A random game of TAG

Here are the rules:

Link to the person who tagged you.
Post the rules on your blog.
Write 6 random things about yourself.
Tag 6-ish people at the end of your post.
Let each person know he/she has been tagged.
Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

Six random things about me:

1. I save bows and Christmas paper, (assuming it is in good shape) , tissue paper and gift bags

2. I am super competitive and hate to lose.

3. I drove around with a box of flairs in my car for 7 years and who knew that they had a picture of my husband and father-in-law on them! Brian was with me before I even knew him!

4. I love to garden (but don't have a lot of time to do it)
5. I have broken my arm and my foot (2 times).
6. I get a Christmas ornament every time we visit someplace new. Then it is a reminder of all the places we have been!

3 Days I will Never Forget..

On November 7 - 9 I participated in the 3 Day Walk for Breast Cancer. I feel so honored to have been part of it. I walked with a team of 7 others. Our team was formed because we all knew and loved one incredible woman, Kim Harlow. Through the blisters, wrapped ankles, sore legs and all, I would definitely do it again.

The 3 Day team does such an amazing job preparing you for the walk. They send out weekly virtual training schedules that help build your endurance for the 60 mile walk. I was following along pretty closely until I injured myself on a 12 mile training walk. I had a partial tear were my calf and achilles come together. I was in a lovely black boot for 4 weeks and then went to physical therapy 3 times a week for 4 weeks. I had my last physical therapy 2 weeks before the walk. I was allowed to walk only one mile until there was no pain in my leg and then was able to add one mile at a time until there was no pain. I managed to get up to 6 miles right before the walk. Needless to say, I was sooo nervous about walking. I had no idea what to expect. God is so good though. I felt called by him to be part of this walk and He was faithful to the end. I walked the 60 miles (not very fast at times) but I did do it. I love the people at the Medical tent! They treated my blisters and sore leg and were able to get me back on track.

My tent mate and I won the tent decoration contest. We had our tent decorated like a Longhorn in honor of the Ultimate UT fan. I know she was smiling down on that one!!

Through all the ups and downs of getting ready for this walk, I was able to see how God is faithful to the end. When you are called and follow, God provides. He will not leave nor forsake you. It was such an amazing thing to witness. There we people from all age groups, all shapes and sizes, all levels of physical abilities, yet each of us was called to be part of this walk for one reason or another. Such an amazing thing to witness.

First Day of School

He started school this morning
And he seemed so very small
As I walked there beside him
In the Kindergarten hall

And as he took his place beside
the other in class
I realized how all too soon
Those first few years can pass

Remembering I saw him as
He first learned how to walk
The words that we alone made out
When he began to talk

The little boy so much absorbed
In learning how to write.
It seems that he must have grown
To boyhood overnight.

My eyes were blurred but hastily
I brushed the tears away
Lest by some word or sign of mine
I mar his first big day

Oh how I longed to stay with him
And keep him by the hand
To lead him through the places
That he could understand

And something closely kin to fear
Was mingled with my pride
I knew that he would no longer be
A baby by my side

But he must have this chance to live,
To work his problems out.
The privilege to grow and learn
What life is all about

And I must share my little boy
With friends and work and play;
He's not a baby anymore
He's in kindergarten today.

~author unknown
First Day of Kindergarten - August 26,2008

First Day of Kindergarten - Round 1

Today was Luke's first day of Kindergarten. We had meet the teacher on Friday and after a summer filled with anticipation, we found out Luke's teacher was Ms. Beakley. She is a Texas Tech grad (Woo Hoo!) and recently graduated from SMU Law school. She is sweet as can be and I know she will look after my sweet little boy.

Frisco actuall has what I call 2 "First Day's" of Kindergarten. Today, Brian and I got to go with Luke to school for about 2 hours. We had orientation and he got to meet some of the specials teachers. (PE, Music, Art, etc.) Tomorrow he goes to school all by himself for the whole day. He is totally excited and can hardly wait! Brian took a bunch of photos from today and I know we will have a bunch from tomorrow. I am smiling in the ones from today but I know there will be tears in the ones from tomorrow. I know I keep promising to post pictures. I will do it, I promise! I have a hard time gettting my laptop to connect to the network and I am rarely upstairs in the office to post them. I will do it tonight though.

