a sweet day at the Orchard

Oh, the Lord is good to me,
And so I thank the Lord
For giving me the things I need:
The sun, and the rain, and the apple seed;
The Lord is good to me.  "Johnny Appleseed"

Picture Day

Ava's picture day at school today. we were as we say, a little "jazzed"

this gal is as sweet as sugar with just the perfect amount of spice!

Girls

These girls carry a part of my heart with them and i revel in the chance to see them grow as sisters and daughters of the King.
What an amazing privilege.

One grafted in from Kazakhstan, one from China and both in love with each other and loved so dearly

Best Friends

How blessed these kids are to love each other so, it is amazing to watch.

Festival

 We had the most wonderful festival in our beautiful little town this weekend complete with trolley rides and snow cones and jelly beans!

 Ava was all in!

She brings such an incredible zest for life, it is contagious.

We are so glad we get to go on the trolley ride of her life, to see where the Lord leads and how He will use her for His kingdom. 

We are so incredibly blessed in this journey called parenthood.

Labor Day

There is nothing sweeter than seeing my beloveds play in the sand.

blessed labor day, blessed life...thank you Jesus

Little Steps

For the first time we got to go into Ava’s Ballet class.  It was the grand finale for the summer and it was nothing short of lovely! And for the first time, I was taking pictures through a tiny glass window, but rather up close seeing all the beauty unfold around me.  I will confess it was hard to capture a twirling little girl!

But that is Ava,  hard to capture.  She has a humor and zest for life I have never before experienced.  Her lack of speech skills never seem to stop her.  She went to speech school faithfully this summer in the wee hours of the morning, and never complained. 

  I would wake her up from her nap for ballet and she would literally jump out of bed.  She amazes us, blesses us and fills our heart with joy. She is a gift that only the Lord in heaven could have sent.  We are so grateful and so very humbled.

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him." 1 Corinthians 2:8-10