Baskets of FUN!

Kelsie put the laundry basket over her head! 

Who needs toys? The basket provides loads of entertainment!!!!

Kelsie discovered how to clap!

She's catchin' on quick! Kelsie Jo is now clapping & crawling like her sister! She is a selective crawler. She is content with staying put until she sees something she wants and then there's no stopping her! I like that fact! She doesn't seem to feel the need to compete with her sister...yet. I love being a witness to the way the Lord's growing them up!

Always learning

I felt convicted today when watching my children. They GROW. They can't help it. It's what they were designed to do. They learn something new every moment. They are in a state of constant development and they love it! They thrive on new experiences.  

This concept poked at me Spiritually. I was designed to grow too. What kind of a daily example am I setting for the little watching eyes? Do my kids see me in love with my Savior? Am I spending more time developing outward than inward? Am I a spiritual sponge? Do I ache to learn more of Christ's character and long to be like Him? 

I notice the growth in my children, but whether I'm aware of it or not, time is passing for me too. Lifetimes are made up of moments that you only get to experience once. Time is a precious gift!! One that is too often taken for granted. I don't want to look back on my day and be guilt-ridden for being unproductive. They best thing I can do for myself and my children is to daily make progress in learning more about the nature of Christ and striving to be like Him. 

Great Ecards

If you're looking for a good Ecards site, this one is awesome and free! http://www.dayspring.com
They all include a scripture verse!! Send a little encouragement someone's way! :)

1/11/11

Tuesday was Ian's birthday and as you can see by the date, it was a pretty special one at that! It was the first time he received a "Daddy" birthday card! I told him that not many people get a special "date" birthday where all the numbers match, so that was my excuse for getting to pamper him all year! To this, I received no objection ;)  His parents got him a safe that was being delivered Tuesday afternoon, but in order to make room for it in the garage, we had to make him aware of it early, so we "gave" him his "gift" Sunday night. It was a note that said "On this special day in history, I grant you the gift of...cleaning your garage!!...to make room for your next present(a medium sized box)." He was confused & then opened the safe's dehumidifier. Everything clicked! Below are pictures of the fun event. 

Ian, my love, you are worth far more than words can express and I consider myself blessed to live beside you and know you as I do! You are my heart's song! May you always be blessed, dear friend!

 "Beeeeecause we love you, Daddy..."

 Dad & his jewels

 Ian thanking his Dad via phone

 Ian thanking his Mom. She made this day possible!! :)

 A happy birthday wake up call

 Double Time!

 Twin loves

 He's one happy chappy!

Locking up the valuables! ;) 

Naw, we never shut the door, it just made a cute shot!

Sweet Moments

Kelsie standing & diggin' in her toy drawer

Our Identical Twins

For the inquiring minds, I wanted to post the scientific details behind Karis & Kelsie's identical twinhood. ;)

It was concluded that our girls are, what is medically referred to as, Monochorionic-Diamniotic Twins. Identical (Monozygotic) twins occur when a single egg is fertilized to form one zygote which then divides into two genetically identical, yet separate embryos 4-8 days after fertilization. Monochorionic twins are monozygotic (identical) twins that share the same placenta and generally have two amniotic sacs (Diamniotic) which occur in 60%-70% of the pregnancies with monozygotic twins.

If you're anything like me, visual aids help a lot, so here's a graph.

http://staff.tuhsd.k12.az.us/gfoster/standard/twins.gif

The twins share the same DNA set, thus they may share many similar attributes. However, since physical appearance is influenced by environmental factors and not just genetics, identical twins can actually look very different. Identical twins are always same-sex sets.

We have a mover!

Karis crawled to her Dad this evening when he came home on break! She's been inchin' along for a week, but this is the farthest she's gone. We're so proud!

She also discovered how to clap her hands! It's been a big week for her.

Once she figured it out, she just kept on with the applause! ;)

Hello New Year!

(2004 picture)

Again, we have been blessed with the completion of another amazing year! 2010 will forever hold a special place in my heart. It held a lot of "firsts" for me. Now it's time to welcome 2011. Time to begin writing a new chapter and I pray we can all start this year with hearts of thankfulness & hope, in anticipation of what the future will bring.

In preparation for the new year, I have come up with a list of resolutions that I would love to put into practice. I am going to share them with you in hopes of convincing myself that I can count on more than just me for accountability. You ready? Here they are:

- Read through the Bible with Ian
- Workout twice a week (if I loose 10 more pounds...sweet!)
- Do laundry every other day (for me, it's the one chore that's never done...or fun. I usually wait until the pile is sky high before engaging in such warfare)
- "12 item purge" on the 12th of every month (in my never ending efforts to rid my house of unwanted, unneeded items & clutter, I figured that rather than spending an entire day trying to go through every nook & cranny in every room, why not just start small & tackle 12 things a month)
- Be more proactive in my relationships (sending special occasion cards out on time. Arg! I'm so bad at that!)

If you're anything like me, it will take many months before you're used to writing the correct year on checks & documents, but "2011, I am glad to see you & I look forward to what the Lord has planned during our time together!"

Brothers & Sisters, Be Blessed!!