just the sells

Summer Update

2009-08-18T03:27:00.000-07:00

Before:After: Before:After:

Well, it's been a long summer and we've gotten alot done. Above are before and after pictures of what was our office/guest room located in what probably was an attic on the third floor of our house. When we moved it, it was drywalled and carpeted. We barely used it except for when guests came and as we were thinking of moving Scooter out of our bedroom and there wasn't room for his bed in the boy's room, we figured "why not go up?" So we did. There is now a ladder from the boy's room on the 2nd floor up to their loft/sleeping area on the third. They love it and there's plenty of room down on the 2nd floor for scooter (you can see his mattress up against the wall on the right).

Another major thing I got done this summer was the treehouse.

We are now on vacation at our state park that we go to every summer. There's no internet here, so I drive around the town with my laptop open, looking for unsecured networks I can freeload off of. Jonas woke up early this morning and we didn't want him waking the rest of the kids, so he and I went for a drive. He ended up falling back to sleep and I decided to post on our blog.

Enjoy the pictues.

Joel

My new haircut

2009-07-09T10:20:00.000-07:00

HERE WE GO!

AFTER A SHOWER...

And finally, after a trim from Karen.

Our Family Trip to the Delaware Water Gap

2009-06-30T17:46:00.000-07:00

Just thought you might like to see some pictures of
our recent trip to the Delaware Water Gap. Enjoy...

Joel

looking for a good laugh?

2009-06-10T20:24:00.000-07:00

i'll be painfully honest here :),
i've never been coordinated, or even close.
but, i love the way i feel if i exercise,
and i love my incredibly coordinated little sister.
not only am i blessed to have her as a tenant
(and countless other roles in my life),
she is also my exercise partner.
now, you won't laugh at her... you'll be in awe, and maybe a little envious
(as i am) of how easily she follows along.
but me... feel free to laugh as you imagine me in this class.
check out the youtube clip here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVw5s8G0Jww

(the first time we took the class, i went in the opposite direction, and she kicked me...
talk about a good laugh... my kids are still telling the story.)

one of those (wonderful) days

2009-05-18T20:30:00.000-07:00

i love my days learning at home with my children.
but if you know me, you know if i say i love something,
it doesn't mean its often easy or always wonderful.
as a matter of fact, most of our days
are "one of those (ordinary) days".
we read a bit, play alot, write a little, bake some,
squabble a fair bit, clean alot, and just try to work together.
but sometimes, we have "one of those (wonderful) days".
the kinds of days you dream about before you begin to homeschool,
and the kinds of days that give you what it takes to stick with it.
well, today was one of those days.
and for posterity,
(yes, i will probably need to read it before next week as a reminder)
and for encouragement (for some of you on this path),
i will try to recount it beginning to end.

i was awake before the kids (always a good beginning),
and able to have a little time with God and joel.
one by one the kids began to tumble out of bed,
and in an effort to get the blog up to date,
we composed the previous post.
we then made our way to the kitchen for breakfast
where a science lesson awaited us.
yesterday we had found a little snake in the garden.
before i could protest, he was becoming a part of the family.
and by nightime, he was occupying the kitchen table in a salad container.
by morning, he had secured his place,
by shedding his skin with impeccable timing.
the kids were shrieking with excitement.
after several minutes of poring over the snakeskin,
we were calm enough for eating.
i love leisurely breakfast on days we have nowhere to go,
so over eggs and toast, we memorized scripture, read poetry,
and read voice of the martyrs newletter for children, children of courage.
they then moved onto chores
(cleaning breakfast, making beds, putting away laundry).
after chores, they all began to play some rendition of superhero make-believe,
which amazingly lasted quite a while...
at least long enough for me to finish my chores for the morning.

then, hungry again...
we returned to the kitchen for a quick lunch,
becuase by now the sun was shining,
and nobody could think of anything else but making a habitat for the snake.
at this point of the day, he had even acquired a name... "slinky".
a new habitat, a little time in the sunny yard, and laundry on the line,
and we were back inside.
they all had a little "rest with books".
this is as close as it gets to naptime for all but jonas,
which is all i needed to rock the baby to sleep.
after laying him in bed, i came downstairs
to find everyone still "resting with books"...
the thrill raising kids who love reading.
now, micah has shown an interest in learning to read lately.
(i'll delve into my philosophy on this at another time,
but suffice it to say, i've thought and read long and hard
on learning to read, and i'm a firm believer in
letting kids learn at their own pace.
elias was 4 1/2. micah didn't show much interst until after he turned 7.)
i see him studying the words in a picture book,
and i say "hey, micah, how about you read that to me?".
he says "i can't." i say, "yes, you can."
(i don't know that i really believe he can, but its worth a try).
i sit down next to him.
20 minutes and 20 pages later, beaming with pride,
micah finishes reading his first full book.
we celebrate with water ice.

now its my turn for reading, and i read from the horse and his boy
while they eat.
from the content of this chapter, we move naturally into a few discussions...
life after death and heaven, fear, and various geographical regions of the earth.
(i know you're lost now... you'll just have to read horse and his boy, chapter 6.)
after this, everyone does a bit of writing
(except for the stellar reader who takes a break to play ball.)
the inspiration, also from our friend, cs lewis, is the longest day of our life.
elias write a comic style story on a computer animation website for kids.
eva and mara dictate stories to me, which i write.
eva goes on to illustrate hers.

by now, jonas is awake and the sun is calling us outdoors again.
we take to the yard, the snake, and the swings.
at the picnic table, i play the boys in a multiplication card game
and the girls in an addition one.

now, daddy is home...
he plays football with the boys while the girls and i fix dinner.
then, everyone joins me to plant a few more veggies in the garden
and, of course, soak one another with the hose.
we manage a short walk to the library
(one of the joys of city life... a library around the corner)
before we return home for dinner.

and as if i needed anything else,
my amazing husband singlehandedly
bathes, reads, sings, and puts all of the children in bed
while i get away to take a pilates class with my sister.

no, most days aren't this picturesque...
but i treasue the ones that are
and then thank God for all we learn on the ones that aren't.

what i wanna do someday...

2009-05-18T04:48:00.000-07:00

jonas: a pro skateboarder...
though jonas could not quite speak for himself yet,
any baby who spends most of his waking hours
standing on a skateboard and wearing a helmet
or making a toy skateboard ride the arms of his highchair
must have this as his future ambition.

mara joy: a snowman builder...
that has lots of frosties (the snowman, that is).
if you don't have the privelege of spending time with marmie,
let me explain...
mara joy has a little obsession w/ frosty the snowman.
she's still sleeping in snowman pajamas,
playing with snowman decorations,
and asking us to sing frosty the snowman at night.
yes, we know its may :).

eva: a doctor that takes care of everyone...
i already know alot about it,
i really like the things they use,
i have my own doctor things that are real,
and i've been to the doctor alot
(thanks to the pro skateboarder, of course).

micah: an olympic gymnast...
i love gymnastics, and
i've already won one gold and two silvers
('tis true... micah took first once and second twice
in his first three meets this year.)

elias: an editor...
i love to read,
it would be fun to change a story,
and, of course, i would get to read all the books before anyone else.

oops, i forgot, also a pokemon champion...
i'm really good at the game,
i win against almost everyone i play,
and its really fun.

healthy children

2009-04-19T17:42:00.000-07:00

so theres a little bit of irony here, but not really...
all in all, with five children,
we've seen our share of illness and injury
(and this weekend we saw a little more than we would have liked).
but nothing compared with what you see after spending
a few hours in a children's hospital...
toddlers and teens without any hair on their heads
or most of their body hooked to a machine.

yes, today we spent the better part of a gorgeous day in the children's hospital.
and yesterday, we spent an hour or so in the pediatrician,
but before i fill you in, i just want to say i'm grateful,
because it could be so much worse.

that said, eva has two buckle fractures,
one in each of the bones which run from the wrist to the elbow.
she attempted her lovely cartwheel on uneven grass in the park yesterday,
and there you have it...
jonas, as always, is a little more complicated.
he has suffered a few dozen skin conditions since around nine months,
and yet he always manages to find another.
now, i've always waffled on vaccinations.
i take some, i leave some, i delay most...
such was the case with the chicken pox and mmr,
which i had delayed due to jonas' sensitive skin.
but, he had been in a good stretch for a few weeks, so i went ahead.
and, of course, he was the rare child to have the reaction.
he now has mild cases of both measles and chicken pox.
(although the pox are becoming less mild by the hour.)
poor baby... hes been crying and itching through most of the last few nights.

hopefully, they'll be feeling better in few days...
and i'll keep remembering to be grateful i'm not
the mama living in a hospital.

long days

2009-04-13T21:09:00.000-07:00

some days are long.
we're exhausted at the end... in a good way (most of the time).
i suppose the longer day, the more things you get to live...
today began at 6 am.
joel was on his bike to work before the little ones and i
crawled out of our warm, soft bed.
most nights, some little one creeps into our bed before dawn.
every once in a while all of the little ones make their way in.
eva had awoken from a bad dream.
mara joy came in crying about her candy (those darned easter eggs).
and jonas (as we found out later in the day) had a double ear infection.
despite a bit of a sleepless night, the morning had a calm beginning...
reading over eating breakfast, getting the chores done,
and little bit of playing before our trip to the pediatrician.
unfortunately, this was the third trip to the pediatrician in the last five days.
and theres one more to go... at least thats a well visit (for the moment :) ).
turns out jonas has a double ear infection, again,
but at least the other four children were angelic (those wonderful easter eggs).
the afternoon was filled with a renewed interest in the birds.
last year, the kids were crazy over birds.
there must have been a few dozen handmade feeders and houses in the yard.
then, suddenly, they lost interest.
well, with the return of spring has come a return of love for the birds.
with the sun finally shining, they busied themselves filling feeders and baths.
then, some more reading (the horse and his boy) over lunch.
now with jonas sleeping came online math lessons,
some computer programming (elias), a reading lesson (micah),
some handwriting (eva), and playing (mara joy).
then joel came home. we took a walk... getting jonas' prescription,
delivering a meal to a neighborhood couple who just had a baby,
and paying a visit to the library.
one of the things we so love about germantown is
how we can walk most anywhere.
after eating dinner and getting the little ones to bed,
it was on to the boys' skateboarding reports for the co-op.
and, after that, a long quiet night for me.
joel has been replacing a part in the van since just after eight.
its now after midnight...
the blessing and the curse of being able to do so many things yourself.
and the reason i'm writing so long, so late.
i have the hardest time falling asleep alone.
but i'm enjoying the end of my quiet, albeit long, day.
mondays are quiet because its mostly us (not that we're quiet, of course).
the rest of the week is filled with people... people we love.
i just love the quiet, too,
which makes its worth making the day just a little longer.
but now its time to say goodnight. i think i hear joel finally coming in.

