new designs

so i've been busy creating some new blog headers and updating my other blog along the way. it's been fun meeting people through this internet world and making them happy with a new look for their blogs. you can check out my newest designs here.  

a milestone for my girl

well monday night my little peanut took another baby step into being a big girl. ella finally lost her FIRST TOOTH!!! it had been loose for a few months now and it was more than ready to come out (when you see the big tooth growing in behind it...that's a sure sign!).

so daddy decided that monday night was the night. she actually seemed a little excited and ready. there were no tears, just some unsure looks (like the one below).
here is daddy checking out the situation:

and here is daddy going in for the kill. he wiggled it around with the washcloth, pulled it out, and kept pretending like he was wiggling it to trick her. a few seconds later she says "daddy, did you pull it? did you pull it!? it's GONE, its GONE!!!" no fooling her!

and here is the final (bloody, sorry!) product.

i think she has told (and shown) everyone she has seen this week. the tooth fairy left a VERY generous $3! (what was she thinking!?). i assured her that the tooth fairy only leaves that much for the first tooth!! she is saving her money to buy a new webkins pony.

so you experienced moms out there, tell me...what have you done with your child's first tooth? did you save it in a little pillow or box? or what!? i like the idea of saving it...it is kinda cute afterall....but kinda gross at the same time! give me your feedback if you have any!

my easter top "eleven"

we had a wonderful easter. here's the countdown:

11-
hearing evan say "it's just what i wanted in my whole life!" after seeing his
Dora paint book in his easter basket.

10-
making "Resurrection Buns" with the kids for breakfast and hearing them ask all kinds of questions about Jesus and his resurrection!

9-
watching and hearing my big 5 year old sing about Jesus in front of church!
she did such a super job!

8-
watching the kids slide down the huge hill outside of church after our service! (evan's new pants were filthy and ella had scratches all over the back of her legs after this!)

7-
my cute boy

and my beautiful girl (if you look closely you will see her bottom
tooth sticking up...that is because it is about to fall out!)

6-
watching my kids love on each other while i try to get the perfect picture!

5-
a sleepy boy with very kissable lips on our ride to gramma j and hilly pop's house

4-
seeing all the cousins together in their easter clothes (evan's yellow vest would've fit perfectly if we had not changed him out of his muddy clothes from the hill sliding!)

3-
a fun easter egg hunt in my parents backyard

2-
giggles and smiles that bubbles bring

1-
celebrating God's perfect plan of giving up His Son so that we would be rescued and forgiven!! Happy Easter!

the funny things he says...

several things i need to write down before i forget! evan has had some funny quotes that i want to share.
1-
in the car, ella was reading a Miffy book about what makes Miffy happy. ella then asked me and evan what made us happy. i told them it makes me happy when i hear them giggle. then evan said, "it makes me happy when mama....(pause)....(i'm thinking he is going to say something oh so sweet).....goes on a trip." what?! um, ok then, i can have that arranged!

2-
the other night when he sat down at the table to eat, he looked down at his plate as usual and said, "mmmmmmm....looks yummy! but i don't think i like it very much."

3-
i was helping him go potty and i lifted up his shirt and said "what a big belly you have, bud!" and he said, "i know! i have a big belly! you have a big belly too mama!" i had to agree! :)

4-
i sometimes call him my "big boy" and as i was tucking him into bed the other night i said "are you my big boy?" he said "yes! and you are my big mama!" i don't think i want that term to stick.

dyeing eggs

i just had to google how to spell dyeing. is it dyeing or dying? speaking of dying eggs...as in baby chickens who just don't make it because we like scrambled eggs so much...reminds me of a funny conversation we had with ella about that the other day. we were eating chicken and she started asking questions about the dead chickens and i mentioned that we get our eggs from chickens. the light bulb went off in her head when she thought about it. and so she wondered where the baby chickens go in the eggs that we eat...? hmmm...i quickly referred her to daddy, the knowledgeable one in the family. he said that the eggs we eat are not fertilized yet so the baby chickens have not started growing. and that was the end of that discussion....thankfully.

