited once he is home. I love seeing their love for their daddy.

I (Lili) had 2 of my 4 wisdom teeth extracted a couple of weeks ago. I have an appointment for the other two to be extracted next month. The surgery went very well, I couldn't have asked for a better outcome. I praise God for the pain free procedure and for the fast (also pain free) healing. I had friends and family help in so many ways (coming over for several hours to help with the kids, bringing meals, and praying for me, making sure I am fine). It is so encouraging to be surrounded by people who love us and care about us. 

The kids and I try to go outside for at least a little time every day. It's been very hot and humid recently, and due to my surgery, we didn't get to go out daily these past few weeks, but it is always so nice when we leave the house. 

Amy is so excited about Kindergarten, she cannot wait to start school. I sure hope she will like it! We just got a letter telling us who her teacher is going to be. It's hard to believe she is starting school in less than 2 months. 

Amy always surprises us with something random she learned or figured out. A few weeks ago she counted back from 100. When I asked where she learned it from, she said she just figured it out. 

Reading is not her favorite, but she can read sentences with very little help. I am looking forward to her reading books on her own.

She loves nature and loves watching Wild Kratts. She went from screaming when she sees a gnat to letting worms (!!!) and bugs crawl on her. To be fair, she still screams sometimes, so I guess it just depends on her mood. :)

Haley is finally "talking." She started to mimic the words we say a lot recently, and she does what Amy did around this age, putting a few real words into her made up sentences. So "mahaa daddy deehy bye bye" (or something along those lines) is something we hear every day when Chris leaves. :) She knows more and more words and understands more and more things. She is a little mischief. She makes us laugh a lot. :)

Amy and her either play very well together, or all I hear is "mine!" and "no! it's mine!" We are still working on manners... :)

We love our children and are so thankful for our families, our friends, and our church. We feel loved and encouraged by you all. Thank you for being part of our lives.

God bless! Have a great week!

The James family

Together for Six Years

Hi there,

Lots of news this month! 

Mother's Day gift from Amy

Becky and David moved back! We are so glad they are back and that they could meet Haley for the first time. Since then, Becky watched the kids several times, and we had the chance to get together with them for a game night. We are looking forward to spending time with this great couple! 

György Péter Molnár

My sister gave birth to her son on April 27th! Both baby and mommy are healthy and doing well. I am so proud of my sister and so excited for them! He is absolutely adorable! I wish I could have been there when he was born... But thankfully I was able to see him several times through skype! While it is not the same as in person, it will do for now. 

This past Friday was Amy's Kindergarten orientation. In less than two months, she will be in Kindergarten! She is very excited and cannot wait for school to start.

Amy built a house :)

Amy working with playdough

I am looking forward Amy spending time with other kids on a daily basis, and especially looking forward my time with Haley. When Amy was Haley's age, I spent every minute with her. We read, we played, we went for a walk, we learned, we did everything together. I recently noticed that Haley gets very little one-on-one time. I cannot wait to spend more time with Haley and get to know her better. I will finally be able to use my bike again! :) (It has a toddler seat on it, so I can carry one kid, but since Haley was born I wasn't able to use it, because I can't carry both of them on it.)

So Amy going to school is exciting for her as well as Haley and me! :) 

Today Chris and I celebrated 6 years together. It is amazing how many things happened in just 6 years. I am excited to see what will happen in the next 6. We are so thankful for each other!

An anniversary gift
(our vows)

Yesterday we had several hours without the kids, so we had a picnic in Deming Park (a huge park in town), played some games, went for a walk, took some pictures, enjoyed being outside, and just sat on our swing in our yard. We had a very fun, relaxing day. We are so thankful for our family and friends who watched our kiddos while we were together. 

Don't forget to send us an e-mail with your update or just prayer request or praise. It is always nice to hear from you! 

God bless!

The James family

Exciting Month for Our Big Girl

Hi there,

We are so excited for the warm weather! Today a friend of ours pointed out how lucky we are to live by a park, and I can't agree more! Especially since Haley is able to walk there, and I don't even have to take a stroller. And I really like the playground, too. It's a pretty little park with lots of space to run. Haley and Amy swing together (on the big girl swings). There are two swings for the big kids and two for little kids, but Haley wants to do what Amy does, so she swings on the big swing, too. I remember Amy being afraid of that swing at 3. Haley is not even 2 yet. :) Second kids are more daring I think. 

