An Invitation

In case you haven't heard, I'm blogging elsewhere for the Christmas season. Please join me as I share our Advent celebrations!

Simply Radical Christmas

Too Many Random Bits to Title

There has been so much going on in Bangsund-Land. We started our homeschool year two weeks ago on August 30th. It has been so much fun! Luke is doing kindergarten this year, and he LOVES it. Paul is sorting, stacking, coloring, cutting, pasting, playing, and doing his best to listen in on everything Luke is learning. I started slowly, so as not to overwhelm my students or myself. Our first week we just did Bible, Science, History, and Read-Aloud (Literature). Then we added Math! This week we have added Handwriting, but I am moving very slowly here. I think I burned Luke out (at four years old!) on writing because I pushed too hard last year. Tough lessons for the homeschooling mom, but necessary. This year will be different. We are playing with the wooden pieces and doing pencil pick ups that are super fun. We are going to make Mat Man tomorrow. :-)

In other news, the remodel is progressing beautifully. We have paint on the walls and lush, new carpet on the floor. The room is completely unrecognizable! I'm so pleased. We have already enjoyed lots of great family time down there. The boys are enjoying the complete lack of furniture as evidenced in the video below. I love having another space in our home that is welcoming and comfortable. We are hosting the BSF Young Adult Prayer Group down there tomorrow night. I can't wait!

Okay...here are some random pictures and a video!

Puzzle time! Very popular at our house.

Sorry about the quality of this photo...I had the camera on the wrong setting. Bummer. I couldn't leave this out, though! This was our first field trip. We visited the Northeast Emergency Food Pantry where our friend Howard works. We had already collected food at Paul's birthday party. Howard weighed our donation (47 pounds) and allowed the boys to put it on the shelves in the proper spots. Totally sweet field trip!

Reading history on the couch. So far we've done dinosaurs, early peoples, Ancient Egypt and today we started Ancient Greece. The pyramids and mummies are still everyone's favorites. Not sure that anything can top that.

Our awesome electrician in the "Nowhere Near Finished Basement." Please note the ugly carpet, wood-paneled walls, popcorn ceiling, bare bulbs, and mess. (Like you could miss them.)

Getting closer! We scraped those ceilings and removed that carpet ourselves. No need to use that eliptical on those days!

And now for the video that shows the "Much Closer To Being Finished Basement." Enjoy!

Unexpected Blessings

I've recently received a huge blessing from an unexpected source. Our church, Mosaic, has a partnership with Shepherd's Door, a women's shelter that operates as an arm of the Portland Rescue Mission. Once a month a team from Mosaic runs evening activities for the women and children who are a part of this community. A few months ago, Mosaic made an announcement that they were looking for folks willing to run a shuttle service so women from Shepherd's Door could attend a gathering. We live three minutes from this amazing facility. It wasn't hard to hear the Holy Spirit. I didn't even want to make excuses. I just wanted to obey, knowing that when I obey the Lord, He blesses me in ways that I would miss otherwise. So I signed up. That was in June. Nothing happened. I went to a meeting of other Mosaic folks who are part of the team that ministers at Shepherd's Door once a month. We talked logistics of the shuttle service, and a sign up sheet was created and placed where the women could see it. Still nothing happened. Isn't waiting weird. There were some Sundays when I was sincerely grateful that nobody signed up and others when I just felt bummed. Then last week, I got the call saying there were two women who had signed up and would be ready for pick-up at 8:45am. I buzzed down the road, excited and a little nervous, not quite sure what to expect.
I struggle to put words to this next part of the story because it was so amazing and beautiful. These two ladies, recently homeless and recovering addicts, got into my car and as we drove toward church, one of them began to share a little bit of her story. To God be the glory - He has done great things to bring her through the darkest places humanity offers into His grace through the love of Jesus Christ. I was seriously crying tears of amazement and joy at her story. Did I mention I had known this woman for less than ten minutes? She didn't care and neither did I. Her joy is in her Redeemer and the healing that only He had given her. My joy is in seeing the reality of Jesus Christ in a broken life. It gets more amazing.
We arrived, found seats and worship started. There is something more meaningful about the song lyrics, Our God saves when you are standing next to someone who has experience the worst of life and been rescued by the One True God. All the truths about the God I worship were even more real as I sang His praises with these two women. Tears ran down my face and I was reminded of God's goodness toward me and all others who will humble themselves and turn toward Him. Wanna hear the best part? They came again today. And we sang and praised and cried. We listened to the Word and were edified. I'm getting more out of church because I'm putting more into it. Have you ever heard that before? I had. I am so thankful for the reminder.
After the gathering was over, a friend who is on staff at Mosaic came up and thanked me for bringing the ladies. I smiled and told her what a huge blessing it is for me to do so. And I'm NOT just saying that. It's true. When I give my life (my time, my money, my energy) away for Jesus Christ, I never come back empty handed. He's just like that.

