homeschooling no more

Well, life has definitely changed in the our household. Just 1 month ago, I would have told you that my kids would be graduating from homeschool with the Christian homeschooling community where we were members. Well, I guess God had completely different plans.

I truly, truly have been relying on my God and KNOWING without a doubt that He seriously works ALL things together for my good and HIS GLORY (Romans 8:28). I was also encouraged to remember that like in the life of Joseph (in the bible! Genesis 50:20), sometimes what MAN intends for evil, God intends for good.

SO STINKIN' TRUE!!!

Unfortunately, my family was involved in a hurtful situation that proved to be un-biblical in the way it was handled. It was emotional for all of us...lots of tears were involved, especially by me. I mean, seriously, I thought I HAD EVERYTHING FIGURED OUT before this happened. I knew exactly how my boys would be educated and thought it was the ONLY way for our family.

Well, after said event occurred, I couldn't sleep for days. I was confused and crying out to God for help and wisdom and comfort and peace and direction. Honestly, I just didn't know how to pray. So, in the middle of the night, with just my bible and journal in hand, I began to pray for the Holy Spirit to please intercede on my behalf (Romans 8:26-27). I felt His comfort and peace and ended that praying/crying time with the Lord with some direction. I slept after this...in His peace.

Later that morning, we had a family meeting with my awesome husband taking the lead. (Through this all, he was my protector and my family's hero...I fell even more deeply in love with him.  I am so blessed!) We prayed together. We cried together. The older two boys went to their rooms to listen to God and ask Him for direction.

Together, with God's leading and guidance, we decided that the boys would start public school. WOW! Seriously...4 days before this I never thought this would even be an option in our lives.  Well, never say never!

Honestly, it has almost been one month, and I finally feel like I am at a place where I can write about it.  This was hard...very, very hard.  However, I must tell you that I am doing great.  Seriously, I cannot tell you how good I feel.  I didn't realize how totally stressed-out, overwhelmed, stressed-out, uptight, un-fun, stretched, and on edge I had become. I was spiritually, emotionally, and physically drained...tapped...spent and DIDN'T EVEN KNOW IT!  

Now, I am relaxed.  I laugh A LOT!!  I laugh so hard I cry over ridiculous things like exploding cookies during an Apples to Apples game.  (You had to be there!!)  I seriously don't remember laughing like that in a very, very long time.  I am so much more joyful.  I like me.  It is good.  HE IS GOOD!!!

He seriously allowed me to go through an unwanted, horrible, and hurtful situation because He knew that was the ONLY way that our family would switch its course.

Even better than all that is the fact that I have fallen in love with my sweet 5-year-old Ian again.  He has been my hardest child, by far.   Now, we have some time together every day where he is the "oldest" and we play and laugh and have fun!!!  I actually enjoy him.  I also have the necessary time to discipline him correctly and diligently.  It is good.  GOD IS GOOD!!! 

And in case you're wondering, my boys love school.  Nate is having a harder time adjusting, but he loves it.

God is good!!!!  WOOOOHOOOOO!!!

awful day

I know that God has amazing plans for my family, to give us a hope and a future and not to harm us (Jeremiah 29:11). I know that He works all things together for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28). But you know, sometimes life is just HARD. Curveballs are thrown at you and they hurt.

Well, yesterday was just an awful day. My character was called into question by someone who I trusted.

I just feel defeated. Actually, I kind of feel like someone just decided to use my heart as a trampoline.

Anyway, I know that I know that I know that God has the best in mind for me; I just hate when it hurts this badly.

So, when I was praying with all the boys last night at the end of such a horrible day, Nate prayed this, "Thank you Jesus for this awful day. Amen."

Yep...that about sums it up.

So, with the reminder provided to me from my awesome seven-year-old, I will choose to praise God in this storm. Although the future is unclear, I know that my God will guide us and protect us and LOVE us!

I don't know how I would make it without Him.

Psalm 28:7
The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.

bad blogger

I'm getting so bad at this blogging thing!!  We have had such big things happening in our family, and I haven't even blogged about it!!

For example, last week, Kyle lost his first tooth!!!  The day before that, I caught him outside in his UNDERWEAR swinging from swing chain to swing chain.  I asked him what in the world he was doing.  He replied, "I'm George in the jungle."  They had just checked that movie out from the library.  What a character he is!!!

