McCain-Palin

A great day to be a Republican!

here a dragon, there a dragon...

Micah's life verse is apparently true, since Josiah's new favorite song is "Puff the Magic Dragon," and tonight Micah and Rachel came up with their own new line of Webkinz, called Draginz. But wait, that means...I am a mother to dragons. Yikes! And all this time I thought my own life verse was hidden somewhere around 2 Cor. 12:9. I'd better spend more time in Job...

Check back later for a less crazy post.

lofty goal

Micah has an autobiography project due at school in mid-October. It is fairly extensive for a 4th grader, and has several requirements, so we are already talking it over and looking at projects done by kids who have gone ahead of him. One of the things the teacher asks is that the students choose a life verse. Micah brought me his tonight, as quoted on the dedication page of his book The Dragon Prince. It is from Job 30:29 "I am a brother to dragons..."

an invitation

Bible Study Fellowship is an international, interdenominational Bible study. There are 3 classes in Bloomington-Normal that meet on Monday night and Tuesday morning. The classes include a preschool children's program (ages 2-kindergarten) during the day and a school age program (grades 1-12) at night. The kids learn and/or study the same material as the adults!! This year the class will be studying the life of Moses, covering Exodus through Deuteronomy. Classes begin on Sept. 8 and 9. You can look at their website http://www.bsfinternational.org/ to find a class near you.

first day of school!!!

Micah bounced out of bed this morning, excited to start 4th grade. Last night we went to open house where he met his teacher Mrs. Hodge and got his binder for the year. Inside are spelling words and a list of projects for the year. Fourth grade looks to be a big change! Lots of new things this year like oral and written book reports and projects to go with them, an autobiography (I can't wait to help him with this!), science experiments, sentence diagramming...how do they pack this much learning into one year? Micah is anticipating homework and took time this morning to spruce up his new desk so it would be all ready.
Micah moved down the hall and acquired a bigger locker. His verse is from Micah 6:8.
Rachel is excited to start the year with Mrs. Heidebrink. The theme for her class is "Survivor." The classroom reminds me of the inside of a grass hut!! The teacher gave each child a bandana filled with items they will need to survive (and thrive!) in 2nd grade. Rachel's assignment for today was to bring back her bandana and say good morning to Mrs. Heidebrink before Mrs. Heidebrink could say good morning to her. Rachel practiced all evening and morning, and then caught her teacher off guard and before her first cup of coffee. She was beaming with self-confidence as we parted, glad to finally be a second grader.
After sending two kids off to school, I know well that all too soon, these precious preschool days will be over. I cherish these quiet moments with the baby of the family. Today I discovered he knows how to use scissors! Why should this surprise me? (All my kids have loved playdoh but Josiah has a special place in his heart for it. I get the sense that he more hangs out with it than plays with it. And then he gives it kisses when it's time to clean up.)

adieu to summer

It's our last full week of summer. Eric took two days off work and we took the kids on a trip to the zoo, where Micah got to hold a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach. We learned that they hiss by forcing air out of their bodies when they feel threatened. Micah must have seem pretty benign because we didn't hear any hissing...
He passed on the opportunity to hold the walking stick. I guess this bug can get pinchy!

Our dynamic duo! Josiah was along, too, and you can see him in the sidebar under our new "Rhodes Under Construction" photo.

We ended our morning with a trip to an authentic Mexican restaurant. For some reason, we thought this would be a fun family outing. Micah gave it a thumbs up, but Rachel and Josiah would have preferred some golden arches with chicken nuggets and french fries.

Next we left the kids with Nana and Papa while Eric and I escaped to a bed and breakfast near Starved Rock and Matthiessen State Park. This was a belated way of celebrating our 14th wedding anniverary (in July). We came home with our batteries recharged. It's hard not to when you can sit quietly for half an hour with your spouse and take in scenes like the one above...

Thanks for watching the kids, Mom and Dad!! I'm not sure who had more fun...the grandparents, the kids, or the parents. The time away was much needed and we appreciate it more than we can say.

organizing prayer requests

Thou art coming to a King,

Large petitions with thee bring;

For His grace and power are such,

None can ever ask too much.

-John Newton from the hymn "Come, My Soul, Thy Suit Prepare"

I remember once seeing a cartoon of a man walking through church. A good friend approaches him, and he begins to think, "Oh, there's Harold! I told him I'd pray for him. 'Dear Lord, would you please bless Harold and help him with...' Hi, Harold! I want you to know I've been praying for you."

Have you ever been there? I have tried for years with some success and some failure to lift up requests and burdens before the Lord in prayer. All I can say is the persistence does pay off, and encourage anyone (including myself) to never give up! I found a great help to organizing my prayer life this summer and share it with others in hopes it may be a help to them as well.

I've tried notebooks and index card files but this little binder from Wal-Mart is what has finally worked for me! The spiral note cards are perfect for memory verses, and loose index cards fit into a pocket at the top. I have several categories (urgent requests, missionaries, ministries, church, family, direction, etc.), one category on each index card, and try to pray through a few each day. Some, like urgent requests, I pray through every day. It's easy to start new cards as needed since they are loose, and I was especially encouraged when I was able to re-write one category of requests because so many had been answered!

Ephesians 6:18 "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."