Hello!

Wow! It’s been a while since I posted. The arms on the clock just keeping moving…

It’s Blake’s birthday week! He turns “14” this Saturday!!! It doesn’t seem real. I was reading a friend’s blog, her son is potty training and she has another baby on the way. It seems like only yesterday I was doing the same thing. Blake was testing the bounds of potty training and I was waddling around with Tyler in my belly!

I spent some time this weekend just watching the boys. I’m so proud of the young men they’re becoming. I watched Blake interacting with the younger kids and loved watching how patient and gentle he was. We don’t see that side of him as often these days. It was a wonderful reminder of the heart God’s put in this young man.

Speaking of God, we tried a new Church this past Sunday. We may go back. The Pastor was on sabbatical and they had a guest speaker. While we enjoyed the guest speaker, we’d like to attend when the main Pastor is speaking.

I’ve had some sincere concerns about not having a church home for the boys and the effect it could have on their spiritual growth. I know it’s affecting mine. We still do things together as a family and watch messages online, but we’re all missing out on the fellowship and learning that goes along with seeing others in action and participating in Youth, Volunteer and Life Group programs.

It was encouraging to realize how much they got from the message. I wasn’t even sure they were paying attention. But they had plenty to share and say afterwards. The message was about the Armor of God. The speaker had props, graphics, a great sense of humor, but ran out of time and didn’t get to the sword. Both boys were disappointed. They wanted to see the sword. They just knew it was real and had to be amazing. It wasn’t all about the props though. They also picked up on the “how”… the speaker told us his wife, as he put it, has this annoying habit of asking “how?” Any time he preaches she wants to know how to implement, how to apply, how to you put it into practice, etc. Well, with each piece of armor he talked about how to put the armor on and how to keep it on. It was really good.

Maybe I’ll share some of his ideas in another post. I hope all is well with everyone! Our hearts and prayers are with all of our family and friends near and far.

No More Elementary School…

Well, it’s official. School is out and Tyler successfully completed the 5th grade. We attended the 5th Grade Recognition Ceremony this morning. The kids sang two songs, the principal spoke, the teachers handed out “Candy” awards and then they were each presented with their Certificates of Completion and Report Cards. Tyler had prepared me ahead of time for the songs, telling me they were meant to make the moms cry. I did my best, but my eyes did get a bit watery. Tyler’s candy award was Rolos, because he rolls with the punches. His cousin, Ashleigh, received gummy worms for being a great reader (book worm). There were lots of different awards. Tyler said he was surprised by his, but really liked the Rolos.

This means both boys will be at the Middle School next year; Blake as an 8th grader and Tyler as a 6th grader.

Wow! Where has the time gone? I remember when I was much younger, my grandmother would tell me to slow down and not be in such a hurry to grow up. She told me time would start moving faster the older I got. And she was soooooo right!

I’m looking forward to this summer. We haven’t loaded the calendar quite as full as in summers past. I’m looking forward to a slower paced summer. I’m sure the boys will find ways to fill it with swimming, friends and other activities… but I see plenty of family time and play time in our future.

Happy Summer Break!

Congratulations to all the Graduates!!!

"Thank You"

It's amazing how good a "Thank You" can sound!


It's the little things, you know?!

My oldest son thanked me this morning, without prompting even. I hadn't done anything overly remarkable, I simply handed him something he hadn't asked for and I wasn't sure if he'd even want it or take it. The graditude was quite unexpected and it's made my whole day. Manners these days can be very touch and go... It's almost like starting from scratch at times. But not today. Today he said "Thank You" and even flashed me a smile!



If I haven't told you "Thank You"... well... Thank You!

Thank you for reading... for caring... for commenting... for calling... for advising... Thank You! :)

Amazing!

My oldest son is currently participating in the City-Wide Youth Football Championships. His first game of the tournament was last night. I’m pleased to report there were no major injuries, everyone played well, and our boys won! Our next game is Thursday night! Go Jets!

The “Amazing” part was watching my Grandfather. In this football league, the Home team is required to provide three volunteers to handle the chains and down marker. My husband had volunteered to help and I left the sidelines to get him some sunflower seeds from the concession stand. When I returned my Grandfather was zipping up his coat and grabbing the Down Marker!

For those of you not familiar with football, the Down Marker is a sign showing the current down/play for the offense. The down marker follows the sideline ref and marks the placement of the ball and current down.

What’s so amazing about that you ask? Well… for starters, my Grandfather will be 82 in January. How many 82 year-olds do you know actively participating at their great grandson’s football game? My Grandfather was hustling up and down the sidelines with the ref, avoiding sideline tackles, marking the ball, flipping the numbers, and smiling the whole time! Some of our parents can’t even seem to do it, but here’s my Grandfather showing them how it’s done.

Simply Amazing! I pray we all follow his example and pursue each day with the same zest and love for life!