Baseball Season!!

Well, Drew is a few weeks into his first Coaches Pitch Season! He is playing for Weaver Construction, which is funny, because many moons ago, Mommy played on a Weaver Softball team! He is doing great! And the coaches have said they wish they had a whole team of Drew's! Of course, I can't blame them! He continues to make me proud in all he does! He had his first game a few weeks ago, which is what these photos are from. His game last night was under the lights! What fun that was... even if the rain came in and got us all soaked in under 5 minutes! Got to love Ohio!! Enjoy!




And what would a brothers ball game be without dirt for the younger brother? Toby had a lot of fun playing in the dirt/rocks... Here are a few photos. Not sure if you can really see his shirt, but Nate got it for him at the Rock Hall a few weeks ago. It is a picture of a little Asian boy playing Drums and it says "To the beat of my own drum". It is currently his FAVORITE shirt!



God is Good!

Happy Memorial Day

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you to all who have served so selflessly for our Freedom!



God is Good!

Kelsey's growing up

Well, my oldest niece Kelsey, is graduating from high school. I have NO IDEA where the time has gone, and I am just in complete shock. Just yesterday, she was in love with Nate... that's right, she had a crush on her uncle (well he wasn't at the time) Nate when she was little! Who could blame her :) And it was not but yesterday that she was the flower girl in my wedding.

Now, she's all ready to face the world! Head off to college, and fulfill her dreams! I pray for her often, but especially now, during this time of transition in her life. That she will realize the decisions she makes now will effect the rest of her life. It's not as easy as "which cereal do I eat" or "which socks do I wear?". It's now "how will this decision change the rest of my life." It's a fun time, but also a very challenging time, and I pray she will stay strong in who she knows she can be and will continue to grow into the beautiful woman she has become!

Here she is with her certificate!

And here, getting ready to sing the National Anthem at the program.

I missed the beginning, UGH, but I got most of it. They did a BEAUTIFUL job!



Love you Kelsey, and God Bless You at Johnson and Wales University!!!!

God is Good!

Our Busy Taylor

Well, as usual, Taylor has kept us hopping!

She had a double header soccer game last Saturday. They tied the first game, and the second game was very close, but they lost. Here are a few shots of Tay in action.



And Taylor also had her first Orchestra recital. She did very well and we were very proud!


If you can stand it, here is a video clip of one of the songs!

It was very strange for me, sitting and watching her perform in orchestra. I am a proud band geek alum, and to sit and watch my daughter out there, just brought back so many memories. As I watched her director step up and raise her arms, I could just picture and hear Mr. Moss doing the same thing so many years ago. I could picture the silly faces he would make, to help us all relax. I could remember that feeling, as I raised my flute, full of anticipation and excitement. It just made me hope and pray that her experience in Orchestra will be as wonderful as mine was in band. I have so many wonderful memories of that time, and I hope she can say the same in a few years! Almost makes me want to dust off my flute and my music (don't think the neighbors would like us to add to our band of instruments that they already get to hear now that the windows are thrown up!)

God is Good!

Happy 5th Birthday Kaleb

Well, Happy Mother's Day to all of you Mom's out there. While I am so blessed to have three beautiful children that I love dearly celebrate with me on Mother's Day, it will never be a joyous Holiday. It was five years ago that I was carrying my precious Kaleb in my womb, knowing that any day, he would be born, and would be the worst day of my life. Yes, I prayed that the doctors were wrong, I wished that he would be born, and have a fighting chance. Babies survive at 24 weeks all the time, right? Well, that wasn't the case for my Kaleb.

So while I celebrate my mom on Mother's Day, and I celebrate my Mother-In-Law on Mother's Day, and I celebrate all my Grandmothers on Mother's Day, I also suffer through this day. Remembering the last moments I had with my baby here on earth. Tomorrow will be 5 years since the day that Kaleb was in my arms. I think that being the milestone birthday that it is is making it much harder this year.

So I will get through the day tomorrow. We will go to the cemetery and release balloons into the sky. Balloons that I know you will see as you celebrate your birthday with Jesus beside you. What more could a mother ask for? To have Jesus at your son's every birthday celebration. I know we all think of eternity, but having lost a child (or four) you tend to look at eternity in a whole new light. Not with fear, but with hope and excitement beyond that of meeting your creator. One of feeling whole again, after years of having part of your heart missing.

Until then, I think of you every day Kaleb. I wonder often "what if" and "what now". But I know one day you will be in my arms again, and my heart will be whole.



God IS Good!

National Day of Prayer

Today is the National Day of Prayer. Here are a few things I am praying for...

- Our Country
- Our Economy
- Our President

(would you pray with me for the following children/families?)
- Baby Sayla Geiser
- Kaylie Hostetler
- Brian Ricer
- The Miyashita Family

Coworkers
- Lola who is recovering from surgery
- Regina recovering from a broken leg

- My Sr High Small Group - Caitlin, Jenea, Naomi, Hope, Micaela, Erika and Jenessa
- My Adult Small Group - Carters, Artrips, Clevelands

My Family
- Salvation for many, and boldness on my part to share the gospel with them
- Nate's cousin Sara and her mom and dad, making a long trip today to see her boyfriend graduate from boot camp (you two mean so much to us!)

My Children
- Taylor - that you would continue to become a woman of God, as you grow and mature. That you would be strong in your faith as the temptations around you increase. That God would carry you when you need Him and that I would know how to be a Godly example to you!
- Drew - That your loving heart would continue to grow! That God will use you and challenge you in life and that you will grow to serve God.
- Toby - That as you grow, you will grow closer to God and have a desire to serve him and have Him as your Savior! I pray for continued health and healing for your Kidneys and physical growth as well.

My Husband
- As you seek to follow God's Will, I pray for clarity and peace. I pray for schooling to continue to go well, and for your desire to finish strong will not diminish but only intensify as you take a break this summer. I look forward to the wonderful summer God has planned for our family!

What are you praying for?

God is Good

Very Hungry Caterpillar

On Thursday, we attended Toby's first preschool program. How exciting. The week before, I had been to his IEP meeting, and the teachers explained to me that he is still about a year behind in speech and communication. While we are aware of his situation, and have seen great progress, seeing him in his classroom with his peers does make it more obvious. It just means I have more work to do! He is very smart, and I know he will do well in life, but the idea of Kindergarten now only a year away, we need to do all that we can to help him be ready!

So, he was the one that didn't sing a single note to the songs, but he was still a very handsome caterpillar! He did march right in and preceeded to "eat" all the food as the story went. One of his teachers commented on how he was the best at eating the food. He was very clearly munching on everything and even had sound effects. So A+ for that big guy!

Here he is dressed as a caterpillar. You can't see the big green circles that they had on their bellies! Theyre were adorable!

And here he is showing off is butterfly. He did a wonderful job on all the craft projects they had hanging around the room!

And a photo by one of his "favorite" foods in the story, Pie!

So as Nate and I were watching, it became clear rather quickly what Toby's nervous habit is... finger in the nose! Luckily he was on the end, so I don't think many people noticed. Once they were done, his finger didn't return to his nose the rest of the time. We'll have to work on that!

God is Good!