Easter, Bikes and Springtime!

I don't think it is ever going to stop raining. It snowed all winter and now we are going to have rain all spring :( I am thanking God that we have not had as bad as storms as the south though. We have had a few tornadoes, but nothing like Alabama and a few other states have gotten. It breaks my heart to see the damage there and to know there were so many deaths. Praying God will be with them!

On another note, we have been taking advantage of the days when it is nice out! Easter was NOT nice. It was misting all day long and all of our egg hunts were inside! :( However, it was so fun to teach Emma the real meaning of Easter. While talking about Jesus's death, she would look at me so concerned. Her eyes were very big and she looked like she was about to cry. When we got to the part about Jesus rising again, she started laughing and clapping. It is so sweet. I really love the innocence she has right now. She is such a loving and caring person. It warms my heart to know how much she loves Jesus already!

Emma in her Easter dress while doing the egg hunt at church.


Maddie in her Easter dress with Paw. Of course her bib is blocking the front of the dress.



One of Emma's Easter egg hunts! She made out quite well!




Trying to decide what to do with all of them....


I think next year we may just put stickers in the eggs. WAY too much candy!

And would you believe for each of her hunts, I forgot to bring her cute Easter basket?!?!?! AHHHHH, I hate it when I do things like that!


Emma and her cousin Maxine having fun with Papaw!


Maddie got bubbles in her basket and she got to experience them for the first time! :)



We also went to a baby shower this past weekend for Brandon's cousin and his girlfriend. They are going to have a little girl and are naming her Mya. I love it! Emma loved helping opening the presents! It was a small family shower and we had such a great time!


We also had Emma ride a two-wheeler bike for the first time! She had to wait patiently while Daddy fixed the seat (it was given to us), but eventually she was able to show her stuff! (Yes, we did have a helmet too! :))



She got tired of waiting, so she decided to take a short walk :)






FINALLY DONE! :)


So happy!

While all that was going on, Maddie sat and waited patiently in the grass....







What's over there?

No, I think I like what's over here better.....Sister and Daddy! :)


Emma and Maddie are doing wonderfully. Emma has to make sure Maddie sees her do things. She loves to entertain Maddie. She will sing, dance and give her kisses all day long. She also loves it when Maddie "toots". :) I cannot believe Emma is going to be three years old in three short months! Brandon and I are going to take the day off of work (it is a Friday-yea!) and we are going to do something special with her while the grandparents spend the day with Maddie. I am not sure what we will do yet. The Children's Museum has a Dora and Diego exhibit right now. She would go crazy over that. That may be our choice. We could do that and the zoo and a fun lunch. That would completely make her day :)
I hope we have some more nice spring days coming up soon. One thing's for sure-we are going to have the greenest grass ever!

Things that make me happy :)

I started out today with not so good news. It is about money, so it can be fixed, but it just brought me down. However, as the day went on, I decided to put my big girl panties on and just live life. This makes me happy. At least I know my problem can be fixed; unlike so many more people that have it way worse than me. So, I decided to make a list of things that make me happy so I can remember how happy I really am.

1. Jesus. That is all I need to say about that.

2. My husband. He makes me laugh quite a bit. Even though he is a typical male, he makes it known that he loves me no matter what I look like or what I do.

3. My daughters. Emma-I honestly don't know what life was like before she came into it. She makes me laugh every day and I love to see how much like me she is. She is such a joy to me and I can't believe how much more I love her every day. Maddie-once again, I don't know how life existed without her. She just completes our little family and she is my other joy that I love so much more every day.

4. My parents. They have helped me in ways that I thought weren't even possible. I can tell how much they love me and my girls and I will be forever grateful to them!

5. My animals. I have two dogs and three cats. Even though that is a lot of animals and they do so many things that make me mad, they are all so good with my kids and I can tell they are loyal. They are so fun to snuggle up with!

6. Baking brownies and eating the batter......'nuff said.

7. Driving and blasting rock music in my car with the windows down. I especially like to blare 80's hair bands like Def Leppard and Poison.

