Consider it all Joy....

We are alive.........

....Well......

...and Wonderful !!!


I'm still around - thanks for not giving up on me and my little
'Ol blog !
I promise I'll try to be a better blogger.
(maybe)
ha ha......!!
Love to you all.
So many Joys to share :
my amazing husband
our 4 incredible kiddos
a life purposefully lived in contentment and Joy in all I do.....
*~*~*
What Joys do you have to share?

Blessings ~

Credit : God.

Ellie here......

....once again taking over my moms blog, as she never posts on it anymore - but thats okay;
I'm three.
I can handle it on my own.

See, when your three, you can get away with all sorts of things.
Like showing everyone how to cross their eyes like me....and they think it's soooo cute....


....and then, you can sing to your hearts content worshiping
Jesus.......

......and not give a hoot what others think. But these cool folks
loved it, cause they love Jesus too!

.....I also don't mind showing how God made me, fingers together and all!
(I get to hang at Shriners Hospital soon!)

Ahhh yes......being 3 is so sweet!

Gotcha!

Today, one year ago - I was handed the most

precious baby girl.

Just like the birth of each of my children, I was forever changed...

for the good.

..the moment.

....the overwhelming gratefulness.

Hello baby!


...and yes - there was that bit about her not being real

happy about us too!
(ugh. This is such a bad picture of me)

How thankful I am.

That God chose Mark and I to parent this

amazing girl.



Okay. I am SO bummed that I can't get these to load any larger....
just squint!

We are in love.

With each other, with our children,

with our amazing God.

Adoption is truly incredible -

stay tuned........

Ellie Grace style...

Is this seriously.....
not the cutest thing ever ?

Thank you Jesus for my children.

*~*~*~*

What in the world........

is happening to my BLOG????????????????? Can someone

please tell me why all my cool little doohickys are disappearing?
Just scroll down and take a look at my sidebar. Weird. Weird. Weird.

Or......is it only on my computer that I'm seeing this?

help !

**update**

It IS my computer........sigh. My laptop has issues........

My man.....

...baby, after 18 years of sharing your last name
you still rock my world.......

Big snow in Oregon....

So here's what our mode of transportation looked like around here for the last several days.....

I know a lot of you all get dumped on during the winter, but in Oregon - we don't!
Snow is measured around here in inches (like 2) not in feet - like 2, which is
what we have up at our place...

Wanna buy a car?

This is the main drag in our little town......



Our country road....




Ellie's a bit puzzled by all this snow....
" whoa dude"

We were blessed with a WHITE (dumped on) Christmas!

I knew I should of put that table away for the winter....

Somewhere out there is our nursery...

But unfortunately, too much snow can also not be a good thing......
Part of our barn awning......
nice.

But there is SO much fun to be had, like dressing up and playing, playing
playing in the snow!!!

.....and after all that playing - one gets to kick back and relax.....

and snore....

Have a blessed day!

Although it's been said....

......many times, many ways;

Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas.....
to you.

*~*~*

May the joy of this precious season fill your heart.

*~*~*~*

May you take time to seek His face, drink His word and praise His name!

Blessings.

The Christmas shot.....

So my mom is trying to get the perfect Christmas picture of all of us......
I'm so easy.
All I have to do is smile and turn on the sweetness......

AHHH !!
Where did my eyes go????
Okay mom, don't use this one....

Do ya think I'm loved, even just a little??
Yup. We had lots of fun......I don't know if my mom thought so....

Bingo.
This is what it's all about.....


ME !!
(naw, just kiddin'!!)

*~*~*
Blessings.

Catching up.....

howdy all. ellie here.
just wanted to catch you up with all the fun we've been having.
we went out last week and put this HUGE tree up in our living room, I've
had so much fun trying to pull off all the pretty things on it....
oops.

then the day before we went and ate all this turkey, we made
these fun houses (i had a blast with frosting and candy)

those two words are dreamy together, don't you think.....
frosting ~ candy
now your talking.....!
*~*~*
so on the actual turkey day heres what we did:
a lot of this:

a lot of that......

and a ton of this.....

ahhh yes. it was so fun.
but something just as fun is coming up tomorrow......
my 3rd birthday!!!!

all I know is that I get to sing
"happy to"
"happy to"
and tear into paper!!
I'm so excited.

