This Monday was Jack’s first day of first grade!
ready to learn
The official First Day of School pic for the 2014-2015 school year.
Lucy won’t be starting Pre-K until next year, but I still had to take a picture.
love
Jack’s art from the first day…
…and Lucy’s art from the first day.
No surprises on day one =)
This is our last week of summer break. We will officially start school on Monday. Here is a recap of the Summer of 2014 minus our trips to San Antonio and Kansas.
Our first 2 weeks of summer included swim lessons for Jack at OBU. He is cautious by nature so he seemed to benefit from his time in the pool getting more familiar with the water. He had a very patient and knowledgeable instructor and he is on his way to being a more confident swimmer.
Keeping Lucy busy during swim lesson time was quite the challenge. She wanted nothing more than to jump in with her brother. Next year, Lucy!
Everything is awesome!
We really enjoyed the local kid movie series at our downtown theater. This may have been their third time to see The Lego Movie.
Jack’s soccer coach encouraged us to sign up for soccer camp this year.
Again, Lucy wanted to be part of the action.
Jack with some of his teammates. He will start his FOURTH season of soccer next week!
That same week, Doug was at camp too. He spent his third year teaching at Resonate, a worship camp. He actually wrote an article about his experience.
A trip to the zoo. You can tell by their red faces that our kids don’t handle heat real well.
OBU sent Jack a back-to-school letter and some supplies. The brainwashing starts young.
Isn’t his Mii cute?
Did I mention the kids don’t handle heat well? Jack may have spent enough time indoors playing the Wii to beat Mario Kart. He is a little too good at games.
I promise he didn’t play games all summer. He worked on a reading challenge as well. We didn’t exactly meet our page number goal because he read quite a bit out loud to me and that takes a little longer. We read The Indian in the Cupboard and The Mouse and the Motorcycle together.
Lucy did some light reading too. Here she is reading Jane Eyre. She’s so advanced.
Although Jack’s birthday was in May and we went to Dallas with family instead of throwing a party, he really wanted a cake. After all, it is tradition to have Daddy make one. Plus, do you really need an excuse for cake? Our small group didn’t complain.
Yes, its a SPURS cake. He told us he wanted a basketball cake. A Spurs basketball cake. Doug tried to remind him that we are Thunder fans and Jack responded with, “Well, I’M a Spurs fan. Spurs win Championships.” Indeed.
gangster
A few of their friends had actual summer birthdays so we partied with them.
Can’t get enough pool time.
Nothing says childhood like party favors and Kool Aid mustaches.
The silly birds at our house decided to build a nest and hatch eggs in the summertime instead of spring. We enjoyed watching them. We don’t enjoy what they did to our porch.
It is the end of the ’99 Breeze Era. I finally said goodbye to the trusty car I paid cash for when I was 18 with my Sonic carhop tips. My roller blades from those days were still in the trunk. This car was our transportation from our move as newlyweds from TX to OK and our honeymoon road trip to St. Louis. This car will be great fodder for conversations with my kids later. “You want a car? Well, when I was your age…”
Jack played T-ball for the first time. He was on a team with several friends. Go Rangers!
Fortunately, there were other little sisters to occupy Lucy during games and practices.
One last hurrah at the pool with friends. Summer sure is tough when you’re a kid.
2 weeks ago Doug and I and a group from church attended the National Worship Leader’s Conference in Kansas City. Before the conference we visited our friends from the area who just added a beautiful baby girl to their family.
Sandy and sweet Magnolia Josephine
Sandy and Nathan were friends from Doug’s college days and our newlywed days. We had never met their children so visiting them was extra special.
we brought goodies from Shawnee
One of the highlights of the week was watching G get his vinyl signed by Bill and Gloria Gaither. This is what starstruck looks like.
BILL GAITHER!!!! Pretty sure this is when L and I became best friends. Bill brought us together.
Here we are meeting Paul Baloche. If you aren’t as familiar with his music as we are, let me enlighten you: several artists have covered his songs including Michael W. Smith, Casting Crowns, Rebecca St. James, and many others. He has also co-written songs with Kari Jobe, Meredith Andrews, and Lincoln Brewster. His more widely known songs include, “Open the Eyes of My Heart”, “Hosanna”, “Today Is The Day”, “Your Name”, and “Above All.” So, when he talks about songwriting, people tend to listen.
