Update

Jonah is doing better thanks to the meds. Isaac has conjunctivitis - a.k.a. pink eye. Given that it's highly contagious, we were given a "shareable" prescription because at least one of us is likely to catch it. Oh joy.

I would just like to sleep...all night...with no interruptions. Probably not likely, but a girl can dream, right?

Sick

I promise I'll be back at some point to post about Christmas and add new pics. Unfortunately both of my boys are "infected" right now. I took Jonah this morning for what was supposed to be his "well" check - turns out he's not so well. He has an ear infection. As we were checking out at the dr's office, I noticed Isaac's eye had some...er...stuff...in it. I thought maybe it was just normal stuff, but it wasn't long after we got home that I quickly discovered that no, it's not normal - not normal at all. Soooo...we are going back this afternoon to get Isaac checked out. Two doctor visits in one day - what a great way to spend Christmas vacation! Hopefully the antibiotics will kick in soon and my boys will be back to normal - whatever that may be - sooner than later. In the meantime, know that we did have a wonderful Christmas and I'll be back when I can to write all about it.

Oh - and if I don't make it back before then - Happy New Year!! May you all be richly blessed in 2009!

Thoughts on Santa

I want to introduce you to a book I just discovered that I think is a great way to explain Santa to your kids. As a Christian parent, we have a choice to make. Do we let our kids believe in Santa or not? I have friends who absolutely refuse to acknowledge Santa in their household. Their children do not receive gifts from Santa, they don't take their children to see Santa or be photographed with him. One of the reasons for this is that they are afraid that when their children discover the truth, they will realize that Mom & Dad have "lied" to them. If we allow them to believe in Santa, only for them to find out the "truth" later on, how then can we expect them to believe in Jesus? Will they not think we might be lying to them about Him, too?

I am of the mindset that Santa is ok. He's a fun way to celebrate Christmas and to let your child experience a little magic and fantasy. Of course we emphasize that "Jesus is the Reason for the Season" and that the REAL reason for Christmas is to celebrate the birth of Christ. If we allow His love to permeate our lives so that our children are able to see and feel it, I just know there will be no question in their minds that He is indeed alive and REAL!

I could go on, but I actually think the book explains it much better. The title is "Santa, Are You for Real?" The author is Harold Myra, who just happens to also be the President of Christianity Today, Inc.

The review from Amazon says this:

In Santa, Are You For Real?, children will discover that there really was a Saint Nicholas. Through colorful illustrations and a heartwarming story, children - and parents - will learn who the real Saint Nick was, when he lived, and why he gave gifts. Most importantly, you'll see how the original Saint Nick set an example for us today by keeping Christ at the heart of Christmas.

Written by Harold Myra, President of Christianity Today, Inc., this trustworthy story is accompanied with fun, whimsical illustrations.

You can also read the book in it's entirety here.

Whether or not you choose to allow your kids to believe in Santa or receive gifts from him, this book is a great explanation of a real person who did exist at one time.

Believe

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know I'm a fan of the blog, Bring the Rain. Angie Smith is the blog owner and she is the wife of Todd Smith, a singer in the Christian group, Selah. She has an awesome post over there now titled "Believe" - and I want you to click on it and go read it right now. Go ahead...I'll wait.

Awesome, huh? It's a great reminder of what truly matters as we prepare to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas to you all!

Question of the day

Why is it that when you strategically plan a special event around your child's naptime, he refuses to go to sleep?!!

AARRRGGGHHH!!

Ok, I feel better now. :-)

We will now return to our regularly scheduled blog.

My little reindeer

Jonah had his Kindergarten Christmas program this morning. It was all about the "symbols" of Christmas. Each class was a different group of characters and Jonah and his classmates were reindeer. I was very pleased that one of the symbols they focused on was the nativity scene and all the kindergartners sang "Away in a Manger!" Of course they sang a song about Hannukah, too, but as a former music teacher myself, I unfortunately know that in the public school system you have to be careful about having a "well balanced" program.

Anyway...

Out of the 21 children in Jonah's class, 3 were given speaking parts. Jonah was one of them! I've included a video of his part and a cute picture of my little reindeer below.

I love how they stuck the 3 little soloists right in front of Jonah. I mean, I know he's tall and everything, but, he was the star, people! :-) I do have the whole song on video, but for the sake of saving time uploading, it's shortened a bit.

