Team Smith

Saying grace before a meal is our way of being vocal about the blessings on the table. Sometimes it's quick in our haste to pick up a fork. Other times it is long and ceremonial around a holiday. Most days it's usually Matt telling God on our behalf how thankful we are. Tonight was different. We still sat down. We still held hands. We still bowed our heads. But this evening before Matt or I could utter a word, Cassidy took it upon herself because she felt it was her turn. "Dear God, thank you for our food in this meal and our many blessings. AAAAAmmeeen! Yay!" It was the most adorable and sincere thing...

Matt and his Dad (John Smith) put a small bookshelf together to house all of the books Matt uses as he writes. Because my hubby is mostly ambivalent about trivial aesthetics, I got to paint it however I wanted! I choose to use several colors, creating a vintage look :-) Cassidy assisted and most of her painting is on the back and sides of the shelf.

Summertime has brought an abundance of change to the Smith family. For a multitude of reasons we left our home in Nevada. We said goodbye to a place where we had grown together as a family. We hugged friends and family close and spoke of staying in touch and promising visits. We left a church home where we felt God with every visit, picnic, prayer vocalized, song sung, and sermon taught. Driving away from the beauty of the Sierras and surrounding mountains, we headed east. West Chicago greeted us with open arms and welcome smiles. Our family housed us for weeks while we sought a new place to live. My new colleagues answered my endless questions with patience and guidance. And we started to adjust to a new way of life. To leave the familiar and embrace the unknown has been the biggest challenge our little family has faced on this adventure. It's an exciting fear tinged with anticipation and hope. I think it has forced us to connect with one another and lean on each other in a way we...

We went to a festival called Swedish Days in the town of Geneva. It was great to take a break from apt hunting and just hang out. This is where we devoured the deep fried twinkie! We also sampled other savory items...

Cassidy enjoyed cupcakes today at daycare! She really got into dancing to the Happy Birthday song! Yes, I am that person who bought the Happy Birthday shirt knowing my child is only going to wear it one time! But it is festive and we can pass it on to someone else for next year. :-) Cassidy loved these flower hair bows because they double as rings and they are fun to throw. My baby is now officially a toddler. The past year has been a whirlwind of adventure and growth. My favorite part of the day is still when I walk into daycare at 5:10pm and she looks up at me. Whatever she is doing, whoever she is playing with, becomes second and is discarded without a second thought as she pumps her little legs with her arms thrown out running full speed before crashing into me with a loud and cheerful "Mama!" And we hug in the middle of the floor; all noises of other little ones fading into silence. She tells me about her day. She talks about her friends. She squeals about what books...

Last year Cassidy picked up one egg and said "All Done!" This year she was unstoppable... Rev Kathy did an awesome kidlet service and Rev Stefani made Cass smile so big between the singing and waving of the Alleluias. I love seeing all of the kids dressed up in their Easter best and wreaking havoc at the same time. Yes, some do exhibit angelic tendencies, but most are just having a ball during service and that includes running around, screaming at the top of their lungs, and talking to each other. The Lord did say make a joyful noise! Then we went over Teri and Roger's place for lunch and watched Cass play with Aidan and Bella! Too cute :-) Tea parties and chasing and egg hunting were all on the agenda. Followed by a scrumptious lunch of grilled cheese, tomato soup, fruit salad, and boiled eggs. And what I appreciate about this egg hunt is that we mixed it up a bit. Some eggs had candy, but others had stickers or change and golden eggs had dollar bills...so fun watching t...