new beginnings

(i have waited long time to write this in my bible....so cool!!!!)

what a blessed weekend! i am not even sure i can express to the fullest what i am feeling right now. on sunday i fulfilled a twenty year desire of mine....to be baptized! i have believed in Jesus since i was six years old, but have let so many things get in the way of outwardly showing my dedication to Him (ridiculous to let so many things get in the way.) it was wonderful, but what was even more wonderful was to be baptized with both of my daughters. how cool is that? alan and i want to be the best parents we can be and want the best possible lives for our girls.... and the best possible life is a life with Jesus. we ask for your prayers and support as we raise these girls to know and love Jesus, showing them unconditional love.

kylee, i am so proud of you. you were such a big girl. i am so glad that you know Jesus and know how much he loves you. i just love hearing you talk about him (she frequently tells me about the cross, how "he rose then died for us.") and sing songs about him. but the neatest thing is to hear you tell me that "he lives in my heart." he sure does my sweet girl! a child's faith, unbelievable!!!

miss alaina jean, you will never remember this day, but we will. we are committed to love you and your sister just as Jesus loves you.....with everything we are. we pray that you to will know and choose his love for you.

this day wouldn't have been the same with out our family and friends to be there with us. you play a part in who we are and so we thank you. thank you so much for sharing this very special day with us, it really means a lot. we love you very much.

(kylee has been playing "baptizing," it's freaking hilarious. she baptizes me then i have to baptize her..."in father, son in holy spirit and i seal (as she puts her thumb up to my forhead)," so funny. kylee you are awesome!!)

big momma

yes, that says "big momma" and that is my new favorite t-shirt. not long before alaina was born i acquired the name "big momma" from kylee. it made me laugh at first because i was a big momma at the time, it's kinda lost it's humor now (well maybe not....it still makes me laugh), but it just stuck.
since the sun is out, the warm weather has come to stay and things are a little more sane at our house my creative juices have started to flow again (not to mention, a little inspiration from a friend....hannah, thanks for being so creative yourself, you really have helped inspire me to get my butt up and moving..... doing some of the things that i love!) that is why i decided to make this t-shirt (well, that's part of the reason, the rest is a secret.) i wanted a shirt that would become my favorite t-shirt (that would one day have holes in it because i wore it so much) and i wanted the girls to be involved in making it. we (kylee and i, alaina didn't like it so much) had a fun time making it. i love knowing that i will always have my girls with me, not only in my heart (or on my hip), but on the coolest t-shirt in the world!

is it finally may???

finally, nice enough weather to bring the sprinkler out to play with. kylee and payton had a blast playing together, first running in circles around the sprinkler (afraid to get wet), then right through it. it is so fun watching the two of them play, they really are the best of friends...even though payton may not always agree. i can tell that this summer is going to be a messy summer, drawing with chalk....eating the chalk (yeah, blue chalk....she said it tasted "good"), dirt everywhere. those of you who know me know that i don't like getting dirty, but watching her do it makes it look like fun....so, i'm going to jump right in and join in the mess of summer! when i think of everything she is getting into right now, it makes me laugh. we're going to have a blast. i hope everyone has a great summer, full of love and laughter.

happy mother's day

yesterday i was having fun capturing just a few of the funny faces miss alaina jean makes. what else can i say, but "how cute is she!" those big eyes just pop out at you, and that grin makes my heart melt. i am so in love. i don't have the words to describe how i feel about my two girls. God is so good and i am so lucky!!!! i am also so lucky to be a daughter just the same. thank you to all my mom's (peggy, toni and julie), there are truely not enough words to tell you how grateful i am to be loved by you. i wouldn't be who i am today without mom's like you. you are wonderful and i love you dearly....happy mothers day.

oh so yummy

this is a new favorite of mine and i just had to let everyone know about it. for those of you who like ben and jerry's ice cream, except dad (rimbo) this new flavor is awesome. if you like cherry garcia and fudge brownie than you'll love this one because it is all in one, half and half. i love the big brownie pieces mixed with a little of the cherry....oooooh so good. it's sooooo good for you too!!!!!

big girl

we are getting so big! i was so worried the first couple of weeks that she wasn't a very happy baby, but i think that has all changed.....well, for the most part:) she just likes things the way she likes them.....especially lots of attention and i mean right in your face attention. if you get really close to her and just say "hi" she starts to smile and coo. i just love it, i get all gooey inside. the cutest thing is when kylee comes up to her (she doesn't even have to say anything, just sit there) she gets a grin from ear to ear. she already loves her big sis so much! kylee you are awesome!!!!!

back to work

today, reality set in. today was the first day i have really experienced being a mother of two all by myself. up until now alan has been home with me, but today he had to fly to south carolina for training for his new job. while i was at home knee deep in baby poop with a screaming three year old running around hitting me....it really wasn't that bad. well, maybe it was. i think i tried to do too much the first day. i just need to relax and just go with the flow, but even saying that makes me cringe....i am too structured, it's really kind of annoying. i actually feel more sorry for the kids having to put up with me and my insanity. anyway, please keep us all in your prayers this week, we'd really appreciate it:) alan, we really do miss you, especially kylee.....she's excited to see what kind of treat you are going to bring her. (it's really just a bribe so she'll be an extra good girl while daddy is gone!)

staples

can anyone guess who this is.....yes it is kylee with three staples in her head. she thinks they are hair clips. last night at bedtime she was throwing a temper tantrum and threw herself into the corner of her night stand, and i mean the corner. you could hear the thud, it was horrible. when i was holding her i felt the blood on my hands, she literally had a small hole in her head. off to the hospital we went. but before we left kylee was running around (shouldn't that have hurt, running around) telling alaina and payton that she was fine and that she was going to the hospital....not like either one of them understood a word she was saying. she was talking and laughing the entire way to the hospital and when we got there and the receptionist asked me how to spell her name and she spelled it for them. what? i didn't know she could spell her own name. something must have happened when she hit her head. anyway, she really was great through the whole ordeal. she didn't even cry when they put the staples in. i would've cried like a baby, wait, why did i say 'like a baby' i am a big baby! so after 2 1/2 hours in the ER we were on our way home to bed, but first a little ice cream (at 10:45 pm) for the poor wounded child.

i really dislike having garage sales. it takes forever to get everthing organized, brought out to the garage, then put countless stickers on everything. then as soon as everything is ready to go it RAINS!!!!! what is up with that, come on! and then the people who do make it out come and drive by, stare into your garage and then drive by assuming that you have nothing to offer....yet when i look at all the stuff i see great deals. so, guess what i am doing right now......you got it, i am sitting in my garage bundled up with the heater on and the baby sitting in the swing. let me just tell you what fun we are having :) don't get me wrong, i really do like garage sales, just not having them (especially having to put it all away again after it is all said and done.) okay, i have said all i have to say....right now! thanks for listening.