Celebrating Christ! ~ Throughout this month, we sought to celebrate and give glory to our King, Messiah, Emmanuel, and Light of the World ~ Jesus Christ ~ in a variety of ways (such as advent chain, reading the Bible about Christ's birth, singing Christmas hymns, watching the video What's in the Bible?: Why do we call it Christmas?, making a birthday cake for Jesus, and more) in the midst of enjoying time with lots of loved ones. The song Light of the World declares a powerful message of the hope we have in our Savior, Jesus Christ, that resonates with our hearts and brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it. The song was extra special to us this month as we celebrated Christ's birth.
Then Jesus again spoke to them saying, "I am the Light of the world;
he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life." John 8:12
Click on this link to listen to the song Light of the World by Lauren Daigle ~ Light of the World
What's on the Harrisons' Hearts
Resting in God's Sovereignty in CO Springs Shootings ~
...all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. Psalm 139:16
"I know that You can do all things, and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted." Job 42:2
Recently, we had 2 shootings in CO Springs within a month. One was on Halloween and the other was on Black Friday after Thanksgiving. It can be tempting to get fearful and try to protect yourself and your family in obsessively cautious ways. I am thankful that we can have peace and rest in God's sovereignty that He ordained the number of days that we will live on this earth. Nothing and no one can thwart His plans by adding or taking away a day of someone's life from what God has already determined.
Praises & Prayers
Friend - Please pray for a friend who has left the gospel and is in a journey of agnosticism. I am praying John 8:32 for her that she would know the truth, and the truth would set her free.
Josiah's birthmother - Praise for her sharing how the Lord is at work: "...it [the photos we sent] makes my heart dance in joy, you have made a beautiful family with the help of the Lord. To me you guys are living proof that God exists and that He loves us."
Great Papa - Praise for the Lord helping him to quickly recover from pneumonia after being taken to the urgent care and hospital on Christmas Eve.
Tami - Continued prayers for the Lord to give my dad and other loved ones His perspective and that God would heal Tami, but ultimately that His will would be done. Please pray Galatians 5:22-23 that the fruit of the Spirit would abound in Dad's & Tami's lives during this trial. Also, prayer of James 1:5 for wisdom with this trial.
Wes & Christina - Praise for the Lord blessing our family with a lot of wonderful memories with extended family that we were able to spend time with this month. Please pray Romans 12:18 that the Lord would grow us in being biblical peacemakers when conflict occurs between us or with others.
Noah - God would graciously save him at a young age and lead him to walk with the Lord all of his days, if that be the Lord's will. Continued praise for the Lord growing Noah in loving his brothers, especially Josiah since Noah will sometimes provoke him. I asked Noah what he would like loved ones to pray for him, and he said, " That I would love Jesus more."
Josiah - God would graciously save him at a young age and lead him to walk with the Lord all of his days, if that be the Lord's will. Praise for the Lord helping Josiah to communicate more often with his words rather than screaming when he doesn't like something. Please continue to pray for the Lord to grow Josiah in using his words to communicate (Psalm 19:14).
Samuel - God would graciously save him at a young age and lead him to walk with the Lord all of his days, if that be the Lord's will. Praise for no major prayer requests for Samuel presently. :)
Marriage Memories
:)
Date Night ~ Vietnamese dinner & a movie
AWANA Memories
Our club had a "Dress up your Director" incentive for being on-track in their handbook, and our T&T clubbers enjoyed decking us out with all these accessories. :)
Back in November ~ T&T Boys & Girls Service Project at Crossfire Ministries (we helped package boxes for Thanksgiving meals) * Wes had a deacon work day (they bagged arout 40 bags of leaves!!!)
Family Fun
Our Fam on Christmas ~ in our pjs ;)
Christmas
Samuel's 1st Christmas ~ "Ummm....what do I do?" * Having fun * Excited about his gift from his bros
Noah was excited about his gift from his bros & his spiderman pjs
Josiah posing with his new Ninja Turtles hat * Sitting on his glow-in-the-dark basketball while he opened gifts
Bros ~ Giving thank you hugs to each other * Noah having fun watching Samuel open gifts * Josiah showing Samuel how to play with the phone Noah & Josiah got him
Samuel's 1st Christmas ~ "Ummm....what do I do?" * Having fun * Excited about his gift from his bros
Noah was excited about his gift from his bros & his spiderman pjs
Josiah posing with his new Ninja Turtles hat * Sitting on his glow-in-the-dark basketball while he opened gifts
Bros ~ Giving thank you hugs to each other * Noah having fun watching Samuel open gifts * Josiah showing Samuel how to play with the phone Noah & Josiah got him
Family game gift ~ Each year we pick out a new game for our family, and the boys couldn't wait to take down each other's boats in Battleship. ;)
New Year's Eve
Samuel started being able to stand on his own when holding on to the spindles
Battleship ~ Daddy & Josiah battle Noah & me while Samuel blew bubbles ;)
Having fun dressing up
Decorating Rice Krispie Houses
Putting together a puzzle of 2015 photos of our extended family
Other Fun
"Twins" * All smiles!
