We carve pumpkins every year, and last year we forgot to buy them:( The kids were no very happy with us.  So this year I made sure not to forget!

And the best part.......they did them all by themselves!  As true to tradition, we separated all the seeds and baked them. YUM!

Our youth group served hot chocolate, coffee and cookies to trick-or-treaters inviting them to our church.
They had a great turn out and everyone was so shocked that we would do all this for them.  The youth kids all dressed up as different color M & M's!

Nathan at Tyler's house! I am so thankful for their friendship:)

They each carved a pumpkin.....one had a "T" and the other an "N"!

Zoo

Friday we went to the zoo with some friends.  I was shocked to hear from my kids that they were excited to go.  I have been wanting to get to the zoo since we moved here but every time I would mention it, they would all sigh.........I don't think they realized how much walking we were going to have to do at this zoo but I didn't hear one bit of complaining that they were tired.  We probably walked about 4 miles or so.  It was a beautiful day to be outside and you walk through alot of nature trails. We went with some people from our small group at church and Ashley and Nathan couldn't have been happier helping take care of the little ones!  I thought back to how fun it was to go when my kids were the little ones. But to watch them taking the other kids hands and being so excited to show them the animals and share in their joy.......it was priceless! 
It got me thinking about the different stages of their lives and how much they are changing.  I loved when they were little and I love that they are getting older!  Soon after Ashley was born, I had so many "seasoned" mothers that took the time to mentor and encourage me.  I know that the Lord used them to help me on my parenting journey.  Now, the most exciting thing to me is that I can have a turn to mentor and encourage these young women in our small group.  And even better.....my older kids are being a part of that too!   I LOVE that! 

As we spent the day together it made me really think back to when I was in this stage of parenting.  I remember how hard I was on myself when my kids would misbehave.  I will confess.......I still can be at times!  But now their misbehavior is so different.  It's not as "innocent" and foolish....now they pretty much know better!  Just like their misbehavior is different, so are the consequences!  Now we have to work on being creative and continuing to train their hearts.  The older I get the more I realize how important it is to not just train their outward behavior, but really get to their heart.  Daniel is learning Jeremiah 17:9 for Awana this week.....The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.  Who can understand it?  Boy, is that the TRUTH!  If I am honest enough to look into my own heart.....I see how sinful it really is and how there are times I don't even understand my own heart.  There are so many times that I parent my kids out of my own sinful heart.  It is times like these that I see that I can't do it on my own.  I need Jesus to help me daily.....sometimes moment by moment!  I don't mean just going to church on Sunday or just opening my Bible to read it because that's what we are suppose to do as Christians.  I mean allowing Christ access to my heart and submitting to the times when HE asks me to change.  When I was growing up, I remember thinking about wanting to be "good".  I wanted to do all the right things and be good.  It didn't take very long to blow that expectation! Now, it is such a relief for me to know that I can't be good on my own, I need Jesus!  I want my kids to see that.  For me, one of the greatest things in parenting is seeing my kids respond to the things God is teaching them.  They usually share those things with me when I talk with them before bed.  Ashley wrote is her blog about one of those moments about a week ago.  Her blog is not public so if you want to read it, send me an email and she can add your name to her allow list!
Wow! all this just from the zoo!

Still on Break!

The kids have been out of school on break.  They have all of next week left so we have been out and about and enjoying the beautiful weather! This has been the first break that they all haven't been complaining of being bored!  We have enjoyed sleeping in (me especially), watching movies, the park and playing games.  The other day we played a game called The Game of Things.  Ashley learned to play it in youth group, so she prepared all the paper pieces and made up some scenerios (like....things you shouldn't eat ect...) and we laughed so hard at some of the responses! They were all very creative. 

Yes, this is Ashley sitting on my lap on the swing! It started with Daniel and then they all wanted to do it.  I got a great workout for my legs:)

Monday, Daniel has a follow up MRI on the osteocondroma on his leg.  Please be in prayer with us that it hasn't changed. I want to ask you to pray for one more thing.......My friend's 9 year old daughter has some bleeding on a spot in her brain. They are meeting with doctors today about what they need to do.  They have been such an example to me about how to go through trials.  Even though they are scared they are trusting in Jesus and have HIS peace. Our family is praying for them and their family everytime the Lord brings them to our mind.

Orange belt day!

We are very pround of Daniel today! He earned his orange belt in taekwando! He had his heart set on testing today and we were not sure if he could get all the patterns down.  We told him he had to work really hard and practice and he practiced like crazy!

What we have been up too!

I wanted to catch you all up on what we have been up too! For the sake of time.....I will post some pictures!
Nathan has had 4 games so far.  They just lost their first game this past saturday, but they played a great game!  He has been playing a variety of positions and plays the WHOLE game.  When they ask him if he wants a break, he never wants one.  His favorite position is wide receiver.

