Note to self: 

Do NOT tell a child that they can't have a bubble bath and then hand child liquid soap in a whirlpool tub and walk away. 

Jets turned on + one dropped bottle of liquid soap = boy yelling "mommy help!"  and mommy discovers this:

We spent Easter weekend at Phil's parents house.  The kids loved decorating eggs with Grammie.

Easter Sunday:

I remember loving to get dressed up as a young girl (I still do!)

I have memories of spinning on the lawn by our church so that my dress would puff out. 

(In the background is my in law's church)

She was giggling so hard, she had to stop and catch her breath.

After church the kids went hunting for easter baskets.

Nate found his in Grammie's linen closet.

Ally caught on to the "closet" idea and found hers in the downstairs coat closet.

Nate smiles obediently for the picture while Ally ignores any commands and just digs in:

She's got her mama's sweet tooth!

The next two pictures are posted for the Manwarren family who I thought would get a kick out of a shot of "Smokey" the cat.

Mom and Dad have a white cat named "Lily" who is very anti-people and won't come near anyone.   Mom Manwarren really wanted a friendly cat.  She was thrilled when she was given a beautiful fluffy gray kitty (Smokey) who loved to cuddle with her.  But Smokey not only loves to cuddle.  She has gotten bigger and bolder and now sits right on top of Mom and Dad's face!  She is literally right on their heads and across their necks.  It's her favorite spot!  LOL

Hope you had a wonderful Easter!

Happy Spring!

Years ago, it was a train conductor. 

He promised I could ride on his train, up front with him, of course. 

"But I get to drive, mommy",   he said.

Not long ago he wanted to join the army like poppy.

Drive tanks and get bad guys.

I gulped and said "ok.  You would be a good soldier and make me proud."

A little more than a week ago he announced that he wanted to be a 'Divel-oppper.'

??

"What's that?"  I asked

"I am going to build cities and roads and bridges!" he declared.

"OH!  a land developer.  cool!"  I responded.

He has added robot builder to his long list of career possibilities.  He wants to own an RV and says Phil and I can go on vacation with him in it! 

He has also informed us that he wants to always live in our house.  (We'll have to see about that one.)

When he plays his video games and he can't get to the next level, sometimes he gets so frustrated that he storms out the room.   I always follow to try to help him gain perspective and teach him to see that its not a big deal and only a game.

After the initial emotional reaction, he often tells me "I want to go back and play my game some more, Mommy." (this after being defeated by the game a dozen times!)

"Why, hunny?  Just quit the game for now.  Why don't you give it a rest and wait until Daddy is home to help you with your game."

"No.  I want to do it.  I will never give up.  I will never quit."

I love my son.

So, my tough little six year old with the big heart, huge dreams and no quit attitude announced last week that he wanted to bake a cake like I do.

I enjoy baking and selling cakes out of my home.  I never imagined Nathaniel as a cake baker, but I want to encourage and support my children in any way that God sees fit to equip them.

"Sure"  I said.  "What kind of cake are you going to make?"

"A city cake."

"Oh, like you are a developer?  and you are going to build your city out of cake?"

"Yep" said my determined little baker.  "It will have tall towers and big buildings and even roads with a tunnel."

"oh, really?"  I smiled and shook my head. 

"And mom?  I want to build  a huge Robot on the cake that is attacking the city."

(with Dad's help and Rice Krispie treats, Nate was able to have his robot!)

Cake, anyone? 

Our Family Christmas Album

We celebrated Christmas with Phil's family over the Thanksgiving weekend. 

Anyone up for a game of LIFE?  (complete with our niece Alexis' little pet shop characters!) 

We got to meet Val and Andrew's new puppy, 'Buddy':

My Father in law and nephew Ryan haul in the tree!

I couldn't get the kids to turn around for this pic.  (they were too interested in the presents... what's up with that?)  lol  

But I got this good one of them all later:

(my two on the left and then our niece Alexis in the middle with nephew Ryan on the right)

Although it was two holiday celebrations packed into one busy Thanksgiving weekend, it was good to be together with Phil's family and see everyone!

A few weeks later -

We rented this lodge for Christmas day with my family:

Phil and I had Christmas eve and Christmas morning with our kids and then drove up to the Lodge.

It had lots of space (which was perfect for our large clan!)

Dad kept the wood stove goin' and we were warm and cozy all day...

Here are two little snow angels who came out of the cold after some sledding fun!

Gift Time!

My sister in law Martha made my mom a quilt...

Which made her cry!

Being with family is just one of the things that made our Christmas so special.

I just felt really blessed and I'm sitting here with a full heart remembering it all. 

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!!

We got our tree last weekend...

It is cold outside,

but hearts are warm

When its Christmas trees wer'e hunting for...

walking arm in arm.

Its the little things.

The Christmas lights bouncing off the sparkles in my children's eyes.

The exclamations from the back seat of the car:  "How BEEA-UU-TIFUL!!" as they spot Christmas lights.

