Did I mention?

Two posts on one day! I know, I know! Amazing!!! I think I forgot to mention that my Dad is in Seminary now! He is going to Concordia to be a Lutheran Pastor. A month ago he was inducted in as a Vicar. Pretty cool huh!? Way to go Dad! Or is it Pastor Gerry now? :)

My Dad is on the top row, second from the left.

New pictures

On Saturday our small group went shopping and bought a bunch of food for our food bank at church. Then we headed back to church and let all of the kids stock the shelves. They had a great time!
What's more fun than a rolling cart?

Big helpers!

Luke can't wait to be a big kid!

Future super model :)

Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers for me! I get my EEG results on Thursday! Pray for good news!

Funny like his Daddy...

Those of you that know Jeff know that he is pretty funny. He is always making jokes, or trying to. In the last few days, Luke has said some things that are too good not to share. I also want to document them for future use! :)

1. After dinner one night Luke came in and told me he had food in his mouth. I was some what confused. But, after more questioning I realized that he had something stuck in his tooth. He ended up yelling "Get it Mommy! I want you to get it so I can eat it!" GROSS. If your wondering if he ate it, he did. EWWW.

2. On Sunday Jeff was giving the kids a bath. When he was done I went upstairs to help put pj's on and get them ready for bed. I had Luke. As I was combing his hair I was telling him how HANDSOME he looked. He objected by saying...

"No Mommy, I NOT handsome!!! I FANCY!" While he said this he shook his little bottom and had his hands on his hips. Oh, my goodness... I almost died laughing!!!!

On another note, my parents have been in town for a few days. It has been such a fun visit! We went to the Japanese gardens today, so look out for some fun pictures of that soon. Also, this last weekend we took the kids to a business outing of sorts for Jeff's work. They had a family day at a local ranch... we even got our own REAL cowboy hats! SO FUN!

My cowboys

Claire petting the armadillo

One more thing... check out my Mom's new etsy site. I have also added a couple of new things to mine. I will be adding things frequently as we approach the holidays! I added this bag tonight...

Corduroy sunset

Cutie of the day...

Catching up with pictures...

Here are some pictures to catch you up on what we have been doing. I am having a hard time organizing these photos, so they are in somewhat of a random order.

Luke riding his big boy bike! Luke on his first day of school
Picking out backpacks for school. What a task!
Walking in to school with Papa Dale.
First day of school
Claire and Uncle Michael
Papa and Luke
Because I have had so much help with the kids lately, I have had a lot of time to create some new things for my etsy shop! Here are a few of them. I am starting to feel more like my self. My migraines seem to be spacing out. Hopefully I am moving in the right direction!

One of the many...

faces of Claire.

Absent

I have been absent lately. From lots of things really... I haven't been blogging for lots of reasons, but mostly because I haven't felt like it. The last few month have been rough for me. I have literally not gone a day without the fear of getting a migraine. There have been a few good days here and there, but most days have been tough. My typical migraine medicine of choice has stopped working. So, all this to say, I have been pretty miserable. BUT! I finally got answers today!!! I wanted to blog about it, because so many of you have been concerned about me (thank you for that!)
Last week I had an MRI and today I went in for my results... I have abnormal thickening of my Sphenoid sinus. The sphenoid sinus is buried deep in the brain. Apparently, my SS is very infected, and swollen, creating pressure in my brain. (Frightening???Yes, I think so!) So, the doctor thinks that the pressure is building making my migraines worse and worse. Sooo, I am now on some medication to remedy the problem. Hopefully, it will work. I am also going to see a Neurologist in the coming weeks to make sure that the swelling is subsiding.
So, there you go. That is why I have been absent from class, blogs, phone calls, etc. I apologize. Hopefully I will return full force soon!
Love you all.
emily.

Powerful

Please go watch this! Our church did cardboard testimonies a few weekends ago, and they are POWERFUL! GOD works in wonderful ways.
Here is the link.

Long hair and rainbows

Claire is obsessed with having long hair. She thinks that everyone with long hair is beautiful. She wants her hair as long as possible... no matter what. Even though our daily hair routine starts and stops with screaming and tears, she still wants long hair. Today we were in Walmart and she saw a woman walk by. I did not see her right away, but Claire made her VERY evident to me. Claire started jumping up and down YELLING " Mommy, I want hair like THAT!!!" "LIKE HERS!!!" As I looked up, I saw a woman with hair that would have reached the ground if it would not have been wrapped around her waist. Yes, that's right folks, it was braided, and then threaded through her belt loops like a belt. So, my response to Claire you might ask? "Maybe when your older Claire, maybe when you older." I think I might have laughed a little too! I don't know why I am always amazed by the things I see and hear at that store... you would think I would walk in there looking for a story. Is it just me, or do you have fun times in that place too?!

On a side note, Claire and Luke love to say the prayers at every meal, and bed time. It is so sweet to hear them pray for all the things and people that are special to them. They never forget to mention Mommy, Daddy, Claire and Luke (usually several times each) they sometime throw in Shelby (the cat) and Bailey (the dog). Nana and Papa's always are included, and if Claire is in charge of the Prayer she always throws in something special... She talks about God, Jesus, and "Thank you for the rain and the beauuuutiful rainbow that God created!!!" While she says this line she throws her head back and arches her hand across the sky mimicking a rainbow. It is the sweetest thing... but it always makes Jeff and I laugh. She is SO dramatic and full of life! What a blessing we have been given!

