Revived, Renewed & REAL Christmas pictures!

Oh, I've missed the Blog World. Last week was super crazy, starting with Ellie being sick on my birthday (started my day at 2:30am by her throwing up on me......fun times!), and then I got sick on Monday, with both her stomach bug and mastitis.... and I can't decide which was worse! But now, I'm back in action. Being sick during the Christmas season is a total drag! I think I had to cancel like 3 or 4 fun Christmas events, I lost valuable time with the kids, AND got super behind on Christmas shopping and housework. But even in the midst of getting sick, there were several blessings...my incredible husband, who was SUPERDAD and SUPERNURSE all at the same time! And my sweet sisters loving on my kiddos one night, and my awesome friend/cousin making us a super, yummy meal. I also feel like God adjusted my perspective. For the past few days, I think I've been more appreciative of our general good health than I normally am. Having good health and having your loved ones be healthy is one of the biggest blessings you can have on this earth....and one of them that we take most for granted until that changes. For those of our friends and loved ones who are dealing with health issues and sickness this Christmas season, I pray that God blesses you with His joy and peace despite those obstacles.

One of my very favorite things of the Christmas season is Christmas cards. I LOVE going to the mail box each day during this time of year. It's so fun to get cards and pictures from everyone....and have those waiting for you in the mail box, instead of just bills and ads. However, taking pictures for our own card is always crazy. I wanted to post...and therefore, remember later how our Christmas pictures went this year. This is our first Christmas as a family of FIVE. It's totally awesome, and a total circus! Here are some of our REAL Christmas photos.....


Not wanting to take our family photo with the dirty football.....

Trying to hold on to a slippery baby....


"Hey Bubba...I am so cold...look at how red my nose is getting...."

Dawson tries so hard to be a good photographer assistant...but they were all strung out by this time. :)

It was so cold outside, and we.....well, I was making everyone suffer through...trying to get the perfect holiday photo. We finally went to the church, hoping to take pictures inside, but that didn't work out, so Dawson and I just started taking pictures of ourselves. At least we could cooperate and "smile pretty." :)

Rage and Humor

There are many reasons why I love HEB. It is a great, reasonably-priced, down-home store. One of it's many great attributes is the "Customer with Child" parking spots they try to reserve at the front of the parking lot......for their customers WITH CHILDREN. Now, I am a Jesus-loving woman, and I try to live a somewhat peaceable life, but when I go to HEB and see people WITHOUT CHILDREN parking in the "Customer with Child" spots, it makes me stark-raving mad!! Seriously!! I don't know why it gets under my skin so much, but it does! Maybe it's because I frequently have to go to HEB with all three of my crazy children, and I know how convienent it is to be able to park close to the store, and close to a cart return rack. But seeing the TWO different WOMEN who got into their cars--by themselves--no child to be seen-- beside my spot.....where I was juggling a baby on my hip, yelling at another kid who was trying to run in front of cars, and at the same, unloading cart/loading car with groceries.....I almost lost it! I will confess that I have left notes on people's cars before when I've spotted them parking in those designated spots. Polite, but poignant notes! And yes, I want to show Jesus to them, and love them just like He does......but wow....it's hard!

And then the humor, as we were driving out of the parking lot of HEB, and I was telling Ellie that it was going to be nap time when we got home, she said, "No mommy! Please don't make me take a nap. Please! I'm not thirsty. I'm really not thirsty!" (in her desperation, I think she mixed up her adjectives :)

Last thing, please continue to pray for my sweet friend, Kristen and her precious daughter, Jordan. They are home now, after starting Jordan's first round of chemo. I pray that God continues to work miracles in their lives!

Grace Upon Grace

This Thanksgiving I was more aware than normal of how completely and totally blessed we are. I was reminded of a life-changing devotional I read in a book called "Grace for the Moment" by Max Lucado. The title of the short, but poignant entry was "Grace Upon Grace." I want to share it on my blog....more as a reminder to me than to anyone else.

I have learned to be satisfied with the things I have and with everything that happens. Philippians 4:11

Test this question: What if God's only gift to you were his grace to save you? Would you be content? You beg him for this. You plead with him for that. What if his answer is, "My grace is enough." Would you be content? You see, from heaven's perspective, grace is enough. If God did nothing more than save us from hell, could anyone complain?...Having been given eternal life, dare we grumble at an aching body? Having been given heavenly riches, dare we bemoan earthly poverty?... If you have eyes to read these words, hands to hold this book, the means to own this volume, he has already given you grace upon grace.