Mommy & sons all bundled up for some fun in the snow!
Noah News
Cute Communication
* Noah - "Mommy, why do you wear your shoes all the time?
Me - "They help my feet be comfy since I'm up on my feet a lot as a mom."
Noah - "Were you born with them on?"
* Noah's back hurt, and he explained to us how he hurt it - "I was trying to be gentle with Josiah so he wouldn't get hurt wrestling, and I got hurt." ~ Wes has said this before. ;)
* Noah - "Mommy, how are we supposed to play Battleship since we have two little kids, and you're a big kid."
Me - "You mean I'm an adult?" ;)
Latest Likes
Loosing his 1st tooth!!! ~ He was eating a sandwich, and it was sticking way out so Wes pulled it out.
Chalulah - hot sauce that Daddy likes
Calling Wes "Beefy Daddy" (since Beefy is one of my names for Wes) & "Mama Bubottie" (since Hottie Butattie is one of Wes' names for me)
Showing off his 1st lost tooth! :)
Playing with Hot Wheels ~ sometimes you think they've outgrown a toy and then it makes a comeback ;)
Josiah Joys
Cute Communication
* Calling Wes ~ "Mr. Wes," "Mr. Dad," or "Mr. Daddy" ;)
* When Josiah is missing something or lost something, he says, "Noah can find it because he has eagle eyes."
* "Mommy, I burped all by myself. You didn't have to pat my back." (like I do for Samuel)
Latest Likes
"Joy to the World"
Light sabers
Balloons
Excited about the gift he wrapped for his cousin! * Darth-Josiah-Vader ;)
9 Month Stats:
Weight - 15.2 lbs. 1%
Height - 25.8 in. 0%
Head circumference - 18 in. 75%
1sts - crawling!!! , standing up by furniture, eating all kinds of table food, sound "dada," waving, removing clothes (pants) on his own, pincer eating, clapping, playing in the snow, Christmas
Latest Likes
Crawling
Dancing = Head / Body bobbing
Clapping & cheering
1st time feeding himself a cracker
Crawling! ~ Working hard * Getting closer * Mission accomplished!
1st time playing in the snow * 1st time taking his pants off
Playing in a drawer * Standing up next to our coffee table
Bro Bonding
Bros ~ Christmas Eve * All bundled up
Sitting on top of their castle using their imaginations & creativity
Being silly & making me smile :)
Noah & Josiah having fun on the crash pad
Noah & Samuel hanging out in the snow * Josiah & Samuel checking out the snow
Homeschool Highlights
Click on these links if interested in seeing more info about the K-8 skills/benchmarks books I use:
Please let me know if you would like to know about the specific curriculum I use. :)
Core Knowledge Sequence: Content guidelines for K-8 (Fyi ~ This is not the same as Common Core.)
What Your [Grade-level of Your Child] Needs to Know ~ Core Knowledge books corresponding to grade-level
Noah participates in a homeschool program through RMCA in which he goes to a school building once a week for a full day ~ 8 am to 3 pm. Noah has a homeroom teacher, Mrs. Campbell, who reiterates reading and writing concepts that Noah is learning at home, and she also teaches some science, critical thinking, and character. In addition, Noah participate in P.E., music, and art each school day, so it is a full day!
Noah enjoys RMCA's homeschool program, and it has been a great fit for our family too!
Noah enjoys RMCA's homeschool program, and it has been a great fit for our family too!
Noah's Class :) ~ Noah and I think the students' expressions are quite entertaining ;)
The Lord has confirmed many times that it was wise to have Noah repeat Kindergarten, and his progress report reflected this too. It was encouraging to see the progress he has made since last year and also to hear the feedback from Noah's teachers:
Clasroom teacher ~ "Demonstrated very good progress [in Language Arts]. Has good attitude towards his work [in Work Habits]. Receives redirection with joy [in Conduct & Citizenship].
Music ~ "Observant & enthusiastic learner! Great attitude!"
Art ~ "Bright boy. Understands concepts well. Helpful to others."
P.E. ~ "Does well and is a delight to have in class."
Noah's academic strengths continue to be Math and Fine Arts, and his most challenging subject is Language Arts.
