Sixteen Years in a Flash

My heart can’t seem to wrap around sixteen years with this incredible guy.

Isaiah, you came to us with passion and joy and energy. You taught us to love big, and you showed us more of our great big God.

And through sixteen years of highs and lows and everything in between, you keep growing to be more like Him.

I’m so grateful I get to witness it all.

Keep looking to Him.

Keep bringing Him glory through music & running & friendships & podcasts & so many other things God has gifted you in.

I love you always!

Happy 16th Birthday, Isaiah!

Beautiful 14th Birthday

Happy 14th Birthday, beautiful Annabella! So grateful for you, your quiet strength, & your breathtaking heart. You bring so much joy to our days! Love you! ❤️

Keep smiling & being kind & looking to Jesus. Keep being the sweetest friend, the amazing sister, & the loving young lady that you are.

Happy Birthday! Love you so!

Twelve Years Old Today

A dozen years with you has been a gift.

This last year has proved like none other how God can wrap courage and beauty in a bundle and place it in one’s arms.

And sometimes (maybe often times) that quiet bravery & strong faith come from ways no one would ever hope for. And yet, the lasting scars are breathtaking.

That’s been your story, especially these last few months.

The traumatic fall at your state gymnastics competition was heart-wrenching.

And yet you continue to fight for the full use of your arm again and smile through the many appointments and trust in a God who is so good & faithful & loving. So beautiful.

We love you, Ariya Faith!

And we’re honored to celebrate you.

Happy 12th Birthday!

Beautiful Seventeen

This girl’s heart. It’s full of compassion and joy and beauty. And it shines right out, lighting up the lives of all who are near.

For seventeen years.

Oh, sweet Kayla, thank you for displaying Christ’s goodness and love and hope from the moment you were born until now.

You are a good friend. An amazing coach. A precious role model. A caring sister. A lovely gift.

You are loved by many.

Keep spreading that hope and love and joy.

Happy 17th Birthday, Kayla!

We love you!

15 Things I Love About This Guy

Fifteen years. A blink. A lifetime. So many amazing memories.

On your fifteenth birthday, Isaiah, here are 15 THINGS I LOVE ABOUT YOU:

1. Your passion!

2. Your heart for God & His ways!

3. Your loyalty!

4. Your dedication in sports (cross county, basketball, & track this year)!

5. How you cheer others on!

6. Your enjoyment of music!

7. How you talk & laugh with your sisters!

8. How you love on the little love that’s joined our family for a bit!

9. What a good friend you are!

10. How you enjoy stories!

11. How you make others smile!

12. The way you look out for others!

13. The respect you have for the men in your life who love God!

14. Your helpfulness when it matters most!

15. How you are one of my favorite people to be with!

Happy 15th Birthday, Isaiah!

Love you so! ❤️

Growing Up Is Breathtaking!

It’s been a few weeks since these lovely daughters stepped into adulthood and then, a couple days later, spent a week in the beauty of Ireland.

And I’m still trying to find the words.

With every picture sent – the cliffs and castles, grandeur and splendor – it was like a whisper to not forget the magnificence of it all. For more breathtaking than the scenery surrounding them, was the way these two spent a childhood capturing our hearts with their lives.

From preterm babes to toddlers in pigtails, toothless smiles and toting around little siblings. From sounding out words to taking the ACTs, caring for children, leading Bible studies, and serving on a mission team.

And then, from across the sea, they sent messages knowing that it would help this mama’s heart beat more peacefully.

I saw them cherishing time with grandparents and laughing at all the windblown hair. I heard of them loving on Irish cousins, navigating down narrow roads, tasting new flavors of candy, and trying to find just the perfect wi-fi spot in the cottage to hopefully communicate with their younger siblings.

I marveled at it all and wondered… Why had these first-borns of ours growing up been something I have for so long been dreading?

And now I know in my heart it’s not something to dread.

For it feels like the most right, breathtaking thing – kids growing up for His glory.

Happy 18th Birthday, Alyssa & Elliana!

We love you dearly!

The Last First Days

Just like that, the last first days of homeschooling as we know it have come and gone.

With our oldest two being highschool seniors this year, it seems like we are in for a lot of lasts… and firsts.

And I’m over here loving these amazing kids God blessed us with.

And soaking it all in.

2022-2023 First Days of School Pictures

ARIYA – sixth grade! 🥰

ANNABELLA – seventh grade! ❤️

ISAIAH – ninth grade!!! 😎

KAYLA – eleventh grade! 😍

ELLIANA – twelfth grade!! 😭❤️😊

ALYSSA – twelfth grade!! 😭❤️😄

Oh, I love these kids! And I think we’re in for a breathtaking “last” year.

Happy First Days (Weeks)!

First days throughout the years! ❤️

13th Birthday for Beautiful Bella

It’s been thirteen years with this lovely girl.

And our lives only grow more beautiful with her in it.

Oh, Annabella Love, how have thirteen years already passed? Wasn’t it just yesterday you toddled at our feet and looked up at us with chubby cheeks and adoring bright eyes?

Now here you are having so gracefully stepped into the teenage years.

Somehow I think you leaped even deeper into our hearts.

I could hear it in the words of gratefulness and blessing our family prayed over you this evening – FRIEND, JOY, LOVE, BRAVE, KIND, SWEET, SMILE, LAUGH, TOGETHER, TIME, MENTOR, CARING, SPECIAL, TALENTED, SINGER, BEAUTIFUL, HEART FOR GOD…

Bella, I hope you never forget that you are loved – always.

From the little ones you help care for, to the girls who look up to you at gymnastics, to friends at church, to each of your siblings, to all of us around you – you bring light & love to our days.

Keep that big, beautiful heart for God. He’s already using it to do amazing things.

Happy 13th Birthday, Bella!

You are loved! ❤️

Eleven Incredible Years

It’s been quite an incredible year for this beauty.

A move. New friends to adore. Hours of dedication and perseverance. Winning a gymnastics state championship. So many inches grown, books read, acts of love poured out. A heart that keeps shining for Jesus. So much fun & laughter & sweet talks & joy.

And yesterday we got to celebrate this girl.

Eleven years.

I don’t know how eleven years could have passed since this beauty first stole our hearts that morning after our anniversary. But here we are. It’s this heart-wrenching, beautifully breathtaking experience getting to be the one with a front row seat to watching these kids grow up into amazing people. Would time just slow down a bit!?

Oh, Ariya Faith, this past year I learned of a new meaning for your name – “a ray of hope,” & that’s what you’ve been & continue to be every day of your eleven years – a ray of hope, shining God’s hope & joy to the world around you!

Keep shining for Jesus.

Keep spreading His hope to the world.

Keep smiling and giggling and laughing until your gut hurts.

You are amazing. And we love you!

Happy 11th Birthday!

Sweet Sixteen For This Lovely Lady

This lovely girl.

Yesterday she turned 16.

And it has been a breathtaking sixteen years.

Her heart is set on God. She is kind and fun, strong and loving, a favorite of many. She is an inspiring gymnastics coach, a loyal friend, and a trustworthy sister. She is quick to forgive, full of love and compassion. And she shines joy to all around her.

Even when disappointments come (like a giant storm that blew through on her birthday), her heart keeps turning to God. And there she finds hope and joy which she brings to the world around her.

Kayla, I’m so grateful for your friendship and love.

Keep seeking Christ and His heart.

Keep loving those around you in big and small ways.

Keep using your creativity and passion and amazing heart to bless the world around you.

HAPPY 16TH BIRTHDAY, BEAUTIFUL KAYLA! You are so very loved!