Baby's Got Talent

Be forewarned - viewing of this video may evoke feelings of jealousy should you not be blessed with a child possessing this talent.



Then again...you may instead be experiencing excessive gratitude that your child does NOT possess this talent.

P.S. When I showed this video to Jimmy, he found no humor in it. "That's not funny Karen. Why are you laughing? Don't encourage that!!" Just makes me laugh all the more....ha ha ha ha here I go again!

Let's Par-tay!!!

We had the time of our lives celebrating Josiah's 6th birthday and watching the Superbowl yesterday! With it being a combined birthday / football party, it worked out perfectly that he wanted a Sports Themed birthday celebration. Though I laughed a little when he told me the 2 sports he wanted highlighted as cakes were football and pool! Yes, pool has become a recognized sport in the Finnestad household!I laughed at the irony of the crafts we chose, which included sports themed door hangers...when our older three children don't even have doors on their new rooms yet! ha ha Soon!
Our house was full of great food, friends (51 to be exact) and fun!






Josiah received the loudest rendition of Happy Birthday I've ever heard. I was only able to capture a brief portion of it, but you get the idea.After the Superbowl game was over, it was time for the "other sport"...Pool!! I was so impressed by one of Greg's shots - two balls split and off into different pockets at the same time.

What made this weekend even more exciting for Josiah was the fact that it was his turn to bring home the class mascot, Matty Monkey. Matty was here to join in the celebrations and got to go back to school this morning to tell the class all about it. Happy Birthday Sy!

Getting to Know James

So this is what you get when you turn on the video camera and ask a 7 year old to tell you a little about himself. What a goofball!

You Talkin' to Me?

About a week ago I began going through a book my Mom gave me titled "The Prayer That Changes Everything" and found myself realizing how lax my prayer life has become as of late. Then at Girlfriends Night at church I won a door prize which contained the books "The Prayer of Jabez" and "Beyond Jabez". A couple of days later a dear friend called me troubled by some very difficult circumstances. We ended the conversation by saying these are the moments when we just ask God for a miracle....only one day later her miracle came! God answered in a mighty way. The next day my neighbor called saddened by the news that a family dog had run away. She mentioned she was shooting up a prayer, so I told her I was going to do the same. 10 minutes later she called back "You're never going to believe this...the dog just came home!"


I was beginning to sense a theme here. As I stood there in awe of God's power, I half heartedly joked "God, are you talkin' to me?" And then I heard him speak - "Karen, are you talking to ME?" I think I can see the first area of my life in need of Revival - Prayer.

Revival and Rejoicing

I am so behind in blogging, but rather than playing catch up tonight I'm celebrating another year of blessings and refining. God disciplines those He loves and boy have I been feeling loved lately :) It makes me all the more excited for the theme He has given me for 2010 "Revival and Rejoicing". I've had a feeling for a couple of months now that the theme would focus on Praise - glorifying God through every circumstance of everyday. How can He not receive the glory for any reviving being done in my life?

I'm curious if anyone else ever has a theme or verse they pray over for a season? Praying for a year full of Revival and Rejoicing for each of you! Thank you Jesus!!

Come on Rainbow Bells

Aliya has been practicing for her upcoming preschool Christmas Performance at church. She's frequently heard singing "Come on Ring Those Bells" ~ although she is convinced the song is actually "Come on Rainbow Bells". Here's a sneak peek - for the actual performance, you'll need to be at church on Sunday! (Maybe between now and then I'll figure out how to rotate the video.)

Making Progress

It's amazing how much has happened in the past 1½ months with our house.

Stairs have been built

2nd story framing has gone up

Walls have been nailed on

Trusses set, rooflines reestablished and reroofed


Windows and Sliding Glass Door installed


Nursery Dismantled/Hallway Framed


Plumbing, Mechanical and Electrical installed



Interior framing done / windows removed or relocated

Insulation in place


All to prepare us for "Rockin' Out" next week! It's almost time to sheetrock - Yahoo!!!