VBS Week

It's only been 17 days since my last post, but it feels like it was SO long ago that we were in SC!!


This week, we are having our VBS - and, as you can imagine, I'm working in the Craft Room :) The theme is The Boomerang Express So we are heading Down Under to discover the vastness of God's love and that no matter where we go It All Comes Back To Jesus!


Wes is really enjoying his week and I've enjoyed getting to know a few more friends at church. So, without further ado, I present our VBS in pictures :)

First, the craft room as seen BEFORE the kids arrived! We are located at the Crafts Crossing along the Boomerang Express:








Here are most of the craft crew - as you can see the week has worn some of us out!






I snagged Wes long enough to pose for a few pictures in the cool decor :)




Here, Wes is making his Billy Can which is what the Australians travelling in the outback would use to cook over the campfire - or to boil the water to make tea... The ones we're making this week aren't necessarily food-safe though :)



While the kids work, the song "Waltzing Matilda" has been playing and in the Lyrics it mentions that he's waiting for his Billy to Boil...

Here is Wes getting ready for the Worship Rally in the sanctuary - He's all smiles because he already knows the songs and motions - He learned them in Brookhaven last week! :)



Wes made a really cool suncatcher with a boomerang motif that he drew himself!



We also made (everyone's favorite) Sand Art:




Here are Wes's 3 projects: The Billy Can, the Suncatcher and the Sand Art

To give you an idea of JUST how many kids we have and how WILD they are - I took a short video of the kids in the worship rally - this was on the first day and the numbers have steadily climbed each day:

Now, for the Garden Updates :)
My delphinium finally popped up and I'm in LOVE - They are super bright and super purple! I will be planting these probably every year!

We also have a couple new daylilies and they're definitely beautiful!

My "cannas" bloomed and they look like nothing I've ever seen before- are these even cannas??

The rose bushes continue to bloom beautfiully and I have thoroughly enjoyed them!

These fun little flowers popped up in the front garden and I have no idea what they are - Zinnias? Anyone know?




We've harvested and eaten our first zucchini and a handful of cucumbers - We are actually in the process of tracking down pickling supplies too :)

The yellow pear tomatoes are flourishing and will be harvested in no time :

Today, after VBS, Wes and I joined our neighbors and headed to the Collinsville Waterpark - I know you must think I'm kidding, but we DO have a water park and it's really, actually, pretty cool! Check it out!

Wes and Makagan are good buds when they aren't sick of each other! Isn't that how it is with all kids though? :)

Next time I post, I'll be putting up photos of ORANGE BEACH! We're heading there tomorrow night! Woohoo!

Macy's First Birthday :)

This past weekend, we had two birthdays to celebrate: Jenn's Birthday and MACY'S First Birthday!!

God gave us beautiful weather for the whole weekend so Captain Herb flew us over to South Carolina on Friday morning and we arrived just in time for lunch - just in time for me to form a small addiction to Rush's





After lunch, it was time for us to get down to some serious play time :) Jenn and Doug were still at work so it was just the MS crew and we had Macy all to ourselves -




Even though he tried, Uncle Brad couldn't resist playing with Sweet Macy:

Later, when Macy needed a nap, I thought a few snuggles with a good book might be in order:

Once Doug and Jenn were home, we opted for Macy to open the presents from us and I think Grandmom scored a huge hit with the bouncy ball:

After Macy's presents, we let Jenn have her turn and we showered her with gifts -

I think Doug blew us all out of the water though, with his surprise: a jogging stroller! Brad was quick to help Jenn check out all the bells and whistles:

The rest of the evening was spent catching up and then crashing! Besides, we needed our rest to prepare us for...

SATURDAY -

Macy woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed and before we knew it we were off to the park for her birthday party!


I would put all the fun party pictures here, but Brad took Doug and Jenn's camera and I took my video camera.... So, I don't have any fun party pictures :(

But I do have the sweet before and after pictures...

BEFORE the party:

AFTER:



Needless to say, it was a really wonderfully fun-filled weekend! I enjoyed my time with Doug and Jenn and of course, Macy! As is always the case, the weekend went by too quickly and before we knew it, it was time to leave! (Lucky for Cheryl, SHE got to stay behind and spend more time with everyone) I can't wait for another chance to go visit my South Carolina Family!

Memorial Day - 2009

What a wonderful Long Weekend we have had!

Brad really wanted to spend some time with Wesley so the first order of business was to make ROLLS! Wes made a complete batch of rolls from start to finish all by himself! Brad dictated the recipe and Wesley did all the actual mixing, rolling, etc. It was a really sweet process to observe and I can tell that both Wes and Brad ate it up!

They were DELICIOUS! Wes is a great chef!


Next, Brad had a hankerin' to play Go Fish and was SHOCKED to learn that Wes didn't know how to play - THAT had to be fixed right away! Wes took to Go Fish and loved it from the start! I think you can tell that they both were having a great time :)

Mastering his poker face:

Wes was able to put his newfound Go Fish skills to use right away - Grandmom and Grandad came to see us on Memorial Day! We had a lovely visit, grilled some burgers, and played some cards! We all had a wonderful time!

