Springin' into Summer

The pool still wasn't open when this picture was taken, so the hot tub had to suffice. (Yes, I realize Chase is a very white child...thank God for sunblock!)

Posing with Grammie Pam on a giant fish on the VA Beach boardwalk (this was before we saw the sign that said, "keep off the artwork, LOL)

Chase getting his ear muffs ready for the Monster Truck show as he's standing in front of a cool, big Chevy truck (Tim in the background)

My Mother's Day cards and flowers from Tim and the boys

A frequent springtime visitor in our yard

Mix-n-match day at school

Before Gabe's K3 preschool presentation

Double springtime picture cuteness (yes, I'm biased)

Way to go Chase and Gabe!

One cool little 4 year-old

Since my last post, Chase and Gabriel turned a year older (Chase-7, Gabe-4) and wrapped up the 2015-2016 school year.  Congrats to Chase on making the A-Honor Roll and for receiving several awards for his outstanding academic performance.  Chase and Gabe both had perfect attendance for the last nine weeks too!  Gabriel concluded the school year with a super cute preschool program where he and his classmates got to share some of what they learned, such as sounding out different consonants and recognizing the letters of the alphabet, counting to 20, and citing John 3:16.  It's an awesome experience to hear 3 and 4 year-olds being able to speak the word of God from memory!  So proud of both boys!

Team Riptide concluded the soccer season with 2 wins, 2 losses, and a tied game.  We didn't make it far in the tournament, but we sure had fun this season and topped it off with a pizza/cupcake reception for the kids at Nike Park.  Tim will most likely coach the 4/5 year-old's in the fall so that he can help ease Gabriel into soccer for his first season....now, that will most definitely be something to blog about this fall!  

April and May turned out to be busy months with soccer, baby showers, the boys' birthday party as well as a 63rd birthday celebration for my mom, the monster truck show in VA Beach, a couple trips to Busch Gardens and our first trip to the Smithfield Swim Club pool this year.  We've had so much fun doing the aforementioned and can't wait to see what the summer brings us as we have more trips to Busch Gardens planned (including a date night for Tim and me where we can ride the "big kid" rides), a trip or two to Water Country USA, many relaxing days by the pool, and a couple beach trips to OBX.  In the meantime, the boys will be attending summer camp at FOEC again during the morning hours and spend the afternoons at my grandmother's house.

The month of June started off bittersweetly with my uncle David Griggs passing away on June 4th after a 3-year battle with lung cancer.  His funeral was today with family and a few friends gathering to celebrate his 57 years of life.  Pastor Joey Hartman of Faith Outreach preached his funeral and did an outstanding job glorifying our Father in Heaven and extending the invitation of Christ to everyone in the congregation. I'm a firm believer that all things work together for His good and perhaps the funeral today will help reach a few lost souls out there who need the reassurance of knowing that Heaven will be their home when their time on earth ends. I'm sure thankful I have that reassurance and hope that everyone reading this has that same peace!  The peace of the Holy Spirit can outshine the summer sun any day!  Have an awesome summer kick-off month!  

 

April Showers...

Chase, Gabe, and Jacob (Chase's friend across the street) colored eggs for Easter.

Recognize this place? This was as close as I could get without crossing the double fences (and risk being arrested, LOL)

Chase's new smile without his top, front teeth and Gabe's classic smile

Family Picture around our Japanese Cherry Blossom Tree (in honor of Connor)

An attempt at a close-up with the boys and I, but Gabe wouldn't stay still and we were zoomed in too far.

Tim and his mini me at Morgart's Beach (we were at our neighbor's wedding)

Beautiful view of the James River...beautiful, sunny spring day as you can tell by Gabe shading his face.

Happy Spring to everyone!  April showers bring May flowers, but apparently, the word “showers” even applies to snow!  We had a brief snow shower at our first soccer game this season.  Within the same week, we also had temperatures above 70 degrees. The weather in Hampton Roads is always a rollercoaster, isn't it?! Usually accompanying the drastic weather changes are seasonal allergies and whatever other nasty viruses are floating around. My family has suffered a few bouts of the dreadful "stomach flu" (yes, I'm well aware it's really a virus and not the actual flu).  Some of us were unfortunate enough to get the stomach bug twice!  I got it again just a week and a half after I had it the first time, or perhaps I never fully shook it the first time.  If you’re not into bathroom humor and sarcasm, please spare yourself and stop reading now.