Wow! I have been given grace, upon grace, upon grace.....to the infinite degree. I'm challenging myself, in this season of buying/giving/getting, to remember that I already have grace upon grace.

Pictures of some of my graces....

Me and my boyfriend spending the greatest getaway night at the Gaylord. Thanks to my awesome mother- & father-in-law!

Daddy and Adelyn at the Christmas parade in Ft. Worth

I have the sweetest bro- & sister-in-law in the world! And such cute neice and nephew too!!

The Fab Four watching Polar Express in 3-D.....so adorable!

Pure joy!

And the cutest baby IN THE WORLD! Man, I love this kid!

As beautiful as she can be....getting ready for bed in our new Christmas pjs :)

Football and friends

Last week was Caleb's last week of his first football season. I say "first", because he is absolutely in love with the sport and wishes he could play football every day, so I'm sure we will be signing up for football again next year. It really was so fun watching him play on a little team. Even though having games twice a week made our family's evening schedule crazy, it was a fun thing to do as a family. And his team was actually pretty dang good...in my unbiased opinion. :) He was also awarded a trophy at his last game (everyone was...but that didn't make it any less special). The boy already has three trophies, which is more than I've gotten in my whole life!

Here is my little star...


Also, I have a favor to ask of you. One of my dearest friends from high school, Kristen, has a beautiful baby girl, Jordan, who is just a couple of months older than Adelyn. This past week, Kristen and her family found out that Jordan has stage 4 neuroblastoma. Jordan is scheduled for surgery tomorrow to remove her tumor and then will begin chemotherapy. Please join me in praying for strength, comfort, and healing for this sweet family. They live in New Jersey, so I feel like there is not a lot I can do to help. But prayer is so powerful, and I want to just absolutely cover them in it during this difficult time. Thank you.

My Pretty Little Princess

A short three years ago....




My sweet Ellie turned 3 years old last weekend! It's crazy how time flies! But it's so different with her than it was with Caleb. When Caleb turned three, I remember thinking that I couldn't believe my baby was already so old. But with Ellie, I feel like she should be turning 12 or 13 ! She is already so sassy, and seems too grown-up. But she is also as sweet, and funny, and beautiful as she can be. She is such a blessing in our lives.

She is obsessed with everything princess and fairy right now, so it was no surprise when she requested a "Princess party." We decided to do a dress-up fashion show, and let all the girls dress up like princesses. My sweet sisters magically transformed Addie's nursery into a fairy tale dressing room. It was so much fun! Dawson and I made a princess castle cake....which definitely looked homeade, but Ellie loved it and that's all that mattered. Overall it was a big success, mainly because of the time we got to spend with our awesome friends and family.

Pictures from the big day....


My beautiful little princess....my precious gift.

Precious Ballerina

Ellie started her very first dance class this week! Ballet and tap lessons are my sweet parents' gift to her for her birthday. Such a super, fun gift!! And it's as much of a gift to me as it is to her because it has been so fun dressing her up and doing this with her! She was the cutest, most adorable thing I have ever seen! She looked so precious in her little pink dance attire, and she did such a great job at her first class! Apparently most of the girls in her class have been doing dance for a year or so already, but Ellie just jumped right in and tried to follow them. She did a great job listening to her teacher, and she tried to make some new friends too.

Sometimes I feel like she is definitely gypted (sp?) as the middle child. Caleb is so expressive, and Adelyn is so little, that they both demand my attention way more than she does. Hopefully that will change as the seasons of their lives change. But lately, I've been trying to be so intentional about giving her my undivided attention as much as I can. And in those times, while we're in the car, or at the lunch table, Ellie will usually say, "Mom, let's talk." like she's 18 years old or something. Then I'll say, o.k. Ellie, let's talk. Then every time, she proceeds to ask me, "What's your favorite color?" So, we talk about our favorite colors. Then she might say, "What did you do today?" even though we've been together all day. :) I just love it! I love having these little conversations with her, and I hope we will always have these little talks together. She is such a gift from God!

