Psalm 23

Hello! Hopefully my catching up on some blog posts isn't overwhelming your inbox (those of you who are subscribed via electronic mail). But...this mama had some catching up to do. This is the second of today's two posts....so really not that much.

Anywho...

So, River's class had been working hard on memorizing  Psalm 23 and recited it for chapel last Friday morning. It was a privilege to see little people up there speaking such a wonderful promise.

Unfortunately, you really can't see my son's face (other than the top of his strawberry blond head), but he was there....:-)

And I promise I will get better about videoing the entire performance. Hehe. Will work on that. :-)

Here it is....please ignore the fuzzy footage. Focusing is key. I'll remember that. :)



Psalm 23 from kelly c. on Vimeo.

Have a great evening! :-D

Oh, and I encourage you, if you do not already have Psalm 23 put to memory, to go read it now..amazing promises!!

-Kelly

true things..

hello...
i heard this song on pandora this morning..
it's 'true things' from jj heller.
thought i'd share the goodness...
listen to the words..



well, i am working on editing photos from sunday's beach shoot and will have some of those up just as soon as i can. i am pretty excited with how they are turning out and i can't wait for the lovely people i photographed to see them!

well, must go catch up from yesterday..i've been so tired and that really can take it's toll on household responsibilities...

have a great day!

love, kelly

the lizard and tree frog hunters..

river and lily, as well as our sweet neighbors, matthew and mariah, love going hunting for lizards and now....tree frogs. oh, little itty bitty frogs are super cute.

matthew let river "frog sit" for him while he was out running errands with his mom a couple days ago..

so naturally, i had to take photos of the frog.

isn't he adorable?




isn't God's handiwork in creation amazing?

yes, super short post..and that's okay. i'm sure there are more lizards and tree frogs to photograph. ;-)

when was the last time you went searching for lizards and tree frogs? ;-)

love,
kelly

beautiful one

both of the kids have been walking around singing 'beautiful one' by jeremy camp, as well as others, because of VBS, which is going on this week.



so...i had to listen to it for myself again, as i have always liked this song, but haven't heard it in a while.. the video has some pretty photos, too.

also, here is picture 7 of 365 of my 365project (a photo a day for 365 days)...you have total faith that i can complete this project, right? i hope so! ;-)

the kids doing hand motions during a song at VBS

there is something just so sweet and precious about children singing and worshiping God. it is heartwarming, to say the least. melts my heart through and through.

must go now...have a wonderful rest of the week (in case you don't hear from me before then).

*oh...in case you haven't seen the first six photos from my project 365 and care to...just click on the above picture and it will take you to my flickr.

love, kelly

these are a few of my favorite...

photos..of my three favorite people..

oh...i love these people! i am so blessed to have them!

happy tuesday to you!
<3, kelly

VBS

Vacation Bible School started today!

to say that leafy was excited is putting it mildly...and though i ,unfortunately, do not have a photograph which captures his happiness.. i do have this one...

(just please ignore the the graininess of this shot..i know i can not, but hopefully you can... (my iso was way off), but i love the moment captured just the same.

this was taken the day before the first day of VBS..so, quite possibly he was thinking about all the fun he would have while learning more about Jesus and what life was like when He was a kid? let's go with that..;-)

so..let's see...we showed up at the Church and of course, i stuck around for a while snapping photos and though leafy was excited he became very shy and really wanted me to stay around for awhile. i was completely fine with that...as i really didn't want to leave anyway..

after meeting in the Sanctuary for some worship singing..we (yes, i was still with them at this point) headed to the market place in Nazareth to learn more about some trades such as toy making, bead making, dye shop, and they also learned about synagogue school, and played games that  children might have played in Jesus' time.

each child was given a bag with tokens and they had to "pay" the market shop owners a set amount of coins for each shop. (notice the market keepers hand reaching for the coins leafy is getting out. ;-)

leafy and lily loved making beads..

leafy really is having fun, despite his body language communicating another message.. promise. ;-)

would have been nice to get a few better shots of this experience (oh, how i could put to good use a speedlight flash for my camera)...lol. but anywhoo...

the other nice part of the VBS was that lily got to partake in the fun today,too. leafy's teacher went ahead and let lily participate in the bead making and a couple other activities since i was taking there for a bit taking photos. and then when it was time for me to leave (it had to happen i suppose) the teacher requested that lily stay if i was fine with it since she was working so nicely and having fun. you see, lily doesn't turn four until july and to participate in VBS you had to be four by june...so, i was thankful that the teacher allowed her to do this. i asked lily if she wanted to stay and of course, she did.
i registered her and then was on my way...but, was saddened to realize that i was without my babies (if only for a couple hours).
i made the most of it by going back to the apartment and exercising at the club house then having a quiet lunch with rocky..it was certainly nice and much needed (both the exercise and alone time with the hubby). God is so good to work all that out!!

i hope you all had a wonderful day,too!!

