A moment at a time.... Capturing the Memories...

New Year. New Beginning.

2012-01-03T19:43:00.000-08:00

It's a new year. A time for New beginnings. A year of Change.
I hope to do better at blogging this upcoming year.
To be able to use this space as a journal, an online reminder of the goals, committments, and dreams I have... as well as a place to celebrate the triumphs, the achievments, the progress.
Sure there will be struggles,
I know there will be trails
and bumps in the road.
But it's a process.
Taken a step at a time.
One day at a time.

The changes are necessary
It's beyond time
For a new beginning.

A lil bit of Heaven Maryland...

2011-01-13T09:08:00.000-08:00

On our recent trip up North over Christmas we made sure that we made a few pit stops before returning home.

First and foremost we miss our families. I wish they were not so far away so we could see them more often. There are also a few other things we miss... so this time we decided to bring them back with us!

Here is our taste of Maryland...

*Safeway select Southwestern Salsa- tuly the Best salsa!

*Cluck-u-chicken Atomic Barbeque Sause-- Jakes FAVORITE!

*Garlic & Wine Seasoning from The Melting Pot-- greatest seasonin for EVERYTHING!

*Martin's potato rolls-- Must have for any cookout! .. wish we coul find them here!

Yummy!! Like a lil bit of ~~Heaven~~, ... er, a .. Maryland, in SC!!

Transparency... Resolutions, and New Beginnings

2011-01-01T20:57:00.000-08:00

As we begin this new year of 2011, I have found myself reflecting on the last year. 2010 was a year of ups and downs. A year of challenges, a year of blessings, and a year of change.
I also have begun to think of the things that I desire to change for this coming year. At this time you hear talk of "Resolutions" and new vows to be made in the new year.

They say that truth sets you free.. and that getting things in the open will help you to get through them or overcome them. So, I have decided to be transparent about some things in my life. I am ready for change. I desire this year to be a year of growth, and of positive improvements spiritually, emotionally, physically and socially.
I have heard this song a few times but never truly listened to it until the other day. It spoke to me, it shook the core of who I am. I felt like the lyrics were speaking the truth of my life. It depicts exactly where I feel I am right now.

So... Here are the things I am challenging myself to do this year... I am ready for change, I need the change, and I am going to make things better.

Most importantly....Re discover God- Re claiming the passion, the hunger for the things of God that I once had. To have a real, intimate, personal and daily relationship with my savior.
1/ Daily devotions-- quiet time with Him. (Mornings- after Bus)
PRAYER- To spend time daily with Jesus... Seeking, Thanking, Listening, and Worshiping.
Reading through the Bible- Studying and digging into the word, through The Message.
Instilling these important things into my children. Reading scripture/Bible stories with them, and encouraging and helping them to memorize scripture.

2/ Fast 21 days with Church
At the start of the new year, our church begins a corporate three week fast. This year, I have made the committment to join in with this fast as a time to grow spiritually, as well as to begin a healthy weightloss journey. I have chosen to follow a modified Daniel Fast eating mostly fruits and vegetables and abstaining from Sodas, Sweets, Red Meat, and most dairy products. I know that this experience will stretch me in new ways, and will be a challenge but I pray that it deepens my dependancy on Christ and gives me a new perspective.

3/ Loose weight-- Excercise -- Get Healthier! It is beyond time for a change. I want to feel better physically, to care for my body and gain energy for the things life brings my way. This will help me to be there for my children and be able to do more with them and for them.

4/ Organize Bills/ paperwork. As part of re claiming my life back in 2011 I will get back on track financially. I desire to sit and create a budget, and learn to stick to it. Things must get more organized so that Bills can be paid, on time and important papers kept and filed away. Debt Snowball updated, and tackled!

5/ Because of B.R.A.Y.D.E.N. This coming year has the potential to be an amazing year for B.O.B. as well as for my personal growth and healing. It is my #1 goal to obtain our 501 (3) (c) status and put together a working board of directors to help, support, and improve all that we hope to do. New opportunities are opening up every day and I pray that God will use me, in the ways He desires to make a difference in this field.

6/ COUPON!! As overwhelming as it feels, I want to make it work for our family. With the help of friends, family, and some helpful websites I will work hard to learn the art of couponing as a way to be more frugile with our finances.

Something else that I have decided to do this year is a fun project I saw on another blog and also have seen done by a close friend. I look forward to opening my eyes to the things around me, to choose Daily to be thankful for all the things in my life. I will be recording them in a photo album on facebook. I am excited to see all the things we are so blessed with and stretch myself with this challenge.

Project 365: THANKful

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2010-11-28T19:20:00.000-08:00

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First Grader!!

2010-08-16T20:04:00.000-07:00

Today was Nathaniel's first day of First Grade!

He was so excited to be going back to school and starting a new year.

My lil Flowertown Elementary "Busy Bee!"

His very own desk this year... in the second row of Mrs. Horner's class.

Praying for an amazing and successful year!

Motherhood Moments

2010-08-15T20:02:00.000-07:00

Someone asked me recently what my favorite moment of Motherhood is. What a tough question to answer! There are so many thngs that I love about being a Mommy... and I do my best to cherish each and every moment I am given with my precious children.

I have thought about this question alot and though there are so many answers Icould give, I have decided my favorite moment of Motherhood, (other than the moment of first holding and looking into the faces of my beautiful babies!!) is bedtime.
Yes, Bedtime.
This may sound odd since bedtime is when our children are sleeping and we are not with them. But many of the moments I enjoy the best with my children are putting them to bed. The calm, peaceful moments of cuddling, sharing moments of the day, praying over them, kissing their little heads, and tucking them in.

As I sat rocking my baby girl tonight (after 30+ minutes of screaming and not going to sleep on her own!) I could only smile. I was reminded once again how much I treasure and love those moments. I can't help but think to myself how blessed I am. To think that this may be the last chance I get to hold, rock, and pray over my baby girl. Wow...
How can I complain?
I don't want to miss a moment of it.

When the day is busy, and kids are hectic.
When they are whinny and fussy, cranky and loud
When they want nothing to do with me...

There's always Bedtime.
There's always hugs.
There's always a kiss and a prayer.

As I lay Nathaniel down, go through our nightly routine, and kiss his forhead. He leans to me, draws me close... and says, "I love you Mommy!" How much, I reply? "Up to the moon and down again, and all around the world... and up to the moon and down again, and all around the world again... and THAT's NOT ALL!!" ..and Jesus loves you more! (Just as my mommy did with me!)
My heart melts.
My arms love the embrace and warmth of holding my precious ones close.

Lord, May I always treasure each and every moment you allow me to share with my children. They are gifts from you and I am blessed and thankful for the time you have bestowed on me to love them, raise them, and care for them.

My Confident Aquatic Problem Solvers!

2010-07-18T21:33:00.000-07:00

We did it!! Elliana and Nathaniel have finished their session for Infant Swimming Resource Self-Rescue swimming lessons. I am so proud of them both and how great they have done. The last week was very different and difficult as we tested out their skills while wearing clothing. The week started with them wearing light weight summer clothes, then long pants and long sleeves, then to thicker heavier clothing, and lastly in full winter outfits and shoes.

Elliana's "Starfish!"

Thanie's "Starfish!"

Rotating from his back to his stomach for a swim-float-swim rotation. This way he gets as far as he can, but knows to roll over to float, rest and take a breath whenever needed!

Through this program Nathaniel and Elliana both learned breath control, and swimming face down (which promotes vertical swimming. When your face is not in the water your more likely to sink) Where your head goes, your feet are sure to follow!

Ellie floating independently with heavy fleece winter clothes on!!

The rolling over and going for the wall as she finds her way out.

For more information on Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) visit http://www.infantswim.com/.

These lessons are very different then your traditional swim lessons. The skills they learned are for self-rescue purposes in the unfortunate chance that they find themselves in a situation with water. SUPERVISION is always the best protection! Survival skills are just one more layer of protection we as parents can offer our children.

SOOOO Proud of them both and how hard they worked over the last month and a half. I truly believe that they are now confident aquatic problem solvers. So incredibly thankful for Becky, our awesome ISR instructor. Blessed that God brought her, and this amazing program into our lives, and blown away by the healing it brought, the passion it birthed and the new journey it has started us on! I would have never even dreamt it 2 months ago!

"Star" Baseball Player

2010-06-13T09:56:00.000-07:00

Nathaniel: Mommy, when I grow up, can I be a Star Baseball player, would you like that?"

Spring time is here and it's t-ball again. Nathaniel has come such a long way this season. He has impressed us, his team mates, and coaches. He is so much more focused, able to throw better and often catches the ball. We are so proud of his hard work playing this year.

Here are some of the highlights from my #5, Royal Blue, left handed boy!

Up to Bat!

Home!

Baseball Ready!

Check out that form!

Always a... "Good Game!"

Team Party and Trophie night.

Spring 2010 Summerville Little League 'Sportsman Shop' Royal Blues

" YES, My dear... You can be ANYTHING you want to be when you grow up... and I would love to see you play baseball. Just remember... You are already a STAR to me!

I love you Thanie!!"

18 Months

2010-06-12T09:28:00.000-07:00

Elliana is now 18 months old!

It's so hard to believe she is growing up so fast. She is such a joy and delight to us. It's amazing how much she has changed and progressed in the last 6 months. We are so proud of all that she is doing. She is really trying to imitate sounds and words and has learned quite a few. She loves music and is often found dancing. You'll never miss when Ellie walks in the room as she beams her million dollar smile and gives her"Miss America" wave high in the air. She blows kisses and gives hugs all the time and absolutely loves babies. Elliana will never be left out of play time with Daddy... she loves to be tickled and wrestled with and jumps right in with big brother. She already has such a sweet tender and caring heart and it shows with her interactions with others as well as in her play. Elliana adores her big "bubby", Nathaniel.

Ellie knows many of her body parts and has taken off with signing!I love to see her making requests with signs and I do believe it is reinforcing the verbal language as well. Here is a short video of her in all her cuteness.

Elliana also has such a little personality blooming. I must confess that we do have quite a Diva Princess on our hands.

Elliana loves shoes (of any kind, any size!) loves jewlery, lipgloss and nail polish. She is often found with a purse or bag on her arm and a bracelet and necklace on.

We have learned the word, "No" which we are not too happy about but we are working through it. When she wants something, Ellie is not shy to let us know and when we don't get our way, there is quite a little attitude that shows its face. We've also learned to love the camera... and "CHEESE!" ...when we're in the mood!

We love her so much, and know that we have been soo blessed with the gift of a daughter. I thank God every day for our precious little girl, our Elliana, our answered prayer.

Out of the Mouths of Babes Moms!

2010-06-02T10:33:00.000-07:00

This is a new blog carnival found over at MckMama's Blog. I always chuckle when I read about the silly things that come out of MckMama's Mouth. It's nice to know I'm not the only one that say's such goofy things. As Mom's you never know what we may need to say to our children on a daily basis! It's part of the joys of Motherhood.

So today, I decided to join in on the fun! Here are some things that have come out of the mouth of this Mom...

"NO, Hunny... Please don't put your hands IN the Poop!"
"If you would just lie still, this would be over with very quickly!"

"Please do not squeeze or pull the snake! We will let him free himself."

"Do not let her touch or grab your penis! We keep our private parts to ourself!"

"Yes, that is poop all over her sheets, No you can not see it and smell it, I will clean it up". "Yes you make Lots of messes like this when you were little."

"Wipe off marker should not be used on your sister... please only use it on your wipeoff board, thank you."

"No, when you grow up you will not have breast, and you will not need to wear a bra. Only Mommy's and ladies where a bra."

"I'm sorry sweetie, but you may Not eat scissors! They are not a snack or a toy."

How about you?? What silly things have you said lately?!

ISR Update

2010-05-15T21:20:00.000-07:00

My little Swimmer! ...

Well, we are now at the end of week 3 of lessons. Things are going great! It's amazing to see the change in such a short time period. Elliana is doing so good and is so much happier, you can see the confidence building as she improves day by day.

As intense as I knew it would be, I still had my doubts about only 10 minutes a day. I have been so impressed and amazed to see how much that 10 minutes and the consistency of everyday can do.

Earlier this week we also started Nathaniel with Self rescue lessons as well. He was so excited to finally have his turn at lessons! With a big smile on his face from the first minute, he is really enjoying the lessons and doing really well.

Here is a short video of Nathaniel on his first day...

We are working on floating more than anything with him as he is a bit over confident, but I know that he will continue to improve and gain these important skills in no time.

Chin to the ceiling.... starfish!