Miles, Miles and More Miles

Oh my gosh.. my legs are so tired. So far I have walked 16 miles this week. I have an 8 mile day Saturday. I am not sure the legs can make it! It is a good thing the virtual trainer spaces them out!

Help! Where has the summer gone!

I can't believe how fast the summer has gone by! It seems just like yesterday we were planning our trip to NYC and our trip to Surfside. Now both of those trips have gone by and Luke starts school in 33 days (but who is counting).

In 16 weeks, I will be walking 60 miles for the Breast Cancer 3 Day. I can't believe it! It seems just like yesterday that the virtual trainer started sending me my weekly mileage schedule for the 24 week training plan!

I guess time flys when you are having fun! In addition to all our trips the kids have been busy doing VBS, gymnastics, Pump It Up Camp and Music Camp at the church next week. Next thing we know it will be August and then I will start back to work.

I had such plans for this summer. I haven't accomplished all of them but the most important thing was to make sweet memories with my boy before he started kindergarten. I knew that this was our last summer before the grind of school started and I wanted to make the most of it. I can definitely say I accomplished that. He is so sweet and precious.

I also have gotten some great time with Emma this week. Luke has been in camp, so she and I have done some fun girlie things this week. She has gotten to experience what life without Luke around all day will be like. She has missed her "brudder" a lot but really enjoyed getting her nails done today and having lunch with Grandma! What a treat! She was so cute!

Before I know it, I will be blogging about the end of Luke's first year of school. Time has sure gone by fast! That is the importance of living each day to the fullest. To be the best God has called us to be and to live the life he has so graciously given us to max. I am so thankful for the time God has given me this summer with all my family (my immediate family, my parents, my in-laws). I am sure it is cheesy but I can't help but think of the 10000 Maniacs song "These are Days". Brian has that in Luke's baby video and every time I watch it, I cry. I end with this:

These are the days These are days you’ll remember Never before and never since, I promise Will the whole world be warm as this And as you feel it, You’ll know it’s true That you are blessed and lucky It’s true that you Are touched by something That will grow and bloom in you These are days that you’ll remember When May is rushing over you With desire to be part of the miracles You see in every hour You’ll know it’s true That you are blessed and lucky It’s true that you are touched By something that will grow and bloom in you These are days These are the days you might fill With laughter until you break These days you might feel A shaft of light Make its way across your face And when you do Then you’ll know how it was meant to be See the signs and know their meaning It's true Then you’ll know how it was meant to be Hear the signs and know they’re speaking To you, to you

Vacation - Round 2

Just when we were recovered from our trip to NYC, we headed off to the beach for 7 days! I know life is rough but when your kids get up every morning at 6:00 a.m. requesting sunscreen, it gets to be a little tiring.

We headed down to Surfside, TX for a fun-filled 7 days at the beach. My parents rented a beach house and it was AWESOME! The name of our beach house was the Nirvana. We just had to walk across a little bridge to the beach. It was perfect. The kids had the best time playing in the sand and ocean.

We did do a couple of other things besides being beach bums. One day we went to Galveston and played mini-golf and then enjoyed a fabulous lunch at Gaido's.

We spent another day playing golf. My dad, brother, Brian, Luke, Emma and I all hit the links at Freeport Muncipal Golfcourse. We had the best time. Luke did so well. I only played one hole but I did good. I impressed Luke, so that is all that matters.

In between outings to the beach we would go to Buc-ee's. It was the highlight of our afternoons! Luke was consistent getting his Deja Blue Water and Lucky Charms. Emma's snacks varied every trip and I discovered Oreo cakesters. Those are so yummy! Buc-ee's is pretty awesome. I will say that we were pretty excited to go again. Where else can you get Reef Flip Flops and fishing bait! You can guess which one I purchased!

On our last day at the beach we were able to spend some time with my Aunt Alix, my cousin Tim and his wife Tiffani. We realized we hadn't seem them since their wedding last May. We had the best time and the kids really enjoyed spending time with them.

