My Prayer Hike

This morning I woke at 4AM to meet with five gals from my prayer group to hike Usery Mountain in Mesa. We vowed to one another that once we exited the car all the way until we returned to it again, we’d stay totally silent, not talking to one another at all. The task was challenging, yet so rewarding! Three hours of alone time with God was wonderful. As I first took route on the trail, I found myself asking Christ for things (“Bless this person, help this other one, and don’t forget so and so…”) until He spoke to me, “Kymberly…just enjoy me!” So from that step on, I just praised him for all his qualities, (“Lord, thank you for always being here for me, thank you for being an unchangeable God, I praise you for your justice and grace…”).

Once I hit the top of the mountain where the Wind Cave is located, Diane, our amazing prayer group leader, gave us an envelope to open. Inside was a lovely letter as if it was written by Christ. It started out, “Come away my beloved. You do not need to make your path like a snow plow, for I say unto you, I go before you. I shall engineer circumstances on your behalf. I am your husband, and I will protect you and care for you, and make full provision for you.

“I know your need, and I am concerned for you: for your peace, for your health, for your strength. I cannot use a tired body, and you need to take time to renew your energies, both spiritual and physical. I am the God of Battle, but I am also the One who said: They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. And Jesus said, Come apart and rest a little while.

“I will teach you even as I taught Moses on the back side of the desert, and as I taught Paul in Arabia. So will I teach you. Thus it shall be a constructive period, and not in any sense wasted time. But as the summer course to the school teacher, it is vital to you in order that you may fully be qualified for your ministry…” (more followed)

I sat, read the letter, and meditated on the words, read from my Bible, then found myself breaking out in song to him for the thirty minutes I sat there overlooking the valley and watching the sun shed its full light.

Coming down from the mountain, God have me another thought. With the full light upon the path, it was so much more beautiful than as I had headed up in some darkness. Isn’t that so true?! With Christ (He is the Light), you see things in such different perspective and beauty. Oh how we all need to see his Light!

I didn't miss talking or listening to others speak. I very rarely ever get to rest in silence, yet it’s in the silence when we can really hear loud and clear what God has to say to us!

We had a Blast at Blast X-Treme!

We had a BLAST, that’s for sure at our church’s version of VBS called, Blast X-Treme! Each day the chapel was filled with incredible Bible teachings with creation as the topic and mad scientists to deliver the thought provoking message! Every year I am in awe of how God brought us together as a body to serve one another with our gifts and talents, for His glory. From the music, to skits, teachings in the classroom and in the lab for crafts, nothing was missed and everything was remarkable. I was so proud of the kids who attended this year and their geneous hearts for donating $2,799.16 to the Center of Life ministry!

(Too bad Nathan and I had to miss several days this week for him to recover from his ‘spot attack’ known as the coxsackievirus. I missed my class I was teaching yet it was so neat to see my friend Kelly step up and take over in impressive ways. I did cherish the ‘snuggle time’ I had with Nathan though. Hmmm, not much else can compare in such a wonderful form!)

How High Will They Stack?

As we read Jon’s handwriting from the entry pulled for tonight’s Family Fun adventure, everyone was excited and eager to get started. One by one, each of us stacked those deliciously dangerous Oreo cookies for a stacking contest which then transpired into a messy teeth competition.
Stacking results:
1st place, Jon with 24 cookies stacked
2nd place tie was Nathan and Mommy, both with 21 cookies
3rd place was Baylee with 20
4th place Owen with 19 (boy did he hold his own!)






And for the messy teeth competition…no certificate was rewarded, just lots of laughs! Take a look and see how horribly cute we turned out to be!

Happy Daddy's Day

Owen, Nathan, and Baylee are BLESSED beyond measure! They truly have the BEST DADDY it the WORLD! There is a mutual admiration between the foursome that I love to gaze at! Jon’s fun, kind, patient, forgiving, and gentle with them all, and most of all, he LOVES them! The kids are so thankful to have him for a DADDY.

(photos to come)

Chapter Twelve...Zoe and Brinkley

This vacation was so fun to experience with our puppies, Zoe and Brinkley! They were wonderful travelers and guests at the beach house. We were so thankful that Cherie and Eric invited them to join us.(Zoe...poor girl, you can't see her eyes!)

(Brinkley)

Chapter Eleven...A Few Photos of the Kids at the Beach

Do your eyes easily get attracted to family photos on the beach like mine do? There’s such beauty of the ocean’s backdrop! Our entire time here on the beach, we forgot to pull our tripod out to try to capture a family shot like we did six years ago at Cannon Beach. I am so bummed! Nonetheless, at least I snapped a few of the children that will captivate my heart for a lifetime.

Chapter Ten...the Beach House

Bighearted and openhanded are two simple words to describe Eric and Cherie. To offer us their home for our week’s vacation just begins the generosity we experienced. Both are wonderfully humble, kind, and loving cousins and their home was beautifully inviting and comfortable! Here’s the home the Kempiak Party of Five indulged in…




(My very favorite place in this house...a reading window!)

Chapter Nine...My Cousin, the Artist

I have always loved and admired my dear cousin Cherie in so many ways! Besides our bond through family blood, we are also connected because of our faith (as well as other areas). She is my cousin, sister in Christ, and a dear friend who I can talk on the phone with for hours at a time! Cherie is talented in many ways, today I will share one area of creativity, her artwork that is displayed throughout her beach house we are staying at. She’s offered to make me a few pieces for my home too and I plan to take her up on her generosity! Having her ‘fingerprint’ in my home would be a constant reminder of our love and wonderful relationship. She has a website if you would like to see more…just click here!

Chapter Eight...Channel Island Vacation...David

This is my lovely cousin David who I cherish deeply. He has always been someone who is easy to love and over time has been the one family member that reminds me most of my brother. Several years back, David went into surgery to have a lump removed because of skin cancer. Once surgery was over, praise God that the cancer was gone but so was his arm, shoulder, and scapula. The doctors had to remove it all in order to give him ‘life’.

This trip was the first time I’ve been able to be face to face with him. I treasured every minute of it! Being able to reconnect was great but he also inspired me in so many ways. His physical challenges have not stopped him one bit! He’s surfing, canoeing, and much more!

"Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore" ~Andre Gide

“Life challenges are not suppose to paralyze you; they’re supposed to help you discover who you are.” ~Bernice Johnson Reagon
“The marvelous richness of human experience would lose something of rewarding joy if there were no limitations to overcome.” ~Helen Keller

Chapter Seven…Channel Island Vacation…Kids’ Ocean Adventures

Ever since Jon and I returned three days ago from our Sea-doo escapade with Eric; Baylee and Nathan have been chomping at the bit to have an ocean quest of their own. Eric and Cherie returned; bless their hearts, to make it possible. Eric and Jon took the ‘big kids’ on the water with the intention of keeping them in the Chanel canals. They were unsure how the kids could handle the waves of the ocean as well as the mode of transportation and temperatures that come with splashing through the cold waters. Well, both Baylee and Nathan surprised both men and sooner than later, they were out in the ocean being surrounded by many large pods of dolphins. Everyone out there agreed that they saw at least a hundred, if not two! {I'm crazy jealous ☺!}

Once in site of us on the deck of the beach house, both Baylee and Nathan were practically screaming as they boasted of the sites they encountered on the Sea-doos. Nathan exclaimed, “I could even hear them breathe Mommy!” {Nice…my daughter and son lived a dream of mine!}

Owen wasn’t thrilled when his brother and sister’s adventure began so Cherie and I took him out on the canoes. Once I got a handle on the balancing act needed for two, we had a blast maneuvering on top the water. Then once Daddy and Eric returned the Sea-doos, we spontaneously agreed to take Owen out on a ride, sandwiching him between us. We didn’t go far, nor fast, but Owen felt like he was a part of something pretty important and he was greatly satisfied! It was precious!