Awana Awards Night

A.W.A.N.A.

[God's laws] are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. Psalm 19:10

What a fun night for the boys! New treasures and rewards for some hard work!

Big Bro' received his very cool T'n'T first book award patch.

Tree Frog got his Sparks 1st and 2nd book award and some gold (chocolate) coins for his Truthscripts verses- Psalm 1, 23 and 72.

Double C got his first book Cubby Bear award to put on his vest and a very fun Cubbies cup and pen!

And, the Little Man gets the much loved award of going to bed pretty easily tonight and staying in bed once he was there! He also gets the big applause for using the words Mama, Dada, and moke (milk) pretty regularly now!

..............................................

AWANA is such a wonderful program! If you have a chance to learn more about it, work with it or have your kids attend it... do it! You will be truly blessed. What a great way to hide God's living, active, and sharper than any two-edged sword words in your heart!

The Best Things You Can Give Children Next To Good Habits Are Good Memories

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

I just wanted you to know how much I love you! I don't have all of my ducks in a row or chickens in the pot to be able to show you in tangible ways, nor the organizational skills/time to really show you how I've been blessed by you again and again, so the least I can do is tell you. :)

Thankyou for all the time you spent praying and doing and being for us. Of course there is no way for a child to understand how much a parent gives of him/herself every day. And no matter how much a child might try to understand, the limits of experience hold them back. Sounds like a picture of God and his children, huh? Thankful, but not completely understanding the depth of love for his creation.

Now that I am a mother as well, facing the joy, the worries, the excitement, the pride, the anger and frustration, the forgiveness and love, I understand more of what goes into a nurturing character and a nurturing character. And I'm thankful for the example that you've given. None of us could possibly achieve a perfection in this, but, Mom, I love knowing and feeling a deep respect and joy coming from you simply because of my being. What a special feeling that I want my boys to have...to know that they are loved just for who they are, whether there are flaws in their character or places where they don't measure up to a pre-set standard. Whether they make a place in history or make a difference in a couple of people's day to day life.

Mom, you are special and I know that you've made all of our lives special, too. I am grateful for the things you shielded me from, pushed me toward, supported me through, praised me for and taught me with.

Thanks for letting me get grass stains and play in the gutters, climb trees and lose coats and shoes. Thanks for bringing my trumpet when I'd leave it on the city bus. Thanks for having a party when I invited guests (what was I, four?). Thanks for making ruffly doll dresses with matching doll blankets and doll underwear. Thanks for flower door-knobs and library book stacks and wonderful birthday parties. Thanks for taking pictures and letting me use the hot glue gun when I was five. Thanks for the popsicle sticks and the use of your sewing machine to make mattresses, bed spreads, and bunk beds for my little tiny dolls. Thanks for taking me to gymnastics and tap dance and piano lessons and soccer and swimming and pioneer girls and Awana and camps and volleyball and basketball and track and drama practices and choir concerts and bells concerts and band concerts and Ensemble concerts and youthgroup and youth group events. Thanks for typing some of my papers and staying up really late in 1986 to finish a project that I had not understood. Thanks for calling my teacher to straighten out a mix-up I'd had with magazine sales that I was supposed to be in charge of, also, 1986-not a great year! :) Thanks for encouraging me through my college hunt, my Major hunt, and all of my relationship ups and downs.

Thanks, mom for encouraging me to be who I am.

Thank you for taking time for me.

Most of all, thank you for praying for me.

Thank you for allowing me to be an individual... a shoe-losing, key-losing, kid-loving, Jesus-loving, extremely organized in a few things, extremely disorganized in a few others. An individual who sometimes is outgoing and sometimes not, who is sometimes competitive and sometimes could not care less. An individual who loves things clean and organized but just can't keep them that way, due to the fact that I am probably working on about 5 other projects at the same time (Oooh... look at the shiny, sparkly item in the distance...). Yes, thank you for the graciousness of growing an individual and raising an individual and loving that individual through all the weather of these 35 years.

I love you, Mom!

"...for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. And let us not be weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Galations 6:7,9




(As a slight disclaimer, I had to take the quote marks and the commas out of the title, even though it bothered me greatly to do so, or it wouldn't publish. It's the little idiosyncracies that make us all special, isn't it! :) )

This Pressed Down and Shaken Together Post is For Jeanne, But the Rest of You Can Sure Read it, Too! :)

So one day, not so very long ago, I was having a rough day... mess, screaming two year old, more mess, starving, wild, feral children, no words, but only screaming two year old, more mess, no shower in sight, yet, etc. Anyway, as I was relating my day/past "few" days to my loving sister, she gave me a big ole phone hug, and then laughed heartily and said, "I'm so sorry it's been rough...ha...ha...ha!...make sure you are taking pictures...because I want to see it...ha..ha...ha...!" and, "You're livin' the dream, man...livin' the dream...ha...ha...ha...!"

