Adam's Birthday....

Pinata time....

Walking with grandpa....

Karinne and Molly....

Crazy boys....

The latest style?...

Molly was so excited to show me what she put on all by herself....dirty twisted socks with open toe shoes...anyone ready for this style? :)

Trash digger

Yes that's me! I love to dig in the trash....and look what I found! My last two pieces to complete my dining set....all from the trash. All that I need was some fresh paint and new fabric covers....here are the before and afters:

On my way

to bible study and I look out the window and what do I see?

Some one had a licensed race car on Meridian street....how funny....some take the Indy 500 a little too seriously.

What did you do today?

Today I left some dishes dirty,
The bed got made around 3:30.
The crumbs I spilled the day before,
Are staring at me from the floor.
The fingerprints there on the wall,
Will likely be there 'til next fall.
The dirty streaks on those window panes,
Will still be there next time it rains.
"Shame on you," you sit and say,
"Just what did you do today?"

I nursed a baby till he slept,
I held a toddler while she wept.
I played a game of hide and seek,
I squeezed a toy so it would squeak.
I pulled a wagon, sang a song,
Taught a child right from wrong.
What did I do this whole day through?
Not much that shows, I guess it's true.
Unless you think that what I've done,
Might be important to someone,
With bright blue eyes and soft blond hair.
If that is true....I've done my share.

Author unknown

Happy Mother's Day

Easter goodies

The kids were thrilled to get some Easter lovin' from both sets of Grandparents....legos, candy, Hello Kitty jammies....Thanks!

Bullfrog

I learned a ton on Drew's field trip to Eagle Creek Science Center. They got to pet a few different wildlife of Indiana. Here is a big bullfrog...

1st time

obedience! That's my conviction this week. In my lecture this week at Bible Study, she talked about first time obedience....and I have been slacking as a parent....I so bad want to give my kids chances to obey because I don't want to discipline them. I never would have thought that first time obedience would come in the middle of Deuteromony, but it did.
The chapters were a review of what had happened so far in Israel's journey from Egypt. Moses talks about how he disobeyed by striking the rock twice instead of simply doing what God asked which was to speak to the rock. Therefore, Moses wasn't able to enter the promised land, which is a pretty mild punishment when he could have been struck dead, like other disobedient Israelites.
You know, God could have said, "I know what you meant, you were angry, you meant to just speak but you accidently hit the rock. Next time....." But he didn't. He said (in my own words) You disobeyed and here is your punishment, no excuses.

So my question this week on my Bible Study is "how am I going to apply what I learned at lecture?" Well, I am trying to work on that first time obedience once again (I go in out of phases of this)....
Obey
without challenge,
without excuse,
without delay (from the book Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp)

Have a great day!

"Glow" the Musical....

starring Drew! Well, not really starring, but he was a part of the 1st and 2nd grade musical this year and was a butterfly. He is our star!

Yea! It's Spring!

My tulips have bloomed and I am enjoying them....now I wish I just new how to plant flowers properly....I may be digging them up and moving them. Oh, well, I guess I just keep learning....I wish I knew more about landscaping.

I am so ready for this warm weather this weekend! Yea!

The kids enjoyed playing in the hot tub at Grandma and Grandpa's-the highlight of their Sunday!

And another sign of spring is Jack's soccer has started!

What's the Hurry?

Do you ever feel like you are too busy? Sometimes....it kinda goes in waves for me. I will have a couple weeks were things are good....you know, playing with the kids, spending time in the Word... then there are weeks where I don't even know what time it is and I am running around like a chicken with it's head cut off and I know some of you have seen me crazy busy.

This world we live in is so high speed....even the internet is high speed, forget the "dial up" life or the "snail mail" life. When I am so "high speed" I tend to forge things because I am focused at the end point and not the steps to get there (like the "t" I forgot in "forget" in the previous sentence:) Of course it's great to look at our final end point and have that as a focus....but being in the Word daily are those steps we need not to overlook.

Here are some questions to ponder:

On a scale of 1 to 10, how fast does your family operate?

What kinds of activities or opportunities tempt you to pile more onto the schedule?

How hard is it for you to recognize when you've reached your load limit?

What kind of ship do you think you are? (a barge: slow and steady, a sail boat, a party cruise liner, an aircraft carrier (that's me))

What kind of ship do you think your spouse and kids are?