Lucky me, the second bout of the stomach bug occurred during a business trip to Washington DC. I turned all of the main tourist attractions into the Brown House, the Crappitol, the Stinkin’ Memorial, the Wash-your-hands Monument…you get the point!  Thankfully, God is good and He carried me through that business trip that felt like an eternity as I fought off waves of nausea sitting in an 8-hour class for 2 days.  Tim and the boys had the stomach bug too, so they can relate to the misery I felt.  Chase had a wonderful explosion of vomit from the top bunk bed in his room that looked like a scene from the movie “The Exorcist,” only his head didn’t spin (but, I think mine spun when I saw the mess).  As a parent, experiences like cleaning up a horrific mess like that can only humble you and make you laugh in hindsight.  Moreover, if all we have is a little stomach bug in comparison to some of the other ailments people suffer around the world, then we still have a ton to be thankful for health-wise. 

April is a big birthday month in our family.  “Papa” Breeden led off the birthdays this month.  I won’t tell you how old he is, but Tim has been jokingly calling him an “old fart” long before he ever qualified as one.  Papa and Grammie Breeden also have an anniversary this month, so Happy Anniversary to the two lovebirds who are well on their way to that golden one.  There are other family members with April birthdays too: Uncle Dennis, Robert Coffey, Bert Griggs. I’m sure there are others I’ve missed, but the two that stand out the most to me belong to Chase and Gabe.  Chase will turn 7 years old on April 22^nd and Gabriel will turn 4 years old on April 21^st.  I can hardly believe the baby in my Facebook profile picture will be 4 years old…unreal!  Happy, Happy Birthday to my back-to-back birthday boys!  I’m so thankful for them and remain proud of them for all of their accomplishments.  Chase continues to make the honor roll as Gabriel continues to improve his speech and learn new things in preschool.  Both boys are learning so many new things.

Chase is reading all sorts of books now and completed his very first book fair project for school last month (got a perfect score on it too!).  Beyond schoolwork, he also experienced a wonderful lesson at the dentist last month.  He had several baby teeth that just wouldn’t give up the fight, but the permanent ones were already growing in and leaving his mouth too crowded.  As a result, we scheduled for the dentist to intervene by pulling out the baby ones.  He was able to lose one on his own first, but the dentist still had to pull the other three.  He was so panicked when I picked him up from school the morning of his appointment.  I felt so bad for him as I had to wipe his tears and try to reassure him everything was going to be alright.  When we arrived at the dentist office, we said a prayer in the parking lot.  We specifically asked God to help ease his nerves, to help the dentist to do a good job pulling his teeth and to give him a brief and easy recovery time.  Chase immediately calmed down as soon as we walked in the dentist office and everything went better than expected.  He was quite the trooper and ended up being a comedian with the laughing gas.  Even the dentist was laughing as he kept repeating, “I really like this stuff,” (referring to the laughing gas).  So, the lesson learned from all of that was for Chase to always ask God to help him whenever he’s feeling anxious.  No prayer request is too big or too small for our awesome God!  As a reward for being such a trooper, I took Chase bowling right after his appointment.

In total, Chase has lost 6 teeth in less than a month from the 3 teeth pulled by the dentist and 3 more lost on his own.  The Tooth Fairy may have to take out a loan at the rate this is going!  Chase has no top front teeth right now, but you can just barely see the buds of the permanent ones starting to poke through his gum.  While losing teeth has been Chase’s big news over the past month, Gabe’s big news is that he’s FINALLY pooping in the potty.  There was one particular moment when Gabe refused to go poop in the potty and he ended up doing it in his pants after I had repeatedly asked him for the past hour if he would go to the potty.  I was so frustrated with his stubbornness and the mess that he had made that I’m sure he could sense my disappointment.  It seemed like that was finally the breaking point for him.  The very next day he voluntarily pooped in the potty all by himself and he’s been doing it ever since then.  He still has an occasional accident, but we’re moving in the right direction.  Praise the Lord! 

Speaking of praising the Lord, there’s nothing cuter than hearing a 3 year-old singing the praise song that goes, “Here I am to Worship.”  The part of the song that goes, “You’re altogether lovely, altogether worthy…” is the best, because Gabe says “wormy” instead of “worthy.”  Although I’ll be thankful for the day when he can fully annunciate words on his own and not need speech classes anymore, I have to admit that it’s cute to hear him say some words the wrong way.  Our almost 4 year-old can be very stubborn at times, but he’s still a happy child with a big sense of humor.  He’s always dancing and singing.  We attended a wedding for our neighbor yesterday afternoon and he was quite a hoot dancing along to the music. 

