woollypeaches

random BOO thoughts

2012-03-19T11:16:00.000-04:00

Maybe I will start a new weekly tradition, random Monday thoughts, probably not...but it is a random thought :)

I think some of the randomness just needs to be shared (and remembered for my kids to question me about later.)

1) My rule for clothes. Do any of you have rules for clothes? I know my kids are only 5 and 3, but I am SO not ready to fight about clothes yet, so the rule in our house... You pick what you wear at the house, I pick what you wear when you leave the house. And yes, that pretty much means I hang out with Snow White everyday or the occasional swimsuit, but leaving the house in the AM and getting dressed in the morning is easy-peasy.

2) Visual learners...I got this idea from a good friend of mine (MY) and I thought it was great. We have always kind of had "to do lists" or "chore lists", but I loved the idea of having a picture next to each one. The kids easily know what needs to be done each day or what they still need to do...love it! (And the kids love it too :) I made charts for their bulletin board to hang next to the stop lights. (Brother loves his stop light too, that is the discipline technique they use at BBP and he requested it at home too. Works for me :)

3) Bedtime stories... my kids LOVE bedtime stories. They would choose a story Hubby or I make up any day over reading a book. I have to start thinking around bath time to get something in mind for bedtime :)

We have been having a few problems with listening the 1st time lately, so I decided to use something they love to help them learn... And so the "Adam and Katie" stories were created. Most of you know that isn't my kids real names, so I wanted something close, but not the same. Adam and Katie are a brother and sister duo who have a hard time listening to their parents. They have tons of adventures and almost always end up somewhere they shouldn't (ex. trip to the zoo by way of Marta turns into a mess when the kids don't stop when their parents are calling and get on the wrong train. )

I was actually pleasantly surprised with how much they LOVE the stories. I have actually been able to tie quite a few into something my kids were struggling with for the day. And when they are doing something they shouldn't it is common to hear Sister say "I not being like Katie!" ha!

4) The Magic Treehouse... one of Brother's favorite rewards for having a good day is to read a chapter in the Magic Treehouse serious. I am all about fostering a love of reading in him, so it is something we try to do every night if he has had a good day. My favorite part of the stories is that they are about a Brother and Sister who like to go on wild adventures. They are SO similar to my kids it is crazy. The older Brother is more reserved, while the Sister doesn't have a care in the world. I even use their names when I am reading, so don't tell him they are really named Jack and Annie...he wouldn't know what you are talking about!

Is that enough randomness for today?! I need to go finish the laundry and make some lunch. I hope you all have a wonderful week! Our busyness starts tomorrow, cause that's how we roll...

Dad's Dessert Night 2012

2012-03-19T10:39:00.000-04:00

Sister got an adorable new shirt and headband from one of her friends for her birthday! They were perfect for Dad's Dessert Night at the preschool. Last year the theme was baseball and this year was all about camping and the outdoors. It is definitely one of our favorite nights of the year (especially for Hubby).

This year was actually a little more special b/c Hubby, JB and JM were the speakers for the evening. I was very proud of them. They did an awesome job sharing their hearts and practical thoughts and ideas for raising preschoolers. Biggest plus is getting to see them share how much they love the Lord and their kiddos. We had a wonderful time. The kids always get up from nap ready to GO, so we had a few minutes to grab some pictures before we headed out.

Cutest bow EVER!

Sweet kiddos...she is catching up to him in height. I bought him size 5T clothes at the consignment sale, and her 4T...crazy! She is technically wearing a 3T, but they "just fit". whew.

They make me laugh everyday!

ha! I can't imagine life without that face :)

They even talked Daddy into being silly too.

Sweet kisses... Those are cheek kisses, funny story about Sister. She came home the other day and said a boy kissed her on her cheek under the table. I said "Sister we talked about not giving away our special kisses..." S: " I DIDN'T KISS HIM" M: "Well, either way, let's not kiss at school. What are you going to say next time he wants to kiss you" S: "THANK YOU" M: Grrr...

Monday FUNday

2012-03-12T20:39:00.000-04:00

About once a quarter a wonderful Monday roles around where everyone in our house is home...yay! It doesn't happen too often, but when it does we always plan a family fun day! The ideas for today all came from a friend on facebook (thanks MT!). It all centered around a yogurt place in Athens that has dairy free options (and some awesome coupons). We started the day at Bear Hollow...one of our favorite stops in Athens. The kids call it a zoo, and to be fair they don't really remember a "real" zoo, so the free one will continue to be exciting for now. We didn't tell them where we were going, but Brother remembered as soon as we pulled into the parking lot (of course :) Gotta love that memory.

Family picture to start our day! The animals were actually out and about a good bit today. We were the only ones walking around while we were there, so I think they liked having someone to look at too.

Me and my girl...and our crazy curly hair.

Ready for some fun. (Side note...I LOVE her new shirt, $1.50 at the consignment sale :) and she loves it too.

Alligators...

Owls...one of them was ALL over the place this morning. I don't think I have seen an owl that active before.

Silly pictures...these 2 cute bears were my favorite.

These owls were pretty cute too!

The bears were cracking us up today...we decided the one on top was Brother (he didn't want to wake up)

I was a little surprised he didn't fall off from up there! The one on the ground was Sister (she wanted everyone to come and play with her.)

Bald eagles next to the bear area...

Family picture take 2.

Brother checking out how big his "paw" is...

Sister measuring her "wing span".

And the one the little bears were bothering was the Mom...fitting, right?!

Kisses...

Pop on the head...

Bite on the neck...

Oh, no you didn't?!

Don't make me come up there!

And back to kisses, that pretty much sums up the cycle of my days too :)

Sweet Sister...I love this picture. I think I have one just like it from last year. She is so big now!

Silly Brother...

Hubby's "wing span"...pretty close!

Bobcats...

Here kitty, kitty...

Loving our time with Daddy home... between work & school it has been a crazy few months, but today was a lot of fun and good for all of us :)

My boys...

Picture by Brother, love it :)

Daddy and his girl.

After Bear Hollow we headed over to the Athens-Clarke County Library. They are in the middle of some renovations, but we had heard the kid area was really neat and it didn't disappoint. We had to follow some winding hallways to get there, but once we found it the kids really enjoyed it. We had learned before we left that you can check out books there with your Pines library card and return them in Loganville...perfect for us! And a double bonus for the kids that they got to play and pick out some fun books to take home. I bet the library is going to be fantastic next year when the renovations are complete.

Next on the list was a quick stop at CFA for lunch (calendar coupons in hand :) and then the biggest treat of the day. CFA is in the same parking lot, so the kids ate lunch, played on the playground for awhile and we walked across the parking lot to Menchie's. It was SO neat. We don't usually do the "yogurt" places b/c both kiddos can't have dairy, but the friend who mentioned the idea to me also found out that Menchie's had dairy free options...woo hoo! Our kiddos were in heaven. Today they could choose between watermelon and mango...it was SO great. I also had downloaded a coupon, so we basically got buy one, get one free = awesome!

Hubby and I were both going to get something different, but the coffee flavor was calling our names. Mine was coffee with chocolate sauce and almonds, and he had coffee with heath bar crumbs. The kids stuck with toppings like strawberries, sprinkles, and gummy worms :)

I had been cautious with the amount we got the kids, trying not to overload them, but we actually let them get a little more after they licked their bowls clean before we sat down...it isn't everyday they get to enjoy a yogurt place.

Thank you Menchie's! We will definitely be back (I printed 2 coupons :)

Now to head home and get to dance class...I love Family Fun Monday's!

We have to get to bed early tonight, we have new books to read...cause that's how we roll.

February Catch UP

2012-03-12T14:30:00.003-04:00

HOW has it been almost a month since I posted?!! I thought I was actually doing pretty good this year too! Oh well, catch up time... If you have seen me you know what we have been doing. Life has been crazy busy, but good. Hubby is in school now (2 online classes) and 1 class he is taking at work (that prayerfully should be over at the end of the week), between 3 classes and 2 jobs that pretty much explains where he has been. :)

As for me and the kids...school, dance classes, play practice, church, & consignment sale have pretty much been our lives the last few weeks. To be honest though, we pretty much love every minute of most of it...busy or not. Brother is doing his 1st play with my Sister at her church in Stone Mtn. We drive every Saturday to spend the morning at play practice. I wasn't sure how he would feel at 1st, but I think he is LOVING it. They are doing "Cheaper by the Dozen"...if you are interested in seeing his theatrical debut, let me know...it is going to be cute.

Anyway, on our way to play practice last Saturday we already had the promised HomeDepot monthly activity on our schedule, so we ran a "few" minutes late, so the kids could make their orange race cars. They LOVE doing this with Hubby each month and I had a really good time tagging along :)

Getting out the instructions...always a good 1st step.

Helping Daddy "gently" put on some glue

Brother and Mommy getting started.

Making it stick...

Sister thought the hammering got a little loud...ha!

Brother did a great job putting the wheels on.

The table was a little high for Sister, so the level floor worked nicely.

Sticker time...almost done!

Yay for family fun...thanks HomeDepot!

On to play practice...Sister isn't in the play, she is just standing in for cousin, GO...please don't tell her though, I am not sure she "gets" it, we are working on it. She is definitely ready to be on stage...ha! They were missing a couple of the siblings on this day, there are 12 of them :)

The last picture is Brother and Sister, or Buzz and SnowWhite playing JustDance with their good friend, AM. She got to come over and place with us last Monday and they had a blast. Her family is expecting a new little one soon and we can't wait! Woo Hoo for new little ones :)

Well, hopefully that caught everyone up in our lives...or at least caught you up in some pictures. Thanks for hanging in there when I haven't posted in a while. We are doing well, spending time together when we can and having fun, cause that's how we roll.

