Four Fast Years

Nikolas turned four years old on Saturday!

We had family over to celebrate and naturally we had a train party, for the second year in a row. This particular train party had a little twist to it, however. Sometime last year Nikolas became a fan of a little train called, "Lady". Lady is a girl train....and pink. Didn't matter to this tree climbing, bike riding, tough little boy. Oh no, for the last few months I have been reminded over and over again that he wanted a "Lady party". Not a Thomas party, or a James party or even a Percy party. A Lady party.
Well, I wasn't about to decorate the place in pink, I don't even have a speck of pink in my house. (Except for my Nalgene & Camelback bottles and that is only a ploy so Tone' doesn't steal them:) ((It doesn't work, by the way)) So I decorated in red and blue except for a pink Lady window painting I did on the sliding glass door. I had decorated and baked the cake the day before but I hadn't frosted the cake yet. Normally, if you have followed my blog for the last couple years, you may have noticed I like to create 3D cakes. This year, I wanted to make my friend, Emily's, delicious chocolate cake recipe, which was too moist to create into 3D. So I just made a 9X13 cake and had planned on frosting it in the morning. Nikolas came out in the morning, looked for his cake, didn't see it, came to find me with his little shoulders sagging and his head down and said, "I guess I'm not having a Lady party after all:(" It was so sad! So I got busy frosting and ended up with this:

It was delicious!!! I'll never use boxed cake mix again! (Well, except for cake mix cookies, that is entirely different:)

He had to have the face part of the cake. Right out of the middle.

It was such a perfect day on his birthday that we were able to go outside to play with all his new toys, like the golf clubs! Watch out!

Then he showed us how high he can climb in our neighbors tree.

I think this boy had a wonderful fourth birthday. I can't even believe how fast the last four years have gone. I don't even want to think about another four going that fast as that would make him EIGHT! Oh my. Nope, don't want to think about it.

Over The River And Through The Woods.....

to Grandmother's (and Grandfather's) cabin we go!
The boys and I went to the cabin for a couple days while my dad and Sue were staying there last week. It was the perfect weather that first day: bright and sunny, warm, with very little wind. From the moment the boys jumped out of the car they wanted to be outside enjoying every minute we had. The biggest draw at the cabin is the dock that jets out into a little cove in the lake. Lukas and Nikolas ran for the dock to check out all the geese who were loitering around waiting for their daily rationing of bread. Those two little boys were loud enough that they scared all those big ol' honking geese away! Scaredy cats! er...geese.

Lukey with Grandma Graham

Lukas found a big pile of rocks and he soon discovered that rocks make a really cool "plop" sound when dropped in the lake. He kept trying to fit all the rocks through this little hole, some fit...some didn't. It didn't matter what the size of the rock was, he had to try it.

If it didn't pass the test, over the side of the dock it went.

In fact, in this lower picture, Lukey is standing in the exact same place that Sue was standing when she decided to take a little jump into the lake, only, she hadn't meant to! (I'm so sorry Sue, but it is too funny not to share!" So as the story goes; Sue was out on the dock in the same place as Luke is in the above picture, only she was facing the opposite direction. She went to lean against the railing, only, their was no railing in that particular spot of the dock. So she just kept going and kersplashed right into the freezing cold water! This water is so cold as it is glacier melt from Mt. Adams. I don't even swim in it in the summer, brrrr! Of course, the cold wasn't the worst part, oh no! The worst part was sinking into the muck and mud at the bottom of the lake as the part she fell in at was only about three feet deep. She came up with mud EVERYWHERE!!! Oh, I can't even imagine:0 We just won't even talk about what else made up that mud:{ Eeeewwwww....

Nikolas spent most of his time outside swinging on this tire swing. I mean, really, what more could a boy want than rocks, water, tire swings and a forest to tromp around in? Well, besides chocolate, naturally.


Grandpa took everyone for a little boat ride as well, and thankfully, no one fell in:) He took us over to the other side of the lake where there is a really fun rope swing. I had to take a few swings on it, which always puts a smile on my face! You climb up a ladder attached to a tree and swing out over the lake and back again. Super fun:) I can't help but scream every time. In fact, I do the same thing when I fall off a rock face....scream like a girl....but I am a girl, so it's okay. I'm looking forward to more cabin visits now that the weather is turning more summer like, that is, it was, certainly not the case this week.

