5 Years Old

A 5th Birthday party has come and gone...I'm not sure how that happened. I was just putting P to sleep in his crib yesterday. He was patting my back as I swayed and sang to him, "Hush, Little Baby..."

I can't believe how fast time flies although P has been wanting to be 5 since his 4th Birthday. We all had a great time at the party and he got some wonderful gifts! His loot included a bike, scooter, and 4 water guns! You'd never know that he turned 5 in December...in the midwest, ha! :) He's ridden his wheels around in the garage so far...because the wind was unbearable. I'm thinking we still have some cold days outside ahead of us, watching while he rides up and down the street. Here's a sampling of the fun to be had:

P with his fantastic Lego Fire truck! (Thanks Josh & Sarah!)

His "cheese" face looks like he's in pain, ha! I promise...he really IS excited about all his great gifts!

P with his waterguns!


Love this Lite Brite from my Sister & family...We had these as kids, so much fun!

The first picture we did was of a Birthday cake with 5 candles...how perfect! :) Joel and I got him the Space Shuttle in the background that makes sounds...Fisher Price has some fun toys!

P's scooter from Joel's parents. So much fun!


M wasn't sure what to think of all the excitement.


She seems to like it. :)


Here's a short clip of him on "the bike"...

That Time of Year

With our most recent family photos...I am ready to begin thinking about designing some Christmas cards! With new pics and the fact that Bloggers get 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly I'm really excited to order my photo cards.

Shutterfly has some super cute cards to choose from! I love this one. Here's a super cute Flat Photo Card design. They also have Thanksgiving card designs! I love the idea of sending out a "thankful" card like this one. Have any of you ever sent a Thanksgiving card? Or received one? I never have...but what a great concept!!

Sometimes it's just good to reflect on the things we have to be thankful for. Of course I'm thankful for my kiddos...I post pictures of them all the time. But, there's more that I'm thankful for...


I'm thankful for Joel. He is my best friend and puts up with my...craziness. He is a great Daddy and I love that I can tell him anything.


I'm so thankful for these girls. :) My Momma and Sister are invaluable to me. They are sources of laughter and encouragement. The Lord knew I needed some incredible women in my life to lean on...I'm so thankful He put me into the family He did!! They are blessings. Pure & Simple.

I'm also thankful for great friends. (You know who you are.) :)

Mostly, I'm thankful for a Loving, Heavenly Father who cared enough about me that He sent His only Son to take the punishment on the cross...for MY sins!!! I'm thankful that I have a relationship with my Father. That He saved me out of the darkness...and promises me a life with Him in eternity.

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." - John 3:16

THAT is reason to be thankful! This time of year especially causes me to come to grips with the most valuable things in life. And...I've heard it said before that "the most valuable things in life aren't THINGS".

Life in Pictures

Here's some picture evidence of what we've been up to. I finally took the "effort" to get the photos off my camera. Yes...it took all of oh--5 minutes. Sometimes I wonder why I put some of the "simplest" things off! :)


We've tried rice cereal! M doesn't really seem to mind it...but I think we'll wait a while longer before we make it a regular thing around here. I make it so "soupy" for her and she makes pretty funny faces at it sometimes. It still is a different taste/texture than what she's used to. This last time I fed it to her, most of it ended up sliding right back out the side of her mouth, so...I think we'll wait until she's just after 5 months old and then try it again!

(photo by P)


We love snuggling! P must give his Sister hugs and kisses every single day. :) She adores him. When he kisses her or talks to her and tells her stories, she smiles or giggles. I love the first baby giggles. What a priceless sound!!


Our little superhero. Sure...his costume was a little big this year. I wanted it to last longer than just for the costume party, so he could wear it for playing in. I thought it was pretty hilarious that as soon as I put it on him, for the costume party that he ran around the living room lifting his desk chair, or the laundry basket...whatever he could find that looked heavy...and then he'd throw it down. I put an end to his heroic actions before someone got hurt but he was sure his costume made him instantly strong!




Last but not least--lots of smiling! My baby girl is growing bigger and getting cuter every day! Of course...I'm not partial at all. But I think she's a doll! :)

Highlights

So...It's been a while. A month. Yikes! Time for an update! :)

Joel has been working most weekends with my Brother-in-Law. He has taken some time off...and we've made some good memories. Went to the pumpkin patch one weekend. This past weekend we attended a friends' costume-party...I was Olive Oyl, Joel was Popeye, and M was Sweet Pea. P was Superman. Sometimes I wish my biggest problem in life was deciding what Superhero I wanted to be when I grow up! P's rational: "Buzz Lightyear has a laser, but Ironman can FLY!" Ah, yes...the dilema! ;o)

We also had family pictures taken. Here's a sampling:











LOVE this one of my Sister & her man kissing in the background...Three kids later, the romance is still alive. :)

Sitting Pretty

Look who's sitting in a Bumbo now!

Okay, she's usually leaning dramatically to one side...or rests her head on the side of the Bumbo, but still! She's getting stronger. I love her so much. This baby is such a joy...now that she's done with the first two months of her life. ;o) Joel called her a "cry machine" at one point, and I'd have to agree. She was struggling over something, that's for sure! She's mostly happy now (when we're at home!) Going out is somewhat of a different story. This girl likes her routine!

Two Little Blessings

Sometimes I think that I am blessed beyond belief.




And then I realize...It's true. :) These two little people make me one blessed Momma.


Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. - James 1:17

Our 2-Day Vacation

This past weekend, we took a trip. Not a long trip...but I'm calling it a vacation nonetheless. :) We went to Kansas City where we shopped and ate at the Crown Center and stayed in a pretty nice hotel inside the Crown Center. Joel took P down to the pool. They had a blast. We ate supper at a place Joel and I dined on our honeymoon.

We wanted to do more fun things in the KC area on Saturday, but M was ready to go home. She'd had enough of all the fun. Since she was non-consolable, we decided to just head home. We did stop in St. Jo on the way back and toured the Pony Express Museum. I went with my family as a child and somewhere there is a photo of my Sister and I in front of the Pony Express stable door. I had to get a pic of the kids in front of that same door. P cooperated for only one pic...He doesn't like to be STILL very much. That's also why he's blurry in our family pic next to the waterfall in our hotel's lobby. Oh well, at least I got some pictures.

I'm cleaning the house today because I turn the big 3-0 tomorrow, and I just want a clean house for my B-Day. P thinks there must be someone coming over for a party, ha! He's been encouraging me to work faster by setting the timer while I folded laundry. So helpful.

I told Joel that I remember as a kid, thinking that 30 was SO old!! He assured me that it's because it IS old. Oh well, I'm thinking that alot of milestones occurred in my 20's...graduating from college, getting married, making new friends, buying a house, selling a house, buying another house, having 2 babies (and 1 in Heaven)...I'm excited to see what my 30's will hold. At least, that's what I'm telling myself. Really...age is just a number, right?