Looking forward to the coming weeks to see them get even better and better as they gain more confidence and the skills come naturally

OrangeOnions.com

2010-05-08T14:33:00.000-07:00

I found a great new website that I wanted to tell you all about! It has great products for great deals. They also have giveaways and sales for all your shopping needs! I am looking forward to doing some shopping! Check it out for yourself and be sure to check out their
Deal of the Day!

http://www.orangeonions.com/c=6xOgJrKRACevEDu2AyvMVwvsN/category/peel_of_the_day/

Elliana's 1st ISR self rescue swim lesson

2010-04-26T21:11:00.000-07:00

Today was Elliana's first ISR swim lesson. She will be learning self rescue water skills over the next few weeks. It was an emotional and difficult day but I am so proud of how well Ellie did! They began today by working on holding onto the wall (or the pvc bar at the wall- lower for practice due to Ellie's size) She needs to gain confidence in the wall and learn to reach and go for it (not a person) when needing help or a way out.

Here is just a quick snipet of her lesson.

Looking forward to watching her grow and learn over the next few weeks!

18

2010-03-24T20:29:00.001-07:00

This past Saturday, March 20th was a very significant day for my family.

A month and a half before my twelth birthay, in 1992, my dad died in a work related accident and went to Heaven to be with Jesus.

It was one of the hardest days of my life.

It rocked our world, and changed the course of our family.... forever.

This year marked eighteen years, he's been gone... 18!! Wow!

Such a hard thing to comprehend. I remember that day like it was yesterday.

I still miss him so much.

I still wish so desperately he was here to be apart of our future. To have been here for al of lives exciting (and diffcult) events. To have met his incredible grandkids, to have taught us all to appriciate music even more, to remind us always to laugh.

Yet life has moved on.

Soooo much has changed and we have all grown up.

My mom is remarried. I have a step father and 3 new siblings (:

We now live 8 hours away and each have families of our own.

Saturday was also a special day in a very different way.

11 years ago, in 1999, Jake and I made a decision to begin something together....

We began to sponsor a little boy named Mohamed Abeid. Mohamed lives with his family in Tanzania, Africa.

What makes Mohamed special is that he was born on the same day that my dad went to Heaven. March 20, 1992.

One of the things that comforted me that most after loosing my dad was remembering that Life begins and life ends. God gives life, and he ends life. It's a cyle we are all a part of.

It may be hard for others to understand, but for me it was comforting and special to know that I could help and support this little boy, who God chos to give life to, the same day tht he chose to take my dad to his heavenly home. Mohamed may not make it through this life, without sponsorship, and we were able to be apart of that plan.... pretty amazing.

Through the years we have kept in touch with Mohamed, watched him grow, and mature. Kept up with his studies and been amazed as his handwriting, and artistic abilities have improved greatly. He know writes us his own letters and draws wonderful pictures for us. It has been a wonderful journey to have been a part of.

Last Saturday, March 20, 2010, Mohamed turned 18 years old. He has grown into a handsome young man. Our little boy, is not so little anymore... and we are proud to have him as part of our family... and honored to havebeen able to be apart of his life.

Happy 18th Birthday Mohamed!

Bye, Bye Birdie Bottle... Blues

2010-03-07T19:33:00.000-08:00

Another feat. Another milestone.

It has been over a week since Elliana has had a bottle. She loves her sippy cups. Heck, she loves everyone elses sippy cups too! I realized that it was harder for me to just give up the bottle than for Ellie. I want to comfort her, to make her happy, to soothe her. The most difficult for ~~Elliana~~ ME ,is bedtime. We were to the point where we really wanted her to start putting herself to sleep. To back down from the long 30 minute or so ordeal of rocking, bouncing, etc. to get her to sleep. But thats what she wanted. Thats what she loves. It was so hard to let go of that. So I gave in and went with the bottle.

It worked. She went to bed, on her own with her bottle. We just had to lay her down.

It was wonderful, It was peaceful.

After a few weeks of this I decided it was time to start weening the bottle. She is 15 months old now. So I tried it. I rocked her a bit, comforted her, then layed her down... this time with a sippy cup. A little fussing, A pushed away cup, and even some tears.

But it worked. She still went to sleep... within a very few minutes!

So Bye, Bye Bottle it was!!

Since then, Elliana has done so well with just the sippy cup for bedtime. What a relief.

...That is Until we began the Bye, Bye Bottle Blues...

The last 2 nights have been very hard for Ellie (ME!) Elliana has cried, and cried, and thrown fits, and tried to throw herself out of my arms... Just to get to bed. It breaks my heart. I want her to get peaceful rest, I want her to be happy.

I know the easy answer. I know what would work...

But I can't go back...

We said Goodbye to the bottle and theres no turing back!

NOT ME! Monday

2010-02-22T19:44:00.000-08:00

Being brutally honest, and living to ~~tell~~ blog about it!
Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. "Not Me! Monday was born out of my desire to admit some of my imperfections and reveal a few moments I'd rather forget. You may find it therapeutic to join in and do the same thing!" You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

As I went through this week, I certainly did not take notes on my Not me Monday antics so that I would definately have something to blog about today! I have a much better memory that to need that and I would never be so worried about such things! Nope, Not me!

I did not thoroughly clean off our lovely highchair this weekend for the first time since Elliana was 7 months old!! And I did not feel ashamed at how dirty is was and how much was hidden under that lovely seat cover! I take much better care of my children's things and would never put my child in something that dirty! Nope, Not me!

And as I was cleaning said highchair, which took place on the back deck, I surely did not watch as my darling one year old daughter picked up a (who knows how old) wheat thin that has fallen from whithin the chair somewhere. I did not allow her to put the cracker in her mouth and proudly walk off eating it as if she had found a prize! I would never let my child eat something old like that, that momentarily fell onto the deck. Nope, Not me!

At another point while outside this weekend I also did not leave my wonderful children unattended for mere moments as I loaded the dishwasher. While playing with chalk my lovely son did not decide to scribble all over the table with chalk just to rub it off with his hands, creating "chalk snow" All over his sisters head!!! I always keep a better watch over my children than that. I would never stand by and let something like that happen to my poor baby girl! Nope, Not me!

How about you... what things have you Not been up to??

NOT ME! Monday

2010-02-15T18:43:00.000-08:00

Being brutally honest, and living to ~~tell~~ blog about it!
Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. "Not Me! Monday was born out of my desire to admit some of my imperfections and reveal a few moments I'd rather forget. You may find it therapeutic to join in and do the same thing!" You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

While trying to get some things done around the house, I did not leave my one year old daughter unsupervised in her highchair with some crayola beginning crayons (..and, ...a... oops! ...paint!) And I did not come back moments later to find her eating said ~~crayons~~ paint and covering her face and mouth with beautiful colors! I am more responsible than that and always watch my children closely! Allow my child to eat art supplies, and even photograph said incident, Nope, Not me!

I did not run out with a friend to walmart sat. night at almost midnight to grab a few things for Valentines day so that I could suprise my hubby with some chocolate. I am much more together than to forget a gift for such a special holiday like this one! No last minute late night shopping for me, Nope, Not me!

When I delived such said gifts to hubby, knowing (as always) he would not have anything in return; I also did not feel completely and totally stupid and humbled when I recieved the greatest gift ever!!! My hubby surely could not have gotten away with keeping such a huge secret from me and getting friends and family involved with this gift without me having a clue... And I definately did not become speechless when given this ,heartfelt, handmade, three-strand, personalized bracelet!! Nope, Not me!!!

After bathing my darling daughter, I did not take off my wedding rings and set them on the couch to apply her lotion. I would never be so careless with something so special and valuable. And dd surely did not hop up and instantly find the jewlry, tossing them, in attempt to avoid me getting them from her. I did not spend the next 30 minutes searching everywhere for my engagment ring which was missing so that I could find it before my husband got home! Nope, not me!
(**of course, it was my wonderful hubby who found the ring, after comforting me and calming me down from feeling so stupid, by simply moving out the couch. Your the best hubby, I love you!** )

SNOW on my PALM trees!!!

2010-02-15T18:23:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we were part of History... For the first time in 10 years, it snowed in Charleston, ...Summerville in fact! Although I'm not a huge fan of the white stuff or the cold, it was very beautiful. The fact that we did not have to go anywhere, shovel, or deal with it much also made it all the more enjoyable.
snow began on friday afternoon/evening. I was convinced that it would not accumulate to anything and would be gone before we could blink. So... I got out my camera, bundled up the kids and began taking pictures of the falling white stuff!!

I just had to capture the fact that there was snow on my palm trees! That just doesn't even sound right! lol.. we've moved to the south/beach for a reason... oh well! (o:

Dinner, fellowship, biblestudy, and a few hours later... we were welcomed by quite a suprise when we opened the door to head back home. Not only had the snow kept falling but it was acumulating fast and even sticking to the roads! The men braved the weather, cleared off the cars for us, and we made the treck back home in the snow. Several more cars were seen in a mess of trouble and it took way longer than normal, but we made it home.... to this.

Jake got home shortly after, and we decided to go ahead and make the trip over to our small group. We northerners are used to this stuff and can drive in it, nothing to worry about! What we didn't think about was the reaction of all the southern charlestonites who don't know what to do in a snow ~~storm~~ flurry! We were amazed at how many cars we saw off the side of the road and even in ditches! The city had gone mad...

The excitment continued as we settled the kids into bed (already very late due to small group) made ourselves comfy on the couch with laptops in tow.... and the power went out. No way. It's cold, its snowing, the kids are asleep, its late... this can't be happening.

But it was.

Called my sister who I knew had not been home long either and found out that they did have power. She invited us to pack up and head there... but I hesitated due to the effort that would take and we decided to wait things out. I called to report the outage and no sooner did I tell Jake about the automated message I recieved the power was back! Relief.

So off to bed we went.

7am rolled around... sooner than we would have liked. Jake jumped up, late for work and hurried around to get ready. Disoriented and trying to figure out why he didn't get up we realized how cold we were.... and the fact that we again, had no power. We assume by the temperature that it had been out for several hours while we were sleeping, having gone back out around 3am. Bummer.

Jake cleared off the cars, got him self together, and headed into work. We were pleasantly suprised to see that the roads were very clear so the ride in was assumed to be an easy one. The sight outside was beautiful. Snow covered everything. As if God has laid a white blanket over the city. I absolutely love how the snows lays on each and every branch of the trees. It truly was beautiful.

Nathaniel woke up rearing and ready... He couldn't wait to pile on the clothes and head out to play. He had a great time playing in all our snow!

By Saturday afternoon the sun was out and the snow was melting fast... by Sunday, you wouldn't have known it even snowed. It came, it was beautiful, it was fun, and then it was gone.

Perfect Snowfall (:

Till the next decade! ...

Boys Night Out!!

2010-02-14T11:01:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, at the last minute I found out about a show that was going on locally, in North Charleston. For over a year now Jake has been talking about wanting to take Nathaniel to see Monster Trucks. Somehow, we missed hearing about this one coming to town until the night before. As soon as I heard, I jumped online to find out details and look for tickets. Sure enough I was able to get tickets for saturday nights show. Jake was so excited. He decided not to tell Nathaniel but to let it be a suprise.

I was even able to go to a local motor sport store to get free pit passes so that they could go early and get up close and personal with the huge trucks! Nathaniel and Daddy were in heaven!!! Not sure who was more excited.

After visiting the pit, they found their seats and the show began. The first truck to come out, made hs way around the track, and then flipped upside down! One of the highlights of the show. Jake is always hoping this will happen. (we went several years ago to a show and noone flipped, he was so dissapointed)

They had so much fun watching and listening as the fork lift and rescue workers came out to flip the truck back over and clear the track. Everyone was ok and after several minutes the truck was back over and excorted off.

Round one, each truck started off with a "wheel stand" then rolled up over a row of crush cars.

Next up was the opsticle course competition.

A new addition to the show this year was the mechanical 20- foot tall, fire-breathing dinosaur!!

He picked up the car, bit it and spllit it in half... then crushed it into several peices. "With his sharp hands and teeth, Mommy!"

...Can we say amazement!?! ...Enjoyment!! ??!

Next up was the motorcross competition... Mommy is always amazed at the skill, speed and crazy tricks these guys pull off. Pictures are very hard to capture.

They boys had such a blast together, the look in their eyes, the excitment in their voices, and the stories (which lasted for days!) made it all the more special and so worth it. Sooo glad they were able to enjoy this special night together!

Milestones

2010-01-30T09:19:00.000-08:00

It's so amazing to watch a child grow. From infancy to childhood there are so many milestones they reach in such a short time. So much learning, so much excitement.

Elliana has now reached a new milestone. Her one, four, or seven steps... have now turned into full fledged WALKING!!!

No more crawling for our little princess, she is now all the time on her feet. Walking the house over and over... she is walking everywhere!

We are so proud of our little girl, who is growing so fast.

And so excited that she is now Walking!