Faster Than A Shooting Star!

Funny conversation between Nikolas and another little boy while they were riding bikes at the park:

Nik: Is that a fast bike?

Boy: Yeah, it's really fast. It's faster than a shooting star! But I never use that mode.
And I don't ever show anyone either.

HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!! Tone' and I started laughing hysterically when we heard that! How do kids come up with these things?!!! Hooboy, too funny.

My Little "Dirt" Biker

Nikolas has become quite the proficient bike rider over the last month, being able to stop and start on his own, slow down, make sharp turns and so on. I've been wanting to take him somewhere else to ride his bike other than our little dead end street, so with the weather so nice we headed for Happy Valley Park. I put Lukas in the stroller and Nikolas hopped on his bike and we headed for the board walk. The board walk is a really cool path through trees, marshland and fields and as I found out, not quite wide enough for two full size strollers to pass each other. Nikolas did surprisingly amazing going straight, slowing down for corners and for other people and not getting too far ahead of me. People commented to me as they walked past at how amazing it is that he doesn't have training wheels, to which I usually agree. It is quite amazing, actually. I only know of one other 3 year old who learned to ride a bike at 3 and that is my friend, Shawna's son. So when we were nearly done with our ride and had only one last sharp corner to make before the home stretch to the paved path and grass, I commented to a runner who was passing Nikolas with a worried look, "Don't worry, he's done great the whole time and knows to slow down."

And then time slowed down; yes, now just picture this in your mind:
Tiny little boy riding a tiny little bike on a boardwalk 3 feet wide. Man runs past him causing him to swerve a little, little boy sees he needs to make a sharp turn onto the next path at the same time he sees a walker approaching from said path with a little yappy dog on a leash.
Tiny little boy makes the turn......and forgets? to straighten his front wheel sending him right off the edge of the boardwalk and three feet down causing him to fly over his handlebars and do a face plant into the very squishy, thick and wet mud below. :0

Now picture this:
Mama half screams, half laughs as she starts running/pushing stroller towards screaming mud covered little boy. Mama pulls little boy out of the mud while laughing and trying to calm mud boy down at the same time. Muddy boy has ooey gooey mud dripping off his eyelashes, in his hair and ears, up his nose and all over his favorite soccer shorts. Worst of all, to little boy, is that his very favorite "fire" bike is also covered in thick gooey mud.

Thankfully, the runner who I had made the comment about Nik being quite safe came running back and pulled the bike out of the muck. He looked quite helpless just standing there, like he really wanted to do something more, but eventually saw that I was not as distraught as most mothers probably would have been.

After I wiped the mud off Nik's face as best I could I plopped him on top of the stroller, stuck the bike's front wheel in the stroller basket and headed for the car. Upon gaining composure Nikolas said to me," Mama, that was a very nice man. He pulled my fire bike out of the mud. I need to find that man and tell him, "Thank you." I love that nice man. "

Aaaawwwwwww, I think that was the sweetest thing I have ever heard my boy say:) I sure wish I had seen that man again, cause I bet that comment would have made his day!

Let's Head To The Park!

The boys and I were happily surprised when Tone' called Friday afternoon to say that he was headed home for the weekend. With the sun expected to shine all day on Saturday we decided to hit Happy Valley Park (my favorite!) and have some good old fashioned fun. We were only there for a couple hours, but we packed it well with all the park has to offer.

We hit the playground first, and naturally, Nikolas has to push the limits on everything he does. (Somewhat similar to his mother....)
Instead of using the stairs or a ladder, he gets up the play structure by climbing up the supporting beams and such. I've stopped worrying. I mean, really, I taught him to rock climb on real rock when he was 2 years old, so what can I expect.

