Mostly Momma's Thoughts

So ...

2011-07-13T18:07:00.000-07:00

It appears that blogging isn't my top priority in life! I want to share our little life with the outside world, but I forget. Or I need to switch the laundry, or give a hug, or get distracted by facebook .... whatever the case, I don't keep up with it.

Our life is about to take a big turn and I thought I'd put a little tidbit about it on here on the off chance that anyone is still reading my blog!

Due to the economy Justin has been searching for a new job for nearly a year now. It appears that one way or the other, we will be moving from beautiful Colorado within the next month or so.

We've been here now for a little over three years. We love it here. We've settled into our life quite nicely and met some wonderful people. Also, one of the benefits of our current location is that people come and see us quite a lot! We've always kept a guest room (or two) and been ready to welcome anyone with open arms to the Bruner Bed and Breakfast!

Even after being here for the time that we have, we still miss our life in Texas and the friendships we built there.

We are ready to get somewhere, and stay somewhere. Ready to put down some roots and find a community to raise our girls in.

I can't wait to see where that will be and what God has in store!

More to come ....

Blessings to you all!!!

Praying the Scriptures for your Children, Part 1: Praying for Your Child's Faith

2010-04-28T06:38:00.000-07:00

As a reminder, "When you pray for your children, you join God in the work he is doing in their lives."

Part one of this book is Praying for Your Child's Faith. Chapter one is Praying for Your Child's Salvation.

I believe this to be such an appropriate place to begin. The chapter starts with this verse: Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matthew 19:14

Many of us have heard this verse many times. So don't read through it quickly without pausing to think about it. Jesus told those around him to not keep the children from him. Let us bring our children to him in prayer.

From the author: "When you pray for your children's salvation, you can be confident that you are praying in accordance with God's will."

The following are among several verses listed as "Prayers you can use" to pray for the salvation of your children. These are the ones I am praying through for Allyson and Lauren today.

I pray that _______ would confess with her mouth that Jesus is Lord, and that she would believe in her heart that you have raised Christ from the dead. Cause _______ to call on your name, Lord, and save her.
Romans 10:9, 13

Count _______ as one of your people, and be her God. Give her a singleness of heart and action, so that she will always fear you for her own good and the good of her children. Make an everlasting covenant with ________. Never stop doing good to her, and inspire her to fear you so that she will never turn away from you.
Jeremiah 32:39-40

Other verses listed:
2 Corinthians 4:4-6
2 Timothy 2:25-26
Acts 26:18
2 Corinthians 5:17
John 3:16
Colossians 2:6-7
Ezekiel 11:19
Pslam 125:1
Ephesians 3:18-19

So much to pray for! Don't waste a minute :)

Side note:

I was giving my girls a bath last night and it was the end to a couple of frustrating days with them. You know, the days where you wonder if anything you have taught them is anywhere in their little minds. They are constantly fighting with one another, telling on each other, hitting each other, and so on and so on. They were the kind of days where you are finding it hard to use patience and kind words when interacting with them. So, as I was rinsing the shampoo from Lauren's hair and she was refusing to look up, hold a washcloth over her eyes, or do anything helpful to keep soap out of her face (and yet screaming the whole time about soap getting in her eyes!) and I was ready to ... well you've all been there, I am sure you know what I wanted to do! Then, suddenly a thought occurred to me. These are God's children. He has given them to Justin and I for a short time. He is giving us the blessing of raising them to know him. (Do you ever wonder what he was thinking?!) If Allyson and Lauren are really HIS, how should I treat them? What do I want God to know in regards to my interaction with his children? I want to be found faithful in this, I want to be found trustworthy by him. Discipline is still a part of this, but perhaps how I discipline, the tone of my voice, etc ... is important. Each moment is precious.

So, perhaps besides praying for my girls, I need to be praying more and more for myself also!

Praying the Scriptures for your Children

2010-04-26T05:32:00.000-07:00

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
1 John 5:14

I am reading a new book.

It is called: Praying the Scriptures for your children, Discovering How to Pray God's will for Their Lives. The Author is Jodie Berndt.

From the author: "When you pray for your children, you join God in the work he is doing in their lives."

What a great concept praying the scriptures for your children is! I always pray for my girls, but often my prayers are pretty much the same things over and over again. Prayer is such a powerful tool, and what a powerful thing scripture is ... I want to use the promises of God to pray for the lives of my little girls as we journey on the path toward adulthood with them. We are given these little blessings for a brief amount of time. I feel like God is letting me borrow them for a little while, they are really his, aren't they? It is so important that we make good use of the time we are given. It is so important to me that we are faithful to the task set before us. As everyone says, they grow up so fast. I believe that there can be much wisdom given from God in prayer and that we need MUCH wisdom when raising our children into adults who will love and serve the Lord.

The book is divided into five parts and in each part there are four topics. The author lists several prayer principles as well as specific scriptures in each topic that you can use while you pray for your child. Anything that I put in quotes comes directly from the book. I won't put the scriptures in quotes, but I am pulling them from the book as well. I will list a couple of the scriptures that spoke to me regarding each topic, the ones I will most likely be praying through for Allyson and Lauren. She seems to list several scriptures per topic and I can see how they would apply to different situations in different families. With my girls being so young, I am praying more often for the development of a certain qualities and principles as opposed to the changing of their hearts (though there is some of this also). If I was praying for a grown child, the approach and requests may be different, make sense?

The five parts of the book are:
1) Praying for your child's faith
2) Praying for your child's character
3) Praying for your child's safety
4) Praying for your child's relationship
5) Praying for your child's future

I am excited to start this journey. I know that God will change me as I learn more about prayer. I am reminded of this scripture:

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples." Luke 11:1

Attitude

2010-04-13T05:56:00.000-07:00

I am signed up for a daily devotional from the Proverbs 31 ministries website.

It drops in my inbox each morning and some days I read it, some days I don't. This is from yesterday and it spoke to my heart. I just wanted to share it in hopes of it connecting with you as well.

"Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus…" Philippians 2:5 (NIV)

One day I opened my car door and was blasted with a horrific smell. I searched every inch of the car but could not find the source of the stench. I then took action to get rid of the smell: I scrubbed the carpet with deodorizers and sprayed air freshener. The stench persisted. I left the car doors open, deciding I couldn't possibly run errands in that stinky car.I went back inside, opened the refrigerator, and noticed a small trickle of milk had leaked on to the shelf. After examining the milk container, I realized that the milk must have leaked into the car the day before when I got groceries. That explained the cause of my stinky car: spoiled milk, one of the most offensive odors I've ever smelled.

Negative attitudes are like the stench of spoiled milk, permeating our lives and affecting everyone we come in contact with. Think about some of these negative attitudes that might make you stinky: complaining, selfish, prideful, bitter, or unforgiving. Do any ring true with you today?

Now imagine a pleasing aroma. What comes to mind? A freshly baked pie, the scent of the ocean, newly brewed coffee, or a cinnamon candle. A pleasant aroma is so powerful that it can bring a smile to our faces and make us feel more positive. The same is true of our positive attitudes. In our relationships we can be like a fragrant aroma by adopting attitudes that please and reflect Christ. In fact, Paul teaches that we are a "fragrance of Christ" (2 Corinthians 2:15).

