Off to Africa

"Off to Africa" is code around our house for "going to the restroom". (Ellie made that one up.) We were off to Africa in a different way last week when we visited Kalahari Indoor Waterpark Resort in Sandusky, OH. I wish I had more pictures but water parks don't really lend themselves to getting snap happy, what with all the...water. So here's a picture of our arrival. Of course, the Africa theme was over the top with these life-size animals. Daniel was VERY impressed with this elephant (after he got over his initial fear of it). The other three were so excited at this point! We had been looking forward to this get-away for a long time, and we weren't disapointed. The water park was really huge. All the kids loved the wave pool and the Lazy River. The water slides were OK, but the girls weren't even tall enough to go on most of them. I made a mistake the first night we were there and took Joe and Ellie on one that I thought would be pretty tame. It was called the Rippling Rhino, and I figured anything with the word "rippling" in the title was going to be OK. I couldn't have been more wrong. We were hurtled at what felt like 60 mph through complete and total, pitch-black darkness. The kids are screaming and crying, and I'm just afraid that they're going to let go of our tube, so I'm trying to yell louder than them, "Hold on! Just don't let go!" Boy, were we a sight when we finally hit the splash pool! Ellie was shaking so badly she could barely walk out. And it's funny that I was afraid they wouldn't hold on because the whole time we were in the wave pool, they were clamped onto me and nearly dragging me under. There's nothing at all wrong with their grips! Anyway, after that water slide, Joe and Ellie were pretty skeptical of any others that I tried to talk them into. They each went down one more big slide, but after that we stuck to the lighter attractions. The important thing was that we all got to play together, and that was such a blessing!

Truth Tuesday

...Your word is truth. John 17:17


So let us know, let us press on to know the Lord.
His going forth is as certain as the dawn;
And He will come to us like the rain,
like the spring rain watering the earth.
Hosea 6:3

Catching Up

OK...I had one of those weeks. I had other things I felt I needed to focus on, but I really missed the blog too much. The next few posts are a little catching up.

Jungle Jack and the VonTrapps

Last week my mom treated us (me, Joe, Ellie, Erin, my sister, and her husband) to an evening with Jungle Jack Hanna live on stage. He had the usual assortment of interesting and unusual animals, plus lots of information. He really is very entertaining to just listen to. What made the night for me though...

Throughout the night, various animal handlers would come on stage and he'd ask us if we recognized them, telling us they were from a very famous family. At the end of the show he introduced them. They were some of his neighbors in Montana and the great-grandchildren of Captain VonTrapp from The Sound of Music (Kurt's grandchildren, for those of you who are officianados). Of course, they sing (are about to leave on an international tour), and so we were treated to three numbers, The Goatherd Song, The Sound of Music, and the Rwandan National Anthem. Amazing, amazing, amazing voices!

Thanks, Mom, for a very special night!

Tidbits That Made Me Smile

Here are some odds and ends from this past week that made me smile.

Daniel discovered the joy of sidewalk chalk. It's a good thing I got that "lifetime supply" back in July...he's got a lot more clothes to color.

Joe has been working on his juggling. He still has a long way to go, but he's getting better. Today, as he bent over to pick up his juggling blocks for about the 50th time, he said, "I know how to juggle, I just can't do it!"

And Erin...just as ravishing as can be!

Made for Work

If I had been more faithful to the blog this past week, this would have been my Thankful Thursday post. Joe was just on top of the world on this day when he got to go out and work in the yard. For some reason, the fir trees in our backyard dumped a boatload of little pinecones this winter. Joe raked and raked and raked! It made me think of a book that's on my list of ones I want to get soon, a devotional for boys called Made for Work. This day made me think we'll definitely be enjoying the thoughts shared in this book. Joe loves to be useful and see the fruit of his labors. This was an extra chore, so I offered to pay anyone who would work. The girls only lasted for about 15 minutes. Joe kept up with the work, but I don't think the money was really his motivation. What a blessing that kind of energy will be for his whole life!

Perfect Seven!

We celebrated Ellie's birthday on the last day of February. She chose a horse theme for her party. We had the cake... and a very special balloon to set the theme. (Side note about the balloon....She gave it a name and got very attached. Today she was in tears because it's starting to lose its air...the trials of being seven!) One of her favorite presents was inline skates (which she had really been asking for!). She's skated up a storm on our wood floor and has gotten pretty good. She says she feels like she's flying when she skates. She also got a pinafore as a gift. Nice ensemble, huh?Another gift she was really excited about was these two blank books for her to write her stories in. I can't wait to see those when they're finished!

Flashback Friday

Ellie - October, 2004

Thankful Thursday

Tonight I'm simply thankful for this dear girl who is turning 7 this weekend. I've been working on her slide show and am feeling sentimental. For some reason, her birthdays are always the hardest ones for me. She's the one who seems to change every time I blink my eyes! (I really love that about her, though.) Tonight she was busy working on her "book" called The Life of Joe, Ellie, Erin, and Daniel. She's been working on it for at least a week now, and I think it's precious...fully illustrated, of course. Maybe someday I can put an excerpt on the blog. What a precious blessing her life is to our whole family!

Book Monday

I really hadn't decided what book I was going to do today until about ten minutes ago, when I picked this one up...and remembered, again, why I love it so much. Lies Women Believe, by Nancy Leigh DeMoss, is set up so that all you have to do is look through the list of lies women believe in the table of contents, find your lie, then turn to the page to read about the truth. Awesome. I was looking under the lie of "I don't have time to do everything I'm supposed to do." (Who out there hasn't thought that??) She points to Jesus' words at the end of His life, "I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do." (John 17:4, italics added). Later, she follows up with this quote:

Frustration is the by product of attempting to fulfill responsibilities God does not intend for us to carry. Freedom, joy, and fruitfulness come from seeking to determine God's priorities for each season of life, and then setting out to fulfill those priorities, in the power of His Spirit, realizing that He has provided the necessary time and ability to do everything that He has called us to do.

When your head is speaking lies to you, there's nothing like a good shot of the truth to get you back on solid ground, and this book is a great tool for that. Nancy Leigh DeMoss has recently become a favorite of mine. She really loves the Lord and has such fresh insights from the Bible.

Five Year Old Girl!

As I continue to replay our week, I am now to last Saturday afternoon when we had Erin's fifth birthday party. We had grandparents and one aunt come as special guests and did all our usual birthday things. Erin got to wear the birthday hat (and her sparkly dress!) as she blew out her five candles on her pink kitty cake. (We called it "Sweetheart Kitty" since the party was on Valentine's Day.) Some of Erin's special gifts were "Coconut" (the American Girl dog), some clothes for her Build-a-Bear, a new Easter dress, and a pinafore (just like Laura Ingalls'!). She had a great day and loved being the guest of honor!

I used to make 10-12 scrapbook pages of the year and present them to each child on his/her birthday. It was always nice to pass around at the party (and it was easier for me to let them turn the next age, knowing I had a lot of the previous age recorded). Then last year, I went to digital scrapbooking and each kid got a hardbound book with their pictures and stories for the year. I still haven't gotten Erin's done yet, so during her party I had a slide show playing on the computer with her special pictures from the year. What is it about looking at pictures while listening to music?? I could hardly watch it without getting all teary-eyed! I've never been so far behind on having the scrapbook done, so I really need to get going on that, but the slide show was a nice alternative.