I Cried Today...

Look at my First Graders! 

Hard to believe they start WHOLE days of school this year! 

My days are not going to be the same without these two.

At least I have two more little munchkins to keep me busy!

As we walked to school (yes, we walk 10 minutes to get there- thats 40 minutes of walking ever day for me- whoo hoo- exercise- I need it!) 

I thought about how fast our summer went and how big my girls have gotten.

They started their first day of a NEW school today.

I think that is what made it so hard for me.

I dropped them off with complete strangers and they knew no one in that big building.

I know they will be fine- I can trust my heavenly Father to watch after them, but it still was hard.

Their teacher was very nice. Her name is Miss Stephansen.

They have 29 kids in their class- CRAZY big! 

We walked them to their classroom and Sophia went right in and Arianna clung to my hand a bit. But, she went in without crying. Not me- As soon as I turned away and walked out that door, the tears were flooding my face. It was such a big step for us to step outside our comfort zone and put them in public school. I am terrified but excited for how God is going to use my girls and me in this school. 

I plan to volunteer in the classroom and for many events at the school. 

I want more and more opportunities to share Christ!

But I still am scared and would appreciate prayer for my girls and our family.

Today was just a half day and at 11:45, I met them at the door.

They excitedly told me all about their classroom and the things they did.

Sophia said, "Mom, you know what my favorite thing about the first day of school was?" 

"When Elijah and Ella rolled away in the wagon!"

Yes, While I was busy taking pictures,  the little ones were in the wagon that rolled quickly down the hill while I was snapping away- good thing another parent was watching my kids and saved them!

Parties Galore!

So many birthdays in July!! It starts with Elijahs, moves to our good friend Clara's, then its the twins turn, then its Aunt Tinas, then its Grandpa's, then its our other good friend Maddies.... its SO busy!! 

But aren't parties fun!

I have thrown a party for every one of my 4 children every new year of their lives. I told the girls when they hit 7, we will play it a bit more low- key and they can have a friend or 2 over for a sleepover and a fun trip somewhere special. 4 big parties a year gets a bit crazy!! 

These pics are from our friend Clara and Maddies party this summer. 

We love these two kiddos! 

I have made countless cakes this summer- I will be posting pics of them soon! I think I will dedicate a whole post to cakes:) And I still need to put up pics of the twins party- it was a blast!

So happy that "Party Month" is over!!!!

Fresh Veggies with Pesto

Just made this delicious fresh, light summer dish for dinner the other day and thought I'd share the recipe...

Special thanks to my neighbor (Nick) who have me loads of fresh garden zucchini

Special thanks to Jeniece who gave me some fresh basil from her garden

2 Tomatoes

Fresh ear of cooked corn with kernerls cut off

2 zucchini sliced

large bunch of basil

1/4 cup of olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

bag of spaghetti noodles

sea salt to taste

Cook veggies in some olive oil on medium heat. 

cook spaghetti

make pesto (in a food processor blend basil, garlic and olive oil)

put together and viola- a delicious, healthy and fresh summer dinner....

and Mark even ate it all and liked it:)

SCORE!

Need a laugh?

Sign #1- No People Allowed

Sign #2- If you touch the Puppies, you are in jail

Sign #3- If you get on the toy mat, you are in trouble

My twins love to pretend that they are puppies.

They set up a puppy play area and post numerous signs to warn their little brother and sister.

They attach leashes to their clothes and have Ella "walk" them.

They want to eat like puppies out of a dish on the floor- I rarely let them:)

They crack me up!

Do you think they are trying to tell me something?

Where Did July Go?

Its hard to believe it is August 1st. 

July has been a flurry of activity with 

many birthdays to celebrate, 

pools to swim at, 

friends to play with!

I celebrated the last day of July with friends swimming. It was bliss. 

Mark took the kids for 4 hours (they saw a movie) 

and I swam, relaxed, ate juicy hamburgers fresh off the grill and

basked in the warm summer sun.

Summer- its almost over. 

Mark goes back to school on Tuesday for a staff retreat. The days of waking up late, hanging around the house, going on day trips, watching the kids jump in the sprinklers and blow bubbles in the back yard are coming to an end. Its sorta sad really.

It was such a lazy summer. Every day seemed to last forever but now that I look back- 

where did the summer go?

I am excited to get back into the school routine, 

feel the days get shorter 

and smell the scent of Autumn in the air as fall approaches. 

Dress in chunky sweaters and jean jackets.

Those are fun days too.

I am often overwhelmed by how much God has blessed me.

