Just Couldn't Resist...

I've been waiting far too long to buy something boy to let this pass by me in Target!! First purchase for my little buddy...it just makes me smile :)

Few and Far Between...

Well, my blogging has greatly suffered lately. Between pregnancy illness & the exhaustion of chasing the girls around, I would rather spend my "free time" napping or being more productive haha Anyways, I thought I would share these ultrasound pictures :) It is finally official, the completion of our family with a SON!! We couldn't be more thrilled and grateful to God for this blessing. Little man is due May 19th (so they tell me). We are still talking about names, but once we DO decided we are keeping it a secret until he is born. It's our last little bundle of joy so we thought we'd keep it interesting (as well as keep any negative opinions at bay...come on now, you ALL KNOW that you've shared your two cents on someone's baby's name when it MIGHT not have been appreciated hahaha). Enjoy!!! He was head down and facing my back so basically the only GOOD shots the ultrasound tech could get were those proving his gender...the manly pride has begun early!! The first picture is his foot (you can see the tiny toes!!) and the second is his arm up by his head. The third speaks for itself :)

Updates Anyone??

I do realize that this blog is in serious need of an update (or two...oooor three) haha I PROMISE to get at least one on here by the end of the weekend :) Along with fall came a pretty packed calendar but it SEEMS to be settling down so check back Monday...

Counting Cars...

Today Sophia was quite frustrated while sitting in the car. As we were stopped at a traffic light, I could hear mutterings of a numbered nature..."six, seven, eight...errrrr!!". So it goes...

Me: "Whats wrong babe?"

Sophia: "I just not do it Mom. They just not stopping!"

Me: "What's not stopping? I don't understand!?!?"

Sophia: "The cars Mom. I have to count them and they just keep on driving! I can't count them if they moving!"

Me: **trying not to smile and giggle because she is being VERY serious LOL**

Sometimes I just sit and marvel at the inner workings of a pre-schoolers brain. As if the world is supposed to just STOP in it's tracks at their every whim. Oh, I love that girl :)

L.O.V.E

A daughter brings a special joy
That comes from deep inside,
And as she grows to womanhood
She fills your heart with pride.

The love she gives so freely
Is a rare and beautiful gift.
She brings the sunshine right indoors
And gives your heart a lift.

With every busy, happy year
She’s dearer than before,
Through every stage…through every age,
You love her more and more.

-unknown

Fresh...

Brian and I got a RARE date morning this past Saturday!! My mom took the girls overnight Friday and we went into downtown Davidson for breakfast in the morning. We went to my FAVORITE old town cafe called Toast. Love it there...very quaint and historic feeling :) Anyways, they have a farmers market in the surrounding quad (right by the college and library) and I had never checked it out!! So we went and I coaxed my adoring husband into buying me these AMAZING fresh flowers. I haven't had such pretty flowers in a REALLY long time and was super excited. I had to share some pictures of them. They evoked joy in my heart for two reasons. First because the colors had an interesting way of bringing summer & fall into a happy place of acceptable co-existence. Second because my girls couldn't stop marveling at how pretty they were and commenting how they smelled so "nummy"!! Unfortunately when flowers are so "home grown" they die pretty easily. On the bright side, I was able to snap these before they began their droopy decline :)

My Wonderful Little Terror...

I thought, since I was pondering the miracle of my littlest girlie today, that I would just give a quick recount of her recent mischievous actions :) As each day passes, her "I didn't do it" and "I'm cute, but dangerous!" faces are making more frequent appearances. To summarize what I am talking about, this ALL happened yesterday...

the morning begins WITH...

the removal of a #2 filled pull-up (for the millionth time this week) and by removal I unfortunately do not mean by me or with even a shred of my knowledge

and then progresses to...

a quick trip to the bathroom for ME and a sneaky relocation of the kitchen stool, mounting of the kitchen countertop, removal of every spice from the spice rack & pouring and sloshing of expensive olive oil onto the newly cleaned floor for AUTUMN

and finally ends at...

a purposeful "watering" of the bathroom rug in an attempt to "communicate" dissatisfaction of a much needed tubby AND a revengeful "reorganization" of every clothing item from her dresser drawers in an attempt to "communicate" her disapproval of bedtime.

