Easter 2011

Great time at church and with family!

Dying Eggs

Today has been all about baby chicks, dying eggs, and of course baseball. It was a busy yet good day! Some friends came over to see the baby chicks and they brought us a praying mantis egg sac. They ordered a kit and it came with 3 egg sacs. There are anywhere from 150 to 300 praying mantis in each sac. I am unsure if I want that many living in my yard. I think I will put them in the garden. They are great for eating harmful bugs. Anyway, looking forward to another adventurous day tomorrow!

Remember, adventure is out there!

Catupults and Gardening and Baby Chicks

Yesterday we made catapults. The boys had a great time letting different things fly through the air. Fortunately, they did not fly far! One time, Cade turned the catapult towards himself and shot himself in the face. He decided real quick that that wasn't very smart:)

We planted corn, lettuce, broccolli, and carrots in the garden yesterday. We planted pepper and tomato plants on saturday. I have several more things I want to plant but I am waiting for Russ to finish the boxes that I am planting in. I am hoping that the weeds won't be as bad in planter boxes. Isaac wants to plant large pumpkins so we have a spot on the ground for that. Russ bought a tiller for $100.00. It has been working great! A great investment:) We are really enjoying the garden so far. But the weeding hasn't started yet. lol. We have been looking forward to this garden since last season. We are still enjoying corn, squash, pickles and bell peppers from last years garden. I haven't bought a bell pepper, corn, or squash, in 2 years.

Today we bought some baby chicks. They are adorable. Cade really likes them. The 2 yellow ones are his. He named them Fred and Bowser. The cat was really interested in them also. We just pray they live!

Thank God it's Spring!

Have I mentioned how glad I am that it is spring? I love the warmer days and getting to go outside whenever we want and not when the weather decides. We have been doing yard work, playing baseball, and planning a garden. We have some eggs in an incubator that we are hoping will hatch in a few weeks. We also plan on getting some baby chicks soon. But not before Russ has time to build a chicken coop. We are all excited about having chickens. We had a wonderful day today at Chau Ram Park. We went letterboxing with Kristie and her boys. We found 2 boxes. That was good because they were the only 2 we looked for. The rest of the time we just walked up the trail until we got to an interesting intersection and we chose to go back the way we came because none of the trails were marked and we did not feel like getting lost with 4 small boys!

We have been filling our days with baseball, reading, science, board games, video games, computer games, National Geographics, google earth (Cade's new favorite), bible stories, playing and working outside, and did I mention baseball? With 2 boys on 2 different teams we have been pretty busy with that lately, but it is all good!
Yes, life is definitely good!

Nantahalla National Forest

Russ and I spent last weekend in a cabin at Nantahalla National Forest. We had a very relaxing and wonderful time. There was a beautiful stream that ran down the mountain and beside our cabin. We followed it about 1/2 a mile up the mountain and that is where all the pictures were taken. The pictures do not do it justice. We were definitely glad to get home to the kids. I know Cade was especially glad when we returned because he called us everyday, several times a day while we were gone. He said he doesn't feel good when we are not home. But I think they had a good time without us. Michelle kept them pretty busy.

Now back to the real world with real choices and decisions and life!

God chooses you!

I am so glad that spring has finally arrived! It was a long, cold winter. We have been taking full advantage of the beautiful weather. Basketball in the front yard, trampoline and playing with the dog in the back yard, and a trip to our favorite park - Chau Ram! Isaac found raccoon prints. Mama and baby. That was cool.

I have been reading the bible in large quantities lately. I am reading the bible in 90 days. When I first heard about this, I thought, "why would anyone want to do that?" But I am really enjoying it. Some days it is hard to get all the reading in and I am behind by a day but that is ok. I am learning things I did not know before. I am getting a better understanding of when things took place and God really does speak through His word even when you are reading a lot at one time. Two things that God has been speaking to me about this year. He started saying this to me before I started reading the bible in 90 days but He is reinforcing it now. He said, "I love you and I choose you". That does not sound too thrilling until you stop and think about who said it. God almighty! The maker of heaven and earth! He is all powerful, all consuming, all knowing, always present! What more could I ever want or ask for! God loves me! God chooses me! And the best part is, if He loves and chooses me, He also loves and chooses you! God loves you and God chooses you! If it wasn't so, He would not have put it in His word. God has a plan for your life. All you have to do is ask. God really only asks for one thing from us, and that is to love Him above all else. He just wants a little of your time. He doesn't want you to focus on a long list of does and don'ts. He wants a relationship with you. He already knows that you are going to mess up and make mistakes. He just wants you to spend time with Him daily, just like you do your spouse or children or friends. Anyone who you love and want to have a relationship with. That is what God tells me. Just spend some time with me. And when I do, I always feel much better and have a much better day and a much better attitude. So that is my sermon for the day. God loves you! God chooses you!

Hearing from God

Sometimes I just want to hear what God has to say. I spend so much wasted time worrying about things that never happen or may never happen. I put thought and energy in things that could be better spent on things that matter. All the worrying and lost sleep is for nothing. God says to focus on Him. Worship Him. Love Him. Serve Him. Obey Him. If we put our all into Him, then we don't have time to worry or try to make things happen that we have no business making happen. If we put all our focus on God, He will take care of all the details of our lives. He will tell us what we need to do and when we need to do it. All we have to do is obey. But that is the hard part isn't it. The obeying. Sometimes we are more than willing to obey because it is something we want to do. Other times we do not neccessarily like what He is asking us to do so we don't obey. That's when we get ourselves into trouble and we start complaining that God isn't listening or He doesn't care. When if we had just been obedient in the first place we could have saved ourselves a lot of grief. So, I said all that to say this. God wants me to pray and worship Him. Spend time with Him. That is all He is asking for from me. Not just pray for myself and my family but for other ministries and people as well. So tonight I plan to sleep much better and keep my Heavenly Father on my mind and not problems. So hear is to a good night sleep!