Places to go, People to see

I am thankful that Matthew and I are able to provide fun, memorable experiences for our children.  These are the things memories are made of!

For Philip's birthday outting, he, Matthew and my dad visited Cowpens National Battlefield on the Saturday before his birthday.  There were reenactment activities to watch and participate in. Philip enjoyed serving as a member in the kids' militia training!

Next up was our night at the circus.  After traveling through a torrential downpour praying all the way (we're talking 15-20 miles per hour on the highway!),  we arrived at the big top!  Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey shows are definitely worth attending. It's like a mix of broadway musical and death-defying stunts.  The circus is definitely tagged as a family event, but I left thinking, "Wow, a bunch of those people just risked their lives and all for the sake of our enjoyment!" Anyhow, Juliet was SO CUTE as she just about jumped off Matthew's lap when the horses came out and again off of mine when she saw the tigers.  We have a little animal lover in our family! 

We had so much fun at "The Greatest Show on Earth!"

Little Man is 8!

When people tell you to love your children being little because they grow so fast, it's the absolute truth.  I cannot believe that I became a mom 8 years ago.  Philip's birthday was January 22 and even since then the days are flying by.  With another birthday just days away, it's time to post photos from Philip's big day!

As before, I tried to take a photo every hour through the day, but also as always, occasional hours passed me by uncaptured.  Anyhow, here's an overview of Philip's day, mostly filled with schoolwork even though he tried HARD to convince me that schoolwork shouldn't be a part of his birthday.

Reading time with Juliet. A standard part of each school day.

 

"I am 8!" declares Philip.

 

Grammer on his bed.  A great part of homeschooling. 

(Sitting on his bed, not grammer.  It's Philip least liked subject.)

One of his favorite things for lunch: spaghettio's.

Bible time after lunch when Juliet is down for her nap. 

I thrills my heart to know that Philip already has a love for the Word of God.

Skip a few hours and it's party time.  Philip is ready to chow down on a piece of Grandma's chocolate chip cake - his special request for his birthday.

Philip's grandparents joined us for dessert and present time.  Who's that crazy faced girl?

And yes, another Lego set for his birthday...

completed two hours later!

 



I am so thankful to know this awesome, 8 year-old boy and to be able to say I am his mom.  Philip has truly been a blessing to us and to those who know him.  As he grows, I am excited to watch God's plan for his life unroll before us.  The Bible verses we chose to be Philip's life verses when we had him dedicated to the Lord at 3 months old are Romans 8:38-39.  I pray that Philip will never doubt the truth in these words.

 

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Family Field Trip to Kings Mountain

What to do on an unusually warm January day?  Plan a family field trip to Kings Mountain National Military Park!  We are blessed to have so much American history right here in South Carolina.  Now that we've begun studying American History in school, it was time to put some of it to use.  Plus it makes for a super, fun day together as a family! 

With Baby #4's arrival approaching quicker than I had anticipated (still due June 3 but the months seem to be flying by), I am working hard on completing our school year before the little one shows up on the scene.  By looking at my attendance sheet, I computed that by teaching Philip and Braewyn every Monday through Friday from here on, our last day of school would be April 26 (we must complete 180 days to complete a school year).  That would provide a WONDERFUL month (if baby comes on time and not before) to relax and get last minute things in order.  All that said, God's plans are always perfect and often not what we have expected.  We'll just have to see how things really pan out.

Anyway, this past Saturday was a school day thanks to our field trip.  We spent a refreshing three hours at Kings Mountain NMP and really learned a lot!  I had read online about their Junior Ranger program (available at many national parks), and so the first thing we did was go to the visitors' desk to get Philip and Braewyn their Junior Ranger booklets.   It told us we had to watch the 30 minute movie (a docu-drama of sorts depicting what happened during the Battle of Kings Mountain; occurring during the American Revolutionary War for any non-history buffs), hike the 1.5 mile trail around the mountain, and complete four activities in the booklet.   The kids were excited and I liked the fact that we had a something with which to validate it being a school day!

