Camping 2009

We had a wonderful camping trip this past weekend! Despite discouraging weather forecasts and a rough start, we ended up with beautiful weather pretty much the whole time, and the girls did great. This was Ruby's first camping trip, and she was amazing.

Rae & Daddy try out the new camping chairs

Ruby quickly adjusted to camping...and eating grass...and dirt.

I am in LOVE with this picture.

The adventures began as soon as we arrived. It didn't take us long to notice that after driving all the way to William O'Brien State Park, we had forgotten our tent poles at home! It was very frustrating at first, but we quickly realized how blessed we were that the campground was only about 45 minutes away. There was no better place for us to make a mistake we'll never make again!

JP ended up driving home to get the poles, and I stayed with the girls at the campsite with only a few items that had gotten pulled out of the van: one box of food, a kiddie pool, a screen gazibo, some blankets, and the pack-n-play. I set up the gazibo and tried to get the girls to nap in it (Ruby in the pack-n-play, and Rae on the ground), but that just wasn't happening. Neither of them could sleep, so I got them up and we played in the pool until daddy got back. We had no bug spray, and both Rae and I got eaten alive by mosquitoes. Ruby escaped with only one bite. After setting up camp we roasted hot dogs and headed to the beach to cool off before bed time.

Friday was filled with more swimming, nature walks, and time around the camp site. We also let Israel stay up with us past her bed time and roast marshmallows. But after two nights of sitting around the fire by ourselves, JP and I were both missing the company of our family we're used to having on camping trips. We were excited when my brother Joe and his girlfried Becky joined us on Saturday. After setting up their tents, we headed down to the St. Croix River to let the dogs swim, then we hiked to the "sliding rock," a large, sloped rock we used to love to play on as children. It was fun for me to see Rae having so much fun in the very spot I used to play as a little girl.

Pay no attention to the rear end in the background

Becky's black lab (Jake) and Joe's bulldog (Beau) were there, too.

Ruby thought it was hilarious when Jake would lick her all over her face.

Rae on the sliding rock

Our friend Eric also joined us for a few hours on Saturday. It was so great to see him, and he and Ruby really hit it off!

On Sunday, the rest of my family showed up for a Father's Day picnic. The day was a little cooler and more overcast than the other days. My mom brought a huge lunch for everyone, and we hid under the trees as we ate our bar-b-que sandwiches. The kids had a blast running around in their rain coats, too.After lunch we went back to the beach for more swimming. By 2:15, all of the kids were so tired from playing that they kind of started to fall apart. We had to quickly get them loaded into the car and head home before chaos erupted. My girls were both asleep by the time we pulled out of the park, and after transferring her to her bed at home, Rae slept until 5:30 pm.
It feels great to be home and I thoroughly enjoyed sleeping in the air conditioning last night. I think JP has all but decided that we need to keep our camping trips to earlier spring and in the fall to avoid the hot weather. Now I just have to tackle the unpacking and laundry...

Quick Update

Tomorrow we are headed out for our long overdue first camping trip of the season. The forecast says thundershowers tomorrow and Friday, but we're praying for that 40-50% chance that it WON'T rain! Pray with us!
This was a big week for Ruby. She is now officially a crawler! We got her very first crawling experience on video, so hopefully I can get that uploaded soon. With the crawling came the confidence to try pulling up on things as well. It won't be long till she's walking along the furniture, I'm sure! Ruby also started clapping yesterday, which is the cutest thing.
Israel is doing very well using the "big girl potty." We've started and stopped so many times, but only now have I really seen the motivation on HER side to do it. Rae doesn't like it when you call her a baby; "I'm just a big girl," she'll tell you. So the other day, JP explained to her one day that diapers are for babies. "Ruby is a baby, and she wears diapers. If you really want to be a big girl, you should use the big girl potty. " That seemed to do the trick! Now she just wants to be big!
That's all for now. I'll have lots of pictures and stories when we get home from camping.

Time for a T.V. fast???

Rae: (watching Diego) "I loooove watching T.V."
Mom: "Oh, great."
Rae: "But we don't always watch T.V."
Mom: (feeling encouraged) "That's right!"
Rae: "Yeah, cuz sometimes we have to eat!"

Pen Pals

Since Micah and his family moved to North Carolina, we are trying to keep the kids connected by writing letters and sending packages back and forth. We send pictures and drawings and let the kids dictate (with some help) the letters we write for their cousins.
The other day we received a letter from Malachi that was SO CUTE, I just had to post it. Rae's response was equally as cute, so hers is after that.
We miss you, M/M/M/Z/A!

Dear JP, Audra, Israel, and Ruby,
Hi! How are you? I love you and you are my cousin, Rae Rae! I liked the picture you sent us, and the letter. Thank you for the box! Thank you for the glow snakes and for the gummies with juice in them. Yes, I like my new house and my new pool. The birds come to eat the bird seed and the deer come to eat the corn. Yes, I like to swim in my new pool. Yes, Anna is getting big. I want to dance and blow bubbles with you, too!
When you come and visit us, we can swim in our pool, and jump. We can also play wrestle, go exploring, and play with the hose, and put blankets on our heads and bonk into things! :) We can do diggers and play in the sand, and we can go to a store and look at things, and go on a walk and take pictures! Wow! That's a lot! It will be lots of fun! Talk to you soon!
Love,
Malachi (and Uncle Micah, Auntie Missy, Zach and Anna)
P.S. When we take a walk, we can eat snacks too!