This and That

2010-01-19T19:11:00.000-08:00

I am in the mood to blog tonight, yet my thoughts are a bit scattered. I don't have anything specific for this post so I thought I would just ramble out some things.
Today is tuesday, (or is it Monday, or Wednesday?!?) I am so thrown off as I have been off work since last friday. The weekend was rough. My Hubby, and both my children got sick. The stomach bug landed and took over our home.
Yesterday, schools were closed for Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. Some day off... caring for a sick family and catching up on laundry rapidly being created by all.
Thankful it appeared to be a 24 hour bug. After lots of rest and time, the family seemed to be getting better.
I thought I was scott free. I thought I had made it through and remained healthy. That was until this morning. The nausea hit me so fast and within moments I was rushing to the bathroom.
Didn't someone addvise Mr. Stomach bug that Mommies are exempt?!? We are not allowed to be sick. No fair.
So here we are today, day 4 of being home. I don't want to eat, move, or do anything. This feeling is horrific. I decide to try and send Elliana to the sitter so that I can rest and take care of myself. As I walk towards her bedroom I am hit with a horrendous smell. She has thrown up in her crib ...again. Her 24 hours was up. She had been herself yesterday and had a good day. Plan for the day scratched. Mommy caring for herself? never. My job is never through.
Tomorrow will be tough. Hoping to make it to work again. Praying this sickness will be gone.
I need my life back.
Worked on a website for Journey, the support group I am getting together for beareaved parents who have lost young children. I really hope to make this dream a reality... and soon.
It's late. I should be sleeping. I just ate despite the terrible feeling in my stomach. Actually hoping to get sick again, thinking it will relieve the feeling.
Elliana is now awake. She's screaming. Please Lord, let her bed be clean.
Please Lord, give us all the rest and refreshing healing that we need.

Can I run away and take a vacation now??

Discovery

2010-01-18T15:09:00.000-08:00

Open the door. Shut the door. Open the door. Take out item. Put item back in. Shut door. Repeat.

Hand mom item. Take item back. Hand mom item. Take it back. Laugh.

Discovery. Such fun. Who knew?

Put in. Take out. Put in. Take out. Open Door. Shut Door. Open Door. Shut Door.

This went on and on for at least 20 minutes. And she loved every bit of it!

Elliana is now one year old. She is at such a fun age where she is often searching for things to get into and new things to discover.

Often trivial, simple things have such meaning in her young mind. What appears to outwardly be so silly, is truly an educational experience.

Growing, Learning, Laughing, Crying.

Oh to be young...

Oh to... Discovery.

New Years Eve... Highlights from 2009

2009-12-31T21:48:00.000-08:00

It's new years eve... The end of 2009 and the start of 2010 it's hard to believe. Here are some hightlights from the year 2009

1. Loving life with my little princess!! Finally, Mommy to a girl (:
2. Planting our Japanese Maple tree in memory of Brayden, and having it grow and bloom beautifully!
3. My new nephew Avery Dillon joining the family!
4. DISNEY!!!! Our first true family vaction!
5. More family moving closer... Auntie Em, Uncle Gregg, and Paulie (:
6. Spending 3 weeks with a bestie and making a fun trip up north.
7. Finding an incredible person (and family) to care for our children, who have become great friends!
8. Getting a job (and contract!) with the school district
9. Nathaniel starting Kindergarten!
10. Thanksgiving with the Zieg's/Sniffens
11. My princess turning a year old!! (and having 2 wonderful parties!)
12. Christmas with my parents, all 5 of my siblings and our families!! Lots of laughs, and memories made!

I could ceratinly go on and on. This year was a tough one, but we made it through. New memories were made, and we were blessed with many things. My hopes are that things are only better for 2010 for all!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

NOT ME! Monday

2009-12-28T13:37:00.001-08:00

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog at http://www.mycharmingkids.net/ to read what ~~she~~ (MckMama did not participate this week but did put up MckLinky so we can check out others) everyone else have not been doing this week. "I created Not Me! Monday for the purpose of confessing our shortcomings and imperfections to each other since, after all, we are all only human!" (MckMama's words) Every Monday, you can find more "Not Me! Monday" at her site.

It's been awhile (too long!) since I took part in a Not Me! Monday so today I decided to take the time to post one! It has been a busy, crazy, fun few weeks and I'm sure I could go on and on about all the silly, embarressing, and ~~stupid~~ not so intelligent things we have not been up to.

Confession is good for the soul...So here it goes...

I did not allow my daughter to have so much cake, icing, and mini colorful fruit flavored marshmellows at her first birthday party that she threw it all up the next morning! I watch what my children eat and care about their health and well being more than that! Nope, Not Me!

For Christmas, I did not buy myself presents then hand them to my husband to wrap up and place under the tree for me. That would be selfish and greedy..and I am not those things. Nope, Not me!

Also, I certainly did not wear a maternity top for Christmas eve service since I ~~don't have anything that fits~~ was unable to find a different top to wear. I am not pregnant and would never want people to think so due to the clothing I'm wearing. Nope, Not me!

When so excited about my daughters independant steps she began taking this week, I did not repeatedly pick her up (to her frustration) to continue the (attemps at) walking... just so I could catch it on video and get a photo of the exciting moments! I wouldn't want to cause my precious little one to be frustrated, and would always have patience to wait until she is ready to try her new tricks. I am not that worried about pictures and video's... Nope, Not me!

**This is the best video I got... since of course, lil miss didn't want to "perform" once I got the camera out!! She was doing much better though! Promise (: **

While cleaning my closet, I did not find a bag of gifts purchased months ago for my son that I forgot about and excitedly wrap them all up for this years' christmas gifts. I don't forget important things like that and I surely wouldn't keep my closet so messy that I wouldn't even notice the bag sitting there! Nope, Not me!

Lastly, I did not spend several hours yesterday blogging.. trying to catch up with things I have intended to get posted but have procrastinated about. I am more on top of things than that and would never procrastinate about things. Nope, Not me!

Sigh! Wow, I really could go on and on this week! So Blessed and thankful that I am so loved despite all my imperfections. How about you? What have you not been up to?

Birthday Party # 2

2009-12-27T19:28:00.000-08:00

Once we got back Home to SC we had another local celebration for lil Miss. You only have one first birthday after all... so why not party it up! Cause you know, she'll remember it all so well! (o: This time we partied at home, with friends and family who could make it to celebrate.

More Pizza...

More Fun and Friends...

Lots More Lovin' ...

Play time with Nana

Grandpop and 2 of his joys (:
Auntie Lauren and Ellie

More Presents...

Baby Lovin'

Elliana tore up these presents like a pro!
She had no doubts what to do!
Even took a moment to check out the cards (:

and of course, there was More cake! ...

Yum!!

Double Fisting it!

Even shared some with Daddy...

...All over his face!! Hee-Hee!

Mommy, Daddy, and a messy birthday girl!!

Straight to the bath.... new change of clothes and more playing and visiting...

It was a great day and we had so much fun. Miss Ellie has a blast too ...

...she was so tired and wore out she didn't even make it through the bottle or to bed!

Poor pooped lil princess!

Over the River, and through the Woods....

2009-12-27T17:03:00.000-08:00

..."To Grandfathers' House we go... the ~~Horse~~ (Van) knows the way, to carry the sleigh, through ~~white and drifted snow~~ (lots and lots of Rain), O! "

This, and other joyful sounds like the tune of "Are we there yet?!" we heard quite a bit as we made the hike up north for Thanksgiving. We went up to see family and friends for the Holiday and boy did we drive through some rain! It made for a looong trip. But it was well worth it, we had a great time.

One of the many highlights was getting all the cousins together! They are all growing up so fast and I hate that we don't get to spend more time with them.

Elliana (1), Isabelle (2), Nathaniel (5), and Alyson (7)

Our visit was filled with tons of playing and fun,

such as "Potato Sack" Rides with Papa!
...and of course tickle/wrestling time!

The Kitchen seemed to be the hangout for the men...

Pete (Papa), Uncle Bryan, Uncle Brendon, Jake

Cousin Love... Alyson and Elliana

The kids love going into Gramma's "Kid" drawer for coloring books, crayons, paper,

stickers, and more...

Aunt Jessica and Ellie

Papa and Ellie snoozing... so sweet!

Ellie was so excited to see her Gramma & Papa and went right to them from the moment we arrived. In the midst of her "stranger/seperation anxiety" the past few weeks this was a sweet suprise and relief! Gramma & Papa enjoyed every moment and were thrilled to pieces.

We miss everyone already and hate that we live so far away!! So thankful for a wonderful fun and relaxing visit!

...and still praying they see the light and move south soon!!! (o:

A marshmellow in the microwave...

2009-12-27T15:52:00.000-08:00

What happens when you put a marshmellow in the microwave? It blows up! True, try it for yourself... just watch carefully if you don't want to clean up a mess! lol

A box of graham crackers, a bag of marshmellows, and a package of Hershey bars.

The perfect recipe for ooey gooey goodness, known as S'mores.

While we were in Md for Thanksgiving, Gramma and Papa announced to us that

we were having S'mores for dessert.

Yet, instead of heading outside to start a fire...

The ingredients were stacked up... and placed in the microwave! That's right. We made ~~bootleg~~ homemade S'mores.

So, after taking turns standing by, watching the marshmellows grow larger and larger at the microwave window, then promptly hitting stop before they burst....

We each could partake of the ooey, gooey, stringy....

(Isabelle wasn't too sure about this S'more stuff at the beginning! lol)

(Yet, after giving into a bit... she was hooked!)

...Goodness... of a marshmellow in the microwave.

Birthday Party # 1

2009-12-27T09:15:00.000-08:00

The first of 2 parties for the lil miss was in Maryland while we were visiting for the Thanksgiving Holiday. We met at a place in Crofton called Eddies Place for some Ledo's Pizza and fellowship. The have a seperate room we could close off and we had a great time seeing people we don't visit with enough. It was also a neat way to get everyone together since we were not there long enough to have seen them all individually. And we enjoyed every minute of it!

Yummy Ledo's Pizza!!

Fun, Food, Friends! The best kind of party (:

Yes, Even the birthday girl loved her some Pizza!

Kenzie, Nathaniel, and Alyson Playing, Swinging, dancing, laughing...

They had a blast together!

The Boys...

Lifetime friends...

Cute family picture with the birthday girl!

After the pizza we stripped her down....

Bring on the cake! (:

It all started with just a little finger licking...

Then she was all in!!!

Ellie tore up that cake like a pro! LoL!!

Can you see the ~~sugar rush~~ excitement on her face?

Yay for cake!! This is Yummy Stuff!

For such a lil Princess, ... she sure knows how to make a mess!

(The real fun was trying to clean all that up in a tiny public bathroom sink! lol)

And then of course there were presents!

This is one cute, very loved, and very happy little girl!

Photography Editing Contest....WOW!...

2009-12-18T18:20:00.000-08:00

So over at Mckmama's Blog there is another unbelieveable giveaway!!! Check it out here

The P's have it....

2009-12-18T18:15:00.000-08:00

The epidomy of

Precious....

My petit, pony- tailed ...

Princess...

Pathetically Pouting....

and protesting the pictures...

but oh so Pretty...in Piggy's!

An Incredible Giveaway!!!

2009-12-09T19:40:00.000-08:00

See that awesome beauty in the corner of this room??? It's a brand new HP touchsmart computer!! (with wireless keyboard, mouse and MANY other amazing features!! )

...and need I mention that beauty of a 23.5 inch screen!?!

Wouldn't you love to have one in Your living room???

Check out this incredible giveaway of MckMama's Blog!!!!

Be sure to also take advantage of all the great ways to enter by visiting Blogher!!

Click HERE for a review by Kelly of Kelly's Korner!

One Year Old!!!

2009-12-04T20:37:00.000-08:00

Elliana turned one year old today!!

I can't believe my baby girl is growing up! We are so blessed by our beautiful princess,

and are thankful for everyday with her.

Here are some things Ellie has been up to this month.

Elliana loves to be on her feet! We walk along everything we can and enjoy pushing things around. Though were not walking on our own yet, Ellie stands independently, maneuvers between pieces of furniture and has taken a ~~dive~~ step or two on her own.

The game of "Peek-a-boo" tops our favorite games

She now has 6 teeth and is no longer our lil vampire...

We squeal with excitement when we are happy and throw ourselves backwards, arching her back and kicking her feet when she's upset.

Miss Ellie has continued to show herself as quite the little drama queen!

She drinks out of a sippy cup more often now though Mommy has more luck with the bottle still.

We sleep through the night (most nights) and are even putting ourselves to sleep most nights! Ellie sleeps about an average of 10-12 hours a night.

Banana's still top the list of our favorite foods, though Ellie Loves to eat and must have something whenever anyone is eating! She is proving to not be the picky one...

Babbles alot now, says "Momma", "Dadda", "Baby", and a few other approximations

Enjoys emptying out Mommas wallet, throwing receipts all about and loves to make quite a game out of toilet paper and tissue boxes.

Diaper changes are nearly impossible these days without a (very favored or interesting)distractor and some extra arms/legs to stop the rolling as she tries to escape the task!

Just like her brothers did, Elliana loves taking things out and putting them back in... any type of container. Lack of toys? Bowls and spoons are great entertainment.

She has jumped right in with tickle time with daddy and doesn't ever want to miss out of the giggling, squealing, wrestling fun!

