Busy

We are settling into quite a routine since school started. Every morning I let the boys watch a little bit of a movie from the time they finish breakfast until we need to catch the bus. The first week or so of school the morning movie was 'The Rise of the Guardians'. There is a part in the movie where North (aka Santa Clause) says 'We are very busy bringing joy to children - we don't have time for children." If I'm not careful this can sometimes be my life as a mom - I can get busy making plans and buying gifts, preparing for an incredible adventure or memory. It is a good reminder that there isn't anything more important than the actual time I spend investing in my kids. I also think this quote can be applied to the church. Sometimes we get so busy creating programs and grands schemes and forget that what really matters is the relationships we have with people. We are so busy caring for people that we don't have time for them.

This weekend we have been celebrating two years as a family. It is a little earlier that we celebrated last year but seeing as it is labor day and we had an extra day to play with new toys I figured we would take advantage. I began the tradition last year of giving the boys some gifts to celebrate Davis Day - a digital scrapbook of memories from the past year, a book with some connection to Ethiopia (this year Mulatu got 'Jesus in Ethiopia' and Nate got 'With two Hands - Stories of God at work in Ethiopia'), some stamps from Ethiopia and something fun (this year it was their own Kindle Fire and the Disney Infinity Wii Game). We also all get to blow out a candle representing the number of years as a family. Today we went to Louisville and ate some Ethiopian food at the Queen of Sheba and then played games, mini bowled and jumped on the inflatables and obstacle course at Incredible Dave's. We finished with a great meal at Claudia Sanders. It was a wonderful celebration of the love and beauty that is our family.

Before we headed to church this morning - Nate was playing the new Disney game - going through the Incredibles level. Mulatu and I took it upon ourselves to coach him. We were telling him that if he would bust the boxes he would get more coins - He replies - "I'm trying to save people here, not get some money." What a great quote! So simple yet so profound - I hope that when I look back at my life I can feel that that is how I played this game of life.

First Day of School

Life is a constant moving thing and if you don't watch out you might just miss something. That is how I feel. I can't believe it has been so many months since I sat down to reflect on my journey as a mother. A lot has happen since that Easter day. Both of my boys were baptized and we were able to celebrate that with many of our family and friends. They are in the early stages of their faith but I believe it is sincere and I'm so excited to see where their journey takes them.

Our trip to Disney went amazingly well. It was perfect. We had plenty of time to see everything that we wanted to see and experience all that Disney has to offer and the boys had a blast. They are already talking about going back. Their favorite part was Disney Quest, a five floor, arcade heaven. Nate loved taking pictures with all the characters and Mulatu loved riding Space Mountain. I'm so grateful for the memories that we made as a family and I look back at all the pictures we took and smile every time. The beach was fun too - seeing their faces light up when they jumped in the ocean for the first time is something you can't capture with words.

This summer has been spent mostly pool side, enjoying the sun and the freedom to jump in and swim whenever we want. The boys had a great time at both Centerpointe's Kids Camp and at Scott County's Basketball Camp. For the fourth of July we celebrated at my cousins house with a cardboard boat race. We worked hard constructing our duck boat and I was glad to see that it stayed afloat at least for a time while I tried to keep Mulatu from flipping us out. We will be back at it again next year with some experience under our belt because as in all things I've learned this too was a opportunity to grow.

Being out in the middle of a pond alone with my boys in a somewhat sinking cardboard boat is somewhat symbolic of how I have felt at moments throughout this journey. My kids are great and I love them with everything I have but sometimes life is hard. Sometimes the emotions and stress of what feel like constant battles is a bit overwhelming. Mulatu had written on the side of the boat 'Jesus calms the storm' which looking back was a wonderful foreshadowing of our moment on the pond. I can not do this journey without Him. Jesus is the only one that keeps my boat from going under and at the times when water is creeping in I know that I can count on Him to be taking a bucket and pouring it back out because He is with me and He is for me and this journey is not my journey - it is our journey.

Which brings me to this morning. This morning is unlike any other morning that we have had at the Davis household. This morning was the first day of school and my boys were so excited. Nate came in at 6:14 asking when they could get up and I responded 6:15 so he proceeded to go back to his room until the alarm blaring their favorite music ‘The Wanted’ went off and they jumped out of bed with enthusiasm bursting into my room with their clothes on ready to go. We lay in bed a moment and prayed together before hopping up to begin our day. As we sat at the bus stop we had conversations that ranged from the number of birds in the sky to the various cars passing by. One car that passed by had a child in the front seat which led to Mulatu asking if they weren’t allowed to sit in the front seat to which I replied the law says you must stay in the back until you are older. Nate chimes in with and mama would go to jail if she let us sit in the front seat. Mulatu ends the conversation with ‘...and that would make Mama sad because she wouldn’t be able to see us but I would pray for you Mama if you were in jail.’ And that is the conversation that stands out this morning above the rest. I try to take in each moment of this journey because they all matter but this one is special. There won’t be another first bus stop moment and I’m glad that I was present and I’m glad that I was able to take it in. 

Time Flies

Time sure has a way of getting away from me. Over the last several months I have been trying to teach my sons is to be content with what the have and to be thankful. It seems that no matter how much time that I give them to play wii or something else that they want to do they always want more. I find that the small lessons that I try to teach my sons are often lessons that I need to learn myself. How often have I gone through life with that same mentality - always wanting more. Being a parent continues to give me a new perspective on my relationship with my heavenly Father.

We finished up our basketball season. It was a successful season - they both scored but more importantly they had a great time. Their trophies are now proudly displayed in our living room.

On Martin Luther King Jr day we went to the Cincinnati Museum Center for the African culture festival. The kids had a blast playing in the various areas of the children's museum and seeing the displays. We got to see some African dancers and singers perform and they even had an Ethiopian "passport" stop where they could smell Ethiopian coffee beans.

The boys spent the month of February in a small group for boys in grades 1-3. It was called Knights of the Round Table and each week their talked about the armor of God. They made a belt of truth, a breastplate of righteousness, a shield of faith and a sword of the Spirit. It was great for them to have this time geared just for them. Throughout the past month we have spent one night a week in a What's a Christian class. Our children's director did a great job in this class presenting the gospel to the kids in ways they could comprehend and I saw their faith and knowledge grow on a weekly basis. Prior to both of these classes they had both expressed interest in being baptized after reading the story of the Ethiopian Eunuch. We sat down this past Friday with the children's director to talk this and we will be planning that in the next couple weeks.

Today is Easter! My sons have a deeper understanding this year of what Easter is all about and it warms my heart. They came home from church singing 'Oh happy day when Jesus washed my sins away...I'll never be the same.' Throughout this whole morning I've been more emotional than normal. During worship this morning there were tears in my eyes as I not only thought about the sacrifice that Jesus made on my behalf but of the sacrifice he made for my children that now have their own personal relationship with him. I am so extremely thankful!

We are headed to Disney world at the end of next month. We started a 30 day countdown a few days ago. Each day we are doing something Disney related. So far we have watched Brave, played Toy Story Yatzee and worked a Cars puzzle. I can hardly wait to have see my kids light up as we get to experience the world of Disney. We will also be spending a few days on the beach which will be another first. Loving life!