When You Give a 5 year old a camera

Here are some examples of what happens.

Yes that is the bottom of his foot…touching my camera!! ha ha.

That is Daddy in the background there..you see his nose and eyes!

AND in case anyone was wondering what we have in our fridge…Elijah gives us a sneak peek!

Close up of Elijah!

Daddy studying…without a head??

First a Foot and now a hand on my camera…gonna need to clean my lens now!

Hope you enjoyed this glimpse into Elijah’s 5 year old world.

I will leave you with this picture (that I took)

Me and my snuggle bunny!

Wordless Wednesday

A New Chapter

Starting on Saturday I will be heading into a new chapter of my life. I am finally going back to school. I will be getting my BA in Elementary Education Interdisciplinary Studies (K-8). My school will be all online courses so I can continue to work full time and help provide for my family. I am very excited (and nervous) to start this chapter of life so please be praying for me as I make this transition. It will bring a lifestyle change for me and I am looking forward to benefiting from this in so many ways.

Speaking of new chapters, I will soon be entering another new chapter in my life in October when I marry my best friend, Noah. The wedding plans are coming along great. I am starting to get a lot of anxiety about it all because there are so many parties/functions that I have to attend and that are being thrown in my honor. I am glad to have them all and to have people that love me enough to throw me a party but I didn't realize it would be all this! There are 74 days left until the wedding! I very ready for it to be here but also thoroughly enjoy planning it. So it is bittersweet.

On a different note, Please continue to pray for Stellan and his family. You can read all about his story here.

Praying for Stellan

I am asking everyone to pray for Stellan and his family . Stellan is an 8 month old baby boy who suffers from SVT, you can read all about his condition at the above link, since I don't really know how to describe it. Just please be lifting this family up in prayer..they need it!





Dear Lord,

Please be with Stellan and his family right now. Please be with the doctors that are working with him and let his family know that you are the Ultimate Healer and you will watch over Stellan.

Amen!

Thankful Thursday!

My list of things I am thankful for:

1.  That God has blessed us with rain here in the South which makes the summer a lot more bearable.

2.  That I live in a country where I am free from prosecution for being a Christian.

3.  That I have freedom of speech to post on my blog daily.

4.  That I still get to enjoy my parents (whom both had birthdays this week, Mom on July 19 and Dad on July 24), even though there are lots of people who don’t.

5.  For my fiance, Noah, who tells me I am beautiful, even when I have been napping on the couch and my mascara is smeered on my face and my hair is a mess.

6.  To be a Child of God.

7.  For awesome friends who keep me sane on a day to day basis.

8.  For a great future mother-in-law, because without her this wedding would not be happening.

9.  For other great bloggers like MckMama and Kelly's Korner , who keep me entertained daily.

10.  To be able to go back to school to get my degree.

Tune in next week for more!

Thanks!

Wordless Wednesday

Zoo Time!

We really had a packed weekend this past weekend..after the party on Saturday we decided on Sunday to load up the entire family and go to the Zoo! Our family loves the Zoo.  We buy season passes so we can go as much as we want.  This past weekend it was unseasonably cool so we decided to venture out. 

Love this picture of Pawpaw with the babies!!

MiMi, Kirsten, Elijah and Pawpaw outside the Zoo.

Pawpaw playing with the kids while waiting on us to get the wagon.

The kids posing with the statues.

Elijah admiring some animals.

My Lil Family!

Elijah feeding the birds in the “Birds & Bees” exhibit.

MiMi and Kirsten feeding the birds.

We had a great jam packed weekend!

Elijah’s 5th Birthday Party!

Saturday we had Elijah’s 5th Birthday Party! We had a blast! We swam, cooked out, had cake, and opened lots of cool presents.  Here are some great pictures from the day:

Kirsten jumping into the pool.

Elijah, Liz, Kirsten & Dalton (under the water) hanging out at the pool.

London chilling by the pool watching his twin brother, Ethan play.

Dalton jumping off the diving board and doing a spin.

London or Ethan (Sorry but they are identical and very hard to tell apart)

The twins with Kirsten eating their lunch.

