End of the Year

All three kids went for about the last 5 weeks or so to New Beginnings MDO program.  The last day of classes was last Tuesday and they had a great program to show some things they'd learned.  I was just learning to use the iPhone as a camera/video and so I didn't get nearly as quality of pics as I was hoping and thought I was recording when I wasn't and was when I shouldn't have been...but all in all there are cute videos (which I can't put on my blog) and only a few cute pics...

The older classes all sung a few Spanish songs in the very beginning together.  Jackson was a few people over from Creighton. 

 She looked so cute and I hate that this one was fuzzy...but it was the only one I got of her sweet smile

 and this one...

 I didn't get any pictures of Jackson's class up singing but I have a lot of video. They did a very good job and it was great.  After they sang they did a little "graduation" for the Pre-K kiddos.  He was called up first.

 Rarely see him so serious :)

There's my sweet smile! So proud of you buddy! :) I can't believe you are officially now in "real" school from now on.  It's weird buddy.  You weren't suppose to grow up so fast! I love you with everything in me and I am so proud of you.  You've come a long way and you have a long way to go, but you've proven you will work hard!

You said you wanted to be an Astronaut this time...so much better than when you graduated your 3's pre-k class and wanted to be a Taco Bueno drive through guy! :)  But if you do become either of those extremes or anything in between, I'll still be proud of you!

Catalyst

I spent Wednesday through Saturday with these people and about 3000+ others at Catalyst Dallas 2011.  It was an incredible time of growth and healing for me on nearly a million levels.  I can't wait to get my thoughts written out.  It will probably be a while before/if I post them...but let's just say I am more than grateful for the opportunity to have been there, and more excited that my prayers that God would show up and do big things were answered in that exact way and then some.

Friends, new and old.  Hearing the Word just BROUGHT!  Praise and worship like nobody was there but me and my Savior.  Healing. Laughing.   It was a priceless weekend.

Fun Zoo Pics

 same train, same sweet girl, so much time and so many memories in between

(this was around March 2008)

Adventure to the Zoo...

We had a whole day of nice weather. I figured I needed to plan wisely.  So we called up a friend and they were already planning to go to the zoo and that's what I had in mind too.  So we went. 

 Jackson's self portrait...after a crazy lunch chasing geese away CONSTANTLY.

I love this pic of my sweet girls and their smiles.  Jackson just wouldn't smile on the turtle.

 There is one of the friends we met, the other was on the turtle for a minute and then never got back on.

Our friends left and my kids were done with the animal thing, so they wanted to play at the park.  So we did. They had a blast.... 

 Charleigh played in/on the train forever.  She didn't want to get off.  So I kept taking LOTS of pictures of this sweet smile!

 So much so that she shook her head at me and said no and covered her face....I think I was taking WAY too many pictures....

 I love this sibling love!  She called for her Bubba and he came a runnin'.  He didn't stay long, but long enough to capture that!

 My sweet Rae came over next to hang out with her sissy!

 Isn't she just gorgeous!  I can't get over her these days!

 I finally had to PULL her off the train to show her there were other fun things to play on/with at the park too....she was just as happy on this!

 The big kids were playing happily together and that's a rarity so I had to get it documented!

Sweet cheeks! I love you.  You were such an angel today at the Zoo even though it was incredibly hot!  She came home and took about a 3 hour+ nap.  And I made Rae take one too. She was so fussy from being exhausted and so hot all morning.  That was nice!

We came home and had everyone (but Nonna) home for dinner and we made steaks! Yummy!

A Very Special Date...

with this sweet guy>>

I rarely get to spend time alone with this little guy and I treasure any time I do get him all to myself.  He is such a gem when he is alone.  He thrives on feeling special, words of affirmation and quality time.  He is a really neat kid!

First we went to Burger King and only because he really wanted a Thor toy and they came with the kid's meals. They only get kid's meals on special dates because I think it's cheaper not to get them.  Anyway, so that was his choice.  He ate all of cheeseburger and happily played with his silly Thor toy all day (although I can say I haven't seen it since).  He also got a special drink (a cherry Slushie) and he loved it but said it was "spicy" to his tongue. I think it is the carbonation? I have no idea.  

Then we went to a very very special dessert place because I wanted to treat him like a Prince and pull out all the stops...

 We went to Cosi and got the S'mores for 2!  It was the complete package.  Fire table side. 4 big marshmallows each, 4 graham crackers each and a 1 big Hershey bar.  2 sticks and we were ready to go! He just liked the idea at first but then LOVED it.  (I didn't tell him what we were getting until they brought it to the table).  I think he was confused.  But I made him a mean s'more and he devoured it.  It was such fun!

Then I had talked with his best bud from Bartlesville's mom earlier in the day and knew they'd be in Tulsa at his sister's dance competition, so I secretly arranged for us to meet him and take him with us on our next adventure.  I didn't tell him until he physically saw him what we were doing.

