Happy Birthday to my Life Partner!!
"Grow old with me, the best is yet to be.
The last of life for which the first was made"
Robert Browning

Happy Birthday to my amazing man. We're in this together!!

You keep our home so beautiful. Yes, I do love green grass. You're amazing!

Emeril aka Derrick, even cooks on vacation. Our Kauai cottage.

You're a loving dad.

I know we're only promised today, but I pray for many more tomorrows with you.

Lifting up the Mohlers, with HOPE.

Our friends since before we were married.
Had our children around the same time.
Led camps together, singing and teaching.
Sat under Jim's preaching AND Miriam's preaching.
Got our first American Girl in Chicago with them.
Celebrated their 25th with them in 2005.
So glad they moved back to CA last year.
We all got annual Disney passes. They're Disney experts.
So happy our kids connected!
Most importantly, they love Jesus, learn about Jesus, teach about Jesus, serve Jesus, praise Jesus and trust Him with their future.

We are lifting up the Mohlers during this hard storm of their lives. Jim was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme, brain cancer, stage 4, on March 11. Almost exactly a month after some symptoms started showing. He already started chemo and will start radiation next week i think. They are amazing to watch through this. If you know them and want to read their story or write a note of hope and encouragement, you can go to caringbridge.org and put in Jim Mohler.

Here's her post in the journal today.

Happy Spring! The season of renewal and hope! Today Jim had several visitors and worked hard on his Physical therapy in the morning. After lunch we drove to LA for his planning session with the radiology department, where he had a mask of his head made. He starts 6 weeks of radiation next week in Ontario.

Tomorrow he heads back to LA for an MRI.

Everyday, in the midst of visits, new routines, upheaval and uncertainty, we cling to hope. One of my favorite lines in one of my favorite movies, Shawshank Redemption, is: "Never Forget. Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies".

Emily Dickinson, a favorite poet, wrote:

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune--without the words,
And never stops at all,...

Someone once said that a person can live 3 days without water, 3 minutes withour air, but only 3 seconds without hope. (Perhaps 3 hours without a computer/phone - or is that pushing it!?) Biblical hope as opposed to optimism or wishful thinking is an amazing thing because it is certainty, a confident expectation, rooted in promise and a trustworthy God! So, we are full of hope and we are ready to give an account to anyone who asks of the hope that lies within us. We are singing about the best of things: HOPE!

We long to be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer (Rom 12:12). Amen.

Annie Moses Band

Annie Moses Band

Our family and several friends too, went to see Annie Moses Band tonight! What a great time that was. I wanted to dance and play with them. It's a family with 6 kids, age 25 (Annie) down to 11 I think. And the father is the arranger, composer, pianist. They play violins, viola, cello, harp, keyboards, mandolin and sing. Their style is really undefined because they play all types of music. They are classically trained but play jazz, country, swing, gospel, quite an eclectic mix, but most important of all is their message to the next generation and beyond. That you are a child of God and He loves you and has called you according to His purpose. They are encouraging parents to instill a love of music in their children which is being lost in this generation.

Here's a link to their Fine Arts Summer Academy

And here's their YouTube Channel

P.E. home school style.

Guaranteed no weeds for 30 years. Kids are clearing the rocks, laying the sheet, replacing the rocks. Et voila! No weeds, no more spraying.

Emma, still smiling! But it's only about 75 out.

Scrap Boxes

My cousin's wife Pam always has something for the kids to do when she visits. She came down to get out of the -20 North Dakota weather while Todd was on a mission in Nicaragua. Can you tell she loves the sun?
They made scrap boxes, which will eventually be filled with pictures. I'll post them when they do that. They are beautiful.

Grimm never looked so good

What a fun afternoon, seeing the fruit of months of work on Little Red Riding Hood and The 4 Little Pigs. They made their own scenery, had dialogue to memorize and songs to sing. Then parents and grandparents converged on the 'scene' to support and encourage the budding thespians.

Dawn making up the scary wolf. Nicky did a great job!

Dexter keeping an eye (or a hand) on 2 year old Emma Grace.
2 of the little pigs were quite blingy! (the photo will enlarge if you click on it, they're hysterical!) Jefferson (far left) and Cameron were the narrators.
Lizzy was Little Red

And the final bow.

Praise Him in the Storm

A dear new friend of mine at Simple Living, has been praying for me and I am so grateful. She wrote a poem (she is an amazing writer) which I will post on HBC's site. It's a long story how we have started corresponding, so funny how God puts His mosaic together. But this past week I have (crazy you might say) been going off caffeine, thinking in some sick way, the horrific pain from going off cold turkey will remind me that I don't want this 'drug' in my system. And I think it's working. Since I have suffered from migraines for years, this dear friend has been a gentle reminder that God wants my whole attention, He wants my praise and thanksgiving in ALL things, pain and joy, and He is about relationships. So go to her blog and read about Praise and Thanksgiving today. You will be edified.

Thank you Jennifer!

When We Work and Play Together

A while back, I did a podcast with Donna Otto for Homemakers by Choice, about the principles of working together in our home. And I talked here about a song my mom used to sing. Well, several of you asked about it, and you can actually hear me sing it on this podcast! It's so dorky, it's funny! I haven't heard the whole podcast yet, my speakers don't play loud enough. But here's the link on One Place.com to hear it for free.

Click here: Principles of Working Together at Home

Expression

"The happiest life is that which constantly exercises and educates what is best in us." Hamerton

Nana and Lizzy, resuming piano lessons.

"If you have an hour, will you not improve that hour, instead of idling it away?"
Lord Chesterfield

Jefferson's football plays. Initially, they are plans for his birthday party. (In August mind you) But then I said, you can have some friends over to try those plays before August. He said, Really? Cool!

Jefferson has a meticulous order in his brain, hence the football plays, and war scenes drawn in detail. So starting piano was a no-brainer. He carefully checks off each time he sings the notes, sings the words and says the finger names for each song. This will be a good thing, even better because he is reading.

Amazing Love, How can it Be?

Amazing love, how can it be?
That You my King would die for me?

Amazing love, I know it's true,
and it's my joy to honor You.
In all I do, let me honor You.
7:15 am rehearsal

8:10 Orchestra plays Freedom Song for Courtyard (Alex on violin, straight ahead)

Communion song "Amazing Love" Alex solos and plays her guitar. Our kids choir, where Alex helps, came to see her sing in the narthex on the TVs.

I love these kids!