FordeFam

Um. 60 posts behind, maybe

2011-08-12T23:57:00.005-05:00

Oops! So much for keeping this New Year's Resolution... :) Hahaha! Okay, I'm fine and soooo thankful to be able to say that the reason I have gotten so behind is because we finished up last years school year, started house hunting and then moved. :) So, my last post was in March, that would make me about 60 posts behind... Eek. :0 I think I'm going to just go from here. We have been in the new house for about 3 weeks now and still have not found the silverware, but we are loving the space. This is our first home to own. We are so blessed.
To name a few things:

1. it is over twice the size of our last one! We went from 1,065 sqft to 2180 sqft!
2. We have 2 bathrooms now, not just one. Thank You, Lord! :)
3. I have a DISHWASHER! Yay! I love it!
4. The Homeschool Closet has upgraded to the Homeschool Room!
5. We have gained a fire place, which I have always wanted!
6. There is a wonderful laundry room!
7. A living and family room, plus 2 dining areas. :D
8. I have a green sink, stove top and oven that are original to the house, which I LOVE!
9. All the bedrooms are soooo roomy. :)
10. Oh, and we also got a pool with the house! :) It's been great with the 100+ weather we've been having! Whew!

I wake up and just look around and feel so blessed to live here. I am so grateful that we didn't buy the 3 other houses that we actually made offers on. This is the one that fits our family. It has everything from both of our lists in it and more. I really hope that this blog doesn't come across as bragging. I have actually never lived in a house that my family actually owned, since my family bought their first home after I went to college, so this is all so exciting to me. :) I will post some pics! :)

So, there are a few pics of the house! :) I have many more, but it just seems to take a little bit to get them on and I MUST sleep! :) Happy Saturday! :) Looking forward to this coming week because the hubby is taking off from work to help get things in order! We're having a "staycation" as they say! ;) Yahoo! I can't wait to find the silverware, the Phonics curriculum, and the pet net hooks! :/ Hahaha! Blessings!

No Sugar/Flour

2011-03-29T00:41:00.006-05:00

Last week I decided to cut out all sugar, flour and major starches and did so successfully. It was a dedicated week. I did this with my last two pregnancies, but this was the first time to do this diet when I'm not preggo! :) This diet made me realize how much we're addicted to bread, pasta and sugar! Hahaha! Everything seems a little harder to make that the convenient "normal" things we eat, not to mention the grocery trip at Central Market so that I'm not as tempted to cheat... So, I did great! I am glad that I prepared well for it before hand, though, because I was planning to do the same diet the week before and failed because we didn't get to the store for me to do it, so last week it was. :) I started out thinking "what will I eat?". I quickly remembered several meals that I loved when I was preggo, and jotted them down. It went well, and I did lose 2 pounds, so I guess that was the goal, not to mention I felt better this week as well! ;)

One thing I used to get me through was Agave Nectar, and I'm hearing/reading some controversial info on it! If anyone has any info good and bad, I'd love to know! Thanks! Just trying to use it in moderation right now, but I definitely want to be healthy and if it's not that, then I don't want it! ;) Anyway, I thought I'd post a few pics of some of my yummy meals! :)

Plain Yogurt with vanilla extract, agave nectar and sliced apples

Cottage Cheese with fresh sliced pears

Lentil and Sausage Soup with carrots, celery and onion

Fajita Salad with marinated fajita meat from our butcher

Spinach Noodles with meatsauce

Quinoa with tuna, olives, olive oil and green onions

Homemade Frozen Vanilla Yogurt with almonds and dried cherries

Also, wanted to show the little specials that the hubby and I picked up at my first trip to Anthropologie for my sister's bday! She had been wanting me to get there for forever, and when I walked in I was amazed. :) I decided to get something practical, that way I wasn't getting something that would just clutter my house, but something that I can use and actually needed.
So, here are the pics of my new measuring cups and spoons!

And now, last but NOT least, some pics of the crew. ;)

"Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!"
Psalm 34:8

Thankful for
1. My sister doing the diet with me this time, from 1 1/2 away, but together all the same. ;)
2. Encouraging friends and family (including the kids) for this diet
3. Bible time with the family at night before bed.
4. First words, teeth, cruising... spelling words :)
5. Hearing my two year old say "Thank you Mommy" and then getting to teach him "Thank you God"! :)

Photo Op. :)

2011-03-20T02:46:00.002-05:00

This will have to count for last week...? I know. I'm making the rules! ;) So, today I'll just post a pic and then another time this week I'll actually blog! :) Here's to posting, though! :)

HEALTHY CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE BALLS

2011-03-12T17:53:00.001-06:00

This week I'm going to share a great recipe with you! :)

HEALTHY CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE BALLS
2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
2 Tbsp. raw oats (or shredded coconut, almond slivers, or anything you like)
2 Tbsp. room temp. coconut oil
1 Tbsp. agave nectar (or honey)
1/2 Tbsp. vanilla
A friend told me 2 hours in the fridge, but I did 5 min. (hehe) in the freezer and they are AMAZING!!! :) I put mine on some wax paper on top of a paper plate. Soooo good. Mmmmm!

Let me know how you like them! :)

Next, carpet angels, the hubby's completed socks, and his sweet surprise for me!!! :)

Lee had our marriage license and vows framed as a surprise for me! What a super hubby! :) Love! :)

"The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing." Zephaniah 3:17

Dreamer

2011-03-02T01:14:00.000-06:00

What do you do with a dream? When a dream has been dreamed for so long you can't even remember when you started dreaming it, what do you do when you are all grown up and still dreaming about it? It's not a bad dream, or even an unreasonable dream, but it is a hard dream. It is a dream that will take hard work and vision and passion and time. And sometimes its a scary dream. Sometimes you don't want to have the dream anymore. It's much easier and safer not having or living the dream. But, this dream keeps coming back. You wonder if it's really your dream, or a romantic notion that's not really for you, but for someone else who is living the dream. You think about all of the hardships that this dream could entail should it come to fruition, and then wonder if you should ignore it altogether. And then you think about all the people you've told about your dream and wonder what they think about the fact that it IS just still a dream... Do you go on dreaming? Do you try and change your dream? Is this being disloyal to your dream? Maybe the dream was something that you only thought you could pull off, but you're just too weak. Or maybe it's okay to still dream? When you are washing dishes and loading the laundry up, does the dream change anything? You would still be doing these things if you were living "the dream". Do you let the dream go? When it's in God's hands to bring things together for this dream to become a reality, is it a dream given by God, or is it something that is conjured and wanted by self? Even if the dream isn't about material things, is it okay to hold on to the dream? Is this dream something that will be easily accomplished in the next "stage" of my life, when my kids are a little older and less dependent on their Momma entirely?

I will give this dream to God. I will let Him work it into being. I will not waste my time thinking about what could be and lose what is already. That's when a dream should be really scrutinized. It doesn't matter what others are seeing about my dreams and the plans that the Father has for our family. The dream may change some. Dreams are hazy, after all, they have not yet created a memory. I pray that my dreams will take a backseat and that I will not live for some day, but for now! We are not promised tomorrow. We are gifted the now. I pray that I can grasp this and RUN with it. I will still dream, but with open eyes of hope, not with closed eyes of disappointment that things are not moving in my timing. My dream is not what is important, but the dream that God is working is. I'm sure I'm not the only one with these thoughts. Maybe it's my stage of life? :)

Proverbs 16:9
"In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps."

And now some pictures! :)

5 Things I'm Thankful for:
1. The finished sock! :)
2. The matching sock started! :)
3. my crockpot
4. our new abacus for math
5. my vacuum cleaner

Philippians 1:6
"And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ."

He is Good

2011-02-23T01:02:00.007-06:00

I'm blogging a little later than I typically do, and I'm really tired, but I was thinking about what in the world I would blog about tonight, and I was tempted to just do the fun "Wordless Wednesday" thing that people do, since I've always wanted to do that, but I felt that since I'm only blogging once a week right now, I needed something else, and then I had an idea. I guess I'll have to save the Wordless Wednesday for another day or maybe add it a little later? :) Anyway, my hubby and I were talking last week about a song that came on in the car that I just LOVE! I was telling him about how much I love the lyrics in reference to my relationship with God, but I really try to live the message these words convey in my parenting and how I relate to others. The song is called You Are Good by Kari Jobe, and if you're familiar with her music at all you have probably heard the song. I have been known to blare it at our house and sing it at the top of my lungs, and the kiddos love it! :) Here are the lyrics:

You Are Good
by Kari Jobe
Your kindness leads me to repentance
Your goodness draws me to Your side
Your mercy calls me to be like You
Your favor is my delight
Every day I'll awaken my praise
And pour out a song from my heart
You are good, You are good
You are good, and Your mercy is forever
You are good, You are good
You are good, and Your mercy is forever
Your kindness is forever, Your goodness is forever
Your mercy is forever, Forever

The words to this song soften my heart to the Lord, and that is was I want to be like to my children. I want them to be drawn to obedience to the Lord by my kindness, goodness and mercy, and for them to find favor in my delight in them. I know that they are children and that I have to give myself room, considering that these are attributes of God, but we are called to be like Him. I can pray that the Lord will draw them to Himself, because that is what is more important, but I can also do my best to live in "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control" as is stated in Galatians 5:22-23. Of course, the reason this song speaks to me is that I am far from being able to keep myself to these Fruits of the Spirit all the time. It is a daily battle of my will, but it is my prayer that my love of the Lord will be lived out in a way that leads them to Him.
I hope it blesses you the way it does me!

And of course the post would not be complete without some pictures of the chickadees and an update on the progression of the sock I'm knitting for Lee! :)

Grace and Peace.

Love and Joy

2011-02-15T02:38:00.005-06:00

Happy Valentines Day! We celebrated early by going out on Friday since that's when my sister in law offered to come and watch the kids. It was such a blessing to be able to get out and go on a date with my husband! I always dreamed that we would be able to go on dates once a week, but that has not always been feasible for us. We have had to improvise a lot of the time, and have dates at home where Lee or I would cook, or where we would have some super yummy dessert or popcorn and a movie. To me, it wouldn't be any fun if there wasn't some sort of creativity to it all. Sometimes, the more simple dates that were cheaper but had more thought put into them are the more special dates, in my opinion. :) This Valentines Day has been a little different, though. I have been stuck on knitting these socks for Lee, and he's really excited, so we went and picked out the yarn and the pattern and bought the supplies, and I'm working on them still. Lee got me two books that I have been REALLY wanting (One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp, and Organized Simplicity by Tsh Oxenreider), so we are both taken care of there, but the funny thing is that we both have another part of each others' gifts that are still on their way! :) My 2nd part for him is expected to arrive on Wednesday, and his 2nd part for me (which I know will be much bigger than my part for him, if I know him) is expected to arrive even later, by a few days! I'm super excited, though. I love Valentines Day, but it's even more fun when surprises are involved and when it doesn't end quickly. I have been known to spoil my own fun on this special holiday, with my expectations for how things should be for myself. And it's not that my hubby is one to go halfway on things, it's just that I'm more a "hand made" girl and he's more of the "nicer the better" kind of guy. It's a funny mix, almost backwards seeming, but we're learning. I'm so excited to be able to "hit the nail on the head" with these knitted socks, and I know what he's got ordered for me is hand made, so we're reaching that middle ground there somehow. :) I had forgotten until today, but this is our 14th Valentine's Day to celebrate as a couple! The first 3 we were still dating, but wow, it seems like it was just yesterday. We have both grown and changed, so it also seems like ages all at the same time. :) I am so blessed! I know I am, and I sometimes feel like I'm bragging to say so, but I need to bask in these blessings! They are a part of the story that God has given to me and I sure LOVE this story so far, even with its twists and turns and jigs and jags! It's a tear jerker and an action film, along with being a beautiful romance and a documentary all wrapped up in one! ;) I am learning to "stay fully awake" the way that Ann Voskamp's video preview mentions about her book, that I have posted in my previous post. I keep having to remind myself that my kids won't be throwing cereal around the room forever (Titus) or needing my help tying their shoes for an eternity. These are solitary moments that I have with them, and I have 2 ways I can handle them, with joy or with drudge. I pray that I embrace each of these moments with joy and that my husband and children will find that it rubs off on them. The same goes for the things I do for my husband, like laundry, dishes and preparing meals. These things are hard to accept as being "fun", and my personality gravitates toward the fun, creative, and non-tedious things in life (hence the crocheting and knitting), but I have been making it my goal to keep a positive attitude toward these tasks. I have even played mind games with myself, like had a competition to see how long we could go in the month and not eat out! I was surprised at the joy I experienced at the creativity I was able to have in the kitchen. :) I'm learning, and I think I need to bring on the personal competitions again! They seem to work with me. :) I am excited to begin to grasp life again, with less fear and with more ambition and with more joy. That is what the Lord has worked in our life, after all, that makes us different from the natural bent of the world. What a blessing that we can look forward to changing our perspective in a way that allows us to look forward to doing the dishes because maybe we will decide to pray for the users of the dishes instead of curse the job of washing them! :)

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10

"Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music;" Psalm 98:4

Adventures in... socks?

