Resolutions

She has no idea what New Year's Resolutions are, but a couple of days ago Elizabeth made a pronouncement.

"Mama, I came up with some rules."

"Rules?"

"Yes. I will wake up each morning and say what a good day it is!"

She tilted her head thoughtfully.

"Then I will pray."

A slight pause.

"Then I will brush my hair."

She smiled.

"Are these good rules, Mama?"

"Sounds good to me, Sweetie."

With a satisfied nod, she ran off to play.

"So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." Psalm 90:12

Currently...

Reading: Jane Eyre, Morning and Evening and The Big Picture.

Reading Aloud: A New Coat for Anna and Dangerous Journey.

Listening to: Leigh Nash's Blue on Blue, Chris Tomlin's See the Morning and the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir's I'm Amazed.

Watching: Pride and Prejudice, BBC and Pride and Prejudice, 2005 versions.

Enchanted by: Charlotte's Web

Stocking Up On: ESV Outreach Bibles.

Updating: My sidebar ----->

Praying about: My word and verse for 2007.

Praising God for: His presence 24/7/365, not just one day a year!

"You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore." Psalm 16:11

Christmas Day Snippets

After breakfast, it was time for our final advent calendar opening. Behind door #25 Jonathan found baby Jesus with a note: "He is the Gift. He is the Giver." With a smile, he ran to the nativity scene to put Jesus in the manger.


"This is what Christmas is all about, Mommy," said Elizabeth.



Don't let them fool you. This calm lasted about 40 seconds!



Alan was thrilled to receive a MacArthur Study Bible
to replace the one that was lost.


Shadow loved her stuffed musubi and couldn't wait to
remove the squeaky ume inside.



When I wasn't cooking, I was shooting.

Grandpa and Grandma always want to know what we ate, so here's the menu: Prime Rib with au jus, mashed potatoes, stir fried green beans, portabello mushrooms with garlic, bread. Dessert was apple strudel, ice cream and sparkling cherry cider.

Leftovers made great Day After Christmas Soup.

The good news: 5 year old Daniel finally figured out how to work his toy camcorder.

The bad news: His first video was of unsuspecting me coming out of the shower!

The collective laughter from everyone was eclipsed only by my scream. You can bet that clip will NOT be seen on Google video!

"Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord." Job 1:21

Sweet Surrender

A confession. I never get tired of reading the real Christmas story, but I am especially captivated by the earlier passage where the angel of the Lord announces the coming of the Messiah to Mary and her reaction to the news.

I have often pondered the thoughts that might have gone through Mary's mind, and can only imagine the whirl of emotions she must have felt. One year, this is what came to me:

Let It Be to Me

Greatly troubled
Am I
At the saying
How can this be
I try to discern
What it means
The explanation
From on High
Is mysterious
Incredible
Unfathomable
Jesus
Son of the Highest
Swirls of thoughts
What shall I do
What shall I say
It is He
The One
I've been waiting
I've been praying
A long time
I have no other choice
But to surrender
Sweet surrender
Come
Prince of Peace
Your will be done
Not mine
Let it be to me
According to Your word

May my heart reflect the same openness to God that Mary possessed. A heart that welcomes His presence. A heart that says "yes" to His plans. And a heart that surrenders to His perfect will.

"Then Mary said, 'Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.'" Luke 1:38

Countdown to Christmas

This year we've started a new Christmas tradition with a cute wooden advent calendar. Each day, one of the kids opens the door for that day and finds a slip of paper describing a special treat or fun activity.



Some of the things we've done this month so far:

Day 1: Attend Star of Bethlehem show at the Planetarium and decorate the Christmas tree.
Day 3: Start reading Tabitha's Travels (last of the Jotham's Journey trilogy)
Day 5: Set up our Nativity Scene
Day 6: Celebrate St. Nicholas Day by checking stockings.
Day 8: Listen to Handel's Messiah and watch A Charlie Brown Christmas (how's that for culture?)
Day 9: Deliver food to a family in need.
Day 12: Watch The Nutcracker.
Day 15: EnjoyThe Legend of the Candy Cane.
Day 17: Chip in with Sunday School class to buy a goat for a family in a third world country.

Today's surprise? Decorating gingerbread!

Jonathan chose to decorate a house. Daniel did a tree, and Elizabeth embellished a train. All snuck candy when I wasn't looking. Even Dad.


Daddy is a big help with icing, especially when one has a cast. :-)


This is serious business, I tell you!


A delightful tree. A delighted smile.


