Tuesday night

Hey Babe!

Amazing to hear from you! So grateful to the Lord for the technology to know you are great. I can hear your excitement and so grateful you are in the Lord's will.

We have had great day. Bible study was a great wrap up of our study. Trusting in the Hope of our Lord. Of course, Christ is our Hope. We we have that anchor for our souls, our minds and hearts are filled with peace. It has sure been true of me while you have been gone.

H and I snuggled and watched a movie during nap time after i picked some more squash and made another casserole. If I am a bit yellow when you come home, its not my liver, its my wonderful squash!! After school, Tara kept the kids for an hour while Ronda and I went and swam in the pond. We swam the to one end, turned swam to the other end, swam to the dock, got out, ran up the hill, ran back down and jumped back in, and did it again. We did it 3 times and it took us about 45 minutes. Beautiful day in the pond, we swam with one duck and again saw no other animals- wa-hoo! I got back to Tara's and she wanted to go to the store to get a few more things for dinner, I didn't let her, I brought over some squash, potatoes, peas, and fruit and we had a feast-- half of her meal and half of mine. Mike ate like you- his second plate was as big as his first! We came home and put our sweeties to bed. I'm about ready too! but I will stay awake a while and pray for you...

I love you,

Hurry home to us when your work is done,

k

Tuesday morning

Hey Honey!

So great to hear from you. So grateful you had a great day. We are hoping today will be amazing. Really hoping for miraculous results in these people's lives and that they would stand for Jesus in such a dark place. I was praying for you yesterday in the Psalms to look to the Lord for your strength. He is the Rock who holds strong.

We had a good night last night. H played a good ball game. Got some great hits. He ran right out to the pitcher's spot every time and was so anxious to get the ball. He was playing Jacks team, so I sat with Susanne and Pam, L enjoyed sitting with Thomas. Christy took Ek to hear last Monday dance class of the year. It looks like next year her classes will be earlier in the day on Monday- that will be better. H was missing you last night, but I tried to love him well. We keep praying for you! I got them to bed as early as I could- they were tired. Tara came over to see the pictures I had received from McGinnis and I talked to Christy for a while about how we are praying for you.

I am really looking forward to Bible study today. It is our last one before summer. I tell you it has definately made an impact on me. You know it is all about recognizing lies that we tell ourselves and replacing it with truth. What a valuable thing to spend time in. I have realizied how often I tell myself I am overwhelmed and forget that God has chosen me to bear fruit, that he has a plan for my life and his main heart for me is to love. I also this last week have had to combat anxiety with the reminder that God loves me and is working good in my life. It is amazing how God's work can transform our minds, hearts and lives. So grateful for my Tuesday group-- I sure am going to miss them this summer.

Love you! Can't wait to hear about the transformed lives there. Praying for your day!

Love you, k

Monday afternoon

Hey babe!

Thinking of you so much!! So grateful you are serving God with your life and your talents and your time. He is worthy. Think of all he has done. We have such hope!!! I think our greatest gift is love. I do love you. So grateful for His love. Trusting in it!!

We had a great morning. Got Ek and H off. L to your parents and went to the swim party. The kids had a blast and were so good. Robbie, Jaden's mom, Surrelle and I got in to swim with them a bit. Jaden's mom and I were saying how much Paul- Jaden's dad and you would have so much fun swimming with them too. But not sad, just happy to know you love us and peaceful to know you are where you need to be. They had a great lunch of pizza, Chick nuggets, fruit, chips and tons of desserts. Ben Butler said he wanted to swim there all summer- the food was great!! Tina and I laughed and laughed. Ek is swimming great, getting her confidence all the time, she is really working on blowing her bubbles underwater, she's going to be a great swimmer! L was asleep when I got home and H was watching your dad in the garden. H is supposed to have ball tonight but I think it is suppposed to rain- we've had bad luck in the rain dept. with ball!!

