Out-of-town Friends

The other week we got together with the Sinks and the Riggalls and let the kids play at the park.
Somehow, we didn't take any pictures together (why?), but here are some of the kids playing.









Here's Caleb "showing" Jaron how to play with the Lightsaber!


Jaron seemed to get the hang of it pretty quick. I guess it just comes naturally for boys!

Finnished Project

Do you remember THIS post from 7/16. Well, we finally finnished this past weekend! Here's some before/after pictures.

BEFORE: We didn't really take before pictures, so here are some that I found.
As you can tell, the walls aren't even really white, they look more like yellowish.



It's obviously been forever since these walls were painted.


AFTER:
Check out how great it turned out! I love how the white accents the pink and purple.





My Mom really went with the theme for Alisia's birthday and got her a big purple shag rug that matches perfectly! She also got her a cool lamp and the new beautiful bed set that is on her bed. THANKYOU GRAMMY!

Alisia loves her new room!


So does Caleb!


This is his best "Pretend like your asleep" face.


Now that her room is finnished, it really makes the rest of the house look dated! Now we all want a cool room like hers! =)

Kindergarten Updates

The first day of school, Caleb came home and brought me one of his favorite books. He said, "Mommy, I need to write my name in this book. I'm going to learn to read it in Kindergarten."

"Do I have to go to Kindergarten every day?"

"We don't play in Kindergarten."

"I don't close my eyes when we have to lay down." (if he only knew how lucky he is!)

"I spoke Spanish today!" He was proud of this. Their teaching it this year starting in Kindergarten. He's so excited he already knows it and Angel's excited he'll have to use it! Sooo cool!

It's soo funny because apparently, mommies know nothing about Kindergarten! Now all of the sudden, his teacher knows more than I ever could. He always says, "Mrs. Baugher says...."

He loves seeing Alisia in the halls. He comes home and tells me how many times he saw Alisia during the day.

The first day of school.
What a sad day.
Well, I'm not too sad. I'm glad my big boy is so excited about being there.

I am thankful for the opportunity of sending them to a school where they can pray for each other, their teachers encourage them in the Word, and they memorize scripture. It challenges us to make the home the primary place they recieve their biblical foundation, then school and church just reinforce what they learn at home.

"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
Duet. 11: 18-19

The Coolest Kids in School

Check out these two cuties on their First Day of School!



"Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD. "
Psalm 34:11

Questions, Answers, and Graduation

Mommy: What would you do if our house was on fire?
Caleb: Get chocolate and roast marshmellows?
Mommy: What would you do if someone you didn't know said 'Hey little boy, come over here.'
Caleb: Shake his hand?
Mommy: What would you do if mommy was hurt really bad?Caleb: Give you a kiss?

Mommy: What would you do if mommy was bleeding really bad?
Caleb: Get a bandaid?
I love this kid! I love his sweet thoughtful answers! These are some examples of things we have been working on over the summer along with ABC's, sounds, reading, and other fun ways of learning. I met with Caleb's kindergarten teacher on Monday. She retested him and said he showed improvements over the summer. She also said that a few more kids registered over the summer and they are going to divide the class into two classes. Since there will only be 9 kids in his class, she will be able to give the children more individual attention on their level. This really made us feel more at peace with him going. Praise God for working this detail out! I'm so glad he'll be going to Kindergarten. Caleb is really excited about going too! He has already been counting down the days! Tomorrow is the big day, so check back for more pictures!


Today was Caleb's graduation from Daycare. They had a little ceremony and lunch at Calley's oustide on the roof!










The Three Musketeers:


The Class:

FAIR

We made it to the fair this year because Alisia won entrance tickets by reading.

A friend of mine does a great job at describing the fair: "Heapin’ doses of denim, boots, big hair, smelly animals, greasy food, sugar and unsafe rides. Oh my, that sounds so delightful,
doesn’t it?"

I guess everyone has their own reasons for heading to the County Fair. This year, we wanted to try something new so we bought tickets to the Demolition Durby! This was all of our first time watching something like this and we were all captured with amazement.

So after the Derby, we decided to walk around some. Most of the rides cost $3 or $4 a person to ride!I had to keep reminding myself, and the kids that we don't need to ride any rides since we already went to Hershey Park this year. We ended up letting them ride a few rides though! Ugggh! Thankfully, by that time the fair was almost over.

Rest for your Soul

I haven't been able to sleep good these past few nights for some reason. I just lie in bed thinking, praying, and trying not to worry. There's not really one thing in specific that's on my mind, just several different things. I'm usually not a worrier, because I know that God is in control. But when it comes to big life decisions, I want a complete peace. When my heart isn't at peace, I just keep praying that God will give us wisdom and a clear answer.

