The Wild and Crazy Month of May

Crazy May! It really is too!  We have been busy and I am ready for summer vacation.  I've been feeling like I can barely keep my head on straight lately and am looking forward to possibly getting some sleep!

 We kicked off May with the Mothers Day Tea in Tanners Kindergarten class.  It was precious.  We were greeted with corsages, the kids sang to us and then served us bagels and lemonade on little place mats they had made.  Mrs. Buxton and the kids really out did themselves!.  I loved every minute of it!

 Tanner and Mrs. Buxton.

 Carter did a Mothers Day project at Preschool which was darling! Preschool is the best!

 We had the biannual "replace a toilet at the neighbors" party.  Hopefully this isn't really going to be a biannual event, however Tyler and Jock have now replaced the same toilet in their house twice in the last 6 months.  It turned into a party full of food and fun that went well into the night! The brothers are here with some of their favorite girls!

 Tyler ran in the Great Potato race and came in third in his age group!  Not too shabby! 

Katie and Troy also ran and it was a blast seeing them!

 Things have been busy and sometimes you just fall asleep in your seat while at the car wash. 

 We have had some very warm days and so afternoons at the pool have been a blessing.  It is so nice to be close to the pool. 

 Last weekend we headed up to Cascade for Memorial Day Weekend.  It was a little chilly and rainy but it didn't stop us from having any fun!  We had a ton of fun! Tanner and Hadley in the boat.

 Carter and Grandma in the boat!

 The kids trying to fish.  I think the rain scared the fish away as we didn't catch anything!

 We went on an adventure up by Gold Fork and shot the bb gun and explored.

 Threw rocks in the river because there truly is nothing more fun than that!

 Field day at Prospect Elementary! Tanners class is in the background, these are a few of the younger siblings! 

 My sweet Prospect Mom friends, Andrea & Tracy.  Love these girls and their kiddos! These two were definitely my island of calm among some crazy other moms!

 Mrs. Buxton and the class.  So adorable!

 Tanner with his little graduation treat! Tomorrow is the big Kindergarten Graduation ceremony.  I cannot wait to see what that all entails! 

 Off to Friendship Celebration for Carters end of the year preschool BBQ.  Pastor Brett and Pastor Tom talking to the kids.

 Adorable!  Pastor Tom going over "Pastor Toms Beads" Even Tanner remembered what they stand for!  Black: EVERYBODY Sins. Red: Jesus loves me. White: Jesus washes away our sins. Blue:  helper is the Holy Spirit. Green: Jesus wants me to grow. Yellow: Jesus will take me to heaven. Orange: Jesus makes me a new person.  Take this along with the rules of Kindergarten and that pretty much sums it up! I love this preschool and I am so happy I have three more years here! It'll be hard to leave this place!

 With all the fun and games and prizes, Carter took the liberty of stamping his face! Gotta love preschool!

 Carter and Pastor Tom! See ya next year!

 Very true.  Kindergarten really is all butterflies and watermelon and superheroes but you really do learn the most important life skills! I struggle with school.  Its hard for me to let go.  I wanted so badly to send my kids to a private Christian school, until I priced it out. Yikes. But I feel so confident in the education they are getting and the experience they are having.  It is exciting to let them spread their wings and fly and experience life. I think Tanner was truly a light this year and will continue to be, I'm hoping the other two will follow and be little lights also.

Can't wait for graduation tomorrow!

We are all Gods Dudes

A friend of mine way back from Junior High (Thank you Facebook) married a Pastor and he wrote a book.  How cool is that?  It gets even cooler, she sent me 3 autographed copies so that I can somehow formulate a devotional off this book and then give them away at MOPs.  Even cooler, right?  This is a great book.  It seems to come along side of everything else I have been learning about recently in church, couples Bible study and our MOPs Bible study.  It just fits perfectly.  Over this past weekend the thing that has resinated with me the  most has been "pressing on".  Crap happens.  Lots of really crappy things happen to everyone.  Leave them in the past.  Move on.  Press on.  Learn from them and leave them the heck alone.  Seriously.  If they linger, they will give us fear for the future. Do not let the horrible. awful, no good things from the past get in the way of what God wants for you. God is your biggest fan, He wants far better things for us than we can even imagine.  Crazy thought, right?  So, seriously, get over it, life is hard, it's going to keep being hard, but through trials come tribulation.  Good always comes from bad.  I can list countless really bad things that have happened in my life that have resulted in really amazing gifts.  Have faith and trust that God will take care of you and do not get in the way of Him helping you.