8. Playing pass with Emma. I am starting to teach her how to do a volleyball "pass". She is catching on quick! Yea!!

9. Hearing Maddie giggle when I get her belly or tickle her. There is nothing better than a baby laugh.

10. Hearing Emma laugh her high-pitched laugh when Brandon is chasing her.

11. Hearing Emma talk and say new words.

12. Emma going to the potty.

13. Emma counting and saying her ABC's.

14. Emma singing songs to her little sister so she can keep her entertained for me.

15. Maddie's big smile she gives me when I get home from work.

16. Knowing that my girls have wonderful baby-sitters that take great care of them.

17. Going to my church and just feeling content.

18. Taking walks while there is a breeze out.

19. Drinking ice cold water.

20. Reading a great book.

21. Taking a nap without waking up for 3 hours.

22. Memories of my childhood.

23. Memories of my grandparents and going to their house.

24. My feeling of accomplishment when I check something off of my "to-do" list.

25. Paying off bills.

26. When a song gives me chills.

27. Seeing military families being reunited.

28. Cuddles with Maddie after bathtime.

29. My co-workers who have supported me through a lot of hard times.

30. My few close friends that have stuck by me in hard times.

31. Planning birthday parties for my girls.

32. Anticipation of my vacations.

33. Watching a movie I thought I would hate and it turns out I loved it.

34. Hearing that people are pregnant-I don't care if I know you or not.

35. Getting good bargains on clothes/items.

36. Running into people at the store that I haven't seen in a long time.

37. Friday nights!!

Those are just a few things, but I didn't want this to go on forever. Maybe I will finish this week ;) For the time being, here are some cute pictures of my girls from this weekend.


Sorry about the snotty nose, but this face is just her....


Here Emma is listening to my mom tell a story. Her face was so intent about 5 seconds before I took this picture.


Emma went to Grandma and Paw's earlier so Maddie and I decided to take advantage of the warm sun on Sunday. Her cheeks are getting so chubby :)


Watching the Amish go down the road....yes we live out in the country, well a country town...and I love it :)

6 Months Old

Maddie, you are six months old today! You are growing so fast! What all are you up to these days?

-You are in a size 2 diaper
-You wear 3-6 months and 6-9 months onesies
-You wear 6 months pants
-Your hair is becoming more silky and longer in the front and you have developed a nice peach-fuzzy in the back from losing it from sleeping :)
-You love to blow raspberries at us-especially when we give you kisses on your lips
-You can sit up on your own now. You are able to catch yourself from side to side if you start to tilt over. You think you are hot stuff too!
-You are still sucking your thumb, but you usually only do it if you are very tired or cranky
-You pucker your mouth up for kisses before you blow a raspberry at us
-You are grabbing our faces now when we pick you up
-You talk all the time! You are really starting to sound out consanants and vowels
-You absolutely love baby food. So far you have tried apples, bananas, pears and green beans
-You are still nursing 1-2 times every night. You also love to take a bottle
-You love to be outside. Nothing calms you down more than being outside in the sun
-You absolutely love your sister. You smile so big every time Emma does something to entertain you. You also love to see her first thing in the morning
-You are still very much a mama's girl :)

Maddie, I don't know how many times I can say this, but we love you so very much! You are such a blessing to our family!

Only Little Sister Likes Her Picture Taken....

Why is it every time I try to get a cute shot of Emma she bolts? She is always on the move and doesn't want to sit still for one second!! I can't even get her to sit still at a formal sitting. I am going to post some pictures that they had taken back in February. They are pictures of pictures so the quality is not that good. I hope Emma is out of this "I-don't-want-to-get-my-picture-taken" stage soon. The only reason why we have Emma smiling is because the guy taking the pictures was awesome and made her laugh just by throwing a stuffed bear around :) I just wanted to share these pictures because I thought they turned out really cute; especially considering the rambunctious 2 year old that was running around and halfway throwing a tantrum.....













Here are a couple of Maddie at church this weekend...once again, big sister would not stick around to show off her pretty face and dress.




Isn't that the most precious picture?? :) :) :)

Saturday's Game

Just a quick note on this Friday afternoon....

GO BUTLER!!! GO BUTLER!!! GO BUTLER!!!