Alligators and Bats

Last week was an unusual one in our house.  Rob had to take his turn working the swing shift.  He didn’t get home until after 12:30 every night, and if you know me, you know that I am scared to death to stay by myself.  Needless to say, we had little sleep last week.

However, his last night, the kids and I decided to visit him at work.  After I picked them up, we drove through the Grandy’s drive-thru, and took dinner to Daddy.  It was nice to be able to eat together after such a long week.

After dinner, we visited Lake Alice and the beasts that live within.  We gave the children careful instructions about the alligators, to which Cade replied, “Why is this family always doing dangerous things?”

Armed with a loaf of bread in our hand, this is what came to meet us.

Notice this poor fella only has three legs.

This little guy was kinda cute.

This one was mean as ever. 

 

He growled at the turtles trying to sneak some bread.

 

It didn’t take long to realize what may have happened to Mr. Three-Legs.

Both kids were super excited about being so close to the alligators.  At one time, we had 5 alligators and a dozen turtles.  SeaWorld made an impression on SG, because she kept wanting to swim with them.  I told her they would bite her legs off, to which she replied, “They would be so nice to me.”

After some time watching the gators, we decided we would stay long enough to watch the bats at the Bat House.

SG’s class had a field trip here, which she missed, so she was super excited to finally see the bats.  I, on the other hand, was a little wierded out.  We waited, and waited, and waited.  But when they finally came out, it was really cool.  It was as if a big, black cloud of bats were in the sky.

As we left the parking lot, Cade said, “This was the coolest night ever.”  I’m so glad we got to experience this local gem, especially with Daddy.

The Butterfly Farm

Last week, SaraGrace’s class took their last field trip of the year.  We went to the Greathouse Butterfly Farm.  We had such a great time, and I can’t wait to go back again.

When we first arrived, we sat under the canopy (in the rain) and listened to this man tell us all about butterflies. 

He did such a great job explaining all of the parts of a butterfly.  The kids listened with excitement.

Then it was time to plant our own butterfly plant.  You know my girl was all about getting in some dirt!

The kids each planted milk weed, and got to bring it home.  So far, ours is still barely alive.

At the end of the trip, we got to feed the butterflies.  This was really neat, and the kids really enjoyed it.  Here is SG’s first butterfly.

 

 

I love this picture!  Catching these butterflies is serious business!!!

Faith’s Birthday Weekend

Before Faith was even born, Cade had asked, “If Faith dies, can we always do something special on her birthday?”

He has asked and asked, and this weekend was the day.  Both kids had been begging to go to SeaWorld, but we just hadn’t been able  to go.  Rob and I had planned in advance what we were going to do, but we did not tell the kids until we pulled in the parking lot.

We were out of the house by 6:30 am.  Cade kept asking why we were up so early on a Saturday.  Rob just kept telling him we were going on a ride.  He was getting really upset, because there was an “End of the Year” party he was invited to, and he was scared to death he was going to miss it.  He kept saying “Today is Faith’s birthday, not yours or Momma’s.  I wanted to do something special.”

We just let him talk.  It wasn’t until we pulled into the parking lot, got out and walked up to the entrance did either child realize where we were.  Let’s just say we had two kids who were ridiculously excited!!!

The first thing we did was go see the dolphins.  Both kids were mesmerized.  It was so beautiful to see God’s creation right in front of your eyes.

 

They didn’t want to leave.

We left there and went to the dolphin show.  This was mine, Rob, and SaraGrace’s favorite thing all day.  SaraGrace kept asking when it was her turn to swim with the dolphins.

We left there and went straight to the Shampoo show.  Cade has called it that since he was little, and it has sorta stuck.  We saw the sharks, the sting rays, and everything there was to see.

Cade’s favorite show was the SeaLion and Walrus show.  He keeps repeating all of the lines, and he just rolls over in laughter.

After the show, we went and fed the sea lions.  This was another favorite.

This is what you see when you have a tray of fish in your hand:

Can I just say that these things are super loud?  Oh My Goodness!  Once you threw them a fish, this is what they looked like:

 

For only one second.  Then it was back to barking.

Cade really liked the polar bear, so he wanted his picture taken with this one.

We finally made it to the kiddy area, and the kids and Rob rode the roller coaster.  This was SG’s first coaster ride, and she was super excited.

 

Since Momma couldn’t ride the ride, I just kept them company in line, and took pictures.  Cade was excited to ride by himself.

We left the park at 6:30 and Daddy had another surprise up his sleeve.  We got to stay the night at the Coronado Springs Resort in Disney World.  This was so much fun!  They had the coolest pool and to make it even cooler, they played a movie out by the pool Saturday night.

We slept in a little on Sunday, and then got some breakfast.  We hung out at the pool until our late checkout time.  We left there and went to Downtown Disney to watch a movie in their super cool movie theater.