quote of the day

2009-04-11T19:00:00.000-07:00

from micah, on this rainy saturday afternoon before easter
as we watched the Jesus film,
and after he heard peter deny Jesus three times...
"listen, everyone, now the peacock will crow."

ten

2009-04-10T11:35:00.000-07:00

last night, joel and i completed our tenth session

of premartial counseling for a cool young couple,

kerith and jay. kerith was a high schooler

i mentored in my days of leading youth group.

she met jay in college.

they will be married in the end of april.

last december, joel and i celebrated ten years of marriage.

its been so amazing, the coinciding of these events in our life.

counseling kerith and jay was challenging and enjoyable,

and we hope and pray its making a difference for this couple.

they say it was far more significant

in their relationship than they anticipated,

but last night as they were thanking us,

we found ourselves realizing how significant it was for us...

not only did it cause us to

reflect on and dialogue about our own marriage

each time we read a chapter in our book

or prepared the evening discussion,

but it really allowed us to take a step back

and look at the big picture of our lives so far.

God has done so many things,

and we are so different ten years later.

yes, theres been many, many rich blessings

from committed family to enduring friends

to five fiery little children :)

but whats most amazing is how He has redeemed

so much of the struggle, the heartache, and the trials.

we sat there last night, trying prepare this newlywed couple

for that moment that will inevitably come.

the one where you ask yourself

"how did i get into this and is there a way out?"

alright, i'm not trying to be shocking here,

but if you've been married ten years,

you've thought this at least once, right...

even if it was only a passing thought :) ?

but once you remember this is what you signed up for,

and that the only real way out is through,

thats the place in which God really begins to work change in your heart.

and then one day, you find yourself having come through,

having been changed and made stronger because of it.

here we are, joel, and i, and yes, jonas...

celebrating our tenth anniversary in the same cabin we honeymooned in.

the co-op

2009-04-07T20:28:00.000-07:00

this year we joined a homeschool co-op.
well, actually, we worked together to begin a homeschool co-op.
its been a lot of work, but worth it.
its only 8 blocks from our house.
it has all kinds of families.
and today, on our first day of spring semester,
the boys had classes on the lion, the witch and the wardrobe,
the french language, the country of Japan, and skateboarding.
how cool is that?

jonas

2009-04-05T17:44:00.000-07:00

since its been so long,

i thought i would do an update on each child

(one at a time, of course).

those of you who we don't spend time with regularly

might be surprised to know our baby has become quite the little boy.

if people ask how old he is, i say

"17 months going on 5".

he is quite certain he is as capable as his brothers and sisters

and will try to do every last thing they do.

and if he cannot do it or we will not allow it,

look out, he can throw a stellar tantrum.

he is all boy, even more than micah was at his age...

he is completely taken with balls and anything on wheels,

from cars to skateboards on which, believe it or not, he hold his balance.

and yet, he is also more taken with dolls than either of my girls were at his age.

he has several boy dolls that he affectionately calls "doddy"

and carries all around the house.

hes such a sweet mix, and at the same time, completely himself.

hes short and stout like his papa, for whom he was named,

and hes got golden locks which fall all around his face...

this definitely warrants a pic.

just to put it in writing

2009-04-04T09:38:00.000-07:00

someday i will no longer have little ones.
though this is very hard to imagine,
a day will come in which i will not need to nurse, change diapers,
chase toddlers, sing and pat babies to sleep, and
(the one i really cannot imagine parting with)
wear my little one in a wrap, a sling, or an ergo
(you should see the collection :) ).
i do not really look forward to this day,
although i know once it comes i will embrace the new stage of life.
but what i want to put in writing today
is something i hope never to forget.
and thats the joy of it all, despite the exhaustion,
the constant struggle to balance life, the little frustrations.
today i was at a meeting with jonas.
i thought i had it made with just one child in tow.
but jonas was not interested in the meeting,
and he spent the most of the time running away from me,
shouting for other childrens' balls, and all together making a commotion.
i finally decided to leave early once i could no longer handle the glares of a man there.
now this was a basesball meeting for the boys, mind you.
parents of boys who were a few short years ago just like jonas.
i hope having had as many children as i have,
i will never be that parent who forgets what a joy a little one is
and only sees the commotion. i always want to see the joy.

just one thought...

2009-04-03T19:59:00.000-07:00

here goes...
my millionth attempt to keep my blog up to date.
but, i have a new idea this time.
no long entries (at least not yet), probably not many pictures,
but maybe just one thought.

i'm inspired by those of you whom i love so much that live so far away.
at least, i can get a little window into your days and lives.
so, heres your little window into mine... one thought, one day at a time.

this past week has been like stepping back in time five years.
while elias and micah are having the adventure of their little lives
in disney world with oma and papa,
i have been spending my days enjoying my littlest ones.
lots of reading, baking, playing house, dolls, and balls.
not that we don't play this way every day, but its punctuated
by reading novels, enacting science experiments,
traveling to and from sporting events, etc...
its been refreshing to have a little change of pace,
but its also reminding me how grateful i am
for the challenge of parenting different stages.
(not just because i love each one,
but because its refining me like nothing else in my life has.)

THE ELECTRIC CREAMSICLE IS ALIVE!!

