Puddle Jumping!

After all the rain we have had the past couple of days, the kids and I had to get outside to get some fresh air! Caleb had been wanting to go on a walk badly all day long, so I decided that we could go out and jump in the puddles. Thankfully the rain had stopped for a little while, so Caleb put on his rain boots and ran out to find the puddles. He jumped and laughed and splashed around so much that he got absolutely soaked. He loved it though! When he came inside and took off his boots he had at least a cup or tow of water in each boot! He stripped down and went straight to the tub.

Mid Air:

Ready, set, jump!

A splash landing:

Poor Kathryn doesn't have any rain boots yet and her little tennis shoes weren't very water friendly! After jumping a couple of times and getting wetter with each jump, she had had enough. She decided she would just play on Caleb's scooter and watch him jump.

After the puddle jumping, Caleb decided to be a good big brother and push Kathryn on his scooter. She loved it!

I have to share the great deals I got last weekend. It was the annual fall consignment sale at Matthews United Methodist Church here in Charlotte. A bunch of my friends and I volunteer to work the sale and consign clothes so that we can get in first to the sale. We love it and always find so many great things for a really good deal. I like to think of it as a clothing and toy exchange! I consign a lot of things so I normally end up making more than I spend! Caleb helped me get some of our toys that they no longer play with to sell, so I told him that in return I would bring him and Kathryn a treat back. The sale was packed with great things and I came home with lots of nice clothes (Ralph Lauren, Kelly's Kids, Rosalina, Stride Rite, Talbot's Kids, etc) plus some fun toys for the kids. I got Caleb a big train set with an electronic Thomas for just $10! He was so excited and played and played with it once Russ and I got it set up. We had to put it up after the weekend because it takes up so much room, but we will get it out again on special occasions. I also got Caleb a big Little Tykes Tool Shop for my parent's house. It has lots of fun tools and equipment and cost only $35. It is in great condition! Kathryn got a book collection of 12 princess books that look brand new for only $4! She also got an adorable chest for her dress up clothes that she is starting to get into now for only $5. I also got them both a playdough set for $3, a Blue's Clues computer game for $3, a Little Einstein's DVD for $4 and the Elefun game for $3. It is always so much fun to get nice things for really inexpensive! I look forward to the next clothing and toy exchange in the spring!

Good Times with Old Friends

Russ went out of town this weekend on business, so on Saturday, the kids and I want down to Greenville to spend some time with my family and to see some of our good friends. Meredith is one of my best friends and has been since we were in kindergarten. We were even room-mates for 4 years in college. She has always been like a sister to me. She and her husband Andy live in Birmingham and have 2 little boys. Austin is 2 and their new baby Campbell is 10 weeks. We don't get to see each other much, but we talk on the phone a couple of times a week. They ended up coming to Greenville on Saturday to see Meredith's parents, so Caleb and Kathryn and I went to visit them. We wanted to meet baby Campbell too! We had so much fun together and it was so good to see them. We hope that one day we might live closer to each other :)

Here is sweet Campbell. Isn't he just precious?

Caleb loved playing with Austin and his train

Kathryn loved just sitting with Andy!

Austin and Caleb

After spending a couple of hours with Meredith and her family, we drove on over to my parent's house to spend the night. Mimi had gotten Kathryn a new purse with a baby doll in it. She loved it and was so proud to show it off!

My dad is an excellent pianist and loves to play most evenings. Here he is playing with his two little prodigies :)

Please Pray For John Robert

I am asking everyone that reads this blog to pray for our sweet friends Laura and Ron and their two boys. Laura has been in my Bible Study for over 3 years now and she and her family attend our church. Their youngest son, John Robert was born the end of November. He is a precious, sweet and beautiful baby. Over the past couple of weeks he has been experiencing trouble breathing. After seeing the doctor numerous times, having breathing treatments and staying in the hospital for 3 days he was finally diagnosed with the croup. However, he has not gotten any better over the past week. Laura Ron didn't feel right about that diagnosis. They decided to make an appointment with an EENT to make sure that there is nothing else there. John Robert has a small outer hemangioma on his chest and they wanted to make sure that it was not blocking his airway on the inside. After the appointment yesterday, John Robert was diagnosed with a sub-glottic hemangioma that is blocking 25% of his trachea. This is a collection of blood vessels in his trachea that can grow quickly and block his airway. They will have an MRI and bronchoscopy soon to find out the extent of it. There could be more hemangiomas that they don't see. After they know what they are dealing with the doctor will recommend a course of treatment for him which may include steriods, laser treatment and possibly a tracheotomy. They have a long and scary road ahead of them, so they would really appreciate all of your prayers.



The bizarre thing is that about two years ago, my friend Elaine who has also been in my Bible Study for 4 years now went through this exact situation with her little boy Ethan. Many of you remember praying hard for him. Ethan was diagnosed with hemangiomas in his esaphogus when he was a couple months old. He went through intense treatments and surgeries and then ended up having a tracheotomy. Today he is a very healthy, beautiful little 2 year old. The Lord brought their family through this triumphantly. The puzzling thing is that now another member of our small Bible study group faces this same issue. It is really amazing how God works and orchestrates the lives of His people. Elaine is there now to help Laura through this time. Amazing.



Please keep little John Robert in your prayers. Please pray that the doctors will determine the right treatment plan for him. Please pray for Laura, Ron, and their 3 year old son Cole as they need wisdom during this time. Please pray for healing.

Let It Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

We woke up to a winter wonderland at our house this morning. After it raining non-stop for 3 days now, we were so excited to look out our window and see 4 inches of snow! After a quick breakfast, we all headed outside to play. It was freezing outside, so Kathryn and I stayed out for only 30 minutes. Russ and Caleb were out for over an hour and they had a snowball fight, ran around the yard and even built a snow triceratops! Caleb absolutely loved it!