Ellie absolutely adores her big brother, Nathaniel. It doesn't matter what he does, says, or what he looks like.. he can always produce a smile (and often a giggle) on his sisters face.

Our beautiful little girl never ceases to amaze us... and brings us joy each and every day.

NOT ME! Monday

2009-11-30T20:23:00.000-08:00

I just realized how long it has been since I have posted a Not Me! Monday! I think about it all the time but have not had the chance to post on time.. It has been a long busy week and I'm exhausted but wanted to share a few things I did not do this week....

I did not leave for our trip packing everything but the kitchen sink! (or so it felt!) ... then 45 minutes down the road, realize that I forgot diapers! Why would I forget something so important?! I then didn't leave my darling daughter in a wet diaper till we got to my in-laws to get a dry diaper! Nope, not me!

While on vacation, I did not turn into a giddy silly teen when finding out that I had won the briar.clair hat giveaway on Mckmama's blog! My family did not think I was crazy for getting so excited. I am more sophisticated then to act silly like that! After all I did enter and leave a cute comment (practicing my new found love of alliteration!) so why would I be so suprised that she chose me?! I also did not insist on showing my MIL, SIL, and Husband the post where My name is shown as the winner! ... Nope! Not me!

Sunday, at Elliana's birthday celebration I certainly did not strip her down to a diaper and allow her to go crazy ~~destroying~~ eating cake by the fistfulls. I would never allow her to make such a mess in a restaurant! My little girl is a frilly princess! Nope, Not me!

After such a mess, I definately did not carry my filthy cake and chocolate icing covered daughter (at arms length!) into the bathroom and wash her off in the sink. That would just be gross and inconsiderate... Not me!

There's no place like...

2009-11-30T19:53:00.000-08:00

There's no place like Home, There's no place like Home...

HOME SWEET HOME!!!!

After a very long day of traveling in (way to much) rain and dealing with traffic and 2 ~~fussy, bored, crabby~~ wonderful children... we are Home!

We had a great time visiting family and friends, eating tons of good food, and just relaxing! ...But it sure feels good to be back.

Van's unloaded, everyone settled, and kids finally asleep in bed

...back to the grind tomorrow!

Ten Things I am Thankful for...

2009-11-29T20:13:00.000-08:00

Saw this on a friends blog and was inspired to do the same thing here. Even though the Thanksgiving Holiday is officially over, I am learning to be Thankful all the time. We are blessed with so many wonderful things and I want to work harder to focus on those and appriciate them, even in the midst of hard situations.

So... Here's my List:

1. My Heavenly Father
He gives me strength to make it through, loves me unconditionally, and promises me a Hope and a Future.

2. A wonderful supportive Husband
I know I don't appriciate Him enough... I am blessed for a mate who loves me and our family and works hard to provide for us. He has stood by me and walked with me through highs and lows over the last 12 years... I am thankful God Blessed me with him!

3. The opportunity to be called "Mommy"
There is nothing like Motherhood. It is the hardest, highest calling in my life; yet the most rewarding. I am thankful God entrusted me with three beautiful and precious children who bring me so much joy.

4. A place to live
I am thankful that we have a roof over our head... and a beautiful home we can call our own!

5. Jobs
Especially in these hard economic times, I am thankful that both Jake and I have great jobs that we enjoy.

6. A wonderful church Family and Friends
We are soo truly blessed and thankful that God brought us to Seacoast. We have been ministered to, encouraged, and blessed immensely by those God has put in our life and we are thankful for the lifetime friendships we have made through the years.

7. Our Small Group
We have made some incredible friends and are so thankful to be apart of our weekly small group. It is the highlight of our week and encourages us so much.

8. An Amazing Family
I am so thankful to have a supportive, loving and involved extended family. Jake and I both feel blessed to have wonderful parents who love us and want the best for us and are always there to help.

9. The opportunity to help others

More and more I am learning to be thankful for the things God has brought us through. Though the road has and continues to be rough, I believe in the promise that God will continue to make All things work together for the good. I know that He has plans for us and wants to use our lives to bless and encourage others.

10. God's Provision

Even in the rocky times... He Always makes a way. He wants to teach us to be completely dependant on Him but always proves Himself Trustworthy. I know that my God WILL supply ALL my needs... according to His riches and Glory...

We are so blessed.

Lord, Help me to always be Thankful for all that we have and never take things for granted.

Sketti-face!

2009-11-20T15:18:00.000-08:00

I love my beautiful little girl.

Love to dress her up, and never go out without a bow!

We love pink, and frills, ribbons and of course jewelry.

She is my little princess.

While eating dinner the other night, Ellie, my little princess...

grabbed ahold of the bowl of spaghetti and went to town!

She tore up her food using both hands, and a fork.

so... my beautiful little girl turned into

little miss sketti-face!

It made for some laughs, and what is some classic pictures... what silly memories. Just had to share...

"All gone Mommy!"

Yes, I love my beautiful, Sketti-faced girl!

Busy Fingers

2009-11-08T08:26:00.000-08:00

Nathaniel is my little creative boy. He loves to have his hands busy. Loves to be helping with just about anything. And loves to create things.

Life is so busy, days just seem to fly by. I feel bad that there never seems to be time for us to just have fun doing different projects. I have come to realize that the time is there... I just need to take the time and make the moments happen.

So, this past weekend I took advantage of the Holiday and planned out some fun things for Nathaniel. He did really well loved it!

First, we made some cookies...

Then, while they were cooking we started our craft projects...

Just before they were finished we pulled them out for some decorating fun!

Here are Nathaniel's frames he made (:

Yummmm..... Decorated Sugar cookies!

We had a fun day and I'm glad we had the chance to do fun things together... and keep those fingers busy!

Fall time Fun!

2009-10-31T11:13:00.000-07:00

To celebrate Fall and have some family fun we went to a local place called West Farm for a day of fun! ...and that we had!

Warning: Prepare your eyes... there are LOTS of pictures!! I couldn't decide which to post! ....Enjoy!

We started with some fun bouncing balls that Nathaniel loved! Ellie even had a turn and enjoyed the bouncing (:

Happy girl! Posing for a cute picture

A family shot while riding on the Hayride!

We also saw several animals such as these sheep and goats. Nathaniel enjoyed petting them but wasn't too sure about feeding them!

Ellie having a turn feeding the sheep.

And of course... Pumpkins!!!

Nathaniel found his perfect pumpkin and couldn't wait to decorate it.

He also had alot of fun running through the mini hay maze!

My cuties (:

Apple slingshot!

And of course... the corn maze!

Love this picture!

Nathaniel and friends winding through the paths...

And yes, after just over an hour... we made it out!!

We had such a good time spending the day together and enjoying all the Fall festivities... such great memories made.

We have so much to be thankful for!

For the Love of God Children

2009-10-28T14:27:00.000-07:00

I walked out of the room for a moment to go use the bathroom... and when I returned, this is what I found.

A crying baby, a guilty looking boy (confessing, "It was an accident!" faster than I could even get into the room!)

...and the culpret?...
Powder... that mommy left in plain view and within reach. (oops! Guilty Mom)

The poor victim? My sweet Elliana. (not to mention the coffee table, the couch, floor...)
who was Not so thrilled about the new look.... that is, until she found something better to focus her attention on...

of course! The bottle of medicine that Mommy also left out, ... in reach. Oops.

What to do... what to say...

Angry? Mad? Upset? Frustrated? maybe a bit... yet I find myself, ...laughing.

Oh me, oh my... thank goodness they are so dag on cute. (and that I love them both to peices!)

ah....For the love of Children...

An Amazing Contest!!

2009-10-23T21:10:00.000-07:00

So.. as I'm doing (one of )my daily checkin's to MckMama's Blog today... I came across a post about this incredible contest! MckMama was chosen by Samsung and Blogher to recieve an amazing new french door stainless steel fridge to use and review... and she is giving away a Best Buy gift card worth $200!!!
WOW... What I would do with $200?!? Not sure where I'd begin. Sure would love a new dishwasher... that works (ie. removing food, making dishes clean!)... and dry's the dishes! I also would LOVE a flat panel t.v to put above our fireplace so that we can expand the seating in our living room. It's so hard having friends and family over with no where to sit!
Have I mentioned that we hate our fridge?? It was here when we moved in... a blessing, really. We had no fridge, and it saved us lots of money. We ~~were~~ Are grateful. One of the crisper boxes (drawers) is broken, shelves in the door frequently fall off... everything in the left drawer (of the fridge!) freezes! ...and I really do not like having the freezer on the bottom.... too strange for me. We also do not have much option for setup and things don't fit very well. Coming home from a big shopping trip can be fun... kinda like a jigsaw puzzle to make things fit! lol

So... wanted to ~~Get another entry~~ let you know of this awesome contest! .. So Thanks for reading and Check it out for yourself HERE!
Enjoy!

A visit with Daddy!

2009-10-18T20:18:00.000-07:00

Daddy loves it when we come visit him at work.. and Nathaniel Loves being able to go to Daddy's work to 'help' him. The other night Daddy called to let me know that he had to stay really late to finish a job. Since I knew he would not be home for dinner, we decided to bring dinner to him! The kids were excited and so was daddy for a special little visit.

Our "Picinic in the Shop!"

Pizza, of course! Daddy and Nathaniel's favorite!!

Daddy and his lil Princess! She was so excited to see him (:

Wish we had the chance to go by and see daddy more... but we definately enjoy the times we do. Nathaniel knows where most things are kept and loves to go straight for the drawer for a pair of gloves to be "ready to work".
Sweet Memories

NOT ME! Monday

2009-10-12T18:14:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog at http://www.mycharmingkids.net/ to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week. "I created Not Me! Monday for the purpose of confessing our shortcomings and imperfections to each other since, after all, we are all only human!" (MckMama's words) Every Monday, you can find more "Not Me! Monday" at her site.

This week seems like it flew by! As if every week doesn't these days... anyhow, it is Monday again so here goes my UN-Confessional of this week...

I certainly did not leave a pot ~~once beautiful plant~~ of dead leaves and too much dirt on the hearth so that my adorable 10 month old dd (who is now standing assisted and pulling up on everything!) could reach! She most definately did not put her hand right in and grab a handful of lucious soil that didn't go straight to the mouth! I always keep everything out of my children's reach that they shouldn't have! Not Me!

This week when trying to reach the wipes (which were across the floor) while changing a diaper, I did not leave my dd unattended on the couch by herself. She then did not roll over, trying to sit up and then fall off the couch! I would never let something like that happen with me right there.. I always watch my children better than that! Nope, Not me!
Trying to wait till payday to spend any money I did not wait to buy diapers assuming that we had enough to make it through, then discover I was out while baby girl sat in a poopy diaper! I then surely did not go rummaging through the house and the van looking for any stray diapers! I am always prepared for my children! Thankfully, I did not have a few diapers crammed under a seat in the van which saved the day. Nope, Not me!
On Sunday, I did not forget, (for the third week in a row) to go get a sunday paper since we are trying to coupon nd save money. I then did not drive to 4 different places looking for one at 10:30 at night having no luck. Desperate to try and redem myself and find some coupons I also did not comment on my facebook status about my dilema asking for a donation of coupons! I would never do a silly thing like that! I always remember important things like that! Nope, Not me!
Lastly, I did not take the time to finally clean out not one, or two... but three old purses that have been shoved in a corner of my room for months. And when doing so did not find several important things including my social security card, credit cards, and unused gift cards! I am more organized than that... why would I leave that kind of stuff in an old forgotten spot like that? Nope, Not me!

It always amazes me how this list grows as I type... I start out with one or two thoughts in mind thinking humm... I didn't really have anything happen this week. Then more and more the thoughts flood my mind and the list could go on and on! I have so many imperfections... I am humbled and thankful for a Heavenly Father who loves me and acceptes me as I am, a family who loves me and needs me and other special relationships who somehow put up with my shortcomings! I am Loved. I am Thankful. I am Blessed.

So how about you? What did you not do this week??

NOT ME! Monday

2009-10-05T19:34:00.000-07:00

10 Months!

2009-10-04T19:40:00.000-07:00

Elliana is 10 months old today! Time continues to fly by and she is growing up so fast. It has been another fun filled month. We have enjoyed seeing Ellie and Nathaniel begin to interact and really "play" alot more together. It doesn't matter what Nathaniel does, Elllie just smiles and laughs at him non stop. She definately LOVES her big bubby!

Here are some of the things that Elliana has been up to this month:

Ellie has learned how to crawl.. officially! No more silly looking half army/combat crawl (:

She even pulled herself up!.. and hasn't wanted to stay off her feet ever since!

We are drinking juice from a sippy cup

She decided that "baby food" is just that... for baby's. And She is a big girl! (or so we think!) So the boycott on baby food has begun and Ellie is now eating bits and peices of just about everything we eat! (whether set out on her tray or snatched out from our hands! LoL) Favorites being green beans, hotdogs, mac n cheese and fruit!

Her first word, is often heard these days... and brings delight to my ears! "Mama! Mama!"

