Disappointment and Joy

Okay, I bought some cereal in an effort ot be healthier. I really prefer sugared cereal. I could eat it for every meal!

BUT, I am trying to set a better example for the kids and just plain need to be healthier.

So, in that effort, I bought this box.

Could it have been any nastier? Why didn't they just say that it tasted like styrofoam? It could have saved me a lot of time and disappointment. It was seriously nasty. I may have to put extra sugar on it just to finish the box.

And I will finish the box on principle alone. But I won't like it.

Maybe that is the way you lose weight. You don't want to eat it so you lose weight!

Well, I needed to make it up to myself and one of the best ways to do that is to buy myself a pen or a mug!!

I found these this morning...


Aren't they wonderful? I can't wait to use them in the morning. :-D

Vacation-lots of pics!!

There are more to come!!

For you, Thither...

We found this and thought of you.

We will get it to you as soon as we can. :-)


It is sooo soft and cuddly.

Love you.

First Date

Steven takes each of our girls on dates, one at a time. It is a sweet time for them and teaches them what to expect from boys when the time comes to *gulp* date. (courting is what we have decided on, but that discussion will come later!)

Our youngest has only been on modified dates because she was so young, so they would go out to eat or get ice cream or something like that. Well, this year she is old enough for a more 'grown up' date! She gets to go to a movie and dinner with Daddy.

I told her when it was time to get ready and she asked why. I told her that she was going on a 'real' date with Daddy and she threw her hands up to her face and squealed in delight. She ran around the house telling her sisters where she was going. It was the sweetest thing.

For each date, Steven buys them a piece of jewelry that is age appropriate. It is a precious moment between father and daughter.


Her necklace that says "Daddy's Girl".

She was so excited that she didn't let go for a few minutes!

Daddy, showing her what her gift was.

A very sweet girl that is growing up all too quickly.

New Things...

I made the mistake of buying the girls new toothbrushes. Why is that a mistake you ask? Well, because I bought the kind that has a suction cup on the end. I figured that it would be an easy way for them to keep track of them.

Um, no.

It was an opportunity to see how many things they could stick to! Now, that doesn't sound so bad until your 4yo comes down and says that she got her toothbrush stuck, 'but it's okay now'.

Yeah, I don't think so.

One look at her and we could see exactly where she got it stuck. I think the picture explains it all!

Can you see her forehead? This happened a few days ago and it is still there!! lol Leave it to her to get a hickey on her forehead!

This is a flower that our 7yodd has nursed back to health. She is doing wonders with our plants. :-)

A picture of doughnuts? Well, I just had to because they were sooo yummy!

This is our 'new' car! Steven's van was having some issues and we were saving up for a different car that would get better gas mileage. Here it is! Steven is loving it. :-) It is nice for him to have a 'manly' car and not a minivan to drive!

Little things

The little things are what matter. Right? I know that some people would not agree, but I tend to have a different perspective than most on just about everything! To me, the little things are what make the big things big. Make sense?

Let me explain.

Our youngest has been doing school with us since she was able to hold a crayon. She loves being with her big sisters while they are doing school. (little thing) She has learned her colors and shapes this way. (little thing that builds to a big thing)

Last year in our home school group, she had a class for learning letters. Granted, she already had them learned and could write her name, but she enjoyed ‘teaching’ the younger kids with me! I didn’t realize, however, that she knew ALL of her letters. Evidently she was paying more attention than we had realized. (little thing)

She has been able to write her name for over a year now. (big thing that came from many little things) Her sisters think it’s cute when she spells it for them! She can also recognize their names on sight. But only because they write them down for her continually and repeat them over and over again. (little thing)

She has been ‘writing’ notes to all of us that have up until this point just been scribbles. (little thing) Now she is asking us to spell words for her (little thing) like “I love you.” (big thing)

Yesterday, she gave me a piece of paper that I had just spelled “I love you” for and what I saw brought tears to my eyes. She has learned to spell Mom and Dad from memory. (little thing that means the world)

Three little letters in each word that are quite easy to spell mean more than anything else. She was so proud that she knew how to spell our names! All the little things that she has been doing and that we have doing with her and for her have added up to a big thing for her momma’s heart.

We will keep doing the little things and treasuring them along the way.