Our Family Blog

Mimi and Poppy Visit

2012-02-14T15:18:00.002-05:00

Mimi and Poppy came this weekend to babysit and to spend some time with us. Poppy, Jake and Gracie went ice skating and had a blast. Later we enjoyed a Thanksgiving dinner which was sooo yummy! (I have a few other pics that I will post later. I still need to upload them.)
Thanks for coming Mimi and Poppy!

Friendship Banquet

2012-02-14T10:13:00.005-05:00

Music Time

2012-02-11T14:31:00.003-05:00

Each weekday, Grace diligently practices her piano and Abigail practices....well...umm...she practices being cute and funny.

Remembering Bert the Bunny

2012-02-08T15:42:00.003-05:00

Our sweet little bunny died this past weekend. It was really sad to see Gracie's heart so broken but we used it as an opportunity to talk about Ecclesiastes 3:1&2 "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven; a time to be born and a time to die."

We talked about how thankful we were that the Lord gave us a bunny to love and we recalled all of our favorite memories with Bert. Just last Friday the girls were outside reading to him and singing "Jesus Loves Me" to little Bert. A special memory for his last day with us.

It was especially hard for Gracie, but she did a wonderful job of decorating the cross to put on his grave. She also wrote a note to bury him with.

Here are a few pictures of our time with Bert the Bunny.

January Teen Activity

2012-02-02T11:20:00.009-05:00

Place: Snow Tubing Park/ Our Home for Food and Fellowship
Food: Amazing Chili, Mac and Cheese, Cobbler and much more
Games: Life Saver Race, Jellybean Spit/Catch, and Pictionary
Memories: The Church Bus breaking down two times
Praise: The Lord got everyone safely to tubing, to the Jones Home, and back to CT
Discovery: Jeremiah is quite talented at catching jellybeans

Shouldn't Everyone Have a Favorite Toe?

2012-02-02T11:11:00.009-05:00

What a random title to this very random post.

Abs and I were hanging out in the window one day when she decided I should take pictures of her toes. She often will point to a toe and say "this one's my favorite".

What a crazy kid! She makes us laugh.

Catching Up

2012-01-25T15:05:00.002-05:00

I haven't really been in a "blogging mood" lately, if there even is such a thing. So I will post a few things now, in hopes of catching up a bit.

I wanted to post this picture from our "Christmas Picture Photo Shoot" just because I love it. The girls just happened to walk together...in the tire tracks...holding hands....on opposite feet.

I really love this picture. And I just wanted to share it. Hope you are having a great week!

The Long Awaited Snow

2012-01-25T14:51:00.003-05:00

The girls were beyond thrilled to wake up and see tons of snow outside. They quickly bundled up and made the joyous journey outside with Mom.

Grace was enjoying herself thoroughly while Abigail stood nearby with a frown on her face. Turns out, she said she didn't like the "snuffies"falling on her face. (That means the snowflakes.) She ended up trying with all her might to enjoy the snow from the shelter of the garage but somehow it just wasn't as much fun in there.
After coming inside, she attempted to love the snow once more later in the day...but alas, that love didn't last long either.

But this is New England, and so a few days later the snow melted in our 50 degree day of sunshine!

Elisabeth's Birthday

2012-01-25T14:48:00.001-05:00

Elisabeth "Aunty Bet" had a birthday this past weekend. We were so happy that we were able to see her (and Uncle Daniel) for the special day!

RUTH Group

2012-01-20T13:52:00.004-05:00

Here are some pictures from our ladies group meeting in January. We had a nice time of fellowship, delicious breakfast foods and an encouraging devotional.

Skating

2012-01-02T16:10:00.003-05:00

We took Grace back to the Ice Skating Rink since she loved it so much the first time. Once again, she skated like a pro! She would have skated all night!

Abigail's Haircut

2012-01-02T15:42:00.001-05:00

Here are the before and after pictures of Abigail's first haircut!

Christmas Day

2012-01-02T15:31:00.002-05:00

Sunday was Christmas day and what a better place to be, than in God's House!

Grace turned the pages for Daddy and later for Joshua, during our afternoon music service.

