Is Jesus Really Real?

So, Ava is at the age where she poses the question, "Mommy is Santa Claus real?"  I wasn't sure what to say, so I asked her if she thought he was.  She said, "I don't know, but maybe.  What do you think?"  I couldn't lie to her and so I said, "well, I don't think he is real in the way the movies and stories say," then I went on to explain to her that the "spirit of giving" is real and there really was a St. Nicholas.  She seemed a bit sad but seemed to understand it. I explained that some people really do believe in Santa, like Christian, and that was fine.  It wasn't her job to tell other kids he wasn't real.  (I don't want her being the one responsible for bursting other kids bubbles.)  Anyway it took her a day to wrap her little wondering mind around this but she didn't seem upset, just thoughtful. 

Then came the question that floored me. . ."Mommy, . . .Is Jesus Really Real?"  Wow, it made me think.  I took a breath and then started to attempt to explain to her that he was very real and that he was the real reason for Christmas. I had explained all of this to her before, but I guess her innocence and naivety took me off guard.  What we tell them and what they see everyday is what they internalize. I took for granted that she just knew the things I knew. But, of course, she would have put Santa and Jesus on the same level because that is what we she sees.  I am not by any means saying it is wrong to allow your children to know about Santa, and I am not exactly sure what I am trying to say besides the simple fact that my eyes were opened and opened wide today.  I need to stop and really explain the important things to my children.  I need to stop assuming they just understand.  I try this, but sometimes I forget.  One of my new years resolutions is to spend more time explaining LIFE to my sweet children, while they are new sponges.  I hope this continues to remind me how open their minds are.  I end this blog entry with a prayer asking God to help me to instill the things he wants me to in my children.

The Perceptive Ear

Two nights before Christmas, I was sitting with my children and we were watching home videos, including the one of our trip to the hospital with when Ava was being born.  Then the visitors that came to see us after and hold her when she was a baby.  She was glued to the T.V. and it was about 2:30 when she started complaining of her ear hurting her. I immediately thought of an ear infection, but what are the chances of it hitting so fast. I called my friend who informed us they are very painful and they do come on pretty rapidly, so I drove her to the newly opened Greencastle Walk-In Clinic.
 I gave her a little Tylenol before we left and when it kicked in, she told me she was feeling better.  She then proceeded to tell me how she thinks she didn't have an ear sickness after all. . ."I think my ear is trying to tell me that I miss my Nana, since she lives in Missouri, and I saw her holding me when I was a baby and it was telling me I missed her."  :)  It made me smile and brought tears to my eyes all at once.  Then I told her how I missed her Nana too and couldn't wait until we could see her again. . and I told her I was pretty sure she had the most perceptive ear I had ever come in contact with. :) 
She did have an ear infection and had to be put on an antibiotic and she was in an extreme amount of pain for the majority of the evening, but was feeling much better by the following morning.  Thanks to medicine and sleep.  However, not sure the missing Nana part went away.  Today, she hugged a corner of the wall and said, "look mommy, I am hugging my Nana."  She is sweet.  She loves you and misses you Nana, almost as much as her Mommy does.

Belching in Lehman's Terms

Micah informed me last night, that while at the dinner table with the kids yesterday, Christian looked at Ava and said with pure excitement. . ."AVA, I just farted out my mouth!!"  Micah promptly informed him that what he had actually done was Belched, but this didn't seem to register in Christian's mind.  He thought he had done something that was of pure genius and talent.  Little minds!!  All I can say is. . .He gets it from his DADDY.

Aunt Anna's Famous Cookies

Tonight, my in laws came over to hang out and they brought with them cookie dough.  It was not just any cookie dough, but it was Aunt Anna's Famous Sugar Cookie Dough.  As the kids were watching Grandma roll out the dough, Grandma told them the story of how Aunt Anna, who happened to be one of Harry's aunts, always made these cookies and they would get them every year at Christmas.  She didn't have kids of her own, so she loved to spoil the nieces and nephews and she did a great job with it.  She always would get them a little something and ALWAYS had these special famous sugar cookies.  The kids loved the story and of course loved the cookies, rather it be the raw dough or the baked goods. :)

I lost count of how many times Christian said, "I eat this piece?" and Grandma would say, something about it not being good for his belly but he could have a little piece and then later this was repeated. :)  Fun memories.