The Candy Express and its happy conductor.

We are thankful for the sweetness of such days and for the One who gives good gifts. He is the Gift; He is the Giver.

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning." James 1:17

Sparkly Girl

Last week at gymnastics class, Elizabeth fell and hurt her thumb. X-rays revealed that she had a fracture. The pronouncement: three weeks in a cast.

At the Ortho doctor's office, she was given a choice of colors for her cast. Our little artist chose a red one for Christmas.

When we got home we decided to make her cast even more Christmasy. We glued on rhinestones to form the letter "E". This has made wearing it a little more bearable. ;-)

Thankfully, the cast comes off just before Christmas.


Here's our sparkly girl!

"Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am weak; O Lord, heal me, for my bones are troubled." Psalm 6:2

From Our Family to Yours...

May the Lord richly bless you this Thanksgiving!

"The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace." Numbers 6:24-26

The Joy of a Daughter

...sometimes expresses itself in simple delights such as a Prairie girl ensemble.






"Strength and honor are her clothing; she shall rejoice in time to come." Proverbs 31:25

Remembering Auntie Yoko

...with thanksgiving.



"I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the Lord." Psalm 116:17

A Week Ago Today

...my Auntie Yoko went home to be with the Lord.

I would be lying if I said I am not grieving. My heart is broken. I will miss her so, so much. I cannot imagine life without her.

But I do not grieve as those who have no hope.

I take comfort in knowing that she is in heaven, experiencing complete joy in the presence of her Savior. I thank God for His grace and mercy evidenced in her life.

Thank you for your prayers and support over the past months. Words are inadequate to express the depth of my gratitude. Please continue to pray for the entire family as we mourn the loss of our precious and loved one.

“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” Psalm 116:15

The Birthday Girl

...is having difficulty making her party blower cooperate.







But she laughs anyway.

One of the millions of reasons why we love her.

A birthday poem:

Elizabeth is a joy, a delight
A sweet little sprite
When God created this girl
Surely His mind whirled
With the echoes of laughter
Here and forever after
He poured out His pleasure
Her life, our treasure

Happy Birthday, Sweetie! We love you!

Mama, Daddy, Jonathan, Daniel

"Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!" Psalm 107:1

43 Reasons

...why I can praise God on my birthday:

43. I am still alive.
42. I can still run (slowly, but I can run!).
41. He lavishes me with His grace daily.
40. He speaks to me through His Word.
39. He is faithful and true.
38. My husband kisses me every day.
37. My husband still likes my cooking after all these years.
36. My kids love me (insert big grin).
35. I am able to homeschool our kids.
34. My best friend is the best.
33. I have the most amazing friends.
32. Our family is helpful and giving.
31. My dog. Period.
30. I am surrounded by good books (insert happy sigh).
29. He provides for all our needs.
28. Our church is alive and growing.
27. I am a child of God.
26. I am going to spend eternity with Him. (Hallelujah!)
25. He is sooooo patient with me.
24. His sovereignty is trustworthy.
23. All His ways are righteous.
22. He gives me treasures in the darkness.
21. He guides and leads me.
20. He gives good and perfect gifts.
19. He hears and answers my prayers.
18. I have the privilege of telling others about Jesus.
17 He gives salvation to everyone who believes.
16. All His promises are "yes" and "amen."
15. He gives the peace that passes understanding.
14. The name of the Lord is a Strong Tower.
13. The battle has already been won.
12. He saves my tears in a bottle
11. All my days were written in His book.
10. I was blind, but now I see.
9. He will never, never, never leave me.
8. He fills me with His Spirit.
7. There is joy in the Lord.
6. My Father is the King of kings and Lord of lords!
5. No one can snatch me out of His hand.
4. I am not perfect yet He loves me.
3. He loves me perfectly.
2. He calls me His own.
1. Jesus.

Thank You, Lord.

This list is just the beginning.

"Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them." Psalm 139:16

Ode to Autumn

I adore Nichole Nordeman's song, Every Season. Here's her ode to Autumn, which describes my heart right now--full of thanksgiving and dependance on God's strength for the coming winter.

And even when the trees have just surrendered
To the harvest time
Forfeiting their leaves in late September
And sending us inside
Still I notice You when change begins
And I am braced for colder winds
I will offer thanks for what has been and what's to come
You are autumn

He made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows its time for setting. Psalm 104:19

Your Real Birthday Story

Jonathan, you love hearing the story about the day you were born. How Mommy was rushed to the hospital. How you entered the world with the doctor exclaiming, "It's a boy!" How we were so excited to bring you home.

