Saturday, May 8, 2010

You Grew in My Heart


Mother's Day- full of macaroni necklaces and pictures scribbled by chubby hands, the same hands you try to keep off you clean walls and tuck into bed every night- at least for those lucky enough to have children with whom to celebrate this day. These precious babies come to us in varying ways through birth or adoption or marriage all a part of the Lord's bigger plan. Even for those who don't believe they are mothers in their own right, every woman is one by nature, nurture or design. An Aunt, a Friend, A Co-Worker, a Mentor, a Teacher. One doesn't have to give birth to a child to be seen as a mother.

My children did not come to me through birth, but through grief and pain and personal miracles. Though they are not of my blood they are my babies always and forever. So on this blessed holiday I want to wish every Woman a Happy Mother's Day and thank all the women in my children's lives for helping to teach and mold and love them. It's true that it takes a village to raise a child and it takes all kinds to be "mothers".

Especially on this day I want to thank my babies' birth mother, Christina for giving me the most precious gifts that one woman could give another. I know she still watches over them from the highest courts above and I can only hope that she's proud of the mother I've become.


By: Fleur Conkling Heyliger

Not flesh of my flesh,
Nor bone of my bone,
But still miraculously my own,
And don't forget for a single minute,
You didn't grow under my heart but in it.

Monday, April 26, 2010

A Few Pics...

Our little wall-top container garden on the patio. We are growing tomatoes, green bell peppers, red bell peppers & jalapenos. Can't wait for the harvest this summer.

The living room. Jason even picked the color (after I said Green, Yellow, Taupe RED!)


I couldn't pass up a trip to The Quilted Bear-- Just to look of course, yet somehow this vinyl ended up coming home with me

Our Dining Room- (note the aforementioned vinyl)


It's Space Week at Central Elementary and today was Alien Hair Day. I told Madi & Caili to give me their best Alien faces--
Behold...

A more subdued Alien







Friday, April 23, 2010

Time Marches On-

And before you know it you've moved cross country back to Utah - AGAIN. Oh you didn't move? Well we did. Two cross country moves in one year is just about enough for me. It's great to be back in Utah Valley though. The kids have adjusted fabulously to school and are almost done for the year already. I can't believe how quickly time flies. I looked at the blog and realized it'd been December since I updated so it was about time. The only major development is that we've moved back but I'll try to get pictures posted soon!

Thursday, December 17, 2009

The Proofs are In!

We had our first ever family pictures done two weeks ago and though the portraits aren't back yet, I couldn't wait to share the proofs with all of you! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!









Thursday, October 1, 2009

Sounds Like Life to Me

Lake Winnepesaukah train ride-

June? Seriously I've been lacking in my blog posting- so lets do a top 10 of what's been going on-

1. We're potty training Gracie- armed with a little pink potty, a bag of princess pullups and a lot of patience

2. I took the kids + Meredith to the Chattanooga Zoo


3. I took the kids to Mayfield Dairy to see how milk is bottled and Ice Cream made, and of course we had to eat some Ice Cream too!



4. The kids started back to school (mom's favorite part of the summer)- Jake is in Pre-K full time so I only have 1 baby home all day.


5. Jason has taken up Geocaching as a hobby


6. I've read half a dozen books or more (Thank you Nora Roberts & Patricia Cornwell for your fabulous writing that keeps me up all hours of the night when I should be sleeping so I can get up in a better mood for my kids in the morning- Speaking of Patricia Cornwell, the infamous "Body Farm" is only about an hour away from me)


7. Job Hunting, Job Hunting, Job Hunting.... ick


8. I'm about 20% done with my billing & coding coursework


9. We moved- Again (for an explanation see #7)


10. I spent 8 days in the hospital- herniated bowel obstruction. It was scary but I'm better now.


11. (bonus)- The rains came down and the floods came up. We were not flooded but many we know were and the streets around us were.


This is not a lake. It's a several hundred acre GRASS park--- or it used to be grass before it was covered by water

Jason's mom's next door neighbor. That's a 5 foot fence

Nothing terribly exciting around here- Sounds like Life to me






Sunday, June 28, 2009

Hot, Humid, Gorgeous...

HOME SWEET HOME
Did I mention Humid? Just a few words to describe our new home in Rossville, Georgia. I love being so close to Chattanooga and the Tennessee River and Chickamauga Battlefield and Walnut Street Bridge and RockCity and Ruby Falls and the Incline Railway.... there is loads to do around here, but it is SOOOO hot and humid. Luckily for us, Jack & Darla have a swimming pool and thanks to Grandma Ange the kids have a great water sprinkler toy that we have hooked up most everyday!

Jason and I are diligently job searching while Jake & Gracie adjust to sharing a bedroom. Madi loves that all her cousins are so close, I don't think I've seen her for more than 3 consecutive days since we've been here as she's always off staying the night with one cousin or another. School starts August 7th so only a few more weeks of summer for the kids and we'll all be back to our routine.

The babies are napping now and Jason took Madi fishing at the duck pond just a few blocks from the house so I could get some school work done, yet here I am blogging. I better go back to getting my education completed so I can find a job in the field I really want!

Here's a couple new pics of the babies, I can't believe Gracie is going to be TWO this week!!


Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Cornbread, Peaches & Coastal Beaches


The Hays family is headed back to their roots- well Jason's roots anyway. It's been a crazy couple months since I've blogged, but it all culminates in us moving to Georgia. We will be leaving June 26- one month from today so be sure to stop by and say hello-goodbye before we're East bound and down ;-)