Whether or not it’s voluntary (most of the time it’s not), the little sister in this family supports her brothers almost daily by attending their sporting games and practices.

I sweeten the deal by agreeing to let her play at a nearby park, if there is one.

Or we walk around the sports fields, practicing ballet moves.

This offsets the countless hours she spends sitting in bleachers–cheering her brothers (as well as counting down the game clock).

I do pray that she grows up learning to support others and hold them up, like a pillar is to a palace.

Our daughters will be like pillars
carved to adorn a palace (Psalm 144:12)

It means a little more when your brother has pledged to defend it.

The youth football program we had been a part of for several years closed its doors at the end of last year, which led us to look for other options. Only Peter was to enroll for the season, for Jeremy–after much thought and counsel-seeking–opted to play fall baseball.

We decide on the Wheaton Rams, after we heard positive things about the program and learned that practices and games were within a relatively close proximity to our house.

It was kind of a slow start for Peter, since he left good friends in order to join this new team, where he didn’t know anyone. But he was determined to get to know his teammates and now feels part of the team.

His coaches call him Pistol (short for Pistol Pete).

It’s pretty funny to hear them call out, “Hey, Pistol, get out there and hit somebody!”

He is an intense kid and has adjusted well to the change.

He was assigned #31, which was my cousin Ronnie’s number in high school. Every week he dons it, and I think about Ronnie–the all-state linebacker from Wheaton. Pistol wears the number proudly!

The two youngest ones are learning Anatomy and Physiology in Science this year. Last week, they learned about the importance of calcium and vitamin D, and that the best means of getting enough are through drinking milk and being in sunlight.

The moment science was finished, they scurried inside. Jeremy called me over to the kitchen, announcing that he not only was drinking milk, but drinking it in the sunlight coming through the window!

Ruth followed suit.

There shall be no rickets from lack of vitamin D in this household.

This big guy turned 16 years old this week.

With his hard work attitude and subtle, clever sense of humor, he is a delight to have around the house.

We celebrated with a steak dinner, which is a special treat around here.

I pray that God will continue to grow Derek in wisdom and faith.

P.S. A flashback picture

On Monday, we discussed over breakfast how we wanted to spend our final day with Jake. He had a few suggestions, one of them being a challenging but beautiful hike up Eagles Peak near USAFA. We agreed that that sounded fun. We didn’t know anything about the trail, except that Jake had done it a couple weeks earlier and loved it.

It started out nice and easy (actually, looking back, I don’t think the trail had even begun yet). How difficult could it be to climb to the top?

Ruth and I started off picking flowers and stopping to look at pretty rocks along the way.

It wasn’t long before the trail narrowed and became steeper with rocks and roots embedded throughout.

Ruthie insisted on using a walking stick; however, once the trail steepened, it became more of a hinderance than a help. So Jake declared himself her Sherpa and held onto that stick in one hand and guided her with the other.

As for the other two boys, I was thankful they opted to wear bright orange shirts that morning. There were times they were so far ahead of us that all I could spot was a dot of orange in the distance.

They were like seasoned hikers.

The final push to the summit required us to scramble on boulders. This little six year-old surprised me with her determination and agility.

A daunting sight!

But once we all made it to the top, we found that the hard work it took to get there was so worth it.

The view was spectacular! Jake and his new home:

After hiking down the mountain (which proved to be much more difficult than climbing up),

we ate dinner and had a teary farewell as we dropped Jake off until Thanksgiving.

Until Saturday morning, we felt like a jigsaw puzzle that was missing a crucial piece. Due to school and football commitments, Derek stayed back here until the weekend. We were extremely thankful for the hospitality of friends and family! He flew out early Saturday, and we all met Jake at the AF football game.

Jake was quite happy to reunite with his brother/buddy.

He’s been working at recruiting his brother ever since arriving at school.

The game was fun to watch–the cadets have all sorts of goofy traditions. One such tradition is that each doolie (freshman) switches one shoulder board with an upperclassman. Jake needed some assistance from Grandma.

Ruthie showed her allegiance to the team with some face paint.

Lots of meals shared together! We were grateful to have found a quiet room off the hotel’s lobby where we could gather.

Sunday morning, we went to church at the USAFA chapel. It was nice to see where Jake had attended church during basic training when he had to stay on campus.

Before heading in, the skies were threatening rain. As we sat inside, it poured, and by the time we walked outside, the sun was shining.

We took advantage of the sun and the fact we were all together to snap some family photos.

Next, we walked around Jack’s Valley, where Jake spent the second part of basic training. Though it was the most difficult thing he’s ever done in his life, Jake loved his time there and was eager to share it with us.

While the basic cadets marched the 5.5 mile route back in July, this time we rode a comfy bus.

The beginning of the assault course:

We kept saying that it was like a giant playground–the kids climbed every obstacle they could.

We adults even had fun.

Jake was full of stories from beginning to end, and also took much time to instruct his siblings on how to get through the various courses.