And, now on to the garden updates!
The Tropicana Roses that we expected to be orange (based on the package they came home from the store in) have turned out to be a stunning hot pink color. We now have two in full bloom and they are just awesome - they catch your eye even from the Way Back Yard!

Also, our first freesia bloomed this weekend and I am so pleased with the little purple flower (and the buds up above it!!)

I was very thrilled this morning when I spotted the first Canna bud out my kitchen window! It's the perfect height to see while I stand at the sink :)

The zucchini is really growing quickly - and now there are TWO competing for our attention! The race is on but I think the bottom zucchini will be the first thing we harvest this year!!

Not to be outdone, our cucumber plants have started trying to grow their first cucumbers

One last thing: I've been impressed with the range of colors popping up in our gardens - Now, I can officially say our lilies are dripping with color!

We've really been enjoying all the flowers and vegetable plants this spring and they continue to remind me of God's infinite creativity! But perhaps there is another lesson He is trying to teach me - The promise of the Good Gifts that are yet to come - I think the white rose bush is a perfect picture of this promise:

Daylillies and Baby Birds

Ah, Spring has sprung :) I've been thoroughly enjoying the various daylilies as they bloom. The double-yellow ones out front were, by far, the most beautiful and prolific.... BUT NOW, well, there are some new flowers opening up and they each try to out-do the previous ones! First, I loved the doubles and was sooo impressed when they bloomed three at a time:

Then, the maroon ones opened up and they were pretty.... but not as beautiful as the yellows... Then, the bright red ones appeared... and they were lovely:

Yesterday morning, gorgeous FUCHSIA lilies opened up and I was so pleased with them - They even glitter a little in the sun:

And, just when I thought it couldn't get any better.... This one popped up and blew me away!

That brings us to a total of 7 or 8 varieties of daylilies blooming RIGHT NOW! I couldn't be more blessed!

Oh, and let's not forget the bloom I've been looking forward to since February:

All the flowers are just gorgeous and I am so thankful for all of God's wonderful surprises.... But perhaps the surest sign of spring has been growing on my front porch all along - I hear lots of happy chirping every morning and think how wonderful life is right now!

Fun Day at School

Last night, Wes and I made Magic Cookie Bars together and they turned out to be beautiful AND delicious! Check out Chef Wesley in action:



Mmmmmm!

Today was Fun Day at Wes's school. I was super excited to be able to go :) And I think Wes was pumped, too! There was complete chaos so I'm glad I was there to make it more fun and laid back. I was surprised at how rude the kids were with cutting in line and calling people names. It really made me sad to realize that they just plain did not care about others :( All the more reason to spend the time investing in WES's morals and kindness!

Complaints aside, we had a really great time and I took a few fun pictures to capture the day!

How Our Garden Has Grown!

Ok - I'll start with a few flower updates and then I'll get to the garden people really wanna see :)


My hydrangeas are still super healthy, but they aren't growing by leaps and bounds anymore... And, I've seen buds and blooms on other people's hydrangeas, but not mine :( I guess I'll have to wait til next year ..

My Canna Lillies are still rebuilding all their foliage, but I don't think it's quite time for them to bloom...

And, just after Wes's birthday party, I was pleasantly surprised to discover a new type of Daylillies in our front and back gardens - So this brings the total of varieties up to three :) I'm really enjoying my Surprises :)

The orange rose bush has put on two buds so stay tuned for those photos in the next blog... AND, after the first white rose bloomed and faded away, that bush put on an impressive shoot of new growth. I'll update those photos next time too...

And now without further ado,

It's Vegetable Garden time :) As you can see in this next photo, the left side is really thriving and making visible progress. The right side is still trucking along, but at a slower pace. That's ok as long as there isn't another upsetting Corn Massacre!

This picture was taken May 14 -

And the next day, Brad made cages for the larger tomatoes:

AND, he discovered THESE on the Yellow Pear Tomato:

The cucumbers are still growing at an impressive rate!

AND, they had a little secret under their leaves:

But, to the rest of the garden's dismay, the zucchinis continue to outgrow them all - Just Look at how much they changed in 10 days:

Wait, I don't think the above photo quite conveys it - Here, let me establish the scale for you - Those are my hands and they're about the size of one leaf:

And, the zucchini was hiding a surprise too - Take a peek:

And, last but not least, Wesley's corn is still growing and LIVING - we have been keeping an eye on a few rascally rabbits though!

Mother's Day

This past Sunday was Mother's Day and I surely had a wonderful day :) We went to church and that was lovely, as always. Then, we headed home for some lunch and presents :) But first, I insisted on a few photos while we were all dressed up :)

Wes could really only handle one or two photos so he headed inside while Brad and I took a couple more :)

At school, Wes made this beautiful heart-shapeed ceramic bowl on a pottery wheel :) That was a pretty cool experience for him and I received a lovely gift :)

He also created this fun banner for me - Each Heart says, "ILM" which stands for "I Love Mom" :) It's decorating our kitchen table now :)

Brad gave me a mandolin slicer (which I have been BEGGING FOR) it's like this one and I LOVE it:

My beautiful white rose fully bloomed just in time for Mother's Day - Isn't that cool?