Stuff

Since starting the remodel, about three weeks ago, our treadmill and eliptical have been unavailable for use. I kept thinking I would just stay active by taking the boys on walks or bike rides. Not so much. So when my friend Kim offered me a new workout video I jumped at the chance. Something new and I can use my computer to exercise during nap time in the playroom. Easy. Right? Wrong. Have you ever heard of Jillian Michaels? The term "shred" should have tipped me off. Today was just day 2 and I'm pretty sure I won't be able to walk tomorrow. Same workout as yesterday, just harder because all those muscles were already tired. Did I mention that she's mean?!? Well, she is. The first day I did the workout, Luke was in the room because he was skipping nap. He kept saying, "Why won't she let you rest, Mommy?" LOL! At one point he even said, "Can she see you, Mommy?" Oh dear.

Paul is waking up, so I'll just quickly post some more remodel pictures. I'll try to keep you informed about the house remodel and the "shred". I'm probably not committed enough to actually follow through with 30 days straight of Jillian yelling at me and making me kick my own butt. I need some sort of reward system...Hawaii...maybe just a scrapbook weekend with the girls...hmmm...

Pictures!

Erik uses the Saws-All on the couch. It came with the house, folks. And it will not be in our newly remodeled room. Bye bye, ugly couch.

The Audience for the Couch Sawing Event.

Say goodbye to the orange formica 1960's bar.

In other news, Paul got a harmonica for his birthday and Luke is being allowed to take pictures with our old digital camera. The results are pretty cute.

Luke took this picture of me and I like it. :-)

Eleven Years

Tomorrow Erik and I celebrate our 11th Anniversary. Tuesday evening we ran away from home to enjoy some time alone together at Dave and Lynne's place in Sunriver. It always takes me a few days to slow down. In fact, yesterday I was running coupon deals in Bend. Today I'm not going to do that. :-) I'm thinking that a bike ride to my favorite spot on the river and maybe even a picnic lunch are today's activities.

I am going to post some pictures of our remodel...because I have the time and energy. Besides, I don't have any pictures of us during this trip. I'm not the best at asking strangers to take our picture. Maybe tomorrow night when we go to dinner...

Anyway, here's the remodel.

The Daddy Man rips open the sheet rock in the stair well. This is after he and I removed a TON of fake wood paneling. Seriously. At one point we removed a section only to find another one beneath it. Why?

At the bottom of the stairs, the pocket door to the laundry room begins to take shape. In all my married years, I've NEVER had a door I could close to hide my laundry.

But now I do!! Luke calls this the dirty underwear door. So no one can see our dirty underwear.

This used to be a really ugly closet completely covered in fake wood paneling. You can also see the orange formica-topped bar. We named that room The Cantina, after the wild and crazy bar in the first Star Wars film. It used to have a single door that you opened and closed to get in. No door to the laundry room, but a door to get to the ugliest room ever conceived. I guess I can see the sense in that.

