Tell -the-Truth Tuesday

or a little late on Monday night... if I don't post right now likely I will forget and some of you have been asking about this so here you go!!

1. When David first asked me out I turned him down.

2. I have a "bucket list."

3. I own a bow and want to hunt for a black bear.

Don't forget to comment and post your answers!! Have a great Tuesday or late Monday night!!

Happy November!!!

This is my absolute most favorite month of the year!!! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday followed closely by Christmas. I just love this time of year!! I love the beautiful color on the trees, I love the cooler weather, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, Christmas music, holiday flavored lattes, I just love it all!!! I used to think summer was my favorite season and I do love the hot weather and the pool and the beach but not as much as I love November - that is just a side note..... Another reason I think I love this time of year - is because it is when I met my husband and fell madly in love with him!! Our actual first date was September 7 and it was just all down hill and googly eyes from there!! I was reminiscing this morning about this and remembered I had written in a CFA calendar (how appropriate right?) every thing we did from September 2001 to January 2002 when we got engaged. I do have a point to this blog - actually two so let me get to them...

1. Recently David made/took a challenge with some CFA co-workers to take their spouse out on a date on the 21st of every month. So he sent me calendar requests for the 21st of every month for the next year - I joked with him I might have to take a raincheck - but that option was not available :). For those of you who don't know - when David first asked me out I told him I needed a raincheck - but that is another story for another blog. If you need details sooner write me and I can tell you all about it! But back to point number 1. So I am all sentimental this morning and actually pulling out the calendar from those first few months of dating - and would you believe it .... we had a date on November 21!!! We went to Callaway Gardens for the Fantasy of Lights show. I had never been and it was such a wonderful date!! We decided this morning to do that for our date night this November!! Isn't that sweet??!! I can't wait!!

2. As I was flipping through the calendar - I noticed a few other things. One in particular was our first kiss on September 30. Do you know what September 30 is? It is Ethan's birthday!! I just thought that was sooo neat!! How funny that six years from the very day we had our first kiss - we had our third baby boy!! I just thought that was something!!

So that is my sentimental blog for now sorry if my thoughts were so scattered!!!! I just have to say it one more time I love this time of year!! And David .... I love you!!! Thanks for making such sweet memories for me!! Below are a few of my favorite date memories. This first is from our date at Callaway - we look soo young!! The second our first trip to NYC -speaking of which we are going for our anniversary in December - more to come on that!! And then the last picture is one of my most favorite date pictures ever - silly we are - getting ready to see an IMAX movie at the TN aquarium.

Please DON'T Go!!!

So it's not like we are always super excited for daddy to go on trips but usually we aren't super sad either. It's life and we are accustomed to the traveling - well as much as one can be. And we are ever so thankful that daddy has a job. However it is hard when we have had daddy home for a month or two and then he has to travel 3-4 times in a row - hence the picture above. Yesterday the kids and I thought we would just get the toy handcuffs and attach him to the stove so he couldn't go out of town. It didn't work much to our avail!! Luke has had a few meltdowns where he tells me " I berry berry want my daddy" or "I berry miss daddy." Of course when telling David all this last night - it made him feel good and it should!! I did tell him when he left not to call here and ask me how things were going - cause you know what happens when he does that!! Daddy we miss you and love you!! Stay safe and hurry home!!!

When daddy is gone - things always happen.....

Is the same true for you other moms out there who have traveling husbands?? Things always happen when they are gone - its just par for the course. David was gone the latter part of last week and when he called on Thursday night he even asked me if all was okay - no busted how water heater etc. All was fine. I even got a thank you note from CFA in the mail on Friday morning (all the wives got one.) It was a note of gratitude for supporting our husbands while away - and even this note made mention of how it seems crazy things always happen when our husbands are away.

One hour later - Nathan falls flat on his face on our kitchen floor. Now you must know Nathan has a bit of dramatic flair in him. So I casually walked over to him not immediately seeing any blood saying "Nathan its okay - get up and let me see your mouth." Mind you I knew he already had a loose tooth - so I thought at most he probably knocked that loose tooth a bit looser. Well he opens his mouth and there is the blood - and not only has he knocked the tooth that was loose - he has also knocked loose one his front top teeth. It was quite noticeable but I felt it just to be sure - so a call to the dentist ensued - with a trip right behind it. So I quick get a shower and then we all head over to the dentist - and mind you Nathan is still crying at this point - pretty much the whole way to the dentist.