2011-02-08T01:46:00.007-06:00

Do you ever get in the mood to create? I get in these moods often. I think it's something that I feel that I have some sort of control over, since everything else seems to be out of my hands. :) Sometimes it crochet, sometimes knitting, sometimes painting (rarely these days though), sometimes writing poetry and sometimes its blogging. The other day I was just wanting to get my hands busy with something beautiful! I was wishing I had practiced more at the piano or stuck with those moments of playing around with the guitar I had in junior high! I could just feel my fingers working together to make a beautiful composition of praise to the Lord... but, alas, the symphony cannot be found here (except for Pandora, YouTube or CD), so today I blog :) Not that it's all that beautiful, but I love words and what the release of them does to my days! There is nothing like sitting down to the computer and just letting it f l o w! ;) I write poetry and but don't share it often. I have always loved it. These days I've been on mission "knit a sock for the hubby"! :) I haven't done a lot of knitting in the past at all, and have made small strips of knitted-ness (that were nothing) with dropped stitches and all (which means HOLES)! :) Then I made myself a single knitted cotton wash cloth for the dishes. It was nice. But I have really busied myself with crochet! I LOVE crocheting, but there is really one thing that I have wanted to be able to make since I started 10 years ago that I can't crochet; socks! Crocheted socks are just not cute!!! :) So, this year, one of my New Year Resolutions has been to knit a sock, well, a pair of socks! :) I started out with all of the stuff: the 4 double sided needles, yarn! BUT it didn't last long... my yarn was too thick and my needles too small! So, after my first project was hurting my hands, I went to Google and "researched" what I needed and found a website that showed me what yarn I should get for what size of needles! I have so far made a "not a sock", a baby hat, and a doll baby cozy, all in efforts of making these socks, until today! :) I have, as of now, conquered one tube sock! Those are the socks that don't have heels. These are going to be for me, since the hubby wants socks with the heels and all, but I am one step closer and VERY excited! I will be starting on the other sock tomorrow. :) I know it probably seems so weird that this project has me so excited, but I am really proud of myself for learning how to knit on my own, and now teaching myself how to knit a sock through YouTube videos and online tutorials! I am so glad that God created us with the ability to create. I don't know why, but I always find a sense of calm when I'm working on a project like this, and I feel so accomplished when I can set a goal and achieve it. I am really looking forward to the days that the girls can join me and we can knit or crochet together. Both Zoe and Lenci have worked on crocheting, and they love it. They are both always begging me to work with them on it. :)
I cannot imagine what the Father was feeling when He made us. It was a much easier task for Him to speak us into being, yet it is IMPOSSIBLE for us to do, than it is for me to knit or crochet or paint... anything, but He looked at creation upon its completion at each step and declared it "good". :) I also love that the Bible uses knitting to describe the creation of the human body in a mother's womb.
"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." Psalm 139:13-16
These passages bring a whole new meaning to my crocheting and knitting projects! I have prayed for the recipients of my creations before. It's very neat to know that with each stitch I can lift these people, created by the Lord Himself, up and intercede for them in my own prayers. I know that it really doesn't "bless" the item any more, but it really gives me a good excuse to pray for them. I'm looking forward to knitting my husband's socks! :) I will surely be praying for him as I knit each stitch. Believe it or not, I think he's looking forward to getting his very own socks knit by Yours Truly! :) I guess I'm going to be working at blessing his socks ON! ;)

So, here's the progression of working on the first finished sock that's the right size! Now on to the other... :) I think I'll just go strait to it, though the girls are most definitely wanting another dolly cozy! ;)

5 things:
1. a hubby happy to cook
2. snow days that keep daddy home from work :)
3. rearranging rooms and repurposing furniture
4. conversations with my hubby over dishes
5. completing tasks and marking things off of my to do list

Memories of moments

2011-01-31T23:06:00.007-06:00

Last week came and went with LOTS on my plate. :) It was the hubby's long work week, and this particular week we had a few sickies passing stuff around and sharing things we don't like to share. ;) It's so hard to keep young ones from sharing colds! They just don't understand that you don't drink out of each other's cups (and from Mommy's cup). :) Somehow, I managed to ward off the cold with a little help from Vitamin C, water and the extra cloves of garlic I threw in to spruce up a few dinners. :) I really thought I had it a few times, but thankfully, I am well. :) We were thankful when Daddy was off and we celebrated by heading to the park for a picnic lunch with the duckies! :) This week we are getting an arctic blast, so it was nice to get outside a bit before we are stuck in the house. There is nothing like seeing things in the eyes of our 2 year old, Titus! His eyes were so bright as he was looking at everything and just soaking it all in. He was almost glowing and I could see his little mind learning, even with every chilly gust of wind. :) All of the kids had so much fun and I know that we made memories this week!

I wrote last week about a few new blogs I've happened upon this past month, and I am super excited about them! :) I have them linked in my blog on the right hand side, but below are a few of the links!
This first one is such a blessing! Ann Voskamp has recently written a book, One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are, and the theme of her blog and her book is to find the gifts from God in the every day! I have been so encouraged by it and look forward to reading what she has to say every time she blogs!
http://www.aholyexperience.com/

Here is a trailer for the book! :)
(You can push pause on the music on the right hand side of the blog if you want to hear this better.)

I'm going to start posting five moments that I am thankful for from this past week:
1. playground knee jeans and sewing on patches
2. the seal I found in the printer (placed there by our man, Titus, himself)
3. the frustration of not having hubby home for "normal" hours (because that means that I miss him and enjoy his company)
4. creating with the kids (stories, art, food, ect...)
5. Unlocking the door to reading with my kindergartner, Lenci, this year

And I will leave you with this link to Bloom (in)courage, which is a group that is going to be doing a book club with Ann Voskamp's book! :) I'm planning to take part in this and I'd love to know if you do too! :) Blessings!
http://www.incourage.me/category/bloom

Yay!

2011-01-25T01:55:00.008-06:00

I'm proud to say... I'M BACK! At least for now I can say I have blogged twice this month! :) I may not have much to say this week, but I'm here! :) I have really been taking this years resolutions seriously, and I resolved to blog once a week at least! I have also really been trying to find real ways to balance my life with order and family time so that there is a more natural flow! I float somewhere between the artsy frazz and the get with it gal to create this frazzed out momma never feeling like I'm meeting my own expectations! I guess that's what it's all about, though! I have been reading a few super blogs about organizing, simplifying, and passionately living completely aware of each moment and grasping each memory! I had talked before the new year about really focusing on trying to live more with intention than in survival mode all the time! God has more for our lives than just mere survival! I have read the first 3 chapters of Piper's book "Don't Waste Your Life" a few times (I have a problem with moving forward if I have waited too long, not that I know what that time frame is...haha), and these ideas are all there, but it's been sooooo refreshing to hear these ideas from these ladies who have blogged lately on all of these topics! I feel such a kindred spirit with them, but then look at myself and my shortcomings only to see them as somehow "above" me in a way. I am continuously learning how to better manage my home and the needs of my family, and I'm so glad that these ladies have posted such genuine blog posts! They have let us all know that they are real too! Our blogs don't show the mess of cracker crumbs that our little munchkins just threw all over the floor behind us, right! ;) We all have our days, and I know that I am learning these things in just the way I am so that I can take others through what and how I have learned! I am glad that I have posted tonight! ;) Another thing I can mark on my list to remind myself that I can resolve to do things and follow through with them, so if this post isn't for anyone else, it was for me! ;) Blessings!

"But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me."
2 Corinthians 12:9

Celebrations of many kinds

2011-01-04T01:20:00.005-06:00

Well hello there! :) It's been a few since these fingers have touched these keys to update our little world here! :) We have made up for it with our busyness! :) Sleep deprivation in the last months has become the norm but we are finally recovering, although that threat is never unfathomable! :) I'm not exactly sure when sleep is ever the same after having kids, but I'm fine with that. :) We have so many blessings in our lives, so it would be silly to let that be something to cause me to loose more sleep! ;) Anyway, we have several bdays in our family, and we only have 2 people that share the same month in our immediate family! We actually have a birthday to celebrate nearly every month starting in August! We have April, August, September, October, December, and January covered just in our family!!! :) Once we hit the fall we're celebrating all the time! :)

Our wedding anniversary is also in October, so that's something else exciting to throw in the mix! This past year, Lee and I celebrated 10 years!!! We were very excited to claim that benchmark! So many wonderful memories! I love my wonderful, hardworking husband! We are definitely a match! ;)

School is going great for me and the kids!
Zoe turned 7 a few weeks ago and is breezing through her 1st grade work! She is loving to read more than ever! :) She loves that she can read things on tv and that she can read stories to the younger kiddos!!! :) Her favorite thing to play these days is with her baby dolls since she got a new toy pack n play for her birthday!!! She also is a pro at luring her brother, Titus, to me when I need him to come to me when I'm feeding Eden! :)

Lenci is 5 and doing great with all of her K work! She is just getting into the swing of the reading thing, but it is so fun to enter that threshold with her! She and Zoe have very different learning styles, and it's just a really neat thing to see what pulls that desire to read out of her! :) She is an animal lover, and she has recently started talking about horses all the time! It's not rare to find her galloping on all fours around the house! I used to do that as a kid, so it's super cute! :)

Asher, 4, is such a champ! He begs me for work when his sisters are doing school, so I print learning sheets from the computer to keep him busy, and I have had a few instances that the girls will be asking me questions about their stuff and Asher knows the answer! :) Hahaha! Little smarty pants! :) He's amazing in math! I'm a little intimidated by that, but for now I know more than he does, so we're still good! :) Hahaha! He loves anything boy, but he is always willing to play with his big sisters! We always give him the big jobs, like smooshing bugs and stuff like that! He is a very proud bug smoosher! :)

Titus turned 2 on the first of the year, and he is just blowing me away with how many words he is adding to his vocabulary every day! Sometimes I'll get him up from his nap and he has new words just from that little time he has had to rest! :) He is a super sweet boy, but man is he a stinker! Yesterday he was putting beads up his nose, pulling the tv speakers off the armoire, knocking books off of the shelf and then climbing in the space the books left, crawling on the table, climing up into the girls loft bed and the list goes on! Needless to say I am one tired momma these days! I just really feel that I am a life guard! :) Titus loves cars, dinosaurs and anything that looks kinda scary! :) He also pretends that anything and everything is either a microphone or a guitar!

And Eden is joining Titus' need for a life guard in that she has begun putting anything in her little mouth! I'm trying to get her to take a pacifier, but she just has never taken one! ALL of the other bambinos have taken them, so I'm not sure what the aversion is, but I got her to take it longer today than any other day by trying my latest trick; COFFEE! :) Yep! I dipped her paci in the coffee and she sure slurped that thing! I have no idea why it worked, but we'll see! I think that's why she puts things in her mouth though! None of the other kids did that so early, so that was my deductive reasoning! :) She has also just started crawling, so she is EVERYWHERE! Her favorite place now, you ask? Anywhere the kids are playing! She has started following them, so I guess that means they're more fun than me! :) I know one thing, they are definitely more exhuberant! Hahaha! She gets so proud of herself when she's standing up too, although right now its just holding onto things! When I get her from her bed she's usually standing now! I can't believe she's getting so big!!! I think her favorite toy right now is her singing glo worm!

I have been crocheting as usual! I have been debating about whether or not to open up an etsy, so we shall see! :) I have decided that I want to learn to knit some socks for my darling hubby! :) He is a lover of wool socks, and it is a deep desire of mine to knit him some since crocheted socks are just not something that he would fancy, AT ALL! :) Hehehe! I really don't like them much either, except for slippers around the house! I went on youtube and watched a few videos of ladies knitting socks and just laughed!!! I am such a novice knitter and the sock knitting was the most complicated thing I had EVER seen with yarn work!!! I am still wanting to learn, but I think I'm going to need a teacher! So, that being said, it is one of my resolutions! I would love to make some socks for Lee for this coming Christmas, and I believe it could take me that long to get them done if I started on them tonight! :) If I learn, I'll post pics as updates! :)

Another resolution of mine will be to update this blog more frequently again! I sure do miss it! :) Words are a favorite of mine! ;) I just have too much to say and it is a really great way to remind myself of all of the sweet graces that God is granting in the everyday happenings of my little life! So, farewell for now!

Are You a Good Person?

2010-09-15T02:41:00.000-05:00

Cotton Babies are giving away FREE diapers!

2010-09-12T19:20:00.003-05:00

Check out this contest for free diapers through Cotton Babies!!! We love bumgenius!
http://clothdiapers.blogspot.com/2010/09/free-cloth-diaper-week-grand-finale.html

Lenci is 5 years old and Eden is 4 months old!

2010-08-25T01:01:00.008-05:00

I cannot believe it, but Lenci just turned 5 years old and Eden is today 4 months old! Wow! Time seems to be flying by! Five years old is monumental! Some of my greatest memories happened at that age! Sorry I haven't posted in a while! Getting ready for this years school and all has me super busy... well, along with the 5 busy blessings God has graced us with! ;) Here are a few updated pics of our family as of late!

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.
James 1:17

Welcome, Eden Grace!!!

