It's About TIme...

For Levi to loose his first tooth considering he is almost 8!!

But unfortunately I think there will be a gap for quite some time as this tooth was knocked out! On Christmas Eve Gage and Levi had a collision and once we cleaned all the blood we found one of Levi's teeth to be very loose and a second was wiggly! I told him not to wiggle them because his adult tooth was not ready to come in yet and he would be toothless for a while. Well, that didn't stop him and within a few hours he had the loose one out. There is no sign of his adult tooth yet but thankfully his other front tooth has gotten tight again.

What is it with BOYS and BRUISES????

As a mom of three very active boys I usually see lots of little bruises on my boys. But this week all three of them have very deep and large bruises somewhere on their little bodies!

We will start with Little Levi...
We had gone out to eat just before Christmas and he had his leg wrapped around his bar stool when he fell off the stool. Of course, his leg was still wrapped around the bar stool when he landed. It immediately bruised! He wouldn't' bare any weight and I thought he had broke his leg! Thankfully it was just a severe bruise that starts at his knee and runs almost to his ankle. This pic was taken a week after his fall and it looks SO much better!

Hayden got a new scooter and of course with any new toy there comes a few falls. He landed on his scooter and got this 4 inch bruise.

Gagie got a Hi Tide for Christmas and was thrilled to try such an extreme toy. I expected a few falls the first day but there weren't any. This fall was on the third day and it also immediately bruised!

My poor kids look like they are being abused! All three bruises are very deep tissue bruises and they are very sore! I will be thankfull when we go back to little bruises.

Christmas in the Great Britian

In the 1640's The Puritans banned any and all Christmas celebrations throughout all of Great Britain. But in 1837 when Queen Victoria assumed the throne she restored the Love of Christmas to all of Great Britain. The Victorian era has had the strongest impact on Modern Day Christmas

In 1843 Sir Henry Cole wanted to send Christmas Greetings to his loved ones. He commissioned J C Horsley to create a card showing a family sitting around the Christmas table enjoying Christmas Punch. The Christmas card was sent to 1,000 of Cole's friends and family. The custom of Christmas Cards immediately caught on.

In 1848 Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert had a Christmas tree placed inn Windsor Castle. The boughs were all candlelit. The London News ran an article with a photo of the Royal Family gather around the tree. After the publication it became much in vogue throughout great Britain to have a Christmas tree in one's home.

One of the most famous Christmas stories was written in Great Britain in 1843 by Charles Dickens. A Christmas Story was an instant sensation. It was from his desire to awaken society to the right to happiness to all human beings, despite thier circumstances, that the story sprang from.

Boxing Day is December 26, and all of England is closed this day. After spending 7 "Boxing Days" in the UK I still didn't understand the holiday until reading this book. The most popular belief is the 26Th of December was the day the church's alms boxes were opened to distribute money to the needy.

Many other Christmas Traditions also originated in Great Britain such as Wassailing, Mince Pies, Plum pudding, Mistletoe, Yule Log and Caroling.

Christmas Around the World...

by Chuck Fischer

Master pop-up artist Chuck Fischers most glorious creation yet, featuring Christmas in France, Germany, Russia, Latin America, Scandinavia, Great Britain, Italy, and the U.S. Includes removable booklets and a functional advent calendar.

Last year my dear friend loaned me this amazing book to look through. So, this year as I was thinking about what to do for our last week of school before Christmas break, I remembered this book.

We went into Books A Million searching! I looked for about 20 minutes and was about to gather the children so we could leave. As I was walking to the Kids section I started praying, asking that if there was even just one copy I would be able to find it! I ended up looking right at the book, totally out of place! I was thrilled. It was the only one I could find.

This week we are reading a country a day.

Laundry TIP

After spending 7 years in England using an itty bitty washing machine that took 2.5 hours to wash a load of clothes I can really appreciate my HUGE American washer!! In England I had to wash 3 loads of laundry a day AND my Dryer was in my Detached garage! I hated Laundry!

But since moving into my house I love doing laundry in my Big Fast American Washer!! I now do laundry once a week and it is only 5 loads. I LOVE IT!! Some people say that my laundry excitement will wear off but I don't think so!

However, a few weeks ago as I was sorting socks I thought to myself, this is the one part of laundry I dread!! Socks make me crazy! I have had the kids sort socks before and it is always an adventure to pull a fresh pair of socks out the drawer because you never know what you will get! So, I do the socks!

But my thoughts took me back to a conversation I had with a dear friend before leaving England! She told me that each other her kids have a lingerie bag and they put their dirty socks in the bag through out the week. On Laundry day she just throws the whole bag in the washer and dryer and then hands it to the kids!! I thought this idea was so brilliant that I went out and bought lingerie bags immediately! But during the move I had forgotten all about the bags.

So, a couple weeks ago I searched the house to find the bags!! It has been great!! The kids are now responsible for their own socks! I LOVE IT!!!

Thank you so much for the great idea Mrs. D!!

The Person you Need is...

So, today after school Levi was watching "Nanny McPhee". I happen to love this movie.

Levi whispered in my ear "The person you need is Nanny McPhee". We laughed and giggled and I asked "Levi do you know who we need?" His immediate reply was "The person you need is Nanny McJesus" I busted out laughing at him!!

There is never a dull moment with my little comedian.

Awesome Views

As I have said before I truly believe that our house was built just for us! It is so prefect for us! But what is even better is yard we have! We have woods all around our house and we even have a small creek! Up until a few weeks ago we couldn't get to the creek because the bush was so overgrown. Now the boys spend their days at the creek!

So we have a great house, a great yard AND great views!! Here are a few shots from around our house.

We have the most amazing sunsets that we can see right outside our front windows. I love the star that is peaking through these two trees.

Fall was SO beautiful here! The colors were so rich!
























Our yard is also filled with Holly! It is so pretty! I wish I could bring some inside the house!

Homeschool Fun

We are studying Cultures and Climates this year and we are having a blast! Every few weeks we "Enter" into a new country to study it. We crossed the Atlantic a few weeks ago and we are studying Europe. This is especially fun since we have been to some of the countries we are studying! One of my favorite school activities is when we have "Friday Family Fun Night" and we cook recipes from the countries we are visiting.

We are studying Germany right now so Friday night we had Bratwurst with sour kraut and German Potato salad. Gage totally enjoyed the sour kraut but Hayden and Levi didn't like it! After dinner we decided to add a little French to our night since we had not yet made Crepes from a few weeks ago. Altogether it was a great European meal.

Glasses, the first of many pairs.

A friend of mine just found out her 5 year old daughter needs glasses. This made me think of when Levi had to get glasses. He was just 4 when we found out he was legally blind. It was so painful to hear such a grim diagnoses for your child. But I thank God for Medical Technology!! Levi can see great with his glasses which he has on ALL time! He only takes them off to sleep and to wrestle with the brothers. He even tries to get in the shower with them on.

