Jackson and the Armor of God

So there is this lady named Kim Norton who founded Kingdom Kidz.  My kids recieved her CDs as a gift from Grandma Caroline and they love them (and so do I).  One song in particular they love the most is the Armor Song. I love that it is this one they love, because I love Ephesians 6.  And I so want that to be a part of their everyday routine...putting on the armor of God.

Well we sing this song almost daily, if not multiple times a day!  They love it.  I don't know that Jackson knew what to think of us trying to act it out with all his play toys/clothes, but I LOVED it.  Here's the picture of the completed Eph. 6 boy.

And priceless: here is the video

Random Pictures

Jackson jams out hard!

Creighton is IN LOVE with the Bruin Bear at the HS football games, good thing 'she' is one of our youth...she 'knows her name' and Creighton feels so special!

Oh man...I don't know if I have words for this pic

Creighton is IN LOVE with this hideous dog at the pet store.  I thought she looked pretty cute too

Way random, and quite stupid...but I went to Jenks the other day to pick up some adoption stuff and we ran by the gym to see the picture and Jeff snapped a shot on his iphone of me next to it...but wow...

Fun Family Activity

Ever wonder what to do with those broken crayons lying around?! This is fun, easy, and cheap..

On the clearance aisle right now, crayons are on sale for like $.40, but better than that, I bet you have lots of broken crayons laying around...we did.  But I bought a box as well.  We tore off all the paper and I let the kids break them up.  Their favorite part of course.

Then I let them put them in the muffin tins, in any order they wanted.

Here is what they looked like IN the oven...as they were melting

Then we put them in the oven on 275 for about 10 minutes.  Here is what they looked like out of the oven (fyi I think I left them in too long, which is why the colors aren't as rich *but more blended* and seperated as they should have been if I'd taken them out sooner, so maybe only 7-8 minutes)

But our final product was cute!  The botttoms are generally the 'prettiest'

It's such a fun and easy craft that the kids can do all by themselves (mostly) and they have fun with them for months!  We use them outside on the sidewalk too so their 'creations' stay around a little longer than with the chalk.  I love it!  (we did this on our family thursday before our bike ride)

Family Day

Last Thursday we had our family day! I love love love family day.  It's so fun to watch the kids interract with each other and with us, and especially their daddy!  We try our best to keep Thursdays sacred, but it felt like it had been awhile since it was just the four of us all day.  We went on a 13 mile bike ride.

 Jackson was a superstar and RODE the entire way on his tag-along bike attached to mine.  Creighton was in the doodlebug behind Jeff.  We went all over really, mostly trying to stay near the pathfinder and safe areas to ride.  We went to the soccer fields and the park area and we played frisbee and they loved it. Although there were most definitely sibling moments of not knowing how to share well.  Love the opportunity to be behind the lens!  Nature provides such a sweet background and lighting!  LOVING FALL!

We had a little bit of a uphill battle on a major street because of unforseen construction, but I was so happy (that we were safe) and that we got these WAY fun pics by the waterfalls.

We stopped to eat (and refuel and take potty breaks) at Taco Bueno.  It was great. Everyone was very hungry so we all ate well.  Then we came home and CRASHED for 2+ hours...everyone.  It was a long 4 hours out in the sun and getting some excersise.  I was beside myself with love for my family and our awesome day!

Colors and A HUGE DEAL

Earlier this summer, Jeff painted the kids' rooms the colors of their choice.  Both of them have 3 walls one color and 1 wall another color.  I wasn't for sure if I ever showed their new rooms.

Here is Jackson's room!  3 blue walls, 1 green wall

And I was SOOOOOO proud of myself this weekend.  I have been wanting a day bed for Creighton's room for a LONG time, but we haven't had the money.  Well, as I was lost trying to find something else entirely this weekend I 'happened' upon a garage sale.  I found the deal of the century!  Look at this wonderful beautiful day bed I got for her for only $25!!!!!!  I LOVE IT! And you can see her pink (3) and orange (1) walls in this picture too!

The kids love their beds and bedrooms.  I can't believe Creighton is SO big.  I love her new bed probably more than she does.  I am still in shock I only paid twenty five dollars for it! It's really really nice and heavy duty real wood.  I dusted and polished it and re-covered the underside padded boards and my mom found a new bedspread (shown) for $8!  It's perfect: pink with Orange trim...looks so good on her orange wall!

A whirlwind week!

This past week has just been one for the record books!!  It started with grieving news of a friend of ours.  Everything surrounding that was never really without our thoughts, as we had lots and lots of conversations, phone calls, etc. all week long.  So with that as the overcast for the week...the rest of the week went a little nuts. 

We had two sets of company, totalling 5 days between the two of them.  It was so much fun having folks over, but it's also tiring, when you are already tired, to be any kind of hostess, amid the chaos.  Monday was just a hard day altogether in lots of ways.  Tuesday we had bible study, then a playdate at the Duck Pond, then Ladies Night Out! We had Nikao Vespers Night which is always a good time, but lots of prep work for Brit and Jeff.  We took a trip to the Zoo to get away from it all for awhile.  I wrote more about that day in this post.  So that was quite the crazy day.

