Elise's First Soccer Game!

Elise had an awesome first game!! She is like a lightning bolt on that field! Danny & I aren't sure where she got her speed from, but she sure does have some turbo power! She's playing in the Upward Soccer League which is Christian based and teaches sporting skills while focusing on character and integrity. They offer devotions for the parents and prayer time for the kids. I had a moment standing on the field during the devotion where I felt overwhelmed with the amazing life I've been blessed with and the love that surrounds us everyday. It actually brought tears to my eyes and I had to put my sunglasses on...HA! This truly is a wonderful program for kids and their families. Elise LOVES it and Anabelle even said today, "Mom, I want to play next year." This is coming from the child who doesn't like to run :0)!

The Lephrechaun Visit!

Well, the lephrechaun came and boy did he make a mess on our porch! He took all of the girls pennies and left golden peanut butter cups in their place. The girls carefully looked into their traps to see if they caught one, but no such luck this year. Elise has already planned out her trap for next year and wants it to be made out of wood with tunnels and lots of rooms :0).

Our Attic is Almost Done!

There are still a few finishing touches that need to be done, but we're almost there! Here are some before & after pictures. The first one is looking at the staircase (on the right) and the second is looking at the wall that now has windows.

We feel so blessed and grateful to have this additional space. The girls LOVE the soft fuzzy carpet. It was great to see them roll around on it and do cartwheels. We really don't have any cozy family spaces to get down on the floor & play, so this will be fun! The first picture was taken at the same spot as the first picture w/ the staircase on the right. Now a TV wall has been built there where you see the brackets and the shelves. The second picture is of the windows. The color looks very yellow in the pictures, but it's actually a cream color like the TV wall.

It'll be fun to have sleepovers up there and lots of family time!

St Patty's Day Fun!

Today the girls had some friends over to make leprechaun traps. It was a great lesson on reusing old materials! They took items from our recycle bin and made something with them using their imagination. It was amazing to see the detail that went into their structures. Elise built hers with different rooms, a bridge, and a tunnel. Anabelle made doors & windows that opened & closed. Sadie really liked the glue!!! I'm guessing that by the time St Patrick's Day rolls around, there will still be enough glue left to trap anything that sets foot in hers :0)!

Sadie on a Bike!

I can't believe my baby is riding a bike!!! Where did the time go?

My Little Snow Angels

SNOW!!!

YAY! We finally got a big snow!! I think they said it was 5 inches, but I think we had at least 7-8. It started Sunday evening and didn't stop until Monday. The kids were thrilled!!

The first day we hopped the kids in the minivan and drove around in search of a good hill for sledding. The drive made me very nervous because nothing had been plowed yet. We found a huge hill by the girls' school, but we only lasted 5 mintues. I'm not sure what we were thinking...the kids were exhausted just after making the trip to the hill! Once we made it up the hill, the whining started and when each one tried going down, the pleas to go home began. I took Anabelle back to the car to warm her toes and Danny soon followed with Elise & Sadie. Ah well...at least we wore them out a bit! They did get some other sledding opportunities closer to home. By the second snow day, our plastic sled broke so I decided to pull out a swimming pool raft & inner tube. It worked great and they were soon the favorites. I even gave the inner tube a try and had a blast!

We had some awesome icicles and the kids really enjoyed chomping on them (even sword fighting w/ them!). Now that I think about it, I think I have a few left in my freezer!

The kids were home for 3 days and had a blast. Although the snow was fun, I think they really liked the hot cocoa, too!