Wedding Bells

Our good friends, Lee and Nicole, got engaged this weekend. Their wedding is planned for March 20th...well YEEHAW! I barely heard the gun go off. :)

Just had to share...

STOMACH FLU

6 men down and 1 left standing. Daddy is our HERO. Praying that the bug keeps it's dirty claws off of him.

TITUS NOBLE WEST

It was nearly two years ago that I wrote this same post announcing Micah's birth. And now Alyssa and Dave welcome baby Titus into the world. Anyone who says baby number FOUR is going to be a quick and easy delivery is sadly mistaken. Titus took his sweet time getting here as we anxiously awaited his arrival. Alyssa's labor was just over 16 hours long. She was my hero that evening. I was exhausted just watching the event.

I keep searching for the words to describe his perfection. I am at a loss. Thankfully I read this quote last night and it sums up my feelings perfectly.

This is taken from YEAR Of WONDERS, by Geraldine Brook. The Narrator, Anna Firth, is talking about her children.

I put my face to their necks and breathed the yeasty scent of them. God wants us not to love any earthly thing above Himself, and yet He sets in a mother's heart such a fierce passion for her babes that I do not comprehend how He can test us so.

PEOPLE MAGAZINE

Rush out as quickly as possible to buy PEOPLE magazine. Our fearless leader, Andrea Roberts, founder of Reece's Rainbow is featured in the Hero's article. Positive press like this could bring in major funding as well as homes for all of the sweet children that are still waiting.

LEGOS

Buddy and I are in the process of writing a book. It's all about LEGOS...a fascinating read, really. ;) Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the book.




I'm not sure how this will tie into the story but I will make it work somehow.

When I found it in his treasure drawer I was confused. Most of the things he builds are cars, boats or spacecrafts. This was MUCH different than the others. I asked Buddy if he wanted me to take it apart so he could use the bricks. He was shocked at my question. "NO MAMA, that is my best one EVER. It's the blood of Jesus, mama. I'm keeping it so that I can share it with Papa!"

Be still my heart!

Ancient Greece

Last week we studied Ancient Greece. Our favorite part was hearing about all of the jewelry they wore. The girls made outfits and jewelry to take them back in time.



Not sure that they would have worn something neon green, but it looked cute on the girls!

MAX and SANDY

HERE THEY ARE....

Max and Sandy.

Max was being a little shy. Sandy, however, was in rare form (she is usually hiding).



They require next to nothing and wouldn't think of talking back...NEAR PERFECTION!

Costumes

Emmett is my child that LOVES to put on costumes. He especially loves it when his brother and sister dress him up. Saturday mornings are a fun time to try out every costume we own. The kids think it is hilarious...Mike and I think the "ballet dancer" is taking it too far. But, he is the baby so he gets picked on a little.

Weekday mornings he can be found at the kitchen table 'doing schoolwork' dressed as a pirate, Spiderman or Buzz Lightyear. This week he went for a mix Batman/pirate.


I don't know about you, but it worked for me. Give that kid another cookie!

Thankfully Uncle Bob (or as Baby calls him- BOG) flies to China often. Our costume box is well stocked!

TEASING?

I am not trying to tease you right now by withholding the info on our newest family members (I have received a few threatening phone calls!). Our DSL service has been down for the past few days and won't be working until tomorrow afternoon. Until then, rest assured that we will NEVER own ANY rodents!

2 New FAMILY MEMBERS

Brooklyn has been doing a REALLY fantastic job with her schoolwork recently. Her attitude has been wonderful and she is giving 150% with everything. We thought it would be a good idea to reward her with something EXTRA special.

When I received an email about a family that had 2 pets that they wanted to part with I jumped at it for Brooklyn. I knew that she would LOVE to have something living (other than her 15 baby dolls) to be responsible for. On the way to pick up our new family members I talked to all of the kids about Brooklyn. She was beaming from the back of the car. When I announce that we were getting 2 new family members the car erupted! They all assumed we were adopting and they wondered how we were going to pick up the "new kids" since we don't have a van yet. Only slightly disappointed that it was not new brothers we continued on. The kids had some CRAZY ideas about what they thought we were getting (a calf, a lizard and a hedgehog were a few).

Brooklyn was ecstatic as we walked to the door. I thought she might fall apart with anticipation. And then it happened. The door flung open and a little boy appeared with a shoe box. Fully expecting that it was OUR new pets I watch Brooklyn's eyes as he opened the box. She melted! And then I looked inside. Four sweet, tiny bunnies peered up at me. HELLO, we didn't come for bunnies!!!! I had to explain to Brooklyn that although the bunnies were PRECIOUS her new pets must be inside the house.

I'll keep you in suspense at this point. I need to take a picture of Max and Sandy. I promise you will see them soon. Until then here are the kids with the bunnies...not OUR bunnies, however!

BIG BOY UNDIES

Baby M is spending a lot of time here this week:



Buddy has repeatedly promised him that he would buy him BIG BOY UNDIES as soon as he kept his diaper dry. Basically their conversation revolves around the potty now. "Emmett did you go potty", "Buddy, are you going to get me BIG BOY UNDIES", "Emmett, do you need to sit on the potty?", "Buddy, do you have my BIG BOY UNDIES?". It's pretty funny to listen to them. It's even funnier that Buddy, at four years old, could put on his resume Potty TRAINER.

Ojai Work Weekend

I have a ton of catching up to do on the blog, so I apologize if the sequence of events doesn't seem right. Blogging and MANY other daily activities (like showering!) took a back seat while we prepared for the auction. In fact, I am still in auction land. This week I am putting together cookie bags and thank you letters to deliver to our donors. Bailey and I dropped a few off yesterday. She LOVES being a part of the Hands and Feet Ministry (stay tuned for what she is tackling next).

Two weekends back Mike and I had the privilege of going on his annual Ojai work weekend. Ok, it's sponsored by his work...we weren't actually working. Unless of course you think a trip to the spa, sleeping in and reading most of the day is considered working! If you aren't from these parts you may not know Ojai. Look it up...it is one of the sweetest, most relaxing places on earth. The Spa that we stayed at is AMAZING. It is a treat to be able to drive 15 minutes from home and yet feel like you are on vacation.

Me and my man!


On Sunday morning we went on a ride to breakfast in town with Rachael and Justin.

$25,000

We raised $25,000 this weekend!!!