Kloee and Love

So....I am not sure what school is doing to Kloee but apparently she feels the need to discuss how and when she will find her future husband. We again were sitting at the table, just the two of us the other day and she said "Mommy say David" in my mind I am thinking what in the world am I getting myself into so I said "What are you talking about?" Kloee calmly replied "Say daddy's name, say David" I obliged and she said "Oh my gosh, your eyes are dilated in love, see how they get really big in the middle when you say daddy's name!" Then she proceeded to tell me to watch her eyes and she said the name of a little boy, I have never seen her eyes get so big in my whole life, again she told me that the dilation of the big part of her eyes means that she is in love. Again is he a Christian with good morals, high standards and firm plans of attending college were a bit far off for her.

Kloee's Crush

Well, as many of you realize Kloee has not entered 2nd grade at Imagine. We are so blessed to again have a great teacher and one that really seems to enjoy having Kloee in her class. Of course with Kloee comes some funny stories so I just though I would share.
On the first few days of class, Kloee kept telling me about a boy that wouldn't behave and the teacher had to constantly talk to him about what to do. Kloee shared with me that this was really annoying but she just tried to ignore it. I thought the ordeal was over but in Kloee's mind she really needed a concrete answer to "his" problem. As David and I had a conference with the teacher and Kloee just explaining some of the skin issues that could affect her at school, out of the blue Kloee asked Ms. W if she can ask her a question. Kloee said I don't know if it is appropriate or not, Ms. W said we are alone go ahead. Kloee proceeded to ask if the little boy who does not listen very well has some type of Special Needs. The teacher laughed as we did and said wow I certainly didn't expect that question. I think because of my job working with kids of all abilities at church, she has really become accustomed to being comfortable asking questions it was priceless!

Next story:
The 3 of us were chatting the other day about school and how Kloee is liking it. One of the things that we are trying to figure out is if she has any really good friends. She doesn't really say a lot but then gets this sparkle in her eye and says "well, I think I have a crush" oh yikes, already. We stay calm and ask what she means and she said well, there is this boy from my class last year and when we are together I feel like we are the only 2 people on the planet! What in the World!!! She asked us if that's how you know he's the right one. Oh, my we asked her if he was a Christian and she said she didn't get that far. I can hardly believe my ears but I guess this is part of parenting!

Camping

When is the last time you went camping? For real camping, in the woods in a tent camping? I love camping about as much as life itself, especially if you can't get cell phone service! It is the only way in this world to honestly be unreachable for a short amount of time. What do I love about camping? I love planning, shopping and going, setting up, getting wood for fires and finding a good spot to take care of business! We were at family night on Thursday, as usual, I was talking with my sister Lindsay about our upcoming camping trip. It was so much fun, we planned our menu and I began to imagine how much fun it will be to organize all of our stuff to go. We will leave on Tuesday but I already have stuff sitting in the garage ready to go. I can't help myself. We used to go all the time when I was younger. I can only remember a ton of fun. My mom recalls things a lot differently, it is quite funny to hear the stories now that we are older. Loads of dirty laundy, camping in the snow, camping in the rain, making french toast, driving on scary roads in a small bus (15 passenger van) and all of the other things my mom did for the love of my dad. I am not sure that she really loved camping, but she loves him and the outdoors are just in his blood. The real reason I think I love camping is because there is no way to deny creation when you are camping. You are surrounded by so many things and you sit around the campfire at night with all the stars and just wonder what God is doing up there. It is all such a mystery. I can't wait to go, with the kids and just enjoy being away from T.V. and phones and even the computer! This crazy life hardly ever affords us to truly be away from it all!

Something to blog about:

It has been many months from the last time I sat down and shared our life with you. I guess that is because life has taken over once again with some crazy plans that we didn't see coming. It if funny when you think you may have a system, how easily that can change.

Yesterday was close to a perfect day. David stayed home from work unexpectedly and we had 3 extra little boys that are special to us come over and spend the day. It started out very typical and ended on such a high note.

You see I think the tone of the day was all set by our breakfast. We had funny face pancakes that the kids made and they had a blast. We had some crooked eyes, some flat noses but the hairstyles were the best!

