SNOW!

Today, I am celebrating the gift of snow. Yes, it's cold. But it is so pretty! My boys got to play in it for a little while yesterday (until they got too cold). They are home from school today and might even be able to go sledding! Since this is our first winter in the Midwest, their wonder is contagious! Perhaps one day we will be sick of the snow and the cold. But for right now we are enjoying it and the fact that we have a warm house to retreat into once our fingers, noses and cheeks are bright red! Do you have a gift that you'd like to unwrap? Head over to Emily's blog and link up!

Tuesdays Unwrapped

Today, I am unwrapping the gift of the sun. She's been hiding from us lately (for a number of days actually). But late this afternoon, much to my surprise and glee, she peeked through the clouds just in time to give us a spectacular sunset (it was so much better in person!).

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands." Psalm 19:1

More Colors of the Season

I thought that I had missed all of the sunflowers. But! The other day on our walk/bike ride, I found these still blooming! Aren't they beautiful?! And the sky was really that blue.

I love where our house sits. We back up to a valley. So every night I get a front seat to these gorgeous Kansas sunsets. This night was particularly beautiful, so I grabbed my camera and ran outside to catch it. This picture really doesn't do it justice. But it was so pretty!

I'm joining in Tuesdays Unwrapped at Emily's blog. What is your gift today?

Colors of the Season

In honor of Tuesdays Unwrapped over at Chatting at the Sky, and my first Fall in this new place I call home, I hope you enjoy the colors of the season through my lens!

Tuesdays Unwrapped

Last week, I focused on Gator...this week is Bull's turn!

Bull is doing so well right now. It's amazing what a little bit of one-on-one time will do for somebody! He has been my little buddy/helper during the day. He has wonderful behavior during our errands. I've really enjoyed our mommy-son dates since Gator has been in school.

And we are having potty training success! I decided last week to really give 100% effort on my part to get him trained. He is doing so well.

Bull is very physical. He is always ready to snuggle and give kisses and hugs. I'm so thankful that I have one that will snuggle with me still.

Bull is one sweet boy! Although he is challenging me to think outside of my parenting box, I am thankful for the stretching. I'm blessed to be his mommy too!

Tuesdays Unwrapped

In honor of Emily's weekly carnival, I have to take a moment to unwrap a couple of things today. I've been unwrapping them again and again over the last few days!

1. Gator earns tickets at school to be used at the end of the week to "buy" things from the Treasure Box. On Friday, he chose three things from the box. He got a Sheriff's badge for himself, a bag of cookies for Bull, and a special little something for me. When he got home, he told me that he had a surprise for me. He made me close my eyes and put out my hands. My sweet boy bought a necklace for me! Of course, I cried. I told some of my friends that that single act would hold me over for the next four months!

2. After the first day of school, we stopped at Target so that the boys could pick out their "first day" prize. I gave them a price limit, and they went to town. Gator chose a Power Ranger morpher, as did Bull. However, Gator had his eye on something else that was out of the price range for that day. I told him that if he wanted it, he could save up his money and buy it at a later time.

Well, he started saving! (I went back a couple of days later to buy it to ensure that it would be available once he had saved the money.) He started doing extra work around the house (he already has "man jobs" that he has to do anyway) to earn money. Our neighbors started taking notice, and they offered him some jobs as well. For example, he lets D's dogs out every day after school.

Finally, after 3 1/2 weeks of working and saving (and selling some toys at Saturday's garage sale), he had enough money to buy the toy on Saturday! He told me he wanted to go to the store, and I revealed that I had it hidden upstairs already. He got a big smile on his face and handed over the money.

I'm so proud of the young man that Gator is becoming. He has such a sweet heart. I'm so blessed to be his Mommy.

How many states have you visited?

Hubs: 33


Me: 31

Gator: 23

Bull: 21

Monkey: none yet...we won't start counting until he is born!

Tuesdays Unwrapped

First, a big happy birthday to my sister! Hope you have a wonderful day!

We have just returned home from vacation. So, yesterday morning, I was up early-ish getting chores done (laundry!). I was already downstairs when my boys woke up. I heard them stirring and starting to play in their room. Next thing I know, they come traipsing down the stairs dressed like this:


Gator - Lightning McQueen pajamas, a shield, a flyswatter for a sword, and a dart gun.

Bull - t-shirt and diaper, a breastplate, a flyswatter for a sword, and a dart gun.

This made my morning much sweeter and reminded me that having boys isn't so bad. And soon, there will be another little guy dressed for battle over his pajamas, wielding a flyswatter and a dart gun!

I'm unwrapping this gift today! Join in the fun over at Emily's Tuesdays Unwrapped.

Great news and a contest!

In honor of Tuesdays Unwrapped over at Chatting at the Sky, here's my update from the ultrasound yesterday (click here for the background information).

The short story is that lil' bit is healthy - everything looks good! My due date was wrong and had to be shifted a full two weeks. The measurements are right on track for the new gestational age. Because of the shift, the quad screen had to be retaken so the results could be recalculated. One thing is for sure though, lil' bit was moving and shaking in there- so much so that the sonographer was beginning to get frustrated!

Hubs and I are so thankful that we have another healthy baby on the way. Thanks to those of you who prayed for us. Our attitudes were great the entire time and fear was nowhere around!

So, here's the contest.

In the comments, answer these questions:

What is my new due date (month and day) - will we have a little turkey or a Christmas baby?

Are we expanding our man-herd or will I finally have an ally in this house?

Be sure that I have a way to get in touch with you! I'm putting together a little prize package for the person who gets both answers correct.

If you're one of the handful of people who already know the answers, please be fair and don't guess. Feel free to leave a comment though!

Tuesdays Unwrapped

Emily is hosting Tuesdays Unwrapped today and I'm joining in the fun!

We have had lots of visitors this week! And we have more coming! I'm really excited!
Here are some pictures of our fun so far (except that blogger won't let me upload them for some reason):

I'm enjoying the gift of feeling well enough to entertain. It is more tiring than it was just four months ago, but totally worth it!

Tuesdays Unwrapped

Emily's blog carnival is going on today!

I am so thankful for spending days with my boys doing fun things! We have been very busy with painting, making bird feeders, watching the birds, going to soccer games, playing in the pool, and lots of other wonderful things!
Here are some pictures of us creating together:

Tuesdays Unwrapped

Emily at Chatting at the Sky hosts a fun blog carnival every Tuesday called Tuesdays Unwrapped. The idea is to slow down and unwrap the gifts of each day long enough to truly appreciate them. Here goes!


Good to the last drop - Bull is licking up the juice that spilled from his fruit cup.


Boys in the mud - need I say more? They played out there for more than an hour. Then we changed into suit-suits (Bull's word for them) and went back for more fun!


My boys creating beautiful works of art. We did this during the early afternoon yesterday because it was 110 degrees with the heat index!