It's going to be a Blue Christmas?

Earlier, I did a post on how my daughter wanted a "pink Christmas Tree" for Christmas this year.  That is what she told her Grandmother every time she asked what she wanted and so she got one.  It is still a magical tree since Ava has only had one night that she has slipped and come to our room in the middle of the night. . . which is a huge miracle.  :)
However, ever since the moment  Christian saw that PINK tree, he immediately decided he NEEDED a BLUE one.  This was a tad bit harder to find and who would think a Blue tree to be pretty.  I warned him they didn't have blue ones and we might have to buy a green one and put blue lights on but he was not deterred.  His faith in having a Blue Christmas Tree in his room was set in stone. . . .solid.

So out to town we went, Grandma, Ava, Christian and Mommy.  We knew what we were in search of and after a long day of shopping and hungry bellies, we decided to settle on a tree that was green and we would have to convince him that the lights could be blue.  Then, low and behold, across the way, on the bottom shelf, there it stood.  A BLUE Christmas Tree.  Were our eyes playing tricks on us?  There was no such thing, right?  But, yes, Ava had indeed found her brother his desired dreamt up tree.  I am not actually sure who was most excited, the Grandma and Mommy that were basically dancing in the aisle with excitement and slight disbelief or the little boy who's dreams were coming true right before his eyes.  What child like faith can do for a person.  There was only one blue one left and it was so cute.  Then we found a tree topper and blue tree skirt that matched.  We could hardly wait to get home and set up the tree.  Christmas for Little Man had finally arrived. :)

The fun was truly had decorating the tree.  We found some little orange basket ball ornaments that matched his room great and of course a few Toy Story ornaments.  The part that simply melted my heart was when I walked back to check on him and he was staring at his tree.  Here he had taken some of his trains and placed them around the tree.  So sweet.  It was perfect to scale.  :)

Christmas Cookies

It seems that the days I decide to do fun crafty ideas with the kids, they act up a little more.  I am not sure why.  Almost like if I take the time out to spend extra time with them, they then feel the need to have my undivided attention the rest of the day.  It is frustrating, but I still enjoy doing fun things with them, so today I tried a new craft.  It was a Crayola Christmas Tree Kit I got from B.B.s 

First we had to make up the batter, which I did by myself.  Then it was to be refrigerated for 5 minutes so it would sort of set together.  I took this time to have them both go wash their hands really good.  Then I started rolling the dough out and they got to cut Christmas Tree Shaped cookies out of the dough.

Then we had to bake the cookies and let them cool.  The kids were pretty patient through this process.  The next step was to ice the cookies and then we had to let them sit for 30 minutes to dry before we could paint them with the edible water paints.  This was their favorite part and mine too.  I loved watching them decorate and mixing the colors. 

 

Post # 100

Yayy, I can't believe it.  I am posting my # 100 post for this blog.  I knew I was having fun, but 100 sounds and looks like a lot of posts.  :)  I am having so much fun recording the life of my family, so I can look back and remember all of the good times we share. I started this to help keep my records straight, so when my kids are older and I have more time (ahhaha) I will be able to scrapbook some of the highlights. :)  This is very therapeutic for me and I enjoy documenting my favorite moments in time.  I feel so blessed when I look back over this year and see all that God has done for me in 2010.  I can't wait to write my yearly review. :)

Changes Can Be Fun . . . .and Sad at the Same Time

A small update for this past few months has to do with my family situation.  My mom, my best friend, went to spend time with her parents in Missouri.  We are all missing her more than we ever imagined and Christmas this year will be quite a bit different without her here.  It helps that she is loving it and enjoying her time catching up and hanging out with her mom and dad, but she is greatly missed by ALL back here at home. 