Christmas 2011- Saturday

2012-01-02T15:23:00.003-05:00

On Saturday we had a wonderful time at Nana and Pada's house. Pada read the Christmas story from God's Word, we had a delicious breakfast and later a delicious dinner! Auntie Bet and Uncle Daniel were able to come to CT so we were able to spend time with them too! Uncle Siah and Uncle Miah got new bikes! It was a fun day.

(We also went ice skating on Friday and unfortunately I don't have any pictures of that! We discovered that Abby doesn't like skating much, and that Gracie is evidently destined for the Olympics!)

Christmas 2011

2012-01-02T15:17:00.002-05:00

We had a Christmas weekend celebration this year...doing a little each day. I will post each one separately.

We opened several gifts each night together as a family. Grace really wanted a robe and was thrilled to finally have one! Abigail loved her new puppy, appropriately named "Puppy Love".

2011-12-27T15:51:00.001-05:00

Big Sister, Little Sister

2011-12-22T14:37:00.001-05:00

The Children's Christmas Program

2011-12-22T14:12:00.005-05:00

A Saturday Stroll

2011-12-22T14:02:00.004-05:00

After the rehearsal, we spent some time with my mom and dad who came up to see the program.
We took them to one of our favorites spots...one that we had been wanting to show them for a while.

We had a lot of fun walking around and just being together!

Thanks for coming mom and dad! It meant a lot to the girls that you came!

Childrens Program Rehearsal

2011-12-19T11:54:00.004-05:00

On Saturday the children practiced their Christmas Program.

What a joy it is to see young people serving the Lord in this way!

SURPRISE

2011-12-16T14:46:00.005-05:00

The teens so graciously had a surprise bday par-TAY for me! (If you know me at all, you know I do love birthdays!)
It was so much fun!!!!

Thank you to all who helped in making it so special. It meant a lot to me!

Teen Christmas Party

2011-12-14T14:20:00.010-05:00

In keeping with tradition, this year's "Teen Christmas Party" was at the lovely home of Matt and Rebecca. And again we did the white elephant gift exchange- o so fun!

Prior to their house we were supposed to minister at the nursing home, but when we got there...we realized that they had scheduled us for the following day. Since the Lord is in control of all things... and has a perfect plan....we continued on with the activity and just planned on doing the nursing home for the next day.

The white elephant game this year included money in a balloon, a rubber snake, a crazy yellow h at, and a HUGE bar of peppermint.

Notice Abby's pictures:
First her not-so-loving-it face when she opened the "scary toy" as she called it.
Then, after trading with a kind teen, her I'm-so relieved face with her new game.

Grace opened the rubber snake gift and we thought she'd be afraid. Instead she said "I'll name him Billy."

The Christmas Party was so much fun and our fellowship the following day turned out to be a special blessing. We praise the Lord for another year of serving with these awesome teens!

O Christmas Tree

2011-12-14T14:15:00.002-05:00

The tree is up, complete with the charming train beneath it. The girls love it and loved decorating it.

"Daddy, isn't Christmas nice?"- Abby, age 2

The Race

2011-12-02T09:22:00.007-05:00

Jake ran the turkey trot race in NJ again this year and he did a great job! The weather was so warm and enjoyable- not at all like the race last year! (We froze!)

Mimi, Mommy, Grace and Abs had fun cheering Daddy on!

A Puzzling Mystery

2011-12-02T09:13:00.002-05:00

Throughout our time in good ol' Jersey, we were all working on a puzzle. We were determined to finish it by Saturday. That meant we only had 3 days to complete it: Thurs, Fri and part of Saturday.

On Saturday we were eagerly trying to put in the final pieces....only to realize that we were missing four pieces!!! The search was on, and we quickly found 3 pieces that were hiding. But no one could find the last piece- which belonged in the center of the whole puzzle!!!

We searched...under the rug...in luggage...under furniture....and could not find it!

Grace decided that we should pray- the best idea!!! So we prayed....and kept looking.

Jake thought to look in the vacuum...and it was there!!!!!! We were all so happy to complete the Thanksgiving puzzle and thankful for the reminder that our God even cares to answer the 'little' prayers too.

Thanksgiving Weekend

2011-11-30T11:33:00.004-05:00

Fun with family. Thanksgiving and Christmas together. Singing hymns and carols. Taking a walk in the warm weather. Making a family cookie recipe. Seeing relatives that live far away. Doing a puzzle. Delicious food.

