Fun Times at Vacation Bible School

Had a fantastic time at VBS this week! Our theme this year was High Seas Expedition. These three little sailors are ready to ship out!

I helped out with Justin's group... First Graders. Oh my. He's a first grader!? Justin said his favorite part of VBS was the snacks.

Makayla and Natalie take a break for a snack. Natalie's favorite part of VBS was storytime. She says, "In church I learned that God's word is true. God's word is comforting and God's word is for everyone."

Lexi's favorite part of VBS was singing "Today is the Day."

Our High Seas Expedition finished up on Friday night with a slide show and songs from the kids.

Friday night also included a cookie potluck/contest. Can you believe that the Mocabee's Peanut Butter Wheels won Best Presentation!?

Happy Fathers Day! And while I'm at it....

.... happy Mother's Day too!
Two years ago:

June 10, 2008. We were ushered into a Russian courtroom. It actually felt more like a basement dressed up with a few tables and chairs strategically positioned to look like a courtroom. No matter. Two years ago, a Russian judge took her place in God's divine plan for our family. She

said "Da...Yes." Just like that, my children were finally MY children.

June 21, 2008. The ever memorable "gotcha day." The last day my precious babies would ever spend in Russian orphanages. No longer would they go to sleep at night without a cuddle and an "I love you" from their forever mommy and papa.

And here we are today. Celebrating Mother's Day. Celebrating Father's Day. Sometimes I have to go back and check the blog or read my journal just to prove to myself that it all really happened! And even then... strangely, some of the details remain fuzzy.

So grateful that the Lord concerns himself with our details! But here's what's not fuzzy. The years I ached for a child. The assurance from God that He, indeed, had a vision for our family. The waiting. The faces of our children when we first met them. A divine promise fulfilled.

To so many reading this blog today, thank you for being part of the journey.

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! 1 John 3:1a

Natalie and Lexi's First Dance Recital

Natalie and Lexi performed in their first dance recital last Friday.

I was more than a little overwhelmed by the amount of sequins and glitter involved in the costumes! Then, of course, there was the hair primping and make up application. Yikes. Lipstick and blush on a four year old kind of makes me cringe, but I had some good moral support. (Thanks Gaby!)

In the end, the girls were super adorable! They danced their sweet little hearts out. Afterward, Justin gave them each a bouquet of flowers. Glowing. I think that pretty much describes the faces of our tiny dancers.

I'm also pretty sure they had their very own cheering section!

I'm beyond grateful that our kids have so many people in their lives who love on them.

We Dream Big Around Here

Ah... the conversations one may overhear in our house...

(We had just finished reading a book about a boy struggling to know what he wanted to do when he grew up. Everyone else in his family had an "it." This little boy didn't know what his "it" was.)

Me: What do you dream about being when you grow up?

Natalie: A mom.

Justin: A superhero. I'm really excited about having rocket boots that make me fly.

Lexi: Ummm.... I think.... I think I will be a lion.

Of course! A lion. Why didn't I think of that!

As if Lexi growing up to be a lion isn't funny enough, the conversation continued...

Justin (quite emphatically): Lexi!!! You can't be that! People can't be lions!

Ohhhh, but a superhero? Yeah. That's much more realistic.

If you've spent any time at our house lately you would know Lexi's recent movie of choice has been The Lion King. Over and over and over and over. More than once we've spotted her crawling around on all fours carrying her other toys in her mouth. You know, like a mother lion carrying her cub. She's got a pretty good snarl going on too.

Here's the picture I took of her that night. Sound asleep. Surrounded by her own little pride.

On a side note, the book we were reading that sparked the "What do you want to be when you grow up?" conversation is called, You Can Do It! by Tony Dungy.

Such a great book. I thought it shared a great message about faith and trusting the Lord with our dreams. In the afterword, Dungy writes, "I'm glad I had parents that helped us to dream. I'm glad they taught us to pray about the things that were on our mind. And I'm really glad that God answers our prayers..."

WE INTERRUPT THIS BLOG FOR AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!

I was a moment, seriously, a moment, away from hitting the "publish post" button on this gripping tale of the Mocabee family's big dreams, when Lexi saunters up to me and declares:

Mom, I don't really want to watch Lion King anymore. We watch that movie really so many times. Now, I want to watch Aristocats.

We just checked that one out from the library today. I guess I should brace myself for more feline adventures.