Stanton's Journey to adoption

Happy Fall!

2011-09-23T08:01:00.002-04:00

Think I will celebrate fall with one of these!!
"Pumpkin Spice Latte"

Happy Birthday Seth Ryan!

2011-09-22T14:15:00.000-04:00

Seth Ryan turned 3 last Tuesday! So Hard to believe my sweet boy is already three years old....

What a wonderful blessing you are Seth Ryan!! We love you so much and are so Proud that God picked us to be your parents. Your growing up so fast and talking up at storm and surprising your dad and I everyday with how smart you are. You are Completely potty trained even before you turned 3 which I am so proud of because everyone kept telling me how hard boys were to train. We Love you Sweet boy!

I just love these two pics of you with your Woody hat on. You love everything Toy Story....You would watch the movie everyday and you almost know every word to the movie.

Your daddy was right about getting you your first John Deere Tractor for your B-day so you could be just like your dad and you do absolutely love it!!

Catch up!!

2011-09-22T12:38:00.001-04:00

Playing catch up as usual ..... But this is mostly for memories so I can remember!! So as long as it gets done right??

Well another school year has begun and we are back in full swing. Avery started 8th grade this year which is hard to believe. It seems like I was just taking her to preschool last year! Growing up is so bittersweet for parents but so Thankful and Proud of the sweet young lady she is growing up to be!

Speaking of Preschool this little monkey started preschool this year 2 days a week and he loves it! I truly miss him when he is there but also enjoy some "ME" time!!

Looking forward to a great year!!

Long time Away/ Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-24T10:55:00.000-04:00

Avery striking a pose on Mother's Day weekend!

It truly has been too long again....Our camera and new lap top is still not compatible!! So blogging lately has not been super convenient so any hoo going to do a little catch up!! I'm not sure how this post is actually going to look because my alignment is off and I don't how to fix it! I guess that's what I get for not blogging in so long..... Mother's day weekend was a Beautiful weekend with our Family and here are a few pics from the weekend. I guess I will get the hang of blogging again soon Ha! I really do want to start blogging a lot more because it is such a Great way to hold on to such precious memories of my sweet family!

My little artist

My Beautiful SIL,my sweet mom, Me and my wonderful mother-in-law

My mother, me and mother-in-law

Mother's Day 2011

Brian's Parents with the kids

It's been too LONG!!!!!

2011-02-23T09:54:00.001-05:00

WOW!!! I really can't believe I have not blogged since Christmas!!! It really has been way too long. So what have we been up to in the last 2 months??? This post will be without pictures because I got a new lap top....and my camera that I really do love and still use and that takes great pictures is a little dated and not compatible with my new lap top so working all the kinks out still. Well we survived one of the coldest winters I can ever remember. I know winter really is not over yet but the recent temps of 70 degree days sure feels like spring to me. Avery just finished basketball season out and now we are entering softball season ....So the hustle and bustle continues in the Stanton home with lots of trips to the ball field. I would not have it any other way so Thankful that God allows our family to be so busy and Healthy!! Avery turned 13 this month and I'm still in shock we now officially have a teenager!"Pics to come soon" I know the older our children turn we like to often joke and say how old that makes us feel and though it does a little more than anything I feel Blessed! Our sweet Seth Ryan truly is growing up too fast! His vocabulary is growing each day and we get so tickled with some of things he is saying....He now often calls me and his dad "honey" which we think is just so funny to hear him say "come hear honey" in that little sweet voice of his! Seth is also beginning to show interest in using the potty. Just this Sunday he told me he needed to the use the potty, so I took him in there and sure enough he actually did poop in the potty. You would have thought we won the lottery or something we were just so tickled and of course he has not done it again since! Hoping to have my pictures all working this week so I can get back on track blogging! Have a Great week!

Christmas Morning 2010

2010-12-27T11:47:00.000-05:00

What a Wonderful Christmas morning"bed head" and all!!!!
Santa was very good to our family again this Christmas and we are so very Thankful.
This was truly a Toy Story Christmas for sweet Seth and it was all about new clothes and a touch screen ipod for Avery!

Avery with her new North Face jacket and her ipod....What happened to baby dolls and dress up clothes??

Seth's favorite gift Buzz and Woody!

Seth's new fire truck!

All the gifts are great but the real gift is you Jesus!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS

2010-12-15T00:00:00.000-05:00

Charming Holly Wreath Christmas

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View the entire collection of cards.

It's the most Wonderful time of the year!~!~!~!~!

2010-12-03T09:45:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday To my Sweet Husband!!

2010-09-30T06:48:00.000-04:00

Hope you have a Wonderful b-day!!!! We Love you!!

Happy Birthday Seth Ryan!!!

2010-09-13T07:37:00.000-04:00

Today my Sweet Boy turns Two!! What a precious blessing you are Seth Ryan We Love you so very much... You are growing up so fast and its a little bittersweet for Mommy and Daddy. Seth at 2 yrs old you are so in love with your Daddy and it just melts my heart, your daddy is your biggest hero to you! You are so loving and you want to hug and kiss Mommy a thousand times during the day and I just Love it. Some of your favorites things to do are watch Thomas the train, play outside and go in sissy's room and get in all of her stuff !! You are all boy with your love of anything to do with ball. Happy Birthday Sweet Boy!! We love you!!

Over the weekend we had a Thomas the train party for Seth's birthday and wanted to share the b-day pictures.

What a Great Thomas party!!

Terrible blogger...

