Day 191 Those/These were/are the days.

Sometimes, I really miss making physical scrapbooks.  The pictures hold so many memories, and I loved putting just the right embellishments on each page and writing the stories down.  I stopped making them when my mom got sick 6 years ago.  I've always taken pictures and tried to write stories down in notebooks.  But now that we have digital scrapbooks and blogs, it's hard to get back to the physical ones.  I haven't gotten rid of my supplies, because I do want to finish Keturah's book, and maybe get one done for Abishai.  But I am so grateful for the digital world, too.  I'm glad I resurrected this blog and am sharing our journey with you.  I bring this up because I brought out the scrapbook with pictures from my trip to CIY (Christ in Youth conference) 18 years ago.  And of course it held all kinds of other memories.  Keturah had sung some songs at camp this week that, ironically enough, one of them, I was introduced to way back at CIY.  I even have the CD somewhere! The song is "Your Everlasting Love (is Higher, Higher, Higher than the Sky)."  So, we made lots of connections today, well, I did, and the kids humored me.

But there's always new memories made like listening and watching the 3 of them, Justin, Keturah, and Abishai puttering around the house talking to one another, throwing balls around, chasing each other up and down the hallway, etc.  I have missed that.  There were fights, too, of course, but seeing Abishai's eyes light up when Sissy or Brother come into his room to pick him up out of his crib from naptime is all worth it.  They love his cuteness and will spend time with him and his toys, sometimes enjoying his toys too much! Lol!

So, here's a couple of pictures from today, and a few from yesteryear.

The kids WANTED to go outside and skate! Sweet! They were a little hyper today, so out we went.  I just wish I could keep little man away from the middle of roads.  He wants to pretend he's a car or something.  So, he needs constant watching.

Look! Girl toys!  We got some of Keturah's toys out today.  And we are missing her current Barbies.  Hm,...

Abishai LOVES the big vacuum, so I'm glad we found out toy one!

Sissy helping little buba.

My little crafty girl.  Just like me.

Ok, ready?  Here's a trip down memory lane 17-18 years ago (really? 18 years?)

This is the best! When I said, "Look at this! It's Grandpa! And Grandma Howell!" Keturah said, "Grandpa looks so young!" Bwahahahaha!  Yes, he does, but so does everyone else.  We just passed down the shirt Jared is wearing to Benaiah.  Crazy!

Our CIY group in 1998.  Yes, me with bangs.  (I don't know why there is a white tag in the middle).

My first bulletin from ICCC.  It was HUGE!

Aw, so young!

Yup, young! They had moved the Busbys out to Massachusetts and then they let me put my stuff on the semi for me to go to college.  Summer of 1999. 

I was just talking about our trip to Kings' Island when we were dating!  And now I await Jared and Benaiah back from the same place.

Yes, Chad, Matt, Jared, and Christi (Meeks) McEwen!

Me! Wow, skinny, in my dorm room!

Obsessed with Christian music artists, horses, and Michael W. Smith!  I still have all those posters, too.  Sometimes, the sticky tack would get loose and the posters would fall on me. This was at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, IN, where Justin will be NEXT WEEK for CIY Mix! It is neat that life has come full circle.