And here are some signs that you may be living to fast:
Like I said, "may", it doesn't mean you are.....just some things to ponder.

• You're cheating on sleep to get everything done
• McDonald's drive thru knows you on a first name basis
• You have no time for the Lord
• You have to speed to get from point A to point B
• You are always running late
• You don't have any family meals together
• You have to have your daily mocha or coffee or diet coke to function thru the day

John 10:9 Jesus says, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the FULL." What is a full life?

Someone told me, "A FULL life is not the same as a FILLED UP life."

John 15:4-5 talks about bearing fruit and abiding in Christ....

so slow down and bear fruit.

Have a FULL life in Christ by emptying a little out of our FILLED UP life. That will leave room for walks with our children, pointing out God's beauty in nature, or sitting down at the table as a family to enjoy each other.

Thanks to any of you who actually read this whole blog and ramblings....I am not a great writer and usually it's a jumble of thoughts/convictions.

Blessings,

abby

Sometimes by Step

I came across this verse today and can't believe I haven't ever seen it before, but I love it.

"In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." Proverbs 16:9

Sometimes those steps move sideways or backwards detour. Sometimes God steers us away from horrendous unseen obstacles while we mistakenly think that He not answering our prayers.
--------------------------------------
Sometimes I think of Abraham
How one star he saw had been lit for me
He was a stranger in this land
And I am that, no less than he
And on this road to righteousness
Sometimes the climb can be so steep
I may falter in my steps
But never beyond Your reach

Oh God, You are my God
And I will ever praise You
Oh God, You are my God
And I will ever praise You
I will seek You in the morning
And I will learn to walk in Your ways
And step by step You'll lead me
And I will follow You all of my days

And I will follow You all of my days
And I will follow You all of my days
And step by step You'll lead me
And I will follow You all of my days
And I will follow You all of my days
-quoted from Rich Mullins song "Sometimes by Step"

Love's Gotta Have Arms

Here are some fun ideas to show some lovin' to the kids.....

Have a secret "I love You" signal such as three squeezes of the hand, touching the tip of your nose or maybe a V-sign with your fingers....(we have one, and it was so cute when I showed the kids and I told them that only our family knows. It's so sweet to see them in public across a room and they give you the signal).

Write a short love note on a large paper, wad it up and stuff it into your child's show to be found later.

Write a three sentence "thank-you" note to a teacher, coach, neighbor, relative or friend who works with and encourages your child.

When reading a story to your child, change the lead character's name to your child's name.

Praise your children to someone in front of them-especially when they don't think you know they can overhear you.

When saying "good night", recite a couple of things you appreciated that your child did that day.

When taking your children out for ice cream, make it memorable and mysterious by blindfolding them first.

Arrange for an unexpected visit by your child's best friend.

In the morning keep kissing your sleeping child until he or she wakes up.

Surprise your child with breakfast in bed.

Do something surprising this week- wear Groucho glasses to dinner, put your shirt on backward and act surprised when it's pointed out. Sit in the wrong chair at breakfast. Ambush your child with a squirt gun ( I so love doing that one).

Create minor mischief-short sheet your child's bed.

Write into your date book five, one-on-one "appointments" with your child to cover the next month.

Break the record of how many days in a row you can go without making a critical comment on your child.


Lighten up and have a great day,
Abby

Kids' View

This is very interesting to hear what the kids think about me.....hmmm....

Copy this note, ask your child the questions and write them down exactly how they respond. Tag me back if you have done this, I'd love to hear the answers.


1. What is something mom always says to you? Molly-Clean up; Jack-?; Drew-okey dokey artichokey

2. What makes mom happy? Molly-when things are cleaned up; Jack-when I say ok; Drew-when I clean up the basement

3. What makes mom sad? Molly-when I not clean up; Jack-when I say no; Drew- when I disobey

4. How does your mom make you laugh? Molly-when your silly; Jack-when you tickle me; Drew- when you do something silly

5. What was your mom like as a child? Molly-I was a baby; Jack-good; Drew-good

6. How old is your mom? Molly-23; Jack-33; Drew-32

7. How tall is your mom? Molly-don't know; Jack-same as drew; Drew-66inches tall (he got out the yard stick and measured)

