MOPS Esater Hunt

About two weeks ago, I hosted a MOPs event at my house. We brought a dish to share and did an Easter egg hunt in the garden. There was a great turn-out, it didn't rain (or get too rainy!) and everyone seemed to have a great time. (Thank you to the ladies who sent me these pictures so I could put together this post.)

 

My friend Sonia with her son Nathaniel.

Emily looking lovely.

Abigail totally caught on to how this worked -- and she wanted to dig into those eggs right away!

Naoko -- she lives in our town of Porto Martins.

 



Colin. His mom, Kris, is going to take over MOPs for me next year. I hope to still help but with baby #4 I know I'm going to need to step down a bit!

This is Elijah's basket. He just discarded the eggs and dumped the candy in his basket!

Christian is a stay-at-home dad who lives around the corner from me.

The kids did a great job sharing the bikes.

Elijah and a new friend.

Playing.

Bikes.

My friend Claire's little boy Gavin and his little sister Bria.

Just some of the kids exploring. (We kept the garden locked until it was time for the hunt.) Moms each brought some eggs to hide so the garden was covered with them!

Time to hunt!

You can see Isaac and Jackson -- superman best buddies on the left here.

Elijah chillin' in our Pirate Ship clubhouse.

The line into the garden for the Easter Egg hunt.

The kids lined up, waiting for the gate to open and the hunt to begin.

Little Hailey teamed up with Abigail to help her hunt the eggs. (Hailey just moved to Germany this past weekend.)

 

Sonia, Claire, and Susan

Only a military base are there two women with the name Naoko. They are both from Japan, both married Americans, and both part of the MOPs group.

Enjoying the slide I bought for $10 on the Facebook yardsale page when we first moved here.

 



Sidge on right, enjoying his find while buddies; Jackson, Isaac, and Max look for more eggs.

Emily. Such a cutie.

We've been getting a few younger moms with their first babies joining us as well.

Letting everyone in for the hunt. Even Abigail is in there, ready to go!

Abigail ... such a big girl now.

Abigail and friend Robyn.

She's on a mission!

Claire and Sonia. (Claire is always avoiding photos!)

A hidden egg.

Jackson finding an egg.

Helping Daddy in the Garden

Serra Do Cume

Aaaaah! One can underestimate how wonderful wonderful weather can be for your soul! We went to the 11am Contemporary Service on Base and then took a "side road" home through the scenic "Serra Do Cume" overlook. Wow! How beautiful!

It is sooooo windy up on top!

I am quite cold! It wasn't nearly this cold before we made the ascent.

A sign that we cannot read.

Trying to get the three kiddos to brace the wind and take a photo.

The boys thought it was cold. I think Abigail was actually a little scared of how fast it was coming!

John took each kiddo out of the car one at a time to take a photo on the overlook.

We really had no idea this farmland was right on the other side of this overlook until we got up there!

Friday Funnies

Sidge: "One time, in another country or state, I pinched Abigail ... Is Turkey a country or a state?"
Me: "Country."
Sidge: "Is Germany a country or a state?'
Me: "Country."
Sidge: "Okay. One time in another country ... Germany or Turkey, I can't remember, I pinched Abigail really bad."
*****
Sidge: "When I grow up, I'm going to be twenty."
Sidge: "When I grow up, I'm going to be a jiu jitzu teacher."
Sidge: "When I grow up, I'm going to do electricity." (In other words, be allowed to plug things in.)
*****
Sidge: "What the thing when you get married that you put on your head? What's it for?'
Sidge: "What are my nipples for? What do they do?"

Sidge does A-Z!

Writing

I love to write. I have always loved to write. So why, lately, have the words not come quite as easily? Part of it is how I have been feeling. But another part is, I am just the pregnant mom of three young kids and a big dog living in another country.

It's hard to accept that maybe I won't have "the time" for writing that I would like, but I am learning that that might just be the case. I have so many things that demand my time that this might be a season where things that would just like my time get pushed back a little bit.

I find there is so much during the day that I want to document. But often, I can't get to the computer to do it. I have a pad (or papers in multiple rooms) that I try to write things down on -- trying to not forget the moments of my current life.

For example, at bedtime tonight, here with the two conversations I had:

Isaac: "Mom, we need to trust God. God is Jesus. Jesus is God. But Jesus died. So he's in heaven. And someday, but not soon, we will die too, and be in heaven with him."

Contrast that to Sidge's conversation with me while he laid in his bed.

Sidge: "Mom, when you cut something, it is snipped. It just goes snip."

Pretty much just small talk but worth writing down all the same.

Time for some housework!

You are Strong

I don't feel myself yet. But it's so important to remember that I am climbing back there. Thanks Aunt Connie for the reminder!

A New Sou Chef

There's a new "Sou Chef" in the kitchen. Isaac still isn't in to cooking (he likes to drive his cars on the counter across from Daddy while he cooks). But Abgail? She's moving in!

Molding

A reminder that we are being molded by what we are traveling through. And the Lord will use this molding in the lives of those we meet in the future. Hang on!

Two steps forward

Joshua 1:9 "Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed, for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”

 

If you, like me, feel like you backtracked a bit in your journey recently, may we all remind ourselves to be strong! Be courageous! Don't be afraid! And do not be dismayed!

I think that last part "do not be dismayed" may be the hardest part of the whole journey. You felt like you had reached a "point" and suddenly, you find yourself having slid back down the pole a bit.

