Pweee-skool!

Well, it appears that I am very behind in blogging... two months to be exact! If you remember, Hannah could not go to preschool in the fall because she was refusing to potty train. Then about two weeks after I told the lady that Hannah would not be coming, she decided to potty train:) Well, I called the preschool at the beginning of March to see about signing her up for next years preschool, I found out they had an opening for her to start coming right away! Hannah was sooo excited to go. Look at Little Miss Confident on her way in to her first day of preschool...And here she is all excited about her new "cubby" for her papers. Of course she had to wear a dress for her first day.And here she is a week later once we got around to finding her a new backpack... Dora (of course). Although she just informed me today that she wants a princess backpack for next year. I think we are hitting a new phase for her... the last few weeks have been all about PRINCESS! When I went to pick her up after her first day the first thing out of her mouth was, "I'm so glad... you came back!" So much for little miss confident. I thought it was funny because I was expecting her to say something like, "I'm so glad you let me come to preschool!" But it is true, she is kind of a home-body and Mama's girl. She is usually so happy when I pick her up. Just a bit of freedom, but not too much:) It's almost fun to go away and come back just for the anticipation of her excitement to see me. Actually, my two hours of freedom twice a week have been very nice. Except I usually end up doing fun things like errands or other home-chores. The quiet is nice and I am grateful, as we will be starting home school next year and I may not have a free hour to myself for the next 20 years or more if we have more kids! Yikes! Yep, I did say we are going to be homeschooling... at least giving it a try. But that's a topic for another blog!

9 Days to Saddle Up Time!

Yep, that's right. Only 9 days until Emelia gets to saddle up and hit the dusty trail! Here's just a sampling from last year that ended up in Nana's yearly calendar of the girls. You can't tell that she enjoys being on a horse just a little bit... You know, just seeing her on the horse gives me a glimpse of what God must feel when we are actively doing whatever it is that He has gifted us to do. When we surrender to the gifts He has given us and do them to the fullest, I know He is glorified. I know to the depths of my being that God has something special planned for Emelia and horses. When I see the thrill and joy on her face, I just want to run to God and give Him a big squeeze and thank Him for having so many unique gifts for all of us humans down here. So, what is your gift? Are you using it for Him? For me, I think I am still discovering it. Or, maybe trying to embrace what it is. I love to create. Especially (lately) in sewing. I crave to do it, have little time to actually engage in it, and often feel guilty when I do get the chance to sew. Why is that? To feel guilty to do that which God has gifted me to do? How silly is that? I think it has something to do with the Enemy not wanting us to fulfill God's purposes for our lives. Well, I guess it's fine time I throw that silly lie out of my head and turn on the old hummer! So whether it be "riding like the wind" or sewing, let all that you do be done for the Glory of God!

Faithful Moses...

Emelia was in a musical at her school a few weeks back called Faithful Moses. She was very excited to be chosen to be in the "choreography" part. She loves to be on stage and did a great job with her tambourine!

Is there anyone who is not encouraged by her beautiful smile? Michael Card sings a song that talks about how he would "wander weary miles... just to see the sunrise of your smile..." Mommy loves the sunrise of your smile, my Pretty Girl, and I hope and pray that you don't ever let the world take away the joy that God has put into your little being!

Still a Boy...

Ted and Emelia got to go to a friends Rodeo last weekend. Here is Ted's version of the fun they had. They got to ride on the horses in between the events. For those of you who think that Ted is getting old, here's proof that he will always have a little boy in his heart:)

Zero Novocaine, 1 Shot and 3 Staples

Yep, that's right. That's what I've been up to today. None of these things were on my list of things to do at all. I decided after Bible Study to stop by Hy-Vee and pick up a few things for lunch. While at the store Hannah said, let's go down the "seeuhl wrow" (Cereal Row). So, we did and as I reached down to pick up a box of cereal I heard and felt this sharp object attack my head. Apparently there was some metal bin attached to the aisle that I did not notice and I got a pretty good gash. So there I am with no Kleenex in my purse, Hannah jumping around, running to the deli section trying to get the meat guys attention for some paper towels.

The meat guy just sort of stared at me and said "What?" while a lady next to me demanded, "Bring some towels quick!" I tell ya, I felt soooo stupid. Then they sent me to the front of the store where there is an Express Clinic. How handy. I thought great, the nurse can clean me up quick and I'll be on my merry way. So she looks at me and says, "Why did you come here?" in a cranky tone. "Well, they told me to...." "Who told you to? I can't help you here, I don't do wounds." I tell ya, I was in a lot of pain at this point, and if I could have been thinking straighter, I might have done or said something not so nice... Then the manager came over and nurse lady calmed down a bit. He offered to bring me to the hospital, but in my immense embarrassment, I strongly refused. Somehow I managed to pay for my groceries and get to the car. Then I called Ted bawling. I kept saying, "Hannah can't miss preschool. Maybe I'll wait to get my head checked until after I bring her to preschool.'' I suppose I was a bit delirious:) Poor Ted. And to shorten this long story, a dear friend from church came to the rescue, dropping me off at the hospital and taking Hannah out for pancakes, then dropping her off to preschool.

So, then when it came time to finally see me the nurse suggested another tetanus shot since I could not remember when the last one was. I just love shots. Ask my mom. (Mom, I promise I acted like a big girl.) Then the Dr. said she would give me some Novocaine and then a few staples. I told her that Hannah had a cut last year and had nothing for the pain. I was merely making small talk, not hinting. But she took this as a hint and said, "Well you don't have to have Novocaine." Well, then I thought, how bad can it be? If Hannah can do it, well then I can too, right? I said, let's do one and if it's too bad, then we can do the Novocaine. Well, it really hurt, but I said, just "get er' done". By the third staple I pretty much could not breathe. So, you can be the judge, either I'm a tough cookie or stupid. I'm voting for the latter.

So, moral of the story is BE CAREFUL when you are looking for a good deal on cereal, grocery shopping can be dangerous! And now I'm going to sit and do nothing for awhile:)

Conversations...

You know how it goes. They are playing like angels until the moment that the phone rings. And as soon as you say "Hello" it is a cue to them to start acting as naughty as they possibly can. I have worked with the girls to try to get them to not interrupt me until I am off, unless there is blood or something super serious... So, one day while I was on the phone, this is this sign that Emelia was waving frantically in front of my face. Needless to say I could not keep from laughing, while also trying to have sympathy. For those of you who have forgotten phonics, it says, "Hannah poked my eye-ball. Ouch!"

From This Moment...

Mommy has been practicing a few songs she is singing for a wedding at the end of March. Since Hannah is always with Mommy, she has gotten in on the practicing and knows almost all the words to the song, From This Moment. Here she is singing a part of the song. I know that this will bring a smile to your face no matter how bad your day may be!