Catching up

Sorry for the lack of posts. Our computer was out of commission for about a week... Word to the wise, don't let magnets anywhere near your computer... Thankfully, my dad had backed up our hard drive just a month before, so we didn't lose much at all.

Our neighborhood Christmas party went well. The kids all seemed to have a good time. Pray that the kids would continue to think about why Jesus came and what He did for them on the cross that they might come to know the Lord Jesus as their Savior.

I can't believe Christmas is next week! We will be headed up to Iowa. I'm excited to see many family and friends.

Here is my menu for the next few days:

Our grocery store had a big 8 lb bag of apples for only $2.99, so I thought I would make these Apple Cinnamon Muffins for some of my neighbors if I have time.

S: Chicken Noodle Soup
S: Best Chicken Ever with homemade Mashed Potatoes
M: Ground Beef Potato Bake
T: Chicken Spaghetti
W: Off to Iowa for Christmas!

Menu Planning Monday

M: Chicken Noodle Soup with bread
T: Tacos with chips and salsa
W: Ham and Potato Soup
R: Asian Peanut Wraps with rice
F: Homemade Pizza
S: Kids Christmas Party - Gingerbread Cookies. Definitely won't be up for making anything after the party so we'll go out to eat.
S: Baked Spaghetti with garlic bread

A New Look

Lately, our little boy has been being called a little girl. As stated by our little two year old niece last weekend, "he's a good girl." It was time for a hair cut. I love his little side curls - they just fit his goofy personality. The back curls, however, have ceased and it was starting to look bad. Last night, I impulsively took out the scissors and just thought I'd cut the back a little and leave the side curls...

Here are the before pictures:




Here is when I thought I could be done, leaving a few curls...




...but it just didn't look right, so I had too take more off. Seth said the curls had to go, it just looked funny to leave them with the rest of his hair being so short. I shed a few tears because I know they probably won't be back. He looks so much older now!

18 Months

My sister, Rebekah, sent me this cute picture and I thought it would be a good time to do a Landon update. I can't believe my baby is 18 months, time just flies by.
Here are some things that Landon has been up to:

He's starting to say two word phrases: "Bye bye, daddy," "Happy Day" (for Happy Birthday), "Bite Please," "My baby"

He's identifying a few people/things in his cartoon Bible - Jesus, Moses, David, Ark, Sky (for creation). He loves looking for Jesus in the Bible and any time we ask him who the Bible is about, he says, "Jesus."

Many time when we say "I love you," he says, "Jesus," and we say, "Yes, Jesus loves you." Then he says, "Bible" and we say, "Yes, the Bible tells us that.

He started to really like to play with legos. He puts several together then points it at me and says, "bang bang!"

Anytime we turn onto the road our church is on he starts kicking his legs and says, "AJ, Ja Ja" - for two boys in our church AJ and Josh that he absolutely adores.

He says, "Amen" after any songs we sing at church or after the prayers.

He loves chocolate and always wants to eat his dessert first (like any kid would) - of course I don't let him :)

Sometimes I cradle him as I would a baby and rock him back and forth and say "you're my baby." Recently he started saying, "my baby" when I start to hold him like that.

If I tell him we're going to see someone and ask him several minutes later who we're going to see, he remembers.

Every time we're waiting in line he makes conversation with strangers. He first says, "one" and holds up one finger (to tell them how old he is) then he says, "basketball." I don't know why, but he thinks it's a great conversation starter.

He's 32 inches long and just over 26 pounds.

Anyway, I just thought I would post these few things to have a record of it. We are looking forward to Thanksgiving. We will be spending it in Iowa this year for the first time since we've been married. I'm looking forward to the traditional Butter Horns - a family recipe for the best rolls ever :) And of course being with family and friends. Well, today is a beautiful day and I need to go enjoy it! Hope you are all having a good weekend.

The Second Miracle

We are going through John 6 in BSF and I wanted to share a few things I've been learning.

