For the love of Soccer...

Jordan absolutely loved playing soccer this year! He had a blast. His self confidence was boosted as the season wore on. He started shy and with his hands always at his mouth. And ended, with his hands at his side waiting patiently for his turn to play. He went from unsure of his abilities to confident that he could kick the ball down the field, run, and shoot goals. He displayed great sportsmanship for a five year old. He loved having his daddy coach his team. And he loved having mommy and Jori watching him from the sidelines. It was so cute, when he'd score a goal, he'd always make sure that his cheering section was watching. Grams, Grandmom and Grandpop, Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Laura were all on the sidelines at one point or another during the season. I'm so glad to have been a part of watching him grow this summer, and to watch how much fun he was having. And a big thank you to Coach Ken for his commitment to the kids and his patience in teaching the kids to play soccer.

Happy Birthday Jason!

Happy birthday! You are a big 30 today! :) And this is a photo of your "Surprise" party. We had the party on Aug. 18th at the Chesapeake Bay. You knew I was doing something for your birthday. So, you had guessed from the minute the "family reunion" was "planned" that we were doing your birthday party then. So, I had to throw you off a bit. I figured I'd at least have fun throwing you off for a night, and having you know about your party. :)

So, the wednesday before your party I called you up and asked if you wanted to eat at Tex Mex. Which I never call you up to ask specifically for a restaurant and it's your favorite one. That got you thinking about the party being that night. To top it off, one guy in our small group who is known for blowing surprises sends an e-mail out to the small group saying we should be doing something for the birthday guy that night. (Which by the way I knew he was doing that! LOL! He called me that morning to help conspire!)

And to top it off, one of your "guys" was staying late to work that night. Which wasn't planned by the way, and just played into my evil plan! HA HA HA! And to make matters worse you show up at your parents house with this "guy" who's working late to show him the new location. I get a little stressed out because it wasn't part of my evil plan. (but then I played the stressed out part to my advantage!) I also baked a gf cake for small group that night with the kids to help throw you off as well. You say all of these "clues", and put them all together and totally thought we were surprising you that night.

Well needless to say, when we got to Tex Mex, I go up the stairs, with you lagging behind because you didn't want to come in with me for the "BIG" surprise! And I ask for a table for 2. Your look on your face at that very moment was absolutely priceless. You were completely in shock! You were laughing so hard you were crying. Which was the absolute best ever! You always guess your surprise parties. So... I got you! Then to top it off to throw you off from guessing the Bay then after that surprise was a foil.... I told you to go out to the car while I "shadily" talked to the Hostess. :) I really just went to the bathroom and said hello to the waitress!

When we got down to the bay after 3 hours in traffic, you saw Dustin's Car in the parking lot and were all confused. So, I said "surprise!" it's your party today! You had all kinds of cool people there to help celebrate your birthday. And a few cool people that couldn't come because of 95 south being closed. :( But were there with us in spirit.

So, now you'll never forget the 95 traffic, the foiled surprise, and the actual fun day!

First Day of Kindergarten

What a cutey! He absolutely loved kindergarten. He loved being with his friends J and J again. He loved his new teacher Mrs. H. He had a trip to the Library and brought home his first book for the year. :) They got to play outside and he sat next to a girl during circle time. They made the mom's and dad's a beautiful art project. It had a nice poem that brought me to tears and his painted hand print along with a cut out heart. It's a keeper! :)

Today was his second day at kindergarten and they've given him a bible verse to memorize as homework. Now, for those of you already in shock at a kindergartener having homework, don't be! It's not your typical homework. It's about us as parents working alongside Jordan to help him hide God's word in his heart. It's about taking our time (we have until Nov. 2nd!) to really study this verse and know it inside and out and know what it means so that we may always carry it with us wherever we may go. His teacher and class will be singing it, playacting it, using pictures and drama to help memorize it. They will recite it together everyday between now and then. I'm so glad the bible is part of his education. I'm so glad the foundations of Christianity are not only taught at home but in school as well. That he can have the experience of friends and teachers that will encouraging each other in God's family. And when he's ready he'll have all the tools necessary to follow God's commands and "Go out into the world to spread the Gospel".

Jordan practically pushes us out the door so that the kindergarten day can start. He loves that it's everyday except daddy's playday. And he loves being busy and having lots of friends to play with and activities to do.

Thank you Lord Jesus for the ability to have our son at Penn View. Thank you for wonderful friends and teachers for him. And thank you always for the protection you provide for our children.

Tire Swing

There's nothing like the feeling of swinging on the tire swing. My kids are crazy for it whenever they see one at the park we are visiting that afternoon. Around and Around they go. It kinda makes me dizzy though. :) They love it.

Summertime brings all kinds of great outdoor days. It also brings in our family tradition of hunting down new parks to play at and explore. We have our favorites that we visit over and over again, but we also like to hunt for a new park at least everyother week. It's so much fun trying out the swings at different parks. Not that the swinging feels different, but the scenery is so much worth the swing.

We've gone on dinosaur hunts, Space Walks, and traveled through time walking through the woods at different nearby parks. How fun it is to run and call it going "Warp Speed" to re-enter the earth's atmosphere. I am enjoying this summer home with my kids.