When we returned to the main campus, we took a walk down memory lane, as Derek saw the same planes he had posed next to during our visit to USAFA 11 years ago!

Finally, we went back to Jake’s dorm room so Derek could see it. Squadron 22 are the Raptors:

Like all of us, Derek enjoyed trying on gear.

The two days we were all together as a family flew by in the blink of an eye. It was so sad to say goodbye to Mom, Dad and Derek Sunday night. But at least they left us laughing as they sped off in their rental Dodge Charger!

I learned something about Jeremy last weekend. He’s turning out to be a pretty good photographer. He seemed to have an eye for the perfect shot–how to frame it, and where to stand in order to capture the best light.

I caught him snapping several pictures.

We’d be walking from one building to another, and suddenly I’d realize Jeremy had paused to snap a photo.

This happened often.

Some examples of his work, unedited:

After the parade, we spent the day exploring the campus. Our first impression was that Jake does A LOT of walking during his day. Some in our group were counting steps, amazed at how high the numbers got.

Jake’s first day at school was spent being yelled at for anything and everything. He demonstrated for us, only he couldn’t keep a straight face.

We toured the academic building and met his chemistry teacher. Of the few chemistry teachers I know, they are all a bit…eccentric, and this one did not disappoint. He is one of Jake’s favorite professors because of his excitement for the subject. He led a demonstration in the lecture hall, where he showcased all sorts of interesting chemical reactions. For one, he roamed the crowd to choose a helper. Much to Ruthie’s surprise (and somewhat dread), he picked her to come down to the front. She did a great job!

We saw Jake’s math classroom.

Everyone took a turn trying on the service hat.

We all ate at lunch at Mitchell Hall (affectionately known as Mitch’s), where 4000 cadets are fed in 20 minutes. Thankfully on this day, we had the freedom to linger and chat for a while as we sat with the families of two of Jake’s friends.   Jake invited his brothers to sit with him and the two friends at a separate table.

Next, it was time to check out the dorm room.

Cadets are encouraged to squeeze in some pull-ups whenever they walk past the bar. Jeremy gave it a try.

It was so nice to sit and chat in the spit-spot room. I made the mistake of leaning on Jake’s mattress since seating was limited, and he quickly reminded me that it’s best not to touch the bed. If he doesn’t sleep in it, I certainly shouldn’t be sitting on it.

Jeremy tried out the rubber ducky rifle.

The newly issued flight suit!

We then walked around looking at the model planes. Grandpa enjoyed reading about and describing them to the boys.

At the end of our long weekend at the Air Force Academy, one of the kids said, “This has been the best vacation!”

I hadn’t thought of our trip out to Colorado Springs for parents’ weekend as a vacation until then. But now that we’re home and reflecting on our time there, it really was a great vacation!

Some of us drove out, leaving early Thursday morning. The vehicle felt awfully bare without the two oldest children in attendance.

Knowing we’d be away for four school days, we did bring schoolwork along.

Algebra in Iowa!

After 14 hours, we arrived in CO Springs. We’ve become quite the road warriors; for the most part the hours passed quickly with little to no complaining.

The complaining was heard the next day, however, when we woke up to a hazy sky and wet, cold temperatures.

We weren’t sure what to expect crowd-wise at the Friday parade, so we were sure to get there early. We arrived an hour and half early to stake out seats. But because of the frigid weather, the stands didn’t fill up until shortly before the parade started. Live and learn.

Still smiling…

The entire cadet wing lined up to march onto the field.

We saw Jake in his service dress for the first time.

After the parade, families stormed the field to meet their cadets.

My parents–who flew in on Thursday–had already spent some time with Jake the night before, and their reunion was pretty special. This day was the first time the three younger siblings had seen their biggest brother since June. They were bursting with excitement.

All we were missing was Derek. He had school and football commitments to keep and was scheduled to arrive the next day…

It’s a close call for the sister in this family. For years we’ve known about her love of dogs. This extends to other animals as well, such as birds. She found this fledgling stuck in a parking lot a couple weeks ago.

She was told not to touch it, so she picked it up with a stick and moved it to safer ground.

When we visited my cousin and his new daughter, Ruth appeared to be more excited about their dog than the baby.

But when given an opportunity to hold the sweet one-week-old, she gladly held her in her arms.

Hmm, little people can be cuddly and fun to play with too. This fact was confirmed when we celebrated a friend’s second birthday, and Ruth was reluctant to leave when the party was over.

Not only that, but the two-year-old was reluctant to have her leave.

This year, Peter began what Jeremy likes to call “big boy science” with a thick textbook, tests and experiments.

Yesterday was the first day of experiments, and the younger two were excited to put down their own schoolwork for a while and observe.

And he greatly enjoyed teaching them what he had learned.

I thought Jake would be glad to know that Peter is going through the same General Science book that he had gone through, so I texted him a portion of the video.

He got back right away with his own science experiment from that day:

What Peter can look forward to, perhaps?

We are off to the races for the 2016-17 school year. Like last year, we began in stages.