Homeschooling Daniel is still going great!  He improves more each day:) We joined a homeschool co-op and the last few weeks he has done alot of really cool activities with the group.  The first week he was learning about South America and got to make a clay pot and eat some interesting new foods from South America (which he would not touch!).  Then this week he got to listen to a lady who rescues Macaw's.  As you can see from the picture....he LOVED it! Then in science they made cricket habitat's and got to bring home some crickets.  He has been watching them this week to see which habitat they perfer.

Today was the first day of their three week track-out, so everyone was excited to be able to sleep in this morning.  To celebrate, we went to the high school that Ashley will attend next year to watch the football game.  It was definately football weather and I couldn't be happier to get a break from the heat!  Nathan painted his hair blue for school spirit!

Today was such a beautiful fall day so we went to the park and had fun just walking and climbing on some huge rocks.

Nathan buried Daniel in the sand volleyball court! Needless to say, they had sand everywhere for the drive home!

Where has the time gone?

I got on to read some of my blogs that I haven't been able to read in a while and saw that is has been over 2 weeks since I have updated mine!  I really can't believe how fast it has gone.  I think it is an indicator of just how hectic our schedules have been.  Honestly, I don't like it but really don't know what to do to slow us down.  I can't wait till Friday night when we can just sit and watch a movie together!
School is still going wonderful with Daniel.  I love to see how he is changing so much.  I feel so blessed to be able to do this for him.  He has turned into a reading machine! He has been begging me for the past 2 days to take him to the library.  This is truely amazing because I use to have to drag him to the library.  Awana started up again and so he and Ashley are starting up their memorizing skills again!

Ashley is continuing to do AMAZING in school!  I cant believe the amount of homework she has.  Most days it is at least a couple hours.  She works so hard and I am so proud of her, not because of her getting A's, but because of her dedication to work hard!  She looked up her grade to her Algebra 1 test on the website tonight and saw it was a 92 and actually asked me if that was good!  She is definitely her father's daughter!  I would have jumped for joy to even get an 82 on an Algebra test.

Nathan is enjoying football.  He had a game this past Saturday and it reminded me of Ohio football weather!  I was rainy and COLD! and they played the whole game.  Nathan didn't think he was going to get to play this week without a splint, because last week in practice we were pretty sure he broke his pinky finger.  We went to urgent care and they did xrays and told us that he did break it.  They sent us to an orthopedic specialist and they thought the other doctor was crazy! You should have seen the smile on his face when the doctor told him he could take that splint of and play football with no restrictions!  It was swollen and black and blue but he played with it anyway.  This kid loves to play sports and has HEART!

As for Michael and I, we got to go have coffee together tonight!  Pumpkin spice lattes.....yummy! I love fall! After we went and had coffee, we got to go to some kind of research interview for Guidestone and earned $150!!!!
The small group we are leading just started last week and we are starting a marriage study.  We are so excited to be able to share and learn more about marriage with our awesome group of couples!  I am praying that the Lord would strengthen all of our marriages as we learn from God's Word about how HE intends marriage to be.  I am so thankful for the grace and mercy the Lord (and Michael) gives to me when I am not being the kind of wife that I should be.  Adam and Eve had it so good........and then they sinned.  Because of that we can only see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror.  But one day, we will see clearly. I can't even imagine what that will be like!  This verse really touched me when I studied it this week....
1 Corinthians 13:12 (NLT)
Now we see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity.  All I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.

In Christ Alone

Homeschooling Daniel has been going great so far! I am already seeing some wonderful improvements in him.  He told me last week that I was his best teacher ever and gave me a huge hug.  Priceless.  Ashley and Nathan are doing wonderful in school as well.  I am so thankful for how hard they work and the pride they take in the work they do.  Ashley just started dance up again and Nathan's first football game is Saturday!  Daniel earned his green belt in taekwando.  It has been a busy few weeks, to say the least. 

I have been trying to figure out for a week what to write in my blog.  I just have not been able to come up with anything.  I will be honest, it has been very hard for me to spend quiet time before the Lord.  But as I sat here this morning in the quiet, one of my favorite songs came on and I felt like I needed to share the lyrics to it.  It is called In Christ Alone.  I love the times when the Lord shows me that it is Him that I need to place everything before.  In the busyness, it is often times hard to remember!

In Christ alone will I glory
Though I could pride myself in battles won
For I’ve been blessed beyond measure
And by His strength alone I’ll overcome
Oh, I could stop and count successes like diamonds in my hands
But those trophies could not equal to the grace by which I stand

In Christ alone
I place my trust
And find my glory in the power of the cross
In every victory
Let it be said of me
My source of strength
My source of hope
Is Christ alone

In Christ alone do I glory
For only by His grace I am redeemed
For only His tender mercy
Could reach beyond my weakness to my need
And now I seek no greater honor in just to know Him more
And to count my gains but losses to the glory of my Lord

In Christ alone
I place my trust
And find my glory in the power of the cross
In every victory
Let it be said of me
My source of strength
My source of hope
Is Christ alone

I have been reminded this morning where my strength and hope need to be....How about you?