A Beautiful Baptism

 Alexander was baptized today!

He came to me a few weeks ago and explained that, though he knew he was baptized as a baby, he felt like he wanted to choose to have Jesus in his heart and ask His guidance on making the right choices.

Today, we got to celebrate that moment!

It was very understated, without so much as a break in the worship song.

It was exactly as Alexander would want it to be.

We were so blessed to have Alexander's two second grade teachers come and celebrate this moment with us.  Mrs. Lethers's own story of being baptized again in her youth helped influence Alexander's decision.

We have loved hearing both boys learn a love of Jesus.  Often, when trying to solve conflict, they relate their own lives to the Bible and try to choose their actions with a Christ led heart.  I truly believe they will be more selfless, and less ego driven men than the general population as they truly understand they were created on purpose for a purpose.

Spring Break 2024

 I couldn't have written a better spring break!

We got in some trouble as soon as we got to Gatlinburg

The weather was perfect, our cabin was perfect, the company was perfect.

We had the best time!

So glad Gammie and JanJan were able to join us!

Building a dam in our cabin's creek

Trying to catch minnows

Nothing says Easter supper like a full rack of ribs, right?

Dollywood!

Gammie didn't even know Dollywood had rides!

Though she was there for the shows, Gammie enjoyed the Frog and Toad ride with her boys.

It isn't really in reference to the books, but we have listened to these books enough times to make anything with frogs a Frog and Toad reference!

We definitely took advantage of Fast Lane tickets to make the day as easy as possible

Alexander rode all of the roller coasters.

Some, we used our Fast Lane passes to walk past lines that were nearly two hours long!

Water Rides were a favorite!

Alexander's favorite was the Wild Eagle

Nikolai's was the Dragonflier

We got Gammie to go on Daredevil Falls!

The most memorable was Mystery Mine - unlike any ride I have ever been on, it went full vertical twice, stopped when we were upside down, and never gave any clues as to what was coming next.  The college kid sitting next to Alexander and me was hilarious!

Jan loved the Dragonflier (no surprise there, as she loves dragonflies!) and she patiently stood in the longest line with Niko to ride the Shooting Star

The favorite story of the day was the little red owl featured in the Birds of America show.  After suffering a deformed beak, it came to the Dollywood sanctuary for healing.  Once its beak was fully healed, the team put the little owl in a cage with mice for a 'live prey' test.  Instead of hunting, the little owl befriended all of the mice!  He preferred a life of captivity and food pellets to hunting in the wild.

The next day we ventured into the Great Smoky Mountains

Hiking, exploring, and playing in the creek

Alexander and Niko caught our dinner at English Mountain Trout Company

We didn't love the food, but the experience was amazing

The cabin was perfect. We had board games, a Street Fighter arcade game, and a hot tub.

We took full advantage of all of the amenities!

Our last day was spent exploring Gatlinburg.  We loved the Ripley's museum and homemade toffee and fudge. The weather was forecasted to be cold and wet, but we only had a few minutes of drizzle, so we were happy.

Touching one million dollars

These two couldn't stay out of trouble!

Alexander and I swapped glasses, so Niko had to steal my shades and join the party

Butterball challenge on our way out of town!

Back home, we recreated the whole mountain scene in Lincoln Logs

Getting back into a routine, Niko helped me bake cookies tonight during the basketball game.

This week has been such a blessing!