Greta- 10 months

10 months, where have you gone? Greta is closing in on the year 1 and it's just wild how quickly it has gone. As you can see by her pictures, Greta's hair has gotten more wild but her personality remains sweet as can be. 

Greta has her first Christmas and we all enjoyed it with her. She is still scooting around on her belly. The other day I was noticing she alternates which arm she uses to push off from. She's gotten quite fast. 

Her top teeth finally popped through a week or so ago. She is sleeping very well and has taken to food- even of the pureed variety! We've introduced some cow's milk and so far that is going well. She nurses 4 times a day. 

Oh Greta Jo, we love you so! 

 

Eli is 11

What a fun time we've had this last year with our oldest. He really is such a fun, funny, and kind person. It is weird having a kid grow and change and become part-adult in little bits and spurts. But it also is so much fun to have a front-row seat, most of the time. 

Eli continues to love to be competitive and play just about any sport that can have a score and winner. :) As I'm writing this, Dad and Eli and Micah are playing on the Xbox. Everyday we get an update of recess touchdown stats and scores and the level of fair/unfair teams, etc. He's an avid Dallas Cowboys fan. He is currently in basketball season and told me the other day he thinks its the sport he has the best chance of being good at. I love that he thinks through things that way. It's clearly how God made him. 

He also has a soft heart and we've noticed his compassion and empathy grow as he himself grows. Again, another thing God wove into his being. He doesn't always notice everything around him, but when he does he is good at showing he cares. His siblings probably get to be the recipients of this the most. He isn't a jerk to them. I love that about him. 

Probably the biggest addition/change to Eli from last year is his love of trading cards. It is insane how he has taken to this hobby and knows years of cards by looking at their design or knowing what year was a particular athletes rookie year. He sometimes quizzes Micah on these facts as they're going to sleep. It's a hobby I don't really understand, but I do love that they can do it together and really get a lot of joy out of it. AND it doesn't involve a screen so, win-win. 

He is still an avid reader. I'm currently working through The Wingfeather series. Brent and he read them first and I started reading after they suggested it. Well, he just lapped me making his way past book 2 for the second time. In his class, there are other students that make book suggestions to him and he for them and it's one of my favorite things from the classroom. Speaking of classroom, he'll be in middle school next year! What? Oh and he dressed up like his dad for his 5th grade school picture. 

Eli is also one of our most consistent prayers. He reminds us of people we need to pray for by praying for them every night. He is also fascinated by the missionaries that come through our church and often chooses to sit and listen to their stories instead of running around or going to his own class. And running around the church is literally one of his favorite things. :) 

We just continue to find it a real privilege and blessing to be Eli's parents and pray we are raising him to know who he is in Jesus. 

Christmas Letter 2022

Wichert Family

Christmas 2022

2022 has had its shares of joys and sorrows. At the end of March Brent’s Dad died suddenly of a heart attack. We are still mourning his loss and always will. There’s hope with Jesus and knowing Grandpa is there, in the presence of his Savior and yet we feel the loss of him not being here with us. Knox has started saying “Grandpa Wichert with Jesus” and it’s sweet and true and heart breaking. We’re learning to sit in the complexity of all those emotions without having to fix any of them- because well, they can’t be fixed. 

At the beginning of February Brent took the big boys to Colorado skiing. They had a blast and enjoyed their first plane ride there and back. On February 28th Greta Jo joined our family, but you probably already knew that. :) In June we took a short trip out to western Kansas to see Little Jerusalem and Monument Rock. Brent’s mom and sister came too. Our family stayed in a converted grain bin Airbnb and made memories of no sleep and singing until everyone was quiet. And at the beginning of August we added Luna (a border collie/lab mix puppy) to our family. She’s been a learning experience, but really is the perfect dog for us. Also this summer we hosted the college kids in our home and one week two brothers brought our two big brothers a big bin of baseball, basketball, and football cards. This gift led Eli and Micah into their new most avid hobby of collecting, pricing, and wishing for more cards. 

Eli is in 5th grade and continues to be an avid reader, competitor, and jokester. We all think he’s pretty funny, but maybe not quite as funny as he thinks he is. He played basketball last winter, did quite a bit of pitching for his baseball team, wrapped up soccer season recently and has begun basketball . It’s hard to believe he’ll be in middle school next year, but we are really enjoying this season with him.

