Make it rain!

It's March Madness time, and my boys promptly pulled the basketball goal from the younger boy's room Thursday night. Much fun was had as Clay taught the boy about basketball. The girl so wanted to get involved, but mostly just got run over or pushed out of the way. Here are some fun shots and a video so you can hear the boy makin' it rain!

ZOO redeux

I made a trip to the zoo with both kids for the second time last Thursday. We enjoyed the day with Grannylou, Aunt Kristi, Dylan, Kadyn, and a couple of Kadyn's friends. We couldn't have asked for better weather and crowd (especially for it being spring break). I think we all had a great time. The boy finally enjoyed the animals instead of just the water at each exhibit. The girl also enjoyed the animals, but not being contained in the stroller (see her unhappiness to the left - and we hadn't even started seeing animals yet!). I didn't take a ton of pictures because we were having so much fun - and I only have 2 hands/arms and 2 kids who wanted a better view. We spent over 4 hours there - I think visiting the zoo will be a must again this spring & summer.




Here is the girl entralled with this gorilla. I was so excited to watch her find it. The lion put on the best show with multiple roars right after we walked up. The boy practiced his roar once the lion laid down!

Trying to get a better look...

Look Grannylou, an elephant!





"Climb, climb, climb," he said, and then he simply tried to get a better look at the cow in the petting area. The animals weren't much for being touched while we were there, but the boy did pet a chicken. I was so proud he touched it. The girl promptly crashed for a brief moment...but it didn't last long because she didn't want to miss a thing!




The boy wasn't too thrilled about stopping to take pictures, but we did capture me getting some little boy lovin'. I know the days of public displays are short lived.

You know you're tired when...

you fall asleep right where you're playing -

especially when your bed is only a few steps away!!!

The kids + outside = LOVE

Our kids LOVE to be outside. I am thankful, but dreading the late summer heat. I am also thankful we got the boy a swing set for his birthday last year so playing outside can simply mean opening the back door - no need to look presentable! The girl loves to swing as much as her brother, and he is finally tall enough to maneuver climbing up the slide all by himself. After almost 2 hours outside this morning, I was only able to lure them indoors happily with the promise of Super Why! and snacks. I foresee this being a regular routine now that spring is here.

Yesterday was another wonderful spring day so I opened the windows to air out the house. The girl stood like a captive longing for freedom at the front windows for about half an hour. It didn't help that she kept seeing her daddy "enjoying" the outdoors as he pulled limbs and bags of leaves to the street for pickup. She couldn't seem to understand why he was getting to have all the fun!
I couldn't resist posting this picture - don't you just love that smirk? We are discovering what a joyful handful little miss will be in the coming years. Yes, you can begin increasing your prayers for us now!

Pop turns 60!!!

Today is a special day in our family - Pop turned 60!!! We gathered to celebrate our patriarch with steaks, potatoes, and key lime pie or cupcakes (depending on your age). Family gatherings are quite an adventure these days with 4 kiddos running around - especially when cake is involved! We were able to enjoy Pop and Grannylou's backyard playground thanks to warm weather. Here are a few snapshots of the fun I think was had by all.

Simon Update

Here is a copy of Sherry's blog post from just a few moments ago. Praise God!

Friday, March 14, 2008

Great News about Simon!
Simon's hearing went amazing this morning! My mom and dad get to pick him up at 3:00 today and will have custody of him from now until he gets to be back with Amy and Allen. What an answered prayer! Also, Amy and Allen have very good visitation rights... they can be with Simon most of the time! YAY! This is a HUGE praise! Thank you for your prayers, God is great. This is a big step in getting Simon back with my sister and Allen. Continue to pray that he will be back with them soon.I will post pictures of Simon with my family as soon as I can!

Sherry Clemens
http://ourlifeouthere.blogspot.com/

Blog-apalooza continues

I've been in quite the blogging mood lately. It's probably just a convenient excuse to put off things I know need to be done but sure aren't as much fun! (Maybe I should work on becoming a poet...)

Anyway, there is a new sound in our house..."ma ma, ma ma" It is music to my ears. Yesterday the girl finally distinguished it from "na na" and lovingly uses it when she wants me or wants me to do something for her. The boy graciously joins in when she says "dada" or "mama" - they just love to feed off each other so we get a lot of things in stereo.

The boy has a new love too - Super Why! It's a great show on PBS that teaches reading, writing, and storytelling. He's got the phonetics down for most of his letters - I am just too proud because I've not really worked on that with him - thank you LeapFrog magnetic letters!

I'll hush...there are plenty of posts to keep you busy for a while and I have a few things that need to get done.

Will you pray?

I've debated for days whether to ask you to pray, but I realized today that I need to do so. There is a family I don't know in an unthinkable situation in regard to their son Simon...and they need our prayers. We are in this fight of life together as brothers and sisters whether we know each other or not.

Abby shares the story well so I will send you on to her...Until Next Time and encourage you to blog-stalk a bit as you link through to Amy's blog and Sherry's blog to learn more.

I also ask you to pray for Richard and Jennifer (Jennifer is Sherry's best friend) whose 3 month old daughter died unexpectedly Monday, March 3rd.

I know of another couple who lost their baby this week (they were 11 weeks pregnant) and another little girl born yesterday who is fighting for her health after labor complications.

