Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Easter bunny 2015

The girls insisted on a visit to the Easter Bunny this year. They also insisted on Easter hats. I think the effort was pretty cute :) Seeing as how none of my flowering bushes are even close to blooming & that it is predicted to be so cold on Sunday, I thought we'd get these this year. They had a blast & the Easter Bunny assured them that he'd be seeing them on Sunday. Love these 2 so much!

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Awana 2015

The girls completed their Awana program last night at our church. For those not familiar with Awana, it is a Christian program for kids, which is kind of like cub scouts, where kids learn bible verses to earn badges. The girls, more specifically, Jessica, really got into to earning badges for her vest & was so proud when she could say her verse & earn a badge. Here are some snapshots from their awards ceremony last night. The girls got the "Elsa & Anna Sister Award". Their teachers said they were good sisters to each other, but sometimes had their disagreements.....yep, that pretty much fits. Michael volunteered with the older kids also. It was a great experience for all involved. So thankful for this experience for them. Video follows of the girls singing their "Cubbies" song....I think they're pretty cute :)

Thursday, March 19, 2015

Lent Photo A Day #30: Light

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

John 8:12

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Little Blue gymnast

The girls had dance & gymnastics this last Tuesday, which was St. Patrick's Day. It was so fun for them, they each had specific activities related to the day & the little store at their gym had a great St. Paddy's Day sale. Being the super shopper mama that I am, I snagged a great deal on this pretty leotard for Jessie. Jessie, of course, wanted to model it when we got home. Blue is her absolute favorite color & she loved the skirt, so there you have it a little girl's dream come true. She's doing great at the gym & although she's one of the late joiners for her class she is coming along quickly with her skills. Still working on that ever so elusive cartwheel, but she's definitely making fast progress. As you can see in the below pics, there is no baby left in this young lady & she's really maturing quickly! So proud of our big girl :)

Lent Photo A Day #29: Believe

"Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."

Mark 11:24

Lent Photo A Day #28: Endure

Have you ever had a time of suffering or maybe a time of unpleasantness, a time that called for endurance? Poor little Ella certainly endured numerous uncomfortable hairstyles when she was younger. Perhaps, it's something much more difficult & you feel stuck in a season of suffering. I can tell you from experience in my own life that those seasons produce character in ways you often didn't realize were possible. Cling to God's promises & he will carry your though.

"More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope"

Romans 5:3-4

Lent Photo A Day #27: Wilderness

"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ²And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry."

Matthew 4: 1-2

No believer can fully avoid the wilderness experience — it is the path we must all travel. It can take the form of depression… a crisis of faith… or one or more traumatic life events, of which the list is endless. It is not a joyful time. It is a time when we feel alone, deserted, and dying of spiritual thirst in the midst of a debilitating spiritual draught. There is not much solace in a wilderness experience, but it should bring some comfort to us to realize that every believer is subjected to such encounters. All true saints go through a wilderness experienced in their life; some more than others. Spiritual dryness, or the wilderness experience, is God’s way of getting us to exercise our faith even when there is little feedback or affirmation or emotional joy. In the wilderness we are not being punished — we are being tested, and our faith is being strengthened. (Dr. D. W. Ekstrand)

Lent Photo A Day #26: Celebrate

They celebrate your abundant goodness

and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

The Lord is gracious and compassionate,

slow to anger and rich in love.

The Lord is good to all;

he has compassion on all he has made.

Psalm 145:7-9

Lent Photo A Day #25: Search

29 "But if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you search for him with all your heart and with all your soul."

Matthew 4:29

Lent Photo A Day #24: Practice

24 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

Matthew 6:24

We become what we give our lives to. This is not a demand from Christ to “pick me or die”…it is a teaching of a basic simple truth. What you spend your time doing you become. We must take time daily to practice our faith if we truly wish to live a Godly life.

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Lent Photo A Day #22: Stop

Isaiah 2:22

"Stop trusting in mere humans, who have but a breath in their nostrils. Why hold them in esteem?"

The question is whether to put your trust in people. Obviously, as children we trust in our parents & as we get older we may place trust in our spouses. However, trusting in people to meet our needs entirely is where the problem comes in. People are mortal and finite with limited power. Indeed, they have "only a breath in their nostrils". If we only trust in people alone, then we will never fully have our needs met. The only way to have our needs fully met is to place our trust in God. Having the expectation that people can fully meet our needs is foolish & only leads to disappointment. So we should just stop & recognize where all true power comes from!

Lent Photo A Day #21: Wise

March 11th's theme is Wise. When I asked the girls, "who do you think is wise?" They, of course, said an owl! Hence the photo below. I think as Christians we all strive to be wise in the ways of the Bible & we study & learn many wonderful things about our faith. We may even start to feel that we are wise. Herein lies the problem, if we are seeking to be wise in our own eyes or so that others will notice us, then we fall into the great trap of pride. We should fear God first & foremost & turn from evil, then & only then can we truly be wise.

Proverbs 3:7New International Version (NIV)

"Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil."

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Great Wolf Lodge

We took Jessica away this year for her big 5th birthday to Great Wolf Lodge in Sandusky, OH. We left on Friday, Feb. 27 & returned on Sunday, March 1st. We were able to meet up with extended family from Michigan at this resort & we all had a blast. Jessie felt very special. I had set up a special visit to their kids spa called "Scoops". Everything there is scented like ice cream & for good behavior they received a voucher for ice cream to use at a little ice cream bar in the rest. All in all is was a wonderful weekend, although not exactly as relaxing as vacations pre-kid used to be. We had booked the "Wolf Den" room, which had a little den inside the room with 2 bunk beds for the girls, which they loved. All kids that visit receive a pair of wolf ears to wear, which also added to the excitement of the visit. At night, they have a animatronic story time/show where animals sing & a character reads a story. The girls were mesmerized by this. For those of you not familiar with Great Wolf Lodge, it is string of family-centered resorts which features an indoor waterpark. A kids paradise. Me being the germaphobe that I am was a little concerned about cleanliness, but thankfully everything was extremely clean & very tidy. Jessica & Ella were fearless in terms of the water park & did not hesitate to do all of the water slides. They both liked the kid-friendly hot tub, which during that weekend, we had blizzard-like weather & negative temps outside, so it felt good to young & old alike. She had been talking about having an Elsa party for a few weeks prior, so I knew I'd need to get an Elsa cake of some sort. I didn't even attempt this considering I had to do all the packing, etc. for the trip. It was lovingly baked by our local grocery store, but she loved it. She was of course showered by family with gifts galore & felt special. When I asked her what was her favorite part of the weekend? Getting to wear wolf ears was her answer....there you have it, I should have just ordered a pair of ears, I guess :) No seriously though, we are very thankful to be able to celebrate her birthday in such a fun & extravagant way. Our Jessica deserves to know how much she is loved & I believe her weekend away achieved just that. Enjoy the photos!

Our 2 little wolves in our room