Painting

She's simply do it all day.

And work so hard at getting it just right.

I'm pretty sure she's not going to get enough art time at school. We'll definitely be making up for it at home.

And the sun sets on day 3...

Got this photo with Paul's phone and uploaded it to Facebook from his phone. Then copied it to my blog!:)
It was an amazing day. Ran this morning. Ate a HUGE breakfast. Took a nap and woke up just in time to go kayaking for 3 hours. Saw a seal on our adventure. The weather was perfect. It's such a neat place. Paul and I are in heaven here.
Anxious for another fun day tomorrow. Hiking, whale watching, lunch in the forest.
We're turning in early tonight. I think I'm even more tired with no responsibilities than I am at home with 3 kids. Is that possible?

Coloring

Paul brought home a big roll of paper the other day and the girls went crazy....

I want the perfect foot shot

I love baby feet.
Which is hilarious, because I hate adult feet.
But I have an obsession with taking photos of baby feet.
And I want to capture how cute they are before they get all big and grown up and icky.
So here are a few attempts at getting the pefect foot shot of Ayla...

No Pace

We arrived yesterday afternoon.
Our Inn has a computer closet.
I sniffed it out like a hound dog. :)
It truly is a tiny closet converted with a computer and a desk lamp in it.

There is NO pace here.
We have adjusted quickly.
It is sooooo quiet.
No plans. Nowhere to be.
AMAZING food.
Seafood quiche....oh my gosh. too good.
We literally watched a bee pollenating the flowers next to us on the porch while we ate breakfast this morning.

No doubt I will have a headache upon my return.
Lots of coffee.
No pace.
This is the way life is supposed to be. :)

Off to go find Paul.
I honestly think he fell asleep on the sling rocker on the porch.
I told him I was going to go grab my camera...but I got sidetracked.

Kayaking later today.
Amazing amazing place.
Having a great time already....

Lani and Daddy...

She's got him right where she wants him...

Indifference

The worst sin towards our fellow creatures in not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them; that's the essence of inhumanity. (George Bernard Shaw)

Toothpicks

Absolutely necessary after wings.
Obviously.

Adios....

It's after midnight and I just vacuumed the living room floor and cleaned the kitchen floor.
Talk about waiting until the last minute. We need to be backing out of our driveway at 5:30am.
But guess what...there will be no kids on the plane with us.
We will be able to sleep.
Ahhhh....
So excited.
Adios...

Stats

Sometimes I hate statistics. They can be quoted and to some may cause a lightbulb moment, but to others that same stat may mean nothing.
They can be manipulated and changed to draw two completely different conclusions.
They sometimes drive me crazy. And I think what I hate most about statistics is that we no longer have names and faces when we use them.
I'm currently reading The Hole in our Gospel and soaking it all up. Richard Stearns has a whole section on his love/hate relationship with stats. He says,
Human beings, when enabled to depersonalize a large group of people, respond to them with far less compassion.

True? I think so. He also says,

26,575 children die each day of largely preventable causes related to their poverty. But that very statistic, so critical to our understanding of the extent and urgency of the plight of the world's children, also begins to obscure the humanity, the dignity, and the worth of each of those children. It takes away their names and their stories, homogenizes their personalities, and cheapens the value of each individual child, created in the very image of God....the story of one child [is] more compelling than the suffering of millions.

I tend to believe this is true. If I were on here crying out to all of my blog readers for help with my suffering child. If I was begging for help to save the life of AYLA, I have a feeling I would be knocked over by the response I would receive.
And I would do the same for someone I love. Someone I have a relationship with.

But when I say that 4500 children died today from lack of clean water, it is so easy to graze over. It's a number. A statistic. Ayla did not die today. 4500 children died. HUGE difference, right?

I'm just thinking out loud here. Trying to figure out how to make that number mean something. Because those children don't deserve any less help than my children. They don't.

