Celebration and Praise

Psalm 150

1 

Praise the Lord.[a]

Praise God in his sanctuary;

    praise him in his mighty heavens.

2 

Praise him for his acts of power;

    praise him for his surpassing greatness.

3 

Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,

    praise him with the harp and lyre,

4 

praise him with timbrel and dancing,

    praise him with the strings and pipe,

5 

praise him with the clash of cymbals,

    praise him with resounding cymbals.

6 

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord.

Today was a day of celebration for Julia's birthday and for the new toys that arrived here with Kris Heslop.  After school we all pretended to be going on our way when we actually were all going to surprise Julia at lunch at the Chinese restaurant.  23 of us- children did outnumber adults - celebrating.  What fun to watch Julia's surprise and then to enjoy lunch and adult conversation.  After, there was cake and gifts for Julia to open.  

Many then returned to the baby house to continue her birthday by giving new toys to the babies and toddlers and enjoying some of Tim's homemade chocolate mandazi.  

Truly a day of celebrating the gift of children and the gift of generosity - a time to praise God for His blessings of life, children, and the sharing hearts of many.  Here are some pictures from the afternoon.  (Sorry - not great, quality pictures.  Used my small camera and was having trouble getting the best lighting.)

                                           Surprise, Julia!!

                                            Opening gifts.

                                                     Lizzie explores one new toy.

                                        My man, Jabali, with a new book.

                                      Toys, toddlers, and babies everywhere.

                                      Even the older children enjoyed the toys as well as handing them out.

                                                Jenny stays close - so hard to get her to smile some days.

                                    Adults, babies, kids, oh my!

                                         Figuring out the new toys was fun for all of them.

                                         And of course, I can't leave out "my" Gloria.