Then, last weekend, my brother Bill proposed to his girlfriend Amanda!  I am SO excited and so praising the Lord for bringing her into his life!  What a "beauty from ashes" and "mourning into dancing"-type story!!!  I was able to drive down last Saturday and be there for the proposal.  She was so surprised and it was such a sweet, sweet proposal.  I am so glad I was there!!

Then, yesterday, my Ian started riding his new bike ($5 Diego bike from a garage sale) WITHOUT training wheels!  He's only 4! This is way earlier than the older two boys!  It's amazing how different they all are!

Now, Mike's sister Maria is here for a short visit!  See, there is tons and tons going on in our family...I need to get on this blogging thing and get some pics off my camera!!!!!

a movie with the boys

After this morning, I spent some time praying over my boys and my family while I was taking a meal to a lovely family who just had a little baby boy! Anyway, I decided to just spend some time with the boys tonight! We didn't go to prayer service at church...we just hung out at home. Mike actually had to go into work for month end stuff...he left around 7pm and it's 10:38 and he isn't home yet! I will be SO EXCITED when he has transitioned into his new job.

Anyway, the boys are REALLY into Chronicles of Narnia right now because my awesome sister-in-law Maria bought them the Focus on the Family Radio Theater version while she was here in March. They LOVE it!! It is awesome...instead of just reading the books, they have different actors acting the parts. It is very well done.
So, I requested movie The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe from the library and we picked it up yesterday. Tonight was the perfect night for a movie!!

Well, Caden was dressed like this...
Now, look closely...those are Kyle's shorts, and Caden put them on all by himself! He has his waist through one of the leg holes and the waist band of the shorts and the other leg hole are hanging down...HILARIOUS!! Notice the big boy underwear? Well, don't get too excited because not too long after this picture he had an accident!

And the boys looked like this on the couch...

Notice Nate disappeared UNDER the blanket because of a scary part!

Well, the movie ended around 9:30, and then guess what?? We had ICE CREAM!!! Then, I read one chapter to them from The Magician's Nephew, which is chronologically the first book in the Chronicles of Narnia series.

It was a fun night! I love that Nate pointed out to me numerous times how the movie is like the Bible. He really is a great kid!

I love my boys! I look forward to watching God work in each of their lives.

around the house

Caden is potty-training. He is doing extremely well!! Yippee!! We even ran to the bank, post office, library, recycling, Wal-mart, and Target, and he didn't have any accidents! How exciting!

I am going to throw a party when he is COMPLETELY trained because I have been changing diapers for over 7 consecutive years. At one time, I had three in diapers!!!! I am SO EXCITED!!

Let's see...also, it has been thunder storming and raining like CRAZY here! I guess a house in our neighborhood got struck by lightning this morning...that's crazy.

Oh, and I found out last night that the church in Mannford where I have been "supplying" (filling in because they don't have a worship leader) just hired someone. So, tomorrow is my last drive over to Mannford to lead at New Hope.

AND, the boys are fighting like crazy again. It's amazing. They just yell at each other a lot. Because of all the rain, I can't just send them out to play. It's driving me nuts.

I so desire to have a peaceful, joyful, loving home. So, that is what I am going to diligently praying about...that God will just give me wisdom in how to make our home more peaceful.

Finally, I overspent grocery shopping, but I am just going to divide the next 3 weeks with my remaining budget for the month. I was SO out of things, so it will work out!

Caden's friends

I have SO many blog ideas going through my mind, like our time with Mike's sister Maria (in March), Easter, Earth Day, etc. Well, instead of playing catch-up and trying to blog in chronological order, I am starting FRESH hoping that I can just add in those other posts as time permits.

Anyway, what I really want to write about today is my sweet, precious Caden. He is such a big boy these days (not with potty-training yet) and just a joy to be around. He loves, loves, loves his big brothers and always wants me to "hold you" (for me to hold him) especially after nap times and bath times.

Well, on Saturday, I was wrapped up in a blanket sitting on the couch because I was very feverish.

Little man walked up to me and said, "Mommy, I want to go outside and play with my friends."

A little confused because it's not like I just let my 2-year-old (or actually any of my kids) go wander the streets with the neighborhood kids, I said, "What friends?"

In the sweetest voice ever he replied, "Nate and Kyle and Ian."

Oh my goodness!!! How sweet is that!! They were all outside helping Mike wash the cars in the 50 mph wind!!

