What's for dinner?

Nothing better than my two little sous chefs helping me prepare dinner by picking some fresh swiss chard!

Big Machines, Boat Rides and Fathers

As J and I get older, we appreciate more and more how fortunate we are to have all four of our parents in our lives.  Both sets of parents live close by, so we're able to see them frequently and the girls get to have love showered on them.  Huge blessing!!

We had Mei Mei's baptism (here) on the actual Father's Day.  Saturday we took her out on her first boating trip with Grandma and Grandpa.  She loved it!!  She was so curious and loved all the bumps and waves.

Grandpa has a bit of an addiction...for "big" toys.  Like bulldozers, excavators and such.  He just got a new toy.  A forklift.  The girls were so excited to see it and bonus...they got to ride in it!  Grandpa ate it up with a spoon :)

We spent quite a bit of time at the barn ooohing and ahhhing over all the big machines.  Mei Mei loves to spot them at various construction sites around town and the Noodle knows all the names (thank goodness because I don't have a clue!).  A typical conversation goes something like this:  "Look Mei Mei, there's a--what's that thing called Noodle?"  "An excavator Mama"  "An excavator Mei Mei!"  She proceeds then to make a machine noise while using her hand to make a scoop.  Love it!

After everyone left from the baptism on Sunday and we had cleaned up, we just chilled outside, went for a bike ride, blew bubbles and then had a light picnic dinner.  All in all, a great Father's Day weekend, celebrating all the Dads in our lives who mean so much to us.

q

Mei Mei's Baptism

Mei Mei was baptized this past Sunday (Father's Day) at our church.  Afterwards we had family and a few close friends come over for a light lunch.  

The church where we are attending now doesn't believe in Godparents, but rather that the entire church body is charged with helping raise, look after, care and pray for the child.  There were four other children who were baptized and one teenager who gave her life to Christ (how cool is that?!).

It was such a blessing to have (almost) everyone here with us to celebrate Mei Mei's special day.  We missed having Uncle and Aunt C here, especially since they played such an important role when the Noodle was baptized, but are looking forward to their visit over the 4th!

"Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."--Romans 6:4

Veg smile--a recipe

A few weeks ago someone asked the Noodle what she enjoyed doing with Mom.  I, in my smug assurance of knowing the preferences of my kiddos, was completely taken aback when she said "cook with her".  I was sure she would have said read together, but obviously not.  Don't get me wrong, the Noodle and I do cook together and we both enjoy it, but I didn't realize just how much it meant to her.  Mental note to self. Cook together more this summer!

At the end of a quiet time earlier in the week, she came down to show me a recipe that she had written up and asked if we could make it.  Sure!!

Step 1:  Rice cake (we ended up deciding to use English muffins instead, but rice cakes would work too).
Step 2:  Put a carrot and a pea on it.

**Step 3:  We actually added an additional step which was to put veggie cream cheese on the toasted English Muffin before we made the face.

 

 A snack that incorporates veggies into it?  Bring it on!

 How cute, right?!

There was sister love goin' on and kindness all around.  

"You should definitely go and make these.  They are yummy!"

Pop!

 And just like that, in the midst of brushing teeth, out popped the little tooth!

She was beyond thrilled.  It's a good thing, really.  There had been some mild anxiety earlier in the day, when while eating a banana, she saw blood.  Even though she had seen it happen with most of her classmates, the sight of her own blood freaked her out.

Now to just wait for the tooth fairy.

Goodbye First Grade--Hello Summer!!

It is official--the Noodle is no longer a first grader (insert big sigh from Mama)!  We've started that glorious time called summer break.  Yipee!!

J snuck out of work early on Friday and so surprised her by getting her off of the bus.  Then, after a fun night at church singing, praising and learning about God, we headed to the local ice cream parlor to celebrate a year of successes.

As we drove home, this was the sight that greeted us:

Today when she woke up, she realized she had a loose tooth (finally!!).  The dentist kept reassuring us it would come but I know she's been dying to have a wiggly one.  It was literally at the forefront of her mind all.day.  We'll see how she does when it actually gets to that "hanging-by-a-thread-bloody-phase".  

The morning

It is no secret that I am a morning person.  Always have been.  Even in college, I was the one who was usually in bed by 11:30-midnight (early by college standards) while everyone else in my house was up until 1:30-2:00 a.m.  I was also the annoying one who usually signed up for early morning classes that most everyone else steered clear of.  Ha!

I've always worked out first thing in the morning (even back in the day) and generally start to shut down around 9:00 p.m.  But...I've also always been a napper.  Power naps mind you, but even 10 minutes is enough to revive me.  Most times I don't even set an alarm.

Anyhoo, each morning, after we've dropped The Noodle off at the bus, Mei Mei and I have settled into a nice little routine--we take a stroll around the neighborhood.  It is beautiful around here early in the morning! We look for squirrels, chimpmunks and watch the birds (sounds like I'm pushing 80 when I write that, doesn't it?!).  We count how many rabbits we can spot.  We take time to just enjoy being outside and glory in the wonder that God has blessed us with.

There is something so soothing about the early morning.  The light.  The water.  The sounds.  I'm trying to stop and be intentional about appreciating the beauty around me.  It is no secret that as we get older, we tend to appreciate things more.  I know that's certainly true with me.  When I was growing up, I never gave a second thought to how fortunate I was to live so close to the Lake and to have it (literally) right in my front yard.  Now I see if for the blessing that it is.

I also know that we are so fortunate that I can take this time off from teaching to be at home.  I don't want to waste any minute of it!  As we walk, I allow myself to pray--giving thanks and praising God for his provisions.

This song, You're Beautiful by Phil Wickman, always comes to mind: