Friday, October 23, 2009

Until the Whole World Hears

What do you suppose Jack is doing here? How about here?

Does this help?

Give up? Jack is absorbing a night of worship. He's rockin'. He's belting out lyrics. He's taking it all in at the Matt Redman and Casting Crowns concert last night - part of his birthday present. It was an amazing night of worship, of praise and of music. It was also a night of reflection on our inadequacies, on our sinful tendencies ... but, it was also a reminder of the eternal hope we have in our Savior.

Having seen Casting Crowns perform last year, I found myself not only drawn into their message, but I was also enjoying Jack's reaction. It was also moving as we remembered Owen. As I've mentioned before "Praise You in This Storm" resonates in our hearts and to hear Matt Redman start it out and then Casting Crowns take it over was amazing … emotional and amazing. "Blessed be your name" is another song of worship that we sang at Owen's Celebration of Life service - He gives and takes away. To hear Matt Redman sing this live was also moving.

One of Jack's favorite moments was Casting Crowns getting everyone on their feet for "What if His People Prayed."
Here's to you Jack, our little Casting Crowns groupie!

Please remember to pause the music at the bottom.
We will not stop singing His praises … we will not stop praising Him … we will not stop worshiping Him … we will not stop ... until the whole world hears!

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

We Blinked ...

And, this is what we found ~ a baby boy who has quickly, too quickly grown into a big boy, on his way to being quite the young man. Our little pumpkin turns eight today. Jack has grown into quite the little guy ~ independent (too much at times), sensitive, creative, tender, persistent, insistent, loving, enthusiastic and so much more.
Eight ...
... Halfway to being able to drive (oh boy)
... No more booster seat required
... Closer to double digits
... So much significance
And, so much for a parent to absorb, to embrace, to treasure as we blink our eyes and find that our baby boy is not such a baby anymore.
Happy Birthday, Little Man!

We love you!

"This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Remembering Owen ... Remembering Others

Today is the National Day of Miscarriage and Infant Loss. Having had a miscarriage nearly 9 years ago and after losing Owen last year, this is a day where we stop and reflect and remember ... we remember Owen, as we do each and every day and today we also remember and pray for all of the others who have lost babies. We remember and pray for the family of Elizabeth, for the family of Caleb, for the family of Audrey, for the family of Abby, for the family of Sarah, we pray for those we do not know, we pray for families who have lost babies in early pregnancy, we pray for families that are hurting ... today we pray and we remember and we continue to ask for strength from our Father and we continue to cling to the hope that having a relationship with Him brings.

"For you created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother's womb." Psalm 139: 13-14

There is no foot too small ...

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Race Day

Another Fall Tradition - the big mountain bike race!! So proud of my guys and how my little guys have a heart for biking and racing, just like their Daddy!

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Fall Traditions

I love Fall, absolutely love it, and I love all of the traditions and the things that come with this season - the apple orchard, the pumpkin farm, Autumn hues, birthday parties galore, the crisp air, the smell of falling leaves, hot apple cider ... everything, I love it all.

One of our annual Fall traditions that we all love is a work weekend at Lake Lundgren Bible Camp in Pembine. We stay for the weekend and spend Saturday getting the camp ready for winter. This typically entails cleaning, painting, building, moving items, etc. Jason's whole family and their families typically go up for the weekend to help at camp and to enjoy God's creation (it is absolutely beautiful up there this time of year!). Often the Lilyquist family outnumbers all of the others there!

Well, this year we had to somewhat break tradition. With training Maizey and considering she's not quite 12 weeks old, we didn't feel comfortable boarding her yet (and, I'm not so comfortable painting, dipping my hands in heavy duty cleaners, etc. while carrying this little one). So, I stayed back for the weekend. And, little Samuel decided he would stay back with me. So, I spent the weekend making memories with these two characters!!!
And, Jason and Jack? They were busy workers this weekend, that's for sure. Jason worked on building a porch on one of the cabins, and Jack waxed the boats, picked up sticks, hauled firewood, and delivered snacks. The camp truly is a beautiful place where God's creation abounds. This weekend is meant to not only get the camp ready for winter but to also give God the glory for what He has so graciously given us.
This is our family at camp last year.
This is the group of Lilyquist's there this year, about half its normal size.