Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Go Rachel!
Rachel's preschool program was last night and it was adorable. Rachel's class is crazy--loud, wild kids (mostly boys) were all messing around and being naughty before the show and sweet Rachel is just sitting there in the midst of the chaos, waiting quietly for the show to start. It was so funny.
Rachel did such a wonderful job! She sang all the words and did all the actions and it was just plain cute. We were so proud of her.
Air guitar!
With Miss Melva
Oh, Rachel--we love you so much! You are a sweetheart!
Rachel did such a wonderful job! She sang all the words and did all the actions and it was just plain cute. We were so proud of her.
Air guitar!
With Miss Melva
Oh, Rachel--we love you so much! You are a sweetheart!
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
So sweet...
A few weeks ago Rachel got a small cut on her toe. As Ben was looking at it and bandaging it, Luke came right over, sat down next to Rachel, put his hand on her leg and announced, "I'm going to help Rachel be brave." It was the most tender, sweet thing! Love these kids.
Monday, May 9, 2011
Happy Mothers Day
I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day! There are many mothers who have influenced me and many who I look to now as I try to emulate their wonderful mothering.
I just wanted to write for a minute about my feelings on motherhood.
These three cute kids are mine. All mine. And, boy, do I love them! This picture was obviously taken before I became pregnant with #4. Well--actually, I was pregnant then! Just didn't know it yet.
Each one of my children holds an indescribably large portion of my heart. It is hard to put into words the love that I have for each of them. I remember talking to moms before I had my own kids and they would say something to the effect of: "I've always loved kids. But when you have your own, it is different. The love is extreme. You live and breathe them." And now that I have my own, I fully agree. I am enamored by my children. Even when they are misbehaving or being difficult, that love is there. It doesn't mean you always want to be around them or that they don't annoy you at times, but there is this strong connection that cannot be broken or even weakened.
And it is beautiful.
Sometimes I look at one of my kids and it's like I can see their soul. I see them as a perfect creation, with hearts that feel, minds that understand, and individual talents that are already developing even at their tender young ages. Their spirits are so strong and so unique. They are each a miracle and each so different. I like imagining them all grown up and going forth into the world with their own arsenal of strengths. They have so much to offer. It is such a humbling responsibility to be entrusted with my children's care--to refine them and help them develop into the people they were meant to be, to help them reach their potential. Sometimes I struggle with the best way to raise them, especially because each of my children seems to need different things at different times. But I find that praying each morning that I will spend my time well, listen to my children and be there for them helps me to do just that. I've also found that when I view my children as little people that get in the way of my to-do list, I am not happy. Those are the times I am easily frustrated and annoyed by them. When I am conscious of my role as a mother first, before a housekeeper, I feel the sweet joy and satisfaction of mothering.
I relish time with my children: singing, reading, laughing, working, creating, talking, and playing together. I love stroking their soft cheeks and looking into their large, beautiful, clear eyes.
I have found so much fulfillment in my job as a stay-at-home mom. There are extremely hard days and extremely wonderful days. And thankfully, there are way more wonderful ones than hard (although that may change once this baby is added to the mix!!!). I am eternally grateful to my own mother who I look to all the time as an example of how to parent. She is amazing! And I am grateful to my grandmother and my mother-in-law, who are also wonderful examples of mothers who know. And, of course, my wonderful mom friends, who continue to amaze me with their patience, creativity, and unconditional love for their sweet children. I am so blessed.
And bring on number four! I think I'm ready??? :)
(This picture was taken on Saturday amongst the beautiful tulips at the Tulip Festival. So pretty! Aren't these kids great???)
I just wanted to write for a minute about my feelings on motherhood.
These three cute kids are mine. All mine. And, boy, do I love them! This picture was obviously taken before I became pregnant with #4. Well--actually, I was pregnant then! Just didn't know it yet.
Each one of my children holds an indescribably large portion of my heart. It is hard to put into words the love that I have for each of them. I remember talking to moms before I had my own kids and they would say something to the effect of: "I've always loved kids. But when you have your own, it is different. The love is extreme. You live and breathe them." And now that I have my own, I fully agree. I am enamored by my children. Even when they are misbehaving or being difficult, that love is there. It doesn't mean you always want to be around them or that they don't annoy you at times, but there is this strong connection that cannot be broken or even weakened.
And it is beautiful.
