Snow, Snow and More Snow

I am sort of getting tired of snow...really I like the snow, I just am tired of shoveling the snow. We have quite a bit already, and it is supposed to snow all night long and all day tomorrow. The other morning I was caught by the beauty of snow drifts. The way the snow has been formed by the wind, it is an intricate, delicate sculpture by the breath of God. Seeing a fresh blanket of snow twinkling in the sunshine reminds me that God can take me and wash me white as the snow. Not only that, but I sparkle in His eyes when I delight myself in Him. I wonder if there is anything in heaven like snow.

Family Vacation

We had the chance to go to Kansas City to visit my family. We were gone from home a total of 16 days. We have never been gone that long from home before, and it was so nice to have the time to spend with family. We haven't spent that much time with my side of the family ever, and it was wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. The homesickness this time has been intense, and this is the first time in a long time that the distance seems so great. Here are some photo highlights from our trip.












































We had a great time visiting with extended family in Wichita and at Mom's surprise 60th Birthday party. It was so good to see aunts and uncles that I hadn't seen in almost 10 years. It was so much fun to surprise Mom, a task that is not easily accomplished.




















































We went on a day trip to the Kansas City Zoo. We had a lot of fun there, and I was glad that the kids got to see so many of their favorite animals! (haha)
































We had a lot of fun as a family at Big Cedar. The day that we went on the lake was one of our favorites of the trip.

Hi Mom!

Mom, Welcome back to the internet! I took a couple of pictures of the kids and our new table today, and I thought that I would send them to you. We will be seeing you in just over two weeks, and we are getting so excited to see you. Emily said to tell you that we love you. We do. We really, really love you.

Flowers for my Sister

I wish that I could just show up at your door, with this bouquet in my hand, and surprise you with flowers. While these flowers are beautiful, their beauty lasts only a few short glorious days. Yet, I find myself with one of the most beautiful flowers in this life...my sister, Julie.

I am only doing the whole blogging thing as a way for my family to keep up with the happenings here in our lives. I love reading Julie's blogs, and I love seeing the pictures of her and her family. So, I thought that I would try this for awhile and see how it goes. This is Natalie. It is hard to believe that she is almost 4 years old.

pictures of the kids

I thought that I would post some pictures of my kids, now that I finally know how to post pictures

can i actually post pictures?

I am trying to learn how to post pictures. Thanks to the help of my sister, maybe I can actually do this.

June

It is hard for me to believe that it is already the middle of June. I was going to become one who often blogs thoughts and things down on a regular basis, but that has yet to happen. That is nothing new though. It has rained for 4 days in a row now...a fine, gentle rain. It is beautiful, and everything smells so fresh and clean. I just wish that it could rain and still that the sun could shine through. Too many grey days in a row, and I start to feel very grey.

just a day

Today, I should be feeling as warm and sunny as this day has been. Reality is that I am feeling so blah. I don't want to do anything. I just want some time by myself...which is so rare for me to want. Solitude. That's what I need today.