January...

I never meant to neglect to post, at all!

Here are some highlights from January...

We rang in the new year with friends...

and fireworks... and sparkling grape juice...

Ian has been instructed that he must not continue

to create games that result in his sister having

a shiner:

There has been lots and lots of snow... for months:

And, of course, lots of quizzing:

And, for Grace, lots of 5 question quiz offs...

This is quiz off #4 of the season:

Individual awards at Lela Close...

Seth was 11th, after winning his first quiz off...

Grace was 1st, after winning her 5th quiz off:

And the Team, 3rd Place...

Hannah, Josh, Grace, Seth:

And even some children's quizzing

Caleb's first for the season

(10th place individual, 5th place blue level team)

Ian's first ever

(5th place red level team)

 

 

That's January in a nutshell...  And since the kids are homeschooled we have neither observed snow days nor complained about all the time we have to spend together...

L.

District Celebrate Life, 2014...

Mostly this post is going to be embedded FB post videos.  DCL was really fun and definitely a success as far as all of the entries our youth group brought!

One picture...  This is Seth's sculpture which received mixed scores from the judges (not exactly the most orthodox display of creation I've ever seen, but extremely theologically loaded and helpful, nonetheless), and it will be moving on to RCL in May:

The trio that Grace did with Kelsay and Kyle received an excellent:

Post by Phil Michaels.

The worship band, which practiced together for 2 1/2 weeks, managed to pull off an excellent, and I can't even begin to tell you how proud I am of their effort:

Post by Phil Michaels.

Grace's keyboard solo unfortunately came apart at the seems a little bit because of a memory lapse, but the judge gave her a superior anyway:

Post by Durand NYI.

Grace's vocal solo with accompaniment, which is a song she wrote, herself, received a superior:

Post by Durand NYI.

In addition to all of the above events, Grace's still photography is moving on to RCL, as well.

The only really questionable event of the weekend was bathing suit snow angels...  This event will not take place in May...  Oh, wait...  I don't think this was part of the competition...

Post by Chad Hadfield.

What a weekend!

L.

And So, It's A New Year...

I spent much of last year counting my blessings and trying to make each day a memorable one.  If you have been following my blog for very long, you know that the preceding year (2012) was a rough one and that I entered into 2013 determined to live life and love life, regardless of the circumstances in which I found myself. 

I didn't photoblog every single day, but I did have a record breaking year at 157 posts, and I am so glad that I have a tangible reminder of God's grace in my everyday, ordinary life.  I have learned a little something about being content, and I am happy.  Sometimes I cannot believe that this life, blessed beyond my wildest expectations, is mine.

That's not to say that there aren't struggles... some of them pretty enormous...  But there is something powerful about living a life of love and gratitude.

And so it begins again...

The truth is, last year at this time about all I could really hope for was to check my attitude, worldview, and outlook and to somehow crawl to a place where I trusted God more fully and recognized the great ways in which I have been blessed.  I wouldn't change one step of that journey.

Looking forward, I have a few more concrete goals, but mostly I hope that in 2014 I can do less... and be more...

Carrying on...

L.

Christmas Letter, 2013...

***This letter is what we would ordinarily send out to everyone at Christmas time.  This year was a little unusual, as the letters were printing when an ice storm hit and we lost power for the next 7 days!  Needless to say, they did not get sent out in time.  I am still sending a few to relatives, friends who don't have FB accounts, and those who have specifically requested a hard copy of the infamous Christmas letter, but for the vast majority of people we know, here it is... in electronic form!  If you need new contact information for us, please feel free to make a comment with an e-mail address at which to reach you!  Love you all...  L.***

Dear Friends and Family,

As we come to the close of another year, we are feeling amazingly blessed and maybe even a little bit surprised at where God has brought us.  After twelve years, we have essentially returned "home" and are adjusting to life a little closer to grandparents and with a new church family at Durand Church of the Nazarene, where Phil accepted a call as Associate Pastor in September! 

      

Seth turned 13 in September, thrusting us into a new era of life!  It's really hard to wrap my mind around the fact that we now have a teenager.  Seth is very busy, these days, programming video games on his laptop, creating pieces of art, and working hard at Bible Quizzing.  Seth is enjoying making new friends in the neighborhood and in Durand, and he really likes living closer to his grandparents!

 

   

Grace turned 12 in October, so the countdown to the teenage years is on for her, too!  This past year, Grace's world has revolved around music and Bible Quizzing.  She has won numerous awards and scholarships and continues to amaze us with her dedication and hard work.  Grace loves being a part of a bigger youth group, and she is making friends quickly.  Grace continues to be a huge help, at home, especially with Miah.

    

Caleb turned 9 in May.  This year he participated in Upward Basketball and has continued to play piano.  It was a huge highlight for him when he and Grace did a duet, together, for Fall Festival and were declared "winners".  Caleb has also been tagging along in the quiz world and likes to keep track of statistics!  He works hard at everything he does and never gives up!  