Consider these pleasing attitudes: thankful, humble, generous, gracious, kind, and cheerful. You can ask God to be one of these fragrances through you today.Our attitude provides an accurate litmus test for the true condition of our hearts. God cares first about the condition of our hearts because when God has our hearts, He knows that we're surrendered to Him. He'll mold us and shape our attitudes and actions to reflect His character.

Dear Lord, search me, O God, and know my heart (Psalm 139:23). Soften my heart and make me willing to receive an attitude adjustment from You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

The Bruner Bed and Breakfast is Open for the Season!

2010-04-06T06:18:00.001-07:00

Justin and I will be married 10 years this May.

From the very beginning of our marriage we have always lived away from most of our family. At first it was just a short drive to my mom and dad's and not much further to his. As the years have progressed we have been anywhere from 120 miles up to around 2,500 miles in distance from one part of our family or the other. Such is the nature of Justin's job. We go to the church God sends us to and so far it has not been in Puyallup, Washington or Coeur d'Alene, Idaho! As a result we have always kept a "guest room" in our house. We love keeping a space to have those that we love come and see us.

As we head into spring here in Colorado we have already had a Papa and Grandma visit and an Aunt Tana and cousin Grey visit. We are expecting Justin's grandparents next week.

We moved into our new house (which I will write about sooner than later) at the end of February. We are all in and settled. The guest room has a nice, big, king sized bed waiting for you. Come and see us. We will love you, feed you (Justin has some great grill skills!), and show you all that this beautiful part of the country has to offer.

The Bruner Family Bed and Breakfast (and lunch and dinner) is open. You are welcome anytime. We would LOVE to have you!!

Living Under God

2010-03-30T07:49:00.000-07:00

A Word from Toby and Michael (excerpted from Living Under God)

"Today America is ruled by self-gratification and consumption. To return to godly standards, we need a generation that is willing to make sacrifices and lay down our self-seeking desires. This generation needs to see that true meaning is not found in materialism or self-obsession, but in a life of service. At the same time, people who can operate in the economic system to gain and use wealth to build God's kingdom are also greatly needed. God needs good stewards of what He has given us--time, talents, ingenuity, and material resources--more than ever before.The key, as it has always been, is to plug in to God's vision for your life through prayer, reading, and meditation on His Word, and then putting into action what He has taught you, no matter how outlandish those actions may seem to the world around you. Are you willing to live such a radical life? It is that life that qualifies as living under God."

--TobyMac & Michael Tait

Thursday Morning

2010-03-25T09:19:00.000-07:00

I have become a part time worker.

As Justin and I were going through Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University lesson on debt reduction I came away with the feeling that it was time for momma to get a part time job to chip away at the student loan debt a little faster. When we came home and discussed it we agreed that I would look for something early morning - perhaps a 5am - 9am a couple mornings a week at Starbucks or something like that, and then maybe an occasional Saturday shift. That way the girls could still have thier mommy home all day. Justin could just adjust his office hours a bit.

So, after not much effort on my part (Thank you Jehovah Jireh - the LORD will provide!) I was offered a job at our local Community Center to sit the front desk for the early morning shift (6am - 9am) Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings, and one Saturday a month. Interesting how God lays something on your heart and all you have to do is be willing and open your eyes to the possibility and then he takes care of the details!

I have been working there since early December and it is a great job. The only thing I don't like about it (aside from the 4:30 in the morning wake ups) is not being home with the girls for our normal morning routine. I am a tradition kind of gal. I like to have schedules and routines, partially for the ease of it all and I think routine is great for kids, but also to build memories on. My idea for the kids was never one of wake up, rush to get dressed and eat your dry cereal in the car on the way to work with daddy. Now, don't get me wrong here. The kids are fine and for them it is just part of their weekly routine, what they expect to do and it works great. And, I am thankful to have a husband with the willingness to take on the responsibility.

What I am learning is that Thursday mornings have become a very special time for us. The girls often sleep a little later due to the later Wednesday night bed time. They come in and when they are awake and we hang out mommy and daddy's bed for a while before we go downstairs and make pancakes all together (colored batter of course!) and have a nice and slow morning. Nothing fancy, just time together to talk and be. They call it our "girl date."

I enjoy it and they enjoy it. The first Thursday we got back in the habit of doing this - We've only been in our new house for couple of weeks now and prior to that everything was out of wack for a while - Allyson was certain that she would just rather have Life cereal for breakfast. We even had "words" for a minute or two about it. As we were sitting up at the counter enjoying our pink and yellow flowers pancakes she said, "you were right mom, this was way more fun than cereal for breakfast, you do know things."

:) At times like that you just smile. No "I told you so" is needed!

I love my girls and I love our special times together. I am thankful for my life and my blessings. I can't imagine a world with out my Allyson and my Lauren!

Doing It the Right Way

2010-03-24T06:08:00.000-07:00

God has been nudging me to think through some things.

You know how you have those days where you feel like you did it right? You can kiss the kids goodnight and feel like, at least for that day, you are okay with being held accountable to the responsibility God has set before you. Then you have the other days. The ones where you want to rewind back to your early morning wake up call and start over.

Justin and I were married almost 10 years ago (I know, really?!!!). When we said our vows to one another the thing that was most important for me to say to him was something along the lines of this, "I promise to make my efforts of being a child of God my number one priority. Trying to be a good wife, friend, companion (and someday mother) won't work unless God is first and foremost in my heart." These weren't my exact words, but you get the idea. The whole, out of the overflow kind of thing.

I want to raise my children to know the Lord. I feel blessed to have children! They are a good dose of accountability for me. I see myself reflected in them and I want to see great things! Not to build myself up or pat myself on the back for having the right answers and the best way to do things, but for their own good. The benefit of seeing good in them is that they become the people whom God created them to be. Somedays the reflection I see is God's way of reminding me that who I am to these girls does have an effect on who they are now and who they will be down the road. What a great responsibility! I want to be proven faithful in this. I desire to live in such a way that my children will some day see great things reflected in their own children.

How do we do it the right way? We love God much more than our husbands or our children. Even more than ourselves. When we are presented with a situation with our children and we have no clue how to handle it, we pray. God will give guidance.

Blessings on you as you love your sweet ones!

Catch Up!

