Happy 6th Birthday Carter!

Carter's 6th birthday finished off our week of birthdays with Dad's on the 14th, mine on the 16th and his on the 20th. He woke up on his birthday to 20+ latex helium balloons in his room. Those balloons kept him and his sisters busy all morning. Then we headed to my Women's Bible Study with cupcakes in hand to share with all the kiddos. Carter got to play in Tahoma's amazing park-like backyard, one of his favorite places to go. That afternoon Carter had his 1st soccer practice with his new team and then to a special evening out with mom and dad. He got to chose what he wanted for dinner so off to pizza (of course) then to Funtasia for bumper cars, video games and go carts. We all had a great time!

He had his birthday party on Saturday at our local beach, Edmonds Marine Sanctuary and Park. We had a Beach Ranger/Naturalist come who played games with the kids and took them on a scavenger hunt of the marine sanctuary. The kids had so much fun exploring and finding all sorts of sea creatures (starfish, crabs, sea snails, etc) on the beach. They came back from their exploration for pizza, an ocean life craft and cake (the first birthday cake that I have made). Carter had a great time with all his buddies and the weather couldn't have been better!

Summer Baseball So Much Fun...

Tee ball for Carter was like candy for a baby... he only wanted more. We were able to get him on a coach pitch team at our YMCA even though he was under the age limit. He started practices in June and has been loving every minute. His games are Monday evenings and just down the way in Shoreline. The field he plays at has a huge playground for the girls to play at while we watch him hit homers. Sometimes we take picnics for dinner and put a blanket out and enjoy the summer weather. We are so blessed to be in such a great town with such wonderful opportunities for our kids!

5th of July Fun

I spent the weekend of the 4th of July working so Brandon was on dad duty with the kids. And the brave soul he is he decided (with a little persuasion from Carter of course) to take all 3 kids to downtown Edmonds for the 4th of July Parade. They had a great time but pictures were not in the cards for that event.

But as both Brandon and I had the rainy 5th off we opted to head to Seattle to visit our old stomping grounds, the Science Center and Children's Museum. The Science Center's new exhibit was about the science behind the Circus and it was awesome. The kids got to dress up in circus costumes and play on stage and Carter even got to walk a real tight rope. After lunch in the Center House we headed downstairs to the Children's museum for art, stories and tons of imaginative play. All 3 kids had a great day and daddy and Eleanor got to spend special time together in the baby area on the slide (Ella's favorite toy).

So comfortable on stage

Cool as a cucumber on the tight rope...he made it look so easy!

Baking and eating play cookies at the Children's Museum

Enjoying Our New Home

"Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace."

~1 Peter 4:9-10

We have been blessed with a much larger house and yard in an amazing neighborhood north of Seattle. Our ability to obtain this house was nothing short of God's amazing providence in our lives. So as God has provided for us we are called to provide for others. With our new found space we are called to be more hospitable to our friends, family and neighbors. We are now able to host more Bible Study's, Mom's Groups and play dates. Some of the pictures below are of the kids enjoying their new space with friends and family. We are looking forward to more visitors soon! :)

Dress up fun with the Pak's

Cuddle time with Bampa

Slumber Party with the Payne's

Low Tide at the Beach

I finally found the connector cord that goes from the camera to the computer and was surprised to find I had pictures on the camera from as far back as May. I usually upload pics monthly but in the chaos of the move I am obviously slacking a bit. But there were so many fun adventures we have had so I will try and share some of them over the next week. These pics are from a picnic Auntie Kiki and I took the kids on to Discovery Park Beach on a really low tide day. We all had so much fun. The kids found hermit crabs, starfish and jelly fish. It was such a great day to explore all of the ocean life God has created for us to enjoy and care for.

Blog Article for the Young Mother

As you know I occassionally post articles that I find informative and helpful in my season of life and this article is one of them. I post them on our blog not because I think that my friends and family need the information but that I need to be thoroughly reminded everytime I look at our blog. When I read this article I felt very convicted about where my priorities are and need to be. Some of the other young mothers in the crowd may find it helpful too!
http://www.9marks.org/ejournal/young-mother-ministry-guilt-and-seasons-life
Hope everyone is enjoying summer! I will have some family posts up soon as we continue to unpack from our recent move and I am able to find the cable that connects my camera to my computer!