 

This movie was only playing in 3D, which I typically do not like.  However, it was really good, and the kids had the time of their lives.  SG ate so much popcorn, her lips were blistered from the salt.

After a tough Mother’s Day, I just knew it would be a really hard weekend.  But the Lord is so faithful to provide peace in a time of grief, and this weekend was no exception.  Sure I had my moments, like Cade asking what time she was born, and what time she died.  He wanted us to let him know when those times rolled around on Saturday.  I knew that she was having one heck of a party in Heaven, and we were having one heck of a time spending the weekend together as a family remembering all the wonderful blessings God has given us through Faith.  We all talked about her all day.  SG kept asking if it was still her birthday.  We are so thankful to Him for our family, our children, and most of all our salvation.  For that, my friend, is the guarantee we have of Heaven and seeing our precious Faith again!

Happy Birthday, Faith!

Tomorrow is Faith’s birthday.  It is so hard to believe it has been one year since I held my angel.  But I’m so blessed to have so many memories of that day.  I wanted to post today, because we have special plans for tomorrow, so I won’t be blogging until Monday.

It could have been a very tough week for us, and some days have been tougher than others.  However, I have had a peace that passes all understanding this last half of the week.  While we should be having a birthday party filled with balloons and presents, Faith is having one heck of a celebration in Heaven. 

I want tomorrow to be all about Faith’s life, not her death.  She was an amazing little girl, that Jesus used to show His love to others.  She has made an impact on many lives, and the Lord is still using her today.

We went to Faith’s Garden last night, to put out her birthday flowers.

These flowers were used at our ladies luncheon for the little girls table.  Their theme was “Garden of Faith.”  I knew those flowers would be perfect for her birthday.  They are big, bright, and they make you happy when you see them.

We also replaced her solar daisies because they got damaged by the weather.  Now her light can shine, even in the dark:)

I got a text last week from Cade’s teacher.  He was having a hard day, and was really upset about Faith’s birthday.  He made her a card, and wouldn’t show it to us until yesterday.  He taped it to her stone, and wanted to leave it there.

 

The front: 

The inside:

I thought it was really sweet.

While my heart is still broken, and my arms long to hold her, I am so proud of my little girl.  She has forever changed our lives, and I’m a better person, a stronger person because of her little life.  Thank you all for sharing in our journey with her.  We could not have made it through this year without the strength from Jesus Christ, and the prayers and support of our friends.  Thank you for loving our Faith!!!

Our Dearest Faith,

It has been one year since we saw your face and held you in our arms.  What a year it has been.  We have had many ups and downs, but we have made it with the help of our Father.

I always get so tickled at your brother and sister.  Every time one of them does something they shouldn’t, they always remind each other that you are watching them.  That seems to get their attention.

We miss you so much, but we know you are living it up in Heaven with Jesus.  We can’t wait to get there to see you again.  We love you sweet girl, and we can’t wait to tell your little brother or sister all about you.  I want them to know how strong and how brave you were. 

There is not a day that goes by that I don’t think of you, or wish I could hold you or sing to you.  But you have the angels, so I guess they’ll have to do.

Happy Birthday, precious girl.  We love you and miss you so much!

Momma

Baby Update

I had a dr. appointment on Tuesday.  This appointment was met with much anxiety, and many tears.  Between Mother’s Day, Faith’s Birthday, the appointment, not to mention we are at the same window of this pregnancy in which we received her diagnosis, it has been a hard week.

However, the Lord gave us some sunshine in the midst of a gloomy week, and we are so grateful.  My mom went with me to my appointment, and she was more nervous than I was.

When Dr. D came in, he commented on my blood pressure.  It was SLIGHTLY ELEVATED (read- extremely high.)  He retook it, and it was still high.  I assured him it was probably just some nerves, that would settle once we got through the appointment.

He started the ultrasound, and our sweet little peanut was all curled up, face down with it’s hiney in the air.  It kept kicking at the ultrasound probe, and even moved its tiny hand up by its face.  He started at the head and worked his way down.  He was able to show us that the chest wall and the abdominal wall were both intact.  The spine was completely straight, and the baby was measuring right on target.  None of these things were true with Faith.  He is 100% confident that we are NOT dealing with a birth defect like Faith’s.  A huge sigh of relief came over both my mom and me, and we cried tears of joy.  Mom asked if he could tell the sex yet, and he said we should definitely be able to tell next time!!!  YAY!

I wish I had thought to take a picture of the pictures, but Cade and SaraGrace were so anxious to see them, and we hung them on the fridge.

