Happy Halloween

Hope your day was as sweet as ours!

Katie's Laugh

There are some things I don't want to forget about this stage in Katie's life:

~The way her cheek feels beneath my lips

~The weight of her head against my chest

~The smile that greets me when I walk in her room

~The delight she gets from splashing in the bathtub

~Her tiny hands signing dramatically "more!"

~The obvious way she adores her sisters

~The sweet sound of her uncontrolled laughter...

Ella Grace's Special Day

Yesterday Ella Grace's Aunt Lissa got to be the teacher in her preschool class. Ella Grace also got picked to be the "leader of the day." When she got home from school, she couldn't wait to tell me about these unexpected events:

EG: Mom, (in a super-excited, it's me, it's me kind of voice) guess who was the leader of the day!??
Me: Hmmmm. Let's see, was it a boy or a girl?
EG: (very dramatically) Let me give you a hint: it's someone that is here right now!

Then several times (at least 15!) throughout the day yesterday:

EG: Mom, wasn't today a special day for me? Aunt Lissa got to be my teacher, AND I got to be the leader!

Thanks, Liss, for making Ella Grace's Monday special--for that matter--thanks for making all of Ella Grace's days special just by being who you are!

Our Hilarious Girl

Annabelle: I want more juice!

Eric: What?

Annabelle: I want more juice!

Eric: What? (he's not having trouble hearing, he's trying to get her to ask the "right way")

Annabelle: I want more juice!

Eric: Well, could you ask in a different way?

Annabelle: (in a high pitched tone) I want more juice!

...and the next day:

The girls were eating their lunches with toothpicks and Annabelle stuck her's into a rice cake.

Annabelle: Look, Momma!

Me: Oh, Annabelle, that is so funny!

Annabelle: No, actually it's hilarious!

Silly, Annabelle, it's you that is hilarious! Thanks for keeping us on our toes, sweet girl!!

Girls x's 3

Three Jeaned Booties

plus...Three Croc-ed Feet

plus...Three Bowed Heads
equals...Three Spartans' Fans

Princess With An Upside Down Tiara

A few nights ago, Annabelle was getting ready to brush her teeth and squirted about six inches worth of toothpaste onto her toothbrush and the surrounding countertop. Eric began reprimanding her and went on for several seconds...maybe even a minute. Annabelle waited until he finished, delicately brushed her hair aside, glanced up to meet his gaze in the mirror and said,

"But, Daddy, I'm still so pretty!"

Boo in the Zoo....continued

BOO in the ZOO! 2008

more pictures to come...

Happy Birthday, Sweetheart!

This morning as you left for work, I called behind you, "Love you, Sweetheart!" Ella Grace smirked and asked, "Why do you call him Sweetheart?" My reply was simple, "Because, he's my Sweetheart!"

Here are some more reasons, girls, that I call your Daddy my Sweetheart:

• He works extra hard so that I can stay home and take care of you!


• He is the best daddy you could ever have!


• He adores mom and is not afraid to tell each of you how much!


• He loves Jesus and wants more than anything for you to love Him too!


• He understands a bit of God's grace and is willing to magnify it daily to each of us!


• He helps me fold laundry!


• He's one of the smartest people I know!


• He thinks that the four most beautiful girls in the world live under his roof!


• He wants to obey the Lord, even when that obedience seems crazy!

I call your Daddy my Sweetheart, because that, my darlings, is what he is!

I love you, Eric!!

Today is October 16!

Today is October 16th...and I...

...wore a tank top!
...took the girls to the park for a picnic lunch with friends, where we all perspired profusely!
...dressed Katie in a onesie and the big girls in shorts and tees!
...should have put sunscreen and hats on everyone at the park!
...am thinking of turning the sprinkler on for the girls after their naps!
...am, in spite of being hot, thankful to live in South Carolina where the weather isn't aware of the date!

Sisters @ Approx. 8 Months

Katie

Annabelle

Ella Grace

Happy 8 Months, 'Katers'

Family Dedication, Southside Fellowship, October 5, 2008

The Allens, Us, and The Millers

(we were honored to stand with dear friends from our Small Group)

Gone Fishin'

Because I know some of my dear readers are fellow moms, I am compelled to share this time consuming, I mean, educational activity that the girls loved today!

Each week the girls and I spend time talking about a specific letter of the alphabet. It's the letter Ella Grace's class focuses on in school and Annabelle and I spend a little time playing school while big sister is away.

This week the letter is "F"!

This morning Annabelle and I made "fish" out of cardstock, attached a safety pin through a hole punched hole) to each and fished for them using a piece of yarn with a magnet tied to it attached to a dowel rod. Our fish were as simple as sticking a fish sticker on paper, but there are several templates you could use if you wanted an actual fish shape.



We wrote numbers on each card; but the possibilities are endless: shape recognition, color recognition, letter recognition, etc. To make it age appropriate, while the girls worked together, Annabelle fished out a number and selected the correct number of stickers to place on her sheet of paper. Ella Grace worked on simple addition by fishing out two numbers, counting out the appropriate number of stickers for each, and then totalling her stickers. Of course, independent play has been fun to watch too; they put all their fish in our garden sized bathtub--or, lake, I should say--and fished away.

This has proved to be a great rainy day activity for today. What about you? What do your kids love to do that's both fun and educational? Leave me a comment...hey, I helped you out with an idea!!

The Difference a Year Makes

click image to enlarge


...And one more tiny difference a year makes...

Fall in the Air!