Here's the Scoop

I thought it was probably time for an update for all you "blog stalkers"! Just kidding, I really appreciate the continued thoughts and prayers for our family. We are continuing to adjust to life as a family of 6! We were on Spring Break last week, so we had LOTS of time together, which was good. We got a lot of things checked off our list of things to do...

The big girls had a good report at the their eye dr. appointment. I was so happy to introduce them to my friend, Marla and I was proud of how well they did. (Thanks, Marla, for EVERYTHING!) And Isabella doesn't need glasses after all! We have decided her squinting and blinking is more of a nervous habit, which we are seeing less of lately. The doctor appointment on Friday also went well. Dr. Mebruer decided to start from scratch with their immunizations, since they do not have a shot record. They both cried when they got their 3 shots. Unfortunately, that was only the first round. We will be making frequent visits in the next 6 months so they can get caught up. :( We also got advice on how to deal with all of their skin issues, and we have already seen a big difference. They are both extremely excited about getting the spots on their legs cleared up.

We attended the funeral of my Aunt Dixie, so that was a learning experience for the girls. I hope that if they got anything out of it, it was that you need to live for Jesus, so when it is your time to go, you can spend eternity with him. It's such a comfort to know that she is in a better place and her husband, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren can be at peace because they know she is in heaven.

We took the girls to Build-A-Bear and Isabella and Becca had so much fun. Isabella made a Jonas Brothers dog and named it Isabella Jonas. Becca made a bear that she dressed in a soccer uniform and named Troy. Reagan used her very own money to make a bunny that she dressed in a fancy purple dress and named Addie. Ryleigh bought a Mizzou handkerchief for a bear she already has. It was a fun time! We also got Easter outfits for all the girls. We also bought the big girls Bibles. They are excited about that!

We went to Sequiota Park and walked around, fed the ducks and explored the caves. All of the girls had a blast and it was nice to have some time sitting with Tim while the girls played on the playground. It's not often that we have any quiet time to talk anymore!

There continues to be some struggles and frustrations for all of us. It is so hard to know if the attitudes Isabella and Becca sometimes have are from pain from their past, grieving, anger at us for being "mean", their age, etc. It's hard to understand sometimes how they cannot be more appreciative of their life with us, but I know that they are going through a lot emotionally and we are doing our best to be understanding and loving, yet consistent with rules and expectations. We are doing our best to choose the battles that matter the most and letting the other things go, which is certainly not easy!

We enjoy the fact that we have cut back on activities for awhile... Ryleigh is in between basketball teams, soccer for Becca and Reagan hasn't started yet, and we are taking a break from our Sunday night Small Group (this was such a hard decision for us, but after really praying about it and thinking about what is best for our family at this point, we decided we need that time to be at home). It really takes a lot of thought when we go places to think about who and what the big girls are being exposed to. We want to make sure that we do our best to keep them around positive influences and Godly people.

I am very happy to be back at work in the regular routine. I am excited about all the changes that are going on at Bright Beginnings. We officially hired Ms. Melissa as the new Daycare Director and she is going to be a wonderful asset to the Bright Beginnings family! We are adding several new programs for the 2010-2011 school year and summer school for June. I am so thankful for all the awesome women I work with and how they all add new ideas and are willing to work so hard to make an eternal difference in the lives of the children and families of Lebanon. Nothing can compare to the education the kids get at Bright Beginnings! I am looking forward to our Enrollment Kick-Off Carnival on April 12th.

Again, thank for the support and prayers for our family!