Dalton pushing Elijah around in the boat.

Kirsten with her Great-Mawmaw.

Elijah pondering whether to jump into the boat or not.

LOVE this one! MiMi with Elijah.

Me with one of the twins (London I think?)

Blowing out the candles!

He LOVED his new batman suit Noah and I bought for him!

Ha Ha Ha…told you he LOVED it!!

Opening MORE presents!

Liz with her baby boy Dalton.

Kirsten watching the twins swing. 

Yay for yummy CARS cake!

He loved the present that Ethan and London got him! GI JOE!

Pawpaw and Kirsten relaxing after a LONG day!!

Hope you enjoyed all the pictures!  We had a blast!

Happy 5th Birthday to my baby boy Elijah!! We love you!

Just a swangin’….

Our kids LOVE to swing…here are some cute pictures of this past weekend of them swinging on the swingset that Pawpaw built for them!  They love it! 

Thankful Thursday

I decided to join in on this Thankful Thursday started by Lisa. Check out her site for more Thankful Thursday posts.

1. I am thankful that in this terrible economy, I still have a job.

2. I am thankful that I am a child of God.

3. I am thankful for wonderful future in-laws that provide me with shelter daily.

4. I am thankful to be blessed with a wonderful fiance and beautiful kids.

5. I am thankful for my good health.

6. I am thankful that I have a family that loves me.

7. I am thankful to live in a free country.

8. I am thankful that I never have to do without.

9. I am thankful for a forgiving God!

10. Last but not least..I am thankful for every day that God gives me with my family.


You can join in too..Tell us all what you are thankful for!

Do you ever?

Do you ever just feel like screaming?? I am not talking about a little yell..I am talking a scream at the top of your lungs?? I am having one of those days, perhaps even one of those weeks. As I stated in a prior post here I am on a new adventure in my life with being a step-mommy. I absolutely love it, BUT with every good thing, comes a bad thing. And in my case that "bad" thing is the children's mother.

She makes me so angry that I could scream! As I stated above..I am talking about a top of your lungs scream! She disregards Noah as a father, uses the children as leverage, and never ever has the children's best interest at heart. I would do anything in the world for these kids.

Right now the issue is where E (5) will go to Elementary School, yes that is right, it is a month until school starts and she has yet to decide what school to put him in. We would LOVE for him to go to school in our school district instead of her school district because of the academics of each school. But that would require her allowing Noah to have residential custody of the kids (even though they would still technically live with her), it would only be on paper for his school. But she is too stubborn and will not give up her "power" that she has over Noah.

I am praying daily that her heart and her mind sees that this is what is best for E. Please pray with me!

Wedding Madness!

That is what I have...WEDDING MADNESS!! I pretty much eat, breathe, sleep, work, and plan my wedding...those are the top 5 things in my life right now! Lol. I can NOT wait for the BIG day to get here! Here is a list of things I have left to do:

Get invitations out..deadline August 1st
Buy favors
Make sure guys get fitted for tuxes
Register for gifts (I know I am way behind on that one)
Buy gifts for attendants, parents, grandparents etc.

I think that is all I have left! I can not believe it! My dress is still at the bridal shop they are holding it until a couple of weeks before the wedding.

This is our wedding website, check it out:

http://futuremrsbeach.ourweddingday.com

Also, this is the cabin we are staying in on our honeymoon (I can NOT wait!)

http://www.elkspringsresort.com/Cabin_rentals/Tucked_Inn2.html

And here is where the actual ceremony and reception will take place:

http://www.schaefferweddingchapel.org/ChapelHome/tabid/51268/Default.aspx

I am counting down the days and I am sure driving everyone crazy in the process!

87 Days!

Child Labor??

Nope! She actually enjoys it!



Now in 10 years that is more than likely going to be a totally different story!

I miss the days

of laying in the floor and playing with toys with no worries.

A whole new world...

The title of this post describes exactly what I am going through in my life right now. I am entering into a whole new world of being a step mommy. It is one of the greatest adventures I have been through in life thus far.