2008-10-18T04:59:00.000-07:00

Saturday, October 17th, at 2am in the morning, the Electric Creamsicle drove down the street!
HOT DAWG!!!!
Pictures, video, exclusive interviews and more to follow.

late night reflections

2008-10-12T21:15:00.000-07:00

so, i have had just a few late nights to myself lately.
and, if you have read joel's last few posts on our blog,
you know the reason.
yes, my ingenious husband has been working
into the wee hours of the morning on his masterpiece.
in some ways, i am really not minding.
there is something tantalizing about the hours the kids are sleeping
and i am not...
while i love most every minute of my days
with my little ones,
there are but a few precious moments i have completely to myself,
and they are almost always late at night.
and finally these late nights are luring me back into blogging...
these nights and mom (sell's) request for a few more pictures
of the children rather than the bus.
thanks, mom, i have been saying the same thing to joel myself.
so, as i sip my warm cup of tea
and the cool autumn night air drifts through my window,
my mind drifts back to the warm days of summer,
and it inspires me to begin to wade through the mementos...
here are just a few of my favorites.

Bus Update

2008-09-30T03:23:00.001-07:00

Lots of pictures to upload. Enjoy.

Hopefully the bus will be up and running in a week or two.

The trip from Baltimore to Philly on top and

the bus parked in front of our garage, where it is right now.

Top: Mara the singing peanut and Elias in the bus on the way home from Baltimore

Next: the dirty, smelly, internal combustion engine that I took out of the bus.

Next: the engine bay without the engine. The transmission is that round thing in the middle. That's where the new, clean electric motor is going to be mounted.

Next: the engine bay with the battery mounts built. 11 batteries will go back there.

The engine bay with the battery racks in and the 6 orange chargers. One charger per every 2 6volt battery, and one for the single 12volt battery. There are 10 6volt batteries and one 12 volt battery that will go in the back.

From the top of this section of photos: the middle of the bus where I'm building the rack that will hold 8 batteries and all fit under the middle seat. One battery is shown, then all 8, then the same set of 8 as seen from the back door. Next three photos are of the middle seat and what I had to do to it to ge it to fit over the 8 battery pack. I had to cut off the back and bottom of the legs, but leave the front of the legs to attach the seat the sealed box made of 3/4" plywood. There are two vents inside of the box that will vent any gases that the batteries may discharge while they are charging or being used. The last four photos are of the front seat area where the spare tire used to be. First an empty area, then the 2 batteries and racks, and then the 5 chargers for the front two batteries and the middle 8 batteries.

I just got the middle battery box installed and put on hinges so I can easily access the batteries and some holes cut in the side of the bus for one of the vents and the 120v plug to charge the batteries. I have today and tomorrow off work and will be working as much as possible to finish the bus soon.

Thanks for looking!

The Electric Creamsicle

2008-07-15T18:44:00.000-07:00

I don't get to post much to the blog, but I wanted to show everyone the new addition to our family. I named her (all VW's are female) The Electric Creamsicle. Electric because, well, as most of you probably know (because it's all I talk about), I'm converting a 1979 VW bus into a fully electric vehicle. Creamsicle because a friend of mine from work, upon seeing a picture of the bus on ebay for the first time said, "it looks like an orange creamsicle." We've had the bus for about two weeks now. I drove her back from Baltimore (approximately a 100 mile trip) on only three cylinders and she did great. I had my doubts, and said a prayer at the beginning of every hill (there are lots of hills between Baltimore and Philly, you know), but we made it. Elias and Marmie the singing peanut accompanied me. Marmie loved my singing and Elias hated it, but we still had fun.
I worked to clean out my garage and find new places for all the stuff I had in there, and now I've got a full-fledged workshop, complete with a compressor, three outlets and some lights. For those of you wondering why I'm not using all three bays of my garage, well, I'm renting out two of them to my tenant who lives in the apartment above the garage. He's an artist and needed a place to work. You can see some of his stuff at troysayers.com.
The more I read and get into this electric vehicle (EV for short) world, the more I realize I have a LOT to learn. I had to end up ordering a kit because there was no way I would be able to piece together all the different parts that would be needed to convert my bus. I know VWs. I don't know electricity. I ordered the kit last week and a large box came in the mail a few days ago, but I really don't know what all the stuff is inside. Just looks like a bunch of wires and boxes with electric stuff inside. I gotta email the company and ask them to explain what everything is.
I was hoping to have the bus up and runing before the end of the summer, but it seems that many other people are thinking to save a few bucks the pump by converting to electric, too. My motor is on back order for the next 8 weeks or so. Did you know that an average vehicle costs around 20 cents per mile to operate, a hybrid costs around 12 cents per mile, and an electric vehicle only costs about 2 cents per mile? Also, depending on the price of electricty, I will spend on electricity anywhere from one quarter to one half what I would pay at the pump? Basically I will plug in the bus to charge every night and have about 40 miles worth of charge to drive the next day before I have to charge it again at night. 40 miles is pretty far, if you think about it. Most of you don't drive 40 miles in a day, and we usually don't either. Obviously this vehicle will be used only in and around the city here. Unfortunately no long trips in The Electric Creamsicle.
Well, here are two videos I took today of the bus. Enjoy.

