House Hunting

Today I spent 3 hours (again) cleaning our house for people to come and look at it. The girls are actually a big help these days...dishes, mirrors, vacuuming...it was so nice (and they even had good attitudes!). We still haven't found anything yet in Springfield, but my mom found one that might be a possibility...check it out! Since I had been crying about this whole process 30 minutes before this email came today...it was good to get it and smile again! Thanks, mom!

I just showed this picture to the girls..."look at the house Grandma found for us"...they were so excited...they thought I was serious! Now that is hilarious! :) Morgan wants to know how much it cost...I told her, I'm sure we could afford it! :)

Memorial Day Weekend

Wow, I love my digital camera, really I do...but we took 80 pictures in one weekend...sometimes I'm shocked at how many pictures we take with our digital camera. Oh well, more to share with you!

Well school is out and summer is here. Here are a couple of photos of Morgan's last day of 1st grade. Her best friend is Sammy -- she's in the orange/blue.

We also tried out our new "trail-gators" this weekend...a bar that pulls the girl's bike behind ours. We had fun pedaling on the Katy Trail.

On Sunday we got to share in Karen's wedding (she is a friend of ours who works with Mike.) It was a windy, but beautiful day. The girls had fun dancing. Here they are dancing with Darian (their babysitter, whom also works with Mike).

And today Sarah had an Adenoidectomy (her Adenoids taken out). She is doing great...I keep having to remind myself she actually had surgery this morning! She hasn't complained at all and she hasn't needed any medicine. She's had lots of fun playing with her sister on this first day of summer! Isn't that awesome?! :)

(sorry if the text doesn't line up with the photos...I can't figure out how to get it to line up every time correctly!)

Steven Curtis Chapman

For as long as I can remember, Steven Curtis Chapman has been my favorite singer. His songs inspire me, encourage me, draw me closer to my savior, help me cherish life's moments. Mike's & my song is by him and is called "I Will Be Here" , here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGxmudQmnXo

I also love his most recent song "Cinderella"...it moves me to tears. You can listen to it at this link if you haven't heard it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUk5SZ18WhY

To say I am sad to hear about the tragedy that has happened to Steven Curtis Chapman's family, doesn't even begin to touch the surface of the grief I feel for them. (Their teenage son accidently ran over their youngest daughter (age 5) in their driveway. More info @ http://chapmanchannel.typepad.com/inmemoryofmaria/). All we have are moments, because life is so unexpected. At times like these, I'm so thankful I'm a christian and I can rejoice that life goes on for those who choose to trust in Jesus...one day we get to be in the presence of King of Kings. Last year on Easter our pastor said "One day we will have no hope." At first I thought that was an awful thing to say, but as I've thought about it over the year it has brought me much comfort. Because one day, everything we ever hoped for will be a reality...we will have nothing else to hope for because everything we ever imagined will be our reality. Tragedy, tears, brokenness, struggles...no more. Oh what a glorious day it will be to stand in the presence of Him who loves me more than anyone! And yet today I'm thankful he's also given me the gift of tears with which to express some of my deepest grief while on this Earth.

All Aboard!

This weekend we took the girls to Kansas City on the train! My only rule this weekend was that we could NOT talk about moving! :) We had such a great time...riding the train, making crafts at the Hallmark Kaleidoscope museum (see sun visors in pic below), jumping over lava, riding the escalators, did I mention riding the escalators, eating at Fritz's where mini trains delivered food to our table, swimming, playing in the fountains, playing uno, old maid and other games, eating ice cream, laughing, talking...we just enjoyed being a family this weekend...no agenda, just living in the moment! It was fun!

Pics of the Girls

Here are a couple of our "moments" with the girls this week.



Here's Sarah with her good friends on the last day of preschool (yesterday). Sarah's friends are Joanna, Sudhi, and Vivian. Their parents are from China, India and Africa. Sarah changed so much over the past 2 years at preschool...it's been beautiful to watch!

Recital costumes arrived this week. Morgan had fun trying her's on. The girl's recital is June 6th. She sprained her foot on the way out the door to the bus this week, so there was no dancing this night, but lots of smiles!






Yesterday it was the "straw that broke the camel's back". I had bought these cool organizer bins for the girl's rooms back in February...I've looked forever for some I liked...and yesterday we got a notice in the mail that they were recalled for excessive levels of lead in the paint and we had to return them to Lowes for a refund. I loved these bins and did NOT want to return them, but I knew I must. Then, at Lowes, they would not even give us our full refund because the last price they had in their system was a clearance price. I was literally crying over this! I think it was just one more thing out of my control last night and I was surprised at how much this "little" thing effected me emotionally. Today the sun is suppose to shine again and it's suppose to warm back up and I'm going to take a few moment's to make some lists of "Things I'm thankful for" "Things that won't be changing" and "Things I do have control over". That I can do!

Beautiful Morning

Last night it was warm enough to sleep with the windows open. What a beautiful morning to wake to the birds singing, the sun shinning thru the window and a breath of freshness! But what I most enjoyed was some extended time I had in conversation with God this morning. I explored with Him some more of this issue on Trust and why it's hard. I will save those insights for perhaps another blog. But it was a beautiful morning! And I'm thankful too my girls slept in a bit to give me this peacefulness this morning.

