Busy Summer!

This summer has absolutely flown by. I can't believe that it is almost over.
For the month of July my niece and nephew came up to stay with us for three weeks. It was pretty crowded in our apartment with 5 kids 2 adults and a dog, but we made it work. The kids all had lots of fun.

We went swimming almost every day.

We took them all to a Pig Roast BBQ with all of our new Denver pals.

We got to take a great trip to the Denver Children's Museum with our awesome friends from Durango.

The kids got to go to VBS for a week .

Needless to say, this mommy/auntie was very worn out. It was great to see cousins building relationships and making memories. Now on to the school year!

Girls in the Wild!

Recently I joined a women's backpacking trip from our church. Last weekend we went out on our first trip, and I took Felicity and Caitlyn with me. It was an awesome way to spend some good times with my girls, while experiencing and exploring God's amazing creation.
We hiked in almost 2 miles on the Brookside McGurty trail, there it connected with the Colorado Trail. We camped one night, and then did some exploring the next day before packing out again.
It was a great introduction to backpacking for the girls. It was not to long, but defiantly a challenge. I absolutely love it that I am getting to instill a craving for adventure in my girls. I believe that God has put that sense in every girl, and He wants us to experience Him in the middle of it. I can't think of a better way to encounter Jesus than to emerge yourself in nature.
There is nothing quite like watching the sun rise over the Rockies, or seeing the majestic peaks point to heaven.
Yes, this is proof enough to me that there is an amazing creator of all things. What's is even more amazing is that He loves me, and of all the wonderful things He has made, he actually delights in me. It is a both humbling and overwhelming emotion for me to process.
What a privilege it is that I get to live in this beautiful place, and even more so that I get to share these wonderful experiences with my family!

My lil Cowgirls!

Today both Felicity and Caitlyn participated in their first horse show!

Over the past nine months they have been in horsemanship program here in Golden, Co that is called Westernaires. They specialize in mounted drill teams, but the first couple years are about horsemanship and just learning how to ride.

It has been an amazing opportunity for my girls, as we do not have the ability to own horses at this time. The program provides rental horses and instruction for any kids in our county who want to be a part of the program. It has been such a blessing to our family.

Both Felicity and Caitlyn have wanted to ride since they could first say pony. This has given them this wonderful opportunity.

Today they got to dress up in their best western duds and display all they have learned so far this year. They both did really well. Here are some more pics of the day.

Running Like Crazy!

This past Mother's Day Felicity and I participated in a 9k in Boulder,CO. It was a great way to celebrate the day and spend time with my most favorite people ever, Hubby and my kiddos.

I have not run since high school track. Which I might add I did for only one year and was no good at. I have never enjoyed running. I have always thought that it was too much work and people were semi-crazy to just do it for fun.

So you might ask what possessed me to do a 9 almost 10 k?(That is 6.2miles) I'm still kinda asking myself that question. However the results have been worth any temporary insanity that I may or may not have experienced.

I found out about it through Tami a wonderful new friend that we have made here. She and her husband Jeff lead our weekly life group up in Evergreen, CO.

She put out an invite to anyone who might want to do it with her. So me being a spontaneous girl, I said why not! I gave little thought to the fact that I would have 3 short weeks to go from sure I know what 9k stands for to participating in one. What training would look like or that my 11 year old would want to jump on the band wagon and do it with me.

I started jogging in the evenings and quickly remembered why I thought all those other people I saw running around in their spandex were mildly disturbed. I was now one of them. (Minus the spandex)

Over the few short weeks before the big day I thought I was going to die. No really. Especially after I went with Tami and some other wonderful ladies from our life group to run stairs at Red Rocks amphitheater. I had never been there before. So while most people think of it as a place to relax, enjoy some good music, and have a good time. I see it as a place where crazies go to torture themselves for fun. Again, yes I am now one of them. How did this happen? Still wondering. I know I am.

Even though every time I ran or did cross training I was in much discomfort, I began to slowly realize that I was doing it! I was running, and getting stronger and stronger. I was overcoming something that just weeks before I thought I could never accomplish.

