So I'm just going to throw the pictures of Passover on here. It was so sad when Isaac got sick Friday the eve of our event. However life has a way of throwing curve balls so I decided to make the best of it. I was so grateful that Jeremy was able to watch him so I could still fulfill all of my responsibilities. I think the kids had the most fun playing musical chairs while we sang "go Down Moses". It was such a delight to join with friends again to celebrate Passover. To look across the room at the kids I grew up sitting with their significant others and children warmed my heart. There aren't many families that have such history and I love that we care about each other just as much today as we did when we were the age our children are now. This is why tradition is such a beautiful thing. It is so unifying to steep yourself in remembrances that are joyful and life affirming. Life is rarely perfect. I missed that my brother also was under the weather and unable to make it. Still I felt overall that we were very blessed and I'm so thankful to the Tyler's for continuing their family traditions and allowing us to be part of it this year. While I didn't get pictures of everybody - Happy Passover 2018
Blake's burning bush plate lol
Isaac got second place for his "plague of flies" plate
March was a full month for sure just like all the others. They just keep rolling along! We had a CC window into Challenge event that Trinity got to be on the panel for. I also signed Blake up for a thing called biz-town which will happen in I spent the month preparing the kids for Passover. To make a long story longer when I was growing up in our local church the Tyler family often invited us to celebrate a few of the integral Jewish Feasts. Passover and Purim were my favorites. Being Christians, our scripts are different in some places from the traditional seder dinner you would experience in a Jewish community, but still a beautiful reflection of God's interaction with Isreal which, while not my earthly heritage, is certainly a spiritual one. I used to love it! There were games for the 10 plagues, traditional dances, tons of upbeat music, amazing food, need I say more? We got to draw traditional symbols on our paper plates ourselves. It was very hands-on and interactive. I've always wanted my kids to have that same experience. I tried to get it up and running last year but was too late to pull it off so I had all of my and the Tyler's family pencil it in for this spring. We had to hold it on the final day of the week of Pesach because Good Friday and Easter Sunday were the first weekend and I had commitments at church to play. The Tylers were thrilled to be asked to lead it again. Looking at the script we realized that it had been 30 YEARS since our first Passover together. Not only that but when I went to order my LENT study from She Reads Truth (my personal preference for observing the lent season) lo and behold it tied the story of Christ to the Exodus. I couldn't believe it. They also had this set of cards for the children that walked them through the exodus story from the baby in the basket to the establishment of the tabernacle and the glory of God indwelling it. Talk about a Spirit thing. And so we spent all of March using the cards and practicing the music so the kids would know it. I teasingly called it "Hebrew school". It was really a blast. I was so excited to head to moms where we would celebrate but first I had our own Holy Week to get through. On Thursday afternoon the day before Good Friday Trinity got sick pretty suddenly. I sent the boys out to play. I was so bummed because it was the night of our valentine's present, Jeremy had gotten Trinity and I tickets to Shen Yun. I was sad she was sick but looking forward to taking Blake instead. However we hear a knock at the door and there is a stranger telling me my son is screaming bloody murder in the street. I go out to check on him and he is clearly hurt. We help him inside and I call the doctor to get his wrist looked at. She is booked all day but will double book her last appointment at five to take a look at it. This is three thirty. I start to panic and call a few girlfriends to see if they can come even though I'm already feeling stressed out with Blake's wrist hurt and Trinity sick. I really should have known better than to even try. Twenty minutes before we are to take Blake to the doctor he goes into the bathroom and I hear him get sick. It's the nails in the coffin of my non-refundable, non transferable present. SAD. I can't take an actively vomiting child to the regular docs and so begins a long night of sickness for both Blake and Trin. Friday morning we get into the doc at 10:00. Blake is feverish and the doctor REALLY doesn't like how he looks but we still have to get the wrist looked at. She could take an x-ray there but might miss a hairline so she sends us to Swedish. I mistakenly go to Children's in Bellevue because I thought she said we had to go the ER at Swedish which can get pricey. I call to get on order for an x-ray sent and They call to ask why I'm not having it done at Swedish so it goes into their system faster. I tell them about the ER and they apologize for the misunderstanding. Yes to the hospital but to radiology, not the ER. So back we go Bellevue to Issaquah. Blake vomits in between. He still isn't keeping any medicine down. We sit in the office and get the x-rays done. It's like almost two in the afternoon now and I'm pretty desperate to get him home to rest. They confirm its a fracture. I take him home and head to his doctor to wait for a splint. I have to sit there for forty five minutes waiting for her worrying about Blake at home. Finally she gets me the splint and a prescription for an anti-nausea and a painkiller. I go to the pharmacy but they don't have it there so I have to go to North Bend. Sit there twenty five minutes for them to be filled. At five o clock I finally get the meds in him. I watch him and make sure he is feeling better than I am at church at 6:45 to play for the Good Friday service. He got his cast the Tuesday after and it still in it but only has to wear it three weeks. Pretty tough guy huh? I also played Easter Sunday. Then another busy week and we were off to the long awaited Passover. But more about that in the month of April. . .