2010-05-07T01:47:00.005-05:00

I have been very distracted from blogging as of late, trying to prepare for the arrival of our 5th baby!!! Well, we were delighted to welcome HER into the world on April 25th at 3:17pm at our birth center! Baby's name is Eden Grace and she is just the sweetest! We brought her home the day she was born by 7pm, which is one of the things that I love about going to the birth center! As many of you know, we don't find out the gender of our babies, so it's always exciting to find out at the end, and for some reason we were all thinking girl, all of us except our 3 year old son, Asher! :) We decided to wait to tell the kids what we had until we got home so we could show them their new sister in person! Everyone is just enamoured by little Eden, including big brother Titus, who I was a trifle worried about, considering that they are days away from being 16 months apart! :) I don't think he knew she was even real until a few hours after we got her home and she started opening her eyes and stuff, and then Titus started saying "Hiiiiiiiii" to her in the sweetest voice, followed by LOTS of sweet kisses!!! I must say I am relieved, because I wasn't sure how he would take it, being that he is the youngest, and everyone has always doted on him! :) I have noticed that his vocabulary has grown by a few words since Eden has come home, and he has really been playing more with the others as opposed to grabbing anything that he can reach! :) Things are busy here, and we have taken a few days off from doing school, but we will resume next week, and I plan on using a chart to motivate Zoe to stay on task so that we can really get through the end of the school year with a good attitude! :)
I am using cloth diapers this time from the beginning, besides the first few days of disposables during the mecomium! :) I am loving the little bitty cloth diapers! They're so cute, and we're saving soooo much using these in this stage since they poo and pee TONS at the beginning! :)
Here are a few pictures of our sweet girl and of the whole gang! :) The first two are at the birth center, the next is with all the kids when Eden is 2 days old, and the last ones are of Eden at 1 week old! I had fun playing photographer in the tutu my sister made and the baby nest I crocheted! :) I hope to be better at updating the blog, but I can't promise that this blog will be one of my top priorities! :) Maybe I can just try to update with pictures occasionally! We'll see! Anyway, blessings to you all! Off to feed our new little sweetums! :)

Baby Cozy Giveaway!

2010-01-10T23:25:00.009-06:00

Yay! So, I am super excited to be a part of a drawing!!! My friend Jessica is giving away one of my baby cozy's that I crochet! :) You should go to her blog and check it out!!! It's thelowefamilynews.blogspot.com (sorry, can't figure out how to link it)! :) If you would like to purchase something from me, just email me at heartstringsbymaia@gmail.com and I will let you know prices! I am currently working on getting an etsy set up! That will make things much easier in the future! Here are a few pictures of the things I have made and can make for you! ;)

These pictures are of my son, Titus, when he was 4 weeks old (light green cozy) and 6 weeks old (in the brown cozy)! He loved them soooo much and would fall asleep so easily when he was so tiny! :) They can be used as photography props or for you at home with your children. I don't think I ever put him in his bed in one unless he had one of those things under him to keep him from rolling over, but I know I would let him sleep in it when he was in the swing alot! So, just let me know and I'll get to posting more things that I have made. To name a few, I have made hats for kids and adults, scarves, mittens, baby clothes, baby booties, Christmas ornaments, dolls, stuffed animals, baby blankes, diaper bags, rag rugs and much more! ;) Thanks for coming by! :)

I've missed blogging...

2009-11-02T13:37:00.018-06:00

Sooooo sorry I haven't blogged in so long! I have been very busy and pretty exhausted! I have a problem with sitting down to blog without taking a while!!! I am hoping to at least get back to blogging once a month and preferably once a week! :) Not sure which will happen! A lot has happened since my last post in August! We all had the flu about a month ago and praise the Lord our family all went through it and it lasted only a week as no one had it for longer than 3 days! I didn't take any pics of that week, though!!! Hahaha! It's a pity though, because that's the week Titus decided to walk! He had just turned 9 months! Crazy boy! I was certain he would walk earlier, which he did, but no more than a step was what he attempted at 7 and 8 months repeatedly! Asher turned 3 years old as of October 20th! He had a Spiderman theme! :) I'll also include some pics of Lenci's 4th bday! :) In September we started Kindergarten for Zoe! That has kept me on my toes more than anything! :) Just making sure that we stay on schedule and with all of the flu and stuff! You can imagine! :)

We also found out that we are expecting BABY #5 on April 27, 2010!!! We are soooo excited! :) Once again we will not find out what we're having! :) I am now 16 weeks pregnant and about 3 weeks out of the first trimester!!! Although I don't throw up, this time I experienced more nausea than usual! I REALLY thought I was going to throw up on a few occasions which is a first for me, but I never managed to get to that point. I am so thankful that I have mild morning sickness, if any at all! I do, however, find myself soooo exhausted that I cannot even keep my eyes open during the first trimester! It's always the first indication for me! I was very happy to have some energy back now! We will be going to the midwives again and I am already back on my special pregnancy diet that the midwives put me on to prevent gestational diabetes! I haven't ever actually had it, but that's what midwives are great at, PREVENTION and educating the pregnant mother to be wise with food so that we can avoid certain situations! :) I know I never shared my last birth story! I really need to do that! It just seems so long! I WILL!!! I will post it before baby #5 is born! :) Haha, that way I won't be behind and have 2 birth stories to share! :)

I am looking forward to the upcoming holidays! I absolutely LOVE fall!!! Thanksgiving and Christmas are my favorites of all of the holidays!!! :) Yay! I have already started crocheting gifts and I will hopefully not be crocheting until 4am again this Christmas Eve! Hahaha! ;) I have several requests from the kids! I'm going to be crochet 2 girl snakes and 2 boy snakes, 2 girly ponies, and some doll clothes accessories! :) VERY EXCITED! I have also had a few orders that I have taken! One Spiderman blanket and 2 baby cozies! :) Fun!

Here are some pictures from Lenci's 4th bday party, the first few weeks of school, a sono pic of baby #5, Asher's bday, updated pics of Titus and a pic of Lee and me at the fair when we took the family! Fun!

Very long post, sorry! Hopefully I can get back to posting now that I can keep my eyes open! Very fitting also that I would choose the day after Fall Back (Daylight Savings Time) to post this! Another great day for our night owl family! Hehe!

P.S. The Spiderman blanket I made for Asher is in his bday pics! Zoe and Memaw helped him get it out! :)

Business as usual!

2009-08-20T19:26:00.004-05:00

I have been away for while again, busy as usual!!! I need to set aside a day that I sit down and blog, but I haven't determined that yet, so we shall see! Anyway, I thought I would update you all as to what has been recently keeping me sooo busy! Haha. Well, Lenci turned 4 on the 18th!!! I cannot believe it!!! We have had two family parties so far, with two more on the cLendar for this weekend! Haha! It's been super fun! She is getting to be such a sweet young lady! The other night I was refilling drinks at the table and I overheard Lenci informing her siblings that she was a "woman"! Hahaha! I explained to her that she is a little woman, but not quite a real woman. Never a dull moment... :)
The other thing that is consuming my life at the present is Titus!!! He started standing about a month ago, and I am shocked that he isn't walking around even though he's only 7 1/2 months old! He has taken a step 3 different times and then he bonks his bottom down again. I was thinking he may skip crawling, but since he started the crawling stage his EXTREME ambition to walk and keep up with his siblings has slowed down some. I am, however, constanly following him around and saving his little life from the choking hazards his big brother and sisters have been leaving around! Wow!
We are also sooo excited about starting kindergarten homeschooling Zoe!!! We have lots of friends at church who will be doing school too, and I'm super excited!!! We have her curricullum all picked out and will be starting school after Labor Day! :) Yay! She is already doing some very basic reading and I look forward to teaching her phonics!!! She's a great student and loves to learn! Pictures are soon to come! :)

Adventures in cloth diapering...

2009-06-20T22:46:00.012-05:00

Hello friends! :)
Sorry I haven't posted in a while!!! I have been super busy lately!!! I decided to cloth diaper my two youngest!!! We have now been in them for about 3 months and Asher has been actually wearing underwear the last 2 weeks!!! Yay!!! I was hoping this cloth diaper thing would push him in the direction of being potty trained, but I think it has really just pushed me in the direction of potty training!!! :) Hahaha! He is a pro now!!! And I am a pro with the cloth diapers... okay, just kidding, but I am really liking them!!! I thought it would be CRAZY since Titus is my 4th, but there have been sooooo many good things about it! I really wasn't planning on making this a blog about the pros of cloth diapering, but since I'm on it, I'll just organize these thoughts and give you a list of the benefits of cloth diapering that I have thought of so far! :)
Sooo...
1. You'll save money!!! We were spending over $80 a month on the cheapest Walmart brand of diapers between the two boys, (which I know is on the cheap side) and now we are able to just use the same ones over and over again! :) I love knowing that even though I'm not working I can do this extra little bit to save the money that my husband brings home!!! :) I feel like a much better steward of the money that God has provided! :)
2. They're SUPER cute!!! They have so many cute little diapers and it makes changing diapers fun!!! I know it sounds weird, but I feel like I have a cute little diaper collection! We even have some with froggies! :) I just love matching shirts to Titus' diapers!!! :) They have become an adorable addition to his summer wardrobe! :)
3. Less trash!!! I am not your average environmentalist, but I have seriously noticed a difference in the amount of times we have to take out the trash, meaning less work for Lee (since that's his job here, hehe)!!! Diapers take up so much space! We are making less trash, thus spending less on trash bags as well!!! :)
4. Less smell! While we're on less trash, I may as well mention that there's less smell!!! While the poo in the disposable dipes hang around until the trash man comes, the poo in the cloth dipe is flushed away to "poo-land" with the rest of the family's poo! Hehe!!! I read about some people having a smell in their houses with cloth diapers, but we haven't had that smell at all!!! I don't know why...
5. I am doing better with keeping up with the laundry, mostly because I have to!!! Hahaha! It's a MAJOR motivation to do laundry when your clean floor depends on it! Hehe! But really, diaper laundry is really easy! It's like one load a day, depending on how many diapers you have! I do one load at the end of the day!!! I have felt soooo much more organized with them!!! I've also learned more about laundry from having to know how to sterilize them!!! :)
6. I feel so much more accomplished!!! Never in my earlier motherhood days would I have thought I would cloth diaper, but here I am, and with my FOURTH!!! Weird!!! It seriously NEVER crossed my mind before because I thought it would be gross, but I actually feel like it's cleaner for us in some weird way!? :) Once I googled cloth diapering and I read up on it, I realized how much easier it was than I thought it would be!
7. No more asking the Hubbs to stop on his way home just for diapers!!! That was something that I was doing frequently, and I am happy that he doesn't have to worry about that anymore!!! Now we can look online for great deals!!! I have actually had some great friends pass LOTS of diapers down to me from their outgrown diaper stashes!!! Sooo much fun!!! The LORD provides!
8. They have free patterns out there!!! Not only can you buy them, but you can make them!!! They're not that hard to make, and I'm not even that accomplished on my sewing machine!!! There's just something fun for a girl like me to make my kiddos diapers!!! :) Makes me feel so frugal! :) I need to make some more because Titus has outgrown them and I now know more of what I'm needing! :) The ones I made before were made out of a SUPER cute blanket and some unused fleece and flannel scraps that I was going to use for Christmas presents for the last few years! It really gave me the motivation to get my sewing machine out and learn more how to use it! :)
9. Cloth diaper mommies are like instant friends! There is just something kindred in it, and if someone sees that you cloth diaper they know you instantly have something in common!!! :) I'm serious, too!!! I have so many friends who have found out that I cloth diaper and I have talked to them more, probably because I asked them questions, but they were more than happy to share their know-how with me!!! :) There is a lot to learn, but it is learned fast, and then you can pass on the information!!!
10. They're softer than disposables!!! There are so many different kinds of cloth diapers, but the one thing they have in common is that they are soft!!! Most of the insides of the ones I have are fleece!!! I know, weird, huh? The ones we made were fleece and flannel!!! The more they're washed the softer they get!!! :)
11. They leak less! I know it sounds like it can't possibly be true, but after diapering 4 kids, the cloth are my favorite!!! I had more blowouts with the disposables for sure!!!
12. I can't help but think about the ladies down through history who cloth diapered their children, and something about that is comforting! Maybe I'm weird or a nerd, but I have had so much fun with cloth diapers so far!!! I also look forward to them!!! That is definitely something I could not say about the disposables!!! Hahaha!

So, anyway, that's just a little list! I know it's not for everyone! In fact, it wasn't for me before now, although I think it would have helped me keep myself more on task had I been doing it all the way through with all four kids! I knew I had to try it, since I seem to get more done when I have more on my plate to do. Don't know if everyone's like that or if I just need to challenge myself... who knows? :) Anyway, I now have this mission and I am on task! :) Soooo to sum it all up, that's why I haven't been blogging! I will try to do better! :)

Here are a few cute pics of the boys in their diapers, Lenci being sweet, and Zoe doing some finger knitting!!! If you have any questions about the diapers, I would be happy to find an answer for them! :) Hope you are all well!

F-R-E-E, that spells free.....

2009-03-14T22:34:00.001-05:00

to the first 5 people to respond to this post will get something made by me! Lucky you!

My choice. For you.

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It'll be done this year.
4. You have no clue what it's going to be. It may be a story. It may be poetry or an article on properly cleaning your face before a mask. I may sew or paint something. I may bake you something and mail it to you. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!
5. I reserve the right to do something extremely strange.
The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must re-post this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!

5 y, 3.5 y, 2 y and 2 m

2009-03-05T15:23:00.007-06:00

Those are the ages of the kiddos now!!! Titus is smiling and cooing sooo much!!! He had his 2 month appointment yesterday and we found out that he now weighs 11.5lbs.!!! Crazy boy! He's in the 50th percentile. We were laughing cause Lee was saying "Well, Titus, you are completely average!" Hahaha! Of course we don't really feel that way about that sweet baby boy! He's a complete blessing to our life! Yesterday Zoe told me that he's her favorite baby brother and her only baby brother, and she wanted to know if she could invite him to her bday party, which happens to be next January, hehe! :) She is REALLY starting early planning this year! I didn't mention that she really didn't have a choice about whether or not he was invited! I just thought it was super sweet that she wanted to make sure that he could be invited! :) Then she invited me... Hahaha! About a week ago I crocheted another cozy for Titus! I loved it so much that I decided to play photographer and I ended up with pictures of everyone in the family!!! Here are some of the snapshots that I came up with!

