Daddy ~ Daughter Dance

Last Friday the Girl Scout troop held a Daddy ~ Daughter Dance. Bob was supposed to work but was able to rearrange his schedule to work an earlier shift so he could go with H. She was SO excited! All day long she kept talking about it, singing funny little songs about it and just bubbling over with excitement.

I was SO glad that Bob made the effort to go with her, it meant so much to her. As you can see in the pictures, her little face is just beaming! These pictures were taken right before they left. After the dance they went out for ice cream with H's friend and her Dad. When they came home H was just bouncing off the walls and talking non stop about how much fun they had.

Since it was just J and I at home, we watched a movie, painted nails, and just relaxed. We had a really nice time together too! I included a couple cute pictures of J near the end.

Bob doesn't like to show his braces, this is about the best smile I can get out of him!


Picking out which color of nail polish she wants ...
She wanted her hair in a fancy ribbon just like H had ...

Last day of school

This year has been a whirlwind. I have truly and completely enjoyed homeschooling H and am SO thankful that we made the decision to give it a try. We've had some very rough days, days when I was ready to send her straight back to school ...but in the end it was all worth it.

I felt like I learned so much this year too. I re-learned many things that I learned in school as a child ... but even more than that I learned how to relate better to my kids, how to be a better Mom, how to teach and still have fun, and so many more things! I learned that it's more important to spend time together than it is to get the best grades and complete every last math problem. I learned that it's wonderful to have students who will climb up in your lap for snuggles. I learned that you can "do school" at any hour of the day - it doesn't have to be from 9-3. I learned that doing school in your pajamas is OK. I learned that kids have bad days too, days when the last thing they want to do is learn or do seatwork, and that's OK.

It's really been a wonderful year, one that I will always remember. Next year is STILL up in the air, but I'm trusting that the Lord has a plan which He will show us in due time.

Congratulations H, you have officially passed the first grade and are now ready to move on up to second grade! I LOVED teaching you sweet girl! You make Mama so proud.
Love, Mommy

Early Birthday dinner

Tonight Bob surprised me by taking me out for an awesome birthday dinner on this gorgeous yacht. I was so stunned that he would think of doing such a thing ... (my b-day isn't till next week).



HAHA, Just kidding! Had ya going for a minute there, didn't I?? =) Actually, we went to one of my favorite restaurants, Margaritas. Yummy Mexican food, yummy, fruity drinks, yummy 'fried' ice cream ... it was so much fun!
The girls decided to 'dress up' for going out ...

One of the best desserts EVER! {And certainly not recommended while on Weight Watchers!} It was a little embarrassing, Bob and the girls conspired against me and had the staff come sing Happy Birthday to me and brought the dessert out with a candle. We were able to take home FREE hats! Yippee! We then walked around downtown ... the girls 'window shopped' for Webkinz - thankfully the stores were already closed. =)

Heading back to our car I saw this cute restaurant with the steps all painted with chalkboard paint -- it was so cute how the menu was written out on the steps as you were walking up.
We walked around the docks looking at huge yachts and sailboats, we looked in all the expensive shop windows, we laughed and had fun as a family. I love my family and I'm so thankful they chose to take me out tonight. What a wonderful (early) birthday surprise.

Preschool "Graduation"

My 'baby' is now done with preschool. How is this possible? Last week she had a closing program which was themed the Mother Goose parade. Each child chose a favorite Mother Goose rhyme to dress up as and the whole class presented the rhymes they have learned. J chose Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. This is her whole class, she's on the far left in the yellow.

With her 'diploma'.
Sweet sisters.
We are so extremely grateful for the wonderful years that each of our girls have spent in preschool. My Mother in law is the Director, and the school is part of our church. H went there for 2 years and so did J. They have both grown so much and we are so proud of the wonderful little girls they are becoming.

Precious Arrival

My friend Sandy gave birth to her precious 3rd child on may 15th. Here are a few pictures of beautiful little Rachel Ann. She is SO tiny!!

7 Random Facts About Me

I read this on Shawna's blog and although she didn't tag me I thought it would be fun!

Here are the rules:

• Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
• Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
• Let them know they are tagged by leaving comments on their blogs.

1. I grew up in another country. CANADA that is! I lived in Ontario, Canada until I was 14 years old when my parents decided to move to Florida. Seems like every child's dream to move to FL but I was actually quite upset about it when they first told me. I was just finishing 8th grade, getting ready to start high school with all of my closest friends, and I didn't want a whole new life thousands of miles away! Obviously I got used to it and know that God had a plan for my life even way back then! Now I have officially lived in the states more years than I lived in Canada.

