Drawing to a close

Summer of 2011 is quickly drawing to a close and over here at BIDWTF we like to document the end of summer happenings.

Like Kings Island.

We rolled out early, eating at a little breakfast diner before making the twenty minute drive.  We told them we had a surprise planned. They guessed Kings Island but we never said exactly what we were doing until we pulled into the parking lot.

I love the look they get when we really surprise them with something great.

Where we started off on the helicopter ride, the same place we started the last two years.

It never gets old watching the biggest and the littlest deepen that special bond of theirs.

She trusts him. It's something to behold, that sweet big brotherly protection and the adoration in her eyes.

I was witness to a father's love. It's a tender thing. They reach for a hand and it's already outstretched before the two intertwine. The world is as it should be when Daddy's around. No monster too great, no fear too small.

There were bumper cars (which Isaac calls "bumpy cars"... love that), airplanes and carousel rides.

We watched the Peanuts perform, rode the train and "drove" cars with the help of a big brother.

Gabe was super brave and rode the roller coasters. Isaac rode it and then asked if it was really a kids coaster. He went white as a ghost after we went screeching down the first hill. Gabe couldn't get enough. He thought it was better than ice cream and ice cream is hard to beat! I love that last picture of him, intently listening to the instructions.

And this little one. Well, she took the best care of her "baby". A pink and polka dot bunny she got for Christmas last year. She made sure that baby was well loved. She was a trooper, not wanting to miss a minute of the fun. And the boys did great including her in everything.

****

Last Friday night we headed out to Yellow Springs for one of our favorite places. 

Young's Dairy.

Where we ate yummy food and chased it down with sweet tea.

We went down the big slide and checked out the batting cages.

We played putt putt and fed the goats.

*****


The last week of summer break we enjoyed  lunch on the front porch.

We are tired.

But it was worth it, it always

 is.

It's been a good summer.

XOXO,

Angie

Letting Go

I did it. I let him go. I was able to pull it together until I got back in the car...then the tears came.


I just keep thinking how it will never be the same. We can't go back, no more long days together, no more lunches with the big brother at the table with us. No more days at our leisure, going where we please when we want. No more waking up when the day is new and saying to ourselves "What do we want to do with this one day, this day here?"  and then doing it. Having thoughts in the back of my mind that one day he will be in school, one day I will miss this. That day is here. Now I'm saying to myself, "It will be okay, just breathe..."

It will be okay. He's ready. He did great. No tears, just happy about having his own desk. 

I do find a certain peace knowing he's at a great school. We made a last minute decision to enroll him at Dayton Christian. Our apartment is dirt cheap with it's rent which made it something we could afford, and it's right across the street from the school!

I love that the principal prayed over us when we went in to meet her. I love that they have bible verses on their desks. I love that they are teaching these littles that they are special, created by God to do good for Him.  Love that. Because they are. They each have a reason, a purpose for being here. And they need to know that. 

And every Monday the moms meet to pray for their littles. How cool is that?

Before we dropped him off we stopped for donuts.  Because it's not every day you have you have your first day of first grade.

And daddy was there too. Donuts are always better when daddy can come!

He's ready.

It went quick, those first six and a half years. Go hug a little for it goes fast.

I'm off to play trains and color with my two other littles. Because it won't be long before they are off and on their way.

 

XOXO,

Angie

My Dad

My dad had a birthday this week.  And like it always does, it has me thinking about my dad a little more than usual. He's never far from my thoughts and he's always in my heart.  He was the first man in my life and what a gift that has been for me.

Daddy, Mommy Lois & Callie, my littlest sister August 2007



Here are just a few things that make him the incredible man I love...



Like how he would wake up with me in the middle of the night to give me my bottle when I was a baby.



How he would come over to our apartment when I was sick, late at night and my mom didn't know what to do. me sitting in the bathtub watching them discuss what to do next if the fever didn't break.



How he wrote "I love you" on the sole of my shoe while I sat next to him in church, my foot propped up over my knee.  I still have those shoes. I never wore them again, not wanting it to wear off.
 

Daddy & Selah, October 2010


How he wanted to know everything about school and my friends even though, or especially because, I didn't live with him. I remember Saturday mornings as a rolling-my-eyes-at-everything teenager when he would pick me up, just the two of us driving back to his house. I wish I could go back and have those hour long drives, just the two of us.

My dad has seven kids and an amazing ability to make you feel like you are the only one. He loves something fierce. 



And he's hilarious. So, so funny.  Always makes me laugh.



And patient. The most patient person I've ever known.  I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen him mad. It usually had to do with my brother, Isaiah. He's a rowdy one :)



I remember playing flashlight tag, baseball and basketball on the farm. My dad and my step mom both were really great at just wanting to be with us. They weren't the type of parents who shooed us away when they wanted to talk with the grown ups. Never asked us to run along and play with the other kids. There was always a lap for us to sit on, a hug if we needed it...or even if we didn't.

Our wedding, October 2002



I remember the father daughter dance at our wedding. The only time I cried the entire day. How he held me close and told me over and over again how proud he was of me...of Joe and I.

Father/daughter dance, October 2002



How he asked if he could pray over Isaac as he held him just after he was born.



There is so much more I could say about my dad but I feel like I'm not doing him justice with the words I've already put down. I love him and I'm thankful for a heavenly father who so graciously gave me an earthly one that is so loving and kind. I can see God's love for me through my dad.



I don't see him nearly as much as I'd like but I know there is an unspoken love, an unspoken bond between us that spans the miles. He is always in my thoughts and most definitely my heart.

I love you, daddy. More than I could ever express, more than you could ever know. Happy Birthday!


XOXO,
Angie