Happy Belated V-Day!!!

2009-02-17T16:28:00.006-06:00

We had a great Valentine's Day weekend! Lee was working, but we made a fun day of it anyway! :) I crocheted the kids gifts (again)! Haha! It has now become too much fun and a lot of a challenge to see what I can come up with! :) I made them cup cozies, washcloths, and little crocheted stuffed hearts! :) Sweet stuff! It was a very eventful weekend though! I managed to capture a picture of Titus smiling!!! Even though he's been smiling for about a week now, I haven't gotten a picture of it because the camera was far away and I was holding him with both hands cupping his head! He smiles most when we're talking to him, or when he's in his swing watching his animals spin on the mobile above his head! :) Haha! BUT, what a GREAT Valentine!!! ;) Love it! Here are some great V-Day shots from our house! ;)

Catching up!

2009-02-17T12:21:00.009-06:00

Well, I tried to post a video a few weeks ago and it was too big, so I gave up after all the energy I expended in that endeavor, and haven't posted since! Sorry! :) Anyway! I'm back! Hope everyone had a great V-Day! :)
I decided to do a few "photo shoots" of my own! Hahaha!
Then there are a couple of pics from the weeks of night time sleep deprivation! Hehe! He was wide awake at the beginning, and then finally conked! :)
Next are some pictures of the Baby Cozy I crocheted for Titus when he was 4 1/2 weeks old! He loves it so much that he will sometimes not sleep without it!!! Hahaha! I'm going to need to make him a bigger one soon! What a cutie! I saw these in a picture and thought I'd try to make one myself!!! I am soooo glad I did! I think Titus is too! He's a happy baby in it!
The rest are from Titus' first trip to the park, his first trip to DBU and just a few cute snapshots of him and the kiddos! :) Fun stuff! I had to narrow these down from literally 100's of pictures, maybe even 1000's!!! I know, already! Well, enjoy!
So, here are the pictures!

It's a BOY!

2009-01-12T23:37:00.007-06:00

Hello all! We did finally have our baby and it was a BOY!!! Titus Creed was born on January 1, 2009 (the day before Zoe's 5th birthday) at 8:09pm. He weighed 8 pounds 2 ounces and was 20 inches long! :) We had him at a birthing center, and it was my first time to have a natural birth, meaning no epidural! :) I am still surprised that it's over and it all seems soooo surreal to me! I am recovering so much faster this time, although I don't know why! I am however, exhausted due to the round the clock every two hour feedings! I'm glad he's eating great, but I am finding it hard to get naps in here and there because most of the time someone who needs supervision is awake! :) Haha! I will survive! :) I may not be blogging much in the next few weeks! I have sooo many cute pictures and so little time! :) Here are a few!

We came home the night he was born at 11:30pm, so the next morning was a bit like Christmas with a new brother home! Zoe asked me why I didn't wait and have him on her birthday!!! Hahaha! I'm sure she'll be happy next year when she has her own day to turn 6! :)

So, there he is in a "few" shots! Hahaha! I have many more to share! The last two were from two days ago and the first ones are from the first day, so I will probably be pulling out a few of my favorites from time to time to add to a blog! Fun stuff! I may not do that, though, just because it's hard to keep up with my own addiction to snapping the camera! I get overwhelmed when it comes to picking a favorite picture!!! We shall see!!! I may end up putting my birth story on here? Not sure! It is a good one, if anyone is interested in having a baby at a birth center. I need to get it written anyway, so I'll have to get on that! Blessings for the New Year!!! We got ours off to a running start! Haha!

Merry Christmas!!!

2008-12-27T14:58:00.008-06:00

Well, Christmas is over and I am still with child! :) I don't really know why I was thinking I would have this baby before the due date, but we'll see, eh? Hahaha! I've almost reached the due date, though. I have to say, as much as I wanted to have the baby before Christmas, I am thankful for the time I was able to have to make a bunch of gifts that I would not have been able to fit in with a newborn schedule! I made at least one crocheted gift for almost every family member! :) I'm very proud of the work! I found a pattern for a cute crocheted doll 2 days before Christmas, so I was working on them through those 2 days!!! It made me crazy too, since we decided that Christmas with my family would be at our house on Christmas day, with u being so close to the due date! It was so fun, but I stressed myself out by adding these 2 little dolls to the gift list, making them a high priority to finish before Christmas day!!! It ended up being fine and everything was cleaned and then re-cleaned (after the Christmas morning mess)! Hehe! I managed to make the dolls for the girls, a ball for Asher, scarves and mittens for all three kids, a scarf for Lee, and scarves for several other family members.

By Christmas morning (after my 2 day crochet-a-thon on the dolls where I stayed up until 3am 2 nights in a row) my fingers felt weird and kind of numb, and I actually had trouble ripping the paper! Haha! I was very glad when Lee agreed that the paper we picked for our gifts was a little harder to rip! :) At least I knew it wasn't REAL damage! Hehe! Just kidding! I was soooo tired, though! I really think that my hands were just still asleep, because later I was fine. :) I was able to do dishes, cook, clean and do all the things to prepare for the family to come over that night! :) We had soooo much fun!!! It proved to be uneventful, at least in the way of the baby coming! :) I have decided that I am going to just relax and take advantage of my "free time" before the baby comes and try not to get so bogged down on having him/her as much as I have been. It's a little hard not to get like that, only because of how uncomfortable it is at the end, but it's very neat to be pregnant and feel the baby moving. I'm going to just try and enjoy this time! :) So, my birthday down, Christmas down... now we wait for the baby's arrival and Zoe's 5th birthday on January 2nd!!! Which will come first?

Christmas and baby countdowns!!! :)

2008-12-18T16:29:00.002-06:00

I love this time of year!!! We have so much to celebrate with the birth of Jesus!!! :) I have always enjoyed having my own birthday in the middle of the celebrations as well!!! :) Lots of different countdowns are going on right now: my birthday on December 21st, Jesus' birthday on December 25th, the baby's due date is December 31st and Zoe's birthday is January 2nd!!! :) Hahaha! So much festivity at our house! :) We got our tree up early this year, though not as early as some! Haha!

We were also excited to get some 4d sonograms of our little bambino #4, still managing to avoid knowing what we're having!!! It's soooo surreal, and makes me soooo excited to see this little one in the light of day!!! So sweet!

I love these pictures! It's amazing that you can even see the ear there in that middle one! I'm getting very anxious now! These were taken at about 36 weeks, and now we're at 38 weeks!!! I was thinking that we were going to have this little munchkin last week, during the full moon! I had a series of contractions for 24 hours, and it did prove to be some progress, but no birth announcements yet!!! :) Can't wait to report back to you all with pictures of the baby in my arms, but we'll see!!! ;)

Dressing up and stuff!

2008-11-18T11:01:00.005-06:00

Our church had a festival for Reformation Sunday and all the kids, and even lots of adults, dressed up in Reformation clothing! Asher got some dress up stuff for boys since he's had to improvise with all of his sisters' stuff and all, so we were able to have a little knight and two little princesses to bring to church! :) They had games and snacks and crafts, and the kiddos had so much fun! :) Here are a few pictures of all their fun! :) Asher really didn't want to keep his costume on, so I only got one of him at the house with his on!

Here are a few updated pics of the baby bump! ;) Not too much longer, although before the new year would be nice! :) Only time will tell, and the Lord knows when this baby's birthday will be! :)

Birthdays and Punkins'

2008-11-06T16:02:00.008-06:00

Well, I haven't updated in a while, so I guess I better get busy! I missed quite a bit, and can't believe that I even missed Asher's birthday blog!!! He had such a fun birthday since it was his 2nd birthday and he knew what it meant! It was really fun!

It was so funny! I did the cake balls for his bday too, and he blew out the candle and scarfed the cake ball down!!! As soon as he was done he said, "Again, again!" He wanted to blow out his candles again, so we let him start over with another cake ball and let him blow them out twice more and then we called it quits! Hahaha! Such a cutie!

Lee wanted to get Asher a remote control car for his birthday (Asher's, not Lee's, hehe) and Asher LOVED it!!! He had soooo much fun and Lee even let him use the remote control by himself!!!

My big boy was on the phone!!! He looks so grown up!!!

We also took two trips to 2 different farmer's markets to get some pictures with pumpkins (since I didn't find a pumpkin patch close by)! :) They had lots of fun! The first day was way too sunny and we went at the hottest part of the day, so they were really cute, but the pictures are of them all squinting and covering their faces!!! Hahaha! I had the girls bring their strollers so they would have to slow down for us! Hahaha! :) They did really good! :)

The second pumpkin patch we went to a little later in the day and although the lighting was better, it was still windy! Haha! I did get some pretty good snapshots of them though!

The last picture is cute because Asher saw some birds flying in the rafters at the Farmer's Market and he just couldn't believe it! I guess it seemed that they were inside, and he was laughing and laughing!!! He kept saying "Birdies flying!" What a cutie! :) I have more pictures to catch you up on, but I'll wait for my next post! Hahaha! I have to save something for next time! :)

Fireproof

2008-10-14T10:42:00.005-05:00

I just wanted to tell everyone to go and watch Fireproof!!! I'm soooo excited that it's still playing! Lee and I watched it tw weeks ago, so I was afraid that I would be posting this too late, but I just checked to make sure it's still playing!!! We loved it so much that we're going to purchase it when it comes out!!! It's great to watch a movie that encourages and enhances marriages to grow and continue to be nurtured!!! Let me know if you go and see it!!! I think you will thoroughly enjoy it! You can go to www.fireproofthemovie.com to find out where the movie is playing near you! :)

Also, Lee and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary on October 6th!!! We were able to go to the movie right before our anniversary, so that was really fun!!! We had 3 dates in 3 weeks, since we had family come and see us, so we felt very lucky!!! :) For our anniversary we were home and Lee had to work on the day, but on his way home he went by Central Market and went all out on some yummy food that all he had to do was put into the oven for 20 minutes!!! He picked up salmon stuffed with crab cake, spinach with applewood smoked bacon, a yummy Greek pasta, and for dessert he got this amazing chocolate raspberry truffel!!! It was so fun to have a yummy meal that he picked out and made for us even after working so hard for us! :) I told him the great thing about having a nice evening at home is that when we get the opportunity to take a night on the town, we have a great reason, our belated anniversary!!! :) Very fun! I know we'll take advantage of that! :) Here are a few pics of our anniversary meal and the flowers that Lee got me! ;)

Here are a few pictures of us from our wedding and honeymoon in Wisconson!!! :) Fun times!

Happy Birthday to my hubby!!!

2008-09-26T14:11:00.009-05:00

Today is Lee's birthday, and although he has to work, we were able to celebrate this past Wednesday by going to one of the Movie Taverns where they have dinner and a movie!!! We hadn't been to a movie in forever, and we got a gift card to that specific movie theater!!! It was great, because sometimes it feels like too much time to do both separately, but this time we could have both together! We were a little worried that the food would be less than because it wasn't the top priority, but it was actually really yummy!!! We watched The Dark Night!!! What a blessing to have a date night! Don't know why we didn't get a picture, but we forgot! Haha!

Earlier in the week, I tried out a recipe for those cakeballs I keep blogging about!!! They worked great!!! The girls helped me with some strawberry ones so I could test it out, and then I made the lemon ones! Fun! They ended up working great and they tasted yummy!!! Another GREAT thing is that they weren't as hard as I thought they would be! I am so excited! I will no longer have to pay someone else to make them!!! One cake box makes about 48 cake balls, so needless to say, we have cake balls coming out of our ears (making it hard to be good on my no sugar/white flour diet)! Thank goodness Sundays (and bdays) are spurge days! Hehe! Anyway, here are some pics!!!

The strawberry ones have fall leaf sprinkles on regular and white chocolate and the lemon ones are just plain! Yum! We'll obviously be freezing some! :)
The last picture is from our date on the 17th in celebration of 11 years of dating!!! Sooo fun! I can't believe we've had two dates so close together! :) Our 8th wedding anniversary is coming up in another week! :) I hope it's cold like the day we got married! I love fall!
Lee, Happy Birthday!!! I am sooooo glad that you were born!!! You are such a wonderful husband and my best friend!!! I thank the Lord for you every day!!!

School Days

2008-09-23T01:18:00.011-05:00

A lot has gone on the last few weeks here! It seems that time has flown, since we are in the 4th week of school! It has had it's challenges and successes! One thing I did not anticipate was the challenge it would be for them to have to stick to a subject. I am learning that the more prepared I am for their school, the easier it is for them to attain all of their stickers for their charts!!! :) I am progressively getting better at being prepared, and the kids are getting better at knowing what is expected! :) The great thing is that they have prizes that they can attain for participation, and they get small prizes at the end of each day and bigger prizes at the end of the week if they get the whole week filled up! It only took the first week for Lenci to realize that she really didn't get her prize! It's been harder on her, just because she is much more stubborn, and she's a younger, but I know that this structure is good for her! She has actually been falling asleep during nap time since we started school. Not every day, but I think all of the thinking and concentration is burning some of her energy. :) I am so amazed by them every day! Asher is a hand full and makes our day much busier, but he has sooooo much fun doing school! I have a video of them singing their days of the week song and pledging, but it's really dark, so I'm going to try it again in a more well lit room or something! It's too funny! :) Even Asher is into it! One day I ended up having to do school during Asher's nap time, and it went much smoother, but he loves it so much and I really think it's good for him to be involved. :) I obviously have three different levels to accommodate, making it even more of a challenge, but it is a fun one! We have had field trips, done art projects, made stories, and learned many new things! Here are just a few of the pictures!!! :)

I will leave you with these!!! Haha! I know there are tons of pictures, and there are many others that didn't make the "cut"! ;) I'll have more later! I just waited too long to post, so this is what happens! :) Oh, and I helped them with their playdough prizes (butterfly, car, teapot)!!! :) Have a blessed week!

