Six Stars

Memories of Great Wolf Lodge

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 19:04:00 +0000

I ran across this blog post from The Diaper Diaries and reminded me of how much fun we had last April. It looks like even more fun at Christmastime!

Epic Long Post

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 22:51:00 +0000

For me, this fall has been about catching my breath. Honestly, this is the first time since I got pregnant with Abby that I have felt like I had my brain, my hormones, my SELF back. Life has been very overwhelming for me for a long time and my responses to the pressures have been, at times, less than godly. I am so very thankful to the Lord for the grace he gave during that time and patience he has for sinful and struggling believers on the road to glory.

The biggest change was the opening of Beacon Hill Classical Academy! The Lord is so kind to give us the desires of our heart: an institution which comes alongside the churches and parents of Ventura County to raise up thinking Christians to redeem the culture for Christ. And these kids are absolutely flourishing! It is so exciting to see what is possible in education. And the positive peer pressure these kids give each other--iron sharpening iron--just spurs them on toward love and good deeds. I am very thankful to the Lord carrying us through to the first day and beyond. We continue to look ahead and see what the Lord has for Beacon Hill next year.

Devin has been very busy building up the school and working on his new Master's Degree in Classical Studies. He is such a rock: diligent, hopeful, and persistent even through the busiest times.

I never seen the family so full of purpose and joy. Aiden has been learning the piano and filling our home with beautiful music to the glory of God. We have begun hymn singing nights at our house to give the church more opportunity to learn how to sing well and bring a joyful and beautiful noise to the Lord at church services. Jonathan is learning to read and is bold and excited about his young faith. Geneva is thrilled to go to Awana Cubbies and seems to understand the Gospel more and more. Abby just loves to be with her siblings and it is a joy to see them loving on each other. Life is really good right now.

Oh, and also I'm training for a half marathon. January 9th in Irvine. It's been so fun (I can't believe I really said that). More on that in a later post.

Here are a few pictures from this fall.

Geneva "visiting the ballerinas." She doesn't know it yet, but it really was her free trial lesson at Oakley Ballet School. She will be getting ballet lessons for Christmas!

Decorating gingerbread houses with Beacon Hill classmates and friends, the Spooners.

At the Awana Grand Prix in November.

Aiden and the beloved Mrs. McElroy at the Fall Festival.

Governor Bradford, I mean Jonathan on the last day of school before Thanksgiving.

Yes, this is really what you think it is. Abigail fell asleep standing up.

(By the way--I accidentally reset my camera to black and white and green for a few weeks--oops)

Sweet times. I've been waiting a long time for these moments.

Reformation Day/Halloween costumes. Pilgrim, Indian, and Raggedy Ann.

Here's Aiden rockin' his Martin Luther haircut.

"Here I stand."

Awwwww...

Devin's class eating "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" treats

First day at Beacon Hill!

Date to the Getty Museum in September

Abby's first night in her big girl bed!

By Way of Explanation...

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:20:00 +0000

Hi again! Since the last post a lot has happened which I would have normally loved to blog about, but crazy thing...Life got in the way! Now that we're settling down a little (maybe I shouldn't jinx it by saying that), there should be a few more updates.

Coming soon...Halloween, I mean, er, Reformation Day pictures!

Summer in Prineville: Misc.

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 23:02:00 +0000

This was the first day Jonathan was up on a two wheeled bike.

Our days in Prineville are always full of fun activities. Here's a few pictures of them to finish off this series of posts. Can't wait for next year!

Summer in Prineville: Smith Family Olympics

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 22:49:00 +0000

Trevis explaining the rules.

Abby's best event was the aim the water in the bucket game.

The most hilarious event was the baby relay. We all got a bunch of laughs at Geneva's and Abby's expense. They were good sports, though.

6 events. 2 teams. Only one winner. Smith Family Olympics.

Summer in Prineville: Cousin Time!

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 23:25:00 +0000

I absolutely adore my nieces and nephews. There is nothing more fun than to watch my kids and their cousins play together. We missed Xander, Caden, and Hailey this year, but here are a few pictures of fun times with Claire, Jorden, and Ava.

Coming home from my fabulous breakfast date with my niece Claire. Love you, Claire!

We've finally reached the years in our family that we've all been waiting for--those years we can send them out back on their own and tell them to just stay on the property! I'm still watching after my sweet Abby, but the rest of them had a ball creating their own fun. This year we let them sleep in the tent out back all by themselves! Of course, Uncle Trevis sweetened the deal by offering a dollar to any child who could make it out there until morning.

Ava, our fearless one, holding a mouse caught by Pop-Pop's mousetrap.

The boys playing "Mountain Trolls"

It was so fun watching Geneva and Ava hit it off this year. They are really two of a kind: spunky, fun-loving girly girls!

