he's just brave.

Ok, so I know the videos of Jake in the pool are starting to get obnoxious, but I still cannot believe that my 1-yr-old is so fearless. By the time I got my camera, he had already done this over a dozen times and kept telling Chris "again! again!" He is unstoppable!

and in all things... session 46

Things I am thankful for on Friday, July 26th, 2013...

1. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
2. LUNA bars- especially Chocolate Dipped Coconut
3. My new portable phone charger (thank you Chris! I think he got tired of my dead phone)
4. My security in God... on days when I have none in myself
5. Bravery
6. Family time in the pool after work
7. Dinner on the outdoor grill
8. Hope
9. Various "just thinking about you" gift cards
10. Back to School Supply shopping... my favorite!!!

"Don't wait up... we will probably be pretty late."

I don't know who was more excited... Zoey or Chris... but tonight was her "daddy date" that she chose for her points. {We have a point system where the kids can do work around the house,beyond their everyday chores, to earn something they want badly}. She had the night all mapped out and was showered, pampered and prepped by noon. I kept telling her daddy wouldn't get home till 6pm, but she still spent 1/2 the day looking out the front window. They are now off on their date and I was told not to wait up.

our lil fishies

To my village....

As parents with 4 young kids we really shouldn't be able to stop our lives, hand over our kids to others and minister for a week at Champions For Life Kids Camp. To be honest, the most humbling part of camp was when we had people look at us all week and say "who took all your kids?"

Well the answer is simple: our kids were taken in by some of the people that love us and love them the most. People that were even more sacrificial than we were... and our hearts are oozing with gratitude. We literally couldn't have done it without you. You not only allowed us the privilege of pouring our lives into foster children who haven't always had families, but you poured unconditional love into our kids for an entire week... we can never thank you enough.

Whenever I hear the phrase "it takes a village to raise a child," I always think "...and I have the best village of all."

Much love to Dad & Mom for taking Isaac and Elijah.... to Matt & Nina and Keri (whose husband was with us at camp) for taking Zoey... and to Nate & April for taking Jacob.

We love you!!!

10,000 reasons.

We've been singing this song all weekend.

It has put a lot of things into perspective.

I caught Zoey singing this and tried to discreetly record her on my phone from the couch. It's moments like this I could name 10,000 reasons off the top of my head.

Reminding ourselves that the adventure is in the vision of the mission.

the brave and adventurous one... the cautious and steady one.

Both of our babies have different personalities.

Elijah is a little more cautious than the rest of our kids, which helps him be the steady and tenacious one. He is the one who is always looking out for everyone else and is concerned if someone isn't around.

Jacob, on the other hand, is our adventurous one. He is daring, fast, and fearless... and the only predictable thing about him is that he will be unpredictable. Today he jumped off the diving board. It took our older kids years to do that. Lord, give us strength....