We were so sad to come back home. This week it has been rough not being able to roll out of bed and look out the window and see the waves rolling in. Oh well.. there is always next year!

p.s. - I will be posting pictures from both vacations soon! There are just so many to choose from!

Our Big Vacation!

I haven't posted in awhile! After school ended we were in high gear getting ready for our big trip up the East Coast. It is amazing how you can plan and plan and then all the sudden it is time to leave and before you know it, your vacation is done!

We left on May 31st right after Luke's baseball game. I guess we got on the road around 10:30. Brian's parents followed us in their car. We had ourselves a caravan. :) Somewhere between McKinney and Greenville, Luke wanted to know if we were there yet. I told him we hadn't left Texas yet. He wasn't pleased with my answer. Needless to say, the first day of driving felt like an eternity. We drove to Nashville and spent the night.

The next day we woke up ready to drive to our nation's capital. The kids did great in the car and were so excited when we got to D.C. I had no idea what Luke would think of it or if he would really care at all. He loved it! He loved the monuments (especially the Lincoln Memorial) and asked all kinds of questions. We took a quick tour that night and then headed back to the hotel for some much needed sleep. The next morning we got up and spent about 5 hours walking the mall area. We hit all the monuments and got some great pictures of the White House. I was so moved when we visited the Vietnam memorial. I got tears in my eyes and cried when I read some of the things that people had left for their loved ones that passed away. It was so moving. Brian and I hit some of the street vendors carts and got some treats for the kids. I love a good bargain! At about 1:00 we left D.C. and headed for Connecticut.

We spent 3 nights in Connecticut. On Tuesday we rode the train into NYC and went to the Statue of Liberty. The kids loved riding the train and thought Grand Central Station was so cool. They were also huge fans of riding in the taxi cabs. (I, on the other hand, am not!) Luke was so excited to see the Statue of Liberty. It was pretty amazing. After our trip out to Liberty Island, we walked around Battery Park and I got some t-shirts from the street vendors there. Once I again, I love a good bargain. Luke posed with the guys dressed as the Statue of Liberty. He thought that was so cool. We took taxis back to Grand Central Station and walked across the street to Model's (kind of like Academy sporting goods). Brian was in sensory overload! He managed to score some nice Yankee t-shirts. The kids did pretty well too! They each got Yankee's back packs, t-shirts and Emma got a hat. (all of her items were pink).

Wednesday in Connecticut Brian took the kids to all his favorite places and showed them were he grew up. We went to Stew Leonard's (worlds largest dairy market). They have singing animals and food samples everywhere. It is a good thing we don't live there because it would take me about 5 hours to do the shopping. Emma had to watch all the little shows multiple times! She was a big fan of the Farm Fresh Five. They even have a petting zoo! Not to mention the Ho Down (outdoor eating area). It is insane. I had fun watching Brian with the kids there... not sure who likes it more!?!

On Thursday, we made our way to the Big Apple. We stayed at the Hilton Rockefeller Center. It was so nice! We could get pretty much everywhere we wanted just by walking. We checked into the hotel and then made our way to Serendipity III for lunch. It was yummy but the best was the frozen hot chocolate for dessert. YUMMY!! After that we made our way over to FAO Schwartz. The kids (and I) had a ball. They each got treats and were in total sensory overload. Emma got herself a new baby doll and a barbie and Luke got a sports guy and Yankee's travel Yahtzee. After all that fun we headed back to the hotel for a little R&R. After our brief rest we headed for Times Square. We ate dinner and then headed to the world's largest Toys R Us. Emma, Brian and I rode the Ferris wheel. It is a great way to check out what each floor has. Brian's parents were tired and headed back to the hotel. We stayed and checked out the Toys R Us. They had the coolest Lego sculptures. (as did FAO Schwartz). The Toy's R Us had a Yankee's helmet, Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building and Chrysler Building all made out of Legos. FAO Schwartz had Darth Vader, R2D2, and Chewbaca made out of Legos. The kids of course got more treats (both got a Geoffrey Giraffe dressed as the statue of liberty and Emma got a Hello Kitty pencil case that had I love NYC on it.) When we left the Toy's R Us, Times Square was all lit up. The kids loved the lights. While Emma and I hit a few of the gift shops, Brian and Luke stayed outside and watched the billboard over the M&M World. Luke loved it! It had the M&M's dressed as various characters and he thought that was so funny. We finally finished shopping and headed back to the hotel. It was another fun but exhausting day.

