More of May!

Here is more of May!

Kick ball has become a family favorite! 

Dad got to come early and celebrate Isaiah's birthday. 

Isaiah LOVED his scooter!

 

Happy Mother's Day!  I am so blessed!!!!

 After talking to our friend, Roger, he volunteered his garden space to us 

for our own garden!

   

So, this week, we headed over to plant.  Jackson got to help Roger plow up our plot. 

 Then, we planted corn. . .

 . . .tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, okra, broccoli, and probably some other things as well! 

 We feel so blessed to get to use this space.  Thank you, Roger!!!

With school winding down, we have had lots of activities/assemblies to attend.  This was Sydney's awards assembly. 

 Jackson's "awards assembly" took the form of an ice cream sundae party.  They earned toppings for each level they passed.  He earned the maximum, so he had a huge pile of ice cream goodness!  Unfortunately, he ate it all before I could snap a picture, so this will have to do! 

Raegan and Isaiah set up this tea party the other day! 

 Before we knew it, the last day of school had arrived!  I am always sentimental about these days as I reflect on how great of a year the kids had.  We were all blessed by excellent teachers, and we are thankful. 

 On her last day of school, Sydney was awarded the President's Award for earning all As during 5th and 6th grade in addition to scoring Exemplary on all of her state assessments.  We are proud of her! 

 Then, her day ended with the talent show.  She and her friend, Sydney, paired up to play and sing a song.  They did a great job! 

In thinking about this month, it is always busy.  We have two birthdays, Mother's day, and many end-of-school activities.  Sometimes, I feel like I am just trying to keep up.  But, I'm trying to be thankful for all of this fullness because it is a reflection of all that God has blessed us with.  And it is all good.  So, thank you, Father! 

May Activities

 May has been incredibly full of fun events!  Here are some highlights!  

Slip-N-Sliding down our "hill".

 

Isaiah has been blessed to have a Parents as Teachers teacher come visit us each month.  

This was his last visit!  

 Raegan likes to sneak my camera and do her own shoots.  Here, she caught Isaiah snuggling. 

 We have had lots of Field Days.  The first was Sydney's.  Here she is with her good friend, Sydney! 

 She got to be a part of the relay race.  They got 4th overall.  Run, Sydney, Run! 

 A couple of days later, it was CDS's Field Day.  Here is Raegan with her class. 

 She was so determined to win first place in her race.  She took off incredibly fast.  Unfortunately, her legs got going so fast that she tripped in the grass and fell.  (We should note that she WAS in first place by quite a bit at that point.) 

 

She was brave, though, and got back up and still finished third!  We were so proud of her for finishing hard. 

 Here is Jackson doing the tug-of-war.

 Jackson with his friends.

Jackson chose to run the 200--the longest race. 

He told me before that he was going to stay in 2nd until the very end--and then win!   Here, he is just 10 yards from the finish. . .and in 2nd. 

 

But he lunged at the very end to win at the finish line!  First place!  

That same evening, the girls had their CYT showcase performance.  Raegan got to participate in a "he-haw type variety show where she did a gymnastics routine and told silly jokes behind hay bales. 

 

Sydney was chosen to be a "mom" in the skit about a family taking a road trip.  She was very convincing as an uptight mom who does not want her kids watching movies on the way! 

The month is only half over, and we have had lots of fun already!  

 

Jackson is 10!

 Early that morning, we woke up Jackson so that Chris could celebrate with him. 

 His first bat!  (I wonder if Chris was more excited than Jackson!) 

 That night, Jackson was supposed to play his first baseball game, but the fields were too muddy, so we skipped straight to cake and ice cream! 

 A few days later, Jackson invited a couple of friends over to spend the night. 

 After hamburgers and macaroni and cheese, they played outside before settling in for games downstairs. 

 I think they had an "o.k." time! :) 

Happy Birthday, Jackson!!!  I am so proud of how you are growing up into a boy who loves Jesus and who has a heart for others to know this love. 

A Day at the Farm

A couple of weeks ago, we got to go to a working dairy farm.  Raegan LOVED it--she is definitely our "animal lover".  She was quick to pet as many animals as she could! 

 

Here, she pet the bunnies. . .

 

. . .then the chicks. . . 

. . .and the goat. . .

. . .and the calf!

Isaiah finally joined in on the fun, probably because the calf was behind a fence.  :)  He really enjoyed feeding the bigger cows.  

 

We had a great time watching the pig races, riding on a hay rack ride, watching a cow get milked and playing in their play ground.

   

What a fun day at the farm!  

Spring Came Early this Year

We have had great weather, so we have been outside for months already.

   

Isaiah loves "mowing" with Daddy!  

 

Raegan has set up her "seed store"!

 

And, Isaiah still loves playing in the dirt with his trucks.  :)

Simple Joys! 

Photo Book

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Sun Run

One of our favorite traditions is running in the Sun Run, a run to support Youth Horizons. They are an organization that serves the fatherless in Wichita. Today, we got up bright and early, only to hear the sound of pouring rain! Fortunately, God stopped the rain just as we got out of the car and headed to the starting line. Chris and I ran the 10K. Here is the start! Because he has not been able to train as much this winter, he graciously volunteered to pace me. (Yes, because his slow is my fast!) He pushed me to keep going much faster than I probably would have gone on my own.
I was excited to finish in 48:08, about 30 seconds faster than my PR. Yay! I had wanted to break 48, but I just couldn't keep up! I placed 4th in my age. Here we are after the 10K and before the 2-mile. The kids were getting excited to get going.
They all ran personal bests! Sydney ran a 16:05, Jackson ran a 15:37, and Raegan ran a 20:45. She even won 1st place in her age division! My dad usually comes to run as well. He thought he was super slow, but he even won 1st in his age as well!
Happy Easter to everyone! We hope you have a sweet time celebrating our Savior's resurrection tomorrow.