Gardening and a Few Ramblings

Other than pool parties, I have been busy caring for my flowers. A hugely rewarding project. Each morning I love to spend time in my quiet backyard to focus on the goodness of our Lord. It is a peaceful haven, and I feel so blessed.
I'm also thankful for my little helpers, who (I think) are achieving an appreciation for God's creativity as they see His creation thriving in their own backyard. We recently hung a few birdfeeders, and have acquired a couple birdbaths. Watching and identifying birds has been a delight.
As the summer comes to an end, I've also been gearing up for the new school year and relatively new season of life. For those of you who do not know yet, Noah will be attending "real" school this year at Covenant Classical in Concord. He will be entering the seventh grade. When John and I began homeschooling Noah it was our hope to keep him home through his highschool years, but as he's gotten older it has become clear to us that he would benefit from a traditional school setting. The academics offered and extracurricular opportunities will hopefully spur him on to excel in his overall education. CCS is a highly respected academic facility. Some of his buddies already attend there, and he couldn't be more excited.
Please pray for a smooth transition for Noah, my biggest concern would be academic. Covenant is known to be uniquely difficult. Also, he will be going from a classroom of four to a classroom of twenty! Noah has always relied heavily on my one-on-one assistance. I hope he will grow more independent quickly!
In addition to transition, please pray for his character to grow in godly leadership and not to succumb to negative peer pressure. Homeschooling does allow parents to protect children from some of the harsh realities that are sadly introduced to children at too-young-of-ages (in my opinion). Though Noah is current on world events, (more so even than myself, he's an avid reader of World Magazine), he certainly has not had to endure the peer pressures that I faced by his age. I'm not hugely concerned about this issue, (Noah's a good kid), but I still covet your prayers for him and for wisdom for us in leading him through these years.
Thank you so much! I feel so privileged to have so many wonderful people walking through these years with us. You are a blessing to me!

Crazy Summer Daze

For the few of you who still visit this blog, I am grateful this
isn't the only place you go for regular updates about the Morrison family. Now that we all peruse Facebook, I've found it much easier to post video and pictures on there... leaving the blog to gather cyber dust. On occasion, the rusty wheels of my brain begin to turn around some story or event that I deem "blog worthy" and here I am again. Sorry for my absence, but I think it's inevitable this utility will be receiving less and less of my attention.
This summer has been particularly crazy around our household, especially July (notice not a single event was posted). Our church has designated July as our Sabbatical month of the year, temporarily postponing all meetings, except for Sunday mornings. The goal is to allow people to concentrate on their families as well as having time to reach out to others. We chose to spend the month opening our home to the small groups John oversees. Since we have the pool, our home is very conducive to large summer gatherings.
Altogether we had a total of six large cookouts in our home, at least one a week. The groups ranged from twenty people to nearly fifty. Here are a few pictures:




Between children flying through the air, and surprisingly older gentlemen cannon-balling into the pool that pretty much sums up our month.
It was fun!

Boys' Night Out

My sister, Kath, took all the boys, including Grandpa, James and Benjamin, to see Up! at the theater. Can you find them all in this picture? They obviously had a grand time together. :)

Wipe Out on Family Day

Mondays are our official "Family Days", and in the summertime you can usually find us out on the lake.

Grandpa in the Mountain

Went to Grandfather Mountain with Aunt Pat, Aunt Gail, Maggie, and all the kiddos. On our way there, Lauren asked if we were going to go see "Grandpa in the mountain". : )

Spring Has Sprung

We're always enthusiastic about all the critters spring brings about. This gray tree frog showed up in our backyard. The kids got a kick out of watching it climb up our window with its sticky feet. (Totally cool, if you ask me.) Slightly slimy, it was apparent immediately he wasn't a common toad, despite his bumpy gray appearance.
Anytime we look at these creatures up close, I am again amazed. Don't we serve a great God?!

Cultivating a Green Thumb

This is what I've been up to lately, and I've had such a grand time doing it! These are only a few of the things I've planted. I've also planted knock-out roses, gardenias, a yuletide camelia bush, tomatoes, oregano, rosemary, parsley, blueberry bushes, jessamine, coreopsis, lantana, lady banks roses, peonies, phlox, pinks... the lists goes on. It has been glorious!
I love the spring!

Bidgie's Third Birthday

This was one of my all-time favorite birthday parties. Maggie and I began planning a few months prior to the party via email... bouncing ideas back-and-forth off eachother. (I always say we make a great team.) ; )
We began the celebration with doggie ears, collars and face painting, and sang a few "doggie songs" to put us in the puppy mood. My niece, Kathryn, recently became the proud owner of a poodle-mix puppy, and brought him over as the guest-of-honor. The children were thrilled to play with a real, live, (very-active) puppy-dog. Next, Maggie led the children in Obedience School, where all the little "puppies" learned how to sit, beg, roll-over and speak. Then they enjoyed some "puppy chow" and milk shakes in their own little doggie bowls. Following the snack, we read a little story and all the children ran off to dig up some bones, which they later used in a game of Fetch. Lastly, we had the most adorable cake (Maggie's discovery online) and opened presents.
Some of my favorite moments were during the gift opening, as Lauren cheerfully thanked each person who gave her a gift, and even allowed another child to open one of her presents for her. She was simply delightful. It also was a joy and honor to have Jamie and Linda celebrate with us and the opportunity to introduce them to some of the people we love most.
Lauren's birthday, as each of our children's birthdays tend to do, was another reminder of the many kindnesses God has so graciously bestowed upon us. It was a reminder of the many people: family, friends, and church members, that He has placed in our lives. I am so grateful for them all.
Can you believe our sweet girl is three-years-old?

