Welcome back to the Jerusalem tour. I cannot wait to take you to Calvary in pictures, also known as Golgotha!

Where did we leave off? Ah yes, walking through Old Jerusalem.

In Part 1, we saw the Mount of Olives and entered Old Jerusalem. The first thing we saw there was the Upper Room and David’s Tomb.  Let’s stroll on over to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre now. This church now sits on top of the site where Jesus was crucified, Golgotha.

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre

This one church houses the site of the crucifixion, Golgotha (the rock shaped like a skull), the tomb of Jesus, the stone where they washed the body of Jesus, among other relics and stories and art work centered around the crucifixion.

There are also several active church denominations that have their services at The Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

You may wonder how they know this is the place or how accurate this could actually be. Alan and I certainly did.

…And the answer it is that it appears to be surprisingly well backed by archaeological evidence.

How? For one, they began constructing this place in 326 AD. That is less than 300 years after the fact.

There is another tomb that claims to be the correct tomb of Jesus. However, according to my Crossway study Bible info-graphic on page 2066 and 2067, that does not hold up. Archaeological research proved that particular tomb to be too ancient to have been a new tomb at the time of Jesus’s crucifixion

In the 1960s, archaeologists excavated ground below the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Do you know what they found when they dug?

They found “an isolated mass of rock in the middle of an extensive quarry,” as well as rock-cut tombs from the first century, AD. That is good news.

Where was Jesus crucified? On a rock called Golgotha, meaning place of the skull.

To make it even more interesting, did you know that old Jewish tradition and early historians say that the skull of Adam (as in THE Adam, the first man) is preserved in this hill. So it was not simply a rock that looked like a skull. It is also the place where the skull of an important ancestor of mankind is buried. (Crossway Bible, 2001)

Okay, so that last part may be more of a legend. Who knows? But I loved that the archaeological evidence DOES indicate that the Church of the Holy Sepulchre sits marks exactly the right spot, right down to the age of the tomb.

It needs so many repairs, but there are so many different groups that use this building that they cannot agree on how to make the repairs, so nothing changes.

See the ladder to the window above the right (sealed off) archway?

That window is where the Armenians had to get into the church many years ago. They literally made them climb through a window because the people running the first floor did not want them crossing through their section. No one needs the ladder now, but these groups cannot even agree on whether or not to move the ladder.

This building, which is centric to all of Christianity, as it marks the site where Jesus died for mankind, is the perfect example of the problem with the Church today.

We should all be one church, not arguing over menial, unimportant details. Instead we are divided. And what happens to a house divided against itself? Well, it cannot stand.

That wasn’t just Abraham Lincoln that said that. He was quoting Jesus. (Mark 3:25)

This is the place!!! The very site where Jesus died for ALL mankind!

As divided as we are, God can still use us, but how much greater our ministry would be if we were united!! United by Christ!

This display marks THE spot where the crucifixion took place. Because the scene (in the photo above) looks drastically different than what it did way back in the first century, A.D., it is hard to really feel like you are there, even when you are there.

There were people who were falling all over themselves, trying to touch the rock in this spot. But with the crowds, being indoors, and the noise, and so much competing for my eyes’ attention, it was hard to focus.

It is worth visiting. Only know that it’s very tourist-y.

But then, how could it not be? People all over the world have experienced major heart and life changes from the gospel message. God loves you where you are. Jesus died to pay the price for all of our sins. Faith. Hope. Love. We need only believe. Naturally, thousands of people a day visit this place where it happened.

I am actually surprised there aren’t MORE people there.

I think that’s largely because we have this misconception that it is not safe in Jerusalem, but I can assure you, I felt perfectly safe.

Alan took the photo above. I actually didn’t even see that there was rock under the glass like that until I saw these pictures.

I did take a moment to rub the stone. The actual stone is under a stone that they put on top of it to preserve it, but still!

So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. 17Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). 18There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.

19Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS             John 19:16-19

The Bible says that when Jesus gave up his spirit, there was a great earthquake. Here you can see damage from that earthquake.

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

51At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split 52and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

54When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”                           Matthew 27:50-54

The key to Christianity’s most holy site actually belongs to a Muslim family.

They open the doors each morning to let the Christians in. Isn’t this fascinating?

So many mixed emotions in the Holy Land.

1.) I am in awe to be standing where Jesus and his disciples, and Mary, and David stood.

2.) Our lack of unity is baffling.

In the book of John, chapter 17, Jesus prayed:

20“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

Previous Israel Posts in this series:

No, I couldn’t possibly go to Israel next week.