Though were not really into walking independantly or with a hand just yet, Ellie has started walking along furniture (a bit wobbily)

At our latest checkup Ellie weighed in at 18.1 lbs.

We are still in size 2 diapers but growing out of our 6-9 month clothing for length! Ellie measures almost 29 inches long now.

We've survived the ~~worst~~ first of many teething bouts and now have two pearly little whites peeking through! pic to come later with more explanation (;

Ellie is also doing so well at night, sleeping from about 8:30-9 till 6 or 6:30! Momma and Daddy loooove that!!

She enjoys trying to keep up with bubby, playing with toys, and is on the move at all times!! (and quick!)

We've discovered (and learned how to grab ahold of) Mommy's glasses and necklaces... and even decided to try and boycott the bows, now that we know how to rip them off!

We are still loving every minute of raising such a beautiful, precious, happy baby girl! I thank God daily for blessing me with my sweet Elliana Grace. Can't wait to watch her grow in the months to come!

Love you Ellie Belle!!!

Dress up fun (:

2009-09-27T09:42:00.000-07:00

Nathaniel has enjoyed dressing up in costumes for a few years. We have quite a collection now thanks to after halloween sales and some great goodwill/consignment shop finds. There have been many occasions we have taken 'Spiderman' to lunch or a 'dragon' to the store. It's always fun to watch how his imagination flows with each new venture or character he takes on.

The other day, after a trip to the dollar store where we got some new costumes we had fun playing at home. Ellie even got to take part this time since I got her first dress up outfit! She was a little unsure about it at first but looked so cute and enjoyed all the attention. (:

Here are some cute pictures of my precious kiddos the other day (:

My Beautiful

Fairy Princess

Elliana!

Our Knight

Shinning

Armor,

Nathaniel!!

Our Little Athlete

2009-09-20T13:56:00.000-07:00

Fall is upon us as summer comes to an end and Nathaniel has started playing soccer. He is so excited to be back on a team and learining to play Soccer.

With the start of the new season came a new pair of cleats! Adidas, of course!

Playing "Coach Says"...

Learning to "dribble" the soccer ball, remembering not to use our hands!

Making a goal!

Daddy's Newest Project

2009-09-12T20:39:00.000-07:00

Over the long weekend Daddy got inspired to make a new project. So, off to Lowes we went to get some supplies.

So.. if you can't figure it out by now... we're making a Sandbox!! We have talked about buying or making one in the past but for one reason or another have just not done it. Now that the weather is getting a little cooler, Daddy decided he was up for the task.

Nathaniel was so excited to be getting his own sandbox.

We set out to the back yard to find the perfect spot for the sandbox and settled on a nice shady spot under a tree... Daddy built the frame and began digging up the dirt to prepare the spot.

Elliana had a blast hanging outside with Mommy and Daddy... sitting and standing with her car like a big girl! (:

Viola! A hole!

Insert frame... add corner seats... and its a ~~sand~~box!

Muscle man Thanie tries to help lift the bags (they're 50lbs!)

Then it was time to add some SAND!

and more sand...

....And MORE Sand!

16 bags to open and dump to be
exact! That's 800lbs of sand!

Nathaniel enjoyed using the dirt rake to even it all out

Ellie on the other hand, wasen't too sure about this whole sandbox thing... and decided to give it a little taste...

I don't think she was too pleased with the result... LoL!

Nathaniel couldn't wait to jump in and try it out!

excited to bury our feet... where'd they go!?

It didn't take long for Ellie to adapt and jump in on the fun...

and she loved it too!

Thank you Daddy for our new sandbox!!

Not Me My Child Monday!

2009-09-07T19:50:00.000-07:00

It has been a doosey of a week for us. I decided on this Labor Day Monday to do another Not My Child Monday instead of the normal Not me! Monday. You can find out more about this blog carival by visiting MckMama's Blog.

It' s fun!
Did you almost die of embarrassment when your child walked in on you and your husband doing you-know-what? Want to scream bloody murder when your toddler colored on your floor with a Sharpie? Feel like a terrible mother when your kid used a swear word in front of your in-laws? Well don't! Mothers aren't perfect and neither are children, so today I thought we'd switch things up a little and do a Not my child! Monday!

It was not My child who decided to crawl inside the clothing racks while shopping at target... causing them to break apart and complete colapse! This didn't cause tons of nicely hung and organized clothes to go everywhere and provide lots of exciting work for 2 unsuspecting target employee's. He knows better than that and would never act out of line out in public... Not My Child!

My sweet and innocent 8 month old darling daughter did not get ahold of my Mcdonalds Ice Coffee and proceed to drink it (through a straw!) loving it! I would never give my small child coffee! and drinking through a straw at 9 months??? .. who knew!?? Nope, Not My Child!

Lastly, It was not my child who, while at the Zoo, proceeded to stand and pee in his pants while we were sitting just mere feet from the bathrooms! My 5 year old would never deny that he needs to go to the bathroom when asked and have an accident just moments later... we teach him better than that! Definatly, Not My Child!

Successful Sunday!

2009-09-06T19:24:00.000-07:00

It's Labor Day weekend, and Daddy's weekend off work... which means lots of fun time to play! We have really enjoyed this weekend, and the best part is that it's not over yet! Yesterday we had a great time togetherat the zoo and today we were up and moving as well.. this time to get some things accomplished.

While Nana and Grandpop ran off with Nathaniel and Paulie for some fun, Jake and I tackled some projects at home. Daddy began a very special project that I will blog about soon.

I on the other hand had the joy of working on Elliana's room.

What can I say, the girl has too many clothes! It also doesn't help that she is growing like a weed and needs clothes gone through every month (or so it seems). So sort, fold, hang, and pack up and put away... I did. Alot.

But I must say it felt good to get it done. I was proud of myself for making decisions on what to sell/pass on and what to keep. (most of which I'm getting rid of!) Out with the small... in with the new and bigger! (: I also spent some time organizing her closet and got everything hung up and put away.

Success!

Now we can actually find something for her to wear each day and can even walk through her room.

Ahh... How nice.

Family Field Trip

2009-09-05T20:49:00.000-07:00

Daddy was off work today and we decided to go do something fun together. We packed up into the van and headed down the road for a short road trip. We landed in Columbia, about 1 1/2 hrs away and went to the Zoo. It was a blast. Nathaniel has such a great time seeing all the animals as did all of us and we really enjoyed the time together. Here are some pictures of our day.

Lions

Nathaniel was sad that the tigers were not out but we did see a few of these lions laying about in the shade.

He and Daddy were also very excited to see this Huge Aligator resting in the sun by a small lake.

Nathaniel's First Pony Ride! He loved it (:
"Spooky" the Pony

Mommy got to try her hand at milking a cow (kinda that is.. lol)

We took Elliana on her first Carousel Ride... She was sooo excited! :D

Nathaniel had fun pretending to race on his anteater!

One of Mommy's childhood favorites... Koala Bear

...taking a snooze on this tree branch. so cute!

Also in this Australian exhibit we went through an area full of these beautiful brightly colored birds called Lory's

Many guests purchased cups of nectar to feed the birds. They would come right up for a drink and would even land right on your hand/arm to look for some food.
Nathaniel enjoyed being able to see them so up close and personal and even got to pet a few of the birds.

Mommy's other favorite... Giraffe's!

They even had a baby Giraffe, it was cute watching it follow around the adults and try to reach the leaves or spread its front legs to lean down to eat some grass.

Poor Ellie was worn out from all the fun...

Our family at the ZOO!

We had such a great time and loved seeing all the animals. The best part was having the opportunity to be together. Can't wait till we have another chance to go somewhere else together for another Family Fun Day Field Trip!

9 months

2009-09-05T06:25:00.000-07:00

I can almost not believe that Elliana is 9 months old already! She is growing up so fast! We are having so much fun with her and enjoying all the new things she shows us each day. This month has been such a huge month developmentally. Ellie is ssuprising us all the time with all the things she can do. Here are some of the things she has been up to/accomplished this month:

Sleeping through the night! Mommy and daddy LOVE this! (:
We've learned to sit ourself up from laying down
Ellie is on the MOVE! ... has gone from scooting along to now the perfected "combat crawl"
We are now pulling ourself up on tables, chairs, crib, etc... Ellie loves being on her feet!
Mommy was so excited to pull out our size 2 shoes and find out they now fit! (:
We are still wearing size 2 diapers but are fitting into more and more of our 6-9 month clothes (time to clean out the closet.. again!)
One of our favorite snacks are... popsicles! (of any kind!)
We are also waving.. to anything and everyone, (especially herself in the mirror!)
Our first tooth is just about to break through!!
Ellie has discovered her voice... and likes it. She has become very loud and vocal!

I love you baby girl! Can't wait to see you continue to grow and become the beautiful woman you will become (:

Perception

2009-08-30T20:20:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine, Noah posted this story on his blog today. It really struck me and made me think. So I wanted to share it here.
In the hustle and bustle of life and busy schedules we often miss the small (or big) things around us. We get so focused on what were doing that we miss the bigger picture around us. Sometimes we need to expect the unexpected, and be open to whats all around us. You never know what may pop up right in front of you. Good Stuff... a bit challenging. I don't want to miss out on the unexpected.

Click HERE to read the full post.

Successful Sunday!

2009-08-23T19:45:00.001-07:00

Now that school has started and I am working, Time feels obsolete. During the week life is so busy and things just don't get done. Yesterday we had a much needed lazy Saturday just hanging around the house not doing much of anything. Today, I woke up somewhat motivated... and got to work. It feels really good to have actually gotten things done today.

Here are some of the projects I accomplished...

The dreaded, ~~way too small~~ horribly unorganized, Hallway linen closet

All we ever do is shove, shove, shove... our sheets and towels into this closet. yes, I am guilty too. For a long time I have wanted to go through it and organize it so that it would be more functional. Today was the day...

Somehow, when your into a major organizing/ cleaning project, things always seem to get messier before they get better. Or is it just me?

Success!!

And there's even room to spare! Who know!? (:

It also helped that I got rid of many things we didn't even know existed in there... or things that were lost in the depths that need to be put elsewhere. A chenille blanket, still in the package, that I believe was a wedding gift (we've been married 8 years! ); A round tablecloth ,when we only own a rectangle table, (sold our round table at least 4 years ago!); Kitchen hand towels that belong... in the kitchen! (imagine that, lol); and several pillow shams from old comforter sets we don't use anymore.

Next up: The Kitchen

Although this is not much of a project but a daily task, it is still something that needed to be done and I felt good about. I love that we have a good amount of counter space, but man does it fill up fast! Our counters are always full of too much junk and need to be cleaned off/organized often.

And it felt good to complete this task, thoroughly.

Viola! A new Kitchen! (:

I must say... I'm proud of myself and today truly felt like a Successful Sunday.

Lego- Maniac!

2009-08-22T20:13:00.000-07:00

For the last few weeks my house has been covered with these brightly colored square and rectangle objects. Legos. Also known as Duplo's, blocks, noise makers, or creative toys... whatever you want to call them. My 5 year old, Nathaniel, has been ~~obsessed~~ creatively interested in these for some time now. Everyday the bucket comes out and no matter how many times they are cleaned up my floor is contuniously covered in Lego's. It amazes me how creative he can be with them and how many hours he can stay entertained by them.
Such a simple toy. Such use of imagination. No batteries, no lights, no sounds... just pure 'good ole fashion' fun. He has been so proud of all his many creations and often asks me to photograph them. So I thought that I would share some here... with you all (:

First up is Nathaniel's "Big Cruise Ship!" ... See it?

This next one began as a square, then became a "picture holder" and lastly was filled in and was found to be a great hiding place. There's a silly 5 year old boy behind there! ... who knew?!

The intensity gets high and concentration is in full effect while the creative juices flow...

Lego's, Lego's everywhere! ... The condition of my living room
for the last few weeks!

Getting Daddy involved....

Daddy and Thanie's Big HUGE Ship! (using ALL the lego's!)

So proud (:

Never would of thought Nathaniel would ~~spend so many hours~~ have so much fun with something as simple as lego's. He's my little lego-maniac!

Kindergarten!

2009-08-19T19:45:00.000-07:00

This week Nathaniel started Kindergarten. It's so hard to believe that my baby boy is so grown up and able to go to Elementary school! He has been so excited and counting down for this day. I look forward to all the new things he is going to learn, the special things he brings home, and all the stories we will hear. It's going to be a fun year! On the 3rd day after getting in the car he told me, "Kindergarten is the best!" I love it...

Here are some pictures from his first day! Daddy, Mommy and Ellie all got to go with him (:

All ready to go!

Me and my lil man!
Nathaniel's New School!

We found it to his classroom... Nathaniel remembered the way from meet the teacher night and led the way.

His cubbie... putting lunch and snack away...

Nathaniel's seat! Ready to learn! (:

This picture is from Wednesday... this new schedule and full days of school are exhausting! Poor Thanie didn't even make it the 6 minutes home...

