Should have known

Whose idea was it to get Aaron a football helmet for Christmas? Ahem... that would be me. (grimace)
I should have known this is what would happen. I left the boys happily playing in their bedrooms on Monday afternoon while I did some work in the school room.

And then I heard the hooting and hollering and loud thumps.

I raced upstairs to find them in their football "uniform" running some plays in our bedroom! Of course I had to take a few pictures before I discouraged them from throwing their football and tackling one another inside the house.  "It's just a small ball, Mommy." "We're not really throwing it hard." oh my! And no... nothing broke this time.

It's a little blurry from all their movement!

Gotta love the school spirit! Go Hokies!

* And just to clarify... I love that they were bonding together and having a great time. 

Just a little nervous about them getting hurt and/or breaking something inside (again!) :)

More of Him in 2012

I've never been one to come up with New Year's resolutions and I'm not sure why. No big philosophical reason, I've just never done it. However, this year I decided that I wanted to come up with a theme Bible verse for the new year. A verse that I could memorize, meditate on and learn from. Sort of a spiritual goal for the coming year.

So, I sat down this week to pick a verse. I opened my Bible and I wasn't sure where to turn. Since I studied  many Psalms this summer and really enjoyed it, I decided to turn there. I began skimming through some Psalms praying that God would lead me to a verse that captured my hearts desire. I wanted to find a verse about drawing closer to God and so I continued looking and praying. And then, as I was reading in the Psalms a verse popped into my head. I knew it was from the Bible because I had heard it before, but it wasn't on the page in front of me and I couldn't remember when I read it last. I did a quick search online and found it in Isaiah. I am certain that God laid this verse on my heart and this excites me!

This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength..." Isaiah 30:15


I'm slowly beginning to unpack this verse and understand it in it's context, but the six key words in this verse are perfect: repentance, rest, salvation, quietness, trust and strength.

I went back to the beginning of the chapter and using some commentaries tried to understand better who this verse was written to and why. The verse actually continues with one more phrase, "...but you would have none of it." This passage is written to a wicked generation who is being exposed for their rebellious ways. They did not heed and hear what was spoken to them from God, and the result was not good. According to one of the commentaries that I read, it is written as a warning to others not to live as these wicked men did. The Lord told them that if they turned toward Him in repentance and away from their evil ways, if they submitted themselves to the Lord's will they would be saved! He told them that as "their spirits were calm before Him and in continual dependance on Him and His power and goodness"* then they would have strength.

This is significant to me. Over the last year, I have learned a lot about the importance of repentance in my relationship with God. It's not a one time thing. It is a daily, moment by moment experience of repenting for my sin. I've learned that as I study His word and read of His goodness and faithfulness, then I am able to more fully trust Him with the day in and day out challenges I face. He offers me salvation. He offers me strength. He has given me His love letter, the Bible. I love this!

The one other word that jumps out at me is quietness. (less complaining, less gossiping, less hurtful words, less of me ... more calmness, more dependance, more peace, more strength, more Him!)

I am excited to look back a year from now and see examples of His faithfulness. To see how He is teaching me more and more to trust Him and draw near to Him. I'm so thankful that He led me to this verse and ready for more of Him in 2012!

*Matthew Henry's Commentary

Grandma and Grandpa's

On Wednesday mid-day we left for Grandma and Grandpa's house in Pennsylvania. That evening we gathered for a pot-luck dinner with Darin's sister's family, his cousins, and aunts and uncles. Some of these folks we only get to see once a year, so it's a special time of visiting and catching up.

Darin playing with the kiddos.

Enjoying the awesome fire in the fireplace on this chilly day. 

 The extended family gathering and annual gift exchange.

 The annual Christmas brunch (and my silly boys!)

Grandma was very patient and read LOTS of stories to the boys. :)

We had a good time visiting with both sides of our families, but this introvert was glad to get home Friday night! phew! Now who wants to come help fold laundry and un-decorate!?! :) 

So thankful for the boys being happy travelers and having minimal traffic on our return home.

Over the river and through the woods...

... to Grammy and Poppy's house we go!

We gathered at my parents house with my older brother and his family to celebrate Christmas from Monday through Wednesday. (Smooches and hugs to my little brother and his family in Canada!) It was bitter sweet since it will likely be the last Christmas in my childhood home.  Back in 1970, my parents bought an antique house (built in the 1800's) They have spent the last 40 years refurbishing and renovating it, mostly by themselves. It is really beautiful, but they are excited to move forward to owning a home that requires less maintenance. They are hoping to relocate to Virginia in 2012!