The reason I decided to post this is because after church on Sunday, I looked down at Elijah and asked him what he learned about in Sunday School. He replied with the usual "JESUS!!" But it was followed directly by "and Peter, the King put Peter in jail even when he was not doing anything bad! Then the ANGEL came down and got Peter out of jail! Then Peter and the angel went to Peter's friend's house for the night" I was in awe. He usually just tells us he learned about "JESUS!!" and leaves it at that, but not this Sunday. My heart immediately swelled up with pride and I made him repeat what he had learned to his Daddy who was following behind us but could not hear our conversation. Needless to say, Daddy was full to the brim with pride too, along with MiMi (Noah's mom) and Pawpaw (Noah's dad). I wish I would have known that he was going to say something so awesome and recorded it, but unfortunatly moments like that in life are not planned.

As we walked to our van, I told Elijah to be sure to tell ALL his friends at school and his mommy what he had learned about in Sunday School. He so sweetly replied with "Oh you bet I will!" I am so proud of our little "man". I look forward to more sweet, prideful moments like that!!

A soldier's take on Michael Jackson's Death

This email was sent to me by my daddy, who as you have read in previous posts was an Iraqi Veteran and served his country in the United States Army National Guard for 28 years! I am so proud of him and all the men and women that are serving our country today and have served our country in the past. This letter is so true to me and no one better than a soldier to write it:

"This is written by a young soldier serving his third tour of duty in Iraq . Thought you might find his take on the Michael Jackson news interesting and he's right.


Okay, I need to rant.

I was just watching the news, and I caught part of a report on Michael Jackson. As we all know, Jackson died the other day. He was an entertainer who performed for decades. He made millions, he spent millions, and he did a lot of things that make him a villain to many people. I understand that his death would affect a lot of people, and I respect those people who mourn his death, but that isn't the point of my rant.

Why is it that when ONE man dies, the whole of America loses their minds with grief. When a man dies whose only contribution to the country was to ENTERTAIN people, the American people find the need to flock to a memorial in Hollywood , and even Congress sees the need to hold a "moment of silence" for his passing?

Am I missing something here? ONE man dies, and all of a sudden he's a freaking martyr because he entertained us for a few decades? What about all those SOLDIERS who have died to give us freedom? All those Soldiers who, knowing that they would be asked to fight in a war, still raised their hands and swore to defend the Constitution and the United States of America . Where is their moment of silence? Where are the people flocking to their graves or memorials and mourning over them because they made the ultimate sacrifice? Why is it when a Soldier dies, there are more people saying "good riddence," and "thank God for IEDs?" When did this country become so calloused to the sacrifice of GOOD MEN and WOMEN, that they can arbitrarily blow off th eir deaths, and instead, throw themselves into mourning for a "Pop Icon?"

I think that if they are going to hold a moment of silence IN CONGRESS for Michael Jackson, they need to hold a moment of silence for every service member killed in Iraq and Afghanistan . They need to PUBLICLY recognize every life that has been lost so that the American people can live their callous little lives in the luxury and freedom that WE, those that are living and those that have gone on, have provided for them. But, wait, that would take too much time, because there have been so many willing to make that sacrifice. After all, we will never make millions of dollars. We will never star in movies, or write hit songs that the world will listen too. We only shed our blood, sweat and tears so that people can enjoy what they have.

Sorry if I have offended, but I needed to say it. Remember these five words the next time you think of someone who is serving in the military;

"So that others may live..."

Isaac

P.S.-"So that other's may live..." was also the creed of the Air Rescu e & Recovery Service during Vietnam & is still today. ">

That is so very true!! Pass this on to everyone!!

3 months til....

...I am walking down this :



Well not this exact one but one that is a smaller version of this one. Here is where I am actually getting married at: http://www.schaefferweddingchapel.org/

I can not wait! Only 3 more months to go! That is 92 days! I have just about everything done too. So I am more than ready to be married to the love of my life.

Peek-a-boo!

 

This is the cutest picture of my baby Cori and I!

-Noah