And of course, that is true.

Exhibit 1.

Here is a picture of a wonderful race track (thanks, Uncle Carter) with thousands, maybe millions, or more, of little, hook-them-together-at-the-sharp-protruding-corners-pieces. The boys absolutely love to play with, take apart, and then leave these hidden in full view, in the middle of the room, for some unwary adult to step on at night, in the dark. Here, as you can see, the boys have rigged up a very cool race track down the stairs... Using toilet paper as an anchor and dirty laundry pulled from the laundry basket, as the supporting structures.

"Please, Please, Please, can we keep it here to show daddy when he comes home?"

Lesson 1: Don't have the kids wear any clothes. Then there won't be any dirty ones for supports.

Exhibit 2.

I always get so excited when I come down to this little set-up by our entry way. With four boys of varying ages, we probably have eight different sizes of coats, shoes, boots, flip flops, snow pants, gloves and hats...because someone is always growing out of one and into another...

Lesson learned: Move to Arizona.

Exhibit 3.

Well, lucky for you I don't have a picture of Exhibit 3. Suffice it to say that pictures of vomitty sheets and jammies (plural) would just be too gross. Also, when a two year old child comes down in the morning before his parents are awake and opens a tupperware of leftover baked beans that were in the refrigerator and dumps them all over the kitchen floor (I know it was him...his baked bean smelling hands gave him away)...the thought crosses your mind..."Should I take a picture?" But no, baked beans on the floor also looks a bit vomitous, so we'll just leave that to your imagination, too.

Lesson learned: Put a padlock on the refrigerator and also the two year old's door.

Exhibit 4.

Technically, I could have listed Exhibit 3 as Exhibit 3 and Exhibit 4, which would technically put this at Exhibit 5- But, since I lumped all things gross and disgusting that make their way to the floor, I will allow that this is still Exhibit 4. Here, though is another picture you really don't want... several hours after the baked bean incident, my eldest son sought me out with an urgent request/tattle. "Zane put a toothbrush in the toilet, Mommy" What he failed to tell me was that not only was there a toothbrush in the toilet, the toilet had not been flushed...many times...thanks older boys! So, Super Mommy (Daddy was at work, or I'm sure he would have done it!) donned a chemotherapy blue glove (thanks, Jeanne...who knew it would come in so handy!) and reached down into the bottom of the yellow pool-yes, bottom- and grabbed that Cars Character toothbrush right out (and put it right back into the boys toothbrush drawer- ok, just kidding!).

Lesson learned: Focus more on toilet flushing, don't worry about aim.

Not exhibit 3, 4 or 5, but certainly worth re-visiting...

Exhibit 5.

I'm sure this speaks for itself...

Lesson learned: Buy a trampoline before the crib breaks.

Yes, this is normal.

Yes, Colby is coloring Mater while in his jammies, up on the table. Perfectly logical reasoning behind this, folks: markers need to be on the table for the other boys, dogs eat markers that are on the floor and goodness, it's just so fun to be up on the table coloring.

The other day, Isaac was frustrated that his spelling/handwriting was "so hard to do." I, of course replied with the extremely wise, "I don't think it's hard to do, I think it just takes a long time." He then agreed with my non-flawed thinking but continued to be grumpy about the length of time it was taking. To which I asked, "Why IS it taking you so long?" His response: "Well, I did look at the map for about a half hour." Case closed!

Lesson learned: Stick to geography and allow climbing on the table "for artwork" and there will never be any complaints, right!?

P.S. on this one... Isaac and Ian (especially Ian, right now) absolutely LOVE Foxtrot (the comic books). I find them all over the house. Especially in front of the warm vents where the boys like to sit and read! Anyway, although living a comic book life can be slightly irritating at times, at least the boys have a new respect for math, thanks to math genius character, Jason.

Exhibit 6.

Markers. Mmm. Cute. This picture actually occurred in Florida and was at least somewhat accidental. However, several weeks ago, I came downstairs to the boys, who were supposed to be working on their school stuff, all being super quiet... so of course, I knew something was up... Isaac was drawing designs/war paint all over their faces (not sure WHY I didn't take a picture, kind of wish I would have). His biggest disappointment? That I came down before he'd gotten his war paint on. He was sure I would be delighted... "Isn't this great, Mommy?! Look how I gave everyone their favorite colors and everything!"I must have been thinking...seriously, blue and green marker all over Zane...right before his speech evaluation with social workers...great! Kara, if you happen to read this, I'm sure you can relate, huh...! :)

Lesson learned: "Just smile and wave boys... smile and wave!"

