Sleepers

Sometimes being a kid just frees you up to relax any way and anywhere you want. Don't you wish grown ups could zonk out so easily and freely?

Birthday Weekend

Well, to quote Merrilee "That was the best birthday I ever had!" I turned 43 on Sunday and we spent the weekend in North Carolina. We packed more into one weekend then I think we ever have in an entire week-long vacation! The weather held out great, considering the pop-up tropical storm, Cristobal, that came out of nowhere on Saturday. It made for big waves at the shore when we went to Topsail Beach, but that didn't stop the kids and I from braving the rough surf. We took our dunks in stride and enjoyed the body surfing.

In contrast, the kids enjoyed swimming in the New River at the marina where the waves were non-existent. We just kept watch for the American Alligators that hang out in those parts. Didn't see any, though. Too bad...the kids were kinda hoping to have to out run one.

On Sunday we had breakfast at Cracker Barrel and then Jay asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday. I had thought about it ahead of time, so I think I caught him off guard when I said I wanted to go roller skating. But he came through like a hero, called a friend and found us the roller rink called Wheel Fun! It was so fun showing the kids how we used to rent skates and spend our time when we were in our teens. It has been thirty years since I skated! Despite all the bumps and falls, the kids loved it and didn't want to go home when I asked them if they'd had enough. They managed to keep it up for nearly two hours. We had a blast. And I have to say...Jay was quite Da Man on the floor! I didn't know he had it in him! Ladies, if you've gotten to the point of ho hum with your man, take him roller skating and see what you might be missing!

After we wore ourselves out skating, we went to the arcade in the lobby of Wheel Fun! I'm not an arcade person; I cannot stand the stress of video games, especially the kind Jay likes to play. I had to get away when Merrilee was playing one of those driving games; she was all over the place running down pedestrians and going the wrong way on the highway. I was getting way too strung out and was nearly hollering for her to "Turn the wheel, turn the wheel! Look out for that guy!" while Jay was holding her accelerator down and paying no attention to her, as he helped Jacob with his game. I was freaking out because she was going too fast and I didn't even realize she wasn't using the pedals because her legs were too short. It was awful. I was so glad when we switched to dunking basketballs. Whew, so much more relaxing.

We restored our spent energy with a chocolate cake/vanilla ice cream layer cake. It was a marvelous birthday and I think Merrilee can speak for all of us in saying it really was "The best birthday I ever had".

Pirates

Jacob loves pirates. Don't know what it is about these "bad guys" that's appealing to boys, but it is what it is. He got a new Playmobil set and he's nuts over it.

Busy Summer

Introducing the new CO....

Jay's Change of Command ceremony was June 26th, and the kids and I drove down to NC to be a part of Jay's day. The weather was hot, but there was a decent breeze out on the tarmac, fortunately. The outgoing CO and his wife planned a wonderful reception following the ceremony at the Officer's Club, and everyone had a joyful time. Jay had some family members drive all the way down from Indiana, and to say we felt blessed by it is an understatement. That's a long trip, and we were honored that so many people loved us enough to share that special day with us.

We stayed in NC for just a few days and then headed on down to SC to visit my folks. It was a great week. The kids got to go to the pool nearly every day; Mom and I shopped; we ate the best home-cooked food; and thoroughly enjoyed visiting with my nephew and some family friends.

We came home on July 2 and are still trying to get back into a regular routine. Between Jacob's Tae Kwon Do and Merrilee's gymnastics, it feels like we're going all the time. I'm starting to look forward to school just to get us on a schedule again.

We still have VBS to get through at the end of the month. I'm volunteering as preschool director for the first time. We'll see how that goes. I may need a vacation from vacation Bible school after it's all over!

Hope all of you are having fun and enjoying your summer.

Special Day

I can hardly believe it's been four years, but today is the anniversary of the day Merrilee became our daughter. I remember so much about the day she was placed in my arms and the absolute wonder and awe of it. I couldn't imagine someone was allowing us to take this child, not born of our own flesh, and giving us the privilege of raising her, caring for her, keeping her safe, and trusting her life to us. Jay and I have been so blessed by her joyful spirit. She is such a bright spot in our lives. She is so energetic, determined, funny, and thoughtful--we are so proud of who she is and who she is becoming. And yet it is humbling to look at her and know that we cannot take credit for her smiling demeanor or her charm. We know that it is not us, but the Lord, who created her to be her own person. Adoption is neat that way. It makes you step back from your pride and see a child for who she truly is, not how you see yourself reflected in her.