2010-09-06T19:28:00.000-04:00

Well..... That's my title again Terrible blogger!!!!! I really give it to all you "super moms" who are so awesome at blogging. I am not going to make any more promises on how I am going to become a better blogger because I have broken every one of them HA!! So with that said.... What have the Stanton clan been up to?? School, volley ball games, homework, and chasing a very active almost 2yr old sweet little boy and did I mention volleyball? Avery made the middle school volleyball team and boy are they keeping us very busy between games and practices and I am also planning sweet little Seth Ryan a Thomas the Train birthday party, but even though I'm super busy I feel super blessed to be able to do it all!! I have so much catching up to do here in the blogging world and honestly don't know if I can, but here is a pic of Seth on his new swing set he got last week and it really got a lot of use over the weekend with this wonderful weather we have had. Seth is growing up so fast and I can't believe he is getting ready to turn two!! Avery is doing so great an adjusting very well to her new school. We put Avery in a private Christian school this year and she LOVES it so much!! I just love the fact that she gets BIBLE daily and Prayer in school and she loves that too.

Avery's first day of school

Hope you and your family had a wonderful Labor Day weekend!!

Open Adoption!

2010-07-27T08:13:00.000-04:00

This is something I don't think I talk about often....Why I'm not really sure to be perfectly honest. We were blessed with a beautiful baby boy Seth Ryan almost 2 years ago through an open adoption. I think the very words " open adoption" scares a lot of people a way. When Brian and I first started the process of adopting we thought that we would definitely want a closed adoption. Our hearts were quickly changed with our very first info meeting we attended at our local adoption agency. Now even though I left knowing that open adoption "was, could " be a wonderful thing... I was still terrified, but God had a plan!! We attended many workshops through our waiting process and each one began to soften our hearts and gave us the peace of God that we were going in the right direction. On September 13, 2008 sweet Seth Ryan was born and placed in our arms through an open adoption that truly has been a Wonderful thing. Our sweet birth mother "B" has been everything we prayed for. Have there been a few bumps along the way yes absolutely....But I think any relationship in life has it's trials." Nothing that we have not been able to work out". I have found that your relationship with your child's birth family really just evolves over time into something that works for everybody. Most importantly this relationship is about your child I believe and its a wonderful healing process for the birth mother to see that her plan was indeed the right plan. Seeing the child she placed for adoption HAPPY and so loved brings healing to her heart. We just recently had a visit with Seth's birth father for the very first time. We prayed a lot before the visit" I was nervous" and God answered our prayers because the visit went Fantastic!! I guess in some ways because Our child's birth parents are very young we have became a mentor to them all a part of God's plan. We see them every few months usually around every 3 months or so we meet somewhere fun for the kids to play and we always enjoy our time! Open adoption has become so much more than us adopting a baby it has also become a way for us to reach out and show the love of Jesus to a sweet family that brought us one of the sweetest blessings in our life Seth Ryan!

Let me tell you about my Best Friend...

2010-05-27T08:46:00.004-04:00

This is Seth's very best friend in the whole world right now Miss Zoey... Well other than Thomas the train Ha!
Zoey's mommy and I walk every morning together at the park and while we are walking and pushing these two in their strollers they like to hold hands.... I know "so sweet" it really is so Precious !! They are only a few months apart and they have really grown up together. They are usually together every day and on Sunday's too at church. Seth loves all of Zoey's cute hair bows and sometimes on occasion likes to wear them but not if his daddy is around!! The most precious part about their special friendship is that their mommy's were both praying for these sweet little miracles to come at the same time I through adoption and Zoey's through a pregnancy that her mommy wanted so badly. God answered both of our prayers and these two angels are the result of it. We prayed for these sweet babies for a lot of years and through a lot of tears but as always God's timing is perfect!!

I'm Back!!!!

2010-05-25T07:11:00.002-04:00

Yes I'm back from a 2 month blogging break that really was not planned. But just have been super crazy busy with Life, kids, ballgames, school, trying to sell our house, family visiting and the list goes on. So with all that said blogging fell to the bottom of the list HA!!! But I'm back but with just bullets this morning and some pictures to follow later: )

~School is almost out!! Woo Hoo
~Seth is talking up a storm... I think he says a new word everyday!
~ Avery has had one of her best seasons ever in softball!!
~ Vacation can't come soon enough!!
~ We have a contract on a home that I can't wait to decorate but I have to sell this one first. Please pray!!
~ My brother is getting married in less than two weeks and we are all in the wedding except for Seth he is to young.... But I am the oldest bridesmaid Ha! So YES I'm dieting right now like a mad woman!

I know my bullet list was not very long, but I have lunches to pack and it's my week to take the crew to school. Now if I have a very productive day I may play catch up with some pictures I have to share. Will see.........

Where have we been????

2010-03-13T07:38:00.009-05:00

At the Ball field of course!! Avery made the school softball team this year at her middle school and we are so proud of her... Even though we truly have been living there Ha! These days we are in the car a lot. I think poor Seth must be thinking his car seat is his second home! In other news we are still trying to sell our home. Would you please pray that we sell it soon?

So what else have we been doing?!? Well we got all of Seth's sweet little curls cut....It was a very bittersweet moment it was like my sweet baby was turning into a little boy.... But I have to say WE LOVE IT!!!!

A little blurry... He sat so good for his first haircut!

The soft ball star and the little man with his new hair cut.

I think it turned out so sweet and its so much easier than dealing with all those curls." even though I will always love his curls"

Oh and I have a date night tonite with the hubby and I can't wait!!

For Sale By Owner....

2010-02-28T15:45:00.003-05:00

$YES$ we have our house back up for sale again.... We took it off over the holidays because selling by owner can be a little stressful!! The best part is the house we really really wanted 6 months ago is still on the market; )
We never have sold a home for sale by owner we have always used a realtor but we know it can be done with a little hard work. So bloggy friends if have ever sold your house by owner and have any good tips by all means Please pass along. We live on a road with lots of traffic so that is a big plus for us. I know God already has the perfect family to buy our home I just hope they stop by real soon!!

Just because I'm so cute..

2010-02-18T12:57:00.001-05:00

Avery's Birthday Party!!