So we get to the dentist and they take the x-rays and then the dentist comes in and looks around and begins to point to teeth that I didn't even think had been affected!!! Nathan ended up have FOUR teeth pulled that morning!! He was such a trooper!!! I have never had to have a shot in my mouth that I can remember and he was just fabulous!! He did cry and it was traumatic but all in all he really did a great job. The dentist did tell me that because the area was already injured due to the fall (his lip was pretty swollen) that the shots were going to hurt much worse than normal - as if he were just having a filling. Something I also don't know about. So I say he was a trooper!!! The hardest part for him was probably the pain and the not eating for awhile part. And then when he could eat it could only be certain things. So we took a trip to the grocery store and I let him pick out a few soft items that we would normally not buy - you know like "McQeen" soup etc (not that there is anything wrong with "McQueen" soup it just is not generic thus a little more expensive.) Poor guy - my teeth/mouth hurt for him.

Daddy came home and later that evening we took Nathan and Luke to see "Where the Wild Things Are." This was Luke's first movie theater experience - he loved the popcorn. And they both enjoyed the movie. We actually ended up running into one of Nathan's friends from school Grady - and they got to sit together. And of course that night Nathan hit the jackpot for his 4 teeth. David had told him when he got his first loose tooth that he would give him $5 for it. So we gave him $10 but we also bought him this knight set from the Christian bookstore that he has been saving his money for. He was thrilled!! Now he has the knight set and he still has his money :)

Saturday was much calmer of course - David was home!! I ran a 5k with my friend Bridget and ran my best time yet. In the afternoon my sister came over and we carved pumpkins. Here are a few pics. Enjoy!

I love you like God does....

That's what Luke said to me tonight when I tucked him into his "palette" on the floor in mommy's room. I always tell him I love you more and then usually he replies I love you more most. But not tonight - tonight I said I love you most and then he replies back I love you like God does and my heart just melted. It has been one of those days and I needed that. Thank you Luke - mommy loves you!! Most!!

Vegetables and Vulchers.....

So a week or so ago there was a dead snake on the street right before mine in our subdivision. As you can imagine this was a very big deal for our family seeing as how I have all boys and very fascinating might I add. We were able to see the snake several times in the course of just two days that is before the "vegetables" took it away. You know vegetables and vulchers are soo similar. I think this might be one of the funniest things Luke has said ~ One afternoon we had to ride over to Grandma's house to see some extended family members and of course we had to pass the snake and check it out to see if it was still there - well it wasn't. And mind you we had seen the birds picking at it earlier. So we walk into Grandma and PaPa's house and Luke was just soo excited here is what he said:

"We saw a snake and somebody had run over it and it was all curled up and the vegetables came and took it away."

We all laughed soo hard. Knowing he meant to say vulchers. It was funny - at least I thought so.

HaPpY bIrThDaY David!!!

I am soo thankful for my husband. I Thank God for His sovereignty!! Words just can't express!! So I leave it at that. Here are a few pictures of our little celebration as he not at all into us making a big deal about it. But we have to do a little something :) David I love you and pray God gives you many more birthdays for me to make "not such a big deal" over you!

SPARKS and CUBBIES

Here we come!!

Luke has started CUBBIES- can it be... is he really old enough. The answer is yes. He is so excited to have his vest and his bag. He loves it!! He is doing okay memorizing his verses. He and Nathan are very different so we are excited to see how God is going to develop Luke.

Nathan has moved up to SPARKS and he is beside himself!! He loves listening to his CD and working towards earning patches and jewels. He has done really well. I confess I was a little worried - wondering if he would be able to handle all the work - but he is of course exceeding my expectations. This week he is bringing his good friend Madelyn along. He is very excited.

I am so happy my boys are hiding God's word in their hearts. So thankful we live where we can read the Word wherever and whenever!

Happy FIRST Birthday Ethan!!!!

It seems just like last week I had this sweet baby boy and brought him home and here I am a year later!! What happened?? Let me tell you what happened - Ethan "E-bear" as we affectionately call him as developed a personality!! He is so sweet and loving and at the same time has a flaring temper. He reminds us a lot of Nathan - he is very people oriented and does not like to be left alone in a room without people. However he does like to be left alone by his brothers - if he doesn't want to be bothered watch out! And if the food has run out - beware!!

But for the most part he is sweet and silly and sooo lovable!!

He has gained 4 pounds in the past 2 months. He officially weighs 20 lbs and is 29 inches long. We all thought he was going to be so little!! He is a very healthy boy and as I mentioned earlier he loves to eat!! I think he would eat all day long if I let him. And he isn't picky he will eat just about anything and of course he loves CFA chicken nuggets and waffle fries :)

He had his first haircut last month in our church bathroom!! David was threatening to cut it himself so I had to take action quick!! Thanks to Lita for giving up her fellowship time to give him his first haircut.

