Birthday Party and Pumpkin Carving

This afternoon we were invited to Roy Austin Graham's 1st birthday party. The kids were supposed to dress in their halloween outfits to celebrate. Unfortunately, Caleb has had the croup this weekend and was still at risk of being contagious today. He wasn't able to go so I went ahead and took my little cowgirl to the party while Russ stayed home with Caleb. I was very disappointed that my little cowboy couldn't come because they make the cutest pair! I just didn't want to be one of "those" moms who brings a child that may infect the other children :) The party was held outside and it was a beautiful day. It was made like a carnival with a big jump house and lots of activities. The party was dalmation puppy theme and everything went along with that. Kathryn even got to help decorate her own pupkin! Happy Birthday Roy Austin!

My little cowgirl

(pardon the tongue sticking out of her mouth!)

The birthday boy himself

Kathryn and Savannah

When we came home from the party Russ and Caleb were ready to carve the pumpkin. Caleb really wanted the pumpkin carved with a dinosaur in it, so Russ find a T-Rex picture and made the pumpkin look just like it. He did a great job and Caleb was thrilled with the way it turned out. It really does look neat!

Caleb and Russ hard at work

Digging out the gooey seeds

TA-DA

Aw Shucks!

This morning we took a long drive out to Aw Shucks farm in Monroe, NC. We met some friends from our Sunday School class to have a fun morning. Caleb and Kathryn were able to take a hayride, look at lots of pumpkins, pet and feed farm animals, jump on hay and enjoy a picnic lunch. It was a pretty chilly morning, but when the sun came out it was very nice. We had a great time and it really put us in the fall spirit!

Peek-a-boo Kathryn!

Good smile Caleb!

All of the children waiting for the hayride.

Riding a horse

Caleb with his friend Anna Kate

Caleb and his friend Jack

Acting silly on the hayride

Petting and feeding the farm animals

Kathryn's 1st Year Pictures

Yesterday, I finally ventured out to get Kathryn's 1 year old pictures. Yes, she is 15 months old now, but I figured better late than never! With Caleb I got his pictures taken at exactly 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. Of course I wanted to do the same with Kathryn, but hers has ended up being more like 4,7, 10 and 15 months. Things are so different with the 2nd child! Many years from now I know it won't make a bit of difference that I was a little late getting the pictures. I probably won't even remember :)

We went to my favorite place to get pictures : Portrait Innovations. They are just right up the street from us and they really do a good job. The prices are very reasonable if you don't let them talk you into getting every picture under the sun. I was not very happy with our photographer though. I really do think it was one of his first days on the job. Kathryn was not very cooperative either and she did NOT want to smile. He didn't know what he was doing and had no idea how to get a baby to smile. All he did was talk in a really high voice to her the whole time. He really sounded ridiculous! Finally when he realized he was having no luck, he called in another photographer to help. At the end of the photo session there was a cranky little girl, an exhausted mother, a frustrated photographer and 3 other assistents who had given up on trying to get a smile. I kept telling them that Kathryn really was a sweet little girl and that she normally smiles all the time. I don't think that they believed me! After seeing all the pictures taken, weeding out the ones I didn't like, explaining to the photographer that no I didn't want to spend $220 and get 50 million pictures and that I didn't need the cd, I walked out of there getting 2 really good poses and spending only $37. Here are the cute pics we got. The first one is of Kathryn in her birthday dress and the second is of her in her poodle outfit. My mom made both of them - thanks a bunch Mimi!

Caleb's Church Offering

I just had to share this story today, as it will go down as one of my most embarrasing moments. This time however, it was not because of something I had done, it was something our son did. This morning after church was over we were standing in the children's wing talking to some friends. It was very busy with people picking up their children and heading to their cars. Caleb had walked a ways down the hall while Russ and I were talking. I could see Caleb out of the corner of my eye, however I didn't see what he was doing. When I looked again to check on him, low and behold he was standing in the middle of the hallway with his pants and underwear around his ankles! He was in the process of removing his shirt as well and had a huge grin on his face! I ran as fast as I could to grab him and pull his pants up while I could here laughs coming from all around. When I pulled his pants up, he kept saying that his underwear wasn't pulled up. I just wanted to get him clothed so I could go around the corner, fix his clothes and discipline him! As I was walking him as fast as I could, I could here Russ in the background trying to tell me something but I didn't stop to hear what he said. I just wanted to get out of there! When I turned the corner and looked down at Caleb, his pants had fallen around his ankles again, which was also where his underwear was because I had not pulled them up yet. So that was what Russ was trying to tell me! Anyways, I fixed Caleb's clothes, gave him a very strong lexture about exposing our private parts and waited there until Russ came. I was so incredibly embarrassed! People were walking by laughing and telling me that all children do it. I wanted to say that maybe they do, but my child shouldn't and especially not at church!!! This evening, our friend Jared called to tell us what his son Jack had learned at church today. Jack told his parents that he had fun at church, that he saw Mr. Russ and that he saw Caleb wave his pee-pee! What a day!

A Visit with the Little's

My friend Ashley, a very good friend from college and her little girl Ellie came to visit us this morning. They live in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and were visiting her husbands parents in Concord. I was so excited to see them and finally meet little Ellie. The last time I saw Ashley was at her baby shower exactly a year ago. We keep in touch well, we just don't hardly get to see each other. However when we do get together, it's like we saw each other just yesterday. She is one of those kinds of friends. We had a great time and it was so good to see them. Ellie is 9 months old and she is a sweetheart. Thanks for coming Ashley and we can't wait to see you again!

