Happy Birthday, Mr. Newton!

Dear Mr. Newton,

You turned 4 this past weekend!

Here was your smile when you came downstairs in the morning on your birthday.

God sure gave you a life giving smile.

You chose to celebrate your birthday with just our family and when we told you that you could pick what we did that day, you wanted to go fishing with Daddy.  So that is what we did.  The boys fished, the girls played on the playground, and everyone was happy.

We ended the day with a candle in an ice cream sundae.  And you made sure to remind us that you didn't have to help clean up dinner on your birthday! 

We love you, Mr. Newton! 

We love your smile, your laughter, and your sweet spirit.

You make us laugh with what you say and how you are figuring out the world.

You are so cute and I wish I could bottle up your smile.

You are rough and tough with your big brother and a peaceful playmate with your sister.

You say when you grow up you want to be Daddy.  Not just a daddy, but our daddy. 

You love to cuddle with Mommy and your face lights up when you "read" me a book.

You are usually content and sometimes mischievous.

You love to dance and tell jokes.

You love summer when you can run around with no shoes or shirt.

You giggle as you learn new things, like writing letters and riding your bike.  

It's the sweetest.

You are the sweetest.  

I wish I could keep you little forever. But I am excited to continue watching you grow.

I am so thankful that God gave us you! 

O death, where is your sting?

Today my father-in-law's battle with cancer is over.  He passed away very peacefully this morning.  I am so thankful that his family was there with him and had the chance to cover him with prayer and worship in his final hours.  

There is so much I could write.  So much to process.  But for now, I just want to share what Mr. Mister said to me when I told him this morning that Papa passed away.  The first words out of his mouth were:

"Death may win today but in the new life, death won't win anymore.  Daddy told me that."

I cried.  And rejoiced in the overwhelming hope and joy that are in that truth.  I am standing on the promise of 1 Corinthians 15:55...

"Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?  The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.  But thanks be to God!  He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

Daisy is Two!

Happy Birthday, Daisy!  You are two! 

 You have grown up into a beautiful girl who is full of life and joy. 

If I could use just one word to describe you, it would be joyful.  How appropriate.

You make us laugh and definitely keep us on our toes.  

You are always on the go.

Your big brown eyes are deep and curious.

You are adventurous and independent, fearless and determined.

You are funny.  You are smart.

You are not quiet.

You choose footballs over babydolls and skateboards over skirts.

You know what you want and what you don't want, that is for sure.

You soak in the world around you, always learning from what you see.

You are loving and so sweet. 

Full of personality.  And just full of joy.  

When I think about you, my heart is full.

Here you are with Daddy on the way to the daddy/daughter donut day with some friends this morning.  Your birthday started with donuts and ended with cupcakes....a perfect day for this girl!  

At dinner tonight we all shared things we love about you.  Mr. Newton said he loves to play with you and be your big brother.  Mr. Mister loves how cute you are.  Daddy loves that you are a splash of color in our family and I love rocking with you at night as we talk and sing and pray.  

We love you, Daisy! 

 These two years with you have been such a gift and we cannot imagine our family without you.

To Make You Smile

Everything makes me cry these days.  The good, the bad and the ugly...and we have certainly had it all in the recent weeks.  So I thought I'd lighten things up a little with some fun videos and pictures of our beautiful kids.

First up, Daisy and her hilarious (and really sweet) presentation of Psalm 139:14.  It's a verse I've been praying over her and saying to her most nights since she was born.  A little while ago, she started repeating it after me and now she can say it on her own!  It is one of my favorite things because I love that she is already excited about knowing God's Word and it makes me laugh every time.  Just in case you can't understand her, here is the transcript.  Oh, and her fingers near her mouth are her microphone - she learned that from her brothers.

"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  Psalm 139:14"

Next up is my cute Mr. Newton, posing for a photo shoot as something to occupy us during a recent visit to the doctor for round two of strep throat.  This boy has a life giving smile.

And last but not least, Mr. Mister being just like his Daddy.  First, this is how we found him one morning when he got up before us.  Sitting at the dining room table with his devotional book and a journal.  He said he wanted to do what Daddy does in the mornings.  That was the best surprise to wake up to!

Second, his entrepreneurial spirit is already shining through.  One day he had the idea to make a bunch of paper airplanes and then sell them in our neighborhood.  I loved his spirit and motivation and didn't want to crush him so I let him go to two houses....neighbors that I knew would love it.  He decided he would tell people that the airplanes were free or whatever they wanted to pay for them.  Haha.  He ended up making $3.00!  We have some really great (and generous) neighbors! 

Hope you enjoyed a peak into our lives around here.  It makes me want to get back to blogging more of the day to day happenings.  So many treasures that I don't want to forget!