2nd first impressions

i've always had this thing for new beginnings...a new school year, new (blank) journals, excitement about moving to a new city last fall. there's something refreshing about a clean slate. often i have this thought about how much easier it would be to start anew - job, friends/relationships, etc. - in order to set a great Jesus example. i think about how often i don't portray Christ to those i spend the most time with, particularly my coworkers of late. not that i'm anti-Jesus in my actions, but it's the small stuff in which they need to see my Jesus-like actions, and that's not always (sometimes rarely) my first reaction.

this week, i've been reading through galatians, and chapter 1, verses 23-24, paul speaks: "'he who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.' and they glorified God because of me." and it hit me that if clean slates are what i desire, i'll always be searching for ways to start anew, as i am human, so those instincts i have that aren't quite Jesus are always going to be there. those who are around me most need to see me battle those things, need to see me focus fully on Christ to allow them to see HIM change me, not me change or control myself. what testimony of the gospel is there if i'm the one appearing to do the work? none.

i think of tonight...eric and i are having one of his former youth students over for dinner - he's now living and working in austin. and last night as eric and i talked about inviting him over, i thought 2 things:

1. how cool it is for God to continue relationships outside of fredericksburg for His purposes yet revealed to us - this is the 2nd student we've since met up with
2. how much i screwed up in those early days of ministry - how embarrassed of my former faith i am

you see, i have had a very by-the-books religious-type of "faith" in the past, and this student was one in my small group for the high school discipleship program we did with this student ministry. i was one who enforced the rules, "gotta get the work done," "need to memorize these verses and complete these quiet time sheets," etc. when since then i've learned it's about love first. Jesus' unconditional love is what attracts, and the discipline to live for Him follows. by definition, unconditional love is without condition - always there. and that is exactly what i was not about; my how i've grown to see things anew! (and my how i know i will continue to see things anew as long as i'm seeking Him!)

there's been somewhat of a shame felt for being so mean about getting the work done without any heartfelt desire for these students to truly discover their savior. and how i am ever so appreciative of the grace of God for extending to me forgiveness for this rigid viewpoint and for hopefully leading many of these students to experience the same freeing faith i feel i now have despite my distortion of the truth.

yet i am encouraged by paul's words...his horrible past aided his testimony of the power of Christ, and actually led others to glorify God - isn't He good for working all things for His good?!? so i look with anticipation to tonight's conversations and pray that they lead this student to see the new Christ i've discovered and to hopefully hear of similar things in his life.

Rewarded for Serving

we got the opportunity to campus a neighborhood, advertising for a community gathering our church is hosting at the one of the community centers near where we meet. the kids went with us, kaleb in the jogging stroller and ellie on her bicycle. she pedaled up and down the streets like a champ - there were some hills! (eric helped propel her up and held her back on the way back down. he got a work out in!) and after we spent about an hour going door-to-door, we headed back to the rec center where there was a way cool playground. we spent a few minutes playing before heading home for lunch.

kaleb hasn't felt well today. i think he's getting a tooth (or maybe multiple), and he's got a bit of a sunburn from yesterday (despite layers of sticky sunscreen)

ellie, on the other hand, feels just fine! she crawled in and out of these cool giant spheres:

and climbed to the top of the playscape - it was a cool one! it had some benches to rest on, and 3 slides, and a couple of wheels and a telescope!

and for her finale, she slid down one of the slides, stopped at the bottom to stand up, and took a giant leap in the air!

five mile dam park

we went today on an adventure...to new braunfels (i think) to five mile dam park. we've had so much fun lately with a couple of kids from school, jonah and sadie, and their parents abby and david. and so when talk of the weekend came up, we decided to go camping - only we were a little late to reserve a site anywhere in texas (or so it seemed!) so the next best thing was a day trip. we had a blast!

in preparation for the day, our little family took a trip to the mall to find a bathing suit for ellie. and a bucket hat and some sandals for kaleb. and i answered 72 questions yesterday about the logistics of it all:

mom, shouldn't we pack sandwiches for jonah and sadie too?

no, ellie, their mommy is good at making sandwiches for them

mom, don't jonah and sadie need a bathing suit too?

again, ellie, their mommy will make sure they both have swimwear

mom, is it a long drive? should we get gas before we leave?

really??? i have no response...