much love,
-kelly

mr. turtle...

why did the little turtle set off to cross the road?

to get picked up mid walk, investigated and appreciated by a little family of four, then put back in a safer spot? yes, exactly. ;-)

i just love the markings of the turtle's underside. how beautiful! God is a magnificent artist and creator, indeed!



oh...and update to yesterday's post when i mentioned sunscreen..
i have been doing some research and at this point i cannot yet go ahead with the chemical sunscreens, based on what i know about them.

i have been consulting with friends and also found this website to be very helpful. so, before i throw in the towel on natural sunscreen i am going to try out different brands first..

and it just so happens that two of the natural sunscreens i want to try (from the list and from recommendations) can be found just down the road at target. oh yeah!!

have a beautiful, sunshiny day!!

love, kelly

books, friends, & fountains..

on tuesday, amy,  had the idea to head to books-a-million for some book exploration (both of our kids loveeeeee books)...

amy reading to the kidlets

next...we headed to the fountains, which are located right outside b.a.m. (talk about convenient location). ;-)

laura joined us at the fountains...she has two of her four kids in this picture (she's preggie with her 4th). ;-)

the gang in all in their colorful fountain-playing attire

little miss, 'c'...the youngest of amy's three precious kids.

lily trying to stop the flow..

lily realizing the water is pretty chilly..

my other friend, amy, (wow, amy is a lovely, yet popular name here) just recently did a post on her blog of her adorable daughter, MM, at these very same fountains (just on a different day)...see it here.
seriously...MM is precious!

i really am loving my new friends in gulf shores and will miss them dearly when we leave later this summer. i know the kids will miss their friends, too.

but, for now....we will continue to enjoy every moment...as each is a blessing from God.
even when we do leave, i am certain we will keep in touch. plus, when rocky gets his pilot's license (and an airplane)...we will be making weekend trips back here, i am sure. ;-)

daybook

wednesday {may 4th}
daybook

outside my window...we finally got some rain, so the temps are much cooler. it is downright pleasant outside right now. after the kid's quiet and story time today we will be venturing out to enjoy it.

i am thinking....that i have a kitchen i need to quickly clean up...we made quite a mess baking chewy chocolate chip oatmeal cookies for rocky this afternoon. you see, rocky is really an adorable cookie monster in disguise. i try to oblige. ;-)

i am thankful ...the tornado did not destroy our home (it came about 100 feet from it) and that it even left the newly planted orchard and vineyard in tact (all but a couple apple trees) on our property back home in tn. 

(pictures coming in another post sometime soon)

i am learning....photoshop elements 9 {slowly} and enjoying it. looking forward to trying out lightroom next!

i am creating....a kindergarten home school curriculum for leafy {still} it's a slow process.

i am going to....do some crafty research..time to stock up on materials for the kids for them to do lots of crafts. anyone have any tried and true kid craft ideas they wouldn't mind recommending to me? both leafy and lily love crafty crafts. ;-)

i am hearing.... about so much going on in the world today: mind boggling weather, world events, etc.. it really makes me think that Jesus will be coming soon. i truly believe this and want to be ready to live with Him forever!

around the house...i hear momentary silence. ahhh....

i am reading....'adobe photoshop elements 8: classroom in a book' (a book i checked out from the library). 

i am praying....for all those who have lost loved ones and their homes in the recent tornadoes which ripped through the south. 

a few plans for the week....well, the week is going by so quick. i strive to continue to get my cleaning done early this week (right on schedule even if rocky doesn't believe it- ha!), come up with a list of materials needed for the home school curriculum, continue on with leafy's reading book, 'teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons', and go grocery shopping..we really need to stock up on some fresh produce. anyone else freak out if produce stash dwindles to nada? i am guilty of that. 

a picture... another photo taken at lulu's {we apparently like taking photographs there}. rocky took this during my "lesson mode" and i think it is lovely and had to share. this is unedited, btw. 

i am open to editing suggestions..in fact, i would be most thankful. that is how i learn. any takers-of-photos out there willing to talk photoshop with me on this picture? your suggestions would be appreciated. :-D

fort morgan happenings..

(this post includes a bit of time all bunched up as i have only been able to work on it for just a little bit at a time)

hello!

first off...it was rocky's birthday the 26th!

happy birthday to you, my snuggle bug! ;-)

i am SO thankful that you choose to spend your life your life with me! i truly am blessed to have you!

Also...we have had so many tornadoes touch down recently at home in tn, and many places in the south, for that matter.
my heart goes out to all those devastated by the storms.
please know that we are praying for you all.!!!!

so...

i came across this adorable video way back when (earlier in the week when i started this post)..not sure where it was taken, but thought it was too precious not to share.

it reminds me (i know this might sound strange) of my sweet hubby. really.

you see this past weekend we spent some time exploring fort morgan in alabama (very cool place, btw).
click here for history information on fort morgan

after visiting the fort we headed to the beach (with our friend jeremy and his son P who were visiting from back home for the weekend).

anywho..while on the beach rocky found lots of wildlife. i loved seeing the expressions on his face while he discovered all the creatures such as lots of crabs and the dolphins in the ocean, which were jumping out of the water almost like they were doing tricks just for us. rocky was like a child in a candy store. okay, maybe not quite as animated (rocky isn't that much so), but i know him...and i could see the joy in his eyes. i love that man! i love seeing him happy!
read on later in the post to discover some of God's creation we enjoyed on this fun day at the beach!