Micah has helped me tremendously with dealing with the changes since I don't deal well at all when things change, especially big changes.  He allows me to cry or laugh or just obsessively talk about these things over and over again.  He supports my mom's and my relationship and that is something I prayed for before I ever met my husband.  That my husband would love and respect my parents and respect the relationship between my mom and I.  He does, he loves my mom and he cries with me sometime, because he hates to see me missing her so much. 

One of the things that helps me to cope with change is by making new traditions.  Family time with my children and husband are very important to me and Micah has been great at helping me to prioritize and we are making awesome FAMILY memories together.  My favorite times are when we are all sitting in our warm and comfy living room and enjoying the company of our two silly kids.  They of course, love the attention and bask in it.  They act sillier and giggle and laugh a ton and this is so warming to my heart.  They love "famy time" as they call it. Bring on the Christmas festivities and traditions!!

 I feel so overly blessed and in love with my life and though I miss my mom, I know I will see her again soon and I am glad she is getting this opportunity.  I can't think of anyone more deserving than her, to get a dream come true.  She is so self sacrificing.

"Keep Me!!"

One morning, while we were in Missouri last month, we awoke to some rather loud clambering on our roof top.  Micah & I were in one bed in the pink room and Nana & Ava in the other and Little Man Christian opted to sleep on the floor that night.  So, when we were so rudely interrupted from our slumber, ;)  we were all a little nervous about what was going on.  It only took us adults a few seconds to remember that their were people scheduled to work on Grandma's roof that day, and so we knew then what was going on.  However, the kids didn't know and Micah crawled down to lay with Christian who was obviously half asleep and a little nervous about what was waking him up.  As Micah was laying beside him, Christian whispered so softly to his daddy, "Keep Me!!"  It was sweet and we started to laugh because he was really saying, "stay with me, I am scared," but it came out, "keep Me!!"  I don't think I will ever forget that little moment when we assured him that we would keep him and love him for the rest of our lives.  :)  What a sweet moment in our day.

Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night!!!

I think it is pretty well known that Ava, our daughter, has spent the past five years sleeping in mommy and daddy's bed. We tried from the beginning to put her in her crib, and maybe we were weak, but her crying got to us.  There was one incident, when she was only six weeks old, that we let her "cry it out" and at the end of TWO hours, she was still screaming and I was a mess.  I brought her to our bed and never forced the issue again.  We decided as a couple that some battles were worth fighting, but this one was one we were going to let take it's course.  We talked about how we knew that when she was grown, we were not going to be sad we let her sleep with us, so we allowed this habit to continue.
We only have a queen size bed so as she got older, things got less comfortable for her, being squished between mommy and daddy.  We started a new rule about a year ago and that was that she had to start out in her bed in her room and if she woke up, which she did EVERY night, she could come over to our room.  This worked better for us and her, but we still wondered if she would EVER decide to sleep through the night in her own room. 
She told us when she turned five, she would be grown up and sleep all night, but that didn't work either.  However, Christmas is a magical time and a time for miracles and this week a miracle happened in our home.  Ava wanted a pink Christmas tree for her room because her cousin Ceci has one and she loved it.  She told her Grandma Bumbaugh that she wanted one for Christmas. Grandma took her to the store and bought it for her and then Grandma and Pappy came to her house and helped her to put it up in her room to surprise mommy and daddy.  Her surprise was that she promised Grandma that she would sleep in her room all night long if she had this pink Christmas tree.  We didn't really believe this because she has made many promises of the same sort to us and not followed through.  However, we were willing to try it.
She had so much fun decorating her tree and getting her room ready for Christmas.  That night, she put herself to bed, came out and said good night to us and told us she loved us and then went back to go to bed.  After about ten minutes, I went back to peek on her only to find her sleeping in her bed and her tree on.  I was amazed and excited.  That night, she never did come to our room.  She slept all night in her own bed!!!  This is now five days after the fact and she has yet to come to our bed.  Wow, I am so so proud of her and I tell her each day how excited I am that she grew up and is now sleeping in her own bed.  It is a bit sad, and we miss her but we are so grateful we let it up to her and she did it when she was ready.  The transition was amazing and I think that Christmas will be all year long in Ava's room if that is what it takes. :)