Friday morning we all slept in. We ate breakfast and then headed to the Museum of Natural History. Both the kids were so excited to go. They love the movie Night at the Museum and we of course had to find the T-Rex and the Easter Island head. The kids were cute and acted like they were part of the movie. Emma asked me if I had gum for the Dumb Dumb. :) I brought a big smile to my face. We spent a couple of hours there and saw a bunch of really neat things. For lunch we headed over to Central Park and had picnic. We bought hot dogs and drinks from the street vendors and had nice time. After lunch we headed back to the hotel for a little rest.

Friday night was our trip to the Yankee's game. We went in style! We got to ride in a limo to and from the game. The kids loved every minute of it. This was the whole reason for our trip. Brian is a huge Yankee's fan and has always talked of taking Luke to a game at Yankee stadium. He remembers going there as a kid and wanted to share that experience with Luke. This is the last season the Yankee's will be playing in their old stadium before they move to the new one that is right next door. It made my heart full as I watched my boys walk through monument park. Brian pointed out all the great Yankee's from seasons passed. Luke smiled but Brian smiled even bigger. There really is nothing quite like it. It is quite a unique stadium that is full of history and full of fans that love their team. You can't help but become a fan while you are there. We really enjoyed the game and the kids loved every minute of it. Emma asked Brian all kinds of questions and really watched the game. Luke cheered and enjoyed every minute of it also.

Saturday we were up early and headed for the Today show. Unfortunately, the show wasn't on in Houston and all my friends were up doing the Race for the Cure so nobody could tape it for me. However, Brian's aunt was watching and saw Brian and the kids on TV. They were on there at least 2 times, maybe 3. They were so excited. On the way home they were playing "Today Show" in the car. Emma was Al Roker and did the weather. After that we headed back to the hotel for breakfast and then met Brian's friend and his mom for lunch at Mickey Mantle's. We then went and did some more shopping at the World of Disney, M&M world, H&M, and a few other places.

On Sunday we loaded up the car and headed back home. We drove to Knoxsville and spent the night and then on Monday we made it back to our house. It was a fabulous trip and we have so many great memories. It was really something special! I am so glad that we could do this and that the kids had such a great time. Believe it or not, the driving wasn't that bad. I have over 500 pictures. I will post a few of them. Now we are trying to recover and get ready for our next trip. We are heading to the beach for 7 days with my parents and brother. It will be nice to have a relaxing vacation!

Congratulations Class of 2008!

Pre-School that is!

Yesterday was Luke's Mother's Day celebration and Pre-School Graduation. It is hard to believe that he is ready for Kindergarten! I listened as Mrs. Jerry talked about the importance of their scripture memorization.. it wasn't just so they could learn different letters of the alphabet. They did it so that they would always have God's word hidden in their hearts. You don't think about your little one facing spiritual warfare but they will come under the enemy's fire. They will have these verses burned in their hearts to help them face their struggles. Even in kindergarten.

Luke sang a duet and recited one of the scripture verses. He had the letter "B". Believeth on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Acts 16:31.


Getting ready to sing with Andrew..

Saying our Bible verse..

Walking down the aisle...


Congratulations Graduate! Luke and his teacher Mrs. Helen

Luke,
I want you to know how proud I am of you. I know that it God has special plans in store for you and I can't wait to see him use you in mighty way. You are so precious to me and I pray that next year when you go to Kindergarten that you will have a smooth transition and that you will keep your love for learning. You have been given a fabulous foundation and I know you will be ready. I am just worried that I won't! You probably don't remember but you and I have been going to school together since you were 18 months old! I don't know what I will do with out you! Everyday you amaze me with the things you say and do. I can't believe that you are reading! I want to leave you with this verse. This was the verse that I choose for you at your baby dedication.

