AMAZING Day Off...

A TOTALLY AWESOME Day off with my wonderful Babe and my cute little Bud. Dan arranged for someone to teach his class for him and spent the WHOLE DAY just having fun with Darren and I..."Just Because!"

Our view from the hill where we were flying our kites...

We have been super busy lately so this special day meant the world to me! What a wonderful man!

He worked last night, of course, so he slept in a bit. We ate breakfast then left to go to the city. We flew kites by the water and ate a picnic lunch.

Mommy and Darren flying kites near Ghirardelli Square...

Spiderman!

Darren flying both kites by himself...

Daddy and Darren...

Then we were able to tour the sailing ship, Balclutha of 1886. WOW! That was by far THE coolest thing I have ever done in San Francisco! I love links to the past and seeing how they operated. We were just going to walk by it, but found out it was FREE DAY! We didn't even know they had one! A big HUG from God!! (We also found FREE PARKING!! Another BIG hug from God!)

The Balclutha of 1886...

SMOOOches for Daddy, as Darren calls them!

The ship is amazing as it still has almost all things original including much of the original flooring. There are 3 decks. The very bottom deck is currently under preservation construction but we were allowed on all other levels. WOW!! I know my Dad would have LOVED that, the Navy man! Darren loved it because it was just like "Taptain Hook's Pirate Ship!"

Some of the bunks below deck...

Part of the Captain's Quarters...

A Crew member aloft in the rigging!



Daddy and Darren up by the bow of the ship...

The VERY small Galley!

Hugs for mommy on deck!

A clear day to see Alcatraz too!

After our family fun. We took Darren home and laid him down for a nap. Grandma watched him and Dan and I took off for a "just us" date!! I requested a trip to the Pacific. One of my VERY favorite things to do. The weather today was AMAZING and it was very clear tonight as you will see in the pictures.

We enjoyed a little hike down to the water and then just enjoyed the beautiful surf until sunset. Then what could better finish off the evening? SEAFOOD! We split an amazing bowl of clam chowder and an order of fresh fish and chips at Barbara's Fish Trap in Half Moon Bay. One of our absolute FAVORITES!

This day is at the top of the charts as one of my very favorites!!! Thank you, God, for spoiling us today, and thank you for family...especially the sweetness of a family centered around You!

Happy Wednesday!

Great time out soul-winning with our kids today! Had just about half an hour out, but the 16 teenagers that went out still managed to see 5 people saved! I just LOVE the zeal of our teenagers! If you are ever in need of a soul-winning challenge, I challenge you to go with a teenager.

Dan and I didn't get to personally lead anyone to the lead, but did have the opportunity to pass out many tracts and invite several people to church.

Pastor taught a good lesson on the life of Solomon tonight. Good group at church.

Darren always has something new every day to make me chuckle! Today we were playing the "Memory Game" (or the Memorio Game as he calls it.) This is the game where you match the picture cards of animal babies to their mothers.

We got to the frogs and I said, "Good! You found the mommy frog, now where are the babies?" He promptly found the card with the tadpoles. Then I asked, "What are the baby frogs called?" He thought for a moment then said, "Hmmm...Mommy, I know! Tadifrogs!!" I had a good chuckle over the tadifrogs! He is TOO cute!

Cowboy or Pirate?

What do you think?

Darren says he is pirate Like "Taptain Hook!" If we ever watch Peter Pan, I have to pause the sword fight until he can go get his "pirate gear" on. He has to feel as if he is joining in on the "swashbuckling adventure!" Ain't he a cutie pie?! Love my little man!

He has a yucky cold. I hate it when he is sick. Hoping he will be on the mend soon.

This picture I am posting was taken when Grandma and Grandpa Callaghan took him out to breakfast a few weeks back. Grandpa took this picture on his phone! Darren looks pretty happy about his pancakes, huh?!

Yay for the Library!

I love the Library! I think I have as much fun picking out all the old books from my childhood to read to my son as he has in hearing them! Frog and Toad, Curious George, Blueberries for Sal, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, etc. etc.!!

Darren and I are going to make Thursday morning our Library date! He was jumping up and down with excitement about ALL the books we were bring home and the special "Thomas the Train" video we were going to watch!

We had so much fun wandering through the few small shelves of our little Kensington Library. I think the smaller ones are nicer. They feel like an extension of your home; our little library in Griffith, IN always felt that way to me. I knew every little corner and turn as a child and can still see it in my mind.

I am not quite the avid reader that I wish I was. However, I feel it was in those VERY frequent Library trips that I developed my love for the English language. A love that led me to major in English for my college education.

I am saddened by the decline of knowledge most young people have today of our beautiful language. I certainly hope to help my son learn as many words as possible a young child. I feel quite certain this will help him when he reaches the Junior High and High school years of his education even if English isn't his favorite subject!

God is Good!

We had a GREAT night tonight at our 3rd annual Teen Winter Revival! Great group of kids, great, fellowship, fun games and video skits, Great preaching! We ended it all with some pizza, pop, games and fellowship.

I'll post more later but here are a few pictures for now...

Some ladies from one of the visiting youth groups...

The GREATEST Youth Pastor in the world, Bro. Dan Callaghan!

Our Quartet singing "If We Don't Pray (Angie singing from the piano)...

Two of our teen guys...

A couple of our ladies...

Nothing quite as rewarding as an auditorium full of Christian teenagers!

Some of our teen guys...

Some of our young ladies...

Some of our lovely hostesses...

Some of the guys from a visiting church...

The platform...

A GREAT evening! We also had 2 saved and baptized!!

Teen Revival Tomorrow Night!

Our 3rd Annual Teen Winter Revival begins tomorrow, Monday evening, March 1st at 6:30 pm..."Teenagers of Prayer."

