PHANEROO \fan-er-o-oo\Greek: to manifest in word or deed.


Thursday, December 4, 2014

A Photo Update: From June until Today

Where have we been?! I can't exactly remember, except I do have these photos to prove we've been up to a lot of things...

Schaeffer snagged this big catfish by it's tail!

BJ rode his bike along the greenway from our house to this field of sunflowers in the "urban wilderness."
BJ and I went to a Jack Johnson concert at the Verizon Ampitheater in Atlanta. He got us VIP passes...because he's a Verizon VIP, of course!

Schaeffer is a butterfly magnet at Chattanooga's Aquarium.

Griffin is trying to tame this lion's mane at the Knoxville Zoo.

The whole family went paddle boarding. 

I took a trip to New York City with my friend Betsy.

We raked leaves in our front yard and then jumped into the huge pile later.

We visited Oakes Farm.

Lily picked out her pumpkin at Oakes Farm.

The fair maidens dressed up for Reformation Day.

The brave knights were ready to defend the fair maidens on Reformation Day. But even their fiercest fighting could not fend off the inclement weather that kept us from attending.
We've begun enjoying the winter festivities.
On Thanksgiving morning, the kids (one cousin included) ran the AutumnFest Kids Run. BJ and I (and another cousin) ran the AutumnFest 5K. It was so cold!
We hiked Windless Cave trail with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins the day after Thanksgiving. We traditionally head for the hills on Black Friday.
We've begun counting down to Christmas with the Jesse Tree advent and our handmade paper ornaments.

Friday, June 27, 2014

Hilton Head Island 2014

At the end of May, we enjoyed a week at Hilton Head Island again this summer. We absolutely love this place for a family vacation. We rent a three-bedroom condo on the beach. The condo complex has a wonderful swimming pool perfect for the ages of our kids. And we make friendships with other families in the complex during the week. We even got reacquainted with a family that we met last summer. The condo is just a block away from Coligny Plaza which has restaurants and shopping, including a Piggly Wiggly for groceries. We walk to the Plaza every evening for dinner, dessert, and to restock snacks and other groceries as needed.

We love making memories at this place! Here are some of those memories I captured in photos:
A fisherman holding his catch, a six-foot shark, directly in front of our condo. Impressive!

An evening stroll at sundown.

I caught this 'selfie' with the whole family in view. Would that make it a 'groupie'?

This caption should read something inspirational, but I'm at a loss for words. Just seeing Charlotte's joy is inspirational enough for me!

A plate of crab legs made these two kiddos very happy.

Right before boarding the pirate ship, The Jolly Roger, everyone had to put on their best pirate accent and a skull cap. Aaarrgh!

Sun, fun, and sandcastles!

A nightly routine after dinner.

Daddy-daughter dance at dawn. Very special!

One last look at the beach before heading home.

Griffin, our little ham bone!

Before leaving, Lily was proud of the completely intact starfish she found.  That's a good note to leave on.

Friday, April 18, 2014

My Name is Mary Magdalene

Hi, My name is Mary Magdalene. I will never forget the day I met Jesus. Before I met him I was worse than an outcast…you see, I had been possessed by 7 evil demons. I was out of control. I was not seeking the Messiah like many others had been. I was living a life fully consumed by the work of Satan. He had me in his grip so tight that no one could save me. I was hopeless. Everyone I knew wrote me off and left me to suffer in my bondage. Until, I met the man Jesus, because He had the power to set me free. With authority he spoke and cast out the demons on that very day! I was finally set completely free just by the power of his word! Everyone had said it was impossible, and right then I knew this man Jesus was the Son of God. He was the promised Messiah, and he had found me. He had worked an impossible miracle in my life and he saved me. From that moment my only response was to devote the rest of my life to him and his ministry. Along with the 12 disciples and several other women, I followed Jesus and offered help with anything he needed as he went from town to town. I witnessed him work many more miracles in the lives of others. He continued to teach and speak with such authority. Sometimes I did not understand the things that he said, like when he ran the money exchangers and vendors out of the temple courts with a whip, and then he said to them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in 3 days.” I did not understand, and neither did the other Jews among us because it had taken 46 years to build that temple! But in time I would come to understand.

Then came the day when Jesus was arrested. It seemed inevitable as some in the crowds around him became more hostile about his teachings, especially the teachers of the law. But what happened next I could not understand. From a distance I watched as the man who had spoken with such authority and who worked miracles and who had rescued me, and I watched as he was nailed to a cross. What shame I felt for I knew he took the punishment that I deserved. I had followed this man and I had never once seen him sin. He had compassion and he had healed the sick and blind, he fed thousands, he calmed seas and fears and he even raised a dead man to life. I was confused and broken when I watched his hands and feet nailed to that cross. I couldn’t understand why he didn’t work a miracle that day by the authority of his voice like he had done so many times before. And then right before he breathed his last breath, the sun completely stopped shining right in the middle of the day. And then Jesus cried out to the Almighty God and then he died. I sat at the foot of the cross weeping and bewildered. In my grief I begged for answers as to why he was taken away from us – away from me! Surely his work was not done here!


Then early on the morning after the Sabbath, on the 3rd day after his death, Jesus’ mother and I went to the tomb to anoint His body. As we were going to the tomb we felt a violent earthquake and an angel of the Lord came down from heaven. I could hardly believe my eyes. So easily the angel rolled back the huge stone that blocked the tomb, and then he sat on it. We were scared to death! The guards even shook and fell to the ground for fear. Then the angel said to Mary and me, “Do not be afraid. I know you are looking for Jesus. He is not here. He is risen!” And I looked in the tomb and sure enough there was no body in there. The angel then told us to go quickly and tell the others that he is risen and he is going ahead of us to Galilee. So Mary and I ran – our hearts filled with fear and with joy all at the same time. We ran to tell the disciples everything we’d seen and what the angel said. But then Jesus himself met us on the way. He said, “Hello!” I could recognize that voice anywhere! I immediately fell on my face and worshipped him – my Lord! He is alive! He had rebuilt the temple on the 3rd day just as he’d said! He had defeated death and I knew from that day forward I’d never be apart from my Lord Jesus because not even death could keep me away from him for all eternity.

He is Alive! He is Risen!!

Friday, March 7, 2014

There You Are!

I've let the time slip by without a post. So here's a little update and some photos.

1. We are settled into our urban home. But, we are still trying sell the suburban home. We will feel a lot more settled once we finalize everything there.
2. We are loving the spring weather lately. It's pretty neat that we've had warm, sunny days followed by 7 inches of snow. What a cool way to enjoy the great outdoors - bikes to sleds in one month.
3. We are looking forward to camping, swimming pools, and a beach trip in May.
4. We are losing motivation to complete schoolwork each day. The beautiful weather does not help one single bit! Hurry up summer break!
5. Charlotte and Lily both celebrated a birthday in February - ages 3 and 9.
6. I feel like I'm living in a dentist office. Three of the four kids are losing teeth almost weekly. We have a Ziploc baggy with our collection. Ewww!
Snow day!

The nappers enjoy their late afternoon couch time together.

Girlie doesn't even begin to describe this little bit. 

Griffin's first lost tooth. It seemed so early that I questioned his siblings about hitting him.

Birthday girls at Build-A-Bear.

My handsome boy!