2009-11-03T13:13:00.000-08:00

So...I keep putting off blogging because I intended on putting up a little something from each major event from our summer and so on. After a period of time that becomes too daunting of a task ... so as I am so quick to do on such things, I put it off for another time. I really think about a lot of things to blog, but pass over them because I have too much to catch up on. You get the idea. So, I have decided to just dive in. Some catching up here, but much more concise than if I had taken a bit of time over the course of the actual events.
In June we had the McGinn clan and then shortly after they left John Kirklin came for a visit. July was full of VBS, a trip to Dallas for Justin's grandparent's wedding anniversary, then home for a few days. Middle of July took Justin to Pasadena California for two weeks of grad school and it took the girls and I up to Coeur d'Alene to hang with Papa and Grandma. Justin's parents joined us on the last night of VBS and Allyson, Lauren and I were with them pretty much the entire month of June. It was fun month full of travels and adventures. The highlight for Allyson was talking to Justin on the computer with Skype ... she brought it up again yesterday! At the tail end of July my parents arrived to spend my dad's 6oth birthday (August 1) with us. We had a really good week with Grand dad and Gran Jan. We traveled all over the place and showed them lots of things. Sometimes when we drive through down town Glenwood Allyson asks me if we are Aspen Vail. She doesn't realize these are two different places we visited on two different days! Also in August we had a visit with some friends from College - Rusty and Laura Campbell and their sweet boys. They were traveling through on part of their fundraising tour. We had a wonderful visit with them learning about their future mission plans in Angola, Africa.
At the end of August Andrew and Aimee Jo Martin and family came to visit us. They are currently on furlough from their mission work in Fort Portal, Uganda. What a blessing it was to visit with them for a few days and hear all about what they are doing and spend time getting to know their sweet kids.
One of my favorite parts of the visits we had throughout the summer was watching our kids play with the children of people who we have known over the years.
August ended and September began somewhat slowly. My cousin, Paige, was married on September 12th in Puyallup so the girls and I were able to travel home for that! It was a beautiful wedding and we had a really good visit. I thought it was rather nice of Paige to plan her wedding during the Puyallup Fair so we could do that while we were there :)
At the end of September I attended Women of Faith with some of the ladies from Church here in Glenwood Springs. I have been in the past, but it has been a while. It was so good to go again. If you have never gone (and are a woman) you need to check it out!
This fall Justin is leading a Financial Peace University class at church and we have been learning a lot from that.
Fall has settled us into a nice routine. Life groups have resumed. We're hitting story time at the library once a week. I am watching our little friend Samantha again on Wednesdays. Teaching wednesday evening bible class, helping out with the nursery and chidren's church, etc ... Life is rolling along. I have applied for a part time early morning shift at the community center here in town and have an interview on Friday morning.
The girls are getting so big. They are little playmates now, each with their own opinion on life and how things should be, but they do love each other so much. Now that we are on the other side of the baby thing, I am so glad to have them so close in age. Girls are fun! Lots of baby dolls and dressing up as princesses around here. Lauren LOVES Dora and Allyson is really into Snow White (this couple of weeks anyway). Justin keeps busy with church and school and hanging with his ladies.
We continue to feel blessed to be a part of the congregation here in Glenwood Springs. Colorado is such an amazing place to live and we are trying to soak it all in.
Blessings on each of you this week! There will be more to come and much sooner, I assure you!

Beautiful

2009-06-16T22:43:00.000-07:00

While the McGinn family was here we visited Red Stone. Our family went last fall and I got some cute pics of the girls. Here are a few more of the beautiful girls that God gave me. Also, the picture that is now the header to this blog was taken there. It is a beautiful place!

Okay Mom ...

2009-05-26T13:53:00.000-07:00

The title of this blog is in response to my mom's facebook message to me yesterday, "It's been a month, update your blog." So, being the sweet and obedient child that I am, I am going to do what I am told :) Love you mom!

We have had an eventful end of April/May. Our family flew up to participate in the final Cascade College graduation weekend. It was a great weekend with many happy "reunions." We were able to catch up with so many we haven't seen for so long. The girls were troopers and managed to enjoy being around a bunch of people they didn't know. I think part of this was due to all the ring-around-the-Rosy that their grandad played with them and their cousins outside of the events!

This first few days of our trip up north, my brother Aaron and his family were also up. Aaron and Amy have 3 kids - Grace is 4, Noraa just turned 3, and Sammy is 8 months. So, all of the girl cousins had a blast together and had a slumber party on the floor of my mom's office every night. Grandad told lots of Betsy stories and the words, "no boys allowed" could be heard at any given point in the day from all 4 girls. There was Princess Polly Pocketing to be had as well as the singing of "I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream" from Sleeping Beauty. Also, Allyson was quite taken with Sammy and wanted to hold him all the time. She has been asking me regularly since we've been back if I have a baby in my tummy. When I tell her no, she replies, "Aww man, mom!" The girls seemed to really enjoy each other and Allyson really didn't want them to head back to California.

Lauren and Noraa both have a May birthday so we had a little birthday party for the two of them. We also got a picture of all the second cousins together - except Grey, but we got one of him with all the second cousins later in the week.

Justin was only able to stay for the weekend, and then he headed back home to work. Then a few days later after Aaron, Amy and family left Tana and Grey joined the fun. We picked them up late on a Wednesday night and Grey was ready to roll as if it were first thing in the morning.

Allyson and Lauren enjoyed playing in a whole different way with their boy cousin than with the girls from a few days before. They had a lot of fun with him. There were lots of hugs, more Betsy stories, lots of playing in Grandad and Granjan's backyard, cars to push around, balls to chase!

One of the highlights of Grey and Tana's visit was a day trip to Seattle with a trip across the Sound to Bremerton on the Ferry. We enjoyed watching the kids on the ferry, feeding the seagulls at Ivar's after lunch, and walking around in Seattle.

Over all the trip was very nice. We saw all of my family and the girls got good time with grandparents and cousins. Here are a few other pictures of the trip!

My Blankie and My Grandma

2009-04-19T16:31:00.001-07:00

So, this morning on the way to church I was listening to the Christian radio station. They were talking about God and creation, and quite honestly I don't really remember what specifically they were saying. But, Allyson was paying attention and piped up with, "Did God make my blankie?"

I went into the explanation about how God made many things but also he knows us and provides for us - things like her blankie, our home, food to eat, grandparents, etc... I was telling her that God knows what we need and what we like because he made us. To this she replied, "yep, God knew just what Grandma I would like and gave her to me!"

She says things like this on a daily basis and I really need to be writing them down. What a joy to have these sweet little girls!

The Move

2009-04-08T14:15:00.000-07:00

I am so excited about our new place. God has really blessed us with this home. We are now in Glenwood Springs (same town as the church) and are enjoying the benefits of being "in town." Silt was a great place for us for the year we were there, but I am glad to be where we are now. We had lots of help from people at church with the move particularly all the moms and kids the girls and I spend time with each week. What a great church family! It took a week of bringing one load over at at time and putting it away and then one day of furniture moving and we were in and already unpacked. I much prefer across town moves to across the country ones, that is for sure.

We are still renting ... but there are some benefits to that. Now we have plenty of room and a great view from every window in the house. The picture with the mountain in the background was taken from our front porch so the house you see is across the street from us. The picture that is all house is where we live. We have a full basement and lots of room for the girls to play. There is also a deck and a full back yard. We've got more than enough room for company to come and visit (hint, hint) and are really just glad to be in closer to the church building.

In addition to the new place, while Justin's parents were here over spring break they bought us a dining room set - something I have wanted for quite some time now. Thanks again Papa and Grandma!! (Kind of an upgrade from the $25 garage sale find from our first year of marriage!) So not only do we have room for you to come and visit us, we also have room to feed you at our table!

I know we have been blessed in order to bless others. My prayer is that we use this new home to God's glory and for his ministry!

This is Mount Sopris which can be seen from our back yard:

Conviction

2009-02-10T07:23:00.000-08:00

http://bp1.blogger.com/_jIDObi_2CyM/R6E2IX6NyhI/AAAAAAAAA1o/oUhNuuVUHsU/s1600-h/praying+for+our+children.jpg

Lately I have been thinking more and more about the responsibility that God places in our care when he gives us our precious little ones. We are given a small child to mold, sculpt and lead into a mature, God following adult. I don't know about you, but for me this is something that I am aware of more and more as my girls get older and begin to mimic the behaviour of those around them. I watch them as the live out their day and I want to help them become who God created them to be! As I was on Facebook yesterday (One of my newer addictions!) I came across my sister-in-laws updated status of a verse she was praying for her kids that day. She sent me a link to a calendar that has a month's worth of scriptures to pray through each day for your little ones. Prayer is so important. God gives us these children, but he is there with us. He is our greatest resource when we want to raise these precious little things into Godly adults!

