Today's Miracle

Mike and Peter leave early on the mornings that Mike is helping in Peter's class.  Then Lily and I come along at normal time.  This morning when we went to leave, I couldn't find my keys.  No surprise there!  Normally, I'd completely get completely flustered by this.  I'm all ready and great, I can't find my keys.  I looked around at all the normal places but no keys.  Mike wasn't answering his phone (of course).  And I had nursery second service so there was no chance that  I'd get a second chance to go to worship.  And as we were telling our kids this morning, everyone suffers if we don't make it to church to worship.    Instead, I called my friend Emily.  They normally go to second service so I thought it was a long shot that they'd be able to get us.   And they are usually more on time than us.  ;)  BUT when I called Emily, she was about to leave, b/c she also had nursery second service.  AND she had an extra car seat.  So we were able to enjoy riding to church with them.  Amazing.  I was just so thankful for God's provision of riding with them.  And for friendships where it just doesn't matter.  And for the chance to see God in the even bigger miracle of me not losing it.  Woah, that's a big deal.

 All three girls were wearing cute smocked dresses so I had to get a pic!

We asked Mike's parents if they'd watch our kids after church so we could go to a mission update.  After we settled into our seats, I was telling Mike about the whole debacle.  He asked me if I looked a few places.  I had.  Then he reached in his pocket, pulled out his keys, then pulled out mine.  Haha!  

Field Trip!

We headed out this morning for the spring field trip with Peter's preschool class.

I don't really look forward to these (bah humbug).  When Peter woke up at 3:55am today, I was tempted to just not go.  But we went.  And it turned out to be really fun!  My van was full... that was fun!  There was another mom (who I didn't know before) and two little girls from Peter's class.  So we were our own little group.  It was great to have an extra set of mom eyes and have their company!

Oh, while feeding the goats (both kids' fave part), Peter gave the goat his plastic ziploc bag to eat...  I spotted it 1/2 way eaten by the goat and quickly pulled it out, mangled and all.  I had visions of Dr. Dennis having to donate his services to the park to do surgery on the goat to fix a small bowel obstruction.  "I'm so sorry.  But my dad can fix it...."  Come to think of it... that's sorta a good spiritual picture of our Heavenly Father.

Wellspring Processing...

This week we did Genesis 32:  The story of Jacob wrestling with God.  It was a hard one for me to understand before working through the quotes below and talking thru it with my Wellspring group.  

Why did 'the man' (who is GOD) not prevail, or choose not to prevail, over Jacob?  This verse helped... 

The weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength. 1 Cor 1: 25b

And in this quote: "At some point the awful knowledge has gripped him that the one on whose breast he leans sweating and gasping is the God of his fathers, who could slay him with a glance.  And for once, since he has no choice, no other hope, Jacob's tenacity is turned in the right direction."  -John White  

Why is Jacob commended in this quote for wrestling with GOD?  He continues to demand instead of humbling himself. (Like I always humble myself.  Um, no.)

But then this quote helped me...

"The conflict brought to a head the groping of a lifetime.  And Jacob's desperate embrace vividly expresses his ambivalent attitude before God- love and enmity, defiance and dependence.  It was against HIM, not Esau or Laban, that he had been pitting his strength, as he now discovered.   -Derek Kidner

God chooses to come to Jacob in a way he can understand.  Jacob came into the world wrestling with Esau.  (After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob.  Gen 25:26)  God intimately knows Jacob and how to wrestle just right with him, without destroying, overcoming him.  Much like a father would wrestle with his boy.   And destroying Jacob isn't what God wants.  He is for Jacob.  And we were also reminded of how this is similar to Jesus... Jesus wins us by losing.  

And while Jacob is a wrestler, He is also full aware of his dependence on God (v.10), which is the part that I may not have gotten before.  He is clinging to God & His blessing for life.

"But the question now occurs, Who is able to stand against an Antagonist, at whose breath alone all flesh perishes and vanishes away, at whose look the mountains melt, at whose word or beck the whole world is shaken to pieces, and therefore to attempt the least contest with Him would be insane temerity (excessive confidence or boldness)?  But it is easy to untie the knot.  For we do not fight against him except by his own power, and with his own weapons; for he, having challenged us to this contest, at the same time furnishes us with the means of resistance, so that he both fights against us and for us.  On short, such is his apportioning of this conflict, that, while he assails us with one hand, he defends with the other; yea, inasmuch as he supplies us with more strength to resist than he employs in opposing us, we may truly and properly say, that he fights against us with his left hand, and for us with his right hand.  

-John Calvin

privacy

...is pronounced "prive of seat" in our house.  
As in, when I'm in the bathroom, I need some prive of seat.  
Thanks.