When he first got them he looked so different with them! Now, they are so much a part of him that he looks different if he has them off!

I look forward to the day that he will be able to get contacts! He has the most amazing eyes and it saddens me that they are hidden behind glasses.


Here is a picture of the day we went Glasses shopping! This was the first of pair we tried on and it was the pair we bought. Little did I know this would be the first of MANY frames we would buy! The boy has gone through more then a dozen frames in just over 3 years.

One year at Thanksgiving , my mom went to my sister's house for the traditional feast. Knowing how gullible my sister is, my mom decided to play a trick. She told my sister that she needed something from the store. When my sister left, my mom took the turkey out of the oven, removed the stuffing, stuffed a Cornish hen, and inserted it into the turkey, and re-stuffed the turkey. She then placed the bird(s) back in the oven. When it was time for dinner, my sister pulled the turkey out of the oven and proceeded to remove the stuffing. When her serving spoon hit something, she reached in and pulled out the little bird. With a look of total shock on her face, my mother exclaimed,'Patricia, you've cooked a pregnant bird!' At the reality of this horrifying news, my sister started to cry. It took the family two hours to convince her that turkeys lay eggs! Yep..................SHE'S BLONDE!

Though this didn't happen in my family, I could SO see it happening!!

I hope you got a good chuckle out of this one!

What are you Thankful for today?

Every night at dinner our conversation leads to the daily "Highs and Lows". Everyone takes turns telling what their High of the day was and if they have any Lows. This has been a great time of connection for our family. It has afforded us the opportunity to stay involved in each others lives.

For the month of November we changed it to "What are you thankful for today?" We are challenging the kids and ourselves to go deeper then just being thankful for the food! We want our children to know what Thanksgiving represented in years past not just the commercialization of today's holidays!

God truly has blessed us with so much, much more then we even realize! I hope that we can have a heart of thankfulness all year long, not just in November!

What about you?? What are you thankful for today??

Flannel Sheets

I have this LOVE HATE relationship with my flannel sheets! I do LOVE my sheets and I am so thankful a friend encouraged me to buy them a couple years ago! But I HATE to actually put them on my bed!!

So, this week as I was putting them on my bed I realized why I hate putting them on my bed. For me it is the realization that the beautiful summer is over and I won't see the sunshine again for months!

But this year is different! Yes the cold here is here and I am sure it is here to stay! BUT the Sun is almost always shining here in NC and I LOVE that!!

Snow in NC??

I had no idea that we could get snow in NC but sure enough!! The clouds turned grey this afternoon and I told the boys it looked like rain. Then Levi shouted out "No Mom, it looks like SNOW!!" and sure enough it looked like a blizzard outside!! The boys raced outside to play but it was gone within a few minutes!

They are outside right now waiting for some more snow!!

Math Motivation...

I have really had a hard time getting Levi motivated to do his math the last several weeks!! But my mindset was "Just get the book done, we are so close, just finish it!!" Well, last week Levi watched the Video for Lesson 28 but then he did Lesson 30 in his book and he got them all right!!

I realized at that moment that he doesn't need to finish the book!! He all ready knows what he needs to from this book and he is just bored!! He is ready to move on and be challenged again! When he is not challenged with math it could take him an hour to finish 20 problems!! When he is challenged he will have those 20 problems done in 15 minutes. I should have known that he was bored!! I am still trying to figure these kiddos out!

I am still finding the balance in this home school thing!! Last year I was carefree and this year I am totally anal about finishing it book! Maybe by next year I will be somewhere in the middle.

A Second Historica Election??

As you all know there was a History Making Presidential Election this past week. What most of you don’t know is there was another Historical Election in a small town on the East Coast.

The Bowers family held their first Family Presidential Election on Tuesday November 4th, 2008. The candidates spent the entire day preparing their speeches and building a stage. The Election Speeches were started promptly at 5:00 PM.

The Original Candidates included Hayden, Gage and Levi. But moments before the Speeches began Brian and Alecia’s names were added to the ballots.

The Election Promises were great! Here is a recap…

Levi vowed he would build an incredible motor bike track through the woods in our back yard.
Gage promised that the entire family would receive a 10 minute nightly back scratch given by Levi.

Hayden pledged that everyone would read their bible three times a day.
Alecia vowed to never again cook and pass those responsibilities to the children.
Brian gave an amazing speech detailing how he would provide for his family and he would love each of them.

Once all the ballots were casted and counted Brian was declared President of the Bowers Family with three votes. Alecia and Levi each had one vote.

Brian took the stage and gave an outstanding Acceptance Speech. He then revealed his Cabinet Members who would take their places immediately.

Alecia would be in charge of Education and the Home.
Hayden would serve as Board Director of the Daily News.
Gage would take his place as the Board Director of Sports.
Levi was placed in charge of Entertainment.

Each cabinet member graciously accepted his or her positions and has already begun great works.

As we interviewed the Voters, Levi was asked who he voted for. He quickly looked at his Alecia and replied “I am not telling.” When questioned why he voted for Alecia his response was shocking, “If Alecia was voted President then I would have to cook dinner and I want to make Pizza, Chicken Nuggets and Mac and Cheese every night.” Can you tell why he was placed in Charge of Entertainment?!?!
This Historical Election has been great for the Bowers Family who got to exercise their Right to Vote.

I see Reelection in 2010!

The original Canidates...

Frozen Grapes...

Have you had them??

My mom told my kids that her favorite snack is Frozen Grapes. Her mother used to do it. So, immediately my kiddos threw some grapes in the freezer. They could barely wait til they were frozen to start eating them. Now, it is their favorite snack! When we get groceries the grapes don't ever make it to the fridge anymore, they go straight into the freezer.

Levi told Grandma, "I don't like the grapes, but I LOVE them". I asked him what he meant, he said he didn't like that he got brain freeze when he eats them but they taste SO good he can't help but to eat them.

So, throw some grapes in the freezer and let me know what you think.

Well today is THE day!!

History will be made today regardless of the outcome of the US Elections.

I am very anxious about the results of this election and I do hope we know by the end of the day.

But thankfully I have great comfort in a Bible Verse from Romans. Romans 13:1 says... "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God." So, I take great comfort in the fact that God has all ready decided who will run our great country for the next 4 years. So, I need not worry.

The Critter of the Week...

Though this critter is certainly not as big as the Praying Mantis last week, it just may be as long! The boys played all day with this lizard. As you can see he is brown, but by the end of the day when he was Freed he was bright green.

Praying Mantis... what amazing creatures.

Yesterday the boys found the biggest Praying Mantis I have ever seen! Gage was so sad when I told him that he had to let it go! He really wanted to show our neighbor Mr. R but we weren't sure when he would get home. Before going to bed, the boys opened the door of home (cage).

First thing this morning they raced outside to check on "Pray"and he was still in the home. I guess it was warmer in there then out in the open. The boys held him for a while and then put him in the tree right outside the living room window so they could watch him all day, without having to go out in the cold.

