Joy in the Simple

There is a quote I've been ruminating over since I read Dr. Laura Schelssinger's book "In Praise of Stay at Home Moms" earlier this year:


One of the greatest blessings in life is to learn to be content with and fulfilled by the small, simple things in life- these make up the majority of the human experience.

A rainbow isn't exactly mundane or an everyday experience, but it was a simple reminder last night of God's love and generosity towards us. The boys were amazed by it, since they haven't seen too many rainbows in their lifetime (guess we'll have to move to Hawaii if we want to see them more often!)

Let's Kick It

Today was Daniel's entrance into the world of organized sports- SOCCER! We felt like "5" was the right age for Daniel to start sports* and he's really been looking forward to it. Until this afternoon, when he told me he was "afraid of soccer practice". So we prayed about it and sang "When I am afraid, I will trust in You" (thank you, Steve Green- Hidem' in Your Heart). It also did not help that Daniel woke up at 5:15am this morning, so he fell asleep in the car on the way to practice. When we got there he was exhausted and very teary eyed. So I got to join the soccer practice until Daniel was able to participate without holding onto me. Since Dave is gone, I'm so thankful Pa Pa decided to show up to watch the practice, so he could help with Wesley, who had also fallen asleep in the van.

I'm proud to say that the teary eyed Daniel became excited, brave and courageous by the end of practice. He kicked the ball well and ran around with the other kids. We had to skype Daddy tonight to show him the uniform. I overheard Daniel talking to himself while he was brushing his teeth: "I'm on the Tiger team!" Then he told me soccer was "more fun than school". Wesley agreed and added "and Bible study too".

Daniel was so excited about his new uniform I let him wear it to bed. I'm all about making PJs as fun as possible. I hope this level of enthusiasm continues for the next six weeks.

By the way, we chose the Upward program for Daniel for some specific reasons, the most important one being it is Christ- centered. It is a great organization, and I wish more churches in our area offered it. We chose a location closer to Nashville because it's only a 20 minute drive from our house, Dave can make it to the practices after work (when he is here) and our Nashville grandparents can easily attend. It's also a great excuse to spend time in Green Hills, where we love to eat and shop (Trader Joes!).

*Note: In case you are wondering, Wesley was begging to play soccer tonight, and asking where his uniform is, so the right age for him to start organized sports will probably be "3". : )

Before and After....

For those of you who don't live here (or stop by our house often), I thought you'd like a little peek at our recent makeover. Dave and I decided after 6 years it was time to purchase real furniture and finally decorate our bedroom (yes, we actually hung some pictures). Here is a "before" shot from a few years ago, and an "after" shot from last week. There are still a few things we want to do (like paint the cedar chest black), but we are really enjoying our new luxury suite!

Note: You can click on the pictures to see more detail....

The 5 Senses

The boys have been studying the Five Senses at school and bringing home some cute things they've made. School is off to a great start. We all love the new teachers and most of the boys' classmates were in their classes last year. Daniel has some close friends from last year in his Pre-K class and it's fun to watch those relationships continue to grow.

The ears will be saved- for them to wear as teenagers whenever they aren't listening to me!

Scenes from a Scooby Doo birthday

It was a great weekend! I have a lot more pictures to share, but these will give you an idea of the fun. The kids loved the mystery, Dave was a great villain, and the picture of him is priceless (he won't let me put it on FB). We took the boys for donuts on Daniel's birthday and it may have to be a new tradition in our house.