After that we spent the morning at the movies and it was delightful. We then went to get frozen yogart and Tyler, who is the youngest, I think finished off everyone's! Noah got a brain freeze so he couldn't finish his. We came home and ate lunch and then all crashed for a good nap!

The best part of the day is so funny! Kloee hooked up our bike trailer to her bike a few days ago and took her babies on a ride of their life! Well she had this great idea that she would make Taxi stops for Noah and Tyler and she would take them as her passengers. It was hilarious to listen to them get in the trailer and then instruct her where to go. I could hardly believe that she was pulling around about 70 pounds on her bike and loving it.

At the end of the day Jared and Kloee were talking about Jared's recent baptism and it was so cute to here them have an uninterrupted conversation about God and their thoughts.

It was a great day.

Sweet Cousin

Today after church , we went to eat at Grandma's house. Who doesn't love dinner at Grandma's. It is kind of like a guarantee that it will be delicious. We had family in town and so we all went over and ate to our heart's content!
Kylie, our niece was so funny today. When Kloee walked in she said "Hey there's my favorite cousin" my dad then asked her "Where do I find myself a favorite cousin?" She proceeded to point to Kloee and smile really big. Kylie is one of the funniest kids I know:) She keeps us laughing for sure. We are thankful for family, food and funny Kylie.

Kloee and Kylie Best Cousins

The small things that make life good right now. Two girls in Nani's tub making a huge splash! Pretending to wear crazy hairstyles that are created by Auntie Amy while Auntie Lindsay holds the Brody boy.

The girls are so loud.

Nani lays on her bed wishing she felt better.

Papa is down stairs snoozing along with Paul and Nik.

Family nights, what a sweet, sweet thing. It was a tradition, now it is a way of life. We gather every week on Thursdays to eat, watch T.V., catch up and now sit on the porch of Nani and Papa's new house and gaze at the beautiful Mountains.

It is treasured and a sacred time.

It is the one time of week that we usually see our whole family.

We are lucky enough to all like each other.

We love going home to mom and dad's.

We are so thankful for family.

Life is difficult but God is good and so is our entire family.

We are blessed.

A

What does this look like in 10 Years????

Kloee came home from school the other day to an unexpected surprise, a new friend. We'll call him Sam. They hit it off. Kloee drove him crazy, literally and he loved it. They jumped until they could jump no more. They were so kind to each other. They blew bubbles and laughed and watched T.V. They could even agree on what to do together for the most part. Kloee said later that Sam helped her to have a really happy day. If I gaze into the future it is amazing to think that in 9 or 10 years, Kloee may really be driving someone crazy! Wow, how time flies it feels like so long at first and then before you know it you have a 7 year old and time begins to go even faster. It is so vital that we savor the moments right now. They will be gone so quickly and we will miss them. Yes, we will even miss the lack of sleep and the white noise of the monitor, kind of sad to think that one day it will just be an old man snoring really loud in our house instead of laughing children. Oh, the seasons how they come and go. We are thankful for Sam and his family. What joy to see Kloee laugh:)

A

A case of the Blues and Ding Dong Ditch

Kloee has been feeling a little down lately and so we are trying to be very creative in the "cheer up and laugh" area of life. Growing up our family was blessed during the holidays by a secret family that would leave gifts at our door, ring the bell and then ditch out. We have begun this tradition during the holidays with my whole family and would take turns with the family we have adopted. It is always so fun to drop something off, ring the door bell and run as fast as you can to get into the getaway car while, the crazy driver speeds off! The trick is to then circle around and see if you got them. We did this to a few people in our neighborhood and Kloee got the biggest kick out of it. Soooo....we thought why wait until the holidays, it is fun, can be cheap and who doesn't like an unexpected gift? We are lucky enough to have several friends and family within a few mile radius of our house. We picked up some chocolate, made cards and proceeded to make Kloee laugh. Well, it worked! She sprained her ankle, lost a tooth and had to get stitches but it was really worth it! Ok, just kidding none of that happened but I had you going didn't I? We had so much fun and were able to bless people in the process. It is amazing when you do things for others or serve them, how in turn God blesses you more than you can imagine.