John 6:16-21
"Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat; and they were frightened. But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” So they were willing to receive Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

I had always been amazed at how the Lord Jesus walked on water, but never noticed this second miracle in this story. The sea of Galilee stretches somewhere between 6-10 miles based on the map below from Biblos. They had only rowed about 3 to 4 miles yet as soon as they let Jesus into the boat, the sea is calmed and they immediately reached Capernaum.

Before Jesus came, they were struggling on their own. He knew their struggles and came to them. They didn't recognize His presence in the situation. Jesus made Himself known and they welcomed Him into the boat. We need to welcome him into our boat or rather recognize His presence in each situation in our lives. He knows our troubles and wants to help us through them so we can be where He wants us to be.

Menu for the week

After being gone a couple weekends in a row, and having our Thanksgiving kids club a couple days ago, I am finally getting back into the groove of menu planning.

M: Chicken Stuffing Bake
T: Lime Chicken Soft Tacos with Mexican Rice
W: Three Cheese Baked Spaghetti
R: Asian Peanut Wraps
F: Homemade Pizza
S: Leftovers
S: Grilled Cheese with Carrot and Squash Curry Soup

Landon and Sophie

Last weekend we went to the parenting conference in Topeka. It was really good, we learned a lot! Here is a little video of Landon and Sophie giving each other a big hug.

Ring around the Rosie

Be careful what you say...

I have had the opportunity to attend BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) for the past couple years and have been greatly blessed by it. If you have one in your area that meets, I strongly recommend going! This year we are studying the book of John. There are so many practical applications and revelations of who Jesus is throughout the book. I wanted to share something that really challenged me last week.

The portion of scripture was John 3:25,26

"An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. They came to John and said to him, 'Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—well, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.'”

There is a portion in the notes that says, "Sometimes a friend's sympathy and suggestions of unjust treatment can be the worst possible thing for us. This can make us feel sorry for ourselves, start a root of bitterness, and even shake our faith in God. Are you such a friend? Do you put thoughts against other people into a friend's mind, thereby sinning and causing them to sin?"

This was so convicting. I need to watch what I say about others and what I agree with in regard to what others say.

Matthew 12:36
"But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken."

Menu for the week

M: Homemade Macaroni
T: Chicken Noodle Soup
W: Crockpot Applesauce Chicken Recipe (never got a chance to make this last week)
Acorn Squash
R: Vegetarian Chili
F,S,S - Iowa for the weekend!

Landon saying his first memory verse

Here is a movie of Landon learning his first memory verse. It's Jonah 2:9 - "Salvation is from the Lord." We pray that he comes to know the Lord at a young age! His favorite part of the verse is saying, "nine" at the end so as soon as we get to "Jonah" he wants to skip ahead to the "nine." Silly boy...

Introducing the Potty

When we were at IKEA we picked up a little potty for Landon. The first two days he actually went poo poo and pee pee in it, but has since lost interest. We'll just try little by little and hopefully we'll start to save a few diapers in the process.

Menu for the week

M: Slow Cooker Orange Chicken - This was so sad. I woke up early to prep this before church and we came home and I realized I never plugged in the crockpot! I was so disappointed. So, I still have the rice ready to go in the fridge and will just need to try this again.
T: Rosemary Corn Soup with bread and a salad
W: Baked Pasta Primavera Casserole with garlic bread and a salad
R: Hope Pregnancy Center Fund Raiser Banquet
F: Crockpot Applesauce Chicken Recipe with Acorn Squash
S: Tulsa Conference
S: Tulsa Conference

Samuel's 3rd Birthday

I cannot express how much all of your comments meant to Seth and I. We were so moved by what an impact our son's short life had on so many of you. We so appreciate hearing your memories of the day Samuel went to be with the Lord and your encouraging words. We are so thankful to have so many friends and family that love us and pray for us.