Look at what a big boy Nikolas is becoming!!! He was standing next to the teeter totter and another boy came up who was a couple years older and so they both got on. Nik was ecstatic:)


Next we headed for the creek that runs through the park. Since we don't live on a farm like I would love, this is the next best thing. The boys had a blast jumping in the water, throwing rocks, climbing on logs and showing us everything else they can do. Nik isn't too fond of slimy rocks, however.



After quite a while at the creek we put wet Lukas into the stroller and Nik hopped on his bike and we took a walk/ride through the park. After the bike ride, Tone' and I lounged around the beach volleyball sand pit while Lukey played in the sand and Nikolas climbed a little tree. In his underwear. I know, I know, my kids are always half dressed, but there was a really good reason! Their shorts were wet from the creek and I didn't want them caked with sand and get sand all over the car, now that's a good reason, isn't it?

There is nothing this little monkey can't climb. My dreams of having a climbing prodigy for a child is coming true! (insert gleeful giggle!)

Lukas discovered a great place to build a sand pile:)
He snuck up on Tone' while Tone' had his eyes shut.

There was definitely a mischievous sound that escaped that little boy's mouth while he was running to refill his bucket. We've decided: Lukey is a little stinker. But he's soooooo CUTE!

Seeing as the boys were filthy and we were only a mile from Grandma and Grandpa Grahams house we went over there and gave those boys baths. You should have seen the bath water after they were done, ewwww. Then we piled them into the car and headed home and not to our surprise they both fell asleep within two minutes of leaving.

This glorious day was a nice glimpse at what is to come in the next month as winter is leaving and spring is arriving. I've already been wearing flip flops and going barefoot.
Come on summer!

First Beach Trip of the Year!

A couple weeks ago, the boys and I headed for the beach at the invitation of my brother and his family, (Thanks John!) . We stayed with them overnight in their hotel in Depot Bay and had fun playing at the beach, swimming and hanging out. The weather was beautiful and even warm , especially considering it was early March!

Running from the waves!

It's so nice to have someone to hang on in times of trouble,
especially when that someone is Uncle John

Flying like a birdie

Abby helping Luke and Nik dig for treasures

We stood and just watched the waves crashing against these rocks for quite some time.
So powerful!

Nik had fun dropping off the "cliff" over and over

Morgan keeping little Lukey warm and away from the dreaded waves.
(Apparently he still remembers last year when he was swept off his little feet and rolled a few times by those mean ol' waves:( Where was his mama??!)

Swimming fun!

Lukey was having a ball wrestling Uncle John. Uncle John was having fun as well, until Luke decided to STOMP on John's eye!
Luke: 1 Uncle John: 0

On the way home I decided to make one last stop at the beach. It was great for about 60 seconds, then: sand in the eye happened and there was large amounts of screaming to be heard.

Sand in the eye aside, I hope to make it to the beach again soon! It is simply relaxing and beautiful there and I love that the boys can just run and run and run......and then sleep. :)

Single Mom Again

Tone' just headed north to work in Linwood, Washington (just north of Seattle) for 8 months. He has only been gone for 2 weeks and I'm already done.

Done being a single mom and not having any help in the evenings.

Done repeating to my boys, "No, Daddy's not coming home tonight. __ more days." That is, if he is able to come home on the weekends, which is not going to be the case this weekend.

Done having to drag my boys to the grocery store and coupon at the same time.

Done getting into a cold bed and not having any one to stick my cold feet on.

And that is only the beginning. I realize there are many women, and men, who are single parents all the time, and my heart goes out to them. It stinks!

In spite of the negative tone I am portraying, I'm dealing with it, actually, just fine. Then again, he's only been gone 2 weeks.

Only 7 months, 2 weeks more to go.

My Olympic Experience

Two weeks ago I joined a hundred others in Vancouver, B.C. for the Olympic Games.
Only, I didn't actually see a single Olympic event. I did see the Olympic Cauldron though! It wasn't as impressive as I would have expected it to be.

Instead of being a spectator I spent the week doing street evangelism! Something that I have never done before and never thought I would do. The ministry, Answers In Genesis, has been taking groups of volunteers to the last 5 Olympics to share the Word of God with the world. I have always been really interested in learning about all the evidences for a young earth and how believing in evolution undermines the authority of the Word of God, so when I heard that Answers in Genesis was going to be doing creation evangelism at the Olympics which were being held only hours from where I live then I knew that this was something I needed to look into. I felt the Lord was leading me there for sure when my sister called and asked me if I was going and that she would watch my children while I was gone! I sure wasn't going to pass that offer up!

