Two Peas in a Pod

I went into Vanessa and Paige's room the other morning to wake Vanessa up for school and found two of my precious princesses sound asleep.  Since we are in our temporary home, Vanessa and Paige share a room and, in fact, share a double bed.  They will be sharing a room in our new house, so had no issues with sharing a bed here.  And since they usually like to sleep touching someone else, holding my hand, snuggling with Mommy or Daddy, it made sense to have them share a bed.  For Katelyn, this situation would have NEVER worked.  Katelyn is a very light sleeper and, as it is now, takes f.o.r.e.v.e.r to fall asleep.  I could only imagine how long her falling asleep process would take if she had to share a bed for several months.  I'm hoping that when she finds a husband that she will have adjusted to having someone sleep next to her! 

So, here is what I found the other morning...

Attached at the hip, even in their sleep

Notice the empty pillow and entire other half of the bed?

Now Vanessa knows how it feels on most mornings when I wake up to discover Paige had made her way into my bed at night.

Every girl needs to feel pretty!

A few pictures of the girls getting ready for Katelyn's First Communion.  You're never to young to visit the nail salon!

Sitting so still!

Aren't those some of the cutest piggies you've ever seen!

Enjoying the entire experience.

I think she could get use to this!

The tickle-y part.  She went with a grape purple color - very pretty.

Imagine that...hot pink was her color of choice.

Mother's Tea

Friday afternoon was Vanessa's Mother's Tea in her class.  All of the moms were invited in for a little celebration in honor of moms.  It was a beautiful way to begin the weekend.  Vanessa wrote a little story for me, made a beautiful bracelets that I proudly wore all afternoon, and we shared a yummy treat.  It was really special spending some quality one-on-one time with her.  I'm amazed at Vanessa's growth this year and am having a hard time realizing that in just a few short weeks, she'll officially be a First grader. She has bloomed more and more with each passing day, has become more social with her peers, and has gained confidence that blows me away.

 

I recently read somewhere that as a mother, our days are long and busy, but the years go by fast.  So true!  Every day I say I cannot wait for bedtime to come because I'm just exhausted from the long day.  But then they all are asleep and the house is quiet (just like it is now!) and I realize that someday I'm going to miss these young years.  I know for some moms, they cannot wait for their children to grow up and move on.  But I'm really enjoying being a mom, love it's challenges, and cannot wait to spend each day with my kids.  Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of days where I am just so "spent" that I cannot do anything but put everyone (including myself) in a timeout.  But it's usually in those moments, just after yelling at them to stop fighting and my throat starts to hurt from yelling over their screams, that I'm aware that this day too shall pass and tomorrow will be anew.  And before I know it, all three will be in school full time and then off to college and out on their own.  I cannot wait for them to develop into confident independent women and right now my days are incredible long and busy, but I wish I could slow them down just a little and enjoy these childhood days a little longer. 

Moving to the music

I found this video that I took at the end of March.  The best thing in this video are Paige's legs. Constant movement! Of course, she's pretty cute and so proud of herself, but watching her legs just made me smile.

Katelyn's First Holy Communion

Isn't she beautiful!  Last Sunday morning we celebrated Katelyn's First Communion. She and her class had been preparing for this very special day over the last few months and she was very excited (and a bit nervous) that it was finally here. 

We purchased numerous dresses to choose from, finally agreeing on a tea-length one with sleeves and small beads and embroidery on the top.  Finding a dress that she liked, and that I felt was appropriate for church was actually rather challenging.  So many of the "First Communion" dresses were so elaborate, much like a wedding gown, or had thin spaghetti straps that I didn't feel an 8-year-old should be wearing to church for this event. 

I thought finding shoes would have been easier, but that seemed a bit of a challenge too.  I searched all the online shoe stores that I know of and finally had 11 pairs of shoes sent to the house!  I know it sounds silly, but I wasn't sure of her size or how they would fit her.  Plus, I, once again, was particular on what I felt a child should wear and not wear (as in, I don't think they need to wear high-heal wedge-type slip-on shoes).  Katelyn was able to narrow it down to one dressy pair for the church service and a pair of cute while sandals for the party afterwards. 