This is standing at the bottom of our basement stairs. My vision has been to create a space that is inviting, rather than scary and confusing. The five foot wide doorway is a HUGE improvement in my estimation. Next post will include pictures of No Bar and Sawed Couch.

God is Good!!

The garage sale went so well! Altogether over $600 was earned, with about 85% of that going to Holly. I'll add some pictures in order to convey the magnitude of the sale. I had decided to give our earnings to Erik, partly because the sale fell during his birthday weekend. Yes, he did manual labor on his birthday. I think he deserves a few extra bucks. :-)

The boy clothes bins. All sizes from birth to size 12.

The girl clothes bins. Again, all sizes from birth to size 12.

The hanging girl clothes. Seriously.

The hanging boy clothes.

In addition, our remodel is going beautifully. Erik and I have lots more demolition work to do this week and this coming weekend, part of which will involve emptying a very messy room and tearing apart a 1960's red/orange formica-topped bar. Good times. More pictures in the next post.

So Much Happening

To begin...Erik still has a job! Many know this because I posted it on facebook. My SINCERE apologies to blog followers who were left in the dark for so long. We are thankful to God for His provision and peace throughout the entire process.

And now for the news from Bangsundland this week. We are in the midst of the busiest, craziest week of our lives! We started a pretty major remodel project this past Saturday. It involves modernizing and updating our stairwell and about two-thirds of our basement. If you've been down there, you know the need! The family who lived here before was simply in LOVE with fake wood paneling. It's everywhere. To say nothing of the home made structural features installed by the man of the house, who worked as a police officer for the city for thirty years. Good cop. Bad builder. We have heard our contractor say multiple times, "Huh. That's interesting." This is code for, "That is simply the weirdest way they could have done that." We are so happy to have professionals doing an awesome job for us. They even let us save money by doing a lot of the demolition work! Erik is having a blast ripping things apart. I'm not sure it will be so fun when the time comes to scrape that 1970's popcorn textured sparkly ceiling. Any volunteers?

At the same time as all this, because apparently I need more excitement in my life, I'm hosting a garage sale this weekend. My good friend Holly needed to rid her life of some clutter and experience God's grace and freedom in that area of her life. My garage is going to be the BIGGEST SALE in town this weekend! Come on by! We have books, kids clothes, toys, more books, MORE kids clothes, and some killer knick knacks. :-) I'm so happy to be serving her in this way and I know that God is using me to bless her family. That is the best thing ever!

At this exact moment Dan, The Coolest Electrician Ever, is working hard to rewire our basement while my boys attempt to nap. I don't really care if they do because bedtime comes really early for boys who can't sleep during the day. Harder afternoon? Maybe. Worth it at 7pm when my children pass out. Completely.

Pictures? Um...how about some from the 4th of July! I'll have remodel pictures later...when my husband shows me where the cord for the new camera lives!

Paul shoots the fire hose at the annual block party.

Luke smiles for the camera while checking out the bunnies.

The Fiery Furnace

It's been awhile. I was actually fairly sick for about a month. Then the boys were sick. Luke actually had pneumonia. He's better now. Then Erik was sick. These are my excuses for not blogging. But the good news is I'm back and I actually have something meaningful and important to blog about!

A short preface: Erik and I are studying the book of Daniel together this summer. It's awesomely awesome. We have just finished up Chapter 3, with the famous story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace. I love reading things in the Bible that I think I already know. There was SO much to this passage that I had never realized before. Right before the king throws them into the furnace, these three men make an amazing statement. "If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and He will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if He does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." (Daniel 3:17,18)

About three weeks ago, Erik received an email announcing that on June 15th his company is going to layoff close to one third of the work force. How's that for a fiery furnace? I love the way God speaks through His Word. The God we serve is able to rescue us, but even if He does not, we won't serve false gods or worship other things. God can rescue us from unemployment. That is not the question. The questions are how will we live our lives as we wait and how will we respond if He does not. Will we serve the gods of this culture - worry, anger and fear? Or will we trust fully in our Almighty God? These men had confidence that their God would rescue them from the flames. Our confidence is also sure. We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him. (Romans 8:28) We would rather be obedient and in the center of His plan for our lives than disobedient and making our own way in the world.

Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. I stole that one. :-) But it's true. How can we glorify God as we wait? Trust Him. Love like Jesus loves. Serve others. It's the same stuff we do when we aren't in hard circumstances! Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, through prayer, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:6,7) I love these verses. Of course we are asking for this cup to pass, if it be God's will. Our Savior didn't desire to suffer the Cross, and He prayed in this way. (Matthew 26:39, 42) But Jesus chose to follow the Father's plan for His life all the way, giving up His life and opening the path to reconciliation with God for us. What a beautiful example! We do not know God's complete plan for our family, but we rejoice in this opportunity to grow in our faith and glorify our Lord Jesus Christ.

"I know what it is to be in need and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation (it's Jesus!), whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." (Phil 4:12,13)

We believe this! It doesn't matter where God puts us. We will be content. And we will seek to glorify Him.

Mommy is Sick

Oy. I'm sick. I've had a nagging cough and congestion for about a week. Tuesday afternoon I started to run a low-grade fever. Wednesday morning I couldn't go to Bible Study Fellowship because of said fever. Lynne came in the morning to entertain the troops, and my mom came after BSF to take over. My fever was not-so-low-grade this morning, so Erik took a sick day while I called my doctor. She asked me all the usual questions and then surprised me with a diagnosis for a deep sinus infection. The drainage is causing the cough. The infection is causing my dizziness, fever and feelings of exhaustion. I get to take antibiotics now. And rest.

Daddy is in charge. The boys spent the better part of three hours this morning watching Mr. Rogers DVDs. There are worse things they could be doing. One of the DVDs showed Mr. Rogers visiting a pretzel making factory. When Erik ran out the store for milk, yogurt and other essentials, he picked up some pretzels for the boys. He's so cool. Here's a picture of them sitting out back enjoying their treat. Did I mention that the weather is amazingly beautiful? It is. Here's a picture.

Boys and Pretzels

Who turned out the lights?

This morning around 7:30 am our power went off. I was actually in our room at the time, having a quiet moment of prayer when I heard this loud crashing noise and the lights went out. It sounded like a transformer blew, but as it turns out a car smashed into a power pole about 8 blocks from our house, taking out power for around 800 people in the process. We didn't realize this at the time, but we did realize that this was going to be a problem. Erik and I had been planning on retreating to the basement to work on a project he needed to finish for business while Grandma watched the boys upstairs. With no power, the internet no workie. And the basement is just a really dark place without lights. SO Grandma saved the day! She took the boys to OMSI while we went to Starbucks for free wi-fi, good coffee, and a well-lit work space. We finished Erik's document, a power point presentation that his manager needed in order to submit Erik's request for promotion. Afterward we grabbed amazing pizza, the kind your kids will never let you order. My slice had roasted broccoli, garlic, and hazelnuts with an alfredo sauce. Wow.

We arrived home at the same time as the boys and Grandma. Sadly, the power was still out. We put the boys down to naps all bundled up and called the power company. The recording apologized for the inconvenience and assured us power would be restored by 8:30 pm. I called our neighbors across the street, also without power, but with a gas oven and gas bbq. We have known Tim and Taryn for quite awhile. They were the ones who invited us to Mosaic for the first time, and we were so happy that we finally accepted the invite and joined them there. Anyway...they were delighted to have us over for dinner! Power was actually restored as we were leaving our house for theirs, but we decided to go anyway. We had so much fun. The boys played with their Corgi and enjoyed the legos, while we had grown-up time with other grown-ups. We even got to roast marshmallows and make s'mores outside after dinner. It was delightful. They even told us that we have nice kids. That's worth a power outage any day of the week.

