Miss Wildcat of 4D

I think she deserves Miss Wildcat of the whole school personally. She was excited to be voted MC by her peers. Plus she received a few other awards that made us extra proud. She such a star student.

Ms. Stevenson was such an awesome teacher and I loved seeing her love on my sweetheart.

Off to a new campus next year. I'm not thrilled. I threatened to have her held back just to be with me one more year. Oh how I wish.

We're moving on up...

First grade here we come.

Cannon's kindergarten graduation ended our school year and it was so much fun! Well as much fun as 100+ kinders & 3-4 adults per child could have in an EXTREMLY hot cafeteria.

Cannon's teacher is a grandma and just so sweet. I loved her for my boy. She really fostered his leadership abilities too. Mrs. Sanders constantly referred to him as her leader and had high expectations for behavior from him. Cannon was the tallest kindergartener in the entire school and he knew it!!! He also had the smallest kindergartener in his class. They were a sight next to each other!

We of course got to see M&M graduate as well but my pictures didn't turn out. :(

All aboard the potty train

Well we've started round 2. It's marginal progress but I'm so tired of diapers. Reece has a pretty bad case of heat rash so this is what prompted me to try again. He just so darn cute in his wonderwear!

Holidays in May

There are lots of holidays in May, some are on everyone's calendar and some are just on ours. We celebrate them all! Some big ones we put more time into are my birthday and Mother's Day. Cameron really went out of his way to make sure I was properly celebrated. First, I got flowers delivered to school. They were gorgeous! Yellow/orange roses with pink stargazer lillys. B-e-a-utiful!!! We went out to eat and a movie. So much fun!

Then on to Mother's Day. I love being a mom. Plan and simple. I love every stage of babyhood to 9 3/4 year olds. I'm just thankful some stages are shorter than others. I NEVER thought I would have 4 kids though. I knew we'd have 2 for sure but 4?!? Each one is sooooo unique and bring such joy to our family. We ate out and I got MORE sweet cards and flowers from my kids. It was such a fun couple of days.

My pictures are out of order...oh well.

But it was pretty...

Nothing says grandma like a large print bible. But it was pretty.

I have wanted a new bible for years but never got around to finding one. I finally decided what I wanted, style, translation, perks...I had it picked out and was carrying it around but still had a nagging feeling it wasn't "the one." So I laid it down and started looking again. The bible I bought is NOTHING like what I had originally had (besides the translation). I love the one I bought soooo much more.

And I decided that the reason I was putting off getting a new bible was because of how much writing I had done in my old one. I didn't want to give it up. Yes I'll make new marks and notations but I loved having my personal references established. So to remedy this conundrum, I am excitedly going to go through my old bible and transfer most (if not all) of my notations. Weird, I know! But it was the only way I could walk out if Mardels with a new bible.

Ain't she a beauty?? Full of blessings, promises, love and wisdom.

It's official...

I got my letter of intent last Wednesday and then was approved for employment on the 14th at the school board meeting. I'll be teaching 3rd grade for the 2012-2013 school year. (same as where I am currently).

I have asked the Lord to bring me joy in this transition and He has. I'm anxious to get this school year over with so I can enjoy my babies. I've missed them to bits. We will enjoy every minute of my 9 weeks off and then jump feet first into a new school year. If I can't be at home (where my heart desires to be) then the 2nd best place is at school with them. And who better to take care of Red? Boppy and Nana of course! Win-win!

My new favorite numbers!

Baseball is in full swing again. No tee this time. Cameron was OVER that after the first game last year. So coach pitch it is. The boys love it!! I'm not going to lie, I stand a little taller when Cannon gets up to bat and the coach moves the players back. The boy can hit! Yes he's at least a foot taller than the others, but he has a true passion for baseball. Cameron has passed along his love of the game to Cannon. Mason on the other hand is still trying to see how far he can toss his glove into the air.

Potty Training...

Isn't going so well...

And so it begins...

Lots of work ahead. 8 years worth of life to pack up. The not so fun part of moving. Ha!

From this...

...to this.

An old shirt/jacket that had shrunk in the wash. Up cycled into a scarf. I added more ruffles with another shirt to make it fuller.

Easy peasy!

Sew Easy

I got this idea off pinterest last week and had to try it. It is so rediculously easy that I plan to use this tutorial to teach Gracelyn to sew. Straight lines, minimal thinking, perfect. I made 3 in about 20 minutes.

Headband tutorial...
http://sosewsomething.com/2011/02/03/3-days-of-free-easy-headband-tutorials-no-patterns-needed/

(I'm using my phone so there are minimal editing buttons). Gracelyn loved hers. Mine had to be made thinner. We loved them!

10:52 Be Still

"Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 42:10

Only God could produce something as magnificent as this. Holding a newborn makes you be still and reflect on His glory.

Henry Jett Ramsey
3-8-12
8oz 20 in

9:52 A Great Leap

Painted Toes!

Taking a leap of faith that spring will be showing itself in full force so that I can wear sandals soon.

8:52 Cabin Fever

Grace and I decided we had to get out of the house!!! A gift card to the movies helped make our decision of what to do. We got to experience an IMAX movie for the first time together. The movie was great and I got some time with my girl. Win-win...