I mentioned before that I had done high school track and had not done well in it. That is really an understatement. I was terrible at it. In our small school anyone who went out for a sport made it. I wanted to do track because some of my friends did. I went out for it, made it, and really stunk at it. There is a level of humiliation that goes with being the worst at something. When you're young and trying to find out who you are, it can give you really wrong ideas about who you are.

These wrong ideas can be the devils tools to lie to us. It is the devils job to lie to us about who God made us to be. He is really good at his job. The thing is no matter how good he is at it, we still don't have to believe him. In fact, it is a very destructive thing when we do. It holds us back from all that God has for us. This is what I am learning right now.

One of the things that God had been working out in myself for some time is the fear of failing. It is a gripping fear that I have had for a long time. There have been many things that I have not done things because I was so afraid to fail, afraid to disappoint, afraid that I would not be good enough. These are nothing but the devils lies, and I no longer believe them.

These past few months God has been putting some of those things back in my heart. Things that I have given up on because I was too afraid to try and possibly fail. What I am now choosing to believe is that my accomplishments or failures don't define me. They do not change who God created me to be, or make Him love me any less.

On May 8th 2011, Felicity and I completed a 9.6k together. If was a great experience. I didn't realize at the time that God was using a possible moment of insanity to bring me closed to Him and show me what He has for me.

I know there is more to this journey. I am looking forward to what amazing things are ahead.

Easter

Easter is one of my favorite holidays. It is such a joy to celebrate the victory that we all have in Christ because of His Resurrection. I have always been so grateful and amazed at what Jesus did for me, and all of us on the cross. This year however, God has just so rocked my understanding of what His victory over death and hell mean!

We have had the privilege of meeting some new friends through our life group here at Red Rocks Church.
This Easter was a blast! Some of our new friends the Jensens, host a big Easter bash every year. We went to their house for a wonderful pot luck dinner and Easter festivities.
I am so blessed that God has given us these wonderful people to encourage us and be a part of what God is doing in each one of us.

The kids and the big boys playing chubby bunny. It was hilarious, especially since the marshmallows they used were the size of a baseball. Too funny, look at my hubby's face:P

Here is my sweet little man blowing bubbles, or trying to at least.
We had to do the egg hunt inside because it looked more like Christmas than Easter outside. Here are all the kids waiting to go upstairs and hunt for eggs. You can feel the anticipation!
I tried to get one of Caitlyn as she ran past me! The girls and Sean had so much fun.


This is Grace. Here mom and dad are our new Life group leaders. My little Sean also has a little boy crush on her. Every time we get in the car to go anywhere he asks to go see Gacie, as he calls her.

There was fierce competition at the Foosball table as Ryan and Lacey took on Jeff and Paul.
Sean found a whole dollar in one of his eggs. He also ate way too much sugar and slept all the way home. The day was a success!

I hope that everyone's Easter was great!

Grand Prix

This past weekend the Girls participated in their first AWANA Grand Prix. Which is basically a Pine Wood Derby. AWANA is a Wednesday night kids program that our kids attend while we go to our small group Bible study. They love it and it is a really great thing for them to do. They learn Bible verses and stories. They play games, meet friends, and have a great time.

Anyway, they got to build their own little racers, and got to participate against all the other kids this past Saturday. They didn't have the fastest cars this time. They did however have a blast building and painting them themselves.

Here are some pics from the event.

Sean

Since I did an update on the girls, I thought it only fair to share about the sweet boy too. He has grown up so fast, I feel like every time I blink so much has changed.

Today while the girls were at an event, we played together on the playground. He brings me such pure joy. I cannot even explain it.
I never thought I would have a boy. Having only had sisters, and then having two girls, I was happy and comfortable in my world of pink and lace. So little did I know what God had for me. This little guy has been such a special addition to our family. He loves balls and planes, trucks and blocks. He does everything at mach 3. His spunk is contagious. Thank you God for our little Sean Aaron!