Freaky Face!

I promise I was not playing with my food this time. The two "eyes" were pieces of cereal that looked a little questionable so I scooted them off to the side. When I tipped my bowl to get the last couple spoonfuls, this face appeared! I have to admit, it was a little creepy to see this face looking up at me from my cereal bowl. =)

Ephesians 6:10-11

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the whole armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.

Duckie's Rainbow

Water,Sun, Popsicles, Friends...We Can't Get Enough!!

We showed up at Aunt Sandy's today just as Amanda did with her kids. My mom came a little later, and Cindy Curtis was there to babysit. What a party! With so many adults we don't have to worry about the kids as much. It was a super hot day and the pool was refreshing as ever. The girls swam today with NO SWIMMIES! I was sooo proud of them! They told everyone "We can swim already!" What an awesome time. I still smile thinking about it. =)

Psalm 50:14-15

Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you and you will honor me.

This is the way we spend our days....

Beating on pots, pans and peanut butter jars. Shaking the bacon bits and sippy cups full of Cap'n Crunch. Playing with Lindsey's camera. Reading "the news". Playing restaurant - Lindsey can be the girl who asks what the people want.
Me: "How do I do it?"
Charlie: "You ask the (pretent=) people what they want, then you think in your head what they want. Then come tell us and we will make it."

Psalm 50:12-13

If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world is mine and all that is in it. Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?

What was she thinking?!

Just before noon today, Charlie and Sydney were playing restaurant at home. Besides their kitchen play set, they were using some plastic beads for rice. Suddenly, Charlie looked at me and said, "I have a bead in my nose." I promptly replied, "No you don't." Unfortunately, she was right and I was wrong. Doh! She did, indeed, have a bead up her nose. So I called her mom the nurse and we trekked on up to Mercy so Kelli could check it out. (We decided it was too far up for me to try to get it out.) Syd and I waited while Kelli and Charlie went to the ER, and finally, about 1:15 or so, they returned. The procedure was successful, and Charlie did not want to keep the bead. Seriously, child! At least I am being prepared for my own children, eh? Sorry, no pictures of this ordeal. =)None of us had eaten lunch yet so Kelli treated us to lunch at the hospital cafeteria. Well, "treat" isn't exactly the word I would use for whatever it was we ate there, but it was fine. We all survived the day and spent the rest of our afternoon enjoying the sunshine at Aunt Sandy's.

John Ball Zoo

Gone to Tahiti...

Super cute sign on an exhibit at the zoo.

Splish, Splash!

Psalm 50:9-11

I have no need of a bull from your stall, or of goats from your pens, for every animal in the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains and the creatures of the field are mine.

Oh, here's a spot

Tonight I went with Kristin Woodby to the Coast Guard fireworks. We left my house about 9pm, and by then downtown was a complete nuthouse. Sooo many people. Thousands. Those of you who've been to the CG fireworks know what I mean. It's seriously insane. We found a corndog place for Kristin, then decided to just wander until we found a spot to sit or just until the show started. The "traffic" was incredible - single file, horribly slow, very crowded. Of course, we love it and wouldn't have it any other way! After a while we were getting a little discouraged. Usually, with only two people, you can find somewhere to sit. Not so much tonight. There was no good spot anywhere. That's what we thought until we spotted a good-size square of empty grass among hundreds of other spots littered with blankets, chairs, coolers, and kids. Our faces probably looked rather silly - we were so confused! How could there be a huge empty spot right before the fireworks were supposed to start? We asked around and one family told us they had been expecting friends who never showed up, so they moved their blanket and the spot was free for the taking. So we took it! We laughed and laughed, it just seemed so random! It was a perfect spot, too. We could see the channel and boats, which means we could see the ground-level fireworks as they were being set off. Way cool. We had a fantastic time and plan to find a big, empty, random spot next year....ha! yeah right. =)

Wow!!

I have attended the Coast Guard Festival Fireworks for as long as I can remember, and they never get old. I didn't get the grand finale, but this is 29 seconds of an incredible 20-30 minute show. Enjoy! (And please forgive me, the video is sideways - I wasn't really thinking about it, I was watching the fireworks!)

Home is where you keep your flip flops

No Good Thing

Last night I was listening to 91.3 WCSG and heard someone preaching. I don't know who it was, but he was quite good. From what I gathered, the speaker was talking to men at a conference or something. When I turned it on, he was talking about dad's being with their sons in order to teach them the Truth. You know, how the Bible says to talk about it in the home, when you're out walking, just in every day situations. The speaker gave an illustration (the following is my paraphrase of the illustration)about a time with his son when they went to the gas station for a couple cokes. The line was long because the lottery had gone up to $85 million and people were getting tickets. The lady behind the counter asked if he (the speaker) wanted a ticket, and was shocked when he said "no, thank you." She bugged him about it until he finally spoke up about putting His trust in Christ. Later, in the car, he spoke with his son about the incident. He told his son that those men buying lottery tickets were counting on money to make them happy, but God said in Psalm 84 that He will not withhold any good thing from those who walk uprightly. He told his son that if he needed 85 million dollars, God would give him that money. The illustration was to encourage men to be with their sons so as to take advantage of every teaching moment life (God!) presents. What struck me was the reminder that God does not withhold good from those who live according to His standards, plans, and will. He knows what I need, what I desire, and my job is to walk worthy and trust Him. Wow, it was such a reassurance for me, to be reminded that God knows me, my needs, my desires, my fears...He loves me and will provide what I need, when I need it. Right now I need a new tenant for my previous place so I can stop paying rent on it. God knows that, and He will either bring a new tenant or provide the money I need to pay my rent for both places. When I decided to move back to Grand Haven, and thus terminating my lease early, I knew I would be in a pickle if my landlord didn't find a new tenant pretty quick. But I believe that moving to my current place was a wise decision. I trust that if it was the wrong decision, God will help me learn from my mistake and provide for my needs some way, some how. If, indeed, it was the wise thing to do, I have no doubt that God will provide. Until then, I will encourage and challenge myself with Psalm 84:11, "For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly."