oops!

these pictures somehow missed the last post... check out these gifts, isn't this cool?

this was the best wrap job of the night! look how hard riley's working, it love it!

i thought this gift says it all. it really brings tears to my eyes. to know what this gift means not only to the child that is receiving it but what it means to the child who gave it!

i really wish i could explain all the details of what took place this evening but it is impossible. i believe our kids gave the gift of presence to their families, they made a memory that will last forever!

thank you God for sending your one and only son so many years ago. let us remember why we celebrate. i pray that this year YOU will be the focus. may you bring families closer together, and closer to you this Christmas season. thank you for not only teaching/reminding these kids the real meaning of Christmas but for me as well. i love you, you are an awesome God!

In Jesus Name

Amen

Advent Conspiracy: Kidz Edition Celebration!

this year instead of putting on a Christmas musical we got together with the kids every tuesday night and we potted ways to make this Christmas more about presence (people) instead of presents (things). it was absolutely amazing. we challenged the kids to give up one present, instead of having the normal 4 gifts under the tree, this year they would get 3, for example. they would use the money from that gift and buy a gift for someone who might not otherwise get a gift this Christmas. this could be their only gift. this was a sacrifice. we talked a lot about sacrifice and what a true sacrifice means. the kids got it! the stories we heard from parents and the things the kids shared was incredible. we wanted to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas with our families. the kids wanted to give and gift of presence to their families. so last tuesday we did just that. the kids put on a party for their families. they decorated, they organized, they made invitations, they made place cards, they practice leading Christmas carols, they made a beautiful power point presentation using their pictures as kids read the Christmas story, they served their families throughout the night, they were the host and hostess. they also bought Christmas gifts and together as families they wrapped them. the kids did an amazing job! they were so proud, they were beaming. it was a night that i will never forget, i was so thankful to be apart of something so absolutely incredible.

the kids brought in their unwrapped toys. they were so proud so show us what they got for someone else!

they decorated cookies.

some kids led singing.

You are Invited!

i want all of you to come to movie night, tomorrow friday the 12th at 7pm. free popcorn, candy, and drinks, bring something cozy to sleep on and in (sleeping bag/pillow and jammies). call me or email me for details. it will be a blast, and the kids might even have fun too!

San Diego, Perfection!

when we touched down in san diego we got our car and came straight here! we loved the zoo, the way it is laid out is amazing. the animals are so close. it seams like you could reach out and touch them!

on our way to the hotel we stopped at the beach, jesse got a little excited when he saw a pelican and seals, "right there"

look at these little guys, aren't they so cute?

this was a pre-haircut and eyebrow picture, yuck! this girl could use a serious make over!

after the spa we went down to old town is was so cool. the lady who cut my hair recommended an authentic mexican restaurant, it was so so so delicious! muchas gracias!

in old town they had this nativity scene set up in the town square it was beautiful. time and time again we would see Christmas decorations and it just seemed completely strange. the weather made it seem like summer and yet Christmas decorations??? it just was very weird.

after the "haircut" in old town. i love this man!

jesse saw this coffin and what else did you think he would do??? it was so funny, a lady walked out of a nearby store and jesse popped up, she screamed! it was an accident, but there was almost a cleanup on aisle 2.

we went to the first light house on the west coast it was amazing, and it had the most incredible views.

jesse and i decided that we want to live here. we're packin up and moving to this light house! oh...we can't it's a monument, dang!

look at this beautiful day, can you beleive it's december? jesse is on top of the world!

we went to seaworld, the weather was perfect. can you tell who this is? it's jack hannah. when i realized who it was, i turned around and chased after him and tried to take his picture. i was a paparazzi! it was terrible. i can't believe i acted that way, poor famous people.

of course the shamu show was awesome. i was teary the entire time. i wished my kids could have seen this. they would have loved it, someday they will, that's a promise.

after seaworld, we got all dressed up for our fancy dinner. look at my hot hunk of a man! (it took us four times to get this picture, we were laughing so hard!)

the dinner and dessert was so good. i wish i could describe it to you in great detail, but it would just make you jealous and hungry, so i'll spare you...

my feet hurt and i was cold, so jesse (like the gentleman he is) let me barrow his jacket and i ran back to our room barefoot! we had such an amazing night, jesse was my prince and i was his princess. (thank you laurie and chelsea for the dress and shoes and ryan for the tie)

i told jesse on the plane to san diego that i wanted to find this statue. i can't believe we actually found it. it was kind of a fluke. jesse toured an aircraft carrier that was right next to it. cool huh?

this is my man! he is showing me his "how you doin' " face.

here's me trying to do it back but not so well... this was our farewell shuttle back to the couve! we are so glad to be home, we missed our kids desperately. i am so thankful however, to have had a wonderful time with my husband of almost TEN YEARS! i love you babe! thank you again to everyone who made this trip possible!

San Diego, Here We Come!!!

this is the craziest thing ever! i don't even know what to say or how to say it. jesse and i are going on an amazing little getaway. we're flying to SAN DIEGO for four days! we are staying at the FOUR SEASONS! yeah, and i have money to spend at a SPA! i'm basically getting a head to toe makeover, choppin' the hair off, FINALLY!!! going to SEAWORLD! having a super ultra formal dinner. all of this is free to us! did you read that right? FREE! we are so blessed, beyond blessed. thank you gramma c! you are so generous, i am amazed. thank you for thinking of us this is a gift that leaves me speechless, we love you! thank you mom for taking care, kissing, loving on my babies while we're away, i trust you completely! thank you aunt laurie for the most beautiful dress i could ever imagine wearing, (and the undergarments and shoes to go with), thank you jeff and shelley for the tickets to sea world, what an incredible place to experience, and thank you for watching annabelle and sawyer on saturday for my mom, i know the kids will have a blast! and thank you GOD for putting these people in our lives who love and care for us so much, we feel so outrageously blessed, we're busting out the seams right now! you are an awesome GOD!

check out these pictures of where we are staying, i can't wait!

more pictures to come when we return...

Ms. Debbie!!!

do you shop at 164th fred meyer? those of us who shop here frequently, know and can hear ms. debbie laughing clapping and playing with the kids. she works in the play place and she is amazing! everytime we go to fred meyer (which is way too often) my kids beg me to let them play at the place play. if i'm not in a hurry i'll take a look and see if ms. debbie is working. i only let them go in if she is there. she gives each child one on one attention, she gets on the floor, she comes up with new inventive games, she does a great job in there. i went to f.m. today, there was a waiting list to get into the play place but we waited, the kids were so excited. by the time the kids names were called to head in, my shopping was done. oh well, i thought, i'll just hang out and let them play for a while. they had a blast, and i sat at the cafe, quietly, calmly, peacefully, as i sipped a grande, non fat, chi tea latte it was the best. i could here the squeals and laughs of my kids as i sat and smiled. when i picked them up debbie told me that her last day is dec. 10! i don't know the details, but it is not her choice! i told her that i wanted to write a letter or talk to someone. she gave me the name of the store director, greg gauett. so i wrote him a letter and if she has enhanced your shopping experience in any way i would hope you would do the same. you may also post comment here, and i can pass off your comments to him as well.

Update

thank you for your prayers for paul. he is home. please continue to pray for answers and that paul would be healed completely! pray for rachelle as she cares for him.

Pray...and then Pray Some More!

this is my lifelong friend raChelle and her husband paul. (when i say lifelong, i mean we met when we were around 16 months old and have loved each other ever since!) today, well i guess technically yesterday was her 30th birthday! what a great time to celebrate! we had a night out planned for all of her closest girlfriends...

the plans got cancelled. paul is very sick. he is in ICU right now. lots of things transpired today, i will leave out the details. my point in telling all of you is he needs your prayers. today a miracle happened, to my understanding we could have lost him but GOD had another plan...there was a miracle 30 years ago in the birth of rachelle janae lundy and today another miracle! thank you GOD!

Dear Lord Jesus,

First I want to say thank you for saving Paul today! There is no other explanation other than YOU stepped in and rescued Paul. Thank you for giving us this huge miracle! There are no coincidences, only Divine appointments. Thank you for Paul's life. He is a wonderful, amazing, kind, talented man of God! I thank you for bringing RaChelle and Paul together! They are the most remarkable couple! We give Paul to you right now. Lord, only you know what is going on in his body! I pray that you would find a Dr. that will fight for him! Help them to find out exactly what is going on, give them answers. Help them to not give up until they find them. Lord, be with Paul, relax his mind. Give him rest. Be with RaChelle right now and give her a peace that only you can give! We love you and we trust you, we know that you are in control. Thank you again for the gift of Paul and RaChelle!

In Jesus' Name,

Amen

'Ode'

so i'm sitting here with sleeping babies, jesse's helping my brother move back into town from bend and i've got some time...a little. what should i do??? post, that's it! but what? there are a lot of things going through my mind as i sit here. so here are the random, totally random, super totally random things.

i wish my blog could be cool, with lots of sweet finds and awesome decorating ideas, and delicious treats.
i love bakerella's goody's.
i love bliss's i heart monday list.
i love reading all of my great friends inspirational stories of their lives being played out in their blogs.
i love my aunt laurie, she is so amazing, it is so cool how we are closer than ever and it is all because of a great friend and someone who i look up to, natalie from sparrow! do you know that natalie? you are the reason for all this madness? not only am i closer to my aunt because of worthy goods, but my mom see's me differently now, we can work well together, my mom and i have a greater connection because you came into her life! i have seen my mom open up like never before and take risks! that is the most amazing part of this whole thing. because of you, natalie, my mom is has grown into an amazing, creative, outgoing, person (not that she wasn't these things before but now she is the enhanced 2.0 version). thank you for being my mom's friend. and i have met the coolest people in the world (you being one of them). i love the barnhouse boys, i love rebecca and all the other fabulous people from past sales. i know this is a mushy mess but natalie you are so special and i am so thankful for you, and i am excited to spend thanksgiving with you and your precious family! your imprint on this world is much bigger than you will ever know!
wow that turned out to be an 'ode to natalie'...but i feel it, it's true, so AMEN!

Papa G and Gramma Kristi Came to Visit

yay! papa g and gramma kristi came this weekend, we love you guys, thanks for coming!

daddy and son, push papa g push!

Preschool and More...

annabelle loves preschool! and i think she has the most amazing teachers, mrs. atwood and mrs. sims, ha ha. one week mrs. sims' (christie) is in charge then it's mrs. atwood's (my) turn. we have a blast and the girls are excited about learning, it is perfect for them and us. do you like their turkey hats?i had to write about this craziness! annabelle is not your normal child, she picked this to eat for lunch: oranges, tomatoes, hummus, sesame vegan crackers, and a cheese stick and she ate every bite. this is the same girl that really doesn't like sweets, she would rather have fruit than a cupcake or candy! what is this and how can she be my child??? i love her so much, i should take some of her great eating tips and put them into practice! what do your kids want to eat for lunch?

Auntie Holly Came to Visit!

jesse's sister came to visit this weekend and we had a great time! holly brought her babies, simba, mckinley, and peekay. the kids had such a fun time taking care of the dogs.
holly took us out to the new olive garden, we had the best meal ever, sawyer slept right up until the food was served.

annabelle and daddy raked and raked and raked out back while auntie holly took pictures and let the dogs run around.

we took the dogs on walks in the rain, in the dark, and we took them to the dog park. mckinley rolled in dog poop twice eeewwww, we washed him at the dog wash...we love him anyway!

the kids love their doggie cousins, they can come back anytime!

annabelle loves holly so much they are inseparable. thank you for coming holly we love you and we can't wait for you to move here some day soon!

Neewollah...or...Halloween!

i know this is a little late...but better late then never, right? we call halloween neewollah around here. our church has this totally incredible, super awesome, completely free event every year and it's called neewollah. so this year we did things just a little different...we went trick-or-treating before we went to the big par-tay (this was our first year). sawyer wasn't so excited, argh! but after we told him that he got candy, he was a little better...

"did you just say i get candy?"

isn't that the most beautiful ladybug you have ever seen? my bestest friend in the whole world cathy, made that amazing matching little emily costume, she is beyond talented!

it was the most perfect night, the weather was perfect and the kids had a blast! the kids took turns knocking or ringing doorbells they laughed a giggled and so did i. sawyer would say to everyone "i'm a pirate, argh!" and annabelle would say, "this is emily and she's a lady bug too!" they crack me up.

can you believe this lady? i had to take a picture. sawyer found his 'matey'. and look at the smiles on my girl, man, i love her! overall perfect, perfect, perfect, night and i can't wait to do it again next year!

