who will be visitor #14,000???

I promise to update with new pictures and stories soon (b/c I have so many just waiting to tell...specifically back to school for my sweet baby girl or I should say Kindergartner!!!) But I just noticed that my blog counter is at 13, 991!!! So, I wondered who would be blog visitor #14,000?!?!? So anyone that visits between now and then...leave a comment with what number you were just for fun! I did this back at like 8,000 or something and my friend Meredith won (it was a HUGE prize too...a big pat on her back from herself!!!) hehe.

Anyways, just for fun...do it! ;)

sweeties....

storytime...

Asher had a date with three of his little girlfriends (ages ranging from 2 weeks to 4 years old!!!) We met my friend Sarah and three of her girls at storytime yesterday morning. It was a lot of fun. Asher and I had never been without Lynzi, but we really enjoyed our time together! Then we had a drive-thru lunch date on the way home! Asher and I really enjoyed this time together since Lynzi has been in summer school. It was quite an adjustment for him at first, since he's never not had Lynzi to play with! I didn't think about it that Lynzi had 3 years of practice playing alone, so she's really good at it. But after 20 minutes or so...Asher is ready to play with somebody, so needless to say we've done a lot of playing together the last few weeks! It was a good glimpse at what life without Lynzi will be like once she starts school in the fall. We did miss having her around all day, but we enjoyed our Mommy/Asher time. Here are a few pictures from storytime (none of them are great [again] b/c he was on the go from station to station they had set up, so i had to snap while he was sitting still in the "car wash" for a minute!) His friend is Gabrielle. One of the books they read was about a car wash, so they had a "car wash" set up made out of cardboard with streamers hanging down for the brushes and bubbles for soap and a box of cars and trucks for washing!!! This was their favorite station...

school's out...

Today was the last day of Lynzi's summer school and she is not happy that it's over! She L-O-V-E-D every minute of summer school and she is so ready to start "real/official" kindergarten! She already misses her teacher (and it's only been over for an hour and 1/2!) She started praying a few nights ago that Mrs. Doyle would be her teacher when kindergarten starts in August! We really loved her and she LOVED Lynzi too...so we're all hoping that we get her in the fall!

~Lynzi and her first school teacher Mrs. Doyle~

Asher...

Here are a few pics of my sweet little man at 28 months old...2 1/2 is creeping up on us scarily fast! Everyone keeps telling me how big boy he is starting to look (and I don't like hearing it one bit!!!) But he's just as precious and HILARIOUS as ever!!! Love this boy...

Father's Day...

We had a great Father's Day spoiling the sweet daddy that God blessed my babies with...and being thankful for their precious PawPaw, Poppy and great grandpas too!!! We are so grateful for the phenomenal men that God put into our lives...such an incredible blessing!

My little family woke up to the smell of freshly baked banana bread and all mosied out of bed and into the kitchen for a slice before getting ready for church. Then we headed to church for an amazing sermon about "The Blessed Man". It was wonderful and they gave each man a huge beef jerky stick! They also had steak giveaways in church...hilarious, but what man doesn't want steak!?!?

Speaking of steak, I think we joined about 94% of the American population in grilling steaks yesterday for lunch, along with corn on the cob, homemade sweet potato fries and fresh strawberry pie! That put everyone to sleep while I cleaned up and got to my 3rd round of cooking for the day. I was in charge of snack for life group yesterday, so I made a veggie pizza (crescent rolls covered with cream cheese/ranch mixture and piled high with fresh veggies...yum) and another batch of banana bread.

After everyone's naps...we gave Daddy his Father's Day presents! I printed and framed each of the kid's pictures for his office and we also got him a nice watch

Then we headed out to Life Group and had a great time of fellowship and studying the book "Crazy Love"! We are all really enjoying this book!!!

Here are the only pics I took yesterday. None of them are fabulous, but at least I got something! Nobody is even smiling in the daddy/kids pic...but we were short on time, so I just went with it! And Asher's pic is super blurry, but since I'm posting Lynzi's...I'll post his too! He's still cute...blurry or not! :)

~my sweet bunch...even though they're not smiling~

~Lynzi on our way to church~

~incredibly blurry, but incredibly cute~

modeling clay...

