Epic

They worked on it every night for months.

Hours and hours of father and son sifting through thousands of tiny pieces, finding just the right one for just the right fit. Concepts and ideas flew as they built.

Plans were sketched for additions, hidden doorways stashed behind vines growing up the side, horses were placed carefully in their stalls.

Before they were even close to being finished, battles were fought between the Lion Knights and the Dragon Knights, a working trebuchet was constructed, then a seige tower.

Armies lined up in front of the moat with kings perched on thrones to watch.

It was epic.

A full size sheet of plywood sat on barrels in his room, with walking room all the way around so he could build on every side of it.

And it stayed there for about a year.

"Joshua, did you know the Bible talks about Lion Knights and Dragon Knights?"

His eyes grew big.

"In Revelation the Bible calls Jesus the Lion - 'Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered...' and calls Satan the Dragon? - 'Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended." (Rev. 5:5, 20:1)

So their minds were sparked with the study of history and nations, medieval battlefields and spiritual battles.

I couldn't help but feel nostalgic as the castle began to be surrounded with scattered lego pieces and airplanes lined a small path snaking across the floor of his room from doorway to bed.

It was time.

Time marches on, doesn't it?

The Castle came down today, demolished to make room for an epic aircraft carrier and a flying field. 

But at least we're still in the LEGO phase. I just hope it lasts a little while longer. 

There will be real battles to fight, son, soon enough.

Project 365: Week 10

3.11.13
A dreary, rainy Monday. Perfect for an afternoon of playing "Birds" and daydreaming of summer days when playing cowboys all day in the barn from morning till dark is a reality.




3.10.13
Silent Storyteller.





3.9.13
On Saturday night Emmy and Elayna went with me to watch the GLAA Aerokhanas perform. They couldn't sit still in their seats, bouncing, laughing, clapping and....climbing the outside of the bleachers (Elayna) trying to be like the gymnasts. It was a lot of fun! Especially when they each were lifted up high like one of the team.






3.8.13
How he studies.




3.7.13
"Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens. Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing."  Is. 40:26





3.6.13
Ahhhhhh.......coffee.




3.5.13 - 
Meanwhile, back in MI...

it's still winter.

365 Project: Week 9

3.4.13
Last morning in the hotel. She had snuggled up by Daddy after playing contortionist for the past few nights. This happens to be the only picture I took all day, but I wouldn't change a thing. Sometimes this is just going to be about capturing the fleeting moments before they're lost.




3.3.13
Looking out over some of the modern aircraft from the balcony behind the Missile Silo.




3.2.13
There it is! The entrance to the enormous National Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio. The size of the airplanes housed inside the hangars is overwhelming. Covering everything from early flight to modern military aircraft, including a 140 ft. tall "silo" that houses full size missiles used to maintain peace during the Cold War, it's impossible to see everything in one day. Evelyn thought she'd seen it all in the first half hour. Joshua could have spent at least a week exploring it and rereading every bit of information available.




3.1.13
Colby has never really enjoyed swimming or being in the water. But every single night at the hotel he was in the water with his kids! They had a blast and enjoyed every minute of it. And truth be told, I think we made far more progress in swimming skills during that time than in a year of lessons at the pool.




2.28.13


"Out came the children running, all the little boys and girls, with rosy cheeks and flaxen curls..." ~Robert Browning.





2.27.13

I really have no explanation for this. I went outside to grab some pictures of Joshua and Emmy playing Cowboys and came in to find this little monster sitting on the table using the lampshade as a hat. What'cha going to do but...take more pictures, of course!

**Favorite Things: I tried to convert these to black and white and stuff them into the "right" 365 format that I've done for the last 2 months. But these just wouldn't go, they refused to cooperate, and eventually won the argument. So here they are, in full color, my little time capsule for February 26, 2013.

2.26.13
Favorite Things | Evelyn ~ {almost 30 mo.}



2.26.13
Favorite Things | Elayna ~ {5 years 9 mo.}




2.26.13
Favorite Things | Emmy ~ {age 7}



2.26.13

Favorite Things | Joshua ~ { age 9}

365 Project: Week 8

2.25.13
Ahhh....old books. Is there anything better than to stuff your nose into an old book, curled up by the warm stove, a cup of coffee in your hand?



2.24.13
Such a busy weekend I hardly remembered to take any pictures on Sunday. But I did take this one of the sunrise and the fog rolling into the valley with my phone!




2.23.13
Sabbath: Children's Story. Not even half the normal number of children this week, but it doesn't matter how many cranky, tired, uncooperative, loud, boisterous, bouncy, crazy, unruly, crying, laughing little BLESSINGS there are in attendance, I've not once had the experience of feeling like any of them are at any time unwelcome. I think every generation in our church is thankful for each little body and the life they bring to our church family. Of course, every baby, toddler and child has their moments of crankiness, but for the record, they're all good kids! Just a week before there was a row of 7 children sitting completely by themselves, quiet as little mice! I'm very thankful for our church and for the attitude towards children here.