2010-02-16T09:45:00.006-05:00

We celebrated Avery's Birthday over the weekend with a small party at home with some of her very good friends from school, church and softball! Our weather over the weekend turned out a little snowy so a Birthday party at home turned out to be the best option.

Do you just love her cake?? I thought it turned out sooo Good and tasted even better than it looked!!! No I did not make it.... I'm not that talented!

Here is the whole gang...

Opening presents " The best part of Birthday's especially when your 12"

Time to blow out the candles. Avery had a wonderful party we all had a great time!! Now I can't wait to plan her 13th B-day party next year~!~!~!

So I posted this pic twice.... I don't know how to erase once you have uploaded it to do a post. So all you bloggers if you know how to erase it. Please let me know: )

Happy Birthday Avery!!!

2010-02-11T07:29:00.004-05:00

Wow!! I can't believe you are 12 yrs old today.... It makes me happy and sad all at the same time. What I'm not sad about is the Beautiful young lady you are turning into. You make your dad and I so proud to call you our daughter. It seems like only yesterday we were bringing you home from the hospital and now your in middle school "that makes my heart skip a beat" Avery we love you more than you will ever know and look forward to our new adventures with you!! Always keep your eyes on Jesus and let Him be your pilot thru life!!

We went last night and painted the rock in front of her school for her b-day!! Now in case you did not know this is a huge deal when you are in middle school ha!!

16 months.....

2010-01-14T10:41:00.006-05:00

Where does the time go ?? I'm mean really !?!?! This sweet little boy turned 16 months yesterday so I took a few pics of him last night before bed so I could always remember his sweet little face when he was 16 months Ha! He really is growing up so fast which make his mommy's heart a little sad: ( Now I have a climber on my hands for sure he climbs up on everything and I mean everything. He keeps me very busy....but I could just eat him up he loves to love on his mommy and gives me lots of kisses!! Daddy is his world there really is NOTHING like his daddy to him which just melts my heart that he loves his daddy sooooo much! He adores his big sissy and gets so excited in the afternoons when its time for us to go pick her up at school. Seth Ryan you are such a Blessing to your Mommy, Daddy, and big sissy!!! We love you so much sweet boy!

I had to share this pic of him.... Seth likes to have his picture made BUT if you get to carried away with the camera he is over it. So this is his I don't want my picture taken anymore face. I just love it!!

Christmas 2009

2009-12-29T08:26:00.009-05:00

We had a wonderful and very Blessed Christmas... I just decided to share our pictures of the kids Christmas morning. Santa was very good to them!Ha!

Avery loving her new coat!!

Here is the next Michael Jordan!!; )

The new fashion designer for America's next top model!

Now this was Seth's most favorite gift of all his wagon...he sat in it all morning!!

Well he did do a little grocery shopping too: )

I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas and took the time to remember the true reason why we celebrate Christmas because of our saviour JESUS CHRIST! Happy New Year!

Christmas Card Carousel

2009-12-16T11:39:00.002-05:00

I decided to join in this year on the Christmas Card Carousel... After lots and lots of picture and a little sweet one year old that was not crazy about getting his picture made for our family Christmas card. I decided to not make a big fuss over it and just use their picture on the beach from our vacation this year. You always look better in pictures with a little tan anyway!!

Merry Christmas!

Tis the Season for baking cookies!!

2009-12-15T09:19:00.007-05:00

Avery did a little baking this weekend... for the most part all by herself!! She wanted to make some Gingerbread cookies and decorate them and she really did a great job!! They were so delicious especially with my coffee the next morning!

These are not my Christmas cards pictures but on Sunday while the kids were in their Christmas red. I wanted to take a few pictures... Well as you can see little sweet Seth Ryan wanted nothing to do with getting his picture made : )

By the time I snapped this last picture he was laying in the floor crying!! So we will hopefully get some pictures later.

Christmas cards????

2009-12-08T07:53:00.002-05:00

This was last years Christmas card... I can't believe how much these two have grown up in the past year!! So now I'm in the process of getting this years card ready. I'm thinking a black and white photo outside. I try to do something a little different each year. Christmas cards are one of my many favorite things during the Christmas holidays. Everyday during the month of December I can hardly wait for the mail to arrive each day!! I really want to get my cards out by early next week so I better get busy...So what are some ideas you all have done in the past?? I'm always looking for new ideas!! Hope each of you are taking the time thru this Christmas season to truly celebrate the true meaning of Christmas~*~*~*~*~*~*

Can I have a Christmas wish list???

2009-11-20T08:33:00.006-05:00

Lot's of these Peppermint Mocha's from Starbuck's... Oh my goodness they are so yummy!

This adorable red pea coat... How cute is this? I mean really!!

These for dining room... and I really do think I have my husband possibly talked into these MAYBE!

I really do want this leather living room furniture but the truth is I really want be getting this for Christmas!!

How sweet is the new Coach bag... Oh Santa PLEASE!!!

What do you want for Christmas??? Well the truth is all these things are great...But the true meaning of Christmas is all about Jesus!! My sweet hubby always makes sure I do get a few things on my wish list but.... Our heart is making sure others have a good Christmas and celebrating the true meaning of Christmas" Jesus". He is the reason for the season so before any of us get caught up in what we or our children want for Christmas lets try to think of blessing others first and what we can do this holiday season to make a difference this Christmas for someone else..

Terrible blogger...

2009-11-17T08:27:00.002-05:00

I know I have been terrible about blogging lately.... I love to blog but my most favorite is reading all of your fantastic blogs!! I think every now again we all go into a blogging slump and yes that's where I have been. The holiday season is right around the korner and I am sooo excited this is my most favorite time of year. I love, love, love to decorate for the holidays I am a little worried about my tree this year because of a very curious 14 month old running around. If any of my fantastic blog friends have any advice on keeping my tree in good condition ; ) I would appreciate the advice!! I promise to get better at blogging... wait have I said this before?? Well I will TRY with the holidays here I should have lots to blog about and lots of pictures to share. Well gotta go get ready I have some Christmas shopping to do!

