Boss Your Heart Reading Challenge

I am motivating myself with the Boss Your Heart Reading Challenge this year. There are a variety of plans to choose from...such as reading through just Psalms and Proverbs, reading through just the Old Testament, reading through the entire Bible in 90 days, etc. Start the year off tomorrow with a goal in mind! You can join Boss Your Heart Reading Challenge's Facebook page as well if you wish.

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours. May you each have a blessed time, remembering that Christ is the reason for the season and that He was born to die for YOU!

Almost 8 Months

Benjamin Turns 6!

Benjamin also had a birthday this last week and he turned 6 years old. For his birthday supper, we had pizza. He wanted a dragon cake...






And he was one excited boy to get a pocketknife for his birthday!

Rachel Turns 3!

Rachel turned 3 last week. For her birthday supper, she chose Daddy's famous chicken fingers, Nana Howe's fried rice, and broccoli with cheese sauce. For dessert she had a Dora cake. Here she is hammin' it up for the camera!






Can't waste that icing! Even if it's on the table, just lick it right off!

Flooding In Our Area

The past two days have been full of heavy rainfall and flooding to some nearby areas. Here is a video of a river north of Seattle (around 2 hours from us).

South Fork of the Stillaguamish at Granite Falls

Finding the Perfect Tree

This morning we all set out on an adventure to cut down our own Christmas tree. This is something we've talked of doing for several years, but due to money and/or time, we just have never done it. The kids were SO excited and Rachel kept asking if we were to the "Christmas farm" yet. We drove into the farm to so many trees!



Rachel ran up to the first tree and gave it a big hug. "I love this one!"



Garth wanted to get this because as he said, "We could fit a TON of presents under this one!"



This is the one we selected. It is nice and full and is the perfect height for our ceiling.



Benjamin had great fun "helping" Garth with the saw. He also enjoyed helping him tie it on the top of the van.



I will post pictures of the decorated tree as soon as we get it finished. It is beautiful in the living room!!

Look-A-Likes

Who do you think Ruth looks the most like? Here are the other kids' baby pictures.

Ruth:



Sarah:



Rachel:



Benjamin:

Yesterday...

...I found pumpkin spice cream cheese at the grocery store! It is so yummy, I am tempted to eat it by the spoonful.

...I felt very safe since my son built a trap in the backyard to prevent any large animals from attacking me.

...I used more paper towels than any other previous day.

...I made 20 hairbows, with the help of my eldest daughter.

...I realized that my husband makes better chicken fingers than I do.

...I had everyone loaded and buckled in the van before I realized that the car battery was dead and we weren't going anywhere!

...I snuggled with my middle daughter before her nap time and enjoyed her little giggles of excitement.

...I struggled to keep two little girls quiet during family devotions so that the older two would not be distracted in what they are learning.

...My eyes filled with tears as I listened to my favorite little boy read a story to me about a cow that was stuck on a fence.

...I enjoyed a pumpkin spice latte while doing my grocery shopping ALONE!

Joanna Grace

My brother and his wife welcomed their third child, Joanna Grace, into their family today. Jon is in medical school and just began his OB/GYN rounds today, so Joanna was his first delivery!

Pumpkin Patch

Piglets! The kids loved watching these little critters oink around.



Sarah and Benjamin conquered the corn maze!! There were 12 posts that they had to punch on their card and they found 10 completely on their own, working together.



We love our baby Ruth!



Rachel had a great time playing in the straw maze, the play house, and the wagon with her cousin Jaden.

Fall Fair

An annual event for us is a fall fair. It kicks off the fall season for us...our favorite season of the year. Here are some various pictures from that day.







No trip to the fair is complete without cotton candy!



Rachel took her first ride on her own horse on the carousel...and LoVeD it!



Sarah went on the roller coaster by herself (it was her ride of choice) and said she was too scared to scream, but loved every minute of it.



Benjamin chose the magic carpet ride.



Rachel chose the teddy bears. She really wanted the yellow one!



We had a great time in the barns, looking at the cows, horses, sheep, goats, and even a camel!

