The final night!

Tomorrow Rob and the team from Costa Rica fly home! I can't wait. Hopefully you all understand that I didn't post yesterday because I am still so sick. Boo.

I did get to place a good size book order yesterday though!! You'll have to check out my Book Blog and see what I got! A little fiction, parenting, and homeschooling - I'm super excited.

Well really we haven't been having too much fun around here without Rob and being sick and all, but it hasn't been bad at all either. Sorry I didn't post any pictures from the week on here. Some are on Facebook of our trip to the Kennedy Space Center.

What have you done this week?

Day 5: Feeling Under the Weather

As I was heading to bed last night, I couldn't get rid of my dry scratchy throat. I thought I was just super thirsty. Nope, just getting sick. Joe woke me up at 5:40am and she couldn't go back to sleep. Finally after 6am she said she really had to go to the bathroom. Come to find out she couldn't sleep because she was holding it. I felt bad making her lay down with a full blatter. So in spite of our tired start we managed to still have a good day - other than my increasingly achy throat. The kids and I took things slow today and they are already in bed, not sleeping yet, but at least in bed. :)

I'm going to turn in early myself. Have a great night everyone. Stay safe Rob. Miss you.

Prayer for Baby Kaleb

Dearest Father in Heaven,

We know that we can trust in Your unfailing love. We believe that was has and what will happen is for all our good because we trust in You. We pray now for little Kaleb as he undergoes surgery. We beg you on his behalf to be with the surgeons and the hospital staff. Please comfort Kaleb, his mommy and daddy, his grandma and grandpa, and his whole family. We look expectantly to You as our only true source of hope.

We pray with the Psalmist that you will be near to Kaleb and his family now and forever. Thank you for being a good God.

Psalm 34

NLT

1 I will praise the Lord at all times. I will constantly speak his praises.

2 I will boast only in the Lord; let all who are helpless take heart.

3 Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness; let us exalt his name together.

4 I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears.

5 Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces.

6 In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord listened; he saved me from all my troubles.

7 For the angel of the Lord is a guard; he surrounds and defends all who fear him.

8 Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!

9 Fear the Lord, you his godly people, for those who fear him will have all they need.

10 Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing.

11 Come, my children, and listen to me, and I will teach you to fear the Lord.

12 Does anyone want to live a life that is long and prosperous?

13 Then keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies!

14 Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it.

15 The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right; his ears are open to their cries for help.

16 But the Lord turns his face against those who do evil; he will erase their memory from the earth.

17 The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles.

18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.

19 The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time.

20 For the Lord protects the bones of the righteous; not one of them is broken!

21 Calamity will surely overtake the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be punished.

22 But the Lord will redeem those who serve him. No one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

Day 4: Good things

Free theater day! It was a fun experience again - and this time we met up with friends! Afterwards we grabbed $1 scoops at Ben & Jerry's and then went home for lunch, naps, and down time.

Tonight when I put the kids to bed I tried a new thing - Twila Paris' lullabies for the kids to listen to as they fall asleep. (Thanks both to Jill for the awesome CD!!! And Mom and Dad Thompson for the suggestion - I think it really helped Joe.) We'll see how well it fits into our routine from now on, but I could tell it changed the atmosphere in their room right away - calm and reverent.


I appreciate all of you who are following our week and praying for us while Rob is in Costa Rica. I haven't heard much from him these past 2 days, but I know he and the team leave tomorrow for a remote island and we won't be able to talk until maybe Friday (?). I pray that as a team they are having wonderful personal and corporate communion with our awesome Saviour!!! I pray they will each come home looking more like Jesus!

Free Family Fun Camp

Our Plan for Saturday - Come and Join us!!

Day 3

What a great day. Although it started rough; Graham fell and busted his lip open. 2 big bloody holes from teeth going through... He's all swollen and bruised, and I'm trying to get used to his 3rd fall in one week - raising a boy is definitely different.

But after that drama, we went with Rasha to the Kennedy Space Center! They just launched the last shuttle from there not too long ago - Rob watched it from our driveway. We had a great time, watched an educational 3D film about the Moon, and explored. Very cool.

Then we came home, changed, ate a early dinner and went to the gym! My last free personal training season... I hope I can remember it all!!

Kids went to bed on time and without any usual fuss, and I got to Skype with Mom and Dad Thompson! But now it's time for me to retire, so "until tomorrow."

{We'll eat toast and talk about what you like to do "everyday" when you get home, Rob. Miss you. I hope to post a new video or picture soon!}

Day 2: Church and all

Sundays are big days for our family - up at the crack of dawn, and down well after dusk. Most of the time we get 3 square meals in between and then sometimes we eat things that I don't think count as food... today wasn't much different except for the food (thank you Rasha for lunch!). Even though Rob is away, the kids and I still marched on. They are doing well.

Tomorrow is another big day: we're visiting the Kennedy Space Center! I hope all of these mini adventures will help the kids gear up for the 22+ hours in the car one-way to Michigan!

Just the three of us: Day 1

So far so good. Really, it just hasn't sank in yet. It's like having a "working weekend" and we're pretty used to that. We had a nice birthday party to go to today and that was a lot of fun for the kids and me too! We came home, they got cleaned up, we all took a nap, and stayed in for the rest of the night! And I'm super glad we did because I'm beat.

I've started thinking about routes to take to travel back to MI in 13 days! I also want to finish 2 books while Rob is away. I'm about half way through each. And let's see: clean the house, start acquiring supplies for the trip to MI, go to the gym M-F, go to the theater & library, hang out with friends, and did I mention clean? Hmm... I might need to sit down and plan this out - I don't want to be so busy that I lose focus.

I'll keep you posted. Please be praying for us here and Rob there. We are so thankful for you!

Not losing a Man/Husband/Father/Friend but rather gaining a Missionary

So Rob leaves in the morning, and I have to say that I've only had small moments of panic. Let's face it, I need him. He's not an option to my life - he and I are one! But instead of focusing on all that I am (and Joe & Graham) losing, I'm choosing to put my energy into supporting this awesome ministry opportunity! True, I may not be able to talk to him at all, or Skype, or email, or text, etc... but I will constantly be connected to him through the power of the Holy Spirit and prayer. We serve such an awesome God who comforts us and never leaves us.
Let this be my reminder for the week, like many of you have told me already - "I can make it," but even more than that - I want Rob to come home to his greatest encouragers who never lost sight of the bigger picture, who prayed him through situations unknown, and who are ever more grateful to God for his presence in our lives.

Rob - I am so proud that you are setting out on this adventure - now go serve the LORD!

We made "Summer Jars"

I like scheduling/managing my time. If I could I would do the same things over and over. That's right. As much as I believed growing up that I was this wild child of my generation, I'm really not. I love creativity and expression, art and literature, growth and open-mindedness, but I like all of that to be in an organized nice little box. With a bow. :)
So for me and the kids, I have to adapt my schedule regularly. We have weekly and monthly plans that we try to be consistent with, like going to the library every week for preschool reading group. We rarely miss, but when we do it's difficult to replace it. Like I said, I'm creative but not spontaneous.
Then I found this gem to solve that "spontaneous" problem: The Summer Jar.
Better Way Mom's

But I'm also copying Jodi, because while I was breezing through my "home" on fb, I came across a great photo of cupcakes which read "Free Take One" which I later learned was an item in @JodiMichelle's Summer Jar!

Check it out! Make one for your family! Just be creative and then do what the jar says...