Tomorrow we are headed to my mom's place for breakfast and the boys are going to spend the morning there while we escape for another, less work-oriented, date. Two in one weekend?!? Is that even legal?

In Like a Lion, Out Like a...Bear?

The boys have had a hard time adjusting back to "everyday" life now that we are home. It hasn't helped that we have had a full calendar each day. In retrospect, it's probably a better idea to clear the calendar for the first few days after vacation. Today was better than yesterday though, so I can only assume that tomorrow will be better than today.

Last week before we left for the beach, the boys discovered their Halloween costumes from this past fall. If you weren't aware, they completely failed to wear these costumes at any of the appropriate times in October, but decided to don them instead during March. Actually a few factors contributed to this event. First of all, a few weeks ago we were at a family's house for dinner and their five-year-old son wore a lion costume very similar to Luke's for part of the evening. The second factor involved some lovely puddle jumping and all Luke's laundry being in process as I prepared to pack his bag for the beach trip. He had no pants available. When he asked to wear his lion costume instead, I thought it was a fabulous solution. Paul immediately had to put on his Pooh costume. The results were undeniably adorable. Luke did actually ask to take his costume to the beach, but I thought that was just a little too much mane for that sandy environment. Laundry nightmare. So, to cheer myself and others, here are the pics!

"I'm a bear."

"RAWR"

Erik told Paul to hold Luke's hand...at first Paul couldn't find Luke's hand!

"I found it!"

Brothers don't shake hands. Brothers gotta hug!

More Beach pics

These are just a few of our beach shots. The weather varied from cold and windy to less cold and less windy. :-)

Ready for the beach!

Paul and one of his Pinnipeds

Red cheeks! It was chilly.

Paul is pointing out the ocean. He was pretty impressed.

Grandpa and Luke going for a beach walk on one of the prettier days we had.

Beach Trip

My sincere apologies to all three people who check the blog regularly for new posts. It has been such a busy season, but I am happy to bring you this post and promise another one soon. I was sharing with my husband that I feel like the blog has suffered because my camera is nearing its death; hence, picture taking is no longer fun, but rather arduous. No pictures means no blog. I have things I could write about without pictures, but I'm fairly certain the fans would protest. Plans for a new camera are under review. Stay tuned.

Regardless, we have been here at the beach for the last four days and it has been pretty fun. Our neighbors are partial owners of an amazing house in Rockaway Beach. This past fall they mentioned that we could use it sometime. We immediately asked when it was available and this has been the first time we have made it here as a family. It has been pretty fun, despite the lack of a proper "time-out chair." Seriously. Luke has really struggled with obedience in the new environment and while we tried using a regular chair facing the corner, he hasn't been able to make the adjustment. Poor guy! I was praying about it last night and just came to the point where I needed to thank God for my son even when he disobeys. I know Jesus feels the same way about us. Anyway...

The boys have enjoyed lots of time with the sand. We brought lots of diggers, dump trucks, shovels, and buckets. The Daddy-Man has taught them how to dig deep holes that fill with water. Paul has preferred the dry sand, but Luke has been willing to get a little wet. Yesterday he got a little too wet, falling over into about three inches of water. He recovered well and was willing to change into another set of clothes which had been previously soaked in order to stay at the beach longer. That's incredible! We need to stretch his comfort zone more often. :-)

We also drove up to Seaside to visit the aquarium, which isn't much, but the boys didn't care. They loved the touch tanks and the seals the most. The octopus was also a big hit. We bought them both a pack of little plastic pinnipeds - say that five times fast - and they have made them bath time buddies. My favorite is hearing Paul say pinniped. He's SO earnest because its a big word and he knows what it means. Adorable.

Dave and Lynne were able to come out for a few days and have been warmly greeted by all. I have enjoyed escaping during nap time for espresso, which I had to drive to Garibaldi to find, but that's another story. Erik has been able to share all the exciting news from work, updating them on his current project. The boys MUCH prefer their grandparents and can often be heard saying, "I want Grandma to do it." She's so popular. :-) I'm cool with that! Less work for me.

