Last Day of School!

Well, we are officially out of school and grooving into summer. Here is a picture of Spencer's big water day party at school. Some parents had organized this big event and the kids had a great time! I know one little guy who is SO READY to be out of school! And I know a MOM who is so ready to be done carpooling and packing lunches!!

The Need for Teeth

Well, Spencer officially has lost both top teeth. He kept saying the same phrase over dinner just to hear how funny it sounds! I told him he is a toothless wonder and he thinks that is so funny!! What is even funnier is how he wants them pulled and never complains about the pain! He just wants it out! Well, last night after dinner, Erica and Scott were in charge of cleaning up the kitchen. Scott forgot the tooth was on the counter. At bedtime, Erica and Scott spent a long time looking all over the kitchen for his tooth. Scott even went through the trash. Well, they looked in the sink and there it was sitting an inch from the drain! Erica said, "Dad, I was praying and praying for God to help us find that tooth and that there is a miracle from God!!" Spencer was relieved. For him, it is all about the money! Just SHOW ME THE MONEY!! He knows we are the tooth fairy and he also knows his dad is generous :) Oh to pull teeth to get money again!!!!!

Repitition Just Might Work!!

You know when the kids get out of the pool and you tell them, "Go change and bring your suit and your towel and hang them up outside" and you go in later and find their wet suit and wet towel on the floor? For those of you with grown children, exactly HOW MANY times does one say this before it clicks??? Because so far, I say it over and over and it does not stick!! Well, we went through this again, particularly with Erica, the other day. And once again, she left her towel in the floor. So Scott sent her to her room to go pick up the towel and bring it to the deck and hang it up. She did this. Then Scott told her to go get the towel, take it back to her room, put it in the floor and pick it up and bring it back to the deck and hang it up. She laughed and did it. Then he told her to do it five more times. So the picture is Erica's fourth trip from room to deck to hang up a towel!!! The first two times were funny. And then it wasn't so fun after that. Scott read this in a parent book that repetition helps and suggested this is as a discipline/consequence idea. Can I tell you that we haven't found any wet towels around the house this week???? Go Scott! Hey honey, can we use this idea on eachother???? LOL!!!

Healthy?? YUCK.

I have been taking these nutrition classes and have learned alot about the foods and food industry. So after having this new knowledge, I have diligently been making everything fresh and baking instead of buying so many processed foods. In fact, today, I blew the dust off my bread machine and made a loaf of fresh whole wheat bread to use for sandwiches. My family thinks I'm crazy. And I have quit drinking soda completely and have not had one for five weeks now. I almost have Scott convinced to quit too and he has cut back tremendously. I know that those who know him do not believe me when I say that but it is true. So I made this wonderful (in my mind) meal for dinner. Spencer and Erica will try new things. Jack on the other hand is the most difficult eater in our house. He won't eat fruit, vegetables, etc. So, this is how Jack has resorted to eating at dinner. Bite after bite after bite he plugs his nose. His question to me yesterday was, "Are we ever going to have mac n cheese again?" LOL!!! It isn't like I'm feeding them spinach every day!!! :)

Toll Booth VIOLATION

You know when you go through the toll booths and you use your SunPass and it beeps? Well if the beep sounds different than usual, you should check it. I thought maybe the battery was low. But I didn't change it. So I kept using the toll road with the new weird beeping. Well, it wasn't until Scott went through one, had to slam on the brakes and almost took off the arm of the toll booth on the hood of the car that I thought to myself quietly of course, "Hmmmm... there really could be something wrong with the SunPass." As I'm writing this, I realize how totally "just like a woman" this sounds. Well, today's mail delivered a toll violation letter. And when they have the cameras at the booth, they take really, REALLY good pictures of the backend of your car!! So the letter says we owe the state $3.50 which is about accurate of the times I've used it with the weird beeping sound. Note to self: change the batteries in the SunPass when it makes a weird beeping sound and when the Check Oil LEVEL light comes on in the car, you should check it or at least tell your husband that the oil level might be low and not continue driving it around town so that when he sees the light, asks, checks it and the oil does not even register on the dipstick, you have to confess that it has been coming on and off for a week or so and that you thought it just flashed because of the way the car was sitting.......the other way to look at it is when you go get your oil changed, you should not have to pay the fee for them to dump the oil because there is hardly anything in it. But that doesn't really work with your husband so I don't recommend trying that. And remember: pay your tolls!!!

Growing Too Fast!!!!!

