A lot of Sadie cuteness

This is post is pretty much a whole lot of pictures of Sadie's cuteness.  She likes to pose for the camera it true Sadie-silliness.  Here's cuteness during breakfast...

And then again this afternoon since we just can't get enough of her....

Don't you just want to eat those cheeks!?!

Changing Unloved to Lovely

Our laundry room has generally been unloved.  It's totally utilitarian and not at all attractive or welcoming...until now!
Some new appliances, some fresh paint and some attractive tile make the laundry room a whole lot more lovely.

Here's the Before:

 Contractor grade paint, grubby floor and unimpressive appliances.

We had a leak in this room last summer, and had to remove a section of this wall.  My Handy Honey tried his hand at dry-walling and did a top notch job of putting our wall back together.

And now for the unveiling...

TA DA! My lovely Laundry Room.

I could have staged the picture by removing the laundry waiting to be done or the shirts waiting to be ironed, but this is just the reality of a laundry room.

Another God-blessing was the small amount of money this transformation required.  The paint was left over from a project last year, Brad did the tile and drywall himself and a lot of the supplies were bought by cashing in our Discover Card points for Lowe's gift cards.

Where's the Balance?

I have pictures of my newly transformed laundry room but my computer doesn't like them.  Soooo you'll just have to wait a little longer on those.

In the meantime, Does anyone else struggle with the balance of fun holiday traditions/gifts and simply focusing on the huge gift that has already been given by Christ?

Here's a recent conversation I had with Noelle:
N: I wonder what I'll get for Easter.
Me (sort of offhandedly):  You could ask God for forgiveness from your sins and eternal life with Him.
N:  Well, I really want a chocolate bunny.

Funny.  In a disturbing kind of way.

I almost missed the conviction in my own life....hmmm do I ever choose a temporal, carnal pleasure over a godly, right choice.

Extra sleep in place of quiet time with God
Book reading in place of serving my husband
An idle threat in place of proper discipline
Oh yes, and chocolate in place of forgiveness

Promoting the Right Thing in School

This evening we attended a "Work Ethic Recognition Ceremony" at Noelle's school.  It was encouraging to see the school promoting such good values.  In order to qualify you had to meet 6 standards:

• Discipline
• Attendance
• Community Service
• Academic performance
• Work habits/punctuality/preparedness
• Respect and cooperation

There were 6 students from her class chosen and they were awarded a pin and a certificate.  It was a short program followed by cookies and Kool-aid.  Noelle was most excited about the plastic pin she received.  Sadie was most excited about all the cookies she could choose from.  Brad and I were most excited that they didn't drag out the ceremony for ever and ever...  And of course we were very excited that Noelle was seen as a student that possessed all those qualities. 

Noelle with her "Work Ethic" flag pin

In front of her school with her certificate

The Face of a First-Grader

Someone told me once that if you are talking to a child that is missing their front teeth, you can pretty much bet they're in 1st grade.  Well here's our first grader.  The next tooth will probably be out by the end of March and then we'll have a true hillbilly.

The rest of the family wanted to experience the fun.  Can you guess which one is real?!

New Toys for All!

Aren't big boxes wonderful?

Aren't the things inside of big boxes even better!?!

We had some Christmas money hoarded away until these babies went on sale.  They are a-ma-zing!  I'm jumping and squealing and clapping my hands.   Ahhh appliance joy!

Now we need to get busy making the rest of the laundry room look as good as them.  Lord willing we'll have the unveiling of the new and improved laundry room in 2 weeks.

My Impulse Buy

When I was at Kroger the other day this fruit called out to me.  I just had to buy it.  It was plump and shiny and very appealing.  So for $.99, I thought I'd try it.

It's a Pummelo (maybe you all know that).  I added the battery to the picture for a reference point.  Once I was home with my impulsively purchased fruit I thought I'd better do a little research to find out what the heck I just bought.

So I googled it and was directed to a video.  A video for a fruit?  Well this video proved to be very helpful.  Once you uncover the fruit beneath it's thick shell and pulp and more pulp, it's quite tastey...a little like a very mild grapefruit.

So if you'd like a fruit adventure, grab one and gather around the computer for a little tutorial before you dive in.