What could be any more fun...

than a Big Red Tractor in your backyard??!!! John Luke was playing in his sandbox this morning and all of a sudden I hear squealing. So I run to the back door and look out and he is standing on the picnic table saying, "Look, Look Mama! Mr. Russell is feeding my cows!" [Apparently since the cows are behind his house, they now belong to him!] So, Mrs. Kriss, pass the word along to Mr. Russell we will take good care of his/John Luke's cows!




Happy Friday! Have a wonderful weekend!

*[Mamy & Mamy K... Do y'all remember Happy Friday?!?!?]

Trying to Escape & Choosing Gratitude

Man, she is growing so FAST!





On another subject, I have been reading another FABULOUS book. It is called Choosing Gratitude --- Your Journey to Joy, by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. It has been an absolute eye-opener and I think everyone would be blessed by reading it! It would be totally worth your time!

The back of the book reads:
"Is the gratitude that flows out of your life as abundant as the grace that flows into your life? The world tells us annoyances and afflictions cause discouragement and doubt-- and that we are right to demand our way. Then there are circumstances that aren't what we wish or even what we think we need and suddenly we're convinced life hurts. The only option we have is to protest or whine-- or so it seems. True gratitude is not an incidental ingredient in the Christian's life. It's a crucial one. It's a grace-infused commitment each of us chooses...and it's totally worth it!"

A few of my favorites...

* "The thing that awakens the deepest well of gratitude in a human being is that God has forgiven sin." -- Oswald Chambers
* "Thankless children we all are, more or less, comprehending but dimly the truth of God's fathomless love for us." -- Elisabeth Elliot
* "When we take simple blessings for granted as if they were owed to us, or conversely, when we start to think that our house, our car, our wardrobe, or our general station in life is beneath what we deserve, ingratitude finds all the oxygen it needs to thrive." -- Nancy Leigh DeMoss
* "Gratitude unleashes the freedom to live content in the moment, rather than being anxious about the future or regretting the past." -- Ellen Vaughn
* "Two kinds of people: the grateful and the ungrateful. It's the difference between squandering life and sharing life, between being blinded to glory and "To God Be the Glory," between assured bitterness and "Blessed Assurance." -- DeMoss
* "...gratitude is a revealer of the heart, not just a reporter of details. And among the things it reveals about us most is our level of humilty." -- DeMoss
* "Pride is the father of ingratitude and the silent killer of gratitude." -- DeMoss
* "Are you more prone to focus on what you wish you had (or didn't have) or on the blessings you do have that are far greater than you deserve?" -- DeMoss
* "Yes, grateful people are easily contented, while the ungrateful easily become prisoners to bitterness." DeMoss
* "I've acknowledged that my natural "bent" is to react to people and life's circumstances in a negative way. When I'm asked how I'm doing, the first thing that pops into my head is often the burden I'm carrying, a hurt I'm harboring, or a deadline I'm working under. As a result, I'm afraid people who hang around me for any length of time may find themselves thinking how difficult and wearisome it is to be a Christian and serve the Lord."
* "Ingratitude is toxic. It poisons the atmosphere in our homes and workplaces. It contaminates hearts and relationships. Moms and dads can break the spirits of their children with it, and husbands and wives can deaden every sensitive emotion in the mate they once swore at a church alter to love and to cherish from that day forward. We can be obsessive about spritzing away the disease-carrying, odor causing bacteria from our tables and countertops, but nothing is more contagious in our homes than an ungrateful spirit."
* "To give thanks to Him for all things, is, indeed, a very difficult duty; for it includes giving thanks for trials of all kinds; for suffering and pain; for reproaches; for loneliness. Yet those who have learned submission will not find it a hard duty." -- Priscilla Maurice
* "I have learned along the way that, regardless of how I may feel, anything that makes me need God is (ultimately, in the truest sense) a blessing. Be it disappointment. Be it physical suffering. Be it mental or relational anguish." -- DeMoss
* "Therefore, as Charles Spurgeon said, "Let us daily praise God for common mercies- common as we frequently call them, and yet so priceless that when deprived of them we are ready to perish." ~Bath soap. Toothpaste. Hot water. Dishwashing detergent. Houseplants. Sunsets. Sunglasses. Blue Skies. Flashlights. Blankets. Family photos. Warm clothes. Books. Clean sheets. Sticky notes.

~I made a list of a few of my own common mercies: Sunshine. Ponytail holders. Cards. Smiles. Sweet little laughs. Flowers. Green grass. Shady trees. Cool breezes. Cozy fires. Heated blankets. Picnics. Gas[in my car!]. Soft pillows. Beds. Music. Disposable diapers. Microwaves. Eyesight. Rest. Fun. Relationships. Electricity. Storage bins. Internet. Washing machines. Flipflops. Mail. Pictures. Memories. Diet Coke. Bargains. Assurance. Love.

