mysterious photographer strikes again

What we know:

• He shut himself in my in-laws' bathroom to take the photograph.

a few weeks ago on national night out

we had a smashing drive home

I just got home. The kids and I walked around a lake over the noon hour and walked through some park gardens.

Since the road around the lake is a one way, I went a different way home and found myself having to go around detours and through construction areas.

In one of the construction areas in single lane traffic, there was a fire hose spraying into the street. As I veered around it, I must have been looking down at the water. For when I looked up, traffic was stopped, and I rear-ended the man in front of me at a slow speed.

My front right side of my bumper, headlight, and turn signal were smashed down near my tire. His back left corner bumper was smashed in. No one got hurt. Henri asked me why we were turning into a parking lot (to get out of traffic).

I've never been in an accident that I caused before, and I wanted to make sure that I did everything right. We've been left hanging before by someone who hit Johnny's car. 911 told me they wouldn't send anyone out and just to exchange information. I called my insurance company, and they were fine with that.

The other man didn't speak English very well, but he was nice and hung around while I waited to give him a claim number from my insurance company.

I thought I could drive my car to the auto body shop my insurance told me to go to, but if I turned the wheel to the right, the tire hit the bumper. The auto body shop told me they would tow it, so I called Johnny to pick me up.

While I was on the phone with either 911, Johnny, the insurance company, the auto body shop, and the tow truck company, Henri and Cosette sat in their car seats at first; then Henri let themselves out and they crawled around the car (breaking my sunglasses--2 broken in one week). Then Henri talked and talked wanting to know what was going on. Finally, Henri informed me that he had to go use a bathroom now! The kind employees of the nearby paint store, led us into their backroom to find a restroom.

All in all, it put me home two hours later than I had hoped I'd be. Cosette was pretty tired since we were cutting into her nap.

Cosette is napping now, and Henri is crafting construction paper in his room. I praise God that he kept us safe and the man I hit safe. Although this will be a financial sting in the side (so sorry my Honey), I count it all joy and praise God for our country and the business systems set in place to help everything go smoothly so that both cars can be fixed.

21 months

• Now speaking a few sentences like:

"I did it!"
"I got it!"

• Attempts to say words like:

"Sandwich"
"Snack"
"Computer"

• Gives real kisses.
• Fully weaned, but still asks to nurse occasionally.
• Loves her "Lovey" and pacifier.
• Tries to do whatever her brother does.
• Laughs with her brother a lot.
• Mimics her brother's noises or tries to get him to copy her.
• Adores babies.
  

johnny's family

A photo from our trip
Johnny's dad, Bob, Johnny's mom, Nancy, Johnny's younger sister, Kristin, & Johnny

so I was wondering if I should read The Shack

Ah, The Shack, a popular fiction book, but is it good for me to read?

Here's Tim Challies' conclusion from his review:

Focusing on just three of the subjects William Young discusses in The Shack, we’ve seen that errors abound. He presents a false view of God and one that may well be described as heretical. He downplays the importance and uniqueness of the Bible, subjugating it or making it equal to other forms of subjective revelation. He misrepresents redemption and salvation, opening the door to the possibility of salvation outside of the completed work of Jesus Christ on the cross. We are left with an unbiblical understanding of the persons and nature of God and of His work in this world.

But this is not all. The discerning reader will note as well that the author muddies the concepts of forgiveness and free will. He introduces teaching that is entirely foreign to the Bible, often stating with certainty what is merely speculative. He oversteps the bounds of Scripture while downplaying the Bible’s importance. He relies too little on Scripture and too much on his own theological imaginings.

All this is not to say there is nothing of value in the book. However, it is undeniable to the reader who will look to the Bible, that there is a great deal of error within The Shack. There is too much error. That The Shack is a dangerous book should be obvious from this review. The book’s subversive undertones seek to dismantle many aspects of the faith and these are subsequently replaced with doctrine that is just plain wrong. Error abounds.

I urge you, the reader, to exercise care in reading and distributing this book. The Shack may be an engaging read but it is one that contains far too much error. Read it only with the utmost care and concern, critically evaluating the book against the unchanging standard of Scripture. Caveat lector!

we're back

What a great trip we had visiting Johnny's parents! We came home tonight. We're unpacked. We need to do laundry, and we need groceries. Johnny's loving sleeping in his own bed again. The pictures are downloaded, but I'm not ready to go through all 700+ pictures just yet.

we've been out of town

visiting Johnny's family. Cosette did great on the plane with me. Henri did great with Johnny. We got here last Saturday, and are getting ready to attend a rehearsal dinner. Johnny's cousin is getting married tomorrow.

It's HOT here. Over 108 degrees.

Since we've been here:

• Johnny & I went wine tasting with is Uncle Dick and Aunt Becky. Super fun!
• Henri & I went mountain climbing. He made it to the top! (Obviously, not a huge mountain.)
• The kids have gone swimming.
• We've been visiting with family, including Johnny's parents, sister Kristin, our niece Iris, Aunt Alice, all 4 of Johnny's grandparents, Uncle Dick, Aunt Becky, cousins Natey, Christian, Mike, Ali, Dan, and MORE!

We fly back Monday night, and we have lots of pictures to show for it.

cosette eats peanut butter!

And loves it!

We've been intending on delaying the introduction of eggs, peanuts, and tree nuts with Cosette until she is three as suggested by Henri's allergist.

But a few weeks ago, a friend accidentally gave Cosette Johnny's peanut butter & jelly sandwich.

Could Cosette be an allergy-free girl? I hope so. And things are looking positive.

anyone else get nervous when you fly...with kids?

We head out on Saturday to attend a family wedding and stay with Johnny's parents who live states and states away. Johnny hasn't been out there in 3 years. We're hoping to hike, go wine tasting, and visit with lots of family whom we don't get to see too often.

As the day approaches, I find myself getting more and more nervous. We're flying separately. Cosette and I are on a free ticket using miles on one airline. Johnny & Henri are on another airline that had the lowest price tickets. But we fly on the same days.

Two days ago, I checked our schedules and noticed that I had a 35 minute layover between connecting flights. I'll be flying into a satellite terminal and then having to shuttle to the main terminal before having to walk all the way to the other side of the airport to catch our connecting flight on a commuter flight and different airline.

Yesterday, I told my neighbor who is a flight attendant about it. She thought the layover was way too short and that I'd be running with Cosette through the airport. I checked what time the next connecting flight would leave. It left 8 hours later. Um, no, I didn't want THAT long of a layover.

I tried to duplicate the trip online (as if I was buying it online; we went through an airline agent)--nope, it wouldn't bring up my two flights together.

I started to study the airport maps and even e-mailed them to ask what the fastest way to get to my gate would be.

I asked Johnny to call the airline so that I could be assured that the layover time was sufficient. He called. He got a message that they had a very high call volume and to call again later.

Do you feel my nerves and my shaking as I imagine:

1. Running through the airport with Cosette in my arms.
2. Missing my connecting flight and having to wait at the airport for 8 and a half hours with a tired 1 year old.

I called the airline when I woke up this morning.

Agent response: "Oh, no, that's FAR too short of a layover for that airport--especially since you're switching airlines. I'll put you on an earlier flight out of your city."

And she did. At no charge. And I feel SO much better.

Feeling the adrenaline still blazing through my veins, I packed the kids in the stroller and jogged to the river and back. Then I took them to our local wading pool.

I get a little nutty when it comes to flying. Why is that?

Speaking of nuts, I got sunburned on my back during my jog.

small group kiddos

A few months after we were married 7 and a half years ago, Johnny & I joined a small group from our church. We met with these families weekly to fellowship and study the Word. Because we lived all over the city and the number of small children had grown from one to many, our group disbanded when Henri was an infant. Here's a picture we took of the kids at that time.

In age order (L to R): Elliot, Drew, Micah, Naomi, Henri, Avery, and twins, Soren & Marit.

We occasionally get together to catch up, and we all still attend the same church. Earlier this week we met together again.


From youngest to oldest (L to R): Cosette, Oliver, Soren, Marit, Avery, Henri, Naomi, Micah, (back) Drew & Elliot.