Happy, Happy Birthday Baby!

Happy Birthday to my sweet baby girl Ella! I can't believe it's been six years since you joined our family!

For being such a tiny, petite girl now, you made your entrance to the world in a huge way! You were 9 lbs, 7 oz, and 2 weeks early! You were off the charts! I was so happy to bring you home on my birthday- what a fabulous birthday present!


This has been a great year for you. You went to Kindergarten this year, and it was so fun being at the same school together. I loved peeking into your room and seeing you hard at work, or chatting with your friends! You came out of your shell this year and made lot of really good friends.

You also showed us what a smart girl you are. You learned to read (at your own pace, of course) and we found that you are very good at math! Of course, we knew you would love art and music- PE, well that's another story!

You still do everything when you feel like it. That's how you have been your whole life and I don't expect that to change anytime soon- if ever! I have a funny story about GT testing for you when you are older! You are a girl who knows what you want and when you want it. That will get you far in life, so stick to it!

You make me smile everyday, and I am so glad that God chose me to be your mother! I love you! Happy Birthday!

She's How Old??? What???

I absolutely cannot believe that my baby is five! Where has the time gone? By the way, the girls are aging, but I am not! :)

We had to celebrate Ella's birthday a day early because of the crazy Sunday that we had on her actual birthday. First, we had our regular 2 services to sing at, followed by a dinner to help out the breast cancer walkers, followed by a long band practice, followed by our Turning Point service. Plus, we were going on vacation the next day so I also had to pack! Whew, I'm tired just thinking about it now! So, Ella got to open her presents from us and eat her cake a little early.


Do you like her new haircut? That is the fix to her cutting one side of her hair into a mullet. I cried when it happened, but the professional haircut is growing on me.


Ready to open presents!


She's a girl after my own heart... SHOES!!!


Ella feeding her baby she named MacKenzie.


Ella got a Hannah Montana Dance Like a Rockstar video that came with a Hannah Montana wig. Somehow, Madison ended up with the new wig, while Ella got one of the old ones (can you tell?)

Happy birthday Ella!

(Stay tuned for a birthday party post coming soon!)

I Got Him!!!

As I mentioned in my last post, my much older husband turned 40. We surprised him with a party Saturday night, and he had absolutely NO idea this was coming! Madison even kept the secret from him! Dave and Pat got to be here for his birthday too, which was appropriate because, as they said, they were there 40 years ago! Here are some pictures from the evening.

We really did surprise him!

The cake that turned everyone's teeth black!

Carmak/Mowgli even sang for Steve!

The sign says it all. Happy Birthday!

Old Man and the Fire

My much older husband turned 40 this Saturday. We made him a special breakfast and sent him off for a well-deserved massage.

Ironically, the portable in which his classroom was located burned down the same day. It's like he got his birthday wish! :)

I Survived!!!

I did it!

I survived my first sleepover.

OK, it's not my first sleepover, but it is my first sleepover as a parent!

We had four sweet girls over to our house Wednesday to celebrate Madison's 8th birthday. Since her actual birthday wasn't that great, I was really hoping the sleepover would be better. It was!

The girls arrived and we made individual pizzas. Most of the girls made theirs nice and neat, but one had to use ALL of the sauce, which made her pizza almost inedible!

After pizza, Madison got to open her presents. She got a Webkinz- again, I wish I had thought of that! Her friend has a matching puppy!

She got LOTS of HSM and Hannah Montana dolls. She got a pool for the dolls to play in and the girls spent a lot of time playing with the pool.

She also got a soccer ball, so the girls went outside and played soccer for awhile.

The only drama came before soccer. Not everyone had shoes to play in, so Madison was letting girls borrow her shoes. Words were exchanged over tennis shoes, and three girls ended up in tears. I quickly turned on "teacher mode" and got to the bottom of the disagreement. After the appropriate people apologized, everyone was fine. All over tennis shoes, go figure!

