Happy Kids... and a Happy Mom

Again, I have a bunch of pics since it's been awhile since I posted. Life is busy! I had a great Mother's Day and I'm so blessed to be the mom of Natalie and Blake. Sometimes I think it'd be easier to still be teaching but this job is so worth it and I am so happy to be investing in their little lives. Thanks to my mom and to Linda for giving us such godly examples of mothers and for all the love and advice you give to us. We love you! And here's my happy kids: She loves painting with her watercolors.
Look carefully at this picture: each animal has a piece of chalk. I asked her about it and she said they are eating "cinnaminamin" (cinnamon) which she loves to smell (and say!) The funny thing is she's never seen it in stick form that I know of because we don't have any in the house. Also, the four in the corner are "sharing." :)
Happy Blake...always smiling and laughing. Lots of love between these two...
Maybe a little too much!! Natalie filled up her entire "potty chart" with stars so we told her she could pick out a new toy. She wanted a "ba-oon"-- guess she notices the helium balloons at WalMart because that's exactly what she wanted when he got to the store. Brian also got her a bag of regular ones and blew them up for her so she has 10 or so others to play with. She was so excited about her balloon and sleeps with it in her bed! :)
We had a picnic in the living room one day. "Pesh-ull!" is what Natalie says whenever anything is "special" :)
Trying to be like Joni Erickson Tada and paint with her mouth?
Everyday we have to sweep off the plumeria flowers and leaves from the porch. We have 3 different trees that drop all the time. Sometimes I catch myself grumbling at how I just swept and how it's a never ending task and then I realize that I'm complaining about sweeping beautiful flowers! How ungrateful of me! Thank you God for allowing us to live in this gorgeous place!!
Natalie thinks that you have to wear glasses when you read the Bible because I always still have mine on in the mornings. She went to get her sunglasses (upside-down) and told me, "I reading Bible Mommy" So cute. :)
On Saturday, we had a Women's Tea at church that I was involved with so I was gone from 1pm until after 8pm so Brian had the kids all to himself all afternoon and evening. When I got home, he had made dinner for me again for Mother's Day. (He's decided he wants to learn to cook. :) He had bought me a cookbook and picked out this great chicken dish with an honey onion sauce and made mashed potatoes and peas. I was thoroughly impressed when I walked through the door and the kids were asleep and the house smelled fabulous.
He even made a "drippy candle" like the restaurants in Italy. So romantic. :)On actual Mother's Day, he made breakfast for us and then gave the kids a bubble bath before church.

And we grilled out for dinner. A terrific Mother's Day.

Thanks so much honey, you are such a wonderful husband and I'm so glad to be your wife and the mother of our kids! I love you!