Pictures of my little "baddawina" as Ellie says :)

Living in Crazy Town

This blog is sometimes wildly unsatisfying, because I wish it was more like having a conversation with each of you...my fellow blogging friends. Sometimes I like the personal journaling feeling of blogging, but then sometimes I wish there was more dialogue. For instance, these days I feel like I'm barely hanging on to my sanity...and I want to know, am I the only resident in Crazy Town?!? :) I feel like I'm constantly behind on housework (the dishes now have a life of their own and I did SIX loads of laundry on Saturday....doesn't sound abnormal until I tell you that ALL SIX LOADS came from MY laundry basket!!! I seriously washed clothes that I wore last winter and have been in the bottom of my basket since then!!! I finally had to wash all of them because I could no longer close my closet door!!) Anyway, there's just been times lately when I feel like a terrible housekeeper, a mean mommy, an inattentive and uncaring wife, an on-again/off-again friend, and a whiney, ungrateful, flaky daughter of God.....I either need some serious time down on my knees, and/or some psychiatric drugs. I HATE when I allow my blessings to feel like burdens, and when I let stress and anxiety steal the joy and peace that God tries to give me.

Anyway....as much as I wish blogging was really group therapy, it's not. I do want to share some pictures from Halloween...Adelyn's first pumpkin day! It was a lot of fun!

The traditional carving of the pumpkin....Adelyn looks curious?!



The cutest "soldier pilot", "princess fairy" and daisy flower you'll ever see!!

Fall Fun with the Family

This past weekend my parents came into town, and we celebrated my Dad's 57th birthday and my parents' 34th anniversary! Wow! It was fun to talk with them this morning over breakfast about that momentous day 34 years ago. I'm so blessed to have parents who love each other, and who are committed to each other and their marriage.

It was a beautiful weekend for family time, so we picked out pumpkins, ate too much, and played outside. Here are some cute pictures from the weekend....


Cutie Patooties and pumpkins....was unable to get all of them to smile at the same time!


Adelyn's first pumpkin....


I think she loves her pumpkin. :)


But she loves her Memaw more!!


The boys playing football together....so cute!!


Ellie loves being a big sister and one of her favorite things is to help feed Adelyn...

sooo sweet!! :)

Thoughts for the Day

Some are taking this Swine Flu paranoia a little too far
(my sister sent this picture to me, pretty cute :)

So, here are some random thoughts...

1- What does it say about the state of your life when you are only changing outfits every 48 hours??

2- And within that 48 hours, hoping you remembered to brush your teeth at least once?!

3- Those 100 Calorie packs of cookies/crackers are meant to be eaten three at a time, right?

4- Why is it that every time I change Adelyn's dirty diapers these days, I feel like I'm competing in a rodeo event? Calf roping/steer wrestling?!?

5- Being quarantined/ostracized from society for 5 days is WAY TOO LONG! I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to going to Kroger and Wal-Mart tomorrow.

6- Getting ready for a garage sale is a lot of work...but it's also kinda fun. Cleansing, organizing, getting to play "store", making some extra money so that we can go on a date night and buy Halloween costumes?!, etc.

7- The book "Crazy Love" is still kicking my butt. I think I want to read another one of his books, "Forgotten God" about the Holy Spirit. I love what Chan has to say and the way he says it, but the true concepts of 'Christianity' are so hard to live out every day!! So challenging!

8- I wish someone would hurry up and buy our mini-van. It breaks my heart to walk by her every day in the driveway.....

9- After we dropped off Dawson at work today, as we drove out of the parking lot, Ellie said, "My Daddy is so handsome." So sweet, and so true. My husband's pretty darn hot. :)

10- I REALLY hope we can actually get some sleep tonight....PLEASE GOD!


Cutest Lil' Aggie!

Golden Gator & Farm Flu

This week has been eventful, to the say the least. First, I must brag on my son. He was honored with the "Golden Gator award" at his first Awards Assembly this past Thursday. They give this award for being the sweetest, coolest, bestest kid in the class (well, that's not exactly the description....but that pretty much sums it up! :)
We were soooo proud of him! And he was pretty proud of himself too...but I think he would've been more excited had there been a new toy or ice cream involved! :)





However, just a day after he received his award, Caleb came down with the H1N1 flu. And by the way, I hate calling it swine flu....that's just not very attractive. So, that's why I'm either calling it H1N1 or the Farm Flu. Caleb's been a champ, and hasn't felt too bad except for the fever and an annoying cough. But this morning, Ellie woke up with a fever of 101.5. So, here we go again. I have a feeling Adelyn is not too far behind, because she's not acting like herself either! :( Please pray for healing for our little ones, and strength and stamina for the nurses here at the Skow Clinic. I'm feeling a little ragged already with just one patient, much less three. And I think we are all getting a bad case of cabin fever!

Here are some cute pictures of Ellie Faith, before the epidemic hit....


Doesn't she look like a snake charmer....I thought the panties with the rubber boots was a good look! :)


And this is her playing in the rain....no, mommy was not at home during these activities...


But it sure looks like she had a lot of fun!!