My mom made her vail which was beautiful and very special.  It was simple, yet fancy, and fit Katelyn's personality perfectly.   

Beautiful girl waiting for her big moment

Moments after receiving her Fist Holy Communion

Katelyn, proud Mommy and Daddy, and Fr. Chris

Notice in many of the pictures that Katelyn has her hands close together near her heart.  We gave her a beautiful cross necklace as her First Communion gift and throughout the entire service, she kept her hands on the cross.  I'm not sure if she was just really nervous and it was comforting to her, or if it was just so new that she was still caught up in the novelty of it.  She wears this necklace every day and only takes it off for soccer.  I'm proud that she wants to wear it and publicly display her beliefs.

We had a nice luncheon at home afterwards.  I think Katelyn felt very special and it was nice that for one day she could be the center of attention. 

Our Gymnast

Saturday evening was Vanessa’s big gymnastics performance. This annual show is very much like a professional competition, yet geared for younger recreational gymnasts.  Vanessa is our gymnast. And she’s good. And more importantly, she LOVES it. She is incredible strong and extremely flexible. All of those trips to the ER for her dislocated elbow seem to have foreshadowed how easily her bones can move and bend to where she needs them to go years later in gymnastics. 

Her favorite event is the floor, where she can show off her amazing bridge. When I hear “bridge”, I think of the kind over a river. Well, Vanessa’s bridges are so high and strong that a river could very well flow right under her!

Each gymnast completes on the vault, the bars, the beam and the floor.  They receive scores in each area and then an overall medal.  Every child goes away with ribbons and a medal, so it is a very encouraging and uplifting event for the children.  The children are not really competing against each other, but against themselves and their personal best.  This event is very special because it allows Vanessa to shine.  She gets very focused during her routine, but truly is enjoying each moment. 

It's OFFICIAL!

We are homeowners again.  We closed escrow earlier this week, but are not expecting to move in for another few months.  The current owner - the original owner, a widow, and older, wants to stay there for a few more months until she is able to purchase her new home out of state.  At that time, we'll need to get into the house and do some renovations before getting settled in.  But that day will be here before we know it!

In my free time (HA!  Who created that phrase?!?), I'm researching design websites to get ideas on colors, decor, landscaping, all of the essentials to make this house a home for us.  I have so many ideas floating around, but haven't finalized on anything yet as I want to spend some time in the house watching the light, getting a feel for the rooms, seeing how best we'll use the space.  However, one idea that I came across today was this large vinyl sticker and, in this case, spelling out the family's mission statement.



I love the idea of making it a bold decorative piece in the home, in a central location, and present to the entire family.  If, after all, this is what my family stands for, why not prominently display it?  I know it might not be everyone's decorative cup of tea, but why hide who we are and what we stand for.  I think the phrase in the above picture is completely accurate of my family's values, with the addition of "We live the Golden Rule" and "We love Jesus".

Living life to the fullest

Three years ago today we lost my sister-in-law Jennifer to cancer.  It was a very challenging time for my brother and my family, because no matter how much you expect it to happen one day, you never really expect it to actually happen.  Make sense?  Ya, to me too.  This, in many ways, made her passing that much more difficult to realize.  But while we never will forget her, life moves forward. 

And indeed, so much life has happened in the last 1095 days.  Out of darkness, sadness, and grief came life and a renewed sense of energy toward living and living well.  At the time of Jennifer’s Celebration of Life Party, I was 9 months pregnant and I remember everyone telling me not to give birth until after this party.  Now, we have Paige, who will be celebrating her third birthday in a few weeks.  She never had a chance to meet her Aunt Jennifer here on Earth, but will someday when its her turn to become an Angel too.  Life has moved forward for my brother as well.  He is now engaged to Rachel, and they live nearby with her four-year old daughter Savannah.  I'm sure that new life (if not several new lives if Rachel has her way!) will be in their future as a couple in the coming years. 

Every day that we are here is a blessing and a day that should be treasured.  There are so many worries and stressors that can literally take over our lives, but living each day to its fullest is of the up most importance.  I ask the girls each night at dinner about their Thumbs Up, because it’s important to realize and acknowledge how fortunate and blessed our lives are.