Our Little Ballerinas

Lainie and Emmie started taking ballet and tap this month. I almost can't stand the cuteness! :)

Life Lessons: God's Best

"I can remember praying for him as a little girl, and every morning before high school. I remember the day I met him and the moment I knew he was "the one." I remember him getting on one knee and me saying yes without hesitation as I knew he was the guy that I had been praying for for so long." ~ Mommy

Between now and the time you are old enough to get married, you will have many important decisions to make. What extracurricular activities will you be involved in? What college will you attend? Will you pledge a sorority? What will you major in? What career will you choose? There are so many options out there that will be available to you, and I believe all three of you will succeed in whatever you choose to do. However, one of the most important decisions you will make in life will be who you will marry. Who will be the man that you choose to stand by for the rest of your lifetime?

Since the time you were all three conceived, I have been praying for your husbands. I don't know who these precious boys are, but I know that they have been on my heart and prayed over since I found out about your precious lives. There are so many things that I pray for regarding each of your husbands. I pray that he would be a spiritual leader for your family. That he would truly have a heart for God and have Him as his first priority, and you second. I pray for his career. That God would guide him in the path he chooses and that he would have a passion for the job he has. I pray that he would be a supportive husband. That he would always be a soft place for you to fall and be your biggest cheerleader and advocate. I pray that he would be faithful. That he would never be overcome with temptation and would always stay true to his word and his vows. I pray that he would be an amazing father to your children. That he would love them, guide them, and encourage them each day to be the very best that they can be. I pray that he would be a leader. That he would look to his Heavenly Father for decisions and not the world around him. There are so many things that I pray for in your spouse, and I trust that God hears my prayers.

I will encourage you to begin praying for your husband as soon as you are old enough to understand that concept. I prayed for your Daddy for so many years. I really do remember praying for him before high school every morning. I had no idea who I was praying for, but I knew that I knew that I knew that he was out there and my prayers were being heard. I can honestly say that I believe the strength of my marriage with your Daddy is because of those prayers. He is amazing and truly is God's best for me. I love him with every ounce of my being, and I am honored that he chose me to be his wife. I hope that you will understand that feeling and that level of love one day too.

I will encourage you to wait. Wait for God's best for you. There will be so many men out there, and there may be several that would be good candidates for marriage. However, I want you to wait for God's best for you. You will wonder how you know if this man or that man is the one. I had those feelings too. However, once I met your Daddy, I knew without question, without any hesitation or reservation that he was the person I was supposed to be with. Did we go through trials and tribulations? Absolutely. Did we have to overcome some obstacles? You bet! But throughout our relationship, I always had a peace that we would be fine. You will know. You will have no reservations when he gets down on one knee if he is God's best for you.

I will encourage you to have independence, even when you become one together in marriage. Of course, I will encourage you to rely on your husband, to be there for him and support him, to love him unconditionally, but I also believe that it is imperative to have really great girlfriends that you can depend on, trust, talk to. Believe me, your Daddy hears about 50% of what I am saying when there is a football game on, especially if the conversation is about a cute dress I found at the mall. :). However, I can call a girlfriend and she will usually hear 100% of my words. You will need nights out, pedicures, coffee with a friend, a person to help you pick out a dress to wear to a special occasion. I hope that all three of you will be there for each other, but I also hope and pray that you will have real, honest, trustworthy, loving girlfriends that can support you and love you too. Your husband should be your second priority behind God, but he doesn't need to be who you rely on for everything.

Thank you girls for teaching me. I hope to be able to write you more letters, more experiences, more lessons that I have learned. However, if I never say another thing, you will be fine. I know this for sure. God has you. He holds you in His hand and He has you. He loves you more than I ever could, and I believe with everything in me that you will be completely fine. However, I love sharing with you about you, about me, just as much as I love praying for your husbands as I put my make-up on in the morning.

I love you!
Mommy

Climbing Mt. Everest Might Be Easier

Here is an attempt of trying to get one picture of all three girls smiling at the camera. Seriously, I think it would be easier to climb Mt. Everest than accomplish this task. I never did get around to getting one.










Oh well, I guess pictures of just one at a time will have to do! Here is a cute one of our peanut.

Happy 11 Months to Ellie!

Ellie turned 11 months old on the 14th, and I am finally getting around to doing her monthly update. Justin and I shared our 9 year anniversary with her 11 month birthday, so it has been an exciting week around here. Ellie, here is what you are up to these days!

* You probably weigh around 18 pounds if I had to guess.
* You wear a size 3 diaper, 6-12 month clothes, and some 12-18 month clothes.

* You still take a morning and afternoon nap, and sleep from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. each morning. When you sleep, you hold on to your bumper pads like they are a blanket or stuffed animal. They are definitely a security item for you.
* You are crawling everywhere now and can pull up to your knees, but you still haven't pulled up to stand yet.

