Camp Crazy 2014

As I broke out in a sweat packing up toothpaste, coolers, tubs, wipes, hot dogs, bags, water bottles and the kitchen sink for our first family of six camping trip, a stinking suspicion crept into my mind.  Could it be that I was teetering on crazy for planning to sleep in a tent for two nights with four littles six and under? 

Call me crazy, but it was big, fat, sweaty, sticky, exhausting fun. 

Be assured that there were meltdowns, that many band-aids were applied, and that the kids were grumpy sometimes too. 

 

  

 

But it is hard not give yourself over to toasty marshmallows, mugs of hot chocolate, Mason jars filled with caught frogs, glow sticks and sunshine filtered through a hundred trees.

 As soon as our mini pulls into the gravel driveway, we all change into campers for the weekend.  Even our two new littles embraced the tent and state park bathroom life. 

 Crocks, tanks, friends, water colors, snacks and suits are all that is needed to load this memory with perfection.   

 Camp Crazy 2014 was all that we hoped it would be, and then a bonus was given. 

Julie, Nathan and kids arrived for a campfire picnic and some canoeing. 

Dusk canoe dates were the dessert of the weekend!

 Of course the littles had fun too, scoring their first canoe ride!
(Sorry Mark-o the canoe master for posting an eyes closed pic.   Love that goofy grin though!)

 The beauty in all this canoe fun is that Nathan hand carved both of these works of craftsman art. 

Our cars might have been parked by our tents, and we had to go home 2x for kid care, but it felt as though we'd stepped away from our world for the weekend. We slowed down, made art, had some adventures, noticed the stars, treated ourselves to some incredible camp meals, and disconnected in order to connect. 

 

 

Our hope is that 2014 has a few more tent nights in store.  

Lingering in the Sun

June was summer, fast and furious. 

Camps and all kinds of adventures filled every square on our calendar.   

 June's soul mate, July, has slowed down the pace to just the right speed. 

  And we've loved long days spent around the pool and on the lake

 with lots of special friends. 

So grateful for the gift of friendships and sunny, water-filled days spent lingering.  

Idle and Blessed

Some days it needs to be just us, Saturday-ing down a nearby trail. 

 Just sisters, a brother, a dad and a mom, distraction free. 

 With every step into the woods, some grumpiness falls away and some peace seeps in.   

 Alone, but together, rest is found. 

Rocks splash into water and we measure the success of our day in muddiness. 

 Leaves that become boats teach science lessons about currents.   

And the littlest among us is just a kid with her toes dipped in the water, happy to spend the day with those with which she feels the safest.

By the time we hike out, we have another memory added to our collection, connecting us deeper still. 

 

I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?

~Mary Oliver

Sock Hoppin'

 Our month of camps ended in some poodle skirt, slicked back hair, sock hoppin' good times.  Creative Arts Camp was filled with instrument playing, crafting and dancing fun and ended in a crazy cute 50s style performance. 

We greased up our little man's hair, rolled up his jeans and topped off his look with a white T. 

The girls rocked the poodle skirts with some swagger.  

The sock hop performance was high on the cuteness factor, and the dancers shook it like nobody's business. 

 Our little buddy, Debo, beamed from the stage!

Then, if you are 4, 5 and 6, there is no better end to a camp-a-palooza then jump-a-thon!

It is such a joy to see our littles experiencing new things and pushing themselves in new ways.  Clearly, they mastered their first sock hop!

Adventure Bible NIrV for Early Readers: A Review

 

I'm constantly failing at reading the Bible with my kiddos.  We get in a great a pattern, then it  interrupted.  Then its weeks before we get back at it. 

 

The NIrV Adventure Bible for Early Readers is the first "real" Bible for Sophia.  Prior to this, our favorite Bible has been The Jesus Storybook Bible.  We've read that one MANY times, and will keep reading it, but our biggest girl is ready to move on beyond selected stories. 

 

The NIrV Adventure Bible is designed as a full NIV Bible for beginning readers.  We love that we can really start working on finding scripture and learning the books of the Bible.  Sophia's eyes lit up when this arrived in the mail, and we explained the step up that she'd be taking in learning God's word. 

 

Some of our favorite parts include, color illustrations and the "Live It" young reader friendly devotionals. Also, at the beginning of each book, there is a page explaining who wrote the book, why and where it was written, as well as "What can we learn about God?"    

 

There are pages included including "Questions Kids Ask" and "How to Pray" with scripture references. 

 

This is a "big kid Bible" that is very age appropriate.  Our whole family can learn much from this book.  Can't wait to dive in!

 

**Note: I was given a copy of this Bible in exchange for my honest review. 

Camp Hip Hoppin'

Summer Camp Stats

Sophia: 4

Claire: 2

Eli: 1

Evie: carpool city

January through May of this year was Evie focused.  Like all Evie all the time.  So, this momma (who normally prefers to go minimal on the scheduled structured activities) decided to let her little people have some fun of the not organized by mom variety.  I might have gotten a little registration happy, but lots of fun was had!

As June approached, emails from camps started arriving with lists of dress-up days.  I may or may not have been a grumbling costume finder, but once they were found, it was high on the cuteness factor!

