Little Miss. Kaitlyn

Here are some shots of our beautiful neice. We had a great weekend trip to IN (Matt's parents now live in Indiana with Heather and Scott). We got to spend time with family and meet Kaitlyn. She is a very sweet baby and really loves to sleep. It was a chore to see her eyes, but when they were open there was a lot of intensity behind them. Scott and Heather are great parents. We got to see Kaitlyns' fist church service. She pretty much slept through it all but did eat somewhere in there. She slept through class too- she must not have enjoyed the sermon or class topic. :)

Study

Now that we are in our apartment, I have begun doing a study by Beth Moore entitled "The Patriarchs:Encountering the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob". Let me just tell you how amazing this is. I have learned more in the last 3 days about Abram, about the Jewish culture than I have ever known. Now maybe many of you already now a great deal from your times and classes at Harding, but now that I am older (gulp) I am finding myself thirsty for this "background" knowledge. Anyway- I was finishing up my day 3 lesson and there was a quote that Beth placed in there and it spoke to me like nothing I have read in the last 3 days. It is not a quote from the Bible but rather a quote from F.B. Meyer. We just finished reading about Abram and Sarai living in Egypt during the famine in Canaan. Abram has told pharaoh that Sarai is his sister and God inflicted pharaoh and his household with serious diseases. We were asked what might Abram have done differently. Here is his alternative plan (and what spoke to me after)

"How much better would it have been for Abraham to have thrown the responsibility back on God, and to have said, "Thou hast brought me here; and Thou must now bear the weight of providing for me and mine: here I will stay till I clearly know what Thou wilt have me do." If any should read these lines who have come into positions of extreme difficulty, through following the simple path of obedience, let them now look at God through difficulties, as we see the sun shorn of splendour through a fog; but let them look at difficulties through God. Let them put God between themselves and the disasters that threaten them. Let them cast the whole responsibility on him. Has He not thus brought you into difficulties, that He may have an opportunity of strengthening your faith, by giving some unexampled proof of his power? Wait only on the Lord, trust also on Him....He will provide."


Tell me that is not amazing. As I sit here and think of that, it brings me such peace. I have struggled with letting it all go and trusting that God has a plan in us moving out here with our house not sold and not selling. I have been very vocal that this is a growing time for us and that God has something planned and I just need to have that faith. And on today, a down day- when I think things can't possibly get worse, I find that passage. I felt that God had me find that today to uplift my heart and to reaffirm that he has a plan and it will take place if I am obedient to his stretching and pruning of my faith. I pray that He is blessing you beyond measure and is revealing His will for you daily. Peace, my friends.

Worship

I get daily devotional emails from the Purpose Driven Life website and I got this one a few days ago and thought I would share it. Sometimes I have to take a step back in my day and remember that in all my actions, thoughts and word I should be praising my God. I sometimes find my self not nessarily leaving God behind at the "builing" but I tend to forget that I am able to praise and worship my God in every breath I take. That is what I should be doing. I'm working on it hope you all do to!

Worship is a state of mind.

What do you think of when you think of worship? Stained glass? Choir robes? Praise choruses? Worship band? Hands lifted or knees bent? If you’re anything like me, it’s bound to have something to do with church or doing something religious.

Jesus once said that those who worship God must worship in Spirit and in truth. Now that doesn’t say anything about church or religious activity; in fact when Jesus said this, he was answering a question about the proper place to worship. There was a difference of opinion at the time about which mountain to worship God on. One group said on this mountain and another said on that. That’s when Jesus responded that the Father was looking for true worshipers who worship him in Spirit and truth and that neither mountain meant anything compared to this. In other words, it doesn’t matter where you worship, it matters how you worship.

I think sometimes we approach worship as if we have to have all the right elements working in proper order for something to capture our emotions and truly qualify as a worship experience. We need to hear the right songs, performed in a certain way by the right musical group, enhanced by great visual graphics, and presided over by a trusted worship leader. We go to a certain church because “we like the worship there.” All of this makes worship dependent on certain elements all adding up to create a familiar experience we can identify as worship.

But is worship something that happens to me or something that I make happen? Is worship a mood or a mindset? If, as Jesus said, worship is something that we do in Spirit and truth then it would seem to be something we can do any time, any where. This is, in fact, what true worship is.

I have worshiped at ball games and movies, schools and sock hops, workout gyms and restaurants, on the golf course and at the beach, in the car and in the air, while reading a novel and reading the newspaper, at work and at play.

You are worshiping right now as you read this. The fact that you signed up for these devotionals says that it’s important to you to take a few minutes to focus on God while you go over your e-mails today. But you don’t have to stop worshiping God when you click this window closed. You can just keep on going; no one’s stopping you.

You don’t need anything but your heart and soul to truly worship God. Worship is not something you go somewhere to do, it’s what you pay attention to as you do everything else.

Oops

Sorry to those of you who have been posting comments. I didn't realize when I did a certain setting that I had to go in and approve them to be on there. What can I say- I'm still learning how to do this ;). Yes.... My hubby laughed at me. I just thought no one wanted to comment! Now they are all on and I changed the setting back. So hopefully no weird people will post random things again!

Happy Birthday!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!!