So much to be thankful for!

Thanksgiving Eve

2011-11-30T11:22:00.002-05:00

On the eve of Thanksgiving we were able to spend some time at Nana & Pada's house and see Josh, Can, Cole and Lillian. It was so nice to see them!

After that, we enjoyed a praise service at church.

Raking Up the Leaves

2011-11-17T13:01:00.003-05:00

November Fellowship

2011-11-16T14:01:00.010-05:00

Our teen fellowship this Sunday was filled with delish' pizza, grinders (as people up here call them), Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Mr. Sousa, Pastor and Mom Jones, Mr. Hauta, a bus ride to the nursing home, Jeremiah preaching (great job!), a hot chocolate reward, a serious sponge ball game of sorts and a stable/manger scene of our group!

Here are a few pics of the afternoon.

P.S. if you missed the story of our Bible Quizzing Trip, you can read about it on our Church Blog!

Examples

2011-11-15T14:11:00.002-05:00

I am so thankful that the Lord has allowed me to witness many Godly examples throughout my life. One of those amazing examples has been ushered into the presence of the King and will be deeply missed by many. (We look forward to seeing him again over the sunset mountains!)

This man and his wife~showed me what a devoted life of faithfulness to Christ looked like.

They showed me~ (even when I was a child) what a Godly marriage standing on God's Word looked like.

They showed me~ what it means to serve God with your whole heart.

Praise the Lord for Godly examples!

Rejoice!

2011-11-14T11:25:00.002-05:00

This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

Favorites

2011-11-11T14:29:00.007-05:00

Grace recently asked me what my favorite Bible verse is. As I get older, I seem to have more "favorites". There are several that stand out in my mind. The one that I shared with her has been one that the Lord uses to encourage me a lot.

In Deuteronomy 31: 7& 8, Moses is addressing Joshua in front of all Israel. (vs 8 is my "fav)

"And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto him in the sight of all Israel, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou must go with this people unto the land which the Lord hath sworn unto their fathers to give them; and thou shalt cause them to inherit it.
And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed."

Lately, as I looked at these verses again...I was encouraged in a new way! May you dig into His Word- even those "favorite" verses that you know by heart- and claim them as direct promises from our Savior!

Praise the Lord today for His Word, which is alive and does not return void!

Warm Fall Days

2011-11-11T10:23:00.003-05:00

We take advantage of any warm fall day we get!

The girls have been "racing" as I time them with a stopwatch. Bert the Bunny seems entertained by it all.

Fun fall days!

Psalm 144:12

2011-11-03T07:39:00.004-04:00

What a wonderful verse!
P.S. This plant is in our flowerbed in front of our house. Oh-so-pretty!

Random Pics of Cutie Pies

2011-10-31T14:19:00.003-04:00

Smiles Again

2011-10-25T15:29:00.003-04:00

Big smiles again.
One less tooth.

Thank you Lord for your healing hand.

Missions Conference

2011-10-25T15:01:00.005-04:00

Our Missions Conference was filled with fellowship, food and powerful preaching!

The Neals, the Diachenkos, and the Bakers were our visiting missionaries. Dr. McAllister opened God's Word for us with messages on witnessing to, and loving the lost.

It was a weekend that we didn't want to end. Can't wait for next year!

"I'm so glad I'm a part of the family of God...."

Psalm 145:8

2011-10-20T16:00:00.003-04:00

Psalm 145:8 was Grace's Bible verse last week and it ever rang in my ears these past few days.

"The Lord is gracious and full of compassion."

Saturday evening Gracie complained of her tooth hurting her...Sunday morning, her face was very swollen and she was in pain. We rushed over to the urgent care and the doctor decided to start an IV along with oral antibiotics. He said it was a dental abscess and it was traveling rapidly up her face. By Sunday evening, her poor little face was so swollen that it was difficult for her to see out of her left eye.

She received several long IV drips, had a tooth drilled without Novocaine and eventually had the tooth pulled by Tuesday. Gracie did not complain or say she was in pain. She was a trooper through it all.

These past few days have taught us to lean on the Lord deeper, trust in Him for peace and rely on His strength and healing hand. So many people have showered Grace with love and prayers and we are so grateful.