Isaiah 64:8 "Yet, oh Lord, You are our father. We are the clay, You are the potter. We are all the work of Your hand." (NIV)

Remember that modeling clay that was on our Kindergarten school suppy list that was in a box with four different colored rectangular molds, hard as a rock and covered with that crinkly plastic wrap??? And as an excited Kindergartner, we couldn't wait to get our hands on all of our cool new school supplies, then FINALLY we got to open that box of modeling clay and we were surprised (because up to that point, we're used to gooey and soft play-dough) and slightly disappointed at how hard it was and impossible to use. But once we held it in our little kindergarten-sized hands for a while, it started getting soft and usable and we could create our very best and coolest kindergarten creation!

When we fully turn ourselves over to God (the potter), we are hard like modeling clay. He holds us in the palm of His hand and warms us up while He gets ready to use us. Once we're pliable enough, he begins to form us and make us into what He wants us to be. Sometimes He'll have to stretch us and it might hurt a little, but in the end we'll be a beautiful creation designed by God (worth more than anything to Him!)

Thank you, Lord, for taking the time to hold us and make and mold us into Your perfect creation...(and warming us up and comforting us before you begin to stretch us)!

Just a little thought He placed in my heart...

tooth fairy and tee tee...

Lynzi lost baby tooth #2 tonight (well, technically it's already tomorrow...so i should say yesterday evening.) It was literally hanging by a string and she did not want us to touch it. Ryan tugged on it a little bit a few days ago and she said it hurt, so she has been very skittish about us getting close to it since then! This evening we were playing in the backyard and she sat on the hammock with me and I saw it just dangling around when she smiled at me, so I asked her to just let me feel it. She very calmly agreed, as long as I wouldn't twist it...i barely put my finger on it and gently wiggled it once and it came out without her even knowing it! She had to ask, "Did it come out?!?!" So I'm expecting a visit from the tooth fairy anytime now! Here are a few pics of...I can't say her missing teeth b/c she already had half grown adult teeth coming in behind the baby teeth (how weird is that for a 5 year old to have adult teeth...what?!?!) Anyways...







...and BIG ASHER NEWS...he sat on the potty and went tee tee this evening before his bath!!! YAY for Asher. I just casually told him to sit on the potty before he got in, like normal. But normally, he gets up before he really goes. But he actually went this time and we were so happy! I scooped him up and we did a potty dance and got a potty treat (m&m)!!! He's gone potty before, but lately he's been so disinterested...hopefully this will get him motivated. Even sister got a potty treat b/c she's been encouraging him to go. I've even found her hoisting him up on the big potty a few times...such a helpful big sister (either that or she just really wants her candy....hehe!) Either way works for me, as long as he is going. He has been completely uninterested in pull ups or big boy undies. Every morning I tell him to go get his undies and he says, "Noooo....biper(diaper)!" Then I'll tell him to get his pull up and even show him the cars on them and talk them up real exciting-like....."NOOOOO....biper!" (with 'biper' in hand!) We'll see how tomorrow goes....

Also, as a sidenote...I've noticed that a lot of people question the word "tee tee". I've come to the conclusion that possibly it is a Texas word??? Let me know if you aren't from Texas and you are familiar with it. Just wondering...

And you'll probably notice the lack of Asher pics lately! He is so hard to catch on camera right now. He's too fast and he knows when I want his picture and that's when he darts! I'm still chasing him though and I'll catch him and get a great one SOON! :)

and so it begins...