8. What is her favorite thing to do? Molly-clean up; Jack-cook; Drew-play with legos with us

9. What does your mom do when you're not around? Molly-go to a meeting; Jack-play with Molly; Drew-go to parties

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? Molly-?; Jack-building legos; Drew- singing songs11. What is your mom really good at? Molly-give me hugs; Jack- cooking; Drew-building legos
12. What is your mom not very good at? Molly-?; Jack-you're good at everything;Drew-this is a tough one
13. What does your mom do for her job? Molly-clean up; Jack-cook; Drew-sell Tastefully Simple
14. What is your mom's favorite food? Molly-salad; Jack-Tastefully Simple; Drew-pizza
15. What makes you proud of your mom? Molly-?; Jack-cause she helps me; Drew-builds legos with me
16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? Molly- Jasmine; Jack-R2D2; Drew- Princess Leia
17. What do you and your mom do together? Molly-play Pretty Princess; Jack-Play legos; Drew-have fun; you do a lot of things
18. How are you and your mom the same?Molly-give kisses and clean up our kitchens; Jack-we love each other; Drew-we both like each other and we are on the same team when we go to holiday world and we both have long eyelashes.
19. How are you and your mom different? Molly-?; Jack-? ;Drew-you wear different clothes than me
20. How do you know your mom loves you? Molly-cause you give hugs;Jack-your nice to me; Drew-you let us have candy
21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go? Molly-restaurants; Jack-to Tastefully Simple Meetings (not true); Drew-Mcdonalds(so not true)


Dad:
1. What is something dad always says to you? Molly-obey; Jack-obey; Drew-silly things
2. What makes Dad happy? Molly-obeying; Jack-; Drew-when I say ok to him
3. What makes dad sad? Molly-when I grumble; Jack-when I say no; Drew- when I disobey
4. How does your dad make you laugh? Molly-when I laugh; Drew-when he says silly things
5. What was your dad like as a child? Molly-not nice; Drew-not good
6. How old is your dad? Molly-5; Drew-35
7. How tall is your dad? Molly-don't know; Drew-70 inches tall
8.What is his favorite thing to do? Molly-wrestle by his self; Jack-go to work; Drew-wrestle with us
9. What does your dad do when you're not around? Molly-go to work; Jack-I don't know; Drew-go to work
10. If your dad becomes famous, what will it be for? Molly-?; Jack-computers; Drew- getting a lot of money at work
11. What is your dad really good at? Molly-working on the computer; Jack- working; Drew-building legos
12. What is your dad not very good at? Molly-?; Jack-cooking; Drew-putting us to bed
13. What does your dad do for his job? Molly-eats a sandwich; Jack-work on computers; Drew-making money
14. What is your dad's favorite food? Molly-sandwich; Jack-chocolate; Drew-candy
15. What makes you proud of your dad? Molly-?; Drew-builds legos with me and plays Wii with me.
16. If your dad were a cartoon character, who would she be? Molly- ; Jack-R2D2; Drew- Luke Skywalker
17. What do you and your dad do together? Molly-wrestle; Jack-play Wii; Drew-play Wii
18. How are you and your dad the same?Molly-have fun; Jack-both boys and we love each other; Drew-both boys
19. How are you and your dad different? Molly-?; Jack-? ;Drew-he's a grown up and I am a kid. I also like to go to the grocery store and dad doesn't.
20. How do you know your dad loves you? Molly-cause you give hugs at night time;Jack-he plays with us; Drew-he bought us a Wii and plays the Wii with us.
21. Where is your dad's favorite place to go? Molly-McDonalds; Jack-work; Drew-chick-fil-a

My Favorites

Here are some favorite memories of the kids in the last 7 years.

One of the Boys

Having bigger brothers, Molly likes to play with the boys and do what they are doing. Here it was sword fights. She wasn't afraid to get in there and fight.

Drew's Delicious Win!

Drew one first place at the Cub Scout Recognition Dinner. They had a dessert contest, so I pulled out a simple and tasty recipe (hint hint Tastefully Simple) and he made it all by himself! I helped him put it in the oven though. Drew named them Drew's Delicious Bars.

Playing with Food

The kids love to play with their food....on this particular day it was making masks out of their food. I showed them how to bite holes to make eyes and they took it from there....

4th Picture in 4th Folder

I thought this was a fun idea from Ann's blog....so here are mine! I have two folders so here they are. The first is Jack and Drew and the second is Drew's first birthday.