Late Easter Pictures

I never uploaded my Easter pictures and I thought that grandparents would enjoy seeing them. Here are just a few pictures I took. I love how Becca is looking at Andrew in this one.

The Boys



And them with there baskets (I tried to do small simple things this year and each of them got a pair of summer shoes in there baskets, just trying to be practical).

We had a great Easter and have had a busy few weeks. I really will try to post again really soon, maybe even this afternoon (but don't hold your breath, I have been really bad about that).

I wanted to add a cute little story about Becca. Andrew has had bad allergies lately so I was giving him a dose of Benadryl last night to help him sleep and Becca asked for some medicine. I told her she couldn't have any because she isn't having any allergies. To which she protested...I never get to have allergies, I want allergies! The things they say.

It made me laugh.

Happy Birthday Rebecca

We celebrated my sweet Rebecca's birthday a few weeks back on Easter weekend. It is so hard for me to believe that she is 4 already! Seriously, where does the time go? She is so smart and such a joy to spend my days with. She has the most contagious laugh and she giggles all the time. I have called her the little mommy because she tries very hard to boss the boys around and she has taken that name on for herself with pride.

Since her birthday fell right after Easter we decided to do an Easter themed party. It was fun to plan and I think the kids had a good time. Here are some pictures from the day.

We made bunny masks.

These are Dough Ornaments that I made for the kids to paint. They got the small ones and we put them on ribbon to make necklaces.

These are what mine looked like after I painted a couple as an example.

These are some of the artists.

Another table painting.



And the last table.

We did bunny hop races. Here is the first group.

And the younger group.

I ordered these online and the kids got to color there own bag.

Here was the egg on the the spoon relay. Andrew really thinks he is going to be a part of the relay, he is back there waiting in line.

Finally we had a scavenger hunt that lead the kids to the front yard for the traditional Easter egg hunt.

They all gathered in the front yard before taking off in all different directions to claim their eggs.

The hunt is on.

Even Andrew found some eggs.

Here are my bunny and flower cupcakes.

Singing to the birthday girl.

And a final game of duck, duck goose to finish off the party.

After the party ended we got to open some presents with family inside. She was a little excited about this.

Rebecca had a great time. Thanks for helping us celebrate her! Rebecca, you are a gift from the Father and I am so thankful to get the privilege of being your mommy! I love you very much my big 4 year old!

A Sweet Lesson on the Father's Love

This morning on the way to take sweet Aidan to school, I had a sudden and unexpected encounter with a 16-year-old boy. He was on his way to school, the roads were slick, and he slid right into the back of me when I was stopped at a light. The damage to the mommy mobile isn't all that bad. The kids were understandably frightened but not injured. We got out and this kind, polite boy asked if everyone was OK. He was obviously upset, but he handled himself very well. We called the police and then He decided he needed to call his dad. His dad drove over and was visibly frustrated. You could hear it in his voice as he reprimanded his son. He wasn't necessarily inappropriate and I wouldn't have expected a father to behave any differently. It wasn't long before we were on our way. The father and the son both apologized and I left.

I was on my way home and I was reflecting on that teenage boy. I remembered making HUGE mistakes and having to make the dreaded phone call to my own father. I remember having to listen to him as he told me that I just needed to think, to use my head, slow down and stop making careless mistakes. Sometimes these conversations were based in love and sometimes it was just too frustrating for my dad to be able to remain calm. I was thinking about how that feels, to know you messed up, to know there will be consequences, to feel little bitty, and at the same time to have to listen to someone explain to you what you did wrong. With every word spoken you shrink further into self doubt and inability.

The next thing that occurred to me was the reaction of my Heavenly Father when I come to Him after making a mistake or choosing to act in sin. He never feels the need to Lord our sins over us. He let's us come, repent, and soak in His grace. He is so good, He is a merciful and compassionate God who beckons us to come and sit at His feet and take our fill of His love, His unconditional, limitless love. I am so thankful for the love of the Father! I am thankful for the way He speaks to me in the midst of my daily life and whispers His sweet truths to me.