Family Fun x 3

2012-02-16T23:14:00.000-05:00

After we got back from our week of fun in Ohio we had a fun day planned with some good friends at our local kids museum. The kids couldn't wait to see everyone (especially since they have been playing with only each other for almost 2 weeks :) We met at the museum when they opened this morning at 10am. We took the opportunity to take a picture of them all together...while they weren't all running in opposite directions.

First, a quick blast from the past...Winter Break 2010

And now Winter Break 2012...I can't believe how big they are!! Crazy! I love these kiddos.

We had a great morning at Imagine It. A "few" field trips were there, but we figured out a plan pretty quickly to stick together, rotate AWAY from the large groups and take full advantage of the show and lunch time. While everyone else was busy, we had the place to ourselves. Love it. Brother and HBjr playing in the moon sand.

Sister and GM

Sister played for a few minutes and they headed over to one of her favorite stops...painting. She did great today, no paint on her clothes...woo hoo. It's the little things you know?!

Hmm... I can't remember little HB's name on the blog, maybe that will work...little HB...he liked painting too :)

Little HB and his Dad driving Clifford's truck.

Sister trying to climb Clifford, so glad Hubby was able to get the picture instead of getting her down :) Knowing her she probably slid down his tails 2 mins later.

Planting flowers.

The rotating exhibit right now is Clifford". I think the kids really enjoyed it, we will have to go back on one of the "no field trip" Mondays to check out anything we might have missed.

The conveyor belt took the bones (or cute little girls) to the top.

Having fun in the tree house!

Can you see him behind the tree?

Up and away with the big kids :)

The treehouse was nice for the adults too...only one way in and out, so if we watched the gate we knew we were safe :) It was great to have some catch up time with some good friends.

Moving on to the store...

and the shipping truck.

I love these ladies! The Lord has blessed me with some wonderful, Christian friends.

The boys "cooking" dinner...

or maybe just eating it :)

I got almost all the kids in this one...missing Sister, no telling where she ran off too.

Oh! There she is :)

HB having fun with little HB...ha The balls are always a fun part of our day!

We "might" have started throwing them at each other...or in the buckets, you choose. I was aiming for buckets. I am pretty sure the kids were dumping them on us on purpose.

Sister got bored again and found her way over to the trains...she is a slippery little thing.

Ha! This cracks me up...I am sure they were wondering why there was a big flash in the cave. Hubby is silly like that.

Dress up time! Both my kids love dress up, and from the amount of time we spent here, I think all the kids too. I love JB's face in the mirror...and Sister's dress (she is a "mermaid").

After the museum we headed to the Varsity for lunch. A fun (and yummy) stop while we were in Atlanta. We had to search a little for enough seats (a lot of field trips were there too, go figure), but at least people more in and out of that place pretty quickly. The kids kept themselves amused while we waited to eat...

The girls...

vs. the "pirate" boys.

and a cute little one in the middle.

ha! I can only imagine what they were discussing.

Love it!

And I also love that the Lord has placed some great friends in our life. They are always there when we need them, our kids have a blast together, and we are blessed to be walking on together on the path the Lord has for our lives. I can't wait until our next family fun day :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

2012-02-14T10:00:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day! Love, Brother & Sister

'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" Luke 10:27

Snow-Tubing Excitement!

2012-02-13T23:10:00.000-05:00

I was not sure last year could be topped, but carrying on the Valentine's tradition today was AWESOME. I love winter and there was no better way to celebrate Valentine's than with family snowtubing. We actually started our morning visiting the Beavercreek 9-11 Memorial. It was very neat and our family really enjoyed it.

The memorial was a large piece of the towers that had been placed as the memorial. I love this picture with the flag in the background.

We took the opportunity to take some family pictures (and complete a geocaching challenge) while we were there. It was a great way to start the morning.

Sweet kiddos...we reminded them about the memorial by talking about the Dunwoody Manhattan Memorial Climb Hubby did last September.

After the memorial, we headed to Indiana to visit one of our favorite spots...Perfect North Slopes. We got to the exit a little early, so we grabbed lunch at White Castle (another Northern spot...think Krystals :)

Yum!

Then it was time for our Valentine FUN!

Bundle UP!

Waiting patiently for all the adults to be ready to go...

Whee!!!

Mommy love :)

We love snowtubing!

Brother LOVED every second of tubing today....we had a hard time getting him to take a break, or leave. We started letting him go down by himself about 1/2 way through and he was THRILLED. I can't believe what a big boy he is!

These "action" shots were from our 1st ride down, we all went down together and we were FLYING. I can't believe how fast we were going. We hit the gravel and kept going for a long while. The snow was definitely slicker than last year...SO much fun :)

Here we go...

I think we probably went down about 15 times in 3 hours...it was a perfect day 37-40 degrees and the crowd was really light. The "magic carpet" made getting up the hill nice and easy.

I think she had the best seat in the house though.

On our way back down the "mountain". We rode as groups most of the time (we went faster), but once Brother was able to go by himself, we tried all types of different rides.

Whee! Good job Sister :)

Snow flying in Brother's face...this happened a lot today, sometimes we were covered at the bottom of the hill.

Group picture, LOVE it!

Sister missed nap time and even Beauty and the Beast couldn't keep her awake.

We stopped for a quick dinner at Quaker Steak and Lube (fried pickles - YUM) and headed home to wash some clothes and pack for our trip in the AM. We are heading home in the morning, hopefully the snow won't slow us down too much. The kids enjoyed reading some books with R/ while we worked on getting some stuff together. We have had a wonderful time in Ohio...we love visiting family and actually enjoying WINTER during our winter break :) Best part is we get to see them again in a few months...yay!

Back to the real world...GA here we come.

SNOW

2012-02-11T21:57:00.000-05:00

Saying it was COLD today, is an understatement, but having snow made it totally worth it...at least for today! The kids were SO excited to wake up and see the ground covered in snow. We actually ate a yummy (and filling :) breakfast and bundled up to play for a little while. We promised the kids we would play in it before it melted.

I love these cute faces all bundled up :)

The snow was a pretty "powder", not really great for making snowballs...but we made it work.

Love this picture of my sweet boy!

I had to make her stop and say cheese...

before she went back to eating the snow... brrr.

Pretty snow!

Trying to stay warm, the wind was brutal.

Snow Angels...they came out pretty good in the "powdery" snow.

Family Picture...Take 1

Take 2 (Sister looking the wrong way.)

Take 3...Hubby messing with his hat.

Take 4...I fell over, laughing at Hubby to hard to get up. He was VERY concerned about missing the picture "Get up, GET UP!" ha...still makes me laugh.

Take 5...love it!

Sister making a snow angel too.

After playing in the snow we headed out to spend the day somewhere indoors, but 1st we made a quick stop to find our 300th geocache. Yay for geocaching in the snow!

and # 300!

We spent the rest of the day at the Air Force Museum. It was a lot of fun. I was surprised at how well the kids did. Hubby took a lot of pictures and really enjoyed our time there, so I am talking him into doing the post about that one. He will be able to explain the pictures a lot better than I could. The best part was we were able to do a mulit-cache will we were there too. It was a great day. My favorite part was Brother pushing Sister around in a stroller and explaining everything to her that we had just explained to him...sweet kiddos!

We headed back to the house after a quick stop at Skyline Chili (yum), which must have been a great lunch, b/c I think everyone ended up napping for a couple of hours. Perfect snow filled day!

Ohio Valentine FUN

2012-02-10T22:57:00.000-05:00

Today while the kids were napping I decided to do something fun with their Valentine's presents. We had each gotten them something little, so I decided to make a treasure map for them to follow to get their treats. We went ahead and gave it to them, so they could enjoy the books and other treats since we will be driving on Valentine's Day :) The kids each had a map and 3 "clues". Sister wasn't so sure at 1st, but as soon as Brother found the 1st treat, she was ready to play! I WILL foster my love of games in my children. Well, I WILL attempt to foster my love of games in my children :)

Treasure #3 was hidden in the dryer...he he he

Treasure # 1 - PEZ ( in the cabinet under the TV)

Treasure #2 - books (Near the stereo)

Finding treasure #3..."There is STUFF in here!"

More books, candy and cute Valentine Disney shirts :)

Oh yeah, and Legos, how did I forget that?

And then the BEST treasure ever...SNOW! (not a lot right now, but I have we see in the AM)

Enough for Sister to try to eat though :)

It was easiest to eat it off the tree...

Silly girl.

We are looking forward to really enjoying our WINTER break in the morning. Yay for Ohio snow!!

Bounce U (& Me) Take 2

2012-02-10T21:58:00.000-05:00

This morning was pretty chilly and the weather forecast called for snow, so we headed to somewhere we had taken the kids a few years ago. Read about our other adventures at Bounce U. A bounce house is a perfect way to spend a snowy day! (2nd best way is Soup and Salad lunch at Olive Garden...woo hoo!)

Brother was very serious about his air gun.

He was gracious enough to let Sister play a little too...she got over it quick and moved on to other things :) He stayed here for quick a while. We were there for the "preschool playdate", so we had an hour in each room. Perfect for our kids. They were pretty worn out by the time we left.

Up the slide Sister goes!

Down the slide Sister comes...she LOVED the slide. (She dragged Daddy, Mommy and R/ on the slide with her :)

I thought it was fun too!

Whee!

We did it a bunch.

Brother enjoyed the slide too...they were going really fast.

Sister practicing her skills.

Mommy and Brother having fun.

Cheese!

Mommy vs. Brother

Duck...

Gotcha

R/ bouncing with Sister...she talked her into it :)

Sister talked her into the slide too and another little boy joined in on the fun...we have no idea who he was, but we know he wanted an adult to hang onto :)

AAAAHHH!!

