Surprise Gifts From God

We are thankful for beautiful weather this spring and the many opportunities to "play" outside. We've even been able to take some outings and have seen God provide blessings for our family in extra special ways!

BLESSING #1: Braden is FASCINATED with campfires, and loves building pretend ones almost daily. If he's outside he collects all the sticks he can find (sometimes by pulling them off the tree or saving them from walks) to make a pretend campfire. In the house he uses legos or pillows to build one. We finally decided that it was time to impress him and build a real fire! So one Saturday we headed to a local park along the Lewis River in hopes to build a campfire to cook our dinner. We ventured out not knowing if we would find a legal place to build a fire at the park. When we arrived, the park was VERY busy and it looked as though every BBQ grill was taken and that there was nowhere to build a fire. After much hunting and praying silently, we finally saw the ONLY open spot at the park: A fire pit (and the only fire pit in the park)! It was perfect for our fire and for cooking our dinner!

Time for an after dinner spin!

Praise the Lord for providing a campfire just for Braden!


Blessing #2: On the Friday of Memorial Day weekend Sheldon casually mentioned to a friend that we may head to Long Beach (Washington Coast) on Saturday. What he didn't know was that this same friend had a condo there. The friend graciously offered for us to stay there if it wasn't rented out for the weekend. We tried not to get our hopes up as we waited to find if it was available since we knew it was a BUSY holiday weekend and chances were slim that it would be open. A few hours later, our friend called back and said that his property manager had not rented out the condo and that it was ours for the the weekend. We packed up that day and were blessed with a 2 night stay at the condo right on the beach!

The weather was nice, we were able to fly kites in the breeze, play in the sand, and even go see a lighthouse. The kids had a wonderful time and we were able to enjoy some much needed relaxation on a wonderful three day weekend.

Ready to head out to the beach first thing Saturday morning!

You have to finish your breakfast before you can go outside...

Braden explores the sand dunes

Jamie flies a kite while Ashlyn plays in the sand

Braden at North Head Lighthouse

An evening view from the condo

Thank you Lord for friends and for providing an unexpected and lovely trip for our family!

It's Time for Charlotte's Web...

I decided that it would be fun to read a children's chapter book to Braden so I chose Charlotte's Web as our first one to read together. He loved it, and usually didn't want me to stop reading once we would get started (especially if it was bedtime)!

Of course the teacher in me decided to not ONLY just read the book, but find EVERYTHING that the library had on the topic of Charlotte's Web in order to do a unit study. Therefore, I also checked out the book on audio tape, we watched the movie, read several illustrated versions together (each one is a chapter from the book), and made crafts to go along with the book! We sure had a an amazing time reading, learning, and creating during this book unit.

Hope you enjoy the pictures of some of our highlights...

This is Charlotte the spider in her web. Braden thought of making a web out of yarn and attaching Charlotte to it. He also asked me to write the word "radiant" on tape and stick it to the web since that is one of the words that Charlotte spun into her web in the book. I was thrilled by how Braden took simple craft ideas and developed them into much more creative activities!



We made a paper mache Wilbur the pig. This was our first paper mache project. How fun and how STICKY! Braden could hardly wait for Wilbur to dry (it takes a few days) so that he could pop the balloon inside and then paint him.

Here is Templeton the rat, made into Braden's very own puppet.

Now I am in the hunt for our next chapter book unit! Any suggestions???

Braden Vaughan

Braden is 5 1/2 and his mind is as inquisitive as ever! I'm constantly needing to be "on my toes" to keep up with answers to his many questions and his constant activity!


Recently he has taken a great interest in the concept of numbers. For instance: he is always adding numbers, checking to see how many pages are in EVERY book (the more the better), talking about how many minutes a movie is, and is trying to understand just how BIG a number can be. His favorite number right now is 1,294 (that's how many pages are in his Bible). For a while he would call it "one thousand seven hundred two ninety four", but now he's got it figured out.

Braden has also been saving up money, and finally saved up enough money for a Wall-E tent of his very own (from the animated movie Wall-E). This process has been a great experience as he's really begun to understand how to count and trade money, and just how long it takes to save up for something!

Click play button to watch video clip...

In addition to numbers, he also has certain cartoon characters that he has taken a liking to: Wall-E, Nemo, and Bob the Builder. He even wrote 3 of his own books (all on his own initiative) about each of these characters. The first book he wrote by simply sounding out the words he didn't know how to spell and then drawing a picture to go on each page. He did an amazing job! For his other 2 books he wanted me to spell the words for him so he could get the spelling just right. I, of course, am thrilled by his interest in writing!

