Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Girls Hobbies and Family Pictures

I love how uniquely made each of our girls are.  They are both so kind, smart, funny, loving and generous but they also have many personality differences.  Here's just a little peak into that.

Mia's favorite thing to do is play soccer.  We signed her up for a winter indoor instructional league, and she's loving it!
 Lily prefers to spend her time playing the piano.  She has been taking lessons for a little over a year now, and she has really developed this talent.  I truly love listening to her play!  We rarely have to ask her to practice; she will go to her keyboard multiple times throughout the day and play.  This is her playing at her recital.  Mrs. Pinto organizes the recital to be at a local home for Alzheimer's patients.  They love to see the children come and hear their Christmas music.  Lily played "Angels We Have Heard On High," "Away In A Manager" and "Do You Hear What I Hear?" and she did an excellent job.
 Both girls thoroughly enjoy going to school.  ACCA has been such a blessing to our family!  Mia adores Mrs. Keesee and being with her friends.  Lily will say her favorite subjects are cursive writing and astronomy; she's fascinated by the solar system.  Lily also loves math.  She goes up to 3rd grade math each day where they have been working on their multiplication tables.  We were all so excited when she passed her 12 tables!
 I took the girls to the eye doctor yesterday for their annual check-up.  Lily had been complaining that her eyes hurt when she read (since she loves to read, this was a problem).  Neither of us were surprised when the doctor said she could use glasses.  She was so excited!  This is a picture of the ones she picked out; they have blue metal frames, and she looks beautiful in them.  They are being made now and will be ready next week for pick up.  She can't wait for school to start back so she can show all her friends!  Mia was very upset that her eyes are healthy and not in need of glasses; she was so sad!  I assured her that in a couple of years, she too will need glasses like everyone in our family.  Thankfully, one of the doctor's assistants had an old pair without lenses available.  She cleaned them, put new nose pads on and let Mia have them.  She was thrilled!
Love these girlies!

We were so glad to get our family pictures back from Allison Mauer.  She always does a great job!  We actually went several weeks ago, and the girls had the most adorable coordinating outfits.  When we got there, it was 19 degrees.  We still did the shoot but Allison told me the pictures came back and the girls looked so miserable.  She asked if we could re-shoot which I greatly appreciated.  Even though these outfits weren't as cute as what I originally planned, the girls are happy and adorable!  We are so thankful for Allison and her great photography skills!









I love my family!

Saturday, November 29, 2014

Mountain Getaway

Our family was really looking forward to a weekend away in the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Ryan found a great place on VRBO, so we headed up on the Saturday morning of Thanksgiving break.  We stopped at Mercier Orchards on our way up.  Even though there were no apples to pick, it was a beautiful day to walk around, and we enjoyed eating lunch and getting some delicious treats for later on in our trip.

 The cabin we stayed in was lovely.  It had three bedrooms, and the girls were thrilled to have their own rooms on vacation.
 This was our welcome to the cabin; how cute!
 The view was beautiful!
The girls (and adults) loved that there was an arcade game downstairs to play; the girls now know the fun of Centipede.  Lily loved reading on the porch swing.
 Enjoying the beautiful day.
 We planned on doing a lot of relaxing like this.
We were all excited about the hot tub.  It was actually only warm on Saturday night but by Sunday it had gotten nice and hot.  It was a great way to relax.

 The girls thoroughly enjoyed this swing.
On Sunday it rained all day, so we took it easy and stayed in our pajamas all day.  We started out the day by watching "Up" together.  Throughout the day, we played games like Rummikub, watched football and tv, played the arcade games, read and simply enjoyed downtime.  We ended the day we with glow bracelets which is always fun.
On Monday, it was beautiful again so we headed over to a nearby hiking spot after eating lunch in Blue Ridge.  We came upon some a beautiful waterfall.
Lily brought her Magic Tree House Journal with her, so she could go on a scavenger hunt.  She had a great time checking off the items such as gold leaf, orange leaf, moss, etc.  Mia couldn't wait to get her hands in the water to see if it was cold (it was).
 So beautiful!
 Trying out the water.
 Love these girls!
 On Monday evening, we ended our trip with a chocolate treat from Mercier Orchards and playing some rounds of Headbandz. 
 This was such a wonderful little getaway!  This just may become a family tradition.

