Happy 23!

Happy 23 months that is. Wow can you believe that sweet little girl I blogged about the other day is almost TWO! I know it is cliche to say...but, where does the time go? I feel as though she was a tiny baby like this yesterday.

And then a pappy  addict the day after that, thank goodness it's gone.

And then a sweet 11 month old.

Oh and I can remember taking these pics for her birthday invite like it was 5 minutes ago.

I miss the baby days but I'm looking forward to the days to come. Especially when the terrible twos are over. We were going to celebrate the monthly birthday with a trip to the park but the rains came down. Now it looks like a fun filled day inside. Happy 23 to my baby girl.

The strong willed child

This cute, adorable, beautiful little girl   ----> is strong willed.
You are thinking how can that be? Surely not this sweet precious face! But it is true I tell you. She can be demanding, bossy (yes my almost 2 year old is bossy), throw fits with the best of them, and dig her heels in so deep when she wants something or is being told no, it is just plain scary. She is called Sassy for a reason. =)  With that said, she is a leader, very confident, super smart, hilarious, truly cares for other, and can melt you with her words and eyes. The good outweighs the bad, but trying to find a balance with her is tough! Yesterday was a hard day and I finally pulled out the spoon. Oh, we believe in spanking by the way. I'm not saying she is a bad child! She is precious and I wouldn't trade her for a thousand other little girls. But she definitely knows how to push my buttons and seconds later melt me. I love her to death and continually pray for her. Join me in praying for this sweet girl, my patience, and my sanity. Pray that we find a balance.

back from a bloggy break...

I took a much needed bloggy break in July. I'm back and have lots to share. July for the most part was very low key. We spent a lot of time at home. I was able to finish up a few projects and just have fun with my littles. We did manage to have some friends pay us a visit and even went to swim a few times. Wayne and I were given an amazing opportunity to pay off some debt quickly. The catch, we have to pay 50% of it over two payments, spanning two months. This was welcomed news but also called for huge sacrifice. Lots of penny pinching going on up in here. =) We also sold all of our bedroom furniture! I know you are thinking how crazy we are. And you would think we are crazy, especially if you saw what our master looks like right now. No lie, our bathroom looked like hoarders for about two weeks. All is clean and well now, so no need to call up the show. Oh and you know how I said, " I completed some projects."? Well I am into repainting old furniture, one of my new hobby's. I was very pleased with how my first piece turned out and plan on filling up our bedroom with old thrifted furniture soon.During all of the painting, saving, playing, we celebrated Waynes birthday. It was a family affair with a small gift and home-made cake. Happy #27, it was! In other news, my sister moved to NC this past weekend. She will be missed by me but mostly by my children. I'm so excited for her new adventure and can't wait to go visit. We are thinking of taking the train! How fun would that be?!?! I'm also gearing up for our 1st year homeschooling. I'm getting super excited and went to a homeschooling event just last week. I was a little overwhelmed but gained a lot of great information and finally chose a covering! Please pray for Owen, Emily, myself as the time draws near. Wow, that was like a buffet of a blog, a little bit of everything. In case you have missed seeing my adorable littles here are some pictures of them via my IPhone. Enjoy =)

OH molly!

1st artsy pintrest attempt

5 $ table redo

Waynes birthday present

Helping with chores

Our 4th

I hope everyone had a Happy 4th of July! We certainly did and what a fun day it was. We love a pool and  I feel as though I have a million pool pictures lately. Maybe because it's summer ;). This was Waynes 1st time to swim with us this summer and the kids loved it. We spent the day just hanging around the house and the evening at a friends house using their pool.The whole family was there and we had a good food, swam, and watched all of the neighbors fireworks. Emily didn't cry but she was not a fan of the loudness going on. When we got home and everyone bathed and in bed it was 11:00 and we were exhausted. Wayne and I must be getting old because we both agreed that we couldn't stay up that late anymore.

the beach

We have returned from the beach and though I miss it already, I'm also glad to be home. Oh and you know what I miss the most? The weather! Our last day it was a wonderful 88 degrees, and we drove home to a hot 102! Anyway... It was a great week, filled with lots of sunshine, after storm Debby moved on. Emily surprised us all by finally going into the pool and willingly putting on her puddle jumper. She also loved the ocean, which she at first called, a pool. By the end of the week she was saying ocean and beach. She grew up a lot this week. Owen LOVES the beach and has been talking about it nonstop. There was a sweet group of people that would set up beside us everyday. One man gave Owen, a bucket full of shells that he had found and one had a hermit crab inside! After doing some research it was decided that hermit had to be released. So because my parents love Owen so, he came home with his very own hermit crabs, Sonic and Shadow. We were all very excited to see Daddy when we got back. He was just a tad pitful while we were away. We skyped every other day and watching O and E talk on the computer to their daddy would tug at your heart. You would think he would have slept great while we were away, but he said, " I miss all the knees and elbows in my back." Emily and ocassionally Owen still sleep with us. We can't wait to go back to the beach and are hoping Daddy will be able  to go next time. My mom and dad are saying possibly in September for E's birthday. We'll see.





Huge waves

Owen and Papa watching the waves

1st time putting toes in the sand

It was a tad windy

playing in the surf

Owen coloring in his pirate sticker book.  He loved it!

Em with Nina

water paint



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Found a shell

The boy loves to play with seaweed

Releasing the hermit crab

Thank you nina and papa for the beach trip

hermit crabs to take home

Took a break from the beach and went shopping

burying her brother