Phillipians 1:9-11
And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.

I love you Luke!
love, shuggie

Emma is 3! Yippee!!

Waiting for the fun to begin!

Here I come!!

I bet I can beat you!

Super Daddy! Look how much fun he is having!


Even Grandpa got it on the fun!

Emma and all her friends!

The cake..

The room..

Singing Happy Birthday.

Emma had a fabulous day! So much fun!

The Craziness Continues!

Life is certainly not dull around our house. It has been awhile since I made a post because things have just been crazy! Last week was a week to remember. I was sad because my precious baby Emma was turning 3 on the 19th and I was registering Luke for Kindergarten. It was almost too much for me because my babies weren't really babies any more.

I guess Luke didn't think that was enough for me to be anxious, sad, worried, etc. about. During his baseball game last Tuesday, he and another little boy were running in from the field and got tangled up together. Luke fell face first into the corner of the metal bench and split his cheek open. A four hour ER visit later, he had 11 stitches under his left eye. I will just say that my boy is brave. Words can not express how proud I was of him. I should note that this isn't his first round of stitches. A little over 2 years ago, he was the proud owner of 12 stitches in his forehead. At least we are going down in number! ( I have to find some humor or I will cry).

Emma of course was struggling with all the attention her brother was getting because this afterall was her week. The precious girl turned 3 on Saturday and wanted the focus to be all on her! Friday was her party day and did we celebrate. Who can resist a trip to Pump It Up! We all had a ball. On Saturday we celebrated with our family and had such a great time. It was so nice to see my family!

Luke had his follow-up appointment today with the plastic surgeon who did his stitches and I found out how much God blessed us in this whole situation. I knew that God was protecting Luke when he fell. I told everybody that I didn't want that to happen but we were so blessed that it wasn't an inch higher because that would have been his eye. I knew that God was watching over him at the hospital because the ER doctor offered a plastic surgeon before we even asked but warned that they aren't always available and they don't always come. Well, the plastic surgeon was available and he did come. The doctor wasn't one that we knew of and was assigned by the hospital. Well, today at the appointment I was reading about him and he specializes in facial reconstruction. All of his surgeries deal with the face. He is a specialy within the specialty and has been featured in magazines and on Good Morning Texas here in Dallas. God provided the most perfect doctor for Luke.

Luke and Emma at Pump it Up. 3 days after stitches.

Friends

Today is a sad day for me. My friend Kim Harlow passed away after a 3.5 year battle with breast cancer. She leaves behind a 5 year old daughter and husband. Please keep them in your prayers during this difficult time. Kim was an avid lover of the Longhorns and helped inspire Luke's love of them. She was a blessing in my life and I will miss her dearly. We will always be connected because according to Luke he is marrying Madeline. :)

I encourage everybody to support the Susan G. Komen foundation. They do amazing work and Kim was active in the foundation. Last year we were able to do the Race for the Cure together. This year a large group of our friends will be doing the race in memory of her.


While I am sad here on Earth, I know that she is rejoicing in Heaven with her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I can hear her laughing up there now.

Please remember Bryan and Madeline in your prayers.

Luke, Me, Madeline and Kim at the Mother's Day Luncheon at Pre-School last year.

Happy Easter!

What a wonderful day yesterday was! Our morning started with church. It was fabulous. We opened the service singing He's Alive. My favorite part of the song is when we sing "Worthy is the Lamb, Worthy of our Praise, Worthy is the one who is overcome the grave". AMEN!! I could sing that song a hundred times. It was great! After church we met Brian's cousin Molly and her family for lunch at Texas Land and Cattle.We had so much fun and all the kids were really good.

After lunch we headed back to our house for an Easter Egg hunt. The weather held out. It didn't rain but it was a little on the cool side. It seems to be that way every Easter! It is always warm the day before but then the next day it is cool.


Luke (age 5), Lili (age 3), Emma (age 2), Bella (age 2) - Before the big Hunt!




Luke, Bella and Molly getting eggs.


Emma is making sure she gets her fair share of the eggs! Run Emma Run!


