LAURA IS FOUR!!!!!


Can you believe it? My sweet little Laura Mae, turned 4. Wow! It sure has happened fast! But, I enjoy (almost) every minute of my time with her! She is a spunky and cheery little girl. I just love her to pieces! I am so thankful to the Lord for her in our lives! Here are a few pics to share the moments...



She wanted a cheetah cake, Why? Don't really know- but here it is!




Here's her place for her new stickers- always thinking outside the box!

Ready to open some gifts!

So, happy birthday, my dear sweet Laura!

I can't believe it!!

I can't believe it, the babies are 1!!! September 4, we celebrated their birthday-wow! It has been a whirlwind of a year. I hope I remember some of it! I was talking to my sister in law and we were discussing how we just don't remember all of those early times. Thank the Lord for pictures and movie cameras!

I can't imagine my life without these two bundles of joy. They are so great to have, I am so thankful to the Lord that He entrusted them to us, scary, but such a privilege.

Nathan is more laid back; Katelynn is more demanding

Nathan is walking now; Katelynn still scoots around, pulls up

Nathan loves his bottle; Katelynn insists on eating first, then drinking

Nathan is more fair-skinned; Katelynn has more of a brown skin tone

Nathan is all boy- climbing on anything, hitting toys (and anything) together, exploring

Katelynn is all girl- has the cutest little grin, "talks" all of the time, and cries easily

They are beautiful children and we love them dearly. Enjoy the pics...

Forty One!

So, last week was my forty first birthday! Wow! When I was young, I thought the forties were really old. Now, not so much any more! A lot has happened in my 40th year:

1) Obviously, the first thing, is that I turned 40 (ha! ha!)
2) I became pregnant, probably in Jan
3) I had twins in Sept
4) Emily started 1st grade, full days (this state has 1/2 day Kindergartens)
5) Claire started Pre-K
6) Jon turned 41, Claire 5, Me 40, Laura 3, the twins were born, and Emily 7, respectively
7) After that, I don't remember much more! Can I blame it on having 5 kids 7 and under? Probably should!

Looking back over my 40th year, I have realized:

At this point in my life, I am in a tough spot, again. I am in "the mother of little babies and small children" stage. Most of my time is spent being a mom and taking care of them and the household. Same ol', same ol'. Pretty much NOT exciting, at all. I get excited when I get to go grocery shopping by myself and splurge on a mocha frappaccucino from Starbucks- woo hoo! LOL!

I look forward to being able to do more things with the kiddos as the babies get bigger. I regret that the bigger kids miss out on a lot of things because of the babies. I just can't handle 3 young kids and 2 babies in a lot of public settings by myself (ex: the zoo, the children's museum, etc...) They miss out on swimming pools (no way am I taking 1 kid who swims at an advanced beginner level, and two who can't swim, and two babes- way too risky), sometimes playdates (can't/won't interrupt the nap times). I have been feeling very guilty for this. But, I am protecting them from probable danger, right? Being a parent is so tough. I know this is a stage we'll all get through, but, it is hard, nonetheless. I am thankful that I do attend a mom's group very similar to Mothering Matters back in AR. I really look forward to that meeting 2x a month.

I really want to try to have, maintain, and even achieve some personal goals this year. 1) The first one is to renew my walk with The Lord. My faith is still there, but my daily walk is pretty much nothing. I really have a hard time sitting down to spend QUALITY time with the Lord. Sure, I can sit at the computer and spend 5 min, but it's not the same personal investment to me. So, I want to work on that. 2) I want to work on my marriage, becoming closer to Jon. Having small children, twins, and Jon's jobs has had it's toll on us. Please pray for us, as well. 3) I also want to work on having a healthier life style, especially with with how I eat. I didn't think I ate that bad until I really started to look at what I bought at the store, lots of snack foods, fried foods, etc... I go to the fast food places way too much. So, I will start with small changes. One change, for instance, is for me to eat more turkey and fish- much more healthier. 4) I want to work on my money management. It needs a lot of discipline. As manager of the home, I am the manager of the grocery and household budgets. There is always room for improvement and change.

So, there is some of my thoughts and goals for my 41st year. I hope to keep you updated on the progress, when I find the time!