Coram Deo

Jumpin in the Rain

It was one of those days that goes from warm and sunny to warm and pouring in a second.  We looked outside and the kids are all jumping on the trampoline in the this torrential downpour.  Ethan wanted to come in, but Hailey was ordering him to keep jumping, lest the parents discover the rain and order them all in.

It only poured about 5min and then it cleared right up.  As soon as the rain stopped Eli and Ezra came in to proudly show me their soaking wet clothes and get some fresh new ones.  Eli declared, "We was jumpin the rain, it was sooo fun!"

Vacation Memories

I finally got the pictures from our CA/AZ/CO trip and thought I would share.

The impetus of the trip was to finalize the adoption of Ethan and Ezra.  Some of our family and some of our friends were able to be there.

Afterward we had a little party at my sisters house.

We spent time with friends and family in CA and AZ where I shamefully and regretfully don't seem to have taken any pictures.

Then we went on to CO.  This picture is taken at 4 corners, where it is possible to be in CO, AZ, UT and NM at the same time!

In Silverton we took the Old Hundred mine tour, which was really a highlight for the kids.  It was a working gold mine that never really made any money until it became a tourist attraction.  We got to see how the first miners in the are did it, all the way up to how they do it now.  Our ex-miner tour guide was interesting and a wealth of information.

Afterward the kids got to pan for gold.

On the way back down the mountain we stopped at a river and let the kids play in the water.  The current was pretty swift though, so they mostly had to stay near the shore.

The boys loved throwing rocks in the water, and only occasionally hit each other

On another day we went to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.  Which might be my favorite of all the zoos I have been too.  It isn't huge, but it is really well laid out and you are very close to the animals most of the time.  They provide a lot of opportunities for interaction between the kids and the animals.

This is the kids in the little water play section at the zoo

This is a baby wallaby that ducked its head behind the handlers arm just as I snapped the picture

This peacock was really strutting his stuff

Mamma wallaby with baby in pouch.  They weren't in cages, they were right in front of us.

Climbing on the rocks outside of Flying W Ranch

Look!  It was cool!  In June!

Garden of the Gods, another favorite of the kids.

Eli had trouble getting up here, so Mike reached out his leg and let Eli use it as a handle. 

I was on the wrong side of the sun for a lot of pictures

Riding the Royal Gorge Railroad.  Very expensive and very s-l-o-w.

At the Air Force Academy

Inside the AFA chapel.  This is the Protestant section.  Downstairs is the Catholic section and in the back is the Jewish section.

The stained glass in the chapel

So, that's some of what we did on our trip.  It was wonderful to be able to take that time as a family and I hope the memories last for a lifetime.

Ezra Turns 3

August 13 culminated Ezra's third turn around the sun.  He has been in our family a little over a year and it has been a joy to watch him open up.  He has just begun to smile.  I really don't think he knew how.  He has blossomed into an affectionate, funny little boy and we thank God for His goodness in adding Ezra to our family. 

We had mushroom/bacon/swiss burgers with sweet potatoe fries for dinner and Angel Food Surprise for dessert.  It was very yummy and I just know it's what Ezra would have chosen :) 

We added Nana and Papa's gift to ours and bought him a great big wagon that the kids can pull him all around the yard in.  In fact, we can pull all the kids around the yard in it. It'll be great for trips to the zoo too.

Here he is opening his card.

He was sooo excited to get "dollars"!

Look at that smile

The wagon

He blew out the candle like a pro

Daddy giving Ezra his blessing

Happy Birthday Chance!

My firstborn son turned 20 yesterday.  I don't know how that can be.  He is now 2 years older than I was when he was born.  Time is a funny thing.  Looking up at 20 years seems like an eternity, but looking back at it...the blink of an eye.

Chance is all I could hope for in a son.  He is a daily blessing to our family and it is a joy to watch him draw nearer to the Lord as he grows.  He is hardworking and humble and he loves his God with all his heart.  I look forward with anticipation to all that God will do in his life.

Reunited and It Feels So Good

Yes I know I have been MIA lately.  It seems that my real life has been too busy for me to keep up with my online life.  There are so many things I want to write about, but they require deep thought and some real time spent writing them.  Maybe I should begin word documents and just write a little at a time.  I know most of you won't be interested, but writing helps me to reason things out.  And I want the number one son to read it.

Anyway, we enjoyed a long overdue visit from Kirstyn last week.  She was here for 6 days if you don't count the late night she got here and the early morning she left.  And I don't.