When we come and repent we aren't promised that we will never suffer the consequences of our behavior (that would not be just) but we are guaranteed that we will find love, forgiveness, and acceptance in the midst of our sin filled existence. The next thing that occurred to me is how powerful it would have been in my own life after one of those "huge mistakes" if my father would have come to me and not said a word, but wrapped me in his loving embrace, knowing what I did was wrong, careless, and even stupid. What if he never felt the need to even tell me that, but yet he loved me through it. What if that father today had loved his son through it, never even speaking a critical word. What a powerful reflection of the Father he could have been.

I have found myself pondering my parenting today. I think there is a time and a place for me to correct, train, and teach my kids, but sometimes the most effective thing I can do is wrap them in my loving embrace and love them through it. That doesn't mean that we protect them from the consequences of the behavior, but sometimes we already know the mistakes we made...all we need is to know that we are loved in spite of those mistakes. Ephesians 4:29 is a verse that I have been praying and meditating on lately. It has application to EVERY single area of my life, but I have been specifically praying to see that verse become true in my home. I so desire our home to be place that encourages my family, that builds them up and gives them a safe place to fall when they do fall. The lesson that the Father had for me today directly relates to building a home environment that allows my husband, our children, and our family as a whole to not only survive but to blossom. I pray that in His strength I will be able to reflect the love of the Father more clearly in my own parenting.

Our Sweet Nest

Look what we found! The kids and I were both terribly excited to discover this nest perched atop of the speaker that hangs in the corner of our back porch. I have been repainting the porch so the nest had to come down. We enjoyed getting to admire nature.
I am terribly sad to report that I don't think momma bird has been back. I haven't told the kids that but I think we got a little too close (and they were so careful to not touch). I am feeling a little guilty, but sure did love the chance to share this beautiful glimpse of God's creation with my kids.
This is a random picture that Trace took of Aidan. Aidan was sulking and Trace thought it would be funny to get out the camera and take his picture. Sure looks like it turned his spirits around.

A glimpse into my head

Random thoughts in my head recently:

1. Running 6 miles after not running in weeks is not a good idea, for any reason, especially in a hilly neighborhood. I am sure I will feel that even more strongly tomorrow.

2. Someone should follow me around with a video camera when I run. I am awfully jumpy and I am sure it would make for some great TV viewing. If someone honks their horn when they pass by I am totally and visibly startled. Today I literally screamed for my life when a dog ran up behind me, from out of nowhere, with no warning, and tried to smell my feet. I looked back to see the owner bent over with her mouth covered, not sure if she was laughing at me or not but I sure found the humor in it pretty quickly (at least after I realized I was in no danger).

3. I heard some very disturbing news announcements on the radio today. The first is that the morning after pill is available to anyone 17 years or older who would like to use it with no prescription at any drug store. Seriously...17? Most 17 year olds haven't even graduated form High School yet. I knew about the morning after pill but I had no idea it was so readily available. The second is that there has been a law proposed in the State of Texas to limit the punishment of a mother who suffers from postpartum depression and murders her baby during the first year of their life to a maximum of 2 years in prison. You can read more about it here. This article does discount the likelihood of this happening, but it is still disgusting to see that lack of value placed on our babies. It is truly disappointing to think that a mother would barely get a slap on the wrist for such a heinous crime. I realize postpartum depression is real and very difficult, but it does not remove all responsibility for actions taken. This is appalling to me.

4. I have been thinking a lot about repentance today. I have thought about the negative connotations that we place on the word repentance. That people often don't want to or like to repent, but I have been realizing what a loving thing this is. The Lord is gracious with us and oh so patient. It is His kindness that leads to repentance. We have been called out of darkness into light. We are no longer slaves to sin and in His mercy He allows us to repent and turn from sin and live in Christ Jesus. How is this a bad thing? The Lord has been showing me some areas of pride and a lack of humility. He has been nudging me to come to Him with a repentant spirit and turn from those things, to return to Him. What greater gift is there?