Mount of Olives

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The post Jerusalem in Pictures: Golgotha & The Church of the Holy Sepulchre appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

I guess you know which stocking is mine.

This might have been the easiest Christmas in 14 years of April and Alan family Christmases. We only had to travel two hours, and we woke up on Christmas morning IN OUR OWN HOUSE. Have you ever??? I mean, we had almost never!! Do you do this? Do other people do this every year??  It was so nice!

I mean have you read my other Christmas stories???

Our Nightmare Before Christmas

The Funeral, Christmas Trip

New Years in San Francisco

Well, I’m happy to tell you this is NOT one of those stories. We did go and see our families, but we were able to do all of that and still be at our own house on Christmas morning.

Around 7 or so a.m., we heard Boy #1 begin talking to Boy #2. They simply chatted calmly in bed. Some of the boys woke up the other boys. I don’t remember who got up first, but a miracle happened…..

No one came and jumped on us…..

They gathered themselves in the living room, just the four of them in the living room to patiently wait for their parents to get up.

Whaaa???? We were so pleased with all this that we didn’t make them wait. We went ahead and joined them.

I love watching my children open their presents. Christmas is a whole other level of special for children. When is it that we lose that? Let’s get that back.

Yes, he’s actually CLAPPING. He’s so excited. There were a few To: Caleb and Daniel presents this year. They may look ages apart, but it’s actually only a 3 year gap. Some kids are tall. Some kids are shorter.

SO HAPPY

Be sure to see the 50 second JD video on Facebook, and share in the excitement.

We all went to church together. It was nice, though nothing topped the Christmas Eve service.

Christmas Eve service

There was something about the meaning in lighting these candles and taking communion with so many fellow believers that made Christmas more real to me this year. We sang Silent Night, and I wanted this moment to never end.

Too quickly, we were all headed back to our houses when so often I just want to curl up at the altar and soak it all in…

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”       Luke 2:10-12

…But it was back to Christmas as usual, and I can’t help but wonder. Are we entering a new phase of our lives?  There simply isn’t a BABY anymore. JD is 3 1/2 now. No one is a baby. Life is c-a-l-m-i-n-g down. No one wore a diaper, no one carried a sippy cup, and no one got out of their seat. No one even colored on himself.

Wow.

I think I might cry!

No one was sick this Christmas either. JD caught a cold, accompanied by a very pink eye, but even that ended in two days.

OH, and guess what! Once Christmas day was over, Alan took my minivan to the shop, and I now have a clean minivan, with a heater that heats, and a functioning defroster! Somebody get this man a trophy!!

I feel like we just had the perfect Christmas. I can safely say that because Christmas is fully over. Saying Christmas was perfect can’t possibly jinx it now.

Of course, I did find one baby to hold.

Ah, sparkling pretty lights. I may never take my Christmas tree down. Plus, I’m hoping Alan will do it for me. Hmmm…I wonder if Alan is hoping that I will do it. I seriously don’t even want it taken down. Let’s just leave it up until next Christmas!

Hallelujah! And may we never forget what it’s all about. This is an incredible excerpt from the Passion of the Christ. You do have to click the link to YouTube to watch, but it’s so worth it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDm-myjQgdM

Wishing you all a blessed 2017! May your kids behave. May your rain be snow, and may all your prayers be answered.

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”        Luke 2:13-14

The post This Christmas: 1st Year at Home, 1st Non Disaster Story appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

Dan and his best friend, Carter

There’s a word we hear a lot around here: “best friend.”

JD says that Daniel is his best friend. That is mostly because I drill that into all of my children’s heads from the moment they are born.

“Oh, look, he is being so sweet to you. He is your best friend.”

“Your brother will always be your best friend.”

Positive reinforcement style of brain washing is a good thing to do. Trust me.

JD often asks, “Where my best fwiend?”

And now that Daniel has been gone for over a week, poor little JD has started to look elsewhere for a new “best friend.” There aren’t many other small folk around lately. The person he sees most is me, but I’m his mom, so I don’t count. So he has found our neighbor Mr. Tom. After all, Mr. Tom always talks to him and jokes with him. He’s the natural choice.

We were headed out to dinner the other night, and JD asked, “Is Mr. Tom going to be there? He’s my other best fwiend.”

Not to worry. Mr. Tom was there. You know we are too lazy to make friends with people who do not live next door to us. Hanging out with neighbors just makes good sense. Thankfully, our neighbors happen to be awesome people.

Remember Emma?

