Basketball

The basketball season has come to a close for the Beck family. Jamie's team finished up this week. They did really well this season, 6th in the Fraser Valley. It was lots of fun to go to the games and cheer them on. I have to be honest, I am glad that it is done, for now. It was a long season and with us going to most, if not all, of the games, the season was very tiring.....but worth it.
The boys really liked it when Jamie's team would finish and no other games would start because then they could take a ball and play. Aidan has gotten better and better as the season has gone on. It is fun to watch him grow and get stronger.

Jaxon loves to try. He enjoys dribbling and giving the ball to someone else so they can make a basket. Aidan works so hard to get the ball into the 10 foot high hoop. His concentration is amazing. His tongue is always sticking out and his focus is completely on the hoop. The first time he got the ball in the hoop he was so pumped. The grin on his face was priceless.
I can't wait to see when they actually play on a team or go to a basketball program/camp. Oh the fun these two will have.
The last time, he got the ball in the hoop 7 times! Let's just say, he couldn't stop talking about it.

We continue to live and breathe sports in the Beck house. I wonder what will be next......probably soccer. Aidan loves to play soccer and we have realized that he is the age that we can put him in a community league. We asked him if he would like to do something like that, it was no question. His answer was, "YES".

Soccer mom, here I come!

SNOW!

We have finally gotten snow this past weekend and week; which means that we are trying to spend lots of time playing in it. On the weekend the snow was perfect for packing so the boys and I made our first snowman. Believe it or not, Aidan rolled the bottom ball for the snowman all by himself.

And of course, we couldn't play in the snow without having a snowball fight. I did join in the fight but I tried to take some pictures before they starting pelting me with snow. Not many of them actually turned out....oh well.

Jaxon had the opportunity to go sledding with the daycare that he goes to....but we have not gone yet as a family. Sadly, we don't even have a sled. I know, I know. Not good that we don't own a sled....but we will get one eventually.

To be honest, I can't believe we actually have this much snow. It is really pretty and it reminds me so much of growing up in Michigan but I am not expecting it to last too long. It never seems to.

It is suppose to stay cold and then snow again tonight and tomorrow but I believe after Wed it will start warming up and then we will mostly say goodbye to the snow.

Oh yes, and what is the perfect ending to playing in the snow??? Hot chocolate! Yes, we have been consuming our fair share of that as well. For now, we will enjoy the snow and the hot chocolate! Cuz, there's nothing quite like it!

Christmas Thoughts.....

I do not think it is possible to relay in words or pictures how truly full this Christmas has been. We were able to spend two weeks with Jamie's family leading up to Christmas and then my family came on the 23rd and just left on New Year's Eve. My heart is full with the memories that we shared and I am reminded again of the bond that binds family. Whether you live near or far....you pick up where you left off and enjoy the moments you have.(a certain cousin wanted in on the family picture....so cute)

I cannot possibly pick from the hundreds of picture that were taken between our families. It would be near impossible. But what I can share is that I am blessed! I am blessed with loving parents and a brother who LOVE me, my handsome man and my boys. Who through miles make it seem easy even though I know it is hard. And I am blessed to have married into a wonderful in-law family that has taken me in as one of their own daughters. Aunties and Unkies that LOVE ALL the cousins with wreckless abandon. The friendships with siblings and the cousin love that is so evident. The crazy families that we are, making the best of the moments that we have; creating memories that I hope our children will remember forever. As I look at all the pictures....this is what I remember.
I hope that you all know that we LOVE you and enjoyed all the crazy fun and memories that we were able to make!

Giving Thanks

I have been reading a book this fall called "One Thousand Gifts". The whole idea behind the book is to live in the present moment and to have a heart of thanksgiving for everything. The author was challenged to write down 1000 things she was thankful for. She took the challenged and it changed her life.....for the better. As I have reflected on her words I am reminded again how important our mindset is everyday and when we focus on being thankful....it brings us back to Him and how we view life completely changes. This is not to say that you still don't have "bad" days but when you get into the habit of looking for and recognizing things in your life to be thankful for.....good habits are formed.

As I continue to move through this life I am more aware of ALL that I have to be thankful for. Back at the end of September we had some family pictures taken by Pinball Photography. She did an amazing job capturing our family. It is funny how great pictures help create a heart of gratitude for those that you love. I love now looking up on my walls and seeing my boys and how she captured them.

My handsome man and my boys are just a few of the many things I know I have to be thankful for. As we move closer to the Christmas season where we are intentional to spend time with family and as American Thanksgiving is just a couple of days away it is easy to think on the things that are blessings in our lives.

My hope and prayer is that even after the festivities of Christmas are behind us I will continue to look for the daily things in my life that I can be thankful for. There are so many things...we are truly blessed.

I want to look at life with a heart of thanks. I believe that it is possible and I believe that when we truly have this as central in our lives it brings us back to a focus that is solely on Him and what He has done and what we can do to bring Him glory.

My heart is full with blessings that He has given me...and I want to continue to look and see what He has for me everyday. I think it is nearly impossible to look at the pictures of my boys and not SEE and be THANKFUL!