Ethan is all over the place!! He is finally crawling on all fours after doing the army crawl for awhile. He is pulling up and crawling up a few stairs. He isn't cruising yet and if he doesn't want to use his legs he won't!! In fact we joke that he is a little lazy because instead of cruising from one place on the couch to another spot he will sit down - and crawl over and pull up to where he wants to be. It is rather humorous. He babbles a lot! He is very vocal. He can say dada and mama (he only says that when he is mad - go figure!) He also says uh-0h and bye. And of course like his brothers he is obsessed with phones. It must be in their genes!

We did have a little party for E-bear but he wasn't so into all that!! He cried a good bit!! I think he was overwhelmed. I made him a monkey cake and a smash cake - but he didn't like that either. Oh well we enjoyed the time together and watching him when he was happy.

Oh I have to say it again - how has it been a year!! This is so sentimental for me. As I look through pictures of his birth I am once again reminded of how great my God is. That He knit this precious boy in my womb - and He continues to grow him physically outside, He chose me to be his mother and care for him and love him. And He gave me the huge task of instructing him. My heart is full and like Mary does in the passage in Luke 2 - I too treasure the moments I have with Ethan in my heart. Ethan we love you soo much. We are so thankful to God for you and I am very thankful He chose me to be your mommy. We pray that God will draw you to himself and that He will use you in a mighty way to further His kingdom. May you always seek to follow Him and be a man after Gods own heart. Thanks be to God!

Update

So its been awhile.....a LONG while. So here is the big news - I took a job - one day a week teaching music at Nathans school. I wasn't looking for it - it just kind of fell in my lap. The preschool director called me because she had heard that I used to teach music and wondered if I would be willing to think about coming on staff. I talked it over with David and he was very supportive and I even get to take Luke and Ethan with me. They have a class that they go to while I teach - it really has been great!! It has been soo much fun and rewarding!! I had forgotten how much I really loved teaching!! It kind of makes me want to go back to school and get my masters. But the deal is David gets to go back to school first so if this urge to further my education continues it will have to wait awhile!! I teach on Wednesdays so that makes for a really long day since I teach childrens choir on Wednesday nights at church - but its my passion!! Not only has God given me a gift he is allowing me to use it!! Having this job has definitely opened my eyes to be more grateful for the gift of being a stay at home mom!! I don't know how women work full time and be wives and mothers. I work 4 hours a week and feel behind some days!! Hence the absence of blogging. So what else have I been up to you ask?? Well I go to Ladies Bible study on Tuesday and we are studying Heaven; you know what I do on Wednesdays, and usually Thursday nights I meet with a girl from church here at my house - its a week by week basis - but we go through a book (currently Instructing the Heart of a Child) encourage and pray for one another. So that's whats up with me!!

Now you are probably wondering what is up with everybody else!! Well David is still working hard so I can be a wife and mommy!! He is hoping to get into a hunting stand soon - tis the season!! He is still very involved with helping wounded soldiers returning home. He has a busy next few months which means travel. I have enjoyed having him home for a bit.
Nathan is loving school!! He is doing so well and I have just loved watching him learn new things!! He is starting to sound words out and of course he thinks he can read!! He likes having mommy work at his school. We love his teachers!! Ms. Alleta and Ms. Suzie are perfect for him. He has lots of friends and seems to get along with all his classmates. He especially enjoys doing things with his good friend Madelyn which is a perk for all of us!! He has his first loose tooth - so stay tuned because I am sure it won't be long! Soo funny to me - one is losing teeth and one is cutting teeth!!
Luke - our silly "LuLu" loves going to "school" with mommy and usually gets a bit frustrated he can't go the other 3 days a week!! He is my character!! He is so full of life - there is never a dull moment at home with him. He especially likes to be read to right now and I love that I have the time to read with him. Mostly he just likes to play and love on Ethan- oh to be so carefree again!!
And last but not least Ethan - well he just turned 1!!! Can you believe it?? Well you will have to hold tight - because he deserves a post alone for this milestone!!

So what have you been doing??

"Falling" Behind....

I am soo behind in the blog-o-sphere!! I haven't forgotten about you my faithful blog readers - life just happens. I do so love to blog - it is my way of scrapbooking but as you can see I haven't really had much time for it. I read blogs written by others and they have such cute ideas and posts and it just reminded me of how much I enjoy blogging. So for you readers out there hold on this weekend I hope to get on the blogroll. I have been adding pictures to the computer this weekend - maybe I can have the blog updated before the weekend is over!! Stay tuned..........

Apple Pickin'

Nathan: "Dad I didn't know apples came from trees...... I thought they came in a bag..... like at Kroger."