Spiritual Truths from the Three Little Pigs

this post is more for my benefit...the funny little conversations you have with your kids are priceless and if i don't record them somewhere, i know i will never remember in years to come! the other day, ben david and i were playing blocks together. he actually, brought up the idea of having a "good foundation"...
ben david: "mommy, you know we should make sure we have a good foundation before we start building."
me: (thinking...wow...what a teachable moment!!) "you are right ben david!! that reminds me of the story of the wise man who built his house upon the rock. do you remember that story??"
ben david: "yes!"
me: "it sure was important to have a strong foundation when the floods came wasn't it. how about the foolish man who built his house on the sand? do you remember what happened to him?"
ben david: "yes! (and with great gusto) they huffed, and they puffed....and the blew his house down...not by the hair of my chinny, chin, chin!!!"

and there you have it. matthew 7 meets the three little pigs.
when you think about it, those three little pigs did indeed have a lot in common with the wise and the foolish man. i can see how the stories could get mixed up in a little almost 4yo's mind. in fact...this might even be good sermon material.
until our next "teachable" moment...

Just One More Sled Ride...PLEASE!!!

so, this picture was just too cute not to post!

let me preface by saying that in addition to our fun sledding adventure at the wrays last weekend, the boys also had a great time sledding with their anderson cousins!

today, ben and evan had an impromtu playdate with all the peeps...and this pic was captured!

apparently, james and annascott took it upon themselves to get this sled out of the garage and bring it to the dads, requesting just one more sled ride!!

these two are both quite independent little ones and the fact that they are exhibiting "teamwork" here is impressive!!

now, if we could just get them a little snow:)

Winter the "Wright Wray"

with the snow and ice came some fun adventures at mamie and deuces! there was much fun to be had with our wray cousins, and as with most things involving ben and dan...this too was creative, exciting...and a bit crazy! but DEFINITELY VERY FUN and VERY DIFFERENT!!! i mean, who else out there can say they got pulled behind a tractor in the snow that weekend??? like amy said...this is redneck sledding at it's best! and special thanks to amy for these pics!!

sweet giggles

Caroline at six months!

Good Morning, Sunshine!

caroline has taken to "greeting" me each morning by peeking over the edge of her bumper! what a sweet smile to be met with everyday.

A few days ago, my most thoughtful husband surprised me with a NEW CAMERA!!

i am now the proud owner of a nikon D40. while by no means a professional photographer, i sure am excited about capturing some of our family moments with this fantastic gift.

here are just a few of my first shots...the pics are clearly those of a beginner, but how about that cute little subject of mine:)

Hitting the Big 3-0!!!

this year, it was my quest to accomplish the impossible...plan a surprise party for my husband on his thirtieth birthday!! ben is quite difficult to surprise or pull anything over on, and so after months (and i mean months) of detailed planning, i am proud to say that we (that being my entire family: both sets of parents, annaliese and evan, amy and dan, and many sweet friends) were most successful!! not even the icy storm could prevent this exciting event from happening!

many thanks to my sister and brother in law (annaliese and evan) for hosting this evening! there was great food, great games (thanks to amy), great toasts (thanks to dan and micah...and i even jumped in on that:), and most of all...wonderful fellowship with some of our dearest friends.

HAPPY 30TH BIRTHDAY, HONEY!!!

our great friends!

the moment of surprise:)

sweet prayer by dad
yummy food:)