on comparison

we have been stumbling through our first weeks of homeschool and adjusting to  adam's very random schedule over here, but i'm dropping in quickly.  sweet husband sent me on a solo run this morning and i listened to this.  whew!  so good...the sinful dangers of comparison...taking my eyes off Jesus.  you can go here if you just want the audio.  these wise ladies have been doing a series on the internet and how it can be used for good or ill...comparison and bragging are so easy to fall into.  Jesus said to Peter (and whispers to our hearts also when we are tempted to compare and fall into bitterness and discontentment) "what is that to you? you follow me."

The Snare of Compare from The Gospel Coalition on Vimeo.

there are many other talks from the women's Gospel coalition conference that look wonderful as well. 

marit, the author

girlie wrote her first book, thanks to b-ma stapling some paper in between one of her paintings. well, i guess she dictated and i just wrote down word-for-word what she wanted to go with each of her drawings. i love that it ended up being mostly about flowers (that's my girl!) and the ending cracks me up. every good book has a princess, right? i have a feeling this is an activity we will be doing often:)

family visit

we haven't done a whole lot of traveling this summer, but the kids and i took a road trip to visit my parents and grandparents last week so hardworking dr honey bunny could get in some real boards studying (prayers appreciated for the monster test that is IM boards-aug 6th). thankfully my awesomeness of a sister came with me so the child-adult ratio was pretty good! and plus, it was good to catch up with her a bit as she and her hubby get ready for another move. and plus, my sweet parents let us squeeze in a couple old-school runs on our neighborhood courses from days gone by. my parents were so generous and helpful. the kids did art projects in b-ma's studio, picked peaches in my dad's orchards, and we swam every day. and my dad even filled up my gas tank, tires, and vacuumed out our disgusting van!

 we even took a day-trip over to visit my grandparents...my grandma recently turned 90 and then promptly had a heart-valve replacement.

we have so much to be thankful for...these days of time with people we love, new and old relationships. it was good to go and so good to come home to daddy/husband and get back to whatever "normal" life is.

 here is some footage:

always good to see rufous the great

 marble-works with papa is always a treat

gg-ma teaching marit backgammon...they played this for quite a while as mar loved all the counting!

telling marit about her child-hood wood-stove.  how we all loved playing with it when we would visit.

ice cream for the young...

and just a little less-young

thank you sweet sister for all your help and companionship!

great uncle jim took marit and graham on a kayak ride. graham kept saying "i've never been on a boat before! this is so exciting!"

four generations on my mama's side

more water

been doing a lot of water activities around here and i actually brought my camera once. water is so stinkin' fun!

5

how did we go from here:

to here so quickly?

this is the first birthday of any of my children that i have felt a palpable feeling of sadness. i just feel time rapidly passing. i know the many days and moments that i have allowed to pass without intentionally entering in and being grateful. i want to hold on to marit's littleness and cuddle her up and treasure these days when she asks so many questions and views life with very pink glasses. when i ask her to please, please stay little she looks at me sympathetically and says "i'm so sorry, but i have to grow up to be a big woman." and i have to recognize my failures in parenting her, plead for God's grace and help, and carefully let her grow up.

sweet marit, you are a treasure. we are so thankful for the gift that you are. we praise Jesus for your cheery, curious, expressive nature. we pray that you would walk with Him all your days. as daddy always prays for you, we pray that you will hear "well done, good and faithful servant" at the end of your life . we are excited for the new things that being 5 will bring...learning to read on your own, violin lessons, more responsibilities and we hope it is a joyful year for you. we love love love you!

at marit's request

well, we have a FIVE year old in the house now.  ever since we visited a nearby children's museum earlier this year, marit has been dying to go back (particularly to jump in the belly and slide down the intestine of the enormous boy exhibit).  in lieu of a big party this year, we snagged a few of her (and graham's) besties and made a day of it for her birthday.  it was fun and i wish we could have taken all our friends with small children because they were so cute pretending together...doubled the fun for them.  

apparently marit is in to donuts

the butterflies were a hit!

putting those lug nuts back on...mr handyman

dancing and drumming in africa

fishing in africa

marit sandwich:)

happy healthy hips

today we rejoice and give thanks as marit's hip saga comes to an end. she has not worn her brace for a couple years now and i just assumed we would keep having annual x-rays. nope. we have been released by the pediatric ortho department for good (at least until someone breaks a bone or something). i found myself getting a little teary on the way home thinking about our hip journey and God's care and goodness through it all. it got me thinking about life's bumps and bruises and how a God who can heal and restore could surely prevent us from the bumps in the first place. i certainly do not have all the theologically correct answers for why we must endure the consequences of a broken world when the purpose seems unclear. but i do know that he uses the bumps to remind us that we are not in control of our existence, to draw us to His side (which is for our ultimate good). it must be His goodness to prevent our lives from being frictionless and easy so that we will acknowledge our desperate need for Him and His tremendous grace in our lives.

we are thankful to be over this little bump for now...here is a little trip down memory lane...
harness days (miss that kitty)

brace days

the doc says we are good as long as her legs can go 180 degrees...