A.C.'s Birthday

Anna Clare turned 7 BACK IN MARCH and I am just now posting pictures. I have lots of catching up to do.


We did a combined "cheerleading" party with her lifelong friend, A.B. The girls had a blast! We had two "real" cheerleaders come to the church gym and teach the girls cheers and a dance routine.






















In the words of these girls..."Turning Seven Rocks!"

June 27, 2010

What a joyful day! Anna Clare was baptized this past Sunday morning.



At our church the person who is being baptized chooses a scripture to be read by a family member. I had been praying for God to give her the verse He had chosen for her. She chose Luke 1: 37. "For nothing is impossible with God."



Steve read it during the service. I pray it is a truth she will never forget.



We are so thankful that she has asked Jesus to be the Lord of her life. I pray that she desires to be obedient to Him and walks closely with Him in a real relationship all the days of her life.



Sunday night she asked me if she had to have a bath since she was baptized that morning. Completely cracked me up! We love you Anna Clare and are so very proud of the decision you have made.

Summer is Here!

A few weeks ago I saw this post on another blog and thought it was a neat idea to avoid summer boredom. Anna Clare made a list of activities (i.e. pool, picnic, various local parks, TCBY) and put them in an envelope. She loves little games like this. Today was her first day of summer (blog post on the end of 1st grade to come, and her birthday, and the Disney cruise, and ...I am REALLY behind on posts!) so I told her to choose an activity. When she pulled "Landmark Park" out of the envelope, my first thought was "HOT!" But we loaded up and headed out.

First was the playground...


which was indeed HOT!








Can you tell my girls like to pose?!

Then we happened up on Farmer Sid and Elbert.


It was feeding time, and since we were the only ones in sight, the girls had the animals all to themselves.









Sid was so gracious and patient with the girls (and with me as I tried to snap pictures with a dying camera battery).






He let the girls gather the eggs...




and put them in a bag to bring home so they could have fresh eggs for breakfast Saturday morning!



He even kept the "mean" rooster at bay.



They had a blast! We thanked Farmer Sid and headed home with our eggs.



They couldn't wait for Daddy to get home so they could tell him all about it. And nothing makes Daddy happier than two red-faced, sweaty children who have been spending time in the great outdoors. Feeding time is every week day at 4:00. Your children will love it!

Three!

Yesterday, this little princess was two and this was her last night "posing" as our two-year-old little baby...



This morning, she was "sad" that she was not two any more.



And this is how she felt about being "free."











For her birthday, she wanted to "go to 'Little Bamba,' and wear a hat, and get ice cream on my nose." It was a packed solid day, but we made her wish come true. My dad was giving the commencement address for the graduation of a local community college which included a luncheon. I had the luncheon covered but was having trouble finding an afternoon sitter for the graduation. I had pretty much given up and told my parents I couldn't make it, when my friend Allyson insisted on keeping her (she knew of my plight because her daughter babysits for us). She is a saint in my book. Not only did she volunteer to keep her, but it was during nap time away from home...it could've gone either way. Thankfully, Allyson said she was an angel and even curled up and slept on her daughter's bed while she read to her. I am SO GRATEFUL to her, because hearing my dad speak was a tremendous blessing. I would've hated to have missed it.

Next came Anna Clare's piano recital...



She played "The Gift to be Simple" and "Happy Birthday" (which was not planned in honor of her sister's birthday, but pretty cool I thought). She did a wonderful job. It was sweet and precious, and we were very proud of her.

We finally made it to Little Bamba and the birthday girl (and her sissy) ate their weight in cheese dip...







Then came the hat. As everyone sang and clapped for her, she stared at them like they were completely nuts. Like this...



Then she gave us a smile, ice cream on her nose and all.








K.K. brought a gift...



and a cake...



And then we took the party to the house, for baths and bed.



Sleepy Tight



As Steve said our prayers, she promptly interjected "and thank you Lord for ice cream and ice cream on the nose." Amen to that.

Happy Birthday, Virginia Owen Thompson. We love you to the moon and back!

Marriage Counseling

Well, not exactly. But if you would've asked Steve last week where he was headed last weekend, that's what he would have said. "I can't go turkey hunting this weekend..I'm going to some marriage counseling thing." If you know my husband at all, this will not surprise you.