We had a nice day remembering our little Samuel. I just took the day off from cleaning and cooking and spent a lot of time playing with Landon and telling him about his older brother. When Seth got off work we picked up 4 balloons (3 to release and 1 for Landon). Then we went out to the cemetery. We were so moved to see that an amazing friend had left some balloons for Samuel, one saying "Happy Birthday Samuel, Love, Sophie." I can't express how much this meant to us. Having read Brooke's comment earlier that day of how she "promises Sophie will always know who Samuel is" meant so much to us and she demonstrated one way she was going to do that today.



It was raining as it has been each year on his birthday. We decided to start a tradition of letting off as many balloons as how old he would be each year. It was sweet to watch those balloons go and think that our little boy has been enjoying heaven for three years. Landon chased them saying, "uh oh, balloon, uh oh!" It was nice to be there as a family and talk to the Lord about His goodness and faithfulness. We look forward to the day we can see our little Samuel again.

Remembering Samuel

Sweet Samuel, I can hardly believe three years have passed since I held you in my arms. The memories of the painful days surrounding your birth are still so vivid, but I want to write out each one for fear of forgetting any moment of your short time with us.

I remember before my ultrasound thinking I might be pregnant with twins since I was showing so much. I remember it was a Wednesday. I remember going to the ultrasound and watching you squirm and wiggle even too much to find out what gender you were. I remember falling even more in love with you as I watched you there.


I remember the concern on the ultrasound technician's face. I remember your daddy by my side reassuring me. I remember the doctor's face and tone when he told us I had to be admitted to the hospital and be seen by a specialist. I remember praying with your daddy that everything would be ok.

I remember the second ultrasound at the hospital with the specialist and he told us you were a boy! He also told us you seemed perfectly healthy, but there was something wrong. I remember having such a hard time knowing that you were perfect, but that you probably wouldn't make it. I remember I kept growing. I remember the nurses coming in and marking the top of my uterus as it grew and I remember the marking being at 38 cm. I remember thinking that would be a full-term marking.

I remember playing cards with your daddy and your uncle Justin and aunt April. I remember being loopy from all the medicine and saying some strange things. I remember not being able to walk very well and feeling like I was going to pop. I remember talking to the doctors and deciding if I didn't have a c-section we would both die. I remember asking the doctor what kind of chances you had for living at 20 weeks and I remember him saying, "one in a million." I remember crying. I remember a pain that I had never felt before. I remember picking out your name, Samuel, with daddy because as Hannah dedicated Samuel to the Lord before he was ever born, we were dedicating you to the Lord. No matter the outcome, we recognized that you were the Lord's.

I remember your Nanny and Bumpa coming down. I remember wondering how I was ever going to sleep knowing that tomorrow was the day... I remember feeling little butterfly movements as I lay there and cherishing every one. I remember your Nanny singing hymns with me as I drifted to sleep.


I remember that morning. I remember it was a Saturday. I remember Dr. Bob praying before the c-section began. I remember your daddy by my side and telling me he thought James would be a good middle name. I remember when they delivered you, watching the pediatric staff standing there with a tray in hopes of you being that one in a million and I remember clinging to that hope with your daddy. I remember the doctor shaking his head no meaning you weren't going to make it.

I remember feeling your heartbeat. I remember your beautiful face. I remember kissing your little forehead and lips. I remember wishing I could look into your eyes. I remember how your arms were just like your daddy's. I remember you were so small and yet so long.


I remember when your heartbeat stopped and realizing you had just stepped foot into heaven.



I remember your Mema and Papa coming to visit you. I remember telling your Mema that you would have been her first grandson and she told me you always will be. I remember hugging her knowing she understood. I remember being comforted that you have a aunt in heaven with you, sweet Beverly.

I remember the little blue hat they put on you and the white knit blanket they wrapped you in.



I remember wishing I could still feel you moving inside me. I remember it not feeling real, that somehow it was all a dream. I remember them telling us to say our goodbyes before they took your body away. I remember saying goodbye, but knew it wasn't goodbye forever.

I remember Iowa State playing OU and Adrian Peterson breaking his collar bone. I remember how my arms ached to hold you. I remembered how empty I felt.