Hosanna

2008-09-15T20:05:00.004-05:00

I'm not sure if this song is new or old, but I have found it to be very inspiring!!! When I think about what I complain about or think I need, songs like these put things into perspective, for sure! :) I really needed this the other day! I have been really dealing with trying to stay content! Getting ready to have our 4th baby, I have started to feel cramped in our little house! I am reminding myself everyday that being content where I am now will make whatever is next even more of a blessing! :) It's just not God's timing for us to move yet. Thinking of the greater plans of life is very comforting and gives me something to put my mind on (things above)! :) This song is in my list of songs by Christ Nockels! :) Here are the lyrics! :)

Hosanna

I see the King of Glory
Coming on the clouds with fire
The whole earth shakes
The whole earth shakes

I see His love and mercy
Washing over all our sin
The people sing
The people sing

Hosanna
Hosanna
Hosanna in the highest

I see a generation
Rising up to take their place
With selfless faith
With selfless faith

I see a new revival
Stirring as we pray and seek
We're on our knees
We're on our knees

Heal my heart and make it clean
Open up my eyes to the things unseen
Show me how to love
Like you have loved me
Break my heart for what breaks yours
Everything I am
For Your kingdom's cause
As I walk from earth into eternity

Today was the first day of school!!!

2008-09-02T13:53:00.005-05:00

Today was our first day of school!!! Zoe started Pre-Kindergarten and Lenci and Asher started Pre-School!!! :) They had sooo much fun! I have been preparing for a while, but like my typical self I stayed up until 2am setting everything up for calendar and weather stuff for them!!! That got me really excited!!! I'm very proud of my official looking "closet school board"!!! We don't have an extra room for school, so I put all of the school calendar stuff inside the closet and all of their work on the outside of the closet!!! :) I decided to copy my friend, Katie, and do yummy chocolate doughnuts on the first day of school!!! They were soooo excited! :) The way the calendar was set up, the kids couldn't even see that there was a class in the closet, so when we opened the door they were sooooo surprised!!! Zoe started jumping up and down!!! The curriculum that I have is a unit study curriculum that lays everything out for me, so it went very smoothly because I filled in my lesson plans for the week with her stuff and then did extra things that I knew the kiddos would love!!! :) I had to tweek a few things for Asher and Lenci, but they had so much fun! Asher even participated in saying the pledge!!! It was so cute! I need to get them on video after we say it a few more times! So sweet! I was glad that I had a participation chart, so that they had to participate in each activity to get an apple sticker for their apple tree!!! It really helped them to stay on task and not just wander around like they are usually allowed to do, for drinks or blankets or whatever! I know tomorrow will go even smoother because now they know that they get a sticker for participating, whereas today they weren't sure what I meant! It still went EXTREMELY well considering!!! I am just soooo thankful that we recovered from the stomach bug we had over the weekend in time to start school!!! I could not believe when Zoe got sick on Friday and then it was me on Saturday!!! I'm the one it has taken the longest to get well, but that just goes with being pregnant I guess!!! :) I know it wasn't very smart to stay up until 2am, but sometimes you have to do what you have to do, and boy was it worth it this morning to see their faces!!! :) I can't wait until tomorrow!!! So much more fun stuff to learn and teach!!!

Party, rearranging fun, and Spaghetti Squash!

2008-08-28T12:40:00.011-05:00

We had a small party for Lenci with just our little family at Chucky Cheese!!! She had soooo much fun! She couldn't stand waiting for her presents, so we let her open them at home before we went! ;) She was extremely animated for the pictures, as usual! What a doll! I love giving her gifts because she just loves what she gets!!! :) We also got cake balls for her instead of a cake! They're so fun and you can pick lots of different flavors, although Lemon seems to be the family favorite!!! It was fun for her though! We put a candle in three separate cake balls and let her blow them out! She loved it! :) It was a nice little family party and all the kids had soooo much fun! :) We got her a Fancy Nancy book, a pink pony, a little puppy with a bow and a real leash!!! :) She LOVED all of her gifts...and her cake balls! :)

I have been "de-stuffing" our house and I am so excited that I have had lots of help from my sister and some great friends from our church who have helped me!!! ;) It was two separate occassions, but my church friends helped me to declutter the bookshelf in the living room and my sister helped me rearrange and switch things around in the kids rooms so that they are more functional!!! ;) Our house is small, so I am really trying to focus on getting rid of LOTS and then having a garage sale!!! I'm getting better and better at getting rid of stuff! ;)

I have also been learning more about what I can eat since my midwife put me on the no sugar/white flour diet to prevent gestational diabetes. I was 2 points away when I was pregnant with Lenci and 1 point away when I was pregnant with Asher, and so we are on this prevention diet and we have not had any reason to think I have it this time at all!!! :) I will share more recipes as I go along, but I may not put pictures of them all! Hahaha! I just thought this was so interesting myself, so I took pictures to share. I made spaghetti squash to eat with my spaghetti meat sauce!!! The rest of the family tried it, but they had noodles with their meal. I found a recipe for it online that had microwave instructions for the spaghetti squash preparation. I heard that baking it works better, but our house just heats up so fast when I use the oven!!! So, here are the pictures of the spaghetti squash "noodles"! :)

All you do is cut the spaghetti squash in half and get the seeds out. Put the spaghetti squash into a microwave safe bowl with 1/4th cup of water inside of it. Cover it and cook it for 8 minutes in the microwave. Carefully remove the (hot) bowl and use a fork to scrape the "noodles" out of the spaghetti squash! :) Add your spaghetti sauce, or whatever you want to eat with it, and ENJOY! :) Let me know if you try it! The texture is different than noodles, but it works when you can't have spaghetti noodles and that's what's on the menu for the night...or if you just want to try something new!!!

Happy 3rd Birthday Lenci!!!

2008-08-18T16:14:00.005-05:00

Today is Lenci's 3rd birthday!!! I cannot believe she's actually THREE!!! We're having a little family party on Lee's day off on Wednesday, so I decided to do some special things with the girls during Asher's nap time that we haven't gotten to do in a while! The great thing is that God let it rain a nice cool, steady rain today! Lenci has been begging to get her umbrella out, so that's what we did! I let them jump in the puddles and they got all drippy, so then we came in and I made them some nice hot chocolate!!! (I had coffee!) I love rainy days, so it was soooo fun to take lots of pictures of them! Then after hot chocolate I gave them an early school activity to do! I found little dry erase alphabet placemats with a marker at Target in the dollar section and they were marked HALF OFF!!! I gave them as a birthday present, but she'll get her big present when her daddy can be with her to open it up! ;) How fun! Just thought I would post some pictures from our fun Rainy Day Birthday!!!

Happy 3rd Birthday, sweet Lenci!!! :) You're getting to be soooo big!!!

A little bit normal...sort of! :)

2008-08-15T23:50:00.005-05:00

Well, things have gotten a little more back to normal! :) Lenci is slingless, but her arm still has about 2 weeks to be fully healed! I have recovered from two bladder infections, praise the Lord (not at the same time, hehe)!!! :) One thing that is different is that my midwife has put me on a no sugar no white flour diet to prevent gestational diabetes! I was 2 points away when I was pregnant with Lenci and 1 point away when I was pregnant with Asher. I was measuring about 4 weeks ahead at 12 weeks and measuring 2 weeks ahead at 17 weeks so she decided that being proactive is better than being reactive! I cannot eat any sugar, flours of any kind, potatoes, corn or any things like those things! I am learning to think more about the wonderful things I can eat like most fruit (excluding banana's), veggies, and plenty of protien! :) It has been hard, but I look forward to Sunday's because I was given permission to splurge one day a week!!! :) I have also been feeling baby #4 more these past two weeks!!! :) I love this stage! I'm at 20 weeks now, that puts me halfway!!! Crazy!

Asher got a hair cut at the same place that Lee gets his cut at the end of July!!! :) It's soooo cute, cause they cut his the same as Lee's!!! So, this time we got his hair cut professionally rather than putting him through the confusion of a home-made mommy and daddy hair do! Hahaha! Poor guy!

So, I can't really think of anything super exciting, other than the cool front that we've been having!!! Something about the cooler weather makes me feel like the heat WILL end!!! I love the fall!!! This nice weather gives me a glimpse of the wonderful weather to come! :)

I'll leave you with some silly photobooth pictures the kids and I took today!!! :) They all had lots of fun posing for these! Hehe!

Not so boring life...

2008-07-19T00:16:00.008-05:00

Sooooo, lots of exciting things have happened in the last few weeks!!! Our family has experienced it's first broken bone!!! Lenci was playing alligator with Zoe and Asher and, as Zoe explains "she rolled off the bed and hurt herself"! We didn't know how much was her drama act (since she cries the same high pitched cry when she wants juice as she did that day) and how much was a real injury since there was no swelling/bruising and she was playing just fine for the next few days until we were helping her with her potty training and gently lifted her up on to the potty and she was crying in pain! That's when we decided to take her to the ER at Cook's and found out that she had a fractured collar bone! The doctor who was working with us said that it is the most common broken bone for kids, and didn't seem shocked at all that we didn't know right away either. I took her by myself when Lee came home from work, so she had lots of stories to tell the whole family about her exciting trip!!! It was sad because she was sure that they were going to be scary or hurt her, but by the time we were back in our room after her wheelchair ride to and from the ex-ray room she was starting to milk the attention she was getting!!! Hahaha! She even looked around the room and wanted to sit in "her" wheelchair after they had taken it out! They came back in and helped her get her sling on (which is all they can do for a broken collar bone) and showed me how to wrap her arm close to her with an ace bandage so her arm stays as still as possible on an almost three year old and told me that she has to keep it on for at least two weeks!!! We were on our way out of the ER and she looks at me and says "Mom, that was sooooooo fun!"!!! I was tickled!!! The next morning she was telling Zoe how she got to see a movie and watch the mechanical mermaid and sea creatures!!! Then she told her that she got to ride in a wheelchair and Zoe just looked at her and said "Wow, I've never gotten to do that"!!! Hahaha! She has done pretty well keeping on her sling until yesterday! It's funny, but my sister gave us a bunch of princess and kitten t-shirts that her friends' niece outgrew, and Lenci has wanted to be able to see the picture on her shirt!!! Silly girl! ;) I managed to keep the sling on her by not covering up the cute faces of the little kitty's!!! I have some pictures of her with her sling on the day I dressed the kids like cows (sort of) and got them free chick-fil-a when my parents came out to see us, so she looks silly with drawing on her face, but that was from me! Haha! Please pray for me to find things to keep her and her siblings busy but still during these two weeks! Her balance has been off since one of her arms is stuck to her body and she has tripped twice, which has me CRAZY scared that she is going to hurt herself worse! We put her mattress on the floor after she rolled out of bed in her sleep after her accident (for the first time EVER) and freaked us out, but she hasn't acted like she was any more injured!

We also had our sonogram appointment and we are now 16 weeks along!!! I am showing soooo much faster this time and look like I'm at least 6 months pregnant!!! I was certain that there were either twins or that I was further, but a second sonogram confirms that we are due December 31st! :) I was reading on BabyCenter and another woman was experiencing the same thing, and she was soooo positive!!! She made a great point that it just means we'll get more use out of our maternity clothes this time!!! :) I am going to a midwife this time and I'm really hoping for a successful waterbirth!!! I had epidurals with all 3 of my first children (the 3rd delivery epidural didn't work and the 2nd delivery I didn't get until I was at an 8) and although I'm a little nervous, I'm very excited! As many of you know, we wait until our babies are born to find out what we're having! We just pick out names and have outfits ready for either gender! :) It's really fun!

We also recently had a date night! We were leisurely walking around and Lee asked me if I wanted my hair cut and we looked up and saw Regis, so I went in and told her I wanted something different but low maintenance, so after talking it out, she cut my hair shorter than I normally get it cut! She kept asking me if I was going to cry (since I'm pregnant I guess), and I was like "No way! I need a change!" Somehow I was sooo not scared about it (which I normally am), and I LOVE what she did with my hair!!! I had her straighten it when I left, so that was fun, but I was a little worried that I wouldn't like what it looked like once I wore it curly, but I still LOVE it!!! So much fun! I was soooo sad because we always forget to ask people to take a picture of us when we're on a date, so I guess that means we'll have to have another one soon so I can remember and ask someone to take a picture of us!!! :)

Lenci is also essentially, potty trained!!! She is wearing panties all day except at night time for sleeping!!! She has been such a trooper and has been day-time diaper free for a week now with only one accident!!! :) I am soooo proud of her, but I owe it all to M&M's and Sweet Tart candy companies!!! It is such a relief to know that I won't have three in diapers again like when Asher was born!!! I'm not sure how to start potty training a boy, so if anyone has any tips I would greatly appreciate it! I am thinking that all the treats Lenci is getting may be some positive peer pressure for her little brother, Asher!!! Hahaha! :) Maybe...?