As for cute/silly things said by Chase, you may have already seen Tim’s Facebook post about their walk on the Windsor Castle Park nature trail.  Tim took the boys for a walk while I was at a baby shower last Sunday (congrats to my sweet friend Emily Lamb who is expecting a baby girl this summer).  While they were on their walk, Chase was ahead by a few steps. Tim noticed a silly grin on Chase’s face and he asked him, “What’s up, buddy?”  Chase replied, “I’m connecting with nature…yeah, I’m farting.”  Thank God we have a family with a good sense of bathroom humor!  Perhaps that sense of humor goes a bit far at times with Gabe “pooting” on everyone, including his speech teacher.  We’ll have to establish a fine line of when it’s ok to joke about that sort of thing and when it’s inappropriate. 

Our God is so worthy (not “wormy”) of praise! We had a wonderful Easter weekend with Tim’s parents in Hopewell.  It was too cold and damp outside for an Easter egg hunt on Easter Sunday, but that didn’t stop us from having the hunt indoors.  The kids always love their time with Grammie and Papa Breeden.  They also love being with cousins from both sides of the family.  Even though they didn’t see cousins from the Breeden side on Easter Sunday, Aunt Laurie took Chase, Gabe, and Bella to the circus as the boys’ birthday gift during their spring break.  That was Gabe’s first time at the circus and he seemed to really enjoy seeing all of the animals and stunts. 

We’ve had two soccer games so far this season. Although we enjoy soccer, sometimes soccer games can feel like being at a circus too.  However, we seem to have a great team this season with good chemistry.  Our team name this season is “Riptide,” (of course we stuck with another nautical name).  During our first game, we were up by a point until the last quarter and then our team lost momentum and the other team scored twice during the last few minutes.  We couldn’t have asked for our players to try any harder especially since we were down three players the entire game and the other team had all eleven players.  I still think we won the game in talent with the eight players we had in spite of what the final score said.  Plus, we got snowed on during that game; that goes back to that good ole Hampton Roads weather I was referring to earlier.  Our second game was much better than the first with warmer weather and a win for Team Riptide!

Hats off to Tim for sacrificing time to coach in spite of his busy work schedule.  Tim usually works 11 or 12-hour days during the workweek and he often works weekends too.  He’s normally heading to Thursday practices after a long day of work; and, he typically has already logged in half a day of work before our Saturday morning games even begin (in other words, he has already worked 2-3 hours or more before most of you are even out of the bed).  One thing is for sure; Tim and I both log in plenty of hours of work, whether it’s at a machine shop, at the shipyard, on the soccer field, or just right here in the comfort of our own home (keeping up a home and raising a family is a full-time job in itself). 

It doesn’t look like our schedule is slowing down any time soon.  Aside from work, the next few weeks entail several soccer games, a baby shower for our neighbor, the boys’ birthday party here at our house, a Monster Truck show to attend, and hopefully our first trip to Busch Gardens for the season. It’s also hard to believe that Smithfield Swim Club will be opening its pool at the end of May….doesn’t seem possible for pools to open and schools to wind down for summer with the snow that we just had last week. What a blessing it is to be able to do all of these extra things that keep us busy! I know we’re not the only ones who work diligently and have busy lives so I’ll conclude this blog posting with positive words for all of you hard workers out there.

“Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.” 1 Corinthians 15:58

Leaping through Winter

My Snow Minions

Papa Pirate and Mini Me

Happy 63rd Birthday, Grammie!

My sister Laurie and her youngest daughter Caroline.  Laurie turned 32 in February.

Loved ones surrounding Grandma for her 90th birthday celebration on 2-6-16

Looking great at 90 years old!

Two Peas in a Pod; friendship is one of God's greatest gifts in life! Liz also had a birthday in January.

Can you believe we're already almost two months into 2016?  Even with it being a Leap Year, one extra day this month isn't enough to slow down time.  We celebrated the many January birthdays we have in our family: my sister Dawn, my dad, Pam (Grammie), and my friend Liz.  We also kicked off January with our annual Breeden Christmas; we always get together in January instead of December due to every one's busy schedules in December.  Most of us wore ugly Christmas sweaters or some sort of Christmas apparel to add to the fun.  TD (Tim's cousin's husband) dressed up as Cousin Eddie from the Christmas movie classic: Christmas Vacation (with Chevy Chase).  Tim's sweater was hilarious too with the saying "Oh Snap" and gingerbread men falling apart.  Then there were Pam and Ted with their matching Santa shirts and the rest of us sporting some other form of Christmas gear. Beyond our silly shirts, we all wore smiles and enjoyed each other's company.  It's always fun to see how much the children grow in a year and watch how they interact with each other; surprisingly, they always seem to get along together so well, which is a rarity when you consider the various ages.  Last but not least, I won the "Breeden Lotto" this year, which is a fun dice game we play where everyone puts a few dollars in the pot and tests out their luck rolling the dice.

