BLOCK PARTY

Yesterday we attended the annual block party in the neighborhood where Eric grew up. Eric's mom, Susan, and step-dad, Gary, host this party every year and we have enjoyed getting to know the neighbors and kids/grandkids of neighbors from Eric's childhood home. It is also a fun family time. We had a ball with Grandma & Grandpa, cousins J.R. and Bailey, as well as Judd and Jeanine. Here is a photo of J, J & J -- of course Bailey is way too busy to involve himself in a family photo!

Some highlights from our afternoon included a long session of playing Barbies with Aunt Jeanine and J.R. and lots of play time with toys from Grandma's basement.

And the food was delicious, as always!

My personal favorite memory from the day was watching Avery "interview" the people at the party. The interview went like this: "Hi I am gathering some information about the block party. Would you mind answering a few questions?" Then she asked them their name, birth month, street they lived on, # of kids and # of grandkids. She ended each interview by saying, "Thank you for your time." She recorded everything in a little notebook. Today, after school, we are going to make an Excel spreadsheet with statistics about the party. She is so excited :)

Ella and J.R. were usually right with her for the interviews, and J.R. was in charge of the follow-up questions :) Above is Avery interviewing Grandma, and below she is interviewing Grandpa.

I thought for sure that she would stop with family members, but she interviewed 23 people at the party! Maybe she will be a reporter in the future.

We are already looking forward to the next annual block party in 2009!

TWO LITTLE BOYS

In our house full of girls (and Eric) it was fun to babysit two little boys for an overnight this weekend. We loved having our nephews, Aidan (2 years) and Chase (6 mos.) stay with us while their mom and dad went out of town for the weekend. Aidan is so polite! In response to everything I did, Aidan would say, "Thank you, Aunt Maria". Aidan was especially happy when we had "The Wiggles" on TV :)

Chase is a precious, happy baby. He loved sitting (with a little help from his big cousins) and playing on the floor. Avery and Ella enjoyed being big cousins, especially when it was meal-time.

Taking care of two little ones reminded me how tiring it is to be a mother of babies -- diapers, bottles, night-time feedings . . . I appreciate the ages of my two girls! In fact, they were able to be real helpers to their mom this weekend. We look forward to having Aidan and Chase stay with us again, anytime!

A WEEK OF FIRSTS

Our family experienced many "firsts" this past week . . .

• Avery's first full week of public school. She loves it! God has been so good to answer our prayers for her to make some friends and adjust easily.


• Ella's first week of full-day school. And Maria's first week without both girls all day! Wow -- can they really be growing up this fast?


• Eric's first Sunday as a small group leader in HighPoint. He is leading a group of 6th grade boys. Very cool.


• Avery & Ella's first night of Awana. We are thankful for the amazing children's programs at our church and the influence of other Christ-followers on our girls.


• Eric and Maria's first night with our new community group. We are co-leading this year with our good friends, Kim & Gary, and we are looking forward to developing some new friendships and growing together


• Maria's first morning as a MOPS mentor. It was amazing -- I am so excited for the year ahead!

"Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Not only was it the first day back to school, it was Avery's first day of public school! It was also the first time that I have put my two precious girls on two separate buses heading to two separate schools. Wow -- what a day! I am positive that it was more emotional, more bittersweet and more nerve wracking for me than it was for either of them!

 

Ella's bus comes one hour earlier than Avery's, so we saw her off first. Avery got on Ella's bus to give a hug to Miss Gloria, their sweet bus driver for the past few years. She also got to say hello to one of her previous classmates. I thought for sure that the tears would come then, but none came (at least for Avery :)

By 8:00 (a full 45 minutes before her bus arrived) Avery headed outside to play with the other neighborhood kids who were waiting for the bus. One of the highlights in changing schools for Avery has been joining her good friend (and neighbor), Meghan, on the bus and at her school. Meghan is a year younger than Avery,so not in the same class, but they had a great time on the bus on the way to school!

The report at the end of the day was two-thumbs-up from both of them. They both made new friends, love their teachers and are so excited to go back again tomorrow. Thank you, Jesus, that you are with them every moment of every day. I rejoice knowing that He loves them even more than I can imagine!