Well I'm off to spend a bit of time in the word while its quiet.

Oh our wet suits came!! Really good black box with a man in his suit coming out of the water- looks very serious. Mine is super tight- maybe too tight, we'll see. Fun though!! Oh and some pics from McGinnis came- they are amazing! We are so blessed!!

Love you! Keep doing what your doing! Praying!

I put your update this morning on FB, Shann, Channon Collier, Christy Kendrick, Megan Shirley, Beth White, Lee Garner and Heather Evans all commented. You have a lot of faithful praying for you!

Love you!

k

Monday morning

Morning Honey!!

Soo soooo sooooo great to hear from you. We are trusting God's hand and care of all of us. His hand of protection, and provision and, and love is so great. He can be trusted. I am reminding my soul to be still in his love. We had a great night of rest. The kids quieted down very quickly. I had a hard time falling asleep without you here but am so grateful you are being obedient to follow God's will. We will know more of him through this. I got up this morning and rode the trainer hard for about 30 minutes. L greeted me while I was in the shower and Ek was protesting her awakening under our covers. H got up soon after. We got dressed quickly and I got them a biscuit at McD's and ran by Kroger to get H a camera to take to school for his day. Be sure not to forget to take pics with your camera!!! They were happy about their day. I am taking L to meet your parents in a minute and off to Ek's swim party. Full day!!

Tara just called to check on me. Dana and Ronda checked on me yesterday. Inkie made sure to tell me to call if we needed them. Mindy and I texted a few times last night too, she was at the luau, she seemed peaceful.

Love you babe! Trusting God for all of us!

hugs and kisses, miss you, k

Sunday night

Hey Babe!

Kids "in bed" (as I type I hear "mommy- L is in my room. mama- L is in my bed." sigh.

When L was up, we put our suits and sunscreen on and jetted to the pool. Quite the crowd there, actually. Abby was the lifeguard- horray for that. Will and Laine were there with a sitter. Susanne and Melanie got there about 30 minutes later, they guys were still playing golf. Several others came and went that we enjoyed talking to. So, I am signing in and look up to see Ek and H already in the pool. Didn't quite take them any time at all to get back to it. They were both swimming under the water and jumping in within minutes. Within 20 minutes, Ek jumped off the diving board, got to the surface with her face in and swam to the ladder taking several breaths along the way. Wowie-wow-wow. I really don't think they regressed at all since last summer- this summer at the pool is going to be a blast!!! They were oozing smiles and happiness. Ek didn't even complain to not have any of her friends there and I don't think a smile left H's face. L wasn't quite so quick, she kept very close to me but was playing on the steps without touching me by the time we left. She wore a jacket the whole time and didn't mind it a bit. I don't mind her fear, she'll warm up. John, how did I swim when Ek was 3 and H was 1????? I guess I didn't swim much that summer. Oh, Ek did take swimming lessons in Fl before we left but still- I don't remember swimming much. That was probably a good thing. We got some ice cream from Miss Cathy, she was so happy! We stayed about 2 hours then headed home for baths and dinner. They are quite worn out, if L would stay out of their rooms, they would probably go to sleep!

I am quite peaceful. Trusting God loves us and has great plans for us. The kids and I were thinking maybe Huddle House Thursday morning for breakfast when you get home? We're going to celebrate your return! We are so proud of you. The kids are very peaceful. We are doing great. We love you and we miss you,

k

Sunday afternoon

Hey babe, I know I already talked to you, but wanted to tell you again about the morning--