How has your 2016 been so far? Have you stuck to all of your New Year's resolutions? Tim and I would both still like to shed a few unwanted pounds (don't we all?) to get our bodies beach-ready. However, we're not ones to stress over that sort of thing.  I think everyone should indulge in all-you-can-eat-chocolate on Valentine's Day, buy a few boxes of Girl Scout cookies, and not take yourself too seriously when it comes to body image.  We'll also have to get ourselves in shape (whether it be fit-n-trim or just a rounder shape) for Water Country this year! That's right; the boys don't know it yet, but their main birthday gift from us this year are Busch Gardens and Water Country fun passes. That will be a nice early birthday surprise for them; we'll present the surprise to them in March when Busch Gardens first opens.

Speaking of birthday surprises, we pulled off an amazing surprise 90th birthday party for my grandmother on February 6, 2016 (3 days before her real birthday). Grandma thought she was just coming to my house for a small birthday gathering for her and Laurie since we traditionally celebrate the February birthday girls together. To her dismay, we had around 35 family members and friends at my house to celebrate her 90 years of life. I was thrilled that we had family from out of town to join us for the occasion. We had beautiful weather, great food, and awesome guests to make the event fun and memorable. Most importantly, we gave my grandmother an irreplaceable memory and gift by showering her with the love and attention she so deserves.

We've had a crazy winter so far with temperatures ranging from freezing to in the seventies. The boys were fortunate enough to enjoy a few snow days as well as unseasonably warm days playing outdoors in short sleeves. We even had a tornado touch down in Waverly, VA this month due to the unusually warm temperatures bringing a massive storm front across the country. We're hoping for more stable temperatures with so many things to do outdoors as we knock on the door of the month of March: we'll begin another soccer season (and, yes, Tim is coaching again); we'll get to try out our Busch Gardens passes; we'll be able to try out our new grill and cook many great meals (most things taste better grilled, right?); and, last but not least, we'll get to reflect on the ultimate sacrifice of our Savior this Easter....which also means celebrating with coloring eggs, egg hunts, family gatherings, etc.

For the most part, we've had a nice winter. However, we had a few minor winter woes with Chase and Gabe getting colds and the 24-hour stomach bug. I had a slight cold myself during one of the snow weekends we had, which took away my motivation to want to go out and build a snowman. But, it was still fun watching the boys sled down the hill in our backyard from the window. Chase was scheduled to have a few teeth pulled this month, but he had a stomach virus the day of his appointment which bought his baby teeth a little more time (lucky for him, but it really just delayed the inevitable). He has permanent teeth growing in, but his baby teeth don't want to give up the fight and let loose, which is leaving his mouth overcrowded. He's had several loose teeth for a few months now, but they're just not loose enough to merit the Tooth Fairy's visit.  That's certainly not something we're looking forward to in March, but we'll survive (prayers appreciated). On a brighter note with Chase, he had another great quarter in school with making the honor roll and perfect attendance. I remain proud of my firstborn and can't believe how grown he seems at just 6 years old. In his downtime this winter, he has enjoyed playing games on his Tablet and practicing on his drums.

As for Gabe's winter struggles, he refuses to do #2 in the potty because it involves having to sit down. For whatever reason, he has it drilled into his head that the toilet will engulf him and that only girls are supposed to sit down to use the bathroom. One of these days, we'll get that stubborn child 100% potty trained. At least we have #1 squared away. As for speech, I'm thankful to report amazing strides of improvement just in the New Year. He is meeting the goals laid out in his Individual Education Plan and his teacher has noted on several occasions that she's happy with his progress. We can tell a difference at home with more clarity in his words. Gabe is also doing well overall with the K3 curriculum. Yay for Gabe! In Gabe's downtime this winter, he has enjoyed playing dress-up with Chase in their many superhero and pirate costumes, building Lego cities and trains, and playing with an array of Paw Patrol toys, fire trucks, dinosaurs, pirate ships, etc....the life of a 3-year old sounds rough, doesn't it?  

Although most of our lives consist of more work than play (unlike our kids), Tim and I are doing well with our jobs. Tim has consistently been working Saturdays and some Sundays. Even with his long workweeks, he is content with his job...although he's still hoping for a good raise. I'm extremely blessed to say I was promoted at work and got a raise this year. Unfortunately, several folks aren't getting raises this year at the shipyard and it's no secret that we've had layoffs and could possibly have more reductions to the workforce. I'm humbled and thankful that God has provided for our family through our jobs. There are oftentimes when we feel like our hard work isn't recognized, so it makes it all the more special when our efforts are acknowledged by others. However, one motto I try to live by even during those times I may not feel appreciated is that my joy and strength comes from the Lord (Nehemiah 8:10).