...the school years! So bittersweet! I think I've been just as excited as Lynzi this week, but at the same time I really just want to keep her right under my wing all day...like it's always been! But change means growth and growth is good (right??? right.) She was the first one in her classroom this morning and her teacher had all the students' name tags spread out on a table where they walked in. So the teacher asked her to find hers and after Lynzi looked a second, she picked up the one that said "Lynzie" and she did not hesitate to tell her teacher (in her sweet way, of course) that her name didn't have an 'E'! The teacher made a new one for her and Lynzi found her seat and she was pleased that the name tag on her desk area was already spelled right! Once she sat down, she was ready to get busy. I asked her if I could take a picture of her with the teacher and she said, "No...I just want to stay in my seat!" Once she was settled, we headed out. I was ready to pull up a chair and hang out all day...would've totally made me happy, but I guess that kind of goes against protocol! So out the door we went. Ryan got in his car to head to work and Asher and I in our car to go run some errands. Just me and Asher. We were going to Wal-Mart and as we pulled out of the school parking lot, I could not remember a time that just Asher and I went to a store together since he was about 3 months old!!! Crazy, huh?!?! Even crazier is that we were done with our errands and back home by 9:00 am! As soon as we walked back in the house and I saw a couple little messy piles of toys that Lynzi had left lying around...I instantly missed her! I wished that she was sitting there playing in the middle of the mess, but she wasn't. She was loving every minute of school, learning and playing and having so much fun! We waited in a huge line to pick her up from school this afternoon. I had the windows down and was way back in the line when she spotted me from the sidewalk! I saw her pointing and could hear her shout, "MOMMY!" Ahhh....sweet music to my ears! She started telling me all about it before she even got in the van! She loved every bit of it, but her favorite part was recess (she got to go 2 times!) And she was happy to announce that she ate ALL of her lunch..."even the thing that wraps around the corn dog" (meaning the batter...she doesn't really like anything fried, so we never have corn dogs at home and the few times she's had them out...she's not a fan of the outside of the corn dog, so she just eats the weenie inside, but not today! I suppose it's because she's a big Kindergartner now!) She can't wait to go back tomorrow!

~cutest kindergartner that kindergarten has ever seen~

~sporting a sweet smile (minus one tooth)~

~daddy and his baby girl~

~crazy kiddos~

~waiting for the doors to open~

~her first school buddy~

~Ms. Doyle putting on the "new" nametag~

~ready to get to work~

~cute desk~

~mommy and her big girl~

~Asher enjoying his first solo trip to WalMart with Mommy~

Preschool Graduation...

Wow...I never could have prepared myself for just how proud I would be tonight! The graduation ceremony was adorable. And Lynzi was just too cute! She had so much fun and I just couldn't stop smiling the entire time. I don't think I could have been more proud, even if she had been on that stage for two master's degrees! She was awesome! They started the "pomp and circumstance" and the tiny little preschoolers started filing in, sporting their precious grad caps and proud grins! When Lynzi came around the corner...she was boasting the most beautiful smile anticipating getting on that grand stage! After they all filed on the risers, the director told us that they were going to sing two songs and Lynzi quickly realized that she was lined up directly in front of a microphone and that made her so giddy....she tapped her friend next to her and excitedly pointed to the mic and they both put their fists up to their mouths and just shrieked with excitement! She sang her heart out and did the most animated motions you could imagine! Then they had each individual class come down and say their memory verse. Lynzi's class verse was Philippians 4:13. Then the director called out their names individually and they walked across the stage to get their diplomas! I told her afterward that if my heart had been anymore happy...it definitely would have burst! I got there early enough that the very front row, right in the center was open...but by the end, it was packed out. So, I'm glad we got great seats! Uncle Nate and Aunt Sarah came also and she was really glad for them to be there! There was a reception following the ceremony with graduation cakes and juice boxes!!! Haha...fun stuff!

On our way home, we stopped by her school to see which class she will go to tomorrow. They posted the class lists on the doors today. There are teachers from 2 schools teaching this summer, so we were really glad to see that she got a teacher that is from her school. She is READY. She picked out her outfit, complete with bow and flip flops today and her backpack is packed! She is ready to rock her first day of school! Definitely more pics (and probably tears) to come tomorrow...

~her old classroom~

~sittin 'n grinnin~

where's lynzi?