Lili on the hunt for some eggs.


Luke and Lili enjoying their spoils! Look at all the eggs!


It was a wonderful Easter. I hope that everybody had a blessed one also.

Spring Break!!

We had spring break this week and I had grand plans for us! Due to the crazy weather we had we didn't get everything done that we wanted but we had a great time!!

Day #1 - Monday
I thought it was going to rain. It was cloudy all day but it didn't start to rain until later on that night. The kids and I went to Lifetime. They love that place! It was packed because everybody is on spring break but they still had fun. I wish working out upstairs was as much fun as the kid area downstairs!!

Day #2 - Tuesday
Let the rain begin! It rained and rained! At about 10:00 a.m. we lost electricity and the Internet went out. Perfect timing! Brian was able to leave work for a little bit and we went to go see Horton Hears a Who! Very cute!

Day #3 - Wednesday
The weather was absolutely beautiful but everything was still soggy from the 5 inches of rain we got on Tuesday. We went to Lifetime again and then came home and dyed Easter eggs with Grandma. We had such a good time!!


Watching the shrink wrap work on the eggs finally


How cool are these eggs!! - our very own Luke Skywalker!

Let's not forget Hello Kitty! - She is so proud!

Day #4 - Thursday - Zoo day!

Another fabulous day in the Metroplex! We packed the kids up in the car and headed to the Dallas Zoo! Everybody had the same idea! It was crazy! We checked out the Sting Ray Bay exhibit, rode the monorail through the Wilds of Africa, saw the giraffe get fed fresh bamboo and ended the day with a ride on the merry-go-round! Such a fun day!

Waiting in line for the monorail..


Emma and Mommy.. she's my girl!

Luke and Mommy - my shuggie!

Hey buddy.. what are you looking at?!

Our favorite thing of the day! Watching the giraffe eat fresh bamboo!

She loves her daddy!

Day #5 - Friday - our last day of Spring Break

Our week wouldn't be complete without a trip to see the Easter Bunny. Emma has been wanting to go for the last 2 weeks. We finally made it! Along with the other 30 or so people in line. We saw 3 sets of twins! It was crazy!

So excited to be standing in the 45 minute line to see the "Easter Beagle" as Emma kept calling him.

Really happy to be next!

The moment finally arrived! It doesn't look like a beagle to me but she was happy anyway!

I hope that everybody has a Happy and Blessed Easter!

Toothless Bandit

What a crazy month this has been. Snow one day, 70 degree weather the next and then snow again! For the last month or so Luke's bottom teeth have been wiggly! Last Wednesday he said it was really wiggly and he needed to eat an apple because that would make his tooth fall out. Well, he at the apple but the tooth stayed in. He was so bummed. I was sitting at my laptop and he was wiggling it with his tongue. It totally grossed me out. I told him I could pull it for him but he didn't want anything to do with that. I told him that PaPa use to pull my teeth for me. Once he heard that he was ready to go! I tried to tie the dental floss around the tooth but I was having a hard time. All the fidgeting with it, loosened it more and I was able to just "floss" it right out. We were both surprised and excited!

Not to be out down, Emma tried to pull her tooth also. Thankfully she wasn't successful! I did get some funny pictures of her with dental floss hanging out of her mouth.




The tooth fairy made a visit and Luke was excited that you actually got money for losing a tooth. He wanted to call Santa Claus and tell him the good news. (In the Santa Claus 2, the tooth fairy helps Santa out)

I can't believe how big my babies are! What sweet gifts they are! Look at those sweet smiles!

What's your favorite T.V. Show?

Due to the writer's strike (Praise the Lord it is over), I have been forced to find new T.V. shows to watch. (really I TiVo them). There was only so much Max & Ruby on Noggin that I could watch.

Thanks to VH-1, Style Network & The Food Network, I am now addicted to Clean House, Throw Down with Bobby Flay and Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew. I can't leave out Project Runway, Celebrity Apprentice or American Idol . I feel like a Reality TV addict! From all the shows I listed, it seems like all I do is watch TV. Thanks to my wonderful DVR, I can TiVo the shows and watch them in half the time because I fast forward through the commercials. After watching things on TiVo it is painful to watch regular TV. I just want to hit the fast forward button.