I have posted the link above and am printing this for my fridge. Blessings on your prayer time.

Go-Gurts

2009-01-26T15:02:00.001-08:00

I am sure all you smart moms out there already know this ... but as my girls sit at the kitchen table having their after nap snack I thought I'd share - just in case! At some point in my past someone told me to put Go-Gurts in the freezer and tah dah - frozen yogurt. My girls call them Popsicles ... they like them much better this way. Also, if you are ever doing weight watchers - they are one point each. A nice little treat.

All I do is pull them out of the freezer, run them under warm water for a minute (to loosen them from the wrapper), snip the top off, wrap a paper towel around them - for the girls because they are cold - and there you go.

So, like I said, I am sure many of you already do this and aren't overly impressed at this moment, but for those of you who haven't tried this yet - now you know!

Great Blog

2009-01-20T17:37:00.000-08:00

Last Friday evening Justin and were invited over to some new friend's home for dinner. Justin participates in a monthly area wide minister's meeting. Last week he met a guy named Zac who works with an organization called Youth for Christ. He works with the teenagers in Rifle (the next town to the west of Silt). Anyway it was his family's home that we had dinner at. As I often do, I asked for a couple of the recipes from dinner. One of them came off of this blog and as I was exploring around it I decided it could be a good resource to share. So - check it out!
http://www.passionatehomemaking.com/

Bad Blogger

2009-01-14T12:45:00.000-08:00

One of these days I will be really consistent with this! In the mean time you will just have to be patient with this lady. Christmas was a wonderful blessing to our family. We drove to Idaho, and by "we" I mean Justin. He drove the whole way there and back. Secretly I think it is just his way of not having to deal with the children in the back seat! The girls actually did really well on both drives. Not much of a complaint out of either one of them. While we were there we did lots of festive things and the girls played and played with Papa, Grandma, Aunt Jessica and Uncle Michael. They had a blast.

Also while we were there Allyson had her third birthday - I can't believe my little baby is a big girl. Where did the time go? Much to her pleasure it was a Tinkerbell birthday party. Tinkerbell is the big thing for her these days. We watch the movie basically every day.

Lauren loves Barney. Santa brought her a stuffed Barney for Christmas and she calls it "i love you" - I love you, you love me, we're a happy family ....

Our girls seemed to have hit a growth spurt over the past month or so. Not only are they bigger, they seem older. Those of you with the little ones know what I mean by that. Since being back we've kept pretty busy. Our last week's play date was to an indoor pool at a hotel in Glenwood. They only charge $5 per person and you can stay as long as you want. They have a great kiddie pool and a long, curvy slide for the bigger kids. I took Allyson down it a couple of times and she loved it. The water was a touch on the cool side, so both of the girls wanted to be in the spa part a lot of the time. They really enjoyed the water. Allyson cried when we left - so you know its good!

We are busy building great relationships here. I feel that God is really blessing me with some of the mommies here. Friendships are such a precious thing to not take for granted and such an important part of this Christian life we are all living.

Justin started back up with Grad School this semester, so that will keep him busy along with everything else. He's taking two online courses and just got started last week.

I am on Facebook too much these past few days, but I really do love all the connections I am making on it - every week I think I've got to have come across everyone I know only to find more and more people.

God is blessing us. I am often reminded how great my life is! I'm posting some Christmas and Birthday pictures on my facebook page today. Blessings until the next update!!!

Snow much fun!

2008-12-18T12:16:00.000-08:00

It's official! We are covered in a layer of snow and it is sticking around ... and snowing each night and some days. So, even if it warms up and melts off in the day, it comes back in the night and we wake up to a good covering of the white fluffy stuff. It finally feels like it is really winter around here. The girls LOVE the snow. If the snow is melting away when we are heading out, Allyson will find any little patch of it and eat it. So cute. It is quite an adjustment planning enough time in the morning before we go anywhere to warm up the car, and get hats, gloves, boots, and coats on. Coats don't go on easy when the little ones have thick long sleeves on. It's hard to keep the shirt sleeves from bunching up in the coat sleeves. Ah, the problems of the snow! We have snow tires with studs and snow scrapers in the car. This is such a contrast to Houston. I do believe we have gone from one extreme to the other.

Little Lambs

2008-12-14T14:45:00.000-08:00

We have a family at church that keeps a flock of sheep. While the mama sheep usually have their babies in the spring, one of the little boy sheep got "too big for his britches" (as they tell us!) and 3 sheep had lambs last week. So the family is busy trying to keep these little babies warm and fed in the cold December weather. Thinking that Allyson and Lauren would really enjoy seeing the lambs they invited the girls and I to come out last week and look at them. The girls did love it. Allyson kept telling me that she was a good mom and Lauren had a little one following her around. Allyson held one and fed one - good mom! Lauren was just curious about the whole affair and went from sheep to sheep to check it all out. Lauren has no fear of any animal. She charges right in. They have a dog that lives with the sheep and it is half St. Bernard and half something else - anyway this dog is the size of a small horse with long, thick, and stinky fur (lives with the sheep) and Lauren was hugging and kissing him. This really was a treat for the girls and a treat for me to watch them enjoy themselves so much.

Recipe to Share

2008-12-11T11:01:00.000-08:00

These are a little on the sugary side, but who can fault a cookie for being too sweet? I got some coupons in the mail the other day and there were a couple of recipes included. The girls and I tried this one today! I think they taste delicious. They are sweet and crispy. They don't taste like Vanilla Wafers, but they taste yummy anyway. This was a quick and easy recipe to make and it made two cookie sheets - so quick batch to whip up if you need something sweet to take to someone.

Vanilla Wafer Cookies

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup butter (no substitutes), softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:
In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Drop by teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees F for 12-15 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas ..

2008-12-10T11:44:00.000-08:00

I can't believe we are already into the month of December. We have been busy doing fun and festive things. Putting up the tree and seeing Santa being at the top of Allyson's list! Allyson has a look that she gives Santa (the same one she has reserved for my dad) and it is of pure love and admiration. Lauren was not too big of a fan of Santa. She's kind of in a mommy phase right now and handing her off to some strange man at the mall was not her idea of a good time! They both love the tree and Lauren gives it hugs and kisses quite often.

Here's a couple of pictures...

Quick and Easy

2008-11-24T14:25:00.000-08:00

I am totally behind on blogging lately and I know it! So... I will catch you all up soon on our family and the fun times we've been having just being a family and enjoying our new home...but I've got some pictures to go through to get loaded so for now I will just post a recipe that I tried the other day.

Sour Cream Muffins

2 cups "Self-Rising" flour
2 sticks of butter, melted
1 cup of sour cream

Mix all three ingredients together until a batter forms. Drop spoonfuls into ungreased muffin tins. I fit all the batter into one muffin tin (12 muffins). Bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes.

