Hawaii

We took the kids out of school and we ran off to Hawaii. Best life. It was fantastic to be adventuring together again--plus baby Henry! (Although he did not actually enjoy traveling or sun or sand or water really at all. He just wanted to drink his favorite drink and sleep in peace. Oh well.)

We stayed on Oahu near the Polynesian Cultural Center. We loved learning a lot about the many island cultures there. Eliza learned to hula as she had hoped (she went to the lesson at least three times to perfect the story). The boys learned some fun stick and rock games. 

We went to several different beaches, each of them with their own flavor. Some were better for snorkeling, some for boogie boarding, some for sand play. 

We ate so much delicious food. So much food. All of it gooood and served by nice people.

I loved watching the boys run out into the waves to catch them. Eliza floated confidently on her back in the calm tide pools. 

Hawaii was kind to us.

Petra/Jordan Video

Reliving that day in Petra was just as golden as I imagined it would be. What a special time it was, all of us adventuring together.

Henry's Blessing Sunday

We blessed Henry Duke at home on the morning of 17 February. He was lucky enough to have all his grandparents fly in to attend, as well as uncle Garrett and aunt Camilla and Becky. It was a house full of family, and we loved it! Henry enjoyed the attention--being held all day by the many eager arms. He wore the outfit I made right before Davy's blessing that Eddy also wore.

I spoke for a brief few minutes about how wonderful it is to follow Christ's example in all the ways we can, including being recognized as an infant and having a special blessing bestowed on oneself as a baby, just as Jesus was at the temple by Simeon and Anna. I explained why we chose the name Henry Duke. All of our children carry names of family members whose characteristics and qualities we hope our children will value and develop in themselves. Henry is a great grandpa on Collin's side who was known for his hard work ethic. (I also have a Henry somewhere way back there.) We wanted to honor grandpa Dennis, who told us straight out that he would not wish his name on a child. Grandpa likes to watch The Duke in old westerns and would use the name 'Duke' at restaurants when giving a name to call when the table was ready. It has a nice ring to it and I think our Henry Duke will carry his name well.

Collin gave a beautiful blessing to Henry. He blessed him with recognizing the spirit, love for his family--especially his siblings, to look to the men for whom he was named and to Christ for an example of how to live his life. He was surrounded by all those men who love him and will support him in many ways through his life. Henry began to fuss a little during the blessing and my dad stuck his pinky in his mouth and Collin spoke to him, looking into his eyes. Henry began to coo and smile back. The spirit was warm and welcome in our home.

Determination and Grit (a story of monkey bars)

This success has been a long time worked for. Last spring Eliza discovered the monkey bars and wanted so much to do them. She struggled and cried and stood at the edge of the platform and gave up and tried again. It was quite the drama. Finally, finally all her work paid off and something clicked--she was able to swing her body from bar to bar. She had blisters from the major effort the past weeks. They've transitioned into callouses now. She swings easily from bar to bar. The next thing is skipping a bar (but I think she needs to grow those arms just a bit longer first!). The ability to stick through something hard is one I hope all the children learn in our house before they grow up and enter the adult world.