We did things a little different this year on this special occasion. I drove the kids out to the Eastern Shore to visit our friends who also adopted their daughter on the same day with Merrilee. Their daughter was having her fifth birthday party and we celebrated at their house with a big cookout and birthday cake. It was a joy to spend this day together, and we are so thankful that we life close enough to make the trip possible. The kids and I stayed in a hotel, and I let them swim before bed until 9:30 pm. They love staying in hotels, and they giggled, teased each other, and talked in bed despite my threats. Fortunately, the long fun day and the evening swim took its toll on them and they finally zonked out. I was afraid I'd never get to sleep.

Here are a few photos of our original Adoption Day, and the present.

Way to go, Jacob!

After two and a half weeks of taking Tae Kwon Do, Jacob earned his White Belt this evening. We are so proud of him. He got A's on all aspects of his examination, and is now ready to move up into the other classes. Tae Kwon Do is the first sport he has been involved in, and he's been so good about maintaining his excitement and enthusiasm for it. He hasn't complained once about it, even though he's been doing it three times a week. That's quite a bit for a four-year old. Did I already tell you we're so proud of him? We really are!

After Jacob's class, we let him choose his restaurant for dinner. He chose the Teariffic Tea Room, one of our family's new favorites. It's a new place in town and the woman who runs it is from Hong Kong. She has treated us so well since we got to know her. Last week, the week of the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival, she introduced us to some tasty treats called Zong Zi, made of sticky rice wrapped in corn leaves. Inside the rice were peanuts, and all was boiled and steamed to a sticky, sweet perfection. Her mother made them and the kids and I just loved them. She taught us to cut them into pieces and dip them in sugar. Heavenly. And today, in celebration of Jacob getting his white belt, she brought us some little pastries made with red bean paste, my absolute favorite flavor in the whole world. If you've never had a Chinese treat with red bean paste, you don't know what you're missing.

So our family has had great joy today in rejoicing in Jacob's accomplishment, and it's just one of many days that will be a wonderful family memory. Thanks be to God for each member of our family, and the individual gifts with which He blesses each of us. May our children use their gifts for His glory.

Finally, Beach Weather

We've finally gotten to go to the beach a couple times this past week. Our spring went from the 60's and low 70's to the 90's in a matter of two days. I thought the water would be frigid, but it was wonderfully warm, even following the amazing thunderstorms we've had.

Jacob and Merrilee are old enough now to really enjoy the sand and the surf and this was the first time I've really gotten to see their "beach personalities". I was surprised that Jacob is as much of a water monkey as he is. Even though he usually sinks like a rock, he loves to just jump in and splash away. He can swim as long as he can start in water at waist level and land on his feet after a few strokes (if you can call the thrashing "strokes"). He does get from point A to point B, but needs to work on his endurance. It was also interesting that, for being somewhat afraid of water in the tub getting too deep ("It might go into my face") he eagerly pushes the limits of how far out he's allowed to go into the water.

Merrilee, on the other hand, prefers to stay on land. She loves the water as a source of "soup" for her recipes, usually mixed in a bowl dug into the sand just out of reach of the waves. But she just doesn't really warm up to getting her face in the surf. And she's my swimmer. Like my mom, she prefers the pool. I admit to having a case of the heebie-jeebies when I think I might step on a living creature or get touched by a passer-by down where I can't see it. But I really do prefer open ocean to a pool. Merrilee just feels uncomfortable swimming in open water and is happy to stir and mix and dig and toss rocks. She did decide, about 6 minutes before we left the beach yesterday, that she was "ready to swim", but of course once she got the salty water in her face she called it a day.

We'll just stay home today and enjoy the pool in our back yard. Jacob came home with a cleverly hidden collection of rocks and sand in places unseen yesterday, so today we'll just save him some chafing issues.

Blessings to you all!