Nanna's 60th Birthday Celebration

This past weekend we traveled to PA to celebrate my mom's 60th birthday.  She had no idea that we were coming, I even called her while in PA to wish her a happy birthday and I had to pretend that we were home. My brother and sister also came along with their families, which meant that my kids got to meet their newest cousin for the first time! They loved Natalie and Amelia especially couldn't stop holding her.  We met on the steps of the courthouse during Fort Ligonier Days, an annual event that my mom likes to go to.  It was cold in the morning.  Here are some pictures of my mom when she first saw us:

This is my favorite!

Here are some more pictures from the morning:\

Waiting for Nanna in the cold, got to keep ourselves warm...

A lunch picnic with Daniel and Sarah.

Amelia eating her apple dumpling (which, in my opinion, was terrible).

Finally, here are the rest of the pictures, most of them of Natalie since she is so cute at 9 months

The cake - which was so good.  My first dessert in awhile.  Followed up by Ben & Jerry's the next night.  Now I have 4 more weeks to wait :(

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Natalie all bundled up.

Amelia loving on her cousin.

Emma wanted a turn!

My mom with Daniel and Sarah - she closed her eyes 3 times for this picture!

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Ross with his darling girl.

Mia and Daddy, post-cake.  The sugar was kicking in at this point.  We had to leave the restaurant with 5 hyper kids who continued to be hyper in the parking lot near the street.  Needless to say I was in bed by 7:30 that night.

Family Tree

Emma had her first real school project last week.  She was to create her own family tree.  It could be in any shape, it just had to include some basic information.  She decided on a layer cake with each layer being a generation of her family.

I think she did a great job with all of the glitter and confetti!  And if you are reading this for its historical content, we don't know Al Robbin's real birthday.  It's make-up.  But, he was a WWII veteran and a survivor of the Attica Prison Riot in NY.  Emma shared that information with her class as what she learned during this project.

I've been waiting 3 years for this...

We finally got a new dishwasher!!!!  We bought our old one about 3 years ago and it has been the loudest appliance I have ever encountered.  When it was running, you definitely could not talk in the kitchen.  I can't tell you  how much frustration we experienced over trying to talk and the other person saying, I have no idea what you just said.  I knew that it couldn't last too long, it was too loud and kept grinding.  Well, last week it finally died.  It would fill up with water and then... nothing.  We tried 3 different times just to make sure.  It was definitely done.

Joel was great at going to Sears on Sunday night after a long trip back from PA.  He bought the only Kenmore dishwasher that they had in stock (in our price range, did you know some dishwashers cost thousands of dollars?  I mean, do they do the cooking for you too?).  He started working on installation that night and got up early Monday morning to finish it.  He has done this 3 times now, and each time he says it's the hardest appliance to install.  But - this time it only took one extra trip to Home Depot to buy an additional part.

The new dishwasher is amazing.  It fits SO many more dishes, it has 2 sprayers, and a little place for rinse aid.  You can talk right in front of it and the other day I fell asleep on the couch while listening to it, it was like a waterfall.  I have tested it out and put really dirty dishes in it that weren't scraped at all, and they came out beautifully clean.  I hope this one lasts much longer.

Here is the old Tappan one.  If you ever see anything made by this brand, run the other way.

Here is our new Kenmore!  

Luke

Joel has been really busy lately on his office.  It's a tiny part of our pantry that he's converted into his own space for studying.  Luke has been a huge help!  He can even hammer in nails by himself.  Here are some pictures of him helping Joel:

And this is after his best soccer game ever!  4 goals :)  

He can't wait for his next game, he's #14.

Miscellaneous Pics

Here are some fun pictures that show how we are spending our time:

Emma making a masterpiece outside on the picnic table bench.

THE FORT - it is still up today.  There are Christmas decorations hanging from the tree, sticks making a fence around it, a firepit, and a box of toys.The kids spent about 8 hours on Labor Day creating the fort.

Of course this sign does not apply to Luke.

I don't know what Luke was thinking here.  He wanted to wear his huskies as a belt?

Luke's first day of soccer!  He is SO fast on the field.  During the first game he was blocking the net and tearing across the field to try to get the ball.  He made two goals in the 2nd game and another two in the 3rd game.  There is a slight problem with his team - he is only one of two players who actually understand how to play soccer.  So most of the time it's 5 on 1 :)

A late surprise bloom from my hydrangea plant!  The previous blooms were all pink/green so this one was a great surprise.

I don't know whose idea this was - but somehow Luke and Amelia found matching pajamas and thought it was hilarious to dress alike.  I love blackmail pictures :)

First Communion

Today was a very special day in our family, Emma was admitted to the Lord's Table at Providence Pres. Church.  She prayed to receive Christ in her heart at the young age of 3, this past spring she participated in a Communicants class to learn more about communion and she memorized the Lord's Prayer and the Apostles Creed.  The elders then met with her to talk about her salvation.  She was the first person to be newly admitted to the Table at Providence.  She was allowed to choose a worship song to sing during the service and she chose "Prince of Peace"; she likes it when the men sing one part and the women sing another :)

 "For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes."  1 Corinthians 11:26

I love that verse.  The idea that every single time we partake in the Lord's Supper we are proclaiming His death, believing through faith in what He did on the cross.  And His people have been doing this for thousands of years.  We will continue until "that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father's kingdom." (Matthew 26:29).  

For Emma, she was already saved before today's service.  She had already received forgiveness, His righteousness, His justification, and His grace.  Today she got to affirm that she has trusted only Christ for her salvation.  His body - the bread.  His blood - the wine.  How can we stop being thankful for such a sacrifice? 

More Dancing..

The kids have been having so much fun making up more dance routines, unfortunately to the same song!  These videos are pretty funny, especially the one with Luke singing.  Amelia shows us some fun gymnastics and I'm not sure where Emma learned some of her dance moves!