First off the blocks was this kid from 1,030 miles away, who has been in class for two weeks already. Although this picture was not taken on his first day of school, I like it so much that I am declaring it as his first-day-of-school photo.

Next to get underway were these students.

Derek: 10th grade
Peter: 7th grade
Jeremy: 5th grade
Ruth: 1st grade

And, alas, nostalgia got the best of me and thus we pulled out Jake’s fathead for old times sake.

As you can see, Molly can hardly contain her excitement over the school year ahead!

This picture has been on my phone lock screen for a few months.

The other day, I heard giggling in the back seat of the car. I looked out my window and saw this:

These kids will do anything for a laugh.

We dropped Jake off at the Air Force Academy June 30. Originally, we were not going to see him until Labor Day weekend. But after nearly six weeks of very limited communication, we were itching to see him earlier. Well, we made an uncharacteristically (for at least one of us) spontaneous move and flew out to Colorado to watch the Acceptance Day parade, knowing we would only be able to spend 2 hours with him.

First, we spotted him from afar.

Acceptance Day is significant because it marks the official acceptance of the freshmen (fresh off of basic training) into the cadet wing. The parade was full of symbolism. The freshmen stood at one end of the field, facing the sophomores, juniors and seniors at the other end of the field. Then squadron by squadron, the freshmen marched toward their new cadet squadron.

All 40 squadrons then marched past the school’s superintendent and other leaders. Jake is in squadron 22: the Raptors. To spot him in the video, he is third row from back, on the side closest to the camera.

Once the parade was over, the announcer told parents we were free to meet our cadets on the parade field and observe them have their shoulder boards put on. We didn’t waste any time!

It was quite an emotional reunion–all three of us crying and hugging! We caught up with his classmates and watched the upperclassmen put on the shoulder boards.

Some things haven’t changed–Jake is given a hard time about his height wherever he goes. One cadre hoisted another up so he could reach Jake’s shoulders,

then they just told him to stoop down.

We were able to meet some of his new friends, and in some cases, their parents. This was important to this mama.

We were pleasantly surprised to find out that Jake was allowed to show us his room. Walking on the right side of the hall…

Doors remain open at all times until bedtime.

We were blown away by how fastidious this once–how shall I put it–lackadaisical child had become in a few weeks. We pulled out a sleeping bag from home so he would have some cushion as he sleeps on the floor each night. As we pulled it out of the bag, hair from our beloved shedding dog fell out, and Jake–without batting an eye–rushed over to his cabinet, pulled out a lint roller, and rolled the hair off of his pants.

He even does hospital corners!

Jim enjoyed the organized closet.

We relished every minute of our short time with Jake, and have no regrets on making our impromptu trip to Colorado Springs.

With the change in family dynamics, as well as the imminency of his sophomore year and all that it involves, this guy has been more introspective lately. He enjoys spending his time in solitude either outside with a fishing pole in hand or at the keyboard in the basement.

Ruthie looks forward to the start of her brothers’ new sport seasons; to her, new teams mean new friends. First, she looks for girlfriends. And if she doesn’t find any, she looks for friends of the canine sort.

This particular nine-month-old German Shepherd took quite a liking to Ruth. Off the leash, he followed her everywhere and retrieved every stick she threw.

We’ve had a smattering of home maintenance jobs that have been saved for the summer, when the laborers are off of school.

This week we are staining the fence.

Derek prepared for the staining by powerwashing every slat. It was a dirty job, but someone had to do it.

With four workers, we anticipated the staining to take two to three days.

We underestimated the determination of these workers, for the entire fence was finished in one day!

They parsed out sub-jobs to one another; the boys were each responsible for staining certain portions of the fence, while Ruth had the important job of brushing the dirt off the bottom, then getting down on the ground to stain the bottom.

The end result is beautiful!

The second part of Jake’s basic training has taken place on the field, so to speak, in a place called Jack’s Valley. The basics have been tested daily physically, mentally and emotionally. They take part in things such as an obstacle course, an assault course, experiencing what tear gas feels like, and shooting automatic weapons.

Jake’s letter home reported that he had just returned from the firing range that day, having enjoyed it. The fact that he did well was no surprise to us; in fact, it led my mind to recall all the target practice he’s had to this point.

From BB guns

to bow and arrow

to today.

We experienced a major thunderstorm the other day, with one lightning bolt after another crashing nearby. It was both spectacular and terrifying at the same time, knowing the immense power of the lightning and how very little control we had over where it hit.

Derek spotted billowing black smoke after one such lightning strike about a block away. We learned later that a home down the street was struck and started on fire.

Thankfully, no one was hurt. However, between the damage from fire, smoke and water, the house is a total loss.

It is a heartbreaking sight. After walking over to see the house, we returned home and had a good talk about treasures. Peter said that seeing the house reminded him of a Bible passage they had just talked about in Sunday School from Matthew 5:

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

We have been praying for the family of the home every day, that God will provide for them and comfort them; keeping in mind that our own possessions could be gone today without warning.