Stomach bug of 2008

Yeah, I probably don't need to say much more than that...but, I will anyway. Last night - midnight or so - Jonah comes stumbling into our room. He tried so hard to make it in time...his bed, the hallway, our bedroom floor, the bathroom floor...all fell victim. Did I mention all of our bedrooms are carpeted?

Poor kid hasn't eaten a bite - not even nibbled a cracker - today. Fortunately there've been no more...um, incidents...since last night, but he feels rotten. Thank you, Lord, for Motrin and Lysol...oh, and Resolve.

Chad had to teach Sunday School this morning and I really had to be there, being the pianist and all. Sooo...he quickly taught his lesson and left early to come back home so I could get there for the service. Apparently this evil bug is making it's rounds - as our music minister prayed that the "Lord's Lysol" would cover us all. That oughta be some powerful stuff....Lysol of the Lord. Yep - gimme some of that!

My prayer is that, not only for Jonah to get well quickly, but that this bug completely and totally bypasses Isaac. At least Jonah can talk and tell me when "it's coming", you know? I soooo don't need to deal with that with a 1 year old who hardly ever even spit up.

Ok, sorry. Didn't mean to gross you all out, but it's that time of year for giving and sharing. I promise this is one thing we really don't mean to share!

May you all be blessed graciously with the Lysol of the Lord during this season of cold and flu and other...stuff. :-)

What we're reading

Click each picture for a description...

Birthday cupcake

One of the sweet ladies who cooks Wednesday night supper at church had a cupcake waiting for Isaac's birthday last night. We lit the candle and everyone sang "Happy Birthday" to him. I think the cupcake was a big hit!

Happy Birthday Isaac!

Isaac must know that today is his birthday. He decided we should celebrate around 2:30 this morning. We celebrated for 2 hours. We totally rocked it. In the chair. Two hours. Poor little guy. I took him to the doctor yesterday because I was convinced he had an ear infection. The good news is that his ears are "beautiful" and his chest sounds good. He just has a bad cold and tons of post-nasal drip - which makes it unpleasant to be in a horizontal position. Which makes it difficult to sleep. Oh the joy!! :-)

Today is Isaac's 1st birthday!! He was born by c-section at 9:45am. He weighed in at 8 lbs, 12 oz and was 21 3/4" long. Everyone commented on what a big boy he was, but I thought he was a peanut compared to Jonah's 10 lbs, 5 oz. I've included some pics and a very special video to remember that special day.

And just for fun...

A great weekend!

What a busy (but fun!) weekend we've had! It started off Friday night with the Christmas parade. KFC rode a float in the parade this year for the first time. It was really cold, but the kids had a blast waving and shouting "Merry Christmas!" to the crowds. Our float was #13 out of 90-something, so when our portion of the parade was over, Jonah and I got to meet up with Chad and Isaac to watch the rest of the parade. Jonah had a permanent smile plastered on his face the entire night and Isaac clapped for the big trucks.

Saturday morning we did some more decorating, then went downtown in the afternoon for our town's Christmas festival. They had all kinds of blow-up/bounce houses for the kids - well, Jonah - and all kinds of food vendors and live music performances. We were going to take a horse-drawn carriage ride, but Jonah wasn't "in the mood." We started to get lunch from one of the outdoor vendors when Chad noticed that one of the local (indoor with heat!) family restaurants (which isn't normally open on weekends) was open since the festival was going on. Chad and I had Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Soup - it was the best thing I think I've ever tasted. I'm pretty sure the cold weather combined with the fact I didn't eat much for breakfast that day helped to make it even better. The restaurant had a train track all the way around the ceiling so Jonah, and even Isaac, were mesmerized long enough for Chad and I to enjoy our soup in peace. We then headed back out into the cold for a while, saw the gingerbread house displays, and picked up some kettle corn and other goodies to bring home.

This morning our church had it's Christmas musical in which KFC performed with the adults. All the kids were dressed in their Christmas-best and it was a wonderful time of worship and music. This afternoon we FINALLY finished our Christmas decorating and this evening we headed out to look at Christmas lights with a special stop at Starbucks for a Peppermint Mocha Twist for me and Caramel Apple Spice for Chad and Jonah. Now the kids are both in bed - the house is quiet and hopefully we'll all get a good night's rest to prepare us for the upcoming week.