Variety of Finishes at the End of the Semester
Noah finished ~ 1st Grade Math-U-See Book * Map Skills Book * Sparks Handbook (AWANA)
RMCA Artwork
Other Skills
Writing ~ Noah wrote Christmas thank you notes
Life Skills ~ Wrapping Christmas gifts for siblings and cousins
Art ~ Sculpting with "Sands Alive"
Enjoying time with loved ones from Kansas, Arizona, Indiana, & Ohio! ~ We were blessed with spending time with lots of loved ones from Thanksgiving through Christmas. We are grateful the Lord worked it out to visit Wes' family in Wisconsin for Thanksgiving. In the beginning of December, Christina's mom & step-dad came out for a week from Kansas, and soon after, more family came to Colorado for Christmas. We had a wonderful time with everyone and made some precious memories together!
Celebrating Christmas together (early) ~ Jpa & Gma * Adam, Wendy, & Nathaniel * Our fam
"Christmas dinner"
Reading Bible stories
Singing Christmas hymns
Opening gifts
Saying "Thank yous!"
Playing with their gifts ~ Noah had fun making "tech" bracelets with the iPad
Nathaniel & Josiah cruising with their race car & firetruck
Sweet Samuel sitting & stacking...sort of ;)
Playing with Samuel's stacker
Beautiful arrangement of Christ's birth, death, resurrection, & ascension
Jpa's & Gma's 1st time meeting Samuel
Hanging out & enjoying the Christmas tree together
Mom & sons (Samuel was already in bed)
Playing board games
Making cookies
Yum!
Having fun feeding the boys
Sisters :) * Noah & Josiah dressed up Nathaniel ;)
Making gingerbread houses
Gma & Jpa helping with structural design
Finished products :)
Celebrating Christmas with Family from CO, KS, AZ, IN, & OH
26 stockings!!!
Fam meeting Samuel for the first time ~ Uncle Kale * Aunt Sharin
Aunt Kathryn
Christmas Eve
Cousins ~ Morgan - 4, Sawyer - 5, Kolter - 1, Nathaniel - 2, Noah - 6, Samuel - 9 months, Nora - 4, Tyler - 9, Josiah - 3
Opening Christmas pjs from Great Tache ~ Noah * Josiah * Samuel
Christmas Day at Papa & Nana's
Stockings
Opening gifts
Good Looking Guys ~ Great Papa, Uncle Randy, Papa, & Gpa
Great Papa, Tache, & Nana
Cousins on the crash pad
Pirate Noah jumping into the crash pad
Best buds ~ Josiah & Nathaniel
Triplets
Feeling cheesy & a looking a little pathetic ;)
Samuel sleeping
Hanging out ~ Uncle Kyle, Josiah, & Kolter * Aunt Wendy, Samuel, & Kolter
Morgan, Tyler, & Noah * Ryker & Samuel
More Memories
Neighborhood fun of fort making & defending
Glow Golf with Gpa
There is a long story behind the delay in Gpa cashing in on his "Glow Golf with the Grandsons" Christmas gift certificate from last year. We are glad that it finally worked out for us to go together!
Samuel Blaine with Great Gpa Blaine * Noah & Josiah with Gpa
The expert! * Teaching the grandsons how to golf
Samuel got in on the fun too!
Celebrating Adam's College Graduation
Samuel & Nana had a good time together!
Colossians Women's Bible Study
This past fall/winter semester I enjoyed participating in a women's Bible study on Colossians. I also had the privilege of sharing a testimony at the end of our Bible study about some of the things the Lord taught me through our study. My purpose was to exalt Christ and hopefully encourage the women's hearts.
Colossians Connections Testimony: 5 areas of my life that the Lord connected with Colossians
Relationship of CHRIST'S SUFFICIENCY and my dependency
Colossians 1:27-29 ~ Christ in you, the hope of glory.
We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom,
so that we may present every man complete in Christ. For this purpose also I labor,
striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.
*I can't! Christ can! Christ in me! Christ through me!
(by the power of the Holy Spirit as I abide in Him - John 15:5)
1. Summer Bible Study ~ Colossians 1:18 ~ Christ will exalt Himself - 1st place in everything; often when I feel inadequate & overwhelmed.
2. T&T ~ Colossians 2:3 ~ Christ is the fulfillment of all wisdom & the One who saves & sanctifies us in wisdom. I cannot save or sanctify anyone ~ Christ through me as His messenger & ambassador.
3. Women's Retreat ~ Colossians 1:13-14 ~ Christ is the One who transfers people from darkness to light & who makes me a light-bearer of His light. I can't do this but have the privilege of being a part of this as His light-bearer.
4. Relationships ~ Colossians 2:20 ~ Christ can change hearts. I can't. Christ knows the answers to challenging relational dynamics. I can't always figure them out. My role of dependence = prayer (Colossians 4:12).
5. Witness ~ Colossians 1:28-29 ~ I can't! Christ can! Christ in me! Christ through me! Seek to be faithful & let Christ shine through.
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