I love that when my kids have downtime and I don’t let them in front of a screen they often entertain themselves by playing school. I was doing the dishes one morning and when I came into the classroom I saw the dry erase board covered in an anatomy lesson.

I’m so proud of how well my kids are adjusting to homeschooling. Over the past several months they have really had to roll with the punches and they have done a great job at it! Big E is really doing well with his phonics lessons and he is starting to read a lot more. C is excelling at math and loves to sit in front of the board and work on equations.

We are studying US history this year and they have been fascinated with the stories of early settlers. We’ve been reading some living history books and the kids are spellbound as I read. They ask a ton of questions and do well at analyzing the stories. They are learning their memory verses and participating in our daily devotions.

Of course we have our challenging moments, but I am so incredibly thankful that God has given us this opportunity for me to be home with them and get to be a part of their education!

I checked online this morning to see what the weather was going to be like for the near future and it looks like we are in for some extremely cold temperatures in the weeks to come. Knowing this might be our last chance to spend some time outside for a little while, I decided to take the kids on a hike. We didn’t last long, as everyone was still recovering from the long day yesterday, but I think they had fun.

Big E did manage to scare himself by shimmying between two large rocks and getting temporarily stuck. He was wedged for only about five seconds, but it was enough to freak him out. Thankfully we didn’t need any mountain rescues! 😉

Baby E came out into the shop this afternoon to see me with his fingers stuck up his nostrils. He has gotten it into his mind that all smells at the shop are toxic and he isn’t allowed to breathe them in. Now I wouldn’t recommend sniffing all the lacquers and stains, or standing too close to the sanding table without a mask, but there’s absolutely no harm in being in the shop! But there is no reasoning with a four year old when they smell something they don’t like, so he came up with a plan to plug his nose with his fingers. That way none of the ‘dust’ could get up in there and hurt him. Never mind he was breathing through his mouth!

After some editing and then school this morning we headed to the shop so I could help with some sanding. It turned into a lot of sanding and now it is 12:30 at night and I’m very tired and VERY sore! I’m pretty sure every single muscle in my body is screaming in protest right now. Hopefully they will all calm down for a good night’s sleep. I expect my arms and legs will be jelly by morning!

That’s ok, it was actually a lot of fun. It was nice to get out of the house and do something physical, but here’s hoping the kids sleep in in the morning!

Dearest Baby E,

When I asked you what your favorite number was today you held up three fingers, stared at your hand, smiled, and added another finger. Four. Four is your new favorite number.

You’ve always lived life to the beat of your own drum. After you were born and we were still in the hospital you had a scrunched up little face and eyes that never opened. When we brought you home, you opened your eyes, looked back and forth between me and daddy with a look of confusion, as if we were just now meeting.

From that moment you have kept us on our toes. You have this incredibly unique personality that sets you apart from other kids your age. You have strong opinions about everything and a set way that life should be lived. You can create magic out of nothing, seeing your favorite stories and characters in the mundane of everyday life. See that broom? It’s not a broom. It’s Moana. What about those keys? Also Moana. In fact, if you look hard enough… anything can be turned into Moana. (I’ll be honest though kid, it’s not flattering to be laying on the floor and being recruited to play the part of Moana’s boat!)

Your favorite toys include a broom named “Dirts,” a troll doll named “Creepy,” any small lego or stone that can be turned into the Heart of Tefiti, a Rapunzel doll that is a bathtub staple, an old wig you like to wear backwards so that you have awesome hair, and any small balls you can collect as “core memories” (Inside Out.) You also like to collect feathers and try to sneak them into the bathtub so you can see how they act underwater.

You are a pretty picky eater, but you love pancakes, Papa Johns Pizza, pumpkin seeds, black olives, and pistachios. You like to say you enjoy cake, but in all honesty, you only eat the frosting. You absolutely hate all things bread, but you’ve recently acquired a taste for cooked mushrooms.

Speaking of mushrooms, you are obsessed. You have an eye for picking out the smallest fungi while walking though the forest. Your favorite book is the large fungi identification book we get from the library. You love to flip through it and look at all the beautiful pictures.