I remember the supernatural peace I had knowing your were with Jesus. I remember longing to be there with you.

I remember at the grave sight a few days later. I remember being surrounded by family and feeling very loved. I remember the message was about David and how when he lost his son after he had been sick a while, he had a peace because he knew he would again go to him someday in heaven. I remember being comforted by this passage knowing I too would see you again. I remember singing "Great is They Faithfulness" and clinging to the thought that our God is faithful and would bring us though.

I miss you my little Samuel and can't wait to see you in heaven. Happy 3rd birthday! I wish I could be with you to celebrate, but I know you have the best company and I can't wait to join you one day soon. I love and miss you my sweet boy.

Love,

Mommy

P.S. Daddy and Bubby send you kisses and hugs and want me to let you know that they love you and miss you lots!

Always

This song has really meant a lot to me lately as I miss my little Samuel. I just wonder what he would look like right now as a little almost three year old boy. I wonder what his personality would be like. I wonder if he would have dark brown eyes and hair like his daddy or blonde curly hair and blue eyes like his baby brother. Mostly though, I just want to hold him and kiss him and tell him how much I love him. However, I know that day will come because I know our Savior never fails. What a hope we have in Him.

Menu for the week

I have really been enjoying menu planning. I'm starting to get the hang of it...finally. It saves me extra trips to the grocery store throughout the week and saves a lot of stress as I just have to go to my blog to find out what's for dinner. Hopefully this isn't too annoying to post it here, it keeps me accountable to making a menu and sticking to it.

M: Almond Crusted Tilapia with Broccoli Salad
T: Chicken Roll-ups with Spinach Tortillas
W: French Dip Sandwiches using half of Shawna's Whole Wheat Bread recipe for the hoagie rolls (the other half I'll freeze for pizza later in the week).
R: Italian Cream Cheese Chicken over pasta
F: Play Date: Ham and Potato Soup (this was so good, I have to make it again!), Rosemary Bread (I'm excited to try this, it's supposed to be a lot like the Maccaroni Grill bread - yummy), Pumpkin Spice Cookies
S: Homemade Pizza with Shawna's Whole Wheat Bread Recipe and a salad with Cilantro Dressing
S: Slow Cooker Orange Chicken over brown rice

I have so many things I want to blog about, but I can't get all of the pictures or movies off my camera onto my computer. So very frustrating... We have a sick household today so we are home from church today hoping it's a short bug.

We went to the Tulsa fair yesterday. Landon had a great time, he especially loved all the animals and riding the sky ride. Pictures to come hopefully soon.

I can't believe it's already October and our little Samuel's birthday is only three days away. I wish he could be here. I wish Landon could know his big brother. I miss that little guy. Three years ago today was the day we had our "Big ultrasound" and found out something was really wrong and got sent over to the hospital. Although we wish things were different, I'm so thankful for the hope we have that he is with our Lord we will join him there one day soon.

Menu for the week

M: Ham and Potato Soup with a salad and homemade bread
T: Curried Rice and Chicken
W: Eggplant Parmesan over noodles with a salad
R: Three Cornered Chicken Sandwiches with a salad
F: Homemade Pizza with Shawna's WW Bread Recipe for the crust.
S: Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
S: Crockpot Chicken and Brown Rice Casserole with a salad

A Walk to Remember

Seth and I are here in Dallas for the weekend. We just finished up helping and being a part of a ceremony called a "walk to remember" in which many people come to remember the babies that they have lost. The organization that I am involved in, MEND, puts it on and we are hoping to have a walk of our own in Tulsa next year. More than 500 people came to remember about 170 babies. It was really neat to remember our little Samuel and be around others who understand the pain of losing a child. The balloon release at the end was amazing. We wrote on a blue balloon to Samuel and a pink one for Seth's sister, Beverly, and then sent them to the clouds. This was just beautiful!

