Eli

                                                Eating a healthy snack

                               

                                       On a walk with Daddy

Connor - 5 months old

                                             Connor and Abby

                                                  We like the Bumbo

                                                Such a sweetie!

Daddy and his Boys

Everyone's happy in this pictures except for one person...can you tell who?  Not sure what the face was for! :)

Brotherly Love

Brad and Connor - 4 months old

My love for my family....

I feel like the most blessed girl in the world! I have a wonderful husband, healthy kiddos, quality friends, and a great church family. What more can a girl ask for? I think that being a wife and a mommy is the most fulfilling job a girl can have. Yes, you have late nights and are exhausted, yes, you are not the most stylish girl in town-in fact, your t's probably have juice stains and holes in them like mine, yes, you are at home a lot, yes, you have to do a lot of laundry, BUT somehow the Lord gives you the most joy and satisfaction in this great job. It's neat to see how when you follow God's perfect plan there is the most satisfaction and joy. I delight to see the "fruit" in what we are teaching and planting in Eli's heart...yes, he is still very young to understand many things but he understands simply that we love him, expect him to behave as Christ would call him to behave, and we love others well. Lord, it is humbling to think that you have trusted us with these two hearts and lives to mold and shape. Please equip us to train Eli and Connor up to love and honor you with their lives and to love others well! May we be able to model that well for them.

My Birthday

For my birthday I felt extra special and loved! Brad surprised me with flowers, candle, dinner from one of my favorite italian restaurants "Noodles", and a chocolate cake. He also gave me a gift card to my favorite store TJMaxx. We had to celebrate early since Brad was going to be gone to China. My friends came over Saturday (after Brad left) and made it extra special by treating me to Olive Garden...all this pasta is going to add a few pounds... and sweet gifts. Leah knows how much I love pottery and gave me a beautiful piece that I have proudly displayed in the kitchen. Angie surprised me with some great nail polish and adorable thank you notes. My "winter" toes needed some sprucing up. Shannon gave me some very stylish jewelry which will dress up my every day mom attire of tshirts and jeans. :) Marilyn came to visit while Brad was gone and brought a delicious chocolate cake (I think I ate over half myself..I have a serious sugar addiction) and some beautiful flowers which brighten up my kitchen and make me smile. My friend Jacqueline is so talented and made me a great broach to wear to dress up my outfits. My cousin...who is more like a sister...blessed me with a gift card to Red Lobster so that my hubby and I can have a date night! I feel incredibly blessed by everyone. Thank you!

Build and Grow

Brad found the "Build and Grow" program at Lowe's where you take any child to build different things. They provide "small" equipment for these little hands to use. I think Brad enjoys it more than Eli at this point. If you aren't able to attend you can go and pick up the kit to complete at home. So... the recent project, in honor of Nascar, was a race car. It has become Eli's favorite toy. Daddy did a great job putting it together!

Big Boy...Big Changes...Big consequences

When Eli turned 2 something turned on inside of him. He is becoming a "chatter box" with a language only he knows. I affectionately say "uh huh and oh, really...tell me more Eli"! It frustrates him when I don't act like I know what he is talking about. :) He takes great pride in things that he can do... throws things in the trash, puts clothes in the hamper for momma, helps momma sort the laundry into separate bins (momma has to go back and re-sort after Eli is done "helping"), gives Connor his blanket, brings momma things that he can reach, and many other things. One of his favorite things to do is sort through the pantry when momma is in the kitchen. He learned a tough lesson about throwing recently while he was sorting through the pantry. He picked up the cranberry juice that I had just bought and threw it on my recently mopped floors!!!! I know, I know...why did I have a glass bottle within reach of my curious little 2 year old?!? As I stood there thinking about how the rest of my morning will be spend cleaning up the mess I reminded myself that this is partly my fault. BUT I wanted to take this opportunity to teach him a good lesson about throwing so...I chose to let him stand in it for a minute and then I explained the consequences of throwing. Did he understand everything I was saying...probably not...but what he did learn was that Momma didn't like what he did, and he isn't supposed to throw. :) Lord give me your patience and wisdom as I raise this curious, willful, compassionate little boy. Help me to laugh often and enjoy this season of his little life...it will pass so quickly.

We found Eli a new chair that is just his size... He loves it!

Taking bites now...no cut up food anymore

His own chair

Recently purchased bottle of cranberry juice all over my "just mopped" floors. It was sitting in the pantry and Eli found it. I was on my hands and knees the whole morning cleaning up slivers of glass.