Since Emma’s husband is out of state for military training, I got to go up and stand with Emma and Matthias for the baby dedication. Don’t you think I look a lot like Richard?? Okay, well, maybe not, but I was there for support anyway.

We got to see Emma this past weekend. That’s right. She is back from Malaysia. Her parents are traveling with her now, and they are all doing just swell. It was so fun to visit with them again!

This is our current Chief of Shenanigans.

Sometimes, when I go to bed, I find surprises on my pillow. I don’t know why he doesn’t call me his best friend. Clearly, I am it. But he has informed me that Daddy is my best friend, and that sounds correct.

Daniel, at his class bike-a-thon

He likes to make faces for the photos.

He’s been at camp for a week, and the camp is always posting photos of the kids at camp, and they never ever never never post more than the back of Caleb’s head. Maybe this is why.

Daniel and his “favyite giryull in my cwass.”

Joshua’s team’s last huddle. Caleb occasionally got to play with this older league as well, as sometimes they were short players.

Joshua and his coach

Okay now this next one truly is shenanigans. There’s really no other word for it.

We put the little kids in our pitiful little backyard while the adults stood around and talked outside the fence. When Alan went in to check on the kids. He found this:

Yes, that’s JD. Those are his shorts on his head.

Yep.

Alan took Joshua and Caleb to work with him one day to tour the robotics department.

Aqua robots

My boys actually went to a graduate course with Alan and sat and listened to Alan’s classmates make their thesis presentations.

Believe it or not, Alan said they were perfect gentlemen.

Caleb enjoyed going to class with his dad so much, he asked to go again the next week. Joshua looked a little…..less…interested.

I know. Alan is the man. He also took ALL FOUR boys on a bike ride by the bay:

And another week he took the oldest three to a minor league baseball game, the San Jose Giants.

Then Alan and Daniel headed down South for the funeral.

I think he was pretty happy to take a trip with Dad.

Super excited about all the ice cream

But eventually even Daniel hit his limit.

And now I’ve saved my favorite part for last. Here’s a little preview of the new house I’m so excited about! We are downsizing by around 300 square feet, which also means going from 5 bedrooms to 3, buuuuuuuuuuut that’s okay because everything else about this place is fabulousness! Hard floors! Big backyard! Closer to family! Big living room! Nice kitchen! And the outside is pretty too. Okay. Remember our old backyard looked like this:

See how tiny?

And this is our new backyard:

just a little peek into the backyard

More backyard! Covered patio! Nice slip and slide hill…Just so long as they don’t um…slide right into the house…

And the front!!!

Ah. So pretty. And notice the front yard crepe myrtle tree by the driveway. Love those.  OH!!  And look. Green grass.

So we have the ball rolling on buying this new house. Meanwhile, we’re cleaning up and packing out of this beloved old house. It’s just been the three of us this week, Alan, JD, and me. The other night we ate out on the wharf, and there was an otter that hung out by our window, eating and diving, and eating and diving. It was heavenly.

Alan has let JD tag along with him on his many, many errands:

Is that JD playing with some sort of missile??? i have no idea, really.

Bye-bye, big California trees! (That was a Band-aid on his chin.There was a nasty fall on some concrete steps.)

And Friday, Alan graduated. He now officially has a master’s degree in Systems Engineering. We’re proud of you, honey. Now, let the shenanigans begin. Well, as you can see, they sort of already have.

JD said, “I was sad in that picture. I wanted to go eat cake.”

12 I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live; 13 also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil—this is God’s gift to man.  Ecclesiastes 3:12-13

The post Let the Summer Shenanigans Begin! (With a Sneak Peek at Our New House) appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

He keeps us smilin’.

There are 7 kids in my living room right now, watching Zootopia. And JD’s asleep upstairs, so only 3 of those kids are mine. (But man, did JD NEED a nap. He was crying over every little thing. Note to adults: when you’re crying over everything, and the sky is falling, go take a nap!)

They are watching Zootopia. It sounds hilarious.

It’s officially summer. Listen to the snack I gave them: a plate full of corn on the cob, buttered and salted. Those are some happy kids going to town on corn and watching Zootopia.

I’m feeling successful. We still haven’t decided where to live next, but hey! I washed my hair this morning. Sounds like success to me.

Daniel has developed a photography interest lately. He borrowed our camera and took some pictures…

Life according to a 5-year-old

I promise I had been cooking, not drinking. It’s hard not to blink at that flash.

JD, doing what he does best, taking off his shoes.

Do you see my sidekick?

Someone asked me, after my last post, “Don’t  you have to check on JD, not just Daniel?”

