My 5 year old

When my oldest turned 5 it killed me... it was a new era. Now my second is 5... and my third will be 5 in four months. I feel like I am in an entirely new era from diapers, bottles, needs constantly to some independence. It is a beautiful thing, but there is some mourning watching your children enter into school age. Their protected world intruded by the real world, yet on the flip side this is when God becomes real to them. It is hard to remember that all this hard stuff is what leads them to a Savior. If we protect them forever, they will have no need for Him. Allowing the hurts, stumbles, and bumps is what draws them there and leads them to stay. There is nothing more rewarding then seeing your young child begin to embrace truths that adults wrestle with. Seeing God through their eyes is incredibly refreshing... My little Thomas... 5! His skin so soft, his smile so bright, his cuddles still so tight.... will be arriving in Kindergarten soon as he naps upstairs....

More skiing

My sweet brother-in-law met us as well and offered to help teach all the kids. He was on a business trip and thought it would be fun. What would we have done without him!

First time skiing

There was too much fun to be had for the parents in watching their children ski for the first time. So many variables, so many guesses at how to handle it.... in the end, it was a success. We went to visit my sister-in-law who lives in Boone and her son who is 5 went too. They all were psyched and after 3 tiring hours for the adults, all four were on skis. There were many face plants yet no tears. I call that I success. By the end they were asking, "when can we come back?"

More of the same...

Our friends we met in Ethiopia

Here are some pics from a little reunion we had with a family we met while in Ethiopia. We were in Boone at the same time over Feb. Break. She was always my inspiration last year as I adjusted to 4... she was adjusting to 6. They adopted their 5th child and then found out they were pregnant the day after they accepted their referral. My children couldn't get enough of their children.

Word Picture

On Sunday I learned about the word picture of crumbs and stains. I thought about how often we treat our sins as crumbs that we just brush off where we say "Sorry about that"... and move on. I thought how often I stare at my sin in the face and try to brush it off and sometimes can't get it off fast enough. The pastor talked about crumbs being a "stain". Stains are hard to get out. If you are like me, I can hardly ever remove them. I try and I try, but I just can't. Our sins are stains, they can't be removed with a quick flick off our pants. Jesus has to come and remove that stain. We try and we try and we try. We are taught the message over and over, "just try harder".... we go to self-help sections of bookstores that scream "try harder".... Thankfully Jesus says, just come to me and I will remove your stains. The word picture has remained with me this week as I think on how easy each day could be when we go to Him and stop trying so hard.

Hebrews 4:13 "Let us go to the throne of grace with confidence, where we will receive mercy and find grace."

Psalm 51:7 "Wash me whiter than snow...

Sydney's first salon appt.

Sydney had her first salon appointment ( and last I think :)). Whew.... 40 dollars for a hairstyle that only lasts one or two weeks. I am so thankful for all my friends who have taught me how to do hair. I know you could go to a braiding salon for maybe 25 dollars. So here is her "do" that she got done. She hated every second of it, yet Mommy loved watching and learning. I have found that every person I talk with has a different opinion on how to do hair. I think it is like parenting... we all think we know best, but we really believe our way is right. I think you have to be confident and just go with what you think because there are way too many differing opinions out there such as... whether to use a hair dryer or not, whether to straighten or not, whether to use gel or not, what kind of oil to use, how often to wash it, which kinds of rubber bands to use... get my drift?

Mystery Reader

Thomas is famous for coming out of his shell when it just him. I was the Mystery Reader in his class and brought in three books to read to his class. You would have thought I brought in bags full of candy, he was so excited. He got to sit next to me, but he couldn't sit still for a moment. He wanted to talk the entire time I was ready. I read the book "Wemberly Worry" and asked if anyone in the class worries... Thomas jumps up and shouts...." My brother Bobby worries about robbers! I am not scared of anything--not monsters or bears!" Thank you Thomas. The things they internalize. I know he has watched his brother worry so much after the man asked him to get in the car last Fall.

We have made great progress with Bobby's fears. We had the elders come pray with him a week ago, and I can honestly say we have a completely different child. His confidence is back; his love and engagement in life are back.... the fog is beginning to lift. We all have that skip in our step again. We didn't really know it was gone, but we did know we were having to pray about our own worry. One step at a time....

Andrew's stories of Ethiopia

New habits have developed with our clever Andrew. He has seen that he has gotten quite a reaction out of us when he tells us stories of Ethiopia. All stories are created by him. We had hopes that he would have some memory of his 3 years there, but there has been nothing that matches up. Such as.... "We played a lot of Wii in Ethiopia and we had hot chocolate every day!" From the chuckles he gets from his brothers and his parents, we definitely egg him on. It is just too good to hear his imagination run wild. He said he went to the library a lot and the girls didn't go. Bobby said the other night, "I tell my friends how funny Thomas is all the time." I asked him what was funny about Thomas and he said, " He puts his fingers in his nose, puts ketchup on everything, and puts his hands in his pants!"... Whew.... Then I said, " What do you think is funny about Andrew?" He said, "All of his Ethiopia stories... I could listen to those all night!"