~*~*~

Blessings.

Miss Ellie says......

GUESS WHAT????

We have two winners!!!
Kimmy in Canada
and....
Miss Sherri
How fun!!
Thanks for doing my little giveaway with me guys!!
*~*~*
Blessings to you all.

Giveaway !!

Well hello there all!
My mom wants to do a little giveaway of sorts ~ you see, it's this cool
little book called
"31 Family Devotions For Christmas"
It's going to be a lot of fun around here for my first Christmas as we are planning
on doing this book everyday.
Mom wants me to give you the description:


Create lasting family memories this holiday season. Whether it's shopping, decorating, baking, or celebrating, there are lots of reasons why our schedules are full in December. 31 Family Devotions for Christmas offers daily readings designed to help your family spend special moments together. From fun activities and traditions to recipes and Scripture, this book encourages families to make time-even just a few minutes-with each other every day to celebrate the real meaning of Christmas.


So for anyone who still reads my moms blog (is there anyone left??), leave a comment
QUICK
to enter, cause she wants to get this out to you asap!!
She's giving away 2 copies and something else sweet to go with it....
I get to choose the winners Friday afternoon..........

Blessings.

Advent Conspiracy Promo Video

I borrowed this from the Barna's blog(thanks for posting it Liz!)
This speaks my heart - I could not have said how I feel any better.
What have we let CHRISTmas become in our lives and in our homes?
I became depressed leaving Costco the other day; after
seeing toys that were $200-300+........and watching people buy them.
**sigh**
This year I am so excited - I have made all our gifts
and it has been SO fun!
Our kids are getting something from mom and dad - but we have SO come full
circle on that; we're focusing on others - not just at Christmas,but all year long......
In fact, that leads me to a giveaway I'll be having here soon!
It's a little something that will help you to focus on Jesus and
your family everyday in December....and there might be chocolate involved as well!!

Blessings on you all.

Do we fit the part?

Whadoyatink?

We had missions Sunday at our church a couple of weeks ago, so we came
from China..........
I think Ellie gets the points on this one!

*~*~*
Have a wonderful week.
Blessings ~

Truth.

My beautiful friend Kristi wrote this on her blog (and I'm borrowing it!).........
Like it or not, she hits the nail exactly on the head.
Read on:

One of the good things about not watching TV or having much contact with media other than the computer, is that you don't hear EVERYTHING about an election. Especially during an election that lasted SO LONG. Of course, I knew the candidates and what they stood for, but I didn't get caught up in the frenzy. I could really see it from a very unbiased point of view. In the past I've really cared about who won, but not so much this year. Of course I care, but I don't see it as a matter of the demise of our country. We watched John McCain give his concession speech and Obama fans cheering for our new president last night. It was all very strange to see. What bothered me the most was how hyped up everyone was over the outcome. The enormous fans for Obama cheering like he is going to save their lives or something. Even if McCain had won, I would say the same thing. Our country is not doing poorly economically because of who our president is, we are in this position because of greed. The greed of the people. It's not a matter of the greed of the government, like some Republicans want to think, and it's not from the greed of big business and "the rich", as some Democrats like to believe. It's a matter of the greed of the people wanting the American Dream without earning it the hard way. Debt, credit, loans, are why we are in this predicament. So don't lament like the world just came to an end and don't jump for joy like the saviour of the world just got elected...God is in control, still on His throne, and Jesus is still the only One who can change the human heart. If you want to hope in something, hope in that.

Made with Love.....

It doesn't get any better than this.....

Happy Reformation Day.....

Picked this up from Wikipedia........

Reformation Day is a religious holiday celebrated on October 31 in remembrance of the Reformation, particularly by Lutheran and some Reformed church communities. It is a civic holiday in Slovenia (since the Reformation contributed to its cultural development profoundly, although Slovenians are mainly Roman Catholics) and in the German states of Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. Is also a national holiday in Chile since 2008.