Next time I update this blog, we'll be a few more steaks into using our new grill; Chase will have a few less teeth in his smile; longer days and warmer temperatures will be here; Gabe will (hopefully) overcome his reluctance to sitting down to potty and be able to speak even more clearly; and, we'll have praised our way through another Easter. For all of you snow bunnies and cold weather freaks, enjoy the last few weeks of winter while snow grinches like me grumble just a little longer. On a serious note, may God be with all of you as we conclude another winter and gear up for the spring. Soak up the blessings in 2016 because the year is already quickly passing.  Happy St. Patrick's Day; Happy Resurrection Sunday, and Welcome Springtime!

Farewell 2015...Bring on 2016!

Yes, Christmas in shorts and short-sleeves!  2015 was the warmest Christmas season I can remember!

Amber and Jaycee on Dec 26th

Too cute to be on the naughty list (but, believe me, there were some close calls!)

Aunt Carrie and Baby Charlie

One Motley Crew on Christmas Day

Santa Claus was here!

Mack the Elf will be back next year!

Another Christmas season has just about passed us by as we're knocking on the doors of another New Year.  Santa was good to us in 2015!  The fun wasn't just tearing into the gifts that Santa brought us, but enjoying the build-up of excitement through our children's eyes throughout the month.  If the biggest problem I currently have in life is sorting through an array of plastic toys and trying not to kill myself by tripping on Hot Wheel cars, then I consider myself richly blessed.

We didn't do anything extravagant in 2015; no exotic, tropical vacations, just three summer trips to the Outer Banks; however, that was all we needed to get our salty air fix for the year.  We didn't buy any new vehicles; in fact, we flipped a few bills to fix the ones we have, but they still run!  We didn't do any major home improvements and our house has its flaws, but it's still standing in spite of our two tornadoes (Chase and Gabe) that frequently touch down.  Our soccer team didn't come out as the overall champions, but Tim got his feet wet with coaching and still carried our team to a few victories during the spring and fall seasons. Chase graduated Kindergarten with flying colors and Gabe began preschool and speech class.  Sure, they both still have lots to learn, but they've come such a long way in a year's time.  Tim and I may have occasionally gotten mentally and/or physically drained from challenging jobs at work and long hours, but we're so thankful that we were able to work another year and that we still have jobs to sustain us in 2016. My point in saying all of this is that we we may not live flashy lives, but we can certainly rejoice in all of the small victories we experience in a year's time.  Oftentimes when we exercise hindsight and add up all of those small victories, we realize that they're nothing short of a miracle!

Speaking of miracles, we welcomed two new family members in 2015: Michael Paul Stephens in July and Charles Vaughn Moore just earlier this month.  Tim and I have no plans to continue the expansion of our family tree; moreover, we just hope to continue to nourish and strengthen the branches of our existing tree in 2016.  We will have a very special birthday to celebrate in February of 2016 as one of the oldest and strongest branches of our family tree (my grandmother) will turn 90 years old!  There is a surprise party in the making right now for February 2016!

Whether we're just a budding branch or a seasoned one, we can surely reflect on how good God has been to us throughout 2015.  For some, 2015 may not have been the best year they've ever experienced; however, each season in life has its purpose and we just need the right perspective to look at our current circumstances.  May 2016 be the greatest year we've ever lived due to spiritual wealth, which is far greater than anything Santa Claus brought us in 2015.  HAPPY NEW YEAR!  (How many times are you going to write 2015 by mistake in 2016?....2015....2016!)

Season to be Thankful and Jolly

Kicking off the holiday season at the Yankee Candle Co. Christmas village

3 Breeden Boys at the Yankee Candle Co. Christmas village

Jamestown Ferry Ride (Tim and Gabe)

Jamestown Ferry Ride (Tim and Chase)

Chase and Bella at Dawn's Baby Shower (love Bella's smile...she just lost one of her front teeth!)

A Beautiful Fall Day isn't complete without Nerf guns and bows and arrows.

Thanksgiving is now behind us, but the season to be thankful should last forever. One of Chase's bible verses (Ephesians 5:20) for November should radiate in our hearts year long: "Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ."

