I Got Nothin'

I can't think of anything to write with this post tonight...

All I have are deep thoughts floating through my head.

I'll spare you those and

just let the pictures do the talking.

We messed around with the camera this afternoon,

and these pictures made me smile when I downloaded them a little

while ago.

Okay, so I have to share one deep thought...

As I look at these pictures, I think of how much I love this girl...We sort of ended our time together tonight on a bad note...I was in a hurry to go somewhere...she wasn't cooperating...I was frustrated...she was sad when I left and in bed when I got home...not my finest parenting moment...makes my heart hurt. Just makes me think of the Father's love for us...I still can't wrap my head around it...we don't have to earn it and can't ever do anything to make him love us less...it's perfect. Thank goodness...because I'm so not.

Happy 80th, Grandma!

Yesterday we had the privilege of helping my Grandma Elaine celebrate her 80th birthday. We have a large extended family, and all but 3 of us were together, and it made for a very full, but very fun day. You've heard me say before how much I admire her and what an amazing lady she is. I think the feeling is mutual among our family. She's a quiet inspiration and wonderful example of a humble servant. Just being in her presence lowers my blood pressure :)

Just a few of the things I've learned from Grandma....

• A little grace goes a long way.
• Patience pays off.
• In the hard times, God is trying to teach you something...be quiet and learn it :)
• Prayer truly is powerful.
• The special things in life aren't "things".
• Humility never goes out of style.

As usual, the day was busy, and it was more fun to visit than take pictures. So, I didn't have my camera out enough...and the pictures I got aren't that great, but I'll share a few.

Grandma with her 5 Daughters
Mary, Karla, Jan, Ruth, Beth...love these aunts of mine & my momma too!

Grandma with her 9 great grandkids
Sawyer, Sophie, Paige, Gunnar, Lainey, Aldyn, Addi, Cade & Connor


Love this smile :)
She told me at the end of the day that 80 isn't so bad...I think it looks good on her!

Halloween 09

We had such a fun Halloween this year. As soon as Aldyn realized there was candy involved, she was all over it...and one piece didn't quite cut it. She was asking and signing for "mo" at nearly each place we went...and no one could quite resist that sweet little bumble bee! We love having family nearby and Mike and I enjoyed making the rounds as much as Aldyn. First, we headed to Wilcox to see Hersh and Edna. They gave her the sweetest little dress up stuff as well as some candy and she was excited. Then we went over to Axtell to Great Grandma Elaine's where she loaded us up with skittles and starburst...hope she had enough for the rest of her spooks as she kept insisting we take more...that woman is the definition of "giver". We stopped in Funk to see Aunt Mary and Aunt Karla, and then made our way to Holdrege to see Aunt Beth and Aunt Trish. Finally, we made our way to Grandpa Frank and Grandma Karen's...where they had lots of spooky snacks waiting for us. The cousins had fun checking out each other's costumes and running off their "candy highs" together. We missed not getting to see Grammy Ruth and Grandpa Monte on Halloween this year :(


She's off! Most places she would go to the door by herself and wait.


I couldn't get her to look at the camera...silly girl

I love this picture of daddy and his little bee :)

Some of our friends had a great idea, and invited people over on Friday night, so we could all see the different costumes. Normally everyone is busy on Halloween and we don't really see each other. The kicker was that parents had to dress up too! We hadn't done that for a few years and it really was fun! We laughed a lot that night...everyone was so clever!

We were glad that Mike's mom happened to stop by just as we were getting ready, so she snapped some pictures for us. I think she was a little surprised when a priest answered the door...and then a pregnant nun came walking down the stairs...you just never know what you're gonna get when you stop by our house :)