Noah's Ark Takes the Stage

A year of ballet culminated on stage this spring with an accurate and outstanding rendition of Noah's Ark...complete with animals, rain, waves, sun, dove and rainbow.  Our family was there to support the bee population...never stopped to consider whether or not there were bees on the ark.  It has been brought to my attention that she dances just like me...with a serious face.  Apparently I never smiled when I was dancing and from the looks of the video Anna Grace doesn't either.

Dress Rehearsal Video

Pictures Galore

 getting silly with daddy...

    with mama...

and finally with best friend, amy catherine

  

 this year's fan club

Caleb's 1st Haircut

 

Sweet Ms. Dana is now in charge of Caleb's hair.  He loved getting his hair cut for the first time (the Thursday before Easter I believe).  And yes I was that mom who brought the camera into Vestavia Barber to capture the moment.  It started a stir among the barbers trying to recall how old Neal was when he started going there to get cuts and who all had cut his hair.  (Apparently he has retired several barbers.)

The Finished Product...

A happy boy and the sweet reward of a sucker from the famous sucker drawer. 

VBS

(Interrupting the sequence to discuss our exciting week of Vacation Bible School.  I actually wrote this on the Friday evening of VBS but forgot to publish it.)

What an exciting week...VBS...ah, just saying VBS makes me tired.  The 1st week of June comes around with great anticipation around here and ends in utter exhaustion and bliss.  This year Anna Grace decided she would like to sell cookies to raise money for the missions project.  In the past three days we have baked 312 cookies and 144 brownies!  And praise the Lord she sold them all!  It made for some late nights but watching her grow in her faith as she prayed they would all sell, that she would have lots of customers and that she would raise enough to send a child to camp ($250), followed by her amazement and joy of realizing that God graciously fulfilling her requests make it totally worth it.  Wednesday afternoon was the sale in our yard.  After a few minutes with no customers she started getting bored and restless.  I suggested that she pray and ask God to send customers.  She thought that was a grand idea.  Within seconds of her saying amen an SUV pulled up and bought 6 bags of cookies and at the same time a mini-van pulled up from the other direction and bought 5 bags!  As if that wasn't enough, I looked and saw a car pulled over on the other side of the road waiting their turn to buy something.  When her basket was empty and she stopped to look at all her "dollars" she was beside herself.  What a great encouragement to me personally to see God at work and to be apart of a cookie sale that could help send a child to camp.  We have had many wonderful discussions this week with Anna Grace, Dean and Caleb - since it was a family sale that Anna Grace organized - about being thankful and the amazing things that can be done when we ask God to be in charge and we work on his team.  When we turned in our final money count she squealed with excitement to learn that they did indeed raise enough money to send a boy or girl to summer camp!  


Only 359 days until we do it all over again...but who's counting!

Spring T-Ball

We have officially completed our first real season of ball.  What a giant amount of crazy!  I told someone today that I fear what baseball season will be like in about 4 years.  Dean had basically the same team from fall ball which was nice for us.  Neal helped on the field again.  Thank you, Jesus, for putting people in our lives - grandparents - that want to watch Dean play and help me not lose a child in the park at the same time. 

  

Here is what the siblings thought about Dean's bi-weekly games!

 Two baseball loving boys!

a spring hike

Before baseball got underway, we went to the Vestavia Hills Library  on hot spring Saturday and decided to head off on their trail.  ~  I digress...We really love the library, this one in particular.  Dean recently told "Miss" Amanda the children's librarian that if the library could get a pool it would be the only place we needed to go for fun. ~  We had a great time but wow it is not really set up for parents holding a 1 year old and trying to keep up with 3 others.  Here is a picture from the waterfall.

Hudson Walks

A very, very determined little boy started walking on March 24th.

The Determined Practice Begins

The Determined Practice Continues

Finally Walking Success

Hudson Turns 1

Hudson Knox what a crazy year it has been.  Making a grand entrance heading directly to the NICU, you have continued to shock us ever since.  Your first year has been different than those before you...You have been drug to ballet practice, recitals, art lessons, school pick-up and drop-off and t-ball games.  You maintain an infectious smile and a cheerful disposition though.  I am extremely grateful. Psalm 1 says, "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.  He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.  In all that he does, he prospers." (verses 1-3)  I pray that you will be a blessed man.

    

 

 

  

I've turned the corner

I feel like I have made some huge progress now that I am posting things that happened in the current year.  At this rate I may be caught up by Dean's birthday in a few weeks.