Quick Spring Update

Spring is officially here!  Winter didn't give up without a fight, it layered our yard with snow twice in the last week and I saw ice on the animals water as late as yesterday.   But today we finally have sun and it is warm enough for little ones to be outside! 

Crocuses come up every year under the cedar trees. 

A promise that sunshine and warm weather is just around the corner.

Chirp chirp chirp!

I always know when spring is just around the corner because our house is filled with the sweet sound of baby chicks chirping.  We are raising two batches this year.  In each batch we are raising some for meat and some for eggs.  Our first batch arrived in the mail on Tuesday.  50 arrived but some were too weak from the trip and we lost them.   I think we have about 40 left.   Our next batch we are ordering with a friend and we will be keeping 20-30 from that batch.

All this means we need to get outside and get some bigger, better enclosures built soon!

 

Happy Birthday Elayna!

One of the first couple of posts I did for the blog was about Elayna's Birthday.  It is hard to believe we have come around to another Birthday for Elayna. 

She turned 4 on Monday!

Brother helps put a flower horn on Elayna's new bike.

Dora cake with matching star and butterfly glow sticks for Elayna and Anna.

We had a good run

Well, until last week the Stetson's were able to say that none of the children had ever had a broken bone. Then there was the great scooter accident of February 6th.  Kylie flew off of her scooter while going down one of our big hills.  We waited until the next morning in hopes it was just really sore.  But since it was hard to pick things up and everything that bumped into it hurt we went to walk-in.  It turned out she had a buckle fracture.  She spent the first week in a splint but after getting another X-Ray Friday they decided to cast it.

Heal fast Kylie! 

Stephanie's foot update

I have gotten some questions about how Stephanie is doing and if her foot is recovering.  The short answer is that she isn't as pain free as we were hoping.  She had an appointment yesterday however, and the doctor still feels it is early to worry.  She still has a lot of holes in the bones where the screws and plate came out on January 4th.

I will try to remember to update again in a few weeks and hopefully will have more positive news to share.

This is a short post.  But I couldn't help but post a picture of the screws and plate that came out of her foot.  I took the picture next to a pencil top eraser to give it scale.  I don't even want to imagine how and where that long one was screwed in!

Kylie's 13th Birthday and her Special Promise

The Birthday-

On Thursday we celebrated another birthday at our house.  Kylie turned 13!  I know it would be a cliche to say "where did the time go?"  But....

Anyway, she didn't have the best start to her day.  She fell at music practice while taking Anna to the restroom.  She tore up her knee and hands pretty good and ruined her best jeans.

We got her home, cleaned her up, got her leg up and snuggled her under a blanket. She had a quiet birthday the rest of the evening.  She chose cheesecake for her birthday dessert.

Then some presents from mom, dad and siblings.

The Promise-

Kylie had made her wishes known to her family as we spoke the last year or so.  We knew her desire to wait on the Lord to bring a husband in her future.  We presented Kylie with a purity ring and she made a promise to God and her family.

(click to enlarge)

In an age where young men and women have more pressures than ever and are taught that they can't control their own behavior we are proud that our girls desire to make this commiment to the Lord and to themselves. 

Kylie, you have always done things your own way, you always have had a strong spirit.  Focused the right direction, these gifts God gave you will enable you to stand up for what you know is right.  We love you and we pray for you as you walk with the Lord and find your direction.  And we pray for your future husband as he too grows in his walk with the Lord and prepares to be a good leader and a good protector for you and your future children.

Create in me a pure heart, O God,
   and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence
   or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
   and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

Psalm 51: 10-12

Yep, still alive!

I can't believe it has been over 2 months since my last post.  We did have Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I will try to do a couple quick posts about them in the next couple of days.  I will also do a post soon about what everyone is up to in school and band and update our "jogging to Idaho" icon.

You may notice another little person in some of our pictures.  We are blessed to be sharing our home right now with EJ.  He is 12 months old.  We won't use his full name or discuss his specifics but he is sure to show up in some of our future pictures so I am giving you the heads up.

We have just thawed out from a long, cold, snowy stretch.  It was beautiful while it was here but we are glad to have our roads clear and the animals water ice free.

View from back deck

More coming soon...