Praise the Lord that He is so gracious and full of compassion. Grace is feeling well again. Thank you for your prayers and concern!

(P.S. This picture was taken before her face got really swollen. Her doll had a pretend IV too.)

Happy Birthday Nana

2011-10-20T14:08:00.001-04:00

This past weekend we celebrated Nana's birthday! Auntie Bet and Uncle Daniel were there too! We all had a nice time together!

Happy Birthday Nana~we love you!

Last Stop: Cole's Party

2011-10-10T12:40:00.004-04:00

Our final stop was with Josh, Can, Cole and Lillian. We celebrated Cole's 5th birthday and had a fun time being together!

Next Stop: PA

2011-10-10T12:32:00.003-04:00

Our next stop was PA to see Nanny, Aunt Irene and Aunt Val. We were able to see their new home and visit a playground nearby!
Poor Aunt Irene had just had surgery on her face. We were happy they were all doing well.

First Stop: NJ

2011-10-10T12:28:00.001-04:00

The first stop on our weekend trip was NJ to see Mimi & Poppy!

Seaport with Daddy

2011-10-03T14:37:00.005-04:00

This weekend we picked up the library pass for the Mystic Seaport again...only this time we took Daddy! The girls were sooooooooooooooo excited to show Daddy everything and take him everywhere. Daddy even got to meet "Duke" the horse.

The day we went, they had a free boat ride which the girls really enjoyed. The Lord held back the rain and we were able to have a great time together.

(Abigail even got to see what the beds are like in a submarine...just like Pada had to sleep in, in the Navy!)

Getting Wet

2011-09-30T10:43:00.000-04:00

The girls like to play in the rain with daddy. They have made it a little tradition!

Spending Time with Little Friends

2011-09-28T14:29:00.003-04:00

September Teen Activity

2011-09-27T11:59:00.009-04:00

Each year we initiate the new teens who are entering the teen class. This year we had four brave souls take on the challenge.

Would you have the courage to enter an obstacle course blindfolded??? How about drink a mysterious beverage??

They did a great job and we all had a lot of fun! In the end, almost everyone was either wet or had some kind of food on their clothing.

We opened God's Word later and talked about how we each need to be fully controlled by the Lord through the 'obstacle course' of life.

We are so thankful for the opportunity to work with this awesome group of teens!

Fun Pics

2011-09-26T16:08:00.001-04:00

Everlasting Love

2011-09-22T13:35:00.003-04:00

"I have loved thee with an everlasting love." Jeremiah 31:3

Praising the Lord today for His love for me though I do not deserve it.

"Camping" with Miss Jennifer

2011-09-19T14:45:00.005-04:00

Our friend, Miss Jennifer, stayed with us for a few days while her hubby and boys went to the campout with Jake.

The Lord blessed our time together in so many ways. We were able to spend a day at the Mystic Seaport. The girls loved the children's museum...learned how to spell their names with the nautical alphabet, climbed aboard ships and even had a carriage ride with "Duke" the horse.

Fun stuff. Thanks for coming Jen!

Friends

2011-09-19T14:42:00.002-04:00

Camping

2011-09-19T14:40:00.002-04:00

Our church just had a "Men & Boys Campout" and the girls thought it would be fun to try out Daddy's tent.

A New Year of School and a Sweet Little Girl

2011-09-10T20:49:00.005-04:00

She's not a little baby anymore. I guess we had better come to terms with it...sniff sniff.

The truth is, Gracie has grown into such a sweet, helpful, and smart little five-year-old. She is doing so well in her schoolwork and is quite diligent about getting it done each day. She is such a little book worm, reading chapter books at record speed. (She bought one last Sunday from the church book store and completed the entire chapter book today- not a week later!)

She is a delight to her mommy and daddy and is always so careful to help her sister in a very responsible way.

The school year that has begun was one that Dee Dee (or Deeds, as we affectionately call her) was a little apprehensive about because of the cursive writing. She was nervous about not being able to do it, etc. The Lord has helped her incredibly and we are so proud of her hard work!! (The pictures I posted are of her first ever writing homework...and she really did a great job!!)

On Friday, she even asked to begin her day with her CURSIVE writing book!

Praise the Lord!! He will help her each step of the way. We are so thankful for our Gracie and the wonderful little lady she is becoming.

