Grandma Becki and Grandpa Bob's Visit

Grandma Becki and Grandpa Bob came to visit us and to celebrate Grandparent's Day at school with the girls. We were so excited to have them visit! As usual our time was action packed. They arrived on Wednesday afternoon, but the real fun began on Thursday when they went on Kaylee's field trip to the Lenawee County Historical Museum with her and her class. They had a great time there learning about the history of Adrian. Friday morning was the actual Grandparent's Day celebration where they enjoyed a nice breakfast followed by a program put on by the elementary kids. Kianna's class sang a couple of songs and quoted Psalm 23, while Kaylee's class put on their own performance. The girls had an early dismissal, so Grandma Becki and Grandpa Bob took them out to lunch at Applebee's for a special treat. Afterwards the girls spent the afternoon shopping with Grandma Becki and of course each got to pick out a special something (Trace got something too of course). Our evening was spent enjoying the school's drama "Seussical The Musical". The drama team are very talented, especially for being at such a small school. Trace had a chance to meet The Grinch up close and personal, but explainably was a bit freaked out, so passed. On Saturday, Grandma Becki and Grandpa Bob were able to watch the girls' soccer games. Unfortunately the weather was cold and rainy, but the girls had fun nonetheless. That afternoon all of us girls went to see the movie "Mirror Mirror", which was fun. That evening, Bob and Becki treated us to dinner at PF Changs. We only eat there about once a year, if that, so we thoroughly enjoyed the yummy food (all 1800 calories worth and yes, that was just my meal). Trevor and his dad followed dinner up with their own movie. We had such a nice visit and look forward to seeing them again soon. Can you believe I forgot to take any pictures? Ugh!

Like Father Like Son

Trevor has been filling in as the assistant coach for the varsity baseball team this season. He is really enjoying getting to know the older kids and investing his time with them. I had to share this adorable photo that we received recently of Trace with his Daddy in the dugout.

Easter 2012

Our Easter fun began on Friday with our prayer walk at church followed by the Good Friday service. The prayer walk is always a nice time to reflect on the sacrifice Jesus made to save us from our sins so that we can spend eternity with him in heaven. Thank you Jesus!

On Saturday, we went back to church for an Easter egg hunt. The kids had fun and got tons of candy! The rest of the day was spent preparing food and the house for Easter Sunday. It was quite exhausting...

On Sunday, the kids had a great time getting their Easter baskets, which they had been eagerly anticipating. Trace's basket included a Spiderman umbrella, soccer cones, new shirt, and candy. Kianna's basket included a "What's In The Bible" DVD the girls had been telling me about from chapel services at school, a dress, soccer cones, and candy. Kaylee's basket included some Adventure's In Odyssey CDs, socks, a dress, shin guards, and some candy. The kids had more fun in church celebrating Christ's resurrection, while Trevor and I helped out in Trace's preschool class. We made resurrection rolls with 23 preschoolers, which went pretty well minus one or two boys. The rolls are a pretty neat object lesson for the kids. The crescent roll represents the tomb, the marshmallow represents Jesus' body, the butter represents the oil that was used to annoint Jesus' body prior to his burial, and the cinnamon and sugar represent the spices used to prepare his body for burial. Once the marshmallow is dipped in the butter and spices then it is sealed in the tomb and baked. The kids are then able to pull open the tomb only to discover that their marshmallow (Jesus) is gone, just like on Easter Sunday so many years ago. It was fun to see the awe and excitement on their little faces when they discovered that Jesus wasn't there. They also enjoyed eating their tasty snack. 

We invited our good friends, The Miller's, over for an Easter egg hunt and dinner. Trevor had 125 eggs loaded with loot and hidden all over our backyard. The kids had a great time hunting for their eggs and enjoying their candy. Followed by a yummy dinner served on my Grandma Gaskill's China. It was fun eating on her special plates and bowls, which I so fondly remember using at her house so many years ago. After dinner, the adults managed to fit in a game of Cities and Knights while the kids played. It was a wonderful day!