I think that these taste so good and are quick and easy for dinner. They end up really tasting a lot like really good biscuits. Justin said he likes my yeast rolls better because he was expecting rolls and these pretty much are just more along the lines of biscuits. They would be great with soup or stew. I got the recipe from Paula Dean - gotta love the food network!

Enjoy :)

6th picture

2008-11-11T06:47:00.000-08:00

So I was reading everyone's blog yesterday and Lindsay had posted her "6th picture." She had been challenged to post her 6th picture from her 6th album on her computer. Then she challenged others to do the same so here goes... this computer only has pictures dating back to september of 2007 ... the other computer is in the closet and we haven't moved the pics yet. So here is my picture:

My little two year old! She is almost 3 now ... I can't believe it!
So....anyone who reads this that hasn't already done the 6th picture thing - go for it! If you don't have a blog, email it out.

Our first snow!

2008-11-05T07:06:00.000-08:00

We woke up this morning to a light dusting of snow on the ground. By the time Allyson was up the snow was falling pretty heavily... it is not going to be cold enough to stick around all day, but Allyson was sure excited about it. So, we went outside and caught snowflakes in our PJs! Then we came in and had hot chocolate (and coffee!) She was shivering! But, she loved it.

Watching Daddy scrap the snow off his car:

October

2008-11-02T12:37:00.000-08:00

We had a really great October. The girls got to experience a lot of different things. We took a trip to Redstone to look at all the leaves changing colors. We took walks to the park. We played with friends. We made Halloween sugar cookies and played with icing and sprinkles. We got to go 4 wheeling with one of our elders and his wife up at their cabin in the mountains. We visited the pumpkin patch. We carved pumpkins. We had a visit from our friend John Kirklin and headed up to Independence Pass and saw the Continental Divide. The view was amazing as well as the drive up to 11,000+ feet. We trick-or-treated, and the next morning Allyson woke up and asked if we could do it again. The next evening Lauren picked up her plastic pumpkin and headed to the door asking (in her own way) to go out and get more candy!

I posted lots of pictures on Facebook ... Just FYI!

There is so much to see and do and it is so much more fun to do it with these little girls. Justin and I are blessed and our family is really enjoying our new home!

"Our love for thee Cascade..."

2008-10-27T16:23:00.000-07:00

Because we live in a world that has been made much smaller due to the Internet I just came across some sad news about the College that Justin and I attended and graduated from. It appears that they are closing their doors next spring. Here is a link to the article from their website:

http://www.cascade.edu/news.asp?newsid=317&cat=0

Please be in prayer for all the students, faculty and staff that are going to be drastically impacted by this situation.

This caught my attention.....

2008-10-24T19:45:00.001-07:00

http://dirtyharrysplace.com/?p=4913

Any thoughts?

The Land of Seasons

2008-10-13T07:18:00.000-07:00

We woke up this morning to quite a chill in the air - first time in a few years that I have turned the heat on in October. I believe it was down in the 20's last night!

When we came here to interview at the end of February I took a picture of the sign at church with some of the mountains in the background.

Then when we got here in May I did it again. And, the other day, once again. So, here is West Glenwood in February, then May, and finally in October.

I am going to try and do this a few different times of the year. It's just kind of fun to see all the different ways God can make the same exact place so beautiful.

For the Love of Fridays

2008-10-10T08:31:00.001-07:00

Being in ministry and Sundays being considered a work day, Justin has always had Mondays as his second day off each week. Since we moved to Colorado he has taken Fridays off. I love it. Thursday evening is always exciting because it is the start of our weekend. And, it is so nice to have him home two days in a row. We have been making Fridays our family day since most places are more busy on Saturday. Some days we just stay home and play, other days we go out and explore our new home. Today is one of those stay at home days - so far! And so this morning when Allyson woke me up before 7am she and I went out to the kitchen and had our usual hot chocolate (coffee for me) and bible story. Then we made Bubble Bread. So yummy, so easy, and the whole house smelled so good. I thought I would post the recipe so you could enjoy it with your family if you would like. It is a fun one for the kids to help out with because there are a few of the steps that are easy for them to help with.
A lot of people call this Monkey Bread but when we were talking about making it I told Allyson that we could pick what to call it - either monkey or bubble and she decided since there were no actual monkeys we should call it bubble bread. Makes sense!
We have all been munching on it all morning. Here's the recipe:

Bubble Bread

INGREDIENTS:
3 (12 ounce) packages – I used 2 (16 ounce) packages refrigerated biscuit dough - I bought the Wal-mart brand of biscuits because they were a lot cheaper.
1 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup margarine
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease one 9 or 10 inch tube or bundt pan.
2. Mix white sugar and cinnamon in a plastic bag. Cut biscuits into quarters. Shake 6 to 8 biscuit pieces in the sugar cinnamon mix. Arrange pieces in the bottom of the prepared pan. Continue until all biscuits are coated and placed in pan. If using nuts, arrange them in and among the biscuit pieces as you go along.
3. In a small saucepan, melt the margarine with the brown sugar over medium heat. Boil for 1 minute. Pour over the biscuits.
4. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 35 minutes. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a plate. Do not cut! The bread just pulls apart.

Fall is fun!

2008-10-08T08:25:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I have lived in a place with a changing of the seasons. Fall is in full bloom around here. The leaves are changing and the nights are quite chilly. Last Friday (Justin's day off) we headed up toward Aspen to take a drive and look at the colors. Amazing! Also we went to a small little town - Redstone. There are pictures up in the top corner from the day. We ate lunch in the Redstone Inn, walked down the main (only) street of town, visited the General Store, and played at the park. It was a very fun family day. The girls had a great time.

Fall is by far my favorite season. I love the colors, I love the change in the weather, I love bundling up and playing in the leaves! We've busted out the spiced cider candle, the girls Halloween clothes and PJ's and I am in the mood to make glazed pecans, pumpkin bread, and soup.

We'll be heading to a pumpkin patch in the next week or so - more pictures to come!

Our Visit to Puyallup Washington!

2008-09-27T12:29:00.000-07:00

Wednesday night we flew back from a wonderful visit to Grandad and GranJan's house. I am going to post a few pictures here, but the rest will be in the slide show up in the corner. Also within the next few days I'll have some albums on my Facebook and the pictures will be bigger and easier to see there.

We flew in on a Tuesday afternoon and hit the ground running. Living in a small town now it was fun to be back where there were lots of options of things to do. The main reason we went this time of year was to make a trip to the Puyallup fair. It is a pretty big fair and I've been going my whole life. The last time we went I was pregnant with Allyson and we had evacuated from Houston for Rita. This time was so much fun with the girls. Their little eyes see so much and they loved it. If you notice in the pictures it looks like we were eating the whole time - not really true! But that is part of the fair - so much yummy food. It was kind of disappointing because there was a whole section of rides for the littler kids and as we were walking through Lauren was noticing all of them, pointing and saying, "please" to ride them. Then it turns out you have to be 2 to ride ANYTHING at the fair - even the carousel. We were kind of surprised and she was pretty sad when I took Allyson on the carousel. After that we left the rides and looked at other fun things.

The rest of the trip was full of time with my parents, and extended family. Oh - and shopping! The girls enjoyed Grandad and GranJan to the fullest extent. Allyson was my dad's shadow and Lauren - as always - was her usual independent self. She kind of makes herself at home where ever and finds lots to do and lots to get into. They both did really this trip.