"You are the best daddy in the whole world. I play basketball with daddy. he play baseball with me. He play wrestle with me and him. Daddy give me,Ian and baby Riley hugs. He love Caleb. He love Ian too. Baby Riley laugh at him. "
~Caleb

"I play basketball with daddy. I play baseball with daddy. Dear God, baseball, basketball, Amen. Love you"
~Ian

"oooohhhhh. Dadadada...(laugh)...Ahhhhhhhh."
~Riley

" I love you tons and thank God for you everyday. You make us smile and laugh. You provide for us in everyway possible. Happy Birthday!"
~The wife

More updates

Well now that I have gotten some pictures up from the last couple of months I thought I would give a little update:

Riley is crawling and starting to try to pull up. She gets on her knees and hangs on to anything with in reach to try and see over it. I don't think it will be long before she is pulling up and cruising. Her brothers will make sure of it. She thinks she can do what they do and tries really had to be "one of the boys". She crawls around after them and shrieks at them if they leave her behind. She is really interested in what I do too. She will watch me fold laundry and load the dishwasher so intently. I almost think she is taking a mental note so she can try it later.


Caleb is becoming so...big. He is so ready to start school. I hope that I can find a mothers day out program or even a pre pre-k for him to do a few days a week. It will get him around other kids and he is soaking everything up right now. He wants to know about everything- what it is, how it works, what it looks like on the inside... He is really smart for his age I think. I could just be saying it casue I am his mommy, but I really think so.


Ian is doing really good. He is talking a whole lot more and is becoming very inquisitive. He is the quiet ponderer though. He will sit and think about it more than Caleb does. He is also trying to find his own I think. It gets him into trouble some. He thins he can do what ever he wants. I know Caleb is head strong and wants things his way, but Ian just sneaks around to do it. And he does it several times to see the effect. After a few punnishings he gets the idea and drops it.


All in all we are doing good. We might try to go up and see our niece this weekend. Matts parents are coming down for Matts birthday on Friday and then taking the kids home with them till we get up there on Saturday. Then my parents are coming on Sunday to celebrate his birthday. We couldn't all meet at the same time so Matt gets several birthdays this year.

Our "New Home"

Well we have offically moved into our apartment. It is interesting to say the least. It really isn't too bad except the kids are having a hard time understanting why they can't be as loud as they want. But it is temporary and we will make the best of it.

We are in a little community called Bellevue. We have enjoyed it so far. We are still pretty close to the church we have been visiting (20 min away) and there is an awsome park here that the boys love. We have started going there early in the morning while it is semi-cool to play. In the evenings, we will sometimes go after Matt gets home from work. There is pretty much all you need here (except Target) and we are still pretty close to my parents (an hour if you take the Natchez Trace)









The boys now sleep in their bunk beds. Ian is doing well with the move from the toddler bed to the bottom bunk. Caleb thinks he is big stuff now that he is on top. We have to take the ladder out while they fall asleep and then put it in so he can get down in the morning. I have to get Ian some spiderman sheet like Caleb that way he will feel like a big kid.

Riley is still sleeping in the pack-n-play since we can't find 2 metal rods to her crib. I am sure they are someplace in my parents basement but it might take a while to find. Hopefully they made the move with us and madeit off the truck.

Where we are now, Matt is able to take the bus to work and even if he drives it is only a 15 min drive. We are really blessed to be here in a family oriented community. It reminds me a little of Maumelle, only not as green.

First attempts

There were many first attempts this last month. Riley attempted crawling (of which she is now a pro) and Mommy attempted to "fix" her hair. Now having boys you pretty much buzz their hair and then brush it after a bath and you are set to go. It is totally different with Riley. Her hair is long in the front so I have to pull it back. Actually looks cute if she will let me do it. Some days are a battle to get a clip in her hair just to do it again in a couple of hours later when she pulls it out. I am getting better at it. It would really help me out though if she would just sit still :)

A few pictures

This is the turtle that Papa found outside in the yard. We caught several more after this one. The boys LOVED having "turtle" there to watch.

We got the boys an inflateable pool and they had a blast. It took them a while to actually get in because the water was pretty cold. Papa finally got in with them and then they started playing and sitting in the water. That pool was a life saver when the temps got real high and they wanted to play outside. I think Iam going to try and get them into swimming lessons next year. They seem to love the water.

Riley had a blast in her pool too. She tipped over a few times and got a face full of water but none the less had a blast. She was too cute in her two piece. Luckily for her she was in the water while her daddy was at work or I am sure she would have had a shirt on for modesty! :) She is a big time water baby- loves baths pools or anywhere she can get in the wather

Kaitlyn Grace Stewart

Scott, Heather and Miss Kaitlyn

DSL here we come! :)

Well the time has come for us to leave the comfort of my parents house and move into the city. We have decided to get an apartment in the Bellevue area. This allows Matt to ride the bus to and frorm work and gets us closer so we can meet new people and find a church home. I am really excited. We got an awsome deal. It is a 3 bedroom, on the ground floor and we got some good Vandy discounts. It will be nice to have a place to call home for a little while. We hope it is only temporary but I plan to make it a home for the boys till we find a house. We should be moved in by next weekend....so we are open to guests! I will get pictures of the apartment posted after we get moved in along with the others that I can't get on here with Dads computer. We truly feel that this apartment find is a blessing from God after much prayer.

The new baby...

For those of you who know our reputation... this is not about us :) Matt and I are now the proud owners of a.... NEICE! Yes that is right- a neice. Scott and Heather had their beautiful baby girl this morning- Kaitlyn Grace Stewart weighed in at 6 lbs 6 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. Heather did good through the c-section and everything seems to be going smoothly. We have yet to see her but hope to make a trip up after they are home from the hospital and settled in. We have to let Kaitlyn get some resistance before we let the kids get their germs around her. Praise God that she was healthy and everything went smoothly.

