Congratulations, Hayley!!

I am so proud of my sweet cousin Hayley Michelle!! She just found out that she has been accepted to Pepperdine U... AND that almost 75% of her tuition will be paid for with scholarships!! Way to go, Hayley!!



This was Hayley with Evelyn at Christmas this past year. She calls Evelyn her "Rock Star" because Evelyn's hair was CRAZY when she was really little!

She has worked so hard in school to keep her perfect GPA. She has grown into a beautiful, kind and encouraging woman of God. I can't believe she is graduating... it seems like she was just born!

We love you, Hayley.. and will be praying for you on this exciting new adventure of you life!

WHO'S THE "ROCK STAR" NOW???

Sunday School, Sunshine, & A Ponytail

It's 7:30pm. The sun is shining and fresh air is whistling thru the open windows. My daughter is completely OUT for the night after such a fun day. My kitchen is clean. My husband is out getting me a mint oreo blizzard. AND I am blogging again. Can it get any better? :)

What a week and weekend it has been! I have SO much I could post about, I don't know where to begin. Let's start with Sunday School!

You might remember this post about my fear of leaving Evelyn in the church nursery. Needless to say she did GREAT for almost 5 months. Then, in January, things changed. Let's just say I haven't listened to a full sermon for almost 5 months. It's been horrible. We have been praying and praying for things to get better. Poor thing, she really has been struggling with separation issues, and not only at church. But.... PRAISE GOD.. she has been in the classroom the ENTIRE service for 3 weeks in a row now... and LOVED it! Teacher Tracy loves Evelyn and is SO excited to hear her laugh and have fun now. AND... I have left her with friends for short intervals and she has done fine. I am so excited. And thankful. And proud of my big girl!

Needless to say the sunshine today was heavenly. Evelyn was outside from the moment she woke up from her nap (1:30) til dinner time (barring a diaper change, etc). We went to the park and had a blast. She fussed a little bit when we left (it was getting crowded) but perked right up when we headed to the backyard when we got home. She walked to AND from the park, by the way... at least 1/2 mile total. That's a lot for her little legs, but she loves it. No wonder she was so tired tonight!

... she wanted to eat the bubble wand. Do you think she's teething? :)

Last but not least. You also might remember this post about my daughter not wanting me to TOUCH her hair... not with a comb, and don't even come near her with a clip! She has gotten better since then and likes me to comb her hair. But that's it. I have wanted to put it a ponytail for the longest time, so this week I decided to give it a go again. With a little (well... kinda bigger than little) fight, I did it. She looks so adorable! The girl in me is so happy!

TAKE IT OUT MOMMY!!!

Ok... I guess it's fine!

It wasn't the best job since she was being such a monkey... but I think she looks so cute!

So.. this is my favorite shot of the week, I think. I am not sure why, but it just captures her spunk and free spirit. Maybe you had to be there when the photo was taken....



That's all I have for now. Until next time...

Time to play!

My mom and her husband bought this play structure for their back yard so the grandkids could play this summer. It turned out to be too much for their yard, so since my sister didn't want it, it became OURS! They brought it over Saturday night, and Evelyn has been outside playing every available moment since! Thankfully the rain has stayed away for the most part!


Here she is climbing up it for the first time. She had it figured out in no time flat!

Grandma helping her go down the slide.. she was absolutely beaming!


Here are some shots from today..

I asked her to smile for me.. this is what I got!?!?

Thanks so much Grandma and Grandpa Doug!! We love you so much!!

I heart her....

Somedays I can't believe God let me be a parent to such a precious child!! Today was one of them.



That's all I have to say about that...

Remembering Dad, 1/20/41- 4/14/02

I can't believe it has been six years since God called you home, dad. I wish April 14th would never come again so I wouldn't have to relive the horror of that day. It all happened so fast. How I wish we had more time... much more time.

Thank you for your unconditional love for me, unwavering and always available. Thank you for teaching me to see the good in people, despite their actions or situation. Thank you for being humble, practical, and fun. Thank you... for being you!

It breaks my heart to know that Evelyn will never have one of your bearhugs, never hear any of your great stories, or learn how to shoot hoop from the best teacher of all! She would love you to bits! We look at your picture every day and she knows who her "grandpa in heaven" is.

Doug and I miss you every day, as do so many people. Oh, how I wish you were still here! Sometimes it is so hard without you. But someday we will be together again. I am certain.

To have the last full day I saw you alive be Easter Sunday is a blessing. Remembering sitting with you in church watching a tear came down your face during worship gives me blessed assurance. It is as if God knew.....

I love you so very much, dad. Your light will never dim in my heart. Rest in peace.

When I look up into the sky at night
And see a shooting star
A feeling of peace comes over me
And I know that you're not far

Why God chose you I just don't know
They say he takes the best
To live in Heaven for eternity
And enjoy a well earned rest!

But he left me down here all alone
Without a clue or hope
Of how I would live without you
I don't know how I coped

But something somewhere picked me up
And helped me to pull through
It wasn't someone here on earth
I wonder, was it you?

I know now, you watch over me
From up there on your cloud
And I'll try to do things the right way
And hope I make you proud

I think I'll go for a walk outside now...

Remember that song from "The Brady Bunch"? It was my absolute favorite episode of that show... I STILL know the words. Scary, I know! Anyhoo.. I think it should be Evelyn's theme song for the week!

If you are a regular reader of my blog, you know my sweet girl LOVES to be outside. Well, this week she accomplished something 3 different times (and today will probably make 4): she has walked around the block. If you know where we live, you know our blocks are really big.. huge, actually. So this is a big feat for her little feet (like my play on words?..heehee). She is getting bigger and stronger every day. I am so thankful.

Here are some pics:

Hmmm.. which way to go?....


Thank you God for sunshine on my face!

Hey, mommy!

BTW...isn't her coat so cute? My BFF Jody got that for her in Europe. I LOVE it.. and it finally fits! Thanks, Aunt JoJo!! We love you!



I always manage to get pictures of her backside.. but it is pretty cute!! :) She is picking up pine cones in this one.

Tasting spruce tree needles... hmmmm. Apparently she is an organic girl!


And lastly, two of my favorite pictures of the day:




I hope you all have a "sunshine day"!!

Let the renovation begin.. again!

We LOVE our home. When we bought it in 2004, it needed a lot of updating (one of the reasons we got such a great deal on it!).

We first tackled the kitchen. The kitchen is one of my favorite places in ANY home, probably because I just love food!! :) Here is what it looked like when we bought it:

And the amazing after (minus the dishwasher that wasn't installed yet)... I LOVE my kitchen!!


We have also painted the exterior, redid the hardwoods upstairs that were hidden under carpet, and turned a RV carport into a shop for Doug to play with his cars. Blogger won't let me post anymore pictures right now, tho, so I can't show you!

Next up.. the basement. Other than paint that was there when we moved it, we pretty much have a clean slate... there is just concrete for floors (the laundry room has vinyl, but we're leaving that for now). The orange rug is just a old piece of remnant that was there.


Doug is taking Wednesday off and we are going to pick carpet, tile and paint. I am excited, but it sounds tiring, too! I am glad that we can only afford to do one big project a year now that I am not working outside the home.. any more would be way to stressful!

I am excited to have a nice office area and play area, along with a family room. Its a huge room with lots of potential... we are ready to take advantage of it!