Weekly Review

Some things are a broken record at our house. With five kids we're always busy and we're still spending a lot of time getting caught up on school. However, there were some other big things going on this week.

1. Our pastor had a major heart attack last Sunday but is doing well and even spoke for a few minutes at today's service. Praise the Lord for being right there and allowing Monty to get great care right away.

2. Our first new Life Group meeting was Saturday night. I love getting to know people, so this is fun but a challenge when we have to deal with what to do with the 15 or so kids we have all together.

3. We've received an offer on our land and submitted a counter offer. This has us considering what we'll be looking for in a house and expecting God to work since our housing needs are a little bigger than our budget!

These pictures should fill in the rest of this week's story for you:

Lots of this going on! Audrey is a real conversationalist! If she's awake, she's smiling and loves the chance to chat! Oh, and she's up to 11 lbs at her 3 month birthday.

This picture and the memories around it still break my heart. However, Bethany thinks just because she had her tonsils out, she should get to make this face:


...and get whatever she wants. Ahem...well, it did work for about a week but she's moving out of the Princess Bethany world now. Hope was trying to get in on it by the way...she asked if they call it surgery when you have an allergy test (on the docket for her soon).

Shane went fishing and grabbed Ashlyn so he could call it family time...just kidding-he & Ashlyn enjoyed a couple of short fishing opportunites this week. The last picture is of Hope a few weeks ago. Bethany's trip is coming...

Finally, a couple out of the mouths of babes stories that I can't let get away. Today Hope had a friend over for the afternoon. They played school Little-House-on-the-Prarie style in the kitchen floor. While playing they had conversations only homeschoolers have. Their conversations revolved around what math curriculum they use, what they're studying ("minuses" and multiplying), and which Little House books they own!

Shane and I are in a Sunday School class that's going through a Josh McDowell parenting study. The material has challenged us each week and it's brought in good conversation with our kids. Today's topic was getting to know our kids well. Of course being home with them all the time helps, but Shane used an example from the video with Ashlyn for a conversation starter while they were fishing. He asked her what she'd serve Jesus if he came to dinner at our house. She said, "Nothing because man does not live on bread alone but on the Word of God." When Shane pressed for a real meal, since we wouldn't exactly eat in front of Jesus, she said, "Grapes, bread, cheese and fish." Hmm, I guess that's Biblical!