The Three Ring Bearers

My cousin asked if the boys would be ring bearers for his wedding this summer. I was honored and pleased to accept this responsibility, however soon I began to realize that I have three very shy boys and I have to admit I began to get nervous that they would be clinging to my leg and they would be with out a ring bearer at all for their wedding.
In God's sovereignty we had four weddings to attend this summer before the big event so we talked about it often, showed them who the ring bearers were in the other weddings, acted out what their job was, and then had them practice walking slowly while smiling. (without mommy or daddy next to them)

The day finally arrived. The bride was dressed elegantly, the groom was handsome and all smiles while he awaited his big day and the boys were dressed and ready for the "moment".

They waited patiently for their turn to walk, knowing just what to expect, until they saw all the people looking right at them, but even then they kept on walking just away from the crowd. I gently reminded them of the way they should go and they were brave little boys as they walked down the isle with confidence just like they had practiced. They were welcomed with a hug and kiss from their cousin Edye and they were very proud of their efforts.

I must say that I was relieved and pleased that it all went well. They boys enjoyed their treat while we enjoyed listening to the vows of the bride and groom.

After the wedding as we were driving home the boys had many questions. They wanted to know all about the bridesmaids, groomsmen, the pastor, the flowers, the bride, and the groom. They knew that getting married is a special moment in a person's life and they too wanted to be the groom someday. Their dad reminded them that first God will send them a woman that they will love and cherish deeply if it is in His will. Isaiah then asked to pray that God would bring him his wife. With a smile and a tear rolling down my cheek I realized the faith that my son had that God is the one who gives good gifts. Their dad prayed for each one of them and then Josiah wanted to pray too. How sweet it was to hear the voice of a three year old asking God to bring them their wife.

Strawberry Picking....YUM

We took the boys to a U-pick strawberry patch and they LOVED it! It was so fun to watch their excitement when they would find the "perfect" strawberry.

After we had picked for a while we had quite the load of strawberries. Micah wanted to eat all of them! The flavor was so much better than store bought strawberries.

I believe that this is a family tradition that we will have to continue. We got the best deal for the best price...unless we grew our own of course.

Wisdom

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial, and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

James 3:17-18

What Number Are You?

Now that we are finally having some sunny weather here, I got out the "summer box" of clothes. The boys were very pleased to find their "sports clothes" that their Aunt Rie from Japan sent them. They want to wear them all day long.....every day! They wore them yesterday and then wanted me to wash them last night so that they could wear them to soccer club today.

They like to ask people what their number is, since they obviously have numbers of their own now. :) What number are you?

Building Memories

A kind neighbor, Sandra, has supplied our family with many wooden blocks. After a few weeks of them sitting in our playroom practically untouched, Kenta thought the boys needed a little instruction of how to build with them. After the boys had gone to bed, I sat and watched Kenta enjoying himself sorting and carefully selecting blocks to make this wooden city. Earlier in the week he had been telling the boys stories about his childhood. They seemed particularly interested in his memories of building with blocks.
When the boys woke up in the morning they were surprised to find such a fortress waiting for them. They looked at it closely asking many questions about what each building was for. They enjoyed placing their animals in just the right positions.

It did not take long before the fortress was destroyed, but then little fortresses began to emerge. Their creativity has been ignited and they are off to building many memories with these blocks.

Thank you, Sandra, for supplying these blocks and thank you daddy for supplying the creativity.

Butterflies

The boys' Aunt and Uncle gave them a Butterfly Garden for their birthday. We waited until summer to order our larva and begin the process of watching the metamorphosis. It was unbelievable how quickly the caterpillars grew into big large caterpillars. They were "Very Hungry Caterpillars." We were gone a trip while each caterpillar made their chrysalis, but we returned just in time to anticipate the transformation into beautiful butterflies. We got to release four of them into our neighborhood after we watched them for a few days.

Next time I'll have to try and take pictures of the process as it was so interesting to watch. As a child we often tried to capture caterpillars so that we could witness this special event. But I don't recall ever being successful.

Thank you Auntie Joy and Uncle Rick for helping us to witness this amazing transformation with in God's amazing Creation. After watching the worm-like insect change into a intricately spectacular creature. I can't help but reflect upon the resemblance that this process has to the remarkable change that is happening with in my own life. So many times I catch myself being satisfied by the pleasures of the world neglecting the inner joys that are woven into the life of being a Christian. The word "transformed"comes from the Greek word metamorphoo (met-am-or-fo'-o), which means "to change into another form, to transform, to transfigure." The word "metamorphosis" is derived from this word, which we use to describe the process of a caterpillar changing into a butterfly. Why is it that I find myself crawling on the ground when I have already been changed in form into a "butterfly" and could soar above. May the Spirit of God continue to transform my soul that I would reflect the Lord's glory above all else.

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. Cor. 3:18

My Little Preacher Men

Over the past four to five months, the boys have adopted a small cabinet as their pulpit. Often they get their "preaching books" and stand behind the pulpit and preach away. This entails singing hymns, telling some sort of bible story (sometimes their own version, but they are trying) and prayer.