Summer in Prineville: Daddies vs. Kids Water Fight

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 23:19:00 +0000

Ahhh...the moment the kids have been waiting for all year!

Note to the daddies: your years of drenching domination are numbered.

Jonathan's Funny

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 02:02:00 +0000

I have to get this story out before I forget it.

Yesterday I cleaned out the boys room and so the boys spent hours playing together in the living room. They were great for the first two hours or so. Then Aiden comes in and says, "Mom, Jonathan keeps destroying my Lego creation. I keep telling him to stop but he won't." So I said, "Ok, send Jonathan in." Jonathan comes in and tries to explain why he did it: "Aiden keeps taking all the Lego weapons and hides them from me and I don't have any." I say, "So that made you angry and you destroyed Aiden's creation." Jonathan says, "Yea, everything in me wanted to hurt his Lego, Mom. My brain wanted to, my hands wanted to, my eyes wanted to, everything except my skin wanted to Mom. My toenails?...(thinking)...oh yeah, my toenails didn't want to . Everything except my skin and my toenails wanted to Mom." I was already trying to hold in a giggle from the skin comment. The minute he said TOENAILS I couldn't hold it in anymore. He says, "What's so funny, Mom?" And of course I had to say that I was thinking of this thing that happened some other time...nothing to do with toenails, nope, nothing.

Summer in Prineville: Grandma and Pop-Pop

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 17:02:00 +0000

Jan is always cooking up something delicious for her family. Her specialty is pies, crumbles, and cobblers--using berries fresh from the Northwest--mmmmm.

Jan took us all out to a lovely dinner and play. We are very pampered by Jan--she is always treating us to pedicures, massages, and girls nights out. Thanks, Jan! The young lady between Jan and I is Ania, Rebecca and Trevis' friend from Spain.

Don didn't need to go to the gym this week with all the pushing he did this week!

Enjoying Don's special homemade creme de mint ice cream!

Nothing is more fun than riding Pop-Pop's lawn mower.

Don's beautiful garden

Don and Jan are the reason we love to come here. They are absolutely the best in-laws a wife could have. I thank God that I not only married an amazing man but married into an amazing family.

Summer in Prineville: The Fourth of July

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:22:00 +0000

Geneva with cousin Claire.

Jonathan and cousin Ava not far behind.

Devin and Jonathan take first in the water balloon toss.

Aiden takes first in the sack race.

Amy and Geneva find a cool spot.

There's no wrong way...

to eat...

watermelon!!

Abigail and Geneva feeling very patriotic.

There is nothing like summer in Prineville, Oregon. It is so small town America, it's like something out of a movie. And for me, who grew up in the suburbs of L.A., it is a world I never really knew about. But since marrying a man from a small town, I have lost count of the special, simple memories and blessings of this most favorite place. Catching up with family on the back deck...cutting lettuce out of Pop-Pop's garden for the evening meal...watching the cousins play... Smith family Olympics...dads vs. kids water fights...Central Oregon sunsets, lightning storms, and the inevitable rainbow that followed...homemade ice cream and Pop-Pop popcorn...pedicures...Scrabble...riding bikes or running along the canal road...Icee runs...the sound of the sprinklers at night...and garage saling with Grandma. Traditions come a dime a dozen in Prineville.

This year I tried to capture the best of Prineville summers and will hopefully be able to put together a series of posts in the next few days. It is best when the whole family is together, but this year, we missed Devin's brother Jory and his family.

Enjoying our freedom to set off fireworks in Prineville!

L.A. kid still not quite used to them!

A picture of Aiden and Jorden just for you, Bec! =)

Classic golden evening glow in Prineville.

Classic Prineville rainbow.

The Big 3-1

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:14:00 +0000

So Devin's 30th birthday came and went last year without any fanfare. He should have gotten a huge party, but since I am a lame wife and could not get it together, he had a smaller-than-deserved shindig this year. We had a great time! Thanks to all of you that came for making it such a memorable time for Devin. Here's just a few pictures.

Happy Birthday Aiden

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 20:57:00 +0000

Too young to be parents of a 7 year old!

Love our Aiden. Look at him tear apart that cucumber!

Aiden's birthday gummy snake.

We took the boys to Magic Mountain for Aiden's birthday and left the girls with Nannie and Grandaddy. The two other boys in the picture have been friends with Aiden and Jonathan almost since birth. These daredevils rode on every ride they could.

We had a robot themed birthday party with family.

Aiden: you are intense, responsible, giving, careful, strong, artistic, and kind. We are so thankful God gave you to us.

Mystery Nap

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 20:53:00 +0000

I put Abby down for a nap and one hour later, this...