One thing I would ask that you pray for is that my kids get over this crazy respiratory junk that's been going on. They've both been coughing and sniffling and tonight Isaac started the nasty sneezes where you have to bring in HazMat for the clean up afterwards. Sorry - TMI!! They both have humidifiers running in their rooms and their feet and chests are slathered in Vick's. Yes, I said feet. In case you've never heard - I have to tell you about this, because it really works! When I first heard about it I figured it was just an old wives tale, but then I tried it and it really does work to stop nighttime coughing/congestion. You simply rub Vick's Vapor Rub onto the soles of your feet and then put socks on. I don't know how or why it works, but several people I know have tried this and they all claim it helps them sleep better. So, that's my tip for the night. :-)

Alrighty - quiet house - kids asleep - time for me to get off the computer!! Have a great week!

Jonah getting ready for the parade

Christmas playhouse

First place gingerbread house

Bundle of Joy!

Funny brother!

Christmas card attempt

Another Christmas card attempt - may be the one!

December happenings

Isaac's feet are holly leaves!! What a cute idea! I was tickled when this was sent home today. I immediately hung it on my tree...my undecorated tree. The tree is up - the lights are working - FINALLY. We just have to put the ornaments on now...if I can find the tree skirt. AGH!! In my post-pregnancy brain fog last year, I put away all the Christmas stuff and now...now I can't find the tree skirt - my beautiful burgundy velvet tree skirt with the embroidered musical instruments that I LOVE. Argh!! I know it's here...somewhere...but WHERE?! I can't stand it when I can't find something!

Anyway, Christmas decorating is coming along slowly so far - we're getting there. We have family coming next weekend for Isaac's birthday, so as long as it's done by then (and I find my tree skirt!!), it'll be ok. We're gearing up for the Christmas parade tomorrow night. KFC will be riding on a float in the parade. I am hoping and praying that all comes together. One of the other leader's husband is pulling the float for us. The kids are psyched. Jonah sways between excitement and nervousness - one minute it's "I can't wait to be in the parade!" and the next it's "I want to watch the parade with Daddy and Isaac." So...we'll see what his tune is tomorrow.

My baby will be 1 YEAR OLD in six days. We have church that night and one of the ladies who cooks is making a cake for him to have at Wednesday night's supper - how SWEET! I'll try to remember to take pictures. That post-pregnancy brain fog...well, you see...it never really went away! That reminds me - I need to email the lady - the other lady - about Isaac's cake for the family party. So glad I wrote this post or I might have forgotten. You think I'm kidding? :-)

Have a great day, everyone! Sorry for the complete randomness, but that's just the way I roll sometimes.

1 Year Ago

The picture above is from last Christmas. Isaac was just 2 weeks old. I can't believe that he will be 1 year old in less than 2 weeks. I love looking back and remembering how special last Christmas was as we celebrated the new addition to our family. Today is Thanksgiving Day and I can honestly say that I am so very thankful for my boys. When I say "my boys", Chad is also included in that. As the only female in our family, I'm outnumbered, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I love my boys - all three of them - and they truly are my joys.

50,000 pairs in 50 days

I got this idea from Bring the Rain. Click below for more information on how you can donate shoes to those in need!! Just $5.00 buys 2 pairs of shoes!

The Drive-Thru Difference

Our local Christian radio station is currently doing something really neat in an effort to encourage it's listeners to do something nice for others. They call it the "Drive-Thru Difference." What you do is go through any drive-thru and pay for the person behind you. You then give a letter to the cashier and ask him/her to give the letter to the person you paid for - the person behind you. The letter says this:

Hi!

You don't know me but I've just paid for your order. No gimmicks - it's just something I wanted to do. I heard about people doing things for others on the radio! They call it the "Drive Thru Difference." Maybe you'll feel like doing it for someone else!

I hope this encourages you today!

Signed,
The stranger in the car ahead of you

Jonah and I are going to do this soon. I want him to experience the feeling (and hopefully understand the importance) of doing something good for others - even people we don't even know. A friend of mine did this not too long ago and said that she was really tempted to pull over and watch for the person's reaction, but she forced herself to keep driving as she reminded herself "It's not about me." I just thought some of my readers might like to try this. If you do, I'd love to hear your story!

Thank You, Lord

KFC (Kids for Christ) Children's Choir - 11/23/08

A little turkey

This was sent home with Isaac from Mother's Morning Out on Tuesday. I have no idea how they managed to get his squirmy little hand painted and then so nicely placed on the paper, but hey, they did the hard work and I get to enjoy the result!!

This isn't just a turkey,

As anyone can see.

I made it with my hand,

Which is a part of me.

