Reminders

Check out my post on One Mom's Minutes to see what God has been reminding me of.

The Graduate

Well, it's official! I am now the mom of a first grader! Evan graduated from Kindergarten on Sunday.

Dad and Mom with our Graduate....we're so proud! (and one of us always blinks in pictures!)

Now, if you know me very well, you know I am sentimental, and I just felt awful that my son would miss out on the fun and sense of accomplishment with graduating. I still remember my Kindergarten graduation. But, seeing that Evan is homeschooled, those kind of things are not organized and put on for my child. I didn't want to miss out on the special moment, so we asked our Pastor if he would be willing to let us do a short graduation program at the end of church one Sunday.


Evan with Pastor Jim

I bought him his first suit, and oh, did Evan look so grown up and handsome!

We found him a cap and gown on eBay, turns out the seller is a homeschooling mom as well, and just used them for her daughter's Kindergarten graduation. The timing and price were perfect for both of us and as she said, the transaction was a "God thing." I'm glad I found the cap and gown because they made it seem so official. Evan's done a great job this year, and I wanted his day to be special. I couldn't find a tassel for my price range, so I found some tasselling at the fabric store and made my own.



We made up a little printed program, printed it on card stock, rolled them up like diplomas and tied them with black ribbon. I found online "Pomp and Circumstance", downloaded it, burned it to a cd, and had it played for him to march in.

Evan getting ready to march

He was nervous and shy being up in front of people for the first time by himself, but he did a great job. Ben introduced him, Pastor prayed, Evan led the pledge to the American flag and the Bible,

he recited 3 verses, he recited 5 catechisms, and he sang "How Can I Fear?" with his Dad and Carter. Owen and Derek were supposed to sing too, as Evan requested they all sing with him since it was a song they all learned in Bible class together. But, Owen fell asleep in the nursery, and well, you don't wake a 2 year old to take him up in front of church and make him sing. That's a no brainer. And Derek got cold feet at the last minute. But the 3 guys did a great job.

I had the privilege of presenting Evan with his Kindergarten Diploma, and pronouncing him officially a graduate.

I got a little choked up as I gave him his diploma. Moments like these remind you how fast time is going and how precious every moment is.

Ben ended the ceremony with prayer. It was short and sweet, but special, and I think it is something Evan will remember for a long time. And, since our small church borrows a funeral home to meet in, I think his graduation holds the distinction of being the first ever graduation held in that building (or maybe any funeral home for that matter!)

We also had our church's monthly fellowship that afternoon, so I made a "graduation cap" cake for Evan and took it to share with our church family.



The highlight for Evan was that Gramma B came to be a part of it all, as well as his aunt and cousins.



Poor Grampa and Uncle Mike couldn't make the trip because as Carter said, "they have to stay at the farm and keep sure that the cows don't get into trouble." :-)

I am so proud of my boy for his accomplishments and so thankful to God for giving him the ability and desire to learn. And though it is something I said I would never do, I am thankful that God gave me the privilege to teach him at home. Teaching him to read and add are some of the most fulfilling things I've done in my life! I'm looking forward to first grade and all the new things he'll learn. But right now, I'm enjoying the moment...it's SUMMER BREAK!

JOY

"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward." Ps. 127:3-4

"He grants the barren woman a home, like a joyful mother of children. Praise the Lord." Ps. 113:9

My study Bible states in the notes, "No image better conveys human emotional suffering in biblical times than that of the barren woman. In that time and culture, a barren woman was without significance and without joy. Note that God stoops down to bring her the joy for which she craves--happy children. Salvation is like that. Not only does God fill us with significance, but also with joy."

I agree, even though there may not be the same social stigma now as there was in biblical times, that not being able to have children is intense human emotional suffering. I've been there, I've walked that road. I've spent Mother's Days in grief and left church in tears. I know that joy for which that barren woman craved. I craved it myself. And then God gave me that for which I craved. I prayed for one, and then just one more. God doubled what I requested of him, he filled my cup to overflowing, and he filled my heart with the unique joy of motherhood.

This was the joy that greeted me this morning. Four handmade Mother's Day cards from my babies. There's nothing sweeter than a card made just for you. I love 'em!