SIGH...good thing she is so darn adorable and I remembered to have my quiet time ( in which I sovereignly listened to http://www.covlife.org/resources/2671419-The_Lord_Is_In_Your_Boat ) that day!! :) Oh Lord, grant all of us mommies with crazy second born children, MUCH grace and patience, AMEN.

Seriously in Love...

Ode to Autumn's Curls...

Oh beautiful ringlets that adorn her head,

I pray you grow, abound and spread.

Never leaving or fading away,

Please remain, yes forever to stay.

A smile to my face you bring,

A song in my heart you tempt me to sing.

A giggle you inspire as you bounce around,

A grace you provide without making a sound.

One day I am sure my daughter will say,

"Oh these curls they just get in my way!".

And so I'll assure my sweet baby girl,

"Your curls are more rare than a fresh water pearl!"

I love them I love them and love them some more,

I love these curly cues like never before.

I gawk, I stare, I squint and I strain,

To etch their image into my brain.

Oh beautiful ringlets that adorn her head,

I pray you grow, abound and spread.

Never leaving or fading away,

Please remain, yes forever to stay.

Father's Day 2010...

It is widely known amongst our family that Brian and the girls have a very special and unique relationship. On a daily basis, the girls adore taunting and teasing their daddy (aaand vise versa on Brian's end). It amazes me how one moment they are screaming "NO DADDY, GO AWAY!" and the next they are grasping his legs and proclaiming "Oh Daddy, I love you so much!" :) Time has gone by so quickly and I know that Brian will always dotingly remember this stage in our lives. Autumn helped make breakfast in the morning and then the girls presented Brian with their "Daddy and Me" collages. We went to Outback for a late lunch (Brian HAD to have the crab legs) and just relaxed at the pool for the remainder of the day. All in all, it was a successful expression of how much we three ladies love and appreciate our man ;) xoxox

Her awesome shirt says "I get my good looks from my Dad"

I forgot to mention that we got Brian the Avatar DVD...the girls made their own wrapping paper!

Autumn's collage above...

Phia's collage below...

In other news...

During the months of May, June and July we also had Autumn's 2nd birthday, Father's Day, our 6 year anniversary and the 4th of July (which included a visit from my sister)...

I'll start with Autumn's 2nd birthday, mainly because I can't believe my baby is TWO!! We decided to surprise the girls with bikes to celebrate the occasion. Yes, I know it was Autumn's birthday BUT when you have two kids so close in age it's hard to give milestone presents in quantities of 1 :) So both girls were blessed with their FIRST BIKES!! My mom came with us to "test drive" them and pick out the perfect fit for each girlie. They were delighted when we brought them home but unfortunately it was raining so they had to ride inside.

Dear Friends...

The second VERY noteworthy event that recently occurred was the visit of our beloved friends, the Whites :) Words cannot express how much their short weekend trip to see us meant to me. I can feel the tears welling up as I type (granted I am horribly overtired) but for both these reasons I will post a few snapshots and simply say:

Tiff, I love you and am so honored to call you my friend. Thank you Bryant for sacrificing your time and sanity to drive your family to see us. Boys (and little incubating girls), you are incredible little people and I love having the privilege of watching you grow...even if mostly from afar :)

I wish I had taken more pictures but catching up seemed more important. I was so happy to be with you all that I just kept forgetting my camera!!

Phia loves her "Tiffnee"

Big boy Jack...

And smiley boy Aaron :)

Special Moments...