It is about near impossible to get a good picture of all 3 of them. Here Caleb has a sweet smile, but Kathryn has had enough and is trying to get down. Elli is keeping her eyes on Kathryn! Oh well, I guess it is good enough!

Something to Add to the Laugh Jar

A few months ago, after getting the idea from a friend (thanks Donna) , I started a "Laugh Jar." Whenever Caleb says something really funny, I write it on a piece of paper, along with the date and put it in the laugh jar. Then at the end of the year (or whenever I need a good laugh) I take out the papers in the jar and remember all the things he has said. Here is one I will never forget.

The other morning, we were laying in the bed and talking. Caleb was asking if Jesus lived on the earth at the same time as the dinosuars (he is really into dinosaurs right now). I told him no, but that Jesus walked on this earth a very long time ago. I was telling him that Jesus was perfect and that He never did anything wrong. We talked about how Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sins, how he was buried in a tomb (imagine how hard that is to explain to a 3 year old - I just had to tell him it was a cave that bears might live in!). Caleb then told me that Jesus was alive after 3 days, thankfully he is learning a lot at church! He then wanted to know what happened to Jesus after he had risen from the dead. I told him that He went to visit His friends and show them that He was really alive again. Then He went into heaven to be with God, but that He watches over us. He listens to us when we pray, He loves us and He takes care of us. Caleb was in deep thought and he then asked "When I am ornery, does Jesus go to the North Pole and tell Santa Claus?" I said in between laughs "As a matter of fact He does!"

Caleb's 1st Panther's Game

Russ has been waiting and waiting for Caleb to be old enough to go see the Panther's play. Today was the big day and Caleb was so excited. Nana and Papa took Russ and Caleb with them to go to the game. Caleb wore his new Jake Delhomme jersey and his new Panther's hat and he was ready to go! He got to eat his lunch during the game and have his own coke! The weather was beautiful and Caleb had a great time and did very well. He enjoyed watching the game, but his favorite part of the game was watching the BMX bikes at the half time show and seeing Sir Purr! As much as he liked the game, his favorite part of the day was seeing the dinosaurs in the front window of the Discovery Place as they walked to the stadium. He was more excited about this than the game itself. Oh the simple pleasures in life! Here are some pictures of his day:

Horizon's 10th Anniversary!

I grew up with my father being the minister of music at Mitchell Road Presbyterian Church in Greenville, SC. He was there for 15 years and he loved it and did a fantastic job. He then began hearing the Lord leading him to serve Him in a new and different way. God wanted him to serve as a pastor of a new church that was to be started in Greenville. He was very excited about this new adventure and began going to seminary at Reformed Seminary here in Charlotte. After many months of praying about which direction to go, he and my mom decided that starting a new church was exactly where God was leading them. With blessings from Mitchell Road, my dad resigned and started Horizon Church. There were many unknowns when they first began the process of starting a new church, but with a strong group of core members, Horizon opened it's doors with the main purpose being to reach out to the un-churched in Greenville. Now, 10 years later the church is growing and serving the Lord in great ways. The Lord has blessed Horizon with over 400 members (and counting) and it really is a wonderful church where people come to worship, fellowship and hear the gospel presented week by week. Horizon celebrated it's 10 year anniversary last Sunday night. They hosted a big banquet for all of it's members at the Embassy Suites hotel in Greenville. Russ and I were able to go and be a part of the celebration. We ate delicious food, praised and worshipped God along with the band, reflected on the past 10 years, heard testimonies from those who have became believers at Horizon and heard the plans for the future. It was a great evening and we enjoyed every minute of it. I am so proud of my parents for listening to God's leading and embarking on the sometimes treacherous journey of starting a new church. Because of their obedience, God has blessed them beyond compare. I look forward to seeing what God has in store for the next 10 years at Horizon!

Here's my mom in front of the big cake decoration at the entrance to the banquet!

Here are my parents with the 15 of the 20 core families that started the church with them 10 years ago.

My dad was presented with a framed letter from President George W. Bush himself. It is a letter commending the work of Horizon and has the actual signature of the President on it (it is not a stamp). Horizon has some members that work at the White House :)

My sweet parents ~ aren't they a cute couple?

Pic's from this past week

I wanted to share some recent pictures of Caleb and Kathryn over the past week. Do you remember big wheels as a child? I used to have one and I have lots of great memories riding it all over the place. I wore mine out and remember riding it even when the plastic wheels got all banged up and I bounced all over the place while I rode. Well, we decided to get one for Caleb. He loves it and is the perfect age for it now. His has all the bells and whistle's on it too. He can rev it up, put on his blinkers, play music and even hear a pretend weather forcast on it. He has ridden it all over the place and is quite good at it now. It did take a while for him to learn how to peddle his feet and stear at the same time though! Here he goes:










Kathryn is becoming such a girly girl. She loves wear dresses, her hair bows, love on her babies and especially wear shoes. In fact, shoes is one of her first words. Through out the day she will take her shoes off and repeatedly say "uh oh shoes." She loves to wear them and whenever she sees any, whether they are hers or not, she will try to put them on her feet. She works and works and works at it too! The other morning she found Caleb's shoes on the floor in the den and tried to put them on. After watching her struggle and struggle to get her feet in them, I decided to just put them on her. She loved it and wore them for a while! Here she is posing in her pajamas and Caleb's big Nike shoes.

Kathryn also loves to wear jewelry. Caleb goes into Russ' office sometimes and gets his medals that he won a long time ago. He loves to wear them around the house. Kathryn of course does EVERYTHING that her big brother does. The other day she was playing in the den and before I knew it, she was wearing the medal. She puts it on herself and will wear it all day long. It hangs down to her knees, but she doesn't care! It is so cute...