SHE'S STILL THE ONE...

Bailey is still the one that makes Brandon laugh the hardest.  Funny thing is, sometimes all she has to do is turn around in a circle and look at him; that's all it takes for him to crack up.  It's the funniest thing to watch/listen to.  This video was taken a few days ago and while it's Tom making the noise, Brandon thinks it coming from Boo.  As a matter of fact, when Tom came out from hiding (behind Bailey) and Brandon saw it was actually him making the noise, Brandon just stared at him with this look that said, "what are you doing??".  Then, Tom hid back behind Bailey and made the sound again...Brandon looked at his sister and (as you'll see below) cracks up.  Their relationship is already so sweet.  It's almost as if they have a special language and they're laughing at a joke that only the two of them get :)

SATURDAY MORNINGS...

Smiles, giggles and...cartoons on Disney Jr :)

HOW IS IT POSSIBLE...

To love your children more with each passing day?  I can't tell you "how", I can only tell you that...it happens!

Before school and play...hair all nice and neat :)

After school and now playing...crazy hair and pink cheeks :)

Seriously...you know you just want to SQUEEZE him!  :)

LOVE these "little man" pants.  They even have a zipper! :)

LET'S PLAY BALL...

We about 3/4 of the way through softball season and it's been a blast!  Bailey has shown some really good improvement over last year.  She's getting better at hitting the ball as well as fielding (when she's not too busy talking with another player in the outfield :0). Wish you all could be here to be a part of the fun.  Hopefully the video and pictures help you join in on the experience :0)  Enjoy!

Brother enjoys the games as well :)

NO PICTURES...JUST LOTS OF PRAISE...

We all have things that we do, almost second nature without even thinking.  For me, there are things that I do when I'm driving, that are second nature...a habit.  Today, I was driving my family to the park; in order to get to this particular park, I have to drive onto a major road about a mile from our house.  At this intersection, whenever I turn left, my second nature is always the same:  I look to the left to see if it's safe to turn and, if it is, I look quickly to the right to make sure the turn lane (in the middle of the road) is clear and then pull out.  I've had to have made that turn a hundred times and each time I tell you... I do it the same way.  Check to the left, check to the right and pull out.

Today, God reached down and turned my head the other direction.  Had He not, I truly believe that neither myself nor my son would be alive tonight.  I question if Tom and Bailey would have made it through...possibly, but only with severe injuries.  Because today, when I looked to the left, it was clear...there was big pick-up truck slowing down to turn onto our street; when I looked to the right...it was clear.  And so, I pulled out...but then, God turned my head back to the left and I saw a very light blue car going at least 60mph fly past the truck and while I remember hitting the breaks, I will tell you that I don't know how I reacted so quickly.  How I moved my foot from pushing the gas to pushing the break... so hard that Bailey commented that the jolt from the stop hurt her neck.  He would have hit us, had I pulled into the turn lane.  He would have t-boned our vehicle and, I believe, hit our van right in between my door and Brandon's door.

So...no pictures today.  But lots of on my knees, thanking God, tears streaming down my face....praise.

RAISING A MAN...

I was putting Brandon to sleep a few weeks back with the routine that we've fallen into: bottle, followed by a bath at least 30 minutes later (because he spits up), and then pj's and bed.  His room is dark, the purifier (which also works for white noise) is on and I stand by his crib and rock him to sleep.  It's such a sweet time.  I use the rocker in his room from time to time during the day, but at night (maybe it's because I'm afraid that I won't be able to get up from the rocker :), I stand and hold him...rocking him as I stand.  I know that I should probably try putting him down before he falls asleep, but I also know that soon (much faster than I want) he will be too big and too heavy for me to hold and rock so...for now, I hold him and rock him to sleep.

While I'm rocking him, I take the opportunity to praise God for both our little miracles.  I thank Him for them and then I ask for His blessing over their lives.  I ask for specifics regarding their futures and then I pray for their spouses.  Something I know that my mother did, for the three of us, from very early on.  A prayer that I am very thankful for.  A walk with Christ that I am grateful to my mother for...one which I plan to pass along to my children so that when they rock their babies to sleep, they pray over not only them...but for their spouses as well.