Our group enjoyed learning and laughing along with Paul during his songwriting session. He made Doug’s day by singing an Aaron Gillespie song with him.
And speaking of Meredith Andrews…here she is! Meredith was our guest at our church’s women’s event last year. She and her husband Jacob lead a session on how to structure a worship set. I love how they invest into other leaders and other churches.
These are the Exceptional Young People who joined us this year for the conference. I refer to them as the EYPs. I’m glad Doug and I were chaperoned this year.
Doug enjoyed exposing the EYPs to dumb internet videos after the evening concerts. I am not the concert girl type, but my favorite artist from the week was Rend Collective. The conference may not ever be restful, but it is always refreshing. Already looking forward to next year!
The Hurt family had a crazy July 4th weekend. One of my best friends from high school got married! Miss Ashley Skinner invited me to be a part of her bachelorette party on the third. I loved catching up with her and Jill (who was a bridesmaid in my wedding because Ashley couldn’t be there). I also made new friends with Ashley’s friends and family. She definitely attracts quality people.
So happy for Ashley!
Jill and I
We had a painting party. Ashley wanted to paint Texas Bluebonnets to take with her when she moves out of state. Coincidentally, the painting instructor was a friend from our youth group days. She was very patient and talented. Thank you, Keely!
nerds
The party was pretty tame until we busted out Settlers of Catan.
My painting. Before Doug knew I painted it, he critiqued it and said, “This artist reads a lot of inspirational Christian women books.” Nailed it.
The kids hung out my parents house for a couple days. Here is Lucy doing her morning workout.
And the fourth was not only Independence Day, but the big gender reveal!!!! It is hard to believe my baby sister is having her first baby. Excited doesn’t even come close. In honor of the fourth, guests were given poppers that contained either red or blue confetti.
And because she’s Tammy, it was a super cute, Pinterest-perfect gender reveal party.
mom and Lucy
Doug really wanted to wear his Thunder shirt in San Antonio.
Everybody minus my brother and his family.
The parents-to-be! They are going to be amazing!
My first picture with MY NEPHEW!!!!!!!! Its a BOY!!!!! And so continues the Townsend tradition of having a son first. I love you, Tammy! Motherhood already looks good on you.
July 4th 2014
After the gender reveal, we headed to Doug’s parents property to blow stuff up. Its what the founding fathers would’ve wanted.
You can never take too many little girl sparkler pics.
Told you.
The fifth was the big wedding day. The kids, as always, enjoyed time with their family.
Papa loves taking the cousins on tractor rides around the property.
lets go fly a kite
Pool time!
Lucy is completely fearless in the water. Which makes me completely fearful.
no fear
Wedding Time!!!
What happens when we try to strike a dramatic pose.
Doug thought this pic of me watching the toasts was funny because it looks like I just had a really good idea.
Mrs. Conrad
Its not the best picture but I had to have one with the beautiful bride. The wedding was so classy, and pretty, and intentional. It was privilege to be there. Congratulations, Ashley and Neil!
Directly after the reception, we met our friend, April for a coffee date. April is home for the summer from her mission work in Uganda. It was a blessing to hear how God is working in Uganda and to pray for each other. You can learn more about April here. We love you, April!
pretty Cora
And as if our hearts weren’t filled to the brim with thankfulness for all the joy we were sharing with our loved ones, our nieces were both baptized on the sixth.
sweet Maya
I can’t remember a time when we celebrated so much in a such short amount of time. Thank you to our friends and family for including us in your celebrations! We are blessed by each one of you. Truly.
Our homeschool group took a couple of field trips this past school year that I am late in posting about. I did post some pictures of the trip to the state capital building here. The first trip was back in the fall to P Bar Farms located in Hydro, OK about an hour west of Oklahoma City. 
This family owned farm is picture perfect and there were many activities to keep the kids busy and entertained.
gorgeous day
They were very happy to be on the farm after two hours in the car.
I love the look she is giving him.
being silly
my favorite
We took a ride on a tractor trailer to pick out pumpkins.
gorgeous, but windy
Lucy’s pick
Mom’s pick
We were trying to get a nice picture, but the wind was against us.
an attempt at a family pic
She insisted on riding by herself.
