Making Faces, The Biker, and God's Promise

Come on- that's a pretty good title for a post, don't you think? The other night Scott and I went out for our anniversary, and we took Allison to a babysitter. I just picked up this cute little outfit for her, so I had to snap some shots of her in it. She loves making different faces to show different emotions, and it cracks me up every time.

On the way out to dinner we saw this guy on his bike. My true feelings are this- I NEVER make fun of overweight people in general (because it's not nice, plus I'm one of them), and I really, really never make fun of them if they are out exercising, but come on folks, is this guy serious? I'm proud of him for being out biking, trying to get in better shape- really, I am. But come on! UPDATE: Seems I cannot get the biker guy's picture to download- wonder why??? UPDATE #2- if you click on the little red box that shows up by the first picture of Allison, you'll see the biker dude. I'll get better at this, I promise! :)

Tonight we had a little rain come our way. Scott noticed two rainbows outside, so we all ran out there to look, take pictures, and remember God's promise to us. Allison was squealing with delight. You just don't see rainbows that often, and these were so clear and so beautiful.

I'm trying something new tonight- trying to put captions underneath my pictures. Like most things I try for the first, second, or even third time, they don't work out exactly as planned, so bear with me as I learn. I trust you are all intelligent enough to understand my pictures without explanation, but I really want to learn how to put captions underneath them. So, here goes. :)



This is the face I make when Mommy says, "Smile normally"



This is the face I make when Mommy says, "Make a sad face"



Allison and I spent Friday morning at Imagination Pottery- what FUN! She made something for herself as well as something for Daddy. I can't wait to go back and paint some more. We both loved it!




This is my face when Mommy says, "Make a silly face!"




God will always keep His promises!

Ten Years Ago Today!

Ten years ago today I said the most important words I'll ever say- "I do!" I married the man of my dreams, and 10 years later he's STILL the man of my dreams- even better!

Thank you, honey, for all you do to make our home a happy one! I LOVE YOU!! Here's to the rest of our lives, and then some...

Laurie

Loving Spring!

Just a few shots of Allison enjoying the wonderful springtime weather we're having this week! Enjoy! :)

More KC fun

We took a LOT of pictures on this particular afternoon, so it will take a few posts to show them all. These pictures show Allison having fun in the water (notice how most children came prepared with swimsuits- we were obviously clueless), painting, and playing with big bubbles. It was a GREAT day for kids!! :)

I Scream, You Scream.....

We spent the holiday weekend in Kansas City, and boy did Allison have a good time! There are many more fun pictures to see, but I had to dedicate some space to a collection of pictures Scott took of her enjoying an ice cream cone at an outdoor kids' festival at Crown Center. Talk about JOY!! :)

More Skating and a Song

The other day we were running some errands in the car and Allison says, "Mommy, will you tape me singing Jesus Loves Me?" Why not? So I pulled over in a parking lot and taped her singing. :)

Last night we had ice skating lesson #3. While she does spend most of the lesson either trying to get up after falling down or holding someone's hand as she moves around the ice, I do see a little improvement each time. I'm guessing she'll have to take this beginner's class at least a few times before being able to move on, but that's fine with me. I LOVE hearing her get excited for class, watching her on the ice, and then hearing her say, "That was FUN!" after each lesson.

We're headed back to KC (long story) this weekend, so it might be awhile before I post again. I hope everyone reading this enjoys the upcoming long weekend!

Tragedy

Before going to bed tonight I hopped online to read a couple of blogs, and what I read has left me sitting here in tears. I read a bit online to confirm it. This evening one of Steven Curtis Chapman's daughters (his youngest, adopted from China in 2004), was killed when one of Steven's sons accidentally ran over her in their driveway. I cannot imagine anything more painful than losing your child, and to have it happen like this isn't even imaginable to me. Please join me in praying for this family.

The Pay it Forward Game!

UPDATE:

My anonymous commenter does not have a blog, so I still need one more person to take the Pay it Forward challenge- who will be #3???? :)



I absolutely love the idea of paying it forward. You know, someone does something nice for you- you turn around and do something nice for someone else. Can you imagine how beautiful our world would be if everyone subscribed to that concept? Well, today I'm doing my little part, and I hope you'll join in the fun! Here's how it works:

1. You make a comment on this entry of my blog
2. If you are one of the first 3 people to comment, I will send you a little something special in the mail
3. You then post a Pay it Forward game on YOUR website and do the same

Pretty simple, huh? Now, comment away!! :)

A Fun Weekend in Kansas City

We traveled "home" this weekend to celebrate the 16th birthday of my niece, Julie. It seems like yesterday she was being born, so it was a little freaky to think of her turning 16. She is such a doll, and we enjoyed celebrating with her. Allison had fun playing with her little cousin Cooper, who although not only 2 is quickly catching up to her in size! They had fun in Aunt Jan's beautiful back yard!

The other highlight of the weekend was a trip to the petting farm. There is so much to do there that it really is a different trip each time you go. Allison had a ball feeding the goats, taking her 2nd pony ride (without Mommy by her side this time!), playing in the windmill water with Daddy, riding a tractor, etc. Like I said, LOTS to do!

A Return to the Magic House and our Bookworm!

