June Goodbyes

We are truly blessed and have had quite a year of grace, growth and stumbles. We are 6 flawed humans under one roof, so that just happens, right! June was a great month to celebrate, say goodbyes and enter into a slower season of summer.

Coach Lawrence handing out trophies after a fun (and loooong and rainy) t-ball season.

The coach and his favorite player. Those are 2 handsome men right there.

Leila enjoyed field day the last week of school with a kickball tournament between grades 4-7.

Look at those skills!

Leila had a great year and learned so much at Aylett Country Day School this year. We are so proud of her reading progress and incredibly thankful for her teacher and the ACDS staff.

All the ACDS kids at the Walkerton bus stop.

Mrs. Dillard and most of her class at 8th grade graduation. We LOVE Mrs. Dillard. 


Had to put in a picture of this cutie. #bestbabyever

We enjoyed some extra time with Aunt Christina before she reunited with my brother in Charleston, SC - their new home. We volunteered with Robinson Theater to put on a block party for the Church Hill community.

The kids love serving and partaking in all the fun.

Daddy was the king of handing out water bottles and making others smile.

Mary-Michael received an award for all A’s for the entire year. Go girl!

Frazier received an award for all P’s (like an A) for the year. Such a hard worker!

My sweet boy!

Frazier and some of his crazy buddies. They are so fun, and I loved getting to know his class this year.

I really enjoyed Mrs. McConville, his teacher, this year, too. We have been blessed with some great teachers.

Mary-Michael (and Leila) enjoying one last round of limbo in Mrs. Freeman’s class. This was an end of day tradition all year.

A sweet goodbye. 

Mary-Michael and I enjoyed a momma/daughter day in Williamsburg after school let out. She won an art award and free movie tickets with it, so we saw Incredibles 2, enjoyed Sweet Frog, Barnes & Noble, shopping and a short hike.

Nothing like a good hike in God’s beautiful creation.

Our 3 Month Angel

Wow, our amazing God and a sweet, selfless birth mother has given us such a gift in this tiny little package. From your baby Afro to your big brown eyes and curling little toes, we just love you so much. And now we are blessed with an adorable smile and sweet baby talking. Sometimes, I just nibble your cheeks and cover you with kisses. You are so sweet, my little brown sugar, as I love to call you. You are easy-going and a great sleeper, which God knew this Momma of 4 would need. Since about two months old, you give us full night of sleep with the exception of needing your pacifier a few times. What a blessing! You eat well and the only time you really get upset is when you are hungry or need a diaper change. Otherwise, you are just as happy as can be.

At your two month check up, you were doing everything you should at that age. You weighed 13 lbs. 4 oz. and your head and height were in the 90 to 95th percentile. 

Your brother and sisters love you to pieces. We are so blessed that there really hasn’t been any jealousy or complaining about you joining our family. You are very easy to love!

Celebrating Poppy’s birthday with a cook out at our house.

Giving Poppy a sweet smile.

Bathtime snuggles. Look at that squishiness!

A smile that lights up a room!

So much love.

A sweet sleeping angel that still loves to be swaddled even at three months old.

Muah!

Kick time with Sadie Rae.

Brotherly love. So precious.

Spring Celebrations

Between seeing my baby brother graduate from college, saying goodbye as he and Christina move to Charleston, SC and recognizing I am a momma of 4 living, breathing tiny humans, I was a bit emotional this past weekend. God is good. In the midst of all these changes, I’m even more thankful for His grace and sovereignty. 

Here’s some pictures of our blessed weekend moments.

A proud dad and sister. Zach persevered!

A lovely couple excited for their next adventure!

Proud parents who put on a super fun BBQ celebration.

We love our Uncle Zach.

That about sums up the whirlwind of celebrations.

Leila volunteered 4 days this week for our church’s mission yard sale to raise money for her first mission trip this summer to Philadelphia. Here she is with 2 of her pals.

My sweet blessings that shape me and challenge me like no one else.

Love you guys so much.

