The Love Chapter - 1 Ezekiel 13:4-7

Zeke is patient - he has a mama who forgets things all the time.  I forget things so much that he has to continually ask me for the same things constantly. For example, his drink at lunch, or his snack (from like 30 minutes ago) or to please get AAA batteries at the store.  I've had to start writing his requests on the blackboard in my kitchen so he knows I won't forget.  So, yes, Zeke is a very patient boy.

Zeke is kind - he saves his last bite of...everything...for his daddy.  He loves to give people things that he loves, like pirate coins, "Cars" stickers and lots of hugs and kisses:)

He does not envy - Zeke has a handful of special toys that keep him very grateful for what he has, so he's not too worried about others' possessions.

He does not boast - he doesn't seek out affirmation from me or Josh, although he gladly accepts praise when it comes to him, but he doesn't mind doing things behind the scenes.

He is not proud - unless, of course, he calls a square a triangle and thinks he is right:)

Bless his little heart...

He does not dishonor others -  he is very compassionate and loving toward others.

He is not self-seeking - I've loved seeing his heart transform through our adoption process.  He has gone out of his way to do things to "help" bring our little girl home.  

He is not easily angered - Okay, I lied, but he really is getting better at this one, ha!

He keeps no record of wrongs - except for that blasted plastic children's yard chair of Areyna's that I sat on in the backyard in Charlotte and broke.  Yeah, he won't let me live that one down either! 

Zeke does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth - that is why he always prefaces a tattle-tail remark with, "Ummm, I'm not trying to get Rainy in trouble, but..."

He always protects - especially when he is dressed up as a superhero:)

always trusts - okay, I lied about this one too, he really thinks everybody is out to get his "special to me" toys like his treasure box and spiderman sticker book, but after some convincing, he usually begins to trust again.

always hopes - he has hope that one day his daddy will never have to work another day and we can live as a family together, happily ever after:)

always perseveres - no matter how hard Micaiah knocks him down!

The Love Chapter - 1 Areyna 13:4-7

Areyna is patient - she has 2 little brothers who raid her fairy house and take her lip gloss and "un-arrange" her play kitchen of which she's worked tirelessly to put everything in its rightful place.


Areyna is kind - she loves to be a helper, in every sense of the word.  She helps me clean, cook, fold laundry, get Micaiah out of his bed (this one is getting a little tough with the extra weight he's putting on, ha!), and she takes full responsibility for her role as a big sister.


She does not envy - I have seen her mature so much over the past year.  Her heart is really growing.  She is beginning to cherish her friends more.  She is beginning to get excited for things her friends get, realizing that she is equally blessed in different ways.


She does not boast - she is always quick to give credit where credit is due.


She is not proud - unless she is in character and demands to be called "Rainbow" the Fairy:)


She does not dishonor others - she is a loyal friend.


She is not self-seeking - she has really taken to heart what she's been learning in her class at Journey.  They have been talking about being kind to others, even those who are hard to be kind to.  She has gone out of her way this week to do kind things for us.  It is so sweet to see her grow spiritually.


She is not easily angered - unless of course Micaiah begins to destroy her Fairy house and she has run all out of patience!


She keeps no record of wrongs - except for that blasted plastic children's yard chair of hers that I sat on in the backyard in Charlotte and broke.  Yeah, she won't let me live that one down. 


Areyna does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth - but if she were to delight in evil, such as getting her little brother in trouble for, let's say, cutting his hair with his scissors, I'm sure her parents would be quick to put her in her place.  She would then help him choose the better choice next time;) 


She always protects - she is the first one to say that we, as in me and Josh, are "not allowed" to give consequences to the boys because she loves them.


always trusts - even when Josh tells her "nope, no snacks today.  We've decided that we're all just going to go to bed for the rest of the day:)" or "I just saw a mermaid in the bathtub!"  Oh wait, that's just gullible.


always hopes - she swears that someone is going to give her a bunny for her birthday...no matter what I say.


always perseveres - especially after a little "if you don't sound this word out, I'm enrolling you in school" pep talk.  OR when someone is sad, she will get to the bottom of it.

