the ultimate job!

Okay. So seeing i have SO much time on my hands ;P I figured why not have a fun contest post seeing that it has been forever since I have done that. AND frankly I miss you all! :)

So let's come together for a fun "figure it out" picture contest!

I will leave comments unpublished so that you all can figure out what it is without the distraction of other comments... AKA... NO CHEATING!

Okay, while we were in Kentucky for