We are really trying to embrace the verse

The Joy of the Lord is our strength

Not just in a cliche manner, but in real life when things are difficult and you can't imagine having hope or joy, yet it is possible. There are moments when the clouds part and the storm stops that you realize that God will bring you through it. It doesn't make it easy, or enjoyable but it allows us to focus on true deep rooted joy. There are always things that come out of hard times even if you don't see it at first. Kloee went to school the other day after a long absence. She was very anxious of what the other children might say and do. She arrived at school to her teacher's huge smile and a cubby overflowing with cards, candy and small gifts. She told me that even the mean girl hugged her. God is good. We told her that is one good thing out of this, maybe the mean girl is learning compassion.

A

Hot Cheetos, Crafts, New Friends

Now that Kloee is getting older, she is galavanting around more on her bike and meeting more kids in our neighborhood. Asia is her newest companion and it has been so much fun getting to know her. She has only lived in the United States for 6 months because her dad is in a branch of the military and she has lived oversees her whole life. She lived in England last and has told us all about it. It is so interesting to hear about our beloved country through the eyes of a child who is here for the first time. Kloee and Asia have had a blast together and look forward to more excitement to come.

Asia is a joy in Kloee's life right now. They both love crafts, Hot Cheetos and most of all jumping forever on the trampoline. Life is good and so is God, we are thankful for Asia and her family. Kloee loves having another girl in the neighborhood to hang out with.

A

3 boys and 1 girl....

Today, I took care of 3 boys that are very dear to our hearts. It was a rather odd day around our house. We had throw up, ear aches and cuddling on the couch. Sweet Ty woke up with spaghetti throw up, and bright red cheeks. I put him in the bath and he cried when I touched his ear???? Uh...ohh. Then Noe woke up crying but in the middle of a bad dream...I think. Brody is sick and only wants his Mama. So as the story goes. I had 2 boys on my lap cuddled in blankets and 1 little boy wrapped in a towel and a pull up snuggled in. I had the pleasure of being needed by 3 adorable boys and living in the relaxing world of the couch, a soft blanket, 3 boys who needed me and CARS. What a sweet gig:)

A

The Joy of K

The Joy of the Lord is Her Strength.

Kloee has become quite the advocate for more stylish gowns in hospitals and Dr.'s offices. Maybe Hannah Montana or High School Musical she says. Most gowns really have no personal style and they are so babyish.

Wow, the concerns of a girl who has more to worry about than gowns. I have not been on our blog for a couple weeks, I am glad to be updating here and not in a more urgent matter. We are trying to get back to "normal life" after being gone for almost a week in California to figure out Kloee's skin.

It feels good to be home with our sweet boy who we missed so much. I think he especially missed Kloee, but there are signs that he missed his Mama too. It was a sweet homecoming. We have already started planning for our next trip for treatment, it won't be as long though just a day or two.

We are thankful for you all and look forward to more exciting posts in the near future:) Kloee and Brody are celebrating B-days very soon. March will be a fun month.

A

Miss T.

Miss T.
Kloee just started a new school and we prayed so hard for a great teacher. She loves school and her teacher Miss T. She went late today because her skin was really bad in the middle of the night and she said I had so much fun I wish I was on time:)
Anyways, tonight Kloee was in the kitchen talking to me and she said do you know that Miss T. is 85? Now, I have met Miss T. and she is a very young, cute teacher. Kloee said, yes she told me at recess and guess what she is not even married yet!!! I said wow! Do you really think she is that old? Kloee said no I think she is a teenager or maybe in her twenties. It was so cute and we are so thankful for Miss T.
A