Visiting

Well...we have visited Otter Creek Church the last two Sundays. Last week we visited only the worship service since the boys were in KY with their grandparents and we got a late start on the drive. This week we took the kids to see how they liked the classes. It was very nice and the kids had a blast. Once you drop your kids off in their prospective classes you don't have to pick them up till the end of worship. They have a childrens worship for ages 3 and up and the 2's and down have nursery. So for once Matt and I got to enjoy a sermon with out distractions. They started a series on what they believe and who they are, which is nice in helping us to decide if we would like to attend there. Today, they spoke on membership- what it means to be a member. One thing that he said that stuck out to me is that "God places you in a specific church to use your specific talents for a specific purpose. There is something odd about "church hopping"- to find the place that fits YOU the best rather than finding the church were GOD finds you fit best. God has led our family here and I know that he has a specific place for us to be. Rather than "hopping" around and finding a place that makes us happy and "feel good"- we will find a place that we know gives God joy.

We are also doing some apartment hunting. I have already located one that is a 3 bedroom, in our price range and will be available in mid August. But it is not in the "best neighborhood" so I am on the scour again to find a home till our place sells. Please pray that we will find a place in a decent neighborhood for a good price. We are looking foward to finding our own place again. Thanks to all of you who are praying for our family. We appreciate them more than you know. We miss all of you and pray for you daily- God Bless..

Houston- we have lift off!

Crawling...yes the big news is crawling. Riley has begun to move. And boy is she happy about it. Last night Matt and I were watching the Softball World Cup (in which the USA beat Japan 5 to 1 in case you were wondering- Cat pitched a great game and the defence was amazing with only one blunder) and Riley started moving. She had been doing a kind of bear shuffle before but has it all figured out now. She gets so excited that she tries to go to fast and promptly hits the carpet. But at least she can try to keep up with her brothers now. All 3 on the go.....hmmmmm! :)

Learning

Ever sense we have moved I have struggled with trying to find a time through out the day to get in some excercise and study time. While in AR I usually got up early and got excercise in before the kids woke up and my adopted kids got to the house. Then while they were all napping I cleaned and then had my Bible study time. Well now that we are living in limbo, Riley wakes up at 0 dark thirty and the boys are not far behind her. They also never nap at the same time if they choose to nap at all. Needless to say I have gotten slack about it all. I recently decided to start a study by Beth Moore entitled "The Patriarchs". I am so excited about it, but I have yet to find the time when I can do it. The lessons that you listen to are at least and hour long and then you have a ton of homework. Hopefully once we get moved I can get that started. Since I have not been able to start that, I have begun reading a book by Nancy Leigh DeMoss (author of "Lies Women Believe and the Truth that Sets them Free") entitled "Holiness". Even though I only gets snipets in here and there it has changed the way that I percieve things and how I think about them. I can feel a change begining inward that I am excited about. I have always wanted to become Holy as we have been called to be. I just didn't take the time or I thought I was already on track in areas. I have really , truly begun to transform inside. Not only has it helped my spiritual walk but it also has helped with keeping my sanity in all things and I think has made me become a better wife (you'll have to ask Matt on that one!) and mother. I feel a closeness with God that I haven't felt before for such a long time. It makes me want to do more, learn more and study more. It also has made me sit down and make a plan for exercising and eating healthy. I can feel and see God in all the aspects of my life now and I know the ares of my temptations (some foods, certain shows on tv, ect) and am learning how to get rid of them. Please pray that I continue to grow and to hold tight to the path that God has placed me on. I know that through all the things going on now that he has a plan and is gently leading me in the direction he wants me to go.

Errors

Please excuse the spelling mistakes in the previous post. There is a pop-up blocker on the computer and I cannot get it to let me allow them. So when Matt gets home he can figure out the program and then I will fix them. My brain thinks faster than my fingers can type!

???

Well we had an open house on our house in AR this past Sunday. It was a terenchal downpour so only 2 couples showed up. It has been a very discouraging process and yet I have felt peaceful about it all. These last few weeks have been a range of emotions that are sometimes in-describeable. It has been a strong period of growth for me and for Matt as we have moved, begun a new job, driven everywhere, and visited a new church. I know that God has a plan and if we are patient, and yet productive, that he will bring it before us.

We have several options that we are considering for the house. We are not sure if we will stay with our agent or if we will try to do by owner. We might also try to rent it out for a while till the market is better. But then that brings a whole slew of other issues. We are just in prayerful contemplation on what we need to do. We have decided that we are going to move into the city, though. I want to get the kids plugged into a church and get them around more kids their age. That way we can begin to make friends and feel more comfortable. I am currently looking at houses and apartments for rent in the surrounding areas. It is a fun and tiring experience. Especially when you don't know the areas too well. But the kids have had fun with me.

It has also been a growing time with my parents. Although ithas been difficult at times to live with them, the kids have gotten to know them better and I believe now have a relationship with them. There is a completely different experience when you move in with them. We have all grown and come to a higher level of understanding with each other.

On news with the kids:

Riely has been on her knees for a little while now. She has figured that she can go from the keeling position to the sitting position. I know crawling is around the corner. I am excited and yet a little sad. Knowing that this is the last time I will truly experience this. But God has truly blessed us beyond measure with our baby girl and I am pleased to have the opportunity to raise her in ther love of her heavenly father. She has a new carseat that I am going to install today. She kept wanting to sit up and look around. The infant carrier was jus tnot working. I will post a picture of her in it later.

Caleb is as crazy as ever. He has had the hardest time transitioning. He misses playing with kids his age and looks for them anywhere he is. We were in Wendys eating lunch yesterday and he was talking to a kid a little older than him. He was enjoying himself so much that when the kids had to leave Caleb almost started crying. It was in that moment that I decided we were moving into town to help him find friends at a church. He has had so much fun here though. He loves playing baseball, football or basketball with us in the evenings. He likes to walk down by the woods and listen for animals. He is getting a little more head strong but other than that he is doing well.

