Jacob's 11th Birthday Party

Jacob celebrated his 11th birthday with an overnight party on the Friday before his birthday. He had 6 friends over and they took over the basement. (And it smelled ~ but I loved it) He had Noah, Jack, Drew, Foster, Gordie and Josh. They played xbox, drank Mountain Dew and ate pizza, watched movies and played basketball outside.....in the snow! Yes, snow! On April 19-20. Ridiculous, I know. But the boys had a blast and that is all that counts.

So Much To Learn From Our Kids

Just learned a lesson from Jadyn today. At church today we heard a sermon on money. Didn't really think about it too much until Jadyn and I were playing math memory. Greg came up to me and told me he needed money to go buy hamburger buns. Before I could say anything, Jadyn pipes up and says, "Dad ~ I have money you can have." Notice she said "have" and not "borrow", which is what some other nameless members of my family might say. Anyway, I was thinking about her comment.

She very quickly said Greg could have her money. Why? Because she knows that EVERY DAY her needs are met. If she needs anything, she talks to us and we take care of her. She TRUSTS that we will take care of her because we love her and she knows that. Why is this a big deal? Because.....this is exactly what it is like with God (and this ties back to the sermon on money). She wasn't concerned about getting her money back. She heard of a need and, out of blind faith (that she would be taken care of) offered what she had to fulfill the need.

That is what tithing is, so to speak. We never really feel that we have "enough" money to give 10%. But, like the blind faith of this sweet child, we are to trust that God will take care of our every need because he loves us. Does this mean we will get piles of money in return? No. Possible, but doubtful. We don't give to get something in return. We give because we love. God's love should resonate through us so much that when we see a need we should give to that need without even thinking about it. Like tithing. This need is HUGE.

Somebody Call 9-1-1

Oh wait! Grant already did. We were at school a couple of days ago. I had just gotten off work and had picked Grant up and went back to do a few things. I had left Grant in the front office while I ran back to the copy room. Apparently I got side-tracked because I forgot that I left Grant out front. A couple of minutes later, one of the secretaries came back to find me. She said that a deputy had called back and talked to the other secretary because they had received a call from the school. When I talked to Grant, he told me that he dialed "a 9, then a 1, then a 1" like they taught him in school last week - when the fire fighters visited. Obviously we need to have a more in-depth talk on what constitutes a real emergency.

Guess Who Lost Her FIRST Tooth??

Shortly after it fell out, Grant came up to me and asked when his first tooth would fall out. Jadyn quickly pulled him aside and asked if he wanted her to put her tooth in his mouth, so it could fall out and he could lose a tooth. He wasn't so sure about that.

4 Generation Sleepover

Jasmin's bridal shower and bachelorette party yielded a sleepover of 17 people in a 2 bedroom, 4 bathroom (thankfully!) condo, which included 4 generations. What a special time! I love my family!

Jacob Goes To 5th Grade Camp

Not only did Jacob go, but Greg and I went also. Greg went for the first 2 nights and I went for the last night. Greg got to stay with Jacob. I stayed with 18 girls I did not know. We all endured COLD and VERY WET weather. It rained EVERY DAY. Not just one or two......every day. It was lots of fun. The night I went we had a campfire - inside of course because it was way too wet to have a campfire outside - and a disco. The pictures where Jacob is standing with his hands out and in front of everyone is the campfire. He was the "sign" for the "Sugar Shack", but ended up just being a "sucker". Super fun! The disco was MEGA fun. I decided that I was going to dance with the kids. It was too fun not to. By the end of the night I was soaking wet with sweat. But I had fun, and I think a bunch of kids did too. I was not planning to shower so I did not bring any shower supplies, except a towel. One sweet girl offered me her "stuff that a lady would use", so I could at least get the sweat off. Fast-forward to bedtime....I was laying in my bunk and could not get comfortable for anything, so I asked a few of the girls to get up and help me add a mattress to my bunk. They did but it did nothing for my lack of comfort. So I tossed and turned. The longer I laid there, the more I wished there was another adult to ask for motrin from. I was hurting so badly from all my moving and grooving earlier that I simply could not sleep. The last time I looked a the clock it was 2am. at 2:46am my phone went off with a text from my friend that was watching my girls. She said that Grace was having a migraine episode and she wanted to know if there was something else she should be doing. I called Greg, he was no help. I remembered that my mom was just getting off work (at 3am), so I called her and she ended up meeting Stephanie to get Grace. Finally back in my bed but praying that all the 3 am drivers would be safe. 6:30am came pretty darn quick. Everything turned out fine, except for my lack of sleep. Camp was super fun. Oh, by the way, did I mention that Jacob went?

Just Some Thinking.....

We are at a new church. I heard through the grapevine that this church is one for "pagans and nonbelievers". It may be. But Jesus said, that it is not the well that need a doctor, but the sick. Pagans and nonbelievers NEED Jesus, just like the rest of us. I have a been trying to figure out where I belong. Since the 2nd time at church, I have felt led to pray. At every service, there is a time called "Encounter"......interesting name, huh? But during Encounter, you may take communion and then there are people along the sides who are willing to pray with and/or for you. THAT is where I think I need to be. I love to pray for others. I may not be the best at it, but I love to do it. Recently, I have had the opportunity to pray for 2 different people. These people each have asked me specifically to pray for them for situations that they and their families are going through. One even said they knew about my relationship with God. While I was talking with each of them I mentioned that "the pit sucks, but God is good and His plan is perfect, even if we can't see it." Interesting that I am now in the pit. We have recently received some news that has the potential to be crappy, at best. There is crap going on all around us, and it all sucks. Big time. But I have to listen to my own words......God is so good. He loves us so much. And His plan is infinitely better than we could even think or imagine. There is definitely peace in that. I am feeling peace as I write that. The pit, the den, the furnace.....call it what you want. And whatever you choose to call it, it sucks. If you are in a place like this, remember this.......God will NEVER leave you or forsake you. He has a plan for you that has been in place since before the beginning of time. He loves you more than you will ever know. Trust Him alone. Do not be swayed by the wind. Grab on to the Rock. The One and Only. Jesus.

Easter 2013

Krystel and family and Scott and family all came down for Easter this year. We had a good time! They came down Thursday, Friday we played, Saturday we colored eggs and played some more - I even got to nap with Ella and Blake on the hammock. Saturday we all went to church together at our new church. One song into it Grandpa left because he said if they didn't sing a hymn next he was leaving. They didn't and he did. Too bad too. Because we all came home from church singing "Jesus Paid It All". And yes, yes He did. We had a group Easter basket hunt and hid over 200 eggs filled with candy. Then the kids had so much fun looking together. There was an attempt to feed some chickadees. We had an impromptu birthday party for Jacob - because he NEVER gets to have Spencer at his birthday. I so love having my family all together.