Halloween Pics

We had an enjoyable evening in Westbrook Farms on Halloween night. Elijah REALLY liked the concept of going to our neighbor's houses, looking cute and getting candy. Then, even better eating said candy.

David and I enjoyed a relaxing evening. Rather than going to the door every five seconds, we built a fire in our outdoor firepit and sat outside to pass out candy. It was like camping!!

The Zoo

Noah's class took a field trip to the zoo. It was a beautiful sunny day.
The boys had a great time and most of my time was spent behind the boys. They were conquerors...see and move on was their motto.

We've Been Booed!!

Last night the Smith's were Boo'd!! Now, I personally never really wanted to be booed, but this time it was pretty fun.

Being boo'd is a version of Ding Dong Ditch. Your doorbell rings (or a hearty knock occurs) and you go to the door. When you open the door, there's no one there. Instead, a bag of goodies is on your porch. And, a note to put on your door saying "I've been boo'd. Then, you are supposed to boo someone else. (We are contemplating our plans...covertness might be a challenge on Halloween night).

The kids were pretty excited to be boo'd...it happened twice!!!

It ain't over...

Somewhere I read where, for a commencement speach, Winston Churchhill once simply said something like "Never, never, never quit!!"

Here's a visual that illustrates that point...for your enjoyment...



or...

http://broadband.espn.go.com/ivp/splash2?id=3083220

Random

Just watch it. (Credit to my friend Heidi's Facebook Account for this lil' treasure)

It's been one of those weeks!!

You will thank me for the lack of pics with this post. Here's a summary of our week:

Friday - David becomes friendly with the toilet and stays in the bathroom most of the day.
Saturday - David is comatose most of the day. Diane and the kids spend the day at soccer field and neighborhood block party (grateful for the fresh air). It was a beautiful day!!
Sunday - David begins to stir, but stays in for fear of spreading the plague. Elijah stays home with him. Diane, Hannah, Noah and Clara go to church. To quote our Elementary Director "Clara melted during the hour at church". She came home and went straight to bed and ran a fever all day.
Late Sunday night after all the family (except David) was snug as a bug in a rug, David discovers that our cat Smokey has passed away.
Monday - Clara is home sick from school. Smokey is buried in the pouring down rain. Soccer games are cancelled due to rain.
Tuesday - Soccer game is cancelled due to the rain. We ALL went to open house at the school along with a million other people. Stomach rumblings begin in Diane's stomach and she goes to bed at 8:00. David decides to work in the garage for a bit. He discovers that our deep freezer breaker has tripped and EVERYTHING in said freezer is spoiled. He spends the evening cleaning in the pouring down rain.
Wednesday - Diane is now sick and discovers much to Hannah's chagrin that the teacher can still give assignments from the couch. The garbage man makes a big mistake and opens the trash can to see why it was so heavy. He might have thought there was a dead person inside.
Thursday - Diane is slowly starting to mend. Now we are drawing straws to see who has to change Elijah's diapers. Nasty is the best word to describe them. And again soccer games are cancelled due to the rain!!
What tomorrow will hold we do not know, but we thank God even for the sickness and smells. After all our digestive systems are cleaned out and so is our freezer. Of course the rest of the house looks like a cyclone hit it.
Oddly enough we haven't had alot of company this week...

Abundant Life

Today our son Elijah received his first hair cut.

As I was looking at these pictures I realized how hard it was for me to get Elijah's haircut. I did not want let his curls go. (He's almost three for crying out loud.) The poor lady at Sports Clips must have thought I was insane, taking about a million pictures.

He's adorable in the before picture. But, the reality is that his features are so stunning now. Just look at his eyelashes. They were there before, but now they are remarkably defined.

David's dad, John Smith, has gone to be with Jesus and we are grieving. And yet, He is in the presence of Jesus. He has an imperishable body. I believe we would recognize him. But, I imagine his features are stunning as they reflect the glory of Christ.

I look at these pictures and see the change that occurred in our young man in just a few minutes. They remind me of the changes that must have taken place in my father-in-law in a twinkling of an eye.

Today we celebrate abundant life, the full life that Christ offers. Today we celebrate eternal life!!

We are so thankful for our friends and family that are sharing our life today, praying for us, e-mailing, calling and meeting so many practical needs. Thank you!!! We love you all very much.

A Day in Elijah's Life!!

Elijah had a very busy day yesterday. We snapped a couple of shots so you could enjoy his ventures. As I was busy doing something else, Elijah decided he wanted some powdered sugar. He may have even said powdered sugar once or twice, but being the great mom that I am I ignored him. So, being the industrious child that he is...he got a chair, pulled it up to the counter and helped himself to some powdered sugar.....the whole bag!!

