Moving to Arkansas!

Big news for the Roebuck family: We are moving from Idaho to Arkansas. In two weeks. :-)

This week, Lucas accepted a job as Director of University Communications for John Brown University. He is really excited about this new challenge, and we are both thrilled to be moving back to the town we consider home: Siloam Springs, Arkansas.... where we met and fell in love, and where we both have family close by.

The next couple weeks will be a whirlwind, so don't worry about us if the blog gets a little "stale" between now and August 1st. We'll be sure to update as often as we get the chance.

Catching Up

Wow..... looks like I need to up my blogging game. I haven't posted in forever!

Life has been a little crazy around here this week.... crazy in a good way. We're having a great summer in Arkansas and enjoying lots of really special time with my mom and dad. We are so thankful to be here.

Check out what we did tonight:

Moooo-oooooo! We dressed up like cows to get free dinner at Chick-Fil-A. It was so fun! We met our friends the Fields there for dinner and had a splendid time. Maggie followed the poor Chick-Fil-A employee dressed in a full cow suit around the restaurant for an hour. Literally. She was OBSESSED with the cow.

The best moment of the night was when Dave and Jen's 4-year-old daughter crawled up on the cow's lap and starting asking him for what she wanted for Christmas. I about died. It was so sweet and funny.

I don't know why, but this picture of Max just cracks me up. I love that boy.

After dinner, we met up with mom and dad at KMart. Grandpapa treated the kids to the kiddie ride out front of the store. Maggie was grinning and giggling the whole time. It was sweet!

Conversations with Maximus

[Our awesome friends Mollie and Gene sent the kids a gift from InsectLore: a set of live catepillars which spun cacoons and then emerged as beautiful butterflies, all right in front of our eyes. The kids LOVED it.)

Lucas: Max, pretty soon we're going to release the butterflies and let them go outside.

Max: (crying) No!! I want to keep them! Don't let them go!

Lucas: If we leave them in the cage, they will die. They need to be free.

Max: (still crying). Okay. We will let them go so they can live. [Pause.] But maybe if we leave them in their house, they will die, but then they will wake up later.

Lucas: No, when things die, they don't wake up. It's like Simon [grandpapa and grandmama's dog]. He died, and he didn't ever come back.

Max: Daddy, are you going to die?

Lucas: Yes, someday I will die. But it won't be for a long time. You will probably grow up and be a man and have kids before I die.

Max: When you die, will you go to heaven?

Lucas: Yes, because of Jesus, I will.

Conversations with Maximus

[This little interchange happened as we were driving along one day. Max calls out in a panicked voice from his car seat:]

Maximus: Mom! I need to talk to God!

Me: Okay, what do you need to talk to God about?

Maximus: I need to ask God if, when I grow up to be a daddy, if I can have work.

And then he bowed his little head and prayed that God would give him work. Poor little guy. Even he is feeling the stress from the economy. :-)

Happiness is a visit from a friend

What a glorious treat! Casey, Abbe and Asher are in Arkansas this weekend speaking in their former church about Lahash International. We've had SUCH a good time visiting with them! We spent yesterday morning at the pool and then enjoyed lunch with them. We're looking forward to seeing them a bit more before they head to Texas to see family and then back home to Portland.

I really wish I lived closer to this dear friend.... but I'll certainly take what I can get! This unexpected visit has been good for my soul. Love you, Abbe!

We LOVE being close to these friends for the summer!

I'm WAY behind on posting this, but last Saturday we had a FANTASTIC day with Brian and Anna and crew. Boy, do we love living close to these dear friends for the summer!

We started the day at the botanical gardens, moved on to a fun lunch and park-play at Chick-Fil-A, scooted on over to Old Navy to try to find some $2 tank tops, then ended up at Best Buy where Lucas offered his professional Apple computers personal consulting service- his idea of a perfect ending to a fun day with friends.

We had a great time, and our kids were nice and worn out by the end of the day. :-) Thanks, Brian, Anna, Sam, Kate, and Kai!

My husband's interview with Jim Bob Dugger

There's been a lot of buzz this week about Jon and Kate and other reality TV families. People are reading about it in tabloids, newspapers and blogs and talking about it around their kitchen tables.

Lucas had a great opportunity to speak with Jim Bob Dugger (of TLC's 18 Kids and Counting) yesterday and write a column for the NWA Times. You can read the column here.

Lucas and I really appreciate the Duggers and their genuine faith lived out in front of a watching world. One of the things I really respect about them is that they have very strong convictions that are certainly counter-culture in our world today, but they live out these convictions in a way that is gracious and nonjudgemental. That's something that we just don't see often enough in our world.

I hope you'll take a few minutes to read Lucas' column. I thought he and Jim Bob both did a great job of reminding and encouraging us all about the value of working hard to keep our marriages strong.