Our Boy and His Cricket

Like I said...lots going on...My beautiful and adventuresome niece is headed to Spain for her final year of college next weekend.  We are all so excited for her travels and eagerly anticipate her coming home in seven months!  She's blogging her way through Europe which makes all of us happy to be able to witness everything with her...especially me since I'm a blog lover!  :)  LOL!

The changes in these three is mind numbing sometimes...Our Holly is just growing more and more into such a beautiful woman and I am SO proud to be a part of her life and to be blessed enough to be her step mom.  She is ready for the fall semester to begin so she can dive head first into her EMT classes which I know she'll excel at!  Then there's the cricket...what can I say??  She wakes up and is different!  Toddlerhood!!  And our boy...Big J!  He's off for the next three weeks at two different camps.  First one is a two week discipleship and service work camp which he went to last year and came home a changed child.  Then after those two weeks are over he leaves the next day for a week long camp in Oregon for special needs children where he will be a buddy to one child and do things with the child that her or she might never do as well as care for his/her needs.  I anticipate yet another huge spiritual growth as well as positive change in him when we get him home.   

Oye these kids!!!  I LOVE them so!

And all through the changes going on in our lives, my mom and papa are the guiding stars for all of us.  With the loss of my grandma, my mom has stepped up beautifully as our matriarch.  She is such an inspiration to me and these last few months have brought us so close!  Both of my parents are so dedicated to all of us.   They watch us all swirl around them in our own lives and they never hesitate to bring us a smile, a hug, a piece of advice or just a huge laugh!  Love this picture of my papa...posing for an old fashion picture and my mom cracking up!  So my parents! 

That day was a perfect moment in my life.  A time captured in memory.  A day filled with family.  Sharing our futures and remembering parts of the past.  We played games and talked about everything. The next time we're all together like this will be next year and I'm sure the picture will change quite a bit...in physical growth and maturity for all the children surrounding their grandparents.  And maybe I'll even have better photo skills by then!  But hey I got my nephew to smile!   :)