Well, that's a lot of excitement for us lately!!! Hahaha!!! I have been soooo tired and it's been really hot and Lenci has been injured, so we're trying to stay un-busy and safe for another week when she can walk sling free! She will still have another 4-6 weeks without the sling until she's completely healed, but at least she'll have her balance! I have a bunch of pictures that Poppy (my dad) took of the kids swimming before Lenci got hurt, so I'll have to put those up next time! They're soooo good! :) Have a blessed weekend!!!

a little bigger of an update! ;)

2008-07-10T01:43:00.008-05:00

Sorry!!! I know it's been a while, but I have been zonked!!! :) I am barely over a bladder infection and, man oh man, was I tired and in pain for the past 4 days!!! All I can say is that I will forever be a believer in cranberry juice...but not just any cranberry juice, it has to be unsweetened!!! My midwife told me about Central Market having unsweeted cranberry juice and that I should drink all of that and a gallon of water along with it!!! Craziness!!! I have been potty training and I was going as much as Lenci!!! Maybe that's what has worn me out! The only thing that got us through those last few days was the fact that I pulled out the little potty again for her! We only have one bathroom, so that could have gotten very interesting! :) I hadn't gotten it out yet because Zoe trained better on the normal potty for some reason! You just never know from kid to kid, but Lenci has stayed dry all day for the last 4 days!!! She has also gone poopoo in the big potty, but not in the little one for some reason! Hahaha! I'm really not complaining though! Maybe she just wants to save me the nasty potty dumping step? Who knows! :)

So, a few weeks ago, one of Zoe's friends invited us to a bounce house birthday party right around the corner from our house! She wanted to go soooo bad, but it was on a Saturday and Lee had to work, so I was just imagining what it would be like to take my 20 months old, my almost 3 year old (but still CLEARLY two), and my 4 1/2 year old (and being pregnant on top of that) to a crowded bounce house party trying to chase them and make sure we all ended up together at the end of the party!!! Well, after talking to Carleigh (who I knew would have been with her kids before, hehe), my sister and my mom, I decided to be brave and make a go at taking all three of my kids to the party! I was soooo glad I did! When I called to let Zoe's friends' mom to let her know that we would be coming she informed me that it would only be her party joining our kids, so it wouldn't be millions of other kids to weed through!!! Plus, on top of that, they have coaches that help the kids and stuff!!! They had sooooo much fun! :) Lenci and Zoe wouldn't go into anything at first, but Zoe finally followed some little girls into one and was running around with them. Asher immediately ran into the basketball one and was chunking the ball around! He was usually in it by himself, but every once in a while another one or two kids would wander in to play with him!!! Lenci didn't do anything other than running around to the different bounce house options, then she would stop, sit down and pull up her socks! She did this for at least 30 minutes until she watched Zoe come down the giant slide that the coaches helped her climb up to!!! Suddenly this bounce house had a new excitement and she went into the one that had the mile high "rock climbing" things and a coach helped her get up there and she went down by herself!!! She was HOOKED!!! She went up another 4 times by herself!!! I was baffled at how fast she was able to get up those little nubs!!! I have to admit that I was a little nervous! Asher decided he wanted to go up, so the coaches and my friend helped him go up and then down twice!!! :) I was soooo glad that I took them!!! :) They had soooo much fun and I was running around snapping my camera!!! So, here are a few pics from the bounce house!!! :)

This is all Lenci would do, besides straightening her socks, in the beginning at least!

Zoe was attempting to brave up the nubs on her own!!!

Lenci finally made it into something!!! Hahaha!

Here's Zoe getting some help up the nubs!

She was sooooo proud to come down the slide by herself!!! I missed the actually action shot the first time, but this expression is priceless!!! :)

Lenci found something worth the effort!!! :)

I really think she's going to be our roller coaster girl!!! She's not even flinching here!!! Hahaha!

Zoe went again, so I was able to get our action shot!!! Daddy sure was proud of his brave kiddos!!! And I was so glad that I documented it all with pictures! :)

Lenci was off again and went flying up the nubs with no help this time!

She was soooo set on going again I couldn't even get her expression at the end! She was already planning her next climb up!

This is where she was by the time I came around to her!!! hahaha!

And another WHOOSH!!!!

Asher loved this, even though he looked terrified!!! :) He came off the slide smiling in the end! Hahaha!

Zoe and the birthday girl!!! ;)

I was soooo proud of them and it was very worth the fun time and much less energy than I thought it was going to drain from this tired Momma!!! We drove near the place tonight and Lenci started telling Lee all about it again!!! :) Sooo sweet! I'll be posting again soon because we have another sono coming up!!! :) Yay! Hope you all are having a great week! Blessings!

Coming soon...

2008-06-24T18:47:00.003-05:00

Okay, so I need to blog what's been going on but I've been really tired and staying busy trying to reduce our possessions! ;) I will soon update the blog with some pictures and stuff!!! Stay tuned... ;)

Here are a few pictures of the kids in our little pool from this summer so far!!! :)

A little fun!!!

2008-05-29T14:48:00.003-05:00

Check out the Name Advisor I added in the side column!!! It's fun to plug in your names and see what they think would be a great name for your children!!! I plugged in our names and then changed out first, middle and combinations just to see all of the ideas they had!!! It was REALLY funny some of the names that came up!!! What was also fun was plugging in names of friends and seeing what they should name their children according to the name advisor!!! Hilarious! :) Let me know what you think! There were a few names that came up that I have liked in the past, but there were some that were just plain CRAZY!!! Hahaha! Hope you enjoy! :)

Also, here are some pictures of our 3 when they were just born! Hahaha! Just for kicks... :)

Here's our newborn Zoe!!! :)

Here's us with newborn Lenci!!! :)

Here's newborn Asher!!!

I need you every hour?

2008-05-23T21:53:00.006-05:00

I often struggle with knowing that on my weak days, I am a needy and clingy wife and friend for others! Hahaha! These are two traits that are not extremely becoming, especially to an exhausted husband coming home to 3 excited children to give energy toward as well, although Lee would be the last to criticize me in that way!!! At one point in my life I was very traumatized to understand that some friends had criticized me behind my back about this weakness!!! I was humiliated! I knew that it was true sometimes, but I did not want others who did not know me or my full circumstances well to know this! I did not want anyone else to know my weaknesses, much less someone who would cut me down! Around the same time I heard an old hymn again that I had not heard in a while! It was such a blessing to me after this wound from people I thought were friends!!! The hymn is titled I Need Thee Every Hour!!! Here are the lyrics:

I Need Thee Every Hour

1. I need thee every hour, most gracious Lord;
no tender voice like thine can peace afford.

Refrain:
I need thee, O I need thee;
every hour I need thee;
O bless me now, my Savior, I come to thee.

2. I need thee every hour; stay thou nearby;
temptations lose their power when thou art nigh.
(Refrain)

3. I need thee every hour, in joy or pain;
come quickly and abide, or life is vain.
(Refrain)

4. I need thee every hour; teach me thy will;
and thy rich promises in me fulfill.
(Refrain)

5. I need thee every hour, most Holy One;
O make me thine indeed, thou blessed Son.
(Refrain)

Ha! I was soooo relieved to be reminded that God wants me to need Him ALL THE TIME!!! My dependance on His is vital to my growth in Him and my survival through the day! I was laughing hard inside when I thought back on the words to the song!!! That song can ONLY successfully be sung to our LORD GOD!!! All I could see was Lee's face...if I ever sang that song to him, or even just the title! Thanks be to God that He desires for us to know our need for Him! He is so good to fulfill that need!!! Now I have to work on knowing my strength in Him!!! I am glad that I am needy and clingy for my God! He wants me to be and in this He is showing me His strength being made perfect in my weakness!!! In Him I am strong! Thank You Lord! What a sweet thing to know for this stay at home mom!!! :)

II Corinthians 9:8 (NIV)
8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

Here are some pictures of why at times, I come across as needy! Hahaha!

Lenci found the fingernail polish while I was making dinner the other night!!! I was sure everyone was playing nicely together in the living room!!!

That's when I look in the living room from the adjoined kitchen and notice someone very important is missing!

At first I thought it was blood!!! Thank goodness it only got on the vinyl floor of our rent house and not on the wood floors or carpet!

Such sweet little cuties!!!

The precious trio!

Happy Mother's Day!!!

2008-05-11T23:11:00.004-05:00

I think I know why I was SOOOOOOO passionate about stuff in my last post...although I didn't know why myself at the time!!! Hahaha! I still think there are some great ideas, but this video that Lee put together of the kiddos might shed some light on my impassioned mood! Enjoy!

Hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day! Mine was very relaxing! ;)

Blessings!

Hmmm...deep thought?

2008-05-03T16:44:00.004-05:00

I just heard about the recent food rationing going on in various parts of the nation, and it was a bit of a shocker, but after a good talk with my mom on the phone I feel much better about things! I think it would be beneficial for churches to start thinking in the mentality of the New Testament church and help each other relearn how to cook and sew and garden and raise farm animals! Maybe I'm a little crazy sounding, but it wouldn't hurt us to become more simple, or "GREEN" if you like! :) If all the restaurants closed how many people would starve...well, they would just eat nasty tasting food for a while because America is out of the habit of doing for themselves in the way of cooking, cleaning and making! I am just now learning many of these things, myself, so I am not pointing my finger at anyone without including myself in the crowd!!! I just think that it would be good for us to start having a mentality of working for what we have instead of getting things without consequences like...PAYING FOR THEM!!! Hahaha! Just kidding, but really, we live such a plush life here! Life is not about being comfortable! I REALLY think it would be beneficial for women's ministries to include things like cooking, cleaning, sewing, saving, and maintaining things!!! Also, what about clothes programs for churches? I've heard about women who get together with their kids and friends and do clothing swaps...what a great idea for a church to start!!! I know it would take someone to organize and run it, but it would be so helpful for families and it would build relationships within the body!!! We would know one another's needs and work together the way the church did in Acts!

I don't know! I don't really think this is too far fetched...

Spring is here!

2008-04-22T16:02:00.013-05:00

Spring is here and we decided to get our annual bluebonnet pictures!!! Soooo much fun! We actually missed out last year somehow, but we did manage to get a picture by one or two bluebonnets when we went to Aunt BB's graduation! Hahaha! Anyway, thought I would post those, or a few, since it would really just be too much for you to handle if I uploaded them all!!! Lee and I both had camera's, he had his phone and I had the Canon, so there are quite a few! Fun fun fun! :)

Here are 5 of my pictures and I'll put 5 of Lee's!!! One of my favorite things is different angles people get when they're taking pictures at the same time! It makes a completely different feel!!!

I love this one of the kiddos!!! They all had sooo much fun and this picture shows how they were feeling!!! :) Sooo sweet!

Here are 5 of Lee's pictures!!! He has some great ones!

I love this one!!! I thought Lee's idea was great!!! :)

This one almost looks like Asher's praying!

Grace and Peace...

2008-04-08T10:45:00.012-05:00

I haven't written in a while again! It's been busy here! Lee started a new sales job yesterday and he quit the other one last Thursday so he was able to have some time with us!!! It was sooooo nice to have him home so much and it made him feel ready to start all the hard work again! We were able to watch a movie at night after the kids were asleep and not worry that he might oversleep! Hahahah! I guess I have pictures to post too, from Easter and our tumbling station and our new fish! :) Yah, I'm not crazy by adding two more crazies to the mix! We decided that Camille, our doggy, was just too much to handle for me with so much going on! We found her another home and got two goldfish in her place. I was sad even though I was the one who decided she had to go! The goldfish have been a great distraction for the girls! Zoe and Lenci have already been able to help more by feeding them and stuff, and Asher is mesmerized by their swimming!!! What an adventure!!! At least we know now that in a few years, when we are ready to get a dog, we'll spend time researching what dog will best fit our family! I think I felt too guilty to get rid of her before, but then Lori and I were talking and she told me that the day before our conversation her MOPS group had talked about pets and how if they weren't complimenting the family and felt more like another "child" to care for that it might be something to adjust so that the family can be more at peace! I REALLY needed to hear that!!! We really have had a peace about it! :)

I was looking at some pictures of the past year and a half and remembering how far God has brought us!!! I am amazed at His tender mercies and His provisions!!! I am amazed at His grace to us!!! I am amazed at His sweet gifts to us as His children, and I’m meaning this in both spiritual and physical!!! God is soooooo good!!! He amazes me! I look at some of those pictures and remember where we were and know that only the LORD has sustained us by His power! Lee started selling cars a year and a half ago and ended this last year at 7th in the nation for Suzuki sales in 2007!!! Those sales were gifts from God! There is no doubt in our minds that they were provisions from the Lord!!! We NEVER in our wildest dreams imagined Lee selling cars, much less being in the top 10 of the nation for his sales! He’s great with people, but only God can pull that off!!! I am just sooo thankful for Him! It makes everything worth it!!! Just as Romans 8:28 says "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." I am thankful for those times when we had to soooo readily rely on Him, and there are more days like that than not! There are still days when sales are low and we are wondering what we’re going to do and the Lord will bring in a sale or an unexpected bonus and it meets our need when we have it. I’m not even sure why I’m posting this...I was just moved and wanted to share! We sure don’t have everything together and all figured out!!! I’m sooooo grateful that our LORD does! I am such a worrier and when I look back at my life I just laugh at why I would ever find the need to worry! Thank You, Lord! So many days I look at what we have and want more, but today I look at what we had and see more! We are ALL blessed! Those pictures have just reminded me of all of the provision God has given throughout my life! There are so many stories to tell...