• Kindergarten. When we enrolled Caleb this past spring, we were informed that with a late birthday's (Caleb just turned 5 this past week), parents have the option of waiting a year to send them. We've spent this whole past year talking about kindergarten to get him ready for this year, and I really think he is ready to start. But I also can see that the extra confidence of waiting a year might really be a help for him. So school starts next week, and I still don't know. I've been playing all of the "what-if's" in my mind! I have a meeting with his teacher on Monday. I'm still praying.
• House. Since I have been working full-time this year, we are eligible for a morgage loan (FHO). Although it would be a rather small loan compared to houses in this area, but this would be a huge thing for us and we just don't know if we are ready to persue this or not.
• Job. This Nov. will be a year at RMH. I love my job and working with "at-risk" families. I don't like working full-time! I feel like I need to be home more for and with my family. I don't know how other moms balance this. Especially with more kids! If we want to buy a house, I'll definately have to keep working.
• Missions. We know that God is calling us to Mexico. This has been something that God has confirmed to both of us at different times. We just don't know when! And we are not sure how this will all work out. Every time we feel we are about to persue this more, it seems that something else comes up. I know God's timing is perfect, but we are so eager to be walking in his will. I have to trust that where we are now is his will.
• There are also other on-going things that we are trying to take care of. I feel like I always have a "To-Do List" and it never gets any shorter! =(

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."Matthew 11:28-30

A Tactic that Wins...For Now

Sometimes with two kids, it's really hard for them to agree on simple little things. I imagine with three or four you'd just go with majority rules? I don't know. As with most kids, they disagree often. It seems like Alisia loves seeing how to persuade Caleb. And Caleb just wants to be opposite of her. The other day, we were out and we had talked about going to Wal-Mart, but after doing other running around, I wasn't sure if they still wanted to go or if they were too tired. So I just asked, Do y'all want to go to Wal-Mart or go home?

Alisia: I want to go to Wal-mart

Caleb: Noooo....I want to go home.

After a few minutes pause Alisia said: Fine, we can go home.

Caleb: Noooo....I want to go to Wal-Mart.

Alisia: What?

Caleb: I want to go to Wal-Mart....wait, where do you want to go?

Alisia thought about this simple question for a moment then tried something profound!
She said: I want to go home?

Caleb: Nooo...I want to go to Wal-Mart.

Alisia: Are you sure?

Caleb: Yes

Alisia: (rubbing it in just to make sure that's what Caleb wanted): oh, man I really wanted to go home. But I guess we can go to Wal-Mart.

I was amazed. Alisia sat in the front seat, and Caleb in the back, both with a big grin on their face thinking they won.

I'm sure Alisia has seen this tactic used before. If I get Caleb new clothes or a toy that he doesn't particularly like, All I have to do is tell him it's for Alisia or one of his friends and wah-lah, he loves it! I wonder how much longer this will work?

Wake-Up Call

This morning we played a joke on Papi and sent him a wake-up call from Hannah Montana! I think he was impressed that she was calling him! I also scheduled a call for Alisia and Caleb! They thought it was pretty cool. Check this out: http://www.hannahmontanacalls.com/

Grand Caverns

With school getting ready to start soon, we have been trying to enjoy every chance of homework-free warm summer days. Saturday we got to experience one of the yearly activities the hospital offers to the employees and their families. We spent the day at Grand Caverns. There were lots of free activities to do as a family! And of course, we took a tour through the caverns!


Spider-Man Moon Bounce:


Putt-Putt:


Angel Bull-riding:


Alisia won a game of B-I-N-G-O! (a $10 Sheetz card):



The Caverns:

Caleb's Party

Throwing a 5 year old party is a lot of fun (for those of you who have never done it!) But it also can be challenging! Having the party at home can be fun, but have a lot more clean-up. We had Cable's party at the park, but you have to remember to bring everything! Here are some tips to remember!

Tip #1: Before getting started-PRAY! We are constantly thanking the Lord for the many blessings he has given us through our children! We also continously pray for His protection of them and that their lives may be lived for His glory.

Tip #2: Keep it short. Most 5 year olds have a busy schedule (or so do their parents).

The party animals:


Tip #3: Plan some games. This helps keep the party moving and everyone has fun! We played some water-balloon games:

We also had a piñata (his first)!


Tip #4: When having a piñata, make sure to have crowd control! This can be in the form of security guards, or other parents work well to keep the other kids back. This was soo challenging! But we somehow managed to have no major accidents. Waiting in line for a swing:


Tip #5: Help the kids prepare their plate with things they like. That way there's less wasting of food and less spills!


Tip #6: Invite grandparents and great-grandparents! It gives them a reason to get out of the house, not have to cook, and enjoy a beautiful evening at the park! PLUS they love seeing their grandkids have fun!

Tip #7: Don't forget the candles (or the matches)! Yes, we actually forgot the matches one year! This year we were on top of that!





Tip #8: Plan on eating your food before OR after the party! After the party was over, I finally got a chance to sit down and eat! My plate looked so good (even if it was cold!)

Tip #9: Know when the park closes. As we were cleaning everything up, the park-guard came to tell us the park was closing in 5 minutes!

Tip #10: Don't forget to HAVE FUN! If your not having fun, no one else will either. Relax and enjoy!