Ian has been growing so much. He is talking real good now and as always does what ever Caleb does. He has enjoyed plaing outside in the woods. I have gotten to spend a lot of time with him working on letters and numbers. We still choose to say every color is green but everynow and then will decide to name them correctly. If he gets in trouble then he gives you this grin that squishes his eyes and cheeks together to try and get out of it. Luckily for us it never does. But it does make you laugh when you eave the room.

I have started having "School" everyday. We do a lesson and devotional in the morning. Then we do a craft activity. They seem to like it and show off their work when Daddy and Papa get home. In the evening we have a reading marathon and the kids love that. We see how many books we can read in the half hour before bed time.

Well That is all for now. I will do better at updating and such. Look for pictures in the naxt day or 2...they will be there. ;)

Up and Comming Pictures

Ok....for those of you who are going crazy for pictures (ahem...MARTI) they will be here by tomorrow evening. I have to transfer them from our computer to dads and then upload them on dial-up. There will only be a few but I hope to get more up later. Sorry for the long delay!

Happenings

Sorry it has been so long since my last post. It's not like there is a ton going on but I just haven't taken the time to write it down. We are all doing pretty good. We have "settled" in about as much as we are going to for now. We have adjusted fairly well. I had one small break down the other evening. It hit me that night that I didn't have any friends here and since we are not in a perminent place I will not really get the chance to make friends any time soon. But after Matt and I talked I felt better. I know this was the right decision for us and I also know that it would be difficult at first. I am doing much better and just keep focused on the positives and get out as much as I can.

This past weekend we celebrated Ian's birthday with the family. We all met at the Nashville Zoo and had a great time. We have a membership here so we will be going quiet often. It is really neat they way they have it set up. The areas are set up like the natural habitat and you get real close to the animals. There is a ton of room that they will be building things in over the next 5 years. I am excited to go back. After the zoo we took Matts' family over to Vandy to let them see the campus and where he worked. Then it was off to Oprey Mills for the Rainforest Cafe. It was fun and the kids loved it. Riley could have cared less about it, but the boys were running around looking at all the animals there. Caleb was not to fond of the Hippo at the entrance of the restraunt. He was fine tilll it started grunting and moving. It freaked him out a little. After we got home he was asking to go back and touch it. :)

Papa found another turtle for the boys. We named this one Stumpy since it only had 3 legs. He was still a baby so we are unsure if he was born that way or was hurt. The boys had fun watching him and trying to get him to eat. But in the end the boys asked to let him go. I think once we get a house we are going to get the boys a turtle. They seem to like them so much.

Riley now has a tooth! Her first one broke through yesterday . It is the bottom right if you are looking at her. She is growing so fast. She has been trying to get on her knees and if there is somting behind her she is successful. Other wise she assumes the push-up position. She has gotten real good at going in reverse. We find her under the ottoman and the table all the time. And I must say- Riley is definatly a Daddys girl! She will follow him with her eyes everywhere he goes. She screaches for him to look at her and then smiles when he does.

This weekend we are heading up to KY for a visit with the fam. Since it is a long weekend it is the perfect opportunity to visit. Heather is such a cute prego woman. She is all belly of course. I can't wait to see that precious baby! Hopefully she will arrive around the end of July.

Well I hope to get some pictures up of the kids soon. I have not been able to find the cord for the camera so I can't download them- But I hope to find it this week and then I will get some up there for you to see. Please continue to pray for our house to sell. We appreciate all the prayers lifted up already! God Bless my friends!

Decision Time

Well we found out that we have the apartment if we want it. Matt and I have been discussing what we want to do. As much as we want to move into town and into a place for us, we think the better deal financially is to stay with the parents for a little longer. Having a house and utilities in LR and then having a place with utilities here would put a heavy cramp in our budget. So we will just mooch a little while longer. Hopefully our home will sell soon and then be able to find a place here.

Caleb and Ian went to Bible class on Sunday and Ian did great. Caleb had a hard time and was sad that he wasn't at his class. But after they started he did great. Answered all the questions correctly and had a great time.

I am hoping that we can celebrate Ians birthday at the Nashville Zoo next weekend. I am going to contact all the family and see if that will work for everyone. Guess it is better late than never and then the KY grandparents will get to see the kids at least for a little while.

Hooray!

We are anxiously awaiting a phone call that will tell us if we have an apartment or not. We found one that will fit our large family and is in a decent price range. It is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath apartment. They have just replaced the carpet, countertops and apliances. Hopefully it will all work out and we can begin moving in this week. Please pray that this will go through. It would be nice for Matt not to have to drive 1 1/2 hours to work (one way). It is close to the zoo, stores and groceries (we would have the pick of 8 with in 4 blocks!). The kids are doing great. Ian is talking so well. He speaks mainly in complete sentences. Caleb is quite the mother hen around here (even to the animals). Riley is sitting up real well and has been pushing up on her hands and knees. She is able to scoot backwards now- it won't be too soon before she is crawling around after her brothers.

Congrats to the Albright Family on the birth of Asher Jonathan Albright. He weighed in a little over 7 lbs. A beautiful baby boy to complement his georgous sister! Also congrats are instore to the McCrea family. Ryan and Regina moved away from us a few years back to minister (and do lawyer stuff) to the north west. They have welcomed Kerensa Lynn into their lives. She weighed in at almost 7 1/2 lbs. We are now waiting for Michelle to burst and then a few others (Allison, Laura and Joy) who need to wait a little longer before they burst. Our prayers are with the new mammas and the ones still waiting to meet their bundles of happiness!

