Happy Thanksgiving!

Vacation

Melissa over at the LPM blog just inspired me to get my rear in gear and post our vacation pictures. Ben and I went to Puerto Rico for our 10th anniversary and it was FABULOUS! We had never done a vacation like that and let me tell you it was life changing. At the end of a summer in student ministry we were more than ready for some down time together. To have that in an amazingly beautiful place was more than I could have hoped for. It's so hard to choose which pictures to share. Everything was so great.

These guys hung around outside at our resort.

One of the waterfalls at El Yunque rainforest

Our lunch spot while in the rainforest

The blue cobblestone streets of Old San Juan


The fort that once controlled entrance to the new world


And finally, one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Culebra island. We flew in a teeny tiny airplane to get there.

See? Told you


Ten years together. Wouldn't trade it for anything. Love you baby!

Inside where the bones are

Last night I was trying to explain to Jonathan that something that had happened had hurt Avery's feelings. She wasn't hurt on the outside, but her heart was hurt. I felt like he understood when he asked, "Does it hurt inside where the bones are?"

News Flash

Avery took her first steps tonight! We were reading Bible stories before bedtime in Jonathan's room, and she finally got enough courage to take a few steps from Amy to Ben. We were so excited and she walked back and forth between Ben, Amy, and I several times. Jonathan thought it was the best thing ever, I don't know if I have ever seen him smile so big. I am so glad that it happened when we could all be there to cheer her on and make her feel special.

sisters and roses

When I was growing up and we would drive hours away to visit family, my sisters and I used to laugh and laugh about how my mom and her sister would always be matching once we got there. Now look at us:
Amy came into town today to stay with us for a while. We are so excited to see her!

Also, look at this rose bush that is growing in our back yard. They are mini roses and are vining on a tree. Gorgeous!!!

Catching up on pictures...in reverse order

Avery turned 1!
We actually got a decent family picture.
Jonathan turned 3!
Easter. I know it's blurry, but it had been a long morning.

Melt my heart

Yesterday I was changing Avery and Jonathan came over to the changing table. He stood up on his tiptoes and touched Avery's face and said, "Avery, I'm glad you are my sister".

Raindrops on Roses

Today was my favorite MOPS meeting of the year, called "favorite things". It is very similar to Oprah's show in that the leadership brings in some of our favorite things to share with the group. Lots and lots of things are given away, some in a drawing and some items are given to everyone. It is sooo much fun to hear what makes other moms lives easier and happier.
Here are ten of my favorite things:
1. Stila lip glaze. This is what I shared with our group today as my favorite splurge. It is really the best lip gloss I have ever used. It stays on, tastes and smells great, and really looks like the color that it is in the tube.
2. Lindt truffles. YUM! This is the best chocolate ever. My favorites are the milk chocolate, white chocolate, or dark chocolates. Next time you see these next to a checkout stand you need to snag one.
3. Clorox wipes. I imagine that life without these would feel something like the stone ages. I use them everywhere, on everything.
4. Mrs. Meyers clean day geranium scent products. This.stuff.smells.so.good. The idea behind Mrs. Meyers products is that you can use one scent throughout your home so there are no clashing smells. My grocery store carries limited items in the geranium, so I usually stick to the hand soap and use it by my kitchen sink.
5. My Rowdy diaper bag. We all know how hard it is to find a great diaper bag. With Jonathan I ended up using the black one from the hospital because it was the only one I had that I could completely wipe down. This one is all that and so, so much more. It has a removable, washable liner and a removable clutch purse for my stuff. I use it with the long shoulder strap, but you can also make it into a backpack or use the short strap to carry it on your arm. Plus I think it is super cute. I'm all about stuff with form AND function.
6. Lansinoh diaper rash cream. Sorry Beaudreaux's, this stuff is better. It has zinc oxide to heal the rash, and lanolin to soothe it.
7. Wellness dog food. Ok, this is more like Mazie's favorite thing, but it is really great dog food. It has all human grade ingredients, no corn (almost every dog food and treat has some kind of corn), and it seems to taste great. Mazie practically inhales it when we set it out, and she has never been like that with food before. The lack of corn has helped her allergies tremendously, as she no longer scratches her skin raw. Many thanks to Superchikk for introducing me to this brand of pet food.
8. My Gym. This is the other thing I shared with our MOPS today. We love love love Jonathan's class and look forward to it every week. I have seen him grow so much in our time at My Gym.
9. Francine Rivers Christian Fiction. I have loved reading fiction ever since my first Ramona Quimby book in the second grade. Francine Rivers is unbelievably talented and reading one of her books will consume every minute of your spare time until you finish it. You are warned.
10. Rainbow flip flops. I almost forgot about these because I have to keep my feet adequately covered in the winter time, but here in about 3 weeks I expect that my Rainbows will attach themselves to my feet and stay there until, oh, about September. This will be my 3rd summer with them and they only get better with age. And water.

Now, what are your favorite things? Please leave me a comment with at least one!

Snow Day!

We woke up this morning to find snow on the ground! Here are some pictures of our adventure in the backyard.

Pat a cake

Avery has been a busy girl this week. She's pushing up on her hands and knees a little bit and trying hard to pull up. She also is saying hi and loves to pat a cake.

Avery's room

A while back, I wrote that we were having to find a new home because the owner of our rental was filing bankruptcy. It was a frustrating process to find a new house, but the Lord led us to a house that we are in love with. We moved in just before Christmas, and I am just now getting to the point where I can really settle in.
Avery finally has her own room here. In our last house she was sharing with the guest room, and it was white walls and pretty boring. Here she has a yellow room with a pink ceiling fan that matches her bedding perfectly. The Lord is so good to give us good gifts...things that aren't essential but He gives them to us because we love them.
Here it is:

Ok, I need a lesson on adding pictures to my blog. I can never figure out how to get them where I want to go. Hopefully you get the idea.

When I grow down

Last night Jonathan said to me "When you grow down, you can be little like me".
Love it!

Over the past few days I have had three separate and entirely different earrings disappear from my right ear. What in the world is going on? Luckily I was able to find two of them (including my cherished diamond earring that Ben gave me when Avery was born) and the one that seems to be gone forever was a cheap find. So, I will be taking a break from earring wearing until I can figure out if I have developed some kind of crazy earring rejecting disease.
Any thoughts?