2.22.13
Preparation Day: Elayna is always my eager little helper, and she wanted so badly to help squeeze the lemons for the salad dressing for Sabbath!




2.21.13
Sometimes a little girl just needs to sit on a stool in the middle of the living room with a lollipop in nothing but her unders!




2.21.13
Science is so cool! Our new Apologia Zoology: Flying Creatures of the 5th Day is turning out to be a perfect fit for my aviation-loving son and my zoologist daughter.




2.20.13
Lord, there are no words capable of encompassing the dimensions of a mother's love. Without knowing it, experiencing it, I'd never comprehend the depth of Your love for Your children. For me. Thank You for these three blessings. And their uncooperative baby sister. They are my heart.




2.19.13 

A little early morning routine! It doesn't matter what pajamas I put her in the night before, she always strips down the minute I leave the room and sleeps in just her pull up. At least she leaves that on!

365 Project: Week 7

Feb. 18: Monday School Day
Elayna finds spelling practice to be much more fun when Dr. Seuss gets involved! And who wouldn't?!





Feb. 17: Sunday Afternoon.
A lazy Sunday afternoon playing Review & Herald's Birds game. Birds are the favorite right now, though it often competes with Animals. You'd think with three girls in the family Flowers might gain popularity, but like every other girl in the history of time with a big brother she adores, Emmy follows Joshua's lead in pretty much everything. When I was a kid it was all about Birds or (what a surprise) TREES.



Feb. 16: Sabbath: Weather
The flash captures the intensity and determination of the snowflakes as they bury the ground deeper in a winter white blanket.


Feb. 16: Sabbath: Weather
Snow falling as hard as an April rain.



Feb 16: Sabbath 2: Music
And then the music changed from light and flowing to intense and dark (still instrumental orchestra), gripping her in a sense of worry, still captivating every drop of her soul. It was amazing to witness.




Feb. 16:  Sabbath 1: Music
Emmy on Sabbath morning, waiting for everyone else to get ready for church, she fell into this quiet reverie listening to the orchestra music playing on the radio in the living room.



Feb. 15:  The Corner
In a corner of the living room, across from the cozy wood stove, below the rooms where children sleep, inside four walls that kept out a biting wind and a building snow storm, near the man whose hands have been frostbitten, calloused by hard work, held babies with tender care, and folded me close to him in love.



Feb. 14:  Valentine's Day!



Feb. 13:  Library Time 3:
Baby bird PUPPETS?! To whomever invented this one: Emmy thanks you!


Feb. 13:  Library Time 2:
There was a little girl who had a little curl,
Right in the middle of her forehead;
When she was good, she was very, very good,
And she she was bad....
She had her T-Rex eat the edge of the puppet box!


Feb. 13:   Library Time 1:
Evelyn Claire LOVES Curious George. George is her friend. We checked a few out for her and read this one for a bedtime story. The other three children slowly trickled in and sat around me on her bed, listening and laughing at George's antics.



Feb. 12:
Naptime drama. Just shy of 2 1/2 years old. Fiercely independent. Self-regulated. Articulate. A lot like her big brother and almost as determined to never be the baby of the family. Except when it works in her favor. Or when she gets in trouble for smashing her cousin Levi's LEGO ship. "Hey! I just the baby!"




Feb. 12:
Three random facts:  Elayna Marie is 5 years 9 months. She is my mini-me in just about every way possible except she has curly hair instead of my stick-straight hair. For the longest time she called toilet paper "paper toilet" or "paper towel".

365 Project: Week 6

Feb. 11: He's a good sport and complies with my requests to go here, stand there, look that way, and all the other random photography experiments I'm constantly doing. But this is definitely his, "Really, Mom, pictures AGAIN?!" look.



Feb. 10: Growing and measuring. I try and try to tell him to stop this growing up stuff, but he just smiles and tells me he just. can't. stop. "8 inches to go, Mom. Then I'll be as tall as you!" *sigh*  His father grew 8 inches in one year, the year he was 11. I'm not ready to be looking UP at my son, but my days of superior altitude are numbered, I'm afraid.



Feb. 9: Emmy, soaking in a post-flu hot bath with a few of her favorite toys.



Feb. 8:  By now they all have a fever and spend the day lying around the living room feeling miserable.




Feb. 7: Sick, feverish baby, sleeping on her favorite princess pillow.



Feb. 6: Icicles from an upstairs window, looking out over the sunrise.

Feb. 5: What happens when Momma is sick? The whole world turns upside down.

Feb 4 (again): A kitty and his girl.