SUMMER IS HERE!! As usual, it has taken me far longer than anticipated to update my lovely blog. So here I am finally doing it (even if it IS almost midnight). Life has gone on as expected over the past few months (basically typical, mundane, daily activity) but there were a few special events worth mentioning. First to report is that we successfully had our annual summer vacation...woohoo!! In May, we were blessed to visit my in-laws at their home in Florida and Brian and I were able to take a whole 4 day cruise to the Bahamas, celebrating an early anniversary! During our two week stay, the girls were treated to a day at Disney World (among other things) which was strategically planned to ease the guilt we felt for leaving them behind on our open sea voyage. Brian will say we took them in honor of Autumn's 2nd birthday but for whatever reason(s) it was, they had the time of their lives :) All of the pictures from our trips are duly posted on my Facebook page so I won't bore any of you "loyal" readers with those again (since if your read my blog than you are clearly a friend of mine via Facebook). I will, however, give you a brief synopsis of each family member's highlights...

According to Autumn, the best part of the vacation was (and I quote) "ducks". In the best possible way a toddler knows how to explain herself, she will tell you that both feeding the ducks at Nana and Papa's AND watching Donald Duck in the Magic Kingdom 3-D movie theater were truly spectacular. In reality, that's my translation of what she mumbles and mimes about "the ducks" but I am MOM so I certainly have literary license :)

If you ask Sophia about her trip, she will tell you (plain and clear) that the beach and Daisy Duck were the best parts of all. Actually, when my mom asked her WHY Daisy Duck in particular she responded as follows : "Cause Meme, Daisy shoes and Daisy dress match! I showed her my Dora earrings! She was REALLY nice." She also noted that Nana and Papa's house was pretty and the sand at the beach was "ouchy" (aka ithcy) in her bathing suit. I mean honestly, if Sophia isn't the definition of a "girlie girl" than I don't know what is.

For Brian and I, it's pretty obvious that the cruise makes the top of the list. Before that first morning aboard the Monarch of the Seas, I could not even remember what it felt like to eat a meal (or even have a cup of coffee) without little utterances and little grabby hands all up in my business haha Don't get me wrong, I love the sound of those sweet voices and the sight of those tiny fingers....BUT there comes a time when a break is unequivocally needed. It was so nice to have quiet time. It was also VERY nice to just spend time as a couple. No distractions, no agendas, no cell phones ringing or e-mails waiting. It was truly a God ordained voyage and we were positively refreshed to say the least. Running a close second was seeing the faces of our little girls as we entered the "most magical place on earth". Priceless :) I know they will definitely enjoy it MUCH more as they get older, but the first time was surprisingly memorable. At times, Brian seemed to be having the most fun of all, but if you know Brian than that comes with little surprise.

In short, thank you Lord for the opportunity and provision for yet another annual family vacation AND thank you Mike and Nelida for your hospitality, generosity and love :)

What's the Deal??

Ok so Brian was right (yes, folks I said it...Brian was RIGHT) there is certainly something in the pollen this Spring. It's a substance that seems to be in overabundance and I have dubbed it "the nectar of life" haha Every where I go, every time I log onto Facebook, every phone conversation I have, I am inundated with news that yet another blessed young woman I know is indeed pregnant!! Brian says it's conspiracy...I say it's a sign, but who am I right? Yes, I want another one. It's no big secret. Although, I do agree with Brian that we are enjoying this time and season as a family of four. I'm thinking next summer is a good marker to aim for. In the meantime, I shall live vicariously through my besties and I wanted to formally say CONGRATS to each and every one of the NEW moms and the ONCE AGAIN moms of Spring 2010...happy pregnancies to all of you!! You are certainly blessed...

And yes, I will post something about my own kids while they nap today :)

Early Preparation...

So I am supposed to be cleaning the toy room as I type, but blogging has become addictive...haha A few days ago, the girls decided they were going to play pretend. Not something unusual for them, but the story they came up with was a new one! They were playing "pa-tend goin' to sool" (as Sophia put it...pretend going to school in english). So they grabbed their little shoes, coats and sleeping bag backpacks. They loaded up their bags with randomness (toys, blankies, sippy cups...u know, the essentials haha) and waved goodbye!! Of course the farthest they made it was the front steps (which was soon dubbed the "class"), but it certainly was adorable to watch. I was slightly tempted to tear up just thinking that this day (for real) is only a few years away. My girls might be a lot of work at pre-school and toddler age but I will NEVER get this stage of life back. I am learning to treasure each tantrum filled afternoon in a new way and take as many pictures as I can to ensure a wealth of documentation :) Love you big girls...always and forever xoxo

A good start...