You know, I was so fearful of Tuesday’s appointment.  Part of me was scared to death for the Lord to reveal His plans for this child on that day.  He is a faithful God, and has blessed us far beyond what we deserve. I’m not sure why I get amnesia sometimes, and forget that He has it all in control.  Romans 8:28 should be my life verse, yet sometimes I fail to remember all He has done.

Before we left the dr’s office, Dr. D sat down and scheduled all of our appointments, including the c-section.  He saw that this was going to be a Thanksgiving baby, so he said, “How about Monday, November 19th?”  I said, “Sure.”  But then it changed to this:

“If I have the baby on Monday, I will come home on Wednesday.  Do you have a problem with all of us loading up in the car and heading to Georgia to the hunting woods for Thanksgiving that night?”

He looked at me like I was a crazy woman.

My mom assured him, “She’s being serious.”

He said we might would have to re-think that and we could discuss it next time.  You know  I can’t be missing out on some turkey and dressing, not to mention Black Friday!!!  We’ll have to see how this plays out.

Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers this week.  The Lord has lifted our spirits with this tiny blessing.

Two Little Monkeys

Saturday, Brinley was in a pageant, so all of the girls went to cheer her on.  A dear friend of ours is a momma to a cute little lemur, who just happened to be at the pageant.

SaraGrace had heard all about the “monkey” and wanted desperately to see him.  Miss Kim took her outside, and it was love at first sight!!

SG tried to boss Maxwell around, but he actually took charge.

She laughed and laughed when he would stand up.

Then Miss Kim showed her how to scratch his back to make him lay down.

SG decided he needed some lunch.  We got him some bananas, and little momma was in heaven.

 

 

I think these are two of the cutest little “monkeys” I’ve ever seen!

A Mother’s Day Message

SaraGrace was so excited to tell me that she wrote a Mother’s Day message for me.  She told me that it said, “I love you Momma.”

When we went to pick her up on Wednesday, we saw all of the messages the children made for their mothers.  I will have to say, Rob nearly wet his pants reading SG’s idea of me.  Some of her answers were quite funny!

Check out my hair color!  I sure do hope Rob has bought me a gift certificate to see Katy for Mother’s Day.  I’m just thankful they didn’t ask how much Momma weighs, Amen?

Movie Review

We have long awaited the arrival of the Avengers movie.  Rob and Cade have schooled the girls on comics and their history, and have made us watch every.single.marvel.movie.out.there.  Whew!  I have loved every one of them, so I was excited to see this movie.

Our trip to the theater started out a little hairy scary.  We met some friends for lunch after church at Grandy’s.  We knew we had plenty of time to eat, because the restaurant is right down the road from the theater.  Because we like to toe the line, we left with 15 minutes to spare. 

Upon our arrival to the theater, we found the kiosk and swiped our card.  “No tickets found.”  What!!!  So I pulled up my email ready to tell somebody all about it, only to realize we were at the wrong theater.  Rob was SO THRILLED with my revelation, so it was a long ride to Butler Plaza.  There was no parking, the line was out the door, and Rob and Cade’s day was ruined.  However, because mommas are superheros too, I told him to drop us off and I would get the tickets and go get seats.  We walked into the theater and found 3 seats.  They were in the wheelchair section, so two were together, and one sat all by it’s lonesome.  But, I handled it.  Rob and Cade sat together, and SG sat on my lap.  IT.WAS.A.LONG.MOVIE.

Good thing the movie was FANTASTIC!  Truthfully, it was one of the best movies I’ve ever seen.  It was hilarious!  It was action-packed!  I didn’t know whether to laugh or hold my breath.  There may have been one or two cuss words, but other than that it was wonderful.

If you get a chance to go see it, please do.  It is really good.  Just make sure you are at the correct theater.  Your husband will thank you!

Easter, Finally….and a recycled dress

So…Easter came and went nearly a month ago, and I am just now posting pictures.  I always look forward to our Easter pictures because it seems like it is the only time we get family pictures.

After church, we went to my parents’ house for lunch.  Cade was already half undressed from his “itchy” shirt, but I busted his bubble when I told him to get it back on.  We had pictures to take.  He responded with, “Why do you always think we have to look like we are going to see the Queen of England?”

Here are our annual family pictures:

I am so disappointed you cannot see my fabulous shoes!  I had some super tall royal blue espadrilles.

We wanted a picture of the kids by themselves, and this is what we got.  I’d say, it pretty much looks like them!

 

   Take 2 turned out so much better!

 

Now for the recycled dress. 

I make no bones about being frugal, especially when it comes to shopping for clothes.  A couple of years ago, we went to Mississippi with some friends and found this really cute children’s boutique.  I found SG the perfect Easter dress there, but it was WAY MORE money than I would ever spend.  Mom bought her the dress, and she wore it for Easter when she was TWO!

Does this look familiar?

It is still as cute as it was two years ago!