A refreshing weekend

When we moved to Cleveland 40 months ago -- I went kicking and screaming.  I hated it.  I didn't know why the Lord would "spring" a move like that on us.  We were supposed  to go to Tulsa, OK.  Not Ohio.  I knew I didn't like sunless winters and sticky summers.  There weren't any good churches near the hospital where Scot was going to be working.  To anyone looking on, I had a good attitude -- but inside I was fighting.  Hard.

I would have laughed in your face if you had told me those first few weeks living there that I would be back to visit not even 4 months after moving back "home".

First of all, can I say that my husband is amazing?  He values my relationships so much, that he told me yes, not only could I go back and and visit friends each fall, but I could start this fall!  

So for 4 days, I visited with friends. I talked late into the night -- every night.  I drank large cups of coffee every morning.  I bared my heart.  I laughed til I cried.  I slept in.  I went for a run with colored leaves crunching beneath my feet.  I was still.  I prayed. I had lunch with friends.  I went apple picking.  I shopped at my old grocery stores (read: Aldi and Trader Joes) and brought back goodies I haven't found here. I read a good long book while sitting silent in the airplanes.

I am refreshed to say the least.  I don't think I knew how dry I was before my trip.  Parched for the fellowship I had grown accustomed to -- the vulnerability that is natural with people who have walked a hard road with you.  Who have encouraged you to keep trudging on -- even though it's though and messy and hurts.

(I found my camera halfway through the trip.  So lunch with gals from my old Bible study and playgroup was not captured -- but it was fun!)

Mitchell's with the girls.  Such a lovely time.

I had a lovely time hanging with these ladies for a few days.
My how they miss my boys and vice versa. 

Apple picking with the old gang -- just missing Scot and the boys.

Macintosh apples.  My favorite.  A 5lb bag for $3 is also a favorite.

Oh.  Did I mention the boys stayed here and had "Grandparent Camp"?  Oh yes.  Scot had to work all but one of the days I was gone, so my folks had a blast with the boys.  They went to the zoo -- twice.  They went out to ice cream, ate their favorite foods, went exploring, had "tool time", played at parks, dug in dirt, watched movies with popcorn, and had a blast.

I told Evan this morning (my first morning home) that I missed him while I was gone.  His response: I tried to think about you, but sometimes I would only think about you when Grammy was kissing me goodnight and I would want to think about you as I fell asleep.  but I didn't.  I just couldn't stop thinking about aaaaallllllllll the fun things we had done that day!
me: so.... you didn't miss me?
evan: no.

So...I guess that means they were in good hands, right?

Happy Fall!

It's officially fall and I couldn't be more excited.  The air is changing, the leaves are turning, we're finally into a good rhythm/routine with school/work/play.  Balancing Scot's time off with the my "normal" routine was harder to adjust to than anticipated, but we're figuring it out with each passing "home day" more and more, and seeing each "home day" less as a vacation (the way our brains have been programmed to look at those rare off days for the past 7 years!) and more as just a wonderful blessing.

We went to a little farm-type-place a week ago on a gorgeous day after all the rain.  We were expecting something more like the beloved Farmpark back in Ohio, but no such luck.  We were quite disappointed, actually.  Except for the chickens, there wasn't much to see.  It was good though for the boys to run off some energy after being indoors for so many days.

The boys are a riot these days.  Here are some random cute quotes:

Drew, on his basketball shorts he wears to bed (that are actually Evan's): Do I look cool, Evan?

Evan: I wish I had three legs, then I would have more support and I could run faster.

Evan went to his first "drop-off" birthday party this week and this was a little conversation I heard between them:

D: But I want to go.

E: I know.  But you get to go to Aunt Nina's with mom.  And she always has juice.  You'll have fun, and you'll get juice.  I bet I won't get juice.

D: Oh.  I'll get some juice for you.  K?

E: Oh no, Drew.  You have to let Aunt Nina offer you the juice, you can't ask for it.  And when she offers you the juice, she'll just offer it to you because I won't be there.

D: Right.  I want to go to the party, though...

A conversation overheard on the playground: 

Evan introduced himself to another little boy and told him he was five, to which the other boy responded he was five, too.

E: Are you five and a half, or just five?

Other boy: Just five. 

E/: Oh, me too!  That's so cool.  We're the same age!

Other boy: (standing nose to nose and measuring) But I'm taller (and he was!)

E: Oh, that's probably because you a ton!

Drew, on how much he loves me: I love you so much, mom, I would run and run and run until I couldn't even walk!

school!

A week ago, we started the journey of home-schooling the boys.  I say journey because we don't know for sure what our plan is for the long haul, but for now, we feel that schooling the boys at home is the best decision for our family right now.  We plan to take it year by year and reassess before making a decision.

You may notice the sign there says "Pre-K" -- without going into all the details behind our decision, we are deciding to start Evan on an actual kindergarten program/curriculum in January and letting him work at it for a year and a half.  He was right on the cusp of being able to start or being fine to wait a year, and we went with the later.  He is very excited to start school and I'm tickled pink to be living in a state so friendly to homeschool families!  There are so many enrichment programs, or just really neat opportunities for us.

Drew is having a blast and doing a great job sitting still and doing "school", too.  I have certain goals for him to accomplish, too, and of course, he's a sponge, so I'm sure he'll pick up a lot of what I do with Evan.  We average 2-3 hrs a day, and the plan is to do that 3 times a week.