And Israel's scatterbrained response:

Dear Malachi and Zach,
Hi! I'm doing good! Thanks for your letter and the pictures. I have a Bible and I have flowers. My Bible has pictures about Jesus.
When we come see you, we can go camping and play games! We have been praying for George the kitty cat [their cat was lost, but he's home now]. We saw a turtle at my Gammy's house. Mommy catched him but he scratched her. Then he swimmed away. Now he's under the dock.
I have a new tricycle that my G & Bompa bought for me. It's red and white and it has a bell. Tomorrow I'm supposed to go to Target and have fun!
When we go on a walk, we can eat Dora snacks!
My favorite part about the pictures you sent is the trucks. Maybe we could ride in a wagon! I could be happy!
Ruby eats big girl food now. It's cereal. It's yucky.
I went to a park, and when I slide down the super big slide I was afraid. But then I wasn't scared anymore and I climbed up the slide. Maybe another time we can go back to the park and you can come with us and climb. And we can do the swings!
I lub you,
Rae Rae
P.S. My full name is Israel Hope Charlebois. And Ruby's nickname is Ruba-dooba.

Never Give Up!

Two nights ago, we all piled into the RV and drove to a new park we found not far from our house. The park had one of those little rock climbing walls, and JP wanted Rae to try climbing it with his help. She resisted and whined about it, but he encouraged her to give it a shot. Once they got to the wall, Rae really decided she did NOT want to climb the wall and that it was too hard for her to do. JP explained to her that we should never give up, even when things are seeming too hard for us. She wasn't too happy about it, but he urged her along all the way up the wall, helping her with each grip and each step. Finally she made it to the top.

When Rae looked back down at what she had done, she got SO EXCITED and started laughing and cheering for herself! She was so thrilled that she immediately came down the slide and went right back to the climbing wall. But this time, she did it all by herself! You would have thought she had been climbing walls all of her life! She was up that wall in seconds, then back down the slide to do it again and again and again.

Standing at the top saying "I did it! I didn't give up!"

After that, Rae was so confident in herself that she started tackling all of the "big kid" things to do at the park, including learning how to climb up the slide and hang from the monkey bars (keep in mind, she's only 2). By the end of our time at the park, she was walking around saying stuff like, "I don't give up anymore! Never give up!" We were (and always are) so proud of her!

Typical Night

The following is an example of a typical evening in the Charlebois home. All I can say is -- I love my life.

Just Add TLC

Last week, JP was browsing craigslist for nothing in particular when he ran across a listing that caught his eye. It was a 1977 Dodge Sportsman RV with only 57,900 miles on it for $1000. JP has always dreamed of owning an RV for the many road trips we plan to take as a family over the years. He decided that it was worth seeing, so that night he drove to St. Cloud to check it out. When he got there, he found a treasure!
It may not be the most gorgeous thing to look at, but this "camper truck" (as Rae calls it) has all the bells and whistles, AND it runs! All it needs is some TLC, which we intend to give it! And the very best part is that JP was able to talk the guy down to $560!!!!!
This truck has it all -- a large bed over the cab that folds up to provide extra head-room when not in use; an eating area; a cabinet bed over the eating area; a couch that folds down into another bed; a stove/oven/sink/fridge in the kitchen area; a bathroom with a shower and linen closet; AC and heat; tons of storage; and an exterior that has very little rust.
JP and I are both excited to redeem this truck! Some of the greatest blessings in our life together have come from redeeming things that other people didn't want. Take JP's work van, for instance. He bought that 1983 Chevy for $1300 and it has been an INCREDIBLE blessing to us and our business. JP took the time to learn how to work on it and has all but replaced the entire engine for just the cost of parts. He repaired all of the rust and turned it into a vintage treasure that makes us money every time he takes it out. And because he took the time to do that, he now knows how to get this RV into perfect working condition. Some new belts, new tires, minor tune-ups and a facelift, and we've got ourselves one heck of a family-mobile.
Keep checking back. I'll do my best to keep you posted as we move forward with our new project. JP has already fixed the screen door and some engine parts. We got new tabs for it and drove it to Menards as a family the other day. :) We've cleaned out all of the junk the previous owner left behind and plan to move on to cosmetics soon: tearing out the orange shag carpet (even on the ceiling!), sewing new curtains, replacing the upholstery, etc.
If all goes well, we'd love to take our maiden voyage by mid to late summer. Where to go first...decisions, decisions!

Here she is! What a beauty!

View looking towards the front. Notice how the passenger seat swivels around to face the rear! The sleeping area is above, and the couch on the left has seat belts, so car seats are no problem. Also, the dash is in immaculate condition. We'll probably just add a CD player.

