A Nudge.....

This past week was a hard one. Through the rough times I saw God shining through. A dear friend of mine in my women's small group bible study lost her baby girl 3 weeks from her due date. I was and still am deeply saddened by the news. I cannot even fathom what she and her husband has gone through. Prayer keeps them going. I diligently prayed for them throughout the week and continue to pray for them. After having my own little one 9 weeks ago this continues to be on my heart daily. I saw them both on Saturday when I took them dinner. I saw enormous strength in my friend. Strength I don't know that I would have or ever will have like she did.

On Wednesday of last week I had a "Pay It Forward," moment. I was getting my sister and I Starbucks in the afternoon on Wednesday at a Starbucks we do not routinely go to. I was in line and there was a couple behind me. I heard her say, "I can't use my card." I then heard him say to her as he was pulling out a few dollars from his wallet, "Where did my other money go?" I heard a little more from him that he had $2 and she had some change. Well, we all know when we go to Starbucks it cost more than $2 usually. I felt a nudge......God wanted me to help them out. I paid for my Starbucks and took over some of the extra wadded up money and said, " Coffee on me." The gal smiled and said that is so sweet, and accepted the cash and stood in line to get her coffee. The best moment for me though was when I was standing to wait for my order she paid for hers and looked over and mouthed "thank you." I mouthed back "your welcome." As I was leaving with my order, she was waiting for hers and said "have a nice day." I said the same to her. This moment was just what I needed for this week. That night I got in a bind with our van key and a dear friend of mine came to the rescue. Wow, a nudge! Enjoy your week. God is Good!

Princess Party, Need I say More.

Bailey had her princess party this last weekend and boy oh boy I think it was a hit. We had 6 princesses running around our house. They made princess castles out of recyclable materials, colored Cinderella pictures, ate pizza, present time, and ate princess castle cake. After all said and done, it was a success but I was pooped! I forgot how much work birthday parties are. We all had a lot of fun. Bailey's grandparents from Grand Island Nebraska came and visited for the weekend event and to see their grandson for the first time. Bailey ended up getting 4 Barbie dolls. I thought barbie dolls came later like at age 7, but at 3 years old she has 4. She got a lot of Princess type gifts too. I now will be going through old toys to find what we can get rid of for our garage sale that will happen in May. Enjoy the rest of the day. We are going to the mountains this weekend with friends. It will be a great get-away since we have no funds for extended trips like going on a cruise, or California, or somewhere hot and sunny. My aunt and uncle's cabin is the best for a weekend get-away. It only costs us gas to get up the mountains. Thanks Aunt Yvonne and Uncle Bill for letting us stay up there, looking forward to it.

Bailey Turned 3 Today!

My little girl turned 3 years old today. Wow, I do not know where the time went at all. Bailey is 3 going on 10 sometimes. What I mean by that is....she says the darnest things and acts sometimes so much bigger than what she is and what she comprehends amazes Jon and I. Her birthday started out with cinnamon rolls with birthday candles on a Princess plate and streamers on the chair and a Princess tin purse that she wanted with $3 inside. She was so excited this morning when she woke up to her birthday breakfast. Bailey is having a princess party with her little girlfriends this weekend. Bailey's grandma and papa are also visiting from Nebraska to see her and her new baby brother.

I kept a surprise from Bailey since Saturday. If any of you know me, I don't keep surprises very well. I have to tell someone about the surprise. Bailey is totally into firefighters, fire trucks, what kind of equipment firefighters use to fight fires, etc. I have a friend who works at the Bothell Fire Department, thank you Lisa who gave Bailey a tour of one of her most favorite things right now, the fire house where the firefighters hang out. Bailey's facination came from watching Fireproof with Daddy and Mommy. She only saw parts of this movie when Kirk Cameron fights the fires and started asking questions and would not stop. The Bothell Fire Department was so kind to Bailey. Bailey got a fire hat, coloring book, and a little Easter Bunny from Firefighter Mr. Kirk Robinson. Bailey told Kirk all about her Princess party she will be having this weekend and some. Firefighter Kirk made Bailey feel right at home at the fire department with letting her sit in a firetruck with him to showing her the lights on the truck and his firefighter gear, totally cool!

It was a lot to take in for a 3 year old, but she will be talking about this one for awhile. Thanks again to Bothell Fire Department. Bailey wants to be a firefighter when she grows up, is what she tells mommy and daddy. We would be more than proud of her if this is what she wants to do. Bailey knows about fire extinguishers, fire alarms in our house, and what to do in case of a fire. She crashed on the way home this evening due to no nap because the birthday day continued with dinner at her great grandma's house, opening presents, and eating cupcakes! I am attempting a Princess castle cake this weekend, stay tuned for pictures.

Photography By Ruth

We had professional photos done when Hudson turned 3 weeks old. Ruth did an amazing job and with our family. Ruth took 3 hours of her day to spend with our family capturing moments of our family and children. Bailey does not like to have her pictures taken. Bailey warmed right up to Ruth. I love photos, especially photos of my children. Ruth is out of the Renton area in Washington. She also does Senior portraits, maternity photos, and much, much, more. Take a look at her website and our current photos. www.myproofs.org Hudson is the password. Her website is www.photographybyruth.com Thanks again Ruth for doing an amazing job with our family photos.