It was hard to leave Landon for the weekend, but Seth reminded me that this weekend is really about our other son, Samuel. I thought that was really sweet.

I forgot to bring our camera to the actual event, but here a slide show from last year's event to give you an idea of what it is all about.

Menu Planning Monday

M: French Dip Sandwiches and salad
T: Chicken Quesadillas with chips and salsa
W: French Bread Pizza
R: Use some Arby's coupons for free sandwiches with drink purchases since Seth has volleyball.
F-Sun: Dallas - It will be the first time we've ever left Landon overnight, so we'll miss the little guy. I'm sure he'll be fine though.

Landon playing with a Balloon

Menu for the week

M: Creamy Potato Soup, with Homemade Croutons, bread, salad
T: Chicken parmigiana slow cooker over Pasta, salad, and garlic bread
W: Tomato Zucchini Casserole with a salad
R: Crazy day, grab something out.
F: Pepperoni Rolls with salad
S: Chicken Stir-Fry
S: College and Career: Carne Asada Chicken in tortillas, chips, cheese dip.

Garage Sales

We had two successful Garage Sales. One last Friday (9/11) which went awesome and one yesterday which went pretty well. I think the Friday sales do a lot better. So, we're planning on having one last sale this Friday and then we'll be done with it. We're trying to save up for new windows so this has really helped with our goal. There is a tax credit through the end of 2010 that gives you 30% back on energy efficient windows and doors, so we would like to reach our goal by then.

Hosting the sale was a lot of fun. I have always loved going to garage sales, but this was the first one I had at my house. I loved meeting all the people that came by. It is a lot of work, but it feels so good to de-clutter! I think I would like to do at least do one a year from now on.

Landon's Overly Tired Laugh

Landon at 16 months

Landon is now 16 months old so I thought I'd post about some things he is doing so I have a record to look back on...

He is a huge people person. It doesn't matter if they're young or old, normal or creepy looking he waves and says "hi" to everyone.

He loves "Signing Time" and is learning a lot of sign language.

He is starting to learn his shapes. He knows: Star, heart, square, diamond.

He is starting to learn his colors. He knows: Yellow, red, blue.

His favorite animal right now is an owl. We went to the library the other week and the librarian found a book about owls for him. When we went yesterday he saw that lady and said, "whoo, whoo" and did the sign for owl. His memory amazes me!

He started going to BSF this year. They are piloting a 6 weeks old and up class and are hoping to make it nation wide in the near future. It's so exciting that he will be learning the same things as me but on a level he can understand.

He loves to dance whenever he hears music.

He's starting to put two word sentences together: "hold me", "sit down" (when he stands up on a chair or something and knows he's supposed to sit), "bobby please" and a few others.

He loves to climb. Yeterday I found him standing on the kitchen table - scary!

Ha grabs my necklace and says, "Mamuel" his version of "Samuel" and kisses it. It just melts my heart every time.

He brings us so much joy and we are so thankful to our Lord for blessing us with a wonderful little boy.

Check out my sister, Rebekah's photography website. I wish I had her talent! It's so fun to have her and April in the family. I love to see the shots they come up with.

Our Little Chatter Box

Sorry, I've been so bad at keeping this blog up. We just got back from Kansas Bible Camp where we spent some good time with family and friends. Now, we are getting ready for a garage sale that we hope to have this weekend (weather permitting).
Our house looks like a tornado passed through it - I see why some people decide to go the Good Will route and not mess with it at all.

Anyway, here is Landon showing a few new things he can say.

Happy Birthday Finn!

Landon wanted to wish his cousin, Finley a very happy 2nd birthday!

M.E.N.D.

I am involved with a support group called M.E.N.D (mommies enduring neonatal death). We meet once a month to help support mothers going through the loss of a child at any stage of their pregnancy. When we lost Samuel there was nothing like this out there. A woman I met at BSF started a chapter in the Tulsa area in April 2008 and it is such a wonderful place for women (or men) to come and find support among others going through similar situations.