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid ... for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." Deuteronomy 31:6

WHEN THE LIGHTS ARE ON

We have LOVED our season passes to the family-run amusement park that we've visited all summer (thanks Grandparents for the great birthday gifts!)! We've gone many times and spent a 7-8 hour day riding rides and enjoying the wave pool and water slides. But the one thing that we have not done is stay until closing, when it is dark. I'm sure the girls could have made it, but Mom (that's me!) was always wiped out by that time. So yesterday, after just two hours at the park, Avery & Ella suggested (in a persistent way) that this was the day to come back "when the lights are on". So we went home for an afternoon break and dinner and returned to ride the rides until the park closed.

The first 1.5 hours were still daylight, so we enjoyed some of our favorite rides and anticipated what was coming (when the lights come on!).

By 8:00 it was getting dark and we decided to ride Ella's most favorite ride, the YoYo (this is her favorite because she was finally tall enough to ride it, halfway through the summer :)

Next, Avery decided to wait (and wait, and wait, and wait) in line for her favorite ride, the "Screamin' Eagle"

During Avery's wait in line, Ella and I went to the "kiddie rides" -- maybe this will be her last summer to enjoy them! The boat she rode in had a very fitting title as we close our our summer . . .

Sea U Later summer -- it's back to school tomorrow!

AWAY FROM HOME

Last week my grandma, who is 96 years old, moved into a new home. She has lived in the same small town her entire life and this move to assisted living, about an hour away from her hometown, is a practical, necessary move at this stage in her life. She is now close to my mom and dad and my sister, Coleen, and they will be able to visit her often. The girls and I traveled to see Grandma earlier this week and it was hard to see her so disoriented and unhappy. She just wants to go home.

As I was driving to and from my visit with Grandma, I thought a lot about "home". I am a home-body. I like to be home. It is safe and comfortable and I can be myself there. I can understand why this move is hard for Grandma. But I've been thinking about what the Bible says about home . . . that this world is not my real home. That I am like an alien and stranger on earth (1 Peter 2:11). That we are longing for a better country in heaven and that God has prepared a city for us there (Hebrews 11:15-16).

Grandma was so sad that she refused to let me take her picture with the girls. So I am including a picture, taken last September when we celebrated Grandma's 95th birthday.


When I got home on Tuesday night, I read this poem in my devotional book (this is the final stanza):
And now "my Home is God", and sheltered there,
God meets the trials of my earthly life,
God compasses me round from storm and strife,
God takes the burden of my daily care.
O wondrous Place! O Home divinely fair!
And I, God's little one, safe hidden there.
Lord, as I dwell in You and You in me,
So make me dead to everything but Thee;
That as I rest within my Home most fair,
My soul may evermore and only see
My God in everything and everywhere;
My Home is God -- author unknown

Grandma with 9 of her 13 great-grandkids.


"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms . . . I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am."
--Jesus (John 14:1-3)

FRIENDS

Avery calls her closest friends her "besty-best" friends. I am thankful that God has blessed me with MANY besty-best friends -- going back as far as high school! Recently I was a part of a special day -- Kim & Jason's wedding. Besides the honor and fun of helping them with the details, I loved spending time with some of my besty-best friends (I will call them BB's) who came from near and far to celebrate the occasion. One of my BB's, Kim, was my co-coordinator. We had a great time working together to get the bridal party down the aisle and finding a safe place for the gifts!

No one will ever know if we planned the polka dots . . . was it a coincidence or not?

Liz did an AMAZING job with the reception. She is so talented and has a huge servant's heart!

One of the highlights for me was spending time (not enough!) with Penny and Susanna who traveled from far away to celebrate with Jason & Kim.
A verse that reminds me of my BB's is 1 Thessalonians 5:11, "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing" I am so thankful for my friends -- they are a precious gift from God!

KIND-OF COUSINS

The best way to describe my girls' relationship with Calvin, Abigail and Easton is "kind-of cousins". They have the kind of friendship that doesn't get unfamiliar, even after months of separation. Yesterday they enjoyed a reunion, as Susanna and the kids were in town for a few days. They fell into their regular routine of "house" with Avery and/or Abigail in charge and acting as the mom (of course!).

Since it was a hot and sunny day, we enjoyed a lot of outside time, including a picnic and water play. Oh how we miss Susanna, Dan and our "kind-of cousins"!

WEDDING COORDINATOR

I have a new title to add to my resume of experiences -- "wedding coordinator". About 5 months ago, my good friends, Kim & Jason, asked me to coordinate their wedding. I was honored to be asked and baffled about what exactly that would mean! Over these last months, I have learned a lot, and yesterday Kim & Jason became "Mr. & Mrs." It was beautiful! Everything went smoothly and it was a meaningful and memorable ceremony and reception.

Here is a picture of Kim and her mom, Fray before the wedding.

Kim & Jason's sisters were all bridesmaids. Here is a picture of Kim's sister, Allison, and Kim G. who helped me coordinate the details of the ceremony.

This is a picture of Jason & Kim, after the wedding, with one of their flower girls, Abigail. When Ella looked at this picture, she pointed to Kim and Jason and said "This is now the Zentz family". I love how God formed a family through the covenant that they made to each other! What a special day!

THE COTTAGE

When we visit Grandma & Grandpa W. in the summer we go to "the cottage". It is a beautiful, peaceful place to spend a couple of days. Mom & Gary have created a wonderful home-away-from home where they spend a good part of their summers. Friday was a rainy day, so there was a lot of game playing, rock collecting (in between showers) and inside play. This worked out fine, as Maria took the opportunity to go visit (Great) Grandma Hall in the hospital. But Saturday was sunny and warm so we got outside.

The girls had quite a few rides in the paddle boat, first with Grandma and then with me.

Ella, our little helper, saw Grandma scrubbing the paddle boat and immediately asked if she could help. Later she told me "Mom, we just washed the boat and now it's dirty! Wash it -- dirty -- wash it -- dirty. Isn't that how life goes?" I guess she can relate to what it feels like to be a mom!

Avery was excited to go swimming, but was a little less enthusiastic when she felt the seaweed.

We rounded out the day with a ride in Grandpa's pontoon boat. Both Avery and Ella got a chance to "drive". Notice Eric in the background, resting his back. Laying down has been his primary position for the past 6 weeks :(

Thank you Mom & Gary for a fun mini-vacation! To see more pictures from our trip to the cottage, click here

PRESENTING "THE ARISTOCATS"!

Friday night and Saturday morning Avery and Ella had their theatre debut, performing in the musical The Aristocats. It was a great show! Avery played Berlioz, an Aristocat kitten, and Ella was an Alleycat in the ensemble. A very fun "perk" included personalized seats in the dressing rooms for performers :)


Our good friend, Heidi was also an Aristocat in the ensemble. It was fun to see Heidi and her family a lot throughout these last two weeks!

We enjoyed family and friends joining us to watch the performance. And of course we had to go for ice cream afterwards!

On Saturday afternoon, following the final performance, we attended the cast party. Tug-of-war and a pinata were huge hits!

Overall we were very pleased (and impressed) with the quality of the program and educational component. The girls learned theater technique, terms and etiquette -- I learned a lot too! While it was an intense two weeks (I would recommend it for older kids -- 8 and up) Avery is already talking about doing it again next summer.

O HAPPY DAY, HAPPY DAY!

One of my new favorite songs is written by Steve Fee. The lyrics go like this:

Oh happy day, happy day

You washed my sin away

Oh happy day, happy day

I'll never be the same

Forever I am changed

This is the perfect theme song for the day we had today. At 10:00 am we participated in the groundbreaking for our new 700 seat worship center. It has been awesome to see how God provided over 3 million dollars for this building -- all from the sacrifice of people who love Jesus and want others to know His love too. The perimeter of our new sanctuary was outlined in white on the ground and shovels were placed around the border. Mayor Duffy was present, along with a couple of news crews, and after some praise songs we each had the opportunity to dig into the ground, beginning the foundation for our new worship center. I am bummed that I forgot my camera -- the image of Avery and Ella digging in the ground was beautiful!

Later in the day we gathered at the lake for our annual "Church at the Beach" celebration.

The line of people out in the water include the 13 adults and kids who were baptized, as well as the people who baptized them.

Our neighbor, Anaja and Cousin Kelli came with us. It was amazing!

Truly a Happy Day in every way. We loved singing praises to God in a gorgeous place that He created and listening to the stories of 13 people who've given their lives to Jesus. I've included a few photos, but you can see the album if you click here. O happy day, happy day!