Have a wonderful evening!

Apartment Hunting

Well we went apartment hunting this weekend. We saw a ton of places and really only found 2 that could work. I am going to look at a few more this week and then tell Matt which ones Ilike and he will check them out during his lunch. It is hard going from a house to an apartment. But then also trying to find one that fits in our budget till we sell the house. We had looked in Bellevue and now are going to look in the Brentwood area and a little southeast of there. I am hoping to try and find one soon. We are currently trying to figure out which is the lesser of 2 evils (driving 3 hours in a day/ paying a ton in gas or adding to our monthly expences with an apartment). We shall see what transpires. Thanks to everyone who is praying for a sell on the house. I know it will happen in time. I am having a hard time letting God be in control right now and just trusting that he will allow things to work smoothly. Well gotta run. Will try to update more later. God Bless!

Life in TN

Well we made it in. We got to my parents about 8:30-9 pm on Saturday. The kids did real well and so did I. We stayed at the Welches home on Friday night. The kids were excited that they were staying at Emmas house. Their first co-ed sleep over......no Emma was not in the same room but it counts right?? They got up really early on Saturday so we went and finished cleaning the house. Then we headed back to Martis house to say goodbye. I think that was one of the headest things I have done so far. I made it through it all and had to struggle not to loose it on the drive here. So far the kids think we are on vacation. They don't quite comprehend that Daddy goes to work everyday and he usually dosen't do that while we are on vacation. Matt and I are going to look for apartments this weekend. It is too much of a long drive to get to work everyday from here so we will see what we find.
It has been nice to stay with my parents. They hardly ever get to see the grandkids so they have enjoyed it. Papa found a turtle the other day and the kids had so much fun watching him. The boys named him Ladybug at first and then decided to stick with Turtle the turtle. We let him go the other night and the boys look for him everytime we are outside. I got some pictures but I haven't gotten them up on here. It would take a really long time on Dial up. Yes we are WAY out in the country! :) So as soon as we get DSL I will get them up for you. Grama took the kids on a wagon ride adventure this morning. My parents yard is on a slope and pretty bumpy- but she hauled the wagon around the house and down the gravel driveway. I am not sure that I have seen the boys laugh so much and have a ton of fun on a wagon ride. Of course they have never had one on such a rough road. They loved it and begged to go again. Mom and I took turns since it was a great work out.
Matt likes his job so far. They are finishing up a project this week so there isn't much for him to really do till next week. But he seems to be happy. I will let youknow more as he gets into it. There are so many wonderful benifits to working there that we are truly blessed to have found this job.
Well that is about it on the Clements homefront for now. I will try and update again soon. Miss all y'all!

Moving Day

Well the day has finally come for all our belongings to be packed up and placed in a truck. They arrived about 7:30ish and will start loading soon. Then all we have to do is paint, pull up carpet, pack our cars and go. It will probably be a while beofer there is a new update. God Bless!

Graduation Day

*Lawson (Rod Stewart style) and Caleb*

*Ms. Nancy, Caleb and Ms. Christy*

*If your happy and you know it*

*receiving his diploma and Bible from Ms. Nancy*

*Eating (Caleb, Zane, Lawson, Brett)*

*Levy 2 Year Old Bible Class-2006*


This evening Caleb had his graduation party at church. They have a small ceremony for those coming out of the nursery department to the preschool department. It was a lot of fun. They had a cookie cake, juice and snacks. Then they had a slide show of pictures ranging from the cradle Roll class to the 2 year old class. After the slide show we were entertained by their singing. They sang: Jesus Loves Me, Jesus Loves the Little Children, If Your Happy and You Know It, and Roll the Gospel Chariot. They did a great job. Then Ms. Nancy handed out their Bibles and Diplomas. The parents got a wonderful treat- a picture book filled with all the photos taken while they were in class. We have a collection of Caleb from a few weeks old through now. Most of Calebs' photos are of him and Claire or Lawson. Unfortunately Claire wasn't there tonight. She wasn't feeling to good but we are going to play with the Noels on Friday for one last playdate till they come through Nashville. The teachers at Levy are so dedicated to teaching the kids about God. They have helped us so much in teaching our children and they will all be missed.

A fond farewell

Today we said goodbye to our friends. Cauy and Hadyn had their last day today and we had a load of fun. We watched Chicken Little and played games. I got some Hadyn snuggle time in this morning. She crawled up in my lap and settled in and said I love you. Talk about making me bawl!! Cauy was running around with the boys and they played hard as usual. They will be missed so much. At least in the fall Cauy and Hadyn will be at the same preschool. Love and hugs to you guys! We will miss you.

Bath for 2....what about the 3rd?

What does Riley do when I give the boys a bath? She sits in her bath chair on the floor beside the bath tub and plays with her daddys hat- of course! She had so much fun watching the boys and playing with the hat on her head. They splashed their animals at her and danced in the tub (sitting on bottoms-quite interesting to watch). Anything involving her brothers is fun to her!

Ian's first 2nd Birthday party

Last night at the farewell party we celebrated Ians second birthday with all his friends. It was nice to be able to do that before we move. After we get to Nashville we will have another party with family at the Nashville Zoo. And just in case you can't see it there is a baseball glove with a baseball cake on the table.

