A is for. . . Amanda

Don't Worry, Be Happy!

I have a few friends out there who seem to be struggling with things in life right now. I would love to be the voice of reason and encouragement, but to be quite honest. . . I'm not the most eloquent individual. I feel it, but somehow can't seem to translate it into actual words that make any sense at all. So, in order to (hopefully) provide a little encouragement and support to my struggling friends, here are some quotes from the one who does it best. . . God!

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. ~ Matthew 11:28-30

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. ~ John 14:27

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. ~ Proverbs 3:5-6

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. ~ Isaiah 41:10

Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you;
he will never let the righteous fall. ~ Psalm 55:2

I always think of the phrase "God only gives you as much as you can handle". . .It makes me feel strong. I've been through some pretty rough times that probably could have taken me down, but somehow I have always come out on top. Am I building character? Hmm. . .something to think about.

Snow Bunnies

Amanda and her cousins decided they wanted to play in the snow on Sunday. . . check out their excitement!

I Think I Can. . . I Think I Can

Well, it has happened. . . I think I'm changing. Here I was, going through life, thinking that I was too stubborn and set in my ways to change. But it has happened.

Some of the girls from my bunko group recently ran a relay marathon. I thought that they were absolutely crazy! Why would anyone in their right mind WANT to run that much, just for fun?! Yikes!! There was no way that I was willing to run with them, but stand at the finish line and cheer them on? Absolutely!!
I was very proud to be there to watch these amazing women cross the finish line. It was a wonderful moment. . . very inspiring!

After the marathon, one of these four crazy women (you know who you are!) told me that there was going to be another run in December - though a much shorter distance than the 26.2 miles that they had just done. I told her that running just reeked of exercise and that in no way was I willing to go so far for fun as to actually exercise! That was just crazy talk!!

Well, she planted a seed. I went to the website and got information about this upcoming run and thought that maybe it could be done by someone, such as myself, who really is not a big fan of exercise. Well. . .

As you can probably tell by the shoes, they are new. My old "exercise" shoes were just not really that comfortable, so I bought new shoes. Oh Darn!! And anyone who knows me, knows that I love orange, so it's really not a big surprise that I went with orange for running shoes (as I sit here in my orange t-shirt). : )

Well, I couldn't buy new shoes and not test them out, so. . . my friend and I went for a jog along the river. We wanted to see how far we could actually go before we collapsed. I am pleased to report that not only did we NOT collapse while attempting this "exercise" thing, but we actually made it 2 1/2 miles! Obviously I had to stop and walk a few times, but I still did it. I was very proud of myself. I would never have imagined that I was capable of making it that far without some part of my body breaking down on me. Hmmm. . . who knew?!

So now, the plan is to take part in the run next month. I'm planning to take on the 5k. I may require lots of additional praying between now and then so that I don't wimp out - that's where you come in. Wish me luck!

Trick or Treat

Halloween this year seemed to be a big success! We actually got Amanda to wear her costume on Halloween so that we could go trick or treating in the neighborhood. Last year. . . not so much.

The past two years now I've tried to coordinate the costumes for the girls - I thought it would be cute. I know the day will come when they won't want to do it, so I'm taking advantage of it now.

Last year, with Taylor being only about a month and a half old, we opted for something simple for her. The plan was for the girls to be The Princess and the Pea. The problem with that one was that on Halloween we couldn't get the Princess into her costume. . . it was too scratchy.

This year we went for a more comfortable costume for Amanda. This year the girls were a monkey and a banana. Amanda's costume seemed ultra-cozy. Taylor didn't seem to care either way, she was just having a good time. The only real problem with the monkey and banana idea was that no one knew if they were boys or girls. By the time we were done trick or treating, I vowed that next year's costumes would definitely be more girly than this year - there would be no mistaking that they were girls.

All in all, we had a great time. . . and if I do say so myself, I think I had the cutest little monkey and banana around! : )

I hope you had a wonderful Halloween!

A Year of Firsts

Very First Picture

First Halloween

First Matching Outfit with Amanda

First Independent Sit

First Time in Jail : ) hehe

First Swing

First Trip to the Fair

How old are you today?

Yummy cake, Mommy!!

My Big Girl

Amanda is now at the ripe ol' age of 3, so she has been insisting on me calling her a "big girl", instead of my "little girl". With that being said. . .

This week she started her second year of preschool. Last year we definitely had our ups and downs. To start with, on her first day of school last year, her baby sister was also born. Quite an eventful day for this little family! Definitely an up, I would say. On the downside, we would frequently run into a problem when it came to dropping her off. She would be VERY excited for preschool while in the car and approaching the school, but once at the door to the classroom, not so much with the excitement.

This year has started off quite different from last year. On her first day, we got ready and drove to school. As we approached school, I asked if she knew where we were going and if she was excited - she definitely was. I got a little nervous as we approached the classroom to drop her off, just waiting for the drama. I had my hands full that morning with carrying Taylor in with me for "the big day", and of course I had my camera handy. We found Amanda's hook on the wall for her backpack. I asked her to stand there for me so that I could take a picture - just then, one of the teachers opened the classroom door, and before I even knew what was happening, she was gone! Apparently she WAS excited to go to preschool! She did come back out and give me a quick love before darting back into the classroom for a couple hours of fun with the other "big kids".

I was very proud of her - she's definitely becoming a big girl these days.