Sisters

My sister, Elizabeth, sent me this picture yesterday from when we were all home for Christmas.  These are my two little sisters, and I miss them dearly!  They are two of my favorite people on this planet, and are SO funny!  There are always many laughs and fun times when we’re together.

Seeing that picture made me so happy that Audrey and Elise have each other.  I hope that they grow up to love each other as much as I love my sisters.

The trampoline

We recently bought a trampoline off of craigslist, and boy have we gotten our money’s worth out of it already!!!  Audrey LOVES to go outside and jump on it, do “seat-drops”, or just roll around on it.

Looks like somebody didn’t have their V-8 this morning…

When Andrew gets home from work, they often go play on it together (rarely does Andrew change clothes beforehand).

Here’s her famous “seat-drop”‘.  Occasionally she’ll be in her room and just decide to jump up and do a seat-drop onto the floor…ouch!  Guess she hasn’t completely grasped the idea of the trampoline yet.

Our neighbor, Wes, came over the other day to join in on the fun.

What do you think the maximum weight limit is on this thing?

Oh the trampoline…fun for all ages.  Who wants to come over and play at our house?

Little Helper

Audrey has become quite the little helper lately. Today I asked her to go get Elise a toy…I think she’s going to be an overachiever.

Elise had plenty to keep her busy and happy for quite some time.

Elise’s Dedicaion

Last Saturday we participated in a Baby Dedication ceremony for Elise at our church.  My parents and sister, Lesley, were able to be there, as well as most of the members of our small group.  I love the way Buckhead Church does Baby Dedication because of all the time, effort, and conversations that they encourage before you even come to the dedication ceremony.  There are several messages that you listen to and some homework for the parents that is focused on helping you grow in your personal relationship with God, nurturing your marriage, and being intentional about the things that you want to teach your kids.  One of the assignments was to write down 5 values that you want to instill in your children.  Here are the five that we hope to establish in our girls:

Respect

“Show proper respect to everyone, love your fellow believers, fear God, honor the emperor.”  1 Peter 2:17

Forgiveness

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”  Ephesians 4:32

Generosity

“A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.”  Proverbs 11:25

Integrity

“I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things have I given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you.”  1 Chronicles 29:17

Bravery

“So do not fear, for I am with you;  do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you;  I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”  Isaiah 41:10

During part of the ceremony we were able to talk about these values and our parenting goals with our friends and family, and asked them to hold us accountable as we try to be the best parents that we can be.  One of my favorite parts of the day was when the people at our table prayed for us.  There is just so much comfort in knowing that there are people who support and encourage you along this journey!

As I thought and prepared for the dedication ceremony, one truth became increasingly clear to me:  These beautiful girls don’t belong to me: they are God’s.  I am SO thankful that he has selected me to be their Mom, and entrusted their lives to me while we are here on Earth.  I pray that Andrew and I will be able to love, discipline, encourage, and teach them in a way that points them to God.

Christmas ‘09 video

Many of you have commented on our “Dickens Christmas“, and how it looked like so much fun…which it was!  Well, my little brother, Alan, posted a great video of it on his blog.  For your viewing pleasure:

We’re back….

Hello 2010!!!  These first few weeks have gone by so fast and there has been a lot going on (more posts and pictures to come).  Here’s a little of what we’ve been up to over the past few weeks:

Playing “dress up”.  Audrey loves some bling!

Elise was going to be Snow White for Halloween 2010, but considering her costume (size 12-18 months) fits her now (at 5 months), I’m thinking we’ll be getting her something else for Halloween.  But doesn’t she make a great Snow White?

Flying kites and playing at the park (seriously cheap fun for kids).

Audrey’s latest obsession is the carousel at the mall.

Reading lots of books (and learning to share).

Elise is now rolling over and has decided that sleeping is overrated.  Audrey is talking up a storm, and is fascinated with the potty.  That’s what’s going on in our world…what have you been up to?

See ya!

Our church has decided to begin 2010 with a 21 day church wide fast.  You can read more about it here.  As I began thinking about how I would participate, I knew that a food fast was probably out of the question since I’m nursing Elise and already on a super restrictive diet (Elise is allergic to both dairy and soy).

So, I started thinking about how I spend my time, and I spend a lot of time on the internet.  I love blogging, reading people’s blogs, twittering, etc. so for the next 21 days I’ve decided to take a break from all of that in order to spend more time with God.  I know I will miss getting to read about what’s going on, and what everyone is up to, but I’m also really looking forward to the extra time to spend praying, and reading my Bible.

So, See ya in a few weeks!

Until then, here are a couple of pics that make me smile!

Do you think Elise looks so freaked out because Audrey just got done picking her nose and then went in for the kiss?

In other news, Audrey said, “I love you” for the first time today.  I cried.

A Very Dickens Christmas

So, if you know anything about my family, you know that we love any excuse to dress up and act silly (okay, sillier).  This year, we decided to have an English Christmas…think Charles Dickens.  It was a blast!  We all dressed up and ate roast, yorkshire pudding, brussels sprouts, and flaming plum pudding for dessert.

My sister, Lesley (far left), was “Tiny Tim” and my brother, Preston (in the middle), dressed up like a Russian, although nobody’s quite sure why.

Merry Christmas!  And “God Bless Us, Every One!”

More is more

Whoever said “Less is More” clearly didn’t do hair!

Audrey is almost impossible to get a picture of while she’s smiling these days, but the other night I caught her in rare form.  So, this is what she looks like when she’s really laughing and having a good time!

The “Meat Defeat”

“Three 8 ounce beef patties topped with three fried eggs, cheese, chili, bacon, onion straws, tomato, lettuce, ketchup, mustard, and mayo, served on a toasted bun.  With a side of fries and pickle spear.”

That’s how they describe the “Meat Defeat” challenge.  If you can eat the entire thing in less than 45 minutes, it’s free and you get a t-shirt and your picture on the “Wall of Fame”.  It has yet to be done!

This is how Andrew decided he wanted to spend his birthday.  So we packed up the kids and headed to our local sports bar to take on the “Meat Defeat” challenge.

He put up an impressive effort, but alas, was defeated by the meat.  The manager said that he came closer to finishing it than anyone else who has attempted it.  He spent the rest of his birthday on the couch.