A Heart Like His

When you think of David in the Bible, what do you think of?  I thought of Psalms, Goliath and a man after God's own heart.  Those are all pretty good things to be associated with.  I picked up a study by Beth Moore called, A Heart Like His: Seeking the Heart of God through a Study of David a few months back and started doing it on my own.  I then felt led to do a Bible study with more than just myself.  We have 8 girls in the group and have met twice.  There is a lot of stuff I had no idea about.  1 Samuel offers quite a story!  I felt at sometimes I was reading a real-life soap opera.  A murder plot, best friends, power, giants, love, comedy, acting - it had it all. I have also seen such a wonderful parallel between Saul and David and Christians today.  God is showing me a lot about unconditional love, fear, jealousy and so many other things.  Each week we have had great conversation and I feel like God is really opening hearts and ears to learn.  I can't wait to see what else David and his story has to offer us.  Isn't our ultimate goal to have a heart like His?

Kung Fu and Katey Poo

Yesterday, I ventured to the movies with two 2-year olds.  Our local theater offers "Summer Movie Camp" and entrance is just $1.  They show a different kid-friendly movie every Tuesday at 10am during the summer and all proceeds benefit charity.  The concession stand also offers discounted food.  I didn't take Kate, instead I took Paige, my niece.  I have already done something with Blake and Claire before, but have never taken Paige.  She can sit the longest and watch TV, so we thought she would be the best choice for the first time.  Kung Fu Panda was showing and I made sure it was friendly enough for toddlers.  We got in, got settled with our popcorn and fruit snacks and lasted about 45 minutes.  Paige was actually great.  She had me take her shoes off and was watching the movie and surroundings intently.  Jack was good, but became disinterested when his popcorn cup was empty.  He said, "I done".  Of course I would have liked to make it longer, but I only lost $7 total and it was a good test at a great price.  I would hate to spend $30 for us to go to a movie and then leave 40 minutes in.  I didn't want too many expectations and it was fun.  I am glad we did it.  I think if he was interested more in the subject matter (i.e. Toy Story, Cars, etc.) he would have made it longer.  All he knew was the fat panda.  I think we will have more success next summer when he is almost 4.

This is Paige's "cheese" face.  

I leave you with bittersweet news.  Our baby girl is 11 months old today!  This time last year, I was very pregnant and ready for her to be born.  Now, I am waiting on her to walk.  It is bitter because she is growing up so quickly, but sweet because I can't wait to see her grow and become a wonderful little girl.  We are very blessed.

Pigs and Papa's House

I found this awesome pig fabric at a local store and I was in love.  I grew up collecting pigs, wanted a pig as kid, love Charlotte's Web, love bacon and well, you get the idea.  I figured I needed to get my daughter in on the business of pigs.  I made her this jumper from the same Bonnie Blue Pattern, Madison that I made her previous outfit from.

Buttons, again - very excited about these!

My sweet piggy, Kate

In other news, my parents (Papa and Gigi to the grandkids) took our kids for the night on Saturday.  Craig and I saw Toy Story 3 - fun movie.  Anyway, I told Jack he was going to their house and we got his bags all ready.  He said, "I can't wait to go to Papa's house".  He wore his backpack for at least an hour before they got here.  He was very excited.  We go over there a lot, but apparently, it had been too long for him.  He was waiting by the door looking for them.  Oh, and we picked a balloon from the grocery store, to cap off the look.

Bonnie Blue, Buttons and Backyardigans

For the record, I love having my titles rhyme or have the same letter beginning them.  It is just fun for me.  On Saturday, Kimberly was awesome and we went to my favorite fabric store about an hour away.  I got some great fabrics and then this cute pattern.  I was a little nervous about doing it because it looked and seemed more tedious than others.

I started on it last night after I realized I messed up another project.  I started smocking a cute purple bishop dress for Kate to wear the Sunday around her birthday.  It had a cute cupcake on it.  My problem was I took out the gathering threads too soon before putting the neckband on.  I was so disappointed.  However, this pattern and some cute fabric saved the day and Kate has a new birthday Sunday outfit.  The added difficulty with this pattern were the buttons.  I have NEVER done buttonholes before and was actually quite intimidated.  All it took was patience and reading the directions on my machine.  The buttonholes went very well.  I did manually sew the buttons on because it was easier.  I am actually very proud of it and I LOVE IT.  I then added an iron on "K" to it and I think it turned out so cute.  I will need to pin the top of the pants a little bit because they are a tad big.  I guess I thought Kate was fatter. :-)

Front

Back

My first button and buttonhole!

The pretty girl - look at those shoes!  Love them!

Finally, something about Jack-man (as Lisa refers to him).  If you don't know, Jack is obsessed with The Backyardigans.  They are actually very cute and fun.  Unfortunately, the show is only in syndication and no new shows are produced.  This also means there is not a lot of stuff - clothes, toys, etc. out there.  I found Iron-On transfers for like $2 on Ebay and made him a shirt.  I also have a surprise for his birthday, too.

I have lots for cute fabrics to work with and my next project will be to finish a tree skirt for a certain someone (Val) so they can get it soon!  

Facebook...The End of an Era

Well, after much thought and prayer.  I have decided to end my relationship with Facebook.  There are a few different reasons for this.  If you care, here they are:

1) It was beginning to take too much of my time.  I would find myself checking it every few hours or more to see what someone was doing or what was new.  I need to refocus what my priorities are and really not spend so much time on the computer or my IPod or my cellphone (which all have access to Facebook).

2) Another reason is that I feel like I allow people a glimpse into my life who don't necessarily care about me or what is going on.  Part of that is my fault because I have put pictures and stories on there that everyone can see and I think they care.  Not everyone is like this, but sometimes it just seems so impersonal.

3) I did drop some of my "friends" but still some of my friends chose to participate in activities or say things that I don't feel are appropriate or Christ-like.  Most everyone is fine, but sometimes lines get blurred and I just felt like God was telling me to back off.

I would like to say, on a final note, that Facebook is not a terrible thing.  I have seem some good stuff come out of it, but for me, it is time to focus more on different things.  I love blogging and expressing myself and I really don't need to be so concerned with what other people are doing.  All of these are just my opinions and if you are on Facebook, I don't think you are making a bad decision, just not for me anymore!  Come back and see me here - I will now have plenty to share!

Play-Doh

Recently, Jack has gotten in touch with his creative side and loves playing with Play-Doh.  We are past the point of eating the stuff, so we can play without fear.  He mostly wants us to make balls and cut pieces out for him, but it is fun for all of us.  Craig and Jack played a lot tonight and Jack helped him build a car with new black Play-Doh.  It was especially helpful for the tires on the car.  It is fun to watch their creativity.  He can now sit for an hour and play with stuff like this.  And, it was fun to have Jack and Daddy quality time.

Look at that concentration!

Multi-tasking - on the phone

Summer Swimming

Kate loves to swim and so do her cousins.  My parents got a pool for the summer and it is nice to cool off when it gets near 100 degrees.  I loved watching them bob around and play with each other.  I sure do love all our babies...

Claire and Kate

Swimming

And this is as far as Jack got

Apparently, Jack is quite afraid of water.  At the beach, he didn't like it and really doesn't like it here.  He has been in other pools, but as he is getting older, he is deciding what he likes and doesn't like.  I guess we need to work with him more.  He could be traumatized from all the water I dump on him during bathtime.  He is usually screaming - "NO WASH HAIR".  Oops.  Oh well, he will get over it sometime; soon hopefully.

Happy Birthday Party July 4th

This is what the kids (Jack and the triplets) were saying all day yesterday.  All they knew was there was fun, food and fireworks.  I would have to say that this is one of the best 4th's I can remember.  One of the most memorable was the one after September 11, but this was the most fun.  I am sure they will only get better as time goes by and the kids get older.  We went to church and that was kicked off by some great music.  We sang Yankee Doodle in church.  That was interesting, but patriotic, I guess.  Anyway, it was a great service.  Here is our littlest bug in all her patriotic cuteness.  I was even able to get a tiny ponytail on top to stick her clip in.

We then headed to my parents.  Jack wanted to play outside a little bit before nap and we just hung out.  Kate and Jack were busy playing with each other and at one point Jack was hitching a ride on the back of Kate's walker and she was rolling him around.  It was funny.

Then the real festivities began.  The triplets toddled over and the Eikelands joined us too.  All 5 big kids ran around for at least 2 hours in the backyard while we got dinner ready.  Brian and Kate took in the sites.

Bubbles!

Watching the "Bubble Show"

Brian

Then, we ate and we had some good food.  Burgers, some awesome baked macaroni courtesy of Kimberly, baked beans, and tons of desserts.  Great American food.

Blake loved the watermelon - even the rind!

After watermelon...

My triple berry (strawberry, raspberries, blueberries) cheesecake.  I don't want to brag, but it...was...awesome.  I loved it and will definitely make it again.

Finally, we wrapped up the evening with some sparklers and lame fireworks because our lame state won't allow the kind you shoot in the air.  Lame.  Oh well, it was cheap fun and the kids were into it for a bit.

Watching the "fire" with Papa

Annie even liked them

We stopped by a parking lot down the street from us to see the city fireworks and caught a few, but by that time it was 10 and the kids were done.  Jack liked them for a few minutes and then was ready to go.  It was a late night, but a great FULL day.  It made me feel proud to be American.  I am so grateful for our freedoms and for those who have served to protect that.  God Bless America!