     

Ian turned 7 the day after Christmas!  He is enjoying learning to read, and he likes to make messes in his free time!  We're thankful for a nice playground, because now at least some of those messes have moved outdoors!  Ian loves playing with dinosaurs and Lego and snuggling down to watch movies.

     

Miah is 3 1/2, going on 13... at least...  She continues to be "the queen" around here, and we all love playing with her!  Miah enjoys singing, dancing, reading, and having adventures with her My Little Ponies and Strawberry Shortcake dolls.  As of late, she is also having a lot of fun watching Disney Junior (this is the first time in years we have had any television channels, and Miah can't get over how easy it is to "push the red button" when she wants to watch something)!

Phil and I (Lisa) celebrated 16 years of marriage in August!  It's a really fun time of life for us, since the kids are getting older and more independent, and we have more options for spending time together, just the two of us! 

As we head toward another new year, may you be blessed beyond what you could ever imagine!  You are in our thoughts and prayers often.

  

Love,

Phil, Lisa, Seth, Grace, Caleb, Ian, and Miah
"The Lord said... 'Go back the way you came...'" (I Kings 19:15)

Happy 7th Birthday, Ian!!!

Oh, the time goes fast...

I can hardly believe that Ian is seven, but it seems that's always the way it goes!  He was such a trooper, today, taking pictures out in the snow!  One of these years we'll have to get back to Florida on his birthday, for some warm weather outside shots, but I think these turned out really good, despite the freezing temperatures! 

We always try to make Ian's birthday extra special, since it's kind of rough to have your birthday on the day after Christmas!  Today we celebrated at Chuck-E-Cheese, and we also went to see "Frozen", which we liked, a lot!

They really love Chuck-E-Cheese:

Secretly, there is one thing I like about the

Rat Infested Cardboard Pizza Palace:

Ian chose orange cake, orange frosting, and orange cream ice cream for dessert... no surprises there!  His packages were filled with Lego, Kinex, books, dinosaurs, and play-doh!  Overall, I think Ian thought it ranked right up there as one of the best birthdays ever! 

There's that orange cake:

And the presents:

And... what really matters...

We love this kid:

 L.

It Might Be...

... a little bit icy.

Beautiful, and yet so dangerous.  It's sort of ironic how many things in life about which this could be said...

So, my primary concern, at this exact moment, is that we have been without electricity at our house for going on 18 hours.  Wouldn't you know it, we were out shopping in the ice storm, last night, so our refrigerator and freezer are full!  I'm not too worried about the freezer, because it's pretty stinkin' cold in the garage...

If we go a couple more days, my primary concern will turn to the need our family has to celebrate Christmas and our sacred days, because even though I am super happy to have a place to crash, with heat and electricity, we would definitely like to get home!

L.

Oh, Saturday...

... how I have missed you.

We have had such a busy few months!  Today we finally had time to get the Christmas decorations up (better late than never) and to watch a couple of Christmas movies (How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966) and The Polar Express).

Getting Ready to Decorate:

Next time it's her turn to hang the angel, 

she'll be a Senior in High School:

Here We Are:

 

L.

Look...

... who finally got her ears pierced:

That would be Grace, but Miah just couldn't stand to not be in the picture!  We got Grace a gift card to Claire's for her birthday... ahem... in October... but this was just the first chance we had to actually go there!  She wasn't too excited about the process, but she loves the earrings!

L.

When We Decided To Make This Move...

... I pretty much promised my kids that we would stay connected to their friends and that we would not interrupt their music education.  These were two of the three biggest concerns, and I just couldn't promise that we could keep the house, so it was the best I could do.  A few months in, so far, so good. 

I'll admit that making the trek to Indiana isn't so bad, and I legitimately enjoy seeing friends there as well as going to music classes and lessons.  It's hard for me to be at the house, because there are so many memories, and I know it is only a matter of time before the house will no longer be ours.

But the pros outweigh the cons, and our most recent trip was an awful lot of fun.

Seeing Friends:

Lexi, Nate, & Matt:

Keegan:

 Owen:

We hope to catch some more of you next time around!  Ian did also get to play with John during Grace and Caleb's piano lessons, and Caleb, Ian, and Miah all got to see their music class friends, as well!

And... ahem... Miah and I made some of our own fun in the van, where we spent an awful lot of time on Tuesday:

L.

Sometimes...

... it just blows my mind - these things I get to do.

Today was... snowy...

We started out by attending the EMD mixer quiz, which was an awful lot of fun.  Phil and I both quizmastered, and Seth and Grace quizzed, and Caleb ran score sheets to the office, and it was just great.  We might be addicted to quizzing... just a little...

If I have never mentioned how amazing Grace is, I might just throw it out there that she is the only quizzer I have ever known who has placed first at a district quiz on three separate districts in one year...  Seth also had a pretty nice day, placing 10th, which means that he has placed in the top 10 on three districts, this year, as well...

I've said it before, and I'm sure I'll say it again.  There's nothing quite like coming home...

After the quiz, we ran some errands and then headed for the church board Christmas party, which was an excellent way to end a wonderful day. 

L.