Our MLK Day

Ever had one of those weeks?!?  Last week was that week for me and Kate!  It was BAD, for us... According to another person's standards, you may think I'm a wuss, but none the less it was a hard week.  I'd like to chalk it up to the 5 straight days of rain and not being able to get as much energy out...but come on people...there are parts of the world that don't see sun for months!  I know I lived there once! ;o)

Anyway, Daddy Lion was headed out of town on Sunday night for a week long conference since Monday was a holiday for the kids we tagged along.  It was safest for the girl that way!  I needed as few nights alone with her as possible.  We sneaked in an extra suitcase and just told the kids we were taking Daddy Lion to his meeting.  Then they helped him carry up his luggage.  After unpacking his bag, they wanted to see the swimming pool!  He said well, you have to unpack my other bag.  When they opened it they found their swim suits!  Oh the joy!!!  We heart indoor swimming pools!

This morning we were able to spend a little bit with him before he headed out.  Then we hit the road for our adventure. First stop the Krispy Kreme Doughnut shop we passed on the way to the hotel!  ;o)  I had never been and the kids hadn't either!  Oh my!  So glad we don't have one anywhere near...I can usually pass up a doughnut, but WOW!  That was YUMMO.

Next stop, the Imagine It Children's Museum of Atlanta.  Another first!  The kids loved it!

This pic is for Papaw: 

The special exhibit was the Magic School Bus Storms.  (I'm sure there was a much more clever name, but you know.)  Blake loves Magic School Bus.  Maybe not enough to pose with Ms. Frizzle, but he humored his mom anyway!  ;o)

One of the rare moments when they were together!  (And I had to retake the pic because Blake was running off in the first one!)  I must say my kids were among the oldest there, but taking them at this age is WAY more fun for me....I found a bench near by and pulled out my kindle!  

Moon Sand the way it should be done!  (Somewhere other than my house!) 

They ran and played for hours!  Just what we needed after the last week we had!  Praisin' Jesus for the little details.  He sees us through the storms (no matter how little they may be)!

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD you God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;"

Isaiah 43:2-3a

The beginnings...

As you can see I started updating my blog a little bit...
I was inspired by my besties blog...
Then reality hit and I didn't finish...
Seems to be a running theme with me these days!  ;o)

Keep checking back, you'll never know when I actually do complete it!

A momma's pride

Today was a rainy, cold day...50 is cold people!  ;o) 

A perfect day for catching up on the last month of ironing that's been thrown over the ironing board in my room!  One of the last items was to iron on my boy's stars from basketball. 

 This is his first year, I'm just so proud that he is playing!  Remember this is the same kid who at 3 absolutely refused to wear anything with a ball of any kind on it because he did not play that sport.  The same kid who anytime anything came home from school would inform me before I pulled it completely out:  "I don't want to do that mommy!"  

SO very proud he stepped outside his comfort zone.  So very thankful for a p.e. coach that gave him confidence last year.  If you are unfamiliar with Upwards Basketball, you are missing out!  Really though, I'm so thankful for this positive way to introduce them to Basketball and Cheer!  Each week at practice they spend time working on their skills, but also they have a short devotional and prayer time and work on scripture memory.  Every game they receive stars:  the green stars are for participation.  The first week I was so proud of him for receiving the white star for being Christlike!  (He had helped a player up off the floor after a fall.)  Last week was red for effort.

²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, ²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Colossians 3:22-24

Things already learned in 2013....

1)  I'm not one to make new year's resolutions....and this is why: I'VE ALREADY BLOWN IT!  I told myself that this year I would be more intentional about the blog...try to add even a little tid bit each day!  Well, as you can see it is the 11th of Jan and I'm posting for the first time!  I really am going to try to do better.  With the news of special people giving up Facebook and with no family nearby, the importance of keeping it updated is huge!  So I give you permission to hold me accountable...nag me if you need to!  I cannot believe I just typed that, but I know I need the help! 

2) I'm a moocher.  Or at least I realized I have been in the past.  As I attended Little Lion's first Basketball game EVER and Little Pumpkin's first cheer experience, I realized this fact.  I'm not the typical moocher, it's just with cameras!  We have always had a close friend or family member come to events with very good cameras, so what's the need to invest in one myself!?! 

