A Hope and a Future

Daddy the rescuer

We have a tree in our front yard that Rebecca has gotten into before....to a point. The other day I guess she got brave and decided to climb higher than she has before....and proceeded to get stuck. Very stuck. So stuck that nothing I could do helped her be brave enough to get down: we talked it out, prayed about it, talked about ways she could get down, discussed courage.....she was having NONE of it. I had the ladder out and was up on it near her but there was no way I could lift her out.

Thank goodness it was nearing time for Daddy to get home so I texted him and told him our dilemma. He was already on his way and when he got home it took him about 3 seconds to lift her up and out of her predicament to a safer spot where she felt comfortable enough to climb down.

Thank goodness for daddies...they make very good tree rescuers:)

Strawberry time!

Each spring for the past few years I wait anxiously for the start of strawberry season. We live just a few minutes away from a strawberry farm where not only can you pick your own sweet juicy fruit but you can also see farm animals and play on an awesome playground.  We met Anna and Susan (and cousins of course) there today and had a fun few hours together. My kiddos were still WAY more interested in eating the strawberries than they were actually putting them in the bucket but they definitely enjoyed themselves and we came home with our first of what will probably be SEVERAL gallons of strawberries for this season:)

Easter 2012

We had a great Easter Sunday filled with church, an easter egg hunt for the kids, and a great meal with some of our life groupies (and mom!). 

We dyed eggs on Saturday....was kind of a bust this year (pun intended) since SEVERAL of the eggs rolled off the counter when little people were not paying attention:( Oh well, they had fun anyway!

I may or may not have told the kids there would be NO easter baskets until they gave me a good picture:)

Digging in.....

Daddy hid the eggs in the back yard (he's a really good egg hider:)

And the kids set off on a mad dash....this was the first year they were actually FIGHTING over the eggs and really into it.....hilarious:)

We pretty much let them eat candy to their heart's content yesterday (and cake at supper)....Dennis said when he was putting them to bed they all either said their stomach hurt or that they were full....good thing Easter isn't everyday:)

SO thankful for our blessings....we have MUCH to be grateful for. He is risen....He is risen indeed:)

 

Big girl's FUN trip

Susan's family has a lake house where they spend time whenever they can....which is not too often since it's about a 9 hour drive from here! When Susan approached me with the idea of Rebecca and Emma joining them for the week we thought it sounded like a great opportunity:) It was hard having my big girl gone for a whole WEEK but she had SO much fun with her cousins and we were so thankful for the opportunity....especiallly since her sweet Bama made a way for her to get home (on a plane with Bama) in time for Easter with our family. 

The pictures are thanks to Aunt Susan's faithful emails full of pictures each day plus pictures from mom's camera.....thanks guys:)

I thought it would be appropriate for Rebecca to help me write this blog post....since they are her stories and I was not there:)

Uncle Drew cut some fish for the crab traps and when he did it was gross! Emma and I didn't like it when Jack tried to hold the fish up to us....it scared us!

I had a lot of fun playing with my cousins Eli, Oliver, and Lucy that I don't get to see very often! And of course I had fun with Emma and Jack as well!

One day we got to go to a man's horse farm and ride a horse! It was fun! One time I rode it by myself and got to steer it.....that was fun too! The grown-ups helped us get up on the horses. Everybody got a chance to ride the horses. I'm glad we got to do it the day before I left because I really wanted to ride the horses!

One day we got to ride on a tube behind the boat. We tried two people at once but decided that was too many people so then we took turns riding. I sat in the tube on my knees and it felt really weird! I told Uncle Brent not to go over the wake because I did not like that. It was still bumpy sometimes but I held on tight and did not fall off!

I did not know Aunt Susan was taking this picture but I must have been really tired! When I saw this picture I was surprised!

We were at a place that had ice cream for one dollar and we all had vanilla because the other options did not sound so good. There was a very little dog there that always jumped up and it scared Britt so they put it up. They said they also had two cats but we only saw one; it was a nice cat and the other cat was a mean cat. There was also a big black dog that was really nice and they let us pet it!

Uncle Drew bought crayfish....live crayfish! It scared Emma and I so we stayed behind him in the picture. He bought them to cook and eat. I tried it but I didn't like it!

We all played Bingo and Eli and I had to catch up because we did not start when the others did. I think Jack won the game! After that we went for a walk even though it was raining a little bit!

It was early in the morning and Emma and I were doing my devotion. We did six devotions in one day because we had missed all the other days! My mom thinks that's crazy:)

One day we went to a lighthouse and we climbed all the way up without getting tired! Emma and I went with this nice lady who said she would take us up there since Bama and Aunt Susan could not climb to the top. It was scary at the top because it was so high and I think I might be scared of heights! We could see a really long way from up there. We were glad we got to go up there!

We also went to the airplane museum and got to go inside real airplanes! There was this little playground that Jack liked. There were lots of pictures of people in the army.

Emma and I were about to go in the hot tub (it was really big!). Bama bought us bathing suits that were almost matching! One time I accidentally put Emma's bathing suit on instead of mine but then I noticed it before I got in the water!

We took a boat ride pretty much every day and sometimes I got to drive! It was fun and they said I was good at it! It was really easy and I wondered if driving a car would be that easy! Emma, Jack, and I took turns driving the boat.

The first time we visited the man's horse farm we got to pet horses and dogs. There were four dogs but there was one that is not in the picture that was old like our dog and usually laid around. The dogs were really nice and active. They always wanted you to pet them. There were calves at the farm too, that were for sale.

It was awesome on my trip to Aunt Susan's beach house! My favorite part was getting there, getting my shoes off, and putting my feet in the water. Aunt Susan let us do that because she said she used to do that when she was little every time she got there!

