The Children

Julie--10

Sweet Julie always has a smile on her face. She is so happy and kind! Julie is a writer--she writes plays, poems, short stories and chapter books, and she also keeps various journals and planning notebooks. Julie has been known to plan her birthday party for 6 months! She has also written 3 editions of a family newspaper. Julie enjoys playing with her American Girl dolls, sewing, running, roller blading, riding her bike, reading, cooking (she often cooks our meals) and playing outside. Julie is very thoughtful. I treasure the little notes she writes me.

Clay--9

Laid back Clay is a joy to be around. For him, life is all about having "free time"! Clay usually does most of his schoolwork at night before bedtime. Then he sets his alarm for 6:00 a.m. and finishes all that he can without help. He often asks me to sit down with him and help him finish as soon as I get up! He tries to complete all of his chores before his sisters even awaken. It brings him great pleasure to inform them that he has finished all school and chores before 8:00 a.m. Then......free time! What is Clay in such a hurry to do? Play outside! He rides his four-wheeler on trails in our woods, sharpens sticks with his pocket knife, climbs and plays in our dirt pile, rides his bike, roller blades, swings, swims and plays with Sam. Inside he enjoys legos, drawing and setting up the train for Sam. Clay is a sweet little boy!

Leah--4

Leah----what can I say? She is cut from a different cloth than the other children. She is a free spirit! She chooses ridiculous ways for me to fix her hair (3 ponytails--one front and center with one on each side is her favorite), and she selects shoes that are "most likely NOT to match the outfit" when we are going out in public. Her favorite church attire is a beautiful smocked dress accompanied by old, dirty green crocs. Leah refers to her older siblings as "the children". She will ask me, "Where are the children?" She loves stickers and flowers. Leah is also an artist. She is constantly drawing. Her favorite subjects are flowers, rainbows, lollipops (called lillipops by her) and hearts. Lately she has been drawing mountains. Leah enjoys riding her new bike, swinging and playing with baby dolls. She has a bitty baby named Sarah and the bitty twins which she named Leah and Sam. When she asks me, "where is Sam?" I am not sure if she means the doll or her brother. One more thing--Leah has an aversion to soap on her hands!

Sam--2

When Sam finally gets down from my lap, he has several interests....his main one is construction equipment. He knows many large machines by name (backhoe, grader, digger, paver, roller, tractor) and excitedly points them out to us as we travel. The BACKHOE is by far his favorite. Jimmy has a backhoe, and Sam's favorite thing to do is ride the backhoe with his daddy. He hears it being cranked and runs! Sam also enjoys playing with legos and his train. He would listen to me read to him for hours (the same 20 books!), and he likes to ride his four-wheelers (he calls it a four-four), one is battery powered, the other is a riding toy. His favorite four-wheeler is his daddy's. Sam loves popsicles, my hair and his pacifier which he calls a ba-ba.

Olivia--13 with Ribsy

Olivia is our animal lover. She takes such good care of our 4 dogs and 1 cat. She really has a special way with animals. She is always gentle and kind (with people too!). Olivia is an excellent artist. She creates drawings, paintings, crafts and jewelry. She also enjoys crocheting, reading, running, bike riding, and roller blading. Olivia frequently creates all kinds of things for her American Girl dolls, which she loves playing with. I can always depend on Olivia to help me with the little children--they love playing with her. Olivia has such a kind and grateful heart.