Birthday Boy

Matthias turned 5 back on May 27. Poor guy didn't get much of a birthday. I was at my worst with pneumonia and got out of bed to watch him open his few presents and eat a cupcake. All other festivities were postponed. He's such a sweet little guy, and I hope he knows just how much we're thankful for him. Hopefully soon, we can have a proper belated birthday party. Only now, it's so stinckin' hot!!

Mickey and Boy Scouts

I am so proud of Mickey!! He joined Boy Scouts in January and has done a GREAT job! I think he may have found his niche, we'll see. He earned his rifle and horsemanship badges and worked to earn the money for summer camp (all by himself). He really takes it seriously (finally something) and works hard to do what he's supposed to do.

He's gone to Boy Scout camp this week at Camp Constantine. I haven't heard from him in days and have no idea how things are going. They have a phone on site for emergencies, but other than that, they are not permitted to take cell phones, i-pods, or game devices of any kind. I suppose a glimpse into the future for me. It's weird when your children are home all the time and all of a sudden their gone. Now it's temporary, but in a few short years, he'll be an adult--aaahhh, a bit scary. Such a short time to prepare him for the world!

Bees and Trees

You know Spring is here (of course now it's almost summer) when your children are out catching bees and camouflaged in trees. My children love bugs--and have no fear of critters of any kind. They find lizards, spiders, grass snakes, bird's nests, insects... you name it. I am surprised they find so many critters around our little house.

On this particular day (pre-pneumonia), I went to take photos of them catching bees. There is a mulberry tree on the fence line between our house and the neighbors. Bees were all over that tree gathering pollen. The children would try to catch as many bees as they could at one time--I think five was the record.

And no, no one was stung. Even Miles commented that the bees were too busy gathering pollen to worry about stinging them :-). Matthias was having a difficult time catching the bees (as seen in a couple of the following photos), but he finally caught his "prize". Children are so funny. The littlest things can get them so excited--or bring them to tears. If life could only stay so simple.

No worries--no bees were harmed. I reminded the children how important bees are and to free them to continue their work after they've had their fun. The tree has been pollinated, the bees have moved on--now on to something new...

Finishing Up--Sports

Sports is, well, almost done. Mickey and Madeleine finished up without much excitement this season. Their teams played hard, learned, and will hopefully improve next season. Max and Miles' teams finished up 1st and 2nd, respectively, at the end of season tournament. They then went on to play in the north zone tournament. Miles' team lost in the semi-final round by ONE run! Max's team WON the north zone tournament--way to go Raptors. I must tell--Max had a game saving catch in left field. At this level, more pop ups are dropped than caught, but Max DID IT! I was not able to be there, but I later got the play by play. Max (and Dad) was proud--a real accomplishment for him. He has worked very hard and improved a lot this season.

Miles' coach is caught up in the excitement of coaching little league t-ball. His team--the Wolverines--will be competing in the little league world series in a few weeks. Not sure how far they'll get, but it should be an experience. Miles is looking forward to it and hoping for a 1st place trophy this time, like his big brother Max.

Unfortunately, I have no action shots from the tournaments. The first tournament was the weekend I came down with this pneumonia. Between running Mickey to (and from) boy scout camp, Madeleine to a friends, and baseball games--it just got the best of me. I did try to take a couple of shots of Max and Miles with their trophies. These are the best I got--neither of them were very cooperative and were quite goofy.

Finishing Up

Well, once again, it's been a month since my last post. I really do try to keep up with things, but life has a way of getting in the way. Of course, dealing with pneumonia the last few weeks has not helped one bit!

There are so many things to post about! I'm starting with just one today and hopefully over the next few days (or so) I can get caught up to speed.

Early in May, we finished up AWANA. For those who are not familiar, AWANA is a children's ministry for chidren 3 years--6th grade. They work through various levels of age appropriate books memorizing scripture and Biblical truths.

QUICK SYNOPSIS: Matthias graduated from Cubbies, receiving his Bible as a reward for finishing his Cubbie books, and is very excited about starting Sparkies next year. Max finished up Sparkies this year, completing all three books and receiving his Sparkie plaque--he moves up to Pals. Miles completed his second book in Sparkies, receiving his second book award ribbon (he still has one more year of Sparkies). Madeleine worked very hard completing her second book in Chums and received her Excellence award--she moves up to Guards. Mickey volunteered in AWANA this year as an LIT (Leader in Training) working with the Sparkies during game time. It was right up his alley and was a big helper!

I am proud of all of them and the hard work they put into finishing their books. Mostly, I pray, God's word will remain in their heart's, so when the temptations and trials of life come their way (and they will certainly come)--they will be equipped to handle those trials and overcome victorious to the glory of God!

Here are a couple of pictures from AWANA closing ceremonies. I wanted more pictures, but didn't work out.