Snow in Charlotte!

Woohoo! We love the snow! We didn't even have to drive to Boone for a change. : ) (Though I have to admit, it's not quite as much fun without Magz.)
We are getting our fill of snowy days this winter. We've gone sledding in Boone twice this season, skiing at Sugar, and most recently skiing at Winterplace. Hoping to post more pictures soon.

Two Valentines

God has blessed me with two Valentines in my life. The obvious one being my true love, John. The other is a little girl who came to me on March 8, 1998, then two and a half weeks old.Alyssa was born on Valentine's Day and had spent her first couple of weeks in foster care. John and I had made the decision to adopt again just a couple months before she was born, and had no idea God would bring this little one into our lives so quickly. Only two weeks after we completed our paperwork, homestudy, and profile album, Alyssa joined our family!
Alyssa has always been full of life and adventure, though my favorite personality traits in Alyssa are her servant's heart and her generosity. Alyssa regularly gives to others, she shares without being asked and often spends her money on others. This kindness truly characterizes her, it's part of who she is.
I'm so excited to see Alyssa growing up to be such a lovely young lady, but especially since her decision to follow Christ. This has been a wonderful year in Alyssa's life, as she has been reborn in Christ, and can now celebrate an even more significant birthday in Him. What a joy for John and I as we watch her responding to the Lord's conviction as her desire to please Him is continuing
to grow.
Alyssa, we love you with all of our hearts and thank God for bringing you into our lives eleven years ago.

I Have a New Niece

Lauren Demasi was married to my nephew, Erik Poulsen, on February 7th. We are thrilled to have her as the latest addition to the "Flanigan" clan. (Isn't she beautiful!)

Happily Ever After

John and I are celebrating our sixteenth wedding anniversary today! (I love you, Boogs! Happy Anniversary!) : )

Holiday Highlights

Take Me to the Casbah

John swept me off my feet and whisked me away to the Morehead Inn for my birthday. (Thank you, Pat, Carey, Gail and Charlie, for taking care of the young'uns!) We had a wonderful time!

I'm a Singuh-Part 1 and Part 2

Grateful

As Thanksgiving has come and gone, I am, again, grateful for my family. The holiday season does that to me.
In light of that gratefulness, my mind shifts to one of my family members who is not with us this holiday season, instead she has chosen to leave her father and mother and brother and sister for the sake of the kingdom (Luke 18:29).
Five months ago, my niece Katie, began an eleven-month missions trip with the World Race. Katie, presently stuck in Bangkok due to political protesting throughout the city, recently posted this video:

Orphans of the Storm from katie rowland on Vimeo.

As I have watched each of Katie's videos documenting her journey, I am ashamed of how self-focused I can be, living my comfortable suburban life while so much suffering is going on around me. I am too quick to forget the (approximate) 143 million orphans worldwide. These children will not be with family this holiday season, their lives have been shattered by tragedy.

Katie, thank you for the joy you are bringing these children in the midst of their sorrow, in particular for laying down your life in order to share the gospel with them that they may, someday, experience lasting joy with their Father in Heaven. You are bringing Him much glory as you continue to pour out your life for these people. Thank you for your example to all of us at home. We love you and miss you very much.
xoxo,
Aunt Juli

I'm Thankful For...

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Winter Wonderland

An Update on My Dad

A few of you may not know that my father is no longer living
with us.
Last week, John and I made the decision to place Dad into full- time care at a local assisted living facility. The establishment is actually located in our neighborhood, and is less than one mile from our home. Dad moved in on Monday.
My dad had taken several serious falls in our home since he moved in last April. As the falls became more frequent, (on the average of three times/week), it became very evident that it was not safe for him to continue to live here. Although this was a difficult decision to make, the Lord has made the transition smooth and quick for all of us.
Please continue to pray for my Dad, in particular that his relationship with the Lord would deepen in these last days/years of his life.
John and I have been amazed at the numerous people who have helped us throughout the last eight months. Beyond family, our church has been a regular source of encouragement, service, and means of grace to us during this season. Thank you all so much for your prayers, your council, and your care for Dad and our children. (Several families in our church rotated babysitting/eldercare in order for me and John to continue having "date nights" and to attend important meetings while Dad was living with us.)
We love you all and appreciate you more than you know.

Babyface

Seanna and Jack Morgan's baby shower at Carmel Country Club. (Doesn't he have the cutest little babyface?!)