My "brainwashing" is WORKING!! I tell my boys often that they are BEST FRIENDS!! Well, I think my 2-year-old gets it!!



Oh, and I am totally aware that he needs a haircut! That's in NEXT month's budget!!

The Last Supper

Last night, we remembered the Last Supper with our boys. I used this http://www.ebibleteacher.com/children/lessons/lastsupper.htm as my guide.


Michael started off by reading Mark 14:10-25 and talking about betrayal. Then, we talked about how Christ's sacrifice was foreshadowed by the Passover.

Tenth Plague	Christ's Sacrifice
Firstborn of all men and animals killed	Firstborn of God killed
Only the blood of the lamb saved Israelites	Only the blood of Christ saves us
This plague freed the Israelites from slavery to Egypt	This sacrifice frees us from sin
Commemorated by all Israelites in a feast	Commemorated by Christians in Lord's Supper

Then, we broke bread, drank from the cup, and prayed.

After that, we sang Jesus Loves Me, which was a RIOT!!

The whole thing ends with a game that you print from that website...it was fun and ended like this:

It was a special time, something that I would definitely like to do as a family every year. Wow! I think I may have just started a tradition!! I know our boys are young, but I think this is the perfect time to start!!

highlights:
Nate wanting some more yummy bread
Caden doing jumping jacks during the game

craziness

Today, our homeschool co-op had P.E. We have a YMCA instructor who comes and does the class. I have heard NOTHING but good things about it.

We missed the first time she came because of illness. Last Friday I did not attempt to go because my boys did not want to go. Weird. My very athletic, energetic boys should love P.E.

So when today came, I just told the boys that we had homeschool gym time and get ready to go. We drove out to the church where it is hosted, and my boys ran inside all excited. Their excitement stopped in the lobby. They WOULD NOT go inside the gym and line up with the other HAPPY kids.

Why? Why? Why?

Nate, my 7-year-old, actually was sitting on a chair CRYING. What in the world is going on?? So, then 5-year-old starts crying because he saw the jump ropes and says he doesn't know how to jump rope. I said, something about that is why she is TEACHING P.E....she will help you learn! He proceeds to start CRYING, also. OH THE FRUSTRATION!!!

So, what do I do?? I say, "WE'RE LEAVING!" The crying turned into WAILING, seriously...LOUD WAILING. Fun times. At this point, we are right by the church offices. I just start walking to the van with 3 of the 4 wailing. Of course, they wanted to stay at that point. There was no way I was going to allow them to stay...NO WAY.

I am very sad to say that I completely lost my cool and raised my voice at them in the van. I hate to say it, but I was embarrassed. I mean, shouldn't my kids be perfect? I mean really. Shouldn't we all just be perfect?? The perfect little family with kids that never act out?? Well, that just isn't going to happen, ever.

We are all fine now...I have asked for forgiveness from them and from my heavenly Father. I HATE when I lose my cool with them. I have written often about my short fuse, but God really, really has been doing a work in that area of my life. The fuse is growing, for sure...I have been much better at applying "a gentle answer turns away wrath." I love these boys SO MUCH.

I have told them that 100 times since this morning...I pray that they remember me as a loving, fun mom. I am resting in God's grace for sure.

My uncle Mike just reminded me via Facebook that my love for them is UNCONDITIONAL. Thanks for that reminder...he also wrote that one day they will be afraid of ME embarrassing them...smile.

Sledding and scripture

Today my boys tried out their new sleds for the first time. We started out going down our driveway a few times and then eventually moved to a bigger hill in our neighborhood. They had a blast!!! It was a beautiful, sunny day...just VERY cold (upper teens/lower 20s).

They had a GREAT time! Ian went down the hill once...he went extremely fast! He said he had fun, but didn't want to do it again! Here are Nate and Kyle going down...which ended in a collision!


My sneaky five-year-old had the privilege to write the following scripture TWICE today.
I don't know how well you can read it, but it is Proverbs 14:2 which contrasts an upright and a devious person.

Well, Kyle is one SNEAKY guy!! I walked by his room today and could very clearly hear the "Star Wars" theme song coming from his supposed-to-be-quiet room. When I tried to open the door, I had to push pretty hard because a blanket was at the bottom of the door to "block the sound." He was playing a game on the computer after I had specifically told him that he couldn't. Sneaky, sneaky!!