Good Bye Party

We had a "Good Bye" Party last night at the Bewley's home. It was real nice to get to see and talk with our friends. Caleb and Ian got to play with their classmates from church. It was a good time had by all. I didn't get any of the outside festivities but the kids did some swinging, some wagon riding and some tennis ball throwin'. After the adults were tired of pulling the wagon around Lawson and Caleb pulled the kids around. Meme (Emilyn in Ian speak) tried to pull the boys but I think they were a little to heavy for her. We truly appreciate the friendships that we have here. I know the boys will miss their friends immensely and Matt and I will as well. It has been a great 5 years here. Thanks for all the memories!

Sitting up

Riley has been sitting up real well the last few days. She can sit up for at least 5 min at a time. It make her happy because she can now sit on the floor while her brothers play and still feel included in on the fun.

Then and Now

Our sweet baby boy turned two today. I guess that means he can't be my baby any more. He went to the dr today and is in the 50% on height and weight and the 98% on his head. Big head means really smart! :) From being a tiny baby to the toddler that he is today- God is so amazing! Lift a prayer up for Ian today- for a healthy life, to grow in God's wonder and to love unconditionally as he does now. We love you sweet boy!

Family Reunion

This past weekend we had the chance to head to my parents house for a quick family reunion. My cousin Jeremy was graduating from High School and all of my moms family was there. It was so nice to get to see everyone. We hadn't seen my Aunt and Uncle from FL since Matt and I got married and they had never seen the kids. We all had a great time and plan to get together more often. It will be easier when we are actually living in Nashville. The boys put on a show and everyone played with them. They loved all the attention. Riley didn't get spoiled at all! ;) We all got together the day after graduation at my Uncle Gerry and Aunt Candys house and ate ham, wild turkey (which Matt will start hunting soon) and a ton of other food. The boys got a ride on the 4 wheeler and played baseball with pine cones and sticks (Country baseball!). They really wanted to play football with Jeremy and his friends. The guys actually played with them for a while then had their own game. We were all wore out after that whirlwind weekend but it was worth every ounce of sleepiness! Look for pictures coming soon!

Riley update

Well baby girl had her apt last week and she is growing steadily. She now weighs in at a whopping 14 lbs 13 oz (only 8 oz heavier than Garrett who is 2 months) and is in the 35%tile in weight and 30%tile in height. She is sitting up real well now and loves to play with her toys and watch her brothers run around her. We are on meats now. She LOVES to eat. We don't think it will be too long till she is trying to crawl. She pushes up on her hands and has made it onto her knees a few times. I know she is wanting to chase after her brothers. Her brother absolutely adore her and love to talk to her. Caleb gets this really high voice when he talks to her and Both Ian and Caleb get right in her face to make her smile. She is constantly watching them and laughing at them.

What is in a Name??

Caleb has recently begun calling me Marie. It started a few weeks ago when he was up stairs and needed something. Instead of calling Mommy he yelled down "Marie.... Marie......Marie I need help". Needless to say he got ignored till I heard Mommy. I then pretended to not have heard him untill he said Mommy. Caleb then appologized and said I know your mommy "but you have to listen Marie" He has only done it a few times since. But every now and then he sounds just like Matt when he says my name. Luckily Ian has not caught on.

Have to watch this!!!

Ok just got this off of Karole Anns' blog site. It made me laugh- Ahh the memories! :)




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMH0bHeiRNg

2 down, 1 to go

Riley has offically eaten all her fruits and veggies. She is not a huge fan of pears or peaches. But she likes all the others. So maybe we will start meats before we move. The boys are doing great. I think they are excited about moving. They don't understand that they won't be able to go to Emmas house or to Claire and "memes" house, though. I think that will be the hardest transition. But they are young and should end up ok. If not then I guess we have a ton of therapy on our hands! ;)

Mothers Day

Today was a wonderful Mothers Day. I am probably the only woman in the world that was really excited to get exercise equipment on Moms day! ;) But I am so excited. I can finally start working out to loose all the baby weight. I am so happy. Hopefully it won't wake Matt up in the morning. But he will get use to it- He'll have to!

Today CAC had their graduation. The kids and I didn't make it to the actual ceremony but we went to Mandy's party. It is hard to believe that she is now a high school graduate. I am sad that we will not be here to watch her go through college and eventually get married. But I hope that we will still get to see her and talk to her through out her life. The boys LOVE her! In church this morning Caleb saw a girl with blonde hair and said "there is Mandy. I want to see her. I want to give her a hug". We told him that wasn't her and he was not too pleased. At her party Riley showed her exactly how much she loved Mandy- she snuggled, she cooed, she puked on her. Thats right- Nailed Mandy almost in her mouth and down the front. If Mandy hadn't closed her mouth in time there would have been other issues. Needless to say that made everyone laugh (even Mandy had a great sense of humor). Mandy's brother Matt, her Uncle Jeff and her brother-in-law Scott played with the boys and they had a ton of fun! We are really proud of Mandy and the woman that she is.

Well I am off to bed. Have to get up early to test out the new machine!

Happy Day

Happy Mothers Day!!

Happy Birthday!

To the BEST teenager/ babysitter in the central AR area (and possibly the world):



Happy 18th Birthday Mandy!!!



We Love you!

Matt, Marie, Caleb, Ian and Riley

Aahhh....sleep

How wonderful is it to have a baby that sleeps through the night??? We have been blessed immensely- Riley has begun sleeping through the night. :) I know sounds funny to be so excited, but when you usually get chunks of sleep in 2-3 hour increments you are so excited to get more than that! Although I can tell my body is having to adjust. I have been waking up tired but soon I will be back to "normal". The boys wake up occasionally (like when they think the creaking of the ceiling fan is a monster) but you really don't have to fully wake up to get them back in bed.

