Vacation was great!

We went to Missouri for a few days to visit my Dad's side of the family. We had a fabulous time and wished we could have stayed a few more days. Shane and B arrived on Thursday night, us (along with my parents) arrived on Friday, and Jed arrived on Saturday. So we each got to spend some alone time with Granny and Grandpa. Calla did a great job on the long car ride and did good getting to know all of her family from Missouri! Enjoy all of the pics.

Calla in her new car before we left for vacation.

Playing in the water at Great Granny and Grandpa's

Beautiful B!!!

The girls with Great Granny and Grandpa...we had to have Papa Bryan in there to keep the girls in there.

Uncle Jed and his girls!!

Happy Birthday America!!!

We did all of our celebrating yesterday and just get to hang out as a family today! We went to Stacey and Pat's (Chad's cousin) to their Annual 3rd of July Party. We ate lots of great food there and Calla got to play with Layne and Hank. (Their dad is Chad's cousin) Layne and Hank both played really well with Calla and she had so much fun following them around! Then we went out to Pam and Dave's house to watch the big fireworks that the city puts on. We hung out with Amber, Andy, and Elly there and the girls had fun chatting with each other.

I want to encourage you to say a prayer for my friend Gina and her family. Gina's mother, Stella, is struggling with cancer and their families could use some extra prayers. There is a link to their website (Gavin) on our page too if you want to leave them some encouraging words.

I also want to tell all of you picture mongrels about a great site I recently found. It is www.picturewagon.com and prints are only 5 cents each...this sure beats my 15 cents at Walmart. I ordered pics on Monday and received them on Thursday!!! Just wanted to share this great price with all of you!

Hope you all have a safe and Happy Fourth of July!

Layne, Hank, and Calla

Calla at 16 Months!

Calla has turned 16 months since I last updated! She continues to be the greatest thing ever in our lives. Our daycare provider was gone for a few days and so Calla spent some time with my parents. Chad and I were so bored...we need Calla to entertain us I guess! She was sure glad to be back home, but also had a blast playing with my mom's day care kids.
We continue to be outside as much as possible and Calla loves it...she even is ok with bugspray and sunscreen. Last week I took her to one of the public pools and she did ok with it. It has a zero depth entry and so she could walk in and out of the water and liked that. We also got a little pool for her at home and she played in that last Sunday and enjoyed that.
He vocabulary continues to grow by the day and so far everything she says are words we are ok with! On Friday she gave me a kiss for the first time...my heart just melted. I was laying on the floor playing with her, she came up to me and said "Ma!" and then she put her lips on mine and said "mwah!" It was so precious!!!!
Her dad is definitely her favorite person and she just lights up when he comes home after work! She loves to be held by him and snuggle up.
Thanks for checking in on us!

She is learning how to feed herself with a spoon!

She was so proud of herself that she got some on the spoon and into her mouth!!

Fishing with Daddy

Last Sunday night we went out to Yanney Heritage Park to go fishing. We still did not have full electricity and our air conditioning was not working so it was HOT!!! We went down by the lake and it was BEAUTIFUL! Calla and I sat and watched a bird play on the reeds and watched Daddy fish. He caught a bass and Calla checked it out a little bit, but really was not that interested! I was excited to catch an 11 inch fish in that lake!!! The pictures are all from our adventure fishing!
Tonight we went to Harmon Park and listened to some good old music. Chad felt like he was at a Lawrence Welk concert, but Calla enjoyed just being outside. We met up with a few friends and had a great evening...it didn't even rain one drop the whole time!!! That is almost unheard of here anymore!
Calla continues to be amazing every day. She now can tell you what a cow, horse, pig, sheep, and dog say. She says: "shoes, ball, cup, night night, go, Dada, Mama, Papa, dog..." the list goes on! She absolutely loves to be outside and ride in the bike cart! She sits still to let me paint her toe nails and fix her hair...I think we might have a girly girl!!!
Thanks for checking in on us!

We are alive

Last night was a very intense night at our home. Chad, Calla, and I were under the basement steps for around 1/2 hour as strong storms tore through our neighborhood. Our street had lots of damage and our house was included. A house 2 blocks west had no roof left and a laywers office one block east had part of its roof torn off as well. We lost lots of shingles on the south side of our house and a broken window to Calla bedroom. Our mailbox was torn off and Calla's little tikes castle is still missing. My in-laws and other family were there in a hour after it happened and our roof had tar paper covering it again before nightfall. We walked around the neighborhood a bit last night and think that by the look of several trees a tornado was present. The trees are twisted and mangled and not as a result of high winds only. Things could have been much worse and we are very thankful we only had as much damage as we do have. Our call was made this morning to the insurance adjustor and hopefully we will be good as new again soon. Thanks for all of the calls and texts letting us know you were thinking of us. It is hard to believe that this could really happen to my family again. Thankfully we serve an all knowing Father and only he knows the way of our lives.

Here is a part of our roof and the damage it sustained.