Sister made us laugh when she used her "rug" as a blanket.

Brother had a hard time sitting up every time he went down.

Hubby went down with the kiddos too.

Woo Hoo!

Hands in the air...

Then they talked us into going into the hurricane simulator...not as scary as it sounds.

The #s behind us showed the wind speed.

It was really loud in there!

I think they said 78 was about the highest.

Granddaddy lovin'

Tball practice

Silly faces with Granddaddy

Mommy and Sister fun

Gotcha!

Granddaddy vs. Brother

Brother vs. the "Tower"...spoiler - he won! Yay!

The rest of the day was spent watching snow fall, enjoying lunch at Olive Garden, resting (Hubby was working on school) , eating dinner and having a Valentine's Day treasure hunt (more on that later :) It was great...love our family time.

Sister's Ohio Bday

2012-02-10T21:50:00.000-05:00

Thursday night we headed to dinner at Mel-o-dee's (a YUMMY chicken place Hubby was hoping we would visit this trip :) One the way home Brother and I got to ride in Granddaddy's truck. He is such a big boy and did great. He said it was really "cool" :)

After dinner Sister celebrated her birthday for the LAST time :)

Opening presents...she got a PopOnPals School Bus and a cash register for her "store". They were both a big hit and we played with them the rest of the night (and a lot of this morning :)

Cha Ching...bada bing!

Gigi's cupcakes rounded our her birthday celebration...yum!

Singing to Sister...

Yay for being 3!

I bet she is wishing for snow...only time will tell :)

Road Trip Part 2

2012-02-10T21:44:00.000-05:00

3 states = triple the FUN! Today's plan was to eat a quick bfast at the hotel in Nashville, head towards Louisville (with a stop at Mammoth Cave National Park), dinner with our nephew, CW at 6pm and onto our final destination...OHIO. We spent the day in 3 states and it was SO much fun. (The time changing twice only through us off a little bit :)

We started the morning at Mammoth National Park in KY. The plan was to "hopefully" take a cave tour, but the only one they were offering while we were there was 2 hours long and "moderate" level of difficulty. Hubby and I both voted no, thinking that might be a little over Sister's endurance level.

I felt like the Lord confirmed our decision about 1/2 hour later when Sister started complaining her tummy hurt and she needed to go potty. THANK YOU LORD WE WERE NOT IN A CAVE!

We opted for some fun photo opportunities and finding 5 geocaches in the area. Yay for remembering to load the fun!

On a side note... I love this picture :) So glad Brother can take pictures for us, he is getting really good...ha!

She likes to be in front of the camera...silly girl.

One of the caches was a virtual cache around a pond on the property. Mammoth was a really interesting place to visit. We learned a lot about the area. Sister helped me out on this cache and we found our answers very quickly.

Yay for geocaching!

There were not many visitors at all that day (probably why they didn't have the tour I was hoping for), but it was amazing to see the deer everywhere in the park. This one was about 5 feet from the car...I thought it was going to run up to us, but I took the picture and he kept going. :)

We went on about a 1/2 mile "hike" to find a cache... I am pretty sure this is Sister's face when Hubby said "oops, I think we need to get it from the car"... Rule 2, everyone, Rule 2

She was back to her happy self in no time. (She liked her stick...said she was like "Grandma" ha :)

He is always happy to be outside!

Found IT! Cache #3 I believe :)

Found IT! Cache #4 (We found a small Dora and a policeman in this one for the kids...perfect!)

After Mammoth, we headed towards Lousiville to meet our nephew, CW for dinner. We met at a new restaurant to us, Mark's Feed Store (BBQ). It was yummy and fun to see him and his Dad, Stepmom and little brother.

The kiddos...(DC, Sister, CW and Brother)

They had a lot of fun together. They are "lego" buddies and always had a ton of stuff to talk about :) The trip worked out perfectly. After we left the restaurant, we drove the 2 1/2 hours to Ohio, to stay with my Dad and R/.

Since we got in a little early, we planned to spend Thursday at one of our favorite Ohio places. Boonshoft is a kid's museum that is on our ACM reciprocal membership...yay! The kids went once last year and LOVED it. We were literally there from 9:30am - 1:00pm (we only left b/c we needed lunch and naps :)

Brother is a pretty good shot...not sure if he will get the height to play bball though.

Blast off!

Sister and I helping Brother "take off".

Sister checking out the bugs.

Brother and Hubby building a "water pipe".

Brother found a "bluejay" costume...that is his new team name for t-ball this year. Yay Blue Jays (at least we aren't cheering for the Sandgnats again :)

Sister said her favorite part of the museum was the Animal Hospital. She did a great job "taking care" of all of my sick animals.

This made me laugh, Brother is SO my son. They were playing with the recycling truck and when you pushed a button in the back all the stuff that had been "loaded" came out.

You had to pick which item went in each section. Sister worked hard on that part, but I know it concerned Brother b/c before we left he did this...

So funny. I love that kid.

Pizza King Brother!

"May I take your order?"

My favorite part of the museum is that they also have animals. I LOVE the otters. It was a great day to be there, the animals were on their game. They were running up to the windows, playing with each other and putting on a great show. It was a lot of fun.

The Merekat couldn't decide what we were up too.

I love this picture...he is like "what are we all looking at?" ha!

We went to another "new" section this year, called the Treehouse. It was all about birdwatching...the kids thought it was great and were a little sad Granddaddy wasn't there to show it to him.

The rotating exhibit was all about math and puzzles. We all learned how possible it is to ride a bike with square wheels...

untangle a dog leash...

cover a wall with shapes...

That one took a little while, we were proud of our work :)

Plumber Sister.

and scientist Brother.

Brother said his favorite part was building a Lego castle with Hubby ( I wasn't sure if I should point out to him they could do that at home :)

It was a fun family day! Granddaddy and R/ are off for the next few days, so I am sure we have a lot of fun stuff planned. Right now I think the kids are praying for snow, and that prayed might be answered :)

Road Trip Part One

2012-02-09T14:21:00.004-05:00

Sheep Family Road Trip Rules:

(1) If there is a potty, everyone goes. We take advantage of every opportunity.

(2) Be HAPPY, we are on a road trip. Be full of JOY, no sorrow.

(3) Bring the GPS and always load a few caches. It will take us to places we would never find otherwise and always give us something to do.

(4) Go with the flow and we promise to have fun.

(5) It's all about shining our light for the Lord.

We headed out around 2pm on Monday. I had to work for a little while, but I came home to a packed car and a family ready to hit the road. We started a movie and tried out our new DVD player and headsets before we left ATL.

It was AMAZING! We were able to talk, listen to the radio and enjoy the sites while riding (and the kids had fun too :) The plan was to make it to Nashville, TN to spend the night. We had booked a hotel at a Holiday Inn Express. It was really nice and had a big plus....

an indoor pool :) The kids were SO excited!

Sister was double excited b/c it was the 1st time she didn't have to wear a swim pullup. ( I was excited too...she is such a big girl!)

She ran and jumped in without even thinking about it...I am glad Hubby was already in the pool or we would have been jumping in after it.

Brother of course took a turn too...it was fun to swim in February!

There she goes...

It was a little chilly (much warmer than it could have been, but chilly when you were out of the water), but Sister didn't care. She probably would have swam for another hour if we let her.

Happy boy!

Our hotel room was great! The sofa pulled out into a bed...perfect for Sister. We all got a great nights sleep and woke up to a yummy hotel breakfast and a car ride to a new, fun adventure!

Good Night!

Sleep Tight!

The fun is just beginning...

Adjusting our Prespective

2012-01-30T20:59:00.000-05:00

"The Lord God gives me my strength. He makes me like a deer, which does not stumble. He leads me safely on the steep mountains." Habakkuk 3:19

A few weeks ago during our nightly time with the kids we read a devotion called No Shortcuts from Jesus Calling for Kids. It prompted a lot of questions from the little ones. While discussing their comments a great illustration came to my mind. If you grew up around our area, you probably like most of the families around here, have spent a day at Stone Mountain. We go all the time and love it. But as often as we have taken our kids, there was still one thing we had not done with them yet. Hubby and I use to do it all the time, but had been using the excuse that they were not old enough for quite a while now. After reading the devotion we thought it was the perfect family opportunity on a beautiful day to illustrate God's plan for our life and enjoy His creation. So this morning we set out with a picnic basket, our family devotion and some good walking shoes to climb a mountain!

I have planned out a perfect path for your life, and I am leading you along that path. In the distance, you can see the mountaintop. That's our goal.

I know that you want to go straight to the top, but don't take shortcuts. Follow Me instead. Shortcuts can take you into dangerous places.

There will be difficulties along the way, for sure. But I will use them to bless you with courage and strength.

At times it might even seem that I am leading you away from the goal. Follow Me anyway, I have lovingly planned every inch of your journey.

Hold my hand and walk with Me. When the path gets rocky and steep - when problems get in your way - hold even tighter to My hand.

Together we WILL make it to the top!

Man, I was proud of my kiddos today. We didn't carry either of them at all and they toughed it out. For a 3 and 5 yr old they rocked it today. The Lord was so good to allow us to talk about the devotion the whole way up and give us SO many illustrations and encouragement.