Erica celebrated Madison's 10th birthday (green shirt) Friday night and we think her parents were crazy for taking these four girls to Disney for the evening but they did survive and returned with all of them (seasonal passes really come in handy for times like this!) This was taken after splash mountain and they were all wet but happy about the whole thing!!! Staying up until midnight seemed to work out well Saturday -- Erica fell asleep in the afternoon watching a movie on my bed. She woke up and moved to the chair and fell asleep again and then went to bed at 8:30pm! I think that is sooooooo hysterical :) I can't believe how mature they all are getting.

I went to a graduation tea Saturday afternoon for a friend and we celebrated her daughter. We finished eating and began sharing all the wonderful things we see God doing in her life and the gifts and blessings she has used for the Lord. We didn't even get through the first person's letter who was her grandmother before we all started crying like babies. It made me realize I have only six years left with Erica and if it goes as fast as the first six years have, I am going to lose my mind!! There are so many things I want to teach, share and instill in her over the next few years. I found myself feeling overwhelmed.....and then I remembered the scripture, "God does not give us a spirit of fear but of power, love and sound mind." And I can trust that He is going to give us the wisdom and discernment over the next six years to train her in a way that she will be ready for adulthood. It really does go by fast. When someone older tells you that, I realize now they aren't saying it just to be saying it either. And it makes me think about how purposeful we, as Christians, have to be in raising our children in today's world. Hang in there and remember that we have been given power through His Spirit!!!!

THE END of Baseball

These are some cute pictures of the boys playing baseball this past spring. Jack ALWAYS has his tongue out when he hits. And Spencer is always so casual in the dugout. Tonight, we are heading to what may be Spencer's last game of this year. Tournaments are in and you know when you hit that last week and you are just done? Spencer's team was 2-9 ... they had a rough year but now we are in tournaments, we lost one game and they have this streak of winning! Every hit, play, and out we are looking at eachother thinking where is this coming from and it will not end!!! Last game was a nail biter ... it was the top of the 6th and tied 9-9. His team pulled out three runs and the other team couldn't get on base! It was hysterical! And Jack is done. His team came in 4th. He didn't mind. All he wanted was a blue snowcone :) Wish you could see them play ... I love baseball. And they are just so cute.

Dad will NOT be Dead!!!

A couple of weeks ago, me, Spencer and Jack were alone in the car driving home. Somehow we got on the subject of growing up and one day they will have their own families. I asked Spencer how many children he would like to have and he said, "I want three kids." To which I told him three is a great number! So I asked Jack and he said, "I am going to have nine kids." Spencer and I laughed with him and acted so shocked that he would want nine kids!!! I started to tell the boys how proud I am of them and that one day, they will be wonderful fathers, Godly men that will love their wives and make great dads themselves just like their dad. And I proceeded to tell them how Dad and I will be so happy and proud and can't wait to be there for their children one day. They are listening and out of nowhere, Jack says, "Dad'll be dead." And he said it so serious and matter of fact which is exactly how he is most of the time. I was shocked and said, "Jack! No he won't. He will be here for you and your kids. Why would you say that?" And he says, "No he won't. Dad'll be dead." Spencer and I are not getting more frustrated with him for saying this and I am convincing him that is not true and Jack says, "His Dad died and isn't here. He won't either." In his little mind, that is how he saw it. What a great opportunity we have to explain life and death to our kids. My dad is still alive and I got to explain that to him and that not all parents die at young ages ...... and yet, God is sovereign and has a plan for our lives that sometimes we don't know or understand. We simply have to trust Him that He knows the beginning and the end. And just when you think you know where the conversation is going or where you think you are directing it.... our kids are there to let us know at any given moment, they can change it!!!!!

A Mother's Day Tea

This morning, I was invited to Jack's class for their special Mother's Day Tea they do each year. Last year, I spent the morning as Spencer's date and today, it was Jack's turn. He got to wear something nice to school so he picked out his nice plaid shirt and jeans. And he told me he had LOTS of presents to give me but he couldn't tell me because it was a secret. And he wanted me to also know that when I get to class, I will need to put my arm through his and he showed me, "Like this mommy..." And he wanted me to wear my melon dress. So I did .... and we had the best little time at the tea. We had brunch and I got to sit in his seat with him on my lap. And they sang little love and thank you songs to us, Jack and Abby were chosen to read a special poem together, and we got roses and homemade place mats, little button flowers and a special planted pot they handpainted with a fresh flower in it. Can I tell you that I almost weeped through the whole thing? This is the LAST kindergarten event for us. And can I tell you that Jack made me feel like I was the ONLY mom in the room? He was sooooo sensitive and sweet and I was so proud of him. I know one day when he grows up, he is going to be a wonderful, Godly husband and I can't wait to see the adult he is going to be!!! What was even more fun was Scott was there serving the moms and he was all dressed up in his shirt and tie and got to see the whole thing. He didn't do that last year but he was equally touched and so glad he was there. I just love my guys!!!