Last weekend Daddy took Allison to the Magic House (a museum for kids in St. Louis), and they had a great time, as always. The first picture was taken this week. I was in the kitchen and came in the living room to see this. After she read each book she'd hang it on the arms of the chair- pretty clever, huh? I hope my baby always LOVES books this much!

Just for Fun!

I read this on someone's website today and thought I'd try it out myself. I'm feeling reflective this morning, what can I say? :) If you do this on your blog let me know so I can peek at your answers. :) I promise to post pictures of Allison soon- I haven't taken any (GASP!) in the past few days.


I am: not enjoying the rainy weather we've been having

I think: about how to be more productive- mainly I just think about it, though. :)

I know: God loves me no matter what!

I want: chocolate chip cookies

I hate: that I let little things get to me

I miss: my friends in Kansas City

I fear: BIRDS!

I feel: happy most of the time!

I hear: rain coming down on the windows

I smell: coffee and don't understand why people like it

I crave: anything fattening and bad for you, but especially chocolate and ice cream

I search for: everything because I'm not as organized as I'd like to be

I regret: doing nothing in high school besides being social

I love: finally hearing the pitter patter of little feet

I ache: all the time!

I care: about hurting someone's feelings

I always: say I love you before I hang up the phone after talking to my husband.

I am not: quiet- EVER!

I believe: that God has a plan for my life

I sing: a LOT- I love to sing!

I cry: at nothing, at everything. I'm very sentimental, so it takes very little

I fight: rarely. I retreat instead.

I win: games like Taboo, where you talk to win!

I lose: my mind when Allison CONSTANTLY asks, "Why did you say that?"

I never: chew gum- it grosses me out! It grosses me out when anyone chews it- YUCK!

I listen: to preschool tunes. On the rare occasion I'm in the car alone, it's usually 80's stuff or country

I can usually be found: playing, playing, playing

I am scared: of being pushed off a high mountain and other irrational things like that

I need: clothes- NOTHING fits! :(

I am happy about: my future- I LOVE my husband and child and enjoy every day with them

I hope: we have another baby someday

NEW VIDEOS are ready to view!

We LOVE videos, don't you??? Well, I can only fit tiny little snip-its on my site, so anything longer than a minute or so goes onto another site. Recently, Scott added Allison's 3rd b-day videos to the site. I figured out today how to add a link to the right side of the website - see where it says Family Videos, over on the right? You can just click on there and it will take you to the site.

The one labeled "Allison's 2008 b-day" is a compilation of pictures from the year, set to fun music, and the 2nd one, labeled "2008 birthday video" is one that Daddy dedicated to Allison. It is precious, set to Steven Curtis Chapman's song "Cinderella". They are each 4 minutes long, so when you have 8 minutes to spare (I know, some of you don't!), go enjoy a couple of fun videos.

Happy Mother's Day!

To all the mommies out there- I hope you have a fantastic Mother's Day today! My post today is a tribute to the wonderful moms in my life. Since I'm too lame to figure out how to write under each picture, I'll tell you that the first picture is of my mom, the 2nd picture is Scott's mom, and the 3rd picture is Scott's step-mom. I feel very blessed to have these 3 wonderful women in my life and in the life of my child.

My mom was ALWAYS there for me when I was growing up. She was home when I got home from school, and we would always talk about my day. She sewed for me, baked cookies for me, took me shopping, listened to me when I had all my boy troubles, understood me (most of the time!), let me have freedom with boundaries, taught me how to be a good mom, and loved me no matter what. Today she is a fantastic grandma to my little one, and Allison LOVES her Nana! I love you, Mom!

I was comfortable from day one with my mother-in-law. She is the easiest person to get along with. I could spend hours in her kitchen, playing games and just telling stories. She is a GREAT listener! I always feel like she is genuinely interested in all of my stories. :) She's also a great cook, so being at her house during meal time is a treat. I love you, Judie!

My step-mother-in-law is also a VERY easy person to get along with. She is so much fun to talk to. Her laugh in contagious, and she always makes you feel right at home in her home. I love how she greets Allison with a "Hello there, sunshine!" whenever she sees her. I love you, Sonja!

Some people don't even have one positive motherly influence in their lives, but I am fortunate enough to have three, and I know I am blessed!

Caution- proud Mommy post ahead!

Tonight my little sweetheart hit the ice for the first time, and it was a great experience! I had no idea I could feel this much pride in a three year old child, but I did. I felt like I was watching her accomplish the most exciting thing in her little life so far, and I was just SO proud of her! We really weren't sure if she'd even try it, even though she's been wanting to learn for a long time. In 30 short minutes she went from not being able to walk on the skates without holding our hands, to walking VERY slowly on the ice all by herself. YIPPEE!! She was by far the youngest, smallest, most inexperienced skater on the ice tonight, but with the help of some very sweet, very patient teachers, she accomplished a lot.

For the past year we've been collecting books (can't think of the author off hand) with titles like Silver Skates, Good Luck Pony, Golden Locket, etc. Each book comes with a necklace, and we've told her she can have all the necklaces when she's four. But we made an exception tonight and gave her the silver skates necklace and told her she could wear it when she had her lessons, just like the girl in the book. She was excited, and I could see her showing her necklace to the teachers during the lesson. So sweet!

Enjoy the pictures, and don't make fun of me too much for being so excited in the video just because my child moved her feet on the ice. :)