Wiped Out!

So proud of my ~~baby boy~~ big kindergartener!
Love you Nathaniel!!

Fire House Museum

2009-08-15T12:48:00.000-07:00

With Summer coming to a close, and school about to start, we wanted to do something fun with the kids the other day and it is too hot to do much outside. So for something new and different we decided to check out the Firehouse Museum.

Our ~~silly, costumed~~ well dressed and adorable boys...ready to see some firetrucks!

Nathaniel driving a BIG Firetruck!

Even Ellie loved being up in the drivers seat...

One of the many antique firetrucks we got to see...

Playing with the hoses and learning how they work

Practicing Safety Skills: "Stop, Drop, and Roll!"

Practicing making a 9-1-1 emergency call

Climbing the ladder

...and sliding down the poll... wheeee!

Auntie Em helping Paulie

Nathaniel, Paulie and Elliana

Our lil Jr. Fire Fighters had a blast at the Museum!!!

Mommy and Me Necklaces

2009-08-15T08:15:00.000-07:00

I have opened an Etsy Shop! I will be selling some items here but have started by listing my Mommy and Me Necklaces. These necklaces are great for nursing/ feeding babies. Necklace is worn by mom and enjoyed by baby during breastfeeding, bottlefeeding, while sling wearing and even during diaper changes! They help keep babies focused and provide visual and tactile stimulation. I have several colors or will make to order! I can also make toddler mathing necklaces for those older siblings who want to be like Mommy. Contact me if you would be interested in one. Makes a great gift for any (new) mom!!

CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT MY ETSY STORE!

I hope to add other items in the future also. Thanks for letting me share!

Wordless Wednesday: Lessons from Daddy

2009-08-12T06:00:00.000-07:00

Nathaniel LOVES being Daddy's "Big" Helper! Thought this was too cute not to share... It speaks for itself...

VIsit with GiGi!

2009-08-10T20:18:00.000-07:00

This past week my Grandma, the kids great-grandma more famously known as "GiGi" came to SC to visit. We had such a nice time hanging out and catching up with life. On more than one occasion we were able to get several of us together which proved to be ~~loud and caotic~~ an enjoyable time. Here's some fun pictures of our time together.

This was GiGi's first time to meet Elliana (almost 8 months) and Avery(almost 4 months), the two newest great- grandkids.

4 Generations of girls! GiGi, Nana, Me, and Ellie. I've waited a long time for this picture!

GiGi with 4 of the 6 great grandkids.

So glad we had this opportunity to spend time with my Gramma "GiGi"

We Love you!!

NOT ME! Monday

2009-08-10T19:18:00.000-07:00

Lastly, The wonderful Host that I am did not sit around allowing my friends to clean up, hold, feed, change and care for my daughter while at my house for the first time! That would appear lazy and rude, right?.. I care about my guests too much for that... I would cater to their every need while they attended my cookout! And neglect my own daughter allowing myself to eat uninterupted and have adult conversation?! Not me!

Hope you all had a great week! What kinds of things have you Not been up to!?

Once Upon a Blog

2009-08-09T20:48:00.000-07:00

So I'm trying to get more into the whole Blog appearance thing... I love the layouts here at Once Upon a Blog. They are having a grand re-opening birthday celebration right now and I am hoping to win a new supreme Blog makover! Lord knows I am as cluless as they come when it has to do with all the codes and ins and outs of the fancy stuff. There is so much to learn...I can't wait to have a better header/layout for our family and would love a 3 column nicer more organized blog! Check out this awesome design shop (and their new great look!) and sign up for your own!

8 Months!

2009-08-05T21:00:00.000-07:00

Elliana is 8 months old! Time is truly going by quickly and our little girl is growing up! This month has been a big month! So much has happened... lots of milestones reached. Here are some of the things Ellie has been up to:

She is finally sitting up completely on her own!
Eating lots of baby cereal (preferably Rice, not oatmeal) and fruits and veggies
Starting to use our pincher grasp to feed herself finger foods (cheerios, Kix, and fruit puffs being our fav's!)
Ellie is ~~crawling~~ flopping her way around the room! Moving quicker each day and sooo close to being fully mobile!
We have started sleeping through the night!!! Not quite every night but Mommy is so happy for less broken sleep!
Elliana is still iin size 2 diapers comfortably but are getting taller and beginning to wear our 6-9 month clothes.
She loves to play with all our toys and be in with the action with big brother and cousins!
Though we don't like the swing or bouncey seat any longer we have lots of fun in our jumperoo, excersaucer, and bumbo seat!
She is also starting to really enjoy tickle time with Daddy... nothing beats the sound of that giggle and the sqeals of excitment!

We are still enjoying having a little girl so much! This is truly my favorite age. There is so much interaction and learning of new things each day! Elliana brings us such joy and we are so blessed to have her as part of this family! We love you lil ladybug!!

Our T-ball Star!

2009-08-01T19:32:00.000-07:00

This year we signed up Nathaniel for his first team sport. He played t-ball for Summerville Little League team ECBC North "Royals". We were so proud at how hard he worked at practice and how he gave so much at each game! What a great first season!

"Field Ready"

Getting a little advise from one of his coaches

Running the Bases!

Ready to run home... Go #4! (Momma's favorite number, which was randomly given to Nathaniel! )

Nathaniel was on the same team as close friends Jake and Josh...

With Coach Scott, getting his season trophy.

So proud of our cute t-ball star!

"ECBC Royals!"

Boys will be Boys!

2009-08-01T10:49:00.000-07:00

While our long time friends were here visiting last weekend the boys went outside to play. And play, they did. And run, and dig and Get Dirty!
And find water, they did! What to do... Boys will be Boys! Who cares about a little dirt? Definately not these two!

Add water to the dirt and get fun, wonderful mud! And with mud... comes lots and lots of Mess!

They were so dirty and gross we decided that they couldn't even come into the house. So out came the hose... off came the clothes and we cleaned them up!

We still brought them in and put them straight into the tub! It was fun to try and get all the dirt and sand out that was caked to their scalps! yuck!

What can I say.,... they had a blast... not much to say except, Boys will be boys!

Not me Monday for Stellan

2009-07-27T13:41:00.001-07:00

It's Monday and normally we see Not Me! Monday, the blog carnival created by MckMama, here. In lue of that today we are spreading the word and asking for prayer for this sweet little boy and his family.

Who can get this precious little boy off their minds, Not Me!

Stellan was admitted back into Children's Hospital a few days ago and is not doing well. He will be airlifted to Boston today and may be facing another surgery. He has been in SVT (dangerously rapid heart rate) for almost all of the last 3 days. His Mama and family are weary, scared, frustrated, and tired.

Who has spend hours telling everyone they know about Stellan, and asking for pray for Him and his family, Not Me!

I certainly haven't checked my cell phone every few minutes checking for updates on how things are going or refreshed MckMama's Blog a few hundred times in the last few days... My facebook and twitter updates haven't been spreading the word either... Nope, Not Me!

Please PRAY for WISDOM for the doctors, who are really at a loss with what else to try, Comfort and Rest for the family and sweet Stellan, Strength and Peace for MckMama and Prince Charming as they try to get through this incredibly hard situation. Healing for Stellan, His will be done... but we ask for God's grace and mercy to once again come and touch Stellan.

Sweet Jesus Be Near! Please wrap your arms around this Family who has given so much to bless others and pour out your comfort and peace that passes all understanding for each step they have ahead.
Please spread the word and Pray, Pray, Pray!!

From the mouth of Babes

2009-07-20T21:09:00.000-07:00

Got this cute survey from facebook so I went through it with Nathaniel. So here are his responces about Mom.

Ask your child these questions!

Word for word from Nathaniel, Age 5

1. What is something mom always says to you? "Manners"

2. What makes mom happy? "listening"

3. What makes Mom sad? "not listening"

4. How does your mom make you laugh? "tickeling!"

5. What was your mom like as a child? "Manners"

6. How old is your mom? "21"

7. How tall is your mom? "I don't know"

8. What is her favorite thing to do? "work" (uummm.. are you kidding me?!)

9. What does your mom do when you're not around? "get scared"

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? "best at making crafts"

11. What is your mom really good at? "crafts!"

12. What is your mom not very good at? "running" (LoL.. funny.)

13. What does your mom do for her job? "work, sells toys"

14. What is your mom's favorite food? "lettuce"

15. What makes you proud of your mom? "when she wins some games"

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? "Ni Hoa Kia Lan" (LoL, Chinese?!)

17. What do you and your mom do together? "play games"

18. How are you and your mom the same? "were not the same, how silly!"

19. How are you and your mom different? "She has long hair and I have short hair"

20. How do you know your mom loves you? "she gives me lots of hugs and kisses"

21. Where is your Mom's favorite place to go? "shopping at stores"

Not Me My Child Monday!

2009-07-20T18:19:00.000-07:00

It's monday.. and normailly we see Not Me Monday! here... But our lovely friend MckMama decided to try something new this week. Hope over to her blog HERE to join in on the fun!

Did you almost die of embarrassment when your child walked in on you and your husband doing you-know-what? Want to scream bloody murder when your toddler colored on your floor with a Sharpie? Feel like a terrible mother when your kid used a swear word in front of your in-laws? Well don't! Mothers aren't perfect and neither are children, so today I thought we'd switch things up a little and do a Not my child! Monday!

So here we go....

It was not My child that decided this week to "get My own haircut!" This mommy is way more responsible than to leave a child alone with a pair of scissors unsupervised! And my child would never do something crazy like that. Nope! Not My Child!

My sweet adorable child certainly did not repeatedly reveal my beautiful turquoise bra and chest to the world while being carried around, in public. Why on earth would she want to do something like that! And this mommy would always be more reserved and conservative than to wear a loose fitting shirt that could be easily pulled down.

While visiting the doctor for our yearly checkup it was not my well mannered, obedient child who was screaming bloody murder when he found out he had to get his finger pricked. We play doctor at home all the time and are always jealous at our sisters frequent well baby checkups. How could this mom "lie" to her precious boy and tell him there were no shots this year, then restrain him and require multiple medical personnel to draw a little blood from his finger. Nope! Not my child!

At the store, while I was uploading and printing pictures, it was not my child who slipped a candy bar in his ~~purse~~ shoulder bag and then proceeded to show me his "treat" later asking to eat it. My child was brought up way better than to know how to steal!

Lastly, It was not my sweet, gentle child who decided to pick up rocks found in the playground mulch... and then throw them over then fence into a baby pool where other children were playing! Definately not my child!

You see...My children are sweet, obedient, and... perfect little angels!

(I'm sure you do not see those horns holding up their halo's!? LoL)

Growing with Leaps and Bounds...

2009-07-09T19:19:00.001-07:00

This post is a bit overdue but life has been a bit crazy busy lately! I want to dedicate this post to my beautiful children who are growing with leaps and bounds...

Nathaniel just had a birthday... a milestone of sorts. He is 5 years old! 5!... that sounds so old! .. 4 was ok, still little.. but 5 just sounds so grown up and indendent. 5 means many things... especially changes for fall. Nathaniel will be attending Kindergarten at the end of August. (gasp!) I'm not ready for this...

So.. This is what Nathaniel has been up to this past year...

He now knows his address, phone number, city and state and full name
We finished our first season of T-ball with Summerville Little league as our first team sport!
Nathaniel loves to ride his bike, play with blocks, and Love Hotwheel cars!
Were doing much better with eating habits... eating most meats, lots of fruit, rice, and pasta's... just need to work on those veggies!
Nathaniel's favorite food is Pizza! and favorite place to eat is Pizza Hut! (thanks to Daddy)
He loves to help cook and always enjoys making crafts (and gifts for others!)
We have moved out of a toddler bed and into a twin size bed!
One of his favorite things to play with are small legos.. He will spend hours creating and recreating many things.
We almost always use a "big boy" open cup unless were on the go...
He weighs 39lbs and is 41" tall
Nathaniel is just like his daddy and loves to curl up in front of the t.v to watch some Science Channel, DIY or National Geographic! (in addition to the normal cartoons we still love)
He is also always up for a trip to Daddy's work so that he can help him fix cars. Our favorite part is going in to toolbox to get out a pair of gloves!

Elliana is 7 months

She thoroughly enjoyed her first independance day! (fireworks and all!)
take all of our naps and spend bedtime in our crib
love to grab at things and is becoming more coordinated getting what we want... then getting it into our mouth!
eating more and more Rice cereal and starting fruits and veggies.
Elliana weighs around 16lbs but we won't go for another checkup till 9 months.
She is still wearing 3-6 months clothing and size 2 diapers except we are too long for them now so our sleepers and pants need to be 6-9! We may be a tall girl (: enjoy

It's so exciting to watch them grow and learn each day... so many new things to discover and enjoy! They are truly growing with leaps and bounds!

NOT ME! Monday

2009-07-06T20:56:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog at http://www.mycharmingkids.net/ to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week. "I created Not Me! Monday for the purpose of confessing our shortcomings and imperfections to each other since, after all, we are all only human!" (MckMama's words) Every Monday, you can find more "Not Me! Monday" at her site.