Sometimes I look at one of my kids and it's like I can see their soul. I see them as a perfect creation, with hearts that feel, minds that understand, and individual talents that are already developing even at their tender young ages. Their spirits are so strong and so unique. They are each a miracle and each so different. I like imagining them all grown up and going forth into the world with their own arsenal of strengths. They have so much to offer. It is such a humbling responsibility to be entrusted with my children's care--to refine them and help them develop into the people they were meant to be, to help them reach their potential. Sometimes I struggle with the best way to raise them, especially because each of my children seems to need different things at different times. But I find that praying each morning that I will spend my time well, listen to my children and be there for them helps me to do just that. I've also found that when I view my children as little people that get in the way of my to-do list, I am not happy. Those are the times I am easily frustrated and annoyed by them. When I am conscious of my role as a mother first, before a housekeeper, I feel the sweet joy and satisfaction of mothering.
I relish time with my children: singing, reading, laughing, working, creating, talking, and playing together. I love stroking their soft cheeks and looking into their large, beautiful, clear eyes.
I have found so much fulfillment in my job as a stay-at-home mom. There are extremely hard days and extremely wonderful days. And thankfully, there are way more wonderful ones than hard (although that may change once this baby is added to the mix!!!). I am eternally grateful to my own mother who I look to all the time as an example of how to parent. She is amazing! And I am grateful to my grandmother and my mother-in-law, who are also wonderful examples of mothers who know. And, of course, my wonderful mom friends, who continue to amaze me with their patience, creativity, and unconditional love for their sweet children. I am so blessed.
And bring on number four! I think I'm ready??? :)
(This picture was taken on Saturday amongst the beautiful tulips at the Tulip Festival. So pretty! Aren't these kids great???)
Monday, April 25, 2011
Happy Easter!
Pictures from our Easter weekend. It was great!
My dad is in town and it was fun to have Easter dinner with him! The kids love "the Texas papa!"
My dad is in town and it was fun to have Easter dinner with him! The kids love "the Texas papa!"
Monday, April 11, 2011
Happy 7th Emma!
We had a wonderful three day long celebration of Emma's birthday this past weekend. It kicked off with my dear grandparents taking Emma out Friday night for Chinese food and a movie (Tangled). Then Saturday morning was her party with friends. This is the first "friend" birthday party Emma's ever had and it was a lot of fun. The kids loved making their own stationary with stamps and markers. And they loved playing games too.
Sunday night we hosted some of Ben's family for dinner. Emma requested steak (she is a major carnivore!). Ben grilled us some yummy steak and chicken and kabobs. It was delicious!
The cake! She loves horses these days so a horse cake was in order.
Blowing out the candles. Emma's cousin had to cover Luke's mouth because he kept trying to blow out the candles! Crazy boy.
Some inside info about Emma at seven:
LOVES:
horses
dogs (still asks for one all the time)
deer
animals of all kinds!
reading mystery books
Mulan
drying pots and pans
designing her own worksheets and tests (for her mom and dad) and "preschool" activities (for her brother and sister)
playing Primary songs on the piano
jumproping
searching for bugs
school lunch
math
HATES:
elevators (she tolerates them, but has a big fear of the doors closing on people)
getting ready in the morning--she'd stay in her pj's all day if I let her
being late to school
meatloaf
Sunday night we hosted some of Ben's family for dinner. Emma requested steak (she is a major carnivore!). Ben grilled us some yummy steak and chicken and kabobs. It was delicious!
The cake! She loves horses these days so a horse cake was in order.
Blowing out the candles. Emma's cousin had to cover Luke's mouth because he kept trying to blow out the candles! Crazy boy.
Some inside info about Emma at seven:
LOVES:
horses
dogs (still asks for one all the time)
deer
animals of all kinds!
reading mystery books
Mulan
drying pots and pans
designing her own worksheets and tests (for her mom and dad) and "preschool" activities (for her brother and sister)
playing Primary songs on the piano
jumproping
searching for bugs
school lunch
math
HATES:
elevators (she tolerates them, but has a big fear of the doors closing on people)
getting ready in the morning--she'd stay in her pj's all day if I let her
being late to school
meatloaf
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Viva Las Vegas!
