Here goes...

'Tis been a month (or two). 

It all started when Justin graduated from high school in May! He plans to join Jonathan at Iowa State in the fall and pursue an engineering degree. 

Uncle Justin's open house

Congrats, grad! 

Mediapolis High School Class of 2017

Then all the summertime fun started happening...

Playing with cousins and friends! 

Levi had fun with the Steiners on the four-wheeler one morning! 

He has improved immensely on his coloring skills! Crayons hardly get eaten anymore. 

And then one evening he managed to climb up on the piano by himself and start playing my violin...

Micah's new favorite place to be! This kid's a-hoppin'!

Speaking of fun...some animal has had a lot of fun with all of my potted flowers this summer. Every one of my pots has been torn up at least once. When I woke up to this scene one morning, I decided to give up on these flowers.

We were so thankful when we learned that my brother Travis made the decision to turn his life over to the Lord shortly after school was out. How the angels in Heaven must rejoice when a soul joins God's kingdom!

Matt turned 29 at the beginning of June. "Almost 30" was basically the theme of the day. Apparently age 29 is rather anti-climatic.

June 11th was Billy and Vienna's wedding. I am hoping to share photos later!

The wedding day was also Micah's four month birthday, so he got to wear his bow tie and suspenders for the sticker photo. 

Four months old: 15.5 lbs, 26 inches long. Laid back and content for the most part. He has pretty much given up on sleeping through the night, but we sure love his contagious grin!

The wedding weekend was a blessing. The couple was quite happy and all went well.

Except Micah had a fever of 102-104 up until Sunday. The stress and fatigue of that situation may be reflected in the wedding photos.

Two days later, he broke out in a rash.

That afternoon, Levi got a fever. I believe both Levi and Micah ended up with a mild case of hand-foot-and-mouth disease.

Then a couple days later I was under the weather, too.

A week of recovery.

Now we are all relatively happy and healthy, but both boys have snotty noses. I guess I will take it.

In conclusion, it has been an exhausting month.

To continue:

The father-son campout was Father's Day weekend at the fellowship center. Matt stayed overnight with Levi this year!

And, of course, Father's day requires a tribute to the father of my children! What a great dad...you boys are so blessed!

This year, Father's Day was a special day for the Lanz family as most of the aunts, uncles, and cousins got to spend time together in the nursing home at Grandpa's bedside. He went Home to be with Jesus only a few days later. We are thankful he could be released from his pain and join our loved ones in Heaven, though it is always difficult for the rest of us to say goodbye.

The next week, Camille, Shelby, and Suzanna spent two days and a night at our place to play with the boys. They were able to be here for my birthday, so it was kind of an exciting day around here! They made cupcakes and even brought me a balloon!

...and Matt made me a beautiful bouquet of flowers! 

My 23rd birthday party 

Last weekend, we found ourselves caught up in our annual July fourth gathering with the Steffen-Massner clan. Perhaps the most exciting part of the whole weekend was when BOTH of my boys sat and ENJOYED the fireworks!! I was preparing to have a screaming baby and crying toddler for the duration of the show, but Levi was thrilled with the "booms" and "lights" and Micah was stunned to silence.

The Micahs (Mycas) meet again!

The boys got plenty of attention! 

My brothers spent the weekend trapping Japanese Beetles. This particular brother did not want to take his chances of coming into contact with a beetle. 

I think this annual Sperry fireworks selfie is becoming a tradition. 

Matt had Monday and Tuesday off work, so he and Zach started working on some landscaping out back. Matt is planning to build five retaining walls. They finished one and did some prep work for the second. It was a very hot two days to be outside!

And then there is life in the house.

Now it is already July and I have finally caught my breath again! June was kind of crazy, but July is looking promising. :)

Have a great rest of the summer!

Each Day is His

Psalm 23

The Lord is my 

shepherd; 

I shall not want.

He maketh me 

to lie down 

in green pastures: 

he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: 

he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, 

I will fear no evil: 

for thou art with me;

 thy rod and thy staff 

they comfort me.

Thou preparest a 

table before me 

in the presence

of mine enemies: 

thou anointest my 

head with oil; 

my cup runneth over.

Surely goodness 

and mercy 

shall follow me 

all the days 

of my life: 

and I will dwell 

in the house 

of the Lord 

for ever. 

Last night we attended Janella's visitation. She was a friend (Matt's age) who grew up here in Oakville. Her sudden death hit many of us very hard. Life is so fragile. It has been such a big reminder that we need to always be ready to go Home. And that we must make our life count; she was a great example of a life of service for God.

We grieve and pray for God's comfort for the family. For a husband who lost his dear wife. For her two children who seem far too young to lose a mother. For her parents who lost their only child. For the many friends and acquaintances who knew God better because of her. 

There is a beautiful angel waiting for you in Heaven.

So we live on with renewed zeal to make Heaven our goal in everything. 

Recently I have been reading a devotional called "100 Days of Blessing" which I received as a gift when Micah was born. It has been such an encouraging reminder of the importance of my role as a mother. My purpose is to further the kingdom of God by training up children who will serve Him someday and be lights to the world. God is counting on me to leave behind a generation that will continue to serve Him and bring souls to Him. 

