Block Print

This is a print that Madison made herself, basically carving away at a few blocks, dipping those blocks in ink and repeating the pattern on a larger poster board.  This is a fairly large creation, but it turned out really well.  She's having a great time at art camp, doing a few more complicated things, but she's very much into them, and very focused.  It's great to see her express her creativity in all things, but she certainly loves art.

Madison has been also working on a diorama at art camp, the basic idea of it being a "room that she could design herself."  It's a "dream room," and I think she's creating what her ultimate dream bedroom would look like, including a balcony.  We'll have to see about that here at the house.  Last night, Daddy dreamed we had moved to a newer and bigger house with a newly designed room.  Perhaps we'll move to one that Madison can design for us as an architect.  She's got the core gifts needed for architecture, a creative spirit and a gift with math.  Perhaps that would be something we could introduce her to.

Tonight we had KidPak, and it is one of the last ones we have before all the kids graduate to the next grade level.  This is a big deal because Madison is graduating out of the KidPak age level.  It's something I've sort of dreaded, the idea of Madison growing up and out of KidPak.  But as it approaches, I believe God helps with that transition too.  You miss the old days, but there are so many memories in between, and so many memories still to be made.  The first day of KidPak Jr. for Madison was August 12, 2012.  This blog being so old, we posted that information on that day, a big first moment.  Who'd have thought it would go by so fast?

Daddy spoke tonight, and it was a message about the Promised Land and the spies' report, as recorded in Numbers 13:33.  The Tribe of Ephraim was the most courageous, as their name suggests they bloom wherever there is adversity.  So it would stand to reason that Joshua and Caleb were "all in" when God said the Promised Land could be theirs.  They knew God would bless them wherever they went.  And Daddy tied that to the upcoming school year, which is a place of uncertainty for all these kids.  They might thinking they're as big as grasshoppers compared to the older kids they'll be joining.  But they will be blessed wherever they go, so they can be brave and have courage.  God is with them each step.

In Numbers 13:33, many of the Israelites were seeing themselves as grasshoppers.  While they were seeing bugs, Joshua and Caleb were seeing past that to something wonderful.  Sometimes you have to get the bugs off the windshield to see the horizon.

Madison will stay in KidPak after this, of course, as a helper.  She's been throwing out all the different things she'd like to do to help out, from taking pictures to putting things in chairs to of course acting on stage.  Many other kids are just like her, staying in KidPak to help out.  And that's a wonderful thing.

We did some writing today, and a little bit of driving back and forth, but it was a good day - a humid day too.  Staying indoors is much more preferable lately, almost the same as it is in winter when it's colder outside.  These outdoor temperatures wear you down!