I tear up at the thought of how much I have to be grateful for.

God is good.

Elijah's 2nd Birthday Celebration

Hard to believe that my last child just turned 2! No more babies in this house!

We invited all his closest friends and ours too for a CELEBRATION!

 Complete with Balloons, a dino cake and a pinata!

 Elijah tried his best but it was our strong daddy who was the hero!

Elijah favorite animal is a DINO, so what better way to celebrate than with a dino cake!

I am very happy to have our little boy in our family. He adds much needed testosterone to a house filled with girls! He is rough and tumble and LOVES his daddy- especially wrestling with daddy!

He is talking up a storm and needs his mommy to get on with it and get him potty trained- he is ready!

I could never imagine our family with out our Lij! 

Happy Birthday Buddy! 

Summer Sniffles

I am not into being sick in the summer- AT ALL! I woke up from a nap with Ella today and my nose has not stopped running and my eyes hurt. I think a cold is on its way. 

On another note, I need contacts SO BADLY. I wear disposables and I am supposed to throw them away every 2 weeks. The pair I have in my eyes now are about 6 months old! I do take them out at night, but needless to say, they are old! I just need to make an appointment and go get new ones- easier said then done:) Pretty soon, all  I will be able to wear are glasses, and though they are cute, it is no fun to wear glasses in the summer. Mark and I have contemplated getting me laser eye surgery. I would LOVE it! I am blind as a bat without glasses. It really is bad. They told me I am very close to blindness- not that I am loosing my sight but my vision with out help is that bad! So laser surgery is something we are seriously considering- it would save money in the long run too. 

I feel like rambling tonight so if you dont want to read you can click on someone elses blog now:)

Mark has one week left in his summer before he heads back to school meetings and a retreat. It has been the best summer of our families lives, I think. This is the first summer that mark has had time off- like a month! It was WONDERFUL! He is such a HUGE help around the house and with the kids- I really am so blessed. We were able to go on an amazing vacation, swim almost every day, lounge around the house, finish some projects that needed finishing, sell lots of stuff on Craigs List ( I LOVE getting organized) It really has been the best! 

He has been working on websites which has given us a lot of extra income this summer which was another amazing blessing!

Another huge blessing in our lives has been our church plant. It has been GREAT! Through study of what the church really is Biblically, my eyes have been opened and my heart challenged to live life missionally. EVERYTHING I do, all the conversations I have, am I trying to reach others with the Gospel? Building relationships to see them reached with the Gospel, to see God change them. I have been blessed with the gift of the Gospel- am I sharing that gift with others? It has challenged us as a couple to really reach out to others and be in the world. To not live life in our safe little "bubble" but to embrace a life of hospitality and service.  We have so far to go, and we will never get there, but we are embracing the Spirits help on this amazing journey!  We have met some true friends that share our desires and encourage us daily with CHRIST! Our marriage has been strengthened as each of us has been drawn closer to Christ. I think my new goal in marriage is to serve. If I truly serve Mark and put his needs, wants, desires before mine, it truly fulfills me and strengthens us. And I notice that when I try to do that, he serves me in return because he is so happy that I was serving him- its great!

Another goal we have recently implemented is daily time in the Word with our children. After dinner, we read from an excellent new book with the kids- The Jesus Storybook Bible- it is fantastic. Through every story, the emphasis is brought back to CHRIST and his plan- the Gospel! I have been inspired to look at the Old Testament differently and see it in its big picture! I LOVE it!I think my next post I will qoute the beginning chapter of the book- its right on track. I think every parent should own it. okay, enough about that:)

The twins start school on August 16th- it seems SO very early to me but I am excited to get back in a routine and schedule. They will be in 1st grade this year at Mark Hopkins Elementary. I am very nervous for them, I think because they are nervous:) Sophia keeps asking me if its big and if the kids are nice. We did talk with them that it is a public school and they probably wont talk about God and some may not believe in God and they both seem very worried about this. I told them it is a GREAT opportunity for them to go into that school and share Jesus with the people who dont know Him. That made them excited. But I still sense apprehension when we talk about school and I would appreciate your prayers for them and us as parents to stay involved and make sure our children are not being drawn away from the Gospel and their faith, but instead being strengthened and encouraged in reaching others with Christ. 

 On a side note, we need to go get school supplies. I LOVE shopping for school supplies- it is SO much fun:) 

Wow, I think I've written enough and rambled enough. 

So I am signing off. 

Thanks to those who stuck it out to the end. 

Thanks for reading...