While on my first solo road trip with the kids this week I did not become a pro at feeding by infant daughter a bottle or getting her toys, pacifier, blankie, etc... while driving! That would not be safe and I would never do such things! Not Me!!When almost home I also did not get so excited to be home that I looked down and caught myself going 90mph! That is so dangerous and I am a much better driver than that! (The cruise control was set for the proper speed limit at the point!..) Before leaving for my trip I did not leave a sink full of dishes... that would get gross! And after being so tired from driving all day to get home I certainly did not leave the sink full of dishes (that were still there!) until morning.. I'm not that lazy! Nope, Not me! After waiting weeks to hear about a job that I was hoping for I did not go away for a week right before starting and not bother arranging childcare for my children. I'm way more organized and on top of things that that! I would never wait till the last minute and have to ask a friend to watch the kids for me. Lastly I did not suprise a good friend who I haven't seen in 2 years, in the middle of church, causing her to scream out during service! (cause of course, we were not late getting there!) I would never be disrespectful like that.. at church! Not Me! We had a busy but great week visiting friends in Pa! I wish we could have seen more people and had more time to visit... but it was quick and sweet. Hope you all had a great week as well!

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T21:13:00.000-07:00

In honor of Father's Day I wanted to take the time to post about the most special "daddy" in our lives, my hubby (: Married for almost 8 years, together for 12.. I can truly say that I am blessed to have Jake in my life, and in my children's lives. Here are a few of things I appriciate most about him.
Jake LOVES his children. Nothing is more special to watch then the time this daddy spends with his children. After a long day of work, first thing in the morning or for an afternoon sprinkler play.. Jake is always excited to make the kids smile, laugh and has lots of fun with them. Daddy's favorite activity would have to be "tickle time" Nathaniel and him go at it like crazy... giggling and squealing like crazy. Ellie is finally getting old enough to start giggling and really enjoying this time with daddy as well.
Jake Loves to cook for us. This is an attribute that I appriciate so much. Even after a long day, Jake is often willing and eager to cook us some yummy grilled food or make his special breakfast meals. Nathaniel also enjoys helping daddy cook and this becomes a special time they share.
Jake is an incredibly hard worker! As the bread winner, Jake provides for this family. Every morning he is awake and out the door, giving his all to help us have the things we need. He strives to do above and beyond. More than just putting in his time, Jake desires to push himself to do well and excel. In the heat, when exhausted, when not feeling well, and when unmotivated Jake continues to be there and do what needs to be done. Jake also desires to learn and improve his skills whenever possible, attending school, taking tests and earning certifications to better himself.
This is only a few of the things I love and appriciate about my hubby, my children's daddy... and I feel blessed to have him in our lives! Thank you hunny for all you do for us. I love you and thank God for you! Happy Father's Day!!
For Father's Day we woke up and made breakfast and let daddy sleep in and relax. Nathaniel and Landon helped and had a great time! First they both got to crack and prepare the eggs to be scrambled.. adding cheese to make them yummy!

Landon helped his mommy to stir the batter for the pancakes...

and Nathaniel loved helping to flip them and watch for them to finish

We did a good job together! and it was Yummy!!

Later in the day we all packed up and went over to Aunt Lauren and Uncle Brant's house with Nana, Grandpop, lots of cousins and Aunts and Uncles for a delicious cookout meal. We spent lots of time chatting, visiting and hanging out together and then headed home... after making one last pit stop. The day ended with a special suprise that I blogged about HERE.

This day has taken on new meaning over the last 4 years now that we have children of our own but will always be a day with some sadness... Today is a day I especially miss my daddy. It has been 17 years since we spent a Father's Day with him and I hate that he is not here celebrating with us and spending time with his grandkids. This year my daddy is spending a special Father's Day with his grandson, Brayden... and I know that he is getting lots of Father's Day hugs and love! What a celebration it must be! I love you Daddy... and can't wait to see you again! Happy Father's Day!!

South Carolina Aquarium

2009-06-19T19:42:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we packed all the kids up and headed to the Aquarium. Our friends Jessica and her son Landon are visiting from Pennsylvannia and we knew the kids would enjoy it. We started at the "touch tank" where the boys got to be up close and personal with starfish, hermit crabs, sea eneminnies, stingray, horseshoe crabs, and other under water creatures. They loved this!
We saw MANY different fish! This huge blowfish was a favorite as well as all the brightly colored and large fish we saw.

Jellyfish are always an awesome sight to see... such amazing

creatures they are.

Even Ellie enjoyed looking at all the big tanks and checking out the pretty fish from her front row seat!

By the time we headed home the boys were wiped out! Within minutes they were both sound asleep! .. what a day! ...

So glad we were able to go and have such a fun time!

NOT ME! Monday

2009-06-08T13:00:00.001-07:00

It's Monday again!... Man, do the weeks fly by...

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog at http://www.mycharmingkids.net/ to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week. "I created Not Me! Monday for the purpose of confessing our shortcomings and imperfections to each other since, after all, we are all only human!" (MckMama's words) Every Monday, you can find more "Not Me! Monday" at her site.This week after taking my son to the playroom at McDonalds to ~~stop driving me insane!~~ release some energy (since it was raining outside), I did not get suckered into having dinner there. We are broke and (suposed to ) NOT be eating out as much! Then when I went to order my husband and I's food I did not completely forget to order my son something! (oops!) Nope! Not Me!After hearing that April's Mom, B, was in labor I did not turn on my twitter updates back on my cell so that I would not miss a thing, and did not visit/refresh her blog about 1000 times to check for updates on sweet April Rose... did not tell my extended family all about them, making them so curious they began asking me for further updates all weekend! Nope! Not me!When I decided to put together a photo album of my son, I realized that I do not really have any printed pictures now that we live in this digital era... So I definately did not spend ALL day at Walgreens and CVS looking through and printing pictures to use.... (I have 2 small children and many other things to do with my time than that!)...and knowing that I do not take a ~~million~~ lot of pictures I certainly did not end up printing 800! Who takes THAT many pictures of someone under 2?! Nope! Not Me!
After a long, draining weekend I woke up feeling like one of those days I did not want to get out from under the covers... I did not convince my son to climb in bed with me watching cartoons so I could continue to snooze....and after a few hours of ~~trying to entertain and settle my extremely hyper son~~ playing, then needing some quiet "me" time I did not put both kids in their rooms to rest so I could check on my blogs and write this post! Nope! Not me! Hope you all had a great week! What have you Not been up to?

Six Months

2009-06-04T21:11:00.000-07:00

Elliana is 6 months old today! I can't believe how big my baby girl is getting! I absolutely LOVE this phase.. personalities really start to show and there is so much interaction. Ellie is learning new things every day and brings joy to our lives in so many ways. We love you baby girl!

Here are some of the things you have been up to...

You LOVE your jumperoo... you have mastered the art of jumping and have such a blast playing in this.

Anything and everything that comes near you.. is grabbed! You are doing so well holding onto things, playing with toys... and love to grab mommy's hair!

You have actually started taking a new pacifier! You don;t use it much.. but it helps to soothe you when it's time to sleep.

You also love your silky taggie blankie. We have started taking this everywhere as it seems to be a constant source of entertainment and comfort.

Your now rolling all over the place and scooting your way around somehow. You play nicely on the floor with all your toys for tummy time (until you decide to roll to your back)

Feet and toes are still some of our favorite things to hold onto, play with and even attempt to eat!

You are almost sitting up on your own! You get excited and wobble over but will hold yourself up with your arms/hands for a few seconds and try to sit up.

You have descovered how to squeal! (loudly!) and do it often! We also love to hear you babble and coo ( I think you enjoy hearing yourself!)

Your doing much better sleeping in your crib, even for naps! Mommy has been able to lay you down awake a few times and you have settled yourself down and gone to sleep on your own.

Were moving into size 2 diapers, beginning some more foods (though your not sure about any of these new flavors yet!)

You still love your cereal and eat a larger portion twice a day now.

You absolutely LOVE your big brother! It doesn't matter what he says, or what silly thing he does... you always smile and laugh at him! (more than anyone else!) It's soo cute!

We love you so very much Elliana and thank God every day for you!!

2009-06-01T21:30:00.000-07:00

To self soothe...

2009-05-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have been difficult with Elliana. I am trying to get her to sleep in her crib for naps during the day. Previously her swing was the only way to get her to fall asleep. Things have been slowly getting better.

Feeding her was what typically worked to get her to bed at night. Recently, this has changed. She will finish her bottle but not go to sleep... I will end up making a few more ounces just to try again. She needs that sucking comfort to settle. We have tried pacifiers since she was born. They have never really worked. We found one she would take for a few moments to settle down but the last 3 or so weeks she has stopped taking them all together.

I know that if she would allow herself to take the pacifier, it would give her the comort of sucking that she needs to help calm herself down. To be able to self soothe.

So the other day I dug out a different pacifier, ... one that is shaped more like the nipple of her bottles.

She took it right away! I was so shocked.

.... and it worked.

The pacifier helped her to settle down and she went back to sleep, peacefully.

What a relief!

I have never been so happy about one of my children accepting a pacifier!

But I feel blessed that we have a better solution for her to be able to soothe herself and get the rest she needs.

TAGS!!

2009-05-23T20:27:00.000-07:00

Elliana has a new facination... well I supose it's been going on for some time now, she just happens to be exceling recently (: TAGS! I knew that all babies and kids loved tags of things... but I don't remember my other children this young. At 5 months Ellie will find the tag of ANYTHING she is near. As much as she loves her taggie blanket, she will still go for the official tag over the many small tags surrounding the blankie. I took some fun pictures of her in the act, check out the determination on her face!

She see's the target... and moves in

grasping quickly with both hands!...

and then moving in for the ~~kill~~.... mouth!

SUCCESS!

It's the small things in life....

NOT ME! Monday

2009-05-18T14:06:00.000-07:00

Saturday, while washing our cars with the family I did Not remove my wedding rings and put them in my pocket! Valuable precious sentimental things like that don't belong in a pair of pants... I would definitely put something that special on my dresser if I wasn't wearing them!Then I sure did Not freakout Sunday when they were nowhere to be found. Keeping my family waiting in the car as I ~~tore the house apart~~ searched everywhere for them. Nope, Not Me!

The wonderful driver I am also did Not get a speeding ticket for going 9 over the speed limit (a whopping 34mph!) They don't need to ticket for that craziness! Fine's are for those driving really fast! And then on my way to traffic court I definitely did Not go even a little over the speed limit again since I was running late. (that ticket would have taught me a lesson, right!) Did not have to drive 2 blocks away to find a place to park, run swiftly into the building... just to find out the judge could not do anything to help, the fine had to be paid as is. Not me!

And lastly I did not go to the dollar store and try to pay with a credit card that was declined and have to put everything back. That would be so embarrassing. (Because I would Never forget that my morgage payment came out that morning and forget to transfer money!) Nope, Not Me! I would never do that!

Ahh.. Ok, feeling a bit better now!!

So.. What did you Not do this week??

Summer Spring Time Fun!

2009-05-17T21:11:00.000-07:00

After Nathaniel's t-ball game got rained out we made our way home... Had lunch and then the sun was back out shinning bright! Daddy got the idea to get us outside together and wash the cars...

Things quickly got ~~out of hand~~ very wet and the real fun began

Miss Ellie chillin, soakin in some sun.

Nathaniel LOVES playing in the water...

and had soo much fun!!

Lots of smiles and laughter were made...

and we all had a great time ... together.

With the 80's degree weather you would have thought it was mid summer... had to remind ourselves that it is still Spring! Looking forward to having so many months ahead for more fun memories outside.

5 Months

2009-05-12T20:49:00.000-07:00

~Elliana Grace~

I wanted to post this last week... but we were away on vacation and had no internet service.. so here we go...

My sweet Elliana, You turned 5 months old last week. I can't believe how fast the time goes. You are such a part of this family already and we wouldn't be complete without you. I am so blessed to have spent this amazing time with you. You are truly a gift, Our answer to prayer. I thank God for each moment he blesses me with. To be your mommy, to hold you and kiss you, to laugh with you and pray over you... I pray we are blessed with many many more moments.

Here are some things you have been up to this month:

*Started cooing and talking a lot!
*Smiles all the time
*Found your feet!... and discovered how to reach them!
*Started Rice cereal .. and love to eat it!
*Began reaching, learned to grab and began “playing” with toys

* You were Dedicated to the Lord
*Began sleeping on Your own room in your crib!
*wearing size 1 diapers (barely, were about to move up!)
*Finally grew into your 3-6 month clothes
*Went into playground swing for first time
*Started enjoying your jumperoo
*You Still Love your baby swing, especially when sleepy
*You have completely refused to take your pacifier any longer

You are such a joy to our lives. Can't wait to see what you will show and share with us next! We Love you more than you could ever know!!

"God is able to make all Grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work."