Celebrity Apprentice is really turning out to be amusing. After the first season of the Apprentice, I kind of lost interest but watching all the almost stars compete to earn money for charity is really funny. I am rooting for Piers.

Throw Down with Bobby Flay is awesome if you haven't seen it. I have discovered some fabulous places to go eat in New York! All of them famous for some type of dessert! My trip to NYC revolves around finding all these places to eat. Who needs the Statue of Liberty! I want to eat cheese cake!!

Who do you think will win Project Runway? I like Jillian. I will be sad that Project Runway is over because I have really enjoyed this season but I am excited for Top Chef to start!

I am not sure what I will in April when all my favorite shows return. Oh how I have missed my Grey's Anatomy, The Office and 30 Rock. Can you ever get enough of Michael Scott or McDreamy?

Last set of Pictures

For Uncle Tim and Aunt Alix.. what is this world coming too. Betrayed in my own house!


Soccer Cutie!


This is a picture of the hail storm that hit our house @6:30 in the morning on Feb. 16. What a way to wake up! Brian's car was parked out side and was damaged. Today we found out that it is going to be totaled.


More pictures of the hail.


How cute are they?! T-Ball Season is going to be great! Go Brewers!


Look at the baby blues! She is so precious!

Pictures!!

Getting ready for the Carnival and just goofing around!


The world famous Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders!


This is Debra. She was one of the ladies adopted by my MDO teachers. They prayed for her prior to the trip and sent a card to her full of words of encouragement.


This is Melinda. She was adopted by my mother-in-law. It was so cool to put faces with the names. We all prayed for the ladies and it was really neat to finally meet them.

My friend McKenzie. He was afraid of me on Thursday night. He didn't like my balloon hat. We soon became fast friends!

It's been awhile

since I made a post to my blog! I had planned to make updates from the Orlando trip each day that I was there but I was so tired each night that I didn't. The trip was so amazing. What a blessing it was to be a part of the trip. I saw God work in a mighty way and watched as he created new friendships between the women living in the shelter and strengthen friendships between me and my girlfriends! To my roomies, I love ya! This past Sunday part of the church service was dedicated to talking about the trip. I got tears in my eyes as the video played and my heart longed to go back. Sign me up for the next one!

It took awhile to recover from the trip! On Monday (our last day of the trip), we got to go to the Magic Kingdom for a little R&R. OH MY GOODNESS, by 4:00, I was pooped! My body was worn out. I was so looking forward to getting on the plane and heading home. Little did I know what was in store for me! When we got to the airport, our flight was delayed for 3 hours. We were suppose to leave at 9:00 p.m. and didn't leave until midnight. Once in the air, they were trying to make it home before this huge storm hit Dallas. Some don't know but I hate flying. Needless to say, we didn't beat the storm. Trying to land the first time was worse than any of the rides I had just ridden at Disney World. The plane felt like it was going to fall out of the sky. Our landing was called of due to wind shear and we had to try and land again, and then again. On the 3rd try, God must have just reached out his hand and held the plane because it was like we found the smoothest patches of air. The pilots did a fantastic job. So you think the adventure ends there, but no. Once safely on the ground, we got to spend about 1.5 hours sitting on the plane. In case you didn't know, if lightning is striking with in 5 miles of the airport, they don't open the jet ways and the ground crew doesn't come out. (all totally understandable). Anyway, I arrived safely at home at 4:30 A.M. After being awake for 21 hours, I just ran into my babies rooms and hugged them both. The sweetest thing was when Emma climbed out her bed and said "Suggie, you came back!" I love that baby! (and of course my big boy!)

So now we have resumed our normal routine. Luke has started soccer and t-ball. Brian is such an awesome dad. He is coaching both teams, taking 2 Graduate classes and working full time. My heart is so full when I watch him with those boys. He is so patient and kind and they just love him. If you are in the area come on over! Luke would love to have people watch him play. I have to say it is too cute! I am looking forward to our t-ball games. They don't start until the middle of March but I know those are going to be hilarious! Kindergarten round-up is April 15th-18th. I can't believe I will be registering him for Kindergarten. Brian told him that mommy was going to cry like a baby.