Thursday, November 27, 2014

Thanksgiving 2014

I love Thanksgiving; it's one of my favorite days of the year.  We a nice morning of rest, making Perler Beads, cooking and watching the Macy's Day Parade.  Around 1 we headed out to my cousin, Sid and Elaine's, house for our big family get together.  We were actually missing several family member this year for several reasons but we still had a great time enjoying a lot of delicious food. 
 The kids stood together after appetizers to sing a little song and tell what they were thankful for.  Lily said "I'm thankful for my family and friends," and Mia said "I'm thankful for Jesus and the cross."  My heart melted a little over that one.  Then adults had the chance to say what they are thankful for, Ryan prayed for all of us and then we enjoyed lunch.  It's always nice to share a meal together, and then we just mill around spending time with different family members.  It's truly a great day.
I sure am thankful for this group!

Mia is 6!

Mia is 6 now!!!  I can't believe it.  This precious girl is so amazing, and we were thrilled to get to celebrate her!
 We started out the morning with a Chick-fil-a breakfast, and then she opened presents from us, Lily, Bama and Grandpops and Grandma Jan.  Her day was off to a great start, and we headed to school.  I couldn't focus at work that day, so instead, I made this collage of some of my favorite pictures of Mia through the years.  Can't say enough how much I adore this little girl!
 We were so excited to have Mia's party on the playground after school until we saw the forecast; this screenshot was 15 minutes before the party.  Yeah...we moved the party inside to an extra classroom.
 The birthday girl didn't mind; she was excited!
 Mia loved her rainbow cake.  Both girls quickly noticed that the bakery didn't make the rainbow in the correct order.  No one minded though; it tasted delicious!
 Everyone joined in to sing Happy Birthday!
I talked to my friend Stacie who is also the PE teacher at school to ask for indoor game suggestions.  She gave me some great ideas.  First up was "Duck Duck Goose" but we changed it to "Happy Happy Birthday."  The kids loved this one.
 We also played Red Light, Green Light which was a hit.
I didn't think to take a picture, but we also played "Mia Says" (aka, "Simon Says") and 4 Corners which the kids loved.  This was a laid back party but it was so much fun!  Mia had a great time too; she was with her friends having a blast.

I asked her to tell me a few of her favorites right now:
Color - Rainbow or Turquoise
TV Show - My Little Pony
Movie - How the Grinch Stole Christmas (cartoon version)
Friend - Hudson Miley
Game to Play - 4 Corners
Place to Go - A Swimming Pool
Ice Cream Flavor - Strawberry
Foods - Chips, Watermelon, Yogurt, Apples and Carrots
Animal - Zebra
Book - Not All Princesses Wear Pink
Song - Everything is Awesome from The Lego Movie
Memory from the past year - Our cruise on Allure of the Seas
Bible Verse - 1 Timothy 4:12
Most Thankful for - Jesus and the Cross
I took Mia for her check up a couple of days after her birthday which went well.  She's now 44.6 inches tall (39th percentile) and 49 pounds, 6 ounces (74th percentile).  She had a little trouble with the hearing test, but she did pass it; we'll keep an eye on it.  Overall, this visit went well, and we are very thankful for our healthy girl.
I wish that I was a better writer who could actually fully convey the love I have for Mia.  There are so many amazing qualities to this girl.  She loves God with all her heart; she is quick to say He is her best friend and favorite person.  She is honestly the most joyful person I have ever met.  She has a hard-working, can-do attitude.  She's willing to try new things.  She is always wanting to help, whether it's me in the kitchen, Ryan on the grill, Lily with a Lego set, or a friend with a game.  She is adventurous and curious.  She wants to learn.  I cannot wait to see what God has in store for this amazing, fantastic, fabulous and all around wonderful girl!