...so, here are a few pictures that tell a little...

Here are a few pictures from Easter!

...a few little friends...

...the Tumbling Station...

Here are the new fishy's!!! :)

A head shot of me and Lee!!! Awww!

This picture is from last year around this time, for the sake of the memories part of my blog! ;)

I know the pictures and comments are all caddy-wampus...does anyone know of an easy way to make sure your comments and pictures align right in the blog besides putting miles between pictures and comments? Just wondering!

Grace and peace.
Maia ><>

Happy Good Friday and an Early Easter!

2008-03-21T17:22:00.006-05:00

Well, we didn't win the house...Hahaha! I mean the HGTV Dream Home that they gave away last Sunday! I did get our house pretty clean, but as I was looking at the pics of the dream home I was realizing there was now way my place would ever really look clean in comparison...at least not until we move! Hehe! But, I'm soooo excited to say that my sister helped me by threading my sewing machine and I made a dress for Lenci last night and a dress for Zoe today during nap time!!! My sister suggested a SUPER simple A-line pattern where you use ribbons for the dress straps! I think the dresses turned out great! Of course I started by making Zoe's which ended up being Lenci's because I didn't allow for the seam when I measured at her rib cage! That's fine, though! I'll probably hem Lenci's up a little too, cause it's almost to her ankles! Hehehe!

Here's Lenci talking to Pollly Pocket about coming over to play! :)

Posing in her new dress!!! :)

Zoe's doing her ballerina toes! :)

What a cutie!

Here are some more fabrics that will become dresses, pillows, tops, and chair cushions! :)

This is my special fabric that I got for more than just $1/yard! :) Cabbage Rose...a grand fabric store!

And who can go out and do crafty minded things without the inspiration of COFFEE!!! Well, milk was quite popular in our order at Starbucks that day! Hahaha! 1 warm vanilla milk for Zoe, 1 cold chocolate milk for Lenci and 1 cold vanilla milk for Asher! :) Sooo cute!

Here is a picture of Asher stacking his cheese blocks! Soooo funny! I bought cheese blocks this time because they were cheaper that the off brand shredded and block cheese!!! I know, weird! :) Asher has enjoyed it! :)

And here's Asher with a pair of the girls sunglasses!!! :) He's sooo silly!

On another note, today is Good Friday!!! I am so thankful that the Lord came to the earth to make us right in His standards as He became the sacrifice to atone for our sinfulness!!! I am going to post the lyrics to a great song!!! It's called Beautiful Scandalous Night by The Robbie Seay Band! I love this song and it is soooo fitting for the Easter celebration that we have coming this weekend!!! :)

BEAUTIFUL SCANDALOUS NIGHT

Go on up to the mountain of mercy
To the crimson perpetual tide
Kneel down on the shore
Be thirsty no more
Go under and be purified
Follow Christ to the holy mountain
Sinner sorry and wrecked by the fall
Cleanse your heart and your soul
In the fountain that flows
For you and for me and for all

At the wonderful, tragic, mysterious tree
On that beautiful, scandalous night you and me
Were atoned by His blood and forever washed white
On that beautiful, scandalous night

On the hillside, you will be delivered
At the foot of the cross justified
And your spirit restored
By the river that pours
From our blessed Savior's side

Artist: Robbie Seay Band
Album: Give Yourself Away
Year: 2007
[Beautiful Scandalous Night Lyrics on
http://www.lyricsmania.com/ ]

Happy Easter!!!

Way past due!!!

2008-03-15T15:30:00.005-05:00

Sooooo, I need to post a bunch of stuff! We've been super busy and tired and I know I would have posted earlier if it had not been for the Spring Forward day! That's my least favorite day in the year!!! Before kids I loved Fall Back, but since they don't understand how wonderful it is to sleep in, it's not as exciting! Hahaha! Give us decade and I think we'll be there again! ;)

So, today I'll just post a few adorable pics because tomorrow is the BIG DAY!!! ;) Just kidding! Well, sort of...tomorrow is the HGTV Dream Home Giveaway!!! I've been trying to clean my house because if I win and they come over to tell me I it will be on tv!!! Hahaha! I'm really not thinking that we'll win it, but if we did we could pay off student loans by selling the car they're giving away and then we'd have a free house (I'm sure there are expenses of some sort) but then Lee could get a ministry position and get through seminary!!! So, even though it's not likely, I'm going to clean! Hahaha! It'll be nice for it to feel company ready anyway! Lee's going to be like...huh? Wow, it's clean! Hahaha! So, anyway, here's a few pics!

The girls have been playing in their bathing suits lately and they happened to be wearing them when it started snowing!!! Hahaha! I had to capture that on camera!!! :)

Lenci wasn't too much into smiling at the camera because the huge snowflakes were getting in her eyes!!! It was just crazy and soooo fun!!! She kept talking about how Santa was going to come and bring her presents! Hahaha!

Zoe has been dreaming of catching snowflakes on her tongue since she has known it was possible!!! She was soooo excited to have been able to live out that dream!!! She is still talking about it!!! :)

A recent trip to the mall playground made for a fun afternoon!!! There weren't a whole lot of kids that day, so that made it more enjoyable for me! Hahaha! I wasn't having to follow Asher around and I think he felt like a really big boy!!! :)

Here he is posing for me!!! :) You can tell he's proud of how well he got up there by himself!!! :)

Here's an action shot of the crew!!! They love going up there and jumping on the top because this play area is made of cushy stuff so if they fall it's not hard but padded! I LOVE that idea and worry less! :)

We have been going to the zoo on Sundays since Lee has off and it's been great! We go to church and head to the zoo!!! They have a great park nearby and we do a picnic lunch there and then play a little on the swings! Thought this was a sweet shot!

Another shot of the kiddos with their daddy-o! ;)

Zoe went to a tea party for a girl who lives around the corner! She was so proud of her card! She has been practicing on a dry erase book of letters during nap time. I wrote the words on some paper above the card and she did the envelope! :)

Zoe wants to play the guitar really bad, and this is a shot of her with her favorite toy at her little friend's house!!! Hahaha! :) She really looks like she knows what she's doing! :)

Here are the girls having a great time on the swings!!! :) Zoe's always a little more cautious, but she had a lot of fun!!!

Asher had sooooo much fun swinging really high and getting tickled by Daddy!!! Wheeeeeeeeee!

I think I'll save some pictures for the next blog! :) Hahaha! Gonna get back to cleaning and getting dinner in the works! :) I'll try to get another blog sooner than this one came!!! Especially if we win the house! Hahaha! Blessings! ;)

The rest of the haircut story :)

2008-02-25T16:16:00.006-06:00

Alright, so what you couldn't see in Asher's hair was the minor mistake on the other side of his head behind his ear! :) I decided that I could fix it with Lee's beard trimmers, but it was much easier said than done! Asher was leaning his head into the vibrating beard trimmers, and although they weren't hurting him I couldn't see that it was taking off more than I wanted!!! Soooooo, Lee made the executive decision to just shave his head! I was pretty sad, but at least he doesn't look like he has patchy hair! Poor guy! I'm pretty embarrassed, but not enough to not posts the pics! Hehehe!

Here's the picture of what Asher's hair looked like after the scissor cut I did. Not too bad, just a few spots to blend behind the ears, and a little hard to see in this pic!

Here's the pic of the "after Momma used the beard trimmers" look. So, if he hadn't been leaning into the beard trimmers...I guess I should have waited for Lee to come home and help me with it! Hahaha!

Another angle of the crazy mess I made of my son's hair!!! I know, pretty bad! Poor guy!!!

Here's what Daddy did with the beard trimmers!!! He's still such a cutie, and I think he was proud of his hair do! :)

When his hair dries it gets lighter, so he almost looks bald! I know it will grow, and Lee said it will be thicker when it grows in. He'll have a little more hair tomorrow! And he's still sooo cute!!! I'm a little biased, though!

So, that's my whole story! I'm still very proud of girls' hair, and I SOOOOO glad that I didn't do this much damage to their hair!!! That would have been devastating! I guess I'm just not good with the beard trimmers! Hahaha! I'm also glad that it wasn't Lee's hair! That would have been an interesting conversation starter! I think I'll stick to letting him pay for his haircuts! :)

3 First Haircuts!!!

2008-02-19T20:54:00.004-06:00

Soooooooo...I was inspired by Carleigh to cut my girls' hair!!! Hahaha! Lenci's hair hasn't grown as fast as Zoe's did, so it all started when I was just looking at her and decided to giver her some bangs! It went well, so I figured I do Zoe's hair!!! It has needed a trim since it gets tangled so easily these days! So, I did it! :) I felt so good about it I went back and did a little more trimming on Lenci's in the back! Hahaha! I think it looks just like a little pixie cut! And Zoe's turned out great too! I tried Asher's as well, but I think we're going to have to do some damage control with the beard trimmers when Lee gets home! Hahaha! Oh, well! Not too bad for my first go at hair cutting! And it was actually REALLY fun!!! :) Thanks for the inspiration, Carleigh, and great job on Audrey's hair! :) Here are the pics!

Here's Lenci's new do!!! I think she looks soooo cute with her new bangs! We'll see how it does! Sometimes it gets a little curly, and I don't know what that will look like! :)

Eating the vanilla cookie after the haircut! Mmmmm! I just love this one! I'm a sucker for action shots! ;)

Here's Zoe modeling her new haircut!!! She was really nervous until Lenci didn't wince when I snipped her hair! :) They were both pretty good about it, considering that it was their first haircuts!!! :)

And here's the back of Zoe's hair. I trimmed only the really thin parts off, and it made it look sooo much fuller! Then I put some of my Curls Rock in it! It made it curl up! ;) Soooo cute! :)

Here's Asher's new haircut. These were all taken on my phone, so this one's not as clear! :)

Happy Chinese New Year...well, belated!!! ;)

2008-02-12T12:41:00.002-06:00

I think I'll post a few pics from when we went to Chinatown!!! It was soooo neato! Here they are!

Here we are walking down the street and stopping for a quick pic!!! :) The streets were sooo steep! I was surprised at how well the kids did with walking! They sure slept well that night!

Lee and I are picking little Chinese outfits for the kiddos! I will post a pic of them! ADORABLE!!! They wore them to church last Sunday! They just needed some little chopsticks in their hair...but that wouldn't have been so safe for toddlers, hahaha!

Here's Zoe posing in front of the adorable dolls!!! We were picking out their outfits, and my dad took this one! I don't think I knew how long she was looking at them or we may have gotten one for her!!! But she sure looks like a doll in her outfit!

Lenci LOVED the eggdrop soup we had at the restaurant we ate at! We were shocked to find this little hole in the wall place!!! It was AMAZING and authentic and cheap! ;) Soe of the stuff reminded me of some of the dishes in Taiwan that I had! :) Mmm!

Zoe loved it too, but Zoe is the non picky one!!! I was shocked that Lenci ate the soup! :) Shocked but thankful!!! :)

Sooo, I went and took some pics of them in their outfits in the middle of this blog!!! Hahaha! They loved it, but I just know that since I didn't get them done on Sunday it would be hard to do it in another time, so here are a few! ;)

Another one posed with Asher in the chair! I put lip gloss on the girls so that they would be more likely to sit still and smile! :) Asher was a little wiggly, okay, a lot wiggly! You can see it on the girls' faces! Hahaha!

Here they are in the girls' room playing silly! It's a good shot of the whole dresses and Asher's full outfit! It almost looks like they're saluting him? I have no idea, I was just snapping the camera! :)

Zoe posing for me!

Here's Asher too! I couldn't get Lenci to sit still for me to get a shot of her alone!

This is the best I could get of Lenci, but her hair was sooo sweet! :)

So, I just read that many people celebrate Chinese New Year for 15 days after it starts!!! Very exciting since I decided to post these today! :) How fun!!! I think I should take advantage of that and have Chinese food tomorrow for dinner!!! :) Any excuse to have some yummy food that we don't eat very often!!!

So...I got the pic!

2008-02-02T12:21:00.000-06:00

In the blog before last I showed one pic of Lenci before she got bamboozled by the wave! Well, I got the other ones from my dad!!! I thought there was one, but he got a pic from his vantage point and the one of her after it happened!!! I know it seems cruel that we were taking pics of this event, but we really didn't know that it was going to happen!!! It all happened so fast! In fact, our feet got wet and I had my shoes and socks on! Zoe's shoes almost got swept into the ocean! I was really kind of freaked out about the whole thing! Sooo, here they are! :)

Here's one of Zoe running from the wave!

Here's one of Lenci running from my dad's camera!

Here's one of Lenci running from my camera!!! Not quite fast enough! :(

Here's Lee being a great daddy and pulling her out of the water! I think he's laughing out of shock!!! Poor Lenci!!!

Aunt Cassie came to the rescue with warm winter jacket!!! We still had a great time at the beach, but needless to say we went home next!!! Hahaha! :)

Recovering...