I guess we will study Praying Mantis for school today. Of all the creatures in creation this is one that intrigues me the most. It is so amazing.

Sushi Night at our house!

Brian came home last week telling me he wanted to have a Sushi Night. I immediately thought "GROSS, I am NOT eating raw fish". He reminded me that Sashimi is raw fish, Sushi is stuffed rice rolls wrapped in Seaweed. So, I was OK.

Saturday night we started by making Thai Spring Rolls with Rice paper. They were so good and the kids had a blast making them. Once we used up all the ingredients we moved on to Sushi.
The kids were not impressed with the Seaweed Paper, they thought it was rather gross. But they made a few rolls and had a blast.

We had so much food we ate Sushi for lunch the next day too.

Brian perfecting the seaweed roll.
















Hayden making faces through his rice paper.

Gage getting ready to dig in.

Levi eating his favorite part, the noodles.

Crazy Weather...

We have been loving the gorgeous warm weather here!! On Thursday it was almost 90, it was awesome! Well today the high was in the lower 50's! What a HUGE jump in temperature. I even put jeans on in the evening! Not cool!

Kitchen Disaster!

I love to cook.
I love to try new recipes.
I am usually a good cook.

But last night I had a kitchen disaster and it took me back to the days where I was just learning to cook.

I was cooking a new recipe that called for 6 slices of bacon. So, I decided that I would bake the rest. It would help season my new stone.

So as I carried on with the rest of the dinner I managed to burn everything! My house was filled with smoke so I opened all the windows and doors to try to clear the smoke. After I turned all the burners off I realized I had burned the bacon too. I decided to take the pan of bacon right outside to the patio so it wouldn't add to the smoke I was all ready dealing with. As I pulled the pan out of the oven a blast of hot air hit my eyes and jerked away, spilling bacon grease all over the floor and my foot!

I took the pan out to the patio. My foot was not hurting so I thought maybe it just got a few splatters. I decided I need to clean the floor so the kids didn't' walk in and slip. As I was finishing cleaning the floor the pain started to kick in! OH MY!! It was much more then a splatter of grease, I had poured the grease on my foot and it ran off to the floor.

I was so frustrated I turned off all the burners and just walked out of my kitchen, determined not to ever enter in it again! I spent the rest of the night applying ice to my foot. I tried all kinds of things to help relieve the pain but nothing worked. I tried Benedryl in desperation and within 5 minutes I was pain free!

As for our dinner, it was not as burned as I thought it was. Just a lot of smoke! It was actually really good. And my awesome husband cleaned the kitchen for me so I didn't have to go back in to the war zone.

My foot is doing much better then I expected. I am not sure how I am going to put shoes on but at least I am pain free!

A Day at the Beach...

Give the boy some sand, surf and some sun he will be happy! If you remember a few weeks ago we went to the beach and Levi spent the ENTIRE day in a blanket because it was cloudy and he was afraid there would be a Thunderstorm. But this time the sun was shining bright and Levi went straight for the water and had a blast! I was amazed at how quickly he learned to Boggie Board.



























Gage just loves the water and he NEVER wants to get out!

Hayden is making leaps and bounds in his surfing! He stood up a couple of times this week. It is so fun to see him!






















This is my man!! Love him!

My Auca Warriors...

The last three weeks we have been reading a book about Nate Saint traveling into South America to reach the feared Auca tribes. At the end of the book Nate Saint along with 4 other men were killed at the hands of the Auca's. Nate's wife Marj continued to pursue the Auca's and show them forgiveness. Because of this, many Auca's have given up their lives of killing for a life of forgiveness in Jesus Christ!

On with my story...

Today the boys came down stairs to attack me! They were all dressed, or should I say not so dressed, as Auca Warriors complete with headdress. They did such an amazing job using bandanna's to cover their privates, feathers and paper for the headdresses. Well, as my little Warriors turned to run back upstairs I saw the rest of their costumes! I saw each of their little hiney's running away! They were truly dressed like the Auca's! After a good laugh I sent them back upstairs to cover their hiney's!!

Talk about Creative Play!!

My Auca Warriors...

I am not sure who loves this house more,

the boys or their Daddy!!

The other night after dinner Brian disappeared into the garage. I thought he was working on something. So, after I was done with the kitchen I went in search of him. He was outside rollerblading all by himself having a blast. It was so funny!!

We have been so blessed with all the space and freedom!! The boys (All 4) love it here!! and so does Mommy!

The October 1st Bet

Hayden and Gage have always shared a room and they have a special bond between them. As we moved into our new house we decided that it was time for Hayden to get his own room. He was very excited about this UNTIL the first night he had to sleep in his room, alone. He cried and cried until he couldn't cry any longer. Then he went into a fit of rage because he doesn't want to grow up! It was so heartbreaking for me. I wondered if I had made the wrong choice.

So, I decided to make a bet with Hayden. I told him to give it a couple weeks and if on October 1st, he still didn't like having his own room then I would do his chores for him on that day. If he does like having his own room he needs to make supper. He kind of giggled and asked if he could make pizza and mac and cheese. I told him he could make whatever he wants, Oh good was his reply. I think he knew he would loose the bet.

It actually only took ONE night for him to appreciate having his own room. I think he also realized that having your own is a privilege not a punishment.

Today Hayden is thankful he lost his bet and he will be making dinner tonight!

A Season of Rest...

The biggest fear in this move for me, Alecia, was trying to find a church home. I know that nothing will take the place of our awesome church home in the UK but we know that we need to find a home.

We have attended several churches since arriving here in NC. As of today, the search continues.
Every Saturday one of us asks the dreaded question... where are we going to church tomorrow? I hate making the kids go to a different church every week to try out the kids programs, they are anxious to get settled too. Poor little Levi refuses to go to any kids programs right now. He is waiting until we are settled to go to the kids programs. We also want to plug in so we can start serving the Lord again too.

A couple weeks ago I was talking to the boys about the Creation story and we talked about how God rested on the seventh day. He didn't rest because he was tired, he rested because it was good. The Lord spoke directly to me and said "My child, enjoy this short season of rest! It won't be for long! Rest and enjoy all I have given you."

If you knew us in England, we were ALWAYS busy and loved it! We have thoroughly enjoyed having a completely OPEN DOOR policy!! But honestly, i can say now that I was tired. So, I am excited to enjoy this short season of rest! I love that we can just enjoy being a family! We have spent countless nights outside watching the kids ride the motorcycle, playing games and just hanging out. It is kind of nice not knowing anyone because there is no expectations!

Now as for my response to the Lord, I told him that I am totally enjoying all that he has blessed us with! But my prayer is still that we will find a church home soon, we don't need to plug in and start serving right away, but just that we know where we are supposed to be!

