Wordless Wednesday: The $200 tomato

(Unless our garden begins to really bloom, David quite possibly just ate the world's most expensive cherry tomato. wink!)
"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."- Hebrews 11:6

The first night of vacation Bible school

Last night was the first night of vbs at our church. Before we left, I took these pictures of the children on our back deck. The girls were SO happy that the big night had finally arrived!  We have been planning, preparing, and praying for  vacation Bible school for months now; it was really neat to watch God pull it all together! I'm excited to see what the Lord has planned for the rest of the week!
"The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace."- Psalm 29:11

You are invited!

Friends, you are invited! Please join us for a week of adventures in God's Word as we soar through vacation Bible school! Take flight with us at Faith Baptist Church in Youngsville, June 18-22 from 6:30pm-9:00pm. Even if you cannot join us at VBS, will you join us by praying for the many children, families, and volunteers at Faith this week? Thank you so much!
"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves."-Phillipians 2:3

Friday funny: the poison berries

I admit it, I enjoy practical jokes. I can usually get away with it too, because no one suspects little ol' me! wink! And every once in a while, I like to be silly and play a trick on our children. Poor Wubs,  she fell prey to her mommy's naughtiness.
I was pushing our three children on our swings when Emma Grace spotted a blackberry bush growing out in our woods. We went to investigate and she was right; it was a beautiful blackberry bush! We all squealed with delight at our new treat! I picked several ripened berries and we came inside to wash them. Before Wubs ate a berry, she looked at me and asked, "Mommy, are you sure these aren't poisonous?" I couldn't resist. "No, baby, they aren't poisonous! Look, I'll eat one first." I tossed one into my mouth. "Mmmmm! They are sooo... sooo.... (cough, cough)" Wubs eyes about popped out of her head! "MOMMY!" I bursted into giggling and I started tickling her, but she wasn't about to let me off the hook. "That wasn't funny, Mama. You could have died!" I'm laughing even as I type this. I know, I'm terrible! I guess you had to be standing with us in our kitchen, but it was really funny! In the end, Emma Grace forgave me, gobbled up the blackberries, and we both survived. Have a wonderful weekend!
"But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify.This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."- Romans 3:21-24

the popsicle chair

JJ loves to share popsicles! He's even willing to trade his paci for this delicious frozen treat! David has a favorite chair in our living room, and JJ likes to climb up on his daddy's lap to eat a popsicle. The other day, the girls asked me for a popsicle after their lunch. As I was serving Wubs and Bella, I saw JJ looking at his sisters with sad little eyes. "Do you want a popsicle too?" JJ smiled and clapped at my offer. I went to the kitchen to get one  more popsicle to share with my little man and he had crawled over to the chair to wait for me! ha ha! We have decided that JJ has a special popsicle chair! wink!

(Wubs took this picture of Bella, mommy, and JJ on the popsicle chair!)

"Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord."- Psalm 33:12

Wordless Wednesday: Left unattended for 15 seconds...

"Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you."- 1 John 3:13

Garden update: Varmints!

For Mother's Day this year, I was blessed with a special gift... a straw bale garden. (I did post pictures of the very start of our garden back in May, if you wanted to see the 'before' pictures.) Our garden has been lots of fun and we have enjoyed watching our little sprouts begin to grow. The girls have been watering our okra, bell peppers, tomatoes, squash, and cucumbers. We have little green tomatoes on our vines, but we haven't been able to eat any of our veggies just yet! Unfortunately, we had some varmints come to visit our garden! ( We are pretty sure it was some deer who nibbled at our plants but it makes it more exciting when I write varmint, don't you agree? giggle!) David and Bella decided to trick the deer by sprinkling soap bar shavings around our garden. So far, the plan is working! The varmints haven't returned! I can't wait to post some pictures from our (hopefully bountiful) summer harvest! wink!

"Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble."- 1 Peter 3:8

The ballet recital

Last week, Bella went to ballet camp. She  absolutely loved it! I was a little concerned because Bella can be shy when she is in a new environment but wow! Bella surprised us all! She wasn't shy one little bit and she really had a wonderful experience. On Friday, the last day of camp, Bella got to participate in the camp recital. We were so proud of our sweet ballerina!

JJ, Wubs, and Bella before we left for the big recital!

The ballerina.

Bella asked, "Mommy will you take my picture with just JJ? I never want to forget him." ha ha! Although I'm confident Bella won't ever forget her brother, I happily snapped her picture with our favorite little guy.

Bella Ballerina and mommy.

The ballerinas as they entered the room.

A few quick pictures before everyone took their seats.

Waiting their turn to perform.

Melt.my.heart.

The girls performed their dance to the song, "Thy Word", which is Psalm 119:105 set to music. Just click here to listen to it.  Beautiful!

I cried, it was the sweetest thing!

Bella wanted to bring treats for all her ballerina friends. We made cookies to pass out after the recital. I tried a new icing technique for these cookies called 'flooding', using homemade royal frosting. The little girls enjoyed them!