The cigar is grape flavored. Really. I think I'll smoke it when I get the bus running on electricity. Or maybe I'll just throw it away... I like grape soda... mmmm, grape soda. But I don' know about a grape flavored cigar.

marmie

2008-04-12T19:03:00.001-07:00

marmie, marmsy, marms...

these are all nicknames for mara joy on whom

i've wanted to write a post, about for a long time now.

but, for whatever reason :), i haven't gotten around to it.

well, this past week, she got a brand new haircut,

and since i wanted to put a pic of it on the blog,

i thought now would be the time.

just the other day, at a homeschool playgroup

a friend said to me, my son and i began to read the Bible

and we have a few questions for you (a neat story in and of itself).

then she said, we want to know how come your daughter is named mara?

so, for those of you who know any hebrew,

or any of the places "mara" is used in Scripture,

but don't know how come we named her what we did... i'll explain.

we thought we would name her mira joy,

but we never thought she would enter the world the way she did,

and it made joel change her name just moments after she was born.

6 cm dilated, in labor and prepared to give birth at home,

mara's cord prolapsed (usually an immediate ceaserean,

as it could mean life or death for a baby),

but, for several reasons, after we made an emergency trip to the hospital,

my midwife decided to deliver mara naturally.

after many intense hours of labor, she was born...

cord first, hand and arm second, head third.

she fell onto the bed grey and lifeless.

she didn't move, didn't cry, didn't breathe.

an oxygen mask didn't revive her.

after a few of the most frightening moments in our lives,

our midwife was able to revive her with mouth to mouth.

we were all certain we had witnessed a miracle.

God had made what tasted so bitter so very sweet.

after her daddy returned with her from the nicu,

he said her name just had to be mara joy...

she truly lives that name to its potential,

and at least now, is probably our most exuberant child.

just to describe her a bit...

for the longest time, she spoke in only a sort of shout or a squeaky whisper.

she can sing many, lengthy songs boldly and word for word.

she rolls her eyes or flutters her eyelashes to accompany most of what she says.

she talks incessantly and her vocabulary sounds as if she reads websters.

she nicknamed jonas "baba" (pronounced bayba) and it stuck.

she is definitely obsessive compulsive as all of her clothes must match perfectly,

her blanket must be placed over her in just the right way, and the list goes on and on...

she is quite funny. she said to me yesterday,

"just so you know, mom... i have a baby in my tummy.

and its coming out in the morning".

so, as you can probably imagine, she is quite a little firecracker...

as wells as quite a joy.

birthday boy

2008-03-31T19:58:00.000-07:00

earlier this month, we celebrated micah's 6th birthday,

so before i completely miss my chance to post about it, here goes...

while each of our five children are incredibly unique,

none are quite so different from the others as micah.

just to begin with, he looks different... the others having a baloche look,

while micah is definitely looking like a sell (just look at the easter pics).

far beyond looks, though, micah has a very different spirit.

while i love the perserverance and challenge of my three strong willed children,

micah tempers the others with his gentle nature.

although he is not necessarily softspoken, he is relaxed almost all of the time.

he is unbelievably attentive to his younger siblings...

willing to not only take mara joy to the potty, but wipe her bottom, too :),

and is the only child in the household who can claim the honor

of being able to single-handedly get jonas to sleep.

he has quite a sense of humor... this is where he is definitely not softspoken,

for he loves to make others laugh.

and he has two abilities in particular that joel and i

definitely know did not come from either one of us.

he is an absolute sports fanatic,

as you will see by his football jersey and basketball cake

(this i can attribute to uncle justin)

he is constantly kicking, hitting, or bouncing anything round in his path.

and he is quite good at it, too.

he also has an awesome sense of rhythym and can really dance.

(who wants to claim this honor?... for its certainly not joel or i, as some of you know!)

anyway, happy birthday to my sweet micah!

easter

2008-03-24T18:14:00.000-07:00

the day began at 7 in the morn with a backyard hunt for resurrection eggs

(if you haven't used these w/ your kids, they're really neat..

they're 12 plastic eggs each w/ a symbolic token and a verse

which tell the story of the cruxifiction and resurrection.

we made ours from directions online, but they can also be bought.)

it was also the first time we were able to have an egg hunt in our own backyard,

while we missed our traditional egg hunt in the city park w/ our old home group,

we were very grateful for our own little place of green and trees in the city.

afterwards, the kids enjoyed their easter baskets and a homemade breakfast

before we went to the easter service at church.

finally, we made our way to oma and papa's house

where we took these lovely pics...

they remind me alot of my brother and sisters and i's easter pics,

poised in easter clothes in front of the fireplace,

so i'm certain some you will share in their sentiment w/ me.

science fair

2008-02-09T18:58:00.000-08:00

elias, with his friend zach, being interviewed by one of the judges.

i don't know which one is more impulsive,

but joel said they were so excited,

they had a hard time not talking over one another.

all of the kids eating an early breakfast of panera bagels.

these little scientists had to leave the house before 8 o'clock in the morn.

eva, with her friend leah. leah actually did an experiment with micah. eva was technically too young to participate, but being the little artist, she did just as much of micah's board as he did, and, after that, noone could tell her she wasn't a participant.

baptism day

2008-01-31T17:16:00.000-08:00

jonas was baptized this past sunday. he slept through the whole occasion

with only a slight flinch as the water trickled down his face.

astoundingly, our other four children stood next to us and looked on intently.

but my reflections, later, were that we go through our life

much like jonas did his baptism or much the opposite, in a frantic state,

mostly unaware of the hand of God at work.

