Happy New Year! 366/365

I thought I would buy the expensive party poppers this year for our New Years countdown.  Some of them worked......

 some didn't.  We even reloaded and tried again.

Then we gave up and decided it would be fun just to throw the confetti up and watch it fall.  This is one of those "it was the thought that counts" scenarios.  Hopefully this is not indication of how our 2013 will go.

Happy New Years from our house to yours!  We all hope that 2013 is filled with immeasurable blessings.  We pray that each of you finds peace this new year.

Thanks for following along on our 2012 journey!  It has been 366 days of ups and downs, good times and bad, growing and tweaking, but most of all it has been about growing together as a family and growing towards the Lord.

Dreaming of Peace 365/365

First of all, did you catch that?  365!  I have made it....except for the being in China then instantly having the flu, I have made it.  I just need to go back and tweak those posts that I was to exhausted to do.  Maybe that will be tomorrow's job as I sit at the laundromat.  And yes, there will be a 366 tomorrow since we are in a leap year!  

But for today, I want you to see my perfectly imperfect children being so typical.  We downloaded a new game today.  It is Pudding Monsters, and even I love it!  Everyone was playing.  All piled in together, playing.....shouldn't that be peaceful.  Nope, not at my house.  You see that littlest one mastered the game faster than anyone else, and she couldn't stand it when others couldn't get it perfectly.  She would just have to reach over and swipe the little pudding monsters into the correct position.

Hunter, is generally my second best at figuring these type of games out, so he didn't want help.  Especially help from his little sister.

 She had her fun mocking him because he couldn't get it, then would act like she didn't care.....

only to strike with her toes instead of her fingers. I promise I have tried raising them properly, they just have their moments.  I do cherish these days though.  I have talked with several friends over this shorter than usual break, and they are ready for their kids to go back to school.  I'll be honest, I hate that I only have three more days with them.  I love having them home.  Yes, we have had some moments, but I just thank the Lord that all my children are here to have those moments.  I can't help but think of all the families who just wish all their children had come home from school and they would give anything to watch their children have just one more "moment."  I've been thinking a lot lately on how one's perspective changes everything.  So even in the craziness of our family I choose to see us as imperfectly perfect!

My Best Buddy Today 364/365

You knew it had just been to long since I had blogged about Pippa.  But today I have a good reason, she is my only subject, well, Pippa and Annie.  I have been in bed all day fighting an infection.  Pippa was thrilled to have me be still and has been on me all day.  Annie has been close by, but Pippa has been the best.  I love this little rascal!! Here we are approaching the end of my 365 project, and I do have to say that Pippa has been my constant companion to complete it.  At night when I was tired, Pippa would crawl onto my legs as soon as I sat down with the computer each night.  She would patiently wait while I loaded, edited, and posted pictures.  Then as soon as I put the computer up, she moves into my lap and gets her bedtime snuggles.  When she slams herself down, she rolls her head like this and I always think she looks a little like Gizmo.  I am so thankful for each day that I have to love her.  And, if you see my husband do me a favor and let him know that she is NOT the most blogged about dog in the world.  I'm a little obsessed in love, but not that crazy (okay....maybe just a little!)

Noelle's Big Move 363/365

Noelle has been in her new room since Christmas night, but she has yet to spend the night alone.  Not only has she had one sister in bed with her......

but the other sister has been close by.  I really am blessed with the fact that they love each other so much.  I'm guessing that she will stay by herself soon, as she has allowed the little girls to stay because they want to.  This is going to be a tough separation for this threesome.

I Think We Have a Winner 362/365

LeeLee has never gotten anything that has held her interest.  This however is different, it's huge, it's her passion, it's her first love (well besides God then me according to her.)  She has not been off of this thing for very long.  She is so determined.  She does her stretches up there.

Then she spends hours trying to perfect routines that she can find on youtube.  Here she is doing the same thing that is in that, now so famous, picture of Gabby Douglas.

 She has mastered the cartwheels......

and lands them with sheer perfection.

 She even has the dismounts down and sticks the landings on our hardwood floors.

She is just so happy!  Because she is so difficult to buy for, both my mom and I got her athletic clothes. She was like, "Oh great, I guess this next box is going to have the pants in them."  I asked her if she would have rather gotten toys, and she said, "Yes!"  When I asked her what toy she would have wanted more than athletic clothes, she replied, "A bar would have been nice!"  Oh sweetie, where on earth would we put parallel bars?  Not to mention that I don't think they fall under the toy catagory.  It warms my heart though to see you actually thrilled with a gift.