My big girl has been learning the importance of "hiding" scriptures in her heart. Daddy and I have recently noticed, in Sophia, a regular hesitation to share and a heightened temptation to complain. We are hearing a lot of "me first" and "buuut I don't want to" from her little mouth. We are seeing a lot of angry, frustrated facial expressions towards her sister and "hands on the hips" argumentative attitudes towards mom and dad. So we began to pray on how we could address these issues. In all honesty, the only thing that's going to prove useful in changing my daughter's HEART attitude (not ONLY her behavior) is a correct understanding of truth and a biblical reasoning for adjusting her actions. Something I've always wished I sowed to earlier in life is memorizing scriptures. I cannot put into words how this practice has served me now that I'm grown. So, we began to practice this with Sophia. The scriptures she's finding herself hearing and repeating most often are...

1) "Honor one another above yourself" Romans 12:10

2) "A cheerful heart is good medicine..." Proverbs 17:22

3) "Do everything without complaining or arguing" Philippians 2:14

Adding these principles to the constant instruction of joyful obedience seems like a lot for a three year old at times. She often is very emotional when we go through the process of correction, repentance and "putting on" truth but by the end she is smiling and has a much softer temperament. This is certainly a very busy season of motherhood!! I am learning these scriptures right along with her so I typed up some "reminders" to post around the house. Brian wasn't a huge fan of the new decor, but I reminded him that our girlies souls are more important (and of course he agreed) haha

I have faith that Sophia can demonstrate a good example for her already feisty (yet adorable) little sister!!

Aren't they just the best?!?! :)

You'll want to turn off the volume on my music player so you can hear the video!!

Finally Spring!! from Lindsey Knott on Vimeo.

SPRING!!

We found these adorable mini flip flops for Sophia at Old Navy!! She loves having shoes "just like mama's fip-fops"!! haha She's still getting used to how to walk in them, but it's adorable to watch her try. I hereby dedicate these shoes to the approaching Spring. High of 68 today...woohoo!!

The Exit...

Look where Autumn drove us!! HAHA Ok ok, rather look where the Lord drove us!! After many many tears and prayers, we are on the horizon of a new beginning. This week we will finally begin our plan to move forward financially. It is OUR turn to pull off the monotonous, broken highway of debt and onto a calmer, more scenic side road ordained by the Lord :) No more credit card debt!! PRAISE GOD!! Almost two years now away from the dearest friends known to man and a church that blessed us far beyond words...I cannot believe it has been so long!! The road has been wobbly but the Lord has remained steadfast. He has shown us grace and favor in more ways than I thought imaginable. Mini blessings here and there have helped to keep us pressing forward. So undeserved, but our God loves us THAT much. We trust in the Lord for continued strength to begin to build life HERE in THIS place. I am just so thankful for the release of this particular burden. Of course, there are still obstacles to overcome but this is a great first step. Thank you again to anyone who took the time to pray for my family. The Lord is so faithful. In times when it seemed our highway of financial trial would never find the much anticipated "exit", we were consistently reminded to look UP. Our GPS may have malfunctioned but my God's was right on track. "Do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise..." 2 Peter 3:8-9

And thank you to Brian for being the dedicated, hard working, God fearing husband and father that you are. You continue to lead us, although far from perfectly, into the paths set forth by a good and gracious God. No one can ask for perfection, simply a heart that strives after becoming more like Christ each and every day. We love you!!

Trouble up the road...

