Scripture Memory

Verse 11 - June 1st
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.  James 1:5 (NIV)

Spring Concerts have Sprung!

May is the month for concerts and recitals.  It's been fun to celebrate all of the girls' musical accomplishments.  We are so blessed that they have the opportunity to learn from some great teachers!  Here are just a few of the highlights (of course video is also available for private showings:).

Ella & Makenna at the piano recital.

Makenna played the flute in the Band concert.

She also had the lead part in the Choral concert.  She played a Native American and sang a solo.  So proud of how hard she worked on all her lines.  Owen could actually say them as well!

Must Have Monday

Any family of five has moutains of laundry each week!  Throw in 3 sports going on at one time and it can become quite overwhelming.  I have tried several methods - a load a day, 3 to 4 loads every few days, etc...  Since our laundry room is also the main entrance our family uses to the house (and the location of coats, shoes, bookbags, etc...), having laundry in there constantly drives me CRAZY because there is just not room.

So for me, it works best to do 24 hours of non-stop laundry to get it out of the way.  That is not to say that I don't do the occasional load in between; however, it's not that much and it doesn't sit in there taking up space.  So every Sunday night the laundry gets sorted... but NOT BY ME!  Because to make this work, my "must have" is three little laundry sorters.  And I start them just shy of 2 years old - as soon as they can identify the color white!

Now at 3 1/2, Owen can successfully sort darks, mediums, and whites with 85% acurracy!  He loves doing it!  We use to make it a game - laundry basketball - and he would stand on the bed and shoot the underwear into the approriate basket.  However, now he is just happy to do his part.  Makenna & Ella have been well-trained for years:)

Thanks to the delay cycle on my washer (brilliant!) I manage to get 7 to 8 loads washed and folded and put away by bedtime on Monday night.  Did I mention that my sorters also put away their own clothes too

Scripture Memory

Yesterday at the girl's piano recital, one of the students played the song "Finlandia".  Who knew that was the alternative title for the hymn from the 1700's, "Be Still My Soul"?  It was beautiful... and the inspiration for my 10th verse.

My soul, wait silently for God alone.  For my expectation is from Him.  Psalm 62:5 (NKJ)

Here are the words to the first verse of the hymn written over 200 years ago... I wonder what the situation was that caused the writer to pen these lyrics. 

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.

Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.

Leave to thy God to order and provide;

In every change, He faithful will remain.

Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend

Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

Florida Part 3

Okay last one!  We really managed to squeeze lots of fun into one week.  Thanks mom and dad for the much needed vacation:)

Here are some shots from Easter morning.  The kids weren't in the most cooperative mood for a photoshoot... but I managed to get a few.

 Sorry for the blurry pics... he was just so excited about his Easter basket it was too cute.

Dan, Michele and the boys came after church for Easter dinner.  Derek was very sweet to fill over a hundred eggs to hide for a big hunt.  They were also good sports and participated with our kids.  You are never too old for a little candy:)

The kids spent the rest of day in the pool.

 Finally tuckered out and snuggling with Uncle Dan watching Scooby Doo!  Seriously, the kid had endless energy the whole week.

Florida Part 2

So there are actually going to be three parts to the Florida post!  I just had a lot of fun pictures from our day on the boat.  We spent the day with Dan, Michele (Scott's sister), DJ & Derek.  We rode out to Charlotte Harbor on the boat and put the anchor down on a sandbar.  Dan had fixed two SeaDoos just for the occasion (thanks Dan!!).  The kids had a blast riding the SeaDoos and tubing.  Owen was pretty stoked about the Spiderman  life preserver he got to wear.

 Grandma and Owen enjoying the boat ride.

 Makenna and Derek attempt to keep the tubes from flying off the boat!

 DJ riding the SeaDoo... looking much like Scott at age 15!

 Owen wanted to sit in the tube that was hooked to the boat... that was anchored.  However, he didn't know that and thought he was really moving.  At one point he yelled, "Do you think we could go a little faster?"

 Scott and I taking a ride on the SeaDoo... he promised not throw me off the back of it.

 Dad and Michele taking a spin around the harbor.  Pretty adventurous for a guy who is almost 80!

 The shipwrecked crew taking time out to build some sand castles.

 Ella and I tubing... or me holding on for dear life and Ella having a blast!  It was a whole lot harder than it looked.

 A landmark moment when Grandma agrees to take a ride with Dan... she even liked it!

 Daddy and Owen

 Makenna and DJ on the tube

My little dare devil wanted a turn!  So this is Owen by himself in the tube!  Don't worry, you can see that Makenna is riding on the back of the SeaDoo ready to jump in and save him.  He loved every minute of it.

Such a wonderful time on the water!

Must Have Monday

....fresh flowers to brighten your kitchen.  My tulips are gone and it's too soon for my hydrandra... so these will have to do for now.  Sometimes it's the flowers that brighten your day and other times it's the delivery boy!