Creation Beanbags

Victoria has been learning about Creation and Adam & Eve the past week. I found this great idea on one of the websites I frequent. These are Creation bean bags. I made two sets. It was just easy to cut it out that way. So I am giving one set to my friend Kelly. She doesn't know it yet. So Kelly if you see this before I give them to you...one set is yours. :) I tried to use really soft or textural type fabrics. Daphne helped me dig for what I had and find the rest in the fabric store. She found the fish scales. The opposing fabric is really super soft like bird feathers. The last one with the ric rac is a pillowcase for when God rested. See if you can figure out the rest. I like finding fun ways to learn. In our house, you can never have too many bean bags.

Psalm 20

I had something awesome happen to me yesterday morning that has really made a difference. I was feeling a little overwhelmed with juggling the hats and meeting all the kids needs. And feeling this way first thing in the morning is not good. So I sat down on the floor next to my bed and pulled out my Bible and decided that I would just open it and read the first line that comes into my visual field. My eyes literally fell on Psalm 20. It addressed every single one of our family needs in just one Psalm. I couldn't believe it. And the rest of the day...was awesome. Nothing could bother me. And the best part was I had the mental and physical energy to stay one step ahead of each of the kids. Mostly Victoria. I have never thought it possible to stay ahead of Victoria. God is so good. It was a miracle and exactly what I needed to hear. I have read it several times since then and have read it to Kirk and the kids for words of encouragement. I love how God works! In case you haven't read it lately...here it is.

Psalm 20

May the Lord answer you when you are in distress; may the name of the God of Jacob protect you. May he send you help from the sanctuary and grant you support from Zion. May he remember all your sacrifices and accept your burnt offerings. May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. We will shout for joy when you are victorious and will lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests. Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed; he answers him from his holy heaven with the saving power of his right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we rise up and stand firm. O Lord, save the king! Answer us when we call!

I love the part...some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we rise up and stand firm. It reminds me that I can stand up to the enemy on a daily basis through the Name of God. And the way our world is today, I definately want God ahead of me showing me the way. It reminded me that I can't fight the battle alone. I can only succeed with the help of God before me. It also reminded me that God knows what hardships we have everyday. He knows what we need and what we don't need. This passage brings security to my heart that we aren't on our own surviving. We are living with a loving Heavenly Father in our hearts. How awesome is that!

Mud Boys

Kathy, do you remember this? (Aunt Carol, you would be proud of me, I learned how to use our scanner) This is Wind, Levi, Seth and Blake when we had a family reunion in Zion Nat'l Park. Now these boys are all grown up and on their own. Seth is married to a beautiful girl, Jessica. Blake is in his last year of High School. I remember cooling off in the river. Daphne was 5 and Jared was 2. I turned around and saw these soaking wet boys rolling in the dirt. It was hilarious. My kids would never think to do it. I think that is why it was so entertaining. I remember looking at Kathy and she just looked back like everything was normal. Great memory!

Kaleb

I found this adorable picture of Kaleb when he was 3 months old. He still looks like the same little Kaleb now that he is 9. Just bigger. I kept the outfit he is wearing. I thought he looked like a little man dressed in it.

Happy Birthday Kaleb!

January 18th is a special day in the Headley House. Kaleb was 9 years old on that day. It seems like yesterday that he was just a little squirt who never...ever....took a nap. We have no idea how we survived the first years with Kaleb. We were exhausted and he was a bubbly, energetic, happy little kid. He is a sweet little boy. Any class he has ever been in he is quick to become the Teacher's pet or helper. (Mine as well.) It's a gift. He is always helpful, ready and willing. Kaleb has managed to party all weekend. He spent the afternoon with my parents on Sat., shopping and then dinner. He enjoyed all the attention. Just the 3 of them. Then we continued to celebrate this glorious event with a movie after church. We saw The Tale of Desperaux. Great movie. We all thought that Kaleb's ears reminded us of the little mouse. It was very appropriate. Kaleb's favorite stuffed animal is even Cheezer the mouse. He is definately our little guy. Soon to be a young man. For now, we will enjoy him for who he is. I couldn't imagine a day without our Kaleb!

I have a Library card!