On the way home from the airport Allyson asked if we could go back to the airport "tomorrow and go back to Grandad's house."

That about sums it up!

Hurricane Ike

2008-09-11T15:27:00.000-07:00

Just thinking of all our friends and family in Houston with all this Hurricane business ... Justin and I are praying for every one's safety through it all. 3 years ago we evacuated and Rita didn't hit ... maybe that will be the case again.
We love you all down there.

Isn't it interesting ...

2008-09-08T13:07:00.000-07:00

.... how you have a thought and then it is reaffirmed by something you hear or read? I have been thinking - been reminded by God that I have been lacking in my time with Him, and how I need to have Him stored up in my heart so that the overflow is good. Yesterday morning before church I was reading from My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers. (I have a copy of this book that was given to me Christmas of 1993 by a friend from Highschool youth group, and it is the book aside from my bible that is the most used by me!) His thoughts reflect a lot of what had been going through my mind. You can read the daily devotions from his book on www.heartlight.org, so I am going to copy and paste part of it here to share. If you want to read the rest of it just get on the website!

From the September 7 excerpt:

“The water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water.”John 4:14
The picture Our Lord gives is not that of a channel but a fountain. "Be being filled," and the sweetness of vital relationship to Jesus will flow out of the saint as lavishly as it is imparted to him. If you find your life is not flowing out as it should, you are to blame; something has obstructed the flow. Keep right at the Source, and - you will be blessed personally? No, out of you will flow rivers of living water, irrepressible life.

We are to be centres through which Jesus can flow as rivers of living water in blessing to every one. Some of us are like the Dead Sea, always taking in but never giving out, because we are not rightly related to the Lord Jesus. As surely as we receive from Him, He will pour out through us, and in the measure He is not pouring out, there is a defect in our relationship to Him. Is there anything between you and Jesus Christ? Is there anything that hinders your belief in Him? If not, Jesus says, out of you will flow rivers of living water. It is not a blessing passed on, not an experience stated, but a river continually flowing. Keep at the Source, guard well your belief in Jesus Christ and your relationship to Him, and there will be a steady flow for other lives, no dryness and no deadness.

Reminded

2008-09-06T13:31:00.001-07:00

As a mommy of two little ones (and so many other mommies have 3, 4, or even 5) I feel a little crazy at the end of a lot of days. So many questions to answer, messes to be picked up, sippy cups to fill, pretend trips to the pumpkin patch to make, fights to referee, dolls to diaper, and the list goes on. I hear the words, "Help me please" over and over again! And this is my job - and really the best one I could ever have. Lately, however, I am feeling crazy within about 10 minutes of being woken up in the morning instead of nearer to the end of the day. Instead of feeling patient and delighting in the curiosity of my sweet little ones, I had been feeling quite a lack of patience and frustration. Don't get me wrong, I still find much joy in my girls! I have been convicted - often - of what a huge responsibility it is to raise a little baby into a toddler and into a child and so on. To raise children into fully functioning, spritiually minded young adults seems like such a huge task. If there was ever anything I didn't want to mess up, this makes the short list!
So, as I have been again processing through all of this and reflecting on how I have been treating my girls (more in my head than in my actions, thankfully) I was reminded of something. When I feel like I don't have more to give them it is clearly because I haven't been receiving myself. What I haven't been doing is taking the time to fill my heart with God. What I haven't been doing is taking time each day to sit and be still before Him and fill myself up. When all is emptied out how can I expect to have anything for these girls?
In Matthew 12:34-35 Jesus says this: "You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him."
I was reminded that I need to be filling my heart with things of God so that what flows out on my family is good! How can I teach them the things of God if I am not even spending time with him myself?
One thing that I have learned from having children is a whole new kind of accountability. I want to be the person God created me to be even more because I want them to desire to be His also. I must make time in my day first and foremost for God if I am ever to be all I need to be for my family. I am so thankful that God is so patient with us. I am so ready to store up the good things!

Beer Bread

2008-09-01T11:55:00.000-07:00

Matt and Lauren were summer youth inturns at our church. Most Thursdays they came over for dinner - one of the highlights of Allyson's week. The last Thursday before they left to go back to Texas they brought dinner over to us - a nice treat!
Lauren made beer bread and it is so yummy and delicious that I got the recipe from her. I haven't made it yet, but wanted to post the recipe before I forgot - it sounds so easy and it is really good. Here is it:

Beer Bread
1 cup sugar
3 cups flour
1 bottle of beer
Mix together really well and put it in a sprayed bread pan.
Put it in the oven on 350 for 40-45 minutes.
Take it out and pour one stick of melted butter on top,
then put it back in for 5-10 minutes. Then just let it cool! :)

Tana and Grey

2008-08-29T13:29:00.001-07:00

So...it has been a few weeks since they left, but I am finally getting around to posting a few pictures of our visit from Aunt Tana and Grey. The girls had so much fun with thier aunt and cousin and we all enjoyed the visit so much. We packed quite a bit into the week that they were here and took lots and lots of pictures to send on up to GranJan....I won't post them all here or you would be looking all day.

Enjoy!

August = Cooler Weather

2008-08-15T21:42:00.000-07:00

It turns out July is the hottest month around here. Now hot doesn't equal Houston, but we had a lot of 97, 98 and 99 degree days - of course it isn't that bad with less than 20% humidity and it cools down in the evenings. Side Note: One of the coolest phenomenon here is the climate is so dry that it will be "raining" but the rain will never reach the ground, it evaporates while it falls. Anyhow, we had a warm July but once August hit, things just cooled down, we've had temperatures in the 80's and today in the 70's, it cools down to the 40's at night, it's wonderful.

We are enjoying life around here - the girls all keep really busy during the days taking walks, running errands, and some regularly scheduled fun at the parks around Glenwood. Allyson has grown at least 3 inches since we moved here - all of her 2T clothes fit perfectly now (they used to be long). Lauren is our brave and independent child, we have to keep our eye on her all the time (especially at church, she has figured out how to push open the front doors of the church building, and she is always trying to get to the parking lot). Amy is doing really well, she is busy helping in our children's ministry at church and taking care of the girls. I love my job, I feel blessed to be working with a great church with an excellent group of elders and an awesome sr. minister. Anyhow, the most important part - pictures of the girls:

Taking walks

2008-07-28T07:46:00.000-07:00

The girls and I are out exploring most mornings during the week. On the weekends Justin comes too. We walk all around Silt and see what we can find. Parks, swings, trees, clouds, birds, horses, butterflies, dragonflies, flowers, chipmunks (chickmunks), dogs, mailboxes .... all kinds of exciting things to be seen. I never knew that finding mailboxes could be so fantastic! Allyson is clearly on a scavenger hunt each time we are out on a walk. A couple mornings ago when we were counting horses and stopped to see a couple, they came right over to the fence and the girls were both too excited to contain themselves. The rest of the walk Allyson kept wanting to chew on grass because that is what the horses were doing - each time she tried it she would declare that she didn't like to eat grass!

The world is so big to them - even the small places. Everything is an adventure and I am so glad to be on this one with these little sweet things!