Fun Facts For Friday

I love the gift that girls have of making big, manly things into...well, just about anything they set their minds to.

For example:

Areyna transformed Zeke's tool bench

into a hospital bed for bear.

He's feeling much better, 

so you can quit holding your breathe.

Areyna is a great nurse:)

My kids love critters.  As a matter of fact they love them so much that they really struggle to let them go after being "captured".  But after realizing that the critters are beyond "repair", usually from lack of food, and sometimes oxygen, and being over-played with, the kids realize the critter's doom and will finally let them go.  They are so proud of themselves for releasing the critter back into the wild that I just have to smile, and pray for healing for the little guy...

Well, here is just one example of some of those victims critters.  They were captured after a rainy day when all the beatles decided that it would be "safe" on our driveway and walkway.  Little did they know that they would be doomed to live in a band-aid box, only to be re-discovered weeks later and forced to race to their freedom:)

It has been almost impossible for me to find jeans that fit my little Budda baby.  The length will fit but the waste will be like 2 inches too small, ha!  I may need to try the ol' rubberband maternity trick:)

Josh let me go off-duty last night.  I had so many little projects hanging over my head that I had to make a dent in, so I locked myself in our bedroom and went at it.  I finished Cai's baby book, got all our tax stuff for the ministry in order so I can write-up out tax stuff for the attorney (I love numbers and all, but good grief, I feel like tax stuff NEVER ENDS!), and got caught up on thank you letters, coupons and packaged up some more of my books to mail off.  What a good feeling to have accomplished so many little tasks that just get pushed aside so I can just maintain a clean house and laundry.  Being a stay-at-home mom is tough...can I get an Amen?!

You have 24 more days until my devotional starts.  I created a link on my blog with a countdown so you can make sure you don't miss it.  I'll be selling them in our church lobby on the 20th and 27th!  I found 2 preschools that are interested in taking a look at the book for their book fairs and as a resource.  I didn't even think about that one.  Please let me know if you are interested:)

It's Friday ya'll!  Enjoy the nice warm weather and have a GREAT WEEKEND!

Happy Face, Sad Face, SO Excited, Pause

I'm a pretty dramatic writer and I know it.  I just feel like a . just doesn't express my emotion quite as accurately as a!:)

There's the !
I use a lot of E!X!C!L!A!M!A!T!I!O!N!S! when I write.  I'm an excited person, what can I say.  I get passionate about what I write about and I feel like I need to express that somehow, ya know?!

This is different than the ?!
This occurs more after an exasperated statement like, what in the world was she thinking?!  Or, does grandma not know that the 55MPH sign is for her too?!

There's the :)
This isn't quite as excited as the ! but is sweeter than a . :)

There's the ;)
You know, for times when you are saying something true but want the reader to know that you are trying to make light of the issue.  Or maybe you are just kidding around and want to say something in jest.

Then there is the ...
It's the little pauses that bring the reader to the climax of the story.  Or just a break to express that you are really choosing your words...well...carefully.

How about the :(
When you are sad, but not the kind of sad like if someone passed away or got really hurt.  I'd probably put some ... there, but :( occurs more often when someone got a cold, or maybe a finger smashed in the door.  Maybe even when someone washed all their cloth diaper inserts with their blue kitchen rug.  That would definitely be an occasion to use a :(

So, I know I'm a little dramatic, but why not add a little spice to the words on the page...right?!:)

Who Holds Your Heart

Here's a Valentine activity to do with your kids this week!

(Thanks Jessica:)

Here's everything you should need

(Not Pictured: Scissors)

Step 1:  Pick out 3 colors of paper and trace a heart on them

Step 2: Cut out the hearts

Step 3: Decorate the hearts

Step 4: Use a hammer and nail to make holes down the center

Step 5: Use a needle and thread to sew the hearts together

Step 6: Bend all the heart creases from the middle

Step 7: By far the hardest step

Find the perfect place to display for all to see!

BONUS STEP: If you walk under the hearts with someone
you have to give them a kiss:)
OR
you could tell them something that you love about them!

Lessons From The Classroom - Think Outside The Book

Mondays are families days here at the Via household.  Josh takes off from work and we spend out day together!  We have realized, though, that if we don't get out of the house that we slowly make our way back into the office to "just get one little thing done...".  You know how that goes:)  So we've begun to get out and do something altogether.

