Christmas Rejects

Well, it's been a month and a half since I've done anything with my blog! What a bad blogger I've been.

Oh well.

Here are our reject Christmas card pictures...love these! And I LOVE these crazy kids!!!

Here are a few from our first attempt...

The kids took turns being crazy or grumpy. We weren't giving it our best effort...so we decided to try it again another night. Caleb Wayne got in trouble right before the photography session, so it took a while for him to bounce back! :)


We eventually got a few really cute ones of them.... my best presents, in front of our tree.

My Sweet Baby Girl

Today, my first baby girl turned 5 years old. I am not ready for her to be 5. Five is like the first 'big girl' age. Four still sounds like a baby, but FIVE sounds.......like she's growing up. I don't want her to grow up. I want her world to revolve around baby dolls and Barbies. I want her to sit on my lap, hold my hand, and kiss my face without any reserve or self-consciousness. I don't want her to know insecurity. I don't want her to become aware of her "body image" or the presence of boys.

God has created Ellie Faith to be an extraordinary girl. She is so sweet, and kind, and thoughtful, and sensitive to others, and musical, and bossy....whew, she is so bossy! She is just plain awesome. I am so very grateful to be her mommy. I thank God that He blessed me with her, on this day five years ago. Happy Birth Day Elena Faith!

Just some of my favorites of the past five years....

My big girl....I love you so much it hurts.

Good times in the Tent

Last weekend, we went camping with some of our favorite people. It was a camping adventure like none other!! There is a LONG, HILARIOUS blog entry coming soon about the whole, crazy weekend..... But until then, here are some pictures of me and my closest friends, acting like grown-ups in a tent.

The pictures started out pretty normal

But it was past 2am...

and everything was hilarious! :)

We tried to act serious...and get a good picture of our necks...

But things just kept getting funnier....

and it was NOT a very big tent! :)

So, we were just three "thirty-something" friends...

...acting like we were 13 again!

LOVE THESE GIRLS....

....SO MUCH!

I'm sure if Holly or Kari find these pictures posted....well, let's hope they still love me then. :) So blessed by these beauties!!

Need more fruit!!

Earlier today, I told Dawson, as I was handling another glorious bathroom situation with Adelyn, that when I applied for this job, I don't remember the job description accurately depicting all of the different requirements of the position, nor clearly stating the necessary skills needed to succeed in this work environment.

Being a "Work at home, with your crazy kids and messy house, Mom" is the coolest, most rewarding job there is. But I think to be really successful at it, requires some skill sets that I am honestly lacking in. Like having an extraordinary, supernatural, mammoth-sized amount of patience!?!? Before having Adelyn Lively Skow, I never knew a person could ever require so much patience. And THEN, I still have to have some left over for Ellie and Caleb, and maybe even Dawson!! And let's be honest, anyone else beyond those four better just get out of my way OR ELSE because there ain't much left at the end of the day!

I know that patience is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. But God, if you are reading this, I need some major fertilizer or something to cultivate some more fruit on that side of the tree!!! (Although, I do seem to already have an abundant supply of BS in my life already.....couldn't resist!?! :)

Pray for me! :)

Caleb's Big Day

In most circles, I know that bragging is not appropriate. But I figure our family blog is the most appropriate place for me to gush about my kiddos....

Today, I am particularly proud of our sweet Caleb Wayne. At school today, he was awarded a "Golden Gator" award. A "Golden Gator" is given for 'extraordinary citizenship'. It is only awarded to two kids in every class, every six weeks. This year, instead of the teacher choosing, the class voted for who they thought deserved the award. When his teacher presented Caleb with the award at the assembly, she gave him several sweet compliments. It was awesome! Caleb has actually received this award at the 1st six weeks ceremony every year he has been in school! Like every mom, I think Caleb is the coolest kid in the world. And I think God uses Caleb in very special ways, to love on people and point others to himself.

Then, Caleb had a football game tonight. It was a challenging one, but our team was able to play hard, and tie the game. Caleb played VERY hard, and made our only 2 touchdowns. The first one was when he caught an interception on the 10 yard line, and then ran all the way back to score. He had a great night!

Needless to say....the boy had a good day! I couldn't be prouder!!

Being called to the front by his awesome teacher, Mrs. H!

One of the most exciting parts...getting your picture with the Gator!

We are all so proud of him!! The girls don't really look like it in the picture....but they were proud of their Bubba too! :)

Our team is the 49ers this year- a great group of boys!

My sweet feet!

Beautiful weather, Beautiful Faces

Mondays are Daddy's "late nights" because of band practice, so the kids and I are always on our own on Monday evenings. Tonight, the weather here was PERFECT, so we decided to go on a picnic to one of our favorite parks in town. We had a blast! My heart overflowed as I shared a simple evening with the coolest, sweetest, funniest, most beautiful kids I know.

So precious..

Super Hero pose! :)

The girls LOVE it when Bubba chases them!

EVERY TIME I ask this girl to give me a "pretty smile", this is what I get!?!