Micah is in 3rd grade and is becoming quite the little reader himself. About two months ago he would have told you he didn’t like reading, but he’s recently been caught reading when he’s supposed to be sleeping so I think he’s come around. His 3rd grade teacher, Mrs. Adkins tends to have that effect on Wichert kids. Basketball, baseball, and soccer have all been in Micah’s schedule too. He preferred 1st base and really likes playing defense but his soccer team was quite good so the defensive side was pretty boring. He’s a really good friend and has a variety of friends to prove it. 

Haddie is in 1st grade. She played t-ball this summer with Lana and now they are both in ballet. She is really starting to notice words that she knows and is trying to teach Greta her digraph rules for phonics. She’s such a little mama. She is a great helper at school and home and recently got the character trait award for Trust at school.

Lana is in her last year at home with mom- next stop is Kindergarten and she is so ready to be with the big kids. Her worst days are when the kids have school. She loves when everyone is home and loves most when someone will play Legos, Barbies, or art with her. When we told her she was going to do ballet she said “all my dreams are coming true”. 

Knox is 2.5 and whew, what a kid! He goes hard and fast and loud. He likes a snack and helps himself whenever he pleases. If no one notices, even better! He easily makes us all laugh at least once a day. He likes the Chiefs when he’s on the girls' good side and Cowboys when he’s on the boys. He loves sucking his thumb, his foxie, Paw Patrol, and grandma’s house. 

Greta is the best baby (shhhh, don’t tell the others). She is just the chillest sweetest little girl. She also is a thumb sucker and likes her little bunny she sleeps with. She is scooting around and seems like she’ll be “proper” crawling soon. 

And Brent and I are just getting older. Ha! We celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary this summer and love and really like each other. We are still active at church and with our kids and frankly, that’s about all we have time for. We’ve also thrown in a little farming into the mix, which has been a fun-frustrating-exciting-time-consuming learning experience. Navigating the loss of Brent’s Dad has reinforced how blessed we are to have each other. God is good. He’s still on His throne. He delights in our worship and in us. That’s enough to mull over for 2023. We love you all. 

Brent & Cindy Wichert

Eli, Micah, Haddie, Lana, Knox & Greta

Greta- 9 months

Look who turned 9 months old this week? Yay! Greta has started clapping and it's the sweetest. Lana and mom had to work hard to get a good smile this month as Greta hasn't been feeling well for about a week. She has a bad cough- and has been to the doctor, but otherwise is doing pretty well. 

We celebrated her first Thanksgiving at Uncle Randy & Aunt Amy's house. She didn't take much of a nap, but true of her personality was very pleasant throughout the day. She continues to be a thumb sucker and is still scooting around on her belly. She's really getting quite fast on our hard floors. It makes me consider mopping more. :)

Table food is the pick for Greta. I can occasionally sneak in some applesauce but she much prefers to feed herself with things that she can pick up with her hands. 

She's still the center of everyone's attention. She is so well loved and tended to. Haddie and Lana are living their best "babysitter life". Knox seems to really be paying more attention to her too and it's sweet to see them begin to interact with each other. 

 Eli, Micah, Haddie, Lana, and Knox at 9 months. 

Greta- 8 months

 

Sara McMillian Photography gets all the credit for these sweet shots. The sisters one (in particular) makes me swoon. 

Whew- 8 months! Greta continues to be a great baby. She is sleeping all night and takes a nice afternoon nap. She is growing and starting to eat some table foods. She doesn't care too much for pureed foods, but I can sneak them in here and there. 

Probably the biggest change this month is Greta is mobile! She scoots around the floor very similar to the way Knox used to. Just uses her arms to drag her body around. She gives sweet smiles and just last night was waving to our friend Misty. Since she did it twice, we'll call it a new skill. 

Her bunny and thumb are her sleeping companions. Her other thing she started this month is so funny and the only way I know to describe it is to say she sucks her tongue. It's hilarious. Usually after she's done eating- it's loud and she somehow smiles while she does it too. 

We are all terribly smitten with Greta Jo. 

Eli, Micah, Haddie, Lana, and Knox at 8 months. 