Promotion Sunday

2011-09-05T11:48:00.002-04:00

This Sunday was Promotion Sunday. Grace has moved up to a new class and she is very excited about it. She just about recited her whole lesson to us Sunday evening! We are grateful for such Godly SS teachers and their burden to teach the little ones God's Word.

Abigail did not 'graduate' but still received a gift from her sweet teacher!

Early Pickin

2011-09-05T11:45:00.002-04:00

Our pumpkins turned orange and so we picked them. A little early for pumpkins, perhaps.

I think we are officially the first ones on our street (and in our state) to have pumpkins on our doorstep.

Oh well. Hopefully they last a while!

Homemade Snacks

2011-09-01T14:05:00.003-04:00

I decided to try yet another granola bar recipe. The difference? This one was actually easy and was a big hit!
The girls almost ate every one of them before Daddy even came home!

I got the recipe off of this website. Big smiles for a cheap, simple, and healthy snack that the kids like!

p.s. I didn't include the protein powder or the chocolate but that's because I thought it was a bit much for little bellies. And we left out the raisins just because my hubby would rather them be left out.

Fried Eggplant

2011-08-31T13:36:00.003-04:00

I {heart} fried eggplant. It's the Italian in me.

And it tastes so much better when you know it came from your very own garden!

A Fun Craft

2011-08-31T13:32:00.003-04:00

I found this craft online somewhere and thought it just might be easy enough for me to do! (I am not that creative when it comes to things like this!)

You simply make the letter out of painter's tape, have the kids watercolor all over the page, and then remove the tape!

Easy. Pretty. Fun.

The Pumpkins (Part2)

2011-08-30T14:26:00.001-04:00

Our adorable little pumpkins are turning orange!

Irene

2011-08-30T14:09:00.002-04:00

Well, Irene has come and gone. But as of today...about 138,000 are still out of power in our state. Neighbors all around us continue to have no power.

Praise the Lord that our power was only out for a day...and that the Lord also provided us with a generator, which came in very useful.

The damage of fallen trees seems to be the worst around here. The trees on our property all stood strong, but out neighbor's had several large trees come down.

While the wind blew strong, and the rain poured down....we reflected on this verse:

Matthew 8:27
"But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him!"

Josiah is 18

2011-08-27T10:34:00.001-04:00

Uncle Josiah turned 18 yesterday! We love him so much and hope that he had a wonderful birthday!

Silly Faces

2011-08-27T10:29:00.001-04:00

Silly faces from silly girls.

P.S. Abby did her own hair :)

The Mystery Plant

2011-08-26T12:51:00.002-04:00

A while ago we realized that a plant was growing outside of the garden. It was spreading quick and ultimately ended up all around the garden AND inside of it! The best part? We didn't plant it. It was our mystery plant.

We have been trying to guess what it is, as it grows larger and have finally decided that we have discovered the answer.

We believe it to be a pumpkin plant!!!! How exciting! We get to go pumpkin picking in our yard this year!

The Spot

2011-08-24T13:23:00.003-04:00

A new school year is beginning.

This year I desired to do something special for Gracie. I wanted her to have her own little "spot" to do school. I searched on Craigslist for desks...tried to get inspired by other blogs...and finally thought we'd just do school at the kitchen table like last year.

Then, I felt as though the Holy Spirit said to me...."you have a desk already, remember?" So...with a few extra touches...and a couch moved out of the way....she now has her "special spot".

Sure, we may end up changing it. But for now she is excited about it and has been already spending a lot of time at her desk. Thank you Lord for blessing us in so many ways!

Avondale

2011-08-22T13:47:00.012-04:00

"For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible...." Colossians 1:16a

"The earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein." ~Psalm 24:1

We have a new favorite spot to enjoy the beauty of God's creation.
A little place called Avondale.

Grace and the Race

2011-08-19T14:25:00.003-04:00

Gracie participated in her first ever race! She ran a 1/2 mile and came in around 5 minutes! She ran alongside of her daddy and uncles! She did such a great job...we were so proud of her!!!

After the race, we had some fun time with the family...including cousins Cal and James, who are visiting this week!!

