Every Day's A Dream

Merry Christmas 2011!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 13:24:00 +0000

We are so thankful for God's blessings and can't help but feel undeserving of everything He does for us. We are especially thankful this time of year as we embrace and celebrate the biggest blessing and gift He has ever given...His Son Jesus. May you also be blessed knowing that Jesus came to earth as the greatest gift you'll ever receive. Whether you feel worthy or not, the gift is yours. Accept His gift and you'll be forever changed. May God's peace, love and joy fill your life this Christmas season and in the coming year.

The Latest House Renovations #3 & #4

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 17:44:00 +0000

Okay, so it's been a while but, as you will see, we've been a wee bit busy with house renovations. The house is lookin' awesome and is now reflecting more of our personal style. Our most recent projects have been the Dining Room followed by the Master Bedroom. See the Big Reveals below...

Dining Room BEFORE:

Dining Room AFTER:

Master Bedroom BEFORE:

Master Bedroom AFTER:

Airplanes and Baseball

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 16:55:00 +0000

Just like last year, Steve took Judah to the Quad City Air Show. They made sure to take ear plugs this time around!

Steve organized a family outing on Father's Day for the GO! Kids ministry at our church. We went to the Quad City River Bandits baseball game. The Bandits are the farm team for the St. Louis Cardinals. After the game, all the kids got to go out on the field where a helicopter had dropped tons of candy in the outfield. After the kids were running frantically to pick up as much candy as they could, the helicopter made a few more passes and dropped large and small marshmallows on top of the kids just for fun. After the candy chase, the kids could run the bases if they wanted to. Here is Judah chugging from first base to second.

This N That

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 16:31:00 +0000

Here are a few miscellaneous pictures from things that were going on in our lives earlier this Summer.

Judah had strep throat 3 times in a several month period and he got to go to work with Steve one afternoon when Teri had to work. He wrote me a note (copied what Steve wrote) saying that he had missed me because he had strep. So cute!

Steve did a gravel road bike race near Kolona, IA in June. It was a very hot day. Afterward, we toured the back country roads and stopped in Muscatine for some dinner at the Old Button Factory and for Judah to play in the water spray fountain along the Mississippi River. Aside from TONS of shad flies that you constantly had to swat away along the river and Judah crashing full-force into a little girl and banging himself up pretty good in the fountain, it was a fun-filled day.

Here's Judah enjoying a "smoothie popsicle" that Steve made for him. He didn't make much of a dent in eating it but he sure had a good (and messy!) time trying.

We had our good friend, Dan, over for dinner one evening and he very graciously and patiently sat down with Judah to begin work on putting together Judah's new Lego Battleship. Needless to say, Dan was Judah's new BFF after that night. :)

Judah loves taking pictures and always wants to take photos of Cassidy. However, Cassidy doesn't stand still long enough so Judah usually asks me to hold Cassidy for him. As you can see, she's not too terribly thrilled with being made to stay put.

Dolphins and Peacocks and Bears, Oh My!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 21:11:00 +0000

In May we took a trip up to Chicago. All three of us got to choose one place that we wanted to go and we had to fit all three into our one day trip. Teri chose IKEA (what a surprise), Judah chose Brookfield Zoo and Steve chose REI (not a real shocker either). A two hour mad dash through IKEA really was just touching the tip of the iceberg but it was fun, regardless. We spent the most time at the zoo but still could have spent a couple more hours there to really get to see everything. Judah's favorite was the polar bears but Steve and I really enjoyed the grizzly bears as they swam in their pool. They would swim right up to the glass and float on their backs. So cute and cuddly...minus the really big teeth and sharp claws. The dolphin show was pretty fun to watch, too, and so were the gorillas chasing each other. Judah did great the whole time until...the giftshop. Whoever designed the layout of the zoo and made the giftshop the only way to exit the bears section of the zoo is obviously not a parent. If they were, they would take into account that most children are totally exhausted and on the verge of meltdown mode by the time they've trekked through the entire zoo. Poor Judah just couldn't make up his mind of what he wanted to buy (within the parameters we had set for him), the zoo was closing, mom and dad were more than ready to go...then it got ugly. You parents know what that looks like. I won't spoil the fun for those of you who aren't parents yet and haven't had the joy of dealing with a child in full meltdown mode yet. Anyway, he fell asleep on the short trip to REI and the cat nap seemed to put him in a better place once we arrived. We all wandered and drooled at all of the cool outdoorsy/active lifestyle stuff that is REI and wished we had gobs of money to spend on said stuff. When we'd had our fill, we all piled back in the Jeep for the 3 hour drive home. A long but fun family day.