its not often that we (or at least i) go through our life in the moment,

deeply aware of God, as our other children were for just a minute that morning.

but i'm praying that i will be in the moment with God more...

and by so doing i will be taking my children there, too.

growing and changing

2008-01-18T18:22:00.000-08:00

jonas has begun to make the transition from newborn to baby...

always bittersweet for me.

but, now, hes chubby, smiley, and incredibly cuddly.

his days are full of attention from his adoring siblings,

or hes riding around the house in the sling.

hes actually just beginning to stretch out his legs,

my younger children have curled their legs in fetal position

for much longer than many babies,

as they really do live in the sling.

another one of the treasure of this stage for me is that

hes still little, lightweight, and sleepy enough

that i can keep him in the sling almost all of my waking hours.

so, all in all hes quite happy and healthy,

and we are once again relishing in the joy of having a baby in the house.

by the way, for those of you who remember,

doesn't he look like micah?

and, yes, those are reddish hints in his hair.

the cousins

2008-01-12T19:14:00.000-08:00

i thought i would post a few pics of the newest cousins.

these two little girls are the first on my side of the family,

although the kids already have a cousin on joel's side (titus),

and several others whom we love as cousins,

but don't share our blood :).

anyway...

this is nora faith heiskell born on january 5. isn't she beautiful?

i think she looks just like my sister,

and it makes me so lonesome for both of them just to look at her.

and, this is elise lenore born on december 26.

both little girls were due on christmas day,

and her cousins were very thankful that little elise made it

at least until christmas afternoon before announcing she was on her way.

that is because i had the privelege of attending her birth

(and the kids didn't want to have christmas morning without me).

but, what a privelege it was.

its incredible how its a new miracle each and every time.

and shana was amazing, laboring all through the night and

into the next afternoon before elise finally made her way into the world.

anyway, here she is. i think she looks like her mama, too...

Elias is 8!

2008-01-04T19:22:00.000-08:00

Elias is now 8 years old. Holy smokes. 8 years.

8 years ago we were in Chattanooga,

and I remember the time Matt and Josh

tried to convince me to go on a canoeing trip with him...

he was only a few months old.

Actually, I didn't need much convincing,

it sounded like a great idea to me.

On the other hand, Vanessa did need some convincing,

but Matt and Josh left that part to me.

Needless to say, we were absent from that trip.

I did finally take Elias canoeing this past summer.

I don't have a picture of it,

so you'll have to settle for a picture of him on his 8th birthday.

What a great kid he is. He's so smart.

And he's got a great heart.

And he's pretty good at art

(well not really the art thing, but he does like to do those little doodle-type drawings

that you do on those small pieces of paper while you are sitting in church).

He loves playing board games (ahem, Matt),

but only if he thinks he has a good chance at winning.

To be honest, he can beat at most of the games we play.

He's also alot like me; so much so that he often really gets under my skin,

but I guess that's way things go.

I love you, Elias.

merry christmas

2007-12-25T13:38:00.000-08:00

just a few christmas pics...

it was a lovely, peaceful christmas this year,

albeit quite quiet with only a little family around.

we hope you had time to

see and worship Jesus.

much love to all those we love,

the seven sells

eating christmas eve lunch at nana's

decorating nana's tree

making a last minute visit to santa...

our girls said they didn't believe (thanks to the boys),

so we thought a visit might change their mind...

and it did - not mention they made it on the evening news.

, saying goodnight on christmas eve.

and trying out their christmas surprise.

daddy and papa labored over the past three days,

and not one of the kids had any idea!

the best christmas pageant ever

2007-12-23T19:24:00.000-08:00

the kids had their christmas pageant at church this morning.

they were looking forward to it for weeks.

elias was so proud to have his first speaking part.

he recited 21 verses from mark 2 and

received lots of compliments on how well he read!

(and, yes, i was the mama who realized

moments before the pageant began that

my son had forgotten his script... and what did i do?

without much forethought i tore that page out of an old church bible.

only once he was on stage did i realize just how obvious it was.

we just won't count the number of people who asked me,

"um, did elias tear a page out of the bible?"

to whom i had to answer, "um, no, i did.")

but, micah and eva were quite content with their roles

as a shepherd and an angel,

and mara joy kept calling herself "lamby, lamby".

it then took her several hours to part with the sheep ears.

their favorite part, though, was not the sweet songs or lines...

nope, it was about halfway through the pageant...

the stable collapsed on mary and joseph while

the wise men worshipped,

and they were even happier to find out daddy

caught it on film!

merry christmas everyone :).

baby, baby, baby !!!

2007-12-14T17:19:00.000-08:00

well, i just had a minute...

and in my intention to bring the blog up to date,

i thought i would post these before all the babies were already here.

jonas, of course, has been here a little while,

but these two little ones are on the way soon!

so, this is me, about a month before i was due with jonas

and laura, my sister, and shana, my sister-in-law,

about three months before their shared due date

with their first babies on christmas day.

thirty

2007-12-12T18:28:00.000-08:00

so, for the last few months i have not really been looking forward to that little word.

it just seemed kind of... well, old. but today i had to face it. i am thirty.

i have a close friend here in philly who was raised as a missionary child in africa.

she is part of my "young" married womens' prayer group,

and in the past few years, several of us have turned thirty.

and, every time one of us complains, she gently chides us.

in africa, she says, each year is a gift.

the older you are, the more blessed you are by God.

so last night those girls surprised me with a party, and

since she was here, i knew i could not lament my age as they asked me how it felt.

and, as last night became today, i realized thirty feels incredibly grateful.

as i write, there is a gorgeous, healthy brand new baby boy lying in my lap.

and, there are four other wondrously created, healthy children sleeping upstairs

with a daddy putting the finishing touches on bedtime.

and, yes, there are days i am guilty of spending more time thinking

about how exhausted i am feeling or how overwhelming parenting is...

but the reality is i am doing something i am loving...

getting to know uniquely created little individuals and shaping little hearts

alongside a husband who is loving and devoted.

and along with blessing our family...

