Christopher's First School Program

On Thursday, November 20th, Christopher had his very first school program. It was the most precious thing I've ever seen! They started by walking in while singing "God Bless America" - which has become Christopher's new favorite song, as he sings it all the time! They then sang several other songs, this video below is just one of them (the video was taken during rehersal just before the program):

After the program, there was a special Thanksgiving luncheon for the kids, their parents & grandparents. Since the rest of the school has their Grandparents' Day on a Friday, when no Pre-K students are at school, the Thanksgiving program was the also the Pre-K Grandparents' Day! Grandma Jansen joined us for this special day. Christopher is very blessed to have Grandma J living so close so that she can have such an active part in his life. These are the memories that Christopher will probably remember for the rest of his life!

No Bad Words!

Lately, Christopher has been almost obsessed with figuring out what is and isn't a bad word...and he has become the "Bad Word Police" as a result! Now, in my precious little 4-year-old's mind (and in the minds of most kids who go to FBA), "stupid" is a bad word. Thankfully, this is about as far as his concept of bad words go! :) And he is on a mission to clear this word from everyone's vocabulary!



A few months ago, we were at Grandma Jansen's house and Uncle Chuck was talking about the "stupid Tampa Bay Bucs" (which he happens to support - but was not currently happy with their performance)! Well, before any of us knew what was happening, a little four-year-old finger shot out and started wagging away...followed shortly by Christopher's rebuke, "Uncle Chuck, we do NOT say that word! That is a BAD WORD!" Now, for the first time I think, Uncle Chuck was rendered completey speechless as he tried to figure out just WHAT he had said! :) We informed him of the "s-word violation" and after a moment of processing it, appolgized to Christopher, which finally ended the slightly uncomfortable, but completely hilarious moment!



A couple nights ago, we were watching Law & Order when Christopher woke up with a bad dream. We let him stay up with us for a little bit and eat some dinner (he had fallen asleep shortly after we'd gotten home from school that day & slept through dinner time). Well, apparently one of the characters on the show must have said something that caught Christopher's attention - because he said, "Daddy, that guy on TV said a bad word. Can we pray for him?" This totally caught David off guard and at the same time completely blessed my heart! While David was trying to figure out how Christopher thought of that, I was remembering what happened a couple weeks earler...



I had gone to the public school where I used to work so I could deliver some Avon. As I was leaving, he art teacher was talking with me about some of the crazy things going on in the school. She was using some choice words - but whispering the ones the world considers inappropriate for children out of courtesy for the young ears with me. But, since our standards are higher than that, there were bad words she wasn't aware were bad, therefore she felt no need to whisper those words. I could hear the gasping in the back seat (we were car to car while talking), but thankfully he was respectful enough to say no more until the conversation was over. As I drove away, it was obvious that the discussion had troubled him. As he asked me, with deep concern in his voice, why that grown-up lady was using bad words - I wasn't sure what to say. The answer must have come directly from God's mind to my voice as I explained that the reason she used those words was because she didn't have Jesus in her heart & didn't know any better. Then I asked Christopher if he wanted to pray for her & he seemed relieved that I'd asked! :) So, right there in the car, we prayed for the art teacher's salvation!



As I re-lived this moment for David, my heart swelled with appreciation that Christopher has such a concern for others and such a belief in the power of prayer! And, I must admit, there was also a little pride that the impromptu lesson had such an impact on this precious gift God placed in our lives to guide and direct! :)

(P.S. For those of you who may be wondering, yes...the picture was staged!) :)

Tagged by Teri

I have been tagged by my friend Teri to share the following information with you:

1. Where did you meet? In the singles group at church
2. How long did you date? Officially...just a little more than a month, but we were friends for about 2 years before that...actually, when I think about it, we didn't really "date" - it was more like courting! :) We spent a lot of time together with our group of mutual friends from church...it was only in that month or so between our "first date" and our engagement that we were descerning the possibility of marriage. :)
3. How long have you been married? 6 years this past September
4. What does he say that surprises you? That I'm beautiful
5. What is your favorite feature of his? His loving eyes, sweet smile, happy laughter, and his strong, loving arms (oh...was I supposed to pick just one?)
6. What is your favorite quality of his? There are so many, it would take forever to list the all...but if you were to take a peek at the "Most Important Qualities in my Future Husband" list that I prayed over during my single years, you'd soon see that God created David according to that list...David loves God with all his heart, mind, & soul; he is the spiritual head of our household, he loves me unconditionally, and he is an amazing father! God is sooo good! :)
7. Does he have a nickname for you? Sweetheart/Honey
8. What is his favorite color? red
9. What is his favorite food? Seafood, particularly salmon
10. What i his favorite sport? Chicago Cubs baseball (it's the only one he watches)
11. When and where did you first kiss? On March 30, 2002 after the worship service, at the fountain in the courtyard of our church, just after he asked me to marry him (and I said yes)! :)
12. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple? Go to amusement parks...particularly Universal Studios, since that's where we started to see each other as more than "just friends"
13. Do you have any children? Yes, Christopher (4) & we are praying God will bless us with more children in the near future! :)
14. Does he have a hidden talent? He's very good at building things out of wood...he can imagine it and then create it - no plans or anything! He built the most amazing movie cabinet/book shelf I have ever seen - from nothing more than the image in his head and a few items from Home Depot! :)
15. How old is he? About 9 years older than me (we're both at that stage where we'd rather not tell our actual age! Ha! Ha!) Let's just say we were both alive when man first walked on the moon...but only one of us was old enough to remember it! ;)
16. Who said, "I love you" first? Don't really remember...but I love the fact that we both say it to each other several times during the day, and always before we leave each other's presence!
17. What is his favorite type of music? Country & Contemporary Christian
18. What do you admire most about him? That he usually thinks things through before acting - he RESPONDS to things, rather than REACTING to them like I sometimes do!
19. Do you think he will read this? Ordinarily, I'd say no...but since he saw me typing it & I wouldn't tell him what I was typing, then probably yes! :) Love you, sweetie! ;)

I tag my friends Rhonda, Kelly, Kim, Cherie, & Amanda! I'll be checking your blogs, girls! ;) I can't wait to read all about you & your hubby! God bless!

God Bless Ameica!

Christopher has been singing the song God Bless America for the last few weeks...or at least his variation of the song. I have yet to capture it on video, though. He's very funny about it - he doesn't want anyone singing along with him (I tried a few times to help him with the words) and he doesn't want any recognition that he's singing...otherwise, he stops singing and refuses to go on. I'm pretty sure this song is part of the PK Thanksgiving Program at his school...so, I'm a little anxious to see how that will go!

Something else that I'm a little anxious to see how it goes is life under our newly chosen President of the United States. Not anxious, as in scared...because I know God is in control and there is NOTHING that Obama can do without God's permission! But rather, anxious as in uncertain. I've found it interesting how Obama made statements & decision that at the time were convenient for his campaign...and then changed those statements & decisions if they became inconvenient, expecting that Joe Public (not to be confused with Joe the Plummer) would not notice...which, apparently they did not. David, being the history buff that he is, has been sharing with me some rather uncanny similarities in things that Obama is saying to things Hitler said when he was first elected into office. I can only hope that America will not be so tolerant that we repeat the mistakes made in Germany several decades ago and soon become a dictatorship rather than a democracy!

The other thing that has me wondering what this new term will bring is realizing just how close we are to the end times. While I have always been interested in Revelations, the second coming of Christ, and the end times, I am not one to stand out on the street corner with a sign declaring the end is near. However, as I read scripture and see just how many prophesies have been & are being fulfilled, I do suddenly feel more of a sense of urgency than I ever have before. I can remember as a young teen, my grandfather shared with me that he thought Jesus would return sometime during my lifetime. Even though it initially excited me to think that such a grand event would actually happen in my lifetime, the thought now is rather sobering. I completely believe that no one will know the exact day and time of Christ's coming, and at the same time, I also believe that He gave us the signs of His second coming for a reason - so we could be prepared and reach others for His kingdom.

