WILLOW IS...

precious

our angel baby

nature baby

an animal lover

brave

sensitive

scrumptious

full of life and thoughtful words

a girl with a plan

adored by all

affectionate

funny

happy

attached to Mommy

adorable

confident

deep

snuggly

Did I say precious??

Willow is...

2!!

(Willow, I will always remember our nap times with endearing fondness.)

Truly, there hasn't been 1 minute of these past 2 years with Willow that haven't been purely and painfully adorably wonderful!

What a God-given treasure our angel baby is to our family!! We all agree that life is incredibly sweeter with Willow in it.

Happy Birthday Precious Willow Love!!

You are cherished and adored...always have been, always will be.

May you grow to know and love Jesus more and more every day and seek Him with your whole heart!!

Willow, we all love you so very much!!

"Thus says the Lord who made you, who formed you from the womb and will help you:
I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground;
I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.
They shall spring up among the grass like willows by flowing streams."

Isaiah 4:2-4

GRACEFUL GARLANDS

{Elka...always making something creative in the garden.}

"[Wisdom] will place on your head a graceful garland;

she will bestow on you a beautiful crown."

Proverbs 4:9

CATH UPDATE - BECK

Today Beck returned for a follow up to his cath last week to ensure there was no bleeding and also to discuss the game plan for weaning him off of his meds. The best news of the day was hearing that his oxygen saturation was 100%!!! WOW!! Thank you, Lord!!

(big sister love)

Although he will remain on two of his medications due to his hypertension, he is going to wean off of a big one by the end of this month. This is really exciting! We will follow his progress and check on him with a halter once he is totally weaned. If all goes well, Beck is one step closer toward being medication-free and ultimately toward complete healing for our little guy.

Today was a good day.

"Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!"

Psalm 119:29

(FINAL?) CARDIAC CATH - BECK

Periodically, Bea and Beck undergo investigative surgeries called cardiac catheterizations to assess the condition of their hearts. These are minor, yet invasive. They are several hours long but usually just a day at the hospital without an overnight stay and typically this is done prior to surgery, but also as a way to check progress when needed.

Today, Beck is having his (final?) cardiac cath to check in on the status of his repairs since his open heart surgery last April. If all looks well, then the hope is for him to start weaning off of his daily medications...one more step toward complete healing for our Beck.

. . . . . .

At 4:00am Beck set off for the hospital with Daddy and big brother, Brodie, by his side, ready for the day!

It's always special when a sibling gets to experience these things with our little ones,

a way for their hearts to grow in compassion and care. Brodie loves Beck.

At 11:30am we heard the good news that all went well with the cath and then it was time to wait...

When the doctor came in to explain the findings, it turns out Beck is still dealing with some hypertension and will not be able to wean off of all of his medications. He will be able to wean off of some though, so that is encouraging! One step at a time...

By 4:30pm Beck was stable enough to go home. We will return in a week to discuss things further and hone in on the game plan.

Till then, we're thankful for a successful day and entrusting our little Beck to the Lord and His wise plans for his life.

"Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid;

for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation."

Isaiah 12:2

SACRED

It's been a sacred week with the anticipation of this Good Friday.

With each passing year, we find the celebrations of this season to be more and more...holy.

  "And when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said,
'This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.'"
1 Corinthians 11:24

We take the Lord's Supper and follow the steps each day that Jesus walked as we see it written in the Bible. We talk of Him and what He did for us, out of His great love for us. We saturate ourselves in the Word and somehow traditions we gave no second thought to in the past dissolve to reveal the magnificence of what we are commemorating this Resurrection Sunday and we're convicted.

"But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
Romans 5:8

"Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness; tremble before him, all the earth!"
Psalm 96:9

Lord, as we consider this Good Friday what you came to do here on earth and how you poured yourself out for us to the point of death on a cross and so much more, may we find ourselves awestruck by who you are. Thank you for dying for our sin! Thank you for your sacrifice. Thank you for loving us as we are, sinners. Thank you for forgiving us and offering us, by grace, eternal life and salvation through Jesus. May it resonate in our hearts' and lives' displays that this season is what it is...holy, blessed, reverent, sacred.

 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,  and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time,
so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus."
Romans 3:23-26

TENNESSEE

In life, there are seasons when separations, though difficult, are well worth the pangs of missing one another. Adoptions, mission trips, and heart surgeries have historically been separations of the worthy kind for us, the ones where we gladly endure the distance knowing the Lord is using the time for His type of gain. And so it's been with their trip to Tennessee to visit cherished friends and make memories.

. . . . . .