Hunter's Gifts 361/365

Hunter couldn't wait to open presents yesterday.  He knew what he was getting because he had already picked it out.  He just couldn't wait to call all the stuff his.  You see, on Thanksgiving day we went to my mom's house.  That is rare for us, and when we are there Hunter gets so excited because he is around my dad's stuff.  Hunter misses my dad.  My dad was a tough guy to get to know, but for some reason, when Hunter came along my dad melted.  They were the best of friends and I got to see a side of my dad that I had never seen before.  I wish Hunter still had my dad, and I wish my dad was here to watch Hunter grow.  I know he would love him more and more each day.  But, since that isn't an option, Hunter just wants to get his hands on anything that belonged to my dad.  It makes him feel close to him.  So, when we went to mom's house, he shopped for his Christmas presents in her garage.  He made a little pile that consisted of an old radio, an old flashlight, a voltage tester, and a pulley.  He was like a kid in a candy store.  So on Christmas morning, he got his "Papa" items and he couldn't be happier.

Check out the side of the old flashlight lantern.  I think it was meant to be!  Now Hunter has a project trying to make this old thing work.  This is where he and my dad differ.  My dad had no patience.  I have the patience of Job, and Hunter thankfully inherited that trait from me.  This flashlight will work again soon, and I can't wait to see Hunter's excitement when he succeeds.

Christmas 360/365

First of all, I want you to know that if you feel left out because I didn't send you a Christmas card, then don't.  I didn't send them out.  Even with the best of intentions, I didn't take a picture until today.  I decided to torture them and have them dress up to take a picture.  Oh my children, they are a hoot!  So, this would have been our picture had I taken it before today.  It has been a great day!

Santa came and I couldn't believe he would think we needed something so big at our house, but it sure did make for one happy girl.  LeeLee doesn't like toys at all, so it was great for her to get something she actually loved.  She spent the majority of her day on this thing.

Speaking of LeeLee, I just have to say how proud I am of her.  She really has the most caring heart of all my kids.  This is huge for her!  A few years ago, we wondered if she would ever worry or care about anyone besides herself.  But praise the Lord, he brought the right tools into our lives to learn to help her through some rough times.  This just gives you a glimpse of her precious heart that has been uncovered.  She wrapped presents for everyone yesterday and wouldn't put them under the tree.  She took them upstairs, and I decided to let it be.  Then when it was time to pass out gifts he appeared dressed like this with all the gifts in a cinched up blanket.  It gave her amazing joy to give.  We all had wrapped gifts, they were simple and some of them were regifted things, but it was amazing to see that she was willing to give them to someone else instead of keeping them for herself.  One of the neatest things was a letter she wrote to Hope.....Hope, I saw how sad it made you to have messed up your candy cane present, so I wanted you to have mine. Love, LeeLee (these were bubble bath candy canes given to them by a friend.  Hope busted hers on accident.  They had both been so excited about them, so giving this up because she saw Hope's pain is huge!)  I'm telling you, night and day difference, and I am so thankful!

Some kids had surprises today.  Neither one of them were expecting new bikes, but I had found two to good to pass up deals, so they both shocked.  The only bad thing is we have been under severe weather warnings all day, so they didn't get to ride at all.

We enjoyed the special cake that we were gifted yesterday by Lynn.  We put a candle on it and we had our annual birthday party for Jesus.

At the end of the day, this was Hope's favorite gift.  It is Barbie's sleepover puppy.  Hope loves Barbie, and it was a Barbie Christmas for her.  She is my first child to like Barbie, and for her it is such a big deal to have a real Barbie.  Barbie is well known in China, but the real ones are very expensive.  The knock offs are affordable, but they fall apart as soon as you take them out of the package.  She cherishes each Barbie.  Hopefully she will remember to pick them all up so Rags won't chew off their limbs.  We have lots of special needs Barbies.

I took a picture of Hunter with some of his gifts, but I would rather devote some time later on explaining his gifts so I thought I would instead include a picture of him with his favorite gift ever (and ours too,) Rags!  These two crack me up.  Rags is terrified of storms, so he was happy to get right by his boy for some comfort.  I have his thundershirt ready so we can make it through the night.

Noelle's favorite thing of course is her new room.  It is beautiful and so her.  One of her prized things in her new room is this cat tree!  It was a gift from my mom.  Both Posey Brooks and Cheeto and so excited to have it.  Tonight will be her first night sleeping in there, and she is so excited.  