Let me present exhibit A:

Exhibit B:

Exhibit C:

Exhibit D:

So, all my camera guru family and friends: HELP!!!

Please email, text, Facebook...whatever works for your camera picks...Now, I'm no fancy photographer, but I want a camera that's gonna last me...no more point and shoots!

3)  Enjoy the small moments!  I'm really trying to let go of the things that don't matter and embrace the things I'll never get a second chance at.  So, if you come visit this year I pray you find me leaving the floors a little messier while I'm curled up on the couch with a book and one or two kids; the ironing may not get done same day out of the laundry so that I can be a cheerleader with one and for the other; the toys may be out on the floor instead of neatly put away because YES we live here and I want my children to remember playing with mommy more than mommy always cleaning!

Praying for 2013 despite my slow beginnings!     

When my kids make me smile!

If I was honest with myself, I've probably been dealing with a little bit of depression.  It seems to be stemming from selfishness...a pity party for myself of where I am and what I am without.  The frustrating part is that I know it...I know that I am NOT the center of the world, that life is NOT all about me and that GOD's timing, ways and thoughts are NOT my own!  So why do I continue to wallow and miss out on what's going on around me?!?

I'm slowly coming around.  Yesterday morning was a beautiful picture of what I've been missing while in my self absorbed state.  After doing our morning devotion (praising Jesus for the God Time cards the kids get from church!), Kate was sharing about a little girl from church.  It was a long story of how Kate really wanted to get to know her, but was too shy to talk.  Then finally one Sunday they talked.  As talk of school began, they realized they were going to the same school and hoped to be in the same class.  Then first day of school...they WERE in the same class and now we are best friends Mommy. (of course everyone is her best friend except for the boys) Anyway, across the room Blake says "That's a God thing.  That's how He rolls!"  SMILE!

Same morning after dropping Blake off, Kate and I are listening to the radio.  Her favorite song these days is God's not Dead by Newsboys.  (Thank you Papaw for the cd!)  Mind you this song is not playing as we go down the road.  She says to me:  "Mommy, you know what the people who sing God's not dead, He's surely alive are missing?"  Surprised I said No.  With a huge smile one her face she says "ME"  pointing to herself then BELTING out the chorus!  SMILE!

So today, I'm praising my Jesus for kids who love Him and bring me to Him when I find myself to busy in my pity party to come to Him or even see Him!  Thank for the smiles through two of the best gifts you've given me!  Please don't let me allow these days to pass without relishing them.  It may not be where or how I envisioned, but it is your perfect will for us right now.

Blessings!

We have SO very much to be thankful for this year and every year!  We hit the road last Monday and made our way back to Texas to celebrate with friends and family that we haven't seen in a while.  The kids were so excited to see their friends again.

I don't know how I missed getting pictures, shame on me! The kids had their first sleep over on Tuesday night at the Z's house.  ALWAYS a blast there.  Chia Lu will have to share any pics she got of the four of them.

We had a Thanksgiving dinner with Lolly, Pop, Z's and Papaw on Wednesday night so that we could eat on the leftovers longer!  ;o)  What a crazy night...I know Papaw got some great pics, so I hope to post them later.  After dinner we ditched the kids at the White House and enjoyed some quiet time.

I "borrowed" some pics from the best blogger ever!  While the kids waited on lunch they had a mid-morning swim...what?!?  You don't go swimming on Thanksgiving Day?!?  Neither do I, brrr...

They had a blast...you try getting 6 kids under 9 to look at the camera at the same time while in the swimming pool!  

I managed to squeeze in some cuddle time on the couch before lunch.  He is the cutest!  

Good friends are such a blessing!  I pray they never forget each other!!!

With Thanksgiving over (almost),  Little Pumpkin was ready to get into the Holiday spirit!  Christmas nails with Lolly.  Truly a favorite thing to do while at Lolly's!

