Merry Christmas from the Boaz family! Thank you for visiting our blog and taking the time to catch up with us. Here’s our year in a nutshell… and if you want the whole bowl of nuts, feel free to browse the rest of the blog!
Isaiah 64:8 says, “But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” This year we’ve seen the Father’s hand molding us in so many ways…
Naomi turned seven this year and is the trailblazer in the family adventure of homeschooling. She has become a great reader; it was an exciting moment to have her call from the porch where she was relaxing one afternoon with her little ladybug-covered Bible and hear her exclaim, “Mom! I can read this - listen!!” She is an eager learner and loves history, science, and art, too. Naomi is excited to have a small speaking part in the church kid’s Christmas musical this year – she loves to sing, too. She also keeps busy going to Awana Sparks, feeding her vivid imagination, and keeping her little brothers in line. Her enthusiasm for life lights up our family!
Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might. Ecclesiastes 9:10a
Johnathan is now five and has grown up so much in the last year. He is about to wrap up physical therapy for the first time since he turned one – he’s doing so well! Instead, he’s trying new activities to keep his leg stretched out. This fall he played flag football through the Upwards program. He loved his Cougar teammates, his coach (Daddy!), and the fun of playing and practicing. He’s also attending a Pre-K program at St. Thomas Early Learning Center three afternoons a week, where he does lots of running, climbing, trike-riding, plus all kinds of learning. Johnathan loves joining Naomi in what she’s learning, especially when we read aloud. He’s crazy about animals and can describe in detail the food chains and predators of just about every continent, thanks to our science reading and PBS’s “Wild Kratts” program!
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. John 10:28
At 18 months, Ezra is an adorable, adventurous, energetic bundle of busyness. He learned to walk a few days before his first birthday, and he hasn’t stopped ever since. He seems driven to catch up with the big kids of the family, and spend his days climbing, trying to get into Naomi’s school stuff, playing with Johnathan’s cars and trucks, and learning new words. Because he had a stiff neck from torticollis early on, his head got significantly flattened on one side. So from April to September, he and Mommy made a twice-monthly trip to Austin to have his condition treated with a DOC band (a helmet-like head orthotic). In the end he came out with a normally-shaped head and a knack for bumping it on everything after months of having it protected by the helmet!
I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you. Isaiah 42:6
As for Kevin and Rachel, we were blessed to celebrate ten amazing years of marriage this year. Though we were busy on the actual date with homeschooling, school drop-offs, and evening Bible studies, we feel like we’ve celebrated all year! This summer we got to drop off the kids in Colorado and fly to San Diego for the EFCA Leadership Conference, where we enjoyed fellowshipping with other pastors and their wives, hearing Joni Eareckson Tada speak, and a little cruising along the California coast, too. In October we met Kevin’s parents and aunt for a fun few days in Branson, Missouri, where we saw some fun shows and other family attractions.
But back at home, we’ve been thankful for the opportunity to take advantage of our family situation and begin homeschooling. Rachel and the kids settle in to our school room at the back of the parsonage every morning to work on the core subjects, but we also enjoy the flexibility of snuggling together all over the house and yard throughout the day to share books on all subjects, do art projects, go on occasional field trips on Daddy’s day off, and do PE with the world’s best PE teacher/pastor! We’ve found our first four months of homeschool to be a joy, challenge, and immense opportunity for growing in character (and I’m not just talking about the kids, either!).
In other family news, we were excited to discover that Baby Boaz number 4 is expected to join us in June 2012. This pregnancy came with a scary moment at 8 weeks, but it has served as a reminder that this little one’s life is in God’s hands.
But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, "You are my God." My times are in your hand. Psalm 31:14-15a
Praying that your family rests in His mighty hands in the coming year.
Love, Kevin, Rachel, Naomi, Johnathan, and Ezra Boaz
