Small Joys

Yesterday my grandson, Liam, brought me these flowers. Such a small thing brings such joy. 

I am also very proud of this girl. She has only been home from China for two years and just finished her second grade reading book. She is now in a third grade book! To think that she has had to learn a totally new language and adjust to a new country and then start doing school when she could not even understand what was being taught. She has done so well. She is now doing almost all of her school work on grade level. She has worked so hard and done so well and we are so proud of her. Tess is doing such a good job. 

Our Trip To Louisiana

Our daughter, Megan, had twins a couple of weeks ago and I decided that I would drive to Louisiana to see them. I took Sarah and Bethany with me as I didn't really want to drive all that way alone. Megan has a special bond with Sarah as she took a year off from school and helped teach her. I'm not much on driving long distances, but decided I would make this fun and try to enjoy as much of the trip as possible. The girls were pretty good and didn't complain or ask to stop very often. 

I think finding Cracker Barrel on this trip was one of the highlights for Sarah. None of us had ever eaten there and I saw one and decided to give it a try. Sarah absolutely loved it. She ate like she had not eaten in who knows how long. She barely talked. She ate everything on her plate and asked if she could have more. I liked it fine, but it is now Sarah's favorite place to eat. She and Bethany played checkers on the front porch after lunch and that was nice as it helped break up the trip a little. We even bought one of their checker boards. 

Megan was surprised when we arrived as we didn't even tell her we were coming. We knew she would still be at the hospital as Oliver was in the NICU. I was really glad we went. It was a nice time visiting with Megan and meeting the new babies. Megan was able to take both babies home the night before we left to go back to Virginia and that made me happy -- knowing they were finally all home together. 

We got back last night and the weather seems a little warmer and I think spring is finally here. 

This is Oliver -- he was the one in the NICU as he stopped breathing quite frequently. He went home on caffeine and a monitor. 

This is Penny and the one that the girls got to hold the most. Bethany said tonight that she wished she were back in Louisiana holding Penny. 

The lighting was just so bad in the hospital I turned these next two into black and whites. 

Twins!

I am in Louisiana visiting my daughter that just had twins - a girl and a boy.

Ice Cream

I bought popsicles and ice cream for the kids the other day hoping that the weather would warm up and they could all have ice cream outside. That is one of my favorite things to do -- give the kids ice cream in a cone on a hot day and watch them sit on the porch and enjoy. Well, it was kind of warm and my grandson Asher seemed to really love his ice cream. 

MRI Canceled

I had asked for prayer for Joey since he was having his MRI on Thursday, but he got a call today that it had to be canceled and rescheduled. I'm not sure when it will be now, but please continue to  remember him in your prayers. 

We have gotten back into our nature studies this spring and all of us really enjoy reading and discussing our nature books. Tess and Bethany seem to especially enjoy our study and have some big plans for projects. This is something they all love and it is good to see them enjoy it so much. Learning can be difficult for some of my children, but when you are really interested and you can have some hands on learning it makes it a lot easier and more fun. 

Pictures of the girls making cornbread again and then a chocolate cake -- Sarah's favorite. Then they did some drawings from our nature study today. 

Caroline ended up taking so long that she finished up her picture as we read our new book The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall. I think this book is going to be a hit. It is one I have never read to the kids before and that is unusual. 

Prayers For Joey

Asking for prayer for Joey as he has an MRI on Thursday. He also has not been feeling well at all for quite sometime. We are hoping this will change and he can start to enjoy the weather warming up. Please remember him in your prayers.

I took these pictures on Friday. I was keeping Joshua and Madelyn for Joey and Shannon and, of course, Luke is here everyday. It was nice and warm so they could play outside and I was able to get some pictures of all the kids together. 

Sophia does not like grass. Never has. Occasionally she will sit in it, but not usually. She likes to watch from the porch away from grass, gum balls and sticks. 

Boys Can Work In The Kitchen, Too

I was watching my grandson, Liam, in the outdoor kitchen late one afternoon, and he was so enthralled in his work of cleaning and cooking he hardly noticed I was there. It amazes me how much all the kids love this outdoor kitchen and it cost so little and is mainly dirt and a few spoons and plates and cups. Kids can be so happy using their imaginations and making their own little play spaces.