Papa and Grandma

2008-07-24T13:46:00.001-07:00

Where do I even start? We did so many fun things when Papa and Grandma were here. The girls had tons of fun and Allyson is still talking about it all. We took walks, had tea parties, played on playgrounds, rode a gondola, ate pizza and ice cream, shopped, rode rides at the mall, went swimming, read lots of stories, played dress up, glued things, put stickers on paper, made sidewalk chalk art, hugged, kissed, loved and just played and played and played. It was all so exciting and Justin and I enjoyed the visit too!!!!
I do believe that one of life's greatest blessings is grandparents who adore their grandchildren.
We love you Papa and Grandma and can't wait till we get to see you again.

McGinns!

2008-07-21T13:17:00.001-07:00

We had a really good visit with Kyle, Courtney, Mark and June the weeked after the fourth of July. The kids played and played and had lots of fun. We walked around downtown Glenwood Springs and rode a gondola to the top of a mountain and went on some "rides." What a blessing to have a taste of Texas for a few days. We had a great time visiting with friends and were sad to see them leave. Can't wait for our next visit!!!

4th of July

2008-07-04T21:58:00.000-07:00

We had a pretty relaxing 4th this year. The day was spent mostly just playing with the girls and then in the evening we headed to church to have a potluck and watch the fireworks go off down town. The church is up hill and across town from where they were shooting them off, but we had a perfect view of the show. Lauren was in awe of the fireworks and stayed pretty mesmerized the whole time. Allyson enjoyed them too, but was seemingly more happy about sitting in the back of one of our friend's truck with some of her little friends. We all have our priorities!
I put them in cheesy matching outfits - which I do somewhat often. I just can't seem to help myself and they are too young to object just yet.

Thursday at the Park

2008-07-03T14:08:00.000-07:00

A couple of the moms from church and I go to the park every Thursday to have a picnic and let the kids play. Today I got some cute pics of my little ladies. They had a great time and are now sleeping off the hard work of playing outside in the sun.

The Emmons!

2008-07-01T19:15:00.000-07:00

Today we had a special treat. Some of our friends from college days are visiting family about 2 hours southwest of our new home. So today Ryan, Jill and Hailey Emmons made the trip up here and we got to enjoy a day with them. The last time we saw them Jill was pregnant with Hailey and Ryan was helping load our moving truck that took us from Sacramento California to Friendswood Texas - almost exactly 5 years ago. It was fun to catch up on what they have been up to over the past few years. Allyson really enjoyed playing with Hailey who was happy to have a younger friend to dress up and lead around! We went out to lunch, enjoyed some ice cream and played in a fountain - well the girls played in the fountain. We hope our next visit isn't another 5 years away.

Today's visit begins our fun July/August of friends and family coming to see us. This weekend the McGinns will be here, next week Justin's parents, at the end of July we'll have my sister-in-law and nephew - Tana and Grey, and there are rumors of a John Kirklin sometime in mid to late August.

VBS

2008-06-27T09:49:00.000-07:00

This past week was VBS at our church. Glenwood does an amazing job putting on a Vacation Bible School. This was Allyson's first official time to participate. I took both of the girls up each morning because in theory I was helping out with one of the stations ... luckily there was enough help at that station because I basically ended up with the littles - Lauren being the youngest of the group, and the oldest was a little over three. Allyson couldn't bear the being left part yet and Lauren was too busy wanting to walk around for the lone group leader to keep up with it. Two of the others in the group wanted to be held a lot so between those two and mine, there was no way for one adult to manage the group which totaled 6. 6 kids doesn't sound like much, but the little ones are really a handful.

All in all the girls really had a great time. During any of the singing times before or after the station rotations Lauren was fully ready to join in the fun. Every time there was a song with hand motions - such as the ever famous Father Abraham - she was up marching her little legs as fast as they could go around in circles and clapping her hands. She even got the "nod your head" part occasionally. I have never seen anything so cute. Allyson who tends to be somewhat of an observer was mostly happy to sit on a front pew and watch while holding her blankie (I would only let her have one or the other of Lorelai or the blankie .... the blankie wins in the nervous moments). By the end of the week she had warmed up to all of it quite a bit. Her favorite part was crafts - she really loved making things. Lauren's favorite part was most certainly the singing. Of course, Allyson would sing the songs all the way home each day and make sure we were going back to VVS tomorrow. She is just a little more shy than Lauren. Lauren seemed somewhat frustrated to not be "big enough" to do what the other kids were doing. She doesn't understand that kids aren't paying attention when she is underfoot and she tends to get trampled and get her feelings hurt. During snacks or free time she also had a little group of mother hens following her around and trying to help her a lot. She has grown quite a following!

Last night was the final program and Allyson willingly went up to participate in the songs. She has the coordination of her mother. If they are saying, "right arm" she was turning her head. If they were saying "nod your head" she was stomping her feet. What can I say - it was so sweet to watch! Lauren was trying to wiggle out of my arms and was pretty frustrated and screeching, so Justin told me to put her down. She went straight up to the front in joined right in with Father Abraham, stealing the show with her circular, hand clapping, head nodding march!

We are already looking forward to VBS next year.

I didn't really get many good pictures chasing them both around, but here are a couple from snack time one day- Justin was the "professor" - the theme this year was "Power Lab.

Out and about

2008-06-22T13:25:00.001-07:00

The girls and I have begun to explore our new surroundings. We live in a very small town - only about 2000 people - and though there isn't much to it, everything "in town" is within walking distance. We have wandered near and far and found some fun things. Of course it helps that they are easily impressesed! All I have to do is be excited about something and it is cool to them. I love that! We are also walking around in the rural areas finding horses and fields and gardens, as well as seeing all the mountains. Allyson thinks whenever we walk up a steep hill we are on a mountain. So she asks to go on the mountain to see the horses. We see lots of birds and bugs as well. We also have walked to the elementary school - brand new this past school year - and played on the playground there.
Here are a handful of pictures of us playing at the school the other day.

A few pictures to share

2008-06-11T08:53:00.001-07:00

Sicko II

2008-06-09T13:38:00.000-07:00

"Share with your sister", is heard quite a bit around the Bruner household. So, Allyson decided to take the encouragement quite literally and "share" her germs with Lauren! Now that Allyson is on the upside of the sick junk, Lauren is heading right down into it.

I visited the doctor this morning with Lauren and she has a sinus infection - he didn't think she had bronchitis - and so here goes part two of antibiotics. Lauren has spent a good part of today sitting on my lap crying. She is even crying in her sleep. She is pretty miserable. I am assuming she has a sinus headache and we all know how wonderful that is. Also, the new recommendations are to not give babies under two decongestants - so aside from the humidifier and saline drops (aren't those a fun time!?) she is just having to deal with it.

My guess is Justin will be the next sick one - any one want to place bets on it? :)

We still have Sonic!

2008-06-08T20:28:00.000-07:00

Despite all that we left behind in Texas - we still have a Sonic! It is just about 10 minutes away in the next town. And, as we are accustomed to, the 2pm-4pm half price happy hour on drinks exists here also. Allyson usually asks for an ice tea (like mommy) and says she needs a "sonics". So, the other afternoon after being shut in the house for a week with Allyson being sick, the girls and I headed out the door and enjoyed some sunshine and a yummy drink!

