Deceptively Delicious

So, the other day I was watching Oprah (I know, I know, I only watch it when she does shows on food and gives out stuff!) She had Jessica Seinfield, Jerry Seinfield's wife, on the show and she was talking about her cookbook Deceptively Delicious. She hides vegtable puree in different foods becuase her kids are super picky. I had heard of this before and I was always like, "There is no way my kids would eat broccoli puree in brownies!" I kept watching and they took some of the food to an elementary class to see how well the kids liked it. They actually loved all the food! After that I kinda put it out of my head and then today I was at the Farmland Library Reading Bug program. I saw the cookbook displayed on the shelf so I decided to give it a try. Looking through it I found some yummy recipies that I think I will try the next couple weeks. You'll have to stay tuned to see if my kids go for the cauliflower puree in the scrambled eggs!

Can I live here mom?

Well, the Pinkerton family along with some of the other pastors went up to Quaker Haven Camp this past week for Pastor's Short Course. The first day we were there my daughter turned and asked me, "Mom, I want to live here! Can we live here?" Right from the start my kids were lovin' it. It was really beautiful there and not too hot. Most of our time was spent on the beach playing in the sand. At first Sid and Lucas didn't want to go to the kid sessions while the adult were in their session, but by the end of the camp they were begging to go. The big reason was all the neat kids they met and hung out with. Both Sid and Lucas made one really good friend and I was so proud of them. The parts I really enjoyed were relaxing, hanging out with Tammy and Shelby. and the sessions with Wes Davis and Doug Shoemaker. I was reminded to just be real with my kids at church and to really pay attention to how they percieve what I am trying to share with them. Perception makes a huge difference in the way kids try to understand. I'm going to focus more on this idea and hopefully my kids at church will start living out what they are learning. Overall, a wonderful, relaxing mini-vacation.

How come I've never heard of Laminin?

A friend from High School sent me a link to a Youtube video that blew me away. I am a huge Louie Giglio fan ever since I saw him speak at the Orange Conference. On this video Louie Giglio speaks about our Father staying with us and carrying us through anything that we go through. He is really fired up and his words are powerful. Well, it just gets better from there. He ends talking about a protein cells in our body called Laminin. At first I was saying to myself, "Okay Laminin is pretty cool, it holds our body together like a rebar in concrete. Neat." Then, he showed a picture of what it looks like in our bodies and tears starting rolling down my cheeks. God knit us together in our mother's wombs and put his special mark on us on one of the most important structures that hold us together: cells. You have to see this for yourself, so here is the link. I hope God speaks to you like he did with me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e4zgJXPpI4

Me at 20 weeks!

Bikes, nests, and swings!

I thought I would write about some activities we have been doing outside. James has been working with Lucas on his bike. In the video he's a little wobbly but it was only his second day to try. Today he's been riding all by himself and I'll update you with another video. As a parent, you get this overwhelming feeling of pride when you see your child accomplish a new task. James and I were almost emotional watching him ride for the first time. Nothing is better than seeing your child figure something out and succeed. These are the times when parenting is so rewarding and I can't wait to see what other big events are ahead for our "not so little anymore" son. Of course another activity we enjoy is swinging on our new play set. I tried to get a few pictures of their happy faces. Then we took a picture of a bird's nest that Sidney has been buggin' me non-stop to get out of the tree in our backyard. I finally gave in and got it down. The kids thought it was so cool that the bird used our plastic popsicle wrappers they forgot to pick up to build it's nest. I guess birds can use anything! I was so blown away about how sturdy this nest was. It's amazing that God gives these birds the ability to make a sturdy home for their young out of plastic, mud, and grass. These are just some of the normal but fun things we're doing this summer? What kinds of things to you do outside? I would love some ideas if you have any!

Enjoying the Summer

I have really enjoyed the nice summer days lately. James and I have worked out a great work and kid schedule. I go to work in the morning, come home at noon and James goes in and gets off at dinner time. It's nice to spend time with my kids and do fun things together. Today they painted their arms and legs with shaving cream colored with food coloring. They had a blast and got clean at the same time! What could be better for a mom? So, I'm just really enjoying my laid back summer becuase I know that pretty soon my life will be a little hectic with the added bonus of a third child!

FINALLY AFTER TWO YEARS!

Last Saturday, six guys from the church came to our house to help James put up the swing set. It was quite the ordeal, with Jeff Tharp reading the directions and the rest of the guys trying to keep up with him! It was really fun watching how six guys can work together. I was very impressed with my husband getting right in there with the rest of them! The kids have been playing on it non-stop since we got it up. All the sweat and hard work was well worth it! Here are some pics of their progress last Saturday.













How many manly men does it take to put together three pieces of wood?








Lookin' good guys!













The final result: Pure Happiness!