History
On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther posted a proposal at the doors of a church in Wittenberg, Germany to debate the doctrine and practice of indulgences. This proposal is popularly known as the 95 Theses, which he nailed to the Castle Church doors. This was not an act of defiance or provocation as is sometimes thought. Since the Castle Church faced Wittenberg's main thoroughfare, the church door functioned as a public bulletin board and was therefore the logical place for posting important notices. Also, the theses were written in Latin, the language of the church. Nonetheless, the event created a controversy between Luther and those allied with the Pope over a variety of doctrines and practices.

Lutheran church
Within the Lutheran church, Reformation Day is considered a lesser festival, and is officially referred to as The Festival of the Reformation. Until the 20th Century, most Lutheran churches celebrated Reformation Day on October 31st, regardless of which day of the week it occurred. Today, most Lutheran churches transfer the festival, so that it falls on the Sunday (called Reformation Sunday) on or before October 31st and transfer All Saints' Day to the Sunday on or after November 1st.
The liturgical color of the day is red, which represents the Holy Spirit and the Martyrs of the Christian Church. Luther's hymn, A Mighty Fortress is our God is traditionally sung on this day. Lutherans customarily stand during the hymn, in memory of its use in the religious wars of the Sixteenth Century. It is also traditional in some Lutheran schools for schoolchildren to hold Reformation Day plays or pageants that re-enact scenes from the life of Martin Luther. The fact that Reformation Day coincides with Halloween may not be mere coincidence. Halloween, being the Eve of All Saints' Day might have been an entirely appropriate day for Luther to post his 95 Theses against indulgences since the castle church would be open on All Saints' Day specifically for people to view a large collection of relics. The viewing of these relics was said to promise a reduction in time in purgatory similar to that of the purchase of an indulgence. Dr. Luther may have been shrewd in his choice of that day to post his theses.

We're not Lutheran.
We don't celebrate Halloweeny......I like to call it that.
I thought this would be cool, if not anything to give you a bit O history today!

Blessings ~

Interesting what happens.....

When you take out a battery and put it back in.

Hmmm.

It seems that's all our laptop needed, it wasn't working - or actually, it was b-a-r-e-l-y working...
You know, like you want to throw it across the room, or take your foot to it, working?
Just mess with the battery a bit, and all is well.
There.
I just gave you my lil bit of advice for the week. Hey, you never know........

So, here are a couple of cute little monkeys hanging around.
Man, you guys.
There has been so much going on......I don't even know where to begin?

Sooooooo, I won't.
I'll just show ya some cute pictures that our daughter took......
Get Ellie's face.........what do ya think her thoughts are?
ooOOOOooo, tricky camera poses......
Kinda cool.
Okay, thats yuk.


Awww, my wittle baby maple.....
Don't mind the mess; but my man re-sided our home.....he did an AMAZING job!!
I'm so excited.
(just look past the extra stuff!)
Oh yes. Cute Chinese little girl with her buddy "ut-med" (Nutmeg)....
Brothers on the Deere......one actually drives this thing all over, can you guess which?
Can I just eat them both up?
Please?
Oh how I love my babies, all 4, that God has blessed us with.
I am one thankful mamma.......
*~*~*
Hopefully, I'll be back a tiny bit more now.
Love to you guys ~
Blessings.

Just sayin' "hello" !!
Having MAJOR computer issues - be back soon....
Blessings.

Those of you that know Ellie.....

.....know that this kid LOVES to sing.
All we have to say to her is "Ellie, can you worship Jesus?"
And off she goes. It doesn't matter where we are.
Precious baby girl.
(sorry about the quality....oh, and don't mind the hair; a certain
13 year old thinks it to be great fun to see what she can come up with!)
Blessings.

I haven't turned my back on you all !!
Priorities change, you know? All of a sudden, blogging just isn't
at the top of my list.
My family is.
That feels so good to say!

Even though I still think I will continue to blog, it won't be as often - but please know

that we are all alive, well, blessed and wonderful!!
What joy there is when your obeying your God.

I'll be back soon to update you all on what we've been up to.
*~*~*
Blessings ~

Ps - For those of you who contacted me to check in on us; bless you. That means
more that I can ever say.....thank you.