I had never thought that street evangelism really worked. My preferred way to share the gospel with people is through building long term relationships and also through acts of service, like building houses in Mexico or sending gifts to children in third world countries where they are then given the gospel. Passing out tracts and talking to perfect strangers on the street? Not so much.

(one of the girls on the team)

After the first day, I was still feeling completely out of my comfort zone. Some people were great at passing out tracts. Me, not so much. I envisioned myself on the receiving end and always being skeptical about what someone is giving me. Instead, I went with what I'm good at and that is approaching perfect strangers and starting up a conversation. It was still a stretch for me to just walk up to someone and start a theological conversation from the get go, but I did. I had some really great conversations with people throughout the week and I was amazed at how many people were interested in talking about Jesus, the Bible and Creation versus evolution.

Throughout the rest of the week I tagged along with a father/son team who had spent 8 months handing out tracts and Bibles in Russia! They encouraged me to not worry about wondering what people would think when I handed them a tract, and to not just start a conversation debating the evidence for a young earth versus old earth but to complete the conversation by sharing the good news of our salvation in Jesus Christ. (Don't worry, I wasn't hammering anything down anyone's throats, most everyone was interested in the conversation, and the VERY FEW who weren't just said so at the beginning and we went our separate ways.)

There were so many positive things that came out of this trip:

1) 7 people accepted Jesus as their personal Lord and Saviour!!! That alone made the time, money, effort and sacrifice of going well worth it.

2) 92,000 Bible tracts were passed out with hundreds of meaningful conversations interspersed amidst the passing. In fact, a week after leaving we heard from a French speaking man, (we had French tracts as well) and a 14 year old Canadian boy who had read the tracts and committed their lives to Christ! How Awesome!

3) I learned that there are not only many different ways to share our faith but within each of those ways, such as passing out Bible tracts, there are many different ways to do it as well. That one was a really cool lesson I learned.

4) I met so many wonderful people and developed some instant friendships which I hope to retain for years to come.



5) Most of the people I talked to that were part of our group had either homeschooled their kids, were homeschooling their kids or were being/ had been homeschooled which gave me an opportunity to pick their brains on the ins and outs of homeschooling which is what I would like to do for my children. I was constantly floored by the knowledge of the Bible these people and kids had and for the excitement they had for sharing the Gospel. Inspiring, to say the least.

6) Free publicity! While passing out tracts, two girls from our group were approached by a reporter for the cities main paper, The Vancouver Sun. He wrote a full page article along with their pictures which showed our team sweatshirts emblazoned with the words "answersingenesis.org" on the front. The article was ALL POSITIVE and clearly talked about our purpose for being there in order to share the good news of salvation found only in Jesus Christ. You can read the whole article here, check it out! And while walking the streets passing out tracts one team member reported having someone turn a tract down only to walk back and ask for one saying they heard about them on television! We found out later that a different team member had a brief conversation with a camera crew who then filmed the booklet we were distributing up close. Crazy!


The last day we were kind of worn out so a bunch of us decided to go to the aquarium at Stanley Park. I didn't expect to be handing out tracts or talking to anyone but while standing at the first aquarium we came to and being amazed at a particular fish that was scooping up mouthfuls of sand and filtering it out through its gills, one of the volunteers came over to talk about it. Mike, the father of the father/son team, said, "Isn't it amazing how God has designed this fish to do that?" The young lady agreed, then went on to talk about evolution. So that opened it up to more conversation and ended with Mike sharing the gospel and me sharing with her about the AIG website found in the booklets. It was fun talking to her!

I'm coming away from this trip excited with what I have learned and praying that it will be a catalyst for even greater opportunities to share my faith.

And a HUGE thank you to all who supported me financially and to my sister, Kellie, for watching two rambunctious little boys during the week. You all had a part in bringing people to know the Lord!