During the most difficult times (you know the ones with the handrails :) there were even 2 other women who stopped to encourage my kids. They told them they were proud of them and you could tell it made their hearts soar. Such an amazing reminder that the Lord show up in many ways. When He promises that He will be there it can be in a family member, a handrail, or a stranger that is willing to go the extra mile. Reaching the top of the mountain together was an awesome accomplishment that I know my kids will talk about for days. Trust me, I am sure Brother is ready to tell you all about it :)

It was another day, and another mountain climbed forward to the changes / adjustments we are making in 2012. It ended up being a perfect day to make the climb since our family finished our monthly prayer focus day yesterday and our 25 day fast ends tomorrow. Please pray for our family as we embark on a year to really try to change our perspective. I know that we are all on-board, but I also know that when your family is committed to growing in the Lord and in the word, difficulties can arise. Our goal is to be obedient in His daily calling and when we know He is asking us to do...do it, no shortcuts. Today was awesome. I love it when a plan comes together... (new phrase, it works right?! ha)

Happy Bday Twin Cousin OINK

2012-01-29T21:08:00.000-05:00

I think the girls are liking this 2 birthday party thing...they have been celebrating all week. Two birthday snacks, two birthday parties and a birthday lunch on their actual birthday :) Tonight we headed over to Cookie's house for GO's birthday party...Olivia the Pig style, so cute!

Loved her banner, I didn't get the pig, oops.

Cute cupcake favor boxes, ate mine already...yum.

Sister found the PIG!

The kids had fun watching Olivia on TV and playing...

and of course eating yummy snacks :) We enjoyed pigs in a blanket, chips / salsa, veggies, fruit, puffercorn...perfect.

Birthday Cupcake time :) GO with her Mom and Dad...

Cute cupcakes, right?! Red and white (Olivia's colors) and some cute pink ones all around.

Enjoying the cupcakes! My girl will ALWAYS eat a cupcake... ( I think she was wearing her "I love cupcakes" shirt :)

Me and my boy enjoying our cupcakes too.

Love that girl.

GO opening her presents...we got her a cow & bubble bath. She asked for the cow, we picked out bubble bath :) He is a aromatherapy cow that you can warm up and sleep with. I actually got one for us to have at home also, so cute.

Me and my princess...our goodies. Crowns, wands and rings...and of course the cupcakes! (And some very cute homemade heart crayons that I need to learn how to make :) My kids colored with them on the way home and loved them.

Yay for birthday parties! We have SO many in the fall and winter it is nice to be done for a little while. Lucky Sister still has one more present to open though...she just has to go to Ohio to get it :)

Happy Birthday Sister!

2012-01-28T10:19:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday Sister! I thought this would be a "quick" post, but then I got sucked into looking at pictures from the last 3 years. Has it really been that long?? Sister has grown into such a beautiful, funny, sweet little girl. Our family is more than blessed that the Lord knew what we needed to complete us. We wouldn't be who we are without her. We love you Sister!

Day 3, I believe

Around 4 months...

7 months...

9 months...

Turning 1 at her pajama party :)

1st snow...

Spring pictures with Brother

Easter 2010

Summer 2010

Turning 2...so big!

Big girl bed...

Summer 2011...swim lessons :)

Enjoying playing with Brother...so glad they love to play together.

Fall pictures 2011

Catch Air / 2012

1st dance class, boo boo and all.

Thank you for the excitement, joy and laughter you have brought into our lives. I love hearing you sing and watching you dance around the house (although, I wouldn't mind you being a little more careful or having some "healthy" fear.) I can't wait to see what the Lord has planned for your life. Yay for turning 3!

** And a VERY Happy Birthday to our TWIN cousin, GO! I love these girls!

2009 -

2012 and growing...

Happy Cupcake Birthday!

2012-01-27T20:57:00.000-05:00

I can't believe that tomorrow Sister turns 3!! She has had a busy month, starting dance classes, her 1st trip to the ER, getting stitches, and going to the dentist. I am proud of what a big girl she is becoming. At the beginning of the month I booked her bday party for the little girls in her class and a local cupcake place. Like the rest of the month it didn't exactly go as planned and a week ago they called and told me they would have to cancel the party b/c they were closing. I was a little stressed out, but another bakery down the road from us helped us out and made they day SUPER special for our little girl. They were awesome. If anyone wants some YUMMY cupcakes or is planning a cupcake decorating party for your little one I HIGHLY recommend them. The Lemon Tree Bakery in Loganville, GA saved the day for us and made my little girl's day. You can't ask for anything more!

They lowered their baking table in the back for 7 little 3yr old girls to stand around....it was perfect.

The girls (and their moms) were able to decorate cupcakes and enjoy some snacks. The party was perfect for Sister...right up her alley.

AD, Sister, BD, and EV...sweet friends.

One more with Cousin GO squeezing in :)

The birthday girls and Cookie...Since the girls share a birthday it was perfect to celebrate Sister's today and we will go to GO's party on Sunday. Yay for good timing :)

Brother was the only boy at the party (besides Daddy), so he had a special job of helping with the presents and picking up after some of the little girls. He did great! ( I think he persuaded a few people into reading him a book he brought along too...thank you Cookie and Grandma!)

Sweet Sheep :) Love them!

These 3 girls hang out every Sunday morning and Wednesday night...

Me and my girl...who thought having a girl would be so much fun...pajama parties, cupcakes parties...pretty soon we will be having slumber parties! :)

Does she look like a 3 year old?!

Waiting to get started...

Almost all the little girls...

Ready to decorate!

The had lots of supplies handy for little hands...icing bags, sprinkles, etc. I loved the Teddy Grahams and Sour Patch kids, a nice touch for the little ones.

Each girl got to pick what flavor she wanted to decorate...strawberry, chocolate or vanilla. Sister of course picked strawberry :)

The Mom's took our position behind the girls to help with the decorating. It was a lot of fun :)

Everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves and the little girls were proud of their creations!

We stuck candles in Sister's cupcake and sang Happy Birthday to her.

Hubby said to show him my cupcake and said cheese...thanks JD for saving me from an awkward "I am eating a cupcake" picture...ha!

I had told Brother he probably wouldn't decorate a cupcake, but that didn't stop him from eating a chocolate one...

GO enjoyed her chocolate cupcake too...I have no idea what is up with her hair right now, but it makes me laugh...ha

Next we headed to the front of the store and Sister was able to open her presents. Her little friends know her SO well. She loved everything she got and couldn't wait to get home and play with it. She is all about the doll, princess, cupcakes and clothing stage.

Isn't this shirt adorable?!! My Sister-in-law got it for Sister. I loved it!

She also got a new Belle baby doll (that she specifically asked her friend for when they asked...to be fair, they asked, but geesh we will have to work on being subtle with her later. :) She adored the doll though. I don't think she has let go of it yet.

She got a new Fancy Nancy book and stuffed puppy. New books to read are always on the top of our list and we don't have many Fancy Nancy books, so I am sure this one will be a nightly ritual for a few weeks.

Cousin CP! Oops! I forgot another little boy did get there, but he didn't decorate a cupcake either. Hopefully he got to taste one though :) I am sure he talked someone into sharing!

Finishing presents and getting ready to clean up.

Sister and her Belle doll...that face cannot be faked. She is one happy little girl.

Cousins! These 3 little girls are all the little girls in our family and will all be graduating the same year one day (2027, I believe...ha) I can't believe how different their sizes are...I can't wait to take this picture every year for a few more years. Love it!

Twin Cousins! Happy Birthday to Sister AND GO!

Another fun treat was the HUGE cupcake the bakery gave Sister as her present from them. A thoughtful and YUMMY gesture. She made us laugh when I opened it, she said OH MY GOSH.

Biggest cupcake EVER.

Can we eat it please?!

We grabbed dinner at Zaxbys (yay for fried pickles) and headed home to play with new toys & blog. Sister couldn't wait to try on some of her new clothes. Aunt Kiki made her an adorable firetruck pillowcase dress...it fits SO cute and the best part is, she made one for her doll too. Love it!

Grandma made her 2 new adorable skirts that she put on and off before I could take a picture and the new shirts from Aunt LP fit great. Another friend gave her a playdoh cupcake set I promised to open tomorrow. The kids spent the next 2 hours in the playroom playing princess with the castle, Cinderella and Belle. Gotta love it.

She kept asking me if I would live in the castle with her. I will live anywhere with you sweet girl, but let's hope it doesn't come to that : )

Having a girl is so much fun, the Lord knows me SO much better than I know myself. I am thankful everyday that He knows what is best for me, even when I am not so sure. Sister rocks, just sayin.

** For more pictures of the party check out my sister's blog...she got some great ones :)

birthdays, boo-boo, & a BIG girl

2012-01-16T22:51:00.000-05:00

Wow! I can't believe I dropped the ball on posting this year already. I think I can recap the last week or so in one post though....it was a CRAZY week though! Ha! First, Hubby had a birthday! It was MUCH less stressful than the surprise party I pulled off last year. We went to Stevi B's with the kids during the day, gave him his b-day presents (new stuff for the grill, coffee mug for work and some candy :), then the kids napped and Grandma and Grandpa came over to watch them while we went out to dinner and to a graduation party for a good friend of ours. It was a great, relaxing birthday.

We had a good weekend. Hubby had to work on Sunday, but he was home all day Monday with us. We had a VERY busy day planned. Sister had her first dentist appointment (she did AWESOME - no cavities, or tears :). We waited in line to sign Brother up for spring baseball, it was Hubby's first day of school and the plan was to take Sister to her first dance class at 5pm. That was where the plan was altered...around 1pm she was running to the kitchen to get a snack from Hubby and tripped. She split her forehead open on the corner of the kitchen wall. It was awful and I have NEVER been SO grateful that my EMT husband was home. He scooped her up, took care of her, and calmed her down in an instant (all while telling me to grab a towel, pack a bag and get Brother ready to head to the hospital.) We spent the rest of the day at Egleston and they were amazing!

** DISCLAIMER ON THE FOLLOWING PICTURES- If you don't like hospital stuff, you might want to skip them. I didn't add the yucky one of her head though, no one needs that one - ha! **

Car ride to the ER...she cried when it happened and then didn't cry again until we had to take the first band-aid off 24 hours later. She is a tough cookie.