Our church organized a Daddy-Daughter Dance last month. The girls dressed up real pretty, and the dads took them on a "date." It was very nice from what I heard. Amy kept saying it was 100 nice (meaning it was super amazing). Amy loves to dress up, loves to be with her daddy, and loves to be with her friends at church, so it was an unforgettable night for her. I am so glad she got to go. 

When Amy learned where they are
going (Wild Kratts live show)

She also got to go to a Wild Kratts live show in Bloomington. Wild Kratts is her favorite show (it's on PBSkids), and ever since she was watching it, she had this dream of meeting the actual Kratt brothers. A family from our church gave us two of their tickets, so Chris and Amy could join them to the show. Amy was so excited to be there and to meet the Kratt brothers! She said it was incredible.

At the Wild Kratts live show

I think it was the most exciting thing she has ever done. We are very thankful she could go. We are constantly blessed by our friends. 

Easter Egg Hunt
at church

Haley is such a cute toddler! She will be 20 months old tomorrow! She likes to sign, but she started to say a few things, too. She is very good at understanding us. And she uses her signs/words/body language to make sure we understand her, too. She loves playing with babies and being their mommy. She puts them to bed, put the blanket on them, and give them kisses. She is a lot like me when I was her age. :)

Chris had his appointment with his doctor, and the sleep study came back normal, so the doctor suggested he switches his medicine and see what happens. So he is trying another medicine and see if that does the trick. 

He is busy with school and work. Thankfully he will have the summer off. So only a month or so, and he will be done with school until the fall. I am amazed at how well he manages everything. But we will be both happy when he is done with school. :)

Daddy is the horsie

And let me close with a praise: David and Becky are moving back next week! We are so excited for them 1) to be almost done with school, 2) for coming back, and 3) for starting a new chapter in their lives. We missed them very much and they haven't even met Haley yet! So we are glad they are moving back and we can get together with them again.

Peg + Cat characters Amy drew
completely by herself

Peg + Cat characters
(Click on any of the pictures to see it
bigger.)

Have a wonderful weekend!

Hello Spring

Hi there,

on February 20th

We are so excited to be able to spend our days outside again! It is crazy how warm the end of February was. We spent a lot of time at the playground this past month, and as we learned, Haley is very brave. :) She slides down on the biggest slide by herself. I am not one of those "I'm sure she will be fine" moms, so I am currently learning how to let her do things by herself and still make sure she is safe. Amy was not half this brave at Haley's age, so we didn't have to deal with an 18 months old trying to climb up on the highest things before. To be honest, I didn't mind Amy not being brave. :)

Haley wants to be independent in many things. She likes to eat with a spoon or fork by herself, drink from a real cup by herself, walk on the sidewalk by herself, etc. I think she thinks she can do anything Amy can. She is so cute. She has 16 teeth (4 of those are almost completely out, but not quite). At home she is a clown (always trying to make us laugh), but when we leave the house, she totally changes. She has this serious look as soon as we step out the door. But from what I heard, she loosens up in Nursery once in a while. :) 

Amy is super excited to be a 5 year old. She's been waiting for so long to be 5. She will start Kindergarten this fall, I am very excited to see how she likes it. We decided to go with K-12 for this year, and see how it goes. It is an online, virtual public school, so they provide the curriculum, the textbooks, other materials, and the teachers have classes online, but she stays at home.

Chris has been very tired lately, having problem staying awake, so his doctor had a sleep study scheduled for last Friday. We should have the results in two weeks. Please keep him in your prayers concerning this.

He just started the second session this semester at Summit University, and he is still all As. :) He will be very happy to be done with school (most likely next year), but he is doing very well.

this is what Haley climbs
by herself

We are so excited for all our friends who are pregnant. Many will give birth soon, and many have a few more months to go. We also have quite a few friends who gave birth these past couple of months. I love seeing baby pictures all over facebook. "Children are a gift of the Lord" (Psalm 127:3).

Have a wonderful week!

Amy Turned 5!