I am going to enjoy this Season of Rest!! How about you? Do you ever have seasons, days, hours or even minutes of rest to get lost in all God has blessed you with?

Did the boys making throught the night in the tent?

A couple weeks ago the boys put up the tent and wanted to sleep in it. Did they make it?? Well, here is how our day went...

At breakfast Brian told the boys they could put up the tent and sleep in it! The boys were thrilled, well all but Levi. Gage was totally excited and Hayden asked "Dad, do we have to sleep in the tent to night?" Dad told them yes, poor little Levi's face dropped! Hayden came to me later in the day asking if they really had to sleep in the tent? I told him Dad said yes. Hayden went on to tell me that he really didn't want to.

Well as the day wore on Gage got more and more excited, filling the tent with all kinds of provisions for the night. Hayden became more and more scared but refused to tell his dad. Levi was just certain that he would NOT be sleeping in the tent.


As Hayden and Gage were getting ready for bed, the entire days fears finally exploded into water works. All the while Dad is just laughing at how hysterical they had become. Gage was still thrilled to sleep outside. After about 20 minutes Brian finally told them that they didn't have to sleep outside. Hayden and Gage were of course relieved but then Gage was devastated. This lead to tears all around because then Hayden and Levi felt awful for ruining Gage's fun.

After comforting ALL three of them until they were asleep, I came down and told Brian next time he tells the boys they are sleeping outside, he needs to be prepared to sleep with them!

First Day of Fall...

NO WAY, we are still totally enjoying our summer!! The weather is still in the 80's and we even got to enjoy a day at the beach on Saturday!!

Brian packed up the truck with all the windsurfing and surfing gear he owns and off we went! We drove to Atlantic Beach and it was beautiful! Brian surfed for a couple hours and then decided to show Hayden how to surf. Hayden had a blast and stood up many times. Then Gage wanted to try, I thought he would quit after the first face plant but he endured. Those two boys surfed for hours and hours while Brian windsurfed.

Levi spent the entire day wrapped up in the picnic blanket! He even took two long naps, I thought he was sick because I couldn't even get him to eat a cracker. Then at 5:00 the sun finally broke through the clouds and off Levi went racing for the water. He ran and splashed and rode the waves for an hour, until the clouds rolled back in. This poor little guy is SO afraid of the Thunderstorms here that every time it rains he freaks out! Well, since it was a cloudy day he was expecting the thunderstorms to come at any minute. He believes that every time it rains here there will be a storm. I tried to explain to him that if it was going to storm that we wouldn't be sitting on the beach, but there was no convincing him otherwise. I hope he releases this fear soon.

Is the Bowers family ready for summer, NO WAY!!! We will be back to the beach this Saturday!

Two weeks...

It has been two weeks since we moved into our house and we are loving every minute of it! We are starting feel settled even though there are still some boxes that need to be sorted.

This past Saturday the boys, all 4 of them, spent the entire day outside! They were out roller blading by 8:00 am and didn't' come in until 7:00 pm. They had a blast roller blading, biking and riding their motorcycle. They were all sweaty and hot but I think it was all worth it.

On September 8th, Brian's birthday, we lost our beloved Papa. He was such a great man! He was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer a few months ago, thankfully he never felt sick. He suffered a stroke and passed away within 48 hours. Nana, we are sorry for the lost of your best friend and lover!

We started Home School this Monday. To be honest I was plagued by doubt in the days before we started. I asked myself what the heck I was doing, I wasn't equipped to teach these precious boys and I don't want to fail them. Well, Monday morning we started and I have felt a wave of peace over me since! I don't have to be quipped to follow God's leading, I just have to follow! He will do the rest! We are studying South America and by Tuesday all three boys knew all 13 countries in South America. I can honestly admit I didn't know any of them when we started! We have also been blessed to be able to complete everything we are supposed to do everyday! We are usually done by noon so the kids can spend the rest of their days outside playing. It truly has been a blessing and I am glad the Lord is bigger then my doubt.

Taking bets...

Brian told the boys they could sleep outside in the tent tonight, by themselves! The boys are outside right now setting up the tent.

Any bets on whether or not they will make it all night??

Yesterday there was a family of deer in our yard!

Oh, it was SO cool!! The kids told me there were deer and sure enough there was a buck, doe and the cutest little baby!! I was trying to get my camera out but one of the kids squealed in delight and they all took off into the wooded area behind our house!

We were told there were foxes, turtles, snakes and other critters in the woods. But nothing was ever said about deer. It truly was beautiful!

Brian mowed the lawn again last night. It only took 2 hours this time verses the 3 1/2 hours it took the first time.

We now have keys!!!!

Yesterday we closed on our house. It was quite the experience signing a book of documents. Now we wait on our household goods to show up. We've been greatly blessed with lots of sales and discounts as we buy the things we need for our house! We'll be ready for you to visit soon.

We are officially LANDLORDS!!!!

We are thrilled that our house in England has officially been rented!! The lease was signed today and the tenants will move in on the first!! This is a relief for us as the mortgage payment is due on the third!! Thanks MR and MRS P for everything you have done!!!

We still don't understand why our house didn't' sell in the UK but we trust that the Lord is in control and we will continue to wait on him. Our house is still for sale but as an Investment Only. When the 12 month lease is up, we will consider our options.

I am so blessed...

with such amazing boys!!

Hayden just bought Levi a Light Saber. I asked him why he spend his own money when Levi has money. He replied, "Levi just has a little bit of money and I don't want him to have to spend it. I have lots of money so I want to buy it for him." It brought tears to my eyes to watch my young little man consider his brothers desires more important then his own. One more thing you should know, is that Hayden has been saving his money for a couple years and has yet to buy anything for himself.

For any of you who have moved with kids, you know that patience levels for both kids and parents can get really low. Our kids have been bored out of their minds with the last 2 weeks of business. They have looked at 25 houses with us, sat at our agents office for hours and endured a 2 hour appointment with the mortgage broker. Because of the stress of it all I had lost my patience with the boys. But God gently reminded me through 3 people in one day how great my kids are! The mortgage broker said she has never had boys so well behaved in her office. Then her secretary said the boys were so quiet she forgot they were there. Then we went to shop for appliances and the sales lady said she was amazed with the boys. OK God, I get it, my expectation was too high! I am blessed with three great boys!

We bought a HOUSE!!!

We are so thrilled with the house we picked. It was actually the first house we looked it! When we walked in the front door Brian said, "This is it, we are done looking now!" Our agent insisted that we look at more. So, 24 houses later we went back to the very first house!

This house is everything we could have hoped for in a house! It is a brand new construction on a Cul-de-sac but we are still totally private as we own a wooded area to the left of us and behind us. There are a couple rows of trees to the right of us too. Right now our house is the only house built, but there are plots for 3 more houses. There is a unfinished bonus room upstairs which we will make into a hang out room for the boys! We know that they will LOVE this space! Now, if this amazing house was not enough, there is also a small unfinished room in the bonus room that will eventually be my Scrapbook Suite! I am so thrilled about this!! It will be small, but it is all mine! I am considering selling scrapbooks to make a little extra money so this space will be of great importance to me!

We should close on the house by the end of the month. YA!!!

We are purchasing our Washer/Dryer and Fridge today! Can I tell you that I am enjoying this awesome American appliances.

You have to have been overseas to appriciate this post...

We got free passes to go to the YMCA and I needed a swimsuit along with a few more items. So off to Target we went. In ONE store I was able to purchase the following...

Swimsuit
Pillows
Crock-Pot
Car Air Fresheners
Water bottle
Dish Soap

Yes, all in ONE store!! In the UK I would have had to stop at 3 stores to pick up all those items.

We had the most amazing thunderstorm last night!

I have always been one to enjoy a good thunderstorm. I remember as a young girl sitting on my Grandparents front porch during the thunderstorms!! My cousins and I would be in a competition to see who could stay out the whole thunderstorm.

Anyway, there are very very few thunderstorms in the UK. We got a couple this summer but they only last 2-3 minutes and then they are done. A real disappointment for a storm lover.

Last night just after we put the boys to bed I started to hear what I thought was the boys playing. But after checking on them I realized that they were all asleep. Then we saw the first amazing bolt of lightning. We sat watching from our bedroom window for the next 35 minutes! It was truly breathtaking!!

We are now on US soil...

Our travels were great! We went to London a day early and thoroughly enjoyed our time there. We spent a couple hours in Covent Gardens watching the street performers. Then we enjoyed one last Pub Dinner. We had an added blessing as our dear friends traveled with us as they are also moving to NC.

Despite an hour delay after boarding, we had a great flight. The boys did amazing!! Brian got really sick the mornign of our flight, and has been sick since. I thought it was just stress and anxiety but as the days go on I am concerned it might be something more.

Brian told me that he feels as though our lives are dying but we are living on. We never felt this more then when we finally landed and there was no one there to pick us up. We tried calling EVERY number Brian had and no one answered. After waiting 2 hours we finally took a Taxi. $150 later we arrived at our hotel. What a joke it is. It is a room for 4 people. Poor Levi is sleeping on the floor. We will move into a bigger room tomorrow!

We have spent the last 3 days looking at 25 houses. We have narrowed it down to 4. They all are great houses but each one has their own little advantage. So, we are going to go back through all 4 tomorrow and then hopefully we will know for sure which one is meant for us. 3 of them over look a wooded area, which we really like.

The boys are tired of "Business" and are ready to play. They have been great troopers and we are blessed. Thank God Grandpa and Grandma bought them DS's for Christmas, they have been very helpfully in entertaining the boys are we travel all over NC!! We are taking them swimming today and they are SO excited.

1 Week

Just 1 week and we will be in the USA. It is amazing how fast the time goes by.

I think we are almost done with our house! I think Brian just has one more job to do and that will be done today.

We are enjoying the hotel we are at. It is SO nice to actually get out of the house! Brian has been able to relax a little and it sleeping better.

The boys are doing well. Most of the time they are really excited and happy. But occasionally they get sad and that comes out in frustration for them.

We bought a vehicle off of Ebay!

One of the many stresses we have with this move is that both our vehicles are UK spec so when we get to the states we not only have to buy a house but we also have to buy 2 vehicles.

Well this week the Lord provided us a vehicle!! It is the exact vehicle Brian wanted and the man selling it was in NC where we are headed. We paid for an inspection and title check and both came out clean. Brian's sponsor actually took it through the inspection and then test drove it. He said it is in great condition. Brian's sponsor has the truck and will bring to the airport for us when we arrive!

I am so relieved that one of our stress has been lifted from us!! And did I mention we got it for about $2,000 less then blue book because the man selling it was leaving for Japan within 2 days.

PAINT PAINT PAINT

I don't ever want to touch another paint roller again!! We have been painting like maniacs for a couple weeks now. We just have the kitchen left! When it is done I will be thrilled!

Brian said we need to make sure that we like the colors of our new house because we aren't painting it! Ya, right! But what we did learn is that it is much easier to paint an empty house.

We are down to 2 1/2 weeks before we leave. Time is flying by!

4 Weeks!

It is so hard to imagine that in less then 4 weeks we will be living in the US again! It has been over 12 years since we lived there! I am sure much has changed.

Our house was packed out last week so we have "Stick Furniture". We are enjoying the simple life. The kids are a bit bored and the weather has been dreadful but other then that it has been good.

Leaving the UK is very bitter sweet! On one hand we are SO excited for the conveniences that US offers! I can't wait to get a bigger house with more then just one bathroom. We are very excited about our new assignment and can't wait to explore. Mountains and beaches within a couple hours, what can be better then that?!?!

On the other side we are very saddened by the fact that we will be leaving. Even though we have completely outgrown this tiny little house, it holds an amazing amount of precious memories of family and friends. So many friends have walked through our doors and we have been blessed by each of them. We have loved having an "Open Door" (literally) house!

So in all the new stuff we are about to endeavor on we also know that we will also start the "Church" hunt. It is very intimidating to have to start all over. The city we are moving to has 40,000 people so I didn't think searching for a church would be too bad! UNTIL we looked at a church directory. There are literally hundreds of churches there! We pray that God will guide us to exactly where he wants us to serve.

A new Passion.

Brian has been reading to us most nights after dinner for years! We absolutely love this family time. But as for me I have never been one to sit down and enjoy a good book! I don't enjoy reading and I usually find my mind wondering all over the place. However, since I started homeschooling I have completely enjoyed "Read Out Louds" with the boys.

I recently found a bunch of books called "the Great Classics for Children" at our Book store. They were an amazing price so I snatched up 6 of them. I must admit I had heard of all of them but I only know the story of 2 of them. Hayden immediately grabbed "The Wind and the Willow" and started reading. I was pleased with my great bargains and that Hayden jumped right into them.

Well today I ran across the following article and it made me even more pleased that I bought the "Classics" for my boys. The study was here in the UK but I can assume that studies would show the same statistics if it were done in the US.


CHILDREN’S CLASSICS ARE GATHERING DUST ON THE SHELVES,
ACCORDING TO RESULTS OF NEW SURVEY


Traditional children’s literary classics are in danger of disappearing from our culture,
a survey has revealed.


The survey of more than 2,000 parents across the UK revealed that 78% believed
their children were not being introduced to traditional literary classics.


And the findings of the survey, commissioned to mark the launch of an ambitious
city-wide Treasure Island reading project in Bristol, appear to justify their fears.

· Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous tale has been read by only 5% of
youngsters, although two-thirds knew of the story of Long John Silver, Jim
Hawkins and Squire Trelawney.

· Frances Hodgson Burnett’s The Secret Garden was less well known but
slightly better read – only 58% of youngsters had ‘heard of it’ but 6% had
read it.

· More children knew of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland –
74%, but still only 12% had read it.

· Peter Pan and Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, were both known
by every youngster yet only 12% had read JM Barrie’s tale compared to 81%
who had read JK Rowling’s.

So the new Passion, I want to read all the Classics we have to the Boys! I don't want my boys to miss out on the stories our Parents and Grandparents enjoyed. I also want them to enjoy more then just the 2 hour DVD version.

Update!

Here is a quick update on the happenings the last couple weeks!

We did get an offer on our house but it turns out that she needs to sell her house first! We still have it on the market for a couple weeks but we feel the Lords leading to rent it out. We originally thought we would rent it for one year and then sell it when the housing market starts moving again. But we are now seeing the advantages in keeping it long term as a rental. I think it is a little scary to own a property overseas but I am warming up to the idea. We have dear friends just a couple houses down the street who are going to manage the property for us. We also had another surprise this week concerning the property tax. We assumed that once we leave the country we would have to the pay the $2,400 + tax but the council told us that as long as an American is living in the house we are exempt. YA!!

Along with renting out the house comes a TON of work for Brian. He said he could sell the house "as is" but he wouldn't rent it! That perfectionist is coming out in him. So, he has been really busy fixing up little odd things around the house. After we pack out we will need to tackle all the walls with a coat of paint.

We pack out in one week! YIKES!! I am not ready for that. WAY too much to do.

The last couples weeks have been full of questions and searching for us concerning cars and houses. We considered renting for a year but it just seems silly to throw all that money away. We then checked into Base housing, the wait on the Internet says 30 days. We called NC and they informed us that all the housing in our rank had just been demolished and that it would be 3 years till they are open. So, now we are back to looking at houses for sale.

I think we may die of heat in NC!

The weather here has been great!! It has hit 75 degrees the last couple days and that is hot for us.

I was checking the forecast in NC and it is 105 and very humid! Oh man, we are not used that kind of heat!! The humidity is going to be the killer for me.

The good thing is there are AC's everywhere.

Gage had a follow up today!

and it will be his last as he was declared "Clinically Healed" today! Orginally the DR said 12-16 weeks but he has been realeased at 7 weeks.

Gage is of course beyond thrilled!! He doesn't have to hear Mommy say "Gage, be careful", "Gage don't use that arm" and "Gage STOP running". His only restriction is no contact sports or wrestling for another 2 months.

He missed baseball sign ups by 2 weeks. But I am hoping that the Youth Director will waive him and allow him to play. He did get to practise last night with Levi's team. It was so nice to see him doing the things he loves again. I do have to confess, everytime he hit the ball or was running for base my heart raced a little faster.

Greece Pilgrimage

We got the opportunity to go on a week long Pilgrimage through the Footsteps of Paul in Greece. We traveled with a total of 50 people and it was amazing. We traveled all through Greece.

The highlight of our trip were the Baptisms at Lydia's baptism site. She is believed to be the first person baptized in Europe. Our dear friend Jason baptized Brian and then together they baptized Hayden. It was so amazing!

Brian was thrilled to have the opportunity to speak on Mars Hill in Athens. This is the same spot Paul preached to the Athenians about man made idols in Acts 17. With the Parthenon literally right behind the hill Paul was trying to tell the Athenians that God doesn't live in man made temples.

Gage's second follow-up (4 weeks)

The DR was much more encouraged this X-ray! He said he could definitely see new bone growth and that the bone was working as one now! Praise the LORD!!!

The DR said that he still needs to be in the sling but can slowly work is way out of it. Gage took that to mean he could take it off forever immediately.

Gage is out of sports and normal activities for at least 6 more weeks. I am signing Hayden and Levi up for baseball today. Gage is a little bummed that he can't play but he told me that he would be mad if it was soccer season. I told him that he gets the privilege of being his brothers number one fans.

Please pray for protection and continued healing.

North Carolina here we come...

We have finally gotten our next job location!! It looks as though we will be moving to the Goldsboro area in August. We are getting SO excited. We have been reminded by 2 sets of friends, who have been diverted en-route, that this can change at any given time. We will continue to trust that Lord that he will place us exactly where he wants us.

Gage and Levi continue to pray that we will go to NM instead of NC. Our dear friends are moving there and the boys just can't bear the thought of being without their "Brothers from another Mother". Another family we love dearly is moving there as well and we would have loved the opportunity to love on them as they are facing some challenges right now.

Brian and I have been having a blast looking at houses. We should have no problem getting a bigger house, I don't think we could find an 800 square foot house even if we wanted to.

After being outside the US for 12 years it will be a culture shock for sure! We have forgotten about some many conveniences that the US offers. For example as we "house shop" we are thrilled about the simple things like garbage disposals, closets, screened windows, big ovens and laundry rooms. We look forward to stores being open past 6:00 pm, and also the convenience of being able to shop around.

The last couple nights we have been out and about with friends. We had so much fun fellowshipping with our dear friends but we got a little discouraged when we tried to go out for dinner! On Saturday night the restaurants we wanted to go to were closed at 5:30. Who closes a restaurant at 5:30 on a Saturday night?? Then Sunday night we had to try 3 restaurants before we found one open. These inconveniences we won't miss.

What happened to Spring??

We went from having really cold weather last week to amazing weather this week. It has been 70 degrees and sunny all week!! And the forcast predicts 70's for at least the next 5 days. So, we went from winter straight into summer!

We have had a dreadful winter this year! This was the wettest and greyest winter on record so this sunshine is very welcome!

The boys are loving it too! Today they ate breakfast outside and did school outside!

Gage's First Follow up

Well Gage had his first, of many, follow-ups on Friday. The X-ray shows what appears to be new bone growing which is fantastic!! However the DR said he would have like to see more bone growth. So, Gage is in the sling at least until our next check up in 2 weeks. He plans to X-ray every 2 weeks for at least 8 weeks because the break is so severe.

When the break first happened he assured me that children under 14 don't need surgery. This week when we left he gave me "Worse Case Scenario" if his clavicle doesn't heal properly. They will go in and do surgery scraping out all new bone growth, re break the collar bone to align it properly as it is displaced about an inch. Then put a rod through it and then plate it. However, this means a second surgery to remove all the metal. We are desperately playing that we don't have to go this route. He said the surgery will be several months away as he tries to give kids every opportunity to heal on their own.

On Saturday a little boy pulled Gage's chair out from under him causing him to hit the back of his shoulder blade. The caused Gage great pain and he is back on meds. These are the little things that could hinder his recovery.

Please pray for healing and a hedge of protection around our precious Gage!!

Off we go....

After many tears and much prayer we decided to carry on with our plans to go to Greece. Gage was doing considerably better yesterday when we had to make the decision. We are stocked up on Tylonol! We have borrowed a jogging stroller and Gage finds this the most comfortable place to sit so he will be permanently in the stroller for the next 8 days.

Gage has a spot on his arm that keeps burning and it concerns me, but the totally cool thing about this trip is there is a Ortho Dr and a nurse going with us! So, if we have any concerns we have to look no further then the group we are traveling with. There will be a dentist too!

Please pray for Gage, us and the group of 50 that we are traveling with.

Love,
Alecia

Third time is a doozie...

I took my kids to the village down the road so I could get a couple pictures. As we were crossing the road to go back to the car Gage tripped over the curb. He landed on his shoulder, hit his face, did a summersault and stood up screaming! He knew right away that he had broken his collar bone.

We went straight to the ER where we did TONS of Xrays, twice. His collar bone is indeed broken and displaced. This morning we had to see the orthopedic surgeon because this is the second time this side has been broken. His outlook was good but he said that he will be in pain for a long time because of the displacement, which is almost an inch. His collar bone will probably be shorter then the other side permanently. I shared my concern that he has broken his left collar bone twice and the right once. The Dr said that this is the number one broken bone in boys Gage's age. He has no reason to believe that Gage has any kind of bone deficiency, so that was reassuring.

We are supposed to leave for Greece on Monday, where we are supposed to travel for 8 days. Brian and I are trying to figure out what we should do about our trip. When Gage has Codine he says he wants to go to Greece. When the Codine wears off, he wants to stay home.

The crazy thing is for weeks I have been telling the boys that they can't break thier legs because of our trip. I guess next time I have to tell them that they can't break ANYTHING!!!!

The first 2 breaks were clean breaks which would explain why he bounced back so fast. For example, the day after the first break he was pushing shut a winter storm door. The day after the second break I had to take him off a scooter. This is a more severe break so we won't be bouncing back so quickly this time. He is in alot of pain and once he gets comfortable he doesn't want to move. The two muscles attached the bone are spasming, making the pain worse.

Please pray for our little guy!

A matter of perspective...

So yesterday as I was driving out of our neighborhood I noticed that another house on our street had a sold sign on it. This is a VERY rundown house that will need a total makeover. I instantly felt like I had been punched in the stomach. I came home and immediately told Brian that I couldn't believe that house sold, and ours has not!

He smiled and said "That is good", WHAT!!! Are you kidding me, I want the "Sold" sign on my house! He said "Well, it should encourage us that while the market is moving slow right now, it is still moving!". It sure is a good thing I have the guy around! He helps me to keep my emotions in check and see life with a fresh perspective.

A little discouraged...

I am a little discouraged that our house has been on the market for a month now and it has only been viewed once! Our realitor told us the market was slow, but I didn't realize it was this slow!!

Happy Day

The greatest day in history,
Death is beaten
You have rescued me
Sing it out Jesus is alive
The empty cross,
The empty grave
Life eternal
You have won the day
Shout it out
Jesus is aliveHe's alive

Oh happy day, happy day
You washed my sin away
Oh happy day, happy day
I'll never be the same
Forever I am changed

When I stand,
in that place
Free at last,
meeting face to face
I am Yours
Jesus You are mine
Endless joy,
perfect peace
Earthly pain
finally will cease
Celebrate Jesus is alive
He's alive

Oh happy day, happy day
You washed my sin away
Oh happy day, happy day
I'll never be the same
Forever I am changed
Oh what a glorious day

What a glorious way
That You have saved me
Oh what a glorious day
What a glorious name

Oh happy day, happy day
You washed my sin away
Oh happy day, happy day
I'll never be the same
Forever I am changed
What a glorious glorious day,
I'll never be the same


We have been singing this song around our house for a couple weeks now but it was awesome to hear it during worship on Easter Sunday! Yes, what a Happy Day Easter Sunday is!!

If you have not yet heard this song check out this You tube link... http://youtube.com/watch?v=CAq_CVciNSs

Have a Happy Day dear friends and family!

Love,
the Bowers

Our house is officially on the market!!

After a week of appointments with our estate agent I was thrilled when our house was officially for sale Friday night!!

We are praying that our house sells fast! The average house is taking between 120-225 days to sell. AND it takes 8 weeks to complete the transaction once someone commits to buying it. We have to leave England no later then August 3rd because our Visa's expire. So, we don't have a lot of time. We pray that we can leave England with no attachments, we would be blessed if you joined us in that prayer.

In case you are wondering, we don't have orders. We won't know anything until May.

Just in case you wanted to know...

A brand new Pampered Chef 8 inch Chef's knife is EXTREMELY sharp and WILL cut through a finger nail!!!

I was so excited to use my brand new "Mother of all Knives". I was using to cut carrots Sunday morning before Church. My carrot rolled just has I was taking a hack at it. I completely cut through my finger nail about half way down. There is only a tiny area of flesh holding it on. As my finger was pouring blood into the sink all I could think about was the fact that Brian had to leave in 5 minutes for Church, what was I going to do!!! I calmly went to the bathroom to analyze the finger and try to figure out if I should just just rip the finger nail off or go to the ER. At that time the boys saw all the blood and screamed for dad. My Knight in Shining Armour came to my rescue! He cleaned me all up and then steri-stripped my nail back down and then taped me all up!!

Praise God that I didn't cut my finger tip off, as this knife could have easily done that!

Neighborhood Watch continues...

Since last week there have been NUMEROUS break in's throughout our neighborhood and another caravan was stolen. The thieves are just walking into peoples houses, even if there are home.


On Sunday night we saw the flatbed truck that stole our neighbors van, I went outside and had a stare down with him. By the time I had come into write down the plate numbers Brian had jumped in the car and took off after them, but they were too fast. We did call in the plates.


On Monday morning a lady was knocking on the door, I didn't answer it because I didn't know who she was. Well, after she knocked and no one answered she tried to open my door! Thankfully it was locked but I am really mad that she tried to open my door. I did take her plates down but I am not sure what to do with the info. The local police don't seem to be bothered by the events of the neighborhood. So the Neighborhood watch continues...

Now you see it... Now you don't.

On Monday our British Neighbor got his Camper stolen right out of his drive way during lunch hour. He was devasted. He had just bought it and not even used it yet. And it isn't insured.

Then yesterday Brian came home for lunch. When he went to leave 35 minutes later he noticed that his outside mirror was turned in and scratched. As he moved it back he noticed that our neighbors van was stolen, we share a drive way. WE WERE HOME and we didn't even hear anything! Another neighbor saw it but he figured it was getting towed away to be fixed.

I guess the gypsies are back in the neighborhood! Can you believe how bold they are, what if Brian would have come out while they were loading it?

So, now we are totally paranoid. We live on a dead end off of a dead end so there is usually no through traffic. So everytime I hear a car I jump to the window to see who it is. Hopefully they got what they wanted and they won't be back!

I heard your WHATCHAMACALLIT...

got all
OUT OF WHACK
and
DISCOMBOBULATED
It's a good thing they have those
THINGAMABOBS
to fix your
DOOHICKEY.

This is the card I recieved from my boys on my 7th day of the stomach flu! It sure made me crack up! The boys have been fantastic all week with a OUT OF WHACK mom who spent much of her days in bed or in the bathroom! Thankfully they have not gotten sick!

Brian also managed to get a severe sore throat. Together we sure are a mess!

I can now say that I am finally starting to feel better! Praise the Lord! Now to get my house back in order and the laundry caught up!

Master Sergeant Bowers

Brian pinned on Master Sergeant this month! I am so proud of him!!

Since we are homeschooling this year we all got to participate in the ceremony. Hayden tacked on Brian's stripes too well! His punch followed through and hit the ribbons on his chest, totally messing up the rack but also leaving mulitple cuts on Hayden's hands!

And so it begins...

We have to put our house on the market this month and there are a gigantic list of things that need to be done before we can list it. The projects began this last weekend.

We had the windows changed in our house a couple years ago. They removed an internal window but left the glue and residue. Brian started in the boys room and after scraping and sanding we got to paint thier room. So, one room done! YA!!

Now, if you have been in my house, you know I ALWAYS have candles burning. Well, it leaves an awful black residue on our ceilings in this house! A few years back the boys were playing with rubber slap hands and we discovered that the stick hands completely remove all the black residue. We tried to figure out how we could mass produce this goo but were unsuccessful.

Last week in Chemestry we made "Goo" with glue and starch, in large quantities. So while Brian and Hayden were working on the boys room, Gage and I and started slapping the ceiling with goo! Our goo started out white and by the end of the day it was a charcoal grey!

The "GOO"

Privacy Please

Gage and I knocked heads a little this morning. After about 10 minutes I went to check on him. He was no where to be found. After several minutes I found him under my bed. I assumed he was pouting and I told him to get out from under the bed, NOW! He slithered his way out pushing his handwriting book out with a pencil in one hand and a flashlight in the other hand. I asked him what he was doing, he quoted "This is the only place in the house that I can get some privacy!" This cracked me up as I watched him slither back under the bed.

As for Hayden, he has managed to find his own little escape behind the rocking chair. He even has a few pillows thrown back there for when he does reading and AWANA.

If you have been to our house you know that we have one bathroom and it is right as you enter the front door. We have an open door policy, literally meaning people open the door and walk right in. I used to shut the door every time I went to the bathroom but every time it is shut the kids urgently need Mommy at the exact moment in time. When I keep the door open is when I get my privacy. Ironic??

Living in a 800 square foot house with growing boys can be tough, especially now that we are homeschooling! I figure our next house HAS to be bigger! Brian says double would be nice, I am hoping for triple. My hope is that the kids will each get their own rooms along with a desk so that they can have some "Privacy Please".

Disney Paris

For Christmas Brian gave us a trip to Disney Paris! We just got back and we had a blast! It was a short whirlwind trip but it was SO much fun!

We boarded a bus for Paris at 4:30 on Friday! We arrived at our hotel at 3:30. The bus driver offered a night tour through Paris but we opted to get a good night sleep instead! We walked over to a mall about 2 blocks from the hotel. We were in Awe of the size and the amount of people there. Remember, we have been overseas for over 12 years now. We had Chinese for dinner and then went back to our room. Everyone, but me, was asleep by 7:30, this would be 6:30 UK time!

Saturday morning we had a buffet breakfast and we loaded back in the bus by 8:00. I was totally overwhelmed when we arrived at Disney. Having never been to a Disney, I really didn't know what to expect. We had such a fabulous day and we rode SO many more rides then I expected.

We had lunch at the Blue Lagoon. This is an underground resteraunt that is the beach at the beginning of the Pirates of the Caribbean Ride. It was so beautiful. I ordered Creme Brulee and the boys enjoyed it as much as I did!

Our favorite ride was Big Thunder Mountain, I think we rode it 5 times. Every time Levi would say he didn't want to go but we kept dragging him along. Brian, Hayden and Gage braved the Tower of Terror. Levi didn't want to go and I figured we had tortured him enough so we sat outside and waited. This was the LONGEST line we endured. The sign said it was a 25 minutes wait but Levi and I waited over an hour for them to come out.

We left the park at 10:00 totally exhausted with our legs aching! But it was such a wonderful family time!

Before leaving Paris Sunday morning we stopped at a Church on the top of Paris. It was a hike up for our poor little legs but it was beautiful! We had a great view of the city.

The ferry back to the UK was crazy. The wind was so fierce that there were SO many ladies in the bathroom with seas sickness! If it wasn't so funny listening to them, I may have gotten sick too! After the crossing we had to wait an additional hour before we could dock. It was so funny to watch people walk down the hallways, everyone looked completely drunk. Hayden and I went for a walk and Hayden fell flat on his back twice! It was quite funny.

When we finally disembarked the ferry we drove up to Dover Castle. It was dark but it was so beautiful to see the castle all lit up.

We finally arrived home at 8:30, the kids were asleep within seconds of hitting their pillows!

I ordered each of the kids a scrapbook and they will get to make their own memory albums!

Thank you Brian for the amazing trip! I love you!!

Sweet Silence

Our electricity has been blinking on and off for a few days. Usually no more then 30 minutes and during the day. It is amazing how quickly life can come to a stop when we rely so heavily on electricity. I used to think think that the house was quiet if the TV or Music wasn't on. But I realized that the house is just loud with the hum of the washing machine, dishwasher and the ever present transformers. We have been able to expericence what true silence is.

The other night right as we were sitting down to enjoy dinner, our electricity went out. So, we finished dinner by candlelight! The kids were frustrated that we didn't have any lights to eat by. We spent alot of time discussing days past when there was no electricity, cars, lights, stoves and the like. The kids were amazed that people could live in such a way. After dinner we took our candles and went into the family room where we started reading a book called Hedge of Thorns. This is an amazing book that was written in 1611. It is a story of what happens when we go through the Hedges that God has placed in our path. Often we think these hedges are hindering our freedon and we desire deeply to know what is on the other side. But we don't realize that the Hedges may be there to protect us and provide security. We highly recommend this book!! I don't want to spoil it by telling you more!! If you read this book, please let me know what you think of it!!

It took us a couple hours to get throught the book, but we had nothing else to do in the sweet silence. Just minutes after we were done reading our book the electricity came back on. The kids quickly jumped up and turned them all off to we could finish our night by candle light. It was very refreshing. I thanked God that we did have a few precious minutes as a family to sit in silence as a family. We read most nights as a family but there was something special about that night!

I, Alecia, don't often sit in silence, in fact I don't like silence. Even when I am just scrapbooking I need a movie on or some music in the background. But the Lord has been gently reminding me to "Be still, and know that I am God" from Psalm 46:10. Part of being still for me is being silent! If life is too busy and too loud I can't hear the gentle calling of his voice!! How about you, do you enjoy sweet silence?