Victoria is a take charge kind of gal. Miss Independence. I can do it myself kind of girl. It reminds me of myself. Not fun sometimes. Anyway, we were at our favorite place today. The library. They are issuing new cards to everyone. So when we were trading in our old cards Victoria piped up and said "well, where is my card?". She has been asking for one for the past year. I'm not kidding. I thought they had to be 5 for some reason. The lady at the desk said it was up to the parent. Victoria immediately looked at me and had a look of "Well, come on." So Victoria got her very own Library card today. She even signed it too. You would have thought you handed her a Golden ticket..a million bucks...eternal life... She is very proud of her new card. And wouldn't let me touch a single book that she was checking out. She had to do it all by herself!

Sleeping Buddies

The kittys get so excited when Victoria is going to take a nap. It means a warm body to cuddle up to. It used to freak me out when I would find Toby in the crib with whoever was the baby at the time. He is huge!

Daphne's Pictures

Last summer, after all of our Sunflowers had done their thing...Daphne sat down with a pile and removed all the seeds to give to the birds. She thought she had cleaned them up. But one little seed was left behind to sprout into a beautiful 6 ft plus sunflower. At first we weren't sure what it was but then when it was about 4 inches high Daphne remembered what she had done in that very spot. It was a beautiful surprise. Especially among all the frozen plants. When we lived in San Luis Obispo among the fields of flowers, Kirk would occasionally bring me home 3 sunflowers. I loved them. They were simply beautiful. Daphne reminds me of a sunflower. She is tall like a sunflower and simply...beautiful. Inside and out. The kids and I planted a ring of sunflowers last summer. It took forever for them to finally bloom. And when they did bloom we were on vacation for 3 weeks and we missed it. Daphne is like a sunflower. Just growing and growing and then finally blooming. The greatest part is I haven't missed her blooming.

Lion King Live!

We gave Daphne two tickets to see The Lion King way back in October for her 16th birthday. It seemed so far into the future when we bought the tickets in Sept. Boy it creeped up on us. So, Daphne and I had a Mother/Daughter night out. The show was incredible. It brought tears to my eyes it was so spectacular. The opening scene alone with all the animals and then the elephant...I wish I could have gotton pictures. Of course Daphne knew every single line. It was exactly like the original. The dancers/actors were perfect for their part and were extremely talented individuals with singing, speaking and dancing. I think it was a perfect present. I wish we all could have gone. It was a great memory for Daphne and I to have together. I will always remember it. I hope she will too. (Though I think she is trying to forget the paper she has to write on it now and the sketches of the costumes.)

Woo Hoo, Snow!

We spent our last day of 2008 treking up to Flagstaff for some fun! It was awesome! We all had a great time. The kids didn't even want to stop to eat their lunch. In fact, they ate on the drive home. A loving push from dear old Dad.

Daphne literally flew down on this saucer. She couldn't stop laughing when it was all over. We were down to one saucer that Kirk and I had from our early days together. We were laughed at in Phoenix when calling around for inner tubes or snow sleds of any sort. So I called Discount Tire in Flagstaff and the guy was happy to sell us tubes. When we got there, they said they sold 150 inner tubes last weekend. Jared is still on this igloo kick. He is so much like his Dad. So now he is experimenting like Survivor Man. He figured that he could put tree branches across the top with a covering and stay quite comfortable. I think I would rather my warm bed.
Kaleb started building this cool fort. Being the little guy of the family, he got some extra help from Mom and Big Sis. It was really cool, no pun intended, because the snow had froze on top making these 5 inch thick or so slabs of snow. Perfect for fort building. It was hard on the bigger people to walk because every step we took we sank up to our knees in some places. It was a crack up watching Victoria run across the top. Kaleb vacated our fort to join ranks with Dad when he realized that it was easier to throw snowballs down hill rather than up hill. Daphne and I were being pelted with flying snowballs. AAhhh. Kaleb in angelic form. I barely got to get my feet up out of the way and down we slid. Victoria kept flying up out of my lap. I had a hard time holding onto the tube and her at the same time. It was great. There is just something so adorable about little children bundled up head to toe and sliding down snowy hills in oversized tubes. A real cutey.

I'm cold...my toes are frozen...Mommy...I want to change my clothes now.... I guess that was a sure sign it was time to pack it up after 2 hours. BooHoo. It was awfully quiet on the way home.