365.135: Clark & Esther are Here!

Esther and Clark got to Texas this morning! We just couldn't be any more excited! Shortly after they arrived, they brought out presents for the boys!
Look how excited they are, waiting with eyes closed tight!




Superhero costumes!! Aren't Spiderman and Iron Man just the coolest?!

We got to just hang out and relax and catch up for most of the day.


This evening we all went to Antioch for the Community Feast, which is a worship service and dinner for people who are hungry for Jesus, and for a little food, too! A woman who attends our church, and the Feast, regularly has hit some hard times recently, so Esther, Turner, and I went to the grocery store together afterward. It was fun getting to serve others together!

365.134: Turner and the Not-So-Terrible-Two's

I am not sure if it's my experience as a mom, or Turner's temperament, but this year of being two really hasn't been so terrible. So far. I hear every kid has their own time table for the "challenging" years, though, so we'll see.

But so far, at 2 years and 8 months old, Turner has been pretty easy! For instance, if you put him in front of a sink full of water, he will quietly play there for at least thirty minutes.


Recently he has started experimenting with showing aggression, which is pretty funny, because he's not actually feeling hostile, he's just pretending so that he can try out the face and voice.


And then he quickly returns to his sweet self.


One of Turner's favorite pastimes is scrolling through Facebook pictures of his sweetheart Jayci, who he was forced to leave behind in Atlanta. Turner's parents are basically murderers of love.
(Sorry for the blurry pictures--low lighting. And his hair is still wet from water time at the sink.)

365.133: Water Park Reward

Remember the behavior chart I showed you here? Well, as Holden fills in boxes with stickers for obedience, following instructions, a good attitude, etc, he receives small prizes for the small stars, then big prizes once he reaches the big stars. His first prize was an ice cream party at the DQ. And he has just completed his second column, so we got to go to the park this afternoon to play on the splash-grounds!

I gotta admit that this really grossed this esthetician out when Holden laid down with his face on the ground. Ick. And apparently Turner was worried too, because he went racing over...

...and consoled him...

...and tried his hardest to pull Holden back up.





I just love this little bottom.

365.132: God's Chosen Fast

Well, we finished our first book in Elevate (Victory Over the Darkness by Neil Anderson) and have immediately moved on to God's Chosen Fast by Arthur Wallis. It's really good so far--especially since fasting is a topic that I know slim to none about.

Here is an excerpt from the beginning of the book that resonated with me:

When people do not like the plain, literal meaning of something in the Bible they are tempted to spiritualize it and so rob it of its potency. Once the truth becomes nebulous it ceases to have any practical application. They have blunted its edge; it can no longer cut. [See Hebrews 4:12 in sidebar to the right.] In the main this is what the professing Church, and evangelicals in particular, have tended to do with the biblical teaching on fasting.
...We have only to widen the meaning enough and the cutting edge has gone.

Man, how many times has the truth of the Bible seemed too radical or over the top for comfort, so I just "spiritualize" the teaching as a concept to be interpreted? Did Jesus really mean it when he said to turn the other cheek, to love your enemies, to give more than asked if you're being sued? I mean, he can't really mean those things literally...can he?

365.131: Stats

My most recent fascination on the interweb is checking out my "stats" on this here blog. (If you are a fellow blogspot.com poster, you can check your stats too! It's the really hidden tab called "Stats" on your dashboard. Stats. I've said the word too much and now it's starting to sound really weird.) ANYWAYS, I just love to see who (and where) you, my readers, are and check out where you're linking over from, what times of day get the most hits, and which posts are the most popular. Just fascinating.

Below is a picture of my "audience" this past week. Look at all those countries! Really?! If you are someone in Canada, South Korea, Italy, the U.K., Peru, Taiwan, Australia, or Germany that reads this blog--please leave a comment to let me know. And thanks so much for reading!

Pageviews by Countries United States 413 Canada 12 South Korea 9 Italy 5 Iraq 4 United Kingdom 2 Peru 2 Taiwan 2 Australia 1 Germany 1 Pageviews by Browsers Internet Explorer 153 (33%) Firefox 120 (26%) Safari 108 (23%) Chrome 54 (11%) Mobile 9 (1%) Jakarta Commons-HttpClient 5 (1%) Opera 2 Netscape 1 OneRiot 1 Pageviews by Operating Systems Windows 262 (58%) Macintosh 133 (29%) iPhone 52 (11%) BlackBerry 2 Other Unix 1

365.130: I've Become Involved With Gary and Elaine

I have this friend Jamie who writes the best blog, The Lovely Days. As I commented on her last post, I can always count on her posts to provide fresh fashion, smart humor, and insightful words. I strongly recommend a "follow" in your future with her.

Anyways, her most recent post had me cracking up. She featured another blog (this is getting really six-degrees-of-separation-ish) that does nothing but write captions for catalogue layouts. And it is a trip. The blog is called Catalogue Living and reads each day like a story line out of the life of ongoing characters, Elaine and Gary.

Visit the site and be tickled.

Here's a timely sample:

Gary and Elaine knew fall was here when the Novelty Bin and Mushroom Tree started shedding its leaves.

365.129: Pillow Forts