What are you grateful for?
It's really sooooooooo easy to think of sooooooo much!

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places." -- Ephesians 1:3

We have a Crawler!

Yes indeed, Miss AllieGator has started officially crawling! Yesterday morning I was in the kitchen cooking breakfast and I had layed her down on a blanket with her toys in the living room. John Luke was in the kitchen talking to me as I cooked, and we kept hearing her little [I mean Big] voice getting closer and closer. At first I didn't really think anything of it because she's been scooting on her tummy for a long time. But after a few minutes, I decided to check her out just in case...and sure enough she was up on all fours slowly making her way across the floor! So me and John Luke got down on the floor and cheered her on! She was smiling and laughing the whole way! We were too~

As crazy as it may sound, I have mixed emotions about this new adventure. I'm excited to see her do something new. And it's kind of a big deal to start crawling, but on the other hand, I'm actually very sad to see her cross this milestone because it seems now she's just not a little baby anymore! I told John last night that I remember when John Luke started crawling it was like from that minute he went from crawling to being almost 3 years old!!! It just seems like time has flown by since then!

Anyway, here is our big girl!

ABC with her 'coach'...

Cheesecake!

Can't you tell that is a cheesecake? It looks just like one! Last night I was on the computer, and somehow I got to a page that had a picture of a cheesecake. I said, "Man that looks good!" (John Luke was sitting in my lap). He said, "Mama, I want a cheesecake!" And he kept saying it over & over & over. John was sitting on the couch talking to us as we were on the computer, so I told John Luke that I couldn't make him a cheesecake right then but I bet daddy could make him one. So they ran off to the kitchen. Little did I know they were actually "making" a cheesecake. This is what John Luke was bringing to me when I came around the corner! A cheesecake!

And these were their ingredients...

Snow, 7 months, & My Valentine

Miss Priss (or her newest name AllieGator), because she rolls constantly while your trying so hard to get her diaper or her clothes changed) turned 7 months old on the 13th. She is just as spoiled as she was a month ago. She loves her big brother even more & doesn't want him to get out of her sight! She is scooting around quite well, and will be crawling any day. She can sit up all by herself and play with her toys. It's just a matter of whether she wants to and most of the time she don't want to! She still would rather ride around on my hip all day than anything else and if you put her down for more than 1/2 a second, she will let you know that's not exceptable! She can smile as big as her Mamy K, and she loves to laugh out loud! She has slept through the night twice in the last month. She still loves her bottle but don't even think about trying to give her baby food! She screams bloody murder and spits it out!! She is growing but as I said before she still seems so little. She is wearing 6 month clothes; sometimes she can still wear the 3/6 months. We have got a mess on our hands, and I am frightful of mine and her daddy's future!!! I'm afraid she's gonna be a tough one! But we still love her just the same!



SNOW! Can you believe it!?!?! I told John when the news said we would have snow, I'd believe it when I saw it. Well, when I woke up Friday morning, I saw it! And it was beautiful! We enjoyed the day making snowmen, throwing snowballs, riding the "sled" my Handy Dandy, Inventive, husband made for us, and then sitting by the warm heater watching it fall. John Luke's comment was "Cooooool!"







I know, it's a pretty pitiful snowman. We are definitely not pros!

And lastly...My Valentine!
A lifetime of love is made up of so many things...a friendship that brings comfort and understanding to difficult times and joy and laughter to ordinary days; a trust in each other and a faith in God that keeps our hearts at peace; and a happiness that still makes us smile whenever our eyes meet. In you, God has given me a gift to bless all the years of my life-- and a man I love and respect with all my heart!
I thank God for my blessing called you! I could not imagine any one better! I love you and thank you for all you do!!!
"Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away." Song of Solomon 8:7

Ahhh...it's sooooo good!

I promise I am not the worst mother on the planet... I blame this on her daddy anyway! He's the one feeding it to her! But how can you resist? She wants it so bad and it tastes sooooo good!!!





And the culprit is...

I can't say that I blame her!

Have a great weekend!

We've been sick/bored...

and we're going a little stir crazy!


nice snotty nose...




I'm trying to figure out why all of my pictures are turning out so blurry. It may possibly be because John Luke got the crazy idea to throw my camera across the floor! I really wish I could talk my husband into thinking it was time for a new one...haven't had much luck so far!

Hope to be up and out of here very soon!!! We love home, but it is so time for some new scenery!

**After looking through several of my last posts, I have noticed that ABC is wearing the exact same onesie in almost all of them! I promise I do wash clothes, and she does get changed!!!