But it can twirl mommy...

When your 3 year old picks out the perfect outfit for 'ballerine' class it doesn't matter if it doesn't match...the most important thing is that "it can twirl mommy!!"

Outside Fun

We have had a few Spring like days and we have loved being outside.  One day Caroline found and captured a toad.  She created a habitat for it so that she could play with it the next day.  When we went back, it was gone.  However, she and Maggie enjoyed going on a nature hut to see if they could find it.

Happy birthday Eden

Today we celebrated one of Maggie's sweet friends birthday.  These girls have been together since Fun Ones and I love their little friendship.  I'm trying to figure out how in the world they have gotten to be so big????

Small Group Reunion

A few weeks ago Charissa sent an email inviting folks from our original Monday night small group over for a Mardi Gra celebration.  We were so excited to think about getting to spend the evening with these folks who are near and dear to our heart!  These ladies met together for 7 years almost every single Monday night.  

On a cold night in January of 2006, we met for the first time.  Beth asked Andy and I to consider joining the group.  We were young and fairly new in our walk with the Lord.  We were sure we wanted to commit every Monday night to Bible Study.  However, she would not take no for an answer.  So we gave it a try.  

Little did we know that these ladies (and their hubbies) would walk with us and carry us through deep valleys as we lost parents, struggled with infertility, journeyed through adoption, prayed over career changes and so much more!  They also celebrated with us as the Lord answered many of our prayers...especially when we welcomed our girls into our family!

We no longer meet on Monday nights but we share a sweet bond...tonight we gather for prayer time and dinner.  It brought tears to my eyes to hear how the Lord was working in each of our lives and to reflect on the many ways He has answered so many of our prayer request of the years.  

It was a gift to be together tonight!  Caroline and Catherine also enjoyed their time together.  These girls were together every Monday night...they feel asleep at each others house and we would pick them up and carry them to the car and into the house asleep.  They also share a sweet bond.  I'm thankful for the history we share!!

Queen of the Castle

When I was going through some pictures on my phone I came across this one taken over Christmas break. I think it is safe to say this sweet girl has life made in the shade.

Congratulations Caroline

Caroline was once again chosen to have her artwork displayed at our local district office.  We are so proud of her artistic ability!  Maybe one day she can teach us how to draw pretty things!! :-)

WWE

These two received WWE tickets for Christmas.  They were so excited and had a blast!!  Caroline was talking 90 miles an hour when she came home.  So thankful they get to enjoy special times like this.

Oyster Roast

Tonight we had our annual oyster roast to celebrate our birthday's.  Mom buys oysters and prepares shrimp creole and crab balls to go along with it.  It is such a yummy treat!!!  Sadly Andy and Caroline weren't able to join us but the rest of us surely did enjoy it!!  Such a fun tradition!  Thanks Momma!

Peyton and Caden fished all day.  They caught a few fish.  They cleaned them and Daniel cooked them.  Doesn't get much fresher than this!!  So good!!!!

Lucky Find

My goal for 2018 is slowly get my house and life organized!  I'm trying to work on one room per month.  I started in my kitchen...I have 39 cabinets and yet I feel like I have no room.  The best part about giving yourself a month to organize a room is that you can tackle a little bit along and along.  Today I worked on a cabinet and found 15 Walmart gas cards.  I sat down and plugged in each card number on the Walmart website.  Out of 15 cards, only 4 cards had a balance.  I found a total of $12.80!!  WooHoo!! I'm planning to use the money to purchase a few organizing bins!  I'm already excited to move onto the next room!

Truth!

“The more I taste His goodness, the more bitter sin tastes, and the more my affections, ambitions, attitudes and actions are shaped by His Word.” ❤️ .

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~Transformed Life-taker to Life-giver by Karen Hodge and Susan Hunt

I am reading this book with the ladies in our church.  It is SO GOOD!!!!!  I came across this page in my reading today and it was a 'lightbulb' moment...I pray that I can truly taste the bitterness of sin in my life...while I enjoy the goodness of HIS word in my heart!

Reading "Wonder"

I am a HUGE believer that you MUST read a book before you watch the movie.  The book is ALWAYS better!!!  ALWAYS!!!!!  So when the movie "Wonder" came out on the big screen, I knew I needed to read the book.  Caroline is reading it at school but said she wanted to read it with me.  They are a few chapter ahead of us and it is killing me that she knows what's going to happen...AND she won't tell me!!!!  We are going to work super hard to catch up with her class.

I asked Andy to capture this moment for us because I want to remember this sweet time.  I have LOVED laying with my girl, taking turns reading chapters/sections.  It's easy to let her read on her own each night while I do other things.  But this makes me slow down and enjoy my sweet little 9 year old.  The book is sweet and there are moments that this momma's heart can't read without choking up.  It's a good way for us to talk about kindness and how cruel this world can be...love you baby girl...when given the choice to be right or be kind...choose to be kind!

Paddington 2

Caroline felt so much better when she woke up this morning.  Aunt Jill invited us to join them for a movie.  It was SO NICE to get out of the house after being cooped up for several days.  "Paddington 2" was a super cute movie and we all enjoyed it. 