Guess where we went...again...

....yummy...
(yes - the Oregon Coast isn't the warmest of places)

Luke's Day

*.......mom, I think my legs are longer.

*.....mom, look I can run faster.

*.....mom, I can jump higher today.
*......mom, when I woke up I became 5!

** the mind of the sweetest little man who turns five years old today**

*....mom! I'm a whole hand today!!

Happy Birthday Lukie!!
We love you, oh so much.
( this is my all time favorite picture )

Blessings.

well hi there!
i thought i would give you an update on all the
fun stuff we've been up to.......

now pay close attention... k ?

first......we got to ride in a fire engine for a parade
in our hometown......
i wasn't sure what to think.....

if you think the seatbelt is a safety issue....that was nothin;
you should of seen me hanging out the windows blowing kisses to the crowd!
i rocked.
my cool daddy-o drove us.......

my brother 'Lukie' scored bigtime on all the candy...
check out his pocket....

okay. did you just see that? he is standing right where cars drive!!
first the seat belt in a fire truck, then they let me hang out windows and THEN
they let Luke stand in the street..........
i might have to take charge around here......
Anyways..
next we loaded up the truck and moved to beverly....

looks like it huh?
funny. i don't even know where that song came from in my little adorable brain.
naw, we went CAMPIN!

at the beach no less!
here is adorable me showing off my load.....

we went to this little light house....

see how excited my mom looks?
she says camping is like being in the city......see the two other campsites behind us?
right behind us?
like, two steps away crowded in behind us?
down below here, my sissy and brother think they are so smart.....but i
see them trying to hide from me!!!!

then - just a few days ago we went hiking in a park that
has all these waterfalls everywhere!!!
you could even go UNDER one!

okay mom, a few steps back and you and i are both gonna be wet, not to mention toast.....
real purdy....
and even more waterfalls that made me smile!


i guess i'm done for now.
i'll leave you with my cute-ness......i know thats why you really stopped by!


Blessings.
My heart is full.
Thank you Lord.
**hugs**

daddy

.....could you even begin to guess what today is????

.... my daddy's birf-day!!!!!!

.... mama likes to call him her 'hunk-o-muffin-fireman-stud'....
i just call him daddy.

Happy Birthday Babycakes!

Hangin' at the Beach...

look at those two cute kids...

Good day!
Kristy here, to say we're taking a bit of a break~
no email
no 'puter
cause we're no home!
BUT.
Ellie insisted that I put up pictures of her wonderful
little friend Abby, from her visit with us......

They are the SAME age.
Amazing huh?
Miss Abby has been home for a year and a half-
Ellie has been home 4 months.......
What a difference.

She's not sure what to think here......

...but no matter what, she's always ready with a smile....

....again....

... and again.....
To stinkin funny.
*~*~*
Blessings on you all.
See ya soon !!

my sister ROCKS

yea, it's me again - my mom has this issue with blogging during the summer.....
she doesn't want to!
so i'm gonna do it one more time.......
okay, okay, okay; i've GOT to tell you about my totally cool
awesome big sister.....

thats her.....

she is so totally cool - not only is she now a teenager cause she
just had a birf-day.....
BUT - i'm so proud of her.
see, we went to this bike derby thingy and she WON
first place for the older kids!!!!!!!!!
i was cheering and yelling and hollar-en
the whole time for her.....
there she is smokin out all the others......BOYS that is!

my cool brother Lukie raced too and got 4th place!
woo hoo!

oh, hee hee - i'm so giddy for both of them....
next on my list to tell you is that i loved my first 4th!
here i am with a bunch of my homies....

the next day we went to see this waterfall....
hey, miss teagarden; i know you and my future buddie
Jane just went here too!!!!

i love given my daddy kisses......
(so does my mom)
(in fact, they do that all the time)
(i mean all the time)

my brother Lukie doesn't like them all the time....

so, mom wants you all to know she'll be back soon.....

(this is one of those looks she gives to my dad)
(all the time)
(whats that about anyway?)
*~*~*~*
Be blessed.