Exhibit 7.

Ok, this peanut butter picture is a little old...

And so is the popsicle picture...

But the pasta is not...
Lesson learned: Bread and water only until they are 16.

Exhibit 8.

And here's the crazed beefalo dog in motion. Yes, Riley. I think you will love Oquirrh just as much as you loved Wasatch. Unless you leave some of your toys out...maybe even some of the aforementioned cool tracks... or if you drop a toothbrush on the floor... or maybe even if you're not watching the marshmallow you have on the edge of the table next to you (yes, she's stealthy).

Lesson learned: Eat your marshmallows in the kitchen, standing up, where no children can see you. If you heat marshmallows and chocolate chips in the microwave and then stir them together, they taste almost like fudge and I've never met a dog yet, who can use a spoon to eat marshmallow fudge.

So, there you are... these are our days... and we have been truly, truly blessed...

God has given us so much, a good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over has been poured out into our lap...we ARE living the dream...and it's a good one (except for the throw-up sheets, maybe). No, it's a great one! (ummm...slight paraphrase of Luke 6:38)

And I wouldn't trade it for the world (except the sheets, maybe).

Just smile and wave, boys! Smile and Wave!

He turned the desert into pools of water and the parched ground into flowing springs... Whoever is wise, let him heed these things and consider the great love of the LORD. Psalm 107:35,43

Birthdays!

Whew!

February is always a whirlwind and this year was no exception... Ground Hog's Day, Zane and Isaac's Birthdays, George and Abe's birthdays, Birthday parties, Valentine's Day, Winter Olympics, roller skating, ice-skating, piano lessons, broken cribs, vomit, music classes, Mary Kay and Awana...am I forgetting anything? :)

And you are absolutely right...I would not trade it for the world (well, maybe the vomit- or at least the vomit sheets- T.M.I.?!)! That said, however, I am always a bit relieved when March comes along and there is a little more time for the little things...like breathing! :)

So, I know I'm a little heavy on the photos, but when you spend as much time blogging as I do, it just can't be helped! :)

February 6
Happy 2nd Birthday, Zane! We love you!

You've certainly been blessed with a good set of lungs! :)

Zane loves his new hairball! :) We all do! A word of advice...don't fire it like a missile to a 3rd grader without warning (not that I would do that...just saying).

Hee, Hee, Hee!

February 9
Happy 9th Birthday, Isaac! We love you! And goodness gracious, stop getting older!

Mmm... Isaac wanted to make his own birthday dinner for us: grilled cheese and salad. It was delightful!

That is Ice-Mario throwing an iceball on the cake, b.t.w. Just in case you were confusing him with regular Mario! :)

Ooh! A Mario Kart Winter Olympics game for the wii (Not that anyone's excited about it or anything)!

Josiah and Isaac

Is there anything cooler than having your best friend tell his mom weeks before your birthday, that he know exactly what he wants to get you...and that is a Bible?! Wow! That is really neat!

Mobbed by love

Grandma Shaw got to be here to help celebrate Isaac and Zane's birthdays, help with homeschooling, help with cleaning and laundry (fun), help with food prep and cleanup, go to AWANA, go ice-skating, watch Olympics and enjoy a music class. It was so wonderful to be able to see her and share some of our daily life with her. So glad I-80 turned out to be mostly beautiful!

Florida Adventure, Part 2

Wednesday morning, bright and early, we drove over to Disney World (that is, after fueling up sufficiently at McDonald's and the grocery store). Isaac had been doing an in-depth study of our Disney World Touring Book for a whole year, so following in his father's tour guide footsteps, he knew just where to have us begin our day.

First stop was the Buzz Lightyear ride! The boys love this ride because they get to shoot little red, laser beams at targets as they go, in order to accumulate points. One of their favorites, for sure.

Next stop, and another one of their favorites, is the race-car driving ride. If there wasn't a line, I'm sure we would have done it five or six times in a row!

What a great race!

Here, Colby, Zane, and Grandma Balyo are getting ready to ride the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. It is dark inside of this ride, with a thick mist at one point, a small waterfall, and lots of animatronics. It was NOT Colby's favorite.