God is so awesome to have blessed us with that time on that beach that seemed to be our own little beach for the day.

i thank Him for allowing me to enjoy my husband's joy with it all.

like i said we saw lots of dolphins out in the ocean and dolphins are so adorable. the video also reminds me how much i

  miss our little cat, yoda.

glimpses from fort morgan.....

glimpses from fort morgan {the beach}

sandy faced :-)

lots of dolphin sightings!

a photo & a song

a simple post...

a photo. a song.

the picture... was taken this past weekend..the photos will be weaved through posts for awhile, i do believe..i took many.

the picture here shows me two things..

one: that i have much more to learn about taking pictures, editing, and everything there in between..but, i am enjoying every second of it.

and two: that i love the beach, especially when the sun begins to set.

the song... i heard this while at the gym this morning. it's a beautiful song.

jj heller has such a lovely voice and the words to her songs are just as lovely.

like i said...simply simple.

have a wonderful weekend!!

we are super excited because we have more company coming into town from back home this evening:

our friend jeremy and his little boy "P".

'P' is leafy's age and is his best bud.

the kids are thrilled!

love,
kelly

sunshine smiles...

for those days when sunshine is lacking {not just caused by a literal cloudy day}...remember to smile anyway.

we ALL have reasons to smile. i call them blessings. some blessings may be great big giant blessings, while others may be teeny tiny ones, all are blessings, just the same...smile makers.

i often forget that a smile can be like sunshine, not only to the person smiling {aka happy endorphins released in the body} but also to those whom the smiler comes in contact with.

i wish everyone would smile more and help make the world a bit more sunshiny. ;-) how about you?

a smile is like sunshine...
{remember, i often forget this, too..so this is reminder to myself, as well}

so, go light up some one's cloudy day with your smile..

you may just find that, by doing so, your day is a bit more sunshiny, too.

"It is the artist's business to create sunshine when the sun fails."

~Romain Rolland

God, the ultimate Artist, gives us countless sources of sunshine, as well as, countless ways to be sunshine for others.

have a lovely, blessed weekend!

<3, kelly

daybook

april 12, 2011 tuesday

{daybook}

outside my window....a cool breeze blows. it is a smidge chilly this morning.

i am thinking....that i need to figure out what to make for the picnic this afternoon after library story time.

i am thankful for....my sweet, sweet husband. He works so hard for his family. I admire him greatly.

i am learning....that i talk too much. really need to work on that. it is something i pray about daily.

i am creating....photographs of happy memories, which i cherish.

i am going to....take the kids to the library this morning and then to the park for play and a picnic with friends.

i am hearing.... the kids getting ready for the day and it sounds like they are talking to one another about planning a trip to colorado {we do love colorado}. leafy also mentioned he wants to go to the middle east {there is a type of lizard he wants to see which lives there} ;-)

around the house...my once tidy living room has been taken over by little people who like to "unclean" the clean. ;-)

i am wanting to read....well, still hoping to read Sacred Marriage. Still can't track it down via free. ;-(

i am praying....for our engineering company {the possible projects}

a few plans for the week....research homeschool curriculum, picnics in the park, sandcastles in the sand, cleaning, and continue getting up early to exercise (i haven't been so good about this). i heart sleep. ;-) 

a picture... a precious moment in time featuring daddy and lily.

have a wonderfully, blessed day!

love, kelly

reverse thinking

came across this video this morning and thought it was eye opening.

sometimes we just need to reverse our thinking.

my goal is to live my life according to these beliefs...

with God i know i can.

never alone

i love this song! 

i feel it is a good reminder for me for those moments when i feel as if God is far away from me...sometimes it can be difficult to always remember that He is there for me, as He is an invisible Love.

 i,do know that is where faith comes in...

but, being that i am human, and imperfect for that matter, those moments do occasionally creep in when i feel that He may not be that close to me, but in reality it is me not being close with Him. He is ALWAYS there, and i am never alone. 

what an amazing, humbling thought.

i am so very thankful for prayer...what an amazing way to communicate with God. 

coming from someone who can get pretty wordy (and sadly, usually, talks way more than i should) God is the only One i know of who is capable and most willing to listen to my heart's frequent out pouring. Sure, Rocky is most willing to listen, but he is human, and his human ears can only take so much....understandable. 

i am thankful for God. the more i pray and study His word the more i realize that i am never alone. 

all the beauty

beautiful song...

reminds me of God's love for us..