Autumn, bless her heart, always wishes she could be just a BIT older than she is. She likes to do everything big sister does and often has that curious look in her eye (those with crazy kids know what I'm talking about haha). Well, seems her latest mission is to conquer the roadways (and daddy was surprisingly more than happy to accommodate!!) I'm sure he will be toting her along to car shows before she turns 5. I'd put money on it!! These pictures came out a little strange due to the garage and reflection from the glass but they still make me laugh...

"Eyes on the road babe!!!"

This is how mommy prefers her little angels ride in the car :) Muuuch better!!

medi-sin...

Yes, I know it is spelt wrong but my children have added a whole new meaning to the word. Medi-sin = alternate spelling of the word medicine...definition = when your kids deliberate disobey your instruction concerning a controlled substance of types. Let me explain...the girls have had colds on and off for about two months now (not fun for anyone). Last time they fell ill, the Dr. suggested that I give them warm apple juice with honey, benadryl to dry them up and apply vicks vapor-rub to the soles of their feet before bedtime. Remembering these techniques this time around I decided to implement them right away. Last night, after a looong day, we had baths. The girls were beautifully cleaned, in their pj's, hair dried and medicine taken. I must note that my girls are OBSESSED with medicine. They ask for it on a regular basis (and I don't give it to them often, honestly!!). Sophia proceeded to ask about a hundred times if she could touch the vicks vapor-rub that I was applying to their feet. I repeatedly told her "no" that it wasn't a toy but medicine and she was not allowed to touch it. She finally "accepted my answer" (or so I thought) and I left them to peacefully read a book together on Sophia's bed. I put the vapor-rub "up high" (or again, so I thought).

I returned to the bathroom to clean out the tub and put the dirty clothes into the hamper. No more than five minutes later, I hear quiet giggles from across the hall. "What's going on in there?", I ask. "Nothin Mama, just div buppa da medicine. Buppa div me da medicine too!", responds Sophia. My heart sinks (thinking they somehow got ahold of the benadryl) but as I am racing towards her door I pass the benadryl safely sitting outside the gate where I left it. Next thing I know I am standing in front of two girls who are COVERED from head to toe with a shiny, whitish, thick and sticky substance. "NOOOOOOO!!!", I screech. My lovely SINFUL three year old had deliberately disobeyed me. She had taken her plastic tinker-bell chair from her bedroom, piled it with pillows and climbed up to the shelf where I had left the vapor-rub. She unscrewed the top and the girls began GENEROUSLY spreading it all over each other. I'm talking in their hair, all over their clothes, covering their faces like masks and I could BARELY see Autumn's ears underneath the globs of vapor-rub. My response was a bit less than gracious as I had to redo baths, redo hair drying, redo pajamas, redo the bedding and was still left with two heads of greasy matted down hair (any suggestions for easily removing vapor-rub from long flowing locks of hair, please let me know).

By the time I was finished it was late, my patience was worn thin and I needed to buy more vapor-rub....sigh. But alas, the crisis is over and it's a memory I suppose. I do believe that the most "memorable" part of this situation was simply remembering that my girls aren't alone in their sin. Inspired by a dear friend of mine, Sophia and I have started to sing the gospel song before bed each night. As I sang it with her after "the ordeal" I was freshly reminded of how my actions towards the Lord are at times just as deliberately disobedient as my little girls are. I guess Sophia and I have a lot to work on TOGETHER. I may be 22 years older but surely not 22 years wiser when it comes to the occasional belligerent attitude. Anyhow, it's a good thing vapor-rub isn't all that dangerous. I did read the label and although it clearly states "not recommended for use directly on the face, in the nostrils or around the ears" what can you do?!?! It's now Monday morning, the girls survived the night and I am starting with a cup of coffee and my bible. Here's to a new day :)

The numbers game...

So my "lesson" with Sophia today went as follows:

Me: "Ok babe, let's count to ten!"

S: "Ok...1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10"

Me: "Great job!! Ok now repeat 1-2-3"

S: "3"

Me: "No. Say each number" (holding up my fingers)

S: "Letter A"

Me: "No. Not letters...NUMBERS...say 1-2-3"

S: "1-2-7"

Me: "No. Who said 7? No one said 7"

S: "Yes mama. Me did!!"