Blessed to celebrate Mother's Day as a mother for a second year! 

Of course, motherhood is not a breeze. My children are training me, too! God uses them to teach me patience, to be thankful even in difficult times, to be joyful when everything goes wrong. And I am growing in understanding of God's love for me. I must try His patience, too! 

And then there is this patient and loving husband of mine. He is the perfect father for my children!  

Since Easter, we have kept busy but have little to report that is not covered in the photos below! Piano lessons have started up again after my maternity leave so that is keeping me busy again. :)

Micah is 3 months old! No big milestones this month, but he is still doing great and we are very thankful for that! His nights continue to lengthen (averaging 8-9 hours now), and he is super cheerful most of the time.  

SPRING DAYS

Levi helped Daddy plant flowers for my planters and pots! His shirt ended up being very fitting that day: "DIRT is my favorite color." 

Levi helped Dan M. plant corn a few weeks ago. It was his first tractor ride! 

The fruit trees are all bearing fruit thus far! This is what apples look like in the spring...

Matt cleaned up the raspberries and put down carpet to help with the weeds. 

OUT AND ABOUT

Matt (top right) sang at the Midwest Gospel Sing in Washington, IL. Quite an experience! We watched it on the computer at home.  

Levi had an eye appointment in Iowa City last week. The doctor says all seems good and normal with his eyes for now. We plan to return in a few more months. 

Vienna and Billy's wedding is only a month away! Mom and I enjoyed attending another shower last weekend. She ended up getting dressed up as a "housewife."  

Matt and his boys at Schulz family night on Saturday. 

AROUND THE HOME

Levi saw that Micah had "bubbles" on his mouth, so he wanted to pop them...

Levi has started helping me set the table. He does a great job for a 15-month-old who can barely reach the table! :) 

It is a special moment when the camera clicks and both boys are smiling....all at the same time! This picture makes me smile every time I see it! 

The days go by quickly, but they are good. Some days I am weary, but I never have a good reason to complain. I am blessed. I am blessed to be a wife to a loving husband, a mother of two beautiful, healthy boys, and the child of an all-knowing, loving and wonderful Creator.

Said the robin to the sparrow,

“I should really like to know,

Why these anxious human beings

Rush about and worry so.”

Said the sparrow to the robin,

“Friend I think that it must be,

That they have no Heavenly Father,

Such as cares for you and me.”

Around and Around in 30 Days

We've got a two-month-old in the house! Time flies when you're having fun! 

13 pounds and 23 inches...pretty close to Levi at this age! Those smiles, grins, and giggles are so much fun!  

We have had a very exciting month. First of all, Levi got to meet his future aunt! Uncle Billy is engaged to Vienna...to be married in June!

Then, we had two fiftieth birthdays. Grandpa Massner in March, and Grandma Schulz last week.

My dad's party...

The Steffens made it over for Dad's party and Micah really hit it off with Myca! :)

Then came Matt's mom's birthday...I got to celebrate with her a couple times. We kids had a surprise dinner one evening, and then we had a ladies' brunch at Aunt Janette's on Saturday. 

...so I guess that puts the boys' grandparents "over the hill" now. They have some pretty young grandparents compared to me at that age! They even have several great-grandparents, which is something I never had either.

Last week, we enjoyed being in Mediapolis for my brother Justin's testimony and baptism. There is no better thing than to be at peace with our Lord.

It is a blessing to be at peace with God because we never know when He will call us Home. We are thankful Matt's Grandpa Knobloch was ready to meet Jesus when he passed away suddenly a couple weeks ago. We were glad to make it to Lester for the funeral and to be with the Knobloch family last Monday. 

The whole Schulz family (minus Mom and Dad in Lester, Steve in Connecticut, and Levi who stayed home) drove home in a five-minivan, thirty-person caravan. 

There happened to be a play place at the McDonald's we stopped at...the kids had fun there! 

Easter weekend followed our week of baptisms, funerals, and birthday parties. We enjoyed spending time with the Massners on Saturday and the Lanz family on Sunday.

Actually, the birthday parties weren't really over yet. The Massner family combined our Easter dinner with Travis's birthday...15 on the 15th!

Levi had fun on his second annual Easter egg hunt!

(This was Levi's first Easter egg hunt...for those who may have forgotten.)

We are enjoying the beautiful weather! Levi has enjoyed some days playing outside, and Matt has been getting things looking good around here, too!

Chillin' on the porch with a few of his favorite things...his chair, his bottle, and his cat.

Around the house, things are proceeding as normal. 

Levi's head detached from his body...

...but I managed to get it screwed back on so he could play with Micah again. 

Strawberries grew to the size of apples...

...and I ran out of thyme to finish my chicken... 

...6'5" Travis no longer needs a stool...he just kneels and is still taller than Matt on a stool.

Micah was fussy one afternoon, but fell asleep instantly when I laid him on the rock-hard kitchen counter.

We're kind of losing our marbles around here...

But thankfully we're still smiling! Hope you find reason to smile, too...we are so blessed!