Happy Father's Day to the sweetest Daddy I know

My sweet Husband,

With Father's Day being this weekend, I thought I would take some time to write down some of the things I love about you as a Daddy.  And I wanted to share it publicly because I just think it's good to honor people you love.  And I don't do that enough.

I knew that being parents together would be wonderful, but I had no idea just how much raising crazy little ones would strengthen our marriage and deepen our love for each other.  I also had no idea how many times we would look at each other like "what did we get ourselves into??" For example, road trips where both boys start screaming their heads off at the same time. And don't stop.  But overall, this has been the greatest adventure together, and I know we are just beginning.

Anyone who watches you interact with our boys can tell that you genuinely enjoy them and love being with them.  You don't view them as a job or an inconvenience, but as little treasures and precious gifts from God.  You recognize that you are investing into a life-long relationship with them, and the way you interact with them now and the bonds you form now will bear fruit many years down the road.

Anyways, here are some things I love about you as a Daddy, and want to always remember:

I love that you get down on the floor with our boys and play games that they enjoy.  You are Levi's favorite horsey and you humor him by stopping for grass and water breaks.  He loves "flying airplane" on your legs, and returning the favor for you, always getting a kick out of an unexpected "crash" after suspending you in the air for a few seconds.

 

I love how you never say no to a request for "one more Bible story" and you have an amazing way of explaining truth to Levi in a way he can grasp, and remember.
And now that Levi has dubbed the top bunk "dog party time!" (because of Go Dog Go) you two end every day with a Bible story in your own special place.

I love how you make up songs about the boy's names.

I love how you make up songs for Levi about trucks, and sharks, and tractors...and now he thinks they are real songs and asks me to sing them and I have to try to repeat them.

I love watching you and Levi play your version of Hide and Seek/Marco Polo.

I love how you do silly things with Levi like pretend to be broccoli-eating lions so he will be inspired to eat his vegetables. 

I love how you make up special little games to play with Lijey Bear.  When you get him giggling real good you'll look at me with a satisfied look and say, "I think we're bonding."

I love how you are always so welcoming when Levi sneaks over to your office to visit you during the day.  Sometimes you even send him back with a party favor like a hilighter or red pen.  Thanks.

I love how passionate you are about not letting our family life move to the back burner in the thick of church planting and ministry.  I know our boys can already tell that they are your priority over work.

 

It is obvious in the way you correct and discipline Levi that you're after his heart and not just behavior modification.  And he knows it too, which I think is why not long after you correct him about something, he's tackling you and ready to play again.  He knows you love him and I think he can tell that you're really trying your best to train him in the most loving way possible.

I also love that when you do mess up and respond in the wrong way (which I'm guilty of way more times than you), you aren't afraid to get on his eye-level and apologize and ask him to forgive you.  I'm really, really grateful for that. It's one of those things that's going to be life-shaping for him.

I love how you love snuggling our boys, and you especially consider it a major win when Elijah lays his head down on you for a while.  I'm savoring the time I have with him as a "mama's boy" because I know soon enough he'll be obsessed with you like Levi is.

And although I might joke about it being a little unfair, deep down, I love it.  I really do. 

As a girl who lost her Daddy way too early and still feels the pain of all the years that he missed,  I'd like to think I appreciate your presence in our home and in our children's lives a little more deeply than the average person.  The nine year old girl who cried herself to sleep so many nights because there was just this gaping hole in my life with my Daddy's name on it is still a part of me.

I'm healed and whole now, but the scars are still there.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that seeing you be a Daddy to our boys feels like I'm getting something back that was lost.

I don't know a better way to say it, but watching them build a relationship with you, and seeing the way you pour out your love on them each day and kneel by their sleeping bodies in earnest prayer at night, and soak up every part of them with sheer enjoyment...it heals something in me.  

I know that we have no idea what the future holds, but knowing that my boys are growing up with an amazing Daddy who is living victorious over sin because of the indwelling life of Christ and is going to lead them in following Jesus with their whole hearts is an incredible gift to me.

Our boys may not be able to fully appreciate what a gift you are to them and they might take you for granted sometimes, but I will.  I'll always know what the other side looks like, and even though God filled up the void in my life to overflowing, I'm glad that that's not the road they will be walking at least for now.

I can't help but live with the awareness that life is precious and you never know how long you have with someone.  So I'll appreciate you for them and for me each day and always make sure they know just how blessed they are to have such an amazing Daddy in their lives.

Happy Father's Day, babe.
You're a really, really good man.

Love,
Your Wife :) 

LONDON

For a few years now my precious Mother-in-love has been saying that one day, she wants to take her daughters on a girls trip to London.  It's because she feels like she should have been born there, with her love for tea and English Roses and all things British and beautiful.  And after visiting, I actually agree with her.  I totally should have been born in London. 