 Right before this ^ picture they hugged a HUGE hug and it was just too sweet. He was so excited to see Colton.  Oh the smiles were contagious!

We went Putt Putt golfing and it was an experience to say the least.  I will never take 5 year olds putt putting again, at least for sure not at that course. It was insane, but they hadn't a clue how bad they were and thought it was great fun (although it was VERY hot).  It was hilarious...each hole they'd hit the ball and drag the ball and drop the ball and lead the ball about 10-50 times and then once it FINALLY got in the hole, they'd scream, "HOLE IN ONE". I am really not sure they have a clue what the phrase even means. After the first few holes I ditched the card and the pencil and just relaxed and let them have fun.  And they did!

 Once we got to the 18th hole, I told them not to get upset that they wouldn't be able to get their ball.  It was so hot I don't think they cared one bit. It was our fastest hole and they just essentially dropped the ball in the hole to watch it disappear.  They really wanted to play some of the coin games in the inside and I didn't have any cash on me, but I am thinking that would have been way more fun and cheaper for everyone (good to know for next time!) :)

It was so hot that we went to get snow cones from Josh's snow cones and it was well worth the wait (yes, the line was about 12-15 minute wait). They were very hyper and driving me half crazy because we were so close to the street. I kept thinking they were going to run out there and so I was having anxiety attacks (it's one thing with your own child, totally different when you have someone else's baby too!)  I was thankful when the line got closer to the front and we could stand far from the street. We finally got ours and they both ordered Leonardo the Ninja Turtle.  They ate them up quickly!

I had such a great time with my little man and I loved seeing that big cheesy smile on his face, but more importantly the imprint on his heart (he wears it on his sleeve) was priceless.  I know that it was a sweet and special time for him (and it was for me too).  I look forward to our next adventure together buddy! I love you so very much!

Charleigh!

Charleigh wore this very cute dress that got her even more attention than normal on Sunday!  

She was one tuckered out puppy though and passed out cold.  She was a grumpy girl in Sunday School they said (which is completely abnormal) I guess she was just very very tired.  She's even cute then!

Well I was right...

It didn't even take until the end of the weekend. The very next morning, they were out on their bikes and Creighton had it in minutes.  It's funny, if we combined them, they'd be a perfect rider (almost)....but she's better at steering and braking and he's better at pedaling and starting all by himself.

We've been practicing a whole lot as of the "conquering" and they both get better each time. They are just SO stinkin' cute riding.  They are very proud of themselves and Charleigh is very proud of them both.  I think she's just watched us cheer them along these past few days so much that she just thinks every.single.time they get on their bikes they should be praised.  It's adorable.

They get on and she starts clapping and cheering, "yaaaaay bubba, yaaaaay Rae Rae!" It's awesome!  I love brother and sister love.

Jackson "got the hang of it"

I am pretty sure that by the end of the weekend we'll have 2 proficient riders because Creighton was gloating just yesterday that she was better at biking than he.  Now she has some catching up to do! :)

Today Jackson just totally "got it" and took off!  I loved it and am so proud of him.

What a week...in pictures

Creighton and I went to a Mommy and Me Tea Party.  I really rarely get to spend one on one time with my kiddos. I cherish the time I do!  We had a great experience...

I let her pick the table she wanted to sit at.  She chose the Tee Hee Hee Tea Table. I am thinking she noticed the ring pops :)

I had to snap a shot of us together! all smiles 

 The best part for her was ARIEL was there!  She taught us how to use good manners...or etiquette. :) It was kind of strange to me, but she loved it!

 Afterwards she took pics by all the decorations...great job NBC Children's Ministry team!  Looked fantastic!!!!

 Charleigh came too, but stayed in the nursery...she looked SO cute in her dress but would not smile and I now notice that she tried to pull her pony out and looks now like she has a mo-hawk!

 We had an impromptu Easter egg hunt in the back yard several days AFTER Easter because it has been raining so much we couldn't get outside till now! Charleigh was THRILLED! ahaha

 Jackson in the tree...oh that boy misses his climbing tree!

 Charleigh did a lot of cracking us up!  She is so stinkin' adorable....

 Peek-a-boo!

 Check out those dimples.  Little bit is FINALLY feeling all the way better and got her appetite back.  YES! she is back to eating me out of house and home.

 Seriously, they don't get any cuter?! even with orange juice dripping down the chin!

 Creighton got to go on a Daddy Date today for lunch.  She got all dolled up! (I helped).

 I just love that she loves her Daddy and will know what to expect when it comes to being treated the RIGHT way!

 I found these trikes and bikes on craig's list for $5 each. They have been life savers and wonderful for my kids who haven't had anything to call their own (as far as outside toys) for a LONG time now....if it'll just quit raining, we might never be inside....