Happy Halloween... a little late as usual!!

2009-11-04T07:57:00.007-05:00

We started out our day at fall festival at a church near our house. Here is Avery in a Jello eating contest she honestly is about to throw up.

We could not believe Seth actually sat still long enough to have his little face painted like Tigger!

Avery becoming a Beautiful Butterfly!

Look out here comes Tigger.... First stop Trick or Treating at my parents house.

Avery dressed up as a Spa Lady... complete with a face mask, robe, fake nails and all!!!

Tigger and spa lady on the golf cart ready to go trick or treating.... Well actually just spa lady because Tigger refused to get off the golf cart he had no interest in trick or treating... Maybe he will get the hang of it next year!

Happy Fall Yall...

2009-10-28T07:00:00.007-04:00

Last night we carved one of our pumpkins.... I don't like scary pumpkin faces so they settled for a pumpkin with heart eyes and a star nose can't get much sweeter than that right? Most of the time we carve crosses in our pumpkins and they look so pretty from the road with a candle inside.

Brian and the kids on a hayride on our way to the corn maze.... Yes I'm taking the picture it always seems to work out that way: )

This year for the first time we decided to make a Halloween ginger bread house. Here is Avery and sweet cousin Erin showing off their work... I think they ate more of the icing than actually got put on the house!!Our trip to the pumpkin patch.... Seth was not interested at all in getting his picture made he had better things to do like running all over the pumpkin patch and letting us chase him. But we did manage to get this "Quick" picture in which I thought still turned out pretty cute...Avery on the other hand shes always ready to strike a pose!!

I'm still HERE....

2009-10-20T08:24:00.002-04:00

I know I have not posted in forever...But I really have been super busy around here. We have our house on the market so that keeps me on my toes ALL THE TIME keeping the house clean for when we have showings. We have only lived in the house for a little over 3 yrs but we need MORE room. So when we are not at church, Avery's softball games, doing homework,cleaning, cooking, running here there and everywhere and chasing the most precious 1 yr old around that is into everything we are looking for a new house which is so much fun!! Some days we want to build so we can have exactly what we want... but in all honesty thats a lot of work. I know exactly what I want and believe me I have found what I want but not always in our price range; ) But I know we will find the right house. Loving the cool crisp fall weather, my pumpkin spice coffee and all the fall decor!! How is your fall?? I have a few fall pics to post hopefully this week.

Happy Birthday To my Sweet Husband!!

2009-09-30T07:54:00.001-04:00

Hope you have a wonderful Birthday!! WE Love you!

Thankful...

2009-09-29T06:28:00.005-04:00

One year ago today at only 17 days old Seth came down with a fever so I took him into the doctors office . We were then sent downtown to the Hemby's Childrens Hospital where later that evening Seth was diagnosed with Bacterial Meningitis. Seth was admitted into PICU and placed on a ventilator for 9 days. We were told that getting thru the first 48 hrs was really a matter of life and death and that it could go either way.Thankfully it went the right way and God healed his little tiny body totally and completely. I'm so happy today to say that one year later Seth is a perfectly healthy one year old!!! We are so Thankful that God healed him we could not imagine our Life with out him...

GOD is Sooo GOOD!! These pictures were taken after he came out of PICU.

This is Seth's Amazing doctor "Doc. Johnson"

Wordless Wednesday...

2009-09-23T08:28:00.004-04:00

Well maybe a few....Is he not precious? Oh how I could just kiss his little cheeks off!!

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

2009-09-16T08:01:00.003-04:00

Happy Birthday to my Wonderful mother!!! Does she not make 50 look good!!! I pray that when I turn 50 I look as good as she looks!!
Hope you have a Great birthday Mom... I love you and thanks for being such a wonderful mother and grandmother well "maw-ma".

One year ago today...

2009-09-13T07:09:00.016-04:00

Our life's changed forever when God blessed our family with our Precious baby boy Seth Ryan thru the miracle of adoption. We could never imagine our life without this sweet boy in it. So in honor of this special Birthday we celebrated with friends and family yesterday with a monkey party for our little monkey Seth!!

His monkey cake was sooo adorable and sooo YUMMY!!!!

A good friend of mine Kim had this b-day hat made for Seth when he was first born to wear for his 1st b-day. It is so cute but he hated wearing it.

Are you sure??? All of this is cake is for me...Are you kidding me?

Hmmmm. was all he could say!!

And than it was gone.

Opening presents... He got a monkey backpack: )

More presents!! He liked the cards the most. They are so funny at this age.

Its was a wonderful 1st birthday for Seth with Beautiful weather. We rented a moon bounce too but I really think we wasted our money on that.I really rented it for the older children that came to the party but they were more interested in riding our golf cart more : )

Seth Ryan you are a true gift from God. We love you so very much!! Happy Birthday Sweet boy!!

Big Girls Don't CRY!!!

2009-08-25T10:44:00.006-04:00

But mom sure does... Yes I teared up this morning when I dropped Avery off for her very First day of middle school. Avery on the other hand was so excited and did not seem to be one bit nervous Thankfully!! I really do think this is going to be a great year we LOVE the school and Avery is really a good girl and I think she will do really well as long as she does not come home with the " I know it all attitude" Ha !!

I did have to sneak this picture when I let her out this morning...because in middle school you don't get to get out and take pictures in front of the school. Now this is not a school rule this was Avery's rule!!!

A fun day at the water park... and the Panthers Preseason game!!!

2009-08-17T07:25:00.012-04:00

A sweet coworker of Brian's gave us FREE tickets to Wet n Wild water park up in Greensboro... So we packed up early Sat. morning and headed to Greensboro and oh did the children have a blast!!!!