 

What is your current journey? What giant are you facing? Jobless, hopeless, childless, spouseless . . . we are commanded to be strong. We are commanded to remember that God is with us.  And we are commanded  to not be dismayed.

 

God is with us. He sees our walk. He sees our journey. He recognizes when we feel like we hit a roadblock. He recognizes we feel like we backtracked. He hurts with us. He holds us.

 

May we not forget how much He loves us.

Friday Funnies

I've been telling Isaac not to "worry" about what Elijah is doing. To just worry about himself. After telling on his brother again, I told Isaac, "Don't worry about Elijah. Just worry about yourself."
Isaac: "Mommy, I don't know how to worry at all."
Praying that is always the case!
*****
Sidge: "Daddy I want to be like you."
JB: "Like me?"
Sidge: "Yeah, I want to help people feel better."
*****
Our friend Jackson said, "I have to hurry. It's eight o'clock." Then Isaac said, "I have to hurry. It's ten o'clock." Then Sidge added, "I have to hurry. It's forty-nine."
*****
While using the bathroom (number two) Sidge said, "I heard a squeak."
Me: "That's just a toot."
Sidge: "Ohhh. But it sounded like a squeak."

Blog peeps ...

... would you pray for me?

After having a really good stretch of days, I've hit a bit of a rough patch the last 24 hours and have been really nauseous. I think it's emotionally just hitting me harder because I had been doing so well and really thought the tides had turned.

JB reminds me that my journey does not run in a straight line. I must remember this. But in the meantime, I know there are some real strong prayer warriors who read my blog. Could you say an extra few prayers for me today?

Blessings!

Learning at home

As I continue to feel better, I am really making it a point to try to spend at least 30 minutes each day really focusing on learning. Isaac will turn 5 in May, and we have decided that he will not start Kindergarten here on the island at the Base school. (The school is only open one more year, and we are only here one more year.) Instead, we will hold him "back" and allow him and Sidge to do Kindergarten together starting the summer of 2014. However, this next year, I hope to do a "mini" kindergarten routine with them at the house. Check out some of the stuff we did this week:

Both boys wrote their first word this week. D-O-G. (This one is Sidge's, but Isaac's looked great too!)

Here is Sidge with an "A" and a "B". Both boys can now write A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I and J.

This made me smile. Sidge said this is a "pillow with a bend in it." 

Look closely to see Batman's big letter A.

Tournedos Rossini

Every Wednesday evening, our friend Mianna comes over to dinner. Connie is there too of course!

JB cooks great all the time but often, Wednesday, he pulls out all the stops. 

Last night, our other friend Nick joined us for: Tournedos Rossini which is: toasted brioche with foie gras pate, wilted spinach, beef tenderloin, port-brandy demi glace, and summer truffles

Make a wish

 

Capture dandelion "wishes" in a jar. These wishes just wait on a shelf or kitchen counter until a sad child needs some love and encouragement. Then, it is off ...with the cap, eyes squinched closed for a wish, and a big huff. This cheers children any time they're sad.

He is with me

So many times in my life, the Lord has walked me through dark places or deep valleys. Over and over and over again.

Why then, when I enter a new valley, do I forget that He is walking along side me, carrying me even? That He did it before. That He'll do it again.

While I am not totally over the early sickness of this pregnancy, the morning sickness has dissipated so tremendously. I have battled some down feelings that have too been dissipating. The last few days I have been feeling a lot of anxiety. I know all of this is related to hormones and morning sickness. I know the Lord is with me. I know He will walk through this with me too.

Or do I?

And yet, just like my own children, I cry and whine about the current place I am in. God oh God save me from this place right now. I act like He just didn't just show himself a few days or weeks or months or years earlier. I act like I deserve His immediate rescue from my current plight.

As Paul said in Phillipians 4: 12, "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want."

I have no wants in my life. I really have no needs. I have been blessed beyond anything I could ask or think. And yet I still find myself asking Him for more. Lord, bring my heart peace and my life contentment today ... where I am.

Amen.

Ordinary

Your day may seem ordinary. Run-of-the-mill. Same old, same old. But it is so important we remember, each and every day, how important we are to GOD! Whether you are waiting to be a wife, waiting to be a mom. Whether you are alone or surrounded by people. May we all remember today that we are important to Him. All the time. Every day. In every way.

Easter in Azores

We had a few families over to celebrate Easter with us. 

 Here's Connie with Sonia (they are headed to Hawaii this summer)

My friend Jenn and her daughter Rowynn. They live around the block from us. That's Carla peeking out from behind. Can't believe Abigail was letting people hold her yesterday! A monumental moment for us.

Jenn watching all the little gals. 

JB helping Abigail with her first ever Easter Egg hunt in the garden.

Sonia looking beautiful in blue.

Friends: Sidge (Spiderman), Isaac (Batman), and Jackson (Superman)

Here's Sidge helping Rowynn find an egg.

Abigail getting the hang of this thing. (She definitely understood there was candy inside these things!)

Mr. Frank (Claire's husband) and their daughter Bria. Claire refuses to take pictures!

Alexa (Sonia and David's daughter) eating an egg.

Gavin. That's Claire's arm poking through. 

Carla helping Max.

Our friend Tania and one of her two boys.

Superman (Jackson) on the hunt.