Allyn's Pics

Allyn is turning 5 years old this Thursday! I can hardly believe that it has been five years since I was teaching at Lake City, but it was the news of her birth that prompted me to ask for a year maternity leave which turned into resigning so I could stay home with my kids.

I took these pictures of Allyn while at my parent's house, and thought they would turn out nice, but the shadows from the houses being so close kind of ruins them. I guess it is a good thing that when we returned home I had a coupon for pictures at Walmart! I am taking her in on Thursday to get her "formal" pictures done since these didn't turn out as nice as I wanted. I still like them for albums and for sharing!

Martha & Jaina--8m Update

It is amazing that the girls are already 8 months old! Although I think they are growing like weeds (as well as people who see them all the time), according to the charts they aren't doing as well as we think. I find this hard to believe as they still nurse 5-6 times a day and eat 2 meals. Just the other day I mixed up 2 cups of food and they ate it all and some more of what I mixed up!

Martha is 13 lbs. 2 oz and 25 inches long.

Jaina is 14 lbs. 12 oz and 26 inches long.

Martha enjoys standing up to things, but she is still unstable and can't pull herself up to the standing position.

Here are my Hope babies! Hope college always sends a bib when a new baby is born.

My Grandma

Last week when my Mom went to visit my Grandma in the nursing home, she found her unresponsive. She immediately called for the nurses who at first couldn't find a heart beat, but Grandma did start gasping for air and trying to open her eyes. She was very confused and weak. Hospice told my Mom to call her brothers and let them know because she will most likely have more episodes like this as it seems her body is shutting down. After telling the girls that Great Nana's heart wasn't working right, they said they wanted to make sure they saw her before she died, so we decided to make the trip to Muskegon. Sabra said, "My Daddy can fix her heart!" It was so precious to know that she has so much faith in her daddy, but I had to explain to her that no matter how good Daddy is at fixing things, only God could fix Great Nana's heart.

Although Grandma seems to be doing well, we are glad we went. Her body still isn't functioning at 100%. Grandma is ready to go home to be with the Lord and has asked on several occasions why God hasn't taken her home yet. We just keep telling her that He isn't done with her on earth yet--that she still has a purpose to serve.

I love this picture of Martha focusing on Grandma's face.

Vote!

I have already voted today and wanted to remind everyone else to go vote. This is a monumental election (as all are really) and the American people need to make sure they are taking a part in the future of our country. As Christians, we have the duty to voice our opinion in having a Christian leader who will uphold our rights to free worship without fear of being persecuted for not agreeing with same-sex marriage, the murder of unborn lives, and the such.

Pray before you vote. Pray while you are voting. Pray after you vote. God is in charge of all things and I know that no matter who takes office after today it is because God placed that man in office for some reason that we may not understand yet.

I am praying for God's will to be done in this election and if His will is not who I believe should be in office, I pray He will grant understanding for who does win.

30 Days of Prayer for America--Day 30

Pray for God's will to be done on earth--where you live and throughout American society--even as it is in heaven. (Matt. 6:9-13)

Pray for a spiritual awakening across the nation, that the Gospel would be communicated across the full spectrum of American society and that Americans of all ages, races and backgrounds would be drawn to Christ and receive His life and salvation.

Pro-Life

I read the following on one of the forums I visit in relation to pro-life/pro-abortion and where the candidates stand. I thought it was good, so I asked her permission to post it here.

Ya'll may or may not be old enough to remember this, but I'm going to post
it because it is still so very true:

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.
When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I was not a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

Right now, they campaign openly and loudly - in our public schools, in the media, even in our churches often - about those "unwanted" children. If we don't speak out now, eventually, they will come for us Christians, too. Who will be left to speak out for us? If we raise our children in this deafening silence, they will also be silent...

30 Days of Prayer for America--Day 28 & 29

Sorry, I was really busy yesterday morning and didn't have time to get on-line before my open house and then by the time I got home, I took a nap and forgot.

Day 28

Pray for the leaders, churches and Christians of Guam and the Midway Islands (U.S. Territories).

Pray for candidates for public office, that they would be moved by God to seek what is honorable, just and moral.

Day 29

Pray for the leaders, churches and Christians of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (U.S. Territories).

Pray for the new American citizens, that they will have the opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel and place their faith in Jesus Christ.