View facing the rear

Fold-down bed over the eating area
The kitchen. Not pictured: paper towel dispenser and fire extinguisher!

The bathroom. Can you read the little plaque? (click photo for larger view)

The shower. Who wants to go first?

I love being a mom

I got this in an email today, and loved it. I hope you do, too. Happy Mother's Day to all of the moms in my life!

Before I was a Mom,

I never tripped over toys

or forgot words to a lullaby.

I didn't worry whether or not

my plants were poisonous.

I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never been puked on.

Pooped on.

Chewed on.

Peed on.

I had complete control of my mind

and my thoughts.

I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,

I never held down a screaming child

so doctors could do tests.

Or give shots.

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late hours at night

watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,

I never held a sleeping baby just because

I didn't want to put her down.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces

when I couldn't stop the hurt.

I never knew that something so small

could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,

I didn't know the feeling of

having my heart outside my body..

I didn't know how special it could feel

to feed a hungry baby.

I didn't know that bond

between a mother and her child.

I didn't know that something so small

could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night

every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth,

the joy,

the love,

the heartache,

the wonderment

or the satisfaction of being a Mom...

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,

before I was a Mom .

Faith Like A Child

God is so amazing -- He meets us at our faith.
Last Saturday, Israel spent part of the day at her grandparents' house (Jim & Margie) playing at the lake with Ava. She wanted to bring her orange shovel and pail to play with in the sand, so of course I let her. Later during an "adventure walk," the shovel was somehow lost, and Rae was pretty bummed about it.
Yesterday, we went back to their house to help put the dock in the water. Rae, Margie and I decided to retrace the steps of the adventure walk in hopes of finding the lost shovel. JP joined us, and even with 4 pairs of eyes looking, we didn't find the shovel.
When we got back to the beach, Rae was pretty disappointed. I told her that we could ask Jesus to help us find the shovel, and we said a simple prayer together that the shovel would be found. After praying I asked her, "Do you believe that Jesus can help us find your shovel?" She said "yes," and I know she does believe it, because He's helped her find other items before (lost stuffed toys, etc).
Margie decided to take one more look among some tall grass they had already searched, and not two minutes after we prayed, she emerged with the orange shovel!!! Some might say this was just coincidence, but I know better. I know it was God meeting Rae at her faith. She trusted Him, and He came through.
Rae was so excited, she started laughing and shouting, "Thank You, Jesus!" She knew He had found it for her -- she understood what had happened perfectly. I thank God that he's so faithful, and that at only two years old, my daughter is learning to turn to Him for help!

Peace that Passes Understanding

Yesterday wrapped up a series of events celebrating the life of Jelani Dante Brinson. Thanks to all of you who have been praying for his family, his friends, and for us.
For those of you who don't know, Jelani was a dear friend of ours who went missing on April 17th, 2009. The friends he was with say he just left the house in a hurry. His body was found in a pond in Anoka a week later. You may have seen it on the news. We still don't know what happened. There are theories and speculation, but they are no more than that. We'll never know, but we DO know that God had Jelani's days numbered from the day he was born, and we know that we can trust Him.
I've known Jelani since elementary school. He was in my brother Joseph's grade, and they've been buddies since kindergarten. He grew up around our house and has always been like another brother.
JP met Jelani a number of years ago through our family. Not long after, Jelani gave his life to Jesus. He started coming to church and was water baptized. Jelani and JP quickly formed a great friendship, and it wasn't unusual for Jelani to stop by our house at any time of day or night to hang out, eat candy, share new music, and talk about Jesus. He was a great friend. You couldn't help but love to be around him. Last July he became the proud daddy of a beautiful girl named Zion. He adored that baby, always smothering her with kisses and bragging about how beautiful and smart she is.
There's no way to answer all the questions we have flying through our heads. Why Jelani? Why like this? Why now? When I first heard the news, I was absolutely destroyed. I've never hurt like that before. I cried until the blood vessels burst around my eyes. The following two days were gray, rainy, and dreary, as if the earth were weeping for losing him. Every time I thought of him, I wept.
But then something happened that I'll never understand. As I watched the rain fall and then begin to clear, I noticed the grass turning green and the trees budding. The verse that came to mind was "weeping may endure for the night, but joy comes in the morning." And at that moment, God gave me peace. I had never experienced that "peace that passes understanding" until now. We always hear the cliche, "He's in a better place now," but this was different. It was as if in one moment God revealed to me the reality of Jelani's situaion -- he's home! All he ever wanted, all he ever struggled for was to be with God. And now he's there! He has actually met Jesus! That's so GREAT! How could I be sad about that? Of course we miss him; we'll always miss him. But we can rejoice because Jelani partook in Jesus death & burial (baptism), and now he's taking part in His resurrection!!!!!!
He gives us beauty for ashes and a garment of praise for our heaviness. Thank you Jesus! And thank You for allowing us to be a part of Jelani's life. He has left an impression on our souls that we'll never forget, and we're honored to have called him "brother."
Hope you're having fun up there, Jelani! Can't wait to see you again!

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.

Come Home, Jelani!

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

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

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...