SNOW DAY!

These are from Monday. Thomas had a snow day at daycare with his friend Laina. Don't they look so adorable in the snow?

Here they are helping build the fort.

Hard to believe how much snow there is! It is just about taller than them!

I'm with the band

Today was music day! The boys and I made homemade instruments out of a used paper towel roll. We decorated them a little, cut out paper to go over the ends, poured some rice in them and tied rubber bands over the ends. The boys loved shaking them all over the house.

They had their own little band going for a while!

Shake it boys!

Oliver thought it was silly!

Thomas started singing songs too! What a talented little musician! :-)

Block Party!

Yesterday Ollie and I had a little "block party." These days Oliver loves three things: 1) balls 2) little people and 3) blocks. Well as you can see, blocks are probably he favorite thing right now.

His favorite thing to do with the blocks is bang them together. He thinks it is hilarious and could probably spend half of his day banging them together and belly laughing each time.

And the other half of they day he likes to run around holding two blocks trying to get you to chase him. Running around holding onto his toys is the best. Only thing better than that is getting mom and dad to chase you around while you do it.

Well guess what? Mom LIKES block time too! Shhh! It is our little secret, don't tell Oliver. It is the one time you might catch Ollie sitting still. So if it isn't a picture perfect moment, mom at least gets to rest her feet before chasing him around the room again.

A Few Reflections

Yesterday was the start of the Lenten season for Christians all across the world. Lent is a time for personal reflection and growing--a time to turn away from sin and repent from anything keeping you from God. We have never been the best at attending church and giving God our full attention. In a world with all the electronic distractions and busy schedules, God often gets put on hold. We have been very bad about putting God on hold and have recognized that it is time to grow with Him in our lives again. To keep our family focused on what really matters, we will be working on a new thing every week to keep us more mindful of God's presence in our lives.

This week our focus is prayer. We are going to try and incorporate prayer into our lifestyle. Not just praying at dinner or before bed, but talking one on one with God in our moments of frustration and anger--asking for patience when we need it the most. But we also will pray to God and share our joys with him and be thankful for what he has given us. It is my hope that by starting with a strong focus on prayer we can make God a bigger part of our lives and he can guide us not just through the rest of Lent, but the rest of 2010.

So here is our prayer for the day:

Dear Lord, help us to be keepers of your plan. Help us to do good works and walk away from all that keeps us from you. Let us be strong and patient in the face of opposition. Encourage us with your spirit when we are discouraged in our weakest moments. Comfort us when we need a friend and feel alone. Let us be reminded of your love for us, that you gave away your only son so that we could be free of sin. All that we have been given is because of you, and we are so thankful Lord. Help us oh Lord to be who you made us to be--your servants. Amen.

A Valentine Treat for YOU!

Thomas and I baked cupcakes after church on Sunday night. They were super yummy! They were gone in days and even that is quite amazing since we love eating goodies in this house! Enjoy our Valentine's Day Photos!

Family sent some special cards and presents in the mail. The boys are opening their gifts here:

Showing off the goods!

The boys gave their daddy the card they made him!

New Blog Name!

We have updated our blog name to try and keep things more simple for everyone now reading our blog. The blog name has changed to http://ourfamilyiniowa.blogspot.com/. Add it to your favorite blogs to stay up to date on the Schenk Family happenings!

~XOXO

Happy Valentines Day!

This week the boys and I made some Valentines from scratch. We got out the scissors and paper and cut up some hearts. I had picked up some Valentines Day scrapbooking goodies at Target for $1 and we used those and some cute red paint to decorate our valentines. Thomas and Oliver especially loved getting paint all over their hands. Oliver decided to squish it and made it go everywhere. Don't worry, no carpets were destroyed in this activity!!!

Here is a *sneak peek* at the Valentines we made!

And of course, our little artists in the making: Thomas + Oliver!

Happy Valentine's Weekend everyone! XOXO