Seth loving the swing at the water park...I know that lady in the background would have really appreciated it if I would have cropped her backside out. SORRY limited time this morning: )

All "three" children going down the slide : )

Seth refused to look at the camera he was more interested in what that little boy was doing. I think Seth knew when you get to the bottom you have to get up. They are so smart!

***Are you ready for some Football??

OK tonight starts the Panthers preseason!!!!!!!! So how many of you will be wearing your panther pride and camped out by your TV tonight eating some not so healthy food??? We WILL!!

11 months old today....

2009-08-13T17:01:00.008-04:00

I think this has happened before already....My mommy almost forgot that I turned 11 months old today. I sure hope she does not forget my birthday next month. I think she just has a lot on her mind these days because I do keep her very busy. See I'm learning to walk right now and I have in the last week or two managed to get into a lot of things I should have not including taking off a dirty diaper and pretending it was lotion for my arms and legs. Yea my mommy was not to happy with that. I'm saying lots of new words, playing patty cake, and waving bye-bye and I have a mouth full of teeth: ) My mommy says I'm growing up way too fast and even though I keep her very busy she says I'm still the most sweetest boy in the whole wide world and she thanks GOD for me everyday!!

Just Bullets...

2009-08-13T14:20:00.006-04:00

1.Seth is taking 4 and 5 steps at a time!!!!!

2. Avery will be starting middle school in just 12 days... oh do I feel old and so worried about her going: (

3.I am so ready for fall!! mums, fall candles burning in the house, pumpkins on the front porch, cool fall nights, football games... can you tell I'm ready for FALL??

4. Planning Seth's 1st Birthday party... It's so much fun and I feel sure he will be taking a lot more than 5 steps at his party!!

5.Really excited for my brothers June wedding!! but I'm going to enjoy fall first!

6. Looking forward to Panther's season.

I know post without pics are not that fun but this was all I had for today... Hope you all are enjoying the last days of summer.

Oh my... My First Award!!!

2009-08-10T15:12:00.005-04:00

I would like to thank the academy, my mom and dad... Just kidding but I would like to thank Jennifer at The Causey Clan for giving me this award!!

So here are the rules for receiving this award...

List 5 obsession and pick 5 more fabulous blogs...

My obsessions are:

1.cleaning - always has been always will

2.blogging/facebook

3.my weight - never seem to be happy

4. my children - everyone thinks their children are wonderful... but mine really are (grin!)

5.my hair - cut it , grow it out, color it brown, color it blonde... Can I get a Amen from all my IRL friends!!

And my Fabulous blogs are...

Drum roll please

All of you that take the time and read my blog!! How about leaving me a comment and let me know you received your award.

Here comes the Bride...

2009-08-03T18:04:00.009-04:00

My brother Jared popped the BIG question this weekend to his Sweet girlfriend Paige and she said YES!!! We are so Happy for them! We had a little engagement celebration at Paige's parents house for them after he proposed...We had such a great time celebrating with them this very special time in their life!!

Mom and Dad with the happy couple.

Jared and Paige with her parents.

Me and my younger brother Daren with Jared and Paige.

Looking forward to all the upcoming celebrations for them and their June wedding. Congratulations Jared and Paige you make a Beautiful couple!!

My Favorite things...

2009-07-30T14:44:00.024-04:00

My Wonderful husband... Could not imagine my life without him!

My sweet sweet babies... I love them so much!!

I would go CRAZY without something SWEET and these babies do the trick!!

So in LOVE with my Big Buddha bag my hubby got me for Christmas.

I love my Dolce and Gabbana light blue another Christmas gift from my hubby.

I have to have fresh breath... My most favorite Trident original.

My Mary Kay coral rose lip gloss I don't leave home without it.

Now go check out what everyone else is writing about at Mama's Losin' it!

Pray for Stellen

2009-07-28T08:01:00.002-04:00

A Wonderful Vacation and a very lazy blogger...

2009-07-28T07:30:00.005-04:00

What a wonderful vacation we had. Just can't believe we have been home over a week and I'm just now blogging about it and even being lazy now with only 2 beach pictures. The beach was Great... We had beautiful weather even though some days were very HOT! We spent our days on the beach everyday with lots of family. A huge group of us go down together every year and we have so much FUN! Avery and Seth had a blast for sure and came back two brown beach babes for sure.I know I have been so Terrible with blogging this summer I have a lot more beach pics I may post later.... But will see HA!! This week we have had a little stomach bug going around our house first Avery than Seth and I and so far hubby has been able to escape it and we are praying he won't get it. Hope you are enjoying your summer!!

Are we there YET??????

2009-07-10T21:10:00.002-04:00

These will be the famous words..... I will here at least a dozen times on the way to the beach in the morning!!!! Yes we are headed to beach in the morning for a week and we can't wait. We are leaving bright and early so we will have a full day. So say a little prayer for safe travel, good weather, a good baby on the way down, and for lots of family fun!! See ya when we get back: )

The Lazy days of Summer...

2009-06-30T06:25:00.003-04:00

Yes the lazy days of summer are here....and Yes we have been lazy ha!

That's why I have been so terrible at blogging this summer!! Even though we are having a lazy summer we have been super busy with lots of sleep overs for Avery, family visiting, cookouts, lots of pool time and we are headed out to the movies today... We leave for vacation next Saturday and we can't wait and Yes I did manage to lose a few pds and hopefully a few more before we leave will see! We also have a trip planned for New York in August we are going to visit my husbands grandparents for a few days then we are going to the city" NY city" that is and I am super excited because I have never been to the city before. I feel like I may be doing a little shopping what you think?? Looking forward to July 4th I have always loved this holiday maybe because it's my sweet grandfathers B-day and we always have a big cook out for him on the 4th and I love living in the USA and dressing my kids up in red, white and blue!! Hope you are enjoying your summer... So what are you doing for summer fun??

Summer Bullet's

2009-06-17T08:04:00.003-04:00

We are so loving summer....

