Spring is in the Air

What a wonderful day it was!

It has been such a long winter, hasn't it??

Today's warm weather was so very needed.

We've been cooped up way too long.

I'm so excited that Spring is actually on its way.

I was beginning to wonder if it would ever come.

My outlook on life seems to be so much brighter when the weather is nice . . . is that how you are, too?

We are dogsitting for our neighbor's sweet dog, Josie.  Luke says he doesn't like dogs . . . do you think he means it?

Blessed

What has happened in Japan is devastating.
Beyond words.
It's hard to sit here and not know what to do to help.

Simple things we have are such blessings.
I almost started to complain about the cold this morning and then I stopped.
We have a warm home.
A bed to crawl into at night.
A cozy kitchen to bake in.
A piano to practice on.

Beki at The Rusted Chain is doing something to help the people in Japan.
She is selling these "Blessed" necklaces and for every one she sells, she is donating $10 to World Vision.

I'm going to order mine right now. 

It will be a good reminder to me of how blessed we really are.  Order yours today, too!!

(Go here to order!)

Favorites on Fridays

I decided to start doing Favorites on Fridays again!!

Favorite Kid Shampoo : Circle of Friends

One day as I was giving one of my babies a bath, I was reading all of the ingredients listed on the bottle of baby shampoo.
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and Sodium Laureth Sulfate just didn't sound good to me and I found out I was right.  (If you are interested in reading about the dangers of these two ingredients, look here.)I know that some of you will think I am a little crazy being worried about stuff like this . . .
you're right. :) 
I am. 
And that's OK. 
We all have our "issues".


All of Circle of Friends' shampoos are tearless, made with natural botanicals, and are FREE of Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and Sodium Laureth Sulfate.
They are a little pricy, but they last a long time and I think it is worth it. 
And they come in really cool fragrances.  Our favorite is raspberry, but they come in chocolate, pineapple, banana, mandarin orange, blueberry, and even root beer!

 

In the summer, we use their swimmers' shampoo to help with the chlorine damage.

The little boy on the bottle even looks like Luke. :)

We get our shampoo at Kidsnips, a fun place for kids to get their hair cut.  But you can also get them here.

p.s.... I am not getting paid for this endorsement. (but maybe I should be??)

Under the Sea

I was going through some old pictures and came across Caroline's fifth birthday pictures.

She wanted an "under the sea" theme.
This cake was super easy to make (the "sand" was brown sugar)and I loved how it turned out.

Here are the stairs leading down to "the ocean" . . .

. . . and here is "the ocean".

I taped white Christmas lights all over the walls of the basement, then I covered them with blue plastic tablecloths (they came in a huge roll from the party supply store.)  The kids made fish to hang up everywhere.
I also hung streamers and balloons all over the ceiling to make the girls feel like they were under water.

(I obviously had way more time and energy then!!)

We played a few games.  The favorite was the "fishing booth" . . . Jake was hiding behind it and when the girl's line would come down, he would attach a prize (stuffed ocean animal) on it.

I think Caroline had fun. :)

I can't believe how much she has grown since these pictures . . .she is 8 now . . . time sure does fly.

I can't wait to start planning her ninth birthday party.

What will the theme be????

CAN

I just had to share this with you.

Choosing to SEE

I just returned home from a ladies salad supper at the kids' school.
Everyone brought a delicious salad to share.
The speaker was Steven Curtis Chapman's wife, Mary Beth.
Wow.

My heart is full.
 

She spoke about her loss (of her little daughter, Maria) and her faith in God (the Healer).

She spoke about her struggles with clinical depression.

She spoke about her marriage to Steven Curtis and her passion for international adoption.

After the Chapmans tragically lost their daughter, Steven and their son, Caleb, began fervently praying, "God, we know you're in this, but we're so confused and hurt.  You've got to show us something tangible so we can know Maria's with You! Please, we need to SEE You in this, please let us SEE!"

Well . . . look what Steven found on their little art table.

A flower that Maria had drawn and what do you think it said on the other side??  . . . "SEE".

Wow.

The funny thing is that Maria was in preschool and hadn't written words like that . . . just I love you and names.


And the flower . . . it had six petals (one for each family member) and only one petal was colored in . . . Maria's favorite color, blue.


Mary Beth clings to that drawing and message and she is confident that her little Maria is safe with Jesus.

I love how God works.

Each one of us received a copy of her book, Choosing to SEE and I am so excited to start reading it.

"He has torn us to pieces

but He will heal us;

He has injured us

but He will bind up our wounds."

Hosea 6:1

Project and Popcorn

My parents were here for a little while and I can't wait to show you what my dad started in the laundry/mud room!

It was in need of a makeover.

Since I love our board and batten so much in our family room, I thought we should put something like it in our laundry/mud room . . . with hooks.

Hopefully this weekend I can find some time to prime and paint it and I'll post some before and after pics for you.

I get so excited when projects are underway!  I'm tempted to stay up all night and paint, but I know that would not be wise.  Especially because Jake has two friends sleeping over tonight and Caroline has a play date coming over early in the morning.

This is totally random, but do you own a Whirly Pop?? If not . . . go buy one right now!

It makes perfect popcorn every time . . . it sure beats the microwave kind.  So good, especially with a lot of melted butter and salt on it.

I need to go and get out all of my painting gear . . .