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Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Birthdays and Awards

Last week was one of those weeks where we had something every single night and by the time I got to Friday I was SO thankful I didn't know what to do!!

Those kind of weeks are hard because I feel like the devil just has you so preoccupied with the busyness that you forget the stillness and quiet that is essential to your spirit. In my devotion time this week I have begged God to fill me with patience and endurance to go into each day. I want you to know He spoke straight to me "the joy of the Lord is my strength" and I have just held on to that.

On top of school and work activities last week, we celebrated Brendan's 17th birthday in his peaceful and family oriented way that he likes. He wanted no party and asked for no big gift. It was hot wings before church with the family and then I surprised him with a cookie cake in the youth lounge at church.



 I am amazed how fast 17 years go by. I never would've imagined that being his mom would be like this. I have sat with him through broken bones, bad choices and more basketball games than I could ever count and I am thankful for every single second of it. The young man that he is becoming is only through the grace of God. There is no doubt Brian and I have made many mistakes along our parenting journey and many of them probably have come as Brendan was our learning curve. I pray as we see him into adulthood that God will continue to strengthen him in the choices he makes and in the path he walks.

One event we had last week was our annual Sports Banquet with the school for J.V. and Varsity sports. I always love this night not because our kids might get an award but because it is a celebration of their efforts through the year and the accomplishments of their teams. Some years, the accomplishments for the team are few and some years they have been great. This year was mostly more of the first.

So here are a few pictures from the night...




First of all, here is a picture of the kids. Please take a good look because it is rare that they all three smile so genuinely! Of course, they were in a hurry to move on to pictures with friends so that tends to produce more cooperative smiles for me!
 
 
 
Here is Brendan and Ellie.
 
 
 
 
This is the boys with two of their best friends!
 
 
 
And this is Kamdyn with two of her best friends!

 
If you are wondering if that is also Kamdyn's Easter dress let me say why yes, it is. Because if you thought it was hard to find one dress that is both appropriate and something we both agree on then you should try to find a second one!!! In case you are out of the loop on teen clothing for girls the current style is backless, short and sheer which tends to limit the choices of what we can buy.
 
But back to the awards program...Kamdyn received the Best Defensive Player award for the Varsity Softball team and also the Team Award for J.V. basketball. Brendan received the Leadership award for varsity basketball. And while Koby may not have received a trophy I can guarantee you nobody had more fun and took more pictures than him through the night.
 
We enjoyed a beautiful weekend and I especially enjoyed my Mother's Day and my gifts. Brian made us some wonderful steaks for dinner and I was able to sit out and enjoy some sunshine and reading during the afternoon which are two of my favorite things!
 
Tomorrow will be Brendan's last day of school because he will be exempt from his final exams so you can only imagine how excited he is! Koby is hoping to have the same feeling once exemptions are announced for him. Kamdyn will have to take all of her tests next week because we do not exempt 7th or 8th graders. She is just going to have to push through, which she so often does. One thing is certain - we are all counting down the days.
 
I hope your week is a great one and that you are enjoying sunshine and warmer weather...
 


3 comments:

  1. Busy week, but one week closer to the beach. Love the picture of the kids - a little flip flop as Koby usually has the bow tie. Push on Kam - you can make it!

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  2. GREAT picture of the three of them! I thought the same as mom - shouldn't Koby have the bowtie?

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  3. holy cow could brendan look any more like a grown man than he does in that pic of the three of them. kam and koby look presh too :) love all the pics. i too am pushing thru kam...we can do it!

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