We dropped the school books for a day last week and headed to the Natural Science Museum downtown Raleigh.  It was so much fun!

The kids were absolutely giddy!

There was plenty of hands on stuff for Zeke

and fuzzy little critters for Areyna

but the dinosaurs were the BIGGEST hit!

Cai had fun climbing in and out of the dino print:)

and how cool is this?!

If you live in the Raleigh area you should totally 

go check out the museums downtown!

This one was FREE, except for the parking, and SO much fun.

Here's What My Day LOOKED Like

It's been FOREVER since I did one of these posts.  I thought it would be fun to see how much my everyday life has/hasn't changed:)  I'm warning you now, lots of pictures are to follow!

Up at 6:30am for some Quiet time

8am - Get some work done before the kids wake up
This is usually when I get my blogging done.

9am - The green sign goes under the door
and the day begins!

Breakfast time
Yes, Zeke is eating a PB&J for breakfast
I choose my battles wisely;)

10am - work on daily chores and school activities
such as weather and days of the week

10am - the daily whinefest begins

10:30am - Roomtime for the kids...

...and office time for me.
Usually adoption or ministry stuff

12pm - Somehow I missed lunch, ha!
But believe me, the kids don't let me forget that:)

12:30pm - We work on school

And this is Zeke working on school.
Just look how focused he is:)

When the afternoon whinefest begins
I know it's naptime for this little guy...

...and rest time for Areyna and Zeke...

...and workout time for mama!

which is usually interrupted by some kind of incident

After I workout and get a shower I'll get some more work done

while the kids go swimming in the couch cushions

How can Josh work through the commotion?
Earbuds and iTunes my friend!

Rainy and Zeke's mayhem inevitably wakes up Micaiah

which brings mama's wrath...
and some QUIET book time:)

Between 4:30 and 5pm I work on dinner
while I try to keep Cai entertained

I've found that food in his mouth usually keeps him happy:)

6pm - Dinner

6:30ish - Dinner cleanup
Yes those are my children helping to clean up dinner
They love it...for now, ha!

The rest of the night is spent creating
Oh, you're just realizing that Cai still has his jammies on?
Don't judge:)

8pm - the kids go down and Josh and I, well,
we do quite an array of things after the kids go to bed;)

That's what my day looks like.  How about yours?

Pray For Garren

Dear Friends,

While Josh and I lived in Charlotte we were blessed to have so many special friends, and one of those families was the Janes family.  That family poured into ours while we were there.  Geoffrey is the Southbrook Monroe Campus Pastor.  Not only were they dear friends, but when we played for CharlotteONE they kept the kids many times for us.  Their youngest, Kelsey, is about Areyna's age.  Their son, Garren was SO sweet to Zeke, always playing with him as if Zeke was a little brother.
So, when we found out what happened to Garren we have been deeply burdened for their family.

Garren collapsed at school on Friday and was rushed to the hospital and sent in to have immediate brain surgery.  Nancy and Geoffrey need us to intercede with them for their whole family.  I cannot imagine how they are feeling, but I know that the Lord knows and is listening.

You Can:

Read Current Updates - His dad is keeping everyone updated through twitter and his blog.

Leave Messages - You can leave an audio message that they are playing for Garren to hear.  What an amazing way to show him that people care.  Even strangers who have never even met him!

Grab this button and link it back to Geoffrey's blog to spread the word so others can pray for them too.

Not Me Monday

I am a neat freak.

I mean, almost to a fault sometimes.

But I would never let it get so out of hand that I simply could not finish a conversation because I saw a piece of paper from the back of a sticker on the floor and HAD to go pick it up

or

spend my entire trip home plotting what I could organize next.

Nope, not me!

But since we are talking about my organizational addiction tendencies

I want to make something crystal clear.

You would never see a sight like this one in my house!

Nope, not here.

I always pick up after myself.  Always.

Even if it's been one of those weekends where you try on a million different outfits, just trying to find something that you feel comfortable and confident in...

'cause I don't do that either.

Nope, not me!