chess

Micah is really into chess lately.  He loves to set up the board and play with one of us- or even by himself!  At this point he is mastering how the pieces move, has learned to castle, and knows when he is in check.  However, he still thinks you win if you've taken more of your opponent's pieces than they have of yours!  He's progressing so quickly though, I'm sure he'll figure it out in no time :)

Cameron's eighteenth birthday

Cameron turned 18!  We wanted to make it a memorable day for him.  We took off first thing in the morning for Alton Bay.  It was a gorgeous day!  Brianna had made sandwiches, Alissa made oatmeal fudge cookies, we  brought chips, watermelon, and water bottles and 

Happy Birthday, Cameron!  We are all so proud of you!

God's provision

When our van broke down we didn't know what we were going to do.  It's not easy to find a vehicle big enough for our family, so we took 2 vehicles to church and any other places we wanted to go together.  Then our church allowed us to borrow their van.  That was great-  but we knew it was a temporary fix.  

Then God put it on someone's heart to buy us a vehicle- and pay for the registration and for insurance for 1 year.  All annonymously!

Praise God for His care and provision for us!

early bird

Matt has been waking the kids up every morning for early bird.  He likes to get creative in how he does it- sometimes using a megaphone, putting almonds in the food processor and turning it on right outside their bedroom doors (VERY loud!), singing, popping popcorn and bringing up to them in bags, playing a preschool guitar that automatically plays sesame street- right next to their beds.....

They (most of them!) love it.  One morning he got all dressed up like this to wake them up :)

more oriental trading

These two have some great times together!  They spent quite a bit of time getting things set up so they could circle things they like in the Oriental Trading catalogs.  (And Andrew was reading a Hardy Boys book in the background.)  

22 Years

I have the most thoughtful husband!  On our anniversary he had these flowers delivered to me.  Every flower was symbolic of something....thought up on his own :)

We are at such a good place right now.  I don't for one second regret getting married at 18.  We had some rough moments,but with divorce not being an option, we worked through things and our love for each other became more solid.  Matt's committment to following God and His ways makes me more secure in his love for me.  He is an excellent role model for our own children of a godly husband.

Having 7 children makes finding time together challenging.  We make it a priority to have time out alone so we can continue to build our relationship.

I am so thankful for Matt and grateful that God determined to put us together as husband and wife!

Nana

 We stopped on a recent trip to NH to see Matt's mom.  She treated to pizza and we all had a great time.  Leah and Micah were pretty tired by the time we got there, but they enjoyed the fresh air and the good food.

when you go almost a month without blogging.....

Lots going on and I am trying to learn how to manage each aspect of life without making major mistakes!  I have been doing a lot of praying and asking God to give me wisdom and to help me be the wife, mom, and person that He wants me to be.

• 5 kids went to the dentist for cleanings.  For Micah it was his first time!
• Lilcas bloomed
• Spring flowers and blossoms added incredible  beauty
• Erik came for a week long visit
• We took some of our city friends to church and to our house as well
• Garden was planted
• Fence was repaired
• Basketball has been a regular part of exercise around here
• Andrew has read TONS of books
• He is now off of his crutches and finishes up physical therapy this week
• We've enjoyed tons of strawberries from our berry patch