Kirby + Brody =Peace

Have you ever had the Kirby vacuum man at your house for 6 hours trying to sell you one of the most expensive vacuums on the market? Do you wonder why? Why do they target young couples with kids and bills and cars and mortgages, would it really makes sense to spend so much on a vacuum cleaner at this point in our lives? The answer to all of this is YES, YES, YES. You may be asking if I got sucked in (no pun intended) by the Kirby man but no it was not me. It was my friend, who will remain nameless, but now it all makes so much sense. I thought she was a little crazy at first. Then..................it happened. Our vacuum broke and I asked if I could borrow "Kirby" I fell in love, I never knew vacuuming could be so amazing, the lines the suction, no I am really serious. I now am a par ital owner of Kirby (by default) and I have another vacuum but it just is not the same. At this point I am sure you are wondering why Brody is in the equation. Well, Brody loves Kirby too. As you can see in the picture, Kirby is a soothing sound that in spite of his delicious lunch he fell asleep to. This is not the first time and I hope not the last that he will be soothed by Kirby's gentle yet powerful noise. Brody has not fallen asleep to any other vacuum yet!!!!!!! That is worth more money than anything. I am in love with Kirby and so is my love Brody:)

A

Single Moms Spa Day 2009

First, I want to say it is so fun to see who is following our blog:) It is nice to see your smiling faces!

Ok, so many of you know that for many years now I have had the priveledge of being involved in something at our church called Single Moms Spa Day. It is an amazing event that the women in our church do every year to serve single moms. It is an event that is free and offers spa like services (haircuts, manicures, pedicures, massages, makeup, brow waxing and so on) with childcare and brunch, at no charge to ANY single mother. It is the most incredible way I have ever served! It is amazing that God uses us to further his plan and yet we get to have fun while doing it. We reach out to our community as well to show God's love in a practical yet "non-churchy" way that really speaks to their heart. There are so many stories that I could tell, but it would still not do justice to what God does every year. Sooo....if you would like more info or have interest in our church you can visit the website www.vcfnp.com. If you are a single mom or know of a single mom we would love to serve them. They do not have to be a member of the church to come and they can call to make an appointment. It does fill up quite quickly as we serve over 200 moms, yet we try not to turn anyone away. Registration for this does not being until April so appointments are not available yet. If none of this makes sense, my reason is that we just had our first meeting and I am on a high:) Excuse my run-on sentences and lack of grammar.
A

Goals for 2009

So I was telling Kloee that this year instead of writing my goals out in my journal I made a poster with stickers and cut out things from magazines and words and such. I asked her if she wanted to make one and she said YES! So I began to ask her what she wanted to accomplish this year and her answers were so adorable, I thought I would share them.
Kloee's goals verbatim for 2009
*I think we should have more family dates
*I think we should exchange gifts with one another more, David asked her like what kind of gifts and she held up a little dog figurine and said well, something like this. :)
*I think we should serve people more without roofs and food like you know Uncle Skip, (she lovingly refers to him as Uncle but it is really not her uncle)
That was about it for the moment, she said she needed to think about it a little more. I will post a picture of her poster when she is done with it.
A

Ten Years

Ten Years

It was ten years (yesterday) that I married an amazing man who I have fallen in love with more over the years. It is funny, when you get married you think there is no way you could love that person more and then life happens and you see their real character. Sometimes good, sometimes not so good but when you hit the valleys and come out of them, you realize again God's plan for your life and marriage. I would lie to say that David and I have never gone through difficulty with many things: relationship, health, childbirth, adoption and so on. What is so amazing is how when God is in the middle of it and we are listening he never wastes those difficulties without showing us how to be better and grow. It seems like yesterday that we got married, we were so young and very ignorant about what lie ahead in our marriage but sometimes I think it is easier not to know maybe how hard it will be. The good times are amazing and that is where we are at now, at this season. We have both changed over the years so much but because of our foundation we are able to support each others dreams and aspirations. Sooo...here is my shrine to David on our tenth anniversary. Ten things I absolutely love about him:

• His Humor


• His Compassion when I am sick


• His Heart and willingness to change when needed


• His love and devotion to spending time with his children, taking them on dates and building memories


• His love for God


• His love for his mom


• His Hottness:)


• His comments that embarrass be but make me feel like I am the hottest girl alive (he does wear glasses though hmmm.)


