Project 365 - Weeks 8, 9 and 10

Yeah ... I have some catching up to do. So I'm just gonna jump on in here!!!

Thank you Sara for hosting!!!! You ROCK!

Monday - Sisters!

Tuesday - Daniel - We are doing the Beth Moore's study at church and it is rocking.my.world!

Wednesday - I was all ready for bed when I remembered to take a pic.

(SOMEONE needs a pedicure!!!)

Thursday - Migraine - Hubby gave me an AMAZING back massage with this little thing. I love that man!

Friday - LOTS of laundry! And, this is where I notice that the last few pictures have been taken with my comforter as the backdrop.

Note to self: take the camera OUT of the bedroom!

Saturday - The groundhog lied!!!

And, so did Al Gore.

Sunday - Bed time stories. I LOVE this time of day. (especially when Hubby adds his voices and commentary!)

Monday - Our Memory Verses!! Even my girls are learning some verses. I LOVE that!

Tuesday ... I got nothin. Oops.

Wednesday - Birthday Prep time! Little did we know ...

Thursday - ... she would wake up sick. Poor thing.

Friday - This was all she did all day long. Breaks my heart.

Saturday - Poor Ken. He must have had a rough day ... he needed a LOT of caffeine!

Sunday - PARTY!!! She felt good enough to celebrate ... so, we did!

Monday - 30 Day Shred ... ouch.

Tuesday - She let me braid her hair ... it was SOOOOO cute.

And, just in case you were wondering ...
... she's got her pants on backwards.

I have no words.

Wednesday - But I remembered to take a picture!!!

Thursday - She is an artist!

Friday - I heard her awake up there, but she never came down. So, I snuck up the stairs and found this. I LOVE that she is developing a love for books.

Saturday - started off warm-ish and rainy. Then it turned to snow.

Dear Spring, We are WAITING!!!!!!!!!!!!

So ... how was YOUR week?

Seven

Last week my sweet Hattie Grace turned seven years old. I didn't get my usual birthday post out, because ... well ... it did not go as we had planned.

And ... well ... this mama was an emotional wreck over it all.

I don't know what it was about SEVEN that was so hard for me to take. I mean, it's a number, right? I expected five to be big. I mean, come on, that is a whole stinkin HAND!!! But, seven? What is so big about seven?

And, I think that that is EXACTLY what it was. Seven is big. Plain and simple. Seven is BIG. Which means that she is not a little girl anymore. She is a big girl.

See ... now, there I go again...

Anyway, this is how it went:

(I warn you, your eyeballs are about to be assailed with a whole slew of pictures. Continue at your own risk...)

She jumped in her bed a sweet six year old girl, pretending to be asleep.
But, when she realized that I had the camera out, she went into her Despicable Me, "look at me, I got the pyramid in my hands!!!" routine.

If you haven't seen this movie, you should! I had absolutely no desire to see it, but they got it for Christmas and we ALL love it!!!)
Then she shared a special bonding moment with Sophie. Although, I suspect it was more of a scheming moment, cause the next thing we knew they were doing this ...

... and we could not even get mad at em. They were having so much fun!!!

Once we calmed the party down and had our prayer time, she and daddy had some sweet time just snuggling. Well, snuggling and making shadow puppets on the wall.

Then, the Hubby and I began preparing for the big day. We decorated the place up right for our girl!!!


And I made cupcakes to take to school ...
... which overflowed and burned.

Lovely!

But then, when we went up to check on the girls before turning in, we found that Hattie had gotten sick in her bed.

On her birthday.

SO not fair.

This was all the celebrating that she had the energy to do on her day.

Break a mama's heart!
But She loved the flowers that Daddy brought her for her day.

And, on Sunday she was feeling well enough to party!!! So, I made her the requested Tangled cake!




She opened her gifts ...
... blew out her candles and had a GREAT day!!!!
And a good time was had by all.

Happy Birthday Hattie Grace!!! Enjoy seven, sweet girl, mama loves you!!!

Under Attack ... And LOVING It

Years ago, when Hubby and I were foster parenting two sweet boys (just before Hattie joined our world), we started a game with the oldest boy. "Nuggy" was just under two years old and loved all things wrestle. Physical touch was this boy's love language in a HUGE way. I can remember Hubby would come home and immediately lay down on the floor and Nuggy (and, eventually, all the children) would come running to climb on Mount Daddy! The game we started, way back then, was called Kiss Attack.

And it continues to this day.
A random family member is caught ...
... pinned down ...
... and attacked from both sides with kisses!!!
No family member is immune from these attacks ...
... or the rolling laughter that comes with them.
... Even hubby and I come under attack at times!
The girls will climb on chairs and assail US with their precious ammo.
And, as their mama, I pray that THESE ...
... are the moments that they will long remember.

A Date With My Valentine

Today is Valentine's Day ... but Hubby and I celebrated with a little "us" time yesterday!

The day started off at church, where we learned a little more about our ULTIMATE love - our Father - and His unrelenting pursuit of us. Pastor Andy gave an AMAZING message about the Lost and Found. He spoke of the sin that we get lost in and how we have a Father who continuously chases after us - not to condemn, but so we may be FOUND again ... in HIM! Oh, His mercy is good!

And, because He first loved us, we are able to love one another.

And there is NO ONE I love more than this guy!!
Here is a look at the day we spent together, celebrating our love ... and the top ten reasons that I LOVE being His date...

#1 - OK, I admit it, I just like the way he LOOKS!!!

Hubba Hubba!

#2 - He makes me laugh! My Funny Valentine!

(he is gonna HATE that I posted this, but it makes me smile!!!)

#3 - He knows my favorite places and he takes me there!

#4 - He ALWAYS orders iced tea - sometimes sweet tea, sometimes flavored, sometimes plain, but ALWAYS tea!

#5 - He holds my hand.

#6 - He has strong, caring hands that love me well!

#7 - He lets me appreciate simple things (like silly decorations) without making me FEEL simple!!

#8 - I love the way he looks at me ... like he KNOWS me, understands me and, yes, even likes me!

#9 - I love that he will relive our past with me! (we spent our first valentine's together here and he took me out walking on this frozen lake!!)

#10 - and I love that he is ALWAYS willing to take me on new adventures too ... even if it involves dollar stores (he loathes them, I love them!!).

But most of all, I just love HIM! I love to look at him, talk to him, be with him and spend my life with him.

I am ever more thankful that he chose me and that the One who chose us FIRST, saw fit to make a way to bring us together.

Happy Valentine's Farmboy!

I love you!
Buttercup