Anyway, things like this have been happening pretty frequently with him...pretty normal for this age, I think...you know, like taking gum out of my purse and then denying it while smacking away. I've been using this verse with him, reminding him that because he says he loves God, he shouldn't be devious. Today was the first time I had him write it (twice because he later hid a candy cane under his shirt and asked if he could go take a nap...I knew that sounded pretty fishy.)

I have a feeling he is going to have this scripture written on his heart in no time.

a new President

All morning, Nate and I have been watching the Presidential Inauguration ceremonies. As I watched and listened to the festivities, I found myself praying for President Obama and for the United States. We are so blessed to live in this country, definitely a land of plenty.

In President Obama's speech, he used words such as kindness, humility, courage, selflessness, nurture, honesty, hard work, loyalty, and patriotism. I found myself becoming more and more excited. Oh yes, I don't agree with all of his ideologies, but I like that he is passionate...passionate to make the United States a better place to live.

It is awesome to see how far this country has come in concern to civil rights. Yesterday, I was telling my Nate about MLK and how this country used to be divided. He said, "You mean I wouldn't have been able to play with Nate and Isaac from church if we lived back then?" I told him that's exactly what that means. He understood and was sad.

So now, all I can do is continue to pray for him and for our country, knowing that ultimately, God is in control. As I did on the day after President Obama was elected, I will end this post with these verses from Daniel 2...

Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said:
"Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever;
wisdom and power are his.

21 He changes times and seasons;
he sets up kings and deposes them.
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to the discerning.

22 He reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what lies in darkness,
and light dwells with him.

23 I thank and praise you, O God of my fathers"

God is awesome!!

cheering up

Okay, so is my blog a total downer or what? I think I always am writing about how hard life is. I need to just get over it! God blesses me and blesses me and blesses me! That's what I need to be writing about!!

Take this for instance. I walked into my living room last week where Caden was sitting with his ankles crossed on the couch playing a Leapster game...well, maybe he was just pretending to play and pushing buttons. Tears filled my eyes. I love this little guy so much! What a blessing he is!! I immediately grabbed my camera...


Then, check out this picture! These are two of my closest friends, Steph and Lisette. God has totally used these two ladies to bless my life! My life is richer because of friends like these, both here and afar!

Also, since moving to Oklahoma, my mom and dad ("Mema" & "Papaw" to the kids) have become a huge part of our lives. I am SO blessed by her and my dad! They were both here this week. Here is Memaw playing cards with the boys...

I am blessed!!! Praise God for all my blessings! And, please, I give you permission to remind me when I start being all downer-like again!!!

a blessed Christmas

our Christmas card (BTW, I didn't send any locally)...pictures taken by LE Portraits...she's AMAZING!

We had a wonderful, relaxing Christmas! It was just a great time celebrating Christ's birth while hanging out with family...complete with Christmas carols, a birthday party for Jesus, gifts, puzzles, games, Legos, Christmas lights, and lots of food!

Also, my husband hasn't worked since Tuesday, so we are all really enjoying having him home!

I pray that you all have had a wonderful Christmas!!

Christmas

I love Christmas. Seriously, I really, really love this time of year!

I love going to get the Christmas tree...trekking through the woods, er....Christmas tree farm, to find that perfect tree that will occupy a corner of our home for the next month. This year was even more fun because my brother Bill, his son Bryce, and my parents were with us!

Here are my 5 blessings walking across the field to check out that tall one! The reason this lot seems so empty is because it is actually last year's main lot. We try to buy from this lot because it is cheaper! There were just a few trees that didn't get chosen last year, so they sell them cheaper...those little ones will be ready in about 4-5 years, if I remember correctly!

This is on the hayride...they don't look quite as excited as I was!

my brother Bill, Mike, my mom Rita, my dad Walter
Bill, Dad, me, Mom (if I were really good, I would photo shop my brother Keith into this picture!)
Bill and me

Here is Kyle in front of our tree! We were waiting for the hayride to come back and get us and our tree.

A few fun words overheard that day:

Kyle, after being told that we were going to get the tree: I KNEW this was going to be a special day!

Nate: Will there be snow there?? (He said something very similar to this last year! Remember, we used to live in Maine!)

my nephew Bryce: Aunt Margo's tree has NINE LEGS!!!! (This was after Bill told him that we were looking for a tree that was 9 feet tall!....What a cutie!!)