The teens are excited and so are we! We covet your prayers that all goes well and that the Holy Spirit will speak to the heart of every teen in attendance about the importance of learning to communicate with God.

More updates to follow. Busy Busy!

We also had a great day at church with over 25 teens in attendance on Sunday morning and about 20 back tonight. Dan and I are really proud of our kids! They all pitched in and did their assigned duties after church tonight to clean up the whole church. All the decor is up and the church is cleaned and ready for lots of teenagers!

Darren LOVES his train!

Here is a short video clip of Darren singing Casey Jr. with his Thomas train set! He will literally play with this train set and all his animals on and off ALL DAY long! He loves it. He also sings the song "Casey Jr." many many times a day. I DEFINITELY have it memorized! He's a cutie pie!

It is Good to Be in the House of the Lord!

Enjoyed a great Sunday at church! We had several kids out of town this weekend, but still had a good group with a good spirit.

We had a good time practicing after the service tonight with our teen ensemble singing in Teen Revival. What great kids we have!! Such sweet and willing hearts. There is nothing quite as sweet as watching young people sing about the things of God and knowing that they mean those words from their hearts.

Afterwards, shared some chocolate cake and some laughs with a few of our teens. Isn't it fun to serve God?!

Teen Winter Revival is ONE WEEK FROM TOMORROW! Woo Hoo! We are excited and so are our kids. Dan and I watched the clips recorded for the skit video last night and had MANY laughs! Crazy kids! Excited about a revival night just for teens to have a good time of fellowship with each other, but MAINLY to be challenged in the area of prayer! Pastor also preached a GREAT message about prayer tonight.

Thanks, God, for Family!

Fun day playing with my bud! He LOVES his train track right now; calls it Casey Jr.!

We also played the game "Come When You Are Called!" Not an idea original to me. Darren would go and hide anywhere he wanted. I would call his name in a normal tone, and if he wanted to "win" he had to come running as fast as he could when he heard his name and say "Yes ma'am!" He loves doing this and it is a great way for him to learn to come the first time he is called. He is such a good little man!




Had a fun date with my Babe! I love Thursday date nights! We had a delicious meal at the salad bar and then finished a few finalizing plans for Teen Winter Revival which is only a week and a half away! Hard to believe. We are excited!



Thank you, God for the AMAZING family you have given me!

Great Time Today!

Dan and I enjoyed spending the day at Golden State Baptist College with Karen and Jezzel! What a great place! We enjoyed being a part of the classes and chapel and seeing the great spirit of the young people. Darren enjoyed playing with Jason and Mary Azzarello's boys!

Fun Valentine's Weekend and day off for Presidents' Day!

We had a nice weekend! Dan and I went out for a Valentine date on Saturday. Darren stayed here with a sitter while Dan and I went to the city to a VERY nice restaurant called Joe Dimaggio's! What an amazing man God has given me!! He knows how to make so many "memorable moments!"

This picture is of Darren and Faith on Sunday. They are such good buddies!

These pictures are from our nice "family date" this morning! Dan did not have to teach school today so we slept in and then went for a late brunch at Denny's! We got a coupon for 25% off of our entire breakfast! What a treat to get to go out as a family in the middle of the day!! Looking forward to the rest of the day just being lazy together!

Ladies Winter Banquet Pictures...

Here are a few photos from our Ladies' Winter Banquet. We really had a great time!
The theme was "Polished As a Palace" - Psalms 144:12 "That our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace:

Hmmm...

Do you think Darren shows any signs of becoming a perfectionist like his mother?

You judge...

This is what I found when straightening up before bed. I had asked him earlier just to put his toys on one of the tables. I was CRACKING UP when I saw them all standing erect and perfectly aligned! Too funny! He's a cutie!

Mmmmmm.....!

Ever had a chopped salad? It is simply called a chopped salad because all the ingredients are chopped to roughly the same size. (Which makes it much easier to eat in my opinion; plus you get a little taste of every flavor in each bite.) It is a yummy way to have lunch!

You can be creative, add whatever you like!

Here is my creation from lunchtime today...

Blue Cheese Chopped Salad

The following items chopped and tossed with Raspberry Olive Oil Vinaigrette Dressing...

Iceberg lettuce

Red cabbage

Pecans

Blue cheese

Craisins

Cucumber

Mmmmmmm!

A YUMMY way to be healthy!

(I also added a turkey burger. I bought some of the already frozen patties and just cooked one up with the same dressing as my salad plus a bit of salt and pepper. No bun, just enjoyed it's flavors.)

BaDoons!!

That's what he calls 'em!



There is a lady in our church who brings balloons for the kids every Sunday morning. Darren just LOVES that! When he was little, before he learned her name he called her "BaDoon!" Just thought you might enjoy a fun picture of our very fun little man!

Who says serving God isn't fun?!

Great evening with the teens, as always!

We had 16 go out soul-winning and over 20 teens in church! We didn't have much time actually out soul-winning, but still saw 4 saved! Praise the Lord!

Gearing up for our 3rd Annual Winter Teen Revival on Monday, March 1st, 7:00 pm! Going to be some great singing, skits, preaching by Pastor Mark Lewis of Vacaville and of course...pizza and pop! The kids are getting excited and so are we! So great for teenagers to get together with other Christian teens for a fun time of fellowship and great preaching.

Also, really excited about our first Teen Ladies Winter Banquet. All the girls are buying their formal dresses and getting excited. So am I!

Thanks, God! Serving You is so much fun!

"Gore!"...

What? Perhaps you don't know what that means? Here, Darren will explain...

Darren was playing golf this evening with his sword! I was showing him how to hit the ball (sort of!) and I would say..."Fore!"

So he started playing. He would hit the ball and say..."Gore!" Dan and I had a good laugh over that one!

He is so much fun!