Week in Pictures

This was an ordinary week.  Nothing too exciting to report except our day to day happening. 

Sunday, we went to church.  Caroline wore this adorable sailor dress that my sister sent to us.  The dress belonged to my niece Chloe.  It is so nice to be able to share clothes between the cousins!  After church, Caroline was playing with the tea set while we made lunch.



Apparently Monday was rather mundane because I missed taking any pictures that day.

Tuesday did bring a bit of excitement.  On the way to my doctor's appointment, Kate and I saw this mother goose with her four babies walking across the street to our neighborhood pond.  We managed to snap a picture of the Mom with one of the babies.

After picking up the kids from school, we pulled into the driveway and Matt spotted a cat in the backyard.  He went to investigate and yelled up to me that he also found a turtle.  Fully expecting to find a box turtle, I went down to see it.  Instead, I came upon this rather large snapping turtle.

Wednesday it rained all day!  Kate took advantage of the dreary weather and enjoyed a long nap that she started in the car pool pick up line at school and continued on the couch.

On Thursday this kids wanted ice cream cones for their after school snack.  Caroline enjoyed her vanilla cone without too much of a mess.  She is quickly learning from her older siblings that snacks are GREAT!

On Friday Matt had a baseball game.  He is really enjoying his first experience of participating in a team sport.  You can see by his dirty knees that he is even attempting to slide into the bases!



Also on Friday Jake had his first scrimmage as a part of the high school football team.  He has been working out with the team twice a week since January and for the last two weeks he has practiced daily.  He seems to really be enjoying it and we are looking forward to the fall and the start of football season.

On Saturday, Andrew and Matt attended a birthday party for a friend at the local park.  The birthday boy was a friend of Andrew's from his class.  When I called to RSVP the Mom mentioned that he also had a brother in Matt's class and they would love for Matt to come along also.  The boys had a great time despite a short rain shower.

"The Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you."
2 Thessalonians 3:3







Nick's Baptism

God is able to accomplish things in our life that we never thought would be possible.  Four years ago, our family was living life on our own terms.  Brett and I had both been raised in Christian homes and went to church with our families growing up.  However, once we got to college, we began living our life for ourselves.  We began our married life together and quickly added our first two children.  It was around this time that my parents began praying that we would feel the tug of what our life was missing.  We moved to Pittsburgh in 2001 and it became easy for me to attend my family church because they were all there.  However, when we moved away in 2004, we once again feel into our old ways and neglected our relationship with God, to surround ourselves with other like minded believers, and raise our children to know that God loves them and they can trust and depend upon him.  Through this time, my parents continued to pray for our family to find a church that would encourage Brett and I both in our own walk with the Lord, but in our marriage, and in raising our children.  That prayer was answered when we moved in 2008 to Texas.  We decided upon moving that it was important for our family to get involved in a church.  I found a church online before we moved that also had a MOPS group that I could attend and meet some other moms.  Rush Creek Church is where God began to work in our hearts and in the lives of Brett, I, and our children.  We joined a small group that became a lifeline for our family.  They loved and supported us.  We had weekly fellowship and study time together.  When Brett was transferred to Georgia a year ago, leaving our church was the only challenge.  We immediately found a church in Georgia and began attending.  This fall, we were once again able to join a small group.

It is hard to believe that four short years ago, our life was so different.  Tonight, we had the unbelievable blessing of watching our 7th grade son, along with 17 other children come forward to tell the world that they have put their full trust in God and want to share this with others.  Knowing God and trusting him with your life brings incredible peace.  I pray that Nick will continue to put his trust in God alone.  That he will always remember tonight and when he encounters situations that he feels are out of his control, that he will return to the words he said tonight.  "God loves us in the good and the bad."  It isn't always easy to see God in every situation, but He is present and wants more than anything for us to come to Him. 

I am thankful that my parents didn't give up and continued to pray for us.  God is working in our family in unbelievable ways.  Tonight we celebrated His work in the life of Nick.

http://youtu.be/7puHqD7aNl8

Here are some pictures of our family celebrating Nick tonight.

 

 

 

Lastly, I wanted to share this very tender hearted card that Emily made for Nick.

 

Dear Nick,

Today you got dunked under water to symbolize your faith and to tell others that you trust God.  I'm very proud.

Love, Emily

"You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you."

John 15:16

One Song....Three Ways

While we were waiting for dinner to finish cooking on the grill last night, Kate was sitting at the table singing.  She began with a rendition of Mary Had A Little Lamb. 

http://youtu.be/qEHwI6D178E

Rendition two- Self titled

Crocodile Snap

http://youtu.be/r3VzrwGcZwI

Rendition three- Self titled

Mousy

http://youtu.be/N80Toxk614g

"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads."

Deuteronomy 11:18

Week in Pictures

We enjoyed the first week of May.

We expected to host our home group today, but it ended up being cancelled.  So, we enjoyed a relaxing afternoon in the rec room watching Alvin and the Chipmunks Chipwrecked.

On Monday, the kids enjoyed a water balloon fight and sprinkler time after school.  The weather was amazing this week!

On Tuesday, the little girls and I welcomed in May by making hand print flowers.

We had to run some errands on Wednesday, so we stopped to play at the Chick-Fil-A play place.  This is a treat for the little girls and they had a great time.

Emily put the goggles on Caroline and we thought she looked so funny!  It was hard to get a good picture because she really wanted to take them off.

Friday night was a busy night in our house.  Emily had a friend from school spend the night, Nick went to spend the night with a friend, Jake had spring football practice until 6:40 pm and Matt had a baseball game at 6:00 pm.  We didn't start dinner until everyone was home after 7:00 pm.  By this point, the little ones were hungry and tired, so Kate entertained Caroline and I with a few songs.  (See post to follow)

Andrew and Caroline were enjoying playing together on Saturday in the playroom.  Andrew had a whole family of little people riding in many forms of transportation including a minivan, car carrier, and a fire truck.  (On a side note, you can see Andrew's latest battle wound if you look closely at his face.) He ran into a tree while I was grocery shopping and has a nice cut and red mark under his eye.

Where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.

Matthew 18:20

National Day of Prayer

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

2 Chronicles 7:14

Take time today to pray for our nation.  For all the people of our nation.

I wanted to add these pictures taken of Caroline this week.  She recently turned 16 months old and we are enjoying this age so much.  She is learning and trying new things everyday.  She has brought more joy to our family than we ever could have imagined. 

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened."

Matthew 7:7

Staying Cool!

The Calendar only reads May, but the thermometer is telling us it is more like summer here in Georgia this week.  So, we got out the water balloons that the Easter bunny brought the boys and the sprinkler.  The kids have been enjoying keeping cool after school!



"In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation."

Psalm 5:3

May Day

Happy May Day!

We can't believe the calendar already says May 1, 2012!  Our older kids only have 13 more days of school this year before it is officially summer. 

This morning, the girls and I had fun with a little May Day project.  We stamped their handprints to make a bouquet of flowers.

They always enjoy art projects!

Their finished bouquets!

Hope you are enjoying a beautiful day!

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever."

Hebrews 13:8