5. Rebecca, Andrew, and I spent some time looking for invitations and gathering supplies for Rebecca's Birthday in a few weeks. I can't believe she will be 4 and soon after that Andrew will be 2. It is simply crazy. I have no better words than that. I can still vividly remember coming home from the hospital with my fist baby and now I have 3 and the youngest is really more of a toddler than a baby! Sometimes it breaks my heart, sometimes I eagerly await the future, and sometimes I am able to just rejoice in the moment.

6. Aidan is almost done with Kindergarten. Enough said!

7. God moves through prayer in powerful ways. A few weeks ago I was able to spend some time in prayer with another woman, praying about her marriage, and her kids, and just life in general. It was a powerful time of prayer and I knew the spirit was with us. That time was amazing, but the more amazing part is the way the Lord responded. I can't go into details, but man is He good. What a privilege to see the hand of God move in anothers life in such clear ways.

8. Sometimes rainy days are good. The rain can force us to slow down and be together. I am loving this rainy afternoon!

9. Rebecca said the cutest thing the other day. I was in the other room and I heard her say "gross, Andrew bless youed on me" I thought that was simply precious!

10. Aidan told me that he wrote a song to God in his journal at school the other day and he told his class about it at share time. It was pretty deep. It went something like this..."I love you, God". Not sure he will be getting any contracts based on his unique song writing abilities but, it just melts my heart. I pray daily he grows into a man who loves God with all his heart. Childlike faith is such a beautiful thing! I love that he wrote this and that he was willing to share it with his class.

10. Our mission trip to Mexico this summer got canceled due to the violence that is occurring around the border and I am terribly bummed. I do want to make wise, safe decisions, but I am still sad that we won't be going back this year. I was looking forward to the trip for so many reasons. I was so confident that the Lord had this trip for us but I guess He has other plans. I am looking forward to discovering what those are.

Our Visit with Bob and Gran

I mentioned that we were able to spend some time with Trace's parents over Spring Break. It was such a wonderful treat for us to get to have both Trace mom and dad here with us and to invite them into our home and our life for a few days. This was the first time that Trace's dad has been able to make the trip to Tyler. I know it took a lot of effort to get here but we sure enjoyed having them and the kids loved the extra attention. Most of the time we just sort of hung out around the house. Rebecca loved having Gran here to push her on the swing, Aidan got to show off his bike riding skills, and Andrew played hard like always. We played some games, ate out several times, and we got to take Trace's parents to church with us. I think they liked it. Here are a few pictures from their visit:

And our special trip to Chucky Cheese:

They played some games

Aidan was the only one brave enough to take a picture with Chucky
Riding some rides

And doing a bit of dancing.

Thanks Bob and Gran for a fantastic visit! You are welcome anytime! We LOVED having you here.

Breaking the Silence

WOW! This has to be the absolute longest I have ever gone without posting. I don't know if I can even call myself a blogger anymore? I don't even have a good excuse. We have done a few projects around the house, hosted my in-laws for a few days, and have just felt busy, but more than anything I just haven't had much to say. And once I got out of the habit of making time for this blog it has been super hard to pick it back up. I guess writing is just like anything else for me and if I don't do it for a while I loose my momentum. So this is my attempt to break the silence and jump back in. I hope to become more regular again.

We have lots of potential changes that I would love to share with you and I have many things on my mind...if I can just gather the words to write about them. The kids are good. Aidan is starting up soccer again and LOVES to spend time outside riding his bike. Rebecca is into drawing and writing random letters all over the pages and Andrew is...well, Andrew is into everything! We very rarely have a dull moment around here and there are many emotions felt during the course of a day. Well, the silence is broken. I plan to post again soon.

Oh ya, Happy St. Patrick's Day. Cheers to you all!


Here are the kids with Green Milk in honor of St. Patrick's day.