This past week Brodie took the older girls, Aida, Elka, and Olia (who had never been on an airplane before!) on a very special journey, a "mission trip" of a different sort, watering seeds in our daughters' hearts that I can see will yield a harvest for many years to come!

(Daddy LOVES his girls!)

. . . . . .

On Monday, they set off for a red eye flight, giddy with excitement for the adventure they were about to embark upon!

Our teary goodbyes lasted only a little while as the girls refocused on the joy set before them,

while those of us back home huddled together for a snuggly evening (and I'll admit, some cookies!).

(first tram ride)

(my little women)

(waiting for the plane...safe with Daddy)

(reading a note from Mommy)

(Olia was especially looking forward to the escalators. :))

With all the energy in the air, the girls didn't sleep on their first and longer flight, though they did have a nap during their 3 hour layover in Atlanta. What a pleasure it is to watch my girls grow into such little ladies and to get to see them have this new experience...together!

. . . . . .

On Tuesday morning, I woke up to the sweetest note by my coffee from my (not so little anymore) Brodie. He knows how to take care of his mama. I love to see the kids shine as they take on new roles during times of change like this. Brodie has grown so much and he really knows how to act like a gentleman and the man of the house when Dad is gone. It's been a blessing to bond with him this week.

(my buddy)

(my little girls doing big sister work in the kitchen)

At 5:30am our time Tuesday morning, they finally arrived in Tennessee! First stop Cracker Barrel!

They spent the following days enjoying one another's company, catching up, planting potatoes, frolicking through the fields, talking, giggling, and talking some more. It's so special to share time with these amazing friends of ours, real treasures from the Lord who always spur us on to love Him more and focus even more intently upon His Word!

(view from upstairs in the barn)

(Daddies off in the distance on a Bulldog ride)

(my flower girl in her element)

(antique shopping in town)

(cozy inside on a rainy afternoon)

(Wishing I was there with these wonderful ladies!)

. . . . . .

Though the plan was to travel to Virginia on Thursday, the weather did not permit, but on Friday after much prayer for the storm to pass, they finally made the drive to meet up with new friends. What a blessing to spend the day with such kind, God-fearing families!

(Aida loving the Newfoundlands...her favorite!)

(loving all the animals)

Such a sweet day!

"Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another."

Proverbs 27:17

. . . . . .

This morning as Brodie and the girls prepared for the airport, the joy of coming home for our reunion comforted their hearts as they said goodbye to dear friends. It's clear to me that each one of them holds a piece of Tennessee in their hearts and that they've grown in new ways for having had this experience. Oh, Tennessee, we can see why people love you. I have a feeling they/we will be back...

"Praise the Lord! Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!"

Psalm 106:1

BLUE EGGS...FINALLY!

So, yesterday it finally happened...and it's a really funny chain of events leading up to this long-awaited blue egg!

Over the course of our chick acquisition this spring, we have tried unsuccessfully on several occasions to get ourselves some hens that would eventually lay blue eggs. After many long drives and near misses, we finally made it to the feed store before the last few were gone this past week and we bought some little Ameraucanas which made ALL the people quite happy!!

Ya, this was a sweet moment!

Then, a few days later, a neighbor told us of a friend with 3 adult hens who needed a new home (and it seems that "free to a good home" is code for "yes" around here)...and so we welcomed them in. Our neighbor was so amazing about the whole thing and even drove down the hill to get them and deliver them to our front door! Wow, it's so cool to be part of a good old fashioned community like this where neighbors genuinely look out for one another. It's really special! And thus, we ended up with 3 new mama hens, one of which "coincidentally" is a beautiful silver Ameraucana. Anywaaaay, all that said, it was a priceless moment when Brodie and Willow came up to the house all aglow with their treasured find yesterday...our first blue egg!!

(And wouldn't you know it, they happened to both be wearing blue!!)

In a few months we'll have dozens of beautiful blue eggs in our basket...and many little hands to bring them from farm to table.

"You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate,
that he may bring forth food from the earth."
Psalm 104:14  

HUGS FOR MR. GATES

When our special neighbor and dear friend, Mr. Gates, comes by the house, the children come running for their hugs.

We've even had a few tears on occasion from a child who missed his quick visit somehow.

Yesterday as Mr. Gates drove away, a few of his biggest fans came running from afar, so he kindly stopped for a few last hugs.

And it means all the more since my little ones never knew my own kind father, a man with a heart and spirit like that of Mr. Gates.
How their friendship with such a gentle, wise, and godly man blesses my mother's heart! What a privilege for them to know him.
We're so thankful for our wonderful neighbors here and the many hugs for Mr. (and Mrs.) Gates!

"Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise."
Proverbs 13:20