And, just in case you were wondering how much LeeLee really loves the beam.  So there is only one thing left to say....Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!  

Christmas Eve 359/365

It has been a long day!  I finally hit the bed at 2 a.m. last night after I finished painting Noelle's room and decorating everything.  LeeLee hung with me until one, but I was on my own for the end.  Then I was totally shocked to wake up at 6 a.m.  to finish up her room.  Noelle spent the night away last night, so she came home to her Christmas surprise.  She will move into her new room tomorrow.  (that is a king size bed by the way, so can you tell that this is a massive 25 lb. cat?)

We headed off to church where our kids were part of a nativity skit.  I hate that I didn't get any pictures, because I was the stage director.  They all had very appropriate parts, Noelle and Hope were angels, Hunter was a shepherd, and LeeLee was the star (you know....the star in the East.)  After church we had Christmas tree shaped ravioli for dinner and the little girls put out food for the reindeer.

We were also blessed with this amazing cake for our annual birthday party for Jesus that we do on Christmas Day.  This was made by Lynn, who has been homebound from a rare medical condition for years. Her son and daughter brought it over tonight for the kids.  I wish we had taped LeeLee's reaction for Lynn to see.  It was of course dramatic and full of emotion.  I can't wait to gobble this up tomorrow.

I hope all of you have a Merry Christmas and remember why we are celebrating.

Farewell Aubie 358/365

This was very difficult for me!  I have been putting off painting Noelle's new room because I really didn't want to paint over Aubie.  I loved painting him.  I remember everyone playing around me while I painted, and I just wasn't ready to let go of him.  Finally Paul came down and painted the first part for me, so I had no choice but to go ahead and finish.  I just finished cleaning my brushes, the wall is now bright pink.  I'm already making plans to paint him in Hunter's room.  He is just so darn cute, he has to be somewhere in the house.

Drama Momma! 357/365

Oh yes, this would be LeeLee in the washing machine.  She was staging a protest because I wouldn't trade her, her Reese's for my York peppermint patty.

I swear if she wasn't so cute I would just leave her in the washer.  However, I love her enough to help pull her out.

LeeLee's Monkey 356/365

LeeLee's special ornament that she picked out is a monkey of course.  The only thing that could have made this monkey more perfect is if it had on a gymnastics leotard instead of ballerina.  LeeLee is definitely not a ballerina.  I knew though why she was drawn to this one, and it will for years to come remind me of my little monkey.

Victory In Little Things 355/365

I'm rushing to get this post done before midnight.  Hopefully I will make it.  I know this is an odd picture, but I love it.  I posted back near Thanksgiving about how my dryer caught on fire.  Which by the way has started a trend with my friends, as I have three really good friends whose dryers have all decided to stop working properly since.  So, I have been forced to go spend time at the laundry mat.  I do loads and loads of laundry at home, then go up there with it all wet and plop it all in at once and then that is where my fun begins.  I just love people.  There are some interesting people at the laundry mat, and I love talking to them and getting to know their stories.  Each person has a story to tell whether it is the old lady in her house coat who can't lift her basket, the mom of the newborn who is lulled to sleep by the sounds of the machines, the man out front who is trying to make his car run while his clothes wash, or the Chinese student who only brings five items to wash and considers that a load.  Each one of them has a story, and I love to hear them.  I love to just listen, pray, then listen some more.  Tonight I was there late, so I took some work I still need to do for tonight.  I didn't get it all done because I invested my time in people.  I listened, I offered HOPE when I could, ENCOURAGEMENT when needed, and PRAYER even when it isn't asked for.  In China, all my Chinese friends will hold up the "peace" sign when taking a picture, but it is actually the victory sign.  So, today I celebrate that even in what seems sometimes as a inconvenience to not be able to do my laundry at home, I am savoring the story that is being written because of it.  I knew there was some reason I love that verse in Romans so much!  Now I'm off to finish sewing so I can go to bed.

Brain Freeze 354/365

Yep, this is what brain freeze looks like!  Cracks me up!

Soup Night 353/365

My days never go as I have planned.  It was my first day not working in two weeks, and I desperately need to get some things done.  However my sweet Noelle woke up with her throat hurting.  She has had the crud for a full month now.  She has been able to keep going, but she looked pitiful today.  So, I took her to the doctor and unfortunately for her, it is viral.  So to make her feel better I fixed good ole chicken noodle soup for dinner.

We Live In Whoville 352/365

This morning, I realized that we live in Whoville, I just didn't know it.  Hope and LeeLee searched yesterday with the help of their big sister to create Who outfits for today.