I can hear Luke singing the "Naked" song right now. I'd video it, but he only sings it when it applies and I just can't do that to him. I want him to take care of me when I'm old.

So here are the pics!

Our first day the wind was a little too much down on the beach, so we had play dough time instead!

The boys checking out the touch tanks at the aquarium.

Looking at the octopus!

Pinnipeds!

Full Lives

Our lives have been very full lately, but we have seen blessing upon blessing these past few weeks. Last weekend Erik and I were abundantly blessed to attend the Bible Study Fellowship Leaders Retreat. Over 2500 BSF leaders all gathered to hear from the BSF staff members about God's immeasurable goodness to this ministry, now in its 50th year. We were also amazed by the new Executive Director, Susie Rowan, and her overview of the book of Revelations. Wow. Lots to take in there. I came away with a clearer picture of the majesty and glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lion of Judah and the Lamb that was slain. Amazing and beautiful. I am also aware more and more that my life is not my own. I belong to Jesus. My hands. My feet. My mind. My time. My energy. My talents. All of it. I am filled with immeasurable joy at the thought of loving Jesus more and watching Him grow in me. The hymn for the weekend was "Crown Him with Many Crowns." Each time we met as a large group, five times in all, we enjoyed about twenty minutes of hymn singing, always ending with this one either before the Bible teaching or directly after. Some of my favorite lines are:

"Awake my soul and sing,

Of Him who died for thee,
And hail Him as thy matchless King,
Through all eternity"

I think it's my new favorite hymn. Singing praises with 2,500 people will do that. :-)

In other news, we are so thankful to Jesus for providing beautifully and perfectly for my mom's move. She's into her new place and is moving forward with an estate sale up north. There will probably be a few more trips to Puyallup, but we know that those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings as eagles, run and not grow weary, walk and not faint. We are living proof of this!!

The most recent excitement in our house involves Luke's bedroom. We have slowly been accumulating the pieces of his "big boy bed" and today was the day! Oma took both boys down to her place this morning, giving us time to rearrange Luke's room and assemble the bed. It's actually the same piece of furniture that we've owned since his birth, one of those cribs that converts. It's been really great for our boy who isn't all that keen on change. We bought new bedding for him, including Thomas the Tank Engine sheets and comforter. He was pretty impressed with the results. A few items had to be removed from his room, including his favorite chair and ottoman. Erik told him that Thomas was just too big and the pink chair wouldn't fit anymore. Luke looked at Thomas and said, "Okay!" The other funny thing that happened as Luke was first seeing his "new" room was that he asked, "Where's the bathroom?" I think his four year old brain was overloaded and he thought he was in a different house, and he had to go! His room did undergo a pretty radical transformation. Here are a few pictures.

That's pure delight on his face, in case you weren't sure.

Too happy to open his eyes. :-)

Daddy showing how bedtime reading will work now without the pink chair. Luke was pretty excited.