Sometimes they wear clothes...

sometimes they don't.Either way, it brings joy to my heart as they reflect upon what they have been learning. There are not many sweeter sounds than little voices singing worship to their God or saying prayers to the Almighty.
Sometimes they will get out their pretend bread and little cups to act out the communion service. They call it the bread and the blood...but they have the right idea. They try and talk about the bread being the body of Christ that was broken for us and the "blood" being Christ's blood that was shed for our sin. They always make sure that we all pretend to drink at the same time just like we do in church. I do not know what the Lord has in store for the future of my three little men, if they will be policemen, firemen, convertible drivers, or preachers, but I rest in knowing that they are children of God the Maker of heaven and earth. May their hearts continue to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

When I Grow Up

Over the weekend as we were driving we were noticing many different kinds of cars: police cars, fire engines, big trucks, little trucks, convertibles, cars with car top carriers...the boys had questions about everything on the road!

After seeing a police car again, Micah comments with, "I want to be a police man when I grow up."

Isaiah responds with, "I want to drive a fire truck when I grow up."

Can you guess what Josiah chimed in with?

"I want to drive a red convertible when I grow up."

Rub Dub Dub....

Three little men in a tub...

Welcoming Spring!

The trees blossoming has stirred with in us Spring Fever! The boys often say, "Let's go outside and see what we see." I am pleased with their desire to explore nature and see the beautiful things that God has made. Sometimes as we walk they will shout as loud as they can the different things that they see.

M is for....

As we were driving in the car Isaiah asked, "What letter does "mommy" start with?" There were many answers from Kenta and I with an exaggerated "m" sound as...mmmmachine, mmmmmonster, Mmmmicah, and mmmmmoon.

After a short pause, Micah chimed in, "mmmmmm....food!"

Three Turned Three

The boys' birthday was particularly special as we had three turn three together, but to make it more of a party we invited over three of their friends who had recently had their birthdays too. From left to right we have Josiah, Isaiah, Isabel, Fiona, and Clarissa. Micah is up top. Isabel and Clarissa are in the same Sunday School class with the boys. All together we had 5 turning three with in two days of each other and one turning 5!


Each of the children enjoyed hearing their personalized "Happy Birthday Song" as we did sing it six times. It doesn't get old to three year olds. Below is Isaiah soaking in every moment of his Birthday Song.

Kenta played the guitar while all the kids and Grammy did the hand motions to some of their Sunday School songs. It is such a joy to hear children singing worship to their God.

This is Micah very pleased with the car he received from Auntie Rose and Uncle Steve in California. He really liked that the green car matched his green shirt.

We are so blessed to have such joyful children. It was special to share their birthday with people we love. We thank all of you who gave the boys such generous gifts and love on their special day.

Together Time

Oh how I cherish the together time. Kenta works very hard for our family and for that we are so grateful!

Through his work, Kenta was rewarded with the opportunity to take our family on a little get away. For the boys this is the very best thing that they could imagine. Focused fun DADDY and MOMMY time! We got to read together...
Swim together...

Shoot giant squirt guns together...

have an animated story time together and watch the snow fall inside together!

Thank you Kenta for working so hard so that our family can do such special and memorable things. We are loved by how you serve our family.

Cutting.....

For Christmas the boys were given each a pair of scissors from their Grammy and Grandpa. The boys will sit for extended periods of time cutting, cutting, and cutting paper. I often run out of scrap paper for them to cut. I think we could start our own shredding business! Next, I just need to teach them where to put the paper after it is cut!

Christmas Lessons

We had a very family fun filled Christmas Holiday this past year. Last year due to amazing amounts of snow we decided to stay home and not fight the weather, but this year the weather was nice enough for us to venture over the pass and spend some quality time with family. It was a special time with Great-grandparents, grandparents, cousins, aunts, and uncles. This is Grandma getting hugs after the boys opened their three little pigs and the big bad wolf along with the story to go with it. Over the past month the boys have told this story many times and often we find the "Big Bad Wolf" chasing others around the house.

The boys genuinely enjoyed playing with their many cousins. We are blessed to have so many family members that can gather together.

This was the first year that the boys knew what to expect next. It was fun watching their curious minds anticipate what they would find in their stockings or in the many wrapped packages. Below is the line up of stockings that my Grandma Emery has made for our many family members. It is pretty amazing!!

We had lots of fun celebrating Christmas with lots of food, many presents, and plenty of laughter. We tried to teach the boys that it is more blessed to give than to recieve. Most of all, however, we hope that they will remember that we were celebrating the birthday of our Lord Jesus who came as a child, born in a manger and yet the King and Savior of the world.

Cousins

The boys always enjoy time with their cousins, even if it is cold!

If we go to the park, Josiah will want us to push him and push him. He is even starting to get the whole pumping thing down already.

Micah likes to swing too, but after a while he is ready to start exploring around. He just loves to be outside, rain or shine.

Isaiah likes to be where the people are, especially if it is his Grandpa.

We have been blessed that where we live, there are three different playgrounds. One where they can climb, one where they can swing, and other with a slide.

Hide and Seek

This is what we get to find when we play Hide and Seek along with a shouting...."Come and fiiiiiind me....I am hiiiiiiiding!"

I personally enjoy the group hide.

Dressing Themselves

This is what you may find if you enter our home on any given morning or afternoon. They boys have really been enjoying dressing themselves now that they can get their clothes on by themselves. Doesn't it make you smile? I do often, what silly boys I have. They must get it from their dad.