Ahhh..... to be a kid again!!

Relaxing in the grass after a fun game of "who can get the ball first?"! (a 3 year old version of soccer!!) One of the best parts about being a Mom is getting to act like a kid again. It would look a bit odd if I ,at 30 years of age, was kicking and chasing the ball around our backyard by myself, now wouldn't it?! I have the best excuse ever to be just as silly and energetic as I was as a kid. Isaac and I love to run and chase in the backyard. His giggles and bright, red cheeked smiles are a precious delight to me.

6th Anniversary

Gabe and I had a wonderful time last night as we celebrated our 6th Anniversary! We had dinner at the Riverwalk and then went to the Lighthouse Cafe (the place where he proposed to me) for dessert. We usually don't give each other gifts on our Anniversary, but Gabe broke that rule this year. He framed some black and white pictures of us. I love them --- Thank you Gabe!! And thank you Sara for watching our kiddos last night. You are such a blessing!!

Crazy Girls!!

Gabe and I have been leading the college/early career group at NEBC for nearly a year now. We have thoroughly enjoyed being a part of this group. One night a week the guys and gals split for Bible study. The ladies meet over here on Tuesday nights. Usually there are about 5 or so of us for Bible study. Right now we are studying faith through the study by Beth Moore called Believing God. We have had a blast this summer. I don't remember when or how it got started, but our official uniform on Tuesday nights is PJs. (I am all for being comfortable) We have even worn them to Starbucks a few times and got lots of funny looks. Last week, Sara and Dani got a bit silly. They hiked up their PJs and started doing cheerleader jumps in the living room. I, of course, grabbed the camera and captured their silliness.All silliness aside, I absolutely adore these ladies. Each has such unique and special qualities. I am blessed beyond measure by them allowing me to be apart of their lives. God is doing and will continue to do BIG things through these "crazy" girls!!

Pretty in Daisies

I took these pictures of Julia on Sunday. She was really hard to take pictures of that day because she was always on the move and wasn't in the mood to have a photo shoot. She was hungry and tired, but I just had to get her in this dress before she grows out of it. Enjoy the pictures!

Lincoln Logs 101

The other day I was summoned by Isaac to help with his Lincoln Log house he wanted built over his railroad track. The night before, Gabe built this great tunnel house for the trains to go through. It was safe through the night until morning when"Julie-zilla" attacked!! So I said, "Sure no problem. I will rebuild the house for you." HA - easier said than done! I am a fairly well educated person, but for some strange reason I was unable to figure out the Lincoln Logs. The walls kept falling over and how does that roof stay on there anyway?! I got frustrated and had a "2 year old moment"!! I said with a huff "I can't do this" as I put the Lincoln Logs down a bit rough. Isaac in his wisdom of 3 1/2 years said rather calmly as he patted my leg, "It's okay Mama, you just need to keep trying." And so I did! I got that silly little house built, over the railroad track! I was rather proud that it was actually still standing. However, a few minutes into his play, Isaac called out for help. I went into his room to discover my Lincoln Log house leaning quite a bit to one side. Just enough so the trains could not go through. I just laughed and told him I would try to help again later. He gave up on me then, and just knocked the house down. "Never mind Mama", he said. My sister and I were joking as I was telling her this story. We laughed as we said that I should make Isaac a deal. I will teach him to read if he will teach me how to build with Lincoln Logs! Lincoln Logs 101 !!

Why I love Gabe Landes...

Where do I begin? We have had 6 years together as husband and wife. Our anniversary is on July 21st. I love Gabe for more reasons than I give attention to on a daily basis. I love Gabe most of all because I am not number one in his life. Sounds kind of off, doesn't it? I treasure the fact that I come second. God is Gabe's first love, as He should be. Gabe is a very humble man that seeks God's wisdom and guidance. I love to see Gabe bent over in prayer to our Father, and when I ask him to pray for me I have no doubt that he goes before the throne on my behalf. Gabe deeply desires to love, honor, and obey God. He diligently seeks to abide in Christ. His loving pursuit of our Savior is never ending. I love Gabe because he loves me unconditionally. He has had a little over 6 years to see all my faults and flaws (there are many!!) and he loves me anyway! He loves me with a tenderness and understanding that I don't deserve. He pursues me with his sweet, romantic gestures. Like when he left a hand made rose on my doorstep when we were dating and completed the dozen that evening!! Each rose included a reason why he loved me , and the last included the "Love Chapter" in 1 Corinthians. We memorized this scripture together and talked a lot about what each part of this verse truly means. And let's not forget how he proposed to me!!! Gabe surprised me with a song he wrote himself called "Open the Door". One last little romantic thing we do is hide the "I love you 1st!" heart for each other to find in some of the most surprising and outrageous places. The other day I found it in the oatmeal container! Once, we traveled to Boston on Valentine's Day. He had taken the original heart, scanned it and made tiny little hearts. All day I found them in my pockets, in the pages of the book I was reading and many other places. That is one of my favorite memories.I love Gabe because he is an AWESOME father to Isaac and Julia. My kids are so blessed to have him as their Papa. He walks in the door when he gets home from work and both Isaac and Julia light up. It is a matter of seconds before they have dog piled him on the floor. Isaac has a wonderful example to follow in learning to be a man of integrity and a man in love with God. Julia will feel like a beautiful and cherished princess in Gabe's presence. She will know what it feels like to be treasured.
Gabe, I love you more than my limited vocabulary can express. You are my best friend. You make me feel completely free to be my true self. You are a precious gift to me. Happy 6th Anniversary!! I love you 1st!!!