We are having our first annual fundraiser to support this ministry. It's going to be a BUNCO BASH Thurs. Sept 17th at 6:30pm. If you want to or are able to attend the cost is $10 a person and potatoes with all the fixin's will be provided. Bunco is a game that they will explain if you aren't familiar with it. You play in groups of four, so if you could get 4 people together that would be even better! If you know of anyone that plays Bunco or would help support this ministry by coming let me know.

Also, there will be prizes, so if anyone would be interested in contributing anything, that would be awesome or if you come, you just might win!

For more information or to register please visit the following website: www.mendtulsaevents.com

Thank you!

Osage Beach

Here is a video and a few pictures from our family vacation at Osage beach.

Pictures of Family Camp

Whirlwind

These last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind and I am left wondering where the summer has gone! The day after our Neighborhood Bible Club, we left for Ozark Family Camp. We had a really good time with family and friends aside from getting the stomach flu. I tell you what, it's no fun being sick and taking care of a sick baby! Thankfully it was just for a day. John Heller ministered to us and it was a really encouraging time all around.

We left Turkey Hill on Friday and headed straight to Osage Beach, where we met my family for our annual vacation on the Lake. We had such a good time together. We felt bad though because we brought the stomach flu with us and out of the 16 of us only 3 avoided the vicious plague. In the midst of the sickness, we really did have a wonderful time as a family. I was even able to water ski (my medication is working!). Landon loved the boat and the tube, but hated his life jacket. One of my favorite times was sitting out on the deck talking about things of the Lord and singing praise songs. It really felt like a taste of what it will be like in heaven.

As sad as it was sad to come to an end, I am looking forward to getting back into the normal routine and it feels SO good to sleep in my own bed after being gone so long.

Many pictures and videos to come...

Day 5 - Kids Club

I can't believe the week is over already! It went by quickly. What a great last day though. We had ten neighborhood kids and eleven chapel kids. Today's lesson really wrapped up how Jesus is OUR perfect Lamb, and how all of our sin was laid upon Him. Have I mentioned how much I LOVE The Lamb book? We gave a book to the grand prize winner (AJ) today as well - he was pretty excited.

I am just so thankful to the Lord for bringing the kids out and providing the help to make this happen. The Friday before the club, Rachel and I went out and invited people to the club. I had felt pretty discouraged about the contact (or lack of!) and didn't see how any kids would come. It just shows that when we are weak, the Lord is strong and it is HIS work and not ours. Praise the Lord for His faithfulness!

Matthew 19:14
"Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.'"

Please continue to pray for these little ones.




Schedule of Today's Events:

Kids Arrive - Name Tags, decorate paper bags that would be their treat bags.

Songs - Do You Know About Jesus, Salvation, ABC... Jesus Died for You and Me

Memory Verse- John 3:16

Lesson - The Lamb chapters 9,10

Review Game - Watermelon Memory Game

Prizes - The winner got a backpack with the Lamb book and other little things, second and third got some toys I picked up at Walgreen's for cheap and everyone got a bubbles pack (they were only .50 each at Walgreen's). They all seemed to like their prizes.

Outside Game - Obstacle Course in the back yard - the kids really enjoyed this. It involved throwing a football through an inner tube, pulling a wagon, blowing a bubble, getting a ring out of our pool (while the sprinkler was soaking them), and running under a rope to tag the next person on their team.

Snacks - Pizza Party, Snow Cones (thanks to Rachel letting me borrow her machine!) and Kool-Aid

Day 4 - Kids Club

Today we had a great turn out. We had five new neighborhood kids come and three that have been coming most of the days. There were also twelve chapel kids. All the kids listened really well to the lesson and enjoyed the activities. Can't believe tomorrow's the last day. This week has flown by!