It comes with lots of love

Especially to say,

I hope you have a very

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

The layered look

So yesterday, after doing a few loads of laundry, I was so proud of myself that I actually folded one load straight from the dryer. That just about never happens. Of course, I couldn't be so efficient as to actually take those clothes directly to our dressers, but never-the-less, they were folded and waiting in the laundry basket. While Jonah was eating breakfast this morning, I proceeded to take that stack of folded laundry and place it on the couch while picking out what Jonah would be wearing. Thankfully he still usually agrees to wear whatever I pick out. I laid out his pants and was going to let him choose the shirt he wanted from the folded stack. I got busy making his lunch while he finished breakfast and got washed up. I told him his clothes were on the couch, but I failed to mention he needed to pick the shirt. He put on his pants and then I noticed he was standing there just kind of staring blankly at the folded stack of shirts. Finally he looked up at me and said, "Um, mama? How many shirts am I wearing today?!" I couldn't say anything for a few minutes as I laughed hysterically. The look of relief on his face was priceless when I told him he only needed to pick one.

Prayer and Faith

My friend Lisa gave me a calendar called "365 Days of Wisdom for Moms." Boy, do I need that! Each month has a different theme. November's theme is all about prayer. I confess that I haven't been praying as I should. I don't know why I seem to think there has to be some sort of ritual involved. You don't have to be kneeling or in church or anything like that. It's just conversation - it should be natural and perpetual. We can talk to God anytime, anywhere, all the time! My kids sang a song at church a few months ago called "Pray." It says:

Pray in the morning, pray in the noontime, pray when the day is through.

Pray when you're happy. Pray when you're worried.
Pray when you don't know what to do.
Pray without ceasing. Pray without ceasing.

Praise Him, adore Him, thank Him, then trust Him - pray, pray, just pray.

Today's verse ties prayer together with faith.

"Faith is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen." Hebrews 11:1

"Prayer works. It doesn't just work once in a while. It doesn't just work when a minister prays for you. Prayer works all the time. There's only one requirement - have faith. You have to believe that the Lord is willing and able to meet your needs - no matter what they are. You have to know that He is all-powerful, all-knowing, and altogether merciful.

Amazing how that is exactly what I needed to hear today. Funny how that works, huh?

No wonder!!

So this is how we're supposed to be doing it! With the upcoming holidays, this is a genius idea! No more worries about that extra helping of mac-n-cheese or that big slice of pie!!

Operation Christmas Child

We are currently working on filling our shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child. I encourage you to watch the video above to learn what it's all about. For more information on where shoeboxes are being collected near you, click here and enter your zip code. This is a great way to be involved, and to get your children involved, in giving to others.

Total randomness

It hit me when I was feeding Isaac lunch today. He turned 11 months old today. 11 MONTHS! That means he'll be ONE YEAR OLD in just ONE MONTH! Yes, ok, I know you could've figured that out. It just amazes me that it has already been almost ONE YEAR! Slowly, but surely, my baby is looking more and more like a toddler and less and less like a baby. I cannot even express how that saddens me - because, although I'm not completely positive, I'm pretty sure he's my last. At 34, I don't really have time on my side. Oh, I know lots of women have babies well into their 30's these days. I'm just not sure I'm going to be one of those women. Anyway...

Here are some random pics of our latest happenings around here. I realize I never posted Halloween pics. I confess that, due to being in charge of the Fall Festival bake sale and cake walk, I didn't really get any great pictures on Halloween. Sigh. At any rate, it is what it is - so have a look and enjoy!

Jonah, aka "A Soccer Player"

Isaac, aka "Tigger"

One of his favorite places to pull up

Jonah's "parking lot" - aka a cardboard box

Isaac's favorite place to play - aka Jonah's bed!

My SIX year old!

Grandpa & the boys

Pray 7 x 7

Some of you may be familiar with the group Selah. One of the singers in that group, Todd Smith, and his wife Angie lost their precious baby girl, Audrey Caroline, back in April of this year. Angie does a beautiful job of telling her story, so I won't even attempt, but I encourage you to read it for yourself at her blog, Bring the Rain. Todd and Angie have three other children - all girls -and Angie's blog is so much more than just the story of Audrey. It's a great encouragement for Christian parents seeking to raise their children in a Godly home environment. Angie shared in a recent blog her own personal method of daily praying for her children - 7 prayers a day, 7 days a week. I think it's a wonderful idea. You can find out more simply by clicking on the picture of the praying girl in my sidebar.