new friends new games great day
I made it to the Walk Off the Earth Concert! Woot! Thanks Skeeter and Rachel it was sooooo great!
Isaac belt tested the week before the olders.
the girls choir had a painting party on a thursday that our director was not able to come. I think they had a great time!
one of the things I've been doing for I-90 is posting on the church's instagram account for the worship team. Mostly I post quotes that educate or inspire about worship and link it to the sermon series in some way. I use the #i90churchworships however, there is much change going on and new levels of professionalism and insight being brought into the social media at I-90 so I'm not sure how much of this will remain mine to do but I have enjoyed getting to share my passion for worship in this way.
say I have an idea. . . .
"tree?"
something with sunshine. . .
I believe this was "snowline"
geo terms with pipe cleaners
So funny! this couch belonged to my parents they got at Walkers Furniture which I thought was only in Spokane but lo and behold here is the exact version sitting in the Calvary chapel youth building. I made them an offer but it belonged to the new tenants. Darn it. My brother still has the original my parents bought and they love that thing. I KNOW they would have taken this one as a replacement and had it for another 20 years! =)
bare wall for two years. not so bad.
stackstone in progress. . .on the day the plague entered the house. . .
found a picture of the tile we ordered for the bathroom floors!
Darker where still wet from the saw. finished wall! somewhere I have a picture with more in the bookcases and a big plant on top of one but you get the idea.
February was full of field-trips. We got free access to the space needle with our school group while its under renovation. I've actually not been up in it yet. I'm not even sure if the restaurant was open we only got to be on the observation deck but it was still fun to finally be up there. The next week we went and saw The Little Prince at the Seattle Children's Theater. The sets were just beautiful, and the actors looked like they were having a lot of fun. In fact there was a woman in it that had been in the Christmas play we saw when our friend's kiddo was in one. I love exposing the kids to live theater. I wouldn't say it's Isaac's favorite. It's hard for him to sit that long and there is usually some part where he is a little scared and climbs into my lap. But I don't mind that. Valentines is one of my favorites. We managed our usual dinner at old spaghetti factory but if I remember right (it's April now, whoops) it was the day before or weekend before. Trinity had a choir event and Jeremy's work had an impromptu company dinner so no one was around for the evening anyway, lol. I was SO PROUD of Trinity for performing on Valentines. She loves the singing Valentines event with her choir. We were able to get two locations in the ridge this year and it was just right for her rebuilding confidence. Social anxiety is no joke people. She did it with only one panic attack and that was on the way. I saw her "tells" a few times, a swiped eyebrow, a clutching of the skirt but she did it. Her girlscout troop came to the second location to support and she really like that and she was so surprised and happy.
Also in February was our FIRST ANNUAL CHALLENGE A SCIENCE FAIR. I couldn't have been happier with the their efforts. I am almost very thankful to the judges who were so supportive and detailed in their questions and scoring. It really made the experience a success. Some communities dread science fair but I *hope that won't be the case now for CC North Bend at least. The rest of the pictures are just sort of life in general. Lunch out on a hard day, goofing in class, new studies to fill my soul. Belt Testing, snapchat filtering, sister-visiting. I LOVE that I dragged her onstage yet again to help with worship. I also love Daniel for putting the chord from my tv in the wall. YAy! it only took three years. The slab of quartz and this amazing floor tile not pictured are the inspiration for the upstairs bath remodels. Our yard pictured in sun, rain, snow, and everything in between all in the same month. Life is blessed but never easy. Always more I want to do as a mother and friend. Always more I want to do for Jesus and his church. Always, always.
I have to brag about this little video. Isaac struggles to focus in Karate (which is exactly why it is so good for him) but in this belt test for some reason (I dunno why) he was super into making a loud exhale which the sensei calls "focused breathing". If you listen close you will hear her ask who is doing it and then the sempei says "Isaac!" so then she tells them all to breathe just like him. So. So. glad I caught it on camera!
