i love the beach!

especially the one where i grew up, but really, any beach will do.
these pictures were taken almost 4 years ago--my how the kids have changed!
but the beach doesn't change.
at least not much.
it's a constant reminder of the power of God.
His immutability (He never changes).
the rhythm of life, like the tides-comfort in times of uncertainty.
we all love the beach (though some don't appreciate the sand as much).

thank you, Lord for the beach!

i love to read

what's beside my bedside right now (click on the links for more info):

the first book, of course, is the Bible. it's got everything: it's the ultimate love story (for God so loved the world), it's got mystery (His ways/thoughts are not ours), suspense (what will the rapture really be like?), family drama (check out joseph...), even war. not to mention life giving/sustaining substinence. it truly is my life blood right now.

your money or your life: current book club selection. i give it a b-. it's geared (from a secular point of view) more towards people who actually have a paying job and making detailed lists rather than a stay at home mom of 7 trying to be a good steward of the fruits of her husband's hard labor. but it does make me want to work to live rather than live to work and it will eventually be good fodder for discussion with said husband once we have our own place and i don't have to share conversation time with his parents and 7 children all clamoring for his attention what little time he's actually home.

a blessing of toads: forget about the title. this book is a compilation of sharon lovejoy's columns for country home gardener magazine (a favorite no longer in print). short, fun, and they always make me smile.

prayers of my heart: my prayer journal. i usually do my own, or print a form off the internet but this has become my favorite. simply laid out, and easier to keep track of (and separate from) my regular homekeeping notebook.

what's age got to do with it?: i haven't started this one yet, but is lent to me and highly recommended by my friend deb. i'm hoping it will be encouraging and not discouraging. after all, my wii fit age is 33!

goops: reading bits of this with the little boys at night. a manners manual (with cartoon illustrations) originally written in 1900, this is not only enjoyable, but nice that you can sweetly reprimand your kids in public in only a way they (or someone who's read the book) would understand. "looks like the goops have been here!" you can say when they've left a mess. "you're not turning into a goop are you?" when they start to have a narcissitic meltdown.

esther: i've been waiting oh so patiently to do this study since my dear friend lea
wouldn't do it before i left tally.... you can download the videos (for a small fee) off the internet, so i'm going to have the girls watch with me. can't link to lifeway.com because their site is down.

the home book: wonderful compilation if you're trying to explore the myriad possibilities of decorating a new home. if you ever get a new home.

what's beside your bedside?

testing

i'm just trying to see if i can post bigger pictures

i love karis (who is 18 today!)

my first born is 18 today.
i love karis for all the things she is inside.
she loves jesus. and her family. and her friends.
she trusts in Him and is a good example to those around her, even when she doesn't know how things will turn out.
i love karis' balanced mix of maturity and childlikeness.
she enjoys a good game, or playing at the beach or in snow.
she has a great sense of humor.
she has a great eye for beautiful things: pictures, clothes, accessories.
her eyes are beautiful.
she wants to be a pastry chef.
she makes most of the cakes for our family celebrations (this is mike's recent light saber).
she has a great smile.
she is fun to be with.
even if it's because she and her sister are making fun of you.
we have so many private jokes we can't remember them all.
good times. (she would say).
little kids adore her.
the girl on the left is named after her. karis. and she loves her.
the little girl on her lap is our new youth pastor's daughter.
we had a last minute get together at church for her. over 40 people came.
karis is a blessing.

happy 18th! you can now vote---
love you, karis

i love root's (rhymes with puts)

root's is a local flea market type place that is only open on tuesdays.
in the summer it's packed inside and out with vendors of all sorts.
this time of year only the bravest/most desperate stay outside.
(notice the buggy under the sign. many of the stands are run by the amish. or if you're pete the "anish boy". he always puts amish or anish as he says it with a boy. as if a girl doesn't qualify).
we got to park next to a horse and buggy.
they don't drive with the blanket on, that's just so they don't get cold.
pete really wanted to go pet the horse, but we didn't.
lots of flowers--so bright and spring like.
the colors were beautiful.
need a new lamp?
some of these beautiful (from a distance) lamps are decorated with nascar drivers.
i just know the princess deb is coveting one for her home...
how about some outdoor decorations?
i did check out the price on those wooden clothes dryers to the left--they were the sturdiest ones i've ever seen.
there's one barn that auctions livestock.
we heard the call of a rooster and pete said, "that chicken is calling me."
so we went inside to say hi.
they were loud!
but look how close they are in there.
i wonder if roosters get claustrophobic.
maybe that's why they're so mean.
these rabbits were huge!
they must be getting ready for pet stores for easter.
it's only 6.5 weeks away!
clothes anyone?
they were some of the brave ones weathering the cold (and it was windy!).
i wanted to buy something just to encourage them.
but we are being very careful with money.
and i don't need anything.
and they were ugly.
this was on a little table in the bathroom, playing praise/worship music.
you don't see this in just any public restroom.
we may be redneck (see the comment about the lights above) but we're not afraid to preach the Good News!
it's so encouraging to see.
a reminder that God cares.
even if you don't have your own house to live in and you feel like a bunch of roosters jam packed too tight inside a small space.
the heagy's (of richard heagy meats) go to our church.
richard is dead, but his wife still comes.
we know 2 of his sons quite well.
one of them was married to my good friend carlene who died of breast cancer last year.
the other has 7 kids.
they were the first family we were friends with that had more than 3 kids.
i ran into the mom at the stand.
it was so good to see her. she only has 2 left at home.
3 got married last year within 7 weeks.
oh, my, i thought. that could be my life in 10 years......
produce was all i bought.
the prices were great.
better than costco and better quality from the looks of it.
i let pete pay for everything.
the people are so kind and patient with little ones.
and because he was such a good helper the whole time, i let pete pick a piece of candy with the change we had left.
he chose a rooster lollipop.
because one had talked to him.