My father-in-law is here visiting for the week...

I did cut my hair a lot shorter and I really do like it...

Seth is now hand feeding himself!!!! Makes mommy very HAPPY!

Our vacation is less than a month away... can't wait to put my toes in the sand...

I let Avery shave her legs for the very first time... I really did not know what the right age was. But I knew she did not want to start middle school with hairy legs HA !

It's been hard to blog a lot with summer here we have been spending most of our days outside...

Trying hard to get a few pounds off before vacation... Pray for me !!!

We have only been in our current house 3 yrs now. But we already need more room!!

Seth is loving his Gerber banana puffs!!...

Well I better go I have sweet baby boy crying for oatmeal...

The Happy Graduate....

2009-06-09T19:38:00.005-04:00

Yes... Yes our baby girl is growing up!! She graduated from the the 5th grade today..We are so very proud of her! They had a graduation ceremony for them today at her school it was so dark in there that none of my pictures from the ceremony turned out : ( Today brings mixed emotions... you are so Happy for them that they are going thru to the next chapter of their life but on the other hand this means they are growing up and for mom and dad that is really hard to swallow especially when I truly am a mother hen over my children.. We are so blessed to have such a wonderful, sweet,smart,beautiful young lady as our daughter! Avery we are so proud of you today on your very special day.Congratulations!!

Avery here with her Media center award and her Spanish award!!

The proud grad holding up her certificate of completion of the 5th grade... She also received Most likely to Become a ... Weatherman!!!

Which is so TRUE because she can always give you an update!

Look out middle school here comes Avery!!

Computer Crash

2009-06-04T09:08:00.000-04:00

I will be back soon!

Namie comes to visit... and a few bullets because their easy...

2009-05-26T08:01:00.005-04:00

My sweet mother-in-law came in last week for a visit. Brian's parents live in Hawaii "I know lucky them" so we only get to see them about twice a year and YES we have been there twice!! Now that both of Brian's parents are now retired we will get to spend a lot more time with them. Our visit was great it was only for a week which flew by. Looking forward to July to see them both!!

Now for a few bullets...

1.School is almost over!! Woo Hoo .......

2.Thinking of cutting my hair a lot shorter...I can never make up my mind!......

3.Sad for John and Kate plus 8... hope they can work things out!......

4.Seth calls me Ma-na... So sweet!.......

5.Looking forward to staying up late, playing outside till dark, the pool, the beach, and sleeping in if a little cutie name Seth will allow it but I don't think so :).......

6.Can't believe that when summer is over my baby girl starts middle school..I'm not old enough to have a child in middle school!!......

7.I think Seth will be walking before summer is over. He is already pulling up and being brave and standing without holding on to anything......

8.Did I say can't wait for the summer!!

My little Artist...

2009-05-21T16:30:00.004-04:00

Avery's art teacher at school chose Avery's art work to be displayed at a local hospital here in our area. "Brag alert" This is second time this school year that Avery's art work has been chosen. We are super proud of her!! Maybe she will be the next Van Gogh!!

A New Ride...

2009-05-18T06:22:00.003-04:00

YES Seth got his first little car this weekend and he sure does think it's pretty neat. Saturday morning we had to pick up Avery from a b-day sleepover at a friends and on the way there we stopped by a yard sale and I spotted this little car for $2.oo. Can you believe that? It's like brand new... I just love good deals!! We had a super busy weekend Brians mother came in yesterday for a week so I will have lots of pics to post soon!

Look who's 8 months old today....

2009-05-13T14:18:00.003-04:00

My goodness my mommy almost forgot that I turned 8 months old today.. This is me sitting in my high chair waiting patiently for my dinner.This is one of my new big "boy" things I'm doing now! I am also pulling up, saying da-da and wanting to take a bite of whatever mommy, daddy or sissy is eating. My mommy thinks I will be walking soon will see!! My mommy tells me everyday I'm the sweetest boy in the whole world and very handsome and you know what I think she's right...

Wordless Wednesday...

2009-05-13T08:03:00.000-04:00

Yard Sales and Mothers Day...

2009-05-11T14:38:00.009-04:00

I hope everyone had a special Mother's day... Mine started out with breakfast in bed its kind of a tradition I guess because they do it every year but I always look forward to it. Avery had this banner she made hanging up for me and they had sweet little cards waiting for me on the kitchen table when I got up. My Mother's day gift this year was money YEAH!! That way I could pick out what I wanted... and guess what we did not take one single picture on Mother's day is that terrible or what?? We finished our day by grilling steaks on the grill and just relaxing in the hot tub and just being lazy just the way I wanted to spend my Mother's day.
Now on Saturday while Brian was at the race me and the kids spent the day with my mother and grandmother for Mother's day doing one of things we all three love to do. We went to yard sales and did we get some good deals $$$. We also ate out all three meals another one of our favorite things to do with no clean up. We had such a Fun day spending time together. Now here are a few of my yard sale deals!!!!

this lamp $3.00

this animal print table runner $.50 cents

this picture frame with my sweet baby boys picture. $3.00

curtains for my dining room $2.50

a swing for Seth $3.00

Happy Mother's Day...

2009-05-09T23:16:00.001-04:00

Wishing everyone a Happy and Blessed Mother's Day!!

My baby shower that never made it to the blog....

2009-05-04T08:32:00.007-04:00

My sweet friends gave me a baby shower when Seth was 2 weeks old way back in September. But the pictures never made to the blog because a few days after the shower was when Seth got so sick and was admitted into the hospital for 3 weeks and needless to say Life became a little crazy! With that said I have been meaning to share these pictures forever. It was such a great shower. I have such Great Friends that God has blessed me with! I wish I had pictures of everyone that was there but here are a few!! I'm just so glad I finally got them posted...

Me and my friend Tanya and sweet "little" Seth...