But that isn't the beginning of your story. There was another beginning that started in the fall of 1996.

We had been married nearly seven years. Praying for a baby. Waiting on the Lord. It seemed the only answer we received was silence.

I joined a women's Bible study that fall. Our theme for the year was "The Women of the Bible," and our plans were to study not only the well known characters such as Sarah, Esther and Mary, but also the lesser known women. One of these was the Shunammite woman in 2 Kings 4.

She was a godly woman who was used by God to support the prophet Elisha through her hospitality and giving. When he wanted to repay her in some way, she replied that she was content. He later discovered that she had no children, and prophesied that she would bear a son around the same time the next year. She thought it was too good to be true, but his prophecy did indeed come to pass. She gave birth to a son the next year. It was a miracle.

I was moved by the story of the Shunammite woman. Her story was my story. After sharing my heart and many tears with my Bible study group, they prayed over me. Our leader prophesied that I would become pregnant before the study ended. I didn't want to believe it and be filled with false hope. But God kept whispering to me, "With Me, all things are possible." We were about to experience a miracle.

About the same time the next year, in the fall of 1997, I gave birth to you, our first son.

The one we had hoped for. The one we had waited for. The one we welcomed with open arms and open hearts. We gazed down into your twinkling baby eyes and named you Jonathan, which means "gift of God." That you were, and are.

But your story didn't start there, either. Even before one prayer was uttered, God had already set into motion His plans for your life. He saw your substance, as yet unformed. In His book they were all written, the days fashioned for you, when as yet there were none of them. (Psalm 139:16).



So when I look into your eyes, Jonathan, I see more than just my son smiling back at me.

In your face, I see God's grace.

Happy Birthday, Jonathan!

I love you,
Mama

"The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth, and even forevermore." Psalm 121:8

Harvest at the Apple Orchard

We had spent a week immersed in our favorite apple-themed books. We learned geography from How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World, science from The Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree and From Seed to Apple, and history from The True Tale of Johnny Appleseed. Now it was time for some hands-on experience: a trip to the apple orchard.

The mountain air was crisp, the apples were ripe and the kids were ready.


What to pick--Standard Delicious, Rome Beauty or Fuji?


Some apples are at just the right height for picking.


Others take a little more effort.


Many hands make light work!



The fruit of our labor.


This one's for you!

Our next project: Crockpot Apple Butter.

"Keep me as the apple of Your eye; hide me under the shadow of Your wings..." Psalm 17:8

Blogiversary

Date Night

...was last night. We went to see Facing the Giants.


A "Must See" Movie!

View the trailer.

Don't wait. It may not be around too long!

"For with God nothing will be impossible." Luke 1:37

School is in Session

...which is why this teacher is behind on blogging.

This year I have three students. Daniel is a new Kindergartener and will proudly announce it to anyone who will listen. He is a quick learner and enthusiastic about finally being able to study with the "big kids."

Elizabeth continues to eagerly tackle early readers and paint brushes, while Jonathan checks out library books on jellyfish and discusses the process of mitosis at the dinner table.

Between homeschooling, co-op classes, field trips, gymnastics, Awana, Royal Rangers and church, our lives are quite full.

But we wouldn't have it any other way. We are blessed beyond measure!


Jonathan crunching numbers.

Our curricula for this year:

The Bible
Math-U-See
Institute for Excellence in Writing
Spell to Write and Read
Truthquest History
Apologia Science
Cursive First
Atelier Art
Five in a Row
Classic Literature
..and various electives

Now that my lesson plans are set for the next few months this blog will be on the move again. October is always a fun time of year around here. Stick around, and you'll see why!

"All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children." Isaiah 54:13

Meet Rolly

While our friends are on a trip to Europe, we have the honor of watching their sweet dog Rolly (pronounced "Raleigh") for three weeks. We have a soft spot for golden retrievers because in our early married years our first "child" was a golden. Rolly invokes wonderful memories of him.

Rolly has the classic golden temperament--mellow, happy and patient with children. In the short time he's been with our family he's endeared himself to us with his affectionate ways. He loves to lay his head on the closest lap he can find. He eagerly eats up any attention he gets, and when your hand momentarily stops scratching him his nose will gently nudge you back into servanthood.


Rolly is a BIG, happy guy.


Even though Rolly is about 30% bigger, Shadow
makes it clear that she is still Alpha Dog.


Rolly loves to follow Elizabeth around for head scruffs,
and she is happy to oblige.