I do not know if we will be able to recognize & socialize with each other in Heaven as we do here on earth, but I sure don't want to get there and miss a single friend or family member...especially knowing that if they aren't with me, they are spending eternity in a place called Hell - where there is eternal darkness, blistering fire, and constant pain & suffering. I've often heard the saying that for Christians, earth is as close as we'll ever get to hell...but for those who reject Christ as their Savior, this is the closest they will ever get to Heaven. What that says to me is that as bad as things are here on earth, they will be a gazillion times worse in hell...and on the flip side, the best things on earth pale in comparison to how amazingly wonderful Heaven will be! Can you imagine walking streets made of gold, without the worry of someone knocking you over so they can rip it up for themselves? Can you imagine a world where there are no more tears, no more sickness, no more suffering, no more anger...only love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, & self-control? How amazing Heaven is going to be!!! Are you ready??

Hallelujah Night

After some debate, Christopher decided that he wanted to be a Robot for Halloween/Hallelujah Night. Trying to be thrifty, I decided I could make the costume myself out of an Avon box (actually the sleeve that comes over 3 stacked boxes to make it one package). Boy, I had no idea what I was in for! After a few struggles, though, this is what we came up with:

Our first stop of the night is always at Grandma's for our only Trick or Treating experience. Please forgive the orientation of the video below...complete user error. Someday someone is going to make a fortune when they create a camera that automatically adjusts to the correct orientation when taking a video!

Before heading off to Hallelujah Night at church, Christopher takes a moment for a photo opportunity with Uncle Chuck & Grandma.

Once at Hallelujah Night, we stopped by the Sticky Wall booth so Christopher could show his robot costume off to Miss Betsy & Mr. Jim. The decline of the costume had already begun, as his "robot legs" were now human again!

Much to my dismay, once the above picture was taken, the robot costume came off and didn't go back on. For the rest of the evening, this is where his robot costume remained:

Thankfully, I had thought ahead a bit and realized the costume probably wouldn't last all night, so he had on a robot t-shirt under the costume - which is what he wore most of he night. In fact, one of my friends who saw me later in the night (while Christopher & I were in line waiting on a game & Daddy was in the back, standing guard over the costume) thought that WAS his costume! Ha! Ha! :)

Christopher had a great time playing all the games - and he was quite good at the ones that involved throwing balls, bags, and other assorted items! Someday he's going to make a great pitcher! Of course, the best part of playing those games was the loot...

And of course, the eating of said loot...

And just as important is the burning off of the extra energy gained by eating way too much loot...
Christopher spent quite a lot of time climbing up the inflatable slide and sliding down. Funny thing is I can remember not too long ago he was terrified of these inflatable playgrounds! He would not step foot in a bounce house, let alone a 10-12 foot inflatable slide! The boy is growing up! Once I showed him where to get on the slide, he just kept going in circles...if he knew we could have something like this in our backyard, we'd be in MAJOR trouble! Ha! Ha!

And who should we find at the inflatable slide, but the Preschool Director at Christopher's school! As you can tell, Christopher loves Miss Sherri!

Among other special friends we found at Hallelujah Night was Ra-Ra (Robyn) & "Uncle" Jeff and their dog Romeo! Romeo had his own booth where he showed off all the tricks he knew and let the kids hold him for a picture. Christopher actually got to help with some of Romeo's early training in preparation for Hallelujah Night! Fun!

We quite literally closed down the night at Hallelujah Night at 10pm - and the only one NOT ready to go home was Christopher! He really got into Hallelujah Night this year and I'm so glad it was on a Friday Night so we could let him stay up late and enjoy all the fun he wanted!