Fall festivals may be winding down, but we still have so much to be thankful for this year. Just to have friends, family, jobs, and good health are a few things we so easily take for granted.  We were blessed to get to spend Thanksgiving Day at the Turner's house yesterday with Tim's side of the family.  Although I didn't get to see my family on Thanksgiving Day, I'm fortunate enough to get to see many of them throughout the workweek. After seeing so many negative events highlighted in the news lately, such as the horrible terrorist attack that occurred on November 13th in Paris, I'm extra thankful for all of my family and to know the Lord as my Savior; to know that the loving God I serve is mightier than the hatred that fuels senseless acts of terrorism. Unlike other religions, Christianity is based on the ultimate sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross so that we can have the gift of salvation; I'm thankful it's not something I have to earn, because I know I'm humanly incapable of earning such an amazing gift of grace and mercy.

Speaking of gifts (although no gift can surpass salvation), it's time to gear up for the season to be jolly! As many folks are out stripping store shelves of Black Friday sales, Tim is working and I'm staying home catching up on things around the house (including this blog).  I'll eventually be getting out Christmas decorations from the attic. Chase and Gabe have already relayed their mile long Christmas wish lists for Santa. In fact, they've already seen Santa in person this year. A couple weeks ago, Tim and I woke up on a Sunday morning and got the kids ready for church as we usually do, only we really didn't go to church. Instead, we surprised them with a trip across the river on the Jamestown ferry to see Santa at the Yankee Candle Co. We enjoyed browsing around the toy shop and looking at the Christmas decorations. Chase had no fear of Santa and went right up to him without hesitation. Gabe, on the other hand, was very reserved around Santa and unsure of the jolly ole fellow. However, we were excited he made it through pictures without any tears (which is a first for him). The pictures turned out great, but I can't post them on here as they will be Christmas gifts for some of you reading this!

I remain proud of my boys even though they have a few hiccups every now and then. Chase had perfect attendance in school for the first 9 weeks and made the honor roll. He also has his first loose tooth and is looking forward to a visit from the Tooth Fairy soon.  Gabe continues to do well with his routine of preschool and speech classes. I have several people ask me all the time how speech is going. I can see progress, but I keep trying to explain that speech classes aren't going to result in him speaking coherently overnight; it's going to be a long process that will require patience and hard work. There are some days Gabe just isn't focused (which is to be expected of a 3 year-old) and there are other days when he is very cooperative with his teacher. Aside from speech, there are some days in preschool he does well and other days when he gets put in time-out for being a distraction in class or getting in a tiff with another student. Likewise, Chase isn't a golden child either; he has had a couple notes home from talking too much in class (imagine that!). There are also days that I feel like more of a referee than I do a mom as a result of breaking up debacles between the boys ("brotherly love"). We're still having potty training wars at home with Gabe; he does well taking care of his business at school, but he reverts to not using the potty when he's at home even with constant reminders. I think some of it is just laziness and stubbornness on his part. My point in saying all of this isn't to exploit my children's flaws, but to point out the obvious: no child is perfect and I'm not going to be one of those mothers that ignores imperfections and only gives praise.  Love and discipline go hand in hand.

Needless to say, the boys have plenty to work on over the next month to ensure Santa will visit. I think it's safe to say we all have areas we can improve in our lives. One thing I notice about the holidays is that so many folks stress about it. This isn't "the most wonderful time of the year" (as the song goes) for everyone as some are mourning the loss of loved ones; some are battling depression, broken relationships, financial struggles, addictions, or other physical ailments. Whether our burdens seem big or small, God wants us to hand them over to Him. My devotional yesterday morning pointed out that anxiety is explicit evidence that we're not seeking God's agenda above all else even though we tend to shake it off as one of the "lesser sins." Matthew 6:33-34 hit home for me as I know so many friends and family members who suffer from anxiety; we've ALL experienced fear and worry at some point in our lives. The take-away for me in this devotional right here around the holidays (perfect timing), is to remain thankful and to choose to face each day's challenges with confidence in God's wisdom and plans....even if it comes in the simple form of not stressing over what gift to get someone or worrying about how to squeeze in all of the holiday festivities in our already busy schedule.

Although remaining stress-free is easier said than done over the holidays, most of us still have so many fun things to look forward to this Christmas season. We plan to make a day trip to Scottsville to celebrate Tim's grandmother's 81st birthday next Saturday.  Chase and Gabe's Christmas play will be held at Faith Outreach Education Center later in December. Chase is going to be one of the three wisemen and Gabe will be in the choir; the students have been diligently rehearsing for the play since before Thanksgiving. We have Christmas baking and our annual cookie giving we do for our neighbors; this is a small way for us to reach out to our neighbors and show them God's love by slipping invitations to church in the goodie bags. Of course we can't hand out invitations to church in good conscience without going ourselves, so you can count on us being present for the Christmas Eve service at Liberty Baptist Church. We have "Mack the Elf" (Elf on the Shelf) that will watch over our house everyday between now and Christmas Eve and pop up in different locations. Thankfully, we'll get to be with our loved ones over the holidays....and perhaps one more loved one will be here by then with Baby Charlie being due right before New Year's. But above all, we have the gift of our Savior to celebrate! Join me in kicking off this holiday season stress-free with God as our focal point!

