As some of you may know, I have recently been struggling with a hard situation in my professional life. Work seems to get more stressful by the day. I am having a difficult time trusting God, and His plan.

Over the last month, I have been following the blog of Angie Smith, she is married to Todd Smith, who sings for SELAH - a Christian group. She became pregnant last fall and was told her child would never survive outside her womb. Although the Dr's told her to terminate the pregnancy, she and Todd decided to carry the baby to term and TRUST God's plan. Her blog starts in January, and continues up through little Audrey's birth. In God's plan, He wanted her to live for 2 1/2 hours here on earth, so her parents could LOVE her. Over 40,000 people have followed her story online through Angie's blog. Out of these 40,000, the story of Jesus is being told, and people are being encouraged, etc.

The reason I haven't mentioned this before, is because I kinda thought that it was alot to READ - you know the whole story on the blog would take a whole day to read through. But today, I found a VIDEO version of their story, that churches are showing to their congregations. When you have 20 minutes, check it out.....

this is the video: Audrey's Video
this is Angie's blog: Angie's Blog

Wow - for me, it really put things into perspective. God always has THE plan. Not a POSSIBLE plan - THE plan. If I could just sit back and let Him follow through, without getting in the way.......

Crazy Hair Day

Ummmmmmm.........Like, what can I say? They take after their father.

On the steps of the capital building

Some of you may remember that Tyler began playing TROMBONE when he started 5th grade band. However, about 3 weeks into it, Mr. Miller decided his "mouth" may be better suited for the TUBA. (God Bless the man for listening to 5th graders play musical instruments). Throughout the "BAND" process this year, Mr. Miller has been very kind to Tyler, giving him extra lessons after school, etc. However, right after Christmas, he explained that he wanted to switch him to the drums - I think the conversation went something like this:

Mr. M - Maybe Tyler just can't handle doing 2 things at once, you know like blowing the note, and working out the rhythm
Me - really??? Shocking! you mean the child who still can't remember the 3 things he has to do to get ready for school? I have to tell him 'put on your deodorant' - then when he comes back 'brush your teeth' - then when he's done 'pack your lunch'. I really have no idea what you mean....
Mr. M - Well, maybe if we could get him to JUST learn the rhythm, then he would be OK. So, I would like to switch him to percussion.
Me - So, I thought you had to have 2 years of piano to play percussion??
Mr. M - Well, not for Tyler - I'm sure this is where he needs to be.

I will sum this conversation up using Tyler's own words....
Tyler - Next year, I should probly just stick to CONDITIONING CLASS - I stink at band.

WAIT - Don't worry! MY child has SOME musical ability in there somewhere!! He had a great time performing on the steps of the Michigan Capital building on Friday. Below is a picture of him next to the bass drum. (He likes the BASS drum because it is the same OVER and OVER and OVER). I can't post additional photos because they all have other kids in them.

We'll have to see if he makes it to 6th grade band......

PS: The 5th graders are REQUIRED to take a year of music :), but the 6th graders aren't.......

Blogging....

Ok - As you can tell by this little site - i am like addicted to blogging. I am also addicted to reading other people's blogs - I have a bunch of them in my favorites and I check them daily. This is my new favorite for the week. If you have a couple seconds, check it out. The guys from MercyMe are hilarious!!
mercy me's blog

Saturday Game...

Tyler's game tomorrow is in Rockford - at 2:30 - Here are the directions: 1-96 E to 131 N. Take exit 97 for 10 mile road to Rockford. Turn right at 10 mile Rd. NE - Turn right on Childsdale St - Turn left to stay on Childsdale St - Turn left at Kroes St NE.

SOCKS

My grandma says, “When I die, it will not say ‘Great Housekeeper’ on my grave”. Well, this is not the first time I’ve realized that I take after my grandma. You’ll notice in my “interests” section of this blog, that I do not include ~ SORTING SOCKS ~ as one of the FUN things I like to do. What is the purpose of matching socks? Let’s face it - it is so much fun to wake up 5 minutes earlier, just because you may need to #1. Dump over the sock basket and #2. Pick through the pile to find a matching pair. Right?

Unfortunately, my dearest husband does not share my vision on this subject. For some reason, that I can not relate to, he insists that it would be a good PRACTICE if WE would get in the habit of MATCHING the socks. (He claims something about ‘…not wanting to buy new ones, when we have some right here……’ ~ I don’t know, I wasn’t really paying attention).

For those of you that are really smart, YES – I probably could have matched A LOT of socks in the time it took me to write a BLOG about SOCKS.

On Saturday, our good friends Isaac, Isabelle and Iliana came to visit for the evening. I became quite ecstatic when I realized that Dan had given up on expecting US to match the socks ~ but, instead, had used his BRILLIANT mind to trick them into doing it. I believe a FREE Harley ride may have sealed the deal. Half way through the process, the kids decided to make SOCK puppets, and put on a puppet show!