The Cutest Chipmunk You Ever Saw

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 16:32:00 +0000

This Spring, Judah and I found the cutest, sweetest little "orphaned" chipmunk you've ever seen. Judah named him "Chicky" and we took care of him one afternoon by giving him birdseed, water, lots of exercise and lots of affection. I'm pretty sure his mommy found him because I saw an adult in the same area we found him later that evening. Judah still thinks that every chipmunk we see (and we see LOTS of them around our house) is possibly Chicky...and he might just be right.

Where Did Spring Go?

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 21:09:00 +0000

I swear it feels like I blogged not too terribly long ago but the date on my last post doesn't lie. May, hmmm. Guess I'd better get updating.

Steve and Judah decided to plant a small garden on the side of the house this spring. It started out pretty well and we were able to enjoy some fresh spinach for a while but, due to neglect and too much rain, then not enough rain and too hot...the garden didn't fair too well. It was a fun father/son activity anyway and Judah learned a thing or two about gardening. :)

Judah and I dyed the last 4 eggs we had in the house for Easter. Judah had never dyed eggs before so he really enjoyed watching the eggs take on the food coloring and change colors. He was disappointed though when he realized the inside of the eggs didn't change colors, too. He had a great time, as usual, doing the annual Easter Egg Hunt with his cousins at Grammy and Grandad's house. Here he is with cousin Will.

This Spring the Mighty Mississippi flooded much of the Downtown Davenport area. These pictures taken from the skywalk show just how far it came up over the river bank. The normal river bank is just to the left of all the lamposts to the far left in the first photo. It was pretty surreal.

And of course some of the other signs that Spring has arrived...

Flowers and the Farmer's Market. :)

Repainting Project #2--Living Room & Foyer

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Sun, 22 May 2011 17:23:00 +0000

After tackling our bathroom repainting project and loving how it turned out, I was motivated and inspired to repaint the foyer and living room. I LOVE how it turned out too!!! Next painting project...the kitchen! Here are some before and after pics of the foyer and living room.

Cassidy, the Dog with 9 Lives

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Sun, 22 May 2011 16:57:00 +0000

On Friday, Judah came running into the house frantic and upset. When I asked him what was wrong, he motioned me to come out on the deck and then, through his crying, told me that Cassidy had jumped over the side of the deck. For those of you who have never been to our house, you're probably thinking, "big deal" but our deck sits on top of our garage and is probably a good 15-20 feet off of the ground. Anyway, my heart sank and I prepared myself for the worst as I walked over to look over the side. I imagined a crumpled pile of broken yellow lab laying there in the grass. Instead, when I looked over the side, she wasn't there. I frantically looked over the other side thinking she had jumped on the driveway side (even worse) but, again, no Cassidy. Next thing I know she's coming up the steps with only a slight limp. After looking her over and giving her a big hug, I thanked God for this little miracle. After things calmed down a bit, I got the whole story from Judah. Apparently, a squirrel (Cassidy's arch enemy) decided to prance itself tauntingly along the ledge of the deck and Cassidy's natural hunting instincts kicked in. The squirrel jumped into the adjacent tree to safety while Cassidy--suddenly realizing she wasn't born with the same jumping and climbing abilities that her nemesis was--did a Superfly Snooka from the top rope (sorry, family joke). Thank you, God for protecting Cassidy from this fall...and from running into the sidecar of a motorcycle driving 40 mph...and from overeating to the point of stretching her stomach to 4x it's normal size...and...and...and. I'm beginning to think she'll outlive us all. We love you, Cassidy, our little furry girl.

We Have a "New" Bathroom!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 14:45:00 +0000

Steve and I finally tackled a partial-renovation of our one and only bathroom. It was quite a project that took way longer than we would have liked but I love my new bathroom!!! It's amazing what a little paint can do! Here are some before and after pics.