All that to say that I agree with Richard Stearns. I'm not sure of the effectiveness of statistics. Josef Stalin said "One death is a tragedy; a million is a statistic."
How do we change that?
I don't have an answer. But it's been bugging me lately. And I needed to get it out there.
I'm beginning to shy away from statistics. Because when I focus on those numbers, it seems overwhelming. And pretty soon, it's just number. No names. No faces. No families left behind. Just numbers. And that is scary.
Stearns says we should plead with God daily as Bob Pierce did, for our hearts to "be broken by the things that break the heart of God".

Those numbers break the heart of God. 4500 of his very own children. He knows their names. He loves them. And they are dying. We are His plan. So that is my prayer today...that my heart will by broken by the things that break the heart of God.

Something has happened to me....

I got my eyebrows waxed today.
Something that is very important to a couple individuals in my family, but also something I personally never think about.
For some reason, I wanted to get it done today.
AND.
I want to shop.
I'm not a shopper.
If I need a shirt or something, I'll go online and find a cheap one. Or have Paul wait outside with the kids while I run in and find something on the clearance rack.
Cheap.
Quick.
Easy.
But today, I have a strong desire to shop. And buy a skirt. (something I don't ever own).
And possibly some cute shoes and even a necklace. and a purse just for fun! :)
I'm serious.
Something is wrong with me.
Of course I do not have the time or money to do this kind of shopping, but the fact that I want to scares me.
So I needed to first admit I have a problem.
To you...all of my blog friends.
Because you can't look at me funny. Or snort. Or yell at me. :)
There. I said it.
Now, back to changing poopie diapers and scrubbing toilets..
Oh, and admiring my newly waxed eyebrows...

And now...for today...

All is well.
He is home.
Whew.
I can breathe easier.
Waiting for him to arrive...

She really wanted a kiss...

I think Lani missed him the most....

And Daddy came home for a quick hello hug and about 5 minutes of playing catch.

It's so funny. Everyone is doing there own thing now.
The kids aren't really playing together, but they are just happy.
It just feels like things are right again.
So glad he's home.
And although last night he said to my mom, "Nana, can't was stay just one. more. WEEK?!?",
I think he's happy to be home, too.
He's too much...

Feeling pretty good about progress

Laundry is done.
And I mean DONE.
Washed, folded, sorted and put away.
HUGE accomplishment.

Kids' rooms are thoroughly cleaned.
As in, furniture moved and vacuumed under.
Forgotten toys disappeared.
DUSTED.
The whole bit.
HUGE accomplishment.

I've started packing.
The kids are staying at my parents, so I need to pack for them, too.
But I have started.
Hope to finish that up tomorrow.
Much easier with all the CLEAN clothes put away. :)
Kind of don't know how to pack though. Looks like it's going to be around 70-75 most days.
But we are kayaking one day. Hiking one day.
Sunset whale watching one evening...and she said it can get down too as low as 45 off the coast that time of day. yikes!
Plus, our running schedule has us running 8 miles this weekend.
Double yikes.
I am totally going to overpack, I know it.
Oh well.

I have tons of cute photos that I haven't been posting.
I have scheduled blogs to post randomly while we are gone.
I am NOT bringing my computer.
I have informed my realtor that I won't be able to be reached by phone.
I plan on using little to NO technology while I'm there.
(other than my lovely camera. you KNOW i'll be using that!!)
I feel like I will taint this little community of 1300 people if I tote along all my gear.
So I'm not.
But you won't even know I'm gone with all my scheduled posts! :)

School supplies are BOUGHT and in backpacks.
We have a short week and a half when we return to make the most of this summer.
I don't plan on school supply shopping when I get home.
I plan on enjoying my children.
So I am done with that.
YAY for me.
If you know me, you know I procrastinate terrible, so this is a
HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENT for me.

Paul is cramming in 2 home inspections and 2 radon tests before we leave.
He's going to be busy.
But what a relief to get some work on that front. Maybe houses are starting to sell?!? :)
We can only hope.

We leave at the crack of dawn on Thursday morning. Need to be on the road by 5:30am.
So the kids are staying at my parents Wednesday night.
Brigg gets home tomorrow morning at 9:30. We get 2 days with him.
I don't want to be stressing out, so I hope to get lots more done tonight.