God has been carrying us through a long, hard season, but now...

we are living in a house that is amazing for homeschooling

and joel is actually seeing God working at school;

we are making connections with lots of folks

in the neighborhood and homeschool community;

and, through all of this, i are more deeply aware of just how much i are loved...

by God and by so many people He has put in my life in these thirty years.

i know this is sounding really sappy by now,

but i don't think i can remember feeling so grateful in a long time...

not to mention how talking to your dad as hes reminiscing about your birth and

your best friend as shes recalling all of the birthdays you've spent together,

along with taking your fifth baby to your six week visit

all on the day you turn thirty can do that to a girl (do i have to say woman now :) ?)

jonas maurice: a photojournal

2007-12-05T20:10:00.000-08:00

well, for those of you who have not yet met jonas maurice, here he is...

he was born on october 29 at 2 o'clock in the afternoon.

he weighed in at an amazing 6 lbs 11 oz and was beautifully healthy.

we are enjoying every minute with him,

and for those of you who have been struggling alongside our family

through these last several months,

you will know just what i mean as i write

that his birth has been the beginning of a new season

of joy and peace in our family and our home.

... so please keep checking back to the blog,

as i am beginning to find time for it again

and hope to be updating with all of the other happenings in our life soon.

(un)expected joy

2007-04-26T19:39:00.000-07:00

after a few days of finally feeling good,
i was hit hard with a day of feeling really bad...
all day nausea, overwhelming fatigue,
and not just that, but feeling really bad for myself, as well.
so after surviving lunch... feeding everyone and force feeding myself,
mara joy took a blissfully long nap,
and the rest of us settled in a for a children's film on the couch.
the kids decided to learn about a different culture every month,
and this month it's japan.
(the cherry blossom festival is happening around town.)
well, for the last two months, i decided we would get
as much use as we could out of our netflix account...
viewing children's films from our country of the month...
and hopefully surviving the first trimester in the process.
anyway, while the kids were drawn into a sweet film
about a girl who loves to read and yearns to write,
i rested on the couch and, well, felt bad... for myself.
and while i was lying there, i felt the first tumble of baby in my belly.
one might imagine, after five times, this is not quite so exhilarating...
in fact, i don't think i had even thought about feeling movement yet,
but as soon as i felt it, i knew what it was,
and i felt overjoyed... and pretty guilty, as well.
my suffering has been far from in vain,
and God reminded me of that just at the time i needed it.
another person will be a part of the world because of it...
another child... a completely unique creation,
with the potential to love God and love people.
enough said... i'll just need to read this a few times
to remind myself in the next few weeks.

happy (belated) birthday, micah!

2007-04-21T16:23:00.000-07:00

well, we didn't celebrate belatedly...

but, i'm certainly belated in posting about it...

thanks to finally beginning to come out

of the dark tunnel of first trimester nausea,

but enough about me...

happy birthday micah!

micah turned 5 last month and is becoming quite a big kid...

thankfully, though, he is still my best cuddler,

and i have no doubt he will be a wonderful husband, but

a challenging teenager in the wild world of teenage girls :).

(for now, i'm glad he's 5, not 15.)

he is more of a tried and true boy than joel and i probably

would have imagined we could call our own,

as he loves sports of every sort and could actually play with a ball for hours.

yet, he is not tough, but very tender...

a bit too sensitive for a tough 3 year old sister on most days :).

his latest unexpected development, though, has been

numbers and letters of all sorts...

our day is filled with little comments like,

"mom, did you know two sixes make twelve?" or

the sudden appearance of a paper on which he has

precisely copied the name of his favorite cereal from the box.

(yes, his undying passion for food has remained!)

but, his natural interest in letters and numbers

has deepened my faith in this lifestyle of natural learning we're pursuing here.

while elias asked to be taught to read at 4 1/2 and loved workbooks (!?!),

micah has had little interest in all of the traditional modalities of education,

and my heart, and all those books i read :), told me to trust him,

keep our home rich with opportunities and go with it...

and, all on his own, he is putting together numbers and beginning to read and write.

kind of amazing and serving to remind me i'm grateful for all those

long, exhausting, and sometimes exhilarating days of homeschooling all these little ones.

well, i guess its alright with God...

2007-03-11T12:31:00.001-07:00

alright, friends... i let my blog go dormant for a few months,
although its lots of fun, i have had a hard time getting into this,
but i want to give it another try, so here we go again...

and, i may as well start it off with a bang and let you all know that...
baby sell number 5 is on the way!
of course, most of you probably already know this through the grapevine :).
we are all overjoyed, although it comes with plenty of struggle,
as those of you who have known me through a few pregnancies
know pretty significant nausea is a daily battle, and with four other small children...
well, for those of you who have been there, i need to say to no more.

the kids were all ecstatic. joel gathered everyone on our bed, and said
"someone else is on the bed with us". micah and eva had funny replies like,
"God, oma, aunt charlotte...", but elias got this look on his face and said,
"don't tell me... mommy's pregnant!" once we said that was right,
they began shrieking and jumping (so good for a queasy mama),
and then eva paused and thoughtfully said, "well, i guess its alright with God, then."
the way little minds work...

happy birthday, elias!