Friday night we had the "self divided" football game (Enid vs Bartlesville) and we stayed to the end of the game!  Jeff invited people over 2 nights in a row and they stayed way late...little sleep! 

Then this weekend we had Walk This Way, which went amazing!  But again, just a little crazy and puts us way off schedule.  My parents came up for dinner on Saturday night.  Then Sunday, we had WTW again, then we went to meet Jeff's parents at the Scottish Games (festival) in Tulsa.

 This is where I tried to win $100 carrying 2- 100 pound barrels (one in each hand) as far as I could. I got second place, traveling 41 feet, before my left hand just could not bare the pain of my wedding ring digging mightily into my hand.  I may not have gotten the money, but I have a nice souvenier on my left hand :( I really think I could have beat that girl who won...although she was WAY bigger than me in every category.  I was too competitive not to at least try...but oh man those things are SO SO heavy! It was unbelievable.

Anyway, to say the very least, I was CRASHED last night in bed long before I usually even think of being tucked away.  Too bad Creighton was up at 3am.  I was up from 3-6ish and so I am still very tired.

 But today wouldn't wait. I had to work up at the school because it was picture day!  We had fun. The kids were So SO SO cute, I just hope some of the pics turned out. 

Pressing on through this week!  And, of course, in the forefront of all of my thoughts are the baby...and all the questions that come along with that.  The ever-increasing excitement, yet, at the same time, wonder...it's just a lot for my little brain!

I have done 3 loads of laundry so far, and have 4 more piles to do, and a trip to Walmart! Whew...it's all good.

***Edited to add: I just remember two more things that were HUGE in our week!  Jeff and the other youth ministers set out on a task of passing out 3500 Bibles to Washington county Public schools!  It was insane, but it was all completed! Yea God!  And the other thing was the kick-off to one of our biggest ministries for Nikao--Life Hurts God Heals was on Monday night!  Thank goodness it was a reminder that yes, LIFE DOES HURT, but more importantly that GOD HEALS!  I am sure I am leaving out other things...but I just wanted to document it all so I can look back and remember that our life is/was a little on the insane side and we all made it out okay :) (atleast that is my prayer)

Duck Pond

My friend Kara wrote about our most recent Duck Pond (aka Jo Allyn Lowe Park) Adventure here complete with pictures and funny stories.

Just thought I'd share!

Zoo, Gymnastics, Life Book

Yesterday we went to the Zoo with our kids.  They have wanted to go for a long long time and this is really the first time it was possible that it wasn't raining.  And really, we ALL needed to get out of town and focus on other things!  It was great. 

So even though we were in Tulsa already, and I had a meeting in Tulsa in just a few short hours, we drove all the way back to Bartlesville because 1) the kids had gymnastics and 2) our LIFE BOOK was suppose to be on our front porch and I was very excited about the latter!

We got them to gymnastics only being 2 minutes late.  I had to wake them up from being asleep (as was I) and rush them out of the car.  All that and they WOULD.NOT.STAY. for anything, and I mean anything.  It was slightly embarassing, mostly just VERY frustrating!  But I dragged them both back out to the car barefoot by this point.  Only to have them start screaming, OF COURSE, as we are pulling out that they wanted to stay.  I was beyond frustrated, but felt that (and it helped that I was now going to be late to my meeting in Tulsa even if we headed straight home) this would be a great learning opportunity for them to realize that their choices have meaning and effects.  So we left, they cried.  But I am hoping that they never pull that again.

We got home and our Life Book WAS on the porch, yea God!  It was my prayer all week.  And I might add that it wasn't promised till sometime between Friday (today) and Tuesday of next week.  So, the fact that it was there, was truly a God answered prayer! :)  I love love love our Life Book.  Cheryl from CPO said she thought we had done a great job with it and her assistant told us we profiled very well! :)

So I sped (yes, illegally) all the way to Tulsa.  I was 'graced' with a very nice set of pace cars all the way there.  I got there exactly at 7pm.  Woo hoo! 

The meeting is for all adoptive families and it is a requirement that you and your husband attend at minimum four in order for your adoption finalization to begin.  So, even though Jeff wasn't with me, I was ecstatic to be there.  And personally hand deliver my Life Book! 

The other families that were there each were different, and each of us were in different places in the journey of adoption.  We were right in the middle.  That was a good place for me to be.  I felt I learned a lot.  I have questions.  I had questions that were answered...honestly.  Sometimes that was scary to hear.  But at the very same time, it was good.  I felt love in the room like I haven't experienced in that way before.  I felt a connection to people I had NEVER even met.  I loved it. I am excited to go to the next one.  I was invited to come as a volunteer to the Birthmom meetings which happen each Tuesday.  I do believe I will be trying very hard to get to one of those soon.

Cheryl said our Life Book would begin to be shown immediately and that there are currently 22 on hand.  Who knows how many girls will come through the agency, or drop in to the hospitals in the next few weeks and months, but if you'd join with me in praying for all of them, and specifically for the one that will be a part of our lives forever, I'd much appreciate that!

God is good.