Can You Imagine?

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16

I am going to state the obvious here (especially if you have read this blog for very long):

I love these three little girls to the moon!

I have never been what most would consider a very affectionate person. I drive my mom crazy because I am just not a hugger.

But, the moment I held each one of my girls in my arms, I wanted to hug them, hold them and love on them every second of every day.

I would give up my life in a moment to save theirs. I would lay down my life to keep them from feeling one ounce of pain. I would do ANYTHING, I mean anything, to protect them.

But, what if I had to give them up? What if I had to sacrifice one, or even three, of my sweet children for someone? Can you even imagine!? And, what if that someone didn't even deserve it?

It's a shame that it takes Easter for me to think about the great sacrifice God made for me (and YOU!) to have everlasting life. But, this week, it has been heavy on me. As a mother, I cannot fathom watching one of my children go through the ridicule and physical suffering that Jesus went through on this earth...and all to allow forgiveness for those same ones who were causing the suffering.

When I think about that, I am reminded of just how much God must love me (and YOU!). I am reminded of the promises that He has made. I am reminded,especially during Easter, that we can be made new. With the blood Jesus shed on the cross, we can and WILL have everlasting life.

What an undeserving sacrifice that was made! Can you imagine?

Birthday Interview

I found this idea on pintrest and decided that we would start this tradition in our house. I started off just asking Hannah the questions and writing them down. Then, I decided I wanted to always remember what her sweet little voice sounded like at this age, so I made her answer the questions all over again. :)

Name: Hannah Brooke
How old are you? 5
Who is your best friend? Lolo (Lauren Williams)
What is your favorite thing to do: Play on my iPod Touch
What is your favorite color: Red
What is your favorite food: Carrots and Broccoli
What do you like to do with your family? Play some games
What is your favorite toy: My play house
What do you want to be when you grow up? A Teacher
What makes you happy? Love
What is your favorite show to watch? Phineas and Ferb
What is your favorite book? Bumble Bee Boy & Ladybug Girl
What do you love to learn about? Math
What was the best part of your birthday? Having my family over
Where do you like to go? Bowling Alley
Who was your teacher? Miss Karen
What is your favorite treat? Cake
What do you think about before you fall asleep? Fun stuff
If you could meet someone famous who would it be? Lady Antebellum
What was your favorite birthday present? My Make-up Box

Hannah Brooke,
I think I say this every year, but how can you be FIVE? You are so sweet, kind and loving to your sisters. You and Catherine do fight some, but you are usually nice and just like to pick on her. Your favorite person to play with is Emma. I hope all three of you girls stay close as you grow up. Daddy and I are so very proud of you. You have a laugh that is contagious and your dimpled smile lights up a room. I cannot believe how quickly time has passed from my fussy baby Hannah to my always happy 5 year old Hannah. You are so very special and I can already imagine the great things that you are going to do with your life. Keep smiling and be true to who you are. We love you SO much, Banana Boat! Like your cousin told you, the middle child is the cream in the middle of the oreo...you hold everything together. I love you to the moon!
XOXO,
Mommy

5 Years Old

My sweet Hannah Brooke turned 5 yesterday. We have been celebrating her birthday since Saturday, because...well...WHY NOT!? :)

Saturday morning, we got up and headed to Ft. Smith. Honey and Daddy Brooks were on their way to Portland, Oregon and were passing thru town. We met them for breakfast and Hannah got her first birthday present. Later this month, Honey, Emma, Hannah, Catherine and I will be at the Walton Arts Center watching Mary Poppins! Hannah is beyond excited for her girls night!

Saturday evening, GrandDa, Daddy Ben and cousin Travis stopped by for dinner and some fun outside. (I cannot BELIEVE that I didn't get my camera out!) They had been to Crystal Bridges for the day and brought KFC to the house for dinner. I made chocolate pie and we enjoyed getting to see them! They dropped a present off for Hannah, but she wasn't to open it until her birthday!

Sunday evening, Grammy, Uncle Jon and Aunt Nicole came over for Hannah's birthday party. One of Hannah's favorite things is to eat outside on the patio. During the dead of winter, if we get a peak of sun, she is begging to eat outside! So, since she had a big tea party last year, we opted for a small party and eating outside. She had the best time jumping on the trampoline and playing wall ball with everyone!

