Sabbatical Day 3- Ezekiel Scott Grate

If a sugar cube and a can of red bull had a baby, it's name would be Zeke. He never stops. Not ever. Zeke was sick for the first 6 months of his life. The doctors were worried. So were we. Then one day he just snapped out of it. And today he is our strongest child. Yesterday he body boarded in the ocean for 2 straight hours. Then he came home and swam in the pool for 2 straight hours. Confident that I had worn him out, we came back to the camper and he decided to ride his bike for 2 straight hours. He fell asleep around 3 am. He never quits. Now, there are times when his hyperactive personality puts me on the edge of insanity. But on this vacation I am letting him run. He excels in school, is advanced in most subjects, yet maybe a hair behind socially. He lifts weights. Everyday. Recently I caught him googling "how to get a six pack for 11 year olds." Strangers? There are none. Everyone is a potential conversation, and a possible person that he can explain his brilliance in Greek Mythology to.

Often, in our civilized world of yuppie granola parenting, we would do our best to squash the "madness" out of such a loud, energetic, often distracted young man. Which brings me to Jesus...

I'm thinking about marketing these bracelets that say WWJD. It stands for "What Would Jesus Do?"

What would Jesus do if he met Zeke?

Matthew 19

The Little Children and Jesus

13 Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them.

14 Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 15 When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there.

Ezekiel's name in Hebrew literally
Means "strong man" or "strengthened by God". He is our little warrior, and we love him just the way he is:)

Sabbatical Day 2- Fast food is good for you

Sabbatical Day 2

Prayers answered! Slept like a baby last night. Speaking of babies, I have 3! Elijah 16, Emmy 14, and Ezekiel 11. They are all a result of a divine encounter. At the age of 18 I drove to Marion Indiana for Freshman orientation. Before I arrived I stopped at a Burger King for lunch. Standing in front of me was a confident, spitfire blonde. While I gathered my courage to say hello, my first thought was, wow, she's really loud. She talked loud, laughed loud. She smiled continually. Her hair was all one length and down to her waist. Blond with huge curls. Torn Levi jeans with flip flops? Ummm yes please! "Do you want to have lunch with me?" Reluctantly she said yes. It was the first word she ever said to me. Yes. What a great word. I married that young woman 4 years later. Now the time in-between when we met, and finally got married was tumultuous to say the least. Break-ups, confusion, disobedience, a year away in Bartlesville Oklahoma, arguments (they haven't stopped:) and profound drama. But in the end, God brought us together. Our marriage isn't perfect. If you read yesterday's post, you know that I like to be in control. My wife is the same but on steroids:). I honestly think she could run for president and I KNOW she could beat Hillary.

So we have a spirited marriage. We have to work at it every single day. We have to forgive each other every single day, and we have to compromise....every single day. There is one thing that has always been constant. Love for God and love for each other. That has never wavered. I counsel young couples often, and I tell them that if Holly Syswerda Grate and I can make it, they can too! We have been married for almost 18 years now, have 3 amazing children and work together everyday to bring the kingdom of God into focus for those around us. She is my best friend, my lover, mother of our children, and companion for life. She is amazing. I am undeserving, and I thank God every single day for the precious gift He gave to me in Holly. So enjoy those flame broiled whoppers, and trans fat soaked onion rings. It might just be a Romans 8:28 moment;)

Proverbs 31:10-12
10 A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.
11 Her husband has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.
12 She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.

Sabbatical Day One- 2015

Sabbatical day one

It's 4:00 am. I've been up since three. My brain is not good at compartmentalizing. I worry. To a sinful degree, I worry. Which has caused insomnia...on a sabbatical. This first few hours has shown some light on quite possibly the thing God wants me to learn the most during these six weeks of rest and reflection. I have a need to be in control. Of Everything. When I am not, I worry and the impulse to be in control of these things I worry about is the worst form of pride. It's root grows deep. Into the very nature of unbelief, and a distrust of Gods will and plan. Pray that I can rest. Pray that I can trust. Pray that I can let go. For the ALMIGHTY is in control. He doesn't need me. He chooses to use me. Even when I think I'm in control, I'm not....

Matthew 6:25-27

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

Spring 2007

Here are some pictures from this spring...ENJOY!!!!!!

Long-awaited update....