Facebook funnies January-March 2012

Four sets of kiddo teeth + NO cavities = one happy mama:) 

Starting the second semester of co-op today.....love my preschoolers:)

After a beautiful but FULL weekend I am very thankful to be able to stay home tonight with my sweet family:)

Just finished a family game of hide and seek.....the kids LOVED mommy and daddy playing too:) such a good reminder to slow down and enjoy them.....I know this time will be gone entirely too fast....

I introduced Rebecca to the original Nancy Drew books recently and she loves them....makes my heart happy:)

Got to watch Rebecca cheer today....totally worth only getting 3 hours of sleep to see her SO excited about something she's wanted to do for a long time:)

This month's kids club virtue (self control) is a GREAT example of what a blessing working in KC is.....pretty sure I'm learning as much if not more than the kids through these lessons:)

I am so thankful for my mama:)

While Rebecca and I were reading her history lesson my sweet little guy (Isaac) crawled up in my arms and fell asleep....VERY unusual for him so you'd better believe I'm enjoying it:)

Took the kids to Golden Corral by myself tonight and got a lot of "you must be crazy, lady" looks from people.....can't imagine why.....:)

I was SO happy to see my hubby this morning....I really missed him this week:)

got to teach Rebecca something new tonight when she saw a lit up "Sushi" sign and said "does that mean 'open' in another language?" :)

‎10,000 daddy cool points to Dennis Welch for taking three preschoolers swimming at the Y this afternoon while R and I went to her check up....they had a BLAST:)

It's not even 9am and the words "we do NOT flush Legos down the toilet" have already come out of my mouth. It's gonna be a long day.....

the kids and I had so much fun touring the fire station this afternoon with RCHSA.....thanks to AJ Ebersold and the rest of the guys for showing us around:)

Told the littles we were learning about the letter "o" and they started singing "oh happy day, happy day....you washed my sin away!" :)

I cracked up this morning when Isaac called his cream cheese "bagel sauce" :)

My children are sitting at the breakfast table discussing what they want to be for Halloween. It's February, children......

Two years ago today, on a rainy Saturday, we moved into our house which has now become a HOME. So, so thankful:)

Deep thoughts by Rebecca (when discussing the word self-conscious): "that would have never been a word if the fall hadn't happened" ♥

I discovered the cure for the mommy grumpies tonight: a big 'ol pillow fight with my kiddos:)

Five years ago today we were given two of the biggest blessings of our lives when Samuel and Hannah were born. Happy birthday to my favorite brown eyed boy and girl:) 

Remembering 5 years ago today when Dennis shocked me with the news of a phone call that our babies had been born 4 weeks early....and we would be picking them up in two days:)

My valentine surprised me with a date tonight:) Supper at Outback and a trip to Walmart (what, you don't go to Walmart on your dates?) Thanks for watching the kids mama:) 

Five years ago today we left our house with two empty car seats and brought them home filled with 5lb 2oz Hannah and 4lb 13oz Samuel.....hard to believe they were EVER that tiny! LOTS of great memories today:)

I get to play tooth fairy for my favorite brown eyed boy tonight....his FIRST lost tooth:) Here's hoping I remember:)

Favorite homeschooling quote of the day: "you mean they had history books in HISTORY?" 
Rebecca, reading about how Catherine the Great studied history books:)

It is a sad day in laundry land when Samuel has to wear his sister's purple pajama pants to bed (thankfully the "guess what SILLY thing mama has for you to wear tonight!" tactic still works:)

a certain 5 year old girl MAY have tried to be "helpful" and locked our bedroom door 15 minutes before life group was to begin.....nothing says "welcome to life group" like having to help your life group leaders break their door down! Anyone want to help Dennis hang a new door and replace a door frame? :)

Chuckling at the littles who are in the living room playing "life group" :)

School outside on this gorgeous day? Yes, I think so:)

The obsession of the day? Finding worms under the stones of our walkway out back.....at last count they were up to 43:)

Helping my big girl pack for her big Alabama trip....she is SO excited:) 

Hannah decided she wanted an empty toilet paper tube to play with.....so she emptied it:( Mama is NOT happy!!

So thankful for technology that has already allowed me to see pics and video of the awesome time my sweet big girl is having in Alabama....and for the awesome sister-in-love that is making it happen:) 

 

A first for Hannah

Hannah's front bottom tooth has been wiggly for awhile (and an adult tooth growing in behind it) so tonight when I discovered that it was "hanging by a thread" I asked her if I could pull it out. I was shocked that she just calmly stood there while I worked it the rest of the way out:) She is excited about her "tooth fairy" visit but doesn't want me to take her tooth:)

Heart model

I LOVE our science curriculum this year: we're using Apologia's Human Anatomy and it is GREAT! I confess that I am not a very good "project mom" so sadly today was the exception not the rule but she made an edible model of the heart. She really enjoyed it and it was really cool to have that visual so we could talk about the Circulation through the heart.

UPWARD cheerleading

Rebecca was SO excited to participate in UPWARD cheerleading this year....her first time! She had a great season and enjoyed making new friends and learning lots of fun cheers. I loved watching her cheer....she was always very enthusiastic and "into it"....she loved every minute of it:)

This past Saturday evening the church had an awards banquet and she got a trophy. Such a neat experience for her....she already can't wait to do it again next year:)

Pizza making fun

A couple of weeks ago we went on a field trip with our homeschool group to a local pizza place and the kids really enjoyed it! 

They got to tour the kitchen and see where the pizzas are made:

Rebecca was with the older group so I didn't get a picture of her here

Then they got to pair up with a friend and put toppings on a pizza:)

Then their pizzas went off to the kitchen to be cooked and were brought back to be enjoyed!

A yummy good time was had by all:)

R is for rainbow