Surgery

Abby had oral surgery today. She did very well! She has a tooth that is impacted in the roof of her mouth. The doctor had to go in through her gumline and attach a little hook with a chain to the tooth that is impacted. I can't even visualize how this is even done. Anyway, now the orthodontist will be able to use the chain to pull the tooth down into its proper place. There is a slight chance she could still lose the tooth so we are really hopeful that this won't be the case. For now, it is lots of rest for her this weekend AND maybe even a little ice cream!

Purity Ball

A couple of weeks ago, Abby went to her Purity Ball at church. What a special night it was for her.....and her parents too! We had a wonderful dinner complete with a chocolate fountain. Every girls dream come true. All the girls also were given a purity ring as a reminder of their commitment to stay pure. The dads were given the honors of putting the rings on their fingers. The girls were also given a china plate and a letter of encouragement from women within the church. They ended the night with lots of dancing and giggling. I made a smilebox below of the evening. You can click on the photos to get a better look. We had a really great time and would like to thank all the volunteers for all their hard work!

Create your own digital scrapbook

Weekly Update

It has been quite a busy week. Since Abby has made the softball team, she has been having practice five days a week. She is absolutely loving all of it. The exercise is always a big plus and she loves the time with her friends.

Caroline has been busy with her school work and hanging out with her friends. Her teacher has commented on how well she is doing in school. She has been working on a powerpoint presentation of China. It amazes me how much these little kids can do.

Mattie has been into everything and keeps her mama and daddy on their toes. She loves the outdoors and tries to escape every chance she gets. She is doing well with her speech therapy and is a quick learner. Her speech teacher has some great things planned for the future. We are also looking into adding play therapy into her schedule. I think this will also help her communication skills. She really doesn't play much with her toys. Her favorite activity involves the t.v. remote control, a cell phone, the computer, and emptying drawers. She rarely plays with any of her toys for more than 2 minutes. She has picked up a stomach bug so we are home today. The week before last, she had pink eye and the start of her first ear infection. The joys of having a child in daycare.

I've been quite busy myself too and it is getting ready to get even busier. I am starting choir practice again this Sunday. We have also started a sewing group at church called Joyful Stitchers. Last night, we started with the basics on how to use a sewing machine. We are looking into a future project for charity. It is called Conkerr Cancer: A Case for Smiles. We will be making bright cheerful pillowcases for children who are in the hospital with cancer. I am really looking forward to this project.

Making the Team

This is the first year that Abby gets to try out for softball at the middle school level. She has been playing fastpitch softball since she was eight for our local community teams. She has been waiting until she was old enough to try out for the school team. This past week they had try outs for the girls' softball team. She has been so nervous about whether she would make the team. Well, she found out yesterday that she made the team! Hooray Abby! Now the fun begins. She has already brought the form home letting us know of all the expenses involved with uniform accessories and lots of afternoon practices. But that's OK. It's all a part of the experience. She actually let me take a picture of her in her issued uniform. She is so excited!

Thankful A-Z

I really have enjoyed reading everyone's thankful stories and think it is a wonderful idea. After having my not so thankful moment on Friday, I've decided to get started. I'm a little behind so I'm going to have to double, triple, or even quadruple up some days. Oh...just one more thing before I start this. I really do appreciate everyone's support concerning Caroline's school. My husband and I will be attending the next school board meeting and depending on the response, we will take things from there. We will do whatever it takes to try and change this policy. And as Caroline would say...."just let it go and move on".....

So let me move on with thankful thoughts!

Thankful *A is for Abby*

I am thankful for Abby, my oldest daughter. Abby has become our self-portrait taking photographer. Hence the photos above. She is our goof ball with a contagious laugh that will come out of nowhere. She has absolutely beautiful curls that she insists make her look like a poodle. One day she will realize how lucky she really is to have those curls. She has a beautiful voice and loves to sing around the house. She also likes to help out in the children's ministry at church. Even though she is growing into a young lady, she will always be our little girl.