Waiting in the injury waiting room with Mommy :) We were the only "injury" patient there, so we got our own waiting room with Cars 2 on, much to Brother's delight! She was playing with the blood pressure cuff they gave her (they sent her home with a whole bag of fun stuff :) She told them she wanted to play doctor with her dolls.

The doctors and nurses with so impressed with how tough she was...me too! They were a little worried they would need to sedate her since it was on her forehead (and really deep), but she did great. "Dora" on the Ipad was enough to keep her busy. I don't have enough good things to say about Egelston. It was totally worth the drive to go to a hospital that knows how to love on 2 year olds.

The next picture is actually from the night before we took the stitches out. It took her a few days to actually want to see them. There were 12 total...(5 in the layers underneath and 7 on top). Once she did finally look at them, she thought they were hilarious! ha!

She was supposed to have the stitches for 5-7 days. (Hubby actually ended up taking them out Sunday night.) She was a little scared at first, but did a great job after we got her attention re-focused. She definitely didn't let the stitches slow her down last week though. They said she did great at school, she didn't even miss a day. We also had a birthday party for one of Brother's good friends, AM. They invited Sister and Brother to a gymnastic party. The kids LOVED it! I was a little worried Sister would change her mind about dance class. ha!

And you could never tell from her bouncing around that she had stitches in her forehead. (Plus, to her it was another great opportunity to wear her leotard. Isn't it cute?!) Sorry for the glare, parents sat in the waiting "area", so the pictures are through the glass. Balance beam Sister...

Brother on the beam...

and rolling :)

ha! Sister's protecting her head roll.

The teacher "helping" her do a cartwheel. I actually asked them about camps this summer...I think Sister would LOVE that :)

Cupcake time!

CB and the birthday girl, AM

Silly Sister...

Sweet Brother, I am not sure what the look was about :)

Later that night we cleaned up and played wii for a while. The kids have "Just Dance Kids" and love it..

Boogie!

Woogie!

Woo!

Today, Hubby headed back to work, but the kids and I got to have a PJ and movie day. It was wonderful :) They each picked a movie and we hung out cuddled up under the blankets this morning. I surprised Sister after nap and told her it was finally time for her first dance class. She was SO excited!!

All dressed up in her pink tights, pink leotard, dance bag (with ballet shoes & tap shoes), and her hair in a "bun".

I LOVE this picture, they both look like such big kids, and he is such a boy letting her hug on him and acting like such a big brother. I love these kiddos and am SO blessed to be their mom.

Holiday Adventure Day 2 :)

2012-01-03T21:15:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is all about cleaning and organizing, but today was about fun :) We were not sure what was on the scheudule today, we just knew it had to be indoors...brrr. The kids museum was an idea, but we got kind of a late start, so plan B it was and it worked out GREAT. We headed to Chuck E Cheese at MOG. I am not sure when we were there last, but they have redone the games and play area, so there were SO many new things to do. It was perfect! Plus, I had a great coupon and we had the place pretty much to ourselves...you can't beat that.

The new hot chocolate ride...it spins in circles. Brother loved it :)

Sister was glad her friend wasn't gone, she loves this guy. ha!

Brother did great playing basketball...he wanted to see if I could beat him :)

Sister loves the Mouse!

New carousel, Brother looks thrilled, I know?!

The horse ride is one of his favorites too :)

Daddy and Sister playing Mario Kart. (She couldn't take her eyes off all the fun!)

Skee ball!

Daddy and Sister on the hot chocolate "ride"

This picture makes me laugh every time... it was spinning SO slowly.

Jockey Brother...

Picking out our "treasures"...I think we ended up with a slinky, flower ring and candy to share. Always fun! (And before you say it, I know, my hair looks crazy long! I am holding out getting it cut off until possibly the spring and to do locks for love. We will see if I make it!)

After the mouse-house we headed to the mall for a little while. I was proud of the kids who both tried something new for lunch (terayki chicken for Sister and I and Bourbon Street for Brother and Hubby) They both loved it and ate it all...yummy! We walked around a little bit, got a few great deals and then headed home. It was a fun, productive day! We got home after nap time, so we turned on a movie and spent the rest of the evening hanging out together. It was a great family day. I can't believe the holidays are over, but I know 2012 is going to be very exciting :)

New Year / New Adventures

2012-01-02T23:47:00.000-05:00

Hubby had to work a good bit over the holidays, so we decided for the next 2 days we would spend time doing some new fun stuff I had heard about. The winter weather finally showed up this morning and my plan for today was perfect! I had heard from a friend about a place in Suwanee called Catch Air. It was GREAT! The best way to describe it is a bounce place and indoor playground all rolled into one. It is for kids 12 and under and the whole floor is a soft mat. (So everyone has to wear socks the entire time :) I wouldn't be surprised if my kids asked to go back tomorrow.

We got there when they opened at 10am (which was good b/c when we left after a couple of hours it was PACKED!) *If you are local and thinking about going, be sure to like them on FB, b/c I got a code for 25% off this morning...totally worth it!

Brother headed straight for this "merry go round" thing as soon as he walked thru the gate. It was pretty cool. The kids hung on and it went in a circle. It was a little overwhelming at 1st b/c there was so much to look at, it took the kids a few minutes to get acclimated.

The indoor playground...anyone remember Discovery Zone?! That is what it reminded me of, complete with the ball pit that my kids played in FOREVER. (To be fair, I am not sure they have ever been in a ball pit before :)

The also had a bunch of kid sized workout equipment. I loved that they could really explore and play with everything. The huge bounce houses were a big hit too, but I am not sure I got pictures of that...ha!

Sister on a treadmill...

Brother on a bike... I need some of those to keep them active (OR wear them out :) at home.

Ball pit FUN

That was one happy little girl :)

Brother said his favorite thing of the day was this slide. (He took turns sliding down with everyone - including Mom & Dad). His pants were perfect b/c he flew down the slide!

Finding a new contraption (they were spinning each other around until they fell over...at least they were enjoying playing together :) They stuck together quite a bit today...love it!

They had a smaller area for kids 5 and under. Sister played over there for a little while, but realized pretty quickly she would rather hold her own with the bigger kids.

There she goes!

She had a harder time wrapping her legs around the "ball". They both loved it though...at least it was soft when they fell.

She liked me spinning her in a circle on this thing though...

Oops! Kid down.

I have no idea what this thing was, but we saw other kids sitting in it and spinning like a big top, so we tried it too. So funny.

My favorite part was about an hour after we got there (it was getting busy) and they called all the kids to the dance floor for a "dance party".

They turned off the lights, turned up the music and the kids went to town!

The floor kept changing colors...it was really neat. The whole time we were there they played kids songs / dance music on a large screen on the wall near the dance floor. It was definitely entertaining when the kids needed a break.

Back to the spinning thing...this picture cracks me up b/c I am totally watching my 2 kids fall. I am sure I helped them up like 2 seconds later, or laughed at them b/c I had just put them on...you know, either one :)

Last but not least...we promised the kids one slide on the slide with Mommy & Daddy before we headed out for the day. (Not to mention promising to come back soon :)

Whee!

Mommy's turn!

We packed up and headed out to one of our favorite lunch spots.

Can you guess where? ha! Yum! We love their under $4 menu. The kids ate it up and were pretty exhausted by the time we got home. The rest of the day consisted of naps, football and games with Daddy (while Mommy got to have a night out with the girls :)

Off to get some sleep and plan what kind of adventure / trouble we can get into tomorrow, cause that's how we roll. :)

Another beginning...

2012-01-01T21:33:00.001-05:00

Where you go, I'll go
Where you stay, I'll stay
When you move, I'll move
I will follow...

All your ways are good
All your ways are sure
I will trust in you alone
Higher than my side
High above my life
I will trust in you alone

Where you go, I'll go

Where you stay, I'll stay
When you move, I'll move
I will follow you
Who you love, I'll love
How you serve I'll serve
If this life I lose, I will follow you
I will follow you

Light unto the world
Light unto my life
I will live for you alone
You're the one I seek
Knowing I will find
All I need in you alone, in you alone

In you there's life everlasting
In you there's freedom for my soul
In you there joy, unending joy
and I will follow

Where you go, I'LL GO
Where you stay, I'LL STAY
When you move, I'LL MOVE
I will follow you
Who you love, I'LL LOVE
How you serve I'LL SERVE
If this life I lose, I will follow YOU

I will FOLLOW you

New Year's is always an exciting time for me, I love beginnings. I love projects and starting something new. I love that anything is possible, and it is all up to us. A clean slate, a fresh new day or year, a time to look back and be motivated to do even more.

I don't have any new "resolutions" this year, b/c resolutions can be broken...more like a promise to have a new normal. A promise to give more of myself. To stop worrying about others perception of our life and their opinions and live life fully and exactly the way the Lord has prepared us. To follow when the Lord prompts without hesitation and listen when He is calling. I want to take a step closer everyday to being the wife, mother and Christian He has called me to be.

I know the Lord is working in our lives and I can't wait to see what He has in store in 2012. Please be in prayer for our family as we start new adventures (Hubby starts school 1/9/12) , begin to teach our children what it really means to serve (new opportunities, including our new monthly prayer focus day), and look for the Lord's prompting in 2012. We appreciate your love and support. I know that we are blessed beyond measure. God is good, all the time!

Happy Bday B10 & CW

2011-12-29T21:49:00.000-05:00

Today we got to spend another morning with the cousins :) My sister threw a birthday / get-together party for the boys so all of their friends could come and play and see CW before he heads back to his Dad's. It was B10's birthday and a beautiful day outside, so it worked out great. The kids were excited to do something different and loved hanging out with their cousins a little more before our routine kicked back in next week. I realized looking through my pictures I don't have one of the birthday boy or CW, unless you count at the table. They crack me up...it was hard to catch them at the end to get a hug :) I think they had a great morning hanging out with their friends.