(and yes, this question really was asked!)

so...how did everyone get along? you want to know...fantastic! kaleb LOVED the water - he had the most fun! the other kids were slightly apprehensive of the slimy rocks (they were just a bit mossy...really, not bad though) so their fun was a bit reserved. but kaleb knew no better!

we swam a bit then headed back to base camp to eat some lunch and mess around before heading out this afternoon. the peytons had a kayak that we all took turns in.  the kids blew bubbles. jonah tried on ellie's pink sunglasses - that boy will never be allowed to come over again (they came over friday night for dinner, and jonah found a great pair of high heels he wouldn't take off)! we gotta get some boy toys!

but here's the evidence of the fun day we had. kaleb's telling me a secret here:

and here, he's telling me he doesn't like the hat i tried to get him to wear to keep away the sun

ellie in her star float and carrying her water gun on the way back from the water

the kiddos with the water behind them

my sweet little girl!

even kaleb got a turn in the kayak (not in the water...worry not cacky.)

ellie and mommy took a tour of the river. it was a great time we got to talk about all-important things like why the river had grass in it and what store jonah got the kayak at and why there was only 1 other kayak in the water and how we were going to change into our dry clothes for the ride home and when could she wear her other new bathing suit - maybe to the lake with coach and nonna and chandler and brynn...you get the picture! i loved it, though!

we packed up and headed out this afternoon, and i think both of my kids were out before we ever hit the highway...and stayed asleep at home for eric and i to get to rest a little too. it's been a great long weekend thus far, and we're looking forward to more fun with a church group tomorrow afternoon grilling out. 

warming up for summer

as i logged into the blog tonight, i realized it'd been almost 3 weeks since i last updated. and where has the time been spent? OUTSIDE - this family LOVES the sun and the grass and the longer days. yesterday, we were outside all day with the exception of nap time in the afternoon. no exaggeration. and it's hard to blog from the backyard. and it's equally tricky to post pictures to the blog without a well-working camera...mine has lost the ability to focus (which is also true of me most afternoons as i think about the great weather on a daily basis). so in the meantime, i've posted lost of instagram pics, but they just don't capture the thoughts i want to preserve to remember at a later date and time. so i've reposted several images here with some narration - i keep up the blog as much for myself and my family as i do for anyone else reading these words. 

ellie has totally blossomed into quite the little scholar these days. she's spelling everything, and do a really good job of it, too! still struggles at times with Bs and Ds, and with how to write several of the letters, but the basics are down, and she's even starting to pick out words in books we read at night. and kindergarten is still a whole year away!

and more than showing off eric's grilling skills, i'm showing off my beginner's gardening luck - that's home-grown yellow squash there amidst the onion and zucchini. it was delicious! it's amazing that something can start as a seed and end up looking like the produce in the grocery store! it kind of makes me want to plant lots of long rows of all kinds of veggies! tomatoes are starting to turn yellow-red and will be ready soon, and a couple more squash are getting started. spinach is ready for picking, and actually eric's put some on a sandwich last week. and we have green beans - although i'm thinking it's going to yield about 1 serving total, so we may have to supplement from the store, but it's a start, right?

 today's DIY project was to get rid of the brass on the chandelier in the playroom, and we did just that! the curtain was made a couple of weeks ago after a trip to ikea, and today the paint was bought, the chandelier hung from the tree in the front yard, and a transformation took place for only $8. stay tuned for more transformation to this room...we gotta get some stuff on these walls! ellie and i went to goodwill and found a couple of great frames we'll paint to hang on the walls and display her artwork on a rotating basis. 

kaleb has really grown up here lately. he's developing a little personality that cracks us up! he smiles so readily, and is generally in the best of moods. EXCEPT when you won't let him out the back door when andy gets to go outside, or when you're outside and it's time to come in. he pitches an all-out tantrum! real tears streaming down his face, throws his plug down on the ground, and we even have to remind him to breathe! when ellie showed her love for outside, we were amazed a child could love it so much...until recently seeing kaleb's passion for the great outdoors - i think eric is secretly on cloud 9 when kaleb's tantrums are thrown :)

yesterday, the kids and i went to target, which we do far less-frequently than previously, as we live farther away, and there are 2 HEBs closer, so the weekly grocery shopping is handled elsewhere. i didn't realize how much i missed target until we went yesterday - apparently we stayed a bit too long, as kaleb fell asleep as we stood in line to pay for our purchases. ellie was so excited to get to take a "big kid cart" since it had straps to buckle kaleb in. they shared a pack of animal crackers, and then he was done!

and we finally come to the end of this novel...a couple of videos (of poor quality) for your viewing pleasure. ellie practicing t-ball with eric's homemade tee:

and kaleb eating/talking to/slobbering on the green beans: