http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0 Go look at this video....how creative! I laughed so hard I almost choked!

Just a note..

For some reason it wouldn't let me tag the picture from the lake...The first picture is with our friends Christian and Connor. The second is Lauren eating her favorite fruit..watermelon. The third is of my precious three year being her usual adorable self! Hope you all are enjoying the rest of the summer!

Deam Lake

Invisible Mom...

I don't know who wrote it or where it originated from, but thanks to whoever did. Invisible Mother.....It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible.. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more! Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this??Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude -but now, they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone!?One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: 'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work:No one can say who built the greatcathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof, No one will ever see it. And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.'I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does.No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become. At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubbornpride.I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for 3 hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, 'You're gonna love it there..'As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Random pictures from our trip....

This is what happens when you think your child is taking a nap!!

Life...

" We don't always need to know where we are going as long as we know whom we are following. God is in control. Even when we wind up in strange places or unusual circumstances, the Father is not caught by surprise." - Mike Clay

" When you pass through the waters I will be with you; and through the rivers they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you." - Isaiah 43:2

I was reading these today and they just jumped out at me. The quote at the top reminds me that I don't need to worry because God knows what the next step is and He is in control and everything happens because He allows it to. The scripture verse reminds me that He will not give us more than we can handle. I have faced many times through out the past year that I feel like I might break. I may not know the reason why I am going through it at the time, but I do have to tell you that I have grown from each experience. I have been able to share my experience with people that needed to hear it. God has grown my relationship with my husband through it all. He has shown me what a miracle I have right in front of me through my baby girl. Anyway, I have been thinking about these things all day and just wanted to share a little bit of my heart...

Pictures...Finally!

Having a tea party...

Visiting George Washington...

The three princesses...

Busy summer!

I am so behind on my blog posts. We just came back from a trip to Washington D.C. and the grandparents. I went along to help my mom entertain the other girl cousins. We had a 6 year old, 4 year old and a 3 year old. The experience has made me realize that I could never have three girls! My nieces are sweet and precious but three girls together wore us out! Lauren had a wonderful time and I am so glad that she had that time to spend with her grandmother and her cousins. Paul flew in on Friday to spend the 4th with us and then we drove home together on Sunday. We had a great time! It was a much needed break from life here in Kentuckiana. I will post pictures soon of our trip. Stay tuned...

Pictures...start of the summer!

The first grilling of the summer!
The new haircut...

Busy, Busy, Busy....

Ok, let me tell you about the picture below...one of Lauren's little friends gave her that tu-tu/ballarina outfit and we haven't been able to get her take it off except for leaving the house! As soon as we get back home she puts it right back on! It's been four days. She likes to shake her hips and get the skirt part to move. It's pretty funny.

Life has been a bit crazy around here. I had another birth last week. It was awesome! I have three more scheduled for the summer. Paul has been really busy with school and trying to get through this quarter. Only 15 more months to go! Lauren has been busy with a little music class that she and Paul go to together and learning her letter sounds. I love this age because she has amazing memorization skills. She knows the pledge of allegiance and Paul thought maybe we should teach her the constitution next...Kidding! I told him we should hold off on that for a little while. :) She is so joyful to be around!

We pray that this finds you all doing well! Have a blessed beginning of summer!

So yeah, we were able to get a new camera. This made Lauren so excited that she wanted to wear her new ballerina outfit. She even danced a bit for us. Thought you might like it.

Baby Time!

I finally got to experience my first official birth as a doula! It was probably the most incredible experience I have ever had next to the birth of my own child. We weren't sure if baby x was ever going to come after having two nights of false labor over the past week. Around 2:00 am today they called me and said to get ready for the real thing. I was a nervous wreck all the way to the hospital! We had a couple minor set backs, but I am happy to say that my pregnant mom did an incredible job and achieved her goal of a completely natural/drug-free childbirth. It was amazing!

A glimpse into the exciting life...

I think that we have decided that we need a springtime home to escape all of the allergy problems here. Lauren is doing much better, but I am still really struggling with some sort of sinus/respitory thing. Ugh! What you get for living in the Ohio Valley.

Being the parent of a three year old just keeps getting more confusing, surprising....I'm not sure what the word should be! This morning she informed us that "Hippopotamus" is actually "Hippotapotamus". "You and Daddy need to say it right!" She is also learning how to butter you up in order to try to get out of things. Yesterday she was going was to have to get punished for something that happened and when I walked in the room right before Paul was getting ready to carry out the punishment, she looked at me and said "Mommy, my daddy is a really nice man." It is hard not to laugh at times! Life continues to be so much fun as we work with her to learn new things and surprise at the same time at what she already knows at the age of three. We pray that life is treating you all well and you have a reason to celebrate as we enter into this new season!

We will post pictures as soon as we can. Our digital camara decided to die!