Me and my kiddos playing on the see-saw :)

The other side of our see-saw (plus Sister, who just likes to be in pictures :) Cookie & cousin GO. Silly girls.

ha! They switched again...the see-saw was a big hit I guess.

The many faces of Brother...ha!

I like the eye brow raise in this one...

and a sweet one with Cookie.

A bunch of kiddos ready for something to eat (and I mean a BUNCH...I think there were like 18 of them :)

CFA, chips and cake...can't beat that!

It was a little chilly in the shade, but the sun warmed us up quickly. Doc was off work this week, so it was fun for the little ones to get to hang with him some too.

It was a great day! We had a lot of fun hanging out and the kids wore themselves out. We headed home around 1pm and went straight to bed for a nap. I knew the last few days had been long for them and they both slept until after 4pm. We had a relaxing evening. Played a little wii (Just Dance), watched a movie (Curious George) and had a picnic lunch. I am glad we have a few more days to get the house in order. The only other exciting thing I did today was use some Christmas money from family to renew our Children's Museum membership...yay!!! You all get to hear about more free museums all year. Gotta love it, that's how we roll. I can't wait to find new ones to visit and making plans to spend the day downtown at Imagine It! Love it!

Christmas time with Granddaddy and R/

2011-12-29T09:35:00.001-05:00

This year my Dad (Granddaddy :) and R/ came down to visit us a couple of days after Christmas. It was fun to have something to look forward too after the holidays too. We were excited b/c Uncle J and Great Granddaddy were coming from out of town too. With my Sister and her kids and my Brother coming too we were going to be a full house! The girls started the day by trying on some adorable Christmas hats R/ brought...they were princess Santa hats...right up our alley :)

R/ and the little girls...Sister and cousin, GO

Me and my girl :)

Us with R/

and all the older girls together. I thought they were all cute pictures! So fun!

Meanwhile, the little girls were happy to love on their Granddaddy.

Family picture time! There were 13 of us and I think we did a pretty good job getting everyone in. (Oops...Hubby did a good job getting everyone in :)

Present time! The plan was kids presents before dinner, dinner (bbq-yum), and adult presents after dinner (with kids playing upstairs and watching a movie:). The plan worked well I think. The kids had a good time and I love watching everyone open their presents.

Everyone got a good seat and chilled to watch the action!

Me :) I postioned myself behind my kiddos, so I could help open...etc.

Sister got a really cool bubble "necklace"... it holds the bubbles around your next, so they don't spill. It came with a bubble flute that you can blow bubbles with...so neat!

Brother got a very cool traveling activity. ( I was excited to get a few things for each of them like this, since we have been taking more car trips lately. It is perfect for riding in the car.) It is a Fire Rescue magnetic book...you can create "scenes" and move the men around. It was really cool!

More opening.... R/ has an order we go in. It keeps everything organized and exciting :)

Sister and GO each got a book set that were adorable!! One was the "Boogie Monster" (Sister) who likes to dance and one was the "Tickle Monster" (GO) who likes to tickle :) Sister's also came with a CD to boogie too. Sister of course heard the word MONSTER and wouldn't touch the book. We had to work her into it the next day (pictures to follow). GO took her roll as tickle monster very seriously though...she was a hoot!

Um...this is poop soap. Really. ha!

The older boys were not to sure about it...

Sister opening her Minnie Mouse...BIG FAN! She played with that toy the rest of the day :) Later I found her in the playroom introducing all her new dolls to each other (Minnie, new Snap & Style from Kiki and Dora from Nonnie...they all had to meet everyone. So sweet :)

Uncle A putting together Brother's remote control car that is the BOMB. It works SO good. He has played with it any chance we let him (it is a little loud indoors, but the upstairs room is perfect :)

Brother also got an "airport". Complete with plane, travel bus, etc...I actually haven't seen much of that toy b/c the older boys took it upstairs to put it together to play with while they watched a movie last night. I am going to go check it out! :)

See?! He was ready to go with the car...it is neat, it can drive on either side and flips while you are driving it.

The kids also opened presents from Uncle J, Great Granddaddy and Aunt Kiki (and us for the other kiddos :). Our kids were certainly blessed this season.

B10s new wii game ;) / CW got another Lego Brickmaster / & GO got an Olivia tea set.

Sister got "Just Dance Kids" which was a big hit with everyone later :)

My kiddos also got a new dual screen dvd player for car trips too :)

The girls both got new baby dolls from Great Granddaddy and they couldn't rip into them fast enough :)

Brother got some new tools for his tool bench :) (The little girls liked that gift too! To be far any toy within their reach was fair game :) Brother got a charger for his leapster too ( I said that was really a gift for us since we won't have to buy batteries anymore :)

He also got a new Star Wars game from Aunt Kiki.

and Sister got some pjs for her Rapunzel doll.

and of course, an adorable lollidots hat :)

More fun travel toys from Uncle J (with an Olivia book, Tinkerbell coloring book and Thomas DVD too!) Brother got a cool new game (that I can't wait to play at family game night) and a little money to pick something he would like :) He put it in his bank, so I am not sure he remembers it is there...to tell him, or not?! That is the question.

Uncle A took the opportunity to pass out some gifts from him since we had a little time and we are all big kids anyway :) Uncle J got a real Japanese slot machine that uses tokens. It had lights and pictures flashing everywhere.

Even the little kids were enthralled by it... too funny!

After our BBQ dinner (yum) went sent the boys upstairs to play with their new toys and the little girls into our bedroom to watch Dora, and it was the adults turn to open gifts. We all had a great time sitting around and spending time together.

By the end of the night we were all pretty tuckered out. The kids all put on their pjs and everyone headed home for the night. CW and Brother had a sleepover, since he was only in town for a few days, but they were even asleep pretty quickly once their heads hit the pillow. I am glad everyone went to sleep, we had another couple of busy days in store, b/c that's how we roll :) More to come...

Christmas #2 Continued

2011-12-28T23:39:00.003-05:00

The next morning we "talked" Sister into trying on her boogie shoes. She still wasn't very excited at first, but at least willing to give it a shot. I think they are ADORABLE! Silly Sister!!

We turned on the CD so we all could dance. CW even boogied with us to try and get her into it...maybe it was too early in the AM :)

It was a pretty relaxed day, at some point the boys ended up in the living room (teaching Granddaddy and Great Granddaddy how to play golf on the wii :)

Hubby hung out in the kitchen and put on the chili and baked potatoes for dinner - yum!

and the girls played with a lot of things in the playroom (dolls, games, etc - but no boggie shoes :)

Who know what started the next activity?! Probably just a Granddaddy hug :)

but this happened...

All the little kids had a horsey to ride...GO on CW, Sister was on B10 and Brother on Granddaddy...I think Sister had claimed his spot here : )

Then, the girls decided to put on a show...it you say the Christmas program at BBP it was a little like that, but louder :) Gotta love my girl. I feel like I am going to see her on stage on of these days!

It turned out to be a pretty day outside, so we all got out of the house a little bit and let the kids run around the backyard. (And I think the adults wanted to check out the chickens :)

Uncle A showed up to hang with us and help put together some more of our Christmas gifts b/c he is good like that.

Sister remembered she got bubbles for Christmas and was ALL over that ;)

R/ showed her how to use her "bubble flute"...it was really neat.

She caught on pretty well...I was just worried she was going to suck in...yuck.

CW took Sister for a spin in the truck :)

And she hung out on the swing set for a while...notice the new mulch? SO glad we finally got it in that area. It looks good. Good job Hubby :)

GO got a big bubble wand for Christmas and Granddaddy took turns holding the girls and making the big bubbles come out. (The boys just had fun chasing them and popping them! ) GO really got the hang of it, she was able to run with the wand open and make big bubbles just like Granddaddy!

We came in and had Hubby's yummy dinner, then the girls broke out the tool box to fix things around the house. They moved onto dressup pretty quickly...I am surprised I don't have Snow White and a cheerleader with the tools!

Sweet GO!

Silly Sister :)

The girls were learning from the best!

Hubby was working on something too :)

There is little cheerleader with "her" new Mulan doll.

We had a lot of fun hanging out with everyone. We let the kids play and the adult were able to sit around and talk and spend some time together. I am looking forward to doing it again soon. Our kids are definitely going to need a nap tomorrow though, b/c that's how we roll :) ha!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T22:23:00.000-05:00

The kids actually slept in a little this morning (7:45am), so we still had to move kind of quick this morning. I was VERY thankful we had done the majority of gifts the night before. We saved our stockings for in the AM and the kids couldn't wait to open them.

Brother got a cover for his leapster with 2 more games inside...so excited!

Sister got "Beauty and the Beast"

and Brother got "Cars 2"...he had to wait until this evening to watch it. He has been pretty patient waiting, but he was thrilled to see it in his stocking and realize he was finally going to get to watch it. :)

Sister's new lollidot hat...isn't it adorable?!

I got a green scarf and Just Dance 3... sorry to early for my eyes to be open I guess!

Hubby got candy, gum, a play-station game and Josh Hamilton's book. We ate a quick breakfast, cooked our meal to take to the church, got dressed and loaded up the car to head out about 9:30am. The rain slowed us down a little, but we got there in plenty of time.

We had a wonderful time of fellowship and serving the people in our community. I enjoyed getting to talk to the families in need, hear some of their stories and share presents with them. My favorite part was probably watching my kids serve too. Even just a smile or playing with another child, gave them the opportunity to do something that we don't always take the time out to do. I hope it is an opportunity that the Lord gives us more often. It was truly amazing to see that many people working together to serve others on Christmas morning.

After church we headed to Hubby's parent's house for presents and lunch. The kids were excited to see some more family and hang out for a while. I grabbed a couple of pictures around the tree while they were still "put together" ...ha!

Next we all got in the living room and began opening our presents for each other. I love giving gifts! It is so much fun to see what everyone gets :)

A new omelet pan for Nonnie and Papa....

Sister patiently waiting her turn....

A personalized 2012 calendar with our pictures for Grandma.

New clothes for her "dolly" for Sister.

I think this was the Licoln Logs for Brother...I actually can't wait to play with these tomorrow!

Cute pink outfit for Sister...

A happy Hubby :P

Puzzle and pony for Sister... (Brother has a puzzle like this too. I love them!)

Rescue Bots Fire station for Brother!! He specifically asked Nonnie for this and she delivered = One happy boy!

More clothes for "dolly"...these were pjs .

My bag FULL of goodies...literally, there was SO much fun stuff in there. Cookbook, coffee, pictures, notebook, candle, lotion, pot holders, etc!!

I felt like I opened forever. ha! It was great!

Cousin CP arrived! (With his people too :)

Brother ready to open his Rescue Bot.

Hubby happy to oblige.

He played like this for a good portion of the afternoon.

We switched places and the next set of family took their place in "present row" :)

Yay! from CP

We got Hubby's sister and new scarf set (like my green one, but striped - love it!)

Brother got Toy Story 3 for his leapster from Aunt LP and Uncle RP.

Family picture time! (I grabbed them all while they were close. I didn't want to forget to get one on Christmas :)

Next we ate a delicious lunch (seriously, it was YUMMO.) And the younger kids went off to nap, Brother placed himself in the dining room with some new toys, the ladies gravitated to the kitchen and the guys hung out in the living room. We had a good time catching up and spending some time together.

Brother's "town"...he was so proud of himself :)

After we left Grandma and Grandpa's we headed over to Cookie and Doc's house to deliver a few more gifts, get some treats and hang out for a little bit. The kids were excited our day wasn't over quite yet!

My "little" brother was there too, so we were able open gifts together. We had a nice time visiting with everyone.

The kids also had fun opening a few more gifts :)

Brother got another book to read ( I am excited about this one too) and some great new Ole Miss shirts.

Sister got some new leotards for dance class, but she immediately wanted to put them on and show off her stuff...she is such a hoot. Pretty impressive toe work , though right?!

We headed home to grab a quick bite to eat, pick up a few things and watch the promised Cars 2 movie. It was a great Christmas Day. I love that we were able to serve, spend time with friends and family and were truly blessed by those who love us. We have some more family coming in town this week, so I am looking forward to hanging onto Christmas for a few more days. Tomorrows plan though is to sleep, clean and rest cause that is how we roll. :)

Christmas Eve 2011

2011-12-24T21:21:00.003-05:00

Our 1st blessing of this Christmas season was that Hubby got to be home with us on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, since this is not always the case, we were very excited :) I love traditions and we usually have to do ones that work "on the go" too, but this was the 1st year Brother started anticipating what was next. Hubby was home this year, but we had opted to help serve at our church Christmas morning, so we still opted for doing most of our Christmas traditions the night before.

We always attend one of the Christmas Eve services at church. Brother was old enough to sit with us this year and Sister had a good friend to play with in the nursery, so it worked out great :) Before we left Hubby stayed behind for a few minutes and put all the gifts into place. (We had to be out of the house by 9:30am the next day, so mainly for timesake we thought it would be fun to do the gifts on Christmas Eve. Plus we were heading straight from church to Hubby's parents and then my family, so we wanted them to have a chance to play with them.) The service was at 3:30pm, so our plan was to surprise them with presents, cook a huge breakfast for dinner and hang out for the rest of the evening. It was perfect!

Our kids each get 3 presents, since that is how many Jesus got on his birthday. (And they each pick out for one each other.)

The kids were so surprised when we got home and Brother made us laugh b/c he decided, in his 5 year old mind, that Jesus must have left them for us. We don't really "do" Santa at our house. We talk about him and recognize him, but we try to teach our kids that Santa loves Jesus and he is helping kids who need him. We say that anyone can be a "Santa" when we help someone in need or give presents out of love to the people we care about. We did do our stockings in the morning, so I would assume if they think Santa left anything it would be that. ha! It gets a little confusing when people ask them about it, but they roll with it pretty well. I just remind them who the season is all about :)

Christmas Eve picture and silly picture :) I still had them open their pjs first and put them on before we could open anything else!

Sweet kiddos ;) (Notice the "Y" above their heads? It is our 2011 family ornament. I had a really tough time finding all of our initials this year, like I usually do, so I got the "Y" and 4 white snowflakes to go with. I love it!)

They were happy posing for pictures...yay Christmas spirit!

1st gift (besides the pjs) were the gifts they got for each other... Snow White costumer for Sister and Hal-E-Copter (Rescue Hero) for Brother. My mistake letting her open that 1st, she wanted to be Snow White the rest of the night... I have to persuade her to wait until after brinner.

**We don't have pictures of them opening the big presents. hmm... I think we were videotaping the entire time. Silly us! The rundown is as follows -

Brother (1) Leapster (2) Jake Justice (Rescue Hero) (3) Lego Table

Sister (1) Snap &Style Doll Closet (2) Baby Doll (3) Baby Doll furniture

After that they had a few presents to open from their cousins. A cute outfit for Sister and a new "big boy" toothbrush for Brother. Love it!

Hubby's turn!

Go Daddy Go!

Denim Chore Coat for work...yay! (He pretty much knew it was coming...it can be hard to surprise him with work stuff :)

Perfect fit.

Mommy's turn...Bath & Body Works is always good :)

Hubby also got me a new personalized door mat and cross. I LOVED them. It was a great idea. (That is Brother's lego table next to me...Hubby did a great job on that too :)

Sister's baby doll & furniture. This little set was perfect. It has a bed, bath tub, kitchen and baby seat. We are going to let Sister keep it in her room. She loves it!

My cross...isn't it beautiful?!

Hubby's next box...boxers and undershirts. (I was trying to throw him off a little, but he did really need them :)

We had the big surprise coming next. The KIDS and I had kept it a secret for almost a month! They did SO good. We found the grill he wanted at Lowe's in November and have been hiding it at a friend's house. They dropped it off yesterday and I made a hole for it in the garage. He had NO idea. I love surprises! It is SO fun! Picture is Brother explaining how we surprised him...ha!

Yay! We ended our night going to be a little early and looking forward to serving at church in the AM. It was a wonderful night. I am truly blessed by the family the Lord has given me.

Celebrating 10 years

2011-12-22T18:53:00.000-05:00

10 years ago today I was saying my vows, dancing, and eating dinner at Chateau Elan. My biggest Christmas worry was making it to the airport the next morning to get on our flight to the Bahamas. I was a pretty "relaxed" bride. I just wanted to enjoy the day and my friends and family who had come to celebrate with us. After 5years Hubby and I were ready for the next step, altough I can say at the time we could not even imagine the ups and downs and blessings the Lord had in store for us.

Today we celebrated by spending the day together. Just us, no kids (thanks Mom! :). We had big plans to go zip lining and the weather was NOT agreeing with us, so I went to google and started searching for something new and different for us to do....

See, I even had to wear my rain boots? It was yucky all day :(

We made a quick stop to eat breakfast and chill for a little bit at Atlanta Bread Company. Yummo. And it was only about 5 minutes from our destination! ( I was glad Hubby was on board with my idea :)

We ended up in an office complex in Suwanee that's website boasted some of the best rock climbing in the area. (and a great place for beginners!) It cracked me up when we 1st got there and signed in b/c I kept saying we were both beginners and Hubby was like, you do know I work with rope and heights everyday right?! Ha! I never even thought about him using that stuff at work :) I changed into some more comfy clothes (which I am SO glad I brought - it was really a work out!) and we got all strapped in. ** Please note that the guy helping us was almost as tall as me on his knees. ha! We had a lot of discussions about height today... and how I WAS climbing as high as Hubby if you deduct the height correctly :P

Yay for safety! It took me about 30 minutes on the wall to really feel like I wasn't going to fall if I slipped, but that the ropes / Hubby would "catch" me.

Look, we match :)

Okay, here I go. It was hard to get some pictures while we were climbing, since technically the other person should be holding the rope! But we made it work :)

I think I was nervous about this one. I kept telling Hubby it wasn't the height that bothered me, just feeling like I was slipping of the wall. After I did it once and realized I wasn't going to fall to the ground, it was a lot better.

Hubby was a pro...I think he just scooted up every wall we tried. The hardest part was when he was coming down. We realized pretty quick if I brought him down to fast, I would start to go up with him. ( The guy helping grabbed my harness a couple of times...it helped :) It was fun to do something where we were totally trusting each other to keep us stable.

This wall was a booger. I made my "goal" the large blue circle in the middle. You had to do up a different level to get to it, which was not the easiest task of the day. I actually went a bit further and was very proud of myself. (Even when the little girl, I would say around 8, scaled it with ease next to me :) I don't think it is a fair race until she does it at 32 too.

Getting over that lip was not easy... I blamed my short arms a lot today :)

On my way up!

Hubby at the top! (To be fair he could scale the wall in about 8 steps, it would take me 15 :)

But on the last wall of the day I made it to the top too! Yay me! My Hubby turned out to be a great encourager. It was a lot of fun to do something I had no idea I could do today :)

The facility was great. I really look forward to taking the kids one day. They had a couple of kids camps going on while we were there and the staff seemed really great with them. Brother already can't wait to be old enough to go :)

They had a cute wall in the back that kids could climb up and slide down the slide. In the beginning I was a little worried I was going to end up over there. ha!

