Conversations...

...Heard around this place recently...

(Ellie) Thank you, Brandon! Thank you!
(Brandon) You're welcome! ... for what?
(Ellie) For putting my baby in jail! She was being very naughty.

(no, this is not an indication of our discipline techniques at home! ;-))


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(Ellie) Mommy, I'm gonna keep you forever!!! (Big hug)


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(Ellie - after observing a rather extended battle between mommy and Ethan, which FINALLY resulted in his obedience)
"Good job, Ethan!! You're my baby hero!!!!


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I came out of the kitchen to see all three kids sitting nearly on top of each other on the couch they were so close. Ellie said excitedly, "We're SNUGGLING together!!!" :-D



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(Ethan - after months of complete refusal to talk or even attempt verbal communication, he finally broke his silence on Sunday with the following words)
"Ball!" .... "Cheese!" ... "Teddy!"

He may not say much, but he's got the important words down! ;-) ;-)


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(Ellie) Brandon, will you marry me? (their new favorite game as of late! :-D)

(Brandon) Yes, but not right now.

(Ellie) Not right now? When?

(Brandon) Probably after dinner.

(The kid has his priorities straight after all.)




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(Ellie) Mommy, why are you wearing Daddy's shorts?

(Me) Ummm, Ellie? These are mommy's shorts.

(Ellie) Oh. Ok. Well, you look really pretty, Mommy.

(It's sort of difficult to accept a compliment prefaced like that, but I guess I'll take it. haha!)



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(Brandon - after working with he and Ellie to begin teaching them the books of the Old Testament in order, here was his first solo attempt...)

"Genesis, Exodus, Lettuce, Numbers, and (with gusto) DEUTERONIMOUS!!!" :-D

(A day or two later, we were reviewing the information we'd covered about the structure of the Bible...)

(Mommy) So, the Bible has two parts. The Old.....(long pause, waiting for the answer..)

(Ellie) The Olllld MAN!!

(Mommy) Not quite. The Old Testament. Good try though, El. ;-)

(Yes, we might need to review that info just a bit more.... :-D :-D)



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Brandon looked out the window to see our neighbor (an elderly man) on his roof.

(B) Chris is up on his roof. I wonder if he needs help.

(Li'l B) Daddy, you should go. Be a missionary. Save the world.



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Life with three kiddos is a lot of things, but it is certainly  NEVER dull. :-D So thankful for children that make me chuckle every day of the week. :-)

Plans of the heart

This past month has looked nothing like I planned. I am still marveling at how turned upside down our world has been in the past weeks. According to plan, Brandon was supposed to be away finishing up the culminating exercise of the school he's in. The kids and I were planning to head to Traverse City for a couple of weeks to spend some special time with my parents before coming back to prepare for Brandon's return and the end of quite a journey that this course has been for us.



We didn't plan on the tornado that ripped through our neighborhood the afternoon before Brandon was supposed to leave. Being from MI, we are much more used to blizzards than tornados. This was quite the experience, and seeing the devastation in its wake still catches my breath. God was beyond gracious to us. We had one large tree down in our back yard which caused some property damage, our yard was strewn with debris, our grill and swing were tipped over and bent up a bit, but our home untouched. Each of us were unharmed, perfectly safe (even if the kids were a bit traumatized from hiding in the tub and listening to the "freight train" go by.) Out of 800 or so homes in our neighborhood, over half were damaged or destroyed completely. Trees were uprooted or snapped in half. Power lines were (and still are in some spots) snapped and frayed, with the poles down or cracked in two. It's amazing what a powerful storm like that can do in just minutes. The first time we walked around surveying the damage, Ellie repeated several times, "Mommy, this breaks my heart." Indeed.



Needless to say, Brandon didn't make it out the next morning. It took several days before we were able to easily move around the neighborhood due to the downed trees and debris cluttering the roadways. We were without power nearly a week, and some of our neighbors still haven't had power restored. The past couple of weeks have been a neat time for us to meet new friends in our neighborhood, to offer a helping hand as much as we can, and to try to find ways to practically meet the needs of so many who were affected so much more deeply than we were.

It's also been a time to count our blessings. We are so thankful for the Lord's protective hand upon our lives and our home. We have had several conversations with the kids about His gracious protection in our lives, and as they've walked around seeing what could have so easily been us, they've been moved to thankfulness, too. In fact, while I wouldn't have chosen to have such a tragedy happen here, I will say things like this help to bring perspective on what really matters in life and how dependent we are on the mercies of God for each day.



So nowadays, things like going and picking strawberries as a family or being able to switch on a light in the evening instead of fumble about in the dark seem like quite a blessing.



The day after the tornado hit, I "happened" to read Proverbs 16:1 in my quiet time: The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD. What a great reminder that none of this surprised our Father, that He is working and moving despite our inability to understand the reasoning behind His plans. God is good all the time.



Thank you all for your prayers for us and especially for our neighbors who have lost so much.

Sending love.