We sure seem to have eaten a lot of ice-cream in Florida! :)

Ok, somewhere around this time, I was looking in a little shop that was selling all kinds of unique little instruments from different countries. Loved them! Shakers and rattles and rainsticks and drums...just the kind of thing that would have been really fun to use in our homeschool music class. So, I brought the boys over and this is what followed:
"Did you guys see all of these instruments? Look, bongos! Ooh, and look at these cool shakers! Look how you have to kind of flip it to make the music. Hey, wow, that looks like a bug in there. Is that a...Aaah, there's a cockroach in the shaker (shiver, shiver, shiver)!! Aaah, gross! Let's move on!" So, needless to say, the kids in homeschool music class will not be using a bunch of instruments from different countries, this spring! :)

This was by and far THE longest line that we stood in at Disney Word. We even had to wait through Tigger and Pooh's "honey break." But, the boys didn't want to leave the line and I'm glad, because it was sooo worth it. I really wish that we would have gotten Ian and Colby's reaction to Pooh and Tigger on Video. Colby had Tigger bouncing with him and Ian ran back for one more big hug.

Lots of love for Pooh and Tigger!

Daddy and Zane, being silly outside of Mickey and Minnie's houses.

A fun, but exhausting couple of days at Sea World and Disney World! Good-bye, Orlando! We sure have had fun! Now, to head South...

Now, just a helpful hint to anyone taking 4 young boys to Sea World and Disney World:
Make sure you take Sam's Club size bags of pretzel rods (because they'll probably each eat about 20- including the one who is not yet even two!). And, make sure you pack enough peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to feed a football team (because they'll probably each eat about six... and then ask what else is on the menu!). :)

Florida Adventure, Part 1

Florida!

Wonderful...sunny...rollerblade-friendly...rubber-nosed dolphins...lemons and oranges...I-can-hardly-stand-feeding-them-but-I-just-want-to-anyway-rays...ice-cream...looking for gators...it's-so-fun-to-meet-people...golf carts...HG-TV and morning cartoons...hot tubs and swimming pools...shells and mystery beach objects...lots of food...and naps!

One of the things that the boys were looking forward to the most was driving the golf cart! I don't think I could even put a guess on how many times Isaac talked about driving the golf cart since he' found out we were going to go to Florida in January.
You probably can't tell from this picture, but his excitement and nervousness is basically bursting out of his seams, here. And wow, I will never forget that first ride I had with Isaac driving (and I'm pretty sure Grandpa and Isaac won't either) He didn't quite make the 90 degree turn and almost put us into the lake! :) But, he was a trooper and got right back up on that horse (I did too, but I'll tell you what...my legs were shaking, terribly!!! ).
Ian's excitement is a little more visible, here (as are his untied shoes). He wasn't quite ready to tackle the whole neighborhood (and we weren't quite ready for any more near-lake experiences), but he sure loved driving around the cul-de-sac.

The first 2 days in Florida were chilly, but over the next few days, it started to warm up. On Tuesday morning, we drove up to Orlando so that we could go to wonderful, wonderful Sea World and Disney World the next day.
Sea World is just wonderful! What a privilege to be able to touch such smart, docile water mammals. God's creativity is so obvious when you are looking at all of these amazing water creatures.
I highly recommend studying the animals before visiting them, though. We've been using a fantastic science curriculum for elementary students, put out by Apologia, and the boys have learned so much. I really think they (and I) have been able to appreciate things so much more than if we'd gone with no scientific background.
Posing with a giant manatee.
Posing pinnipeds (flipper-feet). The boys were so excited when they saw that the name of the Seal and Sea Lion show had a ship that was called The Pinniped.
The Dolphin show is an absolute must-see!
I could watch this show over and over and over again and not grow tired of it, nor lose my amazement over the artistic, physical muscle as well as patience, that it takes from both the humans and animals to learn and perform all of the sequences.
You just don't want to blink your eyes...
...lest you miss something else spectacular!
A little break of ice-cream (The adults had wonderful soft-serve cones with hot chocolate fudge in the center- yummy!), a little playing on the climbing net at the playground, a few rides on both the Shamu rollercoaster and the Sea Carousel...and we are off to Shamu's show.
We almost didn't get to see the Shamu show because apparantly the orcas weren't interested in performing that night. But, Yay, they were eventually convinced somehow to do their show... and we were extremely grateful! What a wonderful experience!

May You Get Lots of Sleep in the New Year!

The boys tried so hard to stay up to welcome 2010, but they started dropping off, one by one...

First, Colby snuggled up in Isaac's bed and fell asleep with the lights on...

Then, Ian fell asleep in his tried and true, treefrog method...

And finally, after a noble battle, Isaac gave in to sleep as well.

Cute, little muffins couldn't even wake up for a Happy New year greeting!