Fear the Lord ~ Halloween 2015

The motor cooler is back in business!

Farewell Beach Days until next year! This picture was taken at the NC Aquarium pier.

Pirate Gabe....Arrrr!

Pirate Gabe (again) and Superhero Chase

This is the same Spiderman costume Chase wore for Halloween 3 years ago

Double dose of Spiderman

Look who can drive the John Deere Gater now!

Batman and Robin (this year's costumes)

First Day of School

My last blog posting was towards the end of summer and here we are almost halfway through fall. I'm not sure where time has gone over the past few months, but we've evolved from beach days and afternoons at the pool to school days and Saturday mornings on the soccer field.  We went from eating fresh tomatoes out of our backyard to incorporating pumpkin spice into nearly everything. Although leaves haven't changed colors yet, the cooler, crisp air reminds us that summer is long behind us.

We kicked off the school year at Faith Outreach Education Center (FOEC) right after Labor Day. Thankfully, it was an easy transition for both boys since they attended summer camp at FOEC. I remain proud of Chase as he's writing in cursive, learning basic math, doing sign language, taking drum lessons, reading, playing soccer, and citing 6 bible verses at a time. He's a sharp kid not lacking in social skills or the gift of gab.

On the other hand, Gabriel has had to work harder at mastering speech even though he wants to be as social as his brother.  He's attending 30-minute speech classes twice a week with Miss Hopkins at Hardy Elementary in Smithfield. Miss Hopkins isn't in a position to officially diagnose Gabe, but she thinks his symptoms point to apraxia more so than just a typical speech delay that some children have in their younger years. (I posted details on Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) earlier this year.)  It's not easy for me having to leave work early twice a week and be the "mommy bus" driving Gabe from Hampton all the way into the heart of Smithfield for speech class, but it's worth the peace of mind knowing that I'm doing all I can to ensure that he's getting the help he needs. Between the speech classes and K3 preschool curriculum, Gabe has already improved his speech and learned more than I anticipated. We still have a long road ahead of us to truck, but at least we've made progress. He's still not 100% potty trained, but he's trying and has only had one accident at school (knock on wood).

As happy as I'll be to reach the day when Gabe won't require speech therapy and when I won't have to buy pull-ups anymore, it's bittersweet reflecting on how quickly my boys are growing. I still call Gabe my baby and he often corrects me and says, "I'm not a baby. I'm a big boy." I even called him "pumpkin" the other day and he said, "I'm not a pumpkin. I'm a big boy." I told him just a couple weeks ago that he'll always be my baby and he replied with, "and you'll always be my big boy." I cracked up at that remark! He's totally convinced we're all "big boys!"

Speaking of cracking up over remarks, Tim, the boys, and I were heading to our soccer game last Sat morning and we drove past a lady walking. Chase said, "aww, she must not have a car or a home." Even though that remark was far from the truth as it was just a woman enjoying a morning walk in our neighborhood, it depicts how big Chase's heart is and how easily he sympathizes with others. He also exercises faith better than I do at times. He's had a slight cold for the past week and refuses to take cough medicine. For one, he hates the taste of any kind of medicine (even the children's flavored syrups). Two, he claims in faith and says: "I don't need any medicine because Jesus will heal me." Gotta love child-like faith (even if it is an underlying conspiracy to avoid nasty tasting medicine).

Now for soccer...Tim graciously volunteered to coach the 6/7 year-old bracket again through Isle of Wight Parks and Recreation. Our team this season is the Buccaneers (we were the Sharks last season; and, yes, we enjoy nautical themes). Our team colors are red and black. We have several talented kids on our team, but we've only won one game so far this season. We still have tournament game(s) ahead of us, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we can pull off another win. More importantly, we're just enjoying getting to be a part of the community. Chase has enjoyed playing goalie for most games and has saved several goals (and let a few by too, but we try to focus on the positive).

Aside from school and soccer, we have Halloween creeping up on us. Every day at our house is Halloween with as often as the boys try on costumes and get into superhero mode. We plan to go trick or treating with the Batman theme this year; Chase as Batman, Gabe as Robin, Tim as the Joker, and me as Catwoman. Hearing Chase talk in his Batman voice is hilarious.