We will be heading to TN next weekend. My cousin is graduation HS and we are going to check out some areas and homes close to Vandy. It will be nice. My Aunt and Uncle from FL will be up and they will FINALLY get to meet my kids. Caleb is 3 and they have yet to meet him. Its sad- I know. There are lots of my family who have yet to meet the kids. We are all so spread out that when you only ever go to 2 states that doesn't leave much room to go to others. Not that only going to see the Grandparents is a bad thing, but one day they will get to meet them.

The boys and I made chocolate chip cookies on Tuesday. It was a ton of fun. Slightly messy but they had a blast! I think we will make another batch today. We have shared them with our friends so the boys want to make more. I will try to get some pictures of the baking boys soon. Love to all-

Moving Date Set

Well we finally have a date for the move. Matt will offically start on June 5th. So we will be moving out probably the thursday or friday before. I think we will have a moving company come and box things up and move them for us since the company pays for it. Then we will live in temp. housing for a little while if our home has not sold yet. It might be tight but we will make it. So we might be moving on my birthday, but that is ok. After you hit a certain age they really tend not to be a big deal anymore. I'll just make us eat at a really nice restraunt on our way there! :)

Open House

Well we had our first (and hopefully only ) Open House yesterday. They are just so hard when you have more than one kid. Matt stayed home from church to get the "little things" done and I took the kiddos to church. It was senior Sunday and I wanted to be there to see all the seniors get their Bible. Caleb saw Mandy up there and really, I mean REALLY wanted to get down and go see her. He wanted to give her a hug and tell her he loved her!! How sweet was that! Almost made me cry. Then came the slide show. I must admit- I get slightly teary-eyed at them. It is just so neat to see them when they were little kids (age of mine) and then to see them grow. I had planned on going to the lunch after church but decided I wasn't going to since Ian was crying for daddy.

We went home changed and got Matt. We then had a grand total of 4 1/2 hours to burn outside the home. :) We did what any other parents of 3 would do- Went to Chuck E. Cheese. It was nice. Not crowded and the kids had fun and ate! Ian was a little freaked out when Chuckie came running out around the corner. He bolted into Matt's arms. But he warmed up to him later and gave him a high five. Caleb was a dancing man- he boogied to the music with Chuckie. After our adventure there we went to the Soccer fields to let the kids sleep in the car. That never happened- once I turned the car off Caleb woke up and was ready to play. Then came Ian and Riley. But we had a ton of fun running around the fields. A little girl asked the boys to play soccer with her. They were so cute on the field. I know Soccer players are not supposed to be cute- but they were. They played their hearts out.

Once we finally got home we found that we actually had several couples attend and that there were 2 really interested. We are hoping that one of those couples if not both will make us an offer. I don't see us moving before the end of the month, but anything is possible. Caleb's Bible teacher asked us to be here for the 2 year graduation the last Wed in May, so we plan to stay here for that. Apparently they do a little ceremony and move them up to the 3 year old class. We found out there are several boys that ask for Caleb in there. So there are boys for him to play with there. We just need to figure out who they are! :)

Well I hope everyone has a wonderful day. Please continue to pray that our home sells quickly and that we are able to as one family and not be spread out between here and Nashville.

Trying Hard

Riley is trying to sit up. She does the whole tummy to the floor sitting right now. But we are getting better. If we can get her feet in the right position and get her arms proped up right them she can sit like that for about 5 min. Then we tumble to the floor. She is getting to be such a big girl.

1 little peoples singing bus

2 Spiderman art tables

2 young boys with imaginations and loads of laughter


Pricelss.....

Change

Well it has been said that Change is a good thing- In this case it is. After prayerful consideration and thought we have decided to move our family to Nashville, TN. Matt has taken a job with Vanderbilt University. Although this job will lead us away from our many friends it brings us closer to family and undicsovered friendships. We are truly looking foward to what God has in store for us. I believe that this opportunity has opened doors for us. With Matt working at Vanderbilt, I will be able to return to school and get my masters and the kids could attend there at a discounted price (always a good thing). There are many churches there that will allow us the opportunity to worship and be involved in many areas. It will be hard to leave the friends we have made at Levy. Many thanks to the cradle roll and toddler teachers for teaching our children to hold and share the love of God and for loving them so much.

We will not be leaving for a little while but will be busy in the process of getting ready. Please pray that our home will sell quickly and that the transition will go well for our family.

Growing

Riley has been testing out her jumper. I know once she figures out how to jump in it she will be off.












Caleb is growing so fast. He is very smart and loves to learn. He sings all the time and is such a good big brother.















Ian is getting to be such a big kid. He copies his brother in everything. He is talking very well and learns new things everyday.






Matt and I are so proud of our kids. We know they are not perfect but they try real hard to please us and be good. They get excited to go to Bible class and always want to go. We are so happy to have the wonderful teachers at Levy that we do. They have taught our children so much about God and we thank them for it!

Tuckered Out

All four of my sweet hearts were tired after the Levy Church Garage Sale last weekend. Matt was a wonderful hubby and got up at 5:30 to take our stuff over and help set up. After the kids woke up we went over to help out. We had a TON of stuff there and a lot of people stopped by. There were several famlies that brought stuff to sell and then many famlies at the church donated stuff to sell. All the procedes from items donated went to the Haiti mission fund. It will help people get down there to teach others about God and to help with their schooling. The boys had a hay day with all the toys there. We bought the kids some dinosaurs and a power ranger toy (car and guy). Then Ted gave us some of his "boy"toys. So the kids are all set! Matt took all the kids home after lunch for a nap while I stayed and helped man the stations a little longer. When I got home I found my hubby and sweet girl asleep on the recliner. She was so cute in her Daddys arms! We were all worn out from that day and I was a little red! :) Not being in FL for 9 years makes your skin lighter so I don't tan as quickly. I turned red but I still haven't peeled so I don't think I will. (YEAH!!!) All in all we raised about 1500 for the Haiti mission work. We made out pretty well ourselves.