Here's a video clip below of him reading part of his Wall-E book. Sheldon had fun editing it for me on iMovie:

Click the play button to view the video clip.

Of course, this is just the "tip of the iceberg" of what Braden is learning right now (I didn't want to be too much of a proud mom)! However, as a former school teacher it's very exciting to see him interested in these things, and it's so rewarding to teach him and see him grown and learn!

Ashlyn Kate

Ashlyn is now 2 1/2 and she is just as precious as ever! There are so many things that change so fast at this age. Each day I find myself just smiling at the wonderful little person she is becoming.

Ashlyn loves to play with playdough

One highlight FOR ME is that she's potty-trained! She has been wearing big girl panties for 3 weeks now (except in public and for sleeping). It just dawned on me the other day I had gone 3 weeks without changing a dirty diaper! I'm guessing it's been 5 and 1/2 years since we've been dirty diaper free since Braden wasn't potty trained until after Ashlyn was born. THIS is a milestone for me!

Ashlyn is MISS INDEPENDENT! Her favorite phrases are "I DO IT!" or "ME!". She doesn't want help with anything. She likes to get dressed by herself, put on her own socks and shoes, and do the whole process of going potty alone (including turning the water on and off when she washes her hands), among other things. I guess this makes things easier for me most of the time - right?

To go along with her independence, she often takes initiative to do what needs to be done. I've noticed this at a very young age, but it is really starting to shine through now. For instance, the other day she saw a pile of clean towels on the chair and announced that she was going to fold them and she DID! I hope she stays this helpful.

Last night before bed I was reading an ABC book to Ashlyn and we started to sing the ABC song. The first time she sang it she did pretty well, so I got out the camera to video her and then she decided to shorten the song a little bit!

Click play button below to watch a video clip of Ashlyn singing the ABCs.

Of course, there is so much more I could share about dear little Ashlyn, but these are just a couple of our most recent highlights!

Now that Spring has Sprung...

Yea it is SPRING! I love spring, not only all the new life budding, but also because I know that summer is on the horizon. The very anticipation of summer makes me smile!

Spring weather in Washington is so variable. Some days it's barely 50 and rainy and it still seems like winter, and other days it's 80 and sunny and you would think it's summer. It is still considered our rainy season through June, so I try not to expect too much sun this time of year. However, it seems that we have had quite a few nice days this spring so far and have spent a lot of time outside enjoying the sunshine.

Here are some video clips....

A muddy Spring day! Click play button below...

Of course, one thing I love about this time of year is getting the garden tilled and starting to plant some of my early stuff. Click the play button below to see Sheldon hard at work getting the garden ready for me!

A very warm summer like day. The kids are playing car wash!

Click button to watch video clip.

Thank you Lord for springtime after a cold winter, and sunshine after the rain!

Easter: A Time to Celebrate

HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED!

I remember excitedly shouting this at church on Easter morning every year as a child. And oh how joyful this statement is.....if only I could remember with a thankful heart EVERY morning what Jesus did for me and for all of us because He loves us.

This holy week has amazing significance for me. It's good to be brought back to the basics of what my relationship with Christ is really all about. How awesome it is that the son of God was given to pay the penalty for my sin. To forgive me, to give me eternal life in heaven, and to bless me with abundant life TODAY!

This year my heart is specifically stirred to remember that I do not need to "just get through the day," only to wake up and do it all again tomorrow, but instead I can take hold of the abundant life God has for me right now.

How will I respond to that? I admit, I have often lost sight of that gift and felt like I was just getting by, or burdened with too many responsibilities and cares of this world to even accept God's goodness; however, I need not live that way. What Jesus accomplished on the cross has freed me from "just surviving" AND so much more. I can be joyful, I can experience His peace, His love, His goodness, and I can enjoy the freedom of forgiveness, all of this and so much more as I'm daily surrendering my life to Him. It's all so simple, yet so SIGNIFICANT that it is sometimes difficult to wrap my head around its entirety.

This I know: because of Jesus, I have SO many reasons to CELEBRATE every day! For HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED!

May you also experience the abundant life and freedom He gives. Happy Easter!

Some Favorite Portraits

Some of our most recent portraits of the kiddos.....