7:52 True Love

Making Valentine boxes for the big kids. This guy thought he needed to join the action.

When I look at Mason I get a glimpse of what my true love looked like at 5!

5:52 Shadows

A little (or a lot actually) hip action...

Hard to keep up

It just is...

Hard to keep up, you know.

Laundry, housework, lesson plans, grading papers, being a great wife, being a good mom...

Just hard to do it all. Many women do it. Very successfully I might add. But I haven't ever done it. Not with 4 kids, not trying to sell our home, not with this 3rd grade class. (I really do fear they'll eat me some days!)

But there's this one girl that keeps me going each day. She's behind, very low in her skills, EXTREMLY temperamental and has a very bad attitude. But she trusted me one day. She trusted me enough to cry in front of me. She trusted me enough to let me hug her, she trusted me enough (and my abilities) to "fix" her.

Boy was that a tough request to agree to. "Fixing" kids in the reading department has been a strong suite of mine for many years. I was so fortunate to be trained in the Reading Recovery process along with teaching 2nd grade for a while. I know how to get kids reading and on the path to reading success. BUT I've never taught a child like her. 10, angry, stubborn, and mad at the world.

So I'm on a mission. Knowing that God opened a door for me to help provide for our family during a time that we desperately needed it. He also threw in a little girl so broken who needing fixing. She makes up (kinda) for the horrible pay, long hours, frustration of of 8-9-10 year old boys. She likes me most days. She trusts me, she asked me to pray for her, she let me hug her. She needs me...and I need her to want me there. Because, I do not feel adequate for this class. I discipline more than teach. That's not good people!!!

So, yeah, it's hard to keep up.

Because he's cute...

And big and growing and becoming too independent...

Battle of sickness

Mason had hernia surgery Wednesday. It was successful and uneventful praise GOD! He did great and I was amazed at his recovery. He is one tough dude!

Reece on the other hand is in the hospital 2 days later with RSV & pneumonia. Yes you read that right...BOTH! So we are giving lots of fluids, breathing treatments and hugs. He has such sad sick eyes. :(

We are thankful for his supernatural healing that is taking place. We are also thankful for your prayers!!!

On a much brighter note, Mason is now 5! He made it!!! There were days I wondered if he was going to see 5. He's such a mess! But goodness he's a great mess. I love that boy with my whole being!!!

And as always pictures are out if order and below the post. How do I fix that using the blogger app on my phone?? Anyone???

4:52 Self portrait

Feeling old and looking older. Ready for bed every night as soon as I hear the kiddies stop talking. Life seems overwhelming lately but God is working things out for us! Thank goodness we don't have to do it alone.

3:52 Dreamer

Grace is a dreamer. She has big plans for her future and I pray they all come true. My dream for her is that she's happy, fulfilled and always a shining beacon for the Lord.

2:52 Made With Love

Trip down south

We got to see the Jones family over the Christmas break and it was so much fun!!

D'Sha' and I got a few hours with the girls to window shop. I'd never been in Anthropologie and I fell in LOVE! Same with Sephora. Such fun things to admire and drool over.

New Years Eve we took the kids to a Japanese Steakhouse. Cam couldn't wait to get his sushi fix (thanks to the Ramseys) and the kids thought we were super fancy. The fire scared Reece and all I could do was laugh. Poor guy!! It was a great trip and as always we left planning our next time together.

New beginnings

My first day of work produced a ton of anxiety and even more guilt. I took a long term sub position at the kid's school and it is tough. The teacher unfortunately got sick over the break and can't finish out the year. The class is CRAZY but in a good way. They loved their teacher and she loved them. The students were also use to her ways and teaching style. On the home front we are CRAZY! We haven't found a routine at all. Everyone is chipping in with childcare and I am sooooo grateful. I have an insane amount of guilt and I miss my kids all day but this is good for us. It stretches us. Cam has been flexible with his schedule and I am so blessed that my dad keeps the little boys 4 days a week.

Cam decided at the end of the 2011 season that he was done with his business. It has been bittersweet to let it go. He was ready to move onto something else but the transition has been ROUGH to say the least. He is doing insurance full time and trying to make as many contacts as possible. I have an incredible amount of faith in God's plan and I know that Cam is in the position that will bring glory to Him.

Our house is for sale as well. We decided that we need to get out from our mortgage and are being led in a different direction. We aren't exactly sure what that looks like but we are confident it will all work out.

God is good, that much we know! We cling to that and we claim abundance and prosperity in 2012.

May your year be blessed and amazing.
Keri

1:52 First

First batch of cookies in 2012!

A way to stay motivated

I'm starting project 52 this year. It is a photography project that requires you to capture one picture per week for an entire year. I'm sure at times I'll feel that this is such a chore but I know it is a great motivator to keep posting. There are so many suggestions each week to choose from on the Internet so I'm weeding through them to find the perfect fit for me. Check back soon for the first project 52 entry!!

Hiatus

A long posting hiatus took place. Well most of 2011 actually!!

I've never been more happy to see a year leave before. We welcomed 2012 with open arms and hearts full of hope for a great year. We have been in a roller coaster of sorts with jobs, finances, our house. All in due time I'll share what the Lord has been doing with us. But for now I'll just share some pictures of my sweet family! They've grown so much and are just wonderful.