May 2011!!

Central Arkansas Children's Choir performing in Springfield, MO. Didn't take my camera to Silver Dollar City, but had a ton of fun!!

Kylie with Anna, her good friend from choir.

Josiah moving up to Webelos II!

Ice Cream on the porch. We've been loving the incredible spring weather.

The last of the rainy days....Tom took the kids on a walk down to the creek to see how high it had risen.

My sweet littlest. She doesn't look like a stinker, does she?

Homeschool Days at Pinnacle Mountain! We walked the Kingfisher trail and waded in the water to find crayfish. So muddy and so fun. :)

Ring pop residue.

Strawberry picking!!

We had fun picking strawberries yesterday. Brought home 2 boxes full of strawberries which will be eaten by the end of the week, I'm sure!! Life has been crazy with Tom out of the country but we're definitely keeping busy which makes our days go by pretty quickly. Four days until he gets back!! Of course this weekend is going to be insane with soccer, easter egg hunt and church on sunday....but it will definitely be good to have him home.

gatlinburg pt. 1

Japan relief trip

So.... Tom left for Japan this past monday, 4-11-11. We packed up 4 boxes (2-50 lb boxes and 2-70 lb boxes) full of supplies (the big items were the 2 power washers with hoses and extension cords). The airline that they were flying will allow anyone going on a relief trip to bring the 4 check-in items for free! It was a bit of a challenge to get the weights just right, but the guy that checked us in was really laid back about everything....which was a blessing!

We have been able to skype twice in the past 5 days. I talked to him this morning...9:00am cst, 11:00pm jst. There are five of them on the team together (although 3 are together in Sendai and 2 arrived yesterday and will be doing things separately from the others....Dave has been really good about blogging: http://sushieaters.blogspot.com/). Tom, Kevin and Jason are spending the night in the home of missionaries in Sendai tonight (and were able to get showers!) and will go to Ishinomaki in the morning. They drove a truck up to the Sendai area 3 days ago full of supplies to give out.

Please continue to pray for their team:
-for health and safety
-for sleep and rest at night
-for strength as they will be doing manual labor...helping people clean out their houses
-for good interactions with the japanese that they are serving, that they could share about Jesus
-for unity on their team....that they would continue to get along well and enjoy each other's company

Please pray for me and the kids at home:
-that I would be patient with them
-Leighton has been going through a stubborn phase...well, more stubborn than normal...
-Matthias seems really upset that Tom isn't around, especially when he's tired
-that we would love each other well
-I am thankful that my parents were here for part of the time (they left yesterday)...pray that I would get rest so I won't be crabby with the kids. Last night was rough with tornado sirens going off at 2 in the morning. I ended up waking the 2 big kids up (b/c they sleep under windows) and leaving the 3 littles asleep.

We are grateful that Tom has this opportunity to be involved in this relief effort. It really is such a short time...with so much to do! Please continue to pray for the country of Japan.... for the rebuilding that is going to take so much time.... pray that their hearts (in the midst of this devastation) will know Christ (our Rock and Strongtower).

Pinewood Derby champ and other misc. fun!

first place in his den and first place in his pack!!

before the hike....

and after!!

the princesses are talking about their knight in shining armor! :)

Twins turn 4!!!

foamy craft time. :)

notice the girls sitting so nicely for the picture....and the boys being boys for their picture!

optimus prime tried to ride off on the princess castle....he didn't make it.

matthias refused to blow his candles out. :(

had a fun time with our church/storytime/homeschool friends. we wanted to have matthias and leighton's 'buddies' for a party and just invited all their families.....makes for a big group and a lot of chaos...but twas fun!!

optimus prime and his date :)

the jeep is assembled....we're just waiting for it to be charged up...will probably take it for a spin after co-op tomorrow!!

it's really hard to believe that matthias and leighton are four today. sad and exciting.....sad that they are growing up so fast b/c we know (Lord-willing) that they are our last....exciting b/c as they grow older it frees us up to do some fun things as a family...no more diaper bags, naps :(, etc...

thanking God for our sweet double blessing today!

blizzard of 2011! :)

So. It snowed here in Arkansas this week. We got around 8 or so inches (which, apparently is the most that AR hs gotten in years!)...it was beautiful! While we were waiting for it to stop a little bit we had a mini-photo shoot in the living room window. :)
I love the snow. it's a bit of work to get kids ready to be out and playing in it, but it is sooo worth it!
The past month has flown by! Christmas came and went...we were fighting sickness in our family, so it was a bit of a bummer. January was pretty uneventful. I made a trip to Texas at the end of January to visit cousins/aunts/uncles...my first ever roadtrip with the 5 kids alone! It was a blast...i'm hoping to backtrack a little bit and post pics of our time there. Eventually.
Anyways.... time is flying by and we are plugging along! Thanks for checking in with us...i cannot believe the twins turn 4 in a month!!