Author Archive for julespaq

31
Aug
10

Ella’s date night music video

29
Aug
10

Falcons!

Rilyn had her first cheer ‘scrimmage’ on Saturday.  Because it was only a football scrimmage, the girls wore only their practice outfits and not their real game-day cheer clothes.  Rilyn was bummed about that, but everything was A-OK when they let them use their poms-poms!

sheer joy
You can see that the cheerleaders even have their own cheer chairs to rest in!
Football game behind them and the cheerleaders trying to pump up the crowd!
Rilyn giving us a high kick!
27
Aug
10

flashback friday-boys in the ‘hood

Authentic.
Like a brother.
Bear each other’s burdens.
Ties that cannot be broken.

As many of you know, one of the main reasons we moved to Austin was to live in community with our friends whom we met in college.  Here we are 12ish years later, MANY kids later, and minutes away from each other.  What a blessing to raise our children together, and an added bonus was James, Halim, and Jeff all having little boys that are within 9 months apart.  We all visited each other in the hospital room the day they were born and have watched them grow into preschoolers now!  (In a couple of weeks they start!  Praise the Lord!)  ;-)   I can’t wait to watch their friendship grow as they become young men!  (Malachi still prefers to play with Ella over Asher!)  I had the three boys at my house yesterday and miraculously, (it helped that fruit snacks were involved!), I got a decent shot of them sitting together!

Caden Richardson, Malachi Suh, and Asher
Asher’s BIRTH day and 6 month old Malachi with proud daddies, James and Halim
newborn Caden, and 3 month old Asher
November 2008- Asher and unhappy Malachi
The three boys swinging this past spring

And you know how I love to show old-school pics!  Here is Jeff, our college friend Carson, (who was apparently very tired), James, and Halim on New Years morning 2001.

January 2001
26
Aug
10

the wheels on the bus

This is Rilyn’s third year on the bus!  Selfishly I L.O.V.E the bus.  It drops her off right in front of my house everyday!  I sit on my front porch rocking bench and just chill and wait for her.  This year she doesn’t want me coming up to the bus door to get her.  Now that she is a big first grader, she wants me to stay on the porch and she will walk to me by herself!  She is so grown-up these days!  :-)

Here she is going to preschool in fall of 2008:

fall 2008
field trip in 2009 (I actually did not take a picture of her first day on the bus in kinder!)
end of her first day in first grade!
24
Aug
10

First day of 1st!

Big day today for Miss Rilyn!  Today she started first grade at Manor Elementary!

Last night, we did our family night ‘back to school style’ to get prepared for her big day.  I got the idea and printable from here, a Back to School Survival ‘kit’ with scriptures. So fun and so easy!  (Example:  Rilyn pulls out an eraser from the bag and we talk about that the eraser reminds us that everyone makes mistakes at school and it’s okay.  We then read Genesis 50:15-21 about how Joseph forgave  his brothers.)

This morning was great!  Rilyn was a little nervous because she keeps thinking about getting ‘graded’ this year (versus ‘S’ for satisfactory or ‘E’ for excellent like last year).  We prayed and once she saw her old friends she was great!

new backpack from grandma!
Manor Mustangs!
Her teacher, Mrs. Stein!

I got the idea for making this speech bubble in the top two pictures right here.  (Thanks Kristy for finding this!)

23
Aug
10

dancing

We got a new Flip video cam and James was playing with it the other day. He made this ‘music video’ to show a day in the life at our house! A certain little boy who loves jumping off our furniture, a messy-prone girl with marker stains on her dress, toys all over the floor, a certain 6 year old picking her wedgie in front of the camera, and one boy who loves spinning until he falls down dizzy!

22
Aug
10

photo shoot

I dream of mine one day, off in the distant future, would be to have a little photography business.  I’m starting to learn about lenses and love creative photography.  I did a little photo shoot at Mayfield Park yesterday with my brother and sister in law and their adorable son, Caden.  I thought I would post a few of my favorites!

lily ponds are always gorgeous scenery!
secret doors
peek a boo
21
Aug
10

Back to School date night music video

19
Aug
10

cheer practice

Rilyn started cheerleading a couple of weeks ago!  She is with Pop Warner and they are serious about cheerleading!  Rilyn will be cheering for Manor Falcons flag football.  She had to complete 20 hours of ‘conditioning’ (stretching, running), before she even could start actual cheer practice.  Of course, I had to take a couple of pictures of her first ‘real’ cheer practice!

This is called the “clean position”
This sweet older cheerleader helped out Rilyn so much.
oops-Rilyn is supposed to have her legs closed!
Maybe one day she can get her legs as high as the ‘big’

girls!