 First up was our church's VBS, which only Sophia aged in on.  Such a sweet and fun time, highlighted by making lunches for local kids in need.  She loved it!

Then we hit another local church that rocks out on the camp planning for our community.  Claire and Sophia got in on the action, and came home beaming, dancing, singing their Agency D3 songs 100x a day, and reenacting Bible stories.  

The big one of the summer for Sophia was Camp in the City back at our church.  Complete with waterslides, jumpies, dance moves, chants, tent groups, awesome discipleship, a climbing wall, and the greatest camp counselor ever, her first all day camp did not disappoint.  This camp impacted our girl's heart, increased her faith and boosted her confidence. 

 

Last up was creative arts camp for preschool and completed Kindergarteners with our camp hopping pals.   

It was heavy on the crafts, dancing, instrument playing and sweet Bible story time.  

Eli aged in on this camp and had such a fun first camp experience.  His big smile earned him loads of attention and he had a BIG time!

 

 

We are so grateful to these two churches for investing in the lives of our kids this summer.  We are blown away by how they poured into our kids' hearts.    

Sliding Through Summer

Summer didn't go legit via the calendar until this past weekend, but in our world it started in May.  To us, we settled in long ago and have been sliding through the sunshine months. 

 There is just something about these long, summer days.  It fosters some bravery, promotes relaxation, and gives the gift of reconnection with friends. 

Pools, pop-up storms and pizza.  We are totally summering! 

Thank you, Beth and Heather, for a fun and adventure filled afternoon!



Splish Splash

 June kicked off Operation Fun.  These kiddos need some crazy kid time, so we spent a recent Saturday hitting a puppet show, followed by a splash pad.  Little Miss Ev can't go into a regular pool, so we are in search of splash opportunities. 

 This one was splash-tastic and did not disappoint. 

Puppets, water and a picnic made for a perfect summer Saturday.

 And our new to water fun littles gave it two Chinese-American thumbs up!



Thankful.

whatever it takes

Before there was a picture, my heart held an image of you. I penned my name on the adoption application, and your life was written into my heart. “Whatever it takes”, took on new meaning. The forms, the hoop jumping, the check writing, the calls, the fingerprints, the background check, the study of our home, and the steady push toward a hundred unknowns. A list was given of what it would take to be your family, and we checked it off.

Soon, a picture of little you appeared, and oh how I knew. I’d do whatever it took to get to you.

Whatever the obstacles. Whatever the red tape. Whatever the wait. Whatever.

In China, “whatever it takes” was all new once again. My arms felt the weight of you with your sad eyes, raging fever, infection, no appetite, terrified sobbing, list of medical needs, bag of medical supplies, and wall around your heart. No idea what being your mommy would take, or IF I could do what it would take, I could only do whatever the moment, whatever the trip agenda, required.

Now home, we’ll trek forward with “whatever it takes”, minus the handy checklist.

I’ll simply take care of you. I’ll adjust my days, learn nursing techniques and juggle your appointments with your siblings’ schedules. I’ll creatively battle your veggie aversion and sneak probiotics into your sippy cup. Trusting new instinct, I’ll call the nurse when a low fever feels like something more.

I’ll research and fill my notebook with questions for the doctor, seek specialists, and humbly ask friends to babysit. I’ll check my watch in waiting rooms as I fill out more new patient paperwork, marking “unknown” under family history. I’ll drive to another state for an expert. I’ll add edema (swelling) and febrile (fever) to my widening dictionary of medical jargon. I’ll do pre-op, post-op and listen to discharge instructions. I’ll fill and refill those prescriptions.

I’ll wake another day and let you follow me from room to room because you feel safer with me in sight.

I’ll hold you a bit longer than my arm wants to.

At the sound of your cry, I’ll stumble into your bedroom at 1AM. I’ll hold you during another church service because you panic at the sight of a childcare worker.

I’ll do a daily “lovie” wash so comfort awaits. I’ll smile at you and pull you into my lap when I’d rather have a moment to myself.

Read the rest over at No Hands But Ours. 

You Were Made For This

 

Somehow there are six of us now. 

And its life unglued.  These littles are crazy people. 

They are wild, needy and fill most of the minutes of our days. 

End of the day exhaustion is a given. 

 

But, they are fun, smart and generous with their grace.

We mess this parenting gig up daily.  They yell at us.  We yell at them. 

Not one us has any perfection to speak of. 

Sometimes I fast forward in my mind to when life might be easier, when it might be less of a four six and under crowd.

But then I know better.  We've lived enough ups and downs to know that parenting them today is a precious thing.   

 

You were made for this, Mark.

You are the dad that is needed for this wild and precious time. 

You are all in.  Silly, responsible, hardworking and selfless.  As much of a dad as I am a mom.

You've sailed us past the safe and comfortable life, and we have four goofballs to prove it. 

 

You multi-task, go to soccer practice, give baths and work two jobs. 

You arrive home from Africa and whip up pancakes. 

You navigate the medical ship and play nurse. 

You color at the kitchen table and put carrots in your ears to make them giggle. 

 

You were made for us, and we are blessed by you. 

 Happy Father's Day.