For those of you that may be wondering, I woke up this morning, and instead of having a BIG SOCK BASKET full of unmatched socks, I had a BIG SOCK BASKET ½ full of unmatched socks. I also had 3 piles of matched SOCKS all over the family room floor. Which I then had to pick up and put in the BIG SOCK BASKET, on top of the unmatched socks. I NOW have a BIG SOCK BASKET – ½ full of unmatched socks, and ½ full of matched socks.

I’m so glad we got that taken care of.

What can I say, I have other talents.
And, luckily, I usually listen to my grandma…….

3rd Grade Marketplace

Eyliana sold her SUNSHINE cupcakes at the 3rd grade Marketplace today! Grandma Robin and Eyli made 100 cupcakes last night and SOLD them all today at the Marketplace. (Mommy bought some for the teacher's lounge, and Grandma Robin bought some for the people at her work, too) But, a TON of students bought the little SUNSHINES! Eyli made a $58 profit!!! I tried to convince Robin and Eyli to open a BAKERY! Maybe someday......

Girls on the Run is so much Fun!

This Spring, Eyliana and I are both running a 5K! Yippee! When Katie was in 3rd and 4th grade, I coached 'Girls on the Run', which is a nation wide running program for girls. It is exciting that Eyli is now in 3rd grade, so she can participate. My good friend Tirza twisted my arm, and we agreed to coach together this season! This is a picture of Eyli and I with Tirza and her daughter, Gracie. We will run our big race on May 31 in downtown Grand Haven!! Luckily, the focus of the program is not ALL ABOUT running. The curriculum is geared to teach girls things about healthy habits, self-esteem, positive character traits, etc. And when we run in the 5K, it's not about who finishes first or last - but, that we all FINISH. Thank goodness, 'cause I'll finish towards the back of the pack...........

Tyler's First Game

Tyler's first outdoor soccer game will be at Helder Field in Holland THIS Saturday, April 19th. US-31 South to Quincy Street, East on Quincy to 104th Ave, South on 104th Ave to the park.

For those of you that were asking, the home games will be held at Pine Park, not Beach School.

Dudley the Cat.....

Interesting that I may need to buy a new leather couch in the near future. Dudley insists on spending his days only on the left side, which has caused a permanent indent. But, you know, anything for my fourth child. He's the BABY.........

My Favorite Day.....

Today ~ I got to do my favorite thing! Sunday’s are always my favorite, especially every other Sunday. On the 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month, I have the privilege of serving God in worship at Lakeshore Community Church. Last summer we found ourselves becoming part of the church family at Lakeshore. At the time it meant finding a place that God wanted us to be. We didn’t really realize how much until recently. Lakeshore is a church that is dedicated to LOVING PEOPLE and PREACHING THE GOSPEL. Over the last few months, Satan has attacked many pieces of Lakeshore’s puzzle. We were dislocated from our original “church building” ~ The Harbor Theater ~ when a water pipe burst and dumped 4 feet of water throughout the Theatre. Muskegon Catholic Central High School offered to “house” us until our new building, the old MOOSE LODGE, is completely renovated. But, as renovations often do, this one will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars more than we have. So, the church began to wait on God. In the meantime, Satan also attacked our Pastor. As allegations and confessions surfaced, the elders of the church realized that God was leading them to make a difficult decision, and our pastor was let go approximately 8 weeks ago. We are blessed to have other leaders at Lakeshore that have stepped up to the plate with ‘strength and courage’ to ‘fight the good fight for the true faith’!! Through the last few months, it has become apparent that God intended to use our family to help Lakeshore ‘fight that good fight’. Dan has been serving God through leadership of the Men’s Ministry at Lakeshore, while I get to sing twice a month. For now, this is where God wants us to be.

Ironically, my favorite verse in the Bible is: Psalm 28:7 – ‘The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and with my song I shall thank Him’..........

Tyler's Spring Soccer Schedule

Because Tyler will once again be on the FRUITPORT FIRE travel team this season, here is his Spring Soccer schedule! You can also access schedules and maps at www.gvsoccer.org ~ he is U11 Boys Yellow on that website ~

Saturday 4-19-08 - 1:00 pm AWAY (WMFJ MCMahon)
Saturday 4-26-08 - 2:30 pm AWAY (SCOR Manett)
Saturday 5-3-08 - 4:30 pm - HOME (I think home is Beach School)
Saturday 5-10-08 - 12:00 pm - AWAY (Central Shoreline)
Saturday 5-17-08 - 3:00 pm - HOME
Saturday 5-31-08 - 3:00 pm - HOME
Saturday 6-7-08 - 3:00 pm - HOME
Saturday 6-14-08 - 3:30 pm - AWAY (Alliance Rapids)

I will attempt to post a blog for directions before every game! Go FIRE!

Blessed

Abanatha.....