The smooth warming goodness of a mug of hot cocoa.

The warmth of home.

And the loving glance across a room.

All the glitz and glamor this world has to offer don't stand a chance when up against the wonder and magic of a loving family, a slightly lop sided pine, and contented hearts.

I walked into my kitchen and noticed that the door was gone.  It is our back door to the house, and the entrance that we use the most. 

I found Phil downstairs in our basement.  The door was covered in paint stripper and he was scraping away. 

I hadn't even noticed that the door needed painting.   And I just kept thinking that it was strange that he would just go and decide to paint our door to the house. 

Then he showed me the can of paint he had purchased.  Cherry Red.  "Didn't you say that you had always wanted a red door?"  he said with a cute grin. 

I was so overwhelmed by his thoughtfulness, that I didn't even know what to say.

Phil continually shows me love, and is so unconditional about the way he loves, that I am humbled by it day after day.

He proceeded to strip and paint the door himself and then re did the floor in our entry way and painted the walls too.  Every time I walk into my home, it makes me smile and I will be reminded of his love for me. 

Today, once again, he went out of his way for me.  I had agreed to host a ladies night at my home and he helped me so much in the days leading up with cleaning and getting the house ready.  Phil has always helped around the house and I know this is rare in a husband and something I never want to take for granted. 

I was so excited to have these women come.  They are ladies from my Sunday School class and many are good friends of mine or women I want to know better.    I had such a good time getting the house ready for them.  I made apple cider punch, and the ladies all brought yummy food.  I loved lighting the candles,decorating the house and planning for a great ladies night out.  It is enjoyable, fulfilling and even relaxing to plan events and serve women like these. 

Right up until they arrived, Phil was busy helping me.   I wasn't stressed out at all, but having his help made it so special.  Then he took the kids out for a special night out with Daddy.

I had such a wonderful night.  About 20 ladies came and we ate and talked and ate and talked and then we had a question and answer time which included a lot of laughs.  Tonight left me with my heart full of gratefulness. 

I see a lot of love in these ladies.  They are thoughtful and loving and very kind.  They are so much fun and I had a great time!  I was so blessed from having them in my home. 

But the greatest blessing of all was left behind after they had all driven away.  A plate full of leftover goodies and my amazing husband.   Snuggling up by candle light on a Sunday evening doesn't get any better than this! 

Remembering my Big Weekend in the Big Apple

(deciding to take a break from the dissapointing news showing up on the election coverage and choosing to remember happier times instead)

A little over a week ago, my favorite person in the whole wide world (who also happens to be my husband) and I travelled to New York City to enjoy a belated birthday celebration for him.  (He is quite old.  Pay him condolances if you see him) 

Can I say right now how much I love New York?  Well, I do.  I am in love with Manhattan.  (Can you be in love with a place?)  I love discovering new things in New York City.    New York is always showing new sides of herself.   You could visit every weekend for a year and still not see everything there is to see or experience everything there is to experience. 

I am pretty predictable.  But I even surprised myself!  One example was that I enjoyed being entertained by mimes painted blue who spew banana mush!   The musical we attended on another night was for Phil's birthday and I didn't expect to be that into it, but I actually liked it a lot and it was funny!  I had new food and bought new clothes (ok. that was a given). 

But the highlight of the entire time was being with Phil.  And can I brag a bit on my man here?  He is always generous and loving and fun to be with.  But he was so awesome and patient on this trip when we walked all over for an hour one morning to find me a payless shoe store so that I could buy more comfortable walking shoes.  Then he took me to a place to get coffee and something to eat.  (a hungry Julie without her morning coffee on sore feet is NOT a happy Julie).     

P.S.  He also looked amazing the entire weekend.  H-H-HOT.      I just love him. 

Here are a few random pics: 

I loved these lights in a cafe we ate at in Soho.

Phil took this one:

We visited a great chocolate boutique with the best dark sipping chocolate!

I loved our time in Soho.   The shoppes there are amazing.  I loved the atmosphere and the cafes and street vendors.  Everything was artsy and interesting.  I could have spent days exploring. 

I handed Phil the camera for a while.  Here is a bit of his perspective on the city: 

I took some shots of our Sunday afternoon walk in Central Park before we left to come home:

Ok.  This republican needs to get some sleep.  I'm under the weather (cold/flu bug).  

Have a restful night. 

Autumn on Ice

We had a snow storm here yesterday. Several parts of our area lost power and the schools closed, so Nate was home from school.

Here is what we saw when we looked out our windows:

Today, the kids and I ventured out to explore in the snow and ice.

My snow angels:

Autumn was cut short, as it often is here in the Northeast.  Perhaps it makes us more appreciative of Fall.  We witness the beautiful artistry for a fleeting moment before the long gray winter and cold sets in.

Just a couple weeks ago, I witnessed God's glory showcased in Pennsylvania's foliage.