This past weekend was packed full of fun! Here's a quick recap:
We stopped by to visit Daddy at work on Friday!
The kids left thinking that work was just about the coolest thing ever.
I took the kiddos up to Trenton to visit family, friends and the Missouri Days festivities. The parade is always my favorite!
And we loved the patriotic theme this year! (and those flags are going to come in handy for halloween costumes next week!)
Jackson was super excited about his foot-long corndog.
And Belle was glad to help finish it off!
Don't let her cuteness deceive you. This was her at 4am earlier that morning. I felt the same way about being up with her for over an hour trying to keep her quiet and not wake the other guests staying at Hotel a la Gram Gram. We ended up on a 30 minute car ride until she was no longer a crying mess awake.
Both of my sisters were home for the weekend to celebrate Ashley's birthday! It's a good thing Laura crammed in between the two carseats before we ate fried chicken for lunch.
Jackson really helped by winning a game of "cuties".
Now Monday has come and gone and we're back in full swing of normal life! We've been utilizing our free time preparing for a very special birthday coming up this weekend. Can you believe that this kid will be FOUR?!
Of all the things I dreamed about teaching my kids about it never really dawned on me until today that I'd be the one to teach them about the events of September 11, 2001. My newsfeed was flooded this morning with "We'll always remember/We'll never forget" type status updates and photos-- and I realized that Jackson can't ever remember. To him, it will just be a history lesson, a story.
I've never really felt compelled to homeschool my children, but with this topic, I just knew that it was mine to teach. Not just something to talk about in a classroom someday. So today, I decided we'd talk about it. I organized some photos and videos on my computer and I let him stay up a little bit past naptime to be able to talk with him alone. He was intrigued as soon as I said, "Hey I want to talk to you about something!"
I started out telling him that today was a happy day and kind of a sad day too. First, it's Aunt Laura's 21st birthday!!! Today is a happy day to celebrate her because she's so much fun and we love her!
{we made a quick, impromptu trip to Springfield for a pre-birthday celebration this weekend}
But then we talked about why today is a sad day. A long time ago-- when Mommy still lived with Grammy and Papa and Daddy lived with Grandma Linda and Papa Forrest some people did a mean thing to our country. We talked about our country and the American flag. We talked about the towers and how the planes crashed into them. He saw photos and a short video clip of the tower collapsing and then it just wasn't there anymore.
I knew I didn't want the point of our discussion to be about the bad people in the world, so we spent just as much time talking about how people helped after the crashes. Firefighters, doctors, soldiers. And I explained about how a solider's job is to help protect us and I even snuck in a bit about how sometimes soldiers have to go away for a long time {just as good groundwork in case we experience a deployment in our future}.
Jackson kept asking, "Why do people not like our country?" And I just felt so helpless to say, "I don't have all the answers, honey. But sometimes people are just mean and we won't ever understand."
This was all a rather quick ordeal. Maybe 10, 15 minutes tops. But he was begging to keep looking at pictures and to hear more stories but I insisted that he napped. As soon as he woke up, he was asking to learn more. I wanted to document his reactions so I could share with Derek. This whole concept was brand new to him and his reactions were just so honest and genuine.
What I wasn't expecting was some of the stuff I actually captured. And I put together just a quick video because I can't help but be so proud of my little boy. The first part of the video is him just reflecting on what we've talked about. Oh, his facial expressions when he talks about the "bad guys"-- it just kills me. But, I was nearly in proud-mommy tears as he was talking about growing up to be a "protector" because it's "his job to do when he's a daddy" .... just like his Daddy. Seriously, tears all over again. My heart is full and I pray that his innocence will be around for a long, long time.
As I was quickly exploring Google in attempts to figure out ways to teach this info to a preschooler, I didn't uncover much. I pieced together some photos and videos in a way that worked and if anyone is interested, I'll share. It's nothing spectacular, but apparently he got the idea and he isn't scared or worried (which is what I was really concerned about!). Just let me know!
I spent my college summers doing Summer Missions— China, Myrtle Beach, Kanakuk Kamps, and one full summer in Colorado Springs at the Focus Leadership Institute. These opportunities were ways to serve others, yet as is often the case, these were major blessings in my life and made an impacting change in my life. I still have solid friendships with people that I met during these adventures.