So that's that. Lots going on. Anxious for the week ahead!! We've been planning this trip for a long long time. We cannot wait to enjoy and relax.
or kayak.
or hike.
or whale watch.
or bike ride.
or eat.
or whatever....

Paul's birthday

We decided to avoid the cake and instead went with monster cookies.
They were a hit.

Then it was ice skating. (ok, maybe not PAUL's choice, but fun.)

And we ended up here.
This was ALL Paul's choice.

And I figured since he settled for cookies and agreed to skate with Lani, that we would oblige and enjoy.
He was happy.
Wings, beer and more TV's showing baseball than you could count.

It was a good day.
Give you one guess what the only thing missing was....

British Soccer Camp

Last week Lani had British Soccer Camp all week.
She thoroughly enjoyed it.
And her coach was great...

She kind of looks like a soccer player, doesn't she?!?
:)

And this is how Ayla felt about the whole thing...

"Gag me with a spoon."

On this Sunday afternoon....

We are busy working around outside. Getting things cleaned up. We haven't been great at keeping up with the yardwork this year. Haven't put much effort into it thinking we may be moving at some point. We now we have decided the house is never going to sell, so we better DO something to improve it! :)
So we've been busy outside and it's perfect out there. We had a great church service this weekend and my head it just spinning as I scurry around the house. So much to be thankful for, yet my heart hurts in other ways. Just feeling kind of weird.
We are getting close to the end of the summer. Our house has been on the market for 6 months. We'll be sending Nalani to kindergarten this year. I tear up every time I think about it. She's so sensitive. She will be one that follows all the rules and is polite and raises her hand. That student that teachers dream of...yet I'm afraid she'll fall between the cracks in other areas. Right or wrong, I just want it to be an easy adjustment for her. I'm worried about her. I can't help it. Part of me wants to tuck her under my wing and keep her there all warm and safe forever. But I know she will surprise me and grow so much this year. I remember worrying about sending Brigg off. This time is a little different. Different concerns with her. But I know I don't have to worry about having that "talk" with her about sticking up for the underdog and raising her hand and respecting her teacher. She "gets" all that. It's natural for her. Compassion, respect, love, that is who she is. It's the other side of the coin for her that concerns me. I've been putting off thinking about it for a while, but we're coming up on the big day now and I'm stressed.
Ugh.
Brigg is going into second grade. He's hilarious and fine. But second grade will be an adjustment for him. The 2 teachers run very tight ships. He may struggle with that at first. He's a boy. Who likes to talk and be silly and mess around. He's going to learn a lot this year. I probably don't run as tight of ship as I should sometimes, so he'll learn a whole new way of doing things. :) It's a good thing. But he may not love it!
And Ayla...oh Ayla. She bites. She hits. I'm struggling with her. Don't know how to deal with this. She's hot or cold. Kissing or biting. Hugging or hitting. Laughing or screaming. Hmmmm....wonder where in the world she gets that! She's teaching me so much more about being a parent. Not that I had it figured out before she came along, but I thought I was better than this.
Found out that a friend is losing their house. I'm just sick about it. My heart aches and I feel at a loss over it. What can I possibly do to help the situation? Yuck. Just so sad. Horrible situation.
So my head and heart are spinning today. Lots to get done as we head out on our Maine vacation on Thursday. But I feel like things just aren't "right". But will they ever be on this side of heaven? No. So we just keep moving forward. Doing the best we can. Praying for those divine interruptions to change us again and again.
Deep thoughts by Cassie........
:)

Go and do likewise

Just what I needed tonight.
Church was amazing.
Exactly the kind of service that keeps me coming back...

oh yeah...it's the weekend!!

Last of the carnival pics

Real smiles

Lani enjoyed herself at the carnival, but she really missed Brigg.
She would have loved the rides even more if he was riding them with her.
It was just like we could all sense something was missing.
Our boy.

But I did capture a couple of those true, from the bottom of your heart, smiles.

But Lani can tell you each morning how many days until Brigg gets home.
So can I...three.
He'll be home in three days.
Not that we're counting or anything....