Me opening up my wonderful baby gifts from all my sweet friends!!

How sweet is this cake??

Me and my friend good Tori who was pregnant with little Zoey here in the picture.. But back in January sweet baby Zoey made her grand arrival.

Will I always have baby fever??

2009-04-30T08:21:00.002-04:00

I can't believe I'm asking this question... Seth is only 7 months old!! I feel so very very blessed with my two precious gifts from God, but I have a place in my heart for a house full. Does this ever go away? I said when we brought Seth home I now feel complete and I do but there are some days when I think I would like another sweet blessing to LOVE! I think that is just how God created women we LOVE children and we love being mommies!! I also have a very special place in my heart for adoption...
Maybe this is just my hormones because in a little while I will be chasing a very busy baby boy all over creation!!

My Morning Sunshine...

2009-04-29T07:29:00.004-04:00

One of my favorite things to do in the morning is to walk into this little guys room when he first wakes up. Seth is sooo Happy in the morning when he wakes up. He never wakes up crying I always here him on the monitor in his crib playing so Sweet! Then I must have my morning coffee to start my day because this little cutie is now crawling and he is into everything!!!! Boys are so different than little girls : ) They seem to be so more physical and so Fast. Wonder what we will get into today?

Splishin and a Splashin....

2009-04-25T17:20:00.000-04:00

Warm weather brings some FUN in the water!!

It was such a beautiful day here but very HOT! So we decided to go out and get the kids a little pool for the back deck. This was Seth first pool : ) and his first time in a pool. He loved it as expected he is such a happy baby there is not much he does not like. Even though Avery is getting older she still loved the pool too! So we spent most of the day relaxing by the pool. Ha !Also doing some much needed yard work and there is still more to do. Why is that? Well anyhoo hope you enjoyed your Sat. with your family.

Would you Please have Pity on me??

2009-04-23T14:51:00.001-04:00

My crazy owners in effort to save a little money decided that they would give me a" Home Grooming" as you can see it turned out a complete disaster..My big sister Avery even cried when she seen me.Seth did not seem to mind but what do boys know. And now I must live like this until it grows out!! What's a Girl to do? So if you see them around would you PLEASE let them know that there are plenty of other ways to save a little money...

This is how cute I look when I go to my regular groomer!!

P.S. My mom did tell me that she won't let this happen again.

Just had to share....

2009-04-20T08:11:00.001-04:00

We had our toes in the sand....

2009-04-16T07:38:00.000-04:00

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Easter! We spent Seth's very first Easter at the beach. This also was Seth's very first time to put his toes in the sand. We had a wonderful weekend the weather was great would have been even nicer if the temp would have been a little warmer: ) Avery did'nt seem to mind that the ocean water was freezing she just got right in along w/ everyone else who dared to brave the cold water. We had a wonderful time and Seth was the cutest Easter bunny there on the beach!!

I know I have not posted in forever...

2009-03-24T08:09:00.000-04:00

I have been so busy and I must admit I am a little addicted to Face book right now. Catching up with old friends is so much fun!! Since my last post Seth has turned 6 months old. I can't believe he is already 6 months they grow up so fast. Lets see he has 2 bottom teeth now he reaches for everything within reach and I mean everything : ) and he is Almost sitting up all by himself! He is the sweetest baby and loves to give kisses which just melts my heart. I will leave you with a sweet picture of a little cutie thats growing up way to fast for mommy!!

Just a post about being Thankful...

2009-03-03T14:13:00.000-05:00

I'm so thankful to God that he gave me such a wonderful husband that has a heart to serve God any way he can. For two beautiful children that are happy and healthy. I read all these blogs about sick children and it just breaks my heart. I too was there not long ago when Seth was on life support for 9 days in the Hemby's Childrens Hospital. I am so Thankful that God gave him a complete healing. Far to often I lose focus of what is really important in life and I just wanted to take today to say God I Love you with all my heart. Thank you for saving me and Loving me the way you do. Thank you for ALL the wonderful blessings you have put into my life. I just can't say enough about your Goodness!! What an AWESOME GOD you are..

I know you can't see it.....

2009-02-24T07:51:00.000-05:00

But your looking at a baby boy with his first tooth!!

Just because I'm so cute..

2009-02-18T13:04:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday Avery... a little late

2009-02-16T07:59:00.000-05:00

My baby girl turned 11 years old on Feb. 11th last Wednesday and she was so sick with strep throat:( But thankfully the Friday before we celebrated her birthday with a sleepover and bonfire. She had 8 of her best friends over and family. The party theme was hot pink and zebra print it was so cute she had hot pink cupcakes with a monogrammed A on each one! I have a ton of pics from the party but my new flashcard is not working for some reason so when I get it working I will post the pictures. But I do want to wish my Birthday girl a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! even if it's a little late. Avery you are turning into such a sweet and beautiful young lady your dad and I are so very proud of you!! What a blessing you are! We Love you.

My Sweet Valentine's...

2009-02-14T13:07:00.000-05:00

"I prayed for this child...

2009-02-06T08:31:00.000-05:00

And the Lord has Granted me what I ask of him."1 Samuel 1:27

Our adoption is Finalized!! We actually received our decree in the mail a couple of weeks ago. The miracle of adoption is truly amazing and such a gift from God. What a blessing Seth Ryan is to our family.

Congrats! Tori and Allen on sweet baby Zoey!

2009-01-26T09:48:00.000-05:00

Snow Day...

2009-01-20T13:54:00.001-05:00

Look who's 4 months old today...

2009-01-13T05:55:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe my little man is already 4 months old. Boy do they grow fast. He is the sweetest baby he just smiles and laughs all the time.One of his favorite things to do is to squeal as loud as he can. He brings so much joy into our hearts. What a precious blessing you are Seth Ryan, We love you so much!!

My Sweet Children...