He is with us for one more week. We are plotting how to tell his former owners that they can't have him back. :-)

"A righteous man regards the life of his animal..." Proverbs 12:10a

Giorno di Festa

What kind of field trip goes along with a reading of Papa Piccolo? Why, a gondola ride, amico mio!

One recent Monday morning, we embarked on an imaginary visit to Venice. We began by listening to the head gondolier read the delightful book, Guido's Gondola, a story of rat gondolier who trades his gondola for a cruise ship and learns the lesson that bigger is not necessarily better.



After teaching us the proper pronunciation of the word gondola (gon' da la), our gondolier explained how the various parts of the boat worked together. Our group was then divided into four gondolas.

Here is our little love boat.



The ride was thoroughly relaxing and enjoyable, especially when the gondoliers took turns serenading us with Italian love songs. My favorite song was the rendition of That's Amore.



Some of the gondolas were powered by motors, but one of them was powered the old fashioned way: by gondolier.



The gondolier told us that it is customary to kiss your partner each time your gondola goes under a bridge. As we glided under the bridge, Elizabeth couldn't pass up the opportunity to kiss her little brother.



That's Amore!

"By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:35

More Wedding Photos

(Unfortunately, the one photo someone took of our entire family turned out blurry. I'm thankful I did get a few shots of the kids!)












"This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

The Ring Bearer

Last December at a family Christmas gathering, Alan's cousin Bryan announced that he and his lovely fiancee Betty were engaged. They asked Jonathan if he would be their ring bearer. He was not sure he was up for the task, but we encouraged him to accept the honor.

Over the months Jonathan went through a mixture of emotions and misgivings about the rite of passage.

Eight months ago: "I don't know if I want to be a ring bearer."

Six months ago: "Why does a wedding have to have a ring bearer?"

Four months ago: "What if I drop the pillow?"

Two months ago: "Will I have to talk?"

One month ago: "Will everyone be looking at me?"

Two weeks ago: "Why do I have to wear a tuxedo?"

The night before: "Dear Lord, please help me to remember what I'm supposed to do."

Yesterday was The Big Day. We got up early and by God's grace were able to get showered, dressed, out of the house and to the hotel in record time.

There were some pre-wedding jitters yet Jonathan seemed happy to be a part of the wedding joviality. He beamed every time someone told him how handsome he looked in his tux.


Can this really be my little boy?

The big moment arrived amidst familiar strains of music. Jonathan needn't have worried. He rose to the occasion and was one of the finest ring bearers we've ever seen. :-)


Patient: Waiting for the bridal procession.


Contemplative: Hmmm....I might have to get married one day.

(The bride's veil kept fluttering in the wind..so lovely!)


Cheerful: This is not as bad as I thought.


Relieved: Whew, it's over! I did it!

Later that night, as we reflected on the beauty of the entire day, I asked Jonathan what was his favorite part of the wedding. To my surprise, he replied, "I liked being the ring bearer." I asked him why.

"I felt very special."

"Yes, it was very special to be the ring bearer."

At that moment, his face radiated with such warmth and joy and delight that I wish I could have bottled it up to save it for a rainy day.

Then when he was grown up and no longer living at home, I could take out the elixir every now and then and savor the memory of the day I saw a glimpse of the heart of my boy on the verge of turning into a man.

"My son, if your heart is wise, my heart will rejoice..." Proverbs 23:15

Oceans of Blessings

Last Friday, we joined a group of friends on an interesting field trip to the Ocean Institute in Dana Point.

The night before, we read Very Last First Time, a story about an Inuit girl who follows village tradition and walks on the bottom of the sea to gather mussels for dinner. It's one of our favorite Five in a Row books.

We also discussed one of our favorite Holling C. Holling books about an industrious little hermit crab, Pagoo.

The next morning at the Ocean Institute, the kids sat enraptured as they listened to Eric Carle's A House for a Hermit Crab. After watching a short video on hermit crabs, it was time for hands-on experience.


Jonathan stayed remarkably still in hopes that the hermit crab would emerge.


His patience was rewarded.


The kids used underwater magnifying cameras to study more hermit crabs.


Hermit crab shells were sorted according to size.


Don't be deceived by good looks...this guy is poisonous.


The incomparable experience of touching a starfish.

We were also able to admire moonjellies, a lobster weighing over 50 lbs., sea urchins (can anyone say "uni sushi"?) and many more of God's marvelous ocean creatures.

An altogether lovely day of learning!

"So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind...and God saw that it was good." Genesis 1:21