Senior Menu

If you ask Mom what the best part about her birthday was, she will probably tell you that it was being able to order off the senior menu at IHOP. (She was so excited to get a "Senior Sampler" for only $4.99!) We had a big family breakfast before heading up to the cabin for the day. Here's how we spent the rest of the day:

Throwing pine cones in the river.
Sweeping the decks.

Having a hot-dog roast.

In other news...the girls have been enjoying the nicer weather by spending several hours outside every day. Sierra's precious purple tulips finally bloomed this week. Aren't they beautiful?!

The girls have also kept themselves busy with various crafts. For Sierra, it's always princess related. And I think that Ally decided to give herself a beard in memory of Grandpa Cook. Yet another example of how different our girls are!

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Our family is so blessed to have you. Thank you for:

• serving the Lord so faithfully
• loving Dad
• training us well
• praying for us
• making special memories with Sierra and Ally
• showing us what hospitality is
• writing letters so consistently

The list could go on and on. We hope that you have a wonderful day.

WE LOVE YOU!!!!

Paper Cut Prayer

There is nothing like the honest prayer of a three year old. Today at lunch I was complaining about a cut on my thumb that was stinging. Sierra kindly offered to pray for me, having just recovered from a life-threatening paper cut herself. I thought, This is going to be good! and set my mental recorder. As soon as she was finished praying, I excused myself from the table to write down her words. Here they are:

"Dear Lord, Will you heal my mom's paper cut? Will you? If you say 'Yes', I will be so happy. If you say 'No', I'll be really sad. But if you say 'Yes', I'll be so excited! And I miss my grandma. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Susie's Baby Shower

Missy and I hosted a baby shower for Susie last Saturday. We were so happy to have lots of friends and family members attend. Some of the highlights of the morning included:

• Mom's delicious cinnamon rolls!
• Watching several very dignified ladies dive for the buzzer during a rowdy game of "Baby Jeopardy."
• Megan's "six-pack" joke.
• A great devotional by Great-Grandma Obenchain about mothers and babies in Genesis.
• Lots of fun presents...including THREE baby monitors!

Here are a few glimpses of our fun morning. We can't wait to meet you, baby girl!

Would you rather...?

Would you rather wear wet jeans for six months - or - feel a cold drip down your back every 30 seconds for a year?

I really wanted to post about Susie's baby shower but I don't have all the pictures yet....maybe tomorrow.

Ahhhh...

After a crazy week, it was so nice to get away with Mom and Dad to the cabin yesterday. We drove up to Garden Valley on Wednesday night after the AWANA fair at church. The girls were bouncing off the walls when we got there and didn't get to bed until 11:15. Yikes! There's nothing in the world like being up in the mountains with Grandpa and Grandma! Thursday was a beautiful, sunny day. We played outside and helped Dad clear out the shed for his summer project. Here's what's left of this winter's snow.

I guess that I was having too much fun because I didn't get any other pictures of our time together. My brother, Chuck, came up for several hours and had lunch with us.

Thanks to everyone who was praying for us last week. Like I said, it was a very busy week for Mom and Dad, but they are so encouraged and excited about what the Lord is doing. Please keep praying for this great church.

Now it's time to get ready for Susie's baby shower. It looks like we will have a full house tomorrow morning. I have lots of cleaning, planning, shopping, etc. still to do. We are so excited to meet this little girl! She's not due until May 5th, but anytime she feels like coming will be just fine with us. I'm sure that Susie would agree.

Ally is completely hidden from Susie's view if she stands just bellow her tummy. :)

Can't Sleep

It's 4 o'clock in the morning and I can't sleep. The last few days have been like this. Mom and Dad Cook are staying with us while they candidate at MFBC. Their internal clocks are still on Israel time, so they have an excuse to be up at odd hours through the night...but I don't. I wish that my brain had an "OFF" switch. (Just too much rattling around up there!)

So...I decided that I would play around with the website and try to add some pictures. My favorite subjects are two little girls named Sierra and Ally. Here are a couple of recent snapshots:

Adrift in the Sea of Blog

This is our maiden voyage into the "Sea of Blog." Please bear with us. I have been wanting to get started with this as a means of keeping in touch with family and friends spread all over the world. Since there is a lot of exciting stuff about to happen in our family, I thought the time was right. And let's be honest, as a stay-at-home-mom, this is a great way for me to connect, brag, vent, encourage, etc.
Here's a quick preview of what's in store: possible change of address for Mom and Dad Cook (!), our first niece, our 10th anniversary, the girl's birthdays and fun summer days up at the cabin in Garden Valley. Hopefully that list will whet your appetite and keep you interested in checking out our site every once in a while. See you soon!