How amazing that H walked into our room dressed in a collard shirt, khaki shorts and his church sandals this morning. I heard him up but assumed he would make his way in when he was ready- boy was he ready! He said he wanted to surprise me- he did. Ek quickly popped up and got dressed and wanted to do something to make me proud as well so she fixed everyone their breakfast cereal. Then the 3 of them went off to play hungry hungry hippos. Our morning was so peaceful. We were ready for church way ahead of time and were so excited to get your phone call on the way. Then to arrive and walk in with the Gays- wow it was as if someone had been praying for me!!! We should ask for prayer more often on a Sunday morning!!! The worship really blessed my heart this morning. We sang several songs about how God's love endures forever. I needed the reminder that no matter what my circumstance, no matter what my day, God's love remains the same. Ritchie reminded us that so many of us are living in the OT way of life-- life based on law, sacrifice and no relationship with God. He encouraged us that we need to move into a NT way of life-- provided by Jesus and lead by the Spirit. And that was just his promo for his Discipleship class! His sermon was about enduring suffering. He said suffering reveals how little we know about God. That suffering works in us a new trust of God that reminds us that He is for us not matter what. hmmmm that sounds like the worship too. Love that. We can trust him John, no matter what this week looks like, no matter what life is like when you return and for the rest of our lives. We live with great hope and purpose. I was then off to the nursery, L was her normal clingy self but one time she said- I want daddy to come get me. I told her you were off to Haiti to take care of eyes. She said 'daddy got on a plane. with pastor Gregg. with mr. Jason. daddy gonna take care of eyes?' She has confidence in you honey. She knows you're doing what you are supposed to be doing and that you will be back. We came home and made a quick bite of lunch. It may discourage you to know I have since made mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes, squash casserole, peas and grilled chicken. I am hoping that is enough cooking until you come home. My hope is that we can play hard and go to be early. They were in bed last night at 7:30. Ek and H have played great today- they played little people for a long time, helped me shell peas and pulled one another around on a blanket for awhile. I am going to go get ready to take them to the pool and maybe dinner with the Hoskins- if not we have plenty of food here!! Oh another song we sang was about fighting for love as one-- I'm taking care here so you can love there! Lord, make it all count for your glory!! Love you. Love you. Love you. Be careful.

Oh and I did talk to your mom. She was so glad to know you were safe in Miami. They are coming tomorrow so I can go to Ek's class swim party. I think your dad wants to do some work in the garden as well.

Ok, now. Love you. Love you. Love you. Be careful.

K

Saturday night

John is off to Haiti, here is the update from us...

Saturday night--

Hey Honey,

I was remembering that the last time you were in Haiti you had internet access, so here's to hoping you do this time when you get there. When you left, L was a bit confused and sad. She didn't let me put her down for like an hour- didn't eat a bite of her supper. 'Where's Daddy going?' she asked. I told her you were going to take care of eyes for people who needed him. But we sat in the grass and prayed for you as soon as you were out of sight. We went in and fixed hamburgers and chips and pineapple and jello- quite a feast. We were off to the bathtub. Ek and H both helped clean up a bit. L wanted me to hold her in her towel, so we sat with her all snuggled up in her towel and read a few books. I took the kids to bed at like 7:30- I knew they were so tired. They went to bed very peacefully and I reminded them as I walked down the steps to pray for you. Ek said she would pray for you Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday (at school prayer requests I suppose). I am now tucked into our bed to do a bit of resting.

I am so proud of you John-- that you are leading our family by obeying the Lord. What an amazing example you are giving to all of us. I also think about how beautifully you are using the talents the Lord has given you. Amazing.

Love you, love you, love you.

Wish we could have snuggled a bit today, but I sure enjoyed being with you this morning. The bike ride was really great too. Couldn't have ever done that without you!!

Be careful.

Keep me posted.

Did I tell you I loved you?

I do.

I love you.

k

L and her playmate

Mom has a blast playing with L. She has a way of playing with her that really gets L going. This occasion, L laid her baby doll and mom down for a nap and then sat down for her Bible study. wow. Then she cut mom's hair and did something to her nose, not quite sure what. L loves when she gets play attention, mom knows quite how to give it to her. Come back mom!!

New ride

So happy to see my girl's happy face on her new ride. She is amazing on it- so fast and so happy. Can you tell?