Then, he decided to brush his teeth. The dentist would be so proud. We do NOT have coerce this little one to brush his teeth!! Then we went to Bible Study Fellowship where he learned about baby Jesus being born AND he got to play on the playground.

Finally, we got a DVR box....big time technology for a family who hasn't had cable TV for twelve years. As we were playing with our new box, we found a free on demand Exercise channel. We clicked on a cardio workout and away the kids went. In the end, we had to say it's time for bed...they might have exercised all night.

It was a full day for our little man!!!

Sharing our Lives!!

This past Saturday night our Life Group was able to participate in the Wes's proposal of marriage to Libby. It was an amazing time of joy, excitement and love. We gathered at our church and spent time praying and celebrating. That's what it means to share our lives!!!

Congratulations Libby and Wes!!

Here are some pics from Wes and Libby's post-proposal party. A great time was had by all. Congrats Wes and Libby!!!

Soccer, Soccer and more soccer!!

Noah and Hannah played their first soccer games on Saturday. They both played very well and we are excited to spend our weeks immersed in soccer the next few months. We average five practices per week and three games per week. So, it does keep the Smith family quite busy. Elijah is already quite anxious to play soccer. If we say it's time to go to soccer practice or a soccer game, his face brightens and he says "Soccer practice?", gets his shoes on and goes to stand by the door.

Haiku - Clara

Clara didn't want to be left out of the Haiku writing. Here's Clara's:

Ocean waves crashing ashore.

Palm trees swaying in the wind.

Dolphins jump in air.

Haiku - Hannah

This week in school we have been writing Haiku's. Here's Hannah's:

Summer Evening

Plane ride brings great joy.
Sun sets and twilight arrives.
Mountains granduer rise.

Haiku - Diane

Autumn Morning

Trees ablaze with color.

Crisp air blows gently on skin.

Coffee warms my soul.

Something To Think About...

Something to think about...



Thanks Shelly...

Big D...

A Week In Review!!!

Oh what a busy week it has been
David traveled to Georgia and then back again.
Noah started Kindergarten and had lots of fun
and the same day kicked off soccer and began to RUN.

Hannah is enjoying her home as her school
but there are many adjusments before it's all cool.
She found that soccer is a great place to develop her social skills
and youth group is not so scary, especially since her teachers are so real.

Clara deserves a medal for making it through this week.
She's played soccer six days and tonight a win they will seek.
Her team won two of their tournament games.
She's learning life lessons which are more important than fame.

To conclude our week David and Diane went out.
and enjoyed our dinner, then wanted to shout.
Our friends are having a baby...maybe it will be a boy.
The week ended full of joy!!

Elijah's Quote of the Day!!!

Yesterday Elijah and I were driving home from work and we were driving past a new home being built. He looked over at it and said and I quote, "Boootefil" I was amazed that he knew such a big work and amazed at his skills of observation. His next statement was

"Dirt, I love dirt".

While I saw a massive house being built. He saw the yard which is a big large dirt pile and to him it was bootefil!!

What Hannah's Learned This Week!!

My favorite quote from Hannah this week happened during her school day. She was at the computer doing some research regarding the Pacific Islands. I was cleaning the kitchen. She kept ooohhing and aaahhing and saying "mom, come look at this". And, she was showing me gorgeous pictures from the pacific ocean...sunsets, clear blue water, etc. We were talking about the importance of learning and loving to learn. She said "Mom, I've learned something today." I'm thinking, YEAH!!! Then she shared what she has learned. This is what she said...

"Mom, I learned the Pacific Islands are calling my name!!!"

That's my girl!!!!

Noah's Second Day of Kindergarten!!

This morning when Noah got up, he snuggled down into my lap and said the quote of the day. He said, "I'm NOT excited about Kindergarten anymore." It didn't take long for the reality to set in for Mr. Noah. He did however have a wonderful day talking about kissing hands. And, I don't think he was kissing any hands!! This is the poem he came home with yesterday with his handprint at the bottom.

It's my first day of school
And "The Kissing Hand" is what we read.
It's about a raccoon
who did just as his parents said.

Like the raccoon's first day at school
I was scared and a little shy.
But because of what you said
I was brave and I got by.

All through the year
I'll make more things for you
So as I change and as I learn
You can see my growth too.

Noah's First Day of Kindergarten!!

Noah had an excellent day at Kindergarten today. He woke up with a smile on his face, went to the bus stop with a smile on his face, and got off the bus with a smile on his face. And all this even though he really doesn't like to have his picture taken. He did have to pull his bee clip today for talking. (He takes after his mother.) Now, we are off to soccer practice. He should sleep well tonight!!