The first week of school...

Anna is a first grader and loving it!  She is so excited to be able to have computer class and pick out books from the big book shelves at the school library, which as a Kindergartener she didn't get to do.  The whole school is doing a rewards program for good behavior.  The students can receive yellow (golden) or green tickets for good behavior like being safe, respectful, and responsible.  Every Friday throughout the year, students will be picked to get rewards like sitting on the stage to eat lunch and having their picture posted on the school television system.  Anna has been so excited about the rewards program and everyday she comes home to tell us how many tickets she earned.  One day during the first week of school she earned 5 tickets!  It was a special blessing that she got picked the first Friday to eat lunch on the stage.  She was so happy!

Over this past summer, for one of our family nights we watched the original movie of "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory."  They were mesmerized by the whole idea of the "golden ticket."  Which has been a real treat for Anna since she considers the yellow tickets to be golden.

Ever since the summer Olympics, Anna has been fervently practicing cartwheels and handstands.  She has mastered cartwheels and can do 3 in a row.  As for handstands, her goal is to be able to hold her feet up and walk.  She loves listening, dancing, and singing to worship music, writing and drawing on her dry erase board, and having playdates.

For Micaiah, he has been enjoying more Mama time during the days.  He likes having me all to himself, but I think more importantly he doesn't have to share his toys.  We are doing Teaching Time at home, in which there are good days and bad moments here and there.  We do up to an hour and a half of reading, singing, rhyming, mazes, puzzles, painting, letter/phonic workbooks, and preschool skills/activities two or three times a week.  His level of attention span is getting longer and more focused so that is a good indicator.  He loves Bible Time, painting, playing with his Polar Express train set, playdough, and playing soccer.  And most recently he has started telling knock-knock jokes!  He says some of the funniest things -- he calls restaurants "eating rooms".

The school year is off to a great start!

Celebrating our 7th Anniversary

Many things have changed over the past seven years of marriage.  There's been the miracle of having and raising our kids, which has been the most influential part of our maturing, I think.  As a wife, it is the ongoing thought of how to continually be the helper to my husband that Christ is wanting me to be.  At times I know Brian has doubted the path in which God has had us on.  Even I didn't want to always accept where we were at.  Yet it is through hardship, through failure, through uncertainty that we have relied on trusting Jesus as our Lord.  And in this we are finding that the path is not always smooth or straight.  Sometimes it may even feel like walking on quick sand.  Yet through it all, we are trying to keep our eyes on Jesus...and clinging to His outreached hand that seems to pull us up out of the pit every time, without fail.  We have learned the preciousness of togetherness, of prioritizing our days, and embracing the moment. Though we are running the race as individual racers, being married has expanded my view of this journey.
Your support and encouragement has given me
 the endurance to embrace the moments that have brought us
deeper revelation and understanding of God's design for our life together.
Brian, it has given me great pleasure to know you as my best friend and husband.
It is even more of a blessing to me to see you as a proud and loving father.  

May our journey continue to give all the glory to God! 

Happy 7th Anniversary!!!

(and to many more)

Despite being in the midst of moving, you treated me to a day at Hollyday Aesthetics spa.

I got to have a manicure, pedicure, facial, and sugar scrub massage.

I honestly can't remember the last time I sat that long during the day.

We enjoyed a date night in Waldo where we ate at Remedy.

The food was really good and we got to watch the opening ceremony of 

the summer Olympics in London.

Then we went to the movies to see the new Batman movie: The Dark Knight Rises.

The theater we went to had comfy, recliner seats...the kind with the feet rests.

We had fun playing with the buttons.

Thank you Brian.

The whole day was a special blessing!!!

Summer 2012 Milestones

This summer has been very productive and fun. 

Both Anna and Micaiah have excelled in swimming.

Anna has improved her strokes and kicks and is learning to do tricks off the diving board.

She is so brave jumping off the high diving board.

 

And its just amazing that Micaiah is swimming.

He sometimes wears his "muscles" but he really likes to put on his goggles and just swim on his own.

I think he could be an Olympic swimmer if he keeps it up!

Anna and Micaiah are also riding bikes, but the weather has just been 

too hot that we haven't been doing that much.

This summer Anna had the nickname "Toothless" because

she lost all her front teeth all at once.

Anna really enjoys drawing and coloring.

She drew her first family portrait.

Notice she wrote the ages above each person.

She even included Hosanna.

And Papa is the one with the big bumps on his arms.

 

Outdoor FUN!

We've been out and about spending most of our time lately outdoors.

Mostly bike riding with some playground and sandbox time.

It has been pretty hot here and the humidity is starting to kick in so soon it will be pool time!

The past two weeks have been filled with milestones for Anna.

She learned how to ride her bike without training wheels!

She lost more teeth.

And she has graduated from Kindergarten!!!

I've been wanting to get a picture of her riding her bike.

She hasn't let me yet because she still gets nervous.

So hopefully soon she'll let me capture a picture of her riding.

As for Micaiah, he is so proud to have a big boy bike!

Last year, he was still riding a trike because he could not reach the pedals on a bike.

Now, he is really taking off.

The past 5 months

WHOA!!!!  It has been 5 months since I've posted anything.
Time sure does fly when you're having fun!

So, here's a quick peek at what we've been doing.

January : Welcome 2012
The start of a new year with new opportunities to come!
Brian did a 6 week stint of clinicals.  (so glad thats over)

February : Anna's 6th birthday!!!!!!

She had a princess sleepover with her friend Molly.

They decorated cupcakes and slept in princess tents.

Also in February, Brian finished the program early, studied A LOT, and
passed the national board test (the hardest test he has ever taken).
WooHoo!

March : I started studying for a certification in personal training.

I'm still instructing Zumba and fitness classes. 

Brian got a position as a massage therapist at Hollyday Aesthetics in Brookside.
He is continuing his studies for Corrective Exercise Specialist for personal training and
myoskeletal alignment and pain management for massage therapy.

April :  For Easter, we took the kids on a train ride where they got to
visit the Easter Bunny and have an Easter egg hunt.

We just celebrated Brian's graduation and birthday!

This year he has been working full time as well as studying full time.

He graduated with a 4.0 GPA and a degree in therapeutic massage.

He also received 3 awards which included being chosen to receive 

the highest academic award of the class.

Congratulations!

 and Happy Birthday Brian!
This past year you accomplished so much!
This is just the start of another year of adventure for you!
We love you!

We are busy and enjoying every bit of it!!!!

"The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps." (Proverbs 16:9)