Sitting here on Sunday afternoon sitting on the sofa sipping coffee and being kicked by a baby who is fighting sleep. Hazel just doesn't like to sleep. What a week we've had! Monday was John's eighth birthday. This kid has been such a great addition to our family! John is pleasant and friendly, the most outgoing of the kids fir sure! He's been this way since birth. He's a thinker and a tinker. He's so curious about how things work and I often find him studying things to figure out how they fit together. John is a real people person, but he also likes to be alone to think. He is gentle and affectionate and, unlike his siblings, does not like competition. He's so much more than can be described in a paragraph. I'm just so thankful that I get to be part of his life and watch him grow into a man. I've been trying to blog on my iPad, but it's not very easy, which is why my blogging has been so sporadic the last couple of weeks. For one, typing is difficult. Also, I can't figure out how to insert pictures into a post, so they all end up at the end. I'd blog on a pc, but it seems they're always being used by someone else. Like right now John is playing with his webkinz one laptop while Brian does budget stuff on the other. I guess we kind of look ridiculous the three of us in the den on three different computers. All that to say that the pics will be at the end of this post. Brian and I took John out to celebrate his birthday Monday evening. He chose Kerbey Lane Cafe, then shopping at Terra Toys. We got ice cream at Amy's Ice Cream, and then on to Half Price Books where he wanted to get a "grown up" Bible . He at first wanted this waterproof Bible he'd seen last time we were there, but decided on a giant prit one instead since it seemed a lot easier to read. He's only had a storybook up to this point. I think it's cool that he wanted a Bible for his birthday. My mom and I took the kids out to Thomas and Meredith's house on Tuesday to swim. Their house is like a paradise for children. Set on five wooded acres in Westlake, they have a creek with a waterfall running behind the house, a huge pool and hot tub, a trampoline, a fabulous playscape, and much more. We had ten of the eleven cousins in the pool at once. All of them can swim but the two babies, so my mom, Meredith, and i could chill out for the most part. I cant remember all that we did the whole week, but some good memories were made. Margaret had a swim meet Saturday morning, the first of the season. After that, she and Samuel had a soccer tournament. They didn't advance, so they were able to come home and not worry about a second game. We went over to Central Market in the evening. It was weird, kinda nice for it to just be us after a week with my mom and the cousins. Our friends the Elliot's were there, so we visited with them and made plans for swimming and other adventures before the summer ends.This morning was church and Brian being deacon of the month, or DOM, had to be there early and stay for both services, leaving me to get us there by myself. We weren't too late.;)This afternoon we've just hung around the house recovering from our busy week. Brian and I coordinated our calendars and made plans for the next few weeks, if the Lord allows. This evening he and i ran to Mueller, cir led it and ran back, about five miles. It was so hot and I didn't run very well. I am off to a pretty good start overall in my running. For my first week of training I covered fourteen and a half miles (2 four and a half mile runs and 1 five and a half miler).

My biggest challenge will be to stay hydrated. Hazel is still getting about 95% of her nourishment from nursing and nurses half the night. Some mornings I wake up feeling like a raisin I'm so dried out.

And speaking of Hazel, she's mobile now. She drags herself through the house getting herself filthy on our hard floors. She's started pulling up on things, but not "cruising" yet. Everything she does is such a huge deal to the other kids. They just adore her!

Well, I've been trying to get this post out for awhile now, so I'll end there. A new day is here, let's rejoice and in gladness serve the Lord!