Random-ness!

couple things...how is it possible to love so much? i have been given this gift of loving my babies so much it is an incredible, supernatural thing that i can not even describe! we just got back from the park. we tried a new park today, it is right next to the police station, it's on the same property, i was a little nervous cause i thought that there could be weirdos there, but then there's police so it might balance out...bla, bla, bla...there was only one other mom and her son...anyway, it was a complete blast! i had so much fun with my kids. i was running around with sawyer he was chasing my shadow and trying to step on it, annabelle was climbing like a ninja, she was amazing. i couldn't believe the things she was willing to do, she was so brave, i was so proud of her. i just can't thank God enough for giving me the most perfect (to me) kids! i can't get over the fact that i was chosen to be their mommy. i can live in this small little house, (dirty right now but hey...) drive an older car, wear the same ol' clothes, but i am completely blessed, beyond my wildest imagination! i have the most goofy, hilarious, hard working, responsible, amazing husband and two of the most beautiful inside and out children and if that wasn't enough, i have friends that i know would do anything for me...thank you God for this gift called my life!

just a little update on the workout queen (that's me). since that post a while ago, where i couldn't finish the boot camp class??? well, i have been working my bootie off (literally) i've lost weight and i am so much stronger. last thursday i went to boot camp, i felt amazing. i was strong enough to not only complete the class but do well. i wasn't wussing out! afterward i was telling jesse about it, i almost started crying (so dorky I know) but i was proud of myself for changing my body. i've got more weight to lose and muscle to build but i'm on the right path. (i really want to be at my best by my 30th birthday january 11th) i can do it! i'm excited to see what else i can accomplish, if i decide to work hard and be disciplined!
my friend bonnie gave me this verse a while ago and it's on my fridge...
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline."
2 Timothy 1:7

thanks bonnie, i love you!

We've Have Been Busy Papa G!

i just spoke to my father-in-law and he said you must be pretty busy, cause he hasn't seen a new post in a while so...yes, we have been busy and even more busyness is more to come this week! but in the midst of it all we have managed to have fun and laugh and love, just check out these tongues!

this past sunday was the last of our AIM series for kidz life, it was awesome. i really love every second that God allows me to rock out with, laugh with, dance with, worship with, listen to, engage, pray with these awesome kids! i am so thankful and honored to do what God has called me to do, it's amazing. so since this was the last week of AIM we had to prepare, reorganize, and redecorate for our new series which is I AM (odd...AIM then I AM...) i really am so excited for tomorrow, the kids are going to love it! we didn't think we had the time and energy to pull off something this huge so soon after AIM. we decided to do I AM, we were going to keep it simple and easy. well, if you know shelley or me you know that is not possible. we started planning and executing 12:30pm tuesday and ended 12:30am. not only do we have every element to capture each child's attention but we have a new wall mural, new "make a wave" action cards, name tags, costumes, trivia, new songs (just picture this it was 11:30 at night denise weston was painting beautiful wall mural and shelley and i were picking out the songs that we would sing with this series, most people would probably look at the titles or at the most listen a few songs to sample, well that's not the case with shelley and i we were singing at the top of our lungs and doing the motions, jumping up and down, denise must have thought we were crazy, we're just passionate, that's my excuse anyway). this is an AIM picture, i'll post a picture of I AM soon.

right after our AIM finally we had a kidz life worker meeting, it had to be set up in minutes while workers gathered outside. we had a great meeting, just a regroup, another time to share why we do what we do. God has done so many amazing things in the last couple months it is exciting to be able to share that with our awesome kidz life workers. we couldn't do what we do without everyone doing their very important jobs! thank you, thank you!

we went to my moms this week and annabelle found a caterpillar. she sat outside in the cold fall weather holding her precious caterpillar watching the chickens. she could do this for hours. i made roasted red pepper soup and fresh homemade salsa with my mom, yummy! thanks mom, sorry i was kinda grouchy.

today, we went to the zoo, i know we go a lot, but we love it! we went with our best friends cathy and lloyd, and ashley and connor (jesse was at work, sorry daddy). we had a good time, the weather was perfect. they had a special halloween scavenger hunt all through out the zoo! great times.

so that's what we've been up to, actually just half of it, but i kinda bored myself so i'll spare you the details...HA!