Homeschool Convention

 WOW!!! I just have to say we were so blessed to attend our local homeschool convention this past Thursday- Saturday.   It was put on by Christian Heritage Home Educators of Washington.  What a wonderful time that refreshed us and encouraged us to take this new step in our life....home educating. The keynote speaker was Voddie Baucham.  Lulu said "he's so funny, I like him."  He is so gifted and loves encouraging families to live for the Lord. 

 We were also so blessed to hear S.M. Davis teach.  WOW, he's another gifted teacher and also loves the Lord.  I got to talk to his wife and what a neat couple they are. 

 Mark was able to meet and talk with Douglas Bond.  He is a local author that will be speaking at a conference that Mark will be attending in June with Steven Lawson, John MacArthur and R.C. Sproul. Douglas Bond wrote the book THE MIGHTY WEAKNESS OF JOHN KNOX which is part of the Long Line of Godly Men Profiles series.  I have to say that when Mark with talking with Douglas Bond I was talking with his 6 year old daughter.  She was so well behaved and such a darling little girl. 

I wish I would have taken more pictures.  I met so many other home educating moms.  I met two moms who use the same Christian midwife as me!  Friday night was family night and they showed the movie Captivated.  What a great documentary, so eye opening! Phillip Telfer made this documentary and he was another speaker at this convention.  This years convention was packed full of amazing speakers and topics.  I wish I could have heard them all. 

Thank you to my mom for babysitting so we could go to this conference for a bit on our own. We can't wait for next years convention. Doug Phillips will be the keynote speaker next year.  If you are in our area I would highly recommend going.  What a blessing it was for us.    

Grocery Shopping

Yesterday my mom went grocery shopping with us. 

 Then last night we all went to Costco and got dessert.  This is what Levi got.  It's about as big as he is.

 Yes, he ate it all.  I helped with a few drips but not much.

Lulu's Birthday

 Lulu had a great 5th birthday today.  We started the day with gifts for her.  Levi and Ila May each got her a special gift.  Levi got her a baby carrier for her baby.  Ila May got her a Tooth Fairy Pillow since Lulu's at that age where she might be needing it.  Lulu was thrilled!

 For breakfast we had Lulu's favorite breakfast, cinnamon toast and turkey bacon with pink juice.

 Later in the afternoon my parents and my aunt Linda came over to celebrate.

 My dad even wore pink because that is Lulu's favorite color.

 Pink was the color of the day at our house. It's not hard to find in our house though.  Mark and Levi tried to balance it out with blue and green.

 Mark grilled burgers (Lulu's favorite).

 Here's everyone enjoying our burgers. 

 Lulu, Grammie-goo and Papa.

 My mom made this AMAZING strawberry shortcake.  It was so good that I think I'm going to make it for Mother's day!!  

 It was a beautiful sunny Tuesday just like the day she was born 5 years ago. 

Happy 5th Birthday Lulu!

Happy Birthday to our sweet little Lulu! 

Today 5 years ago you were born on a sunny, warm Tuesday morning.  I labored all night and at 7:59am I gave birth to you in the water.  You have been my only water birth and you think that's pretty special and so do I.  I didn't know if you were a girl or a boy and I had no clue how my life was going to change for the better that morning.  I became a mommy the moment I took the pregnancy test. 

Here is how I found out I was pregnant with you.

Your dad and I were getting ready to go on a trip.  We were going to be spending a few days on a house boat water skiing and having a relaxing time with family.  Then we were going to head to San Francisco for a few days. So when I was "late" I thought I would take a pregnancy test to see if I could be pregnant.  We weren't trying to get pregnant but we sure weren't preventing.  We knew we wanted to have a baby and left it up to the Lord.  So, after I took the test it said I wasn't pregnant. :( boohoo.  So then a few days later as we were packing and getting ready to head on vacation I thought I would test again since I still hadn't started my period.  I remember standing in the bathroom watching the window of the test and quickly there were TWO dark lines!!!!  My heart skipped a beat and I was so surprised.  I had never felt that way before.  I was pregannt for the very first time and I was the only one who knew.  Your dad was at work and would be home in about 2 hours.  I didn't beleive the test so I ran to the drugstore to get a pack of 3 just to make sure. I was so excited that I told the lady at the cash register "I think I'm pregnant!!!!!" She was very excited for me.  While I was driving I rember thinking "I shouldn't be driving"...LOL.  Before I went home I stopped at the grocery store to get a special dinner for your dad and I.  Later that evening when your dad got home I greeted him at the door with a huge smile on my face.  He even asked me "what's going on?" and I just said "I made a special dinner for you (with a big smile)." So we sat down to eat and on our plates were baby back ribs, baby carrots, baby corn, baby spinach with a baby can of pop.   Then for dessert I bought a baby sized cake.

 Here we are moments after I told your dad.

When we sat down to eat I told your dad "here is our baby dinner" and he smiled and thought "that's cute" and then I looked at him again and said "this is our BABY dinner" and he looked at me with wide eyes and said "really??" and I started crying.  We were both SO excited!  That was July 31, 2006. 

Your Birth Story

One Minute Old

 One Hour Old

 One Year Old

 Two Years Old

 Three Years Old

Four Years Old

Five Years Old

Happy Birthday to our sweet little Lulu!  We love you!

Going for a Bike Ride

 Yesterday afternoon we went for a bike ride.  It was a gorgeous day in the Seattle area.  We have 2 bike trailers, Mark was towing the girls and I was towing Levi.  Levi is so fun to tow because he sings the entire time. 

Here we are crossing one of many bridges.  We rode on the Sammamish River Trail.  It's 10.9 miles long and connects many of the cities in our area. 

Here we are pulling in to Woodinville.  This picture is of Redhook Brewery.

I called my parents and told them we were going for a ride on the trail.  The trail we rode connects their city (Redmond) to our city (Kirkland) with a city in the middle (Woodinville).  We met at Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery.  This winery is minutes from both of our homes and made the perfect meeting spot.  The grounds are just beautiful. 

Here is my mom meeting us on the trail into the winery.  My dad found a spot to put a blanket out and was getting a treat ready for us!

Here is Lulu running around the grounds of the winery and the winery in the background.

Ahhh....a nice rest from riding. 

My dad brought us strawberries and whip cream!  The kids were in heaven. 

This was Ila Mays first bike ride.  She cried at first but then got used to it and enjoyed the ride.  

Time to head home. 

We got back on the trail and took our time.  We had a little less energy going home and noticed that there were more up hills on the way back.....we were tired!  

We took a break and stopped at a park and let the kids play.....really Mark and I needed a break. LOL

All 3 on the swings.

Leaving the park and heading home.

Two funny things that happened on our ride.  Levi and I got hit by another biker, but thankfully no one got hurt.  The girl did fall and hit us pretty hard, but everyone was OK.  She was taking a corner way too fast and we were stopped waiting for her group to come by.  Then we found a wallet on the trail and that gal had ALL her things in it but no phone number.  So we were going to drive it by her house then realized she live in an apartment on the trail and when we pulled up to her building she was right there and had no clue it was missing.  Very eventful!