The Joys of Easter

We thoroughly enjoyed Easter this year as the big kids are getting older and really understanding why Easter is so important and pivotal to the Christian faith. It is a privilege to get to watch their young minds connect the dots and see them start to own their faith. We enjoyed a 40 day countdown calendar with a daily devotional to prepare our minds and make connections with the Old Testament prophecies. This included lighting candles and well, anytime a child of ours gets to use a match is an exciting moment. Hopefully, we aren't creating future pyromaniacs.

The resurrection eggs were also helpful in remembering the story of Jesus' last days on earth. And through that, we all anticipated our Messianic Seder meal as we remembered Jesus' last supper with his disciples the night before he was crucified. The kids helped make matzoh and prepare the table for our "feast" of traditional food (none that actually fills anyone up, so it is basically an after dinner snack). This is our 3rd year doing this, and the kids are so eager for it. I just love this evening as a family around a candlelit table remembering God's absolute sovereignty over life and death. And I love that we humble ourselves and wash each other's feet and pray over each other. While the children's favorite thing may still be the many candles and bountiful goblets of grape juice, it is still powerful. 

Our newest little Easter darling had no idea what was going on, but he will soon. Our times with family over the few weeks leading up to Easter were a treat, and we know we are blessed to be close enough to gather with so many. Praying your Easter was meaningful, and that if you are in Christ you remember throughout the year that you are a new creation and you are forgiven. 

Halfway to Sixteen

My dearest Mary-Michael,

You are so much like me. I can see how in the future we are going to be very dear friends (at least that is one of my greatest hopes!). But for now, I must remain momma alone as there is still much for me to teach you. 

You are an incredible young lady with many friends and many types of friends. You can usually find something good in everyone, even the kids that aren't often chosen first. I love that about you. When I eat lunch with you at school, I can see how everyone enjoys your company and has stories to share about moments with you. School is your place. You love it, and you love your teacher, Mrs. Freeman. Kids cry on the last day of school and beg her to fail them, so they can stay with her. She's that well loved, and she's also just that good of an educator. She has pushed you this year and been a great cheerleader for you to be accepted into the gifted and talented program. You are reading and comprehending at a 5th grade level, and I sometimes have to fuss at you for reading too much (usually it's just because you're supposed to be doing something else). You're mastering multiplication and division, and this week I'll get to hear you give a presentation on Andy Warhol (that ought to be interesting). 

You continue to master the almost 300 questions and answers for Junior Bible Quiz (JBQ), and you will be headed to districts in Northern VA in 2 weeks. You are not super competitive (like me), which means you aren't quick to buzz in even though you know your stuff. Oh well, I'm ultimately thankful for the truth of God's Word that you're putting in your mind and heart.

You enjoyed playing basketball this winter with Daddy as your coach and Frazier as your teammate, along with 2 other kids from your class at school. You actually played pretty well for your first year...though we didn't win a single game. It was a learning year, that's for sure. 

If there was an award for "Most Likely to Spill" or "Most Unaware of Messes Left Behind", you would win. Your brain thinks about a lot of things, but cleanliness is not one of them. Yet another opportunity for me to practice patience and gentleness - neither of which come naturally to me. 

When it comes to incentives, you are motivated by sugar. Sugary drinks, sugary treats, candy loaded with sugar. That is your ticket. Too bad you got a mom that puts a lot of limits on those things!

Your clothing style these days is pretty normal and feminine. You don't yet care about boys (thank you, Jesus), but you do like to have your hair done certain ways. You are very curious about Leila's bras and teenage paraphernalia, so we've had a lot of those "grown-up" conversations earlier than I thought.  

You have graciously accepted your forced role as a middle child, but those first born tendencies still reign, and I'm so glad for that (most of the time). You are a leader among your siblings and have to balance playing with both your older sister and younger brother who naturally gravitate to you first. It isn't easy. Thank you for trying your best. 

I love your tenacity, your silliness, your love of dance parties and games and the way you still like to snuggle with me and have your back scratched. You love to have your hand on me or your arms wrapped around me in some way, and I love how affectionate you are. I love you forever and for always, and I’m so thankful God allowed me to be your momma. There are great things ahead for you, my love!

Momma