Let's Just Pretend

Am I really just getting to this? OK so this tells you the kind of week I've had. This is the first time in 15 years that I have been SO overwhelmed with the opening of a school year. As I have always said...I love teaching! It is all the other "stuff" that I can do without and we have a lot of "extra stuff" to deal with this year. With that being said, staying after school till five o'clock is unacceptable. I did it several days this week. And I still didn't get what I needed to get done for my students. I had to bring it all home for the weekend. I have a family and I have a life outside of school. I am a mommy and a wife first. So from this moment on, I have to leave it at the door. Life is just too short to worry about "the extra stuff".

SO here is my belated post. Let's just pretend that I posted this on Tuesday.

Caroline's first day of school. She was up bright and early! So excited about her first day of third grade. She loves her teacher, Mr. Perry. She says he is funny but serious and loves Goofy. We were excited to hear that he spent a lot of time at Roanoke Christian Camp during his childhood years. I think he will be a great match for Caroline.

Abby is now in the seventh grade! where does the time go? Abby was up bright and early too but didn't get ready until after I had left. I told her to make sure Daddy took a picture of her. Do you see a picture? This child of mine has now decided she dislikes her picture taken unless she can take it of herself. You know the "hold the camera backwards and take a chance that your face ends up in the frame". OK we don't have one of those either. Needless to say, she had a great day. I think she is more excited about her friends than any teachers or books. Let's face it. She's almost thirteen. However, we are so excited that the first grade she brought home was a 98! We are praying that this is a sign of good things to come!

Happy Easter!

Hoping everyone is having a nice Easter! The girls woke up this morning and went through their baskets. Mattie happened to find the first egg of the morning that the Easter Bunny hid last night. The older girls finished finding the rest of the eggs. While searching for Easter eggs, they also came across another treat. I've posted a picture below. Then it was hard boiled eggs for breakfast. We then got ready for church and went to lunch with friends. No big plans for dinner since it is just us. We'll probably do something simple and mess free. The thought of a big dinner and a big mess was not in my plans for today!

Mattie finds the first egg!

Yes....that says Happy Valentine's Day. The girls were searching for Easter eggs and found these chocolate bars. I had bought them for them in Feb. and totally forgot about them! So today was two holidays in one!

Revolve Tour

On Friday, we took the girls from church to the Revolve Tour. What a great time they had! The only thing I'm bummed about is forgetting my memory stick to my camera! So I didn't get any pictures. Thank goodness others had a camera. Here is one picture I bummed from a friend but it doesn't have the whole group.


The Revolve Tour is much like Women of Faith, but for Teen girls. They had Natalie Grant, Hawk Nelson, Group 1 Crew, and other great artists who performed. They also had their drama team and the young boy who started Hoops for Hope. The message was "you may not change the entire world, but can you change the world for one?". How awesome is that! Really when you think of the larger picture it seems impossible or overwhelming for one person to change the entire world. But can you change the world for just one person? Can you imagine all the lives that would be touched if each person just made the difference in one person's life? They also learned if there is one thing they should take away from the tour it was to love and show kindness to everyone. Love yourself, be yourself, and love others. And of course, the girls learned that they can have all Access to God. Check out the video for a short clip about the Revolve Tour.

First Dance

Abby is at her first dance tonight. She was so excited! She is really growing up and becoming a young lady. Tomorrow she will be 12 years old and looks like she is much older. Yesterday her Nana pampered her with dinner, shopping, and a haircut. What more can a girl ask for?

Abby and Mom

I'm such a shorty :-)

Abby & Daddy getting ready to leave. Caroline wanted to get in on the action too.

New Braces

Abby got her braces today! She was so excited and was up at 6am...well before she had to get up. Let's see how long the excitement will last~

More Buddy Walk Pictures

Mattie just hanging out....

Abby's face painted
Caroline's face painted
Mattie loves icees!
Signing Time with Rachel and Alex (Leah was there too) I must say this was a big deal! Since Mattie is so little, we had only heard of them. Mattie is asking Santa to bring her some dvd's. We got a sample dvd and learned 5 new signs in less than 10 minutes! Caroline loved it too! Go visit her page to learn more.

More Pictures to come........