Your favorite place to go is the pool, though you don’t actually want to swim. You just want to sit on the steps and play with toys. Your favorite movies are Moana, Robin (Neighbor) Hood, and Inside Out. Sometimes you like to have Super Tim Speed, and run around the house as an awesome superhero that drives a red van.

While you may be incredibly creative and hilarious, you are also very shy. Meeting new people is difficult for you, but once you warm up to them (which can take months), you love them completely.

You really are an amazing kid and I am so glad to be your mommy. Watching you grow up is an adventure and I know your persistent personality will do you well as an adult. I love that you know your own mind and hold your own with your older siblings. You are a blessing to our family and your antics make us laugh. You are loving, creative, fun, silly, incredibly smart, very handsome, and we love you more than you will ever know.

Happy4th  Birthday, my sweet!

Love you! Mommy

Today was dad’s last radiation session. Once he was finished with his radiation, he got to go out and ring the bell. (Apparently it was more of a gong than a bell.) Ringing the bell is a huge milestone for cancer patients because it means at least for the time being, that part of their treatment is complete!!

I’m praising God that his radiation stint was so quick, and we are praying that it did the job it was intended to do. We won’t know for a few weeks or months as we wait to see what future scans reveal.

I’m incredibly proud of the progress that my father has made in the past month. He has made huge strides in walking and independence. I know it has been a ton of hard work, but he is doing so well! We praise God for his continued provision.

I was pretty bummed that I couldn’t be there for the big day, but I woke up with vertigo this morning which left me in no shape to drive. Thankfully it had worn off by mid afternoon and we were able to get some school done, but I wish I could have gotten a picture of the big moment!

Thank you for your prayers for our family! I hope you are encouraged (as we certainly are) by the way God has continually answered those prayers over these past many weeks. We feel truly blessed!

The last nine weeks have been… challenging. The last six have been especially so. I never knew that time could pass so quickly and so painfully slow at the same time. We have shuffled from one crisis to the next, fighting new battles each and every day. We have seen God do mighty things in our small family by answering the prayers we (and so many others) have offered up and the ones we did not even know to ask.

Today, a huge prayer request was granted. After weeks and weeks, the medicines that have had the greatest negative effects on my father are finally out of his system. He’s back. His personality, his ready wit, and his kindness were on full display. His mind is no longer foggy. His thoughts are clearing up. For the first time in many weeks, he is beginning to feel like himself!

As we drove home from the hospital this afternoon, I couldn’t stop smiling. With him tucked away in his room, I allowed myself tears of gratitude for his progress. We don’t deserve such goodness. We are unworthy of the miracles that have unfolded for our family. And yet today, he’s back!

I know the journey that we are on will have good days and bad days, and a lot of uncertainty along the way, but after such a long stint of hard days, it is so refreshing to have an amazing one.  So while we may be going through an incredibly difficult time, we do not do it alone, and there is great comfort in that.

I am so thankful to serve a living God. One that bore my sin on the cross and paid the penalty of my iniquities, so that I can come with confidence before the Father with my pleas. He has answered our prayers and we can continue to pray with assurance that He will carry on his good work, for His glory and not our own.

Good night, sweet friends.

I’m exhausted tonight, so I’m heading to bed. Dad’s still in the hospital. He had his second cyber knife treatment today and will have the final one on Monday. We are praying he comes home tomorrow. Than you!

I was walking away from my dad’s hospital room this afternoon and I glanced back to see my mother adjusting his pillows and making sure he was comfortable. I had driven her to the hospital so that she could spend the night in my dad’s room to keep him company and keep an eye on his treatment. As I watched them interacting, I smiled.

That’s what nearly 41 years of marriage looks like. It looks like two best friends taking care of each other, showing love to one another during the happy moments and the challenging ones. It’s putting the other person first. It’s choosing to love them and show them love every single day.

My parents haven’t modeled the perfect marriage for me, but they have modeled a pretty darn good one, and I’m so grateful for that.

This month they celebrate 41 years, and while it isn’t always glamorous or romantic, it’s incredibly sweet and beautiful. I hope they enjoyed their hospital date this evening. The setting might not be perfect, but I’m glad they could be together.