Another favorite at Lolly & Pop's?  Cuddle time.  Cute boys...couldn't resist getting this pic!  Surprised Pop's eyes are actually open! ;o)  

Our last meal together was chosen by Little Lion, "Shotguns."  I know that sounds like an appropriate name for a Texas restaurant, however, it is actually Shogun.  A hibachi style Japanese restaurant that the kids love....as you can tell they were mesmerized by the chef!   

Saying goodbye is hard to do.  So why not stall it with some pictures!  I have never seen my kids so opinionated on poses and arrangement of people in the picture.  I will say, I'm glad we got this one with Papaw.

What a great way to spend our Thanksgiving break enjoying some of the people we are most Thankful for!  Love you all!

Belated Birthday

I've been under the weather for the past week, so that's my excuse for the delay in posting Kate's birthday pics!  ;o)  However, don't let the title fool you!  We celebrated on her birthday without delay....she would not have let us postpone for ANY reason!  Here she is sporting her first birthday gift of the day: a purplicious outfit!

After a full day of school, we headed to gymnastics then to the restaurant of her choice.  Okay, I'm not gonna lie, I did not accept her first choice of McDonald's!  But finally we found a good second: BlueFin!  It's a local Sushi Bar... and YES she did eat Sushi for dinner.  (Okay, it's "cheater" sushi according to our waiter since it's cooked, but it's my favorite too!)  After stuffing ourselves, we still had room to walk next door to the frozen yogurt place!  Daddy let her get 6 toppings!  She did not make it through them all.  ;o)

Finally, home for presents!  We started off the night skyping with her bestie, Mary.  They were so sweet to mail a special gift...a diary that she has not put down since!  I LOVE it!  I was SO enjoying seeing their sweet faces, I didn't take a single picture...bummer.

Kate was so excited to get her OWN scooter.  This item has been the center of many heated debates at our house recently.  So a welcome sight for this momma too!

GRAPE!  No little girl can have too much purple, or pink or baby blue (apparently the new favorite)!  I think the huge purple bean bag was a hit Papaw!  Thank you!!!

Lolly and Pop scored big with the new Strawberry Shortcake friends!  Cherry Jam was a new one we had not even seen yet.  She wanted to break into them right away to play...unfortunately we were getting really close to 9 o'clock on a school night!  (We are normally in bed by 7:30!)

 The best part of her gift from Grandpa and Grandma Myers was them being here in person!  She got a very special purple Bible from them, which we used immediately that night for our devotions.

Still struggling to wrap my brain around the fact that she is SIX years old!  The fact that she is starting to read  as I type is mind boggling!  Love this little girl....though still praying for rapture before the tween years!  PEOPLE get READY it is coming!  ;o)  

Fall break!

The county school here in GA is closer to a year round school schedule (at least that's what they say).  So we started the beginning of Aug but now we enjoy a week off for fall break!  No complaints here! ;o) With Grandma & Grandpa here, we decided this was a great time to take a mini vacation.  So we spent a few days down in Atlanta seeing some of the highlights.

Wednesday we started at CNN, taking the studio tour.  It was very interesting to see the "behind the scenes" of the everyday news.  Kate did was an anchor with the help of Daddy reading the teleprompter to her.  Blake did the weather for us:

and they both experimented with the green sheet:

The face is compliments of a comment Daddy made...it doesn't take much these days!

Grandpa getting a picture...loved this one!

Next we headed to the GA Aquarium.  The kids found these dolphins out front, so we had to stop for pics!

I'm glad we did because my phone battery died and I didn't get any pic inside the aquarium, bummer!  I'm sure I'll get some from Grandma's camera.  We got to see the Dolphin Tales show...that was pretty cool.  I think Dolphins are my favorite next to active otters!  ;o)  The aquarium was closing early for an event so we missed some things, but the kids were okay with that since our next stop was THE COCA~ COLA MUSEUM!  

Cracks me up, but they both remember that more than the aquarium...I think it's all about the amount of pop they consume at the end of the tour!  I will admit though, it is a very interesting place and they seem to keep it that way.  We were there last year at Thanksgiving and there were new exhibits on display.  My favorite this time around were all the different torches from the Olympics!  Never realized they used a different style each year...pretty cool.

