Turkeys

True to her character, Shelly made a love note for Thanksgiving.

 

 

 

Last night we had a spur of the moment craft inspiration and made little turkeys for our families.

Archer was a bit embarrassed that his turkey lost its beak right before our photo shoot, but the beak was restored afterwards.

 

E had a little help from Mom with his, he was so proud of his finished bird!

 

And last but not least...

Thanksgiving just would not be the same without the Pilgrim Bonnet from kindergarten!

 

 

I am so thankful for God's grace in our lives, for blessings beyond measure, too many to count or name. I'm thankful for these three beautiful children He's given to our family, and to our families that constantly support David and I in our mission to raise up these kids to be responsible, caring people that love the Lord. I'm so infinitely grateful for a husband who loves us so very much.

 

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

I'm Glad I've Learned to Laugh

When it comes to days like this, its sure good to laugh and not get too stressed out about it. Because if I took this life too seriously, I just might be completely crazy by now...

I wrote this email to Denise yesterday morning, hoping to give her a little laughter too, here it is!

The kids have to leave the house at 8:45 to catch the bus to school. Today I woke up at 9:00. (This is right up there on my list of "Top BAD MOM Moments.") I went out to the living room and told them to get dressed. When they stopped to chat with me and take their time getting to their rooms to change, I told them they should probably focus on getting dressed because school had already started. I've never seen two kids get dressed, get their shoes and coats on and get out the door as fast as they did! Of course, the entire 4 minutes that it took them to get dressed, Archer was wailing because he hates being late. BUT, here's the funny part.

Elijah was walking funny and I realized he HAD to have a diaper change RIGHT NOW. Usually takes less than a minute but this one was BAD. He laid down on the floor in the bathroom and when I grabbed the ends of his pants legs to pull off his pants, I also grabbed a handful of POOP! Gross! It was a thick layer all the way from his diaper DOWN HIS LEG!! This was too much of a mess for floppy little wipes, I had to put him in the tub and clean him up. All the while Archer is wailing. My hand is covered in poop. And at some point Shelly starts wailing too because "I DIDN'T EAT BREAKFAST!!" Got the boy cleaned up and just barely dressed. Grabbed a package of Ritz crackers, jumped in the car and then had a moment with the kids.

"Listen, I know you're upset. But I can't let you go to school when you're hysterical. You have 2 minutes to calm down." Sped out of the driveway, raced to school, and dropped them off. Somehow, I think they were only 10 minutes late, after all of that. And I saw some moms talking outside and really wanted to catch up with them, but did I mention, my hair was sticking up all over the place? And I was still wearing my pajamas, the ones with the light blue cloud print... And E had no socks or shoes, not to mention neither of us had coats. Well, that was our morning!

Guess Who

Just Turned Two??

This little guy has certainly changed our family and brought us many many smiles and laughs through the last two years.

Have I ever mentioned that I truly believe he is the SMARTEST two year old on the PLANET?? Today he said "paper." Seriously, isn't he so smart? I love how he shouts "BUS!!!" every time a bus passes through our neighborhood, except he doesn't put an "s" on the end of the word, he puts a "t." He says "BUT" and Archer and Shelly really get a kick out of it. He can say plane, more, eat and most importantly MINE! He recites the Declaration of Independence (just kidding) and follows around the older kids. Ocasionally (a LOT) he bosses them around, steals their toys, throws things at their faces and screams for no aparant reason. But he's so cute that none of us can ever get annoyed for even a second (well... maybe just one second).

This morning I caught Archer teaching E his colors. "This is orange. Which one is the orange one? Good job!" Tonight Archer was being a bad influence and making noises with his hand in his armpit. This morning Shelly told E to be nice, in her best grown-up mom voice. And tonight she wrapped his birthday presents and made him a birthday card. She also helped him unwrap his presents, whether or not he wanted the help.

Those two kids have learned so much and grown so much by learning to get along with the littlest member of our family. These two parents have learned so much too. I have to admit, I thought two kids had gotten us well on our way of learning how to be parents. But the third one brings challenges and blessings and love all his own. And we're so very thankful for God's blessing on our family, and for Elijah Graham's place in our family.

Oh Blessings!

Tonight I experienced something truly amazing, and I was so blessed to experience it with family and friends by my side.

Tonight we went to the airport and waited for endless hours until finally, after fidgeting and telling the kids the rules and snack runs and restroom runs and trying to count heads to make sure everyone was still all there...

Finally...

The flags rounded the corner. The crowd rose to their feet. Cheers rose. Chanting, "U.S.A.!" filled the air.

The color guard neared and applause filled our ears. Mobs of people, so divided everywhere else in our lives, so different, strangers, we all lined the way with our flags and signs.

The flags passed and the first Hero appeared. And then another. Another. They kept coming.

For over an hour, we stood, we cheered, we shouted "Thank you!" and "God Bless You!" over and over. We reached out our hands to shake the hands of the men and women who fought for our freedom.

 

 

Each time one of these veterans came close enough to us we reached out. They saw the kids lining the path and slowed down to grasp each little hand. Occasionally they took mine. I looked into their eyes, I was so filled with thanks for their service, for what they had done for us, their country. They left their own families. They risked death. They saw friends dying around them. They pushed on. They came home, and now today I held these people's hands, and looked into their eyes, and cried as I thanked them.

After the veterans passed, we had the honor of also welcoming those currently serving. And when the parade slowed down and these men and women stood in front of me, I thanked them again, I told them how proud we are, how much we appreciate what they're doing, and I wondered what's ahead for them.

I don't know what's ahead for them, perhaps they'll travel to some unknown place and spend day after day in harm's way. Perhaps they'll end up sitting behind a desk somewhere. Maybe they'll love their assignment or maybe hate every day of it. But this I do know. Each of these people signed up for an adventure that I was never willing to consider. Each one of them was willing to put their own plans aside and serve our nation. And for that they deserve our thanks. I thank the Lord for them, those service men and women. And I prayed over and over tonight that each of those that passed us would know how much we appreciate what they're doing for us, and that they would find confidence in Jesus tonight to take them forward, wherever their paths may lead. What a great nation this is that we call home, and what great people we can thank for the privilege of living here.