Me and my 4 guys. Aren't I blessed? I don't merit God giving me the privilege of being their mom. They are truly gifts!

And just like the gift of my children, my salvation in Christ is a gift, unmerited, undeserved, and unearned. And, like the gift of my children, it brings joy. I'm thankful that God didn't leave me without children. Even more I'm thankful that God didn't leave me without His love, His sacrifice, His forgiveness and His JOY.

Happy Mother's Day!

A special wish for my Mom, and thankfulness for her love and guidance and care, and for introducing me to Jesus.

And for my Mom-in-law, with gratitude for shaping the heart of my man, and for her love for me as a daughter and friend.

Mother's Day Surprises Left and Right

Check out my inspiration on my other post and let me know what you think of my idea. Comments wanted!

And aren't my guys just wonderful?

Well, I ended up getting another unplanned Mother's Day gift, which will arrive a day late. The board on our refrigerator fried yesterday. You don't usually use the word fried with a refrigeration appliance, huh? Well, it doesn't work well when you mix those two. Our frig is DOA. Of course, I had just gone grocery shopping the day before so it was stocked. But, I am so thankful that my parents live right next door. We were able to save everything, except leftovers. I won't cry over that. :-) We stuck everything we could into our freezer downstairs, took frig items over to my mom's frig, and have produce and condiments in coolers. So, completely unplanned, we went shopping last night for a new refrigerator. It's a little stressful having to act on such a large expense so quickly. But we think we found a great deal. Our situation is a little complicated because of the size of the boxed in space we have for our frig. We never realized it doesn't accomodate normal size refrigerators, since this frig was here when we purchased the house. So, we had fewer options, and those options tend to be more expensive because they are not the "average" size. So, it cost a little more to get what we needed for our family of 6, but we made a decision and the nice salesman helped us get delivery a little faster, and it will be delivered on Monday.

So, we are spending 3 days without a refrigerator. You really don't realize how important one is until yours is dead. In fact, I found myself repeatedly trying to open it, so Ben decided to make it easier on me and just get it out of the house. Which is a blessing because the thing stings like, well, have you ever smelled something electrical after it fried? It was stinking up my kitchen, so now it is gracing my deck.

Oh, and I'm very thankful that God allowed it to happen when we were home, and could act quickly. It would have been bad if we had been gone on vacation or something!

So, my poor husband spent alot more on me on this Mother's Day weekend than he would have ever dreamed of. But, one nice thing was, we spent the whole evening together, and we got to have a quiet dinner out together too. See, I'm really breaking the bank this weekend, aren't I?

Ben said he's going to have fun trying to cook on Mother's Day for me. :-) Oh, well, this is life, right? Things break down, money gets spent, time gets eaten up, hassles ensue. But Mother's Day is the perfect time to remember that what is most important in my life is still intact, costs no money (well, technically), makes the best use of time, and brings lots of joy and enjoyment.....my family!

Mint and Chocolate, Oh, My!

Check out my post on my other blog for a yummy recipe. If you like mint and chocolate, you'll be happy!

My Boy Makes Me Laugh

As I came to say goodnight to Evan tonight, he was "hiding" under the sheet, so I started tickling him. He got laughing pretty good, and as I stopped he said, "I haven't had this much fun in years!"

He's 6. What a sad childhood he must be having! :-)

My funny boy, pounding chicken for supper. A house full of guys is pretty handy to have.

Curious Minds Want to Know

For some reason, Carter was very interested at supper time about how he got fed when he was in my belly. It wasn't making sense to him because, as he said, "there wasn't a kitchen in there!"

During the conversation, we were talking about how they were born. All 4 of the boys were born by c-section, so it makes it a little easier to explain the how. :-) Carter wanted to know if there was blood when they cut me open and he said, "But didn't it hurt, Mommy?" So, we tried to explain about how they numbed my whole body. Derek got a very disturbed look on his face when we mentioned the needle and said he didn't want the doctors to give me a shot. I assured him I won't have to have that again, and he felt better. Evan wanted to know how they "put my belly back on". After I told him that they sewed me back up he said very seriously, "I would NOT want to be a girl!" After I laughed, I told him that it's ok, that they were worth it all and I would do it all over again. "You were happy to have your first baby?" he asked. Very. And the next and the next and the next.