My sister, Laura, is a part of a summer mission project in San Diego right now. It’s crazy to think that she’s even old enough to be in California without an adult, but more so to hear her talk about her faith in such an adult manor. Since when did my little sister (seven years younger!) become so mature in relationship with Christ?
I want to share with you what Laura has written about her summer. Her willingness to follow the Lord’s calling is amazing—even when it meant not spending her summer with her niece and nephew, not traveling with friends on fun road trips and vacations, and to potentially cease involvement in her much loved sorority simply to pay for her trip. It’s kind of long, but I condensed it a little bit—there is just too much good stuff and I’m just really proud.
Hello! I am spending my summer in San Diego on a Summer Project through the campus ministry, Campus Crusade for Christ! I have decided to give you a better glimpse of what I am doing here, how God is using me, and what will this trip look like long-term in my life!
I have experienced in-depth Bible teaching through the preaching of the staff here on project. The staff directing the project are some of the most respectable, God-centered, faithful, and intelligent leaders I have been blessed to grow with so far this summer. At each meeting, we start with a devotion to center or hearts and minds on our purpose for being here on project. We are constantly filled with the Word and are blessed with leaders who we can look up to to understand what it means to surrender our lives to Christ.
The opportunities to not only influence Americans, but people from numerous other nationalities here in San Diego are tremendous. As we go sharing at San Diego State University, there are more than 1,900 international students from more than 95 countries*. God has already placed me in spiritual conversations with an undergrad girl from the Philippines, a Muslim girl with a Political Science major, and a girl going on a college tour planning on moving to the States in the fall from Germany. Those are just to name a few! While on the beach I have been able to share the Gospel with a 19 year old boy from France; also, a high school boy at a bus stop about my faith, whose family still lives in Mexico and has an uncle who just started taking him to a Christian church!
While gaining new experiences of different types of evangelism and just simply sharing with all different types of people, I can feel the Holy Spirit changing not only the way I want to live my life glorifying God when I get home, but also placing in me such a life-long, deep desire to use these skills and experiences to lead others to an understanding of what it means to live a life, not just filling up with the Good News, but also pouring out the beautiful redemption we have received through faith! I am so excited to see how God will use me when I am back in my ‘comfort zone’ of school, familiar friends, and family!
I have felt a calling for ministry for the rest of my life throughout this past school year; with this, I know that my summer spent here is not just preparing me for my next 2 years at Missouri State, but for a lifetime of professing my faith in Christ throughout the world. God is growing me and preparing my heart to take the Good News to the numerous unreached peoples of this world.
While on the San Diego Summer Project, we will be living the last 4 ½ weeks without the project staff here. During this time, students will be given the chance to take over the many leadership roles and gain the experience of being a leader in a big way! These leadership positions will not only influence us now, but will be an experience that will help shape us as we continue to live our lives God-centered. Something unique about the state-side Summer Projects, is that we have the chance to get jobs or volunteer and begin to live life here, proclaiming the Gospel, as we will when we get back home. We have a weekly meeting called Friday Night Live where we are encouraged to invite our fellow employees and students we meet on campus so that they may hear the gospel and see what a Christ-centered community truly looks like.
I am still short on my support, God placed it on my heart to be here this summer and that He is using me and growing me in ways I could not expect He would. Please read through and consider, through prayer, helping me reach my final support goal! I have about 10 days to raise $1400. Thank you! Again, I encourage you to consider, through prayer supporting me; and to remember that you are giving for me to be here, but I am here to further the glory of God! If you would like to help me financially, you can donate through this site.
Whew. Don’t you wish you had the guts to talk about your faith to a boy at a bus stop? There is great stuff happening over in San Diego this summer. There are over 100 Campus-Crusade-for-Christ-ers there with her.
I wanted to share this, regardless of if you can contribute or not! But if you’re at a place in life where you can spare some funds to help—it will definitely help change lives. She misses home and covets encouragement too! Leave a comment and I’ll be sure to pass it along to her!
And here are a few pics that I borrowed from her friends off facebook!
Girl time—Laura is in the black tiger sweatshirt.
Yes, that’s my sister acting all ghetto in front. I’m holding onto this one to show her future children!
Not sure what’s going on here—but then, she probably doesn’t either…