They both loved the “train.”
Feeding the animals was their favorite part of the day.
The kids had a blast playing on the playground. I didn’t love how tall it was. However, at the top was a nice view of the land.
she is out standing in her feild
We actually went through the corn maze with Lucy. I made sure she never left my sight.
In Texas, we take bluebonnet pictures. In Oklahoma, we take grass pictures.
She was fascinated by the pigs. The farmer told us their names were Sausage and Bacon. I don’t think he was joking.
llama face
Even Doug made a new friend.
In the spring, our group went to the pretzel factory to learn how pretzels are made.
This is at the Auntie Anne’s at The Outlet Shoppes at Oklahoma City.
Lucy was instructing the worker on the proper way to put the gloves on. She knows everything.
a little bit too big
She’s going to be a pro with the Paparazzi one day.
We were taught how to roll out and shape the pretzel dough.
First you roll it out, stretch it out long…
then cross your arms to twist the pretzel.
yum!
I might have been wearing a hat too. Unfortunately, none of those pictures turned out.
While the pretzels were baking, we got to go behind the scenes.
Can I eat yet?
After the tour we all got drinks and had intelligent conversation while we waiting patiently and properly for the pretzels.
It looked like this.
Jack and his school friend
They were so good. Definitely worth the wait.
And because this was our first and only visit to this newer outlet mall (because the only way to get this family near an outlet mall is to plan a food based field trip) we did some exploring.
And we found a Disney Store.
never serious for long
Imagine how much more fun they could have if I actually put money in the machines.
My favorite things about the mall: the pretzels, the cookies, the walking, and the company. Pretty much anything but shopping.
May 23rd was our last day of school. This blog didn’t exist at the beginning of the school year or last school year, so I am posting this year’s pictures and pictures from Pre-K as well.
Our official first day of Pre-K for the 2012-2013 school year
little Jack
My happy four year old.
These are the books we read aloud to Jack the summer before Pre-K through the summer after Pre-K. We started the BFG by Roald Dahl because it was one of my very favorite books that was read aloud to me when I was in school. Then, we moved on to The Chronicles of Narnia because C.S. Lewis. We went straight from Lewis to Tolkien starting with The Hobbit. Obviously, Jack was too young for most of The Hobbit and LOTR, but he would patiently listen to me and ask many questions and I was pleasantly surprised how many great conversations we had while reading. We finished The Two Towers before we started Kindergarten. In between, we read many many many Dr. Seuss books.
Speaking of reading: This book worked very well for us and I highly recommend it. Reading and writing were definitely our focus for Pre-K.
And here are pics from our last day of Pre-K.
He practiced the last letter on the last day.
On to kindergarten!
First day of kindergarten for the 2013-2014 school year.
Lucy insisted on being part of the first day action this year.
“I hope you aren’t expecting a quiet school environment.”
My happy five year old.
working hard on his first day
I’m keeping this forever
Here is proof that we executed some super advanced science experiments this year. I think I’m the next Bill Nye.
Water can be a solid…
a liquid…
or a gas!
worksheets are not as fun as sitting next to boiling water
Yo, Millard Fillmore by Mark Alvarez was one of our favorite books this year. It is essentially a long memory trick which helps you memorize all the Presidents in order.
Our reading list was much shorter this year because we wanted Jack to have the chance to read to us. With most of the books, we took turns reading out loud to each other. We started the school year with The Return of the King because we HAD to finish the series, and switched gears and read Charlotte’s Web. Then, we completely digressed with Captain Underpants. Next we moved on to a collection of stories about a vampire bunny named Bunnicula. We read Bunnicula, Howliday Inn, and Bunnicula Strikes Again. Finally, we finished the year with another of my favorite read out loud books from my own childhood; The Chocolate Touch.
the official school picture
four feet tall and 51 pounds
Last day of kindergarten! His favorite book from the year was Charlotte’s Web. I’m sure it had nothing to do with how much he loves his Grandma Charlotte or the fact that he loves the movie version. I now have a huge man child that looks nothing like his first semester kindergarten picture.
Cannot wait for first grade!
