Full and blessed weekend

We had a weekend full of activities.

To start it off on Friday night we went out to celebrate Jenn and Chelsea's birthdays.

It was long overdue, but better late than never, right!

Luke spilled his soda shortly after arriving, so he proudly drank from the kiddy cup they made him drink out of.

The Blue Heron Brew Pub in Marshfield was a first for us.

The food and the company were enjoyed by all!

Brent you're a fast one...I didn't even know you captured this shot.

Hanging out with y'all was a blast!

I'm already looking forward to our next diner or birthday tour.

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Next up...We were blessed to have our friends from out of town stay for an overnight visit. Andre had a basketball tournament at the High School. Krista was kind enough to bring the kids so we could catch up and the kids could play.

Ataly making "Welcome friends" signs to hang up before our friends arrived.

Sierra, Ethan, Traeger and Ataly were amazing playmates.

Andre played bedtime songs on his guitar while the kids sang and danced...

then it was time for Luke to read a Bible story about being kind and loving to others.

The girls giving snuggles before saying goodnight!

Thanks Oldbergs for carving time out to come hang out with us. The time always flies, but we are sure to come away with refreshed and encouraged hearts.

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Up next (on Sunday after church) was

FINLEY'S BIRTHDAY PARTY!

Traeger pinning the jewel on Strawberry Shortcake's Crown.

Finley saying "thank you" for the gift.

The kiddos chowing down the on the delicious birthday cupcakes!

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After a weekend full of activities with friends, I couldn't help but think about the verse in Psalms that talks about "our cup is overflowing." My heart is blessed by all the friends, family, and blessings of each day that allows our cup to be full to the brim and even overflowing with abundant blessings from God. God is good!

Love languages

Gary Chapman writes a book called "The 5 love languages." It speaks about how everyone has a "love language," a primary way of expressing and interpreting love. The five are: words of affirmation, quality time, receiving gifts, acts of service, and physical touch. I naturally share words of affirmation and physical touch with Traeger and Ataly. Just because I 'speak' them doesn't mean it is my kids' top love language. In fact, I've recently discovered and am in the process of embracing Traeger's top one....quality time. Now you might say, "But you're his mom and you stay at home, doesn't he naturally get that?" I'm ashamed to share that there are days my "to do list" takes priority and the "quality" is missing in the time. What this has meant for me is having to intentionally carve time out of my day to play a couple games of cribbage, golf or garbage (card games), dominoes, sitting down to watch a show with him, or going outside and kicking the soccer ball around with him. I'm not perfect at this, but I desire to love Traeger well and a key component is figuring out what speaks "I love you" to him. For now, I think quality time is it.

Dominoes anyone?

Breaking out a new game...

Dominoes has become a new family favorite.

Sharing

Ataly was in our room as I was getting ready to go out with some friends Friday night. I layed one of my necklaces on the bed before putting it on. Ataly was curious about whether I was going to share the necklace with her. I kindly informed her that it was a mommy necklace. She immediately pleaded that because we are family we share all things (do you think she has heard me say that a few times to her and Traeger?!) Then she continued on to say,

"Mom, we share all things...you should try it!"

God heals

Though Traeger was sick with a fever, he fought napping, until he just couldn't hold off any longer and zonked out on the floor for a couple hours. I don't really like when my kids are sick. I imagine I'm like any other mom and enjoy the extra cuddle time, but appreciate when the kids are back to acting like themselves. When the kids are sick I love talking with them and processing about how God made our bodies with good bugs to fight off the bad bugs. It was God's design for our bodies to heal on their own (or with the help of medicine). God created fevers to naturally fight off the bad bugs. Though at the time fevers don't feel so good, through it, our bodies are restored to health. That makes me think of trials in our lives. During a trial, it feels like the heat is rising and I would like nothing more than for the fiery trial to be over, and just maybe a quick wave of my surrender flag would take it all away, but THROUGH the trial, God is producing something good and refining my faith. I'm so thankful I serve a mighty God who heals and transforms my heart for my good and His glory.

Grandpa Tim and Nana visit

This past weekend we gladly welcomed a visit from Grandpa Tim and Nana.

We celebrated Ataly's birthday with them.

This little girl loves her laptop...

Thanks for the great gift.

Ataly's thankful for the gifts from the Port Hatfields.

Traeger always loves Grandpa Tim's tricks.

Blowing out the candles on Nana and Ataly's cakes.

Look at those beautiful girls!

A family movie night was in order....

and games too.

The girls dominated in Settlers.

I won 2 games and Nana walked away with a win!

Since Nana and Grandpa won't be here for Easter, they brought eggs to hide now.

The kids coming down ready for the hunt!

And she's off!

Could there be one here?

What about here?

Celebrating a successful hunt with full baskets of goodies!

And Dad found the golden egg :O)!

Classroom visitors

Luke brought Traeger and Ataly in to see the classroom visitors...

A python and an 11 foot boa constrictor.

The kids thought it was pretty neat.

I on the other hand kept my distance.

At the end, I made my way to pet it (for about 2 seconds)

The part I did love is hearing all about them...what they eat, where they live, how you know when you're in danger, etc. Though I'm pretty freaked out by snakes, I always enjoy learning about how God created things and marvel at His workmanship.

Life is grand at 3...

This past year has been one filled with great joy and many blessings as we watched you, my dear Ataly Raen, grow from a healthy and strong 2 year old to a capable and secure big girl who is three.

Just a few of the things we love about you are...

you've got a lot to say and aren't afraid to say it

your love for playing, splashing and swimming in water

you definitely are our left handed girl

you are a great pal to your big brother Traeger

you take pleasure in mastering a puzzle (about 24 pieces)

your sensitive and caring heart

your desire to pray for others

your love for chocolate milk, mac n cheese, along with any fruit you can get your hands on

you care about what you wear

not crazy about dresses but will wear one if I make you

you would live in your jammies if we let you

you're a great hugger and love sharing kisses all over our faces

you definitely aren't afraid to let us know what you're thinking

you go potty on the big potty: 2 years 7 months

you're a cute little mommy to your baby dolls

you're full of joy

your willingness to help out and serve

transitioned from a crib to a full size bed

You are a gift from God Ataly and I'm thankful that God has seen fit to let me be your mommy. There are days I totally don't feel adequate for the "job", but your daddy reminds me that God has a plan and I'm your mommy for a reason. I consider that a great honor and am humbled by my calling. Ataly, I desire to love and serve you well. My prayer is that you would know that there is nothing better than living your life for Christ and some day you will choose to follow Him. God has great things in store for you. He tells us in Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you Ataly. They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." I'm thankful for that promise and will continue to eagerly care for you, pray for you and trust God as He does great things in your life.

I love you like crazy, Mommy!

Zephaniah 3:17

"The Lord your God is with you Ataly. He is a hero who saves you. He happily rejoices over you, renews you with his love, and celebrates over you with shouts of joy."

Family time

Luke had a weekend full of youth activities ahead of him, and so my parents were going to come our way for the weekend, until we got word that my dad's aunt passed away after a long battle with cancer. So the kids and I headed south instead. As always, it was a treat to spend time with family (mom, dad, Grandma Jo, the P family and then extended family at the funeral.)

I'm grateful I was able to attend Aunt Shirley's funeral on Monday. It has been years since I've last seen her, but she's hard to forget. She always had a way of making you feel right at home and loved deeply. She was a great example to me of 1 John 4:12 "No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love has been brought to full expression through us."

Great Grandma Jo stayed at my parent's for a few days too.

Traeger and Great Grandma Jo were card playing pals.

Here they are playing Traeger's version of cribbage.

Nonnie doing Ataly's hair in the morning.

Great Grandma Jo and the kiddos making a dessert in the easy bake oven

Best buds

coloring pals

Secret Agents

Secret Agents with girl power

Family movie night

Our family movie night featured..."Tangled", which was a good movie. We didn't even get half way through the movie and Ataly ran upstairs to get her crown and wore it for the remainder of the show. We always dance to the music while the credits are playing and this movie certainly was no exception. I had to run and grab my camera to capture....

the princess dancing with her prince

Ataly is lovin' the sweet kiss from her prince.

and that's what Traeger thought of taking a picture with his princess.

I'll settle for this prince...

I couldn't have dreamed of a better man to sweep me off my feet, be my best friend, the loving daddy to our 2 kiddos and most importantly my brother in Christ who is a constant encourager and example of what it looks like to follow hard after Christ!

Make-up Artist

Yes folks, it was another one of those humbling experiences. My sweet, beautiful, "innocent" daughter decided she would color all over her face, add a splash of black to her pink shirt and thought the mirror needed a little makeover too. Who comes up with these ideas anyway...and where was her mother? I guess my three year old comes up with this grand idea and her mother was just the next room plugging away doing dishes. I'm pretty sure that was where I was when Traeger joined the haircutting club. Maybe this is telling me something. I should stop doing dishes...what do you think?! I know, I know it's not the dishes fault...I need to have a little more of an eagle eye and check after a second of silence instead of 3. They are fast little buggers.

How do I look mom?

What do you think...does she look guilty?!

Snowed in

What are we to do when we get blasted with a winter storm and can't go anywhere?

Stay in jammies all day, make projects, shovel the snow, watch movies, play camping, take a bath and pray when we wake up the next morning the sun will be shining again!

Celebrating Silas

As tradition would have it, we took Silas out for a birthday ice cream treat at Stramas.

Happy birthday buddy...you're worth celebrating!