May The Force Be With You

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 14:38:00 +0000

About a month ago, I decided that Judah was old enough to understand and "get into" the original Star Wars movies that Steve and I grew up with. We introduced the first one to Judah and let him watch it several times to get to know the characters, etc. before we let him watch the 2nd and 3rd ones. To say that Judah is now a Star Wars junkie is an understatement. :) He's all about light sabers (light savers as Judah says) and Imperial Walkers and Yoda now. Anyway, when he and I were sitting in the John Deere combine harvester simulator the other day at the Bettendorf Family Museum, Judah stood up on his seat and began flipping lots of switches and turning knobs. I said, "What are you doing, Judah?" and he said to me, "I've got to switch all of these so we can make the jump to light speed." Um, okay. :)

Judah Lost His First Tooth!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 14:25:00 +0000

Back in mid-December, Judah told me his front tooth felt "funny." I took a look and realized it was a bit loose. I told him not to wiggle it and that maybe it would tighten back up since I didn't think he was old enough to start losing teeth yet (he hadn't even turned 5 yet at that point!). After another week or so I realized it was still pretty loose so I called the dentist. They told me that, unless he had knocked into something (which he hadn't) or the gums around it were swollen and red, it might just be ready to come out. I chose not to share this information with Judah since that would give him license to start yanking on it, which I didn't think was a good idea just yet. Well....by mid-January, Judah had begun working on that tooth and on January 26th he excitedly called me upstairs. I went upstairs to see what he wanted and found him...sitting on the toilet having just done his business and smiling a big toothless grin. :) I asked him where the tooth was and he said he didn't know. Uh Oh!!! Could it have fallen in the toilet??? Thankfully, it had just fallen into his pants that were around his ankles. :) Of course he put it under his pillow that night and the Tooth Fairy came but, before he went to sleep, he told me that he was going to sleep close to the wall on the far edge of his pillow so the Tooth Fairy could reach under his pillow easier to get his tooth. Such a thoughtful little guy! Anyway, here are a couple of pictures of Judah will his new toothless grin (one of which includes Steve joining in the fun--with a mashed up chocolate chip over his tooth). Judah was, and still is, so proud that he was the first kid in his preschool class to lose any teeth.

Teri's "Officially" Working These Days

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 13:45:00 +0000

Although I've been extremely blessed to primarily be a stay-at-home mom since Judah was born, I've also been blessed to have the opportunity to work part-time FROM HOME doing administrative and/or communication & graphic design stuff to help bring in a little extra cash. After lots of discussion and prayer (and, to be honest, even some tears on my part) Steve and I decided back in late October/early November that it was necessary for me to start looking for a part-time job to bring in a more consistent 2nd income. After MUCH searching for a job that fit my interests and skills as well as the hours that Judah was in pre-school and not finding anything that fit our needs, I decided to look into working at Judah's school at my wise mom's suggestion. I was blessed to be hired on to work one-on-one with a precious little boy named Aedan who has cerebral palsy. He "just so happens" to be in Judah's class in the afternoons, which is when I work, so I also get to spend time with my own precious little guy M-F from 2:30-5:30. Another bonus is that the school is close to home and meets our one-car-family's needs, too.

I began work on December 8th so have been there for three months so far. The name of the school is The Children's Village at Hoover and it is a wonderful early learning center for kids from Birth-5 years through the Davenport Community School District. Although I hadn't planned to work outside of the home until Judah was in Kindergarten, God had something better planned and I am so thankful that He cares about every detail of our lives and takes the time to work them all out so we don't have to.

Birthday Party #2

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 14:00:00 +0000

After returning home from Elkhart, Teri's parents threw a birthday party for Judah at a local bouncehouse joint called Monkey Joe's with his cousins. Two hours of bouncing around went quickly and burnt a lot of energy so we headed over to Happy Joe's (Apparently, there are a lot of guys named Joe starting businesses around here.) for pizza, cake and ice cream. Judah got some fun gifts and had a GREAT time with his Grammy and Grandad, Aunt Becki & Uncle Matt, his cousins and, of course, his awesome Mom and Dad. Thanks Grammy & Grandad!

Judah Turns 5 @ Grandma & Poppy's House

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 14:00:00 +0000

Our little Judah turned 5 on December 30th while we were in Elkhart, IN visiting with Steve's family. We were blessed to spend time with Steve's parents, his sister Lynette and her hubby Dave and Steve's sister Karla and her kids Lily and Jack who were visiting from Hawaii. Judah got some really awesome BIG dinosaurs from Grandma and Poppy and a cool cake with little dinosaurs on it. The big dinosaurs were ready with spoons in mouths to eat that de-lish cake! Judah also got to visit the Elkhart Train Museum with Mom, Dad and Poppy. What a great time we had with Steve's family and Judah had a very special birthday. He even shared some of his cake with his feathered cousin, Claude. :)

German Feast Anyone?

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 14:00:00 +0000

Steve had a hankerin' for German food one day so he and Judah made a German feast complete with HOMEMADE pretzels. Judah was a big help in making the actual pretzels and they turned out totally delicious. Nice work, guys!