How to begin... The last six months have been a roller-coaster ride of emotions. Good and bad, happy and sad...etc. As most of you know, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer this January. This was not the news we were hoping for (obviously), but praise God she is now cancer free. She had a double mastectomy and was spared the horror of chemo and radiation...we all found this a huge blessing and relief. Josh and Shelly continue along on their difficult journey with amazing faith and honesty. I won't be redundant and write more about this as I'm sure all of you keep up with their blog. In the midst of all this God has given me a new joy in the day to day. I find myself thanking Him for all the little things...Ezekiel's snotty kisses, the sound of Emmy's tap-dancing, Elijah's way of telling a joke just like his Grandpa Syswerda. I sometimes feel guilty when my day is uneventful and enjoyable and find myself keeping my joy to myself. I don't know if that makes any sense, but it's just where I'm at. For instance, yesterday... The 5 of us took an afternoon trip to a beautiful park and let the kids ride their bikes and scooters all over the place. It was sunny, the kids were happy and healthy, Jason and I were quietly enjoying eachother's company...you get the picture, and I found myself weighed down with guilt for my happiness and peace. But I digress. I have truly come to realize that my life is not my own...God is in complete control of each moment and I thank Him for each tiny blessing...because I know how quickly they could all be gone. Perspective really is an intersting thing.
OK...enough rambling. What have we been doing the past 6 months?? Elijah turned 9, Emmy turned 7, and Ezekiel turned 4. Emmy lost her 2 front teeth and looks absolutely adorable! Zeke is riding his bike like a pro (no training wheels I might add). Elijah continues to love playing baseball and riding his ripstick...basically just growing up much too quickly!
We took a great vacation over Spring Break. We drove to Myrtle Beach and stayed in a condo for a week. We had such a great time we're hoping to do it every year.
The church continues to be a constant source of blessing...we had our first baby dedication and had 11 kids dedicated! Emmy sang a solo and had everyone in tears.
My job is still great fun. The new honors choir has experienced great success and will be a stepping stone to making the schools choir program one of exellence. The honors choir and I have also had a lot of fun making up a challenging summer reading list. We picked 30 classics and I offered $100 to the student who could read all of them and pass a simple test when we return for the fall. A friend of mine from church loved the idea so much she offered another $100! Really, this kind of thing really fires me up!!
We have continued to spruce up our house...my favorite thing to do! The kichen now has recessed lighting, a new beadboard ceiling and molding, new colors and new appliances...whew! We put in a stackable washer and dryer on the second floor last summer and finnally got is hooked up this week...my rheumatoid arthritis makes trucking the laundry up 2 flights of stairs a bit difficult. Lot of little projects we finish when we have any extra $50 dollars here and there. I am truly thankful for our little place and couldn't love it more (well...maybe if it had just one more toilet...HA!)
Well, that's about all for this 6 months! I will be posting pictures in the next couple days so check back soon. Love to you all!

Merry Christmas to all! True to form, we've been crazy busy...too busy for blogging! We had a groundbreaking ceremony for Josh Shelly's new land this weekend which was amazing. It was great to see them both so amped up. It was my birthday today and my husband treated me to a new refigerator and stove (on a payment plan of course!!!!) Our old ones were on their last leg (and have been since 1980!!!). A bunch of girlfriends took me out for dinner which was just so refreshing- ya know, adult conversation. All of my students sang Happy Birthday to me which was so sweet. Then one of the boys asked me how old I was....when I answered his reply was an astonished, "That's how old MY mom is!" I could've died. Anywho...

There are many pictures here for your enjoyment. Some are from our trip to Amanda and Brendon's, some are of our Halloween celebration, some are of Emmy with Piper (who we sold to someone who wanted to deal with his potty training issues!), and the last are of the Grand Rapids Santa Claus parade which Elijah participated in with his karate class. My favorite picture is of Elijah holding his favorite person- Ephram. He has really taken to his as of late and it just makes me proud!
As a side note- to those of you who typically receive our Christmas picture, sorry! Time got away from us this year and it just didn't happen- oh well! Hopefully next year!

Hello again!

