Thursday, February 2, 2012

Single Mom Reflections

little hands
sweet kiddos!



I'll admit...when Nick had to go out of town for 4 days for work, I was very worried about how I/we would live without him. We all love him so much and I sure do depend on him for so many things. Thankfully, we survived and I think we gained a greater appreciation for our sweet husband/father. Days were still filled with school and other activities, but nights were hard. I missed my husband's snoring, his reassuring presence, his help with the kids and the fact that I was "alone" to handle everything...from locking the doors and putting up Dixie to making sure the temps weren't cold enough to turn on the well-house light. It felt like alot by myself. All 3 kids missed daddy, but were so cute about stepping up to help out. Especially Rachel. She was determined to sleep with me for at least 1 night...and she ended up sleeping with me for 2 nights. She helped me put the boys to bed each night, giving them a kiss and then closing the door and turning off the light (as Nick always does) while I rock Trent for a little bit. She is such a precious child who intuitively knows when and how to help when needed. So, we learned that we don't want to get used to daddy being gone on a trip, but we can survive when he is. Anyway, all that to say, one of the things we did one evening was do this cute cat puzzle. It was actually more me and Bradley than Rach and Trent. He's quite the puzzle-solver! And, I guess we'll be ready to handle Nick's next business trip in March. I have a few more puzzles that we haven't solved yet.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Our favorite cheerleader!

sweet JuJu

Let's Go, Flower Girls!!










Juj is a tried and true (and talented) little cheerleader! We love getting to watch her cheer at each game. It's also especially sweet when she's cheering for Rachel's team! Juj is the prettiest, sweetest little "Flower Girl" on her squad!

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Go Lady Titans!

Excitedly running onto the court!
Go for it, Rach!




ready and matched up with her opponent




The 3 stinkers!




Rach made the switch from cheerleading to basketball this year and has LOVED it! She is having a great time and really getting the hang of the game. Our sweet girl is not naturally aggressive, so that aspect of the game has been hard to learn. However, she's really enjoying herself and she sure does get alot of exercise running up and down that court! (I never realized how much was involved in playing basketball!) I am so proud of her for trying something new and even (gasp!) doing something different from her favorite cousin, Juj! Luckily, since I'm in charge of scheduling the cheerleading, Juj does cheer for Rach most games. Go Lady Titans!!

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Go Jr. Rhinos!







Sheer excitement!




Upward season has started and it has been lots of fun this year! I have to say, I'm enjoying watching both kids play basketball! Bradley really loves it and is getting the hang of the game. He gets really excited and is proud of himself each time he does anything...from passing the ball to guarding his opponent. Sometimes it even looks like he's playing a game of chase out there! :) His games are extremely entertaining and precious to watch! We love our sweet basketball player and are so proud of him for getting on the court and trying his best!!

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Love these faces






I am so blessed to have these precious faces needing me, wanting me and loving me every day! I love these little people so much!

Friday, January 6, 2012

What do you do 4 days before Christmas???

All smiles--all fun!

Before mud got in some eyes.

You can tell who was dominating this mud fight.

Poor Trenty--with mud in his eye and his first hosedown...he was very unhappy here.


Bradley--with his first chunk of mud in his eye...he was very upset here.


Before the mud in his eye, Brad was happy to toss some at Rach.


still having fun...


Rach...at the end...still looking better than her brothers and NO mud in her eyes.

Guess who threw the mud in her brother's eyes???!!!



If the weather's been rainy, warm and humid, you head outside to walk around in your rain boots to stomp in puddles ....... at least, that was the PLAN. However, the kids found a small muddy area and decided to throw mud at each other. They thought it was a blast for awhile. Until Bradley and Trent got some thrown in their eyes. Then it was tears and wails and screams when they had to get hosed off before going in to get a warm bath. They said it was worth it, even if they had to be hosed off in December.

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Farewell 2011!

Fun in the snow!
this snow was thick and slick and stuck around for several days!


Trenty poo turned 2!!


Our sweet family on Easter

Rachel turned 7!


Trent was ready to use the potty!!


We had a GREAT time at PCBeach with gege and papa!!


We had a wonderful garden that gave us more veggies than we even knew what to do with!!


Bradley turned 5!


We swam LOTS with our friends all summer!!


Trenty got a new big boy bed!!


Rachel and Bradley started their year again at Learning Grove.



We have experienced our best homeschooling year yet!!





We carved pumpkins for Halloween!



We had a wonderful Christmas with our precious family!!!



2011 was filled with lots of happy memories--the happiest of which was Nick getting a job at Foundation Technologies. We are also very thankful for our good health, physical abilities and the many precious friends and family that we are surrounded by! We're praying that 2012 is full of even more happy memories and good health!