Eighties

We attended the school auction last night and it was fun! We wore eighties outfits...I think we managed the look or some if it anyway. 

MOPS Summit

The MOPS Summit went well today and I learned some things about being authentic ("True You"). Authentic means being real with people and closing the gap between your public and your private you. It also means learning from your experiences but not to let them define you (especially the bad ones), as well as being who God wants you to be and embracing whatever gifts he gives you. Finally, I was reminded of the heart of MOPS which is helping Mom's to realize they are leaders to their children and many they will encounter in life. I love MOPS because it has helped me to grow in my faith and given me to opportunity to encourage others. 

Wow....God.....Wow

We just got back from the United concert. Michael W. Smith and Stephen Curtis Chapman were absolutely amazing in their music and their testimony of how great God is. I have never cried so much at a concert but it was not somber by any means. Stephen Curtis Chapman especially moved me in talking about how he has changed since losing his daughter Maria and that he had to ask God Can I still sting my songs with the integrity and truth that I have in the past? Then he added a verse to "It's all yours God" after talking about how even our families are gifts from God. He and a friend started a ministry for orphans called Show Hope  http://www.showhope.org/  they are opening an orphanage/hospital in China called "Maria's Big House of Hope". Apparently she liked that song "My Father's Big Big House" and had a special talk about it with her parents just a year before she died. Oh yeah, and he changed the last line of "Cinderella" too. Instead of "and she'll be gone" it was "and I know the dance will go on". 

They finished off the night with everyone singing Healing Rain. It was just awesome! 

The slugger and the artist

I have no idea what the kids will grow up to be but I will never forget at 3 and 2, he consistently liked ANYTHING to do with sports, and she loved ANYTHING to do with pens/colors and paper.

Today when we got home from Grandpa's he was trying out the new badminton set and she got out the Thomas sketch/erase. They are two cuties.

The Hill

If you haven't been to the Hill to have a sandwich, someday you should treat yourself, you won't be disappointed. We used to live on the edge of the hill near a family deli called Southwest Market (on Southwest). I treated myself today and got a sandwich on french wheat loaded up with homemade italian salami (SO GOOD), turkey, provel, lettuce, tomato, onion, and honey mustard. YUMmy!

There is also a good place over on the other side of the Hill (on Shaw I think) called Adriana's, they have great hot sandwiches. They also have a good coffee place over there called Shaw Coffee house I think.

New woman

I am starting to realize how much easier Satan can get to me if I am not taking caring of myself and feeling, well, just UGH. For example, sleep and exercise very much improve my mood. I hadn't slept well in a couple nights since I was nervous and finally last night I got a solid eight hours. It felt good to get some sleep. 

MOPS Sunday

....went well, and I am relieved to have it over with. I know people were praying for me because when I finally got up there I didn't have to think about it the words just flowed. Here is the video that we showed if you didn't get to attend:

Changed this to a link since it was getting cutoff:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxSTTg7h6sw

Growth Report

Well the Peanut had an endocrin appt Fri and I am glad to report we still avoided growth hormones. However, even though she grew an inch in 6 months, she still fell from the 5th to the 3rd percentile. The doctor told us she would need them at some point. Ugh. Please pray for her to keep growing :-)

New Years Resolutions

So I am checking back in on my News Years resolutions. 1) Get up and eat breakfast with my husband - Well I am glad to report I am starting to get back on track with this one and I like having that time before the kids get up. 2) Eat less sweets - bad day to report, I just ate about 1000 Easter M&M's 3) Love the dog more, I have given up on this one, he drives me crazy - I will say some prayers, he is seeming to need more attention in his old age but could he at least leave Abby's sandwich alone and stay out of my bedroom????

I either have a nervous stomach about speaking on Sunday or I ate too many M&M's, ugh.

Easter

I love Easter for lots of reasons but I have reached a point in my life where I mostly love it for the worship. Our worship this year was beautiful, the church looked lovely with butterflies the children decorated and Easter lilies, a special festival choir performed and sounded like a choir of angels, our pastor knocked his sermon out of the park (and with the bouncy ball prop he used....right up to the ceiling), and the church was packed more than usual. It was great to see all of the people there knowing they too were there because it was a special day. It's times like those that all doubt falls away and that my eyes well up with tears at what the Savior has done for me. Like our pastor said, Christ's death and resurrection is more exciting than your baseball team winning the world series, definitely a "WOOHOO!!!!" moment. 

Pet peeve of the year

Kids in the bathroom with me. A girl just needs some alone time in there. 

Kid Stuff

Last night we took the kids to the park. We played catch with Toby and we flew a kite. Abby and I really had it going for a while. After dinner we died Easter eggs, a first for them. It is so fun to do kid stuff with them now that they are getting bigger. Today I felt bad we did a lot of running around but they helped me clean the basement and stuff Easter eggs. They are getting to be good helpers. Sometimes I feel guilty about not doing learning or quality activities with them more often but at least we are always doings things together. It's really fun doing kid stuff too though. We will catch up on the "learning" in May/June when I start trying to get Abby to potty train, lol.

Busy Month

Well April is going to be busy, busy. MOPS has several things going on, we are gearing up for VBS, and I have a stack of BOH work to do. It's all good things but when I try to think about it all at once I get a little overwhelmed. Of course when you are busy you feel like a slacker at your most important roles in life too. 

I have been sleeping better and talking to my husband about it helps too. I just have to let God prioritize for me and only do things (think about things) that are supposed to be done TODAY. There are a lot of fun things coming though and I am excited.  

Coffee is to adults as....

chocolate milk is to kids. They sniff it out, crave it, and are addicted to it.