Krampa's and Gram's pool is getting a lot of use this summer!

 And we are LOVING all the cousin time!!!

Sylvia French braided Caeden's hair this afternoon.

Ryan and Annah made calzones for dinner tonight. They were really good!

Evening swim!

This is a real look, Annah.

Silly girls, having fun 

Chicken!!!

As always, I blog so that I can "count" and remember the many blessings God has given me in this life. It is to leave a "note to self" that even though there are always challenges, God is so good! These are the things we GET to do, to enjoy. I am thankful.

Master Pastor

We had our church staff meeting at a favorite local restaurant today, The Thai House, in honor of Pastor Angela's birthday.  She is our Pastor of Discipleship and Missional Evangelism, and Pastor Todd decided we should call her "Your Sentness," as she is always teaching us about how we are being SENT into the world to make disciples for Jesus.  Today, Pastor Todd gave her many random gifts that rhyme with "sent"...deoderant, bug repellant, condiment, mint, one cent, detergent...It was too funny.

 

What Pastor Todd didn't know is that we were really gathering at the Thai House to celebrate his receiving his master's degree tomorrow!  Pastor Jessica picked out some very funny gifts to celebrate him--a serape (to recognize his Puerto Rican heritage--he was born there on a military base, but loves to tease that he is Puerto Rican)...

Big "brainy" glasses, a giant fake mustache, a mustache necklace, and a graduation cap that we all signed.  Yes, we made him wear them all in the restaurant!  He didn't look himself.  But it was great fun!  We're proud of our pastor.  The fact that he did graduate school while planting a church is amazing to me.

Pastor Jessica brought mustaches for all of us...

We did have a productive meeting too; I promise.  I love being part of this incredible staff.  We do have a lot of fun, and God is growing us individually, as a team, and with our church family as well.  Exciting stuff!!

Bubblewrap and a Box

I love it when simple things add joy to life!

We had a couple long strips of big bubble wrap waiting to be thrown away, so I put it down on the kitchen floor where the kids would pretty much have to walk over it this morning on their way into the kitchen and bathroom.  They giggled and popped around the kitchen for an hour before going off to school.  It definitely added joy to the morning for all of us today!

We also had a big box going to be recycled tomorrow, so Sylvia and Caeden decided to play airplane pilots in their few spare minutes before going out to the bus stop.

This evening, Caeden's neighbor-friend Nate came over to play.  It was too hot to play outside, so they played with the Hotwheels RC and its iPad controller.  They spent some time building obstacles and a course for the car inside the big box. 

Simple fun times are the best!!

Joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart!

The kids like to listen to our local Christian radio station, WBGL, most mornings while getting ready for school.  I had it playing through an app on my phone when Caeden came downstairs for breakfast this morning, and Monk and Neagle's song Beautiful You was playing.

Caeden loves to dance, but he was really dancing with such a peaceful, joyful look on his face this morning.  It's that unmistakable contagious joy of the Lord!

He told me he really loves this song and asked if I could download it so we could listen to it whenever we want.  

"Let them praise his name in the dance," - Psalm 149:3

Colorful, pretty tree

The kids put up their Christmas tree this evening!

Caeden decided to start a new traidition of building Lego ornaments!  He and Sylvia quickly whipped up a manger with a star on top, an ornament with 3 men praying, a Christmas tree...

and a Thanksgiving feast!

The kids were all so bubbly with excitement while they put the tree together and decorated it themselves.  They sang Christmas carols, giggled, worked together and shared the joy of Christmas.  At one point I heard Sylvia say, "I just love Christmas!  It's so happy and joyful and full of love and fun!"

When they had the tree finished, they called me to come look at it, and this is how I saw them at the top of the stairs...

On this tree, they put a LOT--all the ornaments they've made over the years, all the ones we've been given, and the Big Lots ornaments I bought the first Christmas Jeremy and I were married.  It is very full after 13 years of collecting!

The kids love the colored lights on this tree too, and we all love to have it on at night, shining into our bedrooms as we fall asleep.  We are very thankful for so many blessings this holiday season!

Christmas Card

A Christmas card, from us to you!

My mom made the girls these beautiful dresses to wear for music performances and Christmastime, and bought Caeden his handsome outfit too.  We had them try them on over Thanksgiving weekend so we could see if they fit.  I didn't bother fixing their hair, because I didn't think I'd use the picture for Christmas cards.  But, it is a good representation of them being themselves.  I love everyday moments, so that is what we are sharing with our loved ones here.  

May God bless your everyday.

Mini Toasted Tunas

I admit, too many times I do not take the time to stop what I am doing and enjoy watching my children play.  It is a shame when I don't.  They are terribly creative and funny little beings.  They do have a beautiful innocence about them.  They allow simple things to give them joy.  And when I am conscious enough to stop what I am doing and pay attention, they bring me great joy through their play.

Today is MLK day, and they are home from school with me all day.  Thank you, Lord, for this!  As they grow, these days become rarer and rarer, and I am aware of that.

They weren't doing anything "special" or "momentous" or "important."  They were just playing with little stuffed animals they received a few years ago from Lydia, a special teenager friend from church, who loves them and has spent a lot of time playing with and caring for them.

They stood in the kitchen in their pajamas, with their crazy adorable bed-heads, and danced their little penguins up and down, singing "mini-toasted tunas."  (I think this was a song they made up about what their penguins liked to eat.)  And it was special, and momentous, and important.

"Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me..." 

(The words of Jesus in Matthew 18:1a)