2 Corinthians 9:8

Sweet Kayleigh

2009-05-12T20:25:00.000-07:00

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My heart is broken for this sweet family...Please join me in prayer for them. They have a long hard journey ahead of them. Kayleigh is a precious miracle baby who was born almost 12 weeks early weighing only 1lb 1oz. She overcame so much in her early months and went through hundreds of surgeries and On Monday night, Kayleigh went to Heaven... to rest in the arms of Jesus. For 11 months this family spent endless hours by her side in the NICU and were never able to bring there little girl home. Click on the button above to read her story. It has been a long road for them but we can rest in peace knowing that she has been made new.. and is pain free and whole in her eternal home.

I love to picture what that must be like... running down the streets of gold... all the precious little ones who left this earth what feels like too soon. My precious Brayden was able to meet Kayleigh before I was! I hope they are enjoying being in the presence of our Heavenly father, and believe they are watching us from above.

Their journey has just begun. They will need our prayers for days, weeks, and years to come. Pray for Adam and Amiee, their marriage, their 2 older children. For a peace that passes all understanding, strength to make it through each step, and comfort that comes from the arms of our Heavenly Father who is holding them tight.

We can't wait to see you again one day sweet Kayleigh... Let Jesus Hold you till Mommy and Daddy can hold you again...

NOT ME! Monday

2009-05-11T09:16:00.000-07:00

I most certainly did Not let the bills pile up for weeks and spend the time I should have been getting ready for our trip playing catch up! Not Me!

In turn, I did Not wait till the last possible moment to do laundry and pack for vacation... resulting in a living room looking like this at midnight.. when we were suposed to leave at 7am the next morning! Nope, Not me!

I also did Not notice ahead of time that the office to check in our condo at closed at 6.. when we arrived at 6:40... and I surely did Not forget to bring the lock box code with me to get our keys! Nope! So before our vacation was even able to begin I did Not have to call my mom to check my email for me and get the code so that we could get in... and have a placve to stay for the night! Not me!
I also did Not spend too many unnecessary trips driving around Kissimee trying to find discount trickets ...just to save a couple bucks for Disney...Not Me!
(Lesson learned... next trip will be much different! lol)
We did have a wonderful time.. the kids enjoyed Disney and we made lots of memories! Which of course was Not captured on about 400 pictures in just 4 days! No way!

After spending the week in Florida, with no internet... I did Not stay up till 2am saturday night online playing catch up with all my blog's and getting filled in with the week I had missed! Not me!

I also did Not buy this new rocker for Ellie ... (that we truly don't have room for or need!) just because it was such a good deal off craigslist! and then I did Not put her on it at 5 months when she can't even sit up... just so I could get this cute picture! Not me! (She also did Not end up falling off since she has no sence of balance or security on this thing yet! ..oops! Since I did Not let go of her and allow her to get all excited... Definately Not me!)

What a week.. we made it! So thankful for all the good moments that made up for all my ~~terrible~~ un-researched, and unprepared vacation plans! Let the new week begin!

(Yay! I slashed out a word! (for the first time! lol) .. BTW... I definately did NOT just read through several ~~books~~ days worth of tweets from MckMama to find the one that explained how to do that, whew! I missed alot of tweets this week being away MckMama! (:

Thankful

2009-05-10T07:06:00.001-07:00

On This Mother's Day I wanted to reflect on how Thankful I am for my 3 precious gifts. Thankful to be called "Mommy"
Thankful for this incredible love
Thankful for the hugs and kisses
Thankful for the memories
Thankful for each moment...

~ Nathaniel Miller~

~Brayden Russell~

~Elliana Grace~

Happy Mother's Day!! Hope all the Mommy's in my life have a wonderful and blessed day.

God's Children

2009-04-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

We had Elliana dedicated at church this weekend. It was a special time... yet quite emotional. More so than I expected. It made me realize once again... that these children I carried inside me, prayed for, hold in my arms, cover with hugs and kisses, laugh and cry with... truly belong to GOD. He has merely allowed us to borrow them for this allotted time while they are here with us.
I know that I desire for God to have His way in their lives... whatever that may be. They are each such precious gifts, and I treasure every moment spent with them.

Lord, help me to Honor you in all I do... Help me to be the mommy that you desire me to be for these children, these precious gifts... from you. As we testify before You, our church, our family and friends, ... we give Elliana back to you.. We desire to raise her to love you and serve you with her Life. We look forward to leading her to Christ and teaching her about your amazing love for us. Bless her, pour out your Grace into her life, and use her to touch the lives of others. Let Elliana be a beacon of light and point those around her to you. Do not let us take simple things for granted. In the tired, frustrating, and difficult moments... remind us of the blessing and the gift she is. Give us wisdom, patience, and strength to love her as You love her.

Thank you for each moment we are given to be her parents and care for her, this side of Heaven. Thank you for answering our prayers for this beautiful little girl. Thank you for our precious, beautiful, princess, Elliana.

My GIRL....

2009-04-17T21:17:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned how much we are enjoying the "girly things in life these days?! ....

We decided she needed a few more frills....

A few weeks ago we had Elliana's ears peirced.

She did so well... and they look sooo cute!
For Easter, Mommy couldn't resist this adorable bracelet... cause every princess needs jewelry!! Precious...

I LOVE having a little GIRL!! Thank you Jesus for my beautiful Elliana, a true "answer to prayer"...

My little "Crafter"

2009-04-04T22:10:00.000-07:00

Lately, Nathaniel has been so into crafts. Almost everyday he will ask me if we can make some crafts! He loves coming up with creative things to make and give to family members.
The other day he asked for beads... After getting the bucket of beads and a few pipe cleaners I let him go create....

As he progressed he became very proud of his work... "Look Mommy, it's getting tall!"

A little later he ran over and told me that he had made a beautiful bracelet. "It's for you Mommy, cause I love you." (heart melted!) "Yes you may wear it today, it matches! you may wear it anyday!"

Do you love it??!! I DO!! And it so conviently matches everything! Such a special gift from a very special boy.. one I happen to love very much! Thank you Nathaniel!

Brayden's Name Gallery

2009-04-04T22:08:00.000-07:00

I added a link to Brayden's Name Gallery which has been started. I will upload pictures as I recieve them so please continue to send them to michellezieg@yahoo.com. Check it out!! Thank you to those who have participated in this special project to honor and remember our precious Brayden.

Wordless Wednesday...Beauty of Spring

2009-04-01T20:36:00.000-07:00

NOT ME! Monday

2009-03-30T10:40:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can normally head over to http://www.mycharmingkids.net blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing each week. "I created Not Me! Monday for the purpose of confessing our shortcomings and imperfections to each other since, after all, we are all only human!" (MckMama's words) Every Monday, you can find more "Not Me! Monday" at her site.

McKMama has had a higher calling this week. As many of you know she has been spending endless hours by the side of her precious Stellan, who remains in the PICU having heart problems. Please continue to pray for this family. In honor of McKMama and her McKMuffin some fellow bloggers have decided to take care of the Not Me Monday for her. So hop over HERE to the Cline Family Blog to see what others have NOT been up to this week. ~Stellan Style

Although not many read this blog, I couldn't resist adding my part to NOT ME! Monday. I love reading all the other post's on monday's and have wanted to join in on this project. So.. Here we go...
My week NOT for Stellan...

I most certainly did NOT spend ALL week checking my computer for updates, messages, and pictures of sweet Stellan and the McKFamily, nope NOT ME!

I did NOT try to come up with clever ways to explain who the McKFamily is and how I know them so that everyone could lift them up in PRAYER, and tell everyone about how special this precious family is. Including my husband who though thinking I'm nuts.. did NOT begin asking me daily how Stellan was doing.

I did NOT join Twitter and begin following Jennifer just so I wouldn't have to wait to get to my computer to hear how things are going. Nope! NOT ME! and My phone was not attached to my hand all week so that I wouldn't miss a single Tweet update from McKMama!

I did NOT tell all that I know the story of Stellan and pleed for prayers, calling all to flood the throne of Heaven on behalf of Stellan. I did NOT join facebook groups, post pictures, dedicate my status to Stellan and spread the news to ALL my facebook and blog friends... and certainly did NOT begin following many new Bloggers to keep up with everything.

My heart did NOT break for this Family and no tears fell as I did NOT weep for this sweet mother who is such a blessing to others, and for this innocent little boy who is going through so much. The begging and pleeding were NOT to my Heavenly Father to spare this family from the grief and pain we've had to endure this past year. NOT ME!
Father, we continue to lift up this Family to You. Put your arms around precious little Stellan. Bring your amazing Peace and comfort to McKMama and PC and their MSC. Give Grace and Your Will Be Done...
"Now to HIM who is ABLE to do immeasurably MORE than we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Eph. 3:20-21"

Now... to lighten things up a bit I can't resist sharing the events that did NOT occur this morning as I tried to get this blog posted.....

I did NOT leave 2 young boys outside unattended...... with a tool table full of water... and a bucket of dirt...

To create a HUGE muddy MESS!...

Of course I then did NOT toss them both into the tub to get cleaned off....

And NOT put them both to bed for naps

So I could FINALLY finish this blog! ... Nope!, NOT ME!!

(And naturally I did NOT go from yelling at them, ...to laughing... to taking pictures of this dirty event! Certainly NOT wanting to capture these moments forever... )

Brayden Name Gallery- I need your Help!

2009-03-28T06:32:00.000-07:00

OK so many of you have heard me recently talking about little Stellan and his McKMama. I read McKMama's blog on a regular basis and she is a blessing to many. God has given her a gift for writing, as well as photography and she shares her life adventures, advise, and MSC with us on a daily basis. Little Stellan is still in need of prayer, he is in PICU with a heart condition called SVT. A central line was put in yesterday which should help in being able to get him the IV med's that he needs to convert his heart to a Normal Sinus Rythm which is what he needs. Please continue to lift him and his family up in prayer.

Something that was done while McKMama was pregnant with Stellan was a name gallery. McKMama asked everyone to send pictures of Stellan's name so they could be made into a collage for his room. So much creativity went into this and it is worth checking out! click here to see Stellan's Name Gallery from last summer.

SO.. This is where I need your help.. I LOVE this idea so much that I would like to create a Name Gallery for Brayden. I love His name and when I hear or see it I am filled with thoughts and memories of my precious Brady boo. I would love to have a gallery of pictures with his name as a memory.

I know people don't often know what to say or are afraid to say anything about Brayden. It is still difficut and we miss him terribly everyday... but I LOVE to talk about my baby boy. I love to hear/see his name, and I love it when others remember him. Does it sometimes make me emotional? Do I cry talking about him? Yes.. Many times I still do. That is part of my grief journey.. and it is Ok. Please don't feel bad or hesitate asking questions or talking about Brayden.

If you would like to participate and help me create this gallery please send your photo to michellezieg@yahoo.com. Be creative! Need ideas? check out Stellan's Gallery for some! Please let me know where it was taken and/or what was used for his name.

Thank You! I am so excited to see these pictures!!

Blessings!

Michelle

Brayden's Mommy

T-ball fun!

2009-03-26T08:32:00.000-07:00

Last week we signed up Nathaniel for t-ball with the Summerville Little League. I can't believe my baby boy is old enough to play on a real team!! I can't wait to see him in his uniform and be sitting on the sidelines cheering him on! Even though it's only t-ball and only for fun I love that he has this opportunity to learn new skills, be on a team, feel the joy of accomplishment and strive to learn true determination when doing your best.

So.. to help prepare for his first te-ball season we bought a set to practice at home. Nathaniel has been so excited about it and asks ALL the time if he can go out to play!! I love hearing him say, "I need to practice my catching Mommy" and then later hearing, "Mommy, I'm getting better, I'm learning" ... What a cute grown boy He's becoming!

Couldn't resist sharing some pictures of Nathaniel and Daddy out back...

"Coach" Daddy spent time giving him pointers on how to hold the bat and hit the ball...

Not sure who enjoyed it more.. Daddy or Nathaniel! (.. Or mommy watching behind the camera, capturing these precious memories!! )

There will be lots of fun pictures to come as we join the team!

catching up....

2009-03-15T20:01:00.000-07:00

.... I wish I had more time to blog... I think of things all the time that I would love to write about. I always try and wait for the right time.. when I can sit down and spend time to blog.. well those moments don't come and time fly's by. I need to start taking advantage of even quick moments to update this and share whats happening in our world..
Here are some of the highlights...

Nathaniel got to be a "real racecar driver!"

Mom couldn't resist pulling out the jumperobo... we're still a bit too little, but I know we'll be loving this soon!

Our princess Elliana.... she's getting bigger everyday! Oh, how we love having a girl!

Life is so busy and days fly by! Hoping to find more time for updates in the future...

Family Blog

2009-02-01T12:11:00.001-08:00

So .. I'm getting into this blogging thing... I've decided to start this blog as a place to post updates on our family. I hope that all enjoy keeping up with the moments on our journey... More to come soon!