Thanks 151/365

Thank you Lord for just enough time to do what you would have me to do.
Thank you for the time between teaching 5th grade art and heading to the art museum to help with DBC...time enough to grab "lunch."

Thanks 150/365

Thank you Jesus for healthcare, a husband who stands by my side (especially when he drives to/from work and OHSU to both be there for me and earn $ to pay our medical bills), and for GREAT NEWS that there is no cancer in my eyes (I don't have to see the eye doctor for another year).

Thanks 149/365

Happy Memorial Day! Today we honor those who have given their lives for our freedom. We studied up on the history of it, which is really interesting. 

Crazy Memorial Day tidbit:

If the same percentage of Americans died today as they did in the Civil War, that would equal about 6,450,000 deaths. It is no wonder that "decoration day" came about. Every family was somehow effected by the loss of a loved on who died in battle; they grieved and wanted to honor the memory of the one they lost.

We spent the morning at a ceremony to remember those who sacrifice to defend us. I am so thankful that a lady approached us at the end and said, "Your boys were so respectful and attentive. She shook their hands and thanked them for being good citizens." I am SO HAPPY to be told that!!!

I also love any time I get to spend with Christina. It's a a gift beyond measure to have a friend who is more like a sister than a friend, one who know you better than you know yourself sometimes, who has been there more years than not, who has seen you at your best your worst...and you can just sit and share everything with. 

Thanks 148/365

Thank you Jesus for these two. I pray that they remember these times and remain lifelong friends. 

Thankful for times of crafts and silly photo editing  moments.

I am also so grateful that Daddy, after a long grueling day at work, makes time to have fun and fold paper origami boxes with the kids.

Thanks 147/365

Hiking with Gramma--She rocked the 4T!

Mom has been working on getting healthy, so I offered to have her come on what she now calls, "the mini-death-march" from the zoo to the waterfront. She was a champ and went over 4 miles (most of which were switch-backs up and down hills). Even when her knee was hurting, she pressed in. Way to go mom!!



Thank you, Lord, for perfect weather, the beauty of your creation, and the health to enjoy it. I don't take it for granted.

Thanks 146/365

Happy 75th birthday PAPA!

He got his very first tattoo to celebrate.

 Abigail made penguins with Gramma.

Chris tried out their new bar on the patio.

Abigail cracked up editing Papa's phone.

Good times!!!

Thanks 145/365

Stub Stewart--Fonda's First time camping in a cabin!
By: Isaac

I loved hiking with my sister. It was awesome talking with her. My sister and I found a dog park. I am thankful that Oregon is so beautiful. I am thankful for my sister. I am also thankful for my dog and her love for me. I also like talking with my sister.
 

By: Mom
I am thankful for such beautiful nature so close to our house, for Chris who loves to do this on the fly when I ask him, for marshmallows, campfires and kids giggling in their new sleeping bags until way too late.

Crazy life...it's you, it's you!

This other picture just has to be added...

It's called the "Cool Dad Constellation" 

ヽ(゜∇゜)ノ Posted By: IsaacCornKorenyKorenthal

Thanks 144/365

Last night of Bible study. So thankful for a year with this crew. Thankful that our kids got to spend the evening at our church's kids' club.

A truly grateful parent moment tonight when one of our kids was burdened for a friend who has not been making the best choices recently. Our child has been really concerned for a while and didn't want to be associated with the behavior of that friend. So broken up about it, our child called the friend and said, in a nutshell, "You are my good friend, what you have been doing is not okay, I don't want to be a part of those choices, and if you keep making those choices, I'm not going to be spending time with you." It was hard to do. Being quiet it the easy thing...but not the best thing. Our kids cried, thinking the loss of a lifelong friend was happening.

We had a very good time of encouraging our child with truth (PROVERBS 27:6). The truth is, our child did something in love today, wanting nothing but the best for a friend. Today, it's little things. In the many years ahead, it will be drinking, or promiscuity, lying, steeling...who knows. But, as a parent, I am so happy to see this happening now, between friends, with no parental intervention. The response of the friend was so good. The friend knew they were making intentional bad choices and said they would try to change. The friend totally got it (and the heart with which the message was delivered); no anger or defensiveness on their part.

I have such hope for the future of these too! I pray that the friend is there to confront my child in love when needed. That true friendship.

Thanks 143/365

OMSI date with the "Curly Tops"

I loved spending the day with these two (and Jessica).  I forget how fun the 4/5 age is. I just eat up their insatiable curiosity and determination to figure new things out by trying so many different methods. Nathan is so fun!

I just wanted to capture a "normal" afternoon. Waiting for Isaac at piano while Abigail reads and Fonda eagerly awaits Isaac's return.

Thank 142/365

Long days...but so happy to be able to give to the school and partner with an awesome volunteer team!

Thanks 141/365

Overall, Chris praises God for our health, living in this country, our freedom, and his ability to have a ministry among his staff. He is thankful they trust him and know they can count on him. He is thankful that our parents long to spend quality time with our kids. Tom and DeeDee have a relentless servanthood that contributes to making our family what it is. John MacArthur sermons are a blessing to listen to, especially in the car. It is wonderful to come home to a family who loves him.

Thanks 140/365

What a gift from the Lord to get to have the Ops with us while mom and dad are in Laguna. It is much wilder when you have six kids and an excited dog (and 4 kids still trying to figure out how to act with the dog), but the time is so rich and sweet. I am thankful that these kids are an extension of our family. I am thankful for things they share from their hearts with us, so sweet hugs, snuggles and "I love you"s. Johnny and Isaac even beat Chris a basket ball game.

I am also super proud (not being used to having 6) that they were all fed, clean, and getting along. I was still able to get Abigail to and from her dance class on time, take the kids out, AND do laundry, wash the dog, tend to scrapes and dirty feet, pack up the car, deliver them to their grandma, and get the house cleaned up before Chris got home.

***As a BONUS: Chris had an amazing time with Isaac tonight. Both of them are stressed with penned-up stress of lots of work on their plates and feeling like they are letting people down and will not measure up. The two of them ended up hanging out under the dining room table (all the chairs were pulled out to vacuum the rug) and having heart time. They both shed some tears and bonded. Chris was touched with how Isaac told him that he (Dad) was a good example to follow. These are the moments every parent cherishes forever! I pray that they always have "table time" as Isaac continues to grow into a man.

Thanks 139/365

Sometimes, there are days where you say, "Yes, Lord, I will even praise you for a screaming fight with my spouse while we are walking the dog."

I can praise God because He says, in James 1:

 "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him."

So, I will praise Him who restores marriages, humbles the proud, heals the broken, forgives, and will equip us for the future. 

I can praise God for giving us hearts of submission to Him and one another, even though our tendency is to seek to protect and defend ourselves above all else.

I am thankful that, at the end of the day, Chris and I can say to one another, "Deep down, I know you love me and don't want to hurt me." 

I am thankful that our worth in Jesus is not based on our performance (or our assessment of our performance).