After the recital, Bella got to pick our lunch restaurant. She picked her absolute favorite, McDonalds! What a special day!
"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path."- Psalm 119:105

Doctor appointment

JJ had his one year old checkup last week! He is a healthy little boy and we thank God for him! He weighed in at 24 pounds and he was 32 inches tall. JJ isn't walking yet but he can stand up without holding on to anything, so I know he'll be achieving that milestone soon! He can say 'dada', 'mama', 'paba' (pacifer), 'bah bah' (bye-bye),'chee chee' (chicken nuggets), and he babbles all the time. A few favorites to date:
Food- pizza, nuggets, chocolate milk, yogurt, raisins, popsicles, black beans, and crackers
Toys- tractor, trucks, mommy's pots and pans with metal spoons to bang, and anything that the girls are using...
Activity: wrestling with daddy, swinging, playing 'Where's JJ?', and taking a bath
Dislikes: wearing shoes and getting his face wiped

We love this baby boy! Here are pictures from our trip to the pediatrician...

JJ was so curious about the shiny bandaid on his toe, after he got pricked by the nurse.

The bandaid lasted about one minute and twenty seconds before he managed to pull it off! wink!

Exploring the room...

Reading books with daddy while we wait to see the doctor.

Awwww!!!

"We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts."- 1 Thessalonians 2:4

Sin Traps

I love to blog, as a record of our journey with the Lord. It is so fun to write about His blessings, His faithfulness, and all the sweet memories He is giving our family! Sometimes I write several little stories all at once, and then I schedule them to pop up on our blog, to provide a new post each day. (I do that mostly for my mom... she always calls me if there isn't a fresh picture of her grandbabies!) But sometimes, I just can't shake an idea inside my head about a post. I know that is a prompt from the Holy Spirit, and sitting down to write it out will be the only way I can clear my thoughts. wink! So today, I needed to write about my sin. I know- yuck. But I pray that the Lord will use this post somehow for His glory.

Recently, God has been refining me in the area of recognizing 'sin traps.' I have found myself acutely aware of the temptations that I struggle to resist- a.k.a sin traps. I know  the Holy Spirit has been guiding me as I navigate around them and even through them. In different seasons of my life, my sin traps have varied, but I have a few that continue to snare me. ( For example, filling our calendar too full of commitments is one sin trap where I continue to fail. Too much busy, busy has proven time and time again to be unhealthy for our family.)  I have been praying that the Lord will continue to teach me to recognize these traps and turn from them. These temptations are indeed 'traps' because so often I don't see them until I've already fallen prey to temptation. Too often, I try to navigate this life, filled with unexpected twists and turns, without following Christ as closely as I possibly can. I fail over and over again when I rely on Sarah rather than clinging to the Lord. I am so thankful for my Savior; my words are inadequate to express the depth of my gratitude.
ps- And for Nana, a picture, with love.

"This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance (and for this we labor and strive) that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe."- 1 Timothy 4:9-10

Wordless Wednesday: Another one

"In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence."- Ephesians 4:12

Block party

Two of our neighborhood friends, Kyle (8 years old) and Samantha (9 years old) share the same birthday! Every year, these two families come together and prepare  a big birthday party celebration in our cul-de-sac, and this year, they rented a water slide! It was so exciting to have a giant inflatable just outside our front door on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.  In the midst of all the fun, I loved watching my husband as he talked with our neighbors and parents of the many party attendees. He has such a gift when it comes to striking up conversations! David inspires me to push past my bubble of our little family and want to reach outside the walls of our home. I am so very thankful for a husband that loves and fears the Lord! Wubs had so much fun going down the slide and she made many new friends. Bella wasn't so sure about trying the inflatable, so although she wanted to wear her swimsuit, she didn't want to get wet. In fact, she insisted on bringing her umbrella to shield herself from all the splashing. She is one of a kind and I love her for that! wink. JJ loved all the excitement and food. The boy loves his food!

Wubs at the top of the slide.

Some of the boys were playing catch with David. Kyle, the birthday boy, is on the far left of this picture.

There's my favorite man throwing the football! woo woo!!

Bella was showing JJ the pool toy that she was given by Kyle's mom.

Bella, her umbrella, monkey, and JJ.

Wubs and Samantha, giggling in the pool at the bottom of the slide.

"Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ."- Galatians 6:2

Ballet Camp

This morning, we went to Bella's first day of ballet camp! Bella and her two special friends, Gracie and Miriam, had so much fun together! We'll go to ballet every morning this week, and then on Friday, there will be a mini-recital to showcase what the little girls have learned. Emma Grace was so sweet, encouraging her sister and helping me with JJ during the dance lesson. (It was only an hour, but whew- JJ is an active little boy! wink.) This week is going to be busy, but I am going to try my best to keep our blog updated. Here is our four year old ballerina:

Bella and Gracie

Miriam, Bella, and Gracie

"But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him."- Jeremiah 17:7

my Grandma's advice

Do you ever watch your children at play and wonder, "How did they think of that?" I laughed the other day when the girls were playing in the sprinkler. I was cooking in the kitchen while JJ was napping, and Wubs and Bella were splashing out in the sunshine! Apparently, they decided to pretend like it was raining and they took their umbrellas outside. There is never a dull moment! wink. My grandma told me that one day I'll look back at this season in motherhood and it will prove to be some of the best days of my life.What a wonderful reminder to treasure these times.  Thank you, Grandma. I love you!

"I am your servant; give me discernment that I may understand your statutes."- Psalm 119:25