Sicko

2008-06-05T07:30:00.001-07:00

I am tired! Allyson has been sick since Saturday. I guess technically since Friday - she was slightly feverish then, and I told Justin that I thought she may be coming down with something. She seemed to have just a common cold. Monday night she came down with pink eye (AGAIN - she gets it a lot, you'd think we never wash her hands at all) and luckily we had antibiotics from the last bout of it. I figured that was the culprit of her other symptoms. Then Tuesday afternoon it seemed to be getting worse, she started coughing a lot and her fever went up. So, yesterday we got up and went to the doctor. She has bronchitis and the beginnings of an ear infection. Poor thing. All of that combined has made her quite miserable for the past few days. She has been waking up each morning between 5:30 and 6 because of the cough and consequently is very tired and grumpy all day. Also, due to the cough she is not sleeping very well during nap time or at night. Her nose and upper lip are all chapped from the tissues and mouth breathing. We have a permanent bed made up on the love seat.

She is taking: 2 antibiotics (one for pink eye, one for the bronchitis) mucinex, triaminic, and ibuprofen. We did buy some Cinderella Kleenex and that seems to put her in better spirits. Also our old humidifier broke so we got a Hello Kitty one. Her and Lauren are both pretty intrigued by it.

As would be the way of things, Lauren is going through some kind of growth spurt and sleeping in until around 8:30 or 8:45 - I could be sleeping in if only ... Oh well, what are you going to do? Such is life with the little ones. Now I am just praying that Lauren doesn't get sick too and we can be through with this in a few days.

Currently we are watching an episode of Blues Clues for the 20th time and I am working my way through a cup of nice strong coffee! And, Lauren is asleep.

Lorelai

2008-06-03T13:12:00.000-07:00

So, I was loading some new pictures off of my camera into the computer and as I was editing some of them, I noticed something. Lorelai ... in a lot of the pictures. I often joke about having 3 girls, not just 2. It would seem that this is really the case. Lorelai is Allyson's doll. Having two little girls, we have a great many dolls in our house. But, above all of them, Allyson has placed her love on a $5 doll from Wal-Mart. I just happened to throw into the cart when she was only about 6 months old to keep her busy while I shopped. As attached as she is to her blankie, I think she may be even more attached to this doll. We take her everywhere. When we get places (grocery stores and such) I give her the choice of bringing in Lorelai or the blanket. She almost always chooses Lorelai. Lorelai gets changed into different clothes a million times a day. She gets medicine if Allyson is sick, she gets a diaper change every time Lauren does. I hold her, and even rock her sometimes. The other night when I went to tuck Allyson in, I noticed that Lorelai was uncovered in the doll bed, and without a second thought I found a blanket and covered her up too! We talk about her by name, put band aids on her, lay her down for naps, and the list goes on.

A few pictures to share

2008-05-27T14:57:00.001-07:00

I just enjoy these girls. In spite of their "disagreeable" moments, there are also many hugs and kisses and lots of love shared between them. Here are a few pictures from the last couple of days. Nothing special, just hanging out.

Justin loves the cool weather

2008-05-23T11:45:00.000-07:00

I loved living in Houston and I miss all of our friends down in the 281/713/832 area code, but I do not miss the weather. I was looking and it is already almost 100 degrees in Houston and very humid. Today, it is in the 50s here and it cools down into the high 30s/low 40s at night. Even in the "heat" of the summer here, it gets down into the high 40s/low 50s at night. That is awesome! I look out my window at church and see a giant green mountain. I look out my front window at home and see snow capped flat top mountains - it's okay if you're into beautiful. The 3 girls are adjusting well to Colorado and I love my new job.

These are a few of my favorite things...

2008-05-21T19:09:00.000-07:00

First, Lauren:
Although she babbles all the time, she doesn't really talk with any words yet - the only thing she really says is "uh, oh." I am trying to teach her to say help and please and a couple of other words in sign language to keep the whining noise down to a minimum. Tonight she and Allyson were having some ice cream and she wanted another bite, so she was making her universal noise that she uses regardless of the need, desire, or trouble. I kept saying "say please Lou" and showing her the sign, and she looked at me, thought for a while and said, "uh, oh" and opened her mouth for a bite :)
This isn't the first time she has said "uh, oh" when I was trying to get her to say something else. It is so cute because you can see her little mind working trying to figure out how to say the word, but she says what she knows how to. That is one of my favorite things!
Next, Allyson:
After I put Lauren to bed this evening (Justin is at church and the girls and I are home) Allyson and I were rocking in my chair and watching the season finale of American Idol. One of the finalists was singing "Sharp Dressed Man" by ZZ Top, with ZZ Top. Allyson looked at either Gibbons or Hill - they were both on the screen - and said, "is that Santa mommy?"
For those of you who don't know, they both have chest-length white beards. When I told her no, they were in a band she said, "yeah ..... Santa is in Texas." So, apparently she has the Santa thing all figured out!
That is another one of my favorite things.

Almost home sweet home!

2008-05-17T11:59:00.000-07:00

The movers came Tuesday evening and Wednesday and got all of our many belongings unloaded into our house. Then, the fun began! The unloading of all the boxes and the putting away of things. The unpacking isn't so much of a chore as figuring out where to put the things. Once those decisions are made it is not too bad.
Now we have a garage full of empty boxes and the misc. things that didn't find a home in our home. We have a few purchases to make and some decorations to hang and I will officially be able to call this place home. I actually like our new place - it is a duplex. The kitchen is much bigger than our previous one, I have real laundry room, and much to Allyson's delight there is a playground directly across the street that is easily seen from our living room window.
Life is much more settled with things all put away and accessible. I feel blessed!

Lou Lou!

2008-05-13T19:59:00.000-07:00

Many of you know, but prehaps not all of you that Lauren has somehow become "Lou" to our little family. She responds to it like it is her own name! Anyhow, sweet little Lou turned one today. In the midst of our anniversary and the movers delivering half our load we celebrated our little girl.
I went to the bakery at the local City Market this morning and asked about a cake. They had a little "baby" cake in the freezer. It had red and green sprinkles on it - so you can imagine when it got put in the freezer!! - anyway, I thought it would do for a few pictures. The nice lady in the bakery took it in the back and removed all the red and green and made it pink and orange, and gave it to me for free. So that was fun!

Here are a few pics of the birthday girl and her sister! You can see that they had a good time with the cake!

8 years!

2008-05-13T08:14:00.001-07:00

Believe it or not 8 years ago today Justin decided "hey, why not, she's kind of cute!" and married me! It has been an adventurous 8 years. I am so blessed to have Justin and the two little girls that he is a great daddy for. I am prayerful for many, many more years! I am excited to see what they have in store for us.

I am putting a picture of Lauren and Justin together because it also happens to be her birthday today - but, more on that later!

The trip to Colorado

2008-05-12T08:06:00.000-07:00

We made it!!! A week ago a huge semi was parked in front of our house in Alvin, TX ready to load up all of our belongings and treasures to drive them up to our new home. The girls and I spent the day at McDonald's play place, Target, and Chick fil A's play place. Monday evening we spent our time with one last dinner at Andrew & Juanita's. Tuesday morning we were up and on our way.
To spare you every detail of the trip I will suffice it to say that the girls did really well - some thanks to a handy little portable DVD player and lots of twizzlers!
We arrived Thursday afternoon and are patiently awaiting the arrival of our stuff.

More to come soon. We miss all of our Texas people already, but are happy to be in a new place ready to do what God brought us here for.