Dear friend,

As hard as it is for us to believe, Amy turned 5 and Haley will be 18 months old tomorrow. They do grow up too fast. To be fair, we've been warned by many parents. :) One day you go home from the hospital with them, and soon enough they teach you new things. Amy knows more about a lot of animals (thank you Wild Kratts) than I do. It amazes me how much knowledge they have even at this age. So much potential!

Amy and Haley are very good sisters. Chris and I are so glad to have them as our children.

Amy loves to be with her friends, play pretend, and loves to learn. She has a gentle spirit, and gets emotional easily.

Haley loves books and she prefers to play with someone as opposed to by herself. Nonetheless, she is pretty good at entertaining herself when needed.

It's neat to see how different they are (inside and out), although they have the same parents. We are all different. We are all special in our own way.

I am so glad that God loves us just the way we are. Some of us are serious, some of us are goofy, some of us are little bit this and little bit that. Some like to be outdoors, others enjoy indoors more. Some of us like to party, others like to be by themselves. There's nothing wrong with either. Each person and personality has its values, and the fact that we are all different makes life so much more fun. 

At Steak and Shake,
celebrating Amy's birthday

God is an amazing Creator! There's no one like Him. When I read the Bible, the Word of God, I am able to get to know Him better, and understand who I am in His eyes. He wants me to have a relationship with Him. A personal relationship. I am His child, and He is my Father. What an intimate relationship, indeed! 

Haley feeding the baby with the bottle

I am so glad that our children have the chance to hear about God as they grow up. Amy was shocked to learn that not everyone believes in God. :) I cannot wait to see what God has in store for her and Haley. It is exciting to see your children grow in their faith. May they never stop growing in their walk with God.

Have a wonderful week, dear friend!

The James family

Happy Birthday, Amy!

Hello, 2016

Hi there,

Chris and I are two of those boring people, who believe that while it's great that December 31 is the last day of the year and January 1st is the first day of the new year, there is really no reason to stay up and celebrate it as if it wouldn't come otherwise. : ) So we didn't stay up any longer we would have on any other "normal" day. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with staying up and "welcoming" the new year awake, but it was more fun when we were younger, now we value sleep at night over almost anything else. : )

I'm not a big fan of New Year's resolutions, I believe that once you see that there is something you need to change in, don't wait until January 1st to work on them. And there really aren't a lot of things that people all the sudden realize they can do better on December 31st. :) Anyway, this is not to say there is anything wrong with New Year's resolutions. :) 

I made a commitment 3 years ago to read my Bible from cover to cover every year. I did it in 2013, 2014, 2015, and am in the process of doing it this year. I try to study each book as I read them, but I usually don't do a deep study on each book. If you spend only about half an hour a day reading the Bible, you will easily finish all 66 books in 6 months. Then you have half a year to do deep studies on books you would like to.

Having a tea party

I recommend reading each book in one sitting (as much as possible). I understand that longer books are hard to read at once, but there are plenty smaller books that are easy to read through. You can learn so much reading through the Bible in a year (or less). I always take notes and my Bible barely has any space on the margins anymore. But rest assured, every year I find new things and understand new things. The Bible never gets old. I could tell you quite a few things that I have never noticed for years and when I did, it was an "aha moment." :) God's Word should be always studied and read.

A great free Bible Reading App is Olive Tree. Here is their website: https://www.olivetree.com/

Amy calls herself Elsa Queen Maggie Princess at home
(Maggie is a special friend)
Here is how she writes it.

The kids are doing well, we love them and they love us. :) Amy will be 5 next month (crazy!!!) and Haley will turn 17 months old tomorrow. Does that mean that Chris and I are also aging? That can't be, right? Amy told me yesterday how she is going to be a mom and when I told her, yes, that means I will be a grandma, it hit me. I will be a grandma!!! I know... not tomorrow, but if 5 years have gone by this fast, I can only imagine how soon it will be. 

And since we are talking about babies, one of my cousins gave birth a few days ago to their first little bundle of joy, Balázs. And another dear friend of ours had her first baby, Caroline yesterday, too! We are so excited for them! We have a few more dear friends whose due dates are around the corner or are already past their due dates. This time is so exciting for both them and us, as we anticipate their babies' arrivals. 

We are looking forward to this year and all that God has in store for us for the coming 12 months. We thank Him for all He has done and for all He will do. What an awesome God we serve!

God bless,

The James family