The Blink

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 21:21:00 +0000

Being the fourth, there's not much I can remember from Abby's babyhood. But one thing I will never forget is THE BLINK. Honestly, I don't know what to make of it. It always happens when she is in trouble. "Maybe if I close my eyes, this will all go away"???? Well, watch the video and see for yourself. Here I am pretending to be mad at her for getting in the bath with her clothes on. And then it happens...

Best Cake Wrecks Post Ever

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:51:00 +0000

It's nice to see that someone else shares my love (obsession?) with children's books. This post makes me want to eat through one piece of chocolate CAKE, one ice cream cone, one pickle, one slice of Swiss cheese, one slice of salami, one lollipop, one piece of cherry pie, one sausage, one cupcake, and one slice of watermelon...and then eat through one nice green leaf and after that feel much better.

The Lego Boys

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Sun, 31 May 2009 12:35:00 +0000

Devin with his favorite teaching companion--the white board!

Buddies hard at play.

Lego model taking shape.

The final product.

The team at the expo.

Go Lego Boys!

"Is it Lego night, Mom?"
Every Monday night this spring, we hosted a Jr. Lego club. Our club was for homeschooled kids and all the clubs in Camarillo met up on May 15th for the Jr. Lego League Expo! We had a ball with it as most of the siblings and moms and dads hung out at our house during the meetings. The best part was getting to know other homeschooling families who we wouldn't have met otherwise. Go Lego Boys!

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Tue, 26 May 2009 19:34:00 +0000

Song and Dance Revue

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Fri, 22 May 2009 14:26:00 +0000

Jonathan receiving a congratulatory high five from Aiden on his way down the aisle.

Jonathan giving his all in the dance.

We love Mrs. Kromka!

Jonathan had a great year at preschool. He had a fantastic teacher that got him, and in doing so, drew the best out of him. We will both miss her. Here are some highlight pictures of his end of year show.

Dr. Jo Jo's Graduation

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Wed, 20 May 2009 22:41:00 +0000

The second half of our trip up to Oregon was celebrating Jory's doctorate in clinical psychology. We are so proud of his hard work and perseverance and can't imagine a better person out there helping people.

Great Wolf Lodge

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Wed, 13 May 2009 17:33:00 +0000

Tour of the cockpit on the way to Portland.

Cousin buds Aiden and Jorden

First look at the water park.

Clockwise: Jonathan, Jorden, Ava, Aiden, Geneva, Xander, Claire, Caden, Uncle Trevis

Devin with brothers Jory and Trevis

Magic wand game

Jonathan playing in the wave pool.

Watch out for Geneva!

Big hundred gallon bucket dumps water every 5 minutes!

The best rides were the ones we could do together.

Me and my girl.

On April 28th, we left for five days to visit our wonderful Northwest family. It is always great to be with them, but especially sweet this time since my brother in law Jory's family has been living in Maine since August and we have not all been together since the summer. The first part of our trip was spent in Washington at Great Wolf Lodge, an indoor water park resort. What a great break from the usual craziness of life. Thanks, Don and Jan!

Science Field Trip

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Fri, 08 May 2009 19:54:00 +0000

Simple machines make these tough boys lift a pick-up truck.

Extracting DNA from strawberries.

DNA model with Twizzlers and marshmallows.

Gettin' a little love in the rose garden.

Creating a rainbow of colors with acids, bases, and universal indicator.

I am seriously tired. Can't you tell by my creative post title? But our trip to the Discovery Science Center two Mondays ago was too fabulous not to post. Plus, I want to post pictures of our trip up to Oregon and I am OCD about photo chronology.

Happy Birthday, Choncho!

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Wed, 06 May 2009 06:11:00 +0000

The Thomases brought their super delicious cake pops. Thanks, Bonnie and Josiah!

April 22nd was Jonathan's 5th birthday. We celebrated with a huge backyard BBQ with lots of his little buddies. One thing we all admire in Jonathan is his warm, endearing personality. He is everyone's friend and the proof of this is in how many little guys came to the party from so many different places--church, preschool, Lego league, and Beacon Hill. May you win many to Christ with your love, sweet boy.

Update

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 01:12:00 +0000

This evening Dad emailed me:

"Word comes from the Ogborns that little Madeline is doing well following a very difficult night. Thanks a heap for your prayers and praise God!"

Please Pray For This Little One!

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 15:54:00 +0000

I received this email from my dad concerning the relative of a coworker:

"Would you mind putting a prayer request on your blog for Madeline Ogborn, the daughter of one of the fellows in our office (David)? Madeline was born in the September, 2007, so she is Abby's age. Last night she took a bad fall backwards and hit her head. From what we hear, she started to "seize" and they are watching very closely. That's all I know, except that David's supervisor has asked for prayers from all of us here."

Ressurection Day 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Devin) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 01:00:00 +0000