As for the rest of our family, everyone is staying understandably busy, but doing well. We just celebrated fall birthdays for Kenden, Jaycee, Bella, Emily, and Ruthie. You'd hardly recognize my newest nephew now at 3 months old vs the newborn picture I posted of him in my last blog posting.  Our family continues to grow with Dawn expecting Baby Charlie in just a couple more months. Laurie and I are throwing a very small scale shower for her on November 7th.

As everyone gears up for Halloween and we tend to focus on scary things as a society, I'd like to conclude with one of Chase's (KJV) bible verses on how we should fear the Lord. However, this Bible verse isn't about the scary kind of fear; it's about respecting, trusting, and obeying our Lord so that we live a fulfilled life through Him:

"O fear the Lord, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear Him." -Psalm 34:9 

Happy Halloween to everyone!

HAPPY 36th BIRTHDAY, TIM!

Baby Michael Paul Stephens (3 days old)

Proud Auntie

Tim and Gabriel on Billy Cotten's jet ski (not every 3 year-old gets to ride a jet ski!)

Every summer, we turn down the temperature in the hot tub to make it more like a lukewarm wade pool

Hard to believe this gal is a big sister!

Let me start this blog posting by wishing my husband a HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY 36^th BIRTHDAY today.  Words can’t express how much I love this man…we’ve been through A LOT together and I’m thankful for another year to spend with him.

In addition to birthday wishes for Tim, CONGRATS to Laurie & Ken Stephens on the birth of their precious little boy Michael Paul Stephens on July 21st.  I was hoping for him to arrive on my birthday (the 20^th), but I suppose he wanted his own day.  He was almost a week late and gave Laurie a rough time during the delivery process (as most 9 1/2-pound babies do), but thankfully, all is well with both mom and baby.  

More exciting news in the family: Dawn and William Moore announced they’re expecting a baby boy at the end of this year or in early January of 2015 (perhaps a New Year’s baby???).  So far, Dawn and baby Charlie are doing well and under the care of the EVMS OB professionals. 

As for us, sorry, but we’re done expanding the family tree on our end.  I may announce that we have a family dog many years from now, but even that isn’t a blip on my radar.  Chase and Gabe are more than enough for us.  We’re thankful for them and wouldn’t trade them for the world, but our hands are full right now!

Chase and Gabe are well into the Summer Camp program at FOEC.  I was a bit nervous for Gabe since this is his first preschool experience, but he has adjusted extremely well.  His potty training wars continue and his speech still hasn’t progressed to where it should be at 3 years of age; however, we just praise God for the small victories.  Gabe will start the preschool program with the 2 year-old's in the fall.  Our hope is he can be moved up with the 3 year-olds once he masters potty training and his speech evolves a bit more. 

Chase, on the other hand, continues to talk enough for his brother and himself.  Both boys have already had a slew of fun this summer with bowling, zip-lining at their Aunt Laurie’s house, watching 4^th of July fireworks (in spite of the rain), taking countless trips to the park and pool, and doing many other activities with FOEC.  Chase is jumping off the diving board and swimming in the deep end of the pool totally unassisted; keep in mind, this is the same boy who was hesitant just to go down the slide in the shallow end at the beginning of last summer.  Meanwhile, Tim and I continue to work (and, Tim has to work in the heat which is quite exhausting); even though we may not get to play all day during the work-week like our kids, we sure appreciate our weekends and remain extremely thankful for our jobs!  We still have two OBX beach trips to anticipate this summer to help motivate us through the work-weeks.

Before you know it, I’ll be posting an “end of summer” blog update.  If you’re going through a rough time this summer (perhaps your circumstances go way beyond just enduring the heat), remember that God has a reason for all seasons and that He will carry us through the “deep water” in our lives.  Even I have to admit that I hit a patch of discouragement over the past month after hearing so much negativity in the media (not that I should be surprised by any of this negativity because that’s how the media thrives).  It seems like so many folks in our country choose to be offended (yes, my friends, being offended is a choice!) over everything rather than choose the path of forgiveness.  If everyone could just get over themselves for a few moments and stop fretting over stars-and-bars and rainbows, then perhaps we could focus on tackling the more important issues in our country.  It gives me a heavy heart that our country is steadily becoming more self-centered (is anyone else tired of seeing duck-face selfies on Facebook?..or how about the constant reports on what Caitlyn is wearing?). Obviously, the majority of our country has turned its back on God; however, I just have to remind myself that all of this “deep water” (ironically, it’s shallow thinking that got us here) will soon pass.  God is faithful and will carry us through…  

“When you go through deep waters, I will be with you.” –Isaiah 43:2