Our front porch: notice the crooked railing, the missing mailbox and the broken window

The Stop sign.

Calla's bedroom window...it only broke through the first pane of glass.

The funky clouds around 8:30PM

Another week gone by...

Chad and Calla had a great week without me. :-( I learned many new things and definitely will be better at my career b/c of it! I got to see Bodies Revealed which is something I have wanted to see for several years now...AMAZING! It is real human bodies and body parts they they plastify so that people can learn how the body works. Go to www.bodiesrevealed.com to learn more.
We went on a bike ride yesterday and ended up out in a wooded area by a creek and I had my camera, so I took some cool pics!
I also ask that you continue to pray for my friend Stephanie and her mom Cheryl and the rest of their family. Cheryl has surgery tomorrow and will begin chemo a few weeks after that. She has a battle ahead of her, but like many of you she knows Our Maker and He will be with her and her family every step of the way. What an awesome God we serve!
We also had to say good-bye to some friends of ours this weekend. Eric and Amanda are moving to Lincoln and we will miss hanging out with them and becoming better Christians by talking with them.
Have a grand week!

Calla and Elly with our friend Amanda.

Chad and Calla on the path in the woods.

Calla in the tall grass. She fell down and had some scratches on her face...nice job mom.

A family close-up!

Calla on the path...she loved walking around!

Prayers needed

A close friend of mine has learned today that her mother has breast cancer. I do not want to name any names at this point, but just ask that you keep them in your prayers. Thanks!

Happy Mother's Day--2008

We wanted to wish a Happy Mother's Day to Grandma Karma, Grandma Julie, Great Grandma Mona, Great Grandma Bernice, Great Grandma Lorene, and Great Grandma Carolyn!!! Any other mother's who are reading this, we also wish you a happy day where you are thanked for all of the great things you do for your children!!!

We also wanted to share some new pics from this week. We have been taking lots of bike rides and Calla LOVES to ride in her cart on Daddy's bike. We also take the wagon to the park to play disc golf quite a bit. Calla spent the night at Grandpa Mike and Grandma Karma's on Friday so that Chad and I could go to a retirement party. She had a great time!! We also went to a graduation party and a birthday party...busy Saturday!!

Chillin in her new car seat.

Posing in the flowers this morning.

Going for a bike ride!!!

Check out Calla's curly hair...this is what it looks like when she gets out of the bath!!!

It's been awhile...

Here are some new pictures from the last week or so!

Hanging out on the front porch.

We gave her a bath in our new extra large kitchen sink! She loved it!!

Cleaning out the pantry...it was SO MUCH FUN!!

Whoa!!!

So apparently we have been super busy in the evenings because I have not been updating much at all. :-(
We are loving our little girl SO MUCH!!! She now walks all over the house and loves to open and shut the new cupboard doors. She has 10 teeth and eats about anything we give her! It is so nice to not have to buy special food anymore, but just cut up what we are eating and put it on her high chair tray! She sleeps through the night, about 10 hours at a time!!!!!! She loves to be outside and taking walks while riding in her stroller or the wagon. The dog is a favorite of hers as well...she says "gog" for dog and points to the back door when she hears him bark. The fish tank is also captivating at times.

Daddy and Calla did very well while I was away for 6 days at the beginning of the month. Next month I leave again for 4 days and I know that they will have a good time then as well.

My parents, Shane and Burlynn were out here yesterday. Calla and Burlynn had so much fun chasing each other around now that Calla can walk. Burlynn is such a great girl and we wish SO much we could see her everyday!

I would ask that you check out Charli's site (link to the side) and see how you can help the fight against Childhood Cancer. Charli's family is helping raise funds through Relay for Life and there is a great offer on her website right now that you could take part in!

We want to thank you all for checking in on us and I will try to be better about updating more frequently!

B and Shane checking out the lake.

Trying to get a little pic of the 2 together!

Calla being like Mogli from the Jungle Book!

Running towards her Mama!

She loves to sit and read on the Dora couch!

Here I am with Captain Jack Sparrow...not the real one!!

Clearwater Beach, FL

Life...

I received this e-mail from a friend at work...it is such a good analogy to what we all should be in life. It is a new challenge to me to remember this story at all times and think of where I need to be.

A carrot, an egg, and a cup of coffee...

You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up, She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, ' Tell me what you see.'

'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg.

Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, 'What does it mean, mother?'

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.

The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

May we all be COFFEE!!!!!!!

1 year pics

We finally got around to having Calla's one year pictures taken!! Here are a few of the ones that we really liked and wanted to share with all of you.
Our kitchen is getting closer to being finished. All of the upper cabinets were hung last night. We just now need the shelf built for the microwave and then we can do all the little finishing projects. Obviously painting will be one of the things we need to do! I am leaving in about an hour for my conference in Florida and so Chad gets the honors of putting things away... I will try to update at the beginning of next week with some pics of Calla and the kitchen!

I LOVE how her left her eyes and her dress blue!!!

This is another favorite of mine...she's just chillin!!