Prayer Requests

I heard about this family from a friend of mine.  I don't know them, but I have kept up with their blog for the last few days.  I don't know why their story has hit me so hard, but I cannot stop thinking about them.  I have held onto my boys very tightly since I heard about this family...especially today.  I think that the family could use all of the prayers they can get. Please look at their blog.  www.half12.blogspot.com

There is another family who needs prayers.  The dentist who my sister works for lost his wife this week.  She was struck while jogging by a hit and run driver, and they did not find her until the next day.

After hearing these stories, our problems seem miniscule, but I would like to ask for prayers for our family also.  We are currently waiting to see where we will be moving this summer.  It is nerve wracking to know that you are moving in a few months and to have no idea where you are going, but it is also exciting to see new places, and it makes us sit back and trust God. When Matthew joined the Coast Guard, I resigned myself to the fact that we would never be able to move back to San Antonio and just hoped for Corpus.  Matthew has applied for a job in San Antonio at Lackland Annex.  At first we just put it on the list because it was in San Antonio, but we thought that there was no chance of getting it because it is a Cryptology job, not Engineering.  Now that we know more about the job, it turns out that Matthew is eligible for the position because it is a new program, and they are pulling people from other programs to start this new one.  Long story not so short, there is actually a chance that we could go back to San Antonio.  We will not receive official orders until the middle of April, but hopefully they will "pencil us in" somewhere soon.  There are good and bad points to the SA job, but it is too much to go into now.  There are also several other places on our list where we would really like to go.  If we go somewhere else, that would be fine, but I would really like to know something soon.  I am asking you all to please pray that God places us in the right assignment for Matthew's career and for our family.  Please also pray that we hear something soon and that I learn to have patience and faith as we wait.  Thanks.

Today's Pictures

These are just pictures of our day today.  We really did not do anything exciting, but the boys looked cute while they were playing, so I decided to snap a few pictures.

Target had some Valentine's Day stamps on the One Spot, and the boys loved them.  Plus, Benjamin was happy that I actually let him color.  He usually just eats the crayons, which he did today, but he spent most of the time coloring.  We are

 making progress anyway.

We have had this Fireman's costume for awhile, but they rediscovered it today.  

Goldfish are Benjamin's new obsession.  He got out a measuring cup to use as a bowl and the box of Goldfish by himself, and then tried to figure out how to get them into his "bowl."  He did not even tell me that he wanted Goldfish.  He just helped himself.  He often goes straight for the Goldfish as soon as he gets downstairs in the morning.  I cannot convince him that they are not a healthy breakfast.

Pictures

Things have been pretty normal around here, but I wanted to post some pictures from the last week.  The boys recently started a new Kindermusik class which they love.  Joshua has done Kindermusik in the past, and Benjamin always went and sat in his carrier, but this is the first time that Benjamin has been able to participate.  I forgot to ask the teacher before class if she minds me taking pictures during class, so I just have some from before and after.  I will try to remember to ask her next week and get some pictures of class.

Playing with puzzles before class...I have two of Ben, but for some reason they wouldn't load onto the blog. 

There is a piano on the floor that the kids love to play with after class.

These two are just pictures of them playing at home.  This helicopter was Matthew's when he was little.  

Ben's new thing is to run up to the camera and say, "CHEESE!"  I haven't been able to convince him that sometimes I just want a candid shot.

Playing Outside

Well, Matthew left yesterday for a two month deployment.  He will actually be in San Diego a lot of the time and out in the Pacific for the rest, so we should be able to talk to him on the phone at least on the weekends.  I am trying to keep everything in perspective.  Another boat left on Monday for a SIX month deployment in IRAQ, and I try to tell myself that two months is not so bad, but it really doesn't make it any easier.  I can assure you, however, that I will not be complaining to the wives of the BOUTWELL about missing my husband.  So, for the next two months you can expect lots of random pictures, none of which will be very exciting, but you will get a glimpse into our lives.

While the rest of America is knee deep in snow, we are having beautiful weather here in CA.  Here are some pictures of the boys playing outside today.

On the neighbors' trampoline

Joshua has a reward system where he earns beads to put in a cup, and when the cup is full, he gets a treat.  He got this soccer net today for his treat, but Benjamin was more interested than Joshua once we got outside.

Taking a ride

Joshua ran his train through the dirt from the gopher holes (They are everywhere!), and found it interesting that the train left a track.