The answer is no. Rarely. JD is literally always 1 inch away from me. It seems like always. Occasionally, he does play in the sandbox.

Yes, sometimes I sit down and answer messages and try to read. It’s not successful, and sometimes people get aggravated with me for not answering my phone or messages in a timely manner. I have one go-to excuse…4 children. Seriously.

I didn’t get much reading done here. I ended up staying up until 2 or 3 am one night to finally finish this book. It was worth it.

Everyone says I raise my eyebrows too much. “Mom, please don’t do the eyebrows.”

Even Alan says, “I’ll tell you, but just, please promise me you won’t do the eyebrows.”

Maybe this one was taken by Caleb. I didn’t think Dan was this much taller than J.D.

Daniel is so excited about this move and about going to kindergarten. Every once in a while, though, he confesses, “I just don’t want my fwiends to move away and nevwer see my fwiends.”

Auck! It makes me so sad for him. I’ve grown hard to all the moving and leaving. In fact, I get so caught up in the details of the move that I totally forget to say good-bye to people. I forget to be sensitive to other people’s feelings too. I don’t mean to be cold or anything. I simply go through the motions of the move, never stopping to think about when will be the last time I see our friends.

But the boys are young. They feel these things. They don’t have Facebook to use to keep in touch either. It’s important to remember and be sensitive.

Thankfully, Daniel is super-duper excited about kindergarten and the prospect of having a great, big backyard at our new house. Sometimes he sees me looking at houses online, and he always asks two questions:

1. Is it close to my kindergarten?
2. Does it have a big backyard for my dog?

No, he doesn’t actually have a dog, but they all have great plans to get one at their new house. They’ve even named him. Steve.

I have made it known, repeatedly, that this dog, IF we get one, will not be mine. I don’t like dogs (I know. I’m a horrible person), but mostly I don’t plan on cleaning up its poop. I’ve been changing diapers for 10 years. A line must be drawn somewhere.

I know what you’re all thinking. You think we will get a dog, and I will end up taking care of it. I desperately hope you’re wrong.

Only 13 more days until John David and I fly South!!!  Eeeeeeeee!!!!! So excited!!

The post Life, According to Daniel, age 5 appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

Happy Mother’s Day! What better to share on this treasured day than some adorable seal mom and pup pairs from my favorite spot in the world, Point Lobos State Park.

This particular beach is not a seal hang-out for most of the year. However, when it comes time to birth babies, late winter/early spring, this tiny beach, completely surrounded by rock cliffs, becomes a true seal nursery. This is NOT a zoo. This is the real world, animal style.

ALL of these photos were taken by Aunt Janet, photographer extraordinaire.

This first mom and pup pair are the funniest. This little fella’ was rambunctious, robust, and ready to do some more swimmin’. Mama was trying to take a nap, and he kept sneaking off to the ocean.

She’s trying to rest, but off he goes…

Still going….Even for animals, some little ones are just tougher to raise than others.

Bet you’ve never seen a seal run, but this Momma did. She cut him off at the pass, barking up a storm at the little rascal.      “Nope! We are NOT going back out to the ocean. You don’t know what you’re doing. You are shark food. Now get back up on that beach, lay down, drink your milk, and take a nap. Don’t you go sneakin’ out to this water again without me, you hear. Bark bark bark bark bark!!”

Here she is, at the top of the photo, leading that baby back on shore. She had to keep holding him down with her little flipper.

This momma had a younger, smaller pup to bring in, and she just didn’t have her job figured out yet. Poor little pup was trying so hard to beach herself, but the waves kept washing her back out to sea.

Oops. There goes baby again. Mom needs to learn to get behind her.

nursing seal baby

Every few minutes, you see another momma and baby seal coming in or going out. I could have watched all day, but I had taken a few elementary school boys with me who could only enjoy it in 5 or 10 minute increments.

If I were a seal, I’d hang out here too. Actually, I’m not a seal, and I still like hanging out here.

Look closely to see the baby seal on the momma seal’s back.

This Mother’s Day is coming at perfect timing for me. I have felt a little down lately, mostly due to my mystery low-grade fevers. They zap my energy, and leave me feeling confused and a little hopeless.

But Mother’s Day reminds me of my most basic and happiest job. I am first and foremost a mom, and I am tickled pink to be Mom to our four precious sons. I always considered myself a “girly-girl”, so it’s ironic to me that I am now the mom with the baseball nails, trying to learn basketball lingo, and passing rules about not bringing slugs into the house. When I brush everything else aside, every other worry, every other commitment or hobby, this is the job that I most cherish: being wife and mom. I was never so happy as I am when I’m being mom.