Now, let me tell you where we really went. I heard about Weekend to Remember from by Bible Study teacher. She and her husband went several years ago and talked about what a great experience it was. It occurs twice a year in our state, once in the fall and once in the spring. After checking into it and securing the help of the grandparents, I told Steve that for my birthday (in March), I wanted to go to the Spring conference in April. Since we are celebrating our 10 year anniversary this year (in June), I couldn't think of a better year to go. On my birthday, he gave me a card and on the inside he wrote something about booking "that Marriage Conference thing."

Neither of us really knew what to expect. I had not talked to anyone who had been besides my friend. And I didn't pick her brain about it. She said it was great, and I believed her. She did not lie. It. Was. Great. On so many different levels. Here are some highlights:

1. We spent an entire weekend together, just the two of us...no agenda (except the scheduled conference sessions) no children, no computer, no leisure reading, no work ...from Friday at 4:00 until we got home Sunday at 3:30, it was just us.

2. We ate six consecutive meals together...again, just the two of us. SIX MEALS! Honestly, how often does that happen?

3. The speakers were incredible...dynamic, HILARIOUS, transparent, encouraging, and challenging. They reminded us of so many of God's truths about marriage...it was like a refresher course. Or in their words, a "tune-up" for your marriage.

4. The session topics were real. Stuff you deal with daily in marriage. Everything from "Why Marriages Fail" to "We Fight Too" (resolving conflict), to "Marriage After Dark" (take a guess:), to "How Marriages Thrive." There was also a session for women only, dealing specifically with being a wife and mother. And likewise for the husbands.

5. Saturday night was date night. We went to the movies AND out to dinner (and didn't have to pay for a sitter:)

6. We stayed in a hotel for two nights...no cooking, no cleaning, no cleaning, no cleaning...

7. We spent quality time together. Not that our time at home with our precious children is not quality time. It absolutely is. But with no other distractions, we just enjoyed each other's company. Even in the car, even if we weren't talking every minute, it was just nice to be together.

8. I realized that when I am mad and frustrated with Steve, gritting my teeth and digging my fingernails into his arm is not the solution. And yes, I have done this more times than I care to admit. How mature and appropriate of me. And it did not take me going to a marriage conference to figure out that this is wrong. But I hope to control my anger from now on like a good little girl :)

9. We were reminded that God made us so, so very different. Difference is good. It is not my job to change Steve. It is my job to be an enthusiastic encourager to him, to offer genuine forgiveness with humility, and to love him with an extravagant love. An exclusive, expressed, extraordinary love that is a choice, and not always a feeling. There were also a couple of little "surprises" planned by Family Life that truly made the weekend.

10. I laughed a lot. Pretty much all weekend. Between Steve and guest speaker Greg Speck I laughed until I cried.

And, Steve loved it too. I don't even think he regretted not getting to chase after some old turkey in the woods anyway. Or at least that's what he said:)

And so it was Easter

Remember this? Well, Anna Clare informed me the day before Easter that she thought she just might go down front at church the next morning and tell our pastor she wanted to be baptized. I thought to myself that Easter would be a perfect day for her to profess her faith, but I dared not say much:) She had told us this a few times before but always decided that it just wasn't the right time. God knew when the right time was, however, and His timing is always just right.




I knew her wheels were turning when, between Sunday School and church, she said, "I don't want to sit in the balcony, but if we do sit in the balcony, how will I get down front?" I love that child.

She chose the 2nd row, front and center. So there we sat. When she didn't leave the service for children's church, I thought "this may just be the day." And, sure enough, as soon as the invitational hymn began, she was off. She slipped quietly past us and walked right up to the pastor all by herself. We could not have been more proud.



I thought it was pretty funny that, as intimidating as going in front of an entire congregation can be, she chose Easter Sunday...one of the most crowded Sundays of the year. I suspect God giggled a bit at that as well. We are absolutely thrilled and cannot wait for her upcoming baptism.




After church, we had lunch at my parents' house and the girls hunted eggs. Then we came home and all took naps, except for Anna Clare, who watched episodes from Season One of The Brady Bunch (she is such my child...that was my absolute favorite show growing up). We ended the afternoon with a family walk through the neighborhood, enjoying the fantastic weather.

Best. Easter. Ever.