Greta- 7 months

Greta Jo is 7 months old! I feel like Greta has done a lot of growing up as she's gotten 2 bottom teeth to cut through, is sitting up a lot more solidly, tries to scoot around by pushing off her feet and has started eating more foods. She hasn't gotten on her knees yet so crawling is a little ways off (at least I hope). :) She has kind of turned on pureed foods and prefers foods like puffs, so we may try some little table food soon.

It seems Greta has become a little more of mama's girl this last month. If she's playing in the living room and can't see me she starts to cry. She also loves when her siblings sit and play with her or hold her. Her little bunny seems to help when I'm not there and she does pretty well in nursery. She's been to her first football game and we ended up leaving early (after arriving late) because she was throwing up. It was a weird hour bout and then it passed, so we'll hope that doesn't happen again. 

She's wearing 6m clothes and size 3 diapers. She reminds me a lot of Haddie in the way she looks, but is built a little more solidly like Lana. The girls love to see her wearing clothes they know they wore. It's super sweet. She has been pretty consistently waking up at 5:40 to eat and then back to sleep until 10. Then an afternoon nap from 1-3 or 4 and then down for bed around 7 or 8. She's a dream baby and we love her so much! So far, I'd say her personality is so sweet. 

Eli, Micah, Haddie, Lana, and Knox at 7 months

Greta- 6 months

 Here we are at half a year and we all just can't believe how fast it's going! She really has hit her stride in being her. :) She sleeps great and is so happy in her exersaucer or on the floor and obviously loves being held too. She loves her bunny and sucking her left thumb.

She has started sitting up with assistance and eating baby food. Of the two she's tried- sweet potatoes and butternut squash, she much prefers the squash. Now that Haddie is at school, she probably gets held a bit less. We had some cousins come visit at the beginning of August and got a puppy. 

Height- 26.5"

Weight- 15 lb 8 oz

Eli, Micah, Haddie, Lana and Knox at 6 months. 

Greta- 5 months

Greta Girl (as Knox calls her) is 5 months old! She's had such a big month- so much so that this post is almost a week late! :) haha Greta is rolling both ways, loves bath time and smiling at her siblings. She sleeps with her bunny, sucks her left thumb, and sleeps through the night and takes 2.5 naps during the day. Her personality is very laid back and sweet. She loves to be held, but is mostly satisfied as long as she can see the action. 

If I was more "with it" I'd show you my pictures in this outfit along with Haddie and Lana's but you'll just have to trust me. This was my outfit back in '87 and I love all the ruffles on the back. 

Our Colorado friends came and visited at the beginning of July and we visited our Oklahoma friends at the end of the July, so we got to meet some very special friends. Cousin Megan came and stayed with us during VBS week and babysat Greta. Also, Greta got to move into the crib in her own room after Knox decided it was time to climb out of the crib. The timing was great for Greta (and Knox is doing well with a big boy bed now). 

We love our sweet girl! 

Eli, Micah, Haddie, Lana, and Knox at 5 months

Greta- 4 months

4 months- a whole third of a year has flown by and our Greta Girl is growing so fast! She continues to be a happy girl most of the time, but especially when someone is talking right to her- which is almost always. She has started laughing and coo-ing. We have so much fun with her. 

She has begun to roll both ways. It doesn't seem like she is really trying to roll, it's more like it happens by accident. She really doesn't enjoy tummy time, but will tolerate it for a time. She LOVES baths- has since day one but I don't believe I've remembered to document it. 

Also, she has begun to suck her thumb. It's always her left thumb (Knox was always his right). She now sleeps in our room in the pack-n-play and is no longer in the bassinet since she's rolling. Also, I just swaddle her body- not her arms. It maybe isn't necessary, but it feels like she knows that it's time to sleep when I put her down that way. She sleeps all night, but Knox is still sleeping in the crib so we'll see when we decide to tackle that. Ha!

We went on some road trips- to cousin Remy's birthday party in Sabetha and to Little Jerusalem north of Scott City. She also has gone to lots of baseball and t-ball games. I should get a picture because she scored her own little fan that hooks on her car seat. She stays very comfortable no matter the weather. :) She also endured two weeks of swimming lessons for her siblings and we went on a family swim. She liked having her feet in the water. 

