My Mom

... does not eat the bread of idleness. (Proverbs 31:27)

... is humble and gentle. (Ephesians 4:2)

... hides God's word in her heart. (Psalm 119:11)

... is able to teach and admonish with wisdom because the word of Christ dwells in her richly. (Colossians 3:16)

...speaks the truth in love. (Ephesians 4:15)

... looks after widows in their distress. (James 1:27)

...regularly uses her gift of hospitality to bless others. (I Peter 4:10)

... demonstrates her faith by her good deeds. (James 2:18)

Mom and I on the beach in Brazil in 1976.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

We love you.

HE'S ALIVE...

...and I'm forgiven!

Spring Break Stay-cation

All good things must come to an end. I just prayed with a sobbing six-year-old because she doesn't want to go back to school tomorrow morning. (And I'm a little afraid that Marc might start crying any minute now too!) We had a good week of spring break together as a family. Here's a quick re-cap. Monday: First ever visit to the state capitol building! It was fun to see members of congress in session, to peek into the governor's office and to walk around the beautiful marble staircases and hallways. That night, the girls had Sierra's good friend from school come for a sleep-over. It was a late, giggle-filled night! Tuesday: We spent the morning and had lunch with Grandpa and Grandma Obenchain. Even though we live so close, days like this are few and far between. It was special for all of us. In the evening, we celebrated Chuck's 30th birthday with the family.

Wednesday-Friday: It seems like we may be starting a Mouser family tradition. We discovered Oxford Suites in Boise last year and decided to visit "our hotel" again this year. The girls spent hours (and hours, and hours, and hours!) swimming in the pool. All three of them are little fish. We also enjoyed watching Tangled on the laptop. There's nothing like eating microwave popcorn out of hotel mugs!

Now, it's back to reality... just two more months until summer break!

Chuck-Bob

Makes you feel kinda old when the baby of the family turns 30!

Happy birthday to a great brother and uncle.

We love you!

Life Saving Station

I tend not to put too many videos on my blog because I know that it can be time consuming to sit through them. And while I don't want you to feel obligated, I promise that this one will be worth your while if you're a Christian and go to church! Our youth pastor, Dave Duron, showed this video clip last Wednesday night to the Jr. and Sr. highers. Their eyes might have been a little glazed over, but the parable really struck me! Take it to heart.

Duct Cleaning Gold Mine!

(*** Hi Thursday morning ladies! If you're visiting for the first time and looking for some spiritual exhortation, skip this post and watch the video on the next one. :) I'm not always very spiritual on my blog. Sometimes I just get down to the nitty-gritty. Thanks for the advertising, Mom.)

Yesterday I had the lovely task of trying to clean out our air ducts. I made a couple of calls in the morning and realized that it would cost quite a bit of money to have it done professionally, so I decided to tackle the job myself. (We have lived in this house for a little over 4 years and I have only attempted this job one other time.) I usually just remove the vent covers and reach as far as I can with my regular vacuum attachments. Cobwebs, dust and other small particles are about the only things I find within one arm's reach. But not so yesterday. Oh no! We have one vent near our back sliding glass door that is covered with a wooden grate. I must have skipped it last time, but yesterday I pried it up with an old fork. Here was my first view:

(EW! So gross that I had to run and get the camera so that Marc would believe me.)

I kid you not, here is what I found inside the vent after sucking out the cobwebs:

*5 quarters

* 5 dimes

* 3 nickels

*14 (fourteen!!!) pennies

(Grand Total:$2.04)

* several plastic play money coins in various colors and denominations

*2 wallet size family photos (not our family!)

*one hair band

* one dry pinto bean

* one Mr. Incredible sticker

* several paper hole-punch circles

* one nail file

* one Big Bird trading card

* one math flash-card (#5 to be exact)

* one paper clip

* two rubber bands

* one blue bead necklace

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry! So....I'm asking you: Have you ever paid to have your air ducts cleaned professionally? Was it worth the money? Do you recommend any particular company? HELP!!!

Living Eternally - Francis Chan

I may be the only Christian on the planet who hasn't read "Crazy Love," and I really don't know much about Francis Chan, but I ran across this short clip on a friend's blog this afternoon and it made me think: Am I one of the "stupid ones"?