What's a video game?

Sam has been obsessed with writing lately. He comes home from school and will often sit at the kitchen table until dinner time, writing stories or drawing pictures.
Here are some samples I recently found in his notebook:

the BiBle
yes thets
the book
for me i stad
a lone on the wrd of God
the BiBle
the BiBle
---------------------------------------
"a cat on a mat"

a cat was wnts seepeen on a mat in frunt of the mouse home
but the mouse was awake and the mouse wuntid to git out be for the cat woke up
---------------------------------------
hale king of the joos
---------------------------------------
Jesus is the Christ for evrewun

It sure is hot here

Fires in CA again. Santa Barbara county. So I'm reading the news article and there was actually this quote, "I can tell you for certain that Oprah Winfrey's house is safe, as is Rob Lowe's." However, more than 100 other homes were destroyed.
Is it just me, or is this blatant insensitivity to those who were injured (there were a few) and those who did lose homes? Good grief! These celebrities would be the ones most able to afford new ones if their others burned down. They probably HAVE more than one!
We (society) treat celebrities in a sickening way!

I remember you!

We're now scheduling weekly one-on-one time with each of the boys - something we've wanted to do for awhile now. Mondays are Sam's night, Tuesdays are Caleb's, and Thursdays belong to Noah. We put the others to bed, and then the selected special one gets to stay up a bit later. So far, we've taught Sam how to play checkers and Caleb how to play Parcheesi. I'm thinking about doing some baking with them next week. It's SO different interacting with them on a one-on-one basis when the other 2 aren't around to provide their own dynamics to the situation. Actually, kind of refreshing. I'm really enjoying it!
Now I just have to come up with a catchy title.
Like, "MY night". But that's not too catchy.
Anyone have any brilliant ideas?

Pack it away, kid!

Sam has now graduated to the Level 2 approach for stopping his thumb-sucking, which he still claims he wants to stop doing.
So now, he brushes his teeth.
He gets on his jammies.
He goes potty.
Then he puts his sock over his "thumb hand" (in his case, it's his right).
Then Daddy puts on the packing tape.

This has provided Caleb with yet another wonderful excuse to leave his room at night: "Sam's taking the tape off!"

He's the self-appointed thumb-sucking police.

Toss the cookies

Out to dinner at Perkins tonight, all the kids got one of their huge cookies for dessert. Those half chocolate chip, half sugar cookie ones.
5 minutes into eating his, Caleb all of a sudden announced, "I like God better than cookies!"
We must be doing something right around here!

Voting Day

"Kings and kingdoms will all pass away, but there's something about that Name!"

The Lord, He is God!

Voting day:
"But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." Joshua 24:15

No need to wait till the votes are all counted. We're under HIS command and leadership! Praise the Lord!