When the weather outside is frightful,

you bundle up and enjoy it.

-Or- at least, that's what we did on this snowy morning. Nothing says motherly love MORE than layering three kids in clothing, jackets, hats and shoes (and yourself) for a whoppin' 20 minutes of fun. It sure was COLD today. Our snowtime was shortlived but worth it.

Karson would have stayed outside all day. I could have too. However, I was still in my pajamas and just waiting for the boys (mainly Isaac) to have a melt down. Karson got him in the face with a snowball while jumping on the trampoline. That was all it took. Operation de-clothe the boys began.

Isaac would've loved to run around outside in his underwear. He has issues with layered clothing and would rather be naked than dressed. He was pretty happy throwing snowballs at Karson.

Miles has been wanting to wear "underwears" the past couple of days. Being the good Mommy that I am, I let him. He hasn't made the potty connection but has tried a couple of times and actually likes undies. I'd love to have him potty trained by our Disney trip (in May). He was wearing his undies in this picture. I was waiting for flood to come--little boys can hold it for HOURS. It came later that morning in the living room. SO, we are not responsible for any yellow snow in Plano.

The Hulk Turns 4

Isaac celebrated his 4th birthday with family and friends at Chuck E. Cheese's this afternoon. He's asked me daily for about a week--is today my birthday? When the big day finally arrived, he was SOOOOO excited. Of course, his birthday fell on a Sunday which meant church day =). When we took off that morning and arrived at church, he was angry. He yelled at the top of his lungs..."I did NOT want to go here!" ~ must be the preaching??? I guess he thought we'd be spending the day at Chuck E.'s place.
Isaac's into the HULK these days so we bought Hulk themed mask, plates and napkins. I also had to get him a Hulk shirt. Sometimes when Isaac acts real crazy, gets aggressive and out of control, he tells us, "sorry, I just turned up into the Hulk."

Blowing out his Hulk cupcakes.

God sure did bless me with three great kiddos!

And some wonderful family and friends. Thanks to all who shared in Isaac's special day!!!

The BIG 100

Karson has been at Plano Elementary School for 100 school days TODAY. To honor the occasion, each student came home with giant 100's (last week) to decorate with 100 items (buttons, macaroni, candies, etc.). We chose stickers, and Karson meticulously counted them out while we divided them among the 1, 0, and 0. When I think back to my kindergarten days, I don't remember much besides a few snippets. I only went for a half day, during the afternoon session right after the show Pinwheel. I had graham crackers and milk for snacktime. I believe we also had naptime. I remember getting sick from the merry-go-round at recess and laying my head down on the teacher's desk. I got in trouble once for walking on an imaginary tight rope that the teacher specifically asked us NOT to walk on. There's nothing more appealing than a piece of masking tape on the floor that serves as a tight rope. It was TO much for me to resist, and I wound up getting a mark on my paper camel conduct badge. My BFF Dawn also got one. I immediately came up with a brilliant BRIGHT idea--we could EAT, yes that's right EAT, our badges and no one would ever know. Good stuff. I can't imagine what Karson will remember about her kindergarten days. The expectation of children her age is incredible. She's had nightly homework for months which consists of writing, a word ring and reading a book. They have academic testing throughout the year, and she has her first spelling test on Friday. There are reading and math groups. They have a "special" (PE, art, music, etc.) each day. It's a lot for a 5-6 year old to digest. I'm very proud of how Karson has handled herself. I know it can't be easy pulling 8-hour shifts each day--we sure do miss our girl and are happy to celebrate 100 days of school.

Matt picked up some cupcakes for us to enjoy when Karson got home.

Just in case...

...any of my blogging buddies needed a pick me up. Miles is sporting a Bratz doll hat and playing a hot pink toy guitar. I like to make it a point for Karson and I to periodically have some girls time. Not to long ago, she and I were out and about enjoying our time, and Matt and Isaac had some boys time (I think Miles was napping). Isaac wanted to have a tea party. When the tea party was over, he told Matt "now let's go put on make-up." Matt, of course, had to put his foot down. I think it's great that our boys are in touch with their feminine side--hopefully, they will make for good spouses one day =).

Far from PERFECT

A group of us headed to Perfect North for some skiing on Saturday. Skiing is one of those sports that regardless of how "in shape" you believe you are, it quickly reminds you how "out of shape" you truly are =). The day was great, and I enjoyed every minute of it. There was one mishap though. Matt's brother John got hurt on the last run of the night and ended up in the hospital. He tore the ligaments in his collar bone and will have to have surgery in a couple of weeks =(.

I want to take this time to thank everyone who has encouraged me (from my prior post) and offered prayers on my behalf. I've had a couple of wonderful revelations through this time of testing and wanted to share them with you. For whatever reason, I have discovered that I suffer with primarily obsessional OCD. I believe I have had OCD in some form most of my life and really thought I was going crazy at different points in my journey (and still do to some degree). Isn't crazy the new normal =)??? I've read a lot of great books lately though that have helped me overcome my fears, worries, doubts, concerns, etc. I'm far from feeling"cured", but here are a couple of things that may help any of you out there who are struggling with mental/emotional pains:

(1) Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.

(2) Never let yesterday fill up today.

(3) Don't tell God how big your storm is, tell your storm how big your God is.

(4) You only get better by accepting where you are right now.

(5) An untested, uninvested faith is no faith at all. Living by faith is a risk. Accepting our responsibility to see and do the Father's will requires complete trust in Jesus who is with us to show us the way and provide the power to follow. Complete trust requires humility--the fear of losing control is pride which is simply the refusal to be loved and to love. The Lord never humiliates us--he's much more effective than that. He allows us to think we're running things in our lives until our control breaks down and we see how INeffective we really are.

(6) My feelings at times are such poor reflections of the truth.

(7) Being in "the pit": Satan continues his self-employment as the accuser because the job is easy and rewarding. He knows that even when we're innocent of any reason for being in a pit, we are well aware that we are far from innocent in other things. He plays mind games with our consciences so that for the life of us, we can't seem to distinguish between those areas where we are guilty and those were we are innocent.

(8) God's hands are never tied--when it looks impossible and I don't see a way out, I will stay positive and hopeful.

(9) Loving your life is being willing to make changes. It's not what happens to you that matters most, it's what happens in you.

(10) Sometimes the very things we fight against, the very things we think are trying to pull us down, are actually part of God's plan to launch us into a new season. We may not like it, and it may not be comfortable (but it causes us to use our faith) and God loves us to much to just leave us alone. God has a purpose in everything.

*I think all these revelations go quite well with skiing: pain, humility, pits, confidence, trust =). I will be happy to discuss what I've learned about OCD with any of you out there that feel you may be suffering with it. I am NO expert by any means but find a lot of comfort understanding why I feel the way I feel. NOW, I just need to trust in God's power to help me overcome it. I've also found that God has gifted some incredibly talented people to compose songs. I've been filling my head with Chris Rice, Casting Crowns, Fernando Ortega and many others for encouragement. The BIBLE has obviously been a source of strength. Our church has committed to reading the entire Bible this year together. I want Bible study to mean more to me than something "I need to do" but something that "I want to do". Thanks for listening to me rant =). Happy New Year to ALL!