Best Part of the Weekend

 We just had a great time at the river this weekend.  It was a little early bite of the fun of summer.  It was hot and sunny and the perfect sorta day.  Mom and I did projects.  We spray painted Grandma's old green metal table to breathe some more time into it.  We raked and raked some more.  The guys (Mike and Daddy) spent the whole day fixing the steering cable on the boat.  The kids played and played.  We knew we had to leave last night for church today but it just felt like a nice long day with some relaxing on the dock mixed in too.  

At the end of the day, the kids were playing on the "beach" in the sand, making sand piles and enjoying each other.  I ran in to get the camera.  When I came back out, this is what I found! 

 Their clothes were getting wet and sandy so what better to do than take them off.  It was such a sweet picture to me to think of their innocence, the smaller effects of sin on their lives.  Oh, I believe they are sinful but after studying Genesis this year in Wellspring, it really made me think of the Garden before sin entered.  And how beautiful that is.  But since we do live on this side of the curse, I also think of these verses:

Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith.  Hebrews 12:1b-2a

Wouldn't it be great if that was as easy as taking clothes off?

 They played and played for such a long time and had the time of their lives.  

It was just so so wonderful to watch them and get a little life from their enjoyment of it all.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  1 Peter 1:3

Kisses from Paw

First "Hunting" Trip

Paw wanted to take Peter out to listen for owls and turkeys.  No guns involved.  Sorta like in this book.  So he bought Peter his first camo shirt.  Being the early bird that he is, Peter was thrilled, as were the rest of us!  ;)  Entertainment for the boy before the sun rises = golden!

 Wow, the beautiful scene of the boat house... (I imagine) that helps make getting up early easier.

 No shoes = so Peter

 Calling all owls!  

Mike says the reason for the owl call is to get turkey to call back b/c they don't like owls.  ???

They didn't see any turkeys while they were out but did see one on their way home.  Success!

Copper Lovin'

We headed to the river with Maw on Friday. Copper came along, too, with Paw!  The kids were thrilled.  Lily talks about wanting to see Copper as much as she does Maw and Paw.  We keep thinking Copper isn't long for this world but he keeps on keepin' on!  The kids are super cute with him.  He's a good sport about their pulls and tugs and affection.

While Lily was keeping watch on Copper, we found Peter reading (of course).  He was also really into figuring out the part of the book that moves....

Loved

We got to have Maw with us for 2 days last week!  

She enjoyed some QT with one of her favorite squeezes.

 Goo even came over one afternoon to take Peter on a date.  He got to be surrounded by two of his favorite people!  Heaven for all.

Awesome God

So cute!

This video may be sorta gross to anyone who isn't her mama or daddy, with all the drool and all.  Mike videoed her and I think she'd just finished her oatmeal without being cleaned up (PJ's, nappy hair, and all).  I love her singing this song.  She learned it in Wellsquirts and has been requesting it at bedtime a lot lately.  

Again, so thankful that my kids get to so frequently be in an environment that teaches them truths about God so young.  :)  May it grow their hearts and minds (and mine!) to be in tune with God's economy more than the world's.  

Oh, and can you tell she is the sibling of a speech kid with her over enunciation of the final consonant sound?  And she's just a little silly.

Ni-Night

We finally took the plunge and got a DSLR camera!!  Yay, Yay, and Yay!  Its my 35th birthday present that we got late so we could find the best deal, in true Perz style... I think Mike is more into it than I am, which I love.  So we had to try it out tonight!  Here are our first pictures... how great are they?!.... the handsome little man and pretty girl help.

 Make a silly face, Pete!

Oh, Hi, Lily!

Trying out the focusing abilities :)!

 I've been wanting to document some of my favorite parts of our bedtime routine.  

After the hygienic part ;), we gather on Pete's bed and Mike takes over.  We do prayers... Mike prays then we do 'God Bless....' and say the people we are thankful for.  

 Then Mike tells stories.  These remind me a lot of my Dad or my cousin, Matt (Hi, Bettie!)...

Oh, the stories.  He just makes them up (I am so thankful for this talent of his, I have nothing left at this point).  Most common characters are:  Jip (Pete's dog), George (Curious George), Petunia (Lily's pink dog),  Clove (our cat), plus any of the 4 of us.  Stories often involve: trash trucks (of course), trips to a creek, playing ball, a big mean dog (but Jip protects Petunia), 'kitty stuck in a tree', airplane trips to CO.  He's adapted these, added in stories that address things we are needing to work on... ie, we don't lay on the floor when its time to leave a place we like.   The current favorite is the story of the 4 of us going to drive race cars.  We each pick the color of our car.  Lily always wants purple and Mike always spins out (and they like the noise that goes along with that) and P&L tie for first place.  ;)  Then he always ends with 'The Good Shepherd'.  They love adding in all the places the shepherd has look for the lost sheep ('by the tractor') and talking about what the lost sheep's name is ('Randolph', 'Gandolph').  Then someone picks Lily up and 'carries her back to her flock'.

 Sweet times!