On this night, a few weeks back, I was suddenly struck by the realization that...I was raising a man.  Funny how hard this hit me that particular night. We are raising a man. Maybe it's because I am a woman and I know just how important a good man is but, on that night, that realization burned deep into my soul.  A man.  I am raising a man.  This little guy, who turned 5 months old today, the baby who loves to grab at his toes and stick out his tongue while he licks his lips, the baby who gives me open mouth kisses, who looks for his sister when I ask him "where's sissy?" and the baby whose just discovered that those things on his hands?  Yeah, they're fingers :)  Cracks me up even as I'm typing this, he will stare at his fingers like they are the most amazing things anyone has every seen.  He holds his hand up and opens it wide (which he really just figured out how to do in these last few weeks, up until that point they were always in a fist) and he'll take one hand and gently  hold and study a finger on the other hand.  It really it something so sweet to watch.  This little baby will one day be a man.  A man who will love a woman, a man who will raise a family and a man who (I pray) will impact others for Christ.  A man.... we are raising a man.

Two new "tricks"....grabbing his toes and
licking his lips :)

PARK FUN....

What a great way...to spend a beautiful Spring day :)

Big girl!

Loves his Sissy! :)

My favorite people...

  Poor Brandon...I'm not the best when it comes to
 "self portraits".  I always seem to cut someone off!  Guess
I need longer arms :)

MY PARENTS ARE TIRED...

A couple of years back, I saw a little boy wearing a t-shirt that said, "My parents are tired". I laughed as the little boy was about 18 months old, around the age where babies get very good at walking (or should I say running) away from their parents :)  I wish I could find that shirt.  I have to say, by the end of the day I am exhausted...heck, there are days that I start exhausted!  But then I took a few minutes today to look at this past week, an average week for my family, and this is what I was involved in:

• work week of 32-34 hours
• 14 bath time routines with the kids (including 3 nights where I washed Boo's hair)
• 21 meals (although I'm not much a cook, so the meals are pretty simple and we actually ate out for 2 of them)
• 35 bottles
• 49 diaper changes
• 10 outfit changes on Brandon, 20 bib changes (plus 2 extra outfit changes for me when the bib and burp cloth didn't quite do the trick)
• 10 trips to Bailey's school (actually...Tom did 6 of these this week, thanks Babe!)
• 5 loads of laundry  
• 2 runs with the dishwasher
• Swept the kitchen floor 7 times; the hall, bathrooms and dining room twice
• Mopped the floors 
• Vacuumed 3 times
• Dusted the furniture and cleaned the bathrooms
• Cut the back and front yard
• Put down weed killer (which didn't work with a heck)
• Water the flowers twice
• Updated the blog 3 times
• Spent 2 hours searching coupon databases
• Two trips to the market
• One wonderful visit with my closest friend
• Two trips to the park
• One softball practice
• One softball game
• One morning of hunting for finds at garage sales
• One trip to Costco
• A great morning at church
• One trip to the zoo

So...whenever I wonder, "why am I tired?"...I just need to sit down and think about my week (as this is the list that I was able to come up with, with just the few stolen minutes I had sitting here at the computer...right now, as I type, with Brandon bouncing on my knees :).  Tired?  You bet.  Blessed?  Absolutely.

WHAT A WEDNESDAY...

Hope your day...was as nice as ours :)

HAPPY EASTER!....

At that moment, the Temple curtain was ripped in two, top to bottom.  Matthew 27:31.  This is my favorite verse in the Bible.  Yes, it's centered around the death of Christ which was vicious and unbearable to think of but...that verse is my favorite, because it describes the moment that God became accessible to me. The moment He became my Abba Father. 


As a parent, there is nothing that moves me more, then when my children need me.  There is nothing that I will not do to make myself accessible to them.  To celebrate with them and to sweep them up and carry them when they're hurting. There's nothing that could stop me from being there at that moment.


When I picture the curtain being ripped, I picture my Lord and Savior on the other side...my Abba Father, and I see myself running to him.  His arms are large and so, so strong and he sweeps me up and pulls me close and everything in that moment is perfect.  There is complete peace.  


Wishing each of you an Easter in His peace...

JUST PERFECT...

Perfect weather...perfect family...perfect afternoon...just perfect.  We are truly blessed.

Just perfect

THE GREAT HUNT....

On Friday, Boo's school had their annual Easter Egg Hunt for each class. As usual, Bailey and Reese were joined at the hip :) They both had a great time searching for eggs. What I LOVED was that Bailey was actually disappointed that there was only candy in the eggs and not toys. Maybe I didn't screw her up with my sweet tooth (while in the womb) after all :)

I didn't realize that the camera was set to black and white mode,

until AFTER taking all the pictures :) Oops!