My sister-in-law, who has kids the same age as me, shared this in an email with me, and it so touched me, I wanted to share it with you:

"From reading your blog, I can see you are having similar feelings on part of them growing up way to fast.... The one thing I have noticed though, is that those precious moments keep happening... I don't seem to run out of new moments that I wish I could hold on to forever. I think the types of moments change and the kids are a little older, but the moments keep still coming none the less."

The moments keep coming... The moments keep coming... Thank you God, that there will always be moments, they will change, but yet they will come and keep filling my life!

Also, there are often articles in the paper about the new crime lab in Springfield, here's the latest, http://krcg.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=133304, if you'd like to keep in that loop! It's hard to believe that Mike's been at the lab 12 years now! I am so proud of him and so thankful he's found a job he enjoys so much!

Stubborn Spring

I was talking with a friend at church this morning and that is how she described Spring this year... stubborn...I thought it was perfect. This Spring has been extremely difficult for me...it's been cold and rainy...one thing I've loved about Missouri is that Spring usually arrives earlier, stays longer, feels warmer...it's usually a replenishing season for me. Nature replenishes me and that's why I love to get outside in the Spring. But Spring has been stubborn in coming this year...and when you top it off with the fact that I have some major life changes...new phase of life for the girls and me, lots of unknowns with our move...it's been difficult to keep my spirits up. But then if it wasn't for the rain and storms yesterday, I wouldn't of had my breath taken away by this rainbow out our front window...it was too big to get it all in the picture, so here's just part of it. And since we've moved to our house, we've had to take down a dozen or so trees. (Very sad for a nature lover! They died from Dutch Elm disease.) But we have had these beautiful woodpeckers chopping away at the stumps...I've so enjoyed seeing this beautiful birds up close. I took this picture this morning while we were eating cinnamon rolls for my mother's day breakfast.

When my mom was here a few weeks ago, we saw this quote in the gift shop we were at: Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass… It’s about learning to dance in the rain. And that's my goal for the moment...to learn how to dance in the rain! Anyone want to join me?

Just Have to Write

I should be in bed, but I just can't sleep. I'm glad that Sarah is finally feeling better. She is much more herself now, which is a mixed blessing...when she is sick she is cuddly and sweet, but when she is feeling good she is cuddly, sweet and stubborn! She refused to eat any dinner last night because we only gave her 1/2 a hamburg and not a whole hamburger (even though she could have got the other 1/2 if she ate her 1st half.)

Today was my last day as parent helper in Sarah's preschool...after 4 years at this preschool (2 with each girl)...my last "helper" day is done. I might never help in a preschool classroom again. At least not with my own kids. I've been trying to not cry about it all day, but now I am. It's just another reminder of change. Why is it so hard?

Tonight was my book club. I wish I could say I love book club...I really want to love book club. I enjoy reading books I normally wouldn't pick up and I enjoy listening to others thoughts. But it is so hard for me to share my thoughts and feelings in a group setting. I get discouraged. I could talk about the book with every person there...but just not all at once. We read The Opposite of Fate by Amy Tan. I didn't decide I liked the book until page 322. I just felt sad for her...like she was searching for truth and not finding it...and on page 322 that is why she shared that she writes. I hope she keeps writing until she knows Him who is Truth. I always take quotes from books...here are a few from hers:

• "Many of the greatest moments we experinece are moments we cannot adequately prepare for..."
• "I write because often I can't express myself any other way and I think I'll implode if I don't find the words." (I can relate...why else would I be blogging instead of sleeping?)
• "I will try to sort out my worries, categorize them, organize them, find possible solutions to contain them or make them go away. And they still sit in my brain..." (oh how I wish I couldn't relate to this!)

Tomorrow is Morgan's field trip at school...walking to a local park to spend the day. It should be a fun day spent with her and her friends. Oh yah, something else I was thankful for...when Sarah was sick, she was sleeping a lot, so I had a lot of 1 on 1 time with Morgan and I really enjoyed playing games, going on a walk, and watching our favorite show together "Home ExtremeOver" as she calls it. :) And this Sunday on Extreme Home Makeover...my sister-in-law's brother's friend is the one who is getting his house done!

She did it!

So as Morgan is walking out the door yesterday...I tell her, "Good luck on your Mad minutes!!" (it was her last chance today) and then I said "Remember, you're smart...you're reading like a 2nd grader!" It was the best I could do after she cried herself to sleep the night before, so distraught over these mad minutes. Then I prayed "Lord, you know how hard she's worked, and you heard her prayer last night, and she really needs a miracle today...so I'm asking for a miracle!" And she came running thru the door last night yelling "close your eyes!" and gave me the paper saying she passed her last step in mad minutes!! YES!! It was very exciting! :) I was so happy for her. But what touched me the most was that she still cried last night about mad minutes...she was sad for other kids who didn't pass, one girl in particular was crying yesterday. She is so compassionate about others. Thank you Lord, for the miracle of the mad minutes and for giving me such a compassionate daughter to share life with!

And poor Sarah has been so sick. We've been to the doctor twice. Today she actually woke up without crying from feeling so bad. It was good to see her smile, even if she still has fever. On Friday morning, as I woke her up to take her to the doctor her fever was 104.8!! And that was with meds!!

Signs of Spring

I took some photos of springtime at our house! Enjoy!