***For those of you who have made it through this sappy saturated blog without getting green in the face , may want to check out the slide show I made for Gabe at the bottom!!

God is Enough!

"Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days"
Psalm 90:14

God is enough! I am completely fulfilled and satisfied by His unfailing love. I have struggled for many years trying to find that fulfillment from the people around me. Though God has placed these people in my life for a certain purpose, I am always left longing for more intimacy. I crave closeness, but can not fully achieve what I so naturally desire through earthly relationships. God has opened my eyes to His Truth. HE IS ENOUGH! My attention and energy is rightly placed on God. I believe God will bless the relationships with my family and friends as I embrace Him.

Our First Circus!!!

Gabe, Isaac, and I had a wonderful evening Friday night at the circus!! Isaac and I were first timers! I have never been to a circus before. I enjoyed every minute of it and truly felt like a kid again. Isaac liked the clowns from his seat, not up close. He also giggled quite a bit when the dogs came out and did their tricks. My favorite act was the motorcycles. Gabe would agree. We were both in awe. They had 7 motorcycles in the round cage thing at one time. Amazing! Talk about precision! We will definitely go back in a few years when Julia is older. However, we will be taking our own cotton candy. They were charging $10 a bag at the circus. Ridiculous!!

I am sure you are wondering what Isaac and I are doing..... it was really dark in there and the pictures kept blurring. I told Isaac to be as still as a statue! So here we are doing just that!

As we were walking out, I snapped this picture. They are quite a pair! My handsome boys (and Bear, of course)!

The "Big Reveal" - Imaginative Isaac, Part 2

I must admit that I am somewhat disappointed that more of my family did not venture a guess. But thank you to Jill, Seamus, and Kelly for giving it a try. Jill and Seamus guessed that Isaac was a pirate and Kelly guessed that he was a robot. I have a confession to make, however. I sort of set you up from the beginning. I knew no one would even come close to guessing Isaac's imaginative dress-up idea. Isaac was pretending to be an attic!!! I guess the foam letter was the floor of the attic.... I honestly don't know! But I LOVE his imagination and find myself longing for the days many years ago (don't ask how many years) when I used to have that same elaborate imagination.

Imaginative Isaac

Can you guess what he is pretending to be? The first person to guess correctly gets a $5 gift card to Sonic!!! I will reveal the answer on Friday!! (**Gabe, you can't guess**)

Hats Off to Julia!

If Julia could talk I am sure she would say "Give me your hat!" My sweet little girl whom I try to frill up with bows and ruffles, prefers wearing a baseball cap! Even in the sweet, quiet moments of early morning, when I am just getting her out of her crib, she promptly pats her head and says "dada" (which means hat) She would wear one all day if she could get them to stay on her head. She even stacks two or three on her head at a time.

Going on a Puddle Hunt

I am sure most of you have had just as much rain as we have had lately. Last Thursday, it rained most of the morning. Being the great and creative Mom that I am(he he), I took the kids on a "puddle hunt" after nap. I laughed as I watched Isaac and Julia play in a big puddle in the middle of a somewhat busy street. We were cautious of coming cars of course, don't get me wrong. It was just funny that I was actually encouraging my kids to play in the street.
You would think Isaac would have jumped right in without hesitation. WRONG! He was a bit tentative at first, but soon warmed up and was jumping off the curb to make a big splash. Julia was a nut in the puddles. At first she looked at me with the "are you sure this is okay?" look. When given the okay, she had a blast. Needless to say, they were both soaked when we got home and desperately needed a bath!