Our little man turned SIX on the 10th. We surprised him with a trip to the Legoland Discovery Center in Dallas. Tammy and Jonathan joined us and introduced us to their old haunts from their time living in Dallas. Like Rusty’s Tacos. Mmmmm.
We started the weekend out right with dinner at Chick-fil-A where I taught Tammy that the trick to eating dessert without sharing with your kids is to switch their toy out for ice cream while they are playing.
The next day was Legoland! Jack was completely surprised and didn’t know where we were until he saw the sign.
She kept petting Uncle J’s hair. We don’t know why.
waiting to get in
We had a nice four to two adult to child ratio.
Jack and Doug make a new friend
ready to go!
We took the factory tour where Professor Brick-a-Brack needed help making new Lego bricks.
building and racing cars
Jack wins!
Merlin’s cutest apprentices
Lucy can only ride stationary vehicles
Forest Ranger Pursuit
Yoda!
Star Wars with mommy
Lucy discovered karaoke in the pink princess castle. She’s a little too comfortable on stage.
so girly
pretty in pink
Everything is a microphone.
still singing
Lucy made a friend too
She’s 3 going on 14.
Way too much giggling going on. For those that don’t know, my sister is known for her signature epic giggle.
Dallas Miniland
I love them
Everything is cool when you’re part of a team.
Uncle J is a great foreman.
we belong together
I love my six year old.
Mom, Lego of me
Lego swag
Jack picked out a new Star Wars set. He insisted on the one with Jango Fett.
His birthday lunch was at his favorite restaurant in the whole world: Chili’s.
Lucy picked out a bear with a pink shirt, insisted it was a boy, and named him Bear. We asked for a booster for Lucy but only Bear was allowed to sit in it.
She taught Bear how to hold the crayon and color.
After a necessary four hour nap, Tammy and Jonathan took us to a park in Uptown.
A beautiful evening
We ended the night with dessert at Sprinkles cupcakes. You know, for Jack’s birthday.
They were all out of strawberry in the store, which is what Jack wanted, so we had to use the CUPCAKE ATM around the corner. I love big cities.
she wanted her brush in the pic
Instead of calming her down before bedtime, Aunt Tammy decided to give Lucy a selfie tutorial.
she didn’t want to duck face
Tammy has a little too much fun with her only niece.
We loved our time with the Hoopers.
Back in Oklahoma, we met up with Aunt Rene and cousins Cora and Maya who were headed back to San Antonio from Colorado. They surprised Jack with birthday decorations and cupcakes. Also waiting were birthday packages from all the grandparents. I think he felt loved.
Cousin Love
We are so grateful for all the family who helped celebrate these blessed six years. Happy Birthday, Jack-Jack!
Jack,
Mommy and Daddy are so proud of how hard you have worked this school year. You not only exceeded our expectations academically, but the patience you showed your little sister (and Mommy some most days) exemplified a maturity beyond your five years. For your display, as most projects go in this household, mommy had the idea and your daddy implemented it.
The night began with dinner at Chick-Fil-A, where your daddy was saddened by the transformation of his beloved worship songs into restaurant ambient background elevator music.
sad worship leader
Here is your table at Christian Heritage Academy. I still cannot believe how much we accomplished this year!
There’s my handsome Kindergarten graduate!
During the student showcase, you were so brave and did so well in front of everyone. You recited the entire first Chapter of the book of James. This year, you have worked so diligently on learning each phrase and we have had so many meaningful conversations about Christian living as you pondered the meaning of each verse. I hope and pray you will always hide His words in your heart. It is your weapon against the enemy, the lamp to your feet, and the light to your path.
This is the certificate our sweet Mrs. Buckhalter awarded to you-for demonstrating patience in accomplishing your Kindergarten work and kindness towards your sister.
After the showcase, you were so eager to show your work to your friends and discuss what you had learned. As always, your little sister was very interested in what you were doing. You two are quite the pair.
We celebrated the evening with ice cream, as our family often does. Although we are loyal Blue Bellers, its OK to settle for Braum’s once in awhile.
And the following weekend, you played your best ever in your last soccer game of the Spring season and scored TWO goals. We celebrated with a trip to Pop’s on Route 66.