2006-12-23T22:39:00.000-08:00

elias was so excited, and we were all so blessed

to share his birthday with dear friends,

the phillips, in from london!

and here i am with my great, big seven year old boy. i really cannot believe it... i have a seven year old son, and all those years have really already gone by! its truly a wonder and a gift, as is elias. God never ceases to amaze us with the mind and the creativity with which he has given elias. and He continues to show us His faithfulness, as we watch Him work towards continuing the work He has begun.

so, in eva's words, "happy birthday lego boy!" (just look closely at the cake :) ).

a few thoughts from the boys

2006-11-26T16:54:00.001-08:00

we just decorated for christmas.
it is the 26th of november.
it is sunday, and we are just hanging about.
from elias

this is for grandma:
i love you.
elias did not write this; micah did.
love micah

happy thanksgiving from our little indians

2006-11-26T16:43:00.000-08:00

just had to share this one, too.
after a few weeks of reading
all about the wampanoag,
they were ready to play the part!

we hope you all had a joyful thanksgiving
and are anticipating the
beginning of the Christmas season!
we certainly are.

happy birthday, eva!

2006-11-25T19:51:00.000-08:00

the very happy birthday girl with her puppy dog cake and doggie dress.
for any of you who know my feelings about dogs, definitely her idea, not mine.
she is so independent, now that she's 3 (well i suppose she's been for a while).
hmmm... i wonder where she got that from :).

the whole happy family!

and, by the end of the night...
the birthday princes in a doggie dress.
lots of thanks to aunt charlotte.

how exciting to celebrate eva.
she is an amaing little girl...
full of energy and enthusiasm.
she has such a blend of
my independent mind and
joel's adventuresome spirit,
tempered with a
gentle and affectionate heart.
what a gift... a challenge :) and a joy... she is!

halloween... better late than never :)!

2006-11-25T19:15:00.000-08:00

alright, so halloween was almost a month ago, and thanksgiving is past, but this one is so cute! here are our little halloween jungle characters. elias, of course, had to be the safari man,
not an animal! and mara joy, after only a few houses, began to use sign language
to say "more" and "thank you" at each place! lots of fun :).

a few painting pics

2006-10-14T19:22:00.000-07:00

just wanted to share a few new pics...
i am gradually (finally) learning to use the digital camera :)!

painting, well fingerpainting, for eva,
our fall decorations!
you can see what micah thinks of her mess.

mara joy, looking on, and looking forward to the day

she can make that kind of a mess, with paint, that is!

we certainly have some fun, happy kids here!

love to all... from all the sells!

fruit picking on a beautiful day

2006-10-02T10:40:00.000-07:00

Today, we went apple picking.
We also picked pears and grapes.
They were yummy!
Daddy took a picture with his phone.
Elias

well, i tried to upload that picture and with no success...
of course, we forgot our camera, but the lovely woman who owned the orchard
took a pic with hers, and promised to email it to us, so hopefully we can still post it.

joel had the day off today (yom kippur), so romped around in an orchard
picking, fresh organic fruit. lovely weather, and a most needed way to spend a morning.
we are finding it so recharges our energy and commitment for living in the city,
if we can just get out once a week. well, we have known this for a while.
it just takes alot of commitment to make it happen in our stage of life.

what has also recharged us, though, was a weekend at the ccda conference here in philly.
we got to sit on some awesome speakers, like tony campolo, shane claiborne, wayne gordon, etc... and we were really encouraged in our life here, even though theres alot about it,
that does not make sense at the moment.
we were just convicted to find joy in where God has us.
and to feel blessed to live in a place where need and devastation is so plain,
because it makes God's power, and our powerlessness, so much more real.

well, hopefully, there will be time to share more later... vanessa

happy birthday, mara joy!

2006-09-18T18:48:00.000-07:00

after lots of computer chaos, we're fianlly back online,
just in time for mara joy's 1st birthday!

elias, micah, and eva were probably
more excited than mara joy,
as they wrapped, decorated, and baked
for the occasion!
here they are with the birthday girl,
in her mama's (yes, my own)
1st birthday dress!
(those of you who know my mom,
know she saves everything. very special.)
what a joy to celebrate mara joy!
my heart really rejoiced as i could not forget
God's incredible protection over her
on the day she was born last year.

here she is, anxiously awaiting, and finally enjoying, her pink ladybuy cake!

2006-07-13T21:29:00.000-07:00

three little nature lovers in a really cool tree!

a messy, happy mara joy!

well, awake after midnight, waiting for joel to return from a long awaited bike ride with a friend, and i finally got around to beginning our blog. the blogs of my devoted friends have alas persuaded me to begin one of my own. so, for tonight (i think i hear our van coming in the drive... yes a bright blue vw eurovan, we finally have a car that matches our style again), i will share a few pics of the kids, especially for those of you who have not seen any of our little ones in a while. soon to write more (yes, i believe this will be fun).
vanessa for all the sells