Yum!

Well Riley offically loves carrots and squash. She keeps up with her brothers reputation in the eating department. So I might have 3 eating me out of house and home when they are teenagers. :) But she would eat till she popped if I let her. I have to stop her so that she will still drink some formula. But she loves that she gets to eat meals with us know. Caleb watches hereat and tells her to "chew and don't spit your food out". She just laughs at hime and continues to "buzz" her food out. She is growing quite a bit. She is starting to get a little chunky in the belly and legs but she is still small. Crazy to think she will be six months in May.

The boys are dong wonderful. Matt and I have determined that we have some jocks on our hands (the sweet and nice kind!). Everything is a sport. They are into baseball, basketball and soccer. We went to the park at the soccer feilds the other day and the boys were ready to run out there and play. So next year I think we will get them in t-ball. They also love dinosaurs. Basically they are true boys. They are a ton of fun and keep me on my toes. This morning we were in their room playing and Caleb said " Want to be a boy mommy? We have a lot of fun!". And that they do.

Prayers

There are so many things that I am thankful for: Great friends, extended family (mine and my hubbys) and my husband and kids. Life is so much easier when you have these things. Danny Sullivan taught the class last night and he was discussing prayer. I really enjoyed listening to him and it really got me thinking about it. I prayed the same way for my entire life up till about 6 years ago. Laura Bull and I were praying together and I realized at that moment exactly what the purpose of prayer was. Now some of you are going to say "Duh- you're just now figuring that out", but it was an eye opener for me. I realized that you don't have to have structure, you can say what ever you want. You can praise God for everything and anything that is in your heart and mind. It is great to praise Him. You can also "ask" for things, but the main reason of prayer is to praise Him- to know Him- to communicate with Him and to form a relationship with Him. Now I will be honest- I don't pray as often as I think I should. The business of the day gets to me and I loose track of time. There are lots of things I don't get to in my day, but that is one thing I HAVE to get to. I have to make the time. I have to set time aside to do this. So I am learning and growing every day. Slowly but surely I will get there.

Anyway, just pray for our family as we search out God's will for us. And that we will listen to it when we hear it.

Rice Cereal

Well Riley is officially on solids. SHe is doing real good at eating the cereal. I knew she would be. I had started her on some before we went on vacation and then decided to wait till after vaation to really start it. It would have been to difficult to do it on vacation. But she eats every meal with us and she likes it think so I think I wil be starting her on veggies with in the next 2 weeks!

Hoppy Easter

Easter was fun for all of us. The Easter Bunny came early for our kids. He came to our home on Saturday after dinner this year. Since Matt and I teach on Sunday mornings we wanted to make sure that we made it there on time. So they got their treats early. Then on Sunday they got to do an Easter Egg hunt during Bible Hour. It was fun. We got to head out first for the 3 and under group. They could each get 5 eggs and then the older kids would start their hunt. Matt and Caleb did good and racked up the goods. Ian saw so many eggs he wasn't sure where to start. He got his 5 and kept looking for a baseball egg. Then after the big kids came out he found a bunch of empty eggs and was so escited to get them. At least he doesn't care about the inside stuff yet! Needless to say we are in the "Candy Moderator" mode. Every 2 seconds I hear "Can I have some Candy?....I reeeaaally want some candy". Pretty cute. But we don't need some hyped up kids- they are that way on their own already. Hope everyone had a great Easter!

Pictures

Beautiful kids aren't they??

Home....

Well we are finally home from the travels. It was really nice to see everyone and yet it is nice to be home too. The boys were excited to be home and in their own beds. And they were absolutly elated when their freinds showed up on Monday morning! They all traveled good. Riley had the most difficult time. She is not use to being in the car seat for more than 2 hours. Caleb wanted to get out about half way to Kentucky. But all in all the trip went well. We got to see Heathers tummy and she is a beautiful prego woman. We spent time with the family and enjoyed attending the Southeast Christian worship sevice. It was pretty neat. They have a worship team and a band. It really was not that distracting but if you don't listen to the contempary artists you might not know the songs. They had the words so you cold catch on. Matt and I both enjoyed the preacher and his message. The boys loved class (durring worship). They were worried when it took us longer than 2 min to pick them up after the bell. They thought I forgot them and Ian was crying. But when you sit up in a balcony that takes 2 flights of stairs to get down it takes you a while! :) Anyway it was a really neat experience.
After our time in Kentucky we headed to Tennessee to visit the other half of the family. Dad and Matt spent ample time with the guns and the kids had fun with us ladies. The only not so fun time was when we lost power when all the storms went through TN. My parents live south of Nashville so they were not hit but a small tornado went down the hwy that their power runs from so we were with out power for a while. And trying to handle 3 kids when they can't understand why things don't work at the moment was interesting! But it came back on we never got so much as a little wind and a few rain drops (thank goodness!)
Matts new truck ran well for us! We are glad to have it. It make sence for us to have one since Matt will be hunting and I really don't want a dead dear in the back of the van!! :) Let me suggest that if you get a truck and you have kids- get the crew cab! There is plenty of room!

Sorry no pictures from the vacation. We left in a hurry and I forgot it.