Hi there. I'm here...I've just been busy. I have lots of thoughts swirling around in my head, but never the right time or right words to put them down as a blog entry. I've been doing a lot of thinking...and praying...regarding the presidential election. Of course, now it's over and, since this is my blog and I can pretty much say what I want, I will say that I am not happy about the results...at all. I do not desire for this blog to become anything more than a place for me to share the goings-on of my children and family. However, this morning, my heart is heavy. As I was browsing some of the other blogs I frequent, I came across an amazing post on Beth Moore's blog. (She lovingly refers to her blog readers as her "siestas" - her pet name for sister.) I quote it here for you now and hope it gives you the encouragement it has given me.

A United House
To my beloved Sisters who I esteem so highly and consistently find to be part of the solution to our problems in the Church rather than the cause,

Please join me in praying for our President-elect Barack Obama, his wife Michelle, and his precious daughters, Sasha and Malia. Go with me before the Throne of our sovereign God and ask Him to grant wisdom from above to President-elect Obama and the indwelling presence and power of Jesus Christ. In the words of the Apostle Paul, "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone - for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior..."

Please also join me in the active and deliberate pursuit of unity and purity in the Body of Christ at this historical time in our country. I implore you in Jesus Name to have zero tolerance for prejudice whether it is regarding party-affiliation, color (whether you are Black, White, or Brown), economics or the like. Disagreement is not sin. Prejudice is. Satan has plotted events and planted attitudes that, should he be successful, will result in havoc. We must not stand for his schemes or cooperate in a single way. We would severely displease God and invite untold chastisement upon Christ's Church in our nation. Speak clearly to your children and graciously but emphatically draw a line in your work places and social circles regarding your stand against prejudice of any kind.

"Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, 'Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.'" (Matthew 12:25) A united house stands. A divided house falls. The devil has much to gain. But he also has much to lose.

We are the Body of Jesus Christ and we have an opportunity to show His character. This is our watch. We stand for what is right not from our feet but from our knees.

I humble myself before you and make these pleas under such bold direction of God that I could not resist it nor disobey it. He made it a fire in my bones.

I love and esteem you so much. Shoulder to shoulder, Dear Siestas. Let's leave not one inch for the enemy to come between us.

A very blue birthday

Per Jonah's request, I took cupcakes to his class yesterday for their snack. Jonah asked for chocolate cupcakes with blue frosting and chocolate sprinkles. Let me just tell you - the blue frosting was scary. My fingers are STILL blue. I had to go to the dentist today and I was worried they would notice my teeth had a slight blue tint to them. It was that bad. Nevertheless, the kids loved the cupcakes, blue mouths and all. I took a few pics to remember the blueness...I mean, fun. :-)

This is Jonah's method of helping Isaac to "look at the camera"

6

Today my baby is 6 years old. A kindergartner, missing his front tooth, who loves soccer, basketball, hotwheels, piano and animals - not necessarily in that order. He's a good head taller than anyone in his class. He's kind, sensitive, silly, smart and sometimes a little shy. He entered this world on a Tuesday morning at 9:30am - all 10 lbs, 5 oz and 22.5" of him. "The king of the nursery", as the nurses affectionately called him. It took me a few weeks of him constantly crying to figure out that I wasn't feeding him enough - what was "average" for an "average" baby was not enough for my 10+ pounder! He is my first born and my heart. Happy Birthday, Jonah Thomas!!

Brown-eyed love

I just had to share my little brown-eyed bundle of joy! We went to Jonah's soccer game last night and almost froze to death, but little man still managed some sweet grins!

One of the reasons why I love Jonah's soccer league...

Birthday Weekend

I thought I'd share just a few pictures from Jonah's party. A great time was had by all! The kids bowled for an hour and then enjoyed pizza and cake. We collected quite a few items for the pregnancy center - and Jonah still received several goodies from his friends. Poor thing came home with an upset tummy, though. I think all the excitement and food got to him. Fortunately, he made a quick recovery and we went out to dinner at Outback with my mom and niece and Chad's dad, brother and cousin. Jonah really wanted Charanda (Mexican), but Chad's dad said he couldn't "handle Mexican" - haha! We are hoping to get a sitter for Isaac soon and take Jonah out for his Mexican meal and a little one-on-one time with Mama & Daddy.