Poor Charleigh got ANOTHER shot this week (18 month well baby visit) but she's totally the best and you wouldn't know....she's happy and healthy.  She weighed 22.6 pounds, 32 inches.  She's skinny and tall with a big head (they said her head is like 96% but that she'll eventually grow into it) I totally don't think she looks like a bobble head.  :) You're just gorgeous and so fun! I love you Charleigh Tatum

 my crazy lil man.  Oh he's so all boy, and yet, so tender. We've had some sweet conversations.  We are making progress with his actions/attitude in a 2 steps forward, one step backwards kind of way at the moment.  He's wild.  I love him.  Oh I love him.  He's too darn cute.

 Creighton has nearly mastered NO training wheels.  She can do it, she just gets nervous.  I love helping her but it's KILLING my back. I really can't believe they are growing up so fast.  It's all happening.  First this, next it'll be loose teeth...I just can't handle it all sometimes!

 Tonight they were digging in the yard and playing with mud and having a GOOD time together outside.  I LOVE WHEN THEY GET ALONG!  It just delights my heart and refreshes my spirit.  It doesn't happen often, especially lately it seems, but tonight (and any time they can get messy!) they were and I loved it.

 These are illegal pictures, forgive me.  But they turned out cute, just not quite cute enough to buy. I wanted badly for them to photoshop them for me for the "perfect" pic but they said they couldn't and I am sad.  Because if the sweet smiles of Jackson and Charleigh in this picture

 were merged with this gorgeous picture of Creighton, then it would just be ideal.

 But, it's not and so these images will have to do for now :)  (and actually I am not sure I want to always remember the MOHAWK he's sporting here anyway)....oh boys.

I just can't get over how big my LITTLE girl is getting.  SHe looks entirely too old...and seriously I prayed at one point during my pregnancy for her to be ugly*.  Good thing God didn't listen :) Baby you are gorgeous on the outside and I pray now that every day your heart becomes more and more like Christ's so that you will be all the more beautiful on the inside and be the COMPLETE package :)

*I stupidly (pregnancy made me dumb) assumed that if she was ugly it would ward off the boys....now I just have to teach her VERY well how to handle herself and how to have high morals and standards! Because there is nothing ugly about her (well, except sometimes her attitude...we are working on that!) ;)

Refusing to Party

Last night I received a text from a friend, but I didn't get it until very very late.  It simply stated, "did you hear the announcement tonight? Osama Bin Laden is dead!"

I don't watch TV hardly EVER and for good reason (in my opinion).  But anyway, I skipped over to my facebook just to see what people would be saying.  It really broke my heart.  I don't know why but I just couldn't REJOICE and sing praises and shout victory! over a man's death!

I still can't.  Now I actually even feel more strongly about it.  He was our "enemy" in America and did/lead some impossibly cruel and horrid acts of violence on our soil, yes.  But, the same God that created me, created Him.  The same God that said I was created in His image, also created this man in His image.

Sin entered the world long ago. I am a sinner. I feel like I can resonate with Paul when he says that "...of these I am the worst..." Many would say Osama Bin Laden is "of the worst," too, but I remember that the Bible says that if you've broken part of the law then you've broken the WHOLE law.  I therefore, am in the same exact boat as he.  A sinner--one LOVED deeply by my Savior.

I don't know about any of you, but I didn't personally have a conversation with OBL before he was killed.  I have no knowledge of whether or not he knew the One True God and desired to have fellowship with him.  I can say that based on his history (but you could say the same about me prior to my life change) I have an inclination of whether or not that was true, but I don't know his heart.  I know that One that does.  So I do not judge him to hell.  That is not my job.  In fact, based off what I know the heart of God is, I know that God does not rejoice that ANYONE be there, separated from their Maker.  NO ONE.  And I won't either.  Whether that be is eternal place or not, I refuse to join in the "party" of many of my friends, family, and fellow Americans.

^{Proverbs 24:} 

¹⁷ Do not gloat when your enemy falls;
   when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice,
¹⁸ or the LORD will see and disapprove
   and turn his wrath away from them.

I hope that more will stand up and pray for his family and those that knew/know him personally and that if they do not know the Love of God, that they would come to know him.  Love and pray for your enemy!  

Osama will stand before the Judgement Seat just as will I.  He will have to give account for his actions, as will I.  The Lord is able to forgive, if he asked, even for what he did.  Even for what I did.  How great is that?  That is something I can party about for eternity! I will hop on that bandwagon any day.  Let's celebrate things worth celebrating.  The risen Christ we celebrated just days ago...now that's a death (because of the resurrection) that I can rejoice in!

As a disclaimer, because some of you might want/need it (and it's true), I do feel very blessed to live in America, I am so thankful that we have men and women who fight everyday that we might have freedom and safety, and I have not forgotten about the men and women and children who lost their lives on 9/11.  It was a tragedy like we've never experienced and it changed us forever...let's just not let it change us in ways contrary to what the Lord has called us.  Let it unite us and fortify us, but not turn into evil ourselves.

Officially stepping down off my soapbox...