Gracie's 6th Birthday Party

She's Sweet and Sassy - and so are her friends that helped her celebrate!

See more pictures here: Gracie's 6th Birthday Party

Also a few vidoes:

The Unpredictable . . .

. . . life of a mother of a boy and the evidence of his influence:



(Try and ignore the loud, obnoxious voice of discipline!)

Snow Skiing

This Christmaswe were priviledged to have been able to take the kids skiing for the first time, thanks to my mom and dad, along with my sisiter and her family. Aside from the first day's long lines, lesson mix-ups (or lack there of!), and a crowded mountain, we had a great time.

VIDEOS:

Gracie & Wes on skis for the first time.

Greg & Wes skiing . . .

Robin & Gracie in motion!

Thanksgiving on the farm!

A few days before Thanksgiving we stayed in my sister- and brother-in-laws' trailor at Greg's dad's. The weather was beautiful - sunny 70s in the day and clear, starry nights. The kids had a big time seeing all the animals PaPa helps take care of - cows, peacock, chickens, zebras, cats, bulls . . . fun!

ICE!

One of our favorite things we did pre-Christmas as a family. Well, it was one of my favorites.

The two little penguins in their parkas!!

Gracie got stuck on the ice slide, so Greg learned his lesson and Wes came sailing down after a big push from Dad!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRACIE!

Six years ago today I was exhausted from 16 hours of labor with my firstborn baby - a girl to our surprise and delight! We had worked, cried, and prayed for 2 years and finally had our baby!

What a journey it has been. My little girl is definitely not so little anymore. I think back to those first months, even couple of years and can't believe we're already 6 years later!

OUR GRACIE

observing

strong-willed

inquisitive

questioning

loving

serious

real

curious

A JOY GIVEN OUT OF GRACE FROM OUR LORD



The verse I praised to the Lord when we knew she was coming:

"You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever." Psalm 30:11-12

Each day we have with her is a day God grants us because of His mercy. May I never take a day for granted.

BUSY!

Well, not sure if it's been busyness or computer avoidance; I think a little bit of both. Of course, this season is busy for all of us, so I take advantage of the down times, and sometimes create some. If there is something I've learned from being a mom is that I have to be just as intentional about putting down times in my schedule as anything else. And I've learned not to feel guilty about it. I pretty much can now tell when I've moved from being restful and recouping into laziness - very easy to do, especially when it comes to watching the brainless TV!

So, all that to say is that maybe I'll take some of my "down" time that I hope to have soon (hopefully next week when school is out) to catch up on all my blog postings. We've done so many fun things at Thanksgiving and since that I really would like to get up some pictures to share!

So stay tuned for "Down on the Farm," "Thanksgiving," "ICE!," "Holiday Memories," and who knows what I'm missing!

Looking forward to sharing.