After soccer, I gave manicures and pedicures to all of the girls. I have never painted that many nails in my life! They turned out very cute and all of the girls liked the crazy colors I chose! :)

We also made soap- yes, I said soap. This was a spa party after all! The girls had a lot of fun (with the exception of Madison sticking her hand in the hot soap after I warned her about it!! :) They got to make different colors of soap in the shape of purses, shoes, dragonflies, etc. They turned out really cool! I told Steve I might take this up as a hobby and he just laughed at me. Oh well. I'll make him a bar of soap and he'll feel better about it!

Around midnight, the girls laid down for the evening- yeah, right. Since our bedroom is right below the media room, we could hear every move that they made. For the most part, they laid down, but I did have to go up there a couple of times. Madison said they went to sleep around 2:00 am. I was out by 1:30, so I have no idea what happened! :)

The next morning, we had cinnamon rolls and it was time to go home!

Madison said that this is "what an 8 year old girl dreams her party will be," so I think it was a success.

I'm still tired, so I'm off to take a nap!

Eight is Great... sort of!

I was going to post a super-happy birthday post (see pictures below,) but I decided instead to tell what really happened on Madison's birthday. If you would prefer to believe that her day was perfect, skip this post and go directly to the slide show!

July 12 started with a bang! The girls were still awake after midnight for some reason! Around that time, I heard them getting in trouble with Steve for being up and out of their bed. I heard them swear that they were only going to the bathroom... likely excuse! Ahh, summer hours. Anyway, the next morning, the tired family got up to start the "Day of Madison!" Unfortunately, we had to run to the store and had to attend a wedding, which wasn't exactly in her plans for the day. We had also had a praise team party the night before, and had life group the next day at our house, so the playroom needed to be cleaned. That did not fit into the "Day of Madison" either! So, in between arguing about cleaning the playroom, arguing about getting dressed for the wedding and arguing about going to the store, we did manage to get a few "happy" birthday pictures. (See below.)

Madison did enjoy opening her presents. She got some diving toys for the pool, a Gabriella doll that sings along with a microphone, a Webkinz with some clothes and a 3-D Hannah Montana poster to color. She was very excited about her Webkinz which she named Tory. Whoever came up with the Webkinz idea is a genius... a stuffed animal with a code to play a game online! Why didn't I think of that? Oh well... Madison also bought a sticker maker and a foil paint project with the $8 she got in the mail from Grandma and Grandpa Brock.

After we returned from the wedding, I made Madison's birthday dinner of spaghetti with bolognese sauce. Her big treat was that she got 3 pieces of bread! She's a girl after Aunt Tamra's heart! :) Then she got her "plain Jane" French Vanilla cake with white icing. Seriously, no chocolate...

The day ended on a positive note, and we are in the process of planning her party...... a sleepover! Hopefully, that will run more smoothly!

Happy birthday Madison! I love you... really!! :)

$4 Goes a Long Way

Who new $4 could get you so much? Steve took Ella to Dollar General today to spend her birthday cash from my parents. He threw in an extra dollar to buy the lovely stroller.... which is just what she needed because she only has 3 others! :) Ella and her baby say thanks!

I have great in-laws- here's proof! :) Yesterday while I was cooking myself birthday brownies from scratch, not a box (Mom would be proud), the doorbell rang. I was greeted with these beautiful flowers from Dave and Pat. They are absolutely beautiful and smell great. You were so thoughtful and I appreciate it! Love you and see you in July!

Ella's First Birthday (Party)

Steve and I decided that 4 was a good age to start the birthday bash thing! Madison had her first party at 4 as well.

We had Ella's party at a park in Midlothian and invited her best friends from church. The kids played while the grown-ups talked. The kids ate dirt (Oreo cookies, vanilla and chocolate pudding with gummy worms on top) while the grown-ups tried to keep dirt off the kid's clothes. JD was the best! (See below! :) Ella got great presents, including the cheerleader outfit that she asked everyone for and a Hannah Montana guitar with a microphone. We had a great time!

I can't believe my "baby" is 4!

The kids loved eating dirt..............

........especially JD!

She got her cheerleader outfit! (Thanks Kennedy and Hunter!)

Being a rock star is very hard work!

Happy Birthday Ella!