Happy Anniversary!

This weekend, my husband and I will celebrate our 12th wedding anniversary—separately!  No, we aren’t fighting, and we don’t need marriage counseling (at least I don’t).  It just happened to work out that way this year.  So while I am sweating it out with the four children in Mississippi, Paul will be sweating it out in El Paso! :)

So many things have happened in these twelve years, and most of them good.  I will recount some of these for you here.

• 12 years of wedded bliss (the honeymoon doesn’t have to end)!
• 4 sweet children that live with us
• 1 precious baby who lives with Jesus
• 2 RVs
• 4 states of residence—WV, NC, IN, MS
• 1 mission house
• 1 rented mobile home
• 1 cute little house (which, by the way, we are hoping to finish the paperwork and complete the closing next week, HOORAY! That means we can purchase a house in the area where we now live!)
• 1 Dodge Ram 3500
• 2 years of part-time evangelism (while teaching at ABC)
• 10 years of full-time evangelism
• 300,000+ miles traveled in meetings
• 16,000+ pictures
• Hundreds of sermons—I don’t think I can even figure out how many! :)
• Hundreds of friends all over the world
• 2 mission trips
• Dozens of adventures
• Countless everyday blessings
• 1 thoughtful and funny husband
• 1 extremely happy wife

Like I said, just a sample of the good things…  I thank the Lord for the husband he has given me, and for the wonderful life we have had together so far.  I am looking forward to the next 68 years!  :)

Happy anniversary, Sweetheart!  I love you and I am so glad to be your wife!

The Mystery of the Missing Avacado

There is nothing like a good mystery to engage my thinking and excite the senses.  Last week, I bought three avocados when they were on sale at Kroger.  I was thinking maybe some guacamole and chips for a snack, you know?  All my kids love “broccomole,” as Daniel has dubbed the green stuff. 

Anyway, I started to prepare some dinner the other night, and to my consternation, I could only find two avocados.  “Now where did I put that other one?”  I thought to myself.  I began searching the countertop, in hopes that it would be hidden under a stray pot holder, or perhaps a rumpled grocery bag.  I looked on the floor, in the refrigerator, in the sink, behind my toaster oven, all to no avail.  The avocado had simply disappeared!

 

I thought perhaps it was outnumbered by the other two and summarily dispatched, but that seemed unlikely.  My only other option was to ask my normally clueless children.  “Has anyone seen my other avocado?” I asked.  Four sets of eyes fastened on me, and a high-pitched voice squeaked, “Daniel had it!”  Not good.  I ventured another question, “Well, where did he put it?”  Nobody knew.  Double not good.  Hmmm… Maybe I should ask the accused, I thought.  “Daniel, where did you put the avocado?”  He looked at me with a deceptively innocent face and replied, “It was yucky.”  One of his siblings took this opportunity to tell me that he had had it on the couch, and that while he was “hatching” it, it split open.  Okay, this was definitely not getting any better the more I questioned.  Now I had a rogue avocado somewhere in the trailer.  I searched the couch cushions and the trash cans, but still could not find the fruit.  Finally, I gave up.  It has been over a week now, and there has been no sign of the AWOL avocado.  I keep looking, and every now and then, sniffing around in the dark corners of the kids’ room.  I am afraid of what I will find if it does eventually show up.  But for now, it is one of the great unsolved mysteries of my life.

Hello, Monday

The idea for this post is not original with me, but all my photos are original.  I saw this on my friend Laine’s blog, and thought it was a great idea just to catalog a few things about my Monday morning.  So, here is your glimpse into the deep, dark secrets of Monday morning at our house! :)

Hello, sleeping munchkins!

 

Hello, breakfast!  The church youth were selling Krispy Kreme doughnuts as a fundraiser, otherwise know as Calories for Camp.

 

Hello, my morning cup of happiness – peppermint tea, anyone?

 

Hello, stack of coupons given to my by a friend.  Um, do I really have time to sort through these?!

 

Hello, crazy socks that make me smile!

 

Hello, new stainless steel mug from our church’s 25th anniversary celebration on Sunday.

 

Hello, braids.

 

Hello, too many choices.

 

Hello, messed up lipstick, otherwise known as, do not leave a three-year-old unattended in your bathroom.

 

Hello, my favorite set of keys!

 

What will your Monday hold?

Pinata Party

Okay, for starters, I am slightly irritated that I cannot put the little squiggly mark over my n in pinata.   Why is that button even on the keyboard if it will not put the mark over my n?  Anyway, I will save the blog post about my inadequacy at the typing keyboard for another  time! :)

When we were in Illinois, we ate dinner with our friends Adam and Jamie, along with their baby girl, and Adam’s father, who was in from California.  After dinner, they brought out a pinata,  much to the delight of the children!  I stood well back from the scene for my own safety and took several pictures, all the while shouting warnings to the other children to “stay back” and “look out!”

Then came the glorious rain of candy and toys when the box was finally broken open.  They had added special “Josiah-proof” candy to the box, so that there was something for everyone.  I will say that, next time, they might leave out the whistles… lol

Thanks, Adam & Jamie—it was so nice to see you both again!  :) By the way, we are still enjoying the whistles!

Gotcha!

Have you ever had one of those heart-stopping moments?  The kind when your eyes bug out of your head and you can’t believe what they have just seen?  I had one of those last week.  I was changing Daniel’s clothes and pulled his little jeans off, and nearly had heart failure!  This is what I saw!

“What is that huge purple bruise on his leg!?”  I gasped in horror when I saw it, every possible explanation running through my head.  He didn’t flinch when I pushed on it, and said it did not hurt, so I was quite puzzled.

Further examination revealed a pocket full of squished mulberries.  I’d been had!

Even though I felt a bit foolish, I was extremely relieved that I was able to just wash off the “bruise.”  Next time, I will make sure he has a bucket for his fruity treasures! :)

Creation Museum

In Petersburg, KY there is a fabulous tribute to God’s amazing power and glory.  Our family has had the privilege of visiting the Creation Museum twice now, and both times, I have come away amazed at all that God has done and can do.  It reminds me of the greatness of my God, and my own insignificance compared to the vastness of the universe.  It humbles me to think that God considered me so important that He would send His Son to die for me!

In addition to all of the great exhibits indoors, they have beautiful gardens all over the property and a petting zoo for the children.

 

I took about a bazillion pictures that day—everything was so beautiful!  It was blistering hot outside, so we tried to stay indoors as much as possible.  We went with my family, so it was a fun time for all of us to be together.  The kids loved the animals, and the older three even got to ride Gomer the camel!

 

I am so glad that we had this opportunity to spend some time together as a family enjoying the wonders of God’s creation.

Have you ever visited the Creation Museum?  It is  soooo worth a trip!