5 Months

Like her new shirt? ;-)

$35 CSN Stores Giveaway Winner

The winner of the $35 CSN Stores gift certificate is Carrie who said "I have Corelle dinner ware and love it. I would love to win! Thanks for the giveaway." Congratulations, Carrie! Please contact me at becky [dot] henson [at] gmail [dot] com with your email address.

Random winner chosen.

Ergo Baby Carrier Giveaway

Over at The Modest Mom, there is an Ergo Baby Carrier giveaway going on. Head over there and check it out! I would love to win one of these.

Also, don't forget to enter the giveaway going on at my blog for a $35 gift certificate to CSN Stores.

Benjamin's Shark Teeth

A couple of weeks ago we noticed that Benjamin's front two adult teeth on the bottom had grown in behind his baby teeth. A quick call to the dentist told us that we needed to get this checked out. We googled it, too, and found out that this "condition" is called shark teeth. This most definitely pleased our little 5-year-old boy!

At the dental visit the dentist took a couple x-rays and determined that the roots of his baby teeth had not dissolved at all, so it would be necessary to pull the baby teeth out. Then hopefully the adult teeth would decide to move forward on their own in due time.

Wednesday was the big day. We talked through the procedure with him so that he would know what to expect. Sarah has had a couple cavities filled before, so he was excited to show her that he could be as brave as she was with the needle (anesthetic). The dentist numbed his mouth with a paste and then inserted the anesthetic. Benjamin didn't blink an eye or flinch a bit! (I must admit he is braver than both his parents in this area.) Once his mouth was numb and he was talking funny, the dentist went to work and had both teeth out in less than 3 minutes.

Once his mouth woke up fully (a couple hours later), he was sore but enjoyed a milkshake and pudding for supper. He's back to eating like any normal kid now and we are hoping those adult teeth start moving forward! The dentist said his next two teeth on the bottom should start loosening really soon as well, so we're hopeful they cooperate.

$35 CSN Stores Giveaway

What a fun way to start off a new school year - a $35 giveaway to CSN Stores. Have you ever heard of this online shopping site? They feature many storefronts where you can purchase many different items for your home. One item of interest to me is their Corelle Dinnerware. This virtually unbreakable dinnerware is great for use in your home or your camper...or even a nice picnic!

Want a chance to win a $35 gift certificate to use in any of the CSN stores? Leave a comment here on this blog entry with your first name, city, and state. If you'd like additional entries, you may:

1) Post about this giveaway on Twitter. Then come back and leave a comment, saying you did so.

2) Post about this giveaway on Facebook. Then come back and leave a comment, saying you did so.

3) Post about this giveaway on your blog. Then come back and leave a comment, saying you did so.

Good luck! Giveaway ends September 20, 2010 at midnight. Valid only to U.S. and Canadian residents. Stay tuned next week for the announcement of a randomly selected winner.

Moving On

Garth has enjoyed over 3 years of employment with his current company in Buffalo, New York. He has learned much and has grown in huge ways. When we thought he'd be moving on two years ago, they offered to move him out west and let him work remotely from home, a blessing we never had even imagined. My husband is much sought after in web development, receiving sometimes multiple calls in a week for interviews. He gently turned each one down, knowing that his current position was where God placed him. However, God has made it clear that now it's time for him to move on.

Two weeks from Monday he will be employed by Amazon! I joke with him and tell him that he will now be "playing with the big boys". I am so proud of him and am excited to see how his diligence has been rewarded in a huge way. (And the employee discount to one of my favorite online shopping sites has me just a little excited, too!)

Resemblance

What do you think? Who does Ruth look most like?

FAMILY CAMP!

What we love about family camp...

1) Heart-changing preaching from the Word of God. Keven Brownfield, evangelist from Northland, was the speaker for morning and evening preaching sessions. Pastor brought devotional thoughts at the flagraising ceremony each morning before breakfast. We were challenged and we are changed.






2) Beautiful scenery and enjoying God's creation all around us.




3) Fellowship with families we love. Note: Just because you're not pictured here, doesn't mean we don't love you!!








4) Yummy food fixed by a great set of cooks. Definitely not what you normally think of as "camp food"!