Precious Friends...

I love my church!

That simple statement holds a lot of meaning for me, but the main reason I love my church is because of the people that are there.

Tonight one of our precious church families came over for dinner. Ana made chicken and broccoli alfredo with mushrooms. My tongue is soooooo very happy! We also enjoyed grilled meat, potato chips, lemonade, fruit and brownies. Here are a few pictures of our time together this evening.



My husband had mowed the lawn today. The mower had been washed, but had not been put away yet, so the kids talked him into rides. Go, Shy!!



Of course there were sports...




This is cute Nayja...



Mom had told Nayja "no" to something she wanted. Nayja went into an elaborate pouting routine. My husband decided to mimic her. ;) (He pouts very well....)



And Nayja could not help but laugh! (Few people can ruin a bad mood like my husband!)



Chris doing one of his amazing flip routines...



Chris with their baby...



Ryan playing basketball...





What a wonderful time of fellowship we enjoyed together this evening!

And now it is back to work for me on our Patch Party that we are having Sunday afternoon. I do not know who is more excited...me or the children! Teaching children is one of the greatest things that God allows me to do.

Thanks, Joannne, for the party things today!

And happy birthday to the greatest brother in the world. I love you, Rob, and I hope your day was super special!



Thanks for stopping by,

A Precious Gift From A Friend....

Several months ago my friend Joanne told me she was making a special surprise for me. Then a couple of months ago, she showed me the work in progress. She was crocheting a beautiful blanket and pillows in the colors of my bedroom!

On Tuesday she completed it and brought it over.



I am enjoying my birthday gift...



Honestly, I am one of the richest people in the world in the friend department!



Thank you, Joanne! I feel very loved!


Thanks for stopping by,

Singing In The Rain

Stacy inspired me with her pictures of her kids in the rain...though I did stop at the mud! ;) We seem to have had endless rain this summer. During a break in the rain Ryan ran out to play basketball. He was back in before the other kids could even get their shoes on to report it was raining....again. Thinking of Stacy I sent them out and told them to have a great time-which is what they did after they got over the initial shock!




They played hide and seek until I discovered they were hiding in the vehicles. It is not a good thing for the church vehicles to have muddy footprints all over the seats when it is time to pick up folks for church on Sunday morning!



Our wonderful piano tuner made his yearly visit to our home. We look forward to his visits. He tunes the piano, collects all the small toys that have fallen inside the piano over the year, tells us tidbits about when and where our piano was made--and my personal favorite--plays a piece or two when he is done. We think of him as a dear friend and we hope he does not retire for many years to come. (And he said to say hello to my Dad!! Daddy, he speaks so highly of your influence on him!) By the way, we learned that our piano tuner has worked for many famous people including Liberace. Pretty neat, huh?



Still thoroughly enjoying our time with our friends who are home for the summer. They came over this week for fun, biking and ice cream. Isn't that what summer is all about? Wish you could hear all the laughter and merriment!





The only type of shot I can get when Joshua is eating. It is ALL about the food-no posing and smiling! This picture is especially fitting as those are his fingerprints in the background. We wash the window often, but can never keep up. But I'm not complaining...




Wish we could share some ice cream with you! But I appreciate the time we just shared together. Have a great weekend!

And I am SO looking forward to my sister's upcoming blog post. Stay tuned!

Thanks for stopping by,

Happy Thursday!

Maine has experienced record breaking rain...day after day after day...

I have been teaching my children the importance of not murmuring. We had a fun lesson about it last night in Patch Club, too. Several of my children determined not to complain today--and then we awoke to sunshine! Yeah! I had some very happy children outside today!

Margaret was here for the day. What a treat! She is one of the most thoughtful people I know. My family has been on the receiving end of her generosity more times than I could count. We had alot of fun today talking, playing games, talking, taking pictures, talking...you get the idea. ;D

We took pictures outside. Here are some...

It does not matter how many pics I take-there is always one who does not cooperate!



I was taking pictures of each child to use on our sidebar. I was in the midst of taking Rachel's pics when a bug landed on her. I am so glad I caught her expression...



Ricky found a grasshopper and wanted me to capture it. I was thrilled with the clarity.




___________________________________________________

Missy, thanks for telling me how to get the images. That is really neat. I tried it tonight.

Margaret, thanks for coming! What a wonderful day!

Paula, I enjoyed our "communication" today! LOL We will talk about "you-know-who" and how she behaved later...

Hope your day was wonderful as well!

Thanks for stopping by,