The Laughter in My Life

There are many things that make me laugh, my husband being at the top of my list.  He makes me laugh more than anyone, but as my children are getting older, they are running a close second.  Christian truly is a very humorous boy.  He LOVES to laugh and does a lot of it.  He can be sitting beside you playing and all of a sudden he bursts out into a contagious boisterous laugh and with no apparent reason.  This often, after a few seconds, has me in stitches because he is so sincere with his laughter.  It might be just the fact that a toy train rolled off the track he was playing with and he starts laughing, or maybe a little boy in the store made a face at him.  He just LOVES laughing and it is one of my very favorite qualities about him.  He is really good at making others laugh too, but I am pretty sure I am the easiest target.  I laugh at him quite a bit through any given day when spending time with him.  He just brightens my life and I love him and the gift of laughter and joy he has brought into my life. 

An Example of his contagious laughter happened the other day while I was trying some things on in a dressing room.  I was watching him out of the corner of my eye and he was standing in front of the mirror.  He threw his little hands up beside his face and started making this really high pitched, squeaky sort of noise and shook his head like he was ditsy.  I couldn't figure out what he was doing, so I asked him and he said, "I laughing like a girl mom."  I then asked him to laugh like a boy, and he lowered his voice and laughed in a really low voice.  Then he turned around and smiled at me and gave me the famous thumbs up sign.  As I started laughing, cause it struck me so funny and he started laughing and I said, "that is how Christian laughs"  :)  He is so funny though. 

He also finds movies very funny and he will laugh OUT LOUD at all times of the movie.  He laughs so loud that yesterday when he went to a Christmas program with his Grandparents, he started laughing out loud and many of the people were turning around to see and laugh at him.  I may have to figure a way to tone that down someday, but it was funny and very sincere.  He truly thought that what was happening on stage was so funny. :)  That's my boy.  He kind of takes after his Nana.  One time when I took her to the movies, she was laughing so hard at one part that she stood up in the theater and started laughing.  :)  Guess he gets it honest. 

Life would be boring without laughter and so I am very grateful for the many reasons to laugh in my life, and the people I have to enjoy that laughter with.

Missouri Pictures from Fall 2010

Missouri to me is:  The smell of delicious food coming from My Grandma's kitchen and knowing she is there smiling and humming and cooking away.  It is seeing my mom so happy with her mom and knowing all is right with the world for this moment in time.  It is seeing Grandpa and my Hubby working together outside on the farm and killing Opossums and using tractors.  It is seeing tons of family and all the cousins getting to play together and just have a blast making new memories.  It is playing games, dressing up, and reminiscing.  I love Missouri and I love the people that live there. 

 

 

Funny Conversations with Ava

I find myself laughing quite a bit at the funny things my kids say, and this only feeds their desire to say these things hundreds more times because they realize it made me laugh.  It is usually funny the first time but not so funny by the time we are hearing it for the 9th time.  However, there are some of these conversations I don't want to forget so I decided to blog them on here.  To follow are just a few of my recent favorites with Ava.

Ava got sick the other day and was throwing up all night long.  She was laying on her bedroom floor beside me and I was talking to her.  She was saying how hard it is because she felt like she had to throw up but nothing was coming out.  (just a side note, after her 4th time in a few hours, she no longer had food or fluid to get rid of, so she would just dry heave and this is not comfortable.)  She was amazed that she had "throwed up already five times. . . if I throw up again, it will be six times mommy."  I smiled at her and was trying to console her so I told her that when she was in my belly, I got really sick and that I actually threw up 11 times in one day.  Her eyes got so big and then she said, "but why?  did I make you throw up?"  I explained it is just what mamas do when they are pregnant.  Then she said, "then. . I came out of your belly and now you take care of me when I am sick and you don't get sick anymore!!" 


