Superior, Superior!!

I love science. I really do. However, when it comes time to work on science projects, I want to run the other way. I never had to complete a science project in school, so it is a new world to me. Thankfully, Hannah's projects have been nonexperimental. Since Hannah attends a Christian school, you have to apply your project biblically as well. It can get interesting.

This year Hannah was blessed to receive a blue ribbon at the school science fair and she was able to go to regionals. She was blessed to receive a superior rating (blue ribbon) at regionals as well. Her topic, by the way, was the platypus. Of course my question for her teacher was about which grade they start doing experimental projects. She is hoping next year they will actually try to teach them the process of doing an experimental project by working on it all year. This would be a huge blessing for the next years to come. It would make my life and the life of our family a lot easier. I think Kevin would be thankful, too. I told him once the projects became experimental, it was his ballgame. When you are a chemistry major, you tend to have a little more experience with experiments. We will see!

Valentine's Day Dinner

Yes, I will eventually catch up on the posts I have been wanting to write for the month of February. I know Valentine's was over a week ago. But I had to share about our dinner on Valentine's. Kevin was actually off that day, so I didn't have to go back to town to pick up the kids at school. He ran the shuttle that day. This gave me the opportunity to get dinner ready at a decent hour.

I chose spaghetti with meatballs for our Valentine's dinner. Hannah loves pasta, so I knew she would be excited. Alli eats just about anything. Aaron eats like a bird most days. I bought French bread, so I knew that would get him interested for a few minutes. So I was excited about cooking the meal for my family. Then all of a sudden it hit me. Wouldn't it be fun to break out the fine china for this wonderful meal? You have to understand that Kevin and I have been married almost 12 years and if I decided to do this it would be history in the making for our family. You see, my china has been in storage since we got married. We have moved several times and I have never had anything to put them in. When we moved in our current home a little over a year ago, we took the china out of the boxes and put it in the cabinets in the kitchen. We have a set of cabinets that have glass where you can see what is in the cabinet. I guess I got accustomed to not using them, so I had not thought about getting them out until Valentine's Day this year. Well, the kids were excited about eating on fine china, especially Hannah and Alli. Kevin laughed when he saw what we were about to eat on and questioned whether I was sure I wanted to let the kids use them. It turned out to be a nice meal. I hope I will think to use the fine china more often. Maybe next time we can add some candlelight!

Lessons on the Art of Shaving

For those of you who know my Aaron and have talked with him on occassion you know the issues we have had with his speech (mainly that he talks when he wants to). Preschool has really helped him improve in this area and he works with a speech teacher once a week. So these days I am amazed at some of the things he says and it is easy to actually have a conversation with him. Well one night a couple weeks ago I didn't expect to have a conversation with him about shaving.

You tend to think that shaving is something he will learn from his father. As you know there are three girls in our household and with my husband working different shifts, Aaron tends to be with his mom and sisters a lot. Well, for Christmas, Kevin's grandmother gave Aaron a Go Diego Go! shaving kit. Aaron loves Diego. The kit came with a mirror you can suction to the side of the tub, a pretend razor, and shaving cream. We had opened the kit to look at it, but we had not used it during playtime in the tub. Aaron was ready to get in the tub one evening and says, "I want to shave my legs". I immediately thought, "He spends way too much time with girls! I am going to have to talk with Kevin about this." Anyway, I quickly explained to Aaron that mommies/girls shave their legs. Daddies/boys shave their "whiskers" on their face. I got down on my knees to where he was in the tub, lathered up the shaving cream, and spread it on his face. Aaron likes to be the one in control of things. He wants to be very independent, so I had to grab his hand along with the razor and show him how to shave his face. He finally got the hang of it. When he was done, I asked him if his face was smooth now. He ran his fingers across his face and quickly told me with a cute proud-of-himself grin that his face felt smooth.

I don't think I will forget this particular moment with my son. The girls and I laughed hard about it. Since telling Kevin about this incident, he has summoned Aaron to the bathroom to watch him shave several times. I am now reading the book, "Bringing Up Boys" by James Dobson!

Queen for the Day

At the school where the kids attend, the first graders participate in Bible character day. Each child is assigned a particular character from the Bible and they research the character to find out what that character did in the Bible. During chapel time they share with the other classes about their character. They also must dress like their character.

Alli was chosen to be Esther. I was excited about this because Esther is one of my favorite stories in the Bible. I could read it over and over again. I can't wait for Beth Moore's new study about Esther.

As my kids will quickly tell you, I am not a seamstress. I am not crafty at all. So I went online searching for a costume for Alli. Thankfully, I found one. All we had to do was write down what Alli would say about Esther during chapel. We probably had about three note cards total. Alli planned to read it off the cards that morning, but on the way to school that morning she decided she would memorize it. This made momma a little nervous. It amazes me the ability she has to memorize things so quickly. When it came time for her to get up in front of everyone, you could tell she was a little nervous, but she finally spit every word out just like it was on the cards. I know the Lord is responsible for the courage my kids have when they are in front of a crowd and I hope they will always remember Who gives the courage just as He gave Esther courage.

Nothing But the Blood

What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow.

No other fount I know. Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Last May on a weeknight after school, Alli accepted Christ as her Saviour. She and Kevin took a ride in his truck to talk and pray. She came back and told me she had asked Jesus in her heart. What a blessed moment in the life of a mother!

Yesterday we were finally able to have Alli baptized. What a joyous occasion for us! Another blessing for us was knowing that our niece was being baptized in her church the same morning. Kevin's parents have had two blessings in less than a year--to know your grandchildren know Christ!

