my children

This is a classic picture that captures my children so well. Addelyn's goofy face as Jace picks his nose. 

I love my kids.

girls weekend

Once a year, we schedule a weekend where my best gals from college get together. It is wonderful. At the beginning of June we got to have our usual weekend in Dubuque this time. We ate out, did a wine tasting, went shopping (the girls made me buy new clothes- they always have opinions about my need for some fashion help), and just had a great time together, catching up on life. I love these ladies.

may happenings

Today has been a blog catch up day! Or at least the start of one, I am so far behind! So here we go with some updates from May. Mark and our friend A.J. tackled our sidewalk project (had to replace the broken ones before summer started) one night while we hung out with their little guy Lincoln and Christy. The kids wanted to be out helping but that was bad news with wet cement so they had to watch from inside. That quickly changed to couch jumping! It was a fun night to hang with friends and also we are so appreciative of A.J.'s help. 

This little miss not only ended her preschool days during May but also went to Kindergarten roundup. She has grown up so much in the past few months. This winter, I had concerns if she was ready for Kindergarten. On they way into the Cedar Heights parking lot, she screamed, "YAH!!! I get to go to Cedar Heights!" She was so excited!

Just some pics of my cuties.

Doesn't he look like such a big boy, almost two in this picture!

Cookie baking and eating- this kid doesn't love food but he loves sweets! I always know one way to get calories in him. 

The month of May flew by and summer began......lots of memories made since. I'll keep updating. 

softball nights

Every year Mark plays on the church softball league. I remember the first year he played, I went to every game and so did most of the wives/girlfriends. There were hardly any kids at that point and I remember chatting away during the games, cheering on my husband. Oh how the days have changed. Now we are lucky to make it to a few games per season and this is what our cheering section looks like! I'm lucky to actually watch ONE play from an inning:)

We entertain with games like hide and seek and throw the rock in the drain holes and yes, sometimes candy so kids don't run away or onto the field to find their daddies.

Gotta love those softball summer nights! 

Snow White

At the end of May, we got our first pet. Well, second if you count Nemo, the fish. Our bunny, Snow White, has been a great little pet. It has been a good responsibility thing for the kids (mostly Addelyn) to make sure she has food and water every day. Snow White isn't a big fan of Jace- Jace harasses her continually by trying to "ride" her, trying to pick her up, etc. Every day we get Snow White out of her cage and she loves to run around our yard. At this point, we are not getting a dog or a cat- Snow White is plenty!

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!