come visit us on a tuesday and we'll take you to root's!

i love homemade bread

i admit that i viewed not being able to bring all my wheat grinding stuff and pans, etc. to make homemade bread as an experiment as to whether it truly was worth the time/effort/monetary savings that i put into it.

the experiment has been a success. we miss it. none of us feel as full after a meal filled with white flour products. some of us can't even stand the taste of it (fluffy glue anyone?) so we do without.

for me personally, i miss the almost daily rhythm of combining ingredients, watching them meld and form into something none of them could be on their own. i miss the smell of bread fresh from the oven, and the multiple requests from little boys to have the end before it even cools.

Lord, please sell our florida house soon so we can get back to a daily rhythm of life, including our daily bread.

i love jack

he tells the funniest jokes.
he has the bluest eyes.
he's always been very laid back.
it takes a lot for jack not to smile.
sometimes he has what we call "eeyore moments" (don't we all?)
but he always bounces back quickly like tigger.
he's a really good reader, and is very patient to teach younger kids (like this weekend when he taught 2 neighbor boys how to play football).
he's very social.
the more friends the merrier.
and he loves to talk.
we love his stories.
jack has vitiligo. it's a lack of skin pigment and it not only makes his skin white, it turns his hair white too.
he doesn't mind.
he knows God made him special, and has a specific, good plan for his life.
i love to watch jack play.
he never holds back.
he has lots of energy.
he finds humor in the smallest things.
and shares his funny sense of humor with us.
jack is a good brother, and a good friend.
he is a loving son.
he takes good care of the dogs.
i can't wait to see where God takes jack.
i am sure it's something big.

we love you jack!

i love church

(this is not my church. this is a favorite church of mine, bruton parish church in williamsburg, va). i had plans to take a picture of my church after church today, but my dear father in law fell on his way out the door and we hurried him home to care for him. he is okay, but his right hand and knee are badly bruised/scraped.

i was glad when they said to me, "let us go to the house of the Lord."
psalm 122:1

surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,
and i will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
psalm 23:6

"Thine, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and earth; Thine is the dominion, O Lord, and Thou dost exalt Thyself as head over all."
I Chronicles 29:11

i love flowers

i will miss camelias. they don't grow in the north.
i look forward to flower and vegetable gardening this spring/summer.
i hope we will have our own place by then.
it's so hard to plan when you don't know what the plan is!
but we trust fully in the Planner. He is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path.
happy worship tomorrow!

i love peter

i love that he has jammies that match mine (and mike too!)
i love his hands--the last set of pudgy toddler hands i will have.
i love that you can tell he's smiling even when you can't see his lips.
i love that he make us laugh by doing funny things.
like falling asleep with goldfish in his mouth.
he's got the best manners any 3yo could have.
he even says please, thank you and excuse me in the middle of the night.
i love his constant motion (blurry photograph anyone?)
he keeps us on our toes.
he is a lovely end to our perfect number 7.
i love how he loves his older brothers and sisters.
he has a unique relationship with each and every one.
right now he's really into jack. hugs and kisses him for no reason.

i love his focused attention (if you're fortunate enough to see it).
he loves to help--rake leaves, cook, clean, decorate--you name it, he likes to do it with you.
and he's good at it! he used to sweep our big back porch or the kitchen until the job was done.
i love pete's funny faces.
he has lots of them (you should've seen the number of pictures i weeded through to find just one).
i could fill a whole blog of pete's pictures.
i heart pete's faces.
i love that God has seen fit to bless me with the most unique, good natured,
one-of-a-kind kids.
and they are healthy, mostly happy and bring such joy to our lives.

love you pete!

we love our beds

and we miss them terribly. what can i say? it's been almost 7 weeks since we've slept in our own beds, and some days are better than others. prayers appreciated.

i love mike--who is six years old today!

i love mike's smile.
it's almost the only thing we ever see.
he smiles all the time.
he's fearless. he learned to dive in the deep end of our pool when he was 2.5.
(here's a rare moment without a smile)
he's technologically savvy.
he learned to use a laptop (and use it well!) when he was 2.5.
the doctors told us at 18 weeks in utero that he had no brain, just a fluid filled cyst and we should abort and try again.
the doctors were wrong.
everyone we knew prayed for 4 weeks.
the doctor said he'd never seen one of these completely go away.
but mike's did.
he was so proud that he earned his vest at awana.
he likes the games the best, but he's good at memorizing the verses too.
too good, his teacher told us. "slow him down," she said.

he likes half day kindergarten even though he's already reading on a 3rd grade level and knows his time/numbers/shapes/money.
but he's learning compassion towards those with disabilities in his class. he's also learning diversity, and how to obey other adults.

i love to listen to mike read.
he'll stop sometimes and just think things through.
and then he'll ask a deeper question.
you can almost see the wheels turning in that brain of his.
(that's a snowflake in front of his one eye).
mike loves the outdoors.
any sport or new activity and he. is. there. loving it.

we love mike's zeal for life.
he's always so full of it.
he reminds us to live it to the full too.
and at night, when it's time for bed, he crashes.
lights out. before the electric lights go out.
we love you mike.