A Winter Wonderland

 Saturday evening we were blessed with an unexpected snow storm. Flurries were predicted through out the day, but I'm not sure anyone expected anything to actually STICK! I don't know exactly how much snow our area got, but I'm guessing it was between 2-3 inches. 

It was the PERFECT amount of snow for us southern folks who VERY RARELY get to see the white fluff;)

First thing Sunday morning, the kids were BEGGING to go outside. 

Church was postponed for the day, so we dug our snow gear out of the attic, layered up the best we could, and headed out to play!

We went up to the boys school where there is an AWESOME hill that's PERFECT for sledding! 

Several of our friends and neighbors we already there, and everyone had a blast sledding together!

 I can't even begin to count how many times the kids went down (and then back up) the hill. 

The fun was endless!!!

Finally, after a few hours had passed, and I could no longer feel my toes any longer, 

we headed back home.

The big boys weren't quite ready to head inside yet, so they spent the rest of the morning in the front yard building a Frosty with their friends.

That night, after we were dry, warm, and well- rested, we headed over to my parents house for a little birthday celebration. My sister, B and I have birthdays that fall within a few weeks of each other, so my mom usually does one birthday dinner for both of us. It was a great night with my family and we FINALLY had the opportunity to meet my sister, KK's, boyfriend. They've been dating for a while now, but Shane and I hadn't met him yet. He's a true gentlemen and I hope and pray our crew didn't scare him too much;)

What a FUN and (somewhat) unexpected way to spend the day!

 And now that we've officially seen and experienced snow, I can wholeheartedly say

"Bring on SPRING!!!!"

Gentlemen, start your engines

Each year, our church holds a pinewood derby car race for our AWANA club members.  Corban and Riley have participated in AWANA for several years now, but last Friday night was their very first time entering the derby. 

Each contestant starts with a block of wood and is responsible to design, carve, paint, and build a complete car. It's a lot of work, but the boys had a ton of fun working on it with their daddy!

Some of the entries were totally A-mazing and completely blew us away! 

There are some really talented and creative kids at our church. 

Since this was our very first year entering the race, 

we had a lot to learn.

The boys learned a lot about aerodynamics and made several notes on what to do better for next year;)

The best part of the evening was  hangin' out with sweet friends and cheering on the winners as they raced down the track!

And to quote one of the MOST famous race car we know...
It was a "Ka-chow!" kind-of night!!!

A Sweet Saturday

 We enjoyed a simple and low-key kind-of Saturday. I love it when we don't have much planned and  can just relax and enjoy a quiet day together. That's all going to change really soon as we gear up for the beginning of spring soccer. This year, four of our kiddos will be playing, so Saturday mornings will be filled with game after game after game;)

 It's gonna be super BUSY, but super FUN! 

We can't wait!

We spent some time with Shane's grandparents on Saturday. They recently moved into a assisted living home about 40 minutes away from us.

 Our MawMaw's health is declining quickly and it's really hard to watch...especially for Shane. He simply adores his sweet grandma and hates to see her getting worse.

We pray that donuts and hugs from the kids made her feel just a little better;) 

Then Saturday evening, we got together with our good friends, the Robinson's, for dinner and games.

They challenged our family to a friendly "Just Dance" competition and we eagerly accepted their invitation.

We had the best time together and laughed until our stomachs hurt. 

 

I think the pictures definitely speak for themselves and show WHO really had those "Moves Like Jagger"-HA!

FUN TIMES!!

Day of L-O-V-E

Valentines Day is always such a sweet day to celebrate. I really enjoy a holiday that's about nothin' but L-O-V-E! 

It's just so. much. FUN! 

The boys were super excited to wake up and get to school Thursday morning.

 They couldn't wait for their Valentine parties that afternoon, and they were ready to pass out their valentines to their friends.

We tried to enjoy a simple "Valentiney" themed breakfast before they quickly had to head out the door;)

That night, we did a little more celebrating. 

 The kids got busy in the kitchen making heart shaped pizzas for dinner.

The little ones LOVE "helping" with dinner

and actually eat better when they've had a hand in making it;)

And yes, Valentines Day is also... my birthday;)

My friends and family did a wonderful job making me feel special, and my precious husband spoiled me rotten;) 

 I am one blessed girl!

Blessed with another year and blessed to share such a sweet day with ALL my little LOVES!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!!!

A little Valentine fun!

We had such a wonderful Valentines Day. Each (first) holiday we get to celebrate with Addy-Kate home with us makes these special days just that much sweeter;)

Last year, at this exact time, we had JUST sent our dossier off to China.  Here we are, a whole year later, celebrating this "day of love" with our newest and littlest love.  

Oh My Heart!!!

 

Our celebration started a day early this year, as we welcomed our cousins over for a Valentine play date on Wednesday morning!

It's such a treat to get together with our cousins and the kids always have a TERRIFIC time!

My sister B and I planned a few little valentiney crafts for the kids to do,

 and we all enjoyed some yummy valentine treats. 

We read a valentine book, and the kids each enjoyed exchanging their special valentines they had made for each other!

It was such a fun-filled morning spent with the little people we LOVE the most!

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Happy Chinese New Year!

 Saturday evening, our family had the privilege of celebrating Chinese New Year with several other adoptive families. It's just about the BEST thing EVER to get together with other families who share the same passion, love and connection to a country, it's culture and rich traditions.

The kids LOVED having a reason to get dressed up in their traditional Chinese clothes-which we brought home for them from China last summer.

I thought the girls looked especially pretty in their hot pink dresses, but of course, I'm just a little bias;)

Riley and Hudson thought they were something else, in their new China outfits!!

 They even busted out a few of their "kung fu panda" moves for the camera;)

And because our family has really enjoyed celebrating Chinese New Year, I thought I'd share just a few fun things we've learned about the holiday;)

  ~Chinese New Year lasts for about 15 days!!

~On New Year's Day, you are not suppose to wash your hair because you would have washed away good luck for the New Year.

~The entire house should be cleaned before New Year's Day. On New Year's Eve, all brooms, brushes, dusters, dust pans and other cleaning equipment are put away. Sweeping and dusting should NOT be done on New Years Day for the fear that good fortune will be swept away!

~ You should not use knives or scissors on New Year's Day as this may cut off good fortune.

 ~The color red is worn to drive away bad luck. It symbolizes happiness and ultimate joy!

 

~Shooting off firecrackers on New Year's Eve is the Chinese way of sending out the old year and welcoming in the new one. On the stroke of midnight, every door in the house, and even windows, have to be open to allow the old year to go out.

~2013 is the year of the black Snake!

Ancient Chinese wisdom says a Snake in the house is a good omen because it means that your family will not starve.

 Honestly, I think I'd rather go hungry than have a snake in MY house, but never-the-less...

Happy Chinese New Year, 2013 to ALL!!!

"Messy and bad day for mom"

Riley is notorious for taking videos with my phone. He loves filming anything and everything. Normally, the clips are of himself singing or talking. He can go on and on and on about... nothing, but I love going back though the footage he's taken because it always gives me a good chuckle. As I was watching and deleting some of his most recent "work" from my phone the other night, I came across this little piece.  

I had no idea Riley was filming me as I was down on my hands and knees (in my pj's) cleaning up yet another spill that day!

It had been one of "those days" were messes and spills seemed to abound.

I guess Riley noticed just how much cleaning up I had done and, as he comments in his video, he's really glad he's gonna be a dad someday and...NOT A MOM!!!