So here are the pictures!  And yes, Juliet enjoyed herself just as much as the rest of us regardless of understanding anything about the place. (If you click on any of the photos below, you will be able to see them all in a larger format.)

 And home again to the 21st century...

Just Some Photos

Life is still busy and I am even more tired these days now that the pregnancy is really starting to take over my body.  I do feel pretty well over all, but just struggle with slight nauseausness (sp?) when I get hungry (and completely famished if I wait too long to eat) and fatigue that hits in the early afternoons (a 30 minute nap is mandatory most days).  Any way, my lack of energy shouldn't keep you from enjoying a few looks at some really cute faces.  Here you go.

Philip played flag football for the second year.

 Braewyn tried cheerleading for the first time and loved it.  She is in the blue shoes!

 Miss Juliet is bright-eyed and bushy-tailed!

 We visited family in Georgia and Florida in early October.

 Sweet nap on her great-grandpa's lap.

 A fall must-do... visiting our local apple farm and this year in costume!

 Ended the month with a visit to our cousins' house in North Carolina.

 Happy Fall, Y'all!!

Thank You, Blog Readers!

I thank you, blog readers, for hanging on and still checking on me to see if there might be a new post!  Time is limited these days and so my perfectionism keeps me away from the blog telling me I can't post something worthy of reading in ten minutes time.  Well, I'm going to try again to disagree with that lie.  Things are hectic with homeschooling Philip and Braewyn, caring for Juliet in the mix, and maintaining a level of cleanliness in the kitchen and laundry departments.  However, some things are important even if there are no associated pictures.

Over the last several years, I have juggled in my mind big thoughts regarding children and God's plan.  I know for sure that God's plans are good even if they seem hard (Romans 8:28).  I know for sure that God is good and loving and faithful (1 John 4:16; Psalm 86:15).  These thoughts were persuaded by getting to know two large families (7 and 9 children!) who joined our church and by also watching Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar's family's TV show "19 Kids and Counting" (yes, they have 19 children!).  All three of these families are seeking the Lord's will for their lives in all areas.  I desire to know God as fully as I can and I believe trusting Him fully is part of that.  My favorite Bible verses for many years (since college) have been Proverbs 3:5-6, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths." 

All that said, when Juliet was approaching her first birthday last February, Matthew and I began discussing what should come next.  Three children is a big responsibility so I truly wasn't not wanting another baby at that time.  However, I was being drawn to a desire of trusting God's plan for my life over my opinions of how I would like things to be.  Matthew and I decided that we would leave the opportunity for one more baby (yes, Matthew doesn't have hopes of matching those large families but saw four children as do-able) to the Lord's discretion.  Most people are scared of going without birth control, but with or without, God is the one who decides and creates each new life.  We've all heard of people unable to have children and others who have conceived while using birth control. 

So anyway, I entered this new chapter of our lives (not trying for a baby, but not proactively stopping it) with fear and trepidation.  I knew I had a kidney stone hanging in the bay which would not be fun to encounter while pregnant so I was honestly walking by faith that God would work things out if I just left the ball in His court.  March, April, May, June, and July pass and I began thinking maybe the Lord knows that three children are what I can handle and so no more are coming.  I won't lie - that sounded pretty good!  Three children do make for a lot of laundry to wash and meals to prepare. 

A Sunday morning in August found me in major pain and Matthew driving me to the ER.  That kidney stone began to move and by week's end, it had miraculously disappeared (see two posts ago for the full story).  Matthew casually commented the next morning, "Well, now if you get pregnant, you won't have to worry about that kidney stone."

Let me jump forward a month and end the suspense.  A few things nudged me in the direction of taking a pregnancy test on September 30.  Surprise, IT WAS POSITIVE!  The Lord has blessed us with a new little Brooks to be born on or around June 3, 2013.  That date seems SO far off, but it provides me plenty of time to get some more things in order (meal plans and weekly chore schedules nailed down) or so I hope.  We are all excited to find out who this little person will be and how he/she will change our family dynamic.  I'll try to keep you more regularly posted! 

(The caption for my title picture could now be "Juliet, you're going to be a big sister!")