We gave Bill and Bryce their Christmas presents while they were here, since we won't see them until who knows when...sniff, sniff. I love my brother; it's really a bummer that he lives all the way in Houston. Anyway, here is a good picture of Bryce with Nate and Kyle! He's four, right between Kyle and Ian. He and Ian are best buds!
Every Christmas our boys and him will be stair-stepped in age. This Christmas they are 6, 5, 4, 3, and 2. I just think that's cool! It doesn't last long though, because Ian turns 4 in January and Nate turns SEVEN in February...CRAZY!

FIGHTING

Today started out great. I was able to spend some time with God and get my house really clean! I was so excited.

You see, the last few days have just been so peaceful, with just an occasional fight between Caden and Ian.

That all changed today. It changed quickly and drastically with the arrival of Nate, Kyle, and my parents.

HOLY SMOKES!!!

When there are just two children in the house, the only fight that can occur is between those two children. However, when 2 more are added to the mix...CRAZINESS!! (Plus, Caden and Ian are only 2 and 3, so really, their fights aren't that big of deal!)

Let's see...possible fight scenarios

1. Caden vs. Ian
2. Caden vs. Kyle
3. Caden vs. Nate
4. Ian vs. Kyle
5. Ian vs. Nate
6. Kyle vs. Nate
7. Caden vs. Ian and Kyle
8. Caden vs. Nate and Kyle
9. Caden vs. Ian, Nate, and Kyle
10. Ian vs. Caden and Kyle
11. Ian vs. Nate and Kyle
12. Ian vs. Nate, Kyle, and Caden
13. Kyle vs Caden and Ian
14. Kyle vs. Nate and Ian
15. Kyle vs. Nate, Caden, and Ian
16. Nate vs. Caden and Ian (WHICH ACTUALLY HAPPENED NUMEROUS TIMES TODAY)
17. Nate vs. Ian and Kyle
18. Nate vs. Caden and Kyle
19. Nate vs. Caden, Ian, and Kyle
20. Ian vs. Caden and Kyle
21. Kyle vs. Caden and Ian
22. Kyle and Nate vs. Ian and Caden
23. Caden and Nate vs. Ian and Kyle
24. Caden and Kyle vs. Nate and Ian

Okay...you get my point. That's 24 potential fight outbreaks and I'm sure that somehow a few more combinations are possible.

This mommy can see myself easily going crazy. I found myself yelling at my kids this afternoon, just to get their ATTENTION. I really, really, really don't want to be a yeller. A gentle answer turns away wrath.

I SO desire to have a peaceful, loving, joy-filled home, but seriously, HOW???? That is what I have been talking to God about because that is what His Word tells us to do!

If any of you lack wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. James 1...again (2nd time I've posted this verse in the last couple of weeks)

So, this mommy is praying, praying, praying waiting for God to give me His wisdom before I lose my mind. By the way, crying does seem to help some.

home

This weekend we spent a couple of nights at my parents' house. It was really nice to spend some time with them and just get away from our house for a little while. For me, it meant two extra sets of hands to help cut pancakes and wipe mouths. It meant not looking at LOADS of laundry that need to be folded and bathrooms that need to be cleaned and floors that need to be mopped. It was nice.
Of course, Caden DID NOT sleep well there, so I didn't sleep well either. Actually, on Friday night, 3 of the 4 boys were up at one point or another. But still, I wasn't looking at piles of laundry.

On Saturday, we went in two cars down Talimena Drive. If you live in Oklahoma or Arkansas and have never done this, you really should. We were a couple weeks past the peak foliage colors, but it was still a beautiful drive. Oklahoma really has some pretty scenery! Anyway, the drive was beautiful but a little stressful after the kids started waking up from naps! Here are a couple of pictures...


Now, we are home. Well, Mike, Caden, Ian, and I are home. Nate and Kyle stayed there for a couple of days. My parents are bringing them home on Wednesday in time for the pie-making and other Thanksgiving festivities. So, I only have TWO KIDS for a couple of days!!! I have half the kids that I normally have...what am I going to do with myself?!? Probably tackle a few mountains of laundry and clean some toilets. Yippee!! I am also planning some really good one-on-one time with my heavenly Father...resting in Him. I can't wait!