2. I have texture issues. (My friends are laughing right now as they read this!) I can't eat certain foods simply because of their texture. A few examples are: cottage cheese, clams, oysters and most other shellfish, and tapioca. Blech! Just thinking of the textures of these foods gives me the shivers.

3. I went to 4 different high schools in 3 years. And never had a senior year. Due to circumstances beyond their control my parents moved around quite a bit when I was in high school which is why I went to 4 different schools. As far as my senior year ... while I was a junior I was attending a tiny little Christian school and was only 3 electives short of graduating. The school was so small that it didn't even have electives! So I would have had to attend a local community college to get my electives the following year. Instead I took the GED test and went to Bible College when I was 17 years old! I have never regretted it! (Bob likes to tease me that I'm a high school dropout!)

4. I have had two babies, but never felt a contraction in my life. My firstborn was an emergency c-section and I hadn't even started labor so I felt no contractions with her. My second born we chose to have another c-section which they planned for the week before my due date - so no contractions there either! I never even had those braxton-hicks or false contractions or whatever they are called.

5. I used to think New Kids On The Block were the coolest band ever. And I'm so excited they are back on tour!!! I think it's so funny that I adored them when I was 13 ... and now they are back together and going back on tour again. I want to go to the show just for old times sake - I think it will be a blast!

6. I love to sing, at the top of my lungs, as long as NO one is around. I have always hated my singing voice, I think I might even be tone deaf, but I do love to sing. So I just sing when I'm alone like in the car. Actually, I do sing a lot in front of the kids, but they don't know the difference! I've always wanted to take voice lessons, not to be a really great singer, but just to be a decent singer.

7. I could never live in a city. I love the simple, country life. I like to visit big cities, but after a day I'm ready to head for the hills again. I prefer wide open spaces, lots of trees, country roads, friendly neighbors ...
I would love to someday have a big huge farmhouse on lots and lots of acres. Room to roam, room to play, room to run! I would hate to live in a busy city where you are constantly surrounded by tons of people, too many cars, too much litter, etc. Green acres is the place for me!!

OK, this is the part where I need to tag a few friends ... I will have to choose people that I know will read this blog!
I tag:
Amy D.
Lynn W.
Mary N.
HopiQ
Carol T.
Angie H.
Cass M.

Thankful Thursday

Recently I've heard about the deaths of at least 3 little ones. Little innocent babies or children who were taken from this earth too soon. It's really made me stop and think this week about how truly blessed we are as parents.

So this week I'm thankful for my two beautiful daughters. They are healthy, they are full of life, they are vibrant and silly and sometimes even drive me up the wall. But they have been given to us as a gift from God, they are actually His, but are 'on loan' to us for awhile. We love them, we cherish them, we thank God for them.

Sometimes I want to scream in frustration when they disobey or don't listen, but other times when I hear of a child dying I want to just hold them close forever and protect them from any harm in this world.

I have this little 'tagline' or cliche that comes at the end of emails that I send out. It says "Creating family memories and traditions since 1996." -- I know it sounds a bit commercial-ish but it's truly been my goal in my life, in my marriage and in my parenting - to make memories for my family, and to carry them on as traditions year after year. It's important to me that they have memories and traditions and a legacy to look back on someday.

There's so much more I could say on the topic of my girls ... perhaps I will highlight them individually at another time. Here is a picture of my blessings on Mother's Day:

T-Minus Two Weeks and Counting

My birthday is exactly two weeks from today. My birthday was our goal day to be finished with our home school year. I think we will make it! We only have a few more things to finish up and then we are done with first grade! WOOHOO! H has been a wonderful student and it's been a joy to have this experience with her.

Our plans for next year are STILL all up in the air ... which has been frustrating to say the least! Being the planner that I am I want to have everything decided already. But I'm trusting that God is in control, and that we will know how the girls will be taught (hopefully) within the next few weeks.

I plan to have the girls continue with their reading and creative writing/drawing over the summer. And I know they will have plenty of projects and activities to do with Grandma and Grandpa. So the learning will not end ... but at least we'll be able to say that we've completed our first grade curriculum. YAY!

Reading together

I love moments like these. Big sister reading to little sister ... all snuggled up together on the bed. Priceless!

Oh how I love long weekends

Lazy Saturday mornings ... waking up late ... slowly enjoying my coffee and fresh baked (low fat) cranberry muffins ... kids watching cartoons ... BBQ's and campfires with friends ... enjoying the sun... windows open with warm breezes flowing in ... laughter and conversation with great friends ... kids playing, laughing and running around ... going to church on a sunny, Sunday morning ... taking a boat ride out to the beach ... cooking on the grill ... quiet, lazy mornings when you don't have to rush out the door ... family time ... sand between my toes ... knowing that summer is on it's way ...