Today Claire made a drawing of "The beauuuutiful world that God created" (that's how she says it!)
(clouds at the top, a rainbow, flowers, and grass... pretty good for a 3 year old!)

The last few weeks...

I know, you expect more from me than this... but, the last few weeks have flown by. My Grandpa, Opa, went to live with Jesus almost two weeks ago. We are all missing him so much. We drove up to Colorado for the funeral, and to spend some time with my family. It was good to be there, but also very difficult. It was great to see that my Grandpa was loved by SO many people. Here are a few pictures from our Colorado trip...

Uncle Justin (my brother) with Claire and Luke

Me with my Grandma Elva (Oma)

Luke spent lots of time playing with bubbles outside! Papa Gerry taught Claire how to bounce and catch the ball!
All of the kids released balloons after the funeral. Claire said "I think Opa will catch my balloon in heaven." It was a very sweet time. (Thanks for the idea Becky!)

Since we have been back we have had lot's of great friend time. Here are a few of my favorite pictures of the kids with there best buddies...

Claire and Luke, the best of friends, most of the time! :)
Claire, Luke, and Gracie Claire
Luke holding "Baby Bake" (Translation- Blake)
Luke and his best buddy KJL... How cute are these two?
Luke and Big buddy Ezra! Ezra teaches Luke how to do all the cool, fun things that big kids do!

This and that...

1. I wanted to share my latest creation with you. It is entitled the "Honey bee bag". Check out more pictures on my etsy site.

2. Claire and Luke got to have a camp out in our bedroom a few nights ago. Our upstairs AC is broken, and won't be replaced until Saturday. They loved sleeping in there zebra tent!

3. Thank you for your prayers for my family. My Grandpa is still with us, but he is very weak.

4. We had a great Fourth of July! Our good friends Kelsey and Lisa had us over for a cook out! The kids went swimming, we did a lot of eating, and then went and saw some great fire works. Fun was had by all!

Fun with sparklers!

Claire and Kaylen love to play dress up!
Luke had a great time making a festive hat.
Are these kids cute or what!?
Luke participating in the silly face contest.
Mommy and Luke
Daddy and Luke
Just a bonus picture... my handsome little guy.

Sadness

I got a call from my Mom this morning, letting me know what I have been dreading for weeks. My Grandpa, "Opa" took a turn for the worst this morning. They think he will leave us in the next day or two. I came out of my bedroom crying, Claire and Luke were very concerned. Claire started the following conversation (again). We have had this conversation SO many times in the last few weeks, but I think she keeps bringing it up so that I will understand... she gets it, but I don't think I do.

C: Mom, why are you sad?
E: I'm sad b/c Opa is very sick.
C: Will he get better?
E: No, He is going to live with Jesus soon.
C: Oh, but Jesus lives in my heart!
E: Yes, He does, but Opa can live in your heart too.
C: Don't be sad Mommy.

Kids really understand more than we give them credit for. Maybe I will learn something from her. Please keep my family in your prayers. We will probably making the trip up to Colorado sometime next week.

Walk with me...

This post may get long. Lot's of things to talk about... a fabulous memory, Canada, and funny, funny Claire.

Let's start with the memory. Picture this... Me with a side ponytail and HUGE bangs. I was wearing my favorite NKOTB Joey t-shirt with a sweet ribbon t-shirt ring. I was with my Mom, and a few of my favorite friends from my girls scout troupe. The location? The NKOTB concert at Texas Stadium. I think I was in third or fourth grade. I can remember the noise and the heat like it was yesterday. I am actually sitting here smiling, because I can remember how truly ecstatic I was. Yes, we were screaming, and yes, I kept the paper fan that they were handing out. I even kept the ticket stubs, and collected streamers from the police line tape. I made a collage out of the whole thing.

Why am I telling you all of this? Well, it's not because I am embarrassed, because you know YOU did it too! I'm telling you this because one of the new NKOTB songs is out, and it is GREAT (it's called "Summertime"). You must go to itunes and buy it. It will make you remember things that you only thought you wanted to forget! :) If you know me well enough, none of this should be surprising you. Girls, I can't wait to hear similar stories... comment away!

Next, lets talk about Canada. Jeff got to bring me along on a business related trip to Whistler, British Columbia. It was nothing but fabulous and amazing. I have never been to such a beautiful place. I spent lot's of time at the spa, and lot's of time reading. A much needed break. Jeff played golf, and we also got to go to the top of a glacier. Amazing. One night we went to a "rock and role" themed dinner. The entertainment was none other than "Loverboy". Don't remember him? He sings "Workin for the weekend" and "Almost paradise". It was hysterical and lot's of fun.

The golf course in Whistler.
Jeff and I on top of the glacier.
A view from the ski lift.
A black bear that we spotted on the way down... they were everywhere!

And now for my sweet Claire. She is getting to be such a big girl. After she wakes up from her nap she has been helping me create things. Her latest creation involves threading buttons onto a stick in color order. She calls her creation a "button stick". I hope she grows up to be a crafty little thing!

Claire making a "button stick".

Luke's new trick

Fun with frosting...

My friend Christi and I made a ton of petite fours (tiny cakes) today. It was SO much fun, and they turned out just the way we hoped the would! Martha Stewart helped us a little bit by providing us with the recipes. Claire, Luke, and Sheadon helped by crying (we got to take little breaks!). All in all, it was a very successful morning! I can't wait to go to Becky's baby shower tonight and see everyone else enjoy them!