It was very good to see her again.  She is nearly as tall as I am, and has grown into a beautiful young woman.  It was the first time in nine months that all of my children have been under one roof.  It was for far too short a time, but it was wonderful for us all to be together.

Miss Kirstyn

My girls

The 2 of us

Sierra and Ellie Mae (desperately in need of a haircut!)

I'd have taken more pictures but we didn't have the camera too often.

We had a bit of drama at the airport the morning she left. I told them we had to leave by 6am at the latest (for a 7am flight), but it was 6:10 before I could actually get them out the door.  Then Chance let the dogs out, and since they have been getting out of the yard we couldn't just leave them out.  He had to chase them down and get them back to the house before we could leave.  More time lost.  Fortunately the airport is not that far and there weren't many people crazy enough to be on the road at 6:15 on a Sunday morning.

But we still didn't get to the airport until about 6:30.  No line, so we get her boarding pass real quick.  I wanted a pass to get through security with her, but the ticket agent spent so much time arguing that there wasn't time for that, that there wasn't time for that. 

Alas, she had face wash and foundation in her carry on.  It took the security officer f-o-r-e-v-e-r to figure out what to do with it.  In fact, it took until right about the time her plane took off.  Without her.

Yep. She missed the plane.  Her dad was...not pleased. 

We went to a different ticket agent and she was actually very helpful.  She took us through all the possibilities and we were able to get her on a later flight. 

So, it all worked out in the end and Chance and I even got to spend a few extra hours with her.

We are all looking forward to the next visit.  And I pray that one day God will "redeem the time the locusts have eaten."

It matters what we do when our children are young.  Their youth is the time that we knit their hearts to us, build memories, instill values, train them up.  The idea that it is quality time, not quantity is a myth designed to alleviate the guilt of parents who choose self-gratification in the work place over self-sacrifice in the service of their families.  Life is not lived in sound bites. 

I have lived two lives, and I am seeing the fruit of each.  My younger girls love to spend time with me.  They each have very distinct personalities but we share common interests, values, and beliefs.  They are each others best friend, making memories together that will last a lifetime.  I realize they are young, and that rebellion can come even when we've done all we can.  They belong to God, and He must do His work in their lives.  But I also know that I did not enjoy this sort of relationship with my older children when they were nearly 10 years old. 

I am so grateful to God for giving me a new life.  For giving me a godly husband who loves me and loves our children and daily dies to himself for all of us.  For granting us vision, for second chances, for forgiveness and hope.  I praise Him for leading us to homeschooling.  Even with everything else He has given us, I know we would not share the connection that we do with our children without it. 

What We've Been Up To

We had a productive day today.  The girls made apple scones with turkey bacon for breakfast, helped a lot around the house and in the afternoon Hailey made chocolate chip cookies.  They capped it off with a hour or so of swimming. 

Daddy worked in the yard taking up rocks

He already pulled out the big Oleanders that were there.  He is going to take up all the rocks on that side of the house.  Then he is going to extend the top portion of the deck out to where the larger rocks are and build some benches/storage in.  Where the rest of the rocks are will be some pretty gound cover and stepping stones.  Won't it be nice!?!

He also put up new blinds in the boys room and our room.  And in the girls room we hung the curtains that they got for, dare I say it...Christmas.  They are vintage Hollie Hobbie curtains from the 70's and one was hemmed and the other not, so I needed to hem it.  Also, being vintage you can't be too picky about the size so they were a little short for the window.  I had to figure out what to put on the top, which meant thought...and a trip to the fabric store last night.

We had a very hard time finding something we thought would look right.  The curtains are pretty heavy and sort of a linen, and everything we thought sort of matched was very sheer.  Finally we decided on a pink linen-look fabric.  I think it works really well.  Although It does need one more panel so that it will be more gathered.  Hopefully before next Christmas  We can already tell the curtains will keep their room a lot cooler too.

We plan to paint the room sage green, and I think I am going to paint their dresser a little darker sage than the walls, and maybe antique it a little.  I think it will really look pretty.  What do you think??

Told You He Was A Farmer

On Saturday morning Mike was waking Eli up.  He gently shook him and Eli stretched and yawned.  Then Mike said "C'mon Eli, lets go."  Eli popped up and said "Dad!  I was milking a cow!

Fun and Games

Our neighbors invited us to a mini-horse show last Saturday.  There were several events and lots of fun things for the kids.  It was the perfect opportunity for some father/children time and some quiet time for me to get next years school schedule together.  A wonderful day for all concerned!

At the show

What???

They are so small

Eli never met a camera he didn't like.

I can't believe its so small!

Chance was there too, but he seemed to stay away from any proof of it.