Time With Family

Time with Family always goes too fast! I am so grateful for the family that God has blessed me with and the opportunity to spend time with them this summer. The thousands of miles between us just makes the times we spend together more precious.

All the fam together!


mom and sisters


Micah with his Great-Grampy


Sisters!


Doesn't this face just make you chuckle?


And then you just have to kiss those cheeks!


Dad dishing up lobster dinner

New Hampshire

The last 10 days we have been soaking in all the New Hampshire goodness we can! We come back here every summer to spend time with family and simply enjoy all the beauty around us. This trip seems to have completely flown by, and I feel like I haven't basked in the fresh New Hampshire air quite long enough.
One of our favorite places to go (a favorite of mine since high school) is downtown Portsmouth. Portsmouth was the fourth European settlement in New England, and with it's brick streets, old buildings, and view of the Piscataqua River it is high on our list of things to do whenever we are back here! Here are a few pictures to give you a feel for this historic city:

The view down Market Street looking toward North Church

Old Warehouse- you can still see the old adds painted on the brick

North Church fun facts: Daniel Webster was a member here as well as William Whipple, who signed the Declaration of Independence, and in November of 1789, President George Washington attended services here.

Another view of North Church

I love the fire escapes and street lights!

Prescott Park

The best way to get around.

More New Hampshire fun to come!

ingredients for a summer date

A summer day in our life:

wash the dog (he hates his baths)

explore new streets

try out new treats




feel the grass between your toes




steal a kiss



explore old books


stop and smell the roses

June 23, 2010 = 4 years married to my best friend

See to it . . . that NO
root of bitterness
springs UP and causes trouble,
and by it many become defiled.
Hebrews 12:15 b

It is well with my soul

One of my favorite things to do is to listen to Josh play guitar and sing, but I especially love it when he plays hymns. Right now I'm listening to him sing It is Well with My Soul by Horatio Spafford.
If you aren't familiar with the story behind this hymn, well then you should be! The story goes that in 1873 Spafford sent his wife and four daughter ahead of him on a ship to Europe. On the way over the ship sunk and all four of Spafford's daughters were drowned. On his way to England to meet his wife, Spafford penned the words to this song as they were nearing the place where the ship had sunk. In this hymn Spafford focuses not on the trials themselves, but on the redemptive work of Christ in the midst of trials.

It is Well With My Soul

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Fresh Basil