Playdate pictures

I should clarify that "playdate" means wonderful adults and teenagers have our kids over to their house and play with them. Our kids are ecstatic whenever it's time for a playdate with the Weavers!

During snack time: Seth, Marcie, David, Will and Gracie

Painting with Jasmine

Deliberate David intent on his work

Delighted David

David looking impish and very happy

Sweet, silly Seth

What was this face about??

So happy!

Catching bubbles with Ellie and Amanda

Loving books together; Isaac's RC airplane flying

I love hearing the kids "read" to each other. It's especially cute and funny when they have memorized portions of the books, for example: "And the bear snores on!"

The girls reading together on the window seat with David
(Marcie mixing Easter dress with plaid boy pajama pants, a girl pajama shirt underneath, and church shoes. Neither she nor Gracie wanted to take off their beautiful dresses and "slippers," as they call them.)

David "reading" to Gracie and Seth. David is definitely the leader of the group, a very responsible and caring one too!

I'm pretty sure David righted this book right after we snapped the photo

I'm not sure what they were looking at, but it's such an endearing photo of Isaac with the kids!

Isaac is getting really good at flying RC airplanes! It was his dad's passion at this age (or maybe a bit older?)

A pretty picture of Marcie in her Easter dress, just because :)

Potty training joy!

HUGE thanks to "Aunt" Karen Weaver for taking Will and Gracie all weekend for a fun potty training boot camp!! Four of the five quints are now at least well on their way to completely toilet-trained. Seth has had mumps, believe it or not, and has naturally been pretty miserable (although he certainly had a lighter case than I did as a kid), so we haven't pushed him to do anything but eat and heal. We pray no one else gets it! By the way, he was satting 100% here at 5000 ft altitude, something I could never have imagined when he was so sick in the NICU and we didn't know if he would even make it despite being on the gentle oscillating ventilator. Thank you God! Thanks to those of you who prayed for so long, too!

I have heaps of beautiful photos of the kids, most taken by Karen, but I have been too busy or tired to sit down and load them. I WILL get to it soon, I hope!

Aunt Cynthia is also here, so hopefully we'll have some pics of her with the kids too. Fun times! The girls especially were so excited to see her again.

Speaking of the girls, Marcia hair was a mess as usual yesterday, and when she came up to talk to me David noticed and said with the calm maturity of a grown man, "Marcie, your hair is in your eyes. You better blow it away." She said okay and did it! Such funny little people taking care of each other. They love to help with one another's needs. Yesterday while I was holding sick Seth David brought me a snack for Seth as well as some water, and he asked Seth, "Is this enough water, Sethers?" So cute and endearing, and he said it so lovingly with real concern in his voice! They all talk like that to each other and to us if they sense someone is sad or hurting or sick.

One potty photo before I sign off: 

Isaac's iMovie Mania

Isaac spent quite a bit of time and fun playing with his friends and siblings putting this video montage together and asked that we post it on the blog for your viewing pleasure.  Enjoy!

Happy Easter!

Easter Sunday or not, Gavin had to do an emergency evacuation of a woman who might otherwise have died due to complications after birth in a remote location. He flew her to the closest hospital, then returned home to us, but at that point church was already over. That left me and the kids (who did remarkably well, thanks to Isaac's and friends' wonderful help!). Isaac was the photographer for these photos (more non-Easter photos to follow later):

Wearing matching vests made by Marcia Daly. Gorgeous!

This was a terrible photo of Seth and David, so I cropped them out. Sorry.

Oops, proofreading is hard with quints buzzing around

I totally mis-wrote poor Elyse Fitzgerald's quote in the last blog. It should have read:

That's been his theme throughout all eternity. "Take me. Punish me. Let them go." 

I had to write the blog post with all five quints, plus a friend of theirs from next door, plus three extra boys (Isaac's friends) in the house. It was a happy, chaotic mess!

We're often a bit goofy around here. Here's more proof: 

Will being a "lion," although how he achieves that with a pair of girl's dress-up high heels and his daddy's boots beats me!

Another GOOD Friday

Will, Seth and Marcie posing with Gavin on the motorbike (No, this isn't how we usually travel - although it is how we were raised on the mission field in Colombia, South America! Good memories.)

It's Good Friday and Maundy Thursday as I write this, and I've been wanting to share a few things from a great devotional I've been reading, Comforts from the Cross by Elyse M. Fitzpatrick. Day 24 is so timely today!:

John 18:4-8

Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, "Whom do you seek?"
"Jesus of Nazareth," they answered.
"I am he."
They fell back in terror.
"Whom do you seek?" he asked again.
They answered as before.
"I told you that I am he. So, if you seek me, let these men go."

Elyse continues: Even though his friends weren't worthy of his protection, of his sacrifice for them [having failed to stay awake and watch and pray with him earlier in the evening], he was determined. "Take me. Let them go." That's been his theme throughout all eternity. "Take me. Punish me. Let them go." . . . He interposed his body between the wrath of the religious leaders and his weak disciples; he interposed his precious blood between the righteous wrath of his Father and his sinful bride. . . . What a Savior!

Our Savior continues to guard us here in PNG. We're all so happy and healthy, although we know neither health nor happiness is a guarantee in this life. We're grateful for the easy times, the times of blessing, but we know we are also called to pick up our own crosses and follow Him. When difficult times come, He enables us and even gives us a joy and peace that can't be humanly explained. He yokes Himself together with us. He's already carried the heaviest burden in all of history: the Cross that sets us free, that makes every burden we bear only temporary and ultimately minuscule in light of Eternity.

[And in the background of all this, Gracie and Marcie are arguing the same point. "No, you CAN'T spill your milk!" "Yes, I CAN'T spill my milk!" Back and forth, back and forth. Life is always funny around here!]

Lovingly,
Carrie