My parents were kind enough to give us one of their timeshare weeks. We decided to head to Las Vegas, since it was still getting away, but not too far. And we were hoping to get some warm weather since March is so yucky here. We had a wonderful vacation and it was great to have some downtime as a family, but the weather was not very warm. And half the time it was yucky--windy or rainy. So we didn't get to swim much, just one day for a few hours. The pools at our place were AMAZING. I'd love to stay there again sometime when it's guaranteed to be warm. Even though it was chilly, we still did a bunch of fun things. There really is plenty of family-friendly stuff to do in Vegas.
We checked out the Bellagio, which was just gorgeous. They had a lovely conservatory filled with beautiful flowers and a super fun butterfly garden that the kids loved. And it was all FREE. :)
The amazing colored glass ceiling in the lobby of the Bellagio.
Waiting for the Bellagio fountains to start.
We had to check out the Hoover Dam, of course. It was breathtaking. Can't believe it was built way back in the 1930s. Emma got to take her classroom friend, Bob, to Vegas with us.
We took advantage of the warmest day of the week (which was still only in the low 60s) by heading to Red Rock Canyon. We hiked and saw some waterfalls and pretty scenery and ended with a picnic. It was fun to be outside.
On our way home from our hike, we saw some wild BURROS! Well, I guess I shouldn't say 'wild,' because they all came right up to our car looking for food. It was awesome. The kids were loving it! They were laughing so hard.
Our big splurge of the trip was a visit to the famous Wynn buffet. From what we'd read and heard from people, the Wynn's buffet was THE place to eat in Vegas. We timed it right and went in to eat at 2:45 p.m. We paid the lunch price (which was still $80 for all of us!) but got the dinner food, like the seafood, which the chefs bring out at 3:30. And we stayed for THREE hours! It was awesome. The variety of the food was spectacular, with many different ethnic dishes and new flavors to try. It was NOT the same old standard buffet food.
Look how beautiful this place is! This is one small section of the buffet--it went on forever.
After we'd stuffed ourselves on all the delicious savory food, it was time for the sweet stuff. They had a separate room dedicated entirely to dessert. And once again, not the same old stuff. They had many flavors of gelato, a crepe station, mousses, creme brulee, pies, cakes, puffs, puddings, candies, and on and on.
My cute family enjoying their dessert.
And here is the dessert room--just one small part of it. It was like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. And everything was in small portions so you could sample lots of different treats.
Yummy marshmallow lollipops and candied apples, and yes--a giant try of M&M's underneath.
Don't you love how I wrote the most about the food???
Thanks mom and dad for sharing your timeshare with us! We had a great time.
We checked out the Bellagio, which was just gorgeous. They had a lovely conservatory filled with beautiful flowers and a super fun butterfly garden that the kids loved. And it was all FREE. :)
The amazing colored glass ceiling in the lobby of the Bellagio.
Waiting for the Bellagio fountains to start.
We had to check out the Hoover Dam, of course. It was breathtaking. Can't believe it was built way back in the 1930s. Emma got to take her classroom friend, Bob, to Vegas with us.
We took advantage of the warmest day of the week (which was still only in the low 60s) by heading to Red Rock Canyon. We hiked and saw some waterfalls and pretty scenery and ended with a picnic. It was fun to be outside.
On our way home from our hike, we saw some wild BURROS! Well, I guess I shouldn't say 'wild,' because they all came right up to our car looking for food. It was awesome. The kids were loving it! They were laughing so hard.
Our big splurge of the trip was a visit to the famous Wynn buffet. From what we'd read and heard from people, the Wynn's buffet was THE place to eat in Vegas. We timed it right and went in to eat at 2:45 p.m. We paid the lunch price (which was still $80 for all of us!) but got the dinner food, like the seafood, which the chefs bring out at 3:30. And we stayed for THREE hours! It was awesome. The variety of the food was spectacular, with many different ethnic dishes and new flavors to try. It was NOT the same old standard buffet food.
Look how beautiful this place is! This is one small section of the buffet--it went on forever.
After we'd stuffed ourselves on all the delicious savory food, it was time for the sweet stuff. They had a separate room dedicated entirely to dessert. And once again, not the same old stuff. They had many flavors of gelato, a crepe station, mousses, creme brulee, pies, cakes, puffs, puddings, candies, and on and on.
My cute family enjoying their dessert.
And here is the dessert room--just one small part of it. It was like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. And everything was in small portions so you could sample lots of different treats.
Yummy marshmallow lollipops and candied apples, and yes--a giant try of M&M's underneath.
Don't you love how I wrote the most about the food???
Thanks mom and dad for sharing your timeshare with us! We had a great time.
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