BrynMarae Photography

In April, we had family pictures taken on the Hoskinson side. My friend Bryndi, BrynMarae Photography, from high school took the pics and she did a great job! I would definitely suggest her if you are looking for a great photographer. She lives in Denver, CO but travels back to Cedar Falls and Des Moines every few months. 

We got some new family pics, some cute ones of the kids, and some great group shots. Now to decide which ones to order and hang in my house!

The sweet cousins

These two together= tons of fun and sometimes some trouble!

This shot captures my son- the joy he finds in "tractors!"

Mark's brother Matt and his family

Pictures with Grandpa Tom- we got some great ones with him in them

This is my favorite grandparent/grandkid pic! 

Happy moments with the Hoskinson fam! 

"Unexpected Love: God's Heart Revealed in Jesus' Conversations with Women"

"Unexpected Love:  God's Heart Revealed in Jesus' Conversations with Women" by Julie Zine Coleman was a great book. I appreciated the way writer and teacher Coleman walked through each chapter, sharing stories from scripture of Jesus and his interactions with women of the Bible. Each chapter begins with the scripture she is focusing on, talks through the story, goes into questions to help dig deeper, has a section to relate to today's woman, and ends with scripture/questions that can be used for going deeper on your own or Bible study. 

I found each chapter interesting to read. I loved reading the scripture and then having it explained from a historical/cultural standpoint and also having many of the questions that come up for me addressed. Sometimes when I read the Bible, I get discouraged or confused and don't dig deeper because I don't understand. I love how she walked through many of the questions that may come up when reading about the stories of Jesus and his interactions with women.

I also appreciated how she helps us to see in each chapter how the stories are relevant to woman today. I could relate to many of the women in the stories and it is hard to imagine being able to have the face to face interactions with Jesus the way many of these women did. I love to see and be reminded of his deep love and respect and encouragement of women.

I plan to use this book in the future in a number of ways. I can see it being a great re-read. Also, I see it being one I would go through and use as a resource to better study the scriptures she focuses on. I could also see using it as a Bible study resource for a group of women. Overall, a great book!

A season ending.....

 

I cannot begin to tell you what this year of preschool has done for Addelyn. She couldn't have been blessed with two better teachers for her personality. Jennie and Kristen both have unique strengths and I believe they really drew on Addelyn's strengths and weaknesses and helped her to be stretched but also feel safe and loved. They truly loved our little girl, helped her to grow in both social and academic ways, and also taught her about Jesus. I love the experience she had at Orchard Hill Church Preschool. Honestly, some people may assume I would say that or send her there just because it is where I work/we go to church. However, I looked at our options before deciding on OHC and I can say that I am so thankful this is where we landed.

 

 

On the last day, with Mrs. Kimball. Addelyn thought it was so cool to have a teacher that once babysat her (when she was younger). Kristen makes me smile- I love her honesty and the way she says it like it is and also just loves the kiddos.

 

 

By her coat rack, sad to think I won't get to walk her down the hall anymore to this sweet little spot. I loved that we got to have special time each day, just the two of us, as we would head to Orchard together- her to preschool, me to my office. It was great being in the same building- getting to have sneak peaks of her day all the time. I'll also miss her sweet little face, walking by my office and running in for a quick hug. The moments I'd love to pause in life....

 

Mrs. Knapp, Addelyn's head teacher and also the Director of the Preschool. She is amazing. This woman seriously loves each and every kid at preschool- I believe it. She pours her heart into this preschool and the families that are a part of it.

 

The last day in the classroom, as Mrs. Knapp reads a special story.

 

 

Singing their songs at the program on the last day.

 

Getting her hugs and her certificate!

 

 

Special love from Mom and Dad- proud of this girl and how she has grown.

