Zack's Graduation Surprise

This video was taken after his graduation and after he had opened all the gifts and cards. A couple in our church came up to him and handed him one more card. He opened it up and read it, which is what you see in the beginning of this video. About halfway through, you'll hear a man's voice say, "Here you go my friend. You're now the owner of a Volvo." And then you'll see Zack's reaction. He was shocked!

Zack has been giving their son piano lessons for several months now, and they wanted to do something special for him. This was beyond special!

Pictures From Zack's Graduation

These pictures aren't the greatest quality. I have the hardest time taking pictures in our church- can't get the lighting right. Anyhow, here's a peek at Zack's graduation which took place on Saturday. Zack playing his wonderful piano solo- a medley of "Tis so Sweet" and "Just a Closer Walk".

Anna giving her speech. (Isn't her haircut cute? I love it!)

The graduate.

Mr. Jim Williams who has been an influential part of Zack's life since we moved here 10 years ago. He spoke at Paul's graduation also.

Somehow, there is no picture of me, but I assure I spoke! Paul giving Zack a charge to realize that his life is not his, it's God's.

Zack giving his speech. I don't think anyone realized how well written and well given his speech would be! If you haven't heard it, it's on my facebook profile page.

The two graduates and their families.

The happy family!!!

Presentation of the diploma.

Zack reading his cards. (Isn't he handsome??)

The first realization that he was getting a car. His response? Unbelief. He was shocked and speechless.

Still shocked and speechless!

Unfortunately, the camera battery died right then! But he was thrilled (to say the least!) and he and his dad insured the car and registered it today. Next step? Get his license. I'll post pictures of the car tomorrow.

Zack's Slideshow

Here's the presentation I put together for Zack's graduation.

And where have you been the last 32 weeks??

I mentioned to Paul last evening, after everything was over, that it had been a wonderful day, but I was now ready to move on to the next big event in our lives.

"And what would that be?" he asked.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?" I replied. "THE BABY THAT IS COMING IN SIX WEEKS!"

Hello?

Sometimes he scares me. :)

What a Day!

My second son graduated from high school today. Even as I write that, it is still hard to believe. It was a wonderful ceremony. Zack and another homeschooled young man from our church shared the service. They both outdid themselves.

Zack played an awesome piano solo. I told him it was the best I had ever heard him play. One of my friends, who was sitting right behind me, tapped me on the back when it was over and said, "Did you know he could play like that??" I chuckled to myself. Yes, I knew he could play like that, he does it all the time at home. But what he doesn't realize is that when he plays for the services on Sunday, people aren't really listening to him. And, he doesn't play like that for congregational singing. Needless to say, everyone enjoyed his solo. If you haven't heard it, I've uploaded it to my Facebook profile.

Anna gave a speech she had written about Zack. It was so sweet and I was proud of her for doing it. I then gave a speech. I thought all week about what to say and came up blank, until last night when I sat down at the computer and started writing and it all came together within 15 minutes. I was glad I had my speech all written out and didn't have to think about what to say. I saved all the "mushy" stuff for the end and was glad I did. I teared up but was able to finish.
Paul gave an excellent speech to Zack and a charge to live a Godly life.

Then it was Zack's turn. As he got started we all realized we were in for a treat. He did so well. His humor shone through and it was evident that he had put alot of thought into this speech. At the end he asked the church to pray for him and he said some really insightful, deep things, which just made his father and I tear up even more. He blew us all away. I guess I had never heard him give a speech before- he needs to do that more often! I've put the speech up on Facebook also.

What a great day. I am so blessed. Some days on this homeschooling/parenting journey are hard. Some days, I want to quit. Some days, I wonder if what I'm doing counts for anything. And some days, like today, take all that discouragement and doubt and replace it with gratitude and thanksgiving. What I'm doing does count, in these lives God has entrusted me with. Thank you Father for your Grace and mercy in my life and in the life of my children.

PS- I will put up pictures and his slide show tomorrow. It's getting late and I'm getting tired!

Anna's Birthday Party

I'm not sure how it started, but it has become a tradition to have Anna's birthday party on the beach. This is the third year in a row we've done it. The other two years have been beautiful, but this year was just plain HOT! But that didn't stop the kids (or adults) from enjoying the evening.

Anna opening her presents. Hmmm, wonder what Dad is up to??

What's that behind his back? It can't be the bowl with the ice water in it, can it????

Oh yes it can! Poor Anna never saw it coming.

But she was a good sport about it all.

Yum, watermelon!

Two cute, dirty, sandy boys.

The highlight of their evening was feeding the ducks that came by at the end.

Ben was beside himself with excitement.

Mother's Day

Two silly little boys

Two dirty little boys

Paul bought me a delicious steak and Zack cooked it. It was one of the best steaks I ever had. And for dessert? Reese's cheesecake. Yum.

Yankee candle from my little boys

Candles and candle holders from my girls

We didn't celebrate Mother's Day on Mother's Day this year because of family camp. I didn't want to rush through things or stress people out, so I opted to wait. So we celebrated on Tuesday night and my family gave me a very nice evening. It's been somewhat rough around our house lately, with me being increasingly pregnant and tired and woozy, but I do enjoy my family and I LOVE being a mother. God is good.