Spring Break Blues

The girls are on Spring Break this week and instead of having tons of fun, we got stuck hosting our old friend "strep throat". The kids all got diagnosed on Thursday and Friday of last week, which brought about tears as the girls had to miss their pre-Spring Break parties at school. Kianna missed her Easter Egg hunt and Kaylee missed out on a movie and a swim party. Both were rewards she had earned for reaching her reading goals for the month of March. What a bummer they were to miss!!!

On Saturday evening, I made a last minute decision to take the kids back to Iowa for a few days, that is until I woke up on Sunday morning feeling the early symptoms I had recognized a few days earlier in the kids. Bummer dude! I was under the weather until Wednesday, when we did our first "fun" Spring Break activity of going to the zoo with friends. We had beautiful weather and enjoyed our day, although it started out a little rocky. Kianna was excitedly running down the ramp when we first arrived and took quite the fall. It was a horrible fall in which she proceeded to do a somersault in slow motion down the cement ramp while I watched her neck extend backwards. It was a physical therapist's nightmare of a fall. I prayed while I watched it happen that she wouldn't break her neck. Thankfully all she came away with was a scraped belly and hand. Once the Band-Aid was in place, all was well again although I still thank God she didn't hurt herself worse! The rest of our week was pretty uneventful that is until our Easter festivities began, but I'll save that for another post...

Happy Anniversary to Us

Trevor and I just celebrated our 9th Anniversary with a trip to the Detroit area for dinner and a movie. We ate at a Brazilian Barbeque restaurant named Gaucho's. Their food is amazing. They came to our table with ~16 different cuts of meats to sample. Plus, yummy sides and a salad bar. It was a fun experience followed by "The Hunger Games" movie. I had finished reading the books recently, so was pretty excited to watch the movie. It was a fun night out on the town with my honey. Happy Anniversary Trevor, I love you with all my heart!

Kianna's New Trick

As soon as the weather started getting warmer Kianna was determined to learn how to ride her bike without training wheels. Her motivation was simply that she wanted to go as fast as Kaylee, so they could race. After just a couple of times of working with Daddy, we are proud to report that she achieved her goal. In order to celebrate this BIG achievement we took a trip to The Spotted Cow for ice cream. Great job Kianna, we are proud of you!!!!

What Did I Learn in Africa?

Our Team

Great question without an easy answer. Perspective, I guess. I have been on a great journey the last few years. We have downsized our lives by over half, but we are still extremely rich and comfortable. My kids go to a great school....they have lots of shoes and can refuse the food they don't like because there is always more. Clean and functional bathrooms are plentiful. I can safely drink the water. A grocery store is always five minutes. I can go on and on.

So why can't we be content? Perhaps it is just the American way. We always want more. At times I feel we are a thankless society...whereas we should be thankful if we are truly living by the fruit of the spirit. I think God is using experiences like these to get my attention. Confession time: I have a lot to be thankful for and I have too many wants. That is pretty easy to see. The Bible says it is easier for a camel to walk through the eye of a needle than to go to heaven. That is a tough piece of scripture to get your head wrapped around. Frankly, as Americans, we usually skip over verses like that. It is easier to avoid it. I am sure I will continue to process through this trip for the days, months, and potentially years ahead. I know that I have been given much and much is expected of me by my Lord and Savior. I know I can do more to help the poor of the world through my finances, my time, my prayers, and my words. I pray that I can be less selfish.

It also struck me that after 10 days in Africa I cannot recall a time when I heard an African complain. Perhaps it was the language barrier or maybe they wouldn't want to show that emotion to a mzungu (white man), but it didn't feel that way. Amidst their struggles they certainly had joy. They seemed thankful for what they had and were resourceful to fill the gaps for things they lacked. There is a lot to learn here for us as Americans. We love to critique and complain. It seems like a hobby for some. I pray that I can use this experience to change my own ways and maybe others.

Thank you for reading and for your prayers and support. I know God will use this experience in amazing ways. I've tried my best to capture the experience, but it is a lot to unpack and articulate.

In Christ,

Trevor