Summer Fun

This summer we have been having lots of fun! The kids have gone to 2 Vacation Bible Schools, gone swimming, spent a weekend with their cousins Nathaniel and Eliza, got out the slip-n-slide, jumped on the trampoline, read books from the library, etc. I am trying to stick to a summer schedule (a loose schedule, but still a schedule!) My goal is to do a 1/2 hour of school a day. We did this pretty well when the kids were not at Bible School. It is harder when the kids are gone in the morning.

We will be traveling the next few weekends. Mike is going to NC for a friend's wedding. The next weekend (the 4th) will be spent with family in Brookville and Greenville. And the following weekend we will be spending in Columbus, OH with Mike's Uncle Brian, Aunt Jane and their daughter Abigail. Mike and I will be attending a conference on raising Godly children and Jane and Abigail will be spending time with the children. We look forward to seeing everyone! I am sure we will be exhausted but it will be time well spent!

Happy Father's Day

My husband is great at many, many things. He is a wonderful leader and full of conviction. He is a man of integrity and honesty. He is thoughtful, kind, and a good listener. But this post is not about those things. This post is about my husband and his role as a father!

Mike is truly a wonderful father and a delight to his children. They absolutely adore him. Nearly every evening Mike tries to spend time with the children; sometimes they play together, sometimes work together, sometimes read together. The kids love his company. He loves to give hugs and likes to cuddle the kids. He spends the evening listening to their stories and playing with them (being that I am usually very tired by then!) He challenges them and encourages them. He disciplines them and loves them. And most importantly he teaches them both verbally and by example about Jesus. He reads the Bible with them during our family worship time, he prays with them and talks always about our Lord. His prayer has always been that our children would grow to know and love Jesus and to be His servants.

Thank you, Mike, for loving our children sacrificially, for doing the hard things, and for following the Lord with all of your heart!!! I love you!

Sweet, sweet Sarah

Our sweet Sarah is now over 8 months old!! How time does fly when you are having fun!!!!! Mike and I both enjoy our children very, very much. We love to spend time with them, to cuddle and tickle, to read and so on. And we both are enjoying watching Sarah grow. She is a smiley baby, bringing much joy to those around her. We all love her very much and cannot wait to see what kind of personality she has!

Slash Lagoon

It has been a while since I posted anything. I guess I took a break from blogging. :) So I thought it was about time for an update! Several weekends ago Mike, the kids, my mom, Hannah Morris, and I went on a mini-vacation to Splash Lagoon in Erie, Pa. We had an absolutely wonderful time!!!!! There was something for everyone, even little Sarah. The kids completely wore themselves out; so did the parents. I suppose it didn't help that Sarah slept terribly at the hotel... But aside from being sleep-deprived, we had a great time. We hope to go back next year. The first picture is of the kids on the way home. They looked so exhausted I had to take a picture. :)

More Pictures...

Two Birthdays!!!

Rachel is 5 (well, in 2 days...) and Mark is 2!!! Everyone says, "Enjoy them now, because they grow so quickly." If you have children, you know how very true that statement is! Time does go by very, very quickly.

We celebrated Rachel and Mark's birthdays last Sat. Rachel has been asking about her birthday since, well, Christmas!! She loved her gifts, the cake, and the attention. Mike and I got her some more art supllies and Pictionary Junior. Jonathan wanted to get both Mark and Rachel a gift this year. He picked out a Barbie and princess tatoos for Rachel and candy for Mark. Jonathan was sooo excited to give his gifts and Rachel genuinely was grateful (see the picture of her hugging Jonathan.)

Mark was excited, too. He kept eyeing up the DQ cake and even managed to get his little fingers in there before we sang. :) His big gift was a bike. That gift has been both loud (of course Dad chose one that makes sounds...) and fun! Our new home has lots of space for 3 young kids to ride the bike. Yeah, unfortunately, they ALL like the bike...