Thankful Thursday

I missed last week. Again. I was planning to do it after the track meet, but forgot.

*I'm thankful that my children are healthy.

*I'm thankful for the beautiful weather we've had the past few days.

*I'm thankful for the garden we are preparing to plant.

*I'm thankful for the time Shannon and I got to spend together earlier this week.

*I'm thankful that hat and mitten season is over.

*I'm thankful for Christian friends.

*I'm thankful for missionaries that sacrifice to devote their lives to spreading God's message throughout the world, and for getting to know some of them better.

*I'm thankful for spoons. It would be really hard to eat soup without one. (submitted by Shannon)

*I'm thankful for foam rollers and little girls who like to have curly hair.

*I'm thankful for my nice soft bed and fluffy pillows.

"He who walks in his uprightness fears the Lord, but he who is perverse in his ways despises Him." Proverbs 14:2

Chinese Buffet

Saturday evening Shannon and I hosted our Sunday School class by staging a Chinese Buffet at our home. It was mostly an attempt to bribe them into letting us stay in the 'Young Married' class. We're not quite ready to graduate into the 'Old Married' class. We were expecting 23 people, but only 18 ended up coming.


The menu consisted of Kung Pao Chicken, Broccoli Beef, Sesame Chicken, Orange Chicken, Mongolian Beef, Garlic Green Beans, Egg Drop Soup, Fried Rice, Crab Rangoon, Egg Rolls, and Cheesecake Balls for dessert. All of the recipes except the Cheesecake Balls came from Blog Chef. He was the inspiration for the party, although I did substitute some of the recipes from his original buffet with others to get a variety of beef and chicken dishes. I multiplied each recipe by 3 or 4 times.


I was able to do a bunch of the prep work early in the week, so the actual cooking day wasn't too bad. Shannon was a great assistant chef. I underestimated the amount of time it would take to fry the chicken, crab rangoon (Naomi likes to call them crab baboons), and egg rolls. The guests had all arrived and I was hanging out in the icky garage finishing up, so we didn't eat exactly on time. Regardless, it all came together, and I don't think anyone went home hungry. We had tons of leftovers, and are very sick of Chinese food at our house by now!

After dinner we played some games and shared some good fellowship time. I wasn't able to get any pictures, but Pastor took some, so if I get him to send me some, I'll post them later.

"Feed me with the food allotted to me." Proverbs 30:8

Hudson's Bagel

Hudson loves peanut butter bagels. Can you tell?




"To show partiality is not good, because for a piece of bread a man will transgress." Proverbs 28:20

Soccer Boys

Soccer season is here again. Alex has made the starting Varsity team. He decided to dress Hudson up in his uniform. I think they make a cute pair.





"The lamb will provide your clothing, and the goats the price of a field." Proverbs 27:26

The Blue Bowl

We have always used Corel dishes. They are supposed to be shatter proof. That's not true. We've proven it over and over. Occasionally when I am at Walmart I will pick up another bowl to replace one that has been broken, or is bound to be broken sometime soon.

A couple weeks ago I was walking through the camping department, and saw some blue speckled metal bowls. THESE bowl will NEVER break. I bought one, with the idea that I would get one every time I go to Walmart, and phase out the Corel bowls (or just break them all in the meantime).

You wouldn't believe the ruckus this blue bowl has caused. It became the COVETED blue bowl. Naomi refused to eat cereal out of any other bowl. Pretty soon, the others were joining in, fighting over who got to use the blue bowl.




I have picked up several more blue bowls since purchasing the first one. There are enough for the littles to use for breakfast, and if the big kids NEED to use a blue bowl, too, they are just gonna have to wash one out until I get back to Walmart enough times to get more bowls.

Sheesh.

"A lazy man buries his hand in the bowl, and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again." Proverbs 19:24

Lazy days

I snapped this picture of the kids one afternoon several weeks ago. What lazy bums they are!


"The hand of the diligent will rule, but the lazy man will be put to forced labor." Proverbs 12:24

Bryce's 11th Birthday

On March 21st Bryce celebrated his 11th birthday. He requested a football cake. Grandma Shirley, Papa Ken, Papa Joe, Uncle Jason and Will and Ben came and had lunch and cake and ice cream with us.

Shannon "passing" the football


Bryce blowing out the candles

Bryce is growing up in a hurry. He loves sports. He plays Xbox with the big boys, and plays toys with the little kids. He enjoys doing his Sunday School lessons, and is doing a great job in AWANA this year. He's getting great grades in school, and does his work without complaining (most days). He has a tender heart, and shows compassion to his little siblings. He's done some babysitting for us recently, and is doing a good job. Bryce makes us proud.

"He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; He who keeps understanding will find good." Proverbs 19:8

Great Wolf Lodge

In March we had the opportunity to celebrate my parents' 40th Wedding Anniversary by joining them and my sister's family on a trip to the Great Wolf Lodge in the Wisconsin Dells. Their 40th was last year, but it took awhile to schedule a weekend away.

