Welcome....Here's a glimpse of our happenings!

The verses that have REALLY spoken to me (Sarah) lately....



"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." Matthew 7:24-25



Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. I Peter 5:8-9



From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. For in him we live and move and have our being. As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.' Acts 17:26-28



May the words of my mouth and the mediation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock, and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14



So be careful to do what the Lord your God has commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or to the left. Walk in all the way that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess. Deuteronomy 5:32-33



God, our God, will take care of the hidden things but the revealed things are our business. It's up to us and our children to attend to all the terms in this Revelation. Deuteronomy 29:29 (The Message)

About the Friesen's....

We are Marc, Sarah, Luke, and Kate Friesen. We were married June 5, 2004. We have one son, born July 21, 2008, named Luke Andrew -- now 4 years old. We also have a daughter named Kate Christine -- born June 6, 2012. Marc is working at Cessna as a Senior Accountant, and Sarah stays home full-time with Luke. Sarah also gets to work very part-time at home for Graber Backhoe -- an excavation company AND VERY part-time at our church. We LOVE being a part of Grace Community Church here in Newton, KS. We lead a Community Life Group of other wonderful couples. Marc thoroughly enjoys long-distance running and Taekwondo. Sarah thoroughly enjoys walking -- especially when the weather is nice to take Luke and/or out in the stroller. Thanks for reading our blog!

Sunday, February 1, 2015

Sibling Differences....

On one of the incredibly nice days last week, I took the kiddos to the zoo after picking Luke up from the bus stop and eating lunch.

Now, I'm well aware that our going to the zoo is nothing new; therefore, my objective of this post really isn't about the zoo. It's about our two kids, as siblings, and the differences between them.

I feel like, as with most of our friends in the same "life boat" we're in right now (you know -- married with young children), we have two children who are different.  I would not call our children polar opposites, but I would say they are indeed on different sides of the spectrum.

Recently, Marc had to write a very *brief* autobiography about himself (obviously as that is the definition of an autobiography).  He wrote briefly about our marriage, our kiddos, and his job & hobbies.  The description of Luke was "a serious kindergartner".  I honestly don't remember exactly how he described Kate (and I can't ask Marc at this point because he's already gone to bed), but I can say for sure that the word "serious" was not used to describe her.

Marc & I are both firstborn children (Marc's an "only" even).  Luke is obviously a firstborn.  As I have stated on Facebook AND in person, Kate is a second born child with whom we sometimes don't know what to do with.  In her short 2 1/2 years of life, we can most definitely say she is much less serious.  She is much more free-spirited and joyful appearing.  She appears to have a lot more ambition (though I know appearances can be deceiving).

Back to the zoo last week --

Upon entering the zoo, I told the kids, "Let's take some pictures of you two together".  Luke thought that sounded like a good idea.  Kate, of course, was up for anything in the familiarity of the zoo...I ended up getting some great pics of the kiddos together, and though I didn't plan this, I ended up with some great pics which I think accurately illustrate their personalities.  Count how many times Kate's mouth is opened -- Ha!

But first -- I did get a GREAT pic of the kids at "Subway" -- right before heading to the zoo that day....


Finally -- the zoo....






I am completely and utterly loving this next pic of Luke with the "forced smile".  (The wallaby is right behind him)...


Luke really likes the anteater, and admittedly, I do also find the anteater to be an interesting part of God's great creation....The anteater is often hiding; therefore, when it's out, excitement follows.  But again, seriousness defined right here, folks! (And, I'm realizing *slowly* that Luke is whom God created him to be.  This seriousness in him is something he comes by honestly...insert clearing of throat here).



I'm not going to post the next picture I have in my collection.  It's one of the kiddos (with Kate's mouth open) in front of the rhino.  The rhino is not exactly doing something that would improve the look of this blog, and quite frankly, I'm too lazy at this point to edit it.  So, just trust me on this one that the pic does indeed epitomize our kids' personalities....

Moving on to more of Kate's wide-opened mouth and Luke's seriousness -- Ha!



Even the "selfie" shows personality traits....


In this next pic, you can see all of the construction happening on our zoo's new and upcoming elephant exhibit!


Kate was on a mission at this point.  Luke decided he wanted to see the entire remaining part of the zoo through binoculars -- even when walking.  I assured Luke that he could do that now, but in a couple of months, when the weather turns nice again (for the season) and there are more people at the zoo, the "binocular walking" wouldn't be happening anymore.





There are days when my curiosity gets the best of me, and I become a bit irrational with anxiety.  I worry about what this vast and sometimes ugly (yet strikingly beautiful) world will off our kiddos and their personalities.  And then, I'm promoted by the Holy Spirit to spend time in Psalm 139.  These kiddos of our's were created with a purpose in this world.

I simply must trust God to do His work through them and their personalities.

I must trust that He will take care of them.

I must be completely obedient to the command of teaching them in the way they should go (excellent readings in Deuteronomy and Proverbs).