Emma is growing and growing. I can't believe my baby is going to be 3 years old in April. When we return from our trip to New York, she will start gymnastics. She needs it!! She is such a monkey. I some times get a little sad because my baby is all grown up. She is potty-trained (we are diaper free!) and she sleeps in a "big girl" bed. Baby toys have been replaced with baby dolls and Barbie dolls. I find it such an honor to be there mother. God has blessed me with sweet and wonderful children.

I will post a bunch of pictures from the trip and some of the kids.

Day # 1 Orlando

My day started early yesterday! I was up at 2:45 a.m. to get ready to leave for our trip to Orlando. We got to the airport at 5:00, got through security, and waited to board the plane. We had a great flight and arrived in safely in Orlando at around 9:40 a.m. After we got our luggage we headed to Celebration, Florida. It is a cute little masterplanned town. We had a yummy lunch that of course included some coconut cream pie and key lime pie (there were 6 of us sharing) We quickly dropped off our luggage at the hotel and changed clothes and then headed to the mission to start our work.

Thursday night we held a carnival for all the families at the missions. There were bounces houses, face painters, photographers, games and all the stuff you would expect to find at a carnival. Then at 7:00 the fun really began. SPARK after Dark. After a few performances that included the world famous Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and the Righteous Rappers, the lights were turned off and the room was lit with every type of glow stick imaginable!! It was sooo cool!!

I was totally amazed at all the kids that live here. It is one thing to see all the names of the ladies and kids on paper but it is another thing to see them in person. They are all so sweet and have such interesting stories to tell. I loved running around and playing with the kids (it helped ease my missing of my children) and chatting with the ladies.

I am so excited for today! We will be cleaning at the mission and preparing for the retreat which will be tonight, tomorrow morning and Sunday morning. I can't wait to hear more from the ladies and hear their stories.

I visited with one lady at for a little while yesterday and I learned that there really isn't a difference between her and me. I have just been blessed by God that I haven't lost my job or that Brian hasn't lost his job. She is an engineer that has 2 master degrees and lost her job. She was then injured and didn't have insurance and was unable to pay all her bills. She was so excited that we were there and is really looking forward to the retreat. I can wait to see how God works in her life!

To my family, I love and miss you all! See you soon!

Got Significance?

"I am significant when I receive God's love, grace and purpose for my life."

I will be traveling in February with 24 women from my church to the Orlando Union Rescue Mission (O.U.R.) http://www.ourm.org/index.htm We will be going to minister to the women that are currently living in the facility. We will be there for 5 days and 4 nights. On Thursday night we will have a carnival for the women and their families. We will have a worship leader sing praise songs and our speaker Melissa Shaver (http://www.walkingrace.org/) will give a small message. On Friday we will take over and do the work that the ladies would normally be doing and give them a morning off. Then the fun really starts. Friday night will begin our ladies retreat "Got Significance??" We will have sessions Friday night, Saturday morning and Sunday morning. Saturday evening we will take the ladies to a special dinner. Sunday evening the ladies from our church will spend special time together reflecting on everything. On Monday as a special treat we will get to go to the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World and then we will board a plane home that evening.

I ask for prayers regarding this trip. Specifically pray for the ladies at the mission. Pray that they will be able to have this time to uplift them and let them know that they are significant not only to us, but to God, their heavenly Father. Pray for all the women going on the trip. Pray for travel mercies, for health, health of the family memebers we are leaving at home, pray that we will be have our hearts ready to be used by God and that we will have our hearts open to what these ladies have to teach us. Pray that not only will their lives be changed forever but that ours would be also. Pray for our leaders, Mellisa, Molly, Amy and Suzie. Pray that all stress would be lifted from them and that they will be able to focus on the task at hand.

I am so excited to go and see what God has in store to teach me. I will be taking my lap top and will try to make updates to the blog while I am there. Pray for Brian and the kids. He is so great and I know will do a wonderful job with them.

Have a blessed day!