• His genuine love for my family (well most of them ha, ha)


• He kisses me and the kids everyday before he leaves and when he gets home

We spent our anniversary crying, watching 2 terrible movies that I picked, going to the grocery store and well you know:) Funny how things change when you have an overnight sitter. Errands are so fun together when you can hold another adults hand and you don't have to remind them not to run in the street!

P.S. I got an electric pencil sharpener and Label maker for my present, so hilarious but he knows me too well. I love very sharp pencils and I love to lable things. A diamond would have been ok too:)

Happy Super Bowl Weekend

Go Cardinals:)

A

Thank you for today

Kloee on her two wheels!

I am starting a photo book online for 2009 and I realized what an eventful month and year we have had already! Kloee learned to ride her bike on 2 wheels, Brody learned to crawl, David started school to pursue his dream of being a firefighter, I am finally recovering from Mono and Kloee started a new school. Holy Cow, it makes me tired to think of all of this.

P.S. When Kloee rides her bike outside she often sings songs that she makes up at the top of her lungs up and down the street. It is so amazing that she doesn't even pay attention to who is around she is really in her own world. Her bike is like her best friend.

As many of you are aware, I have just come through quite a difficult time of being sick and stuck inside. Today, I was reminded so many times of how thankful I am to be feeling better. Sometimes we take for granted the smallest things that others would give the world for like, walking, eating, sleeping, housing, children and so on. I had a coversation today and someone said "what do they think you are rich"? In a sense I feel so rich, richly blessed. I have a wonderful family, a home to live in and create a life, beautiful children, food to eat, education, jobs (more than 1 or 2) and so on. But....if you ask if I am rich, I would say yes, rich in the things that matter most and make life worth while:)


A

Into the Archives

So as the story goes:

I was sitting in the quiet place where there is no noise (the bathroom) and looking through a journal that I keep for Kloee. I write funny things she says and does and I also write her letters that I will read to her later on. I always write a letter on her birthday about the previous year and the things that have happened. I was reflecting on her going to school and growing up so fast and I looked back at some of the funny things she said when she was between 2-3. I thought I would fondly remind you of them as I am sure you have already heard these stories.

*Uncle Nik-Always told Kloee that the Toothfairy took his hair. She saw a picture of him with hair and said "I guess the Toothfairy gave him his hair back"

*During a surgery stay while I was in the hospital, Kloee had to stay with several people. She missed Daivd and I very badly and it was becoming obvious. Kloee was staying with David's mom that night and as they pulled away from the hospital, David was walking away and Kloee said "I really do miss that little fella, I miss my daddy" How priceless!

*We were driving in the car and something really bothered Kloee and she said "that really pisses me off" David and I didn't know if we should laugh or cry. It was quite funny.

Kloee was investigating her dolls, as she often still does and she said"mommy the baby had boobies and I have boobies and you have boobies and daddy has really small circles" We were thrilled that she knew her shapes.

I can't wait to start writing the funny things that Brody says, it is what he does that is funny. He basically follows me around all day trying at the chance that he may be able to catch the bottom of my pants and hang on for a ride. He is mama's boy for sure. He laughs at me when I say "mama" he says "dada" instead!

That is it for today:)

Kloee's First Day

So today was Kloee's first official day at her new school, Imagine at Rosefield. You see we have been homeschooling up until this point but Kloee has not been as fond of the whole idea as I have. We went to get all her school supplies and uniforms and she said to me "Mom if we have unifoms, I can't even have my own style". Apparently she is not to crazy about them. She was adorable and when her Nani and I picked her up today, she went on and on about how great it was! Something funny she told us was that she had something for some people we know. I said oh yeah, what? She proceeded to tell me that we have some people in our lives that are alcoholics and drug abusers and her school sent home something that we should send to those people (she named them off). Anyways, they were bookmarks that tell kids to "Say no to Drugs and Drinking". It was so innocent and pure. So for our first post there it is:

My reason for doing this is, I was inspired by nieniedialogues@blogspot.com. She is truly inspirational, and has such a positive perspective that got me through my Mono. Her situation is much worse and yet she is amazing in the midst of it.