We love our Greta Jo and love watching her grow up! 

Here's the big siblings at 4 months- Eli, Micah, Haddie, Lana and Knox. 

Let Me Tell You

This weekend was rough. Brent gets off work on Fridays in the mid-afternoon. In a "typical" week that means we do a little yard work or something outside, clean up, and then start our Sabbath. Sabbath is something we've tried to incorporate in our weekly rhythm after we felt like God was smashing our face into the concept (we're fickle people) for a few months. We started in January of 2020. We keep it simple and there's HUGE room for growth in the area, but our family take turns choosing where/what to eat and what to watch (a family movie). Ideally, we don't do dishes or laundry and we put our phones away. Anything that is rest, worship or fun is a YES. This week wasn't ideal, and honestly it rarely is. Sabbath with littles is a lot of trial and error. Micah's baseball practice got moved to Friday due to rain, so we decided to move our Sabbath Saturday (enter narrator voice that says, that was the wrong move). 

Since Brent's Dad passed away, Brent's rhythms look different. What was yard work is now, what the kids have coined "farm work". "Farm work" is still very therapeutic/Sabbath-y/etc for him- usually. But when things don't work and rain is coming, it isn't. Those of you seasoned farmers and farm families are laughing in our faces, and you certainly have the right to do so. We're not farmers, but we're learning and dabbling and we're often frustrated. Again, this is where you point and laugh. 

So Saturday was the day when things really decided not to work. Raking, bailing, combining, all a big fat NOPE. It felt like God didn't care. I know that sounds dramatic, but it's truly how it felt. I thought we were going to be together Saturday evening and celebrate Sabbath, and as "farm work" goes that didn't happen. (Again, you farmers of years, point and laugh.) It felt cruel. 

I have a Bible app on my phone that sends a daily verse. Somewhere along the way my settings got changed so that it sends in the evening instead of morning. Saturday evening I got this- "Pour out all your worries and stress upon him and leave them there, for he always tenderly cares for you. I Peter 5:7" I sent it on to Brent with a (admittedly snarky tone) "ok, Bible app". 

Sunday starts early for me as I'm a worship leader at our church. I was just telling someone that for a few hours on Sunday, Brent and I reverse roles as he gets the kids to church (yes, all 6 and yes, he is amazing) and I make final preparations to the worship set and spend some time with Jesus. We sang a lot of "It Is Well" songs and they were not easy to sing but they were a balm for my soul. God makes it well with my soul. On some Sunday evenings, we have the college-age adults out and we feed them. They provide all the entertainment. And did they ever provide this week. 

This Sunday we ate, we listened to M read icebreaker questions and we certainly laughed and enjoyed each other's presence. The guys started harassing Brent about our lawn and then someone asked about Gary's combine that is parked right by our house. Brent said that he had charged the battery, but couldn't get it to start. Two of the guys headed over and started looking it over and soon the rest of the guys joined. I don't know all the steps that took place next, but would you believe that those guys got that combine started?! Brent and I just stood back in awe and watched them smile and try different levers and buttons. And then we were even more shocked when the header started turning. There was a little section of wheat close to our house that was too wet to cut on Saturday and they went over and started cutting. 

I could see them from our house along with our kids and the other college girls that came. We all just watched and smiled. 

"Pour out all your worries and stress upon him and leave them there, for he always tenderly cares for you. I Peter 5:7"

God cared for us and he used the most unexpected group- isn't that just like Him? One of the two guys that had the most experience with combines we had only just met on Sunday.

So let me tell you about my good God. Often, He doesn't answer the way I want Him to or the way I think he will or the way I think He should. But then, He answers (or in this case, whispers) in an unexpected way. I too often miss that He did answer because of my preconceived ideas. So I'm documenting it here so when I forget, I can have this night baring witness to His tender care. 

We will always remember Sunday night as when God "tenderly cared". Also, this group of young adults that were there to witness the event and take such an active role in God's plan will always hold a special place in our hearts. 

(Brent took some pictures of the guys, but to respect their privacy I won't post them here. However I did exploit their gifts of taking photos as they took some fabulous ones that are posted here- huge thanks to Mace for the drone pics and Carson for the sunset ones).