Another conversation happened while we were in the car on our way to the doctors with Christian.  We had been talking about little boys and girls that didn't get Christmas presents and I had told the kids that I would take them and let them pick out a boy and a girl from the Salvation Army Christmas tree and they could then go and buy the kids gifts.  It was quiet for awhile, and I knew her brain was churning.  Then all of a sudden she says, "mommy, when I have a girl, will you help me put up the crib?"  I thought she misunderstood me and thought we were picking up actual boys and girls so I explained that we were just getting cards with their names on them and their ages.  Then she said, "No mommy, I mean. . .when I get married and then have a baby in my belly, will you help me?"  I smiled and said, "oh Ava, yes, I will help you get the nursery ready and we will get lots of toys and clothes and books. That will be so fun and I will definitely help you."  Then she said, "Maybe I will have a girl!!!"  and I said yes but you might have a boy too.  Then she said, "But mommy, I don't want a boy.  I don't like boys right now.  They have weird hair.  I want a girl."  And there you have it, that was the end of our conversation. 


One night, while still in Missouri, Ava woke up in the middle of the night crying and saying she needed to pee.  I ran her downstairs and she peed in the potty.  She had not actually wet the bed but a little bit must have come out and wet her panties and woke her from her sleep.  She was crying and it took awhile to console her.  The next day, we were all sitting around talking about our problems.  She said, after listening to us adults, "well, I had a problem last night. . . My pee tried to come out my butt and get in my panties."  She was being dead serious but none of us could stop laughing.  I am not sure she still understood what was so very funny.   This obviously was a large problem to her. :)


This one is my Absolute favorite and it happened last night!!!   The week or so, when getting ready for bed and trying to fall asleep, if not tired enough to crash when her head hits the pillow, Ava has found a new problem that bugs her.  We always have had in the past the usual bedtime stallers like, "I need a drink," or "I forgot to brush my teeth," or "I have to pee." and so on.  However, the idea of a wedgie has been introduced to this poor child.  She has a new complaint and this is that her "panties keep doing this stupid thing to my butt."  She really gets agitated and she gets up and changes her underwear sometimes ten times, no joke.  I think she finally gets tired enough she forgets about it but it really is a problem some nights.  We have tried so many different styles to see if they help but nothing seems to do it.  So, last night, she was crying in her room about the "stupid pantie thing" and I went in to check and there on her floor lay seven pair of clean underwear she had tried on and then taken off.  She was tired but so bothered by this problem.  I tried to distract her with other thoughts but it kept coming back to this underwear issue. Finally I explained that this is an issue many people if not all people have to deal with in their lives and we just have to find a way to cope.  (didn't know what else to say and I was so so tired.)  She asked if she could come over to our bed and so I said she could tonight.  Once we got settled into our bed she threw her little leg over me and said, "I bet I know what the problem is mommy!!!  I think maybe my butt is trying to fall asleep and that is why the panties are doing that to my butt."  UMMM, I was tired enough I started laughing and then she started laughing and we woke up daddy who didn't find this humorous at all.  I am not sure what I am going to do with this little girl.  But I sure do LOVE her.