Change is Good

I have always been one to welcome change. I find it fun, exciting and challenging. This summer I was presented with the possibility that change could be on the horizon for me in regards to my job with World Vision. I have been blessed with my part-time job with World Vision but it looked like it might be coming a close. When this came up Jamie and I started talking about what my next job might look like. I had always wanted to work in the school district as a TA (Teacher's Assistant) or a Youth Care Worker. We thought it might be wise to apply to be on the Casual List for TA and YCW so that when my World Vision job was no more I would have my foot in the door.

I handed in my application to the school board in the summer but did not hear anything until the beginning of October. Jamie had warned me that the process can take a long time so I needed to just be patient (not always my strong suit). I got a phone on a Friday to schedule my interview for the next week Tuesday (two weeks ago). I was nervous since I had not had a job interview in awhile. I remember praying asking the Lord to calm my nerves and to help me to be open, honest and real. The interview went great. I felt really good about it but I also felt at peace that I laid everything out there and if this was not my time everything would work out fine.

The next day, Wednesday, I got a phone call letting me know that they wanted to hire me but that they had a FULL-TIME position for me. YIKES! I was absolutely thrilled and terrified at the same time. I am pretty sure I walked around in a daze for the rest of the day. The rest of the day, I spent trying to work out the details of daycare for Jaxon. Thankfully, I had already talked with someone from our church who was willing and ready to take him for me but we were both thinking it might be 2-3 days a week. She was willing to take him for 4 and Jamie's mom was willing to take him for 1. After talking with Jamie about it more in detail that night I phoned on Thursday and told them I would take the job. That meant, I started Monday!

I had my moment of feeling guilty that I was doing this to Jaxon since Aidan got to have me home for 5 years but then after I had my moment I knew that Jax would be fine. He is our child that doesn't mind change (like me). He goes with the flow and change doesn't seem to phase him. I also knew that God was the one that orchestrated all of this from the beginning and I knew that He would be with us during this time of change/transition.
Monday morning came and Jaxon got ready and was excited to head off to Mrs. Tammy's house. Jamie took him on the way to school. When I went to pick him up after school he didn't want to leave! I was so happy! He has had a great week and is loving it!

All of us did great during this first week of change and I can only truly thank the Lord for this. He has provided everything that we need. Life is going to look different for us now but it is a good kind of different. My prayer for our boys is that they will learn that change is good and that life will always be filled with change and we need to learn to adapt and move with it.

So Proud

A couple of weeks ago Jamie finally finished what he started last September.....is Master's of Education. I am so proud of him and what he has accomplished. When we started this journey several years ago he never thought he would pursue the Master's. However, I think I knew all along that he would eventually get it.

Last fall/winter was long and hard for us with him gone every other weekend to SFU but we made it through and now we are on the other side.....FINISHED! It was so fun for me to be able to go with him to his graduation and watch him complete what very few ever receive.

It was an outdoor ceremony which meant it was cold up on the mountain but it was a very impressive ceremony. What we started we were able to finish together. Originally, we thought that we would bring the boys with us but it was a very long day and I think the boys were definitely happier staying home. The boys would have gone crazy; would have gotten bored and cold....and then I would have not been able to enjoy it.
When Jamie was doing his Master's work I didn't really understand the topic/focus he had but when it was all done I understood much more and was so impressed. His topic was how to motivate students in the area of academics along with using technology. He learned so much and is using what he learned in his own classroom.
For those of you who know Jamie, you will know that he truly does has a passion to motivate, encourage and challenge his students. The day he graduated with his Master's was just another proud moment for me watching him continue to grow. If you can't tell, I am completely proud of my handsome man! He isn't going to like that I took time to gloat about it here....but too bad. He deserves it!

Kindergarten Here we Come

Aidan has finished his two half days of kindergarten and begin full day everyday tomorrow. I keep thinking about it and have those butterflies that I felt when I went to school. I am so excited for him and I am proud of who he has become. The half day's of school have gone well and he has loved every moment.

He is going in a bit blind as he knows no one in his class but to be honest I think that is best. He has the chance to make new friends. And is learning quickly how to make friends. He has already come home and talked about his new friend, Jason. I am excited to meet him and his mom and/or dad. Thankfully, Aidan is familiar with his school as we helped out with the breakfast program last year. And his teacher is someone he met last year. I really think that having him get familiar with the school last year has helped him this year.

Just in the last couple of weeks I feel like he has made HUGE strides for himself in growing up. He seems to be a bit more self-confident, comfortable with leaving us, and able to express his emotions in a positive way. I cannot tell you how much I LOVE this boy!

As I write this, Aidan is at school for his first FULL day. He was so excited to go and didn't seem to struggle to leave me this morning....I was thrilled. I know this is the first day and we could very well have more mornings of struggles but I am going to take this one day at a time and hopefully we will continue to make positive strides.

My prayer for you my Aidan, is that you will be a good friend to those in your class. Always looking out for those around you. Being helpful for your teachers and classmates. That your self-confidence will continue to grow. That compassion, mercy and love will flow from you. That you will make some great friends and have a sense of belonging with your friends and school. This is your school now a place where you will be challenged and encourage and where you can be an encouragement to those around you. Oh yeah, and if you learn academically along the way...that is good too ;)