Photo Shoot

during swim practice, trying to use some of Mckmama's blurry background advice

on our way to the pool!


not sure about this


maybe it's kinda fun to run from mama


THE face. this is what he does whenever he concentrates


beauty finished her swim practice


love this face of hers, too


found some chalk!


what to do with chalk? eat?


or try to run far away with it?


big sis finished. time to go home.


i still need lots more practice with A/Av mode!

update on our friend H-cancer hasn't spread (metastasized) , praise God!
this morning she's some surgical procedures to prepare her for chemo which might start as early as tomorrow. please keep her in prayer. yesterday we had a park prayer playdate with friends and made a big banner and lots of cards for our sweet friend. may God heal her and grant her peace...

I won!

I'm not sure just how many dozens of blog giveaways I've entered. But finally, finally I've won something! A year subscription to Faith & Family magazine! Yay! Thanks to the generous donors!

Butterfly Release

(edited)
on the feast of the Ascension

so excited to open the pavilion
and release all 10 butterflies!

they cheered and clapped for them
you can see one as a blur in front of Stevie's ear below,
the only picture I got of one in flight!



a good reminder of the goal for each of us...
to remember
our true home is not in the confines of this "pavilion" earth
but we will one day be released to fly away with our Savior in Heaven.

Please, continued prayers for Mary Clare's sweet little friend H.
Each day it seems that her kidney cancer diagnosis gets more serious.
She will have some procedures and start chemo later this week.
May God grant her little body complete healing, and may our HOPE
be in the One who loves us more than we can imagine.
May His name be praised, even in the darkest nights...

What's going on...

We have been doing a little of this:


to welcome her:

and her sweet family back to Texas!
My camera wasn't doing well for photos of our fun visit with them, but we are so thankful they've made it back safely and I'm looking forward to more daytime phone calls with my lovely friend now on this side of the planet!

Got up early for her:


to do this:

(isn't she doing amazingly well after only a few weeks? You can tell that her left leg is still giving her trouble, but she's come a long way!)

Then we did some shopping, with this little diva:


who enjoyed herself until getting her leg all wet in this fountain:


We really enjoyed our day with them:

(my aunt and my mom)

and the kids kept us all laughing by doing things like this:

(please excuse the strange-looking gal at the very end--yikes!)

Hope you're Memorial Day weekend is going well too!

Butterflies

This morning Ellie looked at the butterfly pavilion and realized that almost all of them had emerged overnight! There are 9 so far; maybe we'll get to watch that last one emerge tomorrow!

It's really hard to get good photos of them in the pavilion. You can see the white paper has the empty chrysalides as well as some red liquid which I learned is actually meconium!




The butterflies have been a great lesson for me.

I start each week with hope and optimism which by Friday slowly turns into doubt, fear, and anxiety. Our little family is going through a lot right now, so each sign of hope is so important for me.

These butterflies have been a little sign that hope is around the corner. Even in the midst of illness and uncertainties, I know that Christ is in control...He is in control of our health, in control of little H's cancer, in control of Stevie's heart, in control of our work, and in control of our lives. We need to just let him transform us while we wait in our little chrysalis. While from the outside it seems like nothing is changing, He is doing his work in our hearts and we need to trust in him. Because before we know it, a beautiful butterfly will emerge. Our wings will be opened and we will fly in peace.

They that hope in the LORD will renew their strength, they will soar as with eagles' wings; They will run and not grow weary, walk and not grow faint. Isaiah 40:31

7 Quick Takes Friday

Sorry it seems I've been on hiatus this week, not much to write about I guess...Let's see if I can find 7 things to write about tonight!

~~1~~
Guess who we're picking up at the airport tomorrow (Friday) evening? Yay!

~~2~~
Ellie is getting over croup...poor baby has been so upset to miss the past few days of swim team. Here she is watching from the stroller :(

And speaking of swim team, the big swimmer-girl is doing excellent! At the meet last weekend she made it across without even touching the ropes! This week she has moved up to her age group (instead of the newbie class) and is learning "secret breathing" which is the term they use for lifting their head to the side to breathe during freestyle. She wants to try backstroke at the meet this weekend! Ellie has been doing great too, kicking with a board across the pool with no help, and jumping in and taking a few strokes to her coach. They both really love swim team!


~~3~~
Baby gear. Isn't it funny how quickly the new items come out and what was once an amazing baby invention is now old news? We're pretty much out of the baby gear stage for now since we've grown out of bouncy seats and booties, but I do still use a stroller on a daily basis, and still put SJ in the Moby wrap occasionally. But these are the newer gear items I'm pining at...

I used to cringe at the idea of the Phil & Teds stroller since it seems like the child in the back is almost sitting in the basket area. But everyone I know loves this thing. I'm thinking about selling my current single and double strollers (and maybe a few other things) to take advantage of the Costco deal on these right now! It's so hard to push the kids in our current double stroller, but I wonder if they'd like the way this one works...

