The New Room

Here are some pictures of Shelby's new room. I should have taken before and after pictures. Basically, all she had before was the bed and box springs on the floor.

Happy Father's Day

I am such a fortunate girl because I had a great daddy growing up! He was strict, supportive, and oh so loving. I was hugged and kissed often, and I heard the words I love you every day. The biggest blessing though is that my dad was involved in my life. He wasn't just this person who went to work and came home. He knew about my friends, classes and dreams. I know that a lot of who I am today, and a lot of the confidence that I carried with me into the world came from him. That is why I am so thankful for him, but also for Bret who is the same kind of father. It's sad to me that so many kids don't have a relationship with their dads. It's not just the kids who don't have dads. I see it all the time, men who simply don't talk or play with their kids. Bret is a great father. He loves the girls so much, and he tells them so every single day. I am so thankful that God blessed me with my dad and blessed my girls with Bret!

I hate to admit that I didn't get a picture of the girls with Bret on Father's Day! We were just so busy that I forgot. This is my favorite picture of the four of them right now though.

Look how they have changed from last year.

Summer Vacation

The girls and I, along with my mom, took our first trip of the summer. It may be our last for a while! We had such a great time, but I was so exhausted when we got back. Most of my mom's side of the family lives in Tuscola, Texas which is about 25 miles outside of Abilene. Tuscola is a really small town. I think it is population 600 something. The girls call it the country, and they are in heaven when we are there! Being city girls, they think there is nothing better than open fields as your backyard. They get to experience a feeling of freedom that they just don't get in their fenced in backyard. I know, because I felt it when I was little, that there is nothing like running around outside all day without having your mom watch you every second. Not that I wasn't watching them! In fact, it is very hard for me to just sit back and let them go. Bret and I have always been a little overprotective of them. I kept reminding myself what it was like for me when I was little, and that kept me from checking on them every second.

The other perk to being in the country, is that there are always lots of animals around too. There were dogs, cats and kittens galore to play with! Plus, my cousins have a horse and a newborn raccoon who lost its mother. My cousins also own a party business that rents out inflatables and teddy bear stuffing machines. It's so much fun!!!

It's not just the stuff that we got to do and see, but the fact that I have the most amazing family! They are some of the most wonderful people I have ever known. I cannot put into words all that my extended family has brought to my life. To have strong, loving, godly people to look up to your whole life is something I wish everyone had. It is an amazing feeling to know you are a part of something so strong. That no matter what happens you will always have these people around you. Maybe you make mistakes, or don't live up to expectations, but bottom line they are always there. I am SO grateful that my girls have that. My Nana is almost 90, and she is the most special person. She is so strong! I was lucky enough to live there when I was in college, and I learned so much from her in my years there.

The only bad part of the trip is that I forgot my camera. I could have kicked myself. All this beautiful scenery and all I got were a bunch of cell phone pictures. Bret was really disappointed to, but what can I do? They are terrible quality, but seeing as they are all I have, I will share them with you.

Abilene has a really great zoo. It is small, but the habitats that the animals live in are really great. We went in the evening when it was cool, and all the animals were out and playing. The other highlight was that you can feed the giraffes. The girls loved this!

Cousin Jennah

Cousin Hannah took the girls for an early morning ride even though she would have rather been sleeping. She is so great!

Shelby loved this cat, and surprisingly, the cat her too. At one point, I thought she had strangled it. See picture below. I took the cat away because I was worried, and it ran up to her and jumped right back into her lap.

The baby raccoon drinking its bottle. The girls loved watching it eat! It's eyes were not even open yet.

The girls with Nana, their great grandmother.

Build a Bear in your own garage. What could be better! Macey made a biker dog in honor of her daddy.

The girls love cousin Jordon! When Shelby found out that he has a girlfriend and she was coming over, she got very serious and said, "I am not going to talk to her!"

Playing in the backyard with even more family.