* You eat everything that is on the floor. I will give you cooked green beans, peas, carrots, etc. and you look at me like I am crazy. However, if there is dog food, the bottom of a flip flop, an old Cheerio, or some string laying around, you will put that in your mouth faster that I can blink.

* You have started throwing temper tantrums. :( That is the first big sign that you are growing up and out of that sweet baby stage. You really don't like having your diaper changed, so that will bring on a tantrum faster than anything else.
* You love to growl like a tiger. If we growl at you, you will growl back at us. You started that game and we think it is so funny!

* You love to clap, play pat-a-cake, sing songs, and dance.

* You love your baths and are wild, wild, wild in the bathtub still. The bigger the splash, the better. You will crawl all over the tub and act like an animal in there! I can't take my eyes off of you for a second.

* You love to jump in your Johnny Jumper still. You will jump as high as you can and then pick your feet up to swing back and forth. I think you and Lainie will share a love for jumping.

* You are eating table food really well, and your favorite foods are still carbs. You also like all fruit. Some of your favorites right now are macaroni and cheese, quesadillas, bananas, strawberries, yogurt, spaghetti, chicken, mandarin oranges, pancakes, and Puffs. The only way you will eat veggies is if we give you baby food, so you get a jar of baby food with each meal!

* You are still nursing about 3 times a day, but you are also taking a sippy cup of milk throughout the day and seem to love it.

* You are still in your infant car seat, but we will probably move you to a big girl seat after you turn 1. You are so petite, so we decided to keep you in your infant seat for as long as we could!

* You love to sit in your stroller and go for walks. As long as we are on the go, you are happy. You love to be going and doing.

I cannot believe that your next monthly update will be your first birthday update. How in the world are you going to be one next month? This year has gone by so fast! We enjoy every second with you sweet Ellie! You are just a precious addition to our family! We love you!

Lainie - 5 Years Old

Lainie had her 5 year check-up on August 24th, the day after she turned the big 5 years old! It has taken me forever to get her post up, but I wanted to have time to document details of where she is right now. Her stats were:
Weight: 41 pounds (59th percentile)
Height: 42 3/4 inches (57th percentile)

She checked out great at her doctor's appointment. She had her vision checked and she has 20/20 vision in one eye and 20/10 vision in the other eye. We have been to the eye doctor twice and she has been very farsighted both times, so she might need glasses before she starts kindergarten. We will have to get that checked out soon.

Lainie is such a sweet girl. She is still pretty shy and doesn't like to be the center of attention. She is also very cautious and doesn't like to do anything that she is unsure of. She is definitely a creature of habit. She doesn't like change. We have noticed that when she is comfortable with a situation, she will come out of her shell a little bit. However, she has a quiet presence about her.

She definitely takes on the role of big sister well, and can often be a little on the bossy side. She loves babies and has a special place in her heart for Ellie. She adores her and Ellie adores Lainie. Emmie and Lainie are such great friends and play very well together. They both love using imaginative play with any little figures that they can find. The will re-enact movies and shows all the time with their stuffed animals or figures. It is really fun to watch.

Lainie loves art. She loves to draw, color, write, paint, play with play-doh, color with chalk, etc. She also LOVES gymnastics. If she could go to gymnastics 7 days a week, she would. She has always loved to jump, bounce, flip, and twirl, so gymnastics is the perfect sport for her. She really enjoyed t-ball and has started ballet and tap this year. We have been told by several people that she just seems naturally athletic. I think she probably is, and seems to have a genuine interest in sports and dance.

She is so funny to listen to. She can come up with some of the funniest and most mature things to say and it truly comes out of nowhere. We just laugh at her. She also does not forget anything. The child has an amazing memory and remembers everything a person tells her.

She is a super picky eater and would eat junk food for every meal and snack if we let her. Some of her favorite foods right now are: pizza, chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese, raw carrots, grapes, apples, cheese, yogurt, granola, bananas, sunbutter and jelly sandwiches on wheat bread, pancakes, and spaghetti. Vegetables are a battle, and you can forget her eating any meat unless it is chicken nuggets.

Some of her favorite toys/shows right now are Strawberry Shortcake, Tangled, Olivia, and Tinkerbell. She loves several of the shows on Nick Jr. She loves to play with her Barbie dolls, stuffed animals, and all her figures.

We decided to hold her back this year because of her late birthday. We wanted to give her one more year to mature emotionally. Because she is so shy and quiet, we thought this would benefit her. I think academically she is ready for kindergarten. She loves going to Pre-K 5 this year and seems to really enjoy learning. She knows all of her letters and sounds and can write all letters. She can spell her name and Emmie and Ellie's names. She knows all of her colors and her favorite color is green. She knows her street number and name, but we are working on her city, state and zip code. She understands the concepts of patterns, sorting, and can rhyme words.