Two Awesome Dudes

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 14:00:00 +0000

I already love Steve and Judah TONS but when I see their humble servant hearts in ways like this, without being asked, I just love them all the more. Thanks, Steve, for teaching Judah by example how to be a loving servant to others. I love you guys!

Snowstorm #1

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 14:00:00 +0000

We've been socked with a couple of snowstorms this winter here in eastern Iowa along with really cold temps. The first was over Christmas. Here are some pics of Judah and Steve shoveling the driveway, Steve coming home from an "epic" run in the fresh snow and Judah's trucks buried under a ton of snow on the deck railing.

Teri's Family

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 14:00:00 +0000

Teri's family got together over Thanksgiving and Christmas, which doesn't happen too terribly often. I think we have finally stopped adding grandkids to the mix--there are 11 total with 3 grandogs thrown in to keep things interesting...as if they weren't already. Due to the snowstorm on Christmas Eve, we weren't able to get together with extended family but my brother Dave and his family did manage to make it out to see my Grandma Bev with my Dad.

Christmas 2010 Eve and Morning

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 21:01:00 +0000

Christmas Eve is traditionally spent out at Teri's Aunt & Uncle's house in Rio, IL with her Dad's side of the family. However, this year's snow storm prevented that from happening so we spent Christmas Eve at Teri's parents' house with Teri's immediate family (minus Steve who had to work 3 Christmas Eve services at church). We all had a great time together but ate waaaaaay too much junk--At least Teri did! Before we headed over to Teri's parents', Judah wanted to sprinkle his "reindeer food" on the front lawn so Santa's reindeer would have a snack while Santa made his special delivery to our house. Here's a video of Judah leaving their snack.

Christmas morning is spent opening gifts at our house and enjoying a yummy special breakfast. This year we had cinnamon rolls with orange icing and egg/cheese/prosciutto biscuits with a smear of apricot preserves. YUM-O!!!!

Okay, so I'm a "tad" bit behind in updating (ALREADY!)...Here's Christmas 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 20:29:00 +0000

The Meek family began it's Christmas preparations as we have the last several years...going to cut down our Christmas tree. The last two years have been at a local tree farm. Once home with our tree, we set the mood for an evening of decorating with a semi-junk food feast and lovely Christmas music. It's always a fun and festive day!

Merry Christmas 2010!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 16:11:00 +0000

I can't believe another year has nearly past. The years really do fly by the older you get! Anyway, we hope this finds you well and enjoying the life you've been blessed with. We are so thankful to have you in our lives--even though most of you are far from us these days. We think of our family and friends often but particularly so at this time of year. We pray that you are blessed beyond belief and enjoying this beautiful time of year when we celebrate the birth of Jesus. He loves you so much!

Our eco-friendly (read: ECOlogical and ECOnomical!) Christmas card is attached below.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

With love from the Meek's...Steve, Teri, and Judah (and Cassidy, the dog)

It's been a while...

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 20:24:00 +0000

For those of you who (at least USED TO) regularly check our blog to see what's going on in the Meek's lives, I sincerely apologize for being so long between posts this past year. It's been a busy year and I honestly don't know where it's gone so quickly. Anyway, here are a few photos from the past year so you can see how big Judah is getting and how old Steve and I are getting. Ha Ha

I promise I will do a better job of keeping up in 2011. Okay, there it is IN WRITING so now I HAVE to blog regularly. How's that for motivation and accountability?! :) Here are a few pictures taken throughout 2010.

Such A Profound Statement

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 02:25:00 +0000

Tonight Steve and I were doing a family devotion with Judah. After watching the short Bible lesson on DVD, Steve started reading out of the discussion guide. Judah said he wanted to read so he took the discussion guide and began to "read" from it. The next words out of his mouth were so profound...

"The God of Israel came in words."

The lesson was all about ways that we can communicate with God and how He communicates information to us through the Bible...His Word. What a nice summary that Judah put together in that 4 year old brain of his.

My Amazing Hubby

noreply@blogger.com (Steve, Teri and Judah Meek) — Tue, 04 May 2010 20:31:00 +0000

I just want to brag a little bit on how amazing a job my husband does as the Children's Pastor at Heritage Church's Bettendorf Campus. You can see some of the great work that he does by looking at his Kids Ministry Blog at http://www.hcbkids.com/. Amazing stuff! I'm so proud of you, Steve!!!! I love you!