Yellow Belt

Ophelia took and passed her first belt test on Thursday, August 4, 2005 (also happened to be Jeremy's 29th birthday!) and became a yellow belt. She is already a very busy little girl involved in Tae Kwon Do, piano lessons, ballet (from which we're taking a break from due to finances but it's her dream to be a ballet teacher when she grows up so we keep practicing), and art not to mention household chores (when she sweeps a floor it's just AMAZING!), school and the very busy busyness of being a big sister. She's reading very well and doing great in her addition and subtraction tables, has a thorough mastering of the first grade list of sight words, and very excited about learning French by increasing the amount we speak at home. Yesterday Ophelia and I went shopping (did you know that six year olds can already argue about what they can wear!?! I thought that wouldn't happen until she was MUCH older!) and she talked about the things she'd like to be involved in someday and they included playing the harp (I have no idea where she got that), more dance, and becoming a black belt. I have no doubt that she will do very well at all of these with her strengths continuing to emerge over time. She's thrilled to be starting school this Thursday and is looking forward to the challenges facing her in this next year.

Lavinia is a little disappointed to not be returning to St. Mark this fall and is hoping to be going to school at Valley Oaks along with her big sister. We've applied for a scholarship in the pre-k program for Lavinia as one of her greatest strengths is her social skills and she looks forward to the time she gets to spend learning with friends. She is also hoping to begin Tae Kwon Do soon but we only have a scholarship for Ophelia so it may be a while. Her interests continue in dance and music and right now we just enjoy the natural musical ability she has and look forward to seeing that develop in the years to come. We hope to see her in dance very soon as well as God provides.

Helena's doing great with the potty and we've even tried a few naps without diapers! She doesn't seem to miss school at all but enjoys the time home with mommy and daddy. As a result, I'm learning how to get by with less sleep in order to get everything done in a day. She's talking up a storm with new words coming out every day. Her coordination is very advanced for her age and she enjoys learning dance and Tae Kwon Do moves from her big sisters- to a lot of giggles from all of us. Helena is a fantastic helper around the house always willing to lend a hand and to simply take off with an "I DO IT!"

Jeremy turned 29 (for the first time ;-)) last Thursday and we celebrated with a party on Friday evening. He received some fantastic bottles of wine as gifts not to mention some very generous gift cards and a few very thoughtful gifts. Thank you to everyone that thought of him and/or came on Friday. Tonight he and I defrosted some steaks we'd been saving in the freezer and had a lovely meal of grilled steaks, asparagus, and baked potatoes along with a to-die-for Bordeaux that Kathy Ridley gave him for his birthday. It was SUPERB! We're looking forward to trying out the other bottles he was given!

I'm neck deep in consulting and having a wonderful time. Turns out that I love it and I can't wait for our next meeting. I'm surprised to learn that math makes sense to me in two settings: music and statistics. Whish I'd known that in college. But I'm having a wonderful time beyond the stats and math, it's simply wonderful to have the opportunity to work with others in building the Kingdom of God. Even though I know I won't be there very long, it's great to have these relationships and to explore the passions, gifts, and burdens God has set before others. Frustrated though we may be at times with the local church, we have no doubt that God has called the church to serve Him and build His kingdom. We are honored to be a part of that calling as all who call Jesus Christ Lord should be. We have the opportunity to lead worship with St. Timothy again on August 31st and we're really looking forward to it. A time of training and a time of celebration as we explore together what God has for this ministry we are in a time of quiet meditation before Him. If you can make it on the 31st we'd love to see you there. For everyone else, PEACE!

In Christ,

Jessica