Generational Slumber Parties

Some of my absolute favorite memories from my childhood were the numerous slumber parties I got to have with my cousins here in Missouri. The usual crowd consisted of myself, Nici, and Vanessa and boy did we have fun. We did anything from playing games, to watching movies, playing avon lady and dressing up with Grandma’s dress up clothes. We spent many nights staying up very late or should I say early into the morning just planning out our lives and our marriages and our children and of course there always happened to be lots of laughter. Things kept getting more humorous as the night went on, or maybe we just got a tad bit more giddy. Either way, we laughed a ton and those truly are my favorite child hood memories. I loved coming to Missouri for visits and knowing I would see my dear cousins whom I have always felt loved by and accepted, no matter where I was in life or what was going on.
Many years later, we all have our own daughters and we decided that it was time to do the generational slumber parties.  Unfortunately we didn’t get to do them all at the same time, so the first slumber party, or maybe I should call it a semi-slumber party, was at Grandma’s house the second Friday we were in Missouri. Heather, Squeak, Ashlyn, Grandma, Mom, Vanessa, and her daughter Ceci came over. Danny and Barbara and Malachi and Naomi came also, but they all went to bed a little earlier than we did. So, the kids played some games and then Ava and Christian conked out too. However, Ceci amazed us all as we sat around and talked until the wee hours of the morning, because she stayed awake and in a great mood until at least 12:00. So amazing, and definitely ready for some true slumber partying. Great start Ceci!! So, we stayed up and talked for a few hours and just enjoyed each other’s company. We were hoping do another slumber party but some events happened that I will discuss later that made it a little more difficult. It was really great to get to spend the time talking and laughing and some things never change. Our slumber party went again, until wee hours in the morning.

The Second Slumber party was at My cousin Nici’s house in Columbia with her and her daughters Mya and Avery. Christian stayed with Nana, because he was not feeling so well, but Ava and I traveled up and spent two evenings with the girls. Mya and Ava were born three weeks apart and they were so excited about getting together. Nici and I were both hoping they had as much fun as they were both expecting, because the girls had been talking about this for weeks. At first, being the strong willed children they are, they each had their own agenda and they didn’t even play together. They argued and got a bit frustrated with each other, but by the end of the first evening, they were having fun together. They watched a princess Barbie movie and then it was off to bed. The best part was how much they laughed and giggled and Nici and I laid on the floor beside them and laughed and giggled at them. The longer the night went the giddier they got. So sweet and we kept laughing at how much it was just like us.

The next day, the girls played together all day with Avery too. They did pretty good with a few arguments over what they were going to play next. We went to Mya’s preschool play yard and they ran around playing that they were the Princesses rescuing the Prince from the mean dragon and bad people. Go Girl Power!!! They also played on the stair case at Nici’s house, played dolls, little people, and many other fun activities. Nici and I of course had the chance the second night to stay up and talk after our babies were all three in bed, and that was very nice and refreshing. When we got up to check the time, we were shocked to see it said 3:30 a.m. Wow, so crazy. Some things never change.

The funniest thing that happened was the morning we got up and made the girls Eggs over easy.  Mya called her egg "runny eggs" and Ava called them "dippy eggs". . .I was over hearing their conversation as they were trying to tell the other one how to say runny or dippy.  They were pretty certain they each were right and the other girl was wrong.  This also happened when we told them to get their shoes on to go outside.  Ava calls them sneakers and Mya calls them tennis shoes and so they argued about this too.  SO funny!!!

The girls were so excited to be watching the Barbie Princess Movie.  They wanted to watch a few more but we ended it with just one.  It was so cute, little Avery just climbed right up there with them and joined in and they loved her being there.  Our three girls.

They spent a lot of time climbing this part of the stair case and then sliding down.  You can see the dolls they were playing with that they sat down at the bottom of the stairs while they were playing on the stairs. 

One of my favorite parts of this particular trip was how the girls loved this over sized night gown that was their cousin Ashlyns.  They took turns wearing it and they called it the "Cinderella Ball Gown."  So funny.

Our final slumber party of the month was for Christian.  We invited Sage and Tio over to Grandma's so the kids could all play together and Tio is the same age as Christian.  Now, let me tell you, the slumber party with boys is a whole new ball game.  Where the girls were playing house and dolls and girlie things, the boys were playing sword fight and wrestled.  :)  Oh, and Horses running on hands and knees through the house.  So fun.  It was great hanging out with all of our different cousins and the kids had a blast getting to know each other.  Grandma made everyone pancakes and we just enjoyed spending time together.  Tio woke up really early and he went down to the rec room to see who was down there.  His cousins, Austin and Lerran were there and they said as soon as they opened their eyes, he started talking.  I love him. :) They kids had fun and that was what it was all about. 
 

Sword fights!!

