2014 the first trimester

Here is Kylee all dressed up and snazzy.  We've had an wonderful start to 2014.  Everyone is growing so big.  Kylee is preparing to be baptized this summer.  Kaje is getting so big.  He was small and then he ate and ate and ate and slept and slept and slept and he woke up a size bigger.  Here is his first time in the back pack instead of the snuggly wrap.

 Everyone still loves to snuggle with Kaje.  Kylee comes and finds him in the morning and snuggles with him for a few minutes before school.  Here Kaylyn is reading Kaje a book.  Love it!!

 Kaje has found his foot and when he's not wearing socks or foories likes to chew on them.  He is also a thumb sucker big time.  He's my first to be interested in sucking anything other than nursing.

Kaylyn has been enjoying preschool with Mia, Ophelia and then Emma.  He loves to pose for the picture.  This one is funny because this is her Jonathan shirt.  This is because Jonathan will dress up as a leprican on st Patricks day.

 This year we got new neighbors. God probably hand picked them just for us.  They are amazing.  They have a girly girl Kaylyn's age that Kylee and Kaylyn both claim as a best friend.  And then they have boys Karla's age and just older.  Not to mention I adore her!  We often sit and chat on our porch.  But the most amazing part in all of this--Todd and Jacob would be friends even if TeriDawn and I weren't.  It's amazing to watch Todd as he has really gotten to know and befriend our new neighbor.  So we have started cleaning up our yard.  It's been sadly neglected for atleast 3 years.  Todd and Jacob moved our fence and opened up our back yard a lot.  The kids like the cement block that they can now enjoy riding on.  And the pool is up.  We've also put in some strawberries, a garden, an herb garden, some raspberries, and we are working on bringing the yard back.  It's been hard but a lot of fun.  It's even more fun doing it with good neighbors.

 Kaje is sitting out with us.  He is to the point that he doesn't like to be left in an empty room without someone with him.  He'll cuddle and talk to anyone, but don't leave me alone.  UNLESS he wants to sleep.  Then he doesn't like to be rocked to sleep anymore usually.  Lay him down and walk away.

 Kolt has grown a ton.  And we are finding that language is one of his special talents.  He is very good at expressing himself.  He asks me every morning and several times a day "where's daddy?"  He LOVES his daddy.  This is a few pictures of daddy and Kolt while daddy was home on his lunch break.  Kolt loves to cuddle with daddy.  And work outside with daddy.  And he is not shy about it!!

 But can you tell how much his daddy loves him too?  He has just started doing this cheesy smile every time I pull out the camera and say smile.  He is so stinking cute!! I adore this boy!!

 And this boy!!  I have to include a few pictures of this growing boy.  HE is starting to play with his tongue.  He is a very content boy.  He doesn't roll a lot because he is content where he is.  He is starting to lean and want people though.  And so I'm sure the movement is coming.  And he has started grabbing food.  He ate half my dinner the other night.  And he ate a whole pint of pumpkin smoosh.

 We can get cute smiles out of him, but when he is really happy--it's like I'm smiling so big my mouth becomes an O.

 Kolt helping in the garden.  He turns very red like me.  I'm afraid this boy won't tan.  Now the question is will he be like me and tan red--or is he going to freckle like his dad?  Despite popular belief, I believe freckles are very cute and attractive.

Now the one thing I haven't talked about is Todd's knee.  He blew it out trying to pick up his hand truck of paper to deliver.  He dislocated it and then it relocated and dislodged a piece of cartilage.  In doing so, he also tore both the meniscus and ACL tendons.  They are going to go in there and smooth out the tendons and clean out the cartilage.  Todd's finally feeling better and able to work as long as he doesn't lift to much.  But as soon as all the stupid insurance paperwork is done--they will fix it.  And then it's 8 to 12 more weeks for him to feel better again.  I'm glad it's fixable.

What if Mulan had made her match

What if the matchmaker had made a match for Mulan?  One, it would have been a very short and boring movie.  But more importantly, Mulan would have been preparing for her wedding.  And when the men came to inlist her father, she would have been preparing for a wedding or already married.  Her father would have gone instead of Mulan.
Further more, Because the little dragon wanted Mulan to have a chance to see action--he sent the army out.  If Mulan and her spirit dragon wasn't there, the training troops would have never left the camp.  And there would have been no one to notice that the army had been demolished! And the enemy would have had no opposition on their way to the emperor.  This is not even addressing the inspiration Mulan gave the trainees.

Sometimes we feel like a screw up.  But what if our screw ups lead us to the place that we can help as many as a whole nation?  We never fully realize the impact our one little ripple in the sea of life can make.  I do believe that God has a plan.  And it will sometimes be hard.  But in the end, happily ever after is waiting if we choose to trust in God's plan and follow where HE leads.

Sleeping Beauty and the risks of love

Does anyone else every think of things like this?
I attended an amazing reception tonight. And as I was helping take down tonight, I thought about Sleeping Beauty. After the black fairy curses Aurora, the good fairies change the curse so that she needs true loves kiss instead of dieing. And then in their attempt to keep her safe, they never let her meet anyone. What if she never met the prince. She would have slept forever waiting for a love she never met and loved. Thank goodness she didn't. She chanced--against the better judgement of her aunt fairies--and she loved. And in the end, that love was her saving grace.

Love is hard.  Love is work.  Love is scary.  You will get your heart broken.  And the only way to protect from that is to not allow yourself to fall in love in the first place.  But it's worth the broken hearts to enjoy love while it lasts.  And to find that one who will love you for forever.  That kind of love will save you.  It will change you into someone better.  It will teach you lessons you could never learn any other way.  It is just as hard and scary as fighting the dragon.  But anything that is that worth it, isn't easy.