Camping Out

2011-08-19T14:22:00.002-04:00

Thanks to another christian lady's blog...and her suggestion of creating various tents for her little girls....we have been making a "fort" almost every day in different locations. Gracie loves to read with a flashlight in her tent. Fun stuff.

A Special Visit

2011-08-17T16:36:00.003-04:00

We recently had the treat of having a very special visit. My mother, grandmother, and great-aunts came for a few days. That would make them Grace and Abby's grandmother, great-grandmother and great-GREAT aunts!!!!

We had a fun time together. They are still funny as ever and our girls loved spending time with them. We are thankful that they traveled all the way up north to see us! We love them all!

Family Fun

2011-08-16T15:29:00.007-04:00

We had such a fun time together as a family recently. We were able to celebrate Makenna's birthday, take some family pics, and see the cousins together. We are blessed with an amazing family and we love them so much!

Teen Challenge 2011

2011-08-11T07:25:00.006-04:00

God's Word boldly preached.

Souls being saved.

Awesome captains: Jake and Mike.

Navy team FINALLY won....it's been a long while.

Mount Calvary team joining us for the week.

Friendships made.

Here is a link to see our teen group singing from that week. And yes, I am the old lady in the middle who is shorter than all the teens!!

VBS

2011-08-03T13:09:00.007-04:00

This year we had an amazing ministry team travel from Mount Calvary Baptist Church in SC to come and help us with our VBS/Teen Challenge. It was such a wonderful week!!!

Jerid, Michelle and the kids were part of the team, so that was an extra blessing!!
This year was Abby's first VBS. She was not too sure of the whole thing. She cried the first day and did okay for the other days. She didn't smile much or laugh at all. But she stuck with one of her teacher's, Miss Eliza, for most of the week.

The Mount Calvary team did a great job with VBS...and I especially loved the ladies classes. They were taught by such Godly ladies and I was grateful for the chance to sit in on them and be blessed by them.
There was also a comical duo the whole week: none other than Jeremiah and Josiah! They did a skit each day and they were simply hilarious!

I do have to mention, that Abby had a fear of one of the teen guys. Poor Mr. Clay tried so hard to befriend Abs, but she just frowned or even cried when she saw him. I am happy to report, however, that by the last day....she did smile at him, laugh at him and even high-five him! There was another sweet girl, Jamie, who really went out of her way to make Abby smile. She and Abby became buds in no time.

It was also so special that both Abby and Grace each had a cousin in their class. Gracie and Makenna were holding hands and always together, while Abby and Michael were in their own class shedding some nervous tears side by side.
VBS was in the mornings, while the Teen Challenge was at night. A full week...jam-packed with blessings!! We praise the Lord for this group and we miss them already.....

Fun with Grandparents

2011-07-29T13:23:00.002-04:00

Mimi and Poppy came up for a quick overnight visit. We were so very glad to see them and so thankful that they came!

Grace's Pics

2011-07-27T14:51:00.004-04:00

We figured it would only be right to include some updated pictures of big sister Gracie too! This girl is growing up way to quickly! She is such a little lady already.

Abigail's Photo Session

2011-07-27T14:38:00.002-04:00

We recently realized that we needed some updated pictures of Abigail for the grandparents to display on their walls. (The ones they had were of her as an infant! Wow...it's been a while.) Gracie was my big helper - in charge of making Abigail smile and laugh. It worked!!

What a Face

2011-07-19T08:14:00.005-04:00

These crazy faces were all from one simple afternoon lunch. I just had to grab my camera!

"A merry heart doeth good like a medicine" Proverbs 17:22

All Dolled Up

2011-07-19T08:11:00.002-04:00

Zucchini Quiche

2011-07-13T17:00:00.002-04:00

Zucchini is growin' like mad in our little garden so I grabbed a zucchini quiche recipe from my mom and... voila! A yummy summer treat! Thanks mom!

Weekend with Friends

2011-07-13T16:55:00.003-04:00

Our friends, the Rosas, came for a visit recently. We always have a great time together! We are thankful for them and look forward to their next visit!

Lovin' the Summer

2011-07-13T09:49:00.005-04:00

I must admit, the summer is my favorite season and we have been loving every minute of it... swinging under the tree, picking veggies from the garden, running in the sprinkler. Fun stuff.

Thank you Lord for the seasons you make and how wonderful your creation is!

