4.21.2009

Where Can He Go?

Psalm 139:1-18

1 O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.
5 You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, [a] you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to [b] me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you.

4.20.2009

Come Home, Jelani!

Please pray for Jelani's safe return. We love you, J. Come home soon.
Read more here.
And here.
Or here.

4.17.2009

My Thumb is Getting Greener

A couple of weeks ago, I took the girls to Home Depot and we picked up some soil, containers, and seeds with which to start a garden. We bought sugar snap peas, green beans, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, green onion, bell peppers and a sunflower. I not only wanted to do this for fun, but also as a way to involve & teach Rae about growing, save money, and encourage our family to eat fresher and healthier.
Those of you who know me well know that I do NOT have a green thumb. Every plant I have ever owned has died. I've even killed cacti not once, but twice.
Imagine my surprise and delight, then, when the first little seedlings started to emerge. Tiny green shoots are growing into tender green plants, and as soon as the weather decides to stay warm, we will dig a garden outside and transplant them for a summer harvest.
Maybe God is just being nice to me for Rae's sake. :) Just keep praying that they bear fruit so she's not disappointed! I still haven't seen any action from the peppers, and the beans have only produced one weak looking seedling. (P.S. Any tips/advice are welcome!)

Rae adding soil to the containersThe sugar snap peas are growing the best so farOnionsCherry tomatoes

Easter (belated)

Sorry it has taken me so long to get up pictures from Easter. We had a great weekend celebrating with family and friends. We spent Saturday at JP's dad's place enjoying the sunshine and dying eggs while JP helped finish their lower bathroom. On Sunday we enjoyed a powerful service at The Quarry Community Church in Monticello, followed by brunch and an egg hunt at JP's aunt and uncle's. From there we went to my parents for dinner, more egg hunting, and a big hug from Micah, who has been home for the past week!
Being the horrible mother that I am, I neglected to get a picture of Ruby in her Easter dress! I'll never forgive myself....
BUT I did get a few cute pictures nonetheless. Enjoy.

Dying eggs with Gammy & Ava
The hunt is on...
Wait a minute! These have candy inside!Malachi's lootRae waters the flowers in her new apron from GrandmaRuby bonds with Uncle Micah

4.10.2009

Deja Vu

I took this photo of Israel today and it instantly reminded me of another picture of her from when she was only about 4 or 5 months old.
Crazy, isn't it?
Then...

And now...

A Good Friday

We are having a good, Good Friday, and I hope you are as well! We're so very thankful for a beautiful, "warm," sunny day to enjoy, and even more thankful for a beautiful Savior who died in our place, even though it was us who deserved the punishment. We'd have no hope; but now we have Hope. We're so thankful.
But there are even more reasons we are having a good Friday!
Today we took our first trip of the season to Como Zoo & Conservatory. Our dear friends Brenda & Abigail accompanied us, and it was wonderful to see them. We love Como, and Rae was so excited to see all of the animals, especially the giraffes (her favorite), the sea lions, and the penguins.
Later in the day, my sister and her family showed up and we re-visited some of the exhibits with them before having to go home for naps.
The third reason we are having such a good Friday is because my brother Micah is home from his Special Forces selection course. For those of you who haven't heard, HE MADE IT! He was one of 120 men selected from more than 300 candidates to be one of the Army's best of the best, a green beret. We are so proud of him, and so happy to have him home and reunited with his family.Unfortunately his stay will be short. He only has a couple weeks to pack his family and belongings up and move them all down to North Carolina, where he will continue his Special Forces training. He will be trained as a medic and learn Arabic. Eventually they will assign him a country or region (he's hoping for Turkey) and that will determine where they will be based.
Right now, I'm just trying not to think about them moving so far away! (Today is GOOD Friday, right?) :) We already have plans for a road trip to visit them this summer.
And finally, to make your Friday even "gooder," here is my new favorite picture of our handsome nephew Vinnie. Can't help but smile...

4.09.2009

Family Photos

Our family photos are all up and available for viewing. They are GORGEOUS!!! I'm warning you, though: there are a lot of them!

To view the photos:
Click here
Password: KF_Charlebois

Karen also put some of them on her blog with a very sweet lead-in. Click here for that.