Getting ready for bed in the Blue Room!!!

Monkeys in a Tree

The kids enjoyed doing absolutely anything that their older cousins did. . including climbing up in trees much higher than I was fully comfortable with. However, their cousin was so very good at it, that I had to let them try. Ashlyn can often be found high up in a tree either reading or just swinging around. I love this part of her. She just becomes one with the trees and loves every minute of it. So, I wasn’t surprised when Ava came in to tell me that “Ashlyn is stuck way high up in a tree!!” The way high up in a tree part was very true, but the stuck part, not so much. She found this comical too that they were worried about her. I did send them up to get the feel for what it was to climb in trees. Neither one of them seemed at all scared. My brave little monkeys.

The Beginning of Our Month Long Trip in Missouri

Mom, Dad, Ava, Christian and I left on Thursday for our big trip to Missouri. Dad took off work to drive us out and then fly back that weekend, so we would have a man with us on our trip, considering what happened last time my mom and I drove the kids to Missouri (famous St. Louis trip) We left around 5:00 from Mercersburg and within the first hour, Ava and Christian were already wondering if we were there yet. They actually did well with traveling overall. My favorite part about the trip out was at one point, while still in PA, Ava said, “I see Missouri!!” We kind of chuckled and she said, “no, I do. I see Missouri. Look, there are horses.” Pretty cute as she was thinking Missouri was the only place that has kittens and horses. Also, every horse we saw, the kids named it B.G. in honor of Ashlyn’s horse.

We drove straight through the night and all did pretty good. The kids actually slept most of the night and we were so tired but we knew that the best time to travel with toddlers was while they were sleeping. We did stop to get dinner at McDonalds and while we were standing in the line waiting for our food, mom did the most hilarious thing. Before me in line, a family ordered two happy meals and then another meal. Then I ordered and I also ordered two happy meals. So, naturally they put the first two happy meals on the tray for the other family first. However, mom thought this was my tray and so she reached over to yank a French fry out of the happy meal. I quietly said, “mom, that isn’t ours.” Then we both started to laugh because it was so funny that she tried to snatch someone else’s French fries. I don’t think the family before us saw her do it. However, we did laugh about this for quite awhile.

When we got to Sedalia, mom decided she wanted to drive and she drove us the rest of the way home. When we got to Grandma’s, the kids were so excited to be in Missouri. They think Grandma – Squeaks house is “Missouri” so that is fun. They hate leaving the complex because they think it means they are leaving Missouri. They also kept saying their butts were sore, which probably was true.

Of course, when we got here, the kids got to see Larren and Austin and that made them so happy. Christian has been saying that the boys are his two brothers and he has continued to refer to them as his brothers for the entire time we are here. In fact at one point, he came downstairs and walked through Grandma’s house to see where they were. When he couldn’t find them, he asked me, “where are my two brudders mommy?” He couldn’t understand why in the world they had to go to school. So sweet. Ava kept asking when her Ashlyn was coming. Ashlyn did show up, but no till the next day. They were hugging her and exclaiming their excitement to see her.

Christian and Ava love Grandma and Grandpa’s remote control recliner. They like to sit beside Grandma and take rides in it. Ava gets a little bored since it is a slower moving ride, but Christian thinks this ride is a little more his pace. He is not the adventurous one, as much as his sister.

A few of the fun activities they did the first week were jumping in piles of leaves with Malachi and Larren and Ashlyn. They also played in their homemade forts and tents taking up all of Grandma’s play room and living room. If ever a time you couldn’t find them, you knew walk out Grandma’s back door and yell up toward aunt Squeak’s house and pretty soon you would see a little head or two popping out and waving at you from the porch. Sure enough, the kids had walked to Aunt Squeak’s porch to play with and torture her kitties. This was the one activity that remained consistent throughout the entire trip. They LOVED those kitties.

This is Cousin Ashlyn's Horse, B.G. and she loves to eat apples and carrots.