Hello Finch

2011-07-05T14:07:00.004-04:00

Some time last month we made a new friend.

Meet Frankie/Frannie. This little Finch would tap on the window and visit throughout the day....for several days in a row. Well it is back again. This time we hear the tapping at the back window and there he/she is! About 10 min later, the little cutie will be at the front window tapping again.

It will let you get up so close, you are literally face to face with only the glass window between you. I know he/she probably just sees their reflection....but it's still so fun to have this little Finch around.

(please forgive the dirty windows! yucky)

Happy Independance Day!

2011-07-05T12:44:00.004-04:00

Little Friends

2011-06-30T14:54:00.001-04:00

These kiddos are all growing up WAY too fast!

Cuter than a Button

2011-06-30T14:53:00.000-04:00

A Very Merry UNbirthday to You

2011-06-30T14:24:00.008-04:00

I love love love birthdays!!! So when we decided to have an UNbirthday party as our next teen activity, I was thrilled!
We celebrated all of our birthdays at once. Everyone got a present....everyone got cake and everyone got a goody bag. It was a lot of fun.

We played musical chairs, pin the tail on the donkey (look at the picture of Jeremiah and how far away he was from the donkey!), balloon burst and hit a traditional pinata (RIP Francesca).

Later Jake opened God's Word and helped us to focus on the life of Daniel...a faithful servant of the Lord.

4 Generations

2011-06-30T14:16:00.003-04:00

We had the special treat of having Nanny visit!

Mimi brought her, along with Jonathan...who was coming up to go to camp. We had not seen Nanny in so long. She is the girls' great-grandmother. I have always been close to my Nanny & Pop Pop. I talk with Grace a lot about Pop, since she doesn't remember him. We talk about how fun it will be to see him again in Heaven.
We talk a lot about Nanny too and how we love when we get to see her! We were glad we were able to spend time with Mimi & Nanny for a quick visit. Poor Jonathan got pulled around all weekend by Grace & Abby and I have no picture to show for it! Sorry Jonny.
Can't wait to see you again soon Mimi & Nanny!

Flying Horses

2011-06-22T11:16:00.008-04:00

To love or not to love the flying horses....that is the question. The girls recently went on this carousel which is a national historical landmark dating back to 1745. It is also the oldest continuously-operated carousel in the USA. Pretty cool, huh?
Well, Abby didn't think so. When we first put her on it, we thought she'd be excited and up for the adventure. The look on her face told otherwise. About a minute into her 'flying horse' ride, she was sobbing big crocodile tears and the kind ride operator stopped it so she could get off. Poor thing didn't know what to think of the long haired flying horses.
Grace LOVED it and is anticipating riding it again very soon.

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

2011-06-18T15:38:00.002-04:00

Today was absolutely gorgeous! We took a stroll in the park.....
Choo-bops (aka Abigail) was ever so close to jumpin' in that water fountain!

Six Years of U and Me

2011-06-18T15:28:00.004-04:00

This week we celebrated our anniversary! God has been so gracious to us and blessed our marriage and home in so many ways.
To celebrate, we decided to check out the new restaurant in town. All you can eat buffet is always good, right? They have a variety of Japanese, Chinese, Thai and Korean food. Yummm

Appropriately for us, the name is U Me. It was very delicious!

A Trip to the Zoo

2011-06-18T07:49:00.005-04:00

We recently went on a trip to the zoo with a bunch of friends from church. The teens helped me so much with the girls....they are such a blessing to have around. It was a pretty hot day so we all took advantage of the outdoor water fountain to splash and cool off.
(Thanks Wendy for the pics!)

Jake Takes the Cake....I mean the Sushi

2011-06-13T12:36:00.007-04:00

Our church picnic was this past weekend and it was so much fun. The gloomy rain couldn't get us down. The men of the church made the desserts as a competition. All of them looked/tasted amazing. Pada placed third for presentation of his "sand in a pail" which was delish. My very own Jakey placed first for his "Sushi"!! He even made the beautiful tray that the sushi was on. Nice job Jake!
There were a bunch of games to participate in. Grace really loved the games for her age level...as did Abby. Gracie ran up to us when it was over and joyfully yelled "Mommy and Daddy! I got SEVENTH place!!!" It was so cute.

