White Sunday

Well, I do not have a video of the children doing their songs and verses to post, but I do have a picture of them in their outfits. Apparently, Walmart was not aware that this past Sunday was White Sunday, because we could not find a decent all white (alright with an oriental accent, Ha!) outfit for either of them. So here is the best we could do. They are both wearing white tops and blue bottoms. The hat was Jarod's idea.

Jarod had to come home sick yesterday afternoon. There is a stomach bug going around and all but Dianna has caught it. Jarod and Barbie stayed home together today. Jarod is doing much better and will return to school tomorrow. Barbie is not feeling all the way better but will also go back to school tomorrow - what a trooper/super mom. Please pray that Dianna does not get the bug. Below is a picture of Jarod this morning at the breakfast table (remember, normally he goes 90 mph from the time he is coherent to the time he falls asleep mid play). He climbed up into his seat and put his head down and fell back asleep.

Learning at School

Talofa lava. School is in session! We just wanted to share some of what the children have been learning and have learned in school this year. In this first video we have Dianna showing us what she is learning. Praise the LORD for such a good school with a solid Biblical foundation for education. Dianna is coloring better and identifying letters like a pro. In her video she demonstrates her skills of being able to recognize a sound and assign the right letter of the alphabet to that sound. Watch as she thinks about the letter's sound before she verbalizes her answer. What a gem. Enjoy. Our next video is of Jarod leading "his class" (you and me) in the Pledge of Allegiance and "My Country 'tis of Thee". He just amazes me with what he picks up and remembers from school. He talks so clearly, I think, and so much with good sentences. I wish you all could see him and spend time with him to get to know him. Enjoy the show of our little angels. Love you all.

A Moment Captured on Film

Welcome to the screening room. We have a very special and rare treat on the menu for tonight. For one night only, in never before seen footage from his upcoming film, "Hero on a Bike," here is Jarod James. The clip is of the kids riding their bikes in the garage. Dianna is really good at riding her bike, and Jarod has been trying so hard as of late to keep up with his sister. After putting in so much time on his bike, he accomplished something that I thought was still a long was off - he pedaled his bike all by himself. Praise the LORD for HIS blessings and goodness, even in the little things. So, sit back, relax and enjoy the show. One last thing, we love you all very much.

Samples of Dianna's School Work

This is Dianna getting acquainted with her classroom on Open House day, the Sunday before school started. It was crazy crowded, with 39 other students and all their families. Dianna enjoyed meeting her teacher, Mrs. De Luna, and the assistant, Mrs. Franklin. Her actual teacher is Mrs. Stewart, but she has been on maternity leave; Dianna has not met her yet. Mrs. De Luna and Mrs. Franklin must talk about her, though, because Dianna is very eager for Mrs. Stewart to be her teacher. I get to see her everyday. I usually stop by her lunch table; her class is eating lunch when my class is cleaning up from lunch. I got to see her in the hall on Friday - a first for us. She's loving it and learning so much!

Without any prompting at all, Dianna wrote Jarod's name for him on a paper that he was coloring. She did pretty well, didn't she? I'm so proud of her! She really IS learning a lot at the Academy!

She's so proud of this octopus picture. Can you tell what it is? It's her hand, traced onto the paper upside down. Then, turn the paper back right-side-up, and you have an octopus! She has loved explaining the process to us and demonstrating it. She's such a smarty! We are so blessed with such a lovely, talented, intelligent, and sensitive daughter.

A special blessing lately has been in talking to her about Heaven. She accepted Christ as Savior in February. (I'll admit: she was only 3 so I was certain that she wouldn't remember or understand what she did when she prayed. When we talk about how to be saved and what it means, she reminds us that she is a Christian because she already prayed for Jesus to come into her heart. I'm trying to still be sensitive and aware of things she might say that show she needs further teaching and understanding before she can truly be saved, but at the same time am trusting the Lord that she really has accepted Him.) Anyway, lately she has been talking about wanting to be in Heaven and hoping that we will see each other there because she will be thinking about her brother, father, and mother. She told me today that she was not good at being patient about getting to Heaven! What a girl! It's so amazing to see her heart for the Lord and her spiritual growth, even as such a small child.

All About Jarod

Hello, we just wanted to share this really neat school project that Jarod brought home on Friday. This is a little "growth" booklet that the two year olds did for their parents. It is so cute just to see how he has grown in such a short amount of time. We had to send in a picture of Jarod James for the front cover as you will see. Let us begin, shall we?

Here is one of the cutest covers of any book you will ever see.
Page two contains some vital statistics of our books hero. He is 35 inches tall (in Disney terms - 5 inches shy from being able to ride the big kid rides). Our protagonist weighs in right at 30 pounds.
Here we see how big his hands and feet are. I love how Jarod's foot almost takes up the entire box. He is growing so fast!
Here is the poem on the back cover of his book. He is so cute. I think he may have this memorized, but I am not sure.
This last picture is not part of the book, but he colored this all by himself. He si getting better at staying in the lines. He is learning. Well, I hope you all enjoyed this little look at Jarod's school work. We love you all so much. TTFN!!

Master Clubs Memory Verse of the Week

Hello, we just wanted to share a short clip of Dianna sharing her verse that she learned for Master Clubs this week. We are so thankful for this program, as well as our school that our children can learn the Scriptures unhindered. We truly are blessed. We love you all so very much. Also, here is a picture of Dianna in her Master Clubs vest and her bag. Talk to you all later.

Chickens, Football, Spanish Conquistadors, and James?!?!

Welcome back to this edition of "Little Factoids of Our Lives that May or May Not Interest You", but hey, since you are here, let us get started shall we? This weekend, Barbie and the children had a three day weekend for Labor Day. We had a good weekend. James came down to visit us this weekend. It was so good to see him; we haven't seen him in maybe 2 1/2 years. He had not met Jarod yet, so that was exciting. The children had a blast with Uncle James. James is doing some training in Brunswick, GA for Border Patrol and had some leave time for the holiday. We had a good visit. Yesterday (Labor Day) was "wear-a-sports-team-logo-and-get-a-free-chicken-sandwich-day" at Chick-fil-a Restaurants. That was fun. We went to two of the three restaurants in town and recieved 12 chicken sandwiches, 2 drinks, and 3 waffle fries for under $7. I love these promotions that Chick-fil-a does. So we all dressed in Seminole, Gator, and Dolphin wear for our free sandwiches. The last two pictures were taken a couple of weeks ago, but I never blogged about I don't think. August 2009 marked the 450th anniversary of the Spanish landing and settling of Pensacaola. The park that the children are playing in the water at was named "De Luna Park", dedicated to someone of historic value in this era of history. This park was dedicated and named with the king and queen of Spain present here in Pensacola. Neat. The statue is of the De Luna explorer. Pretty nifty stuff.

Well, I must away. Jarod is home sick today. He is running a temperature. Please pray that he gets better and can return to school tomorrow. Ayden has been sick as well. We love you all; have a great day, everybody. Bye-bye.