My friends also rave about the Ergo carrier, which can be worn on the front or the back. I think my homemade Moby wrap works great for a younger infant although it does require the wrapping and knotting. The Ergo is a balanced carrier for both infants and toddlers and clips on easily. Everyone seems to love it!


So right now my Peg Perego Aria Twin stroller (bought used) is probably my most used baby/kid item, besides the very cheap shoulder bag I bought on clearance at Target and use as a diaper bag! And well, the Britax carseats (love those) and the awesome IKEA high chair my friend passed along. I guess I still do use a lot of baby items, now that I think about it. What are your must-haves and drool-overs in the baby gear department?

~~4~~

Our caterpillars are officially chrysalides and have been moved by my "scientist" to the butterfly pavilion! Hopefully we'll have some butterflies emerge in the next few days!
EDIT-we woke up Friday morning to find they'd all emerged but one! I'll add pictures soon!


~~5~~


On Wednesday I had some friends over, who I met on the internet! I had already met each of them in person but many hadn't met each other and it was great having 12 adorable babies and preschoolers running around. I've missed hosting get togethers and enjoyed the wonderful playdate. Thanks to the NFP board ladies for a fun day!


~~6~~
I'd like to ask for some prayers. Mary Clare's little ballet and homeschooling friend H has just been diagnosed with cancer and I ask you to please blanket this sweet family in prayer. My friend's newborn baby J is still in the NICU after arriving early. Also my friend K is still suffering from cancer complications. May God's healing hand be on each one of them and may Our Lady's mantle cover them and their families with peace. And there's my own intention that I continue to ask for your prayers about. Thank you, friends!

~~7~~
My little buddy tonight

Oh, I just want to eat him up! Except when he awakens every half hour all night long. Eye teeth coming in...poor baby.

Hope everyone has a fantastic Memorial Day weekend! Thanks to all those who serve or have served our country. God bless America!

Deep in the Heart of Texas

Berry picking with our homeschool group at the farm...

Driving down the dirt road to paradise


Mary Clare was insistent that I photograph the windmill


Longhorn cattle


Texas Flag


Blackberry picking! He liked to pick and throw!


She liked to pick and eat!


And she wanted nothing to do with picking berries at all!


Baking the blackberry pies




Stevie enjoying the great outdoors



Plasma cars are cool!



What a fun Friday! Thanks again to the O family for hosting our group out there once again!

Once upon a time

I was a ballerina. (Yep, that's me at about age 12)

From the time I was 2 years old, I would supposedly wake up from my nap each day and stand in my crib asking "Bal-gay, Mommy?" (wondering if that day was ballet class) Dance seems to be in my blood and during my entire childhood I can't remember a time when it wasn't a major part of my life. From the time I was in about 2nd grade through high school, I was dancing virtually every day. Tap, jazz, ballet, lyrical, drill team...you name it, I loved it! Tap was probably my favorite of all. I seemed to shine the most in tap and was blessed with some good rhythm! I was never the best dancer of all, but I loved dancing and enjoyed performing and competing.

I loved being on stage. I would get told over and over again how much people loved my smile :) I was always happy dancing. It was a creative outlet as well as a physical fitness opportunity. So although I lived my childhood eating fast food almost every day, you wouldn't have known it! My family was always very supportive of my dancing. My mom tells of how just a few days after my younger brother was adopted, he was at his first dance recital surprising all our friends who didn't know of my parents' plans to adopt a newborn! My dad and brother patiently sat through many a recital or dance competition. My mom always helped behind the scenes and also worked very hard when I was in middle school to petition the state to allow dancers (and other sports followed) the opportunity to forego public school PE and leave school early to dance. I know that benefited me as well as many other athletes after me.

During my senior year in high school I faced an illness that kept me from dancing for awhile and I never really got back into it after that. I taught a little and took some classes in college, but I had other things on my mind and a new life to live as an independent young lady! I spent most of my time at the Catholic center, learning about my faith and meeting God in prayer. Then I met the man who swept me off my feet, and aside from some country dancing here and there, I've never really danced again.

Today the dancing bug has really come back! I've been taking "Zumba" classes at the YMCA fairly often. These are Latin dance classes, kind of like a combination of aerobics and a Latin dance club! The classes are just what I need as a little getaway in the midst of my crazy life raising little children. The other day our washing machine flooded the laundry room three times, and without even asking Steven (which I usually do) I dressed up and told him I was going to Zumba before I lost my mind!

This morning as I danced to the music with a smile on my face (I can't help but smile with the fun dances and energetic teachers), and looked out the window of the Y to watch the cars driving by, I felt like I was "in my element". My body and spirit were moving, and my mind was there. I feel like many days my mind is just not with me...it's stressed about life and panicked about the baby about to choke on a crayon, the preschooler who could drown if she lets go of the kickboard, the kindergartener who needs to get to physical therapy in 5 minutes, the dirty dishes in the sink, the room full of clean clothes that need to be put away, or the bills that need to be paid.

When I'm in Zumba, I'm just me. I can be me without worrying what is going on at home, and I can enjoy the gift that God has given me in my ability to dance, to move my body, to enjoy the fun music, to smile, and to cha cha cha!!!