Tuesday, Hannah officially turned 5. Let me tell you...my kids are always excited about their birthdays, just like their Mommy, but this girl has been on pins and needles for pretty much a year to turn 5. To Hannah, this is the magic age...the age of Kindergarten and tons of big girl stuff. We all woke up before her yesterday morning and woke her up together singing her the birthday song.

**funny story: Monday, on the way to school, I asked, "Han, what are you going to do on your very last day as a 4 year old!?" She was quietly thinking for probably a good 2 minutes. Finally she responded, "I'm gonna do 4 year old stuff."

After school, we picked the girls up. It's a tradition in our house that I will cook whatever you request on your birthday. We did things a little different this year. Hannah has been begging to go to Red Lobster for about 2 months now. So, on her special day, we headed to dinner at Red Lobster, just the five of us. We had so much fun as a family laughing, specifically about the random nicknames that Travis and I call the girls.

Finally, we made it home and Hannah got to open the presents that had been wrapped and teasing her for the past 12 hours! Keeping with the "big girl" theme, Hannah's "big" gift was a caboodle filled with REAL make-up. (No...not for every day, but to play dress up in). She also got the game TROUBLE! from her sisters. So, after bath, we had a little family game night and played her new game. It was a great ending to a great day!

Stay tuned later this week for Hannah's "Birthday Interview" and of course the traditional letter from mom. :)

"G" = Gus Gets Gum

So, our wildest "child" of the house award goes to....

GUS!

We love this little guy and I thought I would share an update of the things that he does now.

• He will play fetch as long as you can throw the ball.
• During the day, he is gated in our laundry room with a doggie door out to the back yard.
• While we are gone, he empties the laundry hamper and drags as many dirty clothes as he can get out to the back yard. (I have since closed the hamper up denying him access.)
• Since he can not get to the dirty clothes, he will drag his huge dog bed thru the doggie door.
• He loves the girls and plays with each of them differently. He is super gentle with Catherine and slathers her face with kisses. He stays calm with Hannah because she will have nothing to do with him when he is hyper. Gus's favorite thing to do with Emma is chase her and stand in the center of her bed while she is trying to make it in the morning.
• No matter if we are gone for 5 minutes or 5 hours, the second we walk in the door, Gus greets us with a wagging tail, smile and lots of loving! Nothing is better than that!
• Gus LOVES our trampoline. When we are playing outside, he gets on their with the girls. Sometimes, when we get home, we find him running around playing on there.

I am sure you are wondering why this post is titled "G=Gus Gets Gum", right? Well, I will tell you.

One day, we were all playing in Travis and I's bedroom. All of the girls had gum and one of them dropped their chewed gum on the bed (don't ask.). Gus ran over there and started chewing it. He kept dropping it, so I grabbed it and got it on video. IT'S HILARIOUS!

(Don't worry. We didn't let him swallow it and took it from him shortly after this video ended.)

Spring Breakin' It

It's Thursday and here I am with our "weekend" update. (I am going to get on top of posting...promise!). So, let's rewind to last week, shall we?

Last Thursday night, my friends and I were finally able to get together for my birthday dinner. We ate at my favorite Mexican Restaurant and Rachel ordered me a sombrero birthday cake! We had so much fun relaxing and laughing the night away.

Friday, Travis and I were off work to enjoy a little Spring Break with the girls. We took them to Crystal Bridges Friday morning. It was rainy and dreary outside, so the perfect thing for us to enjoy together. Let me say, the place is amazing. The art is gorgeous and the architecture is breath-taking. The girls did very well and enjoyed themselves. Catherine got a little antsy at the end, so we had to rush through the last few rooms.

After that, we ate lunch and went to a movie. At home, it was STILL raining, so we decided to build a tent in the living room. The girls had fun hiding out in there, playing games and building their "club". Gus watched from his favorite spot and seemed a little confused on what was going on!

Saturday, the weather was sunny and warm! We went fishing with Travis. I caught the only fish of the day.

After fishing, we went home and soaked up the sun. Travis grilled burgers and jumped on the trampoline with the girls. We played with Gus and just enjoyed spring!

Sunday was our typical Sunday. Church. Naps. Getting Ready for the week.

Now...since I am a blog SLACKER...I need to say: Tuesday Travis and I celebrated our EIGHTH wedding anniversary! Time has flown and I can't imagine anyone else I would rather do life with. I love this man!