Here is a video I took a couple days ago while I was spying on Joseph and Claire out the kitchen window.  It was through the window screen, so the quality isn't the greatest.  Notice they are both wearing their backpacks.  And watch how Claire just randomly starts hopping.  She loves to jump!  It is such a warm feeling to see Joseph and Claire playing peacefully by themselves in the backyard.  Of course, instead of using the opportunity to get chores done, I spy on them and take videos instead.  :)

Claire Loves Mommy

Here is a video I just took while we were at the dinner table and the kids were trying to get Claire to say "I love Momma."  Pretty cute!

Salon Day

Yesterday was salon day in the Vrabely house.  Here are some pictures of my subjects... ahem, I mean clients.  Oh yeah, and it was Claire's first haircut.  A very exciting Saturday indeed!

It's been a while.  Sorry!  Life sure goes from manageable to hectic in the blink of an eye sometimes.  Things did slow down enough for a millisecond today and I was able to catch a cute video and some pictures of the kids playing in the backyard in the rain.  It actually rained here off and on for most of the day which is basically unheard of.  It was wonderful!  And so was this moment with the kids.  Enjoy!

Claire gets some air while jumping into the puddle

Julia, not to be left out of the fun and the picture-taking

Sunday Night Mom Date

My oldest childhood friend got married this weekend, and I was blessed to be able to make it to the wedding.  John had to stay home with a sick Claire, so my Mom was my date.  We had a great time and snapped a few pictures before we left.  My Mom is the prettiest Mommy in the whole world!  And not a bad date either.

Big Brother and Little Sister

Joseph really wanted to hold Claire earlier today before her nap.  She didn't seem to mind too much.  Don't be fooled by these pictures, though.  These two are usually at odds with each other over one thing or another.  Which is why this moment, shockingly able to be captured on camera, was so special.

Precious!

Arrr

Avast Me Hearties!  'Tis International Talk Like a Pirate Day.  I hope ye be celebratin' as I be.  If not, well ye'r a scurvy bilge rat, and ye'd be better off walkin' the plank and headin' fer Davey Jones' locker.  So quit bein' such a landlubber and get ye to swashbucklin'.  Yo ho!

Passing the Class

Salvation:  What are we being saved from?  Hell and punishment, or from our sins?  Hell/punishment is the consequence of our sin.  Why does sin deserve punishment? 

There is always someone sinning bigger and worse than we are.  But if the one making the judgement is perfect and has never sinned, then to Him, even the slightest sin is infinitely worse than any sin He has ever committed because He has never committed a single sin or ever even wrestled with the thought of committing a sin.  So to someone who thinks they are not that bad because they have only lied a few times, thought evil thoughts about a few people, stolen a few songs from the internet, and lost their temper a few times a week, someone who has stolen a car, murdered, or raped appears to be an exponentially worse sinner and by far more deserving of punishment.  But to the perfect, sinless judge, our seemingly minor infractions are like grand theft auto, calculated genocide, and serial, premeditated rape. 

Some people seem to think that God will grade on a curve.  What makes more sense?  To hope that you are on the passing side of an unknown, arbitrary, moral, life or death, eternal judgement curve, or to realize that no matter how "small" in appearances your lapses in morality have been, that you will never achieve the 100% grade that a perfect and Holy God and judge demands of you?  How, then, you might be wondering do you ever "achieve" this perfect score on the test of life?  Well, in a way, you get to cheat.  You get to take Jesus' test and hand it in as your own.  Except it is not really cheating; he offers you his final exam freely, and though God is aware that the work was not your own, He accepts it anyway.  And, because God is a just God and cannot violate his own rules, Jesus handed in all of our failing tests as His own, and took the punishment that our abysmal scores deserved.  So justice has been satisfied and we get to reap the benefits of acing the class.  Wow!  Again, I say WOW!

Just some random thoughts that that keep coming back to me.  Thought I'd try to organize them and share in case anyone out there has been fooled into thinking that you might be able pass the test just because you scored one point higher than your neighbor.  I've got news for you:  the know-it-all over achiever in the front row and the degenerate slacker in the back of the class are BOTH in trouble.  You better start thinking about how you can score that 100% before the bell rings and the test is over.

Vrabely Kid(s) Silly Video of the Day

Claire certainly gives us ample silly material to work with for these silly video posts.  Gotta love her!

Happy 35th birthday to my wonderful husband!  I hope that you have a blessed day, one that is fitting for the awesome husband and father that you are.  Love - Your Family!