It's Basketball Time!

Even though there was a threat of frozen precipitation again this Saturday, the girls finally got to play the first game of the Upward Basktetball season. Of all the sports to choose from, basketball is my favorite. Then when you put my kids in the game, I can really get into it. I had a friend tell me at the game that I needed a nerve pill.

This was Alli's first game and she is learning a lot about how the game is played. I would love to step on the court and show her exactly where to go. She did so great for her first game. She scored a few baskets and would turn to us and look at us with her big toothless grin for our approval. By the way, she finally lost two of her teeth that have been sticking out at us since before Christmas. I pulled one and she let one of my friends pull the other. I think Alli is going to be one that enjoys whatever she is doing in life. This fact shows when she is dribbling the ball and giggles while doing it. This week we will talk about defense.

This is Hannah's third year to play basketball. I could really tell how much she has improved since last year. Her defense rocks! She had to guard a girl that is slightly taller and built bigger than she is. She guarded this girl a lot last year. Hannah stayed with her girl the whole time, with arms up. When Hannah first started playing, she was not very aggressive. I would get down on my knees to be on her level and make her try to take the ball from me. I know that sounds crazy, but I think it was effective. I could also tell that Hannah played with the team in mind and not just herself. I pray she will continue to play this way and remember this important lesson off the court as well.

While the girls played, Aaron hung out with his nana and mom. Most of the time, he had nana at the concession stand for something to eat.

I am sure I will have more to tell as the season goes on. I look forward to watching them grow spiritually and improving on their game.

Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

Since I had to take Hannah to the eye doctor this afternoon, we were able to be home earlier than usual on a Wednesday afternoon. Wednesday afternoons are crazy because we usually don't get home till after 4 and we have to be at church by six. We are running around crazy trying to get showers, do homework and eat dinner. Well today was a nice surprise! Around four, as the kids were getting their showers, snowflakes began to fall. I called them out of the shower to see because I was afraid it wouldn't last long. Well, it's seven o'clock and it's still coming down. We didn't go to church. I am not up for driving in this mess after dark and the temperature is still dropping. After having a bowl of white chili, the kids went out and enjoyed the snow. This is Aaron's first snow to play in and he had so much fun. The girls enjoyed it just as much. Alli was not happy when I made her come inside. At some point, it's time to come in and get dry clothes on. They say this will all turn to rain after 1 am. We are still holding out for no school tomorrow! Thank you Lord for the snow!

The Dough Man

Aaron has an abundance of toys in his room. He occassionally goes in his room to play with them. Most of the time he enjoys playing with his big sister, Alli. We have learned that his most favorite item to play with is playdough. Someone gave him a cool caddy with lots of playdough for Christmas. I also added a Backyardigans playdough set to his collection as well. On Thursday I kept him home from preschool because he has had a terrible cough and didn't get much sleep Tuesday and Wednesday night. I think the playdough stayed out all day Thursday. He would play for a while and then go watch one of his favorite shows. After a while, he would be back at the table playing with his playdough. I don't think he ever gets bored with it. He is definitely in the stage of playing pretend. He has a wild imagination. We know this by the stories he likes to make up. Playing with playdough is a great tool for his imagination!

Back in the Swing of Things

The holidays didn't last long enough for us. We have quickly gotten back into school work and our usual activities. This Tuesday we began a new activity that comes every January--Upward Basketball! The girls had their first practices on Tuesday-Alli at 5:30 and Hannah at 7:30. It makes for a fun evening of trying to get homework done, eat dinner, take baths, and try to get them in bed at a decent hour. Trying to get this done while your husband is at work, makes it even more interesting. I am thanking the Lord for a good friend who let us come over and get Alli and Aaron a bath while we waited for Hannah's practice. The friend only lives 5 minutes from the church. I am looking forward to watching my girls learn more about basketball this year. Hannah gets better every year. This is Alli's first year and I know it will be a fun one with her. She giggles all the time, even while dribbling the basketball. This was a problem for her when she was learning to swim. She always took water down, because she was constantly laughing. I know our schedule is really getting busy because we have added this activity to it. However, when they walk away from Upward, they have learned more about Christ and how to play basketball in a Christlike manner.

As you can see in the picture, Aaron has finally learned how to wink. He usually closes both eyes. I was so excited when I actually caught his first wink, with one eye, on camera. At practice, Aaron ran around the gym numerous times and got rid of lots of energy. I look forward to Aaron getting to play basketball, too!

Pictures of His Grace

I have several friends that blog and enjoy reading their blogs. I love keeping up with their families this way. I am getting to see their kids grow through all the pictures they post. I have been wanting to start a blog for our family, but just couldn't decide for sure if I should do it and couldn't come up with a name for it. I thought this would be a great way for our family and friends who live two states away to see our kids on a regular basis. So, after almost two months of soul searching, I am finally beginning our blog. This is a perfect time to start since it's the beginning of a new year.

I think sometimes from the outside our family is seen as this perfect little family. I have been told several times that I have it all together and react calmly with my children. Nothing could be further from the truth. Most of the time I feel like I fail miserably at being a mom and wife. I feel like my weaknesses haunt me. As I start dwelling on this, God reminds me of a verse in His word. "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9 No matter where I fall short, His grace is enough. He uses my weaknesses to bring glory to Him. So, with that said, anything that is shown or said on this blog, is a result of the grace He has poured out on us. We are truly, pictures of His grace!