Family Night

Josiah was wanting to go bowling for his birthday, and we just weren't able to make it there. We got a coupon emailed to us the other day for up to 6 people to have one free game of bowling. So, when we decided to have a quiet family night, Jonathon decided we should use that coupon.

Here is Josiah in action.

It was quite challenging with Benaiah. He wanted to do everything but BE STILL.
Alegra found a little cubby and thought he would like it....quite the contrary.

Here is Alegra very happy about her throw.

Diella's ball went so slow that she had time to walk back to the seats and eat a few french fries before the ball hit the pins. It was a little bit torturous as we chased Benaiah around, trying to keep him happy with french fries.

All in all we had a great time bowling our one free game a piece. That was just enough for us all. Let's see, who won?.....Jonathon was the grand champion, Diella came in last, but I was tied and losing to two of the children at one point, so that should tell you that none of us broke any records. : )

The stars were shining so brightly when we left the bowling alley that we thought it would be a great night for walk. When we got home, Benaiah was sleeping, so we put him to bed and hit the trails in our backyard. We bundled up with it getting quite chilly out here in Michigan, grabbed some flashlights and set out to enjoy the starry night. Was a lovely walk enjoyed by all and a perfect way to end our evening!

Josiah's Birthday- #5

Josiah has turned 5! It's amazing how quickly they grow up. The day of the Celebration for Celia was on Josiah's birthday, so I didn't want to focus all my attention on that party and forget about something for him. So, we planned a party at grandma Linda's for after the Celebration. Whoooo, that was a full day! He wanted our good friends, Phil and Casie to join us at his party, and they were nice enough to stretch out their day too and be there for him. Jonathon's brother, Jeff and his family, along with their new exchange student, Jessica joined us also. It was nice to celebrate with everyone Josiah's life. We are blessed to have him for sure!

There was a lot of mingling with Jessica, learning about Switzerland where she is from.

And the children decorated rice krispie faces on a stick for dessert.

I think the birthday boy's turned out the coolest, but then he did have a little help.

Their masterpieces all finished! So cute!

Zeky, Alegra, Josiah, Diella, and Eliyahna. Amalyah and Grandma Linda in the back.

He is so shy and wasn't sure how to act with opening his presents and being the center of attention.

He got some fun gifts and some fun cards too!

He has been nostop playing with his new legos, and hot wheels, and working in his new workbooks. Last night we put the glow in the dark stars on the ceiling and walls and he shared with his siblings which was great! Even Benaiah got to put some in his bed. : )

Was a fun evening, a long day, and my bed was a welcome place to rest my head that night.

Celia's Celebration Tea For Two

This weekend we had another wonderful celebration honoring a fabulous lady and her new little girl, Ruth. This Celebration was a Tea For Two and we had tea, cookies, cakes, and a special song with the words of tea for two changed up to fit a new momma.

The treat table with diaper cake as the centerpiece.

The table decorations consisted of a jelly jar with flowers from my gardens, smaller jelly jars with special m&ms and honey dipped spoons.

The guest of honor with her daughter, Shalom admiring all the goodies and excited to be getting her dream of a tea party.

Who wouldn't have smiles with all that deliciousness to choose from. : )

Another angle of the goodies.

Shalom with her honey spoon lollipop.

The great grandma holding baby Ruth.

The grandma holding Shalom after a tiring party.

We also had ladies bring in cookies enough that we could do a cookie exchange. It was fun, encouraging and a blessing for all who attended. I would have liked to have gotten some pictures of some of the tea cups ladies brought. They were to bring their own, and there were some pretty fancy ones. Sooo much fun!!!

A full summer

Well, it seems I wasn't able to load pictures for awhile for some strange reason, but really I didn't have much time for that anyway. We had a garden full of produce that was wonderful to enjoy. The canning for the year didn't go so well as the pressure cooker wasn't working properly, and I ruined several loads of food due to that. I was bummed about all the beans that I lost, but with the help from my little helpers, I was able to get some pasta sauce canned for next year. Thankfully we had way me than we needed canned last year, so that will last us this coming year also.

Here are my helpers carrying in tomatoes. They carried in several loads like this.

I am looking forward to them getting a big enough that they can help cut up the tomatoes. Usually my mom and I do it together and it goes so much faster with that extra set of hands. When they are big enough, I will have some great kitchen help.

Benaiah didn't do much help with the canning, but he does love to climb up on the couch with a library book and sit and turn the pages. Most of the time the book is upside down, but in this picture I caught him looking at it the correct way. : )

The big excitement of the summer was the building of a new loft bed, so that everyone in the house has a bed to sleep in. Josiah was not enjoying the couch so much and my grandparents gave us some wood that their neighbor gave them that was actually used for a loft. So, with some extra wood and a friend pitching in some help to construct another bed, all four children have a soft bed that is their space.

The loft completed and yes, Benaiah does get caught going up to the top every now and then when the children forget to put the ladder up. One night we found him laying on Alegra's belly while she was reading and he was sound asleep. But he does love his little toddler bed too.

And Benaiah is walking now. He loves to be outside walking around and exploring.

Which makes him tuckered out and it isn't anything unusual to find him sound asleep in his bed after crawling up in it on his own. What a joy he is!