2008-01-29T14:30:00.000-06:00

I have been having a little trouble getting back adjusted to everything in the fast lane in our home this week!!! I think it all started the 2 weeks before we left for vacation! The kids all got this chest cold thing and they would sneeze and I would RUN to catch and wipe nosies, not getting anything done! I was frustrated cause I just knew that I would be ready on time to leave for our first flight with kids!!! I could feel myself catching the cold as I was cleaning their little noses, and then I got it!!! I was miserable, and the kiddos were all still sick too! Lee missed out on getting sick, praise the Lord! At the end of the week I thought we were all kicking the chest cold thing... then Zoe woke me up at 4am telling me that she threw up in her bed!!! She went to the bathroom, threw up another time and, after I got all of her new sheets, she got back in bed! All day the next day she seemed fine, just a little timid. She even wanted to eat, but she threw up again at 2am! The next night was good, but I was queasy, and the next 3 nights she threw up around the same time! I wasn't throwing up, but I was sick another way all night for one of the nights...and sooo nauseated for the rest of the week! I was also up all the nights that Zoe was sick!!! Lee helped me, which was great since he had to be up early the next days to work a FULL day!!! So, to make a long story short, the day before we got on the plane I was doing laundry all day and that night I was up packing until 3am!!! Lee set his alarm for 5am and went to bed cause he just couldn't stay up, so we basically traded shifts! We had to leave the house by 6:30am to get to the airport on time, so that morning Lee let me sleep as long as possible and we did actually make it!!! Hahaha! We obviously didn't sleep on the plane since we had 2 toddlers and a preschooler!!! We got 4 seats for the 5 of us, and I was AMAZED at how well they did! My biggest fear was that they would all be fussing and bored and restless...so I made sure they had enough to do! One thing I brought that took up a little time, and even kept Asher busy, was lolipops!!! They were a little messy, but they lasted a long time! I bought stickers, paper, crayons, 2 new books (cheapo ones), gum and pre packaged bags of goldfish!!! The kids weren't perfect, and we were exhausted by the time we got there, but I know it would have been worse if the Lord had not had mercy on us with their pleasant attitudes (and we were all well when we got on the plane)!!! Plus the flight was only 3 hrs and 45 min!!!

We were busy the whole time we were in CA, since we only had a week to spend! We filled it with site seeing, spending time with family, meeting new family friends, shopping, getting my hair cut and a date! :) Well, I know that at the end of every vacation you always feel like you need a vacation to recoop, but with the three munchkins I have been feeling it even more!!! There is a 2 hour difference in CA so the kids were up at 7am until the last day we were there! We are now trying to de-californianize our schedules!!! It's been hard, since the kids aren't ready to go to bed until 2 hours later than their regular bedtime! :) I think we're almost there, but I am just feeling sluggish! I had to leave the house a mess since I was sick before we left, and I think that's the biggest problem! I get overwhlemed with messes, and Asher learned how to climb onto the dining room chairs and onto the table while we were there, so now I have to make myself get stuff done even knowing that he might be standing on the table when I turn around!!! I'm going to just have to give myself 15 minute increments of time to get stuff done and then just let it all go!!! Prayers are appreciated!!! Thanks! I hope it doesn't seem like I'm complaining, because I am soooo thankful for the vacation we were able to have!!! I know the Lord blessed us with that family time!!! :) We got really used to seeing Lee and spending all of our time with him!!! Asher really enjoyed his Daddy time! It was soooo cute! He would run over and jump on Lee!!! :) The day after we came back from our vacation Zoe said "where's Daddy?" and I said "he's at work." Then Zoe said "why?"! Haha! I thought that was sooo funny!!!

Here are a few before and after pics of my hair!!!

This is the picture of how long my hair was right before I got it cut!!! The girl was excited when I told her she could cut more than 7 inches!!! :) The last time I had my hair cut was a little over a year ago!!! Yah, I need to do this more frequently!!!

This is my hair after Katy cut and straightened and styled my hair!!! :) Fun!!!

This is Lee and me on our date at the California Bistro in Santana Row!!! That was a very romantic little shopping center with gourmet restaurants!!!

A front shot of the hair!!! :) I was tilting my head so it would show the layers! :) It looks a little ditzy, but I was actually being very logical! ;) Hehe!

And here is my hair when I wear it curly!!! It feels soooo much better now that it's shorter and is still easy!!! Just wash, add Curls Rock and go!!!

We're back!

2008-01-22T15:14:00.000-06:00

We just returned from visiting family in San Jose, CA!!! I will put a few pics from some of the places we went!!! This was our first time to visit the big C-A! We had a very fun and busy time! They are 2 hours behind us, so that was interesting! :) Haha, so was the flight!!!

One pic from the flight there!!!

First thing...open presents!!! ;) Here they are waiting to open them!!!

So, one of the presents they opened ended up being what kept them in bed at night!!! I was wondering how that was going to be accomplished!!! The Rose Petal Cottage splits in two and the girls fit so they each had a house of their own to sleep in!!!

The Golden Gate Bridge! Beautiful!!!

A yummy San Fransisco restaurant called Fisherman's Groto! We ordered our clam chowder bread bowls here and went over to another place to order fish and chips and eat "in" there! :)

I think this is the only pic of all of us together!!! :)

We were sooooo disappointed that the choclolate factory was closed...they give out FREE samples!!! This picture was taken before we knew we weren't getting some!!! ;)

This is one of the places people surf!!! They were actually surfing behind us in the FREEZING water!!!

This little path takes you to the Santa Cruz Beach!

Freezing cold ocean water at the Santa Cruz Beach!!! :)

Playing in the sand!!!

Cuties!!!

This picture was taken in Carmel at a little restaurant called Forge in the Forrest, I believe! :) It was such a romantic place, and we ate out on the patio with heaters above our heads!!! :) Neato!

Cheese!!! :)

Mimi and Poppy!!!

Aunt Cassie and the girls!!!

Our yummy artichoke appetizer!!!

Here are the girls on the beautiful white sands at Carmel Beach!!!

Mimi and Lenci!

More fun on the beach!

Building sand castles!!!

You can see what's going to happen next!!! I'm waiting for my dad to email the pic of the aftermath!!! Poor Lenci!

Cold and wet after playing in the wet sand!!!

Asher slept a little on the trip home, but he had more of a teething spell this time! Poor guy!

And here's Zoe checking out the safety manual!!! ;) She didn't really know what she was looking at! It sure makes a cute pic though!

We had sooo much fun and took hundreds of pictures!!! LITERALLY!!! I'll post more later! :)

Christmas and New Year and Zoe's 4th Bday Pics!

2008-01-02T14:31:00.001-06:00

Here are some pics from our Christmas Eve and morning!!! Enjoy!

All the little ones at the Christmas Eve party!!!

The family pic which is slightly odd of me, but I was looking at the wrong camera!!! Hahaha! It's the only family pic from Christmas Eve that I have, so, hehe!

Lee and his sisters! :)

The Christmas tree before Santa or Mommy and Daddy came! These are presents from the Christmas Eve party. Lee thought it would be fun to put them under the tree! :)

Zoe is staring in disbelief that Santa came!!!

Wow!!! Stockings!!!

Look at my froggie, Mommy!

Daddy reading the Christmas story!!!

I love my Cinderella!!!

Showing the slippers I made the girls! :)

Big boy Asher!!!

Princess dresses!!!

Two sweet veterinarians!!!

Snuggling with Daddy! :)

Happy New Year and Chinese Yoyo's!!!

Earlier in the evening!

Get Daddy!!!

What REALLY happened on New Year's Eve!!! ;)

AND a Happy Birthday to my big girl!!! Zoe's 4 years old today!!! :) We are in the process, at this moment, of making cupcakes!!! :) Yum!

Merry Christmas!!!

2007-12-26T00:39:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas to all!!! Hope you had a great Christmas!!! It seems like it went by so fast! Happy Birthday, Jesus!!! I keep forgetting to post our Santa pic, so this is the best time, and probably the last opportunity that it will really be in context! :) Soooooo...here you are! :)

Here's the crew!!! I need to pull out last years picture with Santa...and maybe the year before! Hahaha!
Hope all of you had a blessed Christmas!!! Remember Jesus is why we celebrate this day!!!

Trying on the Christmas outfits!!!

2007-12-22T20:51:00.001-06:00

These are the dresses Memaw got for the kiddos for Christmas and I thought I would try them on before Christmas to make sure they fit them and well...you see what happened!!! It turned into a photo shoot! I feel that it was a successful one, since everyone was still and the camera didn't die! Hahaha!

Sweet girls!!!

Love Lenci's expression here!

They were all dancing!!!

He knows he's cute!!!

Great posing...which doesn't happen very often or for very long! :)

More posing...

...and more posing...

...and that's all she wrote! ;) I think the camera died after this, but I think the mood and attention span did too! Ha!
Merry Christmas!

Well, 2 days until my birthday!!! :)

2007-12-19T11:44:00.000-06:00

Yep!!! Two days until my birthday!!! I came home on Christmas day in a stocking as mentioned in a previous blog!!! :) So, here's a picture as requested by Janelle!!! :)

Cute huh?

We went to my sister in law, Tracy's house to make cookies the other day!!! Here are some pictures to document our great fun!!! These are out of order, but fun!

Here they are, hard at work!!!

Asher's little lot of dough!!!

Trying some out with Mommy!!! :)

A few are ready to bake, even though they're a little smooshed!!! :)

Busy with cookie cutters of all Chrismasy shapes and sizes! ;)

What a big girl!!!

Sweet moments!!!

Zoe's rolling out the dough again!!!

Asher's helping too!!!

Lenci is SUCH a silly!!! ;) I love her messy little way of learning!!!!

Precious!!!

And...of course Aunt Tracy gave in to a few early presents!!! :) We had soooo much fun!!!

Yay!!! It's cold!

2007-12-12T16:10:00.000-06:00

Hey! I just figured out how to get pictures onto my computer from my phone!!! :) Here are a few of my favorites!

This is from our anniversary!!! Lee LOVED the lobster! :)

Another from our anniversary!

Just a neat one I took with the night feature!

Zoe playing ballerina!

Lenci trying on Mommy's shirt!!! :)

Asher in his cute pj's!!!

Zoe's sponge cake, anyone?

Lenci is soooo silly!!!

Here's our Camille!

Some knobs that I painted flowers on for the girls' chest of drawers!

He' just a mess!!!

They all fell asleep on the way to go and see Daddy at work! Sooo sweet!

Zoe and I made this fleece scarf!!! :) She's a little proud of it! ;)

Here's something that is really cute!!! I got the idea from my blogging friend Courtney!!! Please watch the video and let me know what you think!!! Enjoy!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1342358700

Christmas is coming soon!!!

2007-12-06T23:20:00.000-06:00

I am sooo excited about Christmas this year!!! We didn't get a tree up last year cause we were in the middle of a move and things were crazy, so this year we have our tree up!!! In fact, I put it up as soon as I could!!! :) It is sooo beautiful to me to see the soft glow of our lovely white Christmas lights on our little tree! As we were decorating the tree, Zoe kept saying "this is soooo fun, Mommy!"!!! :) (I don't know how that punctuation worked, but you know the jist!) ;) Anyway, if I had it my way we would have lights outside and a lot more decorations up, but I not quite sure where all of the decorations are and I don't think I could pull off getting the lights up on my own! :) Christmas is one of my favorite times of year because my birthday is during the same season!!! Yep! I was born on the 21st and came home on Christmas day in a stocking! :) Sooo fun! Well, I have some adorable pics from our Christmas cheer so far this year! Hope you enjoy!

Oh, and don't mind the mess! ;)

This is the wreath I made out of sheets that I ripped!!! :)

Oooo, pretty ornaments!!!

It's fun to decorate the tree!!! :)

The first step to Christmas tree sabotage!!!

The second step to Christmas tree sabotage!!

But, don't worry, it's still standing!!! :)

Silly sisters!

Mommy, catch me touching an ornament!!! :)

Huh?

Merry Christmas!!!

Daddy reading the Christmas story! Sweet moments!

Two of Zoe's artistic renditions of some beautiful Christmas angels!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

2007-11-22T00:29:00.000-06:00

Yay! It's Thanksgiving and Lee's baking his renowned Pumpkin Spiced Cheese Cake right now!!! Mmmmmmmm!!! He's the gourmet cook between the two of us...I'm the day to day yummy/easy stuff cook! ;) I love Thanksgiving! I am sooo glad that a cold front came in for today! I LOVE it!!! :) Our church put out a thanksgiving pamphlet by Life Action Ministries on the table in the foyer for anyone to take and I grabbed a few for our family for this special day!!! For each day in the month of November there is something printed to be thankful for! I thought I would put a few of the things that they have listed! :)

The Grace of God
"I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus." I Corinthians 1:4

God's Provision
"Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap not gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" Matthew 6:26

The Steadfast Love of God
"It is good to give thanks to the LORD,...to declare your...steadfast love in the morning." Psalm 92:1-2

Every Good Gift
"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." James 1:17

Here are three more things that I'm thankful for!!! ;) Couldn't resist!!!

Have a safe and happy thanksgiving!!!

Rainy Day Tag

2007-11-08T21:34:00.000-06:00

I've been tagged by to tell what we do on rainy days!!! Hehehe! We don't have anything in particular that we really do on a consistent basis...well, I guess I drink coffee and watch it rain, but I drink coffee everyday!!! Hahaha! I know when I was little I knew that a rainstorm meant sitting on the porch swing with my sister and hearing our dad read Classic Pooh or a picnic in the living room floor for lunch with our mom! I think I need to start something like that! Something predictable for our kiddos during a rain of thunderstorm! I have let the girls jump in the puddles with their rain coats, rain boots and umbrellas before and they loved that! :) Soooo...I think reading a particular book and having a special picnic in the living room would be a fun tradition to start, but I am sad to say that we haven't yet started anything to date! :) The next time it rains I will try to remember and let you know if we have followed through!!! :) If you have any tips, let me know! :)
I'm tagging 5 people!!!
Have fun!