God Moves Mountains

It was a crazy, busy weekend here! Erik and I swapped places with my mom on Friday. She arrived to spend the weekend with the boys and we drove to her place in Puyallup to be the moving crew. It was absolutely awesome the way our brothers and sisters in Christ loved and supported us, providing everything including Teriyaki lunch, much needed organizational skills, outstanding spatial awareness, strong arms, strong backs and everything in between. We started work on Saturday at about 10:30am and the truck was finished by 2pm, including the lunch break! Thank you to Brice, Dan, Cathy, and Mark for being servants like Jesus.
Erik and I hit the road and headed south. We arrived home a little after 5pm to MUCH excitement regarding the 16 foot moving truck that Daddy backed into our driveway. We locked it up and let it rest for the evening, enjoying an early bedtime ourselves.
Sunday dawned bright and glorious with Pacific Northwest January beauty: solid cloud cover and steady rain. Our work force for the day was comprised of Chelsea, a former student, and her boyfriend, Eli. Long story about why that was it. But I just gave my concerns to the Lord and knew that He would get the glory. And He did! We all drove to Canby and after about two hours we were 85% done. Yes, it rained a lot, but it felt so good after carrying stuff up the stairs to my mom's new place. We enjoyed a fabulous, homemade lunch courtesy of a fellow BSF leader who lives in Canby. We released the kids to go home and relax. Another worker arrived, a man we had never met and I only know because he is the boyfriend of another BSFer. He and Erik finished the last bits off the truck and from the mini-van. And the moving part of the move was over! The best part was that Erik and I had huge smiles on our faces the entire time. We are so excited to have my mom closer, and her new place is so sweet. I'm beyond thankful to God for providing so beautifully for her and us. It's pretty amazing.
Before the pictures, another shout out to Grandma and Grandpa. We love you!
And a wave to Ellen. She's recovering from surgery and currently has a recliner that is stronger than she is...strength will rise as we wait on the Lord, friend. Be encouraged! :-)
And now...the pics.

Last week the boys decided the vacuum cleaner attachments were excellent firefighter equipment. Check out the pockets.

Luke helped Paul get his gear into his pockets. Paul was delighted!

Sunny Day!

The weather here is simply lovely. Luke skipped nap, after waking up this morning at 5:45 am. I decided our four walls were closing in, and the weather would more than permit us to be reacquainted with our backyard. The boys enjoyed the play structure first. Paul discovered something rather delightful. See picture below. Next came the riding toys, followed closely by the digging toys. I smell baths coming.
Before the pictures, a few shout outs. Greetings to Grandma and Grandpa in Hong Kong. We got your update and the boys think the noodles look good. Extra special greetings to Ellen Sabie, a faithful Bangsund Blog Follower. You are in our prayers. We love you so much and know that Jesus is holding you close.
And now, the pics...

"Bright!" He's a mole, like his daddy.

There's something different about this...

I can reach the top now! Such a big boy.

Yes, I posed this shot. I couldn't resist the cuteness.

Happy Brothers

Happy New Year!

I didn't make any resolutions this year, but I can't help noticing that my blogging has significantly decreased this past year. Perhaps 2010 will see me blogging more and doing less of something else. What should I give up to blog more? How about folding laundry?

We celebrated the coming of the new year with our good friends and their two adorable children. Sadly the only pictures we took are still on my mom's camera, which is no longer here. I can tell you that the children all enjoyed playing together and when the hour came to count down (7:42pm PST), the only one left in the room was the youngest two-year-old. The four year olds wanted NOTHING to do with this particular brand of crazy. My two-year-old had already melted and been put to bed. Oh well. Maybe next year. I think I need to sell it more. "Look kids! Sparkly juice and noise makers! Let's count backward from ten to zero and yell Happy New Year!" Wow. That is a goofy tradition.

Since I don't have pictures of New Years, I'll share more snow pictures. The evening of the last post, Erik, Luke and I were able to get out and really enjoy the snow. It only lasted through the next day, so I was really glad we went out even though it was Luke's bedtime. He slept pretty well once we did get him in and warmed up. The adventure ended when I made a snow angel for Luke, unwittingly dropping my camera from my coat pocket into the snow. I realized my error while removing layers in our entryway. My mom, who had watched the snow angel insanity, gave me the idea that I should go look there. Yep. Buried under about three inches of snow. It still works. I was kinda hoping I broke it because it is an ancient machine, nearing five years of age, that has been dropped, kicked, stepped on and in all other ways abused. Apparently it has a few more drops left in it. If you see my camera in the driveway, LEAVE IT! Something tells me my Volvo can get the job done right. Here are the pics!

Building some snow people!

Luke helps out by throwing snow all around.

Standing with partially finished snow people, holding snow. Very happy boy.

We went for a short walk down the street before going inside. Luke brought this snow along and ate it while we walked. Cute.