Easter Pics

Well, it took me a little while but here are a few pics of the girls in their Easter outfits. Grace got an umbrella which she loved (as you can see it made most of our pics) I was very sad it made an appearance in the one of her kissing her sister as we have very few decent pictures of them together. But they aren't screaming so in our house that is a succesful picture of the two of them at this point. :)

A Love Letter to my Gracie

Grace,

Today was one of those special days you have to write down or you are sure to forget it. This morning after breakfast I put on some worship music while I began cleaning the kitchen. You came out with me and we "danced for Jesus." You had a blast waving your hands and giving it all your little two year old energy. And in that moment I thought, it doesn't get any better than this I am living my dream. I hope you know that this is my dream- trying to be the best wife to your dad and best mom I can be to you and your sister. I didn't put my dreams on hold to be a stay at home mom this was the original dream for me.

Then you disappeared and I realized it was quiet.. Uh oh, not a good sign you sometimes get into trouble when it is quiet. So I went to check on you. There you were sitting in your room "reading" your Bible. You love your Bible. It is one of your favorite books-its actually falling apart you drag it around our house so much. And I thought that is my dream for you. That you will always be dancing for Jesus without refrain and have a Bible that is falling apart. I'm tearing up just thinking about it. I wanted to capture this moment and tuck it away for the days when we visit the dark streets of Tantrum town or for the days when you loose your "listening ears" and just can't seem to find them. You are an independent little woman...just like your mother (according to most). But most days I celebrate that independence because it is that quality that helped me to love Jesus even when it was difficult and someday I pray will help you too. I love you my baby girl, and I always will.

Your Mama

Things That Go "Thump" in the Night

So Jeremy has nicknamed Faith "thumper." She is doing something funny I've never seen another baby do. In her bed she will pull her feet up (like she does when she plays with them) and then slam them down like a wrestler slams his oponent to the mat. She does it so hard it makes a loud thumping noise. When we are in our family room in the basement at night you can hear her thumping about if she happens to wake up. So we will see if the nickname sticks.

Mostly she does it when she is fighting going back to sleep. Why is it the more tired a child gets the harder they fight sleep? My child can be an expert in the fight against sleep. (especially now that we are pre-teething) But isn't that how I am with God. Sometimes the thing I need the most is what I fight the hardest... like humility, confession, waiting and the fruits of the spirit to name a few. We are really trying to focus on the fruits of the spirit in our home right now. I feel like God is saying- If your kids don't teach you to be patient, gentle, & joyful you will never learn! (And sometimes I'm not convinced I really want to learn patience) These are the three I'm really working on right now. So what lesson from God are you fighting against?

It's Raining..in my Bathroom!

So, little did I know that right after starting this we would have another great Mommy moment at our house. We are currently in the midst of potty training Grace. And in general you can gauge my sanity at the end of the day based on how many pairs of pants she has gone through. For example the other day was like a 5 pair of pants day- a little crazy!! So she had an accident and I put it in the toilet to try and help her know what she is supposed to do...then i flushed. (Bad idea!) The toilet starts overflowing-like Niagra Falls. Grace is jumping around screaming. I head to the basement to our other bathroom to try and find the plunger. I run...by the time I get there I hear water-uh oh the waterfall is coming through the ceiling. (The upstairs bathroom is above the one in the basement) Well, needless to say I had a big mess on my hands.

But this got me to thinking. Its kind of like what I do with my time with God. Sometimes I loose track of where he is at instead of keeping him close by, then when I really need him I scramble to find him. (Just like the plunger) I want to have my relationship close with him always not just when I am in a crisis, or having a 5 pair of pants day. I have clearly learned an important mommy lesson- 1. Keep a plunger in all bathrooms. 2. Spend time memorizing God's word so I can find it in my heart instead of trying to figure out where I left my Bible the last time I took time to read it.

Ready, Set, Blog

Well, I have finally gotten brave enough to start a blog. It is something I have been thinking about doing for awhile. But I rarelly do anything without analizing it to death (as many of you know!) So, in accordance with my personality I have come up with three goals for this blog.
1. Record My Legacy- I want to share our life with our family (this is for you grandmas) and friends. But, more imporantly I want to have a record of our day to day memories for my girls to read some day. And this is way cheaper and more time effecient than scrapbooking.
2. Reflect on the Journey- In my short expereince as a mom (two years and counting) I have seen that God is teaching me daily through the experience of being a wife & mom. I want to think about how I see God in my daily life so I can more fully learn from it.
3. Book Content- So this one is just a dream and I have hesitated until recently to voice it- but Jeremy belives in me so maybe I will actually do it someday. We would love to write a book some day about marriage, family, & parenting. So how else will I remember all the funny things that happen to us unless I record them?

So there you have it- welcome to my blog. What follows will be funny stories (I have a toddler who is great at supplying them.)Okay, Who am I kidding- I can supply them too. (For example, Sunday I was getting ready to go to church with Faith and fell of our back porch (one step) and catapulted myself into the neighbors fence- ouch! I had to go back and change because I was covered in mud. Luckily Faith was in her car seat so she was startled but fine. I'm sure the visual was hillarious) But it will also be a glimpse of how God is shaping and molding me to be a better wife to Jeremy and mom to Grace & Faith.