Schedule of Today's Events:

Kids Arrive - Name Tags, toss a volleyball around

Songs - Do You Know About Jesus, Salvation, Extra Good News

Memory Verse- Romans 6:23

Lesson - The Lamb chapters 7,8

Review Game - Baseball Review Game

Outside Game - Steal the Bacon using big inner tube

Craft - Popcorn Pictures

Snacks - Oreo Worm Cups and Kool-Aid

Day 3 - Kids Club

Today was another good day. Three kids from the neighborhood came, but two of them had to leave early again. Then, we had twelve kids from the chapel. It was a lot of fun. The kids love the water balloons! Keep praying, the next two lessons really get into the gospel and how Jesus is our Lamb who born our sin on the cross.







Schedule of Today's Events:

Kids Arrive - Name Tags, 20 Questions

Songs - Do You Know About Jesus, Salvation, Extra Good News

Memory Verse- Romans 3:23

Lesson - The Lamb chapters 5,6

Review Game - Watermelon Memory Game

Outside Game - Water Balloon Battleship

Snacks - Cookies and Kool-Aid

Day 2 - Kids Club

Today was a little bit crazy, but a lot of fun. Twelve kids from the chapel came. No kids from the neighborhood were able to come at first, so we went on with the songs, verse, and lesson. Right after the lesson, seven neighborhood kids showed up. It was so exciting! We played a lot of water balloon games. After the games, I taught the verses to the kids that showed up late. They all learned the verses quickly as we had a little song to go with each. I find that it's much easier to learn a verse when it's put to a tune.

Here are some picture (as promised) of todays events:




The Bystanders


Landon REALLY enjoyed his Bomb Pop


The winners of the water balloon toss!



Schedule of Today's Events:

Kids Arrive - Name Tags

Fruit Loop Necklaces - This went over very well!

Songs - Our God is so Great, One Way, ABCD... Jesus died for you and me

Memory Verse - James 2:10

Lesson - The Lamb chapters 3,4

Review Game - Baseball Review Cards

Outside Games: Water Balloon Hot Potato, Water Balloon Relay, Waterballoon Toss

Snacks - Bomb Pops and Kool-Aid

Day 1 - Kids Club

The first day went very well. We had five kids from the neighborhood come and five from the chapel. Three of the neighborhood kids had to leave early which they were very disappointed about. We had a good time though and the kids listened very well to the lesson. I thought I would show our schedule in case anyone reading this is interested in doing a club in their neighborhood.

Kids Arrive - Decorate name tags

Play Balloon Charades - This was fun, the kids had to pop a balloon to see what they were to act out - they all loved it!

Sing songs - Our God is So Great, Can't get to heaven w/out Salvation, God Loves You

Learn Verse - Genesis 1:1

Lesson - The Lamb chapters 1,2 - This is a REALLY good book that I think all homes with children should own. It explains the gospel very clearly from the very beginning.

Review Game - Build Ice Cream Cone - Each time a child would answer a correct question from the lesson, they would put a felt ice cream flavor on their teams ice cream cone. The team with the biggest cone at the end wins!

Outside Inner Tube Relays - Two teams put on an inner tube and run around a tree and back to their team and pass off the inner tube to the next team mate and so on. They enjoyed this - it was a little hot for it though!

Snacks - Rice Krispy Treats with spinkled animal crackers glued on with frosting. I bought the colored marshmallows and was thinking that they would be colorful rice krispies... stupic me, realized while I was melting them, that the colors melt together - oh well they still tasted yummy! We also had Kool-Aid to drink.

I don't have any pictures from yesterday, but I'll post some tomorrow of today's activities. Today we're doing a lot of things with water balloons - should be fun!

Neighborhood Bible Club

Today starts a week long Bible club that I will be having at my house. In the past I've just done holiday parties, but I've never done an entire week before. I am very excited about it though. It will just be two hours a day, so it shouldn't be too much.

This morning Landon decided to try to help when I was in another room and I forgot that the sign was in the room with him... The pictures say it all. Oh well! I wish there was such a thing as a white marker... I'm planning on trying white-out to lessen the mess.






"I just wanted the balloon mom..."