and so, the DYEing of easter eggs....

we had fun today. evan kept saying, "when are we going to play with the eggs?" and we had to keep telling him that we were going to "dye" the eggs. we colored some of the eggs with crayons and it makes them look cute!

a ride in the park

sunday was warm and sunny and a perfect day for riding bikes in the park. since evan got his bike for christmas, he has not gotten to ride it anywhere but the driveway. he has finally learned to go forward and not push the brakes every second....so we thought he might be ready for the open road!

they had a great time riding on the pathway around the lake. after going down a small hill and riding her brakes the whole way, ella reached the flat area and took off....


and then little man had a hard time keeping up with sister and daddy...

while ella was swinging, she told me she loves closing her eyes because it makes her feel like she is flying!

i love how the park brings automatic smiles!!

10 years ago today

march 7, 1998 was my wedding day. actually as i'm typing this it is 3:30pm and that is when the wedding started!

but let's rewind to 11 years ago....march 1997. rusty and i were not together at that time....after dating for 3 years of college, after both of us said that we loved each other, and after R told me his intentions were to marry me. rewind several months before when the split happened. for various reasons, i was having doubts about whether or not i was to marry him. these doubts were big enough to cause us to go our separate ways. it was the most difficult thing we had experienced and the months following didn't get much easier. we were both pretty miserable. we weren't communicating and it seemed like all of our best friends around us were getting married. (like her / him and her and her / him). i couldn't stand not being with him. i missed him tremendously. but through our misery, God did such a work in my heart. and this is such a foreshadowing of our lives together.

thankfully, after about an 8 month break up, we were back together and on our way to engagement. november 1997 he proposed to me at Frost Chapel where we went to school. and 3 1/2 months later....i became his wife.

10 years of marriage has come and gone and i can hardly believe it. looking back on those doubtful times, i am so happy i can say that i'm more confident than ever that God brought us together. marriage certainly has not been an easy ride....how can it be with 2 sinners living together!? but if it weren't for God using R in my life, I would not be where I am today.

I'm in awe of what a gift R is to me. he has stood beside me and supported me through really tough times and he has celebrated with me and encouraged me through our happy moments. i would not want anyone else by my side. he forgives me over and over and over and loves me in my weakest moments like no one else can. i have never doubted his love for me (he probably tells me he loves me about 10 times a day!). watching how his faith has grown amazes me and makes me feel priveleged that he is mine. God has certainly used him in my life to humble me, to encourage me, to make me smile, to dig deeper into my heart where its so difficult to go, to show me the gospel of grace. 10 years is a lot of time to see each other's good and bad...and the fact that our love is more solid than ever is definitely because of God's grace.

i know this is getting on the sappy side....but 10 years is a big deal! :)

i really can't say enough about how thankful i am to have this man in my life. and how thankful i am that our children have HIM as their daddy! R is the hero in our lives....the rock, the support, the protector, the jungle gym, the light.....the LOVE. I love him beyond words...today...and for many more decades beyond!

my cousin

my heart is heavy right now with thoughts of my cousin, joshua. i've posted about him before...about how he was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor last june. it has been a huge battle for him and he is still fighting. last week i got word that although the tumor had shrunk 29% (thanks to some really expensive Italian medicine), there is new growth on his spinal chord.

and today, he and his brother are fighting the stomach flu. it has gotten really bad and they are on their way to the hospital with josh. He is increasingly weak & lethargic, not holding anything in, and choking on fluids.

josh's parents are exhausted. this has been a fight for them as well. his mom is caring for him day & night.

and so, my heart is heavy. we are begging God for a miracle. that He would save this young boy's life. please pray with me...that ultimately, God would be glorified no matter what happens.

If you would like to read more about Josh, you can go here to see pictures of him and hear his story. And also, if you feel led to, there is a place where you can make a donation. Their medical expenses are outrageous (Josh's dad, Gino, is a pastor so you know he doesn't make much!) and they need all the help they can get to raise money for Josh's fight. There is a donation button you can click on and it will give you info. thanks friends.