Friday, August 10, 2007

wow has it been that long??

well as of late this blog has gone the way of the "back burner". it's been almost 3 weeks since i last posted. and had i been diligent about it there were lots of great things to write about in that time.

let's recap quickly . . . we got back from mexico and then the following week we had all the cousins over for 3 days and 3 nights. we decided to take them all camping for two of the nights. so that was and adventure. deb and i (who don't normally camp - at all!) in the woods with 7 kids! (ages 9mo, 2-3yr olds, 5yr old, 2-6yr olds, and a 9yr old)

the following week the girls had a week of VBS at a local church. what was exciting about this one was that on the last day (friday) the church was going to take all the kids to a water park in moses lake. anna and danielle were old enough to be a part of the vbs, but julia wasn't quite old enough. but the older girls had a blast doing something "on their own" - we didn't go with them the day of the water park. and we had fun spending time with the younger two (julia and rachel) for a couple hours each day.

and this past week has been spent with wedding preparations. my sister, elia, drove over from minnesota with her fiancé because they're getting married here tomorrow. so we've spent time with them. went shopping for various wedding things. and basically have had a great time with "all the family".

and this morning anna woke up at the same time that i did. i was really looking forward to getting up before anyone, getting ready, and then coming to the church to get some work done before the wedding rehearsal tonight. but while i was shaving she came in to use the bathroom and then asked if i wanted to play scrabble with her. i had a decision to make . . . would i somehow justify all the work i had to do and get out of playing a game with her that i knew in the end i'd end up helping her so it'd be like i was playing against myself. or do i put all my own things aside and take the time to spend with my six year old in the early morning while everyone else is asleep?

it's easy to write about that today because today i did make the right choice. i played scrabble with anna and yes i did end up helping her. and i even set it up so that she would win. but if truth be told, i don't always make the right choice. there are times that i'm selfish and instead put my kids, and/or wife aside so that i can do what "i want".

to that's how our last 3 weeks have been spent together as a family. it isn't always easy, but in all actuality, if it's a priority, it's not all that difficult either.


// today i'm thankful for:
1. my sister getting married
2. new bible
3. new shoes
4. new shoes (i got two pairs) :)
5. quietness

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(this post was written because of a one day contest being sponsored by the parties listed below. the contest was to answer the following questions:
What are your favorite family activities and how do you find the quality family time? And if you don’t have quality family time, how do you make up for it? What challenges do you face?
feel free to enter the contest on your own blog or simply post responses in the comment section below.)

This post is brought to you in conjunction with
Parent Bloggers Network & EA’s Wii-Boogie, a family gaming experience. Shake it. Sing it. Create it.
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