I have no idea what it will end up being, but the first week went well.  I'm concentrating on the basics (Bible/calendar/letters/numbers/reading/writing) at different and appropriately challenging levels for both boys. We have three "fun" subjects, music, geography, and art, and each school day we spend 30-45 minutes exploring one of those subjects.  It's simple, but it's manageable, and that's what I need.  This time between now and January is getting us in the groove for what is to come.

It's official, though: a new chapter has started.

Since I'm sure you can't read my tiny handwriting on that white board, I'll tell you what it says.

When I grow I want to be:
Evan: A Doctor
Drew: A Hunter

My favorite color is:
Evan: Green
Drew: Blue and Orange (he's a Bronco fan at heart!)

My favorite activity is:
Evan: Playing with friends
Drew: Playing at a park

My favorite toy is:
Evan: Board games
Drew: Trucks

A few snaps of life

We took the boys to their first movie theater to see Planes with friends and we all loved it.  The boys could follow the story line, it wasn't too crazy with action, it had a good message, and it was full of "plane humor", or so I was told by my friend I went with whose husband happens to be a pilot. :D  The boys could not stop talking about it once we left.

This is the way Drew prefers to watch me cook (don't worry, the burner by his feet is off!)  Look how big he's getting!

In prep for our camping trip into the mountains next month, we bought the boys new fleece hats (their old ones were too small!).  Needless to say, they're loving "trying them out".

Scot is done with boards.  Praise the Lord!  We took the 2 days post-boards to celebrate.  We had lazy mornings, lots of daddy time, watched movies (us adults), and went to the zoo on a cloudy afternoon.  It was a wonderful 2 days, to say the least. Look at those smiles!

Labor Day 2013

I have been looking forward to Labor Day, oh...since we knew we were moving back to Colorado.

Labor Day here means the Balloon Classic down in the springs, and that equals happiness and smiles.  And who wouldn't be happy and grinning with lots of hot air balloons being rolled out, blown up, and floating away?!

The weather is always a toss up, but the Lord was gracious this year, and while Sunday's weather was less than desirable for hot air balloons, Monday dawned perfect.  Clear and sunny with no wind.

Scot had to work, but my folks and I got up with the sun, put together a picnic-styled breakfast, got mugs of steaming coffee (or hot cocoa) and woke the boys for the adventure.

We arrived to the field right as the first two balloons were blown up but not off the ground yet.  It was fabulous.  We were able to see several balloons from first to last step, and we each claimed a different balloon as our favorite.  It was great to see the boys' excitement and enjoyment and share the moment with my folks.

Here are a few pictures from the morning, more can be found here.

Early start meant the ground looked like it was breathing with a very lumpy chest

Three of the first balloons up all looked alike.

Stages of  ascent

My personal favorite

Had the unique opportunity to stand in the mouth of a balloon that was being blown up

This was the last (3rd) wave of the morning.  Beautiful sight to see.

And what's a fair-like event with some funnel cake?

Oh, and the rest of the weekend was wonderful.  (When is hanging out at my folk's house not wonderful?!)  My mom built a teepee for the boys and they enjoyed playing in it as well as having a snack in it while my mom read to them.   We also built a fire, roasted marshmallows, and had a generally great time.  Can't wait for next year, when Lord willing, Scot will be with us!

A real Prince

He doesn't wear a crown -- unless he's playing pretend, that is, and he also has his sword and shield with him.

He doesn't live in a castle -- but I have been told a man's home is castle, so maybe that applies to little boys, too.

He doesn't ride a horse -- although he'd tell you otherwise as he gallops on his stick-horse Licorice.

All that aside, Drew is a Prince -- he's now a Child of the King.  He has joined the ranks of a larger family than just the 4 of us.

A little over a week ago (I know, I've been busy and this is the first time I've been able to sit down and write it all out!) after we were done with breakfast Drew was in the kitchen with me and Evan was getting ready for the day and this is the way our conversation went,

Drew: (out of the blue) Mom.  I know Jesus died on the cross for my sins.
Me: He did.
Drew.  Yes.  And I love Him and I want to follow Him (here he had my undivided attention).
Me: You do?
Drew: Yes.  Can I pray and tell God that I love Him and want to follow Him?
Me: YES!!

And he did.  Just like that.  He prayed, he thanked the Lord for Jesus coming and dying for his sins and told Him he loved Him and wanted to follow Him.  I was speechless and overjoyed.

We've been noticing a certain softening in Drew the last year, but most definitely in the last 4ish weeks.  We knew something was going on, but I didn't think he was that close, ya know?  When questions about salvation would come up, I would just end the conversations letting him know we'd keep talking about it.  He was interested in heaven and being there with us -- not quite in tune with his sinful state and Christ's gift to us through the His death on the cross.  Something changed, obviously.

I know a three year old can only grasp so much, but after all was said and done I was thankful heaven didn't come up in his little (and yet HUGE) profession of faith.  We pray the Lord continues to grow Drew and that his profession of faith bears real fruit.

And in the last week we've continued to see changes in his attitude, his prayers at any meal time, and his treatment of the rest of us.  We'll see how long it lasts, but before all this he got scared easily, especially right before bed, and in the last 10 days he hasn't had a bad dream or been scared when we close the door at night.

It's a sweet thing to see a child becoming a true Child of the King, but especially your own, and we're just rejoicing and praising the Lord for the sweetness.