March of Dimes

This morning we participated with Preston's company in the March of Dimes walk. His company raised over $12,500. The weather was great and the turnout was even better. There were about 4,000 people. All 3 boys had a great time and so did Preston and I.

Family Time

Tonight after dinner we enjoyed some fun family time walking around the Summit. Logan got a remote control monster truck. He is pretty excited about it. Owen and Nathan really enjoyed walking around in their Kelty Backpacks. It was a wonderful relaxing time. We tried a few times to get a picture of our outing.

Three cool dudes

Nathan and Owen were so excited to have Mason over to play again this week. They played together until they wore themselves out. They watched some of Mason's favorite movie "Boots" and then went outside for some more fun. They loved using their gait trainers like bumper cars. I thought Owen and Mason were too cool in their shades. Nathan won't wear sunglasses but he is sporting his new headband. This is a special headband made to hold on cochlear implant processors. Nathan came up with a new game to take off the processor pull of the magnet and throw it all. So far the headband is helping!

Searching for treasures

Yesterday there were 3 pirates in my backyard searching for treasure. They found a can tab and some rocks. Then these pirates turned into farmers and built a barn for animals.

The Zoo

This morning we met our friends Melissa, Lillian, John Whitten, Amanda, Jackson, Ruth Ann and Ann Elliot at the zoo. We had a great time seeing goats, roosters, peacocks, flamingos, monkeys, turtles, elephants and the best part was feeding a giraffe.

Nathan, Owen & Mason

Nathan's and Owen's best friend Mason came over to play for the afternoon. Nathan and Owen love spending time with him. Logan and Makala have tons of fun together too. Olivia and I have a great time together talking about our boys, new equipment we can get for them, etc. It is so nice to have another mom to talk with and share ideas. It is so nice for all three boys to play and interact together . All three really seem to love to be around one another. We are looking forward to a summer filled with play dates with Mason, Makala and Olivia. Some time when the Dads aren't busy working maybe we can get them to join us too!

Pure Ministries Concert

Friday night Pure Ministries put on a concert that included Chris Tomlin, Genny Owens, David Nasser and many more. It was an incredible concert. Pure Ministries focus on Pure People (people with special needs). It was nice to see so many people there enjoying the concert and worshipping God. There physical and mental abilities do not matter because they are pure in the way God chose to make them. Pure Ministries provided tickets to the concert, free of charge, for any family who had at least one member with any kind of special need. The people who volunteered with the ministry were so incredibly nice. It was a great experience that we all enjoyed.

Fun at the Park

The Boys New Rooms

The boys are settling into their new rooms. Just a few more finishing touches and they will be complete. They are really enjoying them. We are loving being back in our old house. It is great to know we are being obedient to God. We were able to give away clothes, furniture, toys, books, strollers, etc to fit back in the house. It was great to be able to help so many others with our move. We are also enjoying having a park so close. I think we will be spending tons of time there this summer.

Chosen

God chose Preston and I from the beginning of time to be the parents of Logan, Nathan, Mia and Owen. He also knew that Nathan, Mia and Owen would be born very early...that Mia would go home to live with Him very quickly and that Nathan's and Owen's lives here on earth would be more challenging than most. Many people, though they may not express it openly (though some do) feel sorry for us that Nathan and Owen have so many challenges.

Today as I walked into The Bell Center, one of the Mom's was commenting to another Mom that God chooses families to place kids with Special Needs. It is not to punish the parents but a privilege that God saw that we were strong enough and ready for this special challenge because they can fully rely on Him. I totally agree with her comment, as it seems the most incredible people I know are parents of kids with special needs (even thought this before Nathan and Owen arrived on the scene).

As I was thinking on her comment later this evening I realized that not only does God choose us because He sees something special in us, He is choosing to reveal Himself at an even deeper level, through all our special needs challenges. Just looking into the face of a Special Needs child and you will see the face of God shining back at you. Their love, vulnerability, joy, sense of accomplishment and worth is so pure! You also know that God made them this way for a specific purpose. He hand chose them, not to be like everyone else, but to be set apart for Him. Many, many prayers are prayed over them and every little accomplishment is HUGE and accredited to God. It is not just brushed under the table because they met there age appropriate mile stone. God also performs tangible miracles reminding us daily that He is in control of every aspect of their lives!

I am so grateful that God chose us to be parents to our special children. God also knew exactly what he as doing when He choose Logan to be the big brother. He is wonderful with the boys: loving, patent, encouraging, and very helpful. He sees past their disabilities and loves them for who God made them to be.