To Johnathan on your 3rd birthday...

You're not a baby anymore, are you, buddy! You're 3 now and suddenly you're a little boy who has so many things to say and such an imagination. We love hearing what's on your mind and learning what makes you tick... You love music, and seeing you turn hockey sticks or pens or my arm into a guitar is so fun! I smile every time I hear you singing "Blessed Be the Name of the Lord," or trying to repeat a praise song you just heard. Keep praising Jesus, buddy. We also love watching you play - you love lining up your cars, putting out fires, and cooking cake for us. It's been so fun to see the wonder in your eyes when you see the cows across the street or a lizard on the front porch of your new home in Kurten. And its great that you love to read - seeing you poring over an animal book is amazing!

We also love seeing how much you love your family. Just the other day, I asked you if Naomi was your friend. You emphatically stated, "No!" but then you added, "Naomi my bes' friend". And you just light up when Daddy gets home from the office. And Mommy loves that you give such great squeezes and ning-nings before bed.

I know being 2 hasn't always been easy, son. You've had your share of days when it looked like life was pretty rough for you! But you've learned so much this year and have gone through some big changes - a new state, house, and routine. We are thankful for every day with you, whether its a rough day or a happy one, and we can't wait to see how you grow in the coming year.

Love you, Johnny!!

Johnathan's Birthday

Johnathan's big day was packed with activity and fun! He started off the morning much earlier than he normally would so he could go to Naomi's swimming lesson at 8 am...

Whose idea was it to make me wake up so early today?

Opening the "birthday stocking"... (I realize some of you may have never heard of a "birthday stocking" - in the Stata family, because we love our Christmas stocking gifts so much, we started the tradition of having your own stocking on your birthday, too!):


You mean I get presents? Well, maybe I can wake up for that!

After a quick breakfast in the car, Johnathan watched his sister swim. Then we met Mrs. Linda to go frog catching and duck feeding at a park near her house.

Look out, little frogs! Mrs. Linda is going to get you!

We spotted lots of herons and gave the ducks some donut holes (whatever was left after Naomi, that is).

After some errand-running in town, Johnathan chose to pick up lunch at "Old MacDonalds".

While Johnathan rested, Naomi and I made his cake:

Johnathan's birthday cake contained all his latest favorites: Vanilla, chocolate, trains, guitars (the Quincy figurine is playing one), and, of course, Rocket!

Opening presents!

After a dinner of his favorite "hamagers and hot dogs", it was time to blow out the candles!

To top off the evening, we went to the Kurten's home to ride Polly the pony. What a fun way to finish off Johnathan's 3rd birthday! Thanks, Mr. Jimmy, for saddling Polly up and teaching us how to ride. I think we combined all Johnathan's favorite things into one big day.

At "Rocket's House"

We've been asking Johnathan for a few weeks now what he would like to do for his birthday, trying to discern the mind of a 2 year old whose whims change daily. One request that became a theme was, "I want to go to Rocket's (from the Little Einstein series) house". So, with the help of a couple from Zion who have a beautiful cabin here in Kurten, we took Johnathan to "Rocket's house" for an overnight trip on Sunday.

We had so much fun - We rode the Gator through the clearings, looking for deer...



Johnathan loved "driving"




We clomped around in our new rubber boots (to protect our feet from snakes!)

And we did a little fishing and caught some perch (I think) and a few bass.

Daddy and the kids stayed up way too late making coyote howls from their bunk beds, and we topped off the little trip by swinging by our neighbor's house to see some newly hatched baby chicks. A fun weekend and successful trip to "Rocket's House"!

What I learned from my pastor... 7-12

Kevin started his series on the book of Jonah this week. Now, this is going to sound like the world's most shallow thought about a sermon, but I'll go ahead and say it: This week I learned how many historically accurate details the VeggieTales writers included in their Jonah movie! Please don't judge me!!! But seriously - I learned that Ninevah was named after Nimrod, a fish god (hence the fish-slapping veggies), and what a popular prophet Jonah was with the Israelites because his message to them was one of success in I Kings. Plus Kevin hinted at several other intriguing details that will come up in the weeks ahead. So I'm excited to hear more. Stay tuned...

Simply Summer

Our weeks have been filled with all the simple fun of summer. Naomi is taking her first "solo" swimming lessons and is learning all kinds of new skills. She's also excited to be at an "outside" pool (I guess we didn't get to many of those in Wyoming!). Here she is on her first day... a little concerned about it, but being very brave!



We had a fun 4th of July. Naomi and Daddy made crepes for breakfast. Yummy!



The rest of the day was interspersed with mini firecracker shows put on by Kevin:



For the grand finale of the day, we went to the Kurten community center for the town's fireworks display. For a town of 200-something, it was quite spectacular!! We were highly impressed by the 40 minute show, fantastic ending, and of course, cotton candy...




Naomi loved both the fireworks and the social opportunity - I think she spent equal amounts of time watching the fireworks and engaging people in conversation! Johnathan wanted "to go home" - the noise and shock of the fireworks was not his favorite. But by the end, he opened his eyes to watch!

It's hot out these days, and very dry. But we're enjoying the flower bed in front of the house and trying to keep it beautiful. We got a gift of some plants in the mail from the Olsen's garden, so we love having a piece of our Wyoming family here in Kurten. I think the little plants are a bit shocked by their drastic change in climate, though!

Meeting Carolanne

This morning our niece, Heather, David, and their new baby Carolanne drove down from Dallas (and their home in Oklahoma) to come to church with us and visit! Carolanne is now 2 1/2 months old... Isn't she precious? We were so excited to meet her and to show more family our new home here in Kurten. Thank you so much for driving all this way to visit, Heather and David!

What I learned from my pastor... 7-5

Kevin preached from I John 2:1-6 about how Jesus is our advocate before the Father and our propitiation - his substitution for us is complete, with nothing we can or need to add to it. The result of faith in Him is obedience to Him. Kevin pointed out that the way we really know someone, and know fully of their love for us, is by walking with them daily... just like a spouse or family member is fully known and trusted when we live together day by day. Our relationship with Christ is the same: As we walk daily with Him, we grow in our faith and assurance of His complete and perfect love for us. I'm in awe that I have an advocate before the throne of God who always intercedes for me!