End Of the School Year Happenings

Well, we made it through another school year. By the end, I am as ready as the girls for summer! For one, I love it when my babies are home. Second, it is so nice to sleep in and not have to rush around all the time. I have heard that the older your kids get, the busier you are. Truthfully, I don't want to be any busier than I already am. The 35 minute drive(each way) to school got old after a while. It was worth it, but it got to be something I dreaded. On top of that, school nights are always so hectic with dinner, homework (so much homework), baths and an early bedtime. Then up early the next morning so we can get up and do it all over again. Needless to say, I was really looking forward to summer.

The last week of school was only three days long, but they were three busy days. We celebrated Macey's birthday with her class, had a book fair, reading safari, awards ceremony, and kindergarten graduation. Shelby and I basically stayed at school all three days. She loved it of course and felt very big.

Macey in her cap and gown.

Performing a few songs for the parents and grandparents.

My serious girl after getting her "diploma."

Shelby giving Daddy some love during the ceremony.

One of the mom's in Macey's class made this cake for the graduation party. She is so talented.

At the end of the graduation, the pastor and children's pastor prayed over each child. It was really touching to listen to someone pray over your child's future. That was when the crying started!

Abby getting her A honor roll award.

The girls exhausted and looking a bit like rug rats. They had been running around for hours jumping in bounce houses and playing games at the reading safari. Shelby was in more safari looking clothes to start the day, but she decided to try out the water fountain on her own. Needless to say, more got on her clothes than in her mouth. I found them sitting in a corner on this bench together. They had four pieces of cake and two huge candy stars.

Our Little Girl Turned 6!

Boy how time flies! I really can't believe how big our kids are now. Sometimes I will be doing something, and it will hit me just how much time has past. When that happens, I have a moment of panic and get this pain in my heart. Where did it all go, and when did I get old enough to think that time goes by so quickly? I can remember being young and thinking that a year felt like eternity. Now I know better, and the panic hits at random times. It is so hard as a parent to know your children are growing and getting that much closer to leaving you. My prayer is that I am a mother and woman that pleases God, and that my little girls will see that and become one themselves.

So last Friday, I had another one of those panic moments, when I woke up and realized that my little Macey was six! She of course is thrilled, but it is much harder for mommy and daddy. We still see her as this chubby little baby. Macey had a great birthday week. Bret's mom took her shopping a week before her birthday and let her pick out any outfit she wanted. This was very exciting as I am usually the one picking out the the girls clothes for them. Most of Macey's clothes are "bought" from Abby's closet. :) Then on the Thursday before her birthday, Lizzy and David took Macey out to dinner, just the three of them. This was also very thrilling for her. On Friday, her actual birthday, my entire family was out of town. We had a party at our house with some of our good friends the Zengerles. The theme (Macey's choice) was pirates. I will tell you that I had a hard time buying the skull balloons for my little girls birthday. Saturday night we went to dinner with my parents, and Macey got even more presents. She had a great week!

The outfit Macey picked out all on her own.

Waiting for Lizzy and David to pick her up. Oh the suspense!

Her pirate party.

Abby and Macey's turn

Abby and Macey finally had their turn at the dentist. They did great! The office was so much fun for them. Movies, video games and all sorts of other toys were everywhere! They got a sticker or a prize after everything they did, and they got sugar free ice cream when they left. Abby ended up having a tooth pulled. That was no fun for her, but she handled it well. They gave her verset, and then gas to breath before the shots and procedure. The verset made her very loopy! I had to carry her out to the car because she could barely walk. Once in the car, she laid over in the seat and couldn't figure out how to sit back up. It was a rough couple of hours trying to get her to lay down and be still. In some of the material the dentist gave me to read, it said that kids who took verset usually didn't remember anything about their procedures. That made me feel better. Once Abby was back to normal, I asked her if she remembered it all. She said that she remembered everything, lots of pulling and pushing. I felt so bad thinking about her laying on the table in pain and unable to say anything because of the medicine. I asked her if it hurt and her exact words were, " I'm not sure, I was to busy flying around the ceiling. My arms were flapping around so I put them under my bottom (I did see that she was laying on her hands). Man, that was fun!"

Where's Shelby?

I can't find her, can you?