Sick baby....

Friday morning Caroline woke up and just wasn't herself.  I fixed the girls breakfast which she didn't eat.  I let them chill on the couch for a little while to see if it helped.  She complained of her head and throat hurting.  Her friend that we do carpool with had the flu as well as the other 3 members of her family...I was worried that she may have gotten it from them.  Andy and I soon realized that she just wasn't going to be able to shake whatever she had going on and I decided to keep her home from school.  Worried that it might be strep or the flu, I took her to see Dr. E.  No strep but he thought for sure it was sinus related.  We took it easy the rest of the day.  She seemed ok but not 100%.

Saturday morning when she woke up she was in tears.  She said she didn't want to lay down but she didn't want to get up.  Her head was killing her.  I started her on Motrin and sent Andy to the store for something for sinus pressure.  She was pretty weak most of the day and took several naps.  We soon realized that Motrin was the only thing helping with the severe pain. 

I am so thankful that she woke up feeling so much better today.  We stayed home from church and had a slow, easy morning.  For my child, who by God's grace, is never sick this is was an extremely difficult weekend.  Praying we all stay well!  Although it was a 'fun' experience to take a 9 year old to a doctors appointment.  We enjoyed the quiet of the room and sat and talked like two adults.  SO much different than taking a little one.  I am not thankful Caroline was sick but I did enjoy the sweet time we had together over the last 2 days.

Maggie can sleep anywhere...

I don't know if it's her personality or if it's because she is the second child but this kid can sleep ANYWHERE!  Once she falls asleep, she is OUT!  I wish I could sleep like that!!

Red lips make everything better

Today we went to lunch with Aunt Tomi Jean.  While we were waiting for our food, Maggie decided she needed some of Aunt Tomi Jean's lip gloss.  Of course, she wanted the RED lip gloss.  She was SO proud of her pretty lips!!

Bedtime stories

Maggie informed us last night that she didn't need us to read her any bedtime stories, her sissy was going to do that.  I walked in to find this...sweet moments!!  They may argue often but I am SO THANKFUL they have each other!!

YES!

This afternoon after we dropped Delores off at home, we were approaching the park.  Caroline asked "Do we have anywhere else to go?"  I told her we didn't and she said "Can we play at the park for a little while?"  I thought about all the things that I needed to get accomplished this afternoon and decided they could wait...I said "YES!"  They were so excited!  They played well together.  Caroline was a sweet helper teaching Maggie about some of the big girl stuff.  We called Aunt Jill who lives close to the park...they were actually planning to stop on the way home.  So it was a win for everyone...the girls got to play and Mommy got to visit with her BFF!  I told the girls we could only stay about an hour because I needed to meet Daddy at home to put the Christmas decorations away.  We weren't home long when the girls asked if they could go to the library.  I made a deal with Andy, if he would take them to the library I would take down our Christmas decorations.  He was THRILLED not to have to help and I was THRILLED to have my house all to myself for a little while.  They had a great time and Andy captured a really sweet picture of them sitting on the library steps.  

It's not always easy for me to put away my to do list and say yes to spontaneous activities.  But today I am so thankful I was because it really spoke my girls love language!

I love sharing my school with you...

Today on the way to school Maggie said "I really LOVE sharing my school with you Mommy!"  Melted my heart.  There are moments when "sharing" my school/job with Maggie isn't easy.  There are moments when I wish I had a few minutes to myself in my van.  However, these sweet words this morning reminded me what a blessing it is to share my job/her school with my sweet girl.  Thank you Lord for this opportunity!

Ready for Church

This sweet girl was super proud of her "large" pink purse this morning.  I'm pretty sure it's about as big as she is...however, she made sure she had her lip chap, an extra pair of panties and her Bible. On  a side note, can you believe that we still have SNOW on the ground????  Great background for her snowman dress.

Fun with Jude and Friends

We are so thankful to have our friends in town for a few weeks.  We met downtown today for lunch.  After lunch Caroline and Jude has a fun afternoon planned.  They are staying on a farm in the country and Jude thought it would be fun to have Caroline over for the afternoon.  He wanted to teach her how to shoot a BB gun but she wasn't too interested but she did pose for the picture.  They finished the afternoon watching a movie by the fire.  I love their friendship and hope that it continues to grow throughout the years!

Snow Snuggles

 What's the best way to stay warm on these super cold nights...snuggling with your sissy!!!!!

More fun in the snow!!!!

What a fun but tiring day!!!!  We spent 5 hours outside playing in the snow and this momma is tired!  I loved it but who knew it could be so exhausting!  We played together as a family and then with neighbors.  The kids attempted to slide down the hill but it just didn't work.  We learned that the snow that was in the sunlight was better for building a snowman.  It was our first attempt but we were pretty proud.  Several other neighbors on our street built snowmen as well.  Fun times.  We played outside and took a few breaks to warm up with popcorn, a movie and hot chocolate.  After dinner we made a big bowl of snow cream to enjoy!This was a super sweet time that I will cherish for years to come!!  We measured almost 4 inches of snow which is a lot for us!  What a gift!!  Thank you Lord for the beauty of the snow!