So, they came down dressed and I created the crazy hair styles so they could head off to school to their Whobilation.

I loved seeing all the precious Who's at school today.  All the kids were filled with excitement going from station to station.  I am so thankful for Dr. Seuss and all the fun we get to have just because he dared to be different.

Milk Mustaches 351/365

I remember the great milk mustache adds that used to grace every magazine I read.  I could't help but think of those as they drank the surprise milk shakes that Paul made.  Both girls were extremely lactose intolerant.  LeeLee has outgrown it, so she can have milk and ice cream without any problems.

Hope on the other hand has to take medicine so she can have ice cream.  We keep her far away from straight milk.  We were out of her medicine for awhile, so she was so excited to find that we had finally gotten her some more and she could enjoy milk shakes along with everyone else.  I was hoping that she would outgrow her issues, but so far, it looks like this may just be a way of life for her.

Graham Cracker Houses 350/365

Who needs gingerbread houses when you can make graham cracker houses?  Hunter made the cutest little house.  He gobbled it up too!

The Tang Bride 349/365

I know I say this all the time, but I love Fridays!!  It is the one day that we don't have homework, and everyone is home.  The sounds of fun and laughter fill my house.  Today I heard bridal music and then my door opened and LeeLee was in a full on outfit.  She has a layered slip as a veil, and she looks so angelic (even though we all know that in real life she is not.)  What I love most is the tang mustache.  It just makes it so LeeLee!

Christmas Goodies 348/365

Both the little girls are tickled with the Christmas goodies that are trickling there way to them.  I have never seen a Santa with marshmallow pole legs before, but Hope sure is proud of him.  She is blessed to get tons of one on one attention at school and since her teachers don't have many students their treat boxes have great prizes.  This is what Hope picked out.  LeeLee's bag of goodies was from one of her heroes, Kylie Sheilds.  Kylie has been working with LeeLee in gymnastics since August.  We have been blessed to have Vivi, then Kylie work with LeeLee they are both amazing young women.

Both girls are just thrilled with their items, and it really has nothing to do with what they have, it has more to do with how they got the gifts and how much they love the people that gave them.

I Worry 347/365

I'm not a worrier by nature, but I tend to worry about this precious little one.  She is such a scared little dog, and her life was so perfect with Paul's Aunt.  They were truly perfect for each other, and I just worry that Snoopy lives in a state of wonder.  She has settled in here to her routine and she has taken to Hunter, but you can just tell that she is a heart broken little one.  I always wonder if she knows....knows that the woman she loved is gone, or if she thinks she was left.  I don't want to worry, but I look at her face, and I do.  I adore her, I have adored her since the day I saw her running through Paul's work place.  I just know that she is not capable of ever adoring any of us the way she adored Aunt Mildred.  I will however keep loving on her and praying that she will feel Mildred's love for her through us.

My Hubby is Forty! 346/365

He was 21 when we met, so I haven't almost known this crazy guy for 19 years.  I hate to think about it, but we are both, you know.....aging!  Somehow in my mind we are still 20 and 21 years old.  Yeah, yeah, I know, we have four kids, with the oldest being 12, and yet I still want to believe we are in our early twenties.

But reality is we are getting old.  40 is just a big number.  Paul doesn't really celebrate birthdays, so it really isn't a big deal to him.  He never says anything to anyone, but I think he secretly likes that we do things for him.  Today the girls presented him with tickets to the Daddy Daughter Dance in February.  There is nothing he would love more than dates with his daughters, and Hunter carved him a cross image out of wood.

I am so thankful for my forty year old man!  He is the best, and the kids and I are blessed to have him around.  I hope I get to share at least another forty years with him.

At Least They Thought Of Safety 345/365

If you have been around my house much, then you will know that we like to have fun.  My kids jump on the beds, slide down the stairs, and roast marshmallows in candles on the counter.  We are that kind of family.  I do however have to wonder when I see my eight year old running around inside with a helmet on.  I followed her up the stairs to find that she was deeply involved in a family sport.  However, it took a new twist.

Hunter had Hope climb into a sleeping sack on top of some cushions so she could go head first down the stairs.

Keep in mind she can't see a thing as she sails down the stairs.  When the ride stops, you hear a faint little voice say, "Am I at the bottom yet?"

Then Hope emerges all smiles at the bottom of the stairs.  I had to tell them that I am very proud that they thought about head protection in this little stunt, but that it wasn't really a good idea to go head first.  So, if you want to go stair sliding come on over.  They are always happy to have company.