Yup- it's been 2 months and I know it! I even spoke the words "think I'm done bloggin'' to my sis. Obviously, I changed my mind. (One of my more annoying character traits....) Since my last post, things have been busy, busy, busy. I contracted a lovely case of mononucleosis that's been mysteriously passing around our church- ha ha. Let me just tell you, you DO NOT want this virus. It has seriously kicked my butt. I still don't feel like myself and it's been almost 3 months- ugh.(Needless to say most of the time I'm too tired at night to blog!) I also went back to work and the kids went back to school. I've really enjoyed my job this year and LOVE the new teacher I'm working with. I think we may actually have a choir we can take to state in the near future!!! Elijah is in 3rd grade, Emmy is in 1st, and Zeke started 3 yr. old preschool. Just writing "3rd grade" makes me feel old! How quickly my little boy is turning into a little man - I noticed how often he's absent in my most recent set of pictures; he's been hanging with Dad all fall at the local bar and grill watching OSU and the Indians and generally just being Jason's mini-me. He just wrote an article for school called "Why I Want to be a Pastor"... Gosh is he cute!!! Emmy learned how to ride a two-wheeler and FLYING through piano lessons. She is quite the little musical whiz and is already sightreading, playing with two hands, singing along when she plays.... They both make us so proud. Zeke is LOVING school and having fun hanging with JUST mom in the afternoons. He also has a new little mandolin he plays all the time- he even dances while he plays it- KILLER cute.
We also continue to do our best to help out Josh and Shelly as often as possible. I spend a couple days a week helping Shelly with the kids and whatever else she needs. I think it goes without saying that this is by far the biggest part of our life and we are all still trying to figure out what our roles need to be and how we can best help eachother. I won't reiterate all that's going on with them since I'm sure most of you read their blog religiously!!!
I've posted some pics of our last couple months - the first are from my good friend Carrie's wedding. She married Alex Lopez in a beautiful ceremony this August. The next are Zeke's first day of school and Emmy on her bike without training wheels. The rest are of our day on Saturday at the local pumpkin patch. Hope you all enjoy the pics of Ephram- he is REALLY getting chunky and full of spunk- what a little blessing he is!!!

Pray for Bryson

Hello blogger friends. I am writing you all with an urgent prayer request. Some of you know the Hummel and Osbourne families. Jason's parents are best friends with Charlie and Sue Osbourne and Jay grew up like a brother to all the Osbourne kids. Last night Jay's mom called crying asking us to pray for Bryson. Bryson is Nicole(Osbourne) and Beau Hummel's oldest child. He was badly injured last night in an accident with a lawn mower. Without going into too many details, he lost his leg above the knee. He is just a little 4 year old boy and he desperately needs our prayers, as do his parents, grandparents and younger siblings. He is currently at Columbus Children's Hospital in Ohio and I'm sure will be there for some time to come. JoEllen Hummel (Bryson's aunt) has current updates on her blog- hummelnest.blogspot.com. Please check them and encourage all you know to PRAY!!!!!! Thank you all.

Daddy Update

Thanks so much for your prayers! My dad is home and feeling good. He had a stress test yesterday and there wasn't anymore damage to his heart; it just showed the damage from the heart attack in January. They gave him the option of having a heart cath to see if he needed a stint and decided not to. The doctor said there was more risk in the surgery than not. So he is at home with strict instructions to figure out some good stress management! We all feel blessed to have him with us and pray for MANY more healthy years! Thanks again!

Prayer for Dad

Hey y'all. Just a quick post to ask for prayer. While Jason and I were in Chicago yesterday for Carrie Lindberg's wedding, I called my parent's house to check on my kiddos. My dad answered the phone and said he was having chest pains. He was home alone with my 3 kids while my mom was at Daybreak Church with Josh and Shelly. Of course, Mom's cell phone was broken and Shelly was running some errands during the second service. I finally got a hold of Shelly who did some quick thinking and sent a girlfriend of our over to Mom and Dad's. Dad drove himself to the hospital (after MUCH stubborn argument!!!) and my Mom met him there. Right now it looks like he's had another minor heart attack. (The first being when we were in Miami with Josh.) He is having a stress test right now which will tell the doctors what kinds of surgery he will need, if any. Please pray the doctors will know what to do and the solution will keep him healthy for many years to come!!!