A while back I saved this devotion because I thought it was so great and so fitting for my family. 

Overcome Fear with This Devotion

By Julia Attaway, March 13, 2013

My son Stephen and I have been reading our way through The Golden Children’s Bible, and the other day we arrived at the shores of the Red Sea.

It’s curious how things jump out at you unexpectedly, even in stories you’ve known for decades. This time it was the words of Moses to the panicky Israelites: “The Lord will fight for you if you will be calm.”

Huh. If you will be calm. I scurried off to my own Bible and looked up Exodus 14:14. The NIV translation was a bit different: “The Lord will fight for you. Just be still,” but the meaning was the same: Anxiety isn’t going to win you any battles. It might even get in the way of what God has planned.

Most of us have occasions when we are trapped by circumstances, when we feel helpless or afraid. Even when the danger isn’t as intense as having chariots thundering down on us, fear can be truly paralyzing. It makes me stop to wonder: How different is a fear-paralyzed heart from a hardened one? The will of God can’t penetrate either.

I turned back to Exodus 14:14 and thought about it some more. This time I meditated on the first part: “The Lord will fight for you.” If the Lord will fight for us, why are we afraid?

A problem that has been giving me anxiety lately came to mind. I imagined it as Pharaoh’s army. Then I prayed:

Lord, move the cloud of your protection between me and my fear, and let me walk ahead confident that you have chosen this path... even if I don’t see how things can possibly work out. Amen

Since Friday, so not very long, I have been trying to remember to thank God for everything.  Every little thing.  I feel grateful. I feel good.  There are so many wonderful things amidst all the crazy to be thankful for. After all, I'm on Gods fridge! It's been helpful and has given me a sunnier perspective. Cheers to sunny days! So, my devotion on this book is still a work in progress, but it'll come!

This is what's up

I start a boot camp today.  I'm scared.  After Tanner and Carter were born I was able to lose weight quickly and without much exercise (read: I do not handle postpartum well.) Along with the weight loss, I lost what felt like half my hair, was also totally overwhelmed, and a wee bit envious of the other moms who bounced back so well after having a baby.  Since Hadley was most certainly our last child I thought nothing else but that would happen after she was born.  Except this time, I didn't lose as much weight with her, I was happier, and not totally as overwhelmed as I had been unless I was in a situation that made me anxious or uneasy. Then I was a total mess, but thankfully those seemed to be few. So here we are almost 3 years after her birth and I am unhappy with my body and starting boot camp.  I am going to get this body back in to shape the fun way, without the postpartum mess! I took measurements and pictures last night and cannot wait to see my transformation in 8 weeks!  I think doing this along with my lemon and peppermint oil will really get me looking good for the summer! 

 Our MOPs group had a Luau at church a few weekends ago and it was a major blast!  Tyler smoked a pig at the packing house which was a huge success! I'm super excited he knows how to do this, expect many more pigs at the parties we host!

 The kids have been enjoying the sun and helping me keep my car clean.

 I took Carter to Big Al's for a little one on one time with Mommy.  We had a fabulous time.  Good lunch, good conversation and lots of game time! I actually am thinking of taking him to Las Vegas.  Seriously, the kid has a lucky streak and a midas touch! He won so many tickets (1732) we felt like we bought the store when we were done.  It was kind of a childhood dream come true! 

 Carter had his spring sing for preschool Thursday night.  Adorable.  These little recitals warm my heart so much.  

 Tanner is doing so well with T-Ball and having such a fun time.  It is so cute to watch the kids play! The kids and parents on his team are wonderful! 

 We had the Sterlings over for dinner Saturday night.  We always enjoy them so much! Hadley is just in love with Kayla too! 

Saying that the brothers are into Legos right now is an understatement.  They can't get enough and I think it is so great that the two of them sit down and figure out the instructions together!