We also looked into God's Word and focused in on our unity as brethren. It was a great reminder to us all. Following that, we chowed down to some real homemade ice cream. Yummmmmm.
Can't wait for next year's picnic already!

Playin' with Play-doh

2011-06-10T13:04:00.005-04:00

What is it about play-doh that is so wonderful? I remember my Aunt Barbara making the homemade kind for me- something I plan on doing this summer. But for now the girls had fun with the large stash that we already have and the fun tools that go along with it. Gracie was making a cake which ended up looking quite lovely. Abby...well...she just liked cutting it up into little pieces that were 'oh-so-fun' to clean up!
(ps- Abs is into this new thing where she squints her eyes in pictures and makes weird faces to be funny.)

Jeremiah turns 16!!!!

2011-06-07T14:01:00.005-04:00

Last weekend we celebrated Jeremiah's (surprise) birthday! We all had a lot of fun with family and friends! We played a water balloon toss and a relay involving vanilla pudding (most of which was on my skirt!). Jeremiah got a trampoline for his big bday and Gracie hasn't stopped talking about it since! She and Abby loved it just as much as uncle Miah did!
We even got to see Noni and Jidoo and spend some time with them!

Happy Birthday Jeremiah! You are a wonderful brother, brother-in-law, and uncle to us and we love you very much!

Curly Head

2011-06-07T08:01:00.003-04:00

When the weather is humid Miss Abby's hair springs up in little curls! It's kind of hard to tell from these pictures. But, for a Mama whose hair is straighter than straight, it's pretty exciting to see! Hope the curls stay!!!

Crazy Kiddos

2011-06-06T11:56:00.003-04:00

This duo is quite the hilarious team. They sure do make us laugh!

Lil' Sailors

2011-06-06T11:52:00.002-04:00

Thanks to the Varhol's for these cute sailor dresses and matching doll dresses too! Super cute!
ps- if you're wondering what Gracie got on her pretty dress...not to worry- it was only water.

The Responsibility Chart

2011-06-03T15:52:00.003-04:00

Since school is finished and the summer has begun {woop woop} I decided to focus in on manners, helping, and responsibility in general. It's a great time to brush up on these areas and reward good work.
Sooooo....I found an adorable "chores" chart that a missionary posted on her blog. It inspired me to make one of my own. Gracie helped me make it and is excited to put the magnets on the 'responsibilities' as she accomplishes them.

The magnets are taken off the chart each day and the girls may add one each time I notice them doing a 'responsibility'. At the end of the day, if each category has been accomplished, they get a special reward. And at the end of the week, if each day has been filled....they get {drum roll please} a Dairy Queen ice cream! Doesn't get any better than that. All though, I guess they SHOULD get a cupcake to go with the theme. We shall see how it goes.

Nevertheless, it was a fun DIY project to do with Grace and hopefully it will help us sharpen the girls in these areas.

The Benn Fam

2011-06-03T15:46:00.004-04:00

This week we had some fun times with the Benn family. Poor little Liam is totally outnumbered by all of us girls! But we sure do love lovin' on him. What a cutie pie he is!
Next time we will have to make sure and take some pics of big sister cutie Adelle too!

Reading Glasses

2011-06-01T13:19:00.002-04:00

These are Abby's "eyes", as she calls them. She evidently needs them since she wears them quite often.

Mr. Potato Head may be needing them back soon though.

What a nut!

Girly Time

2011-05-26T15:14:00.004-04:00

It's fun having two little girly girls. I tried to do some fun things with Dee-Dee-fina's hair. (as Abby lovingly refers to her) I got some ideas from a wonderful blog that I follow. This missionary lady has such fun crafts, ideas and hairstyles for girls. She has four little ones!
Abigail's hair is finally long enough for her to sport some piggy tails.

Bible Quizzing

2011-05-25T16:24:00.005-04:00

Our teens had Bible Quizzing this past weekend. They all did a really great job. It is amazing to see how much scripture they memorize! What a treasure to keep in their hearts!

They have won the past six (I believe it's six....) competitions so we were all glad to see a different church win this time instead. Every teen had such a great attitude about it.

We are so blessed by our teen group. It's great to see how the Lord continues to grow them as He grows us along side them.

very.silly.girls

2011-05-25T13:16:00.004-04:00