Also, there are great deals at Staples this week. I did this scenario. You can buy ANY backpack and get however much you paid back in Staples rewards. Can you guess what the prize for the week will be at my club? Yep, I found a backpack for $20 that is really nice and gender neutral for the winner. The best part is it was free :)

Please pray that many kids would come out and the gospel would be shared clearly and understood by these young ones.

Cloth vs. Disposable Diapers

I was running low on my disposable diaper stock so I decided to try using cloth diapers until a good sale came up. It surprisingly was not that bad. I just had a bunch of the prefold style cloth diapers that I had used as burp rags, the old school plastic pants, and snappis. I always thought cloth would definitely be cheaper, but then I decided to try to figure out which was in fact a better deal. I found I used more cloth diapers in a day than disposable, so I thought I'd compare the number of disposables in a day vs. the one load of laundry that I do when I do the cloth diapers.

I looked online and found that the main cost in a load of laundry is heating the water heater which runs about $.39 a load. Electricity and water are a few pennies as well. I use homemade laundry detergent which is a couple pennies a load. So, around $.50. I usually hang my clothes on the line, but if for some reason I can't, the cost of drying is probably somewhere between $.25-$1.00 (can't find online how much exactly). So, roughly $.50-1.50 which doesn't include the investment of cloth diapers, pants, or snappis. In my case, I went with the cheapest route - got the cloth diapers as gifts, pants were 4/$5 at Wal-Mart, snappis were 4/$10 on ebay.

This week I got Huggies on sale for 2/$20. Used two $3.00 Huggies coupons, a 3 off $10 coupon for a new Walgreens opening up, and received a $5.00 Register Reward for my next purchase. So, roughly $3.00 for each pack of 40ct. Which works out to be .08 a diaper. Landon uses about 6 diapers in a given day so the cost would be about $.48 a day for me this week. Now, I can't always get diapers this cheap, but I try to shoot for around $4.50 for a Jumbo pack which is about $.11 per diaper or $.66 per day.

All things considered, I think for me it is a little cheaper to use disposable diapers, but it is not really good for the environment. So, I think I will do a little of both to make my disposable diaper stash last longer and not fill those landfills quite as fast :)

Landon loves crackers

Not What These Hands Have Done

This hymn encouraged me today:

Not what my hands have done can save my guilty soul;
Not what my toiling flesh has borne can make my spirit whole.
Not what I feel or do can give me peace with God;
Not all my prayers, or sighs, or tears can ease my awful load.

Your voice alone, O Lord, can speak to me of grace;
Your power alone, O Son of God, can all my sin erase.
No other work but Yours, no other blood will do;
No strength but that which is divine can bear me safely through.

Thy work alone, my Savior, can ease this weight of sin;
Thy blood alone, O Lamb of God, can give me peace within.
Thy love to me, O God, not mine, O Lord, to Thee,
Can rid me of this dark unrest, And set my spirit free.

I bless the Christ of God; I rest on love divine;
And with unfaltering lip and heart I call this Savior mine.
His cross dispels each doubt; I bury in His tomb
Each thought of unbelief and fear, each lingering shade of gloom.

I praise the God of grace; I trust His truth and might;
He calls me His, I call Him mine, My God, my joy and light.
’Tis He Who saveth me, and freely pardon gives;
I love because He loveth me, I live because He lives.

I am so thankful my salvation rests on Christ's blood alone and not on what I do or don't do.

1 Pet 1:18,19
For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.

14 Months and National Cow Day

Today, Landon is 14 months old - wow how time goes fast! Since Landon has been doing better the last couple days, we decided to venture out for some free food. Landon is wearing the same outfit he did last year - he just fills it out a little better this year ;)

Free Chick-Fil-A

Tomorrow (7/10) is the annual dress like a cow get free chicken at Chick-Fil-A. If you dress head to tow in cow attire you will get a free value meal or kid's meal. If you have any cow accessory you get a free entree item! We did this last year and got two free meals. A pretty sweet deal if you ask me.