Friday, January 18, 2008
Our beautiful girl
What a precious sweetheart Madeline is! She so often shows a heart full of gratitude, which is the foundation for a life of serving others with joy. I pray that the Lord will confirm this attitude in her and make her an effective tool for His use.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
I Thought You'd Graduated
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
The Birthday Boy
Isn't this is a great shot of Jay and Mason? This is one of my favorites. We ordered the "alien" pancakes for Mason and he gobbled up the whipped cream, although he didn't care for syrup on his pancake.
The Denny's staff was very sweet and they brought Mason a bowl of ice cream with a candle in it and then they all sang their special birthday song to him. He was quite amused by the whole production. I was glad we got a pretty good picture of our family during it all.
Another great shot of Mason and Daddy. Jay has taught Mason to put his hand (or whatever toy he happens to be holding) up to his ear when he says, "Hello". I guess Jay has high hopes of his son becoming a telemarketer. Anyway, that's what Mason is doing in this picture.
And, the Party
This was the cake in-progress. I didn't really know what I was going to do for the decorations on the cake and so I made it up as I went along. This is not the most time efficient way to work, but it all got done in time for the party.
Mason just loves his party hat, can't you tell? It's funny, he'll wear any other type of hat, but when I put this one on his head, he just cried and cried. Well, we needed more table decorations anyway!
This was Mason's entrance to the party place (aka. the garage). Jay brought him down all spiffy and he was ready to celebrate!
And this is it...garbage bins and all. With a few balloons and Chinese lanterns the place cleans up real nice. It really was perfect for our little get together, and the birthday boy didn't complain once. Now, we might hear something different when he grows up and realizes his first party was in the garage. Although I have it on good authority that guys prefer to be in the garage than almost anywhere else in the house!
Mason's Birthday Friends
This is Kerry, my very dear friend and confidante.
Two sweet neighbor gals, Jadin and Brodie, are always offering their able hands to play with the kids in the cul-de-sac. They are extremely entrepreneurial, sending out fliers to offer their service as cleaners, babysitters, and even offering back massages.
The boys in the foreground are Cooper and Campbell. What good friends they are to Madeline and Mason! They have learnt well from their parents what it is to be faithful friends.
And so the party was well attended with all those loved ones (minus family) we hold dear.
Christmas 2007
If you click on the above picture, you'll see Mason's first knife. Jay thought it wouldn't be too early to get his son started on a knife collection. And his first one should be a Buck. Mason's been having fun cutting up the carpet, some of his stuffed animals, and his sister's hair!
(Do you really think we'd open the package yet?)
Mason is a very curious little guy. He loved watching Madeline open her gifts and play with them as opposed to playing with his own gifts.
But Mason does love to play with balls of all shapes and sizes...and textures. This "hairy" ball is one of his favorites, sent to Madeline and him by their cousins in Alaska, Luke and Niccole.
These are certainly not all of our Christmas pictures. I have yet to filter through them all and I will eventually add the best ones of our time in El Centro with our sister-in-law, Vicki, and her boys, Caleb and Asa. We all spent the holiday with Gramma and Grandpa. If you visit Jay's blog (see the link in the margin), you can watch a video he made with the boys. We had such a great time! Thanks, family, for giving us such wonderful memories.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Thanksgiving 2007
Although the picture is a bit blurry, you can certainly make out our smiles. Jay may have sacrificed his presence in the photo but he was sure to keep his seat at the table and indulge in our tasty feast. He made is annual cornbread dressing, which was by far his best batch yet. And of course, we couldn't have Thanksgiving without Cherry Coke Salad. And, yum-yum, Mimi's mashed potatoes were sensational! I know all my readers probably have warm, wonderful memories that they are recalling of their Thanksgiving celebration. But we delighted in God's lavish provision of comfort, bonding relationships, laughter, and spiritual discussions...not to mention the After-Thanksgiving shopping spree! What a kindhearted, unsparing and generous God is ours!
Thanksgiving fun
Mimi loved feeding Mason...and Mason loved having a new face to watch as he ate. Amanda is so good at keeping him preoccupied with her fun voices and faces that he eats all his food before he knows it!
Poppy and Mimi brought Madeline some dress up accessories: a fuzzy tiara, a pink tutu, and a "glass" purse that included a brush, mirror and a set of sparkly rings. She loves being the princess, and I don't mind as long as she knows who's queen!
Mason got a monster truck that's soft on the outside but has a "voicebox" that rumbles and growls and sounds just like a real truck. He's not sure whether to cuddle with it or run from it!
And of course our celebration wouldn't be right without some story time with Poppy. Madeline looks like she's found the perfect recliner...although I don't think he'd like to be called a La-Z-Boy.