2009-01-12T09:08:00.000-05:00

Christmas 2008

2008-12-29T17:54:00.000-05:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2008-12-15T09:32:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to share how sweet my Christmas cards turned out this year.

Dad starts us out early around our house...

2008-12-10T07:58:00.000-05:00

Better Late Than Never... Baby's First Thanksgiving...

2008-12-08T08:29:00.000-05:00

How can I thank God Enough.....

2008-11-19T12:35:00.000-05:00

My little pumpkin and Sharpay...

2008-11-12T11:08:00.000-05:00

I know these pics are really really late! I have alot of catching up to do....But I wanted to share pics of my sweet children on Halloween.

Our Little Miracle

2008-10-22T07:59:00.000-04:00

We have spent the last 3 weeks at the Hemby's Children Hospital with our son Seth Ryan. Seth became sick with a fever 3 weeks ago he was admitted into the hospital and diagnosed with Bacterial Meningitis which is a very serious illness. It is a Life or death matter for the first 48 hrs which thank God he survived. Not only did Seth survive he survived with no complications and no serious side effects from the meningitis this could have been a very devastating illness. Seth was in the PICU for a week and half on a ventilator. We would like to give God all the Glory and Praise for Seth's total and complete healing. Our doctor at the hospital is truly amazing and God used him to save Seth's life. We are so Thankful today to now be home with a completely healthy baby boy!! God has been so Good to our family. Thank you God for choosing to give Seth Life.

"For this child I have Prayed." 1 Samuel 1:27

2008-09-26T12:39:00.000-04:00

OUR LITTLE BLESSING IS HOME... SETH RYAN

Born September 13, 2008

Placed In Our Arms Forever on September 14, 2008

What a special blessing he is to our family. We love him so much and Thank God for his Wonderful Perfect plan for our family...

Tricia needs our Prayers again....

2008-07-22T15:02:00.003-04:00

http://www.cfhusband.blogspot.com/

2008-07-22T15:02:00.002-04:00

Happy Anniversary...

2008-07-22T15:02:00.001-04:00

Brian's parents celebrate 40 years and renew their wedding vows!!

VBS... Aloha Style

2008-07-22T15:02:00.000-04:00

Back from Vacation...

2008-07-21T08:08:00.002-04:00

BTW I know my eyes are closed I'm terrible with the flash.

We had a wonderful time on vacation!! Here are a few pics from our vacation.

We are off to the beach!!!!!!!!

2008-07-13T15:46:00.001-04:00

Water Park Days

2008-07-08T08:58:00.001-04:00

What have we been doing?

2008-06-25T09:29:00.000-04:00

Enjoying our summer!! We have been staying up late, sleeping in and loving it... It's so nice to take a break from homework and schedules. We have gone to the movies twice so far one of my favorite things to do in the summer when it's so HOT outside. We have been going to the water park, Carowinds and really just making the most of our summer. Last weekend Brian's brother Dwayne and family came in for the weekend. We don't get to see them very often so it was so nice and we had such a GREAT time with them just wish it could have been longer... I'm really praying before summer break is over that we here something about the adoption. Please join in prayer with our family that we will here something soon!!! I know God's timing is perfect and His plans are PERFECT and I trust in Him.

Piano Recital

2008-06-09T13:05:00.001-04:00

This was Avery's first year taking piano lessons. Last night she had her very first piano recital and she did GREAT!

Pray for Tricia....

2008-06-09T13:05:00.000-04:00

www.cfhusband.blogspot.com

School's Out For the Summer.....

2008-06-06T12:53:00.000-04:00

Last day of being a fourth grader!!!

I can't believe how tall she is getting.

I do have to brag on Avery for a GREAT forth grade year and for getting all A's and one B every 6 weeks. We are very proud of her! We Love you Avery!

Bullets...

2008-06-05T08:12:00.000-04:00

I have not posted in Forever...

It's like a heat wave has hit here!! 98 degrees here HOT!

Friday is the last day of school here. WOO HOO!!

Avery's Softball team made it to the Championship Game. We are so excited we play on Saturday..

I am so looking forward to our summer break of staying up late, sleeping in, going to the waterpark, going to the beach.

I'm going to get better at posting pictures..

I'm looking forward to our ladies Beth Moore bible study this summer..

Praying that we soon get the call from CAS that we have been waiting for to bring home our son..

TRUST IN THE LORD

2008-05-15T11:58:00.000-04:00

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6

As I wait for my son to arrive, I am having to learn to Trust in the Lord now more than ever. I can't try to figure things out. In the adoption process you just have to jump in with blind Faith and Trust God!!!

A Relationship of Trust...

2008-05-08T11:30:00.000-04:00

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

PHILIPPIANS 4:6

FEELING THE FAITH...

2008-05-05T14:43:00.000-04:00

For we walk by faith, not by sight.

2 Corinthians 5:7

A story about Miracles...

2008-04-29T16:17:00.000-04:00

Here is a great blog to follow http://www.cfhusband.blogspot.com/ it will help you know that God truly answers prayers and still performs miracles.

Why does waiting have to be so hard?

2008-04-28T17:55:00.000-04:00

"Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord."
Psalm 27:14

I know that the Lord has the perfect time to bring home our son, but the waiting part is not always so easy.I have to remind myself that God is never a day late he is always on time!! I dream every day of what that day will be like when we do bring home our son. I get so excited just thinking about how awesome that day will be!!

Easter Sunday... Really Late !!

2008-04-01T07:44:00.000-04:00

Better late than never right? Actually I could not get my pics to upload but now it's working so here is Avery on Easter Sunday in her new Easter dress. Namie this pic is for you!!

Spring Break...

2008-03-20T07:40:00.001-04:00

Spring break officially starts here tomorrow and we can't wait!! No early bed times, no homework, no waking up at 6:30 in the morning. We get to stay up late and sleep in YEA!!!!
Hope you all have a wonderful Easter.