My parents real Christmas Tree and the traditional Christmas village. As long as I can remember, my parents have had the tree platform and set up the village. It's really pretty!

Getting ready to enjoy a Christmas meal. 

On Tuesday we went to a nearby horse farm with my dad and got to visit Willy the horse. 

We all had a chance to give Willy a snack of some apple. Ethan was in heaven!
It was pouring rain outside so we couldn't do any riding. 

Aaron was not so sure. Notice his hands in his pockets! His expression is priceless!

Ethan found a new friend.

The littlest boys watching the fire together on Wednesday morning. 

Jumping cousins!

Next stop... Grandma and Grandpa's house. 

Christmas Day

Has it really been a week since Christmas day?! We enjoyed our day home celebrating as a family before we hit the road to visit with our extended family on Monday. We've been really mindful of trying to keep Jesus the focus of our celebrating... a tricky endeavor in this world we live in. I've been really conflicted about the materialism that tempts me and the boys this time of year, but that's a serious post for another time. :) We are very blessed and I'm thankful that we could give generously and thoughtfully. My prayer is that they learn the joy that comes from giving to others. And that the ultimate gift is Jesus dying for us on the cross!

On Christmas morning, the boys let us sleep until 7am. (a rare treat for me!) 

Our tradition is to give the boys each three gifts, just as the wise men brought three gifts to baby Jesus. Luke decided we should open the gifts youngest to oldest because he could be the most patient. ;) Here are a few of our favorite shots from the morning. 

Aaron was SOO thrilled to open his very own Virginia Tech football helmet and jersey. 

The jersey was a little big, so Ethan tried it on for him. 

He was quick to change into his football outfit. :) 

He and I spent time outside in the afternoon tossing his football. 

 Ethan received his first big Lego set... the Lego farm. Perfect for my little animal lover!

He was thrilled and I'm so proud of him for being to put it together all by himself. 

We also got him a microscope so he could study little creatures. (This will be fun for all of us.)

And for my Lego lover extraordinaire...a lego cargo train. 

We also found Electronic Snap Circuits in a catalog and it was a huge hit. 

His little brain loves building the projects and seeing the outcome. (a blowing fan, an AM radio, etc.) 

This is super cool if you have a kid who loves figuring out how things work and taking things apart!

We had a late breakfast of sausage/egg casserole and homemade "ooey, gooey cinnamon rolls" before heading off to church. The rest of the day zipped by as the boys enjoyed their new toys while Darin and I packed for our travels. I'm thankful for the memories we made as a family this Christmas. 

Happy Happy

"She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, 

because he will save his people from their sins." Matthew 1:21

The kids enjoyed singing to Jesus. (And yes, Aaron changed into jammies as soon as we got home from church!)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

75 days complete!!!

On Thursday (12/22) we completed day 75 of school! Even though most public school kids were on break this week, we decided to keep on working with a shortened schedule so that we'd have some structure to our days. I have to say, it was probably the most delightful week we've had so far. I mostly think God is at work in my heart, giving me extra patience with the boys and the ability to love them well. However, I also think that I was more relaxed because we didn't have as much to complete and that certainly affects how the boys behave. When I'm stressed and uptight, the boys are usually on edge. Darin called when he was traveling to check in and I'm not sure he believed me when I said day after day that we'd had a great day! Praise the Lord for a good school week.

On Monday, we had a fun home school Christmas party so we did a little work before going and a little work when we returned. (A very light school day!) Then the rest of the week we had a relaxed schedule of starting around 8:30ish and completing our work around 10:30, depending on when we started. We didn't have any art classes, Bible studies, or PE classes to rush to and that was just wonderful.  This week was an early Christmas present! A reminder that this is where God wants us now and encouragement that He can give me strength to love my boys even when I'm tired. (And I've been burning the midnight oil working on my sewing project!)

Here is what we worked on during our short days:
Luke - Bible, spelling, reading and reading comprehension, math, My Father's World United States study, and a little science too. (We omitted grammar, phonics and music this week since we're ahead in those topics.)
Ethan - Bible, phonics, math and reading aloud practice
Aaron - puzzles, duplos, magneatos, lincoln logs, and having fun!

So tomorrow starts our first official day of Christmas break and I'm praying that when we start up again in January we will all be rested and ready to start the second semester as well as we finished up the first. We read this passage Thursday during our Bible time. It's a passage that we've all read many times but oh how it pierced my heart this time around. We had some good discussions about it and I have some ideas of how I want to continue those discussions over our break. So thankful for what He is teaching me!!!

"And now I will show you the most excellent way. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. 


Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." 1 Corinthians 12:31b - 13: 1-7