~Proverbs 4:13~

~diploma~

~graduated~

~Proud Grad~

~cute grad with cute cake~

~C-A-K-E~

~Uncle Nate and Aunt Sarah~

~Grad Buddies...Lynzi and Gideon~

~Proud Brother~

~Little Buddies...Asher and Adelle (Gideon's sister)~

~Lynzi found her class list~

big days ahead...

I got a new layout today for my blog, but I'm not sure I like it just yet. I'll probably just have to get used to it.

So, a big few days ahead with lots of photo-opps! Tonight Lynzi has her graduation from the preschool department at church! It will be so much fun, including cap and gown ceremony and cake and juice boxes afterwards! The preschool department at church is called "The Zoo" and it is amazing. Lynzi will miss it, I know...because when she moves up on Sunday there will be no more beloved "playland"!!! That's okay...she'll do great with the transition, I'm sure!

Then tomorrow she starts her first day of Kindergarten Summer School! We got a call today from the school's automated message service, giving us all the details for in the morning. We're all excited about it. Well, I'm not sure how excited Asher will be to leave his Sissy at school and come home to just me and him! They are such great play buddies and I don't think he is going to like it very much! We'll see.

Plenty of photos to come in the next few days.....

she lost it...

...and the tooth fairy paid her a cute little visit!!!

(don't ya just love the morning hair!?!?!?)

:)

Loose teeth, Kindergarten, ya know...big girl stuff!!!

My oh my...I don't even want to do this post, but for memory's sake, I know I have to!

So....I don't even know where to start with this girl of mine, she's just getting TOO big! She just turned five and she already has 2 loose teeth...WHAT?!?!? I know...crazy! She had talked about loose teeth a few times over the last couple weeks, but I really didn't pay all that much attention to it because we had been at my parent's house and she had been hanging out with her cousin Jaym, who is 8 and has lots of loose and missing teeth. So I just assumed she was talking "big girl talk" and pretending she had a loose tooth, b/c it's not like her teeth were REALLY loose...she JUST turned 5!!! Ummm...WRONG! So I was fixing her hair in the bathroom the other day and she smiled at me in the mirror and I saw this gap in her bottom teeth that hasn't been there before. It looked like she already lost a tooth, but after looking closely...it was her two bottom middle teeth that were loose, so they were leaning on each other (Lynzi said they were "hugging") and it made a space on the outside of them that wasn't there before! And even crazier...she already has 2 teeth popped through the gums right behind them! I absolutely could not believe it. It didn't seem right, so I immediately called the dentist to see if this could possibly be somewhat normal and they said the normal "shedding" age for the first teeth are 6-7, but she could just be at the very early side of that. They pulled her x-rays from her last visit and said in fact that those teeth were close to the surface back in February, so they could come out anytime and it should be fine! So I came to terms that it was okay and took some pictures of her sweet, almost snaggly smile (b/c who knows how many more pictures I'll be able to take with all her baby teeth intact!)

And yet another big girl thing...Kindergarten "Summer School":
Our school district offers a free "summer school" program to all kids K-12, including those entering Kindergarten in the fall. The kindergarten program basically focuses on routines and transitions, as well as Kindergarten concepts, so they are better prepared when they actually start school in the fall (and free lunch, wow...can't beat that!) Our neighbor across the street teaches first grade at the school where Lynzi will attend and she said she highly recommends it, especially for Kindergartners (and more especially for those who have never been in a school setting, like preschool...which Lynzi has not.) She said by the end of it, they really "know the ropes" and are ahead of the game when Kindergarten starts in the fall and they are much more comfortable since they know what to expect and most of the time become leaders and helpers to the other kids, who didn't go to summer school (which Lynzi would no doubt do regardless, summer school or not!) The schedule is a little more intense than we expected it would be, but Lynzi begged us to let her do it...so she starts next week! My baby is going to school for the first time....and with 2 loose teeth!!!! Waaaaaa....somebody make it stop!!!

~sweet smile~

~look close and see her bottom middle teeth "hugging"~

~they love each other~

~my sweetnesses~

~cool guy~

~cute kid~