Danielle and Nate’s Homecoming

Well, it just so happened that some very dear friends of ours went to were on their homecoming court at Lancaster Bible College and they won for their class. Danielle and Nate, whom I love and my children love. We found out about this and decided to go see them be crowned and honored. This happened to be Micah’s Birthday, but he was sweet enough to sacrifice a day and do this because he loves them too. Shyanne and Evan rode up with us and that was a fun trip in itself.

Evan was always my little guy and now he is holding my little girl.  It was fun to get to visit with him and Shyanne on the way to Lancaster.

When we got there, we found there to be tons of food and so we ate like hogs. The kids did some bull riding which was great and then they also had a huge moon bounce that Danielle was helping to head up. Our kids had so much fun with that and went through it numerous times. They were so excited to see Nate and Danielle. We also all got the chance to dunk Nate in the Dunk Tank. Shyanne dunked him without even hitting the Bulls eye. We still are not too sure how she accomplished that one.

Christian was so excited to see his Danielle

The kids playing in the fun moon bounce that Danielle was in charge of.  They loved it and did it numerous times.  :)

The Bull Rides were awesome. . . and the kids loved them.  They each rode individual too but this time they did it together.

The Adorable couple who we love so much. 

Danielle took us up to see her apartment suit that she lived in. She had it decorated so cute and she even had the pictures the kids had colored and painted for her, hanging up. She also had pictures of them on her mirror so she was reminded to pray for Ava and Christian everyday as she was getting ready for class. We love our Danielley. Here are a few pictures of the fun day we had. I was so proud of them and what they stand for.

It was a very fun day and we are happy to know that now Shyanne is also going to be going to LBC.  Thanks for the fun day Danielle, Nate, and the Smith Family!!

Dried Apples and Old Sleds

Grandparents are great for many things. The really awesome thing about Grandparents is that whatever they do with us, no matter how small, it makes us feel loved, cherished and special. They seem to always know what we need when we need it. They go out of their way to make sure the memories we have with them are never forgotten. They usually have a great way of mixing past and present together to make one really fun moment in time. This is often done with activities that we enjoy and while we are doing them with our grandparents, they tell us of memories they have from when they were our age or when they used to do this with their grandma or mother. It may not always be treasured or fully understood at the time, depending on the age of the grandchild, however, it is later remembered and cherished and for this I am very grateful. I love and appreciate my Grandparents for who they are and all they have done with me in my lifetime. I appreciate the most, the many many prayers that they have taken to the Lord for me and my life. I believe they have truly left me the greatest gift they could ever give me, their prayers. I feel very blessed to have such awesome mentors and leaders in Christ by my Grandparents. They were Heaven sent for sure.

Because of how much my Grandparents mean to me, I realize how much it means to me that my kids grandparents, (Micah’s and My Parents) are so involved in our children’s lives. I love the fact that my kids have real relationships with all four of their grandparents. Here is just an example of how my mother-in-law made my daughter feel special and cherished with just a small activity at hand.

Grandma and Pappy Bumbaugh came to our house one night to have dinner with our while they were there, Grandma dried apples with Ava. They cut them and laid them out on pans and then spread some cinnamon on them. Ava was so very excited to have this time with Grandma and while Grandma was patient enough to allow Ava to do much of the work, she also was telling her stories on how she did this with her mama.

On this same night, Harry, Micah’s Dad, came to the house and brought a surprise for our kids. He was so proud to show them this old Sled that he had Redone and finished to look better than knew. He had completely restored it. It was beautiful and such a great way to tie in their daddy’s past with their present memories. I literally could have cried at how excited the kids both were for this gorgeous refinished Lightning Glider. I love stories where old antique items are used to make new memories. Micah had this sled when he was young and it was a lightning Glider. Some of his favorite memories growing up consisted of him sledding with his siblings and John. Thanks goes out to Pappy Bumbaugh for all your hard work. Job well done.

I know my children will never remember EVERYTHING each grandparent does for them, but the they will remember the feeling of being Loved and Cherished that they felt every time their Grandparents were near. For that I am eternally grateful.