And so it continued until I about lost my sanity. Am I called to home-school my kids? I think NOT!! Maybe the sugar from her morning donuts caused a brain misfire? Or maybe she's just rebelling against learning on a Saturday?? One may never know. LOL

My Sophia...

Lately, I have been seeing my little three year old blossom into such a grown up little girlie. She has brought me so much joy and laughter that I get teary eyed just looking at her some days. The things she says are at times HILARIOUS and often far beyond her years. I have to stop and wonder where on earth she gets these things from!! I thought I would share with you a few of our most recent conversations. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I did hearing them :)

S: "Mama, I love you sooo much"

Me: "Oh thank you baby, I love you so much too!"

S: "You is my best friend Mama" (small pause) "Ummm well, you and puppy"

She has a stuffed animal dog that my mom bought her for Valentines Day. We tried to get her to name the thing (since she treats it as if it were real...feeding it, putting it to bed and making it talk to her) but she insists that it's name is "just puppy" haha

S: "Mama, are we going to the mail today?" (mail=mall)

Me: "No baby not today"

S: "But how mama?" (she says "how" instead of "why"...I've tried to correct her but yet again she insists her grammar is correct haha)

Me: "Well we just don't need to buy anything there today"

S: "But daddy said mama...daddy said 'I wanna go a mail!!'"

Me: "Well daddy likes to go to the mall, but he was just kidding honey"

S: "But the bible says mama" (with a cheesy grin on her face)

The girl will try anything to go shopping...UH OH!! :)

And lastly, as we were driving home last night we had the song "Never Let Go" by the David Crowder Band playing in the car. Each time the chorus came on we heard a very enthusiastic pre-schooler belting out the words from the back seat "YOU NEVER LEEEET GO...NEVER LEEEEET GO....YOU NEVER LEEEET GOOO-OOOO" and then she would say "Mama I sing it! I sing a song!" haha I was just grateful it happened to be a godly song she chose to repeat (daddy is ghetto at heart and can often find himself wandering to the rap station!! haha)

WEST SIDE!!

How to sum up our trip to California?!?! We had such an amazing time. The packing and the super long plane ride were horrible and I don't want to do either for a long long time. Overall, however, I am glad we went :) We had some disagreements with the flight attendants on the first flight. In short I ended up having to hold a wiggly, very cranky and irritable Autumn on my lap for 45 minutes. I really didn't hold her. She more like flailed and rolled around on the dirty floor while screaming bloody murder and smacking Sophia because she was sitting in her seat...sigh. By the grace of the Lord, we were able to put Autumn in the car seat (as planned) for all the other flights. We had a two hour layover both coming and going (definitely not recommended with kids) and my legs were so numb from Sophia sleeping my lap that I wasn't sure I'd ever walk again!! haha Anyways, we finally arrived at some ungodly hour on Christmas Eve. My sister-in-laws house is just beautiful. The view from her backyard consists of "snow-capped mountains" and gorgeous dessert with palm trees. I sure wouldn't mind waking up to THAT every day. We had a lot of fun filled family time. My girls got to bond with their three older cousins and they enjoyed every minute of it. Lia and her husband Chris took us on some wonderful day trips (including one to Newport Beach where we were able to meet up with my best friend from Maryland!!). We were so blessed. I am tearing up even as I type about it. I miss Tiffany dearly and the Lord was so kind to orchestrate our vacations to meet each other out west. We all had a very relaxing time and hope to be able to go back when the girls get a bit older. I can't say thank you enough to Lia for housing the mass amounts of family that showed up at her door :) We love you Lia!! This post contains some pictures that I took of the trip. If you want to see some amazing pictures Brian's cousin took (he's a very talented professional unlike myself) than you can view them on his Facebook page (Justin Mein)!!

Ok so I lied...I HAD to put up some of the pictures Justin took...he's so talented and they are so great, I had to share...these first eight are his...

Now are mine...the difference is saddening right?? LOL