Jack, no matter how great your accomplishments may be, wether in character, academia, or athletics, remember where your worth comes from. It comes not from what you’ve achieved or even by what you haven’t achieved. It doesn’t just matter what you do, it matters whose you are. You are ours. And most importantly, you are His. We love you and are so proud of you, little man.
This year, we were so grateful to have both sets of parents and Tammy and Jonathan with us for the Easter weekend. On Friday we attended a Good Friday Service and Lord’s Supper at our church. This Lord’s Supper was the first time Jack was able to participate.
In February, Jack had a conversation with Doug about Grandpa Gran (my father’s father) and about where he was spending eternity. From this conversation we were certain Jack had a very real understanding of the gospel and his relationship to Jesus Christ. Since then, we have been talking with Jack about the Lord’s Supper and baptism. He experienced both on the same weekend.
Jack and his little cup of grape juice. When we ate the bread, he whispered, “That was delicious!”
Saturday morning was the big egg hunt at church. This is always a fun event for our church and the community. This year was a little less fun when Lucy completely disappeared for several minutes. She was found safe and sound hiding in the church playing with toys.
She’s serious about hide-and-seek AND chocolate.
We spent the rest of the day playing outside, napping, eating, and just enjoying our family.
He was getting tired.
The infamous Easter Squirrel. He chewed a hole in GramZ and Papa’s RV and then chased Papa across the roof when he tried to get rid of him. I wish I had a picture of THAT.
On Easter Sunday, our church meets in Raley Chapel on the Oklahoma Baptist University campus to have one big service instead of our usual three.
Doug leading worship
After a few songs, it was time for the baptisms.
Doug had the honor of performing Jack’s baptism.
Based on your profession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, I now baptize you in the name of the Father and Son and Holy Spirt.
Buried with him by baptism into death…
…raised to walk in newness of life.
I wonder what silliness Aunt Tammy and Uncle J are exposing my children to
After the service, we had some more family time followed by everyone’s favorite part of Easter: taking family pictures!
Aren’t they cute?
The official 2014 family Easter picture.
100% Stinker
One evening a couple of weeks ago, Lucy handed me this and told me she had drawn “Jesus on the cross.” There was so much hope in her little drawing. Hope that one day she will truly understand how much Jesus loves her. And the ultimate hope we now have because He didn’t stay on that cross. He really died. For our sin; in our place. And he really did defeat death and lives today so that in him, we also have victory and life. Thank you, Jesus.
I always tell Doug that I won the in-law lottery. I love my in-laws. And this past week, I was reminded that his extended family is pretty special too. Two weeks ago, Doug received the heart breaking news that his cousin’s son, Josh, had taken his own life. We made the trip to San Antonio and it was such a bittersweet time of grieving and fellowship. Family members who normally, for whatever reason, don’t see each other often showed up from all over the country. A gesture that said, “We may not always be together, but right now, we shouldn’t be apart. You are not alone.” Upon observation and through conversation, I realized we all had this in common: our faith in Jesus Christ. It was a gift to hear about their churches and ministries and to share about ours. When our hearts are broken, it is necessary to dwell on He who heals, restores, and gives true peace and hope.
The Partridge/Hurt Crew
Josh, himself, also gave the family a gift through the words he wrote for an 8th grade English assignment. The paper was titled, “This I Believe: Jesus can give anyone a completely new identity.”
Here is a excerpt:
“As I’ve grown as a Christian, I’ve increasingly seen people more as God sees them: dearly loved, but in rebellion. The Spirit also augments my conscience: I’m still tempted, but I can no longer allow a sin to run rampant in my life. Whenever I do something that saddens God, it also offends me (why would I dare to betray my savior) and He helps me conquer the issue. I also now have a peace, an unnatural, illogical and unexplainable peace, that I can call to whenever life throws something crazy at me. Basically, I did absolutely nothing to earn salvation; I just humbled and gave myself, and asked for forgiveness.
This relationship radically changed my mindset and contrasted my self-centered and materialistic attitude of only a few years ago. This I believe: This kind of transformation exceeds the usual maturing of adolescence; testifies to my change of identity when I bowed my own will to God’s and handed over my life.”
Josh’s life was cut way too short, but our hope rests in knowing his eternity is secured and we will see him again one day.