14
Aug
10

‘the talk’

Last month I was blessed by visiting with my dear friend from Houston, Marisa.  She is a pastor’s wife from our old church in Katy, Kingsland Baptist.  I always love talking with her because of her passion for the Lord and her spunky tell-it-like-it-is attitude!  She has a 6 1/2 year old son and one of the things she told me that night was, “I just had the sex talk with K.” 

Whoa.

I knew that sending Rilyn to public school, I would have to do ‘the talk’ sooner rather than later, but THIS early?!?  And her son is homeschooled!  So, naturally, I wanted to hear all about  ’the talk’ with her son. 

When I got home from coffee that night I talked with James and we really felt that God used Marisa as a vessel to remind us “now is the time.”  I had already heard stories of moms telling me their kids had heard about sex during playground conversations at public school in first grade so I did have it in the back of my mind that we should prepare Rilyn. 

 There are these awesome books out there, called God’s Design for Sex series (4 books) that Marisa used.  The first book you read to your child is written for children ages 3-5!!!  Then the second book you read from ages 5-8, third book age 8-11, and fourth book age 11-14 years.  We bought books 1 and 2.  I love the forward in these books, “Why start early? (teaching your kids about sex)  Because if you as the parent are not teaching your kids about sexuality, they are learning distorted lessons about it from television, the Internet, and playground conversations.  If you stand silent on sex while the rest of the world is abuzz about it, kids come to the conclusion that you cannot help them in this key area.  If you start now in teaching godly, truthful, tactful, and appropriate lessons about sexuality, your children will trust you more and see you as a mother or father who tells the truth!”   Wow.

The first book is entitled, The Story of Me by Stan and Brenna Jones.  The second book is called Before I was Born.  The first book discusses the growth of a child inside a mother’s body and the birth process.  The second book discusses the growth and change as boys and girls become men and women and a tactful but direct explanation of sexual intercourse between a husband and wife. 

So today, I took Rilyn for the day shopping and out to lunch for a mother/daughter date and we had ‘the talk’.  I read to her both books.  The second book is way more graphic in detail than the first and honestly, it was hard to read to my baby girl.  ‘The talk’ went well.  She didn’t ask too many questions, so I plan on reading it to her again next year and the next…She did at one point cover her ears and when I asked why, she said “Because you are about to talk about privates.”  (She saw the picture.)   We talked about that everything I was reading to her is only to be discussed between mommy, daddy and her (or her doctor) and that’s it.  One day she can talk to her husband about it.  ;-)   We also talked about if she hears things at school, she can always tell me. 

I feel at peace with today knowing that God means for Christian parents to be the primary sex educators of their children.  And first messages are most powerful; why wait until your child hears the wrong thing and then try to correct the misunderstanding?  Sexuality is a beautiful gift; why not present it to your children the way God intended?  Why not establish yourself as the trusted expert to whom your children can turn to find out God’s truth about sexuality?




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Piper

Richard Halverson, the chaplain of the U.S. Senate, pointed out something that bothers a lot of people and excites a few. He said,

Jesus Christ said more about money than about any other single thing because, when it comes to a man's real nature, money is of first importance. Money is an exact index to a man's true character. All through Scripture there is an intimate correlation between the development of a man's character and how he handles his money.

That is a good paraphrase of Matthew 6:21 where Jesus says, "Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." In other words, what your money goes after is a signal of what your heart goes after. And Jesus cares more than anything about what your heart is going after.

What our hands do with our money shows what our hearts are doing with God. Or to get right at the heart of the matter: what we do with our money shows what we believe God is doing with us. What money is to us shows what God is to us. Jesus said, "A man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions" (Luke 12:15). No, it consists in his relationship to God. "This is eternal life—true life —" Jesus said to his Father in heaven, "that they might know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent" (John 17:3). What we do with our money shows where we believe life—and joy and love and hope and security and meaning and freedom—is found.

jpaq tweets

  • Any other year and the rangers' division lead would have been cut in half over the last 10 games. Hmmm could this be the year? 1 week ago
  • Could it be? Yes it is! Nectar made with real sugar Ya-hoo! http://tweetphoto.com/40531564 1 week ago
  • Just saw "Scott Pilgrim v world"...genius. didn't realize Nintendo was prepping me for life 1 week ago
  • I am prepping for OT Survey with Halim. Looking foward to bringing gT to the St. John's campus. 2 weeks ago
  • Getting ready for meet the teacher night. Rilyn starts first grade in less than a week. Dang i'm old. 2 weeks ago
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