Here is a picture of the grand kids.


We stayed in a suite that slept 15. There was plenty of room for all of us. It had a complete kitchen, two full and one 3/4 baths, and enough beds to accommodate all of us. The dining area wasn't ideal, but manageable.

The kids had a great time at the water park.

Hudson coming down the water slide


Katie coming down the water slide

Shannon and the littles.

Jack and Alex going across the ropes/lily pads


Cousin Mason


Uncle Jeff


Bryce


Jackson


Colton


Chase


My sister Kim


Our hosts for the weekend

There were plenty of activities to keep all of the different age groups busy. Hudson, our little daredevil, was unstoppable. At on point, he took off from Shannon and ran directly over to a 3 foot deep pool, looked back at Shannon, smiled, and jumped in. Papa Ken was able to jump in and grab him just seconds after he went in. It scared him for a few minutes, but not long. Unfortunately, Hudson wasn't feeling good and was sick with a fever on Saturday, so he missed out on some of the fun.

We decided we would like to go again someday. Anyone else want to come along?

"He who heeds the word wisely will find good, and whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he." Proverbs 16:20

The Roman's Road

A couple weeks ago I was able to be a part of Hannah's salvation. She asked me after youth group was over to speak with her in private, so we made our way to an empty Sunday school room.

Hannah explained to me that she knew she needed to be saved, but she just didn't know how to go about doing it. This is the part where I ALWAYS get goose bumps. I just LOVE it when a teen finally "get's it".

I'll be the first to admit that I get tired of being a youth leader, which is really selfish, because Shannon is the one who does all of the work, I'm just along for the ride. He plans the lessons. I'm just his support staff. He's much more dedicated than I am. Sometimes I get sick of the noise, the disrespect, the apparent lack of growth, and just want to throw my hands up and quit because it doesn't seem as if we are making a difference. Why do we even try?

Then a Hannah comes along and I'm smacked in the face with the REASON we do this. Not because Shannon or I can take the credit. That's all for the Holy Spirit. I'm just glad that we have the opportunity to be a tool in His workings.

Back to the goose bumps. I always get them when I feel the Holy Spirit at work. Anyone else experience this?

Hannah and I sat down and she told me that she knew she needed to get saved. I grabbed my bible and started to explain HOW and WHY we ALL need to be saved. This is the easy part, because about six years ago in our adult Sunday school class in Nevada, Mr. Buhrow, our teacher, shared a tip on how to remember the Roman's Road. He had us write the scripture references in the margin of our bibles, so when given the opportunity, we would always remember the steps in order. Cool. Simple idea. It takes the pressure off. Here's my first page:

I knew exactly where to start, and which scripture to turn to after that.

We talked about sin. What is sin? Who sins?

What can we do about it? How do we get rid of it?

How did sin come into the world? Is anyone exempt?


What is the consequence of sin? DEATH.

We deserve death, but what is the GIFT God has offered us? What do we have to do to EARN this gift? NOTHING!!!


Jesus Christ, in His death, paid our debt. No amount of work or good deeds will get us to heaven. It is not dependent upon how much we tithe. It doesn't matter if we are beautiful or ugly, rich or poor, thin or fat. He paid the price. For me. For you.

All you have to do is ask. Tell Him you are sorry for your sins. Ask Him to wash them away. He will. He promised.

I explained to Hannah that salvation was more than being able to recite the bible verses and have a head knowledge of what they mean. It has to go from her HEAD into her HEART. Is she sorry for the sins she has committed? Is she willing to work hard to STOP doing those same sins? Will there be a CHANGE in her life? Will her friends notice that there is something different about her?

Hannah prayed that prayer, and asked God to wash away her sins. She asked Him to change her life. She thanked Him for saving her from eternal death. The angels in heaven were doing the happy dance! Hannah will be with them someday.

I get goose bumps just thinking about it.

"When He prepared the heavens, I was there..." Proverbs 8:27

Thankful Thursday

I missed last week. I didn't mean to. I haven't spent much time on the computer the past few weeks. It has actually been kind of nice, but I miss all of my bloggy friends. I have several blogs I check daily (sometimes more than once!). I finally realized that there are days I can boot up the laptop to check my blogs, and the next thing you know, two hours have passed. I resolved to spend less time on the computer, more time schooling/cleaning.

I have so many things I need to blog about, or I'm afraid the memories will be gone forever. One day soon, I will get them posted.

For now...

*I'm thankful I have a husband that humors me when I come up with crazy whims.

*I'm thankful for Alex. He is growing and maturing nicely.

*I'm thankful for Hudson. He makes me smile.

*I'm thankful for health. If you don't count runny, stuffy noses and some slight coughs, we are all healthy today.

*I'm thankful for Shannon's motorcycle. He is so happy when he gets to ride it. He even got a new motorcycle jacket. Very cool.

*I'm thankful that I have my last load of laundry in the washer right now.

*I'm thankful for my new draperies. They are hung and pressed and look very pretty.

"The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it." Proverbs 10:22