We have a sickness..Garage Salitis!!

You know you need intervention when you get up at 5 am to hit a garage sale at 6!! That is exactly what the 3 girls & I did this morning! Believe it or not, the girls have garage sale fever! EllyeKate was up at 5:30 and ready to go! We did make some awesome purchases! We then hit another one at 8 and got some really nice clothes and shoes for Eli!! I love garage sales! Is there a group for garage saleaholics!!??? If so, send me the link!! :D

He's in the Army now!

Well, the day I had been dreading for months came aound all too quickly! The day I had hoped I would never have to face as a mom to a son. The day that my oldest son would leave for basic training. He is no longer a civillian.
He is in the Army now! He now belongs to Uncle Sam!

 I was born on a military base, and was a military brat, so I know the military way of life. It is an awesome life, and a great life to be proud of. Zach will be gone until Feb of next year. We have no contact with him for the next 3 months except for letters that we exchange. This momma's heart is bursting with pride, but on the other hand, my heart is heavy. I miss Zach, but I know that GOD has HIS hands on him and that HE has great things planned for HIS son! I can't wait to see all of the great things HE has in store for Zach and his wife! I know they are greater than anything we could ever hope for! Isn't it awesome to know that we serve a GOD who wants to bless us far more than we want to be blessed? Please continue to pray for Zach. Boot is NOT a picnic by any means! I know he would appreciate it so very much!

FTIA has received our Homestudy dratt...can you hear me screaming joyfully???

Did you feel the earth shake?? Did you hear my screams of JOY?? I just so happened to email our coordinator today to see if she had seen hide or hair of our HS! She emailed me back and YES she had indeed received the draft today! That makes me so happy! I have been having a hard day today emotionally. Zach is leaving on Monday the 14th for basic and I am really having a hard time. I know that the GOD who was with my son when he came into this world, will be with him as he goes into basic...but I will miss him terribly.So this bit of good news did help my spirits!!

June 6, 2004........

What a day it was! We left for the Civil Affairs Office in Guangzhou, China around 4:00pm. We were escorted to the third floor where we knew our babies were waiting! We could hear them in the room across the hall. We were put into alphabetical order; we were next to last! We watched as all of the families before us were presented their children. I was dying to hold my baby for the first time. Then all of a sudden, there she was. She was handed to me with her feet kicking, she was laughing, and happy! She was more beautiful than I could of imagined! She was so tiny. 11 months old and the size of a 6 month old! She looked at Craig & I as if she was wondering what had taken us so long to get there! For about 10 minutes I was lost and caught up in one of the greatest moments in my life. I finally rememberd that her daddy was still filming and would love to meet his daughter to!!

    Fast forward to today... Livvy is just as beautiful today as she was 6 years ago!She is vivacious, full of energy and a force NOT to be reckoned with!  We spent "Gotcha Day" playing mini golf , eating pizza, and then a trip  to WalMart to pick out a gift! She chose a stuffed puppy and 2 new outfits! She had picked out her own cake the week before...decorated with puppies,of course!!!  I can't believe that she has been with us for 6 years, but then it seems as if she has always been with us! We love her so very much!!

We Hit the JACKPOT!!

We hit the Jackpot! Garage saling pays off once again!! The girls & I left the house early to hit the numerous garage sales around town!! The first sale we hit had tons of little boys clothes! She knows us well. When we were waiting on Livvy I bought TONS of her little girls clothes! Then we went to another sale and I was able to find some NICE like brand new toys for Eli!! Since we are doing his room in a safari theme, we were able to find some really cute things to use in his room! I found a nice LEGO table with the bigger DUPLO blocks and all kinds of pieces to go with it...I am sure it is worth $50.00+ dollars and I bought it for $7.00! A STEAL!! Kayleigh is beyond excited! She came home and put all of his clothes in the wash, took all of the toys and cleaned them with Lysol & bleached all of the little toys and blocks! I believe that she is going to spoil him rotten! But that is ok....All I know is that this little guy is already sooo loved! I can't wait to see the son God has prepared for this family! Elijah Craig, we LOVE you so much already!

****Another sign****

Today as I was cleaning out the bread drawer once again (the girls rummage through it a thousand times a day..as if they are going to find anything different?) I found yet another fortune cookie! This time it said "You will be traveling and coming into a fortune." Oh, how true is that?
I will be traveling, and I will indeed be coming into a fortune! Our little Elijah is definitely PRICELESS and he is our fortune!!

Prayers for Zach & Courtney!

Dear bloggy friends, may I ask for prayer for my son and his wife Courtney? The time is too quickly approaching when Zach will be leaving for boot camp. I am going to miss my son terribly, but my concern and prayers are not for me, but for Zach & his wife. Could I please ask that you pray for Zach? Boot is not a picnic by any means. Would you please pray that GOD will sustain Zach, hold him, whisper words of encouragement in his ears on a daily basis, and give him the strength and determination to get through a very hard and difficult 9 weeks? Please pray that GOD would keep Zach and get him through basic safely!And please pray for his wife Courtney. She will be away from her husband for a total of 32 weeks! Please pray that GOD will hold her, love her, and give her a peace about the long separation from Zach. This weekend we are throwing a going away party for Zach...it is not going to be easy for Courtney or I to get through. Zach may be 24, but he will always be my baby! Please pray for them, dear friends! Thank you from the very bottom of this very proud momma's heart!

A SPECIAL day with my dad!

My dad & I at the 500
On Sunday, May 30th, I took my dad to see his first Indy 500! We left around 7:30 am and got to Indy within the hour. Traffic was heavy going to the track, but moving nicely! While in traffic, we asked a police officer how far the track was and he informed us that we were within a mile. SO...we decided to park and walk it. Well, that officer was full of it!!!A MILE MY foot!!!! Try 2.5 miles! My dad had heart surgery just 2 years ago...and it was stinkin hot! On top of it, we were trying to carry our cooler full of food and gatorade. After about a half hour the track was in sight..only to our horror to find that we still had a LOOONG walk! UGH! By the time we made it to our seats we were totally exhausted! I had the shakes so badly that I had to pump myself full of Gatorade. I told my dad that I thought next year we would just stay home and watch it on the big screen, but he said "NO WAY! Next year I am bringing a cooler with wheels!!!" What a trooper!We had an awesome day! My dad and I share a very special bond, as I was born on his 20th birthday! I am so blessed to have my dad!