We all were hoping that one day this dream would come true, but we were all surprised when the logistics of pregnancies, nursing babies, school children and all the other details started lining up for this to be the perfect year to take a girl's trip to London.  It was literally the trip of a lifetime, a dream come true in every way, and I know I can speak for the five of us when I say that we are so grateful and humbled that the Lord provided such a fun, fancy, non-essential-by-any-stretch-of-the-imagination kind of gift. 


So for all of you who have been waiting on pins and needles for me to post more pictures of this trip, your wait is over. 


This is my with me three awesome sister-in-laws on the plane, about to fly through the night.   We are clearly full of excitement and joy.  9 hours later, we were full of benadryl and exhaustion and neck cramps, but hallelujah we made it.

 

Driving to our hotel and seeing London for the first time - rain, telephone booths, double decker buses...yep, we're in the right place!

 

We unloaded our stuff at the hotel and headed over to Trafalgar square and the National Gallery.  I might have teared up a little at some of the paintings by Monet, Renoir, and Da Vinci.  That God has allowed humans to be able to create such beauty as a little tiny reflection of His beauty is just amazing to me.   

 

Liz was our fearless leader.  I am not joking when I say that we would have gotten lost all. day. long if it weren't for her. 

Our first British meal.  Never once did I eat the traditional meal of fish and chips on this trip because I have finally accepted the fact that I just do not like fish.  I've tried it and not liked it a lot of times and have just stopped forcing the issue.  

On day two we visited Kensington Palace, had tea at the Orangery, checked out Harrod's, and watched Mama Mia on Broadway.  It's kind of hard to pick a favorite day from the trip, but this one is high on the list. 

These are the gates of Kensington Palace. 

 

Let's all give a collective sigh of relief that women are no longer expected to wear dresses like this for fancy occasions.  

 

 

 

If you look really closely behind us you can probably see Will, Kate and George, because this is where they live.  

 

 

A little niece and nephew came along for the trip...Liz is due in August, and Catherine is due in September.  These babies got us some special treatment throughout the trip, which we didn't mind.

 

  

 

 

On day three we went to Windsor Castle.  It is the longest inhabited castle (going on 900+ years!) and it just sits right there in the middle of the adorable little town, just looking ancient and housing the Queen.

We found this adorable little cafe on the Thames river where we ate delicious food and watched boats and swans pass by and we kept telling each other "y'all. this is really happening. We are in London together eating lunch by the Thames (pronounced "Tim's," by the way) river!)

I spy a cute baby crown.

The flag means the Queen is in residence!

Despite their impressively fancy hats, these guys are NOT just for decoration.  I learned (not by experience, thankfully) that they take their jobs very seriously and will yell at you if you get too close to them. 

Becca was always ready for me with a solid pose.

On day four we went to Buckingham palace, took a boat down the Thames river, toured the Tower of London, and Westminster Abbey.

Thanks, Becs.

 

Apparently the song "London bridge is falling down" comes from the fact that this bridge has fallen and been repaired multiple times. Which makes me not want to drive on it ever.

We asked this street painter how long he had been working on his painting of Westminster Abbey... "Oh, about ten hours." It was unbelieveable!

 

On day five, which happened to be the 15th anniversary of my Daddy's death, we started the day with a little prayer time in the park next to Buckingham Palace (which was about a block away from our hotel.)  I felt so loved and blessed that out of all the ways I could have spent that bittersweet and always tender day, I got to be with these very precious, sensitive, and sweet women. In London.  

And I just have to say that my favorite part of the trip BY FAR, was just spending time with these women. I love each of them so very much and am so incredibly blessed to have them in my life.  

 

   

We spent the morning at the Notting Hill market which was basically a street lined with these little tents and booths of people selling all sorts of fun things - old cameras, antique china, silver serving pieces, old clocks, really everything.  It was crowded and fun and felt very "england-y." 

We also had tea at the Orangery once more, which none of us minded at all. 

This is Princess Diana's Memorial Garden. 

 

There were gorgeous flower stands everywhere.  If I lived here, I think I would go broke buying fresh peonies and roses every week. 

Gelato and Macaroons.  I mean, do I need to say more?

By the end of the trip, I think we had probably walked at least 20 miles and gone up and down close to 150 flights of stairs.  We told each other we weren't sure we had the energy to spend another day exploring even if we were able to!  We left with full hearts, full cameras, and lots of memories and laughs tucked away in our love-tanks.  It really was the best.

And as always, if you made it to the end of this post, congratulations. 
There are about 200 more pictures I could post, and a couple thousand more words I could write about this trip, but I'll just end by saying THANK YOU to my amazing in-laws for making this trip happen and blessing all of us with something we will remember forever.  I love you!