today was a gift!

i was determined to embrace today.
to enjoy my kids. every moment.

{make sure you read the end. it's the best part!}

today was a gift from Him.
EVERY day is a gift from Him. i need to acknowledge that more often.

this morning i told bailey she could pick what we would do.

first...she picked playing in the kitchen sink with the bath toys :-)

some days i think she's really growing up. and others, like this choice, make me realize she's still a little girl. LOVE that!

we filled the little pool up with water for later in the afternoon...

we had matching braids today (sawyer took the pic...)

and bailey had to take a couple...

then we went to the "dinosaur playground". bailey can pump her legs and swing all by herself! THAT made her seem BIG! {christine - sawyer was looking for dinosaur eggs :-)}

it was HOT out there!

THEN...this is the CUTEST!
i went into bailey's class to volunteer. for the first and only time this year.
she asked me to about a month ago. i just don't really volunteer in their classes. it's too hard with sawyer. and i do stuff for the teachers from home. but she kept asking. so, i emailed the room mom and got on the schedule. and asked a friend to come watch sawyer.

i told bailey that i was coming in about 3 weeks ago. she taped her May calendar up on our refrigerator and has been counting down the days EVERY day. each morning she would circle that day's date. and then, in the evening she would put an "x" on that day's date. and let me know how many more days until i came into her class.

today was the day! (took this a few days ago...)

i loved being in her class :-)
THANK YOU, ginny, for watching sawyer!!!

once the kids got home from school and did homework, we headed outside for the rest of the afternoon!

popsicles, pools (the neighbors put one out, too!), hoses...

breakfast for dinner!

soccer practice for rebekah.

whew! what a GREAT day! i think everyone will sleep good tonight!

BUT...the BEST part of the day happened about 30 minutes ago.

the last couple nights, pat has been talking about "what God has done for us" during the "candle" time.
kind of a "back to the basics" thing.

after they were done, he took them up to brush their teeth. i went to the study to start downloading my pictures from today. joshua walked in to get a book to bring to bed with him. i said, "goodnight!" he turned and looked at me and i could tell he was NOT ok.

"joshua, what's wrong?"
nothing.
"joshua. i can tell something's wrong. come here. talk to me."
as he starts to cry he's also saying, "daddy talked to me."
i'm thinking, "oh, he must have done something and got in trouble."
so i say, what did daddy say?
he said, "God loves me."

oh.my.heart.

i speak through the thick throat..."joshua, do you not believe God loves you?"
he says, "but i sin."

i talked to him for a few minutes. and then asked pat to come. pat talked. we both talked. joshua talked. we prayed together. it was so sweet. and REAL. he GOT it. he GOT that the fact that God loves him is a BIG deal. because he recognizes that his sin in ugly. it was so beautiful. so, so beautiful. the hope and prayer of my heart EVERY day as a mom.

i pray he REALLY understands God's love. that he can't earn it. that he'll never deserve it. but that God freely gives it to him. 

today was a gift.
a beautiful gift.
thank you, Lord!

{on our list for tonight: figure out Skype and go through all the medicine we're bringing and make sure we have all we need.}