-Wiping noses

-Trying to convince JD to poop on the potty.

-Reading These First Four Years to Joshua and Caleb

-Reading Green Eggs and Ham to Daniel and Caleb

-rocking JD in the rocking chair

-pushing them in the swings

-cooking their dinner

-buying their clothes

-hugs and kisses

-talking through their problems

-teaching them about Jesus and praying with them

-watching them play baseball

Oh, I love it all so much. What a wonderful gift to be entrusted with. I hope I can walk worthy of this calling.

And I’m thankful I don’t have to go it alone, like the seal mommas.

This guy makes being a mom more doable and more fun. I could not do this without Alan.

Mother’s Day is a reminder for me this year. It’s a reminder of how blessed I am. Healthy or not, I have a glorious life, full of purpose and every good thing. I must remember to be thankful and always share with others what I have. I am renewed with joy. What a blessing.

I better get to sleep. Alan and Caleb are making me french toast in the morning, and I’m super excited. I say Alan and Caleb, but they will probably all insist on helping.

Happy Mother’s Day, y’all!

The post Darling Photos of Seal Moms and Babies appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

You may be tempted to think, “How can you live in California and not be utterly happy all the time from these incredibly beautiful surroundings?”

Good question.

The unfortunate thing is that I don’t actually live on the beach and see these sights every single day. In fact, I pretty much forget they are there until company comes and we show them around. Most destinations are too hazardous to take on with two pre-schoolers, seeing as how I’d like to keep them all alive, and I have the hip problem. Pity. So I wait until I have other adults to go with us to these lovely places, and once I finally make it out there, I am reminded that it does indeed have healing powers.

Fresh air. Sunshine. Water. Wind. Oxygen. Green. It’s life-giving. How can I get out there more often?? I desperately need to do so. I don’t think our Creator ever meant for us to toil our days away, all shut up in our houses all the time. He put the first people in a garden, right? A perfect garden with no briars or thorns even. No sin. No clothes. Ha! Now there’s a picture….

I hope you’re enjoying this series of photography posts from Aunt Janet. Today we will share with you the scenic central California coastline.

These are my favorite.

Nature tends to disorder, and that can have its own magnificence, but well-tended gardens are a testament to the things that we can do with what we have been given.

Carmel

Pelicans!

Carmel Mission: founded 1771.

San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo Mission

visitor’s entrance to the Carmel mission

Nonna and Aunt Janet: the traveling sisters

These trees are unique to the area. They are Monterey Cypress trees.

A big thank you to our talented photographer, Aunt Janet!

And thank you to Nonna, who helped us with our boys!

Hope you all get out and visit inspiring places this weekend.

“In times of great change [which is always], learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped for a world that no longer exists.” –Eric Hoffer

27Consider how the lilies grow: They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these. 28If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith!…  Luke 12:27-28

The post Photos of 17 Mile Drive and the Carmel Mission appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

JD bonded with another dirt-loving two-and-a-half-year old at one of Daniel’s games. Don’t you love those moments when you come across another bird with your same feathers?

The vast majority of these photos were taken by our family photographer, Aunt Janet.  Thank you, yet again, Janet!!

Baseball season has been time-consuming but joyous this year. Joshua joined a team late in the season that was short on players because after seeing his brothers enjoy playing so much, he wanted in on this action too! That puts Joshua in the “Mustang” league, which is an exciting game to watch. At this level, the players get to pitch, get out in three strikes, and even steal bases.

Caleb and his buddy, Aiden, are having a ball in their league as well. Alan is their coach, and Caleb and Aiden have some mad serious baseball skills. In fact, we were so confident in these two that we let them also play for Joshua’s team last week, as their team needed a couple of back-ups, and Caleb and Aiden held their own. They may be the youngest players on the team, but you’d never know it. Both boys scored one point for Joshua’s team, and the funny part was that Caleb even struck out and still scored a run. How? Well, when the catcher dropped the ball, Caleb stole first base! I didn’t know you can do that either, but I saw it with my own eyes.

Daniel is in a tee-ball league. I may not fully understand all the baseball rules, but by golly I’ve got tee-ball down pat, and so does Dan. I love to watch him catch the ball and throw it to first base. (See those cleats? Those were Joshua’s when he played tee-ball!)

Nonna and Aunt Janet got to see Caleb and Daniel’s games.

It was super cold!

By the way, my nails have been quite the hit.

I may not play ball, but I do support it. 🙂

Okay. I just realized I had promised 17 Mile Drive and Seal Pups in this post. Next time! Really really!

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