Because I'm pretty much the only one that reads my blog, I had to share this picture with myself. I take so many pictures of this man, look at how patient he is.....He loves it when I take his picture, he just can't get enough of it..... Gotta love the man God has blessed me with.
PS: In case anyone else reads my blog, he finally got to work today - I hope it stays SUNNY. Who am I kidding? The PS statement was for me, too........

FINALLY!!!!

We FINALLY got out on the Harley today - for the first time this year! You would think that I would've taken a picture, but, I FORGOT - so here is a pic of us on our Harley from last Summer - out on the west coast - (I think this is CONNECTICUT.) Today, it was still chilly enough to be "just right" in the chaps and gloves. We made it to Barnes and Noble to read, and grab a coffee. Life is Good.......

A party isn't a party until you're wearing a hat....

You gotta love Dan's new friends. It wasn't a REAL party until Isaac broke out the hats! I promised I would PLASTER this pic all over the WORLD WIDE WEB - so here it is.......

Colorado seems so far

Katie landed safe and sound in Steamboat Springs, Colorado last night. She posted some of these pictures on her myspace page. If you can't tell, she is having a wonderful time! ~ how lucky!! I don't know about Bill, based on the above picture I wonder if he's having 2nd thoughts about traveling with two 14 year old girls :) ????????

Remembering.....

Remembering Punta Cana - Maybe again someday......

Pele - Watch Out..........

We're officially back outside! Tyler had his first OUTDOOR soccer tournament today - luckily God gave us SUNSHINE! His 5 vs 5 team took first place in the MUDDY KLOMPEN SOCCER TOURNEY in Holland, MI. He continues to amazes us in his soccer ability, which he must get from his mom's side. :) - Dan probably contributed a tad......... Dan took Tyler by himself, as the girls and I were getting all of Katie's stuff to fit in one suitcase for her big trip. Tyler starts OUTDOOR soccer practice next week. I'm hoping that Spring is finally here. I heard 7 Harley's drive by my house today - how come we're not on ours? Someone keeps forgetting to call and get the insurance bumped up to full coverage..................

Leaving on a JET PLANE.......

Wow - how do you know when it's time to let them fly out of the nest? We were given an incredible BLESSING 2 weeks ago when the parents of Katie's good friend, CARINA, called and asked if Katie could join them for a SPRING BREAK trip. Realizing that we could never afford a trip to STEAMBOAT SPRINGS Colorado, we thanked the HOYER family and agreed to let Katie go with Carina and her dad, Bill. Although the immediate thought was "NO WAY" - How do you let your 14 year old go on an airplane for the first time?? But, after some prayer and conversation, we realized that God was providing us with a BLESSING. How exciting for Katie to have this opportunity! We will drop her off tonight at Carina's house and she leaves on a jet plane tomorrow from Chicago. Dan is very jealous, as his new found LOVE of snowboarding is pretty much over for the season here in MICHIGAN (unless we get ANOTHER snow storm). Dan has spent the last 2 weeks trying to figure out how he can hop in the suitcase. Your prayers are appreciated, as my oldest starts to fly.........

My little COOK.....

How do you know when your youngest isn't young anymore? Maybe when she's traded 'Polly Pockets' for BAKING TINS and COOKIE CUTTERS. Maybe when she'd rather watch The Food Network instead of HANNAH MONTANA. Maybe when her favorite thing to do is BAKE with Grandma Robin. Eyliana has yet another CLASSROOM PROJECT - Can you believe it? - Ya, for real - but, luckily, this one is right up our alley ! She had to develop a GOOD/SERVICE to sell in the '3rd GRADE Marketplace' - FUN! Of course, we realized that she would BAKE her 'GOOD'. She will be making "COOKIES SUNNY CUPCAKES". This project is operating AHEAD OF SCHEDULE - as Grandma Robin has taken charge of it. The girls already baked a PRACTICE batch to figure out their PROFIT/LOSS margins. Realizing that they would have a better PROFIT - Grandpa will be donating the CANDY CORN - for a small price of a couple cupcakes (Im sure). The 3rd GRADE Marketplace will be held at WMAAA on April 18th. Eyli is planning to bring 100 cupcakes, with the hopes of making a $63 profit. WOW, I can't believe she is getting so old...........

Good Friends.....

We spent Friday Afternoon with our very good friends Elias and AnnClaire for her birthday. She wanted to go to Fredrick Meijer Gardens to see the butterfly exhibit. I had never seen it, and we had a great time! We are so thankful to have found such great friends, and we plan to experience many other FUN adventures with them! We missed our friends Jeff and Kim, though, as they did not make the TRIP to GR - we of course were in the middle of a SNOWSTORM~ Once again! - Will this ever stop??? Dan and Elias went SNOWBOARDING again yesterday!! I am so sick of snow! 1 more week till SPRING BREAK! - Yeah! We will sit home and watch the snow fall, Im sure................