Actually, tomorrow Caden will be at Parents' Day Out, so Ian and I are going on a DATE. He wants to go to a toy store and to the mall to play at the playground...I am so excited!! Of course, that does mean the unfolded laundry will still not get folded, but I wouldn't give up my date with Ian for anything! Ian is excited about it, too. He wanted to pray about our date when I tucked him in tonight. Sweet!

6 months

Six months ago today we disconnected our cable, unplugged our TV, and put it in a closet. We have been TV-less for 6 months! I must say, overall, it has been a very positive thing for our family! My house has probably suffered the most...I must have used the TV as a baby-sitter while cleaning my house! I can't believe it has been that long. I think everyone should try it for a week or maybe a day :) Now, for some TV humor...it probably holds some truth for many people, actually!

By the way, I have had SO many people tell me they could never go TV-less in Oklahoma because of all the bad weather. Well, guess what, you can watch the weather LIVE from channel 8 online if there is severe weather! Oh, and we do still watch movies occasionally on our computer...family movie nights!

APPLES!!

On Sunday afternoon, we visited an apple orchard! Yippee! I found it online and we drove the distance to find some apples to hand pick! The website boasts of a hayride, pumpkin patch, apple trees, children's play area, and more, so I was SO excited to find a very Maine-like thing to do here in Oklahoma! We got there, and it looked perfect! It was a beautiful day, just a little windy, as you will see from the wind-blown hair! However, upon arrival, we discovered that the children's area and hayride, which leads to the pumpkin patch and apple orchard (too far to walk), required a wrist band that cost $3 each per guest age 2 and up (remember Caden JUST turned 2). My dear hubby was looking at me with a did-you-know-about-this?-type look. Well, of course, I didn't know about it. It IS NOT mentioned on their website. I just actually looked again, and it definitely isn't there...there is actually NO mention of a cost. You see, in Maine, it's just kind of part of the experience. I understand that gas costs more now; I just like to be prepared a little. Plus, we would have bought MORE if we hadn't had to pay so much up front! Anyway, Mike forks over the $18 and we board the tractor-pulled hayride. Now that I think about it, we did pay for a hayride at a pumpkin patch last year, but it INCLUDED a pumpkin. Maybe I'm just cheap, I mean frugal! Anyway, it was fun. Here are some pictures...

My 5 blessings!

mouths full of apples

Check out the hair!

action shot...Ian and Kyle running through the pumpkin patch!

Nate took this picture! LOVE my hair :)

LOVE this picture!

APPLES!!!!!! I can't wait to make an apple crisp!

Weekend Fun

On Saturday (and then again today), all six of us went on a bike ride together! Mike loaded up the bikes and one of our bike trailers on the bike rack on his car, aired up tires, filled up his CamelBak, and off we went to a park here in town. We had such a great time! We rode on the trails through the park to a playground and then back to our cars. After our bike ride, we went to a new burrito place in town for dinner. It was really yummy; even the kids liked it!! What a fun family time!





I am looking forward to many, many more family bike rides! The boys LOVE riding behind Mike on the trailer...they get to go "sooooooo fast," they say! It seemed like everyone that saw us riding smiled and made nice comments about the six of us. I even saw people from a distance pointing at Mike and Ian on the bike/bike trailer. It seems like most people have never seen the ride-behind type of bike trailers before! We sure love it...what a blessing!

I LOVE THIS!!!

Here are pictures of my second and third-born eating their SECOND helping of salad tonight at dinner!! I was so excited that I HAD to grab my camera!! Of course, you know me, it was an organic spring mix blend with an organic ranch dressing (trans fat-free and high fructose corn syrup-free)!! I thought I was going to cry; I was so excited! Now, if only my first and fourth-born would join in the salad-eating fun!! :)

Sweet...eating those vegetables!!

Welcome Baby Hailie

Mike's little sister Marissa had her baby on Friday!! (I went to Marissa's baby shower last month. You can read about that here!)

Hailie and Marissa

Brandon admiring his little girl...I think this is such a sweet picture!

What a cutie!

I am so excited for Brandon, Marissa, and Hailie We can't wait to meet her and hold her! The boys are excited to have a GIRL cousin!! :)

Father, I pray for protection over this family. Please make the transition to parenting as easy as possible! May they look to You for guidance and wisdom, always remembering that little Hailie is Your workmanship and a BLESSING!