 

This little buddy....I have been thankful for the friendship these two have. Don't you love his face in these pics? On the hard days, it was nice for them to have the familiar face of each other. I can only pray they will stay great buds like this into elementary school when boys and girls are gross to each other:)

 

 

What a beautiful ending to a special season. I can't believe my little girl is headed into her elementary days!

garfield smile

Have you ever seen The Garfield Movie? Mark and I have! At least twenty times in the last few weeks since my son has started getting up at 5:15 am every day. One thing happens when you watch a movie over and over- you start to quote the movie and make faces that the characters in the movie make. So at the Hoskinson house- we often make the "Garfield face." Jace knows exactly what we are talking about and usually is the one to get us going!

Even Mom and Dad have to join in on making the "Garfield face!"

Wishing on Willows by Katie Ganshert

I am enjoying my Blogging for Books opportunity of free books for the exchange of writing reviews. 

I picked up Wishing on Willows by Katie Ganshert because I really enjoyed her other book, Wildflowers from Winter. Ganshert is from the Midwest and I love that the book setting takes place in Iowa. 

This book was about Robin Price, a single mom and widow. Robin, during her early days of grieving the loss of her husband, built a cafe in her small town, Peaks, called the The Willow Tree, which helped her to deal with her loss. She is a proud owner and also sees her cafe as a place to minister to others in the community. Then a developer, Ian McKay, shows up in her small town and has plans to build condos. This condo plan happens to be exactly in the place where her cafe is located. Both Robin and Ian are stubborn and much of the book is focused on their battle of figuring out which option is best for the town of Peaks. At the same time, they begin to battle with their feelings toward each other.

I really enjoyed this book. I couldn't put it down and read it within a few days. It was a simple story line but one I enjoyed- especially since I had already read Wildflowers from Winter and there were some of the same characters. Overall, it was a great book. I hope to see more Katie Ganshert novels coming out!

easter

I love celebrating Easter with my kiddos. Although we try to share the Good News year round, I feel like Easter is a great time to really focus and understand what our faith is all about.

The Resurrection Rolls we started doing with Addelyn a few years ago and this year, Jace was able to join in making them (he may or may not have eaten a lot of marshmallows in the process). Addelyn worked hard to make most of the rolls for our family. 

How to make Resurrection Rolls-  Get crescent rolls, sugar, cinnamon, melted butter, and marshmallows. The marshmallow represents Jesus. You dip him in butter to represent the oils they used on his body after he died, roll him in the sugar mixture to represent the spices used on his body, and wrap the crescent roll around the marshmallow to represent the tomb. After you close the tombs up, put them in the oven for "3 days" and see how Jesus is gone from the tomb when you eat it! He has risen!!!

I learned the hard way- to be sure to close those tombs up well! Last year, Jesus did not leave the tomb. Try having that teachable moment! 

Making our rolls...

While they were baking, the kiddos opened their Easter baskets. 

Jesus has risen! The tomb is empty this year, woohoo!

The crazy part is- even Jace ate the resurrection rolls. He doesn't eat much so this was a big surprise for us. Maybe because he saw a marshmallow go inside of each one? He has Risen indeed!!

college ladies

Every once in awhile (okay, not often enough at all) I get together with these beautiful ladies. We were all college roommates and they are women that will always hold a special place in my life, each one in their own unique way. 

This get together involved children and lots of tasty snacks that we munched on throughout the day while we caught up on life. I don't think this kind of get together has happened for a long time, especially since there have been many children added in the past few years!

Little Lawson, cutie pie!

We kept having them say "College" instead of "Cheese!"

Jace and two of the Kacer's boys. Love them!

Addelyn is only a bit obsessed with this little Miss.

Surprisingly, this many kids together all day and there were no big issues and we even got to actually have some real conversations (the moms). Addelyn being the only girl (except baby Jules) struggled at first as the boys wrestled, played with guns and swords, and were pirates capturing each other- and Addelyn (the only GIRRLLLLL) was the enemy. Finally, we helped the boys and Addelyn "discover" the idea that she could be the pirates mom (which satisfied her "play house" option) and then the boys wouldn't stab her or capture her. It was great! From that point on, they had a great, fun day together!

I love my ladies (and their beautiful kiddos!) Cheers to girls weekend in May and to the fact that even our lovely Christina gets to join too!!