Trip to April's

I count myself privileged to have two best friends. My mom always has fun teasing me when I say "my best friend...."; like I'm still in junior high! But it really is true. Amanda Aspenson and April Abbonizio have been my closest friends since I was 11. I met them both at Hastings camp- I met April when I was 11 and Amanda when I was 12. Here I am 32 years old and they are as close today as they were 20 years ago. I thank God everyday (well....almost!) for blessing me with such women as these.
So....this trip was to April's. She is married to a great man (Mike) and they have two girls, Audrey and Avery. Audrey and Emmy were born only days apart and even have the same haircut. They live in St. Louis, so Emmy and I took a road trip and spent the week at their house. We spent lots of time in their pool and even took the girls to Six Flags where Emmy had her first roller coaster ride. What an experience! April and I took an evening for just the mom's and went to the Cheesecake Factory and by 9:30 were out of things to do (I know, pathetic!!). We came home to find Mike and the girls STILL splashing in the pool so we decided to get in with them! It was so great to watch our girls bond and become friends just like their moms. They played horse and owner for longer than we thought humanly possible. Too cute. I realized there aren't any pictures of baby Avery, but trust me, she's a beauty! P.S THERE ARE MULTIPLE POSTS!!!! I couldn't get them to load backwards- so today starts from the post "Back in action" and ends with "trip to April's". Hope that makes sense!!!

Hilton Head July 2007

Our biggest trip this summer was to Hilton Head, SC with Jason's whole family. It really couldn't have gone any better. The kids were angelic the whole trip there and back (even WITHOUT Benadryl!) The house Marsha rented for the week was a mansion-really, no exaggeration. We spent many hours on the beach and in the pool. We took a day trip to Savannah, GA that was unforgettable. We took a trolley ride all around Savannah and then ate at Paula Dean's restaurant Lady and Sons. On July 4th we took the kids to the Hilton Head fireworks and Zeke entertained us with his adorable dancing-he can be such a little clown. We also took a day to explore the island and even saw a baby alligator. My favorite memory of the trip was of Jay and Elijah. We woke up one morning to something akin to a monsoon. Jason got it in his head to take a run with Elijah in the middle of it. They had a blast! There are a couple pictures of them coming back to the house totally soaked!!! It was an all around fun, relaxing, and memorable trip. Thanks Mom and Dad!!

Emmy graduates!

I know I'm seriously behind the 8 ball with this one, but I wanted to add some pictures of Emmy's kindergarten graduation. She looked absolutely beautiful this day and I was so proud to be her mom. The ceremony was awesome and I felt privileged have my kids at the Potter's House-it's our little utopia. So Emmy will be a big 1st grader next year and gone all day every day. It'll be just Zeke and me... WEIRD!!

Back in action!

Hello bloggers! Where have I been you ask? Well, for the better part of July I was traveling around the good ol' US of A. It's great to be back home and settled into our normal routine...well, as normal as it gets here in the Grate house. I'll be posting a few separate posts about our summer so don't forget to scroll down to see it all! More importantly, though, for those of you don't check my sister's blog (I know you're few and far between!), I have a good friend you needs prayer. Jason, Tiffany, and Hannah are a family who've been with us since the start of Greenhouse and have close friends through it all. They recently adopted a little boy named Isaac who was born at 24 weeks. Strangely enough, he is in the same NICU as our friends Burke and JoEllen's triplets! They will be staying in Canton, OH until Isaac is stable enough to transport back here to GR. JoEllen also has a link to their blog on her site (thanks Jo!) Their blog address is tiffanyandjason.blogspot.com and I have a link on my sidebar since I'm too computer illiterate to add it here! Don't forget to see the posts below!

Check out Kelley's blog!

Just a note to let you all know my sis-in-law is not a slacker! She has tons of great pics of our family on vacation that I thought you'd all like to see. We spent last week in Hilton Head, SC with Jason's whole family. I will post soon with more pictures, but until then, click on Kelley Grate on my sidebar to see my cute kids!

Spring 2007

I'd love to post about all the millions of pictures posted in the new slide show....but honestly, I'm just too darned tired from uploading them all! Hope you enjoy them and I'll post a new blog with actual words as soon as possible! Love to all our blogging friends and family. Don't forget to comment all my stalking friends..(you know who you are!!! :)))

Just a quick note to let y'all know I've not yet abandoned Bloggerland. I was talking to my sis-in-law Kelley and I think she was a bit concerned :-). Truly, I've not had the energy to summon for posting. I know, horribly lame excuse. But it's just true. Also- I continue to read everyone's posts, but am unable to comment. Why you ask? I've been using my mom's old laptop which she dumped an entire cup of coffee on. Need I say more? The letter L is permanently non-functioning and as this letter is required for all of my sign-ins, no comments from me! I know, so sad.... I'll continue to read and hopefully post again some day soon with LOADS of pictures of our insane life. Love you all and keep praying for our little family, I know you are.