A determined spirit

I stopped by a small park the other day to let Regan play for a few minutes. She was proud to show me that she could "do" the monkey bars. I loved watching her and seeing her determination. It was a beautiful, sunny day, a hint that spring is just around the corner. I watch in amazement as new flowers seem to show up out of nowhere each day. I also watch in amazement as my sweet, determined girl is growing so fast.

Trent Turns Eleven!

This picture was taken at the birthday "get together". The picture really says it all doesn't it? Ten and eleven year old boys doing what ten and eleven year old boys do.....play video games, eat pizza, drink Mountain Dew, make every imaginable gross noise that a body can make and turn my living room into a smelly gym for the evening.

And yet, amongst all of the awkwardness of these tween years, God gives us glimpses into the smart, sensitive, gifted, loving, spiritual young man that he is becoming. He is a blessing to us!

Happy Birthday Trent!

Happy New Year!

2008....Hard to believe....seems just yesterday I was graduating from High School....and now I am staring in the face of a twenty year reunion. Wow. I really don't feel that old. I guess no one really ever does.

Jon begins his second semester of his junior year today. Life's about to get crazy! :) I truly admire his perseverance. Working three jobs, doing well in school, all the while remaining committed to his family. He makes my life look easy.

Trent is enjoying his new experience with basketball. We're so proud of him for venturing out and trying something new....something that really is out of his comfort zone. I pray this will be a confidence builder for him. He is entering the awkward tween years and we truly desire to parent him well. This is new territory for all of us.

Regan is wanting to play softball this spring so, I suppose we'll be adding one more thing to our already busy schedules.

Rylee is frustrated. She is wanting to crawl so badly but, has not quite figured it out yet. She gets up on her hands and knees and rocks....so it's just around the corner. She is just precious and continuing to bring our family joy everyday.

We've been here in Virginia for almost three years and this weekend was the first time we've had snow that stuck to the ground. It was really beautiful and the kids enjoyed it so much...brought back fond memories of Chicago.