Mr. Almost-5!!!!

I can't stop him.

He just keeps getting older....

His actual birthday is on Thanksgiving.

But now that he is reaching the age of 5, I can now no longer get away with "celebrating his birthday at our family Thanksgiving".  I don't blame him.  He gets rooked every time. 

So, we had a party today.

Can you guess our theme??

We had the party at a local park.  The awesome Richardson Fire Department showed up at the park today for nine little 3,4 and 5-year-old boys.  It was fun.

Even little brother enjoyed hanging with the big firemen!

We had lots of little chiefs today.

When they left the park, they did it with lights and loud sirens.  The boys (and the adults!) thought it was cool.

We had lots of cupcakes (which I think is the absolute easiest way to do a cake for a 5-year-old)  It looks like Spidey is about to karate chop the cake, doesn't it?!

We had friends come play....young and old(er).

Then we did an obstacle course.  Dad was trying to explain the rules....

Run across the bridge.  Slide down the fireman pole.

Grab the wagon.  Run over here to the tunnel.  Throw the balls in the tunnel to "put out the fire".  Climb in the tunnel and rescue the animals.  Slide down the slide and put the animals in the fire wagon and pull them to safety.  Got that straight, all of you?? 

[crickets]

Blake finally got to dig in to cupcakes and unwrap lots of fun toys.

What a blessed day, full of friends and fun!

Excuse me....I'm gonna go cry now...

I can't believe he is turning 5! 

The days can be so long, but the years are so short.

Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of this child!

Every good and perfect gift is from above...

James 1:17

Can you pass me the NyQuil, please?

Well, the CRUD has made it's way around our house....


First my sweet husband had it...major sniffles and slight cough.   
Then it escalated a bit as the littlest man in my home had what his Daddy had...plus a relatively low-grade fever for a couple of days.
Then WHAMMO!!!  Mommy got it.  Worse than anyone. 


Sniffling.  Sneezing.  Coughing.  Aching.  Stuffy head.  Fever.....
You got it.  I have downed this for 2 days.

Yesterday I began to feel a tad better, but decided to lay low.  Today I woke up and YUCK...I felt like my body was a lead weight!  Was I still sick?  Or have I had too much NyQuil??


My sweet husband....oh, what a prince he has been these past couple of days.  He has completely kept the boys out of my hair and given me lots of recovering space and time.  He is amazing.  He has spent many hours since late Friday afternoon being a mostly single dad.  This morning, he took them to church by himself so I could continue to rest. 

I was sitting in my bed when the 3 of them pulled into the driveway after church and I could vaguely hear the conversation outside.  All I can tell you is that it was becoming obvious that the testerone in my house has had too much togetherness!   I knew right then.....Momma is going to have to get it together...and fast! 


My youngest also doesn't like it when Mom is "unavailable" when we are home together, but since he can't seem to put words to his feelings, he tends to "punish" me with less than desirable behavior and then clings to his Daddy (and doesn't want anything to do with me). 

My time "off" these past couple of days just confirmed in me that a Momma's job is NEVER done.  There are no sick days where we are completely off duty.  This is a never-ending job with long hours, many thankless tasks, but full of many benefits (which I will again appreciate much more fully when I feel back to normal)!

So, I thank God:
~that I was sick on the weekend when Daddy could easily be home and rescue me.
~that I am blessed with a husband who can and will take over with the kids when needed.
~that the worst of this sickness is over.
~that He will sustain me as I now get back in the game of being Mommy~even while not at 100%.


I believe the saying goes something like this....
The Show Must Go On!

The formative period for building character for eternity is in the nursery. The mother is queen of that realm and sways a scepter more potent than that of kings or priests. ~Author Unknown

We're lovin' fall!!!

You are observing special days and months and seasons and years! 

Galatians 4:10

Whew...I'm behind! But not with what REALLY matters....

OK...I know, I know....

most of you have moved on past Halloween a long time ago. 

Us....um, I'm just now getting these pictures off my camera. 

Normally around this time of year, I am trying hard to be "Super Mom".  I am making sure I do all the right "holiday" activities.  I wouldn't, after all, want my child to get to college thinking, "my Mom didn't carve my pumpkin or make my spider cupcakes when I was 4...and I remember it!  I was robbed..."

Well, this year I took the pressure off myself.  I convinced myself that I probably won't get ousted by my kids for not doing the right "Mom stuff" this particular year.  And I'm fairly certain they will survive it.  If they do actually hold me to the fire many years later for not doing enough this year, then I will pay for their therapy! 

We did make our way to a couple of Halloween functions.  There was pumpkin painting, trick-or-treating, being with friends, more candy and sweets than should be humanly possible to consume.  But, there was no stress!

We didn't bake.  We didn't really decorate.  We slapped a hay bale on the porch and called it a day.

We had grandparents in for a great weekend.  We had close family friends join us for the activities of the evening.  And we joined friends for a picnic at the park prior to trick-or-treating.  It was easy.  Low key.  And stress free.

I enjoyed the costumes of others!  Have you ever felt like this???  I so couldn't relate.

We've eaten lots and lots of yummy candy.  Including Tootsie Rolls.  We love how it makes us look toothless!

But amidst all the holiday hub-bub, we mainly focus on Christ...and growing up these boys to walk the walk He has for their lives. 

I love this pumpkin Braden brought home from school.  He glued the face on. 

But mainly, I LOVE the prayer on the back.  You'll see why.

My motto for this holiday season is SIMPLICITY.  FAMILY.  FAITH. 

I look forward to a different kind of holiday.  One that isn't about impressing others.  One that isn't about how much STUFF my kids can get or go to.  Or how decorated my house is.  Or how cute my family is on a photo that we send out.  Or how many parties I can go to. 

Don't get me wrong...those things are all good.  And they, too, are gifts from the Lord.  But my striving this season is about being QUIET in my heart and head...and enjoying God's blessings of simplicity.  I choose to be intentional and worshipful this season, going into Thanksgiving and Christmas.

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Well, we've closed out another year of costumes around here.  We have enough candy to last us well into 2010 (that is even weird to type!)  My boys have been filled with abundant energy and sugar! 

I can't show you the full pictures, so let me just paint you a  picture in your mind....

I am inside, doing laundry.  The boys have decided to play outside.  I hear them laughing within a few minutes...they have decided to pour a cup of dirt on top of Braden's head...and a cup of dirt into Blake's pants.  Then, within a minute, I hear them laughing hysterically.  They have proceeded to make mud in the dirt, strip naked, and put mud all over their entire bodies..and run around in the back yard, playing "Mud Men", Superheroes.  I'm quite sure I've never heard of those guys before...until now.

Life is good.  Mud is dirty.  Water can clean it.  They had a ball. 

That's all that matters.

How are you doing with what REALLY matters??

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