Happy 35th Bithday Michael !!!!!!

35 Things We Love about Michael:

1. He is a hard worker.
2. He is loyal.
3. He comes alive in nature.
4. While listening to music in the car, he drums along by tapping on the stirring wheel.
5. When made to, he will dance.
6. He does dishes.
7. He does laundry.
8. He can sleep and drive at the same time.
9. He is stubborn.
10. He is not sooo stubborn that he can't change.
11. He accepts people for who they are.
12. He has built a tepee.
13. He is always on the hunt for the perfect socks and underware.
14. He irons his jeans and his tee shirts.
15. He drives a Buick.
16. He works hard to provide for his family.
17. He can say the words " I love you".
18. He changes poopy diapers.
19. He wrestles with his boys.
20. He prays with his children at night.
21. He can sleep while standing in the shower.
22. He loves to help others.
23. He is the hot drummer ;)
24. He doesn't yell or get mean while angry.
25. He sings along while listening to is IPod.
26. His weakness is a bag of chips.
27. He still loves to be babied by his mama.
28. He cuddles with his baby girl.
29. He will watch a chick flick and not complain about it.
30. He thinks he is funny (okay and so do we :) ).
31. He's kind of, sorta a grill master.
32. He studies the Bible.
33. He can build a great fire.
34. He has dreams and hopes for the future.
35. He is an amazing father and husband.

Michael. We love you and are thankful for you!! Have a Happy Birthday.

Love,
Stacy, Judah, Levi, Eden and Benjamin

This is what you get when two little boys sneak a camera into their room late at night.

Back To Bloggin

Now that summer is over :(, I am finding myself indoors a bit more. I decided it was time to catch up and return to the land of Blog.

How do you put a whole fun packed summer into one posting? This summer was a blast!! It has gotten much easier to get out and about with the twins. We enjoyed and took full advantage of the beautiful summer God blessed us with. We spent a lot of time in our own back yard, riding bikes throughout the neighborhood, fishing, camping and getting together with friends and family.






There where a few little scares here and there. One of them being Eden swallowing a big goodie hair clip, thus earning her new nick name "Billy" for billy goat. We are blessed that she is not a picky eater. But then again, she is not a picky eater and will eat anything and everything:) The first picture is an x-ray of the clip in her tummy. The second picture is what Eden did when we asked her where her clip went;)


We had the opportunity to go to The Wilderness Fellowship with Michael's family. The kids had a great time being with their cousins. There was a lot of swimming, bike riding, hiking, game playing, and eating going on. We are blessed to be a part of an amazing, supportive, fun family.


Before we knew it, the first day of school was here. Judah headed off to the First Grade. He loves his new school and likes his new teacher. He was also very excited to have a couple of familiar faces in his class. I think it should be a great year for him.


And although I am sad to see the summer go (very sad actually), I do look forward to the leaves changing and the sweater weather. I also look forward to catching up with all of you and your blogs!!! Have a great week. Love, Stacy

Update

It has been a while since my last post. Thanks KJ for the encouragement to continue. Since spring and summer have arrived, we have been having a blast!!

Judah graduated from kindergarten. He also lost is first tooth. He was much more excited about the lost tooth than he was about graduating for kindergarten. He has also been busy with T-Ball. I know that every mother would say this about her son, but he is pretty good at it. Who knew baseball could be fun to watch. I guess it takes having a child in it to open your eyes to the positives of the game:)

Levi had his 4th birthday. We celebrated with him by having a worm party. (Thank you Grandpa and Grandma for all the help with the party.) He has been enjoying fishing with dad and catching his first fish. And just today he learned how to ride his bike with no training wheels. He's a BIG boy now.

Eden and Benjamin are growing just as fast as the weeds that make up our yard. It is a joy to watch them toddle around the yard and explore. Eden is very busy and is not about to be left behind her two older brothers, while Benjamin is content to sit a watch all the action going on around him. They both are sooo much fun!!

Well other than the important stuff like riding bikes, playing in the sand box, swimming in the baby pool, going to the park and meeting up with friends, we haven't been too busy. However, I am still amazed by how fast the days are flying by. I pray your summer is going well and that you will be able to find the time to enjoy the beautiful weather and your family and friends. Love you all!!!

The White Stuff

Since Skip's (Michael's Dad) heart issue, Helen (Michael's Mom) has been reading and learning about a healthier way of eating. She grew up on a Minnesota farm and on the good home cooked farm meals. Each meal consisted of a meat, potatoes, bread, gravy and some form of veggie. I too grew up on mid west cooking. Growing up my family ate a lot of hot dishes (tater-tot being my fave) and pasta. On top of all that, desserts and candy found their way into our home quite often. Well, Helen has been sharing with us the things she has been learning, and the more we learn, the more compelled we feel to make a change in our home. Sugar has always been a strong hold for me, so I felt this would be a great place of me to start. I knew it wasn't going to be easy. However with Michael and I united, I felt up to the challenge. That was until I began to read labels. Holy Cow!! The stuff is in EVERYTHING!! It is even in the yogurt and apple sauce I have been feeding the babies. This whole time I thought I was being a good mommy feeding my children healthy snacks, when all along I've been feeding them apple flavored sugar and high fructose corn syrup. Anyway, I am going to try to do some research and learn a bit more about how to cook a bit healthier. Do any of you know of any good web sites or books to read?? Maybe some good, healthy cookbooks or recieps you'd like to share?

Spring

Daniel 2:21
He changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.

Genesis 8:22
As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease."

After what seems to be a long winter, I am reminded of the promise that Spring and Summer will come! We are so blessed to have a Father who has all in His control. He even changes the seasons for us. He is a loving and amazing God!!

Skip

I thought I would let ya all know that Michael's dad is in the hospital. He was having some pain in his chest, so he went in last night. Today he failed the stress test they gave him. This caused the doctors to believe that Skip has a block some where. Right now, they are going in to look for the block and then try to get rid of it. Please keep him in your prayers. Thank you!

An update.....The doctors found the block. One of his main arteries was blocked 99%.
They put in a stint (I think that's the right word). He seems to be doing well and should be home soon:)

Dad- We love you!! Our thoughts, prayers, and hearts are with you.