Thankful Friday

• Homemade chicken salad
• Being able to stay in my nice, warm house while watching the chilly rain fall through the windows
• Isaac's naptime :-)
• A great parent/teacher conference yesterday - Jonah is one of the top two students in his class. He made a perfect score on his 1st nine weeks math assessment. The teacher also gave a test where he had to sound out words and use "creative spelling" to guess how to spell them - he got 20 out of 25 correct!
• A clean, warm house that will welcome our family tomorrow to celebrate Jonah's birthday! (Well, it will be clean by the end of the day!)
• Laundry fresh from the dryer

Happy Weekend to all!

Pumpkin Spice Kisses

One word...YUM!

Fall Treats

Jonah and I made these scrumptious muffins from verybestbaking.com this past weekend. I wish I had been clever enough to remember to take pictures. Alas, they turned out beautifully and we were able to share with lots of friends! This is a great fall recipe!

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs, slightly beaten
2 cups granulated sugar
1 can (15 oz.) LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels

Directions:
PREHEAT oven to 350° F. Grease thirty-six 2 1/2-inch muffin cups or line with paper bake cups. COMBINE all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in medium bowl. Combine eggs and sugar in large bowl. Add pumpkin and oil; mix well. Stir in flour mixture until moistened. Stir in morsels. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups. BAKE for 20 to 25 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched. Cool in pans on wire racks for 5 minutes; remove from pans.

A lesson in giving

In exactly one week from today, my baby will be turning 6 years old. He is so very excited about all of the upcoming celebrations we have planned. Jonah asked to have a bowling party this year, so this coming Saturday, we'll be having pizza and cake and Jonah and his friends will enjoy an afternoon of bowling. Now, don't get me wrong - I love birthday parties, really, I do. What I don't love, though, is the crazy frenzy of selfishness that comes along with the opening of the gifts. I also don't love bringing home those dozen or so gifts and piling them on top of all the stuff we already have. Of course I have learned the art of discreetly purging ourselves of toys that have done nothing but sit on the shelf for months and months, but still, I haven't been able to shake the feeling that, this year, I wanted to do something different. So, in an effort to help Jonah learn that it really is our calling in life to put others first (which is difficult enough for us 30-somethings, much less a 6 yr old!), we actually requested no gifts. Instead (or rather, In lieu of), we included a request in the invitation for donations for the crisis pregnancy center in our area. I sat down with Jonah and we talked about how there are mommies (and daddies) out there who don't have enough money to buy food, diapers and clothing for their babies. We discussed how very blessed we are to have everything we need, and much, much more. I prayed that he would understand - and - I think...maybe at least a little...he did! So, I am really hoping that he feels a sense of joy in the fact that we are able to help someone else. More importantly, though, I hope that one day he comes to know Jesus as his Savior and that he realizes that this life is really not about us at all.

Edited to add - Just wanted to add that between Chad and myself and our families, Jonah will receive more than his fair share of birthday gifts to open. I didn't want anyone to think that he would be given nothing! :-)

KFC

No, I'm not talking about fried chicken - KFC is the name of the kid's praise choir at church - "Kids for Christ!" KFC led in worship this morning and I wanted to share the video! The first song is Forever and the second song is called I Will Tell the World. The music and vocal balance is a little off, but hopefully you'll be able to hear them well enough to make out what they're singing. Jonah is in the middle row, 2nd or 3rd from the left, depending upon which song, in a light blue shirt with stripes across the chest.

Live Video streaming by Ustream

Jonah's latest news

Thankful Friday

• Jonah has decided to be a "soccer player" for Halloween. That, plus the fact that we may dress Isaac in one of Jonah's old costumes, will help save some dough!
• My mom - just for being who she is and for loving my boys as her own
• Chad's job - never thought I would say that given the grief it causes him at times, but it pays the bills and allows me to stay home with our children, which is a huge blessing
• Ok, let's just be honest - coffee!
• My choir kiddos at church - they get so excited about leading in worship - I just love to hear their voices lifted in praise and see the smiles on their faces!

Happy Weekend!

I would, would you?

I had forgotten about this song until I saw the video on another blog tonight. It's pretty emotional for me because it took 4 years for Chad and me to conceive Jonah and 3 years for us to conceive Isaac. Another reason this song hits home is that my birth mom was a teenager who gave me up for adoption at 2 yrs old. Some time in the future I may go into more detail on those stories, but for now I wanted to share this. The singer is Kellie Coffey and the song, "I Would Die For That."

10 months!