he's a part of the family too

little man just asked jesus into his heart. he crawled out of the fort he was sleeping in about thirty minutes ago and asked me if he could accept jesus into his heart. we walked hand in hand to find daddy.  jd asked him several questions and he answered them and had a few questions of his own. he then repeated a prayer after john david.  m1 was excited and tried to be a part of it also, but we sent her to the other room so we could have some private time.  she fell asleep while waiting but woke up briefly for little man to tell her the great news. "you did what to your foot?" was her response. i guess she was still a bit groggy...

p.s. he doesn't always sleep in a fort! we are on day three of the children being home from school due to the rain and hurricane like weather. yesterday he and m1 built a fort and they are sleeping in their sleeping bags underneath.

great wolf lodge

the children were out of school last friday for a teacher workday so the family headed up to the great wolf lodge on thursday afternoon. we were overdue for some immediate family time... lots of distractions lately. the park was just about empty thursday night and most of the day on friday. this was a great trip and we all had a fantastic time. little man and m1 had fun playing with each other, and the fort provided hours of fun for them. jd and i took turns with m2 so we were able to spend lots of time with all the children.

lots of treats...

on saturday afternoon our church had a harvest festival with games, food and hayrides. the weather, which had been perfect all day, started to change as the event began... but not enough to keep the crowds away. i didn't get a picture but the best costume was a dad as the man with the yellow hat and his son dressed as george.

afterwards we headed home to trick-or-treat our neighborhood. i will be the first to tell you that this is NOT my favorite day because of what it can stand for. (and not because i could never have a birthday party on my actual birthday). but our neighborhood has gone to great lengths to ensure a safe place for children to have fun, so we participate along with everyone else. most of the neighbors sit at the end of their driveways and hand out candy... some have crock pots (with extension cords) filled with hot chocolate for adults... some turn their garages into haunted mazes... we also have off-duty police officers close off roads to cars and assist with security; others ride on bikes around the neighborhood. we handed out over 600 pieces of candy... one piece of candy per child; of course i did eat a few pieces along the way and apologize to the last few children that we had to turn away. i just could not resist!

happy birthday me

these pictures have nothing to do with this post (they are actually from a family reunion that i have yet to blog about) but they show me NOT acting forty-two.

how much is silence worth to you?

little man: "will you please be quiet?"
m1: "no"
little man: "I will give you a quarter from my piggy bank if you will just stop talking"
m1: "no i have lots to say"

death and new life

my mom called as we were walking in from church this morning. my uncle joe (her brother) had suffered a heart attack while at church; they were taking him to the hospital but she feared he was already gone. a while later she called back to confirm his death. in one instant our world was changed. numbly i continued fixing lunches while talking with my sister. her family was just getting ready to walk into church when mom reached them. they were turning around and heading to the lake. we decided to do the same and quickly got everyone back into the car. we drove for two hours and arrived at the hospital soon after my sister and her family. we spent about 30 minutes at the hospital with my aunt and cousins. and then it was time to go home.

uncle joe was a changed man from his youthful days. he grew up in church but God did not really take hold of his heart until much later. the past ten years he and my aunt were very involved in church. he was a softened man, tough with a tender heart. he loved me and showed it by teaching me to ski, bait a hook and fish, how to drive a boat. he loved my children and showed it by hugging them, and asking them questions. he loved my husband and showed it by playing cards with him and talking carolina basketball.

he is in a better place now. i just liked the place where he was... he lived at the lake. it will never be the same.

in the midst of all the driving and conversations with the children, the subject of heaven was freely discussed. questions were asked and answered. later in the evening as jd was praying with m1 she expressed a desire to ask jesus into her tender heart. this was not a new thing with her, she had asked before but when questions were asked of her, all of the concepts were just not there. this time they were. john david, m1 and myself held hands as she prayed and asked jesus to come into her life and clean her of her sins. fresh tears were flowing down my cheeks. this day will never be forgotten.

the lake (mostly pictures)

the family ~ minus m2

little man loves getting out in the water with his cousins and familiy. jumping off the boat, fishing, kayaking, water guns and boogie boards keep the children entertained.

meredith and daddy are practicing while she waits for her turn behind the jet ski. she has learned to float this year and proudly shows off that skill.

they make me laugh!

granddaddy and his crew...

mckinley trying to stay afloat with 4 life-jackets on. it was hysterical; she would not even go under when she jumped off the boat. even though she is ten, she enjoys spending time with m1. they went for a long kayak ride, mckinley paddling up front and m1 relaxing in the back. she is a special funny girl and i love her most dearly.

mommy time... i enjoy getting out on the jet ski for some alone time. i can sing praise songs or talk to God, knowing that no one else is listening. i took a picture of my spedometer... i like going fast... i don't like that moment of panic when i turn too quickly and the ski almost comes out from under me and i realize that i have responsibility, a husband, three children, not enough insurance!

little man and granddaddy on the tractor after putting the jet ski over. this is entertainment!

these boys just love one another! little man and cousin wes are not only cousins they are great friends. after a full day in the water they find all sorts of fun "boy" things to do: shooting a bow and arrow (someone got a bulls-eye) playing horseshoes, building with legos. times like this i wish my sister and her family lived much closer.

bike riding is another fun thing the children like to do after spending the day in the water. since they are on grass they don't have to wear helmets, and if they fall off the pier they are only going in the water. little man has been on two wheels since the spring and he encouraged m1 to try two wheels on our last visit of the summer. she and daddy would start in the garage and ride onto the grass. by the end of the day she was riding down the pier with mommy. i was on mckinley's bike ~ she is 10, her bike is small, tough leg work-out. and YES, she is in her night gown and i am in my jammies.

the lake is a special family place... we have been going since i was five. my grandparents started out with a silver bullet trailer, quite different from the house we now have. this is not the place to go if you like eating out or entertainment. the closest wal-mart is an hour away and the grocery store forty-five minutes away; we bring everything in that we need so we don't have to leave. leaving is hard. it's the type of place where after dinner we load the children in the car and go deer spotting ~ if you are lucky you might see a bear! on any given day there might be a dozen small fishing boats nestled up around the cypress tree lined shore. on a busy day six or so jet skis / boats will be towing children around skiing or trying to bounce them off airheads. my sister and i go each year in june (our husband drive back and forth on the weekends) so our children can spend lots of fun time together. it's also a special time for us to reconnect since we don't see each other as much as we would like. after that we head down for as much time as we can without forgetting about church and other responsibilities at home. it is such a beautiful place that leaving is difficult... too many memories to walk away from.