Virginia Vacation

Thursday morning, we left Ohio for the beautiful state of Virginia to spend some time with Aunt Jenny and see where she lives. Here is a peek into vacation so far...

When we arrived, Aunt Jen gave the boys each their very own bottle of bubbles. Here is Collin in front of her house trying his out.


On Friday evening, Aunt Jen treated us to a local minor league baseball game. It was a first for our boys and they had a blast. There was food, a balloon guy and lots of fun!! (Oh yea, baseball too of course!) At one point I shouted out " Go Wildcats", to show Noah that it was a good thing to yell out at a sporting event, but I got a few dirty looks, the home team is called the HILLcats. OOPS! The game ended and everyone was invited to sit in the outfield for the fireworks. Ahh small town USA!









Saturday we explored the creek behind Aunt Jenny's house. This was another "first" for the boys, they LOVED it! Collin had a hard time getting used to the cold water and the way his feet kind of stuck to the wet mud under the water, but Noah just got right in and explored. On our way back to Jenny's house we saw a snake, which was a big hit for Noah.






That's about all for now. We have had a great time exploring local parks and hiking trails too. It has been a great time to enjoy one another and get a little R&R. Tonight we are going to a big event at Liberty University. There will be more vacation related blogging soon, I promise!
Love to all!

Conversations with Noah

Yesterday morning we were leaving the house and Noah found a poor little dead baby bird on our sidewalk. This opened the door toa conversation about death and Heaven. After we had finished the conversation, Noah asked, " Mom, do you ride a whale to get to Heaven? ".

Last night, on the way home from Worship Leadership practice Aaron, Noah and I had this conversation....

Noah: Do skunks have butts?
Me: What?
Noah : Do skunks have butts?
Me: Yes.
Noah: Daddy, do skunks spray God?
Aaron: No.
Me: Only if He wants them too!
Noah: Does God spank skunks?
Aaron and I : No.
Noah: OHH!





Here are a few pictures from a date that Noah and I had a couple of weeks ago. We saw (some of) "The Music Man".
It was really special!

A tribute to the man of my dreams...

I am a few days late on my Father's Day post, so here you go...
Aaron is a wonderful father to our boys! I have been impressed with him since day one with the way he has adapted and grown into an amazing father. The latest development in the relationship between this daddy and his boys has been bedtime - no girls allowed. Noah asks me to leave the room before Aaron tells the boys their bedtime story. No matter how tired or worn out Aaron is, he always does this! He always takes time tell the boys a story before bed. I am always impressed with how much he has to give the kids and I after a long day at work. He has never been the kind of guy that needs time to himself when he gets home and he is almost always sensitive to my need to talk to an adult. He always encourages me to reach out to other women and make meaningful connections and he has supported me from day one of our relationship, incedentially 10 years ago today we started dating.:)
Well, hats off to my wonderful hubby!!
I love you!
XOXO

my life now...

I was just sitting here thinking about how my life is now, where I am, verses where I want(ed) to be at this point. I never thought I would be dealing with chronic pain and in my heart of hearts I always doubted that I would ever be married - let alone happily married. Now I sit and reflect on all of the twists and turns that my life has taken. I think of my childhood and all of the insecurities I remember having and how many of them still haunt me. I think about the issues that are forever attached to my youth. Issues of self-hatred and my horrible lack of self esteem. I think of my first "relationship" with a boy named David and the "abuse" I tolerated in that relationship. I think about how I confused empty words for "love". I think about the self destructive behavior that I have yet to fully give over to God. I think about the weight I have lost and gained over my almost 30 years and how different my life is now after loosing 52 lbs - for good. 52 pounds - about the weight equivillent to that of my boys - COMBINED!
I think about how much my life has changed. On June 17th Aaron and I will celebrate 10 years of being together. When I first met Aaron, I was in a really bad place in my life. I think the downward spiral that I was fully engulfed in at the time Aaron and I initially met was due in part to my desire to run from God, also my fear of dealing with "me". I was very immature, but I thought I had it all figured out. I filled my days with work and my evening/nights were a potluck of dangerous behavior, self-destruction, alcohol abuse and self-hate. Overall, I was extremely selfish! I think about the time, a short while before Aaron and I met and began dating. I can now look back and see God's hand and providence, but at the time, it was HELL! I was lost and seeking desperately to find fulfillment! I praise God for loving me enough to send Aaron into my life at a time when I would have trusted any boy who came along, but God choose to bring Aaron to me. Aaron has always treated me like a gift from God and has always tried to protect me.
I don't know where I am going with this, I guess I am just rambling and trying to think about why God has so greatly blessed my life. I think about the pain I am currently experiencing in my back. I think about the question I ask myself before my head leaves the pillow in the morning, what will today be like? Will I be able to pick up my boys? Can I take them outside? Can I sit up? Can I move?.... Each new day seems to bring new challenges and planning event's (playdates, errands...) are often hard to keep.
I think I will probably never know why the pain I am experiencing is part of my life, but I am thankful that the Lord who is sovereign over all has a plan for this part of my life. I am so thankful that I have Aaron and my amazing boys!
Praise the Lord!