She truly is such a joy! Lainie's face just lights up when she smiles and her laughter is contagious. She is a very loving, compassionate child and is very sensitive to other people. She really can get along with anyone and very easy for others to play with. She is definitely a pleaser and a peace maker. She wants to make sure that everyone around her is happy. We are so fortunate to be able to parent such a sweet spirited child.

Life Lessons: Mommyhood

I know that all three of you will laugh at me for writing a letter to you about this subject right now. Afterall, you are only 5, 3 and 11 months. However, I wanted to write it while I am living in the moment, while I am experiencing these things on a daily basis.

One day, you will more than likely be given what I believe is the most important job of all. You won't get paid for doing it, it will absolutely exhaust you some days, you will feel like you are succeeding one minute and completely failing the next, you will never experience another job like it in your lifetime, you will be overwhelmed with emotion as you experience it....you will become a mommy.

If I wrote everything I have learned on this journey so far, I would be writing forever. The funny thing is I have only had this job for 5 years, 6 if you count pregnancy. I don't want to bore you with details, but instead focus on things that have been life lessons for me while being a mommy.

You are not perfect. You were not a perfect baby, you are not a perfect child, you will probably not be a perfect teenager, perfect girlfriend, perfect wife. Don't expect to be a perfect mommy. You will fail sometimes. I failed, my mom failed, my grandmother failed.....everyone makes mistakes. It is one of the greatest ways to grow and become stronger as a mommy. You make mistakes, you learn from them, and you discover ways to do things differently and more successfully. Embrace your mistakes, teach your children what you learned, pray when you aren't sure what the answers should be, pray when you think you do know the answers.

There are so many decisions that you will have to make regarding your children. During pregnancy you will have to choose a doctor, decide if you will exercise during pregnancy or not, if you will drink caffeine, whether you want an epidural during delivery or not. During the first year of your baby's life, you will have to decide if you want to breastfeed, if you want to vaccinate your child, what pediatrician you will use, if you will circumcise your little boy, whether you will work or stay home. As the baby grows, you will have to decide if you will send them to preschool, when you will potty train, how you will discipline them, what you will feed them, and on and on and on. A lifetime of decisions regarding your child begin the day you see a plus sign on the pregnancy test. No matter what, make a decision that you truly believe is best for you and your child and believe in it. Trust your gut instinct and go with it. Don't waiver, don't feel guilty, don't look around to see what other mommies are doing. You are strong, you are smart, you are completely capable of making decisions. Make them and believe in yourself. Remember that God chose you, YOU, to be your child's mommy. He created you with this job in mind. He has prepared you....believe that! Believe that with everything in you and be confident.

Be honest and real with other mommies. If you are having a bad day, don't be afraid to speak it. Other mommies need to hear it just as much as you need to say it. Everyone has bad days, yet so many people are embarrassed to admit that they were frustrated that they had to get up in the middle of the night with their newborn while their husband snored the night away, that their two year old has thrown 15 temper tantrums in 30 minutes, that their three year old screamed "NO!" at the grocery store when a stranger asked them a question, that they let their 4 year old watch tv all morning because they were too tired to do anything else with them. It is hard to share your weak moments, but they help strengthen you and others around you. The foundation of friendships should be built on honesty and truth. Be real! God can use you in powerful ways when you are real!

Embrace the great moments! Truly take them in and embrace them. Don't focus so much on big events such as birthday parties, the first days of school, the big vacations that you don't cherish the little baby feet that only stay small for what seems like a second, the laughter of your child when you tickle them, the conversations about a ladybug crawling on the back porch, the way your child pronounces a word in a way that only they can, the moments you dance together to music, or the snuggles they give you at just the right time. The everyday, simple, unimportant moments are some of the best. However, it is hard to see that in the midst of the chaos. And believe me, there will be chaos! If you have a moment when you see something you feel like you should embrace and you just don't feel it, you have no desire or energy to even give it a second thought....that, sweet girl, is ok! Don't feel guilty if something that should be special, cute, funny just isn't special, cute or funny at that moment. Everyone has those thoughts too!

Thank you girls for teaching me. I hope to be able to write you more letters, more experiences, more lessons that I have learned. However, if I never say another thing, you will be fine. I know this for sure. God has you. He holds you in His hand and He has you. He loves you more than I ever could, and I believe with everything in me that you will be completely fine. However, I love sharing with you about you, about me, just as much as I love listening to your stories about the butterfly in the backyard.

I love you!
Mommy

Emmie's 3 Year Pictures

Here are Emmie's pics from her 3 year picture session. I was actually surprised that we got as many as we did since she had NO interest in having her picture taken that day. Keri worked her magic and ended up with several cute ones!