I cannot fathom what these families are experiencing and I am drawn to my knees. I hope you are too.

Generations

I've always enjoyed the generation pictures I've seen so I made sure to get one of Clay, Granddaddy, and the boy when we took professional pictures together. Not wanting the girl to feel left out, we took Grannylou with us on the last photo shoot for a similar picture. The photographer asked us a few questions while setting up and we realized some crazy similarities between the two pictures taken. I thought I would share them and allow you to see how much the genes seem to follow the gender line.



Picture taken: May 2006
The boy is almost 11 months.
All men are the first born in their family.
Look how much the boy has changed!









Picture taken: February 2008
The girl is 12 months.
All gals are the babies in their family.



And yes, I realize my mother and I have the same smile lines...at least I know what I'll look like in 28 years. I need to scan a picture my mom found of me at 18 months...it is the girl with a bit more hair! CRAZY!

Can't sleep!

What do you do when you can't sleep? Blog, of course!

Yes, this is becoming a habit I'm not too fond of, but lately my heart has been heavy for loved ones and others I don't know. After praying and reading, I often need something light to close down the day. Messing around with my template and sharing moments from our days is a wonderful therapy. Make sure to catch up as I've blogged every day this week!

Billy Graham here we come!

I'm sure you've noticed the new ticker above my posts. In just a little over 3 weeks, my grandmother and I head to Charlotte, NC to visit the Billy Graham Library. I heard about the BGL while watching a TV special on Ruth Bell Graham last fall. When I learned my grandmother, who so loves Billy and Ruth, had never been, I longed to be able to take her. My amazing man encouraged me to follow my heart's desire regardless of the cost.

I can't tell you how excited I am about this trip. I'm looking forward to learning more about my grandmother (my only living grandparent and the one I've always been closest to) and experiencing something new together. I will also get to enjoy a few days away from my sweet husband and adorable children - a first in years. I've never been gone more than 24 hours nor been this far away since kids came along. Minus one overnight women's retreat 2 years ago, my last trip by myself was in February 2001 (to North Carolina amazingly enough)!

I've always enjoyed North Carolina - it's so beautiful, holds the mountains and the beach and has been a bit of a home away from home at various points in my life. Once again it will hold a special memory for me. So if you hear lots of giggles from the east in early April, know that we are having the time of our lives.

(You can begin now praying for Clay who will pull single-parent duty for 3 days! God bless him for sending me away...he is a good man, a great husband, and an amazing father...and he knows I need this more than I realize.)

Road trip - for the guys anyway!

Clay and 4 other guys headed to Memphis last Thursday to go hunting. Yes, they drove 8 hours to hunt. Don't ask - I'm still not sure I understand. Anyway, they had a great time and got 19 birds amongst them - even in 20/30 degree weather. Clay's folks graciously put all of them up for 2 nights and kindly delivered about 4 inches of snow their second night. (Yes, I realize that I said Clay + 4 guys and there 6 in the picture - I really can count - Clay's dad joined them for the fun!)

The snow and resulting tractor trailer wrecks gave them additional bonding time as it took them 4 hours and 15 minutes to make it from Memphis to Little Rock - normally a 2 hour stint. Here is some of the "carnage" they saw...but it wasn't enough to keep them from wanting to make this an annual event.

Practicing

I got the camera out to catch the girl on the phone, but she failed to keep posing. I did catch this cute one of her loving on one of the happies she brought home from her friend's birthday party Sunday. She is all about loving on dolls and stuffed animals. It is too cute...especially when she pats them like we often do to her. Notice that she is free standing - she's coming right along!

I am less than brilliant - I took video of the girl walking on her own (she's getting more comfortable and often trying to walk first) and then I realize I had the camera turned (give me a little break - it was my digital camera)! So turn your head to the side and enjoy...and no children were harmed during this taping! (Make sure to pause the player at the bottom of the blog if you desire to hear what the kids are saying.)

Not so camera happy

Remember that photo shoot I talked about a couple of weeks ago where the little priss was less than cooperative? Well, the actual prints turned out better than I expected. We purchased some simply for posterity, but not really for sharing. This free compilation shows best her refusal to flash that melt-your-heart-smile. You might have to make the image larger to see her forced smile as she sits next to the chair. I absolutely LOVE this closeup of her face and the more artistic feel of the rest of the shots. I'm actually quite pleased. Enjoy!

"Every great oak tree was once a nut that stood its ground."

- author unknown but passed on by my mother

Shifting focus

Ruth Bell Graham shares about a night she woke up with the name of a loved one on her heart and mind. Her imagination ran wild with fears until the Lord said to her, "Quit studying the problems and start studying the promises." After shifting her focus from her worry to worshipping God, she realized that "worship and worry cannot live in the same heart; they are mutually exclusive."

I am an analyzer - often to my own detriment. At a time when those I love are dealing with uncertainty and hurts that easily weigh me down, I needed this reminder to focus on WHO He is instead of the what ifs.

Shifting my focus changes my perspective.

Followed by a messy night

The girl loves using a spoon so much now that she won't eat as much if I try to feed her. She is naturally messier than her brother, and she made such a mess tonight with her yogurt that I had to take pictures. She truly enjoys her food. She is so proud!



The boy saw the camera and immediately started saying, "Cheese!" I obliged his need for attention and got this great shot.