We're shaking & we're famous!

OK...so we're not really famous, but more on that later. We were among those shook awake this morning. Dusty was already awake and getting ready for work. I was not dead asleep, but I wasn't fully conscious either. We have a decorative metal wall hanging above our bed and it rattles when the neighbors slam their car doors. So you can imagine what it sounded like this morning. I was on my hands and knees on the bed trying to figure out what was going on....thunderstorm....tornado....earthquake?? A 5.4 earthquake; nothing big if you're from California, but it doesn't happen here that often!

On to the famous part!

We are on the cover of the May 2008 Indiana Baptist magazine. I used to work for the Indiana Baptist state office. One of the ladies there, Bev, called several weeks ago wanting photos for the May issue. The theme was Celebrate Family and she didn't want to use stock photography. I sent in several family portraits of church members that I had taken as well as a casual one of us. Well, they choose us for the cover, and here we are. We didn't tell anyone we were going to be on the cover. We just waited to let it show up in the church members mailboxes. It's been funny. I've already got a couple of calls today wondering why I'm in their mailbox. :)

Random Thursday

Sorry, no photo. Just some random thoughts for today.

• I love freecycle
• God always provides the money when we need it
• I may complain about gas and food prices, but we go where we want and no one's ever hungry
• Less stuff is better
• If a 32 year old woman can win the Biggest Loser, I can drop some weight! (Seriously, did you see her!)
• Black Hefty bags are my friend
• You can't beat an evening with good friends

13 Seasons & Counting

Aaron's 1st practice of the soccer season was yesterday. I dug up the photo from his very first soccer practice. It was from April 2002 and he was 4 years old. Aaron is now in his 13th season with our church's soccer league. (We play 2 seasons a year) That very 1st season he broke his arm during his 2nd game. Fortunately we've had no major injuries since then!

Aaron - far left - Age: 4 - April 2002

Aaron - Age: 10 - Yesterday

Eagles & Armadillos

Ahhh....a day of sunshine. Rachel and I took advantage of it with a nice walk. We talked about the blue sky and all of the things God created. While passing Eagle Elementary she saw a painting of an eagle on the school sign. Then she informed me of this little tidbit. "Mommy, armadillos are afraid of eagles." What??? Where did that come from. Must have been the topic of the day on Go, Diego, Go.

Here a kid, there a kid...

I will start by saying I am spoiled. I know it; I make no excuses; I'm fully aware of it. We have 2 kids and one of them is in school all day. The other takes 2 hour naps in the afternoon. It's really not that hard to tote one around to the grocery store or wherever we need to go. Sometimes, she'll have a meltdown and then it's a bit troublesome. But really it's not that big of a deal. There - that's out of the way. :)

I got to watch Jackson, Gabrielle, and Conner this morning while Dacia took Brady to the doctor. She also took Cooper with her as well. For those of you counting at home, yes, that is 5. Jackson is 4, Gabrielle and Conner are 2 year old twins, and Cooper and Brady are 6-month old twins. Dacia has said that she should just put a sign on her head when she goes out that reads, "Yes, they are all mine. Yes, I do have my hands full. Yes, I know what causes that!" She's a great mom and I really admire her.

The kids were all great and they played very well together. While playing with Rachel, Gabrielle, and Conner I thought, "Hmmm....wonder if this is what's its like to have triplets" When one wants juice, they all want juice. If one wants a snack they all need a snack. And then when I had them all on the sofa taking a photo I thought, " Multiply this party by 2 and you have an episode of Jon and Kate plus 8!" We had fun. Dacia and Brad will be moving back home to Georgia this June, and I will miss them....a lot!

Today's Self Portrait

This is what I looked like zooming from one end of the church building to the other during the middle of the Pure Girls event today. And "No" I don't have jaundice. Just forgot to change the white balance setting on the camera. Back to Pure Girls: it went off wonderfully! There were over 200 girls and their moms and everyone had a great time

I got to be part of a great team of women from our church who helped it all to happen. Here's a little of what these great ladies did: prepared decorations, ordered food, set up tables, determined we needed more tables, set up more tables, decorated tables, decorated the stage area, stocked bathrooms, greeted and registered participants, handed out T-shirts, directed participants to their seats, served drinks, prepared food for 200+ people, served that food, cleaned up from that meal, ran video presentations, took photos, passed out gift bags, tore down over 32 tables, moved chairs back for worship service, tore down decorations, cleaned, vacuumed, cleaned bathrooms, vacuumed, took out trash, vacuumed, took out trash, laughed together, and enjoyed helping this event to happen.

They're all great and I'm glad to call them my friends!

Just because

So why do I have beach photos up today? I know you're asking that right now. Because I don't have any other photos to post from today. The beach makes me happy! These are some of my favorite photos. Take your pick. Note to self: start planning a vacation for this summer!

I took some photos today of some kids from our church and their cousins. A couple of 3 year olds, a 1 year old, and a baby. Good times! We made it through just fine. The group shot was a bit dicey, but I'm sure I'll have something presentable in the end.

Tomorrow, I'm helping with an event at our church called "Pure Girls". It's for girls ages 8-12 and their moms. A lot of the focus will be on modesty and the girls finding their worth in the right places. It's a state-wide event and we have over 200 moms and girls coming. It should be a lot of fun and I'm sure we'll be kept on our toes all day!