We finished off the night with a yummy dinner at Legal Seafoods and a dip in the pool at the hotel!

Our first/only stop on Thursday was the Atlanta Zoo!  What a blast.  This was our first time there and I was impressed with how well they maintained such an old zoo (est 1889!) and they pack a lot of things into a small park.  This is Willie B the gorilla...they had a very large gorilla exhibit, my favorite one.

The kids were able to enjoy unlimited rides on the train, carousel, and rock climbing wall.  I lost count how many times Blake rode the train!  Crazy boy.  

Someone had the great idea of telling the kids no dessert unless they reached the top!  They both made it...guess who first?!?  She loves her some dessert.  ;o)

On our way out the kids found another dolphin!

I love trying new places, so we found a high ranked pizza place on urbanspoon: Antico Pizza!  It was quite the experience and very yummy besides...we'll go back without the kids someday!  ;o)  After pizza we had to find a dessert place due to our promise...what did we ever do without smart phones!  Found a Kilwins at Atlantic Station, another first for us.  Not disappointed at all...of course how could you not go wrong with ice cream, fudge, caramel apples, shaved ice.....The choice was hard! 

Again the end of our day found us in the pool at the hotel!

Day three found us at Fernbank Museum of Natural History.  It was the first day of the Genghis Khan exhibit, very interesting!  They had a neat hands on area and the NatureQuest interactive play area was great for the kids!  I'm sure they could have stayed another hour or two there!

Behind the kids is the world's only fully mounted Argentinosaurus, the largest dinosaur ever classified!  

What is a road trip without a meal at Cracker Barrel?!?  We stopped and filled our tummies one last time before arriving home.  It is good to sleep in my own bed without snoring kids in the bed next to us!

a GROWING tradition

Although I was very sad that the weeping willow in our front yard died shortly after we purchased the house, I am very excited about watching our new tree grow with our children! 

We planted a tree in Oregon soon after Blake was born and I was very sad to live it behind a year later.  I had high hopes of taking a picture of it with Blake every year. So here we are in a new town with our new tree and hopeful a new tradition of picture taking!  

Legoland or Bust

So it was the Little Lion's big day!  It fell on a Saturday which always makes it more fun.  Since we are so new to the area and this momma wasn't ready for the chaos of a b-day party, we opted for a day of fun - his choice!  

So Saturday found us on the road to the Atlanta area where we spent the morning at Legoland Discovery Center.

Learning how Legos are made.

That's how much he weighs in lego bricks!  I didn't try this one! ;o)

Little Lion had made the comment that my profile pic on facebook was of Little Pumpkin and I, was I ever going to put a pic of him and me on there.  We tried several times through out the day...but this was the best we got.  He was just not interested in standing still long enough for a pic!

Dreams coming true!  Building till his heart's content.  There were two "adventure" rides and lots of different stations where you created.  Here he is building a structure to stand the test of an earthquake.  Success.

They even had a great GIRLS area including karaoke, cupcake legos and LOTS of pink. 

This was her creation during the Master Builders Academy.  (forgot to get a pic of Little Lion's)  It's a "water park" with steps to a diving board, a fruit tree and a "regular" tree.

Birthday Boy's choice!  I promise I did not sway him!!!

This is the SPUD MAX for those of you unfortunate to not know about McAlister's!  The best spud in the world.  Side note only about 3/4 of the skin was left of this thing!!!!

Yummy cookies for dessert!

The evening was topped off with special calls from friends and even a Skype session!

PRESENT TIME! PRESENT TIME! OPEN THE PRESENT AND SEE WHAT'S INSIDE!

(can't say I miss Blue)

It was a team effort!

And I do mean the whole team!  ;o)

He was so excited about all his great gifts!  In fact as I type this it is 10:35PM and Daddy Lion and him are having an all night Wii fest...we'll see how long they last! lol

So special to have Grandma and Grandpa Myers here all the way from Oregon to celebrate with him!  

We never wait long to break into the Legos...this one was a family event!

Thank you to all who sent your sweet bday wishes to him throughout the day!  I had him read/ listen to every one of them.  We miss you all. 

Where have the last NINE years gone?