Valentine Girls

Here are a few cute pics of the girls making their Valentine's Day Cards for Preschool. The irony is that Hadley was the fastest. She was a machine.

Papa Would be So Proud

I (Elise) have been hanging drywall in the basement. Dan and I knocked out what we affectionally call the Mouse Wall and Closet. Yep....You can let your imagination go on that one. Body count over a dozen. YUCK. Well the wall and closet are gone. If they ever make it in the house again (which is my new life mission to make sure they don't), they will have to find a new graveyard.

So the girls one morning decided to also do some work. My favorite line was Hadley calling out "I need a level!!!". I really wish I had recorded the whole thing. It was priceless. They make me so proud.

Here is a pic of my handy work. I am procrastinating the taping and mudding.

It's About Time!!!

Poor Keiffer and Bower had their first walk in almost 4.5 years. Yes, I know that is so sad. Brianna has been asking for a while when she would be able to walk the dogs. I finally decided that we could try it.

Now you have to realize that part of the problem is that I (Elise) was terrified of dogs for the first 29 years of my life. Dan then talked me into getting a dog right after we were married. The concession on his part was a small dog. I almost instantly fell in love with Keiffer and got over most of my fears. And Keiffer had a walk almost every day. Then Keiffer was almost attacked by a German Shepherd in the park. Keiffer on leash and the German shepherd got off leash. This shook me a bit.

Then we got Bower. While walking both Keiffer and Bower in the same park Bower was attacked by a dog. The dog had Bower in his mouth. I managed to get Bower away from the dog. Needless to say my fear came back and Bower and I are quite a combo of terrified dog owner and terrified dog. Then within 14 months we went from 0 to 3 children. There was just no way to walk our dogs. We were in survival mode.

But now that the girls are almost 5, 4.5 and 4 I decided we could try down the block and back. The girls did great and had a blast. I was ok. We did have to navigate two dogs.

But the best part was that when Dan got home and asked the girls what they wanted to do they said they wanted to take the dogs for a walk again.

So TWO walks today for Keiffer and Bower!

*Gift #33 -- Thankful that my old diaper bag did not sell in garage sale

My Sister just sent me an email with this picture attached. Saying look what I found in your old diaper bag that you gave me. A 2 year mystery has been solved. And I was so sure it was Dan's fault and not mine.

*Gift #33 --- counting gifts from God/practicing gratitude per the amazing book "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voskamp. It is a life changing book if you have not read it.

Gotcha Girl

Mia's 4 year Gotcha Day Anniversary was on Friday January 20th. We celebrated last Thursday by going out to eat at the Rice House. Mia was delightful. She LOVES Chinese food and wanted to try everything. After trying a new thing she cutely would exclaim "Yum, I really like this one". Precious. We can't believe she has been home for 4 years and will soon be 5. Wow. We love you, Baby!

Favorite Conversation of the Day

Mia: "Mom, why are these cookies in the trash?"

Elise: "Because they are all gone."

Mia: "Who ate them all?"

Elise: "Mom did".

Mia puts her hands on her hips and stomps her foot and says : "Mom, why don't you get back on your healthy eating plan and quit eating all of the treats!"

Earning Their Keep

It is about time that the girls started earning their keep.