The people there were great. They really helped us feel at ease climbing and were there to answer any questions we had. I am looking forward to going back with Hubby soon. It would be a perfect date night!

Check it out on the web if you are looking for something new to do... we highly recommend it!

After our "adventurous" morning, we headed to lunch at Longhorn- YUM! We spent the rest of the day finishing a few things on our Christmas list and dodging some of the crowds. We couldn't wait to get home and see our kiddos and hear about their day. Cookie had made sure to bring some fun things to do...honestly I don't even think they had time to miss us :)

We don't always celebrate our anniversary since it is so close to Christmas, but today was a lot of fun. I am glad we took the time out of a BUSY week to focus on each other. Love it!

And lastly...my 10 favorite things over the last 10 years:

(1) Our growth in the Lord (joining FBL in 2002 / being (re) baptized in 2009)

(2) Brother finally joining our family (2006)

(3) Sister completing our family(2009)

(4) Family Memories / Vacations (Disney World / Disneyland / Beach)

(5) New friends and old friends...we have been blessed beyond measure!

(6) Family who love us unconditionally

(7) Fire station holidays (gotta love them!)

(8) Finding careers that we both love and knowing that we are where the Lord wants us.

(9) Understanding that the Lord's timing is always best...we have SO many examples in our life.

(10) Trying new and fun activities with the people I love, because that is how we roll...

BBP Program, Happy Bday Jesus Party and Christmas FUN

2011-12-14T17:04:00.041-05:00

The Christmas holidays are among us! We had one (very) busy last week at school and some exciting projects at home. The kids and I pulled out a Christmas gift from my secret pal at work the other day. I had been saving it from a chilly, pj day and the were excited to do something new. I helped them get started, but we had a candy gingerbread village in no time!

Before:

Brother working diligently (and probably trying not to get messy if I could guess).

Sister working hard to put the candy on the house and NOT in her mouth. (She looks so big to me in this picture!)

Brother placing the finishing touches...

Ta da!

Mommy's house...

and Sister's house. (and a little hand probably reaching to steal some candy:)

Monkey see...

Monkey do.

Our gingerbread village...still in one piece.

Tuesday morning (and evening) the kids at BBP put on their Christmas program. They did GREAT! Grandpa and Grandma joined us for the morning performance and Cookie came to watch the kids that night. The kids were so cute! Sister and her friend MP cracked everyone up with their singing. They belted it out for everyone to hear. Love it!

Sister and her cousin, GO had matching dresses for the morning performance...so sweet. I am sure my sister has a picture of them together. They looked adorable.

Now time to play, find the kid - This one should be pretty easy...she has her mouth wide open!

Brother is a little harder to see. Hint- his shirt is green :)

Thursday was Happy Birthday Jesus Parties! The kids were excited that Hubby was able to come too. It is always a special time at the school. We were very blessed with treats and goodies to bring home over the break...I will be munching on goodies until the New Year - YUM!

Reindeer sandwiches...so cute! I loved this idea for their lunch.

I am glad I grabbed a quick picture with Sister, b/c every other picture she is shoving food in her mouth. Gotta love that girl.

We have a lot of fun activities planned over the holidays. I can't wait to get started...#1 on the list is sleeping in tomorrow :)

Christmas Time at "the Rock"

2011-12-12T23:55:00.000-05:00

Last night was our annual holiday trip to "the rock"...one of our favorite parks in our area. (Last year's visit was a great addition to our Thanksgiving vacation.) Since my MIL works there, she got us some awesome discounts! It makes the day even more enjoyable not worried about how much it is costing :) I think we literally paid $2.39 all night. THANK YOU GRANDMA!! The kids love going and they LOVE seeing Grandma at work :)

Our 1st stop was the Holly Jolly Cabaret show...Hubby and I really enjoyed it. (Especially her impression of the Snow Angel if you have ever seen it...ha!) Sister was mesmerized all night by the shows. She loves singing and dancing, so she sat still and pretty much didn't move in any of the shows. They did a great job! I think I will be able to take them to a musical soon :)

Next we hopped in line to see the Snow Angel. We went on a Sunday night, so the crowd was pretty slim...which was AMAZING! It really helped make our "schedule" run a little more smoothly. It is hard to fit everything in if there are mega-lines everywhere.

The kids enjoyed seeing her...and the costumes Grandma helped make, aren't they great :)

We grabbed dinner (fried chicken, fries and green beans) and the Granite Cafe (with free coupons :) and then booked it over to the other side of Crossroads to catch the Toy Show. Grandma was helping control the crowds for that one, so we got to see her too :) The kids thought that show was great and wanted to meet the superhero after-wards. Love it!

The parade was next, but since we had an earlier dinner, we had a quick potty break and went to grab a snack to eat during the parade. Funnel cakes and hot chocolate (another coupon) were a big hit! The kids had never had funnel cakes before, so they were excited :)

We parked ourselves near the end of the parade route and near the doors of the next show on our list (tip from Grandma to watch down there, so we could get good seats for the next show.) We enjoyed eating, listening to the music and enjoying the beautiful lights while we waited for the parade to get there. We were keeping our eyes peeled for Grandma...

Kisses for Brother...

Dancing with Sister...

She put on her own show for us...

Go Sister, go!

Silly Brother :)

The big tree! (I was about to get a picture with Hubby when the guy yelled at us to get on the side of the road b/c the parade was coming! )

We got to see the Snow Angel again in the parade (and her float blew snow in the air...so cool!)

Sister was in awe...I love this picture!

There is Grandma!!

and Santa of course...we were already in line for the show by this point (Hubby got the picture). The crowd was coming!

Luckily, our tip paid off and we ended up in the front row for Simply Christmas. It was my favorite show of the night...fun upbeat music, good dancing and a great tribute to the real meaning of Christmas. (Sister found the puppy hat and insisted on wearing it...so funny.)

My practice shot of the stage without the flash, my MIL told me to have my camera ready...

I think she told the cast her son was in the audience and the pulled him up on stage during "I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus." ha!

The kids were so funny they didn't know what was going on...and I am pretty sure Sister just wanted to be on stage too.

Sister and one of the cast members after the show. She loved the way their hair bounced while they were dancing...she kept trying to make her pigtails do the same thing. :)

A quick picture with Grandma.

We missed the next train by about 5 minutes b/c we took a quick potty break, so we grabbed a quick treat (our $2.39 :) and waited for the next one. The kids didn't seem to mind, they had plenty lights, etc to keep them entertained.

My silly people...

The train was chilly...it was the 1st time I was cold all night, but we bundled up and cuddled together to enjoy the lights and story. I love the train at Christmas time b/c they stop and present a short story sharing the real meaning of Christmas called "The Gift", totally worth waiting to ride it.

Sister breakin' it down a little more...she is a mess.

Kisses...if I get a cold, we know why! It is hard to say no to a kiss though :)

Sister was finally a little over taking pictures (or her face was cold) ha! We made the train our last activity for the night and headed home pretty quickly after-wards.

We had a wonderful day and can't wait to do it again next year. We are so blessed by our family and the people who love us! I love that we can make the most out of our time together. We have a busy week ahead, so hopefully I will keep up to date on my postings. I love going places where they remember the real reason for the season!

JTB 2011

2011-12-10T16:51:00.014-05:00

Tonight we headed out to our churches Journey to Bethlehem presentation. It is an interactive walk thru that leads you to the birth of Christ. It is awesome, trust me. We met my Sister and one of her kiddos there. The kids had fun hanging with cousin B10.

We had to wait about 30 minutes while they played music and games on the stage. Hubby was technically "working" that night (they need an EMT on the grounds), but he hung out with us until they needed him.

I love this girl!

and this sweet boy :)

Cousins!

I didn't take many pictures of the actual walk thru...go next year, it is great, but I did grab a picture of the camel at the end. Cool, huh. He was a nice camel, named Clyde I believe.

Sister helped feed him some hay ;0

It was a great evening. It ran for 6 nights and our church had a record attendance of almost 4500 people. Crazy! I love how people are truly teaching their families about the real reason for the season. God is good!

5 years?!

2011-12-05T21:33:00.023-05:00

Happy 5th Birthday Brother!!

I am in awe of the little boy the Lord placed in our family. He is a tender-hearted, practical, loyal, little boy. I can't even begin to imagine what the Lord has in store for his life. He never forgets our devotion time at night, loves to talk about what he is learning in school and at church, and challenges me and holds me accountable to stay in the word and be the Mom I know he deserves. I love how much he loves his Sister and that he isn't too big yet to still love cuddling with us.

The last 5 years truly have flown by. It feels like a few short moments ago we were praying for kids and struggling with the inability, but 5 years later I feel more than blessed. We take our family life very seriously and our family days are always my favorite...even if it just means napping on the couch together or putting together Legos. I love that anything can be fun!

Brother's 5yr check-up went well (until he learned he was getting a flu shot, then we had LOTS of tears...this week is already wearing me out :). He is in the 50th percentile for his height and 75th percentile for his weight. (43lbs and 43inches tall...easy to remember!) All of his tests look great and besides the tears over the "pinch" we all left with happy news and faces :)

We are looking forward to the holidays this year. I love getting the opportunity to discuss the reason we believe what we do everyday. There is always something that brings it up! Teaching that giving is better than receiving has been our main motto this year. We have tried to take the opportunity to let the kids help with presents. At our house we teach that anyone can be a "santa" by giving presents to someone who is in need. We love this time together and I look forward to all the new memories we are going to make. I am sure the next 5 years are going to fly by just as fast! We love you Brother!