Turtle Crawl

J and I did our first tri of the year. J had his eye on this one for several years and although it was a magnet weekend for activities, we decided to go for it anyway. I am so glad we did. We had a really great time. The nice thing about a tri at the beach is that we got to recover under palm trees with a sea breeze. I recommend. I realize that people read this and I would love if they would skip this one. I am not trying to brag, I want to remember what we did. The swim was awful, the ocean and current was not kind. I think I swam about a mile in a 600 yard race. bum-mer. It took me forever--should have taken less that 15 minutes, took 30. wow that was bad. BUT I felt like I got into a great rhythm in the water, so that is what I am taking away. The bike ride was so beautiful. I love most bike rides I'm on. I love to watch the scenery go by. We went past beatiful trees, marsh and of course, ocean. The run was on top of the dunes overlooking the ocean- can't beat that! I made myself enjoy where I was. I am so grateful for my health, my husband and my friends to spend time with. I consider that I put my time into the pool at 5am to get the opportunity to swim in the ocean. Our times- me swim 30, bike (15 miles) 48 min (18.1mph), and run 26:19. Over all women 28/124 age group 5/21. John's times- swim 27:27, bike 43:14, run 23:44. age group 5/25 overall men 35/132. I am what I am because of grace of God. I Co 15:10

Art

Today was the art and music show for Ek and H. Pictures do not begin to describe Ek's square dance or the K4 rendition of wheels on the bus with kazoos, I will not try. But here is their adorable art. I had been hearing about this star fish for weeks! And H's fish is adorable. His hands won't be that size for long! How bout those orderly bubbles?

L's turn

Not a whole lot to say here, I just love this smile. Oh wait, I thought of something. This is while we waited for L's class to perform. It was actually the first time H and Ek sat at something for L. I had already decided that they would miss ball to watch their sister, after watching them at 100s of things, it was her turn and they were going to be there. To my delight, they wanted to be and were so happy to be!

Smart big little L

L had her last day of 2 year old preschool this week. She had a really great time in her class this year. Her teacher was so amazing. They did crafts everyday, learned a Bible truth every week and learned 10 Bible verses. I have not actually heard L say these verses, but I'm sure they are in there! She seemed to really get to know and like several little girls in her class especially Sara, Allie and Kensley. Sara will actually go to big school with her one day! This last week my little big girl decided she was big enough to walk into school all by herself, she would tell me to drop her off. Not exactly my favorite moment, but so proud that she wanted to be big. I remember how the year began with her asking at T where her class was. Her teachers were so surprised how well she talked and so delighted to see her little self potty train last fall. Her teacher said again when I picked her up the last day that you would never know she was the youngest in the room and said she was delightful. I think so too.

And this week, she made and identified an 'L.' She ate it right out of her toast.

Field day

H had a blast at field day! He especially liked the "turtle" race. Love that he confused hurdles with turtles! I asked him if he through they were pretending they were jumping over turtles and he said yes! They did a bunch of track and field events- races, relay races, shot put with tennis balls. Wonderful! He was also a big fan of the long jump, he chose to jump and slide. Love watching that boy fun and play.

Not quite what I expected

Yesterday Ek, H, L and I were out in the yard for an end of the year leaf project (that's another post completely). We walked the whole yard looking for our 5 types of leaves to collect, taking pictures, studying, exploring, trying to be good little scientist. We needed pine needles. Um, has anyone seen how tall pine trees are? Couldn't exactly grab a few. And I can't wait for a good wind to blow some down. Don't have a ladder tall enough. So I look into our lot next our driveway and see a small-ish pine tree. I give the kids a big spill-- "Ok kids, remember snakes are out, there are probably lots of snakes in there. I do not have boots on and neither do you, so you must, I repeat must, stay out of the woods, I will be very careful but I just want you to stay in the yard, Agreed?" They all nod with great reverence. "Good" I think and off I go, one step at a time being so careful to not step on a sleeping snake. Ek says, "Lets see what's growing in the garden!!" H and L follow with joyful, "yeah!!'s" Thirty seconds later, I'm not kidding, Ek says, "Mommy! There is a snake in the garden!"

Yep. There was, alright. Add it to the wildlife list (along with our various cats and turtles that I left off the last list.) I come out of the wilderness and back into our civilization to find a 3 foot long king snake slithering around the garden and my 3 children standing 10-15 yard away staring at it. Had it bed a 3 pound dog they would have run into the house screaming, but a snake, they stand and stare. hmmmm. Not sure about that one. So since he is a "good snake," we watched him slither back into the wilderness and we went inside, that's enough leaf collecting for one day.

Good question

They say that children who ask a lot of questions will be very smart-- well, L will be brilliant! Today, while reading Goldilocks and the three bears she asked at least 25 questions. My favorite, "Where's her mama?" L, we have all been wondering that for years. And "Can I go to their house" Well, you do have curly hair. She would be Brownielocks. Would anyone join me in calling her that nickname?

L + a container of sprinkles = ?

I said out loud today, if front of witnesses (HH, actually, and he laughed), "L don't pour out all the sprinkles or we won't have any left for our toast in the morning." Never thought I'd say that. And I'm not sure what I think about it. I do like a little colored sugar in the morning. Well, she did pour them all out. Rub them around a bit and lick her hands. Really, am I telling this story? sigh. But I did get the kitchen cleaned up a bit. the end.

Wildlife report

Since living in our home we have seen quite the wildlife walk by... During the first week, mom and I returned from a walk to find a wild hog in the front yard. That same summer we enjoyed frequent visits from 2 ducks living in the pond down the street-- they would walk down the street to visit us. Sometimes of the year we year the chorus of quail all around us and one night during dinner we saw them marching across the yard. We always enjoy our bluebirds, blue jays, red headed woodpeckers and cardinals. I love nothing more that a bunny jetting through at top speed. This winter we would spy quite the deer family in the neighborhood in the evenings- our highest count one night was 11. I have spotted an armadillo in a neighbor's yard- I thought of TX. Not in our yard, but on the way to school there are several turkeys who choose to cross right in front of me. We saw a King snake 10 yards from our garden several weeks ago. Can I count Samson, the wild lab, as wildlife? If so, count him several times! I was not expecting this little creature today... and may I saw ewwww. We trapped him in a bucket and let him go in the pond. BH desperately wanted to take it to school. I do not thing TH would have slept well with it in her home!! What will be next?

I think she'll be back

I think L's smile tells the story of this one. She enjoys (mild understatement) getting her nails painted very much! And, well, actutally, so do I. I tried to make the most of my disappointment of the rain spoiling our trip to the strawberry patch by meeting up at the mall with my 2 year old to and her generous Grandma to have nails done. Watching L was fabulous. I will remind her though, when she is finding it difficult to sit still, that I know she is capable if she can sit through trimming, filing, buffing, pink paint, sparkle paint and clear coat, oh and drying! She is a hoot. She asked if she could have her toes done too. I told her not today. She asked if she could when she was a mommy. I don't think it will be quite that long for this little girl.

All the time

I'm not sure when it began. I'm not sure how it began, but it did. Ek wears a variety of rubber bands and bracelets with her watch everyday. She even has some little rubber bands on her watch band. Sometimes as many as 12. They are not so much to be used. How do I know? She told me one day last week when I was desperate for one that 'ummm, they aren't really for hair.' sigh. It has drawn some attention. But she likes them and that is fine.

Early

It had been 6 weeks since the day of the great piercing. This is Ek's birthday present from her daddy and me. I knew she wanted to change them, so we opened birthday a bit early. She was thrilled with her pink flowers with a sparkle in the middle. They are a bit bigger than I wanted, but they are sweet. "Bigger that my ears!" is her description. Happy Birthday Ek.