One Thousand Gifts, 251-260

251. Nora's first trip to the beach.
252. Time to reflect on each child's strengths and weaknesses and make some conscious parenting choices.
253. Planning and dreaming about future vacations.
254. Finishing a book.
255. Key lime pie.
256. Drinking my coffee while it was hot three mornings in a row.
257. Sitting on the beach watching the munchkins play in the sand and waves with their Daddy.
258. Soaking in those moments, knowing they are growing up so fast and these times won't last forever.
259. An early celebration of our wedding anniversary.
260. A fun detour to the art museum on our way home.

Jacob's Dinosaur Birthday!

We celebrated Jacob's birthday a little early this past weekend. I think his dinosaur party lived up to all his hopes and dreams--he broke the pinata open, dug for dinosaurs, and ate too many treats, so--success!

One Thousand Gifts, 241-250

241. Dedicating Nora and Jacob to the Lord this Mother's Day
242. Celebrating Jacob's birthday with an adorable dinosaur party
243. That the cake turned out for said party
244. Our awesome family who surrounded us to celebrate so many things this weekend
245. Tessie's birthday!
246. Fun with cousins
247. Help from Nana getting all the party prep done
248. Peonies in bloom
249. The hint of the heat of summer just around the corner
250. Cake. Three different kinds this weekend. Yum.

Weekend at Nana's!

We all had a fantastic time at Nana's a couple of weekends ago. Annie, Jacob, and Sophie loved playing outside and exploring all over the gardens and orchard and lawns. Nora enjoyed all the snuggles and had her best night of sleep ever--10:30-6:30am (which has not yet been repeated...). Nana made a delicious roast, ordered us pizza, and the kids got their fill of pop-tarts. So thankful for this fun trip and family time together!



















Whenever I see the kids on this swing, I see my Papaw standing just outside the camera lens. It makes me happy.

Bible Study Fellowship Recap

This year I studied the life of Moses (Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) with Bible Study Fellowship. Other than a study of Proverbs and lectures on Daniel, I don't think I've ever studied the Old Testament in-depth before. It was fascinating! So much of Jesus in the Books of the Law...who knew? :) Studying the endless sacrifices makes me so thankful for Jesus, His once and for all atoning sacrifice on our behalf. I loved learning about how the different feasts and the elements of the tabernacle reflected Jesus. The lamp stand as the Light of the world and the bread of the presence as the Living Bread I had thought about before, but the curtain between the Most Holy Place as Jesus' body (Hebrews 10:20), torn for us to allow us direct access to God? Amazing!

I was also amazed by the grace God displayed throughout these books. We read the stories of God's judgment and shudder, as we should. But for those who sought the Lord, like Rahab, God provided a place in His family. Even rebellious Korah, who died unrepentant, had descendants who became writers of the Psalms.

I enjoyed learning about the purposes of the different books and the audiences they were written for. I especially enjoyed Deuteronomy, the sermons Moses delivered to the people just before he died and the Israelites entered the land God had promised to them. I love this reminder that the Israelites were God's chosen people simply because He chose them. Likewise, as Christians it is nothing in my life that has earned me anything, but rather simply accepting Jesus' atonement on my behalf.

Deuteronomy 7:6-8
For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you.

Hope these disjointed thoughts make some sense so someone. Nora is awake and I am being paged! Go study God's Word for yourself and hear what the Lord has to teach you.

One Thousand Gifts, 236-240

236. A clean house, laundry done, and a full pantry.
237. Summer schedule is here: lots of free play and fun!
238. Annie and Jacob's swimming lessons are off to a good start.
239. All Honey's help this past week while the Gent has been out of town.
240. Looking ahead to a weekend of celebrating!

Sophie: 23 Months

Sweet Sophie's stubborn side is coming out this month. She is having a good time needling her big brother and sister and making Mama follow through on just about every request. She is fighting nap time and throwing her food on the floor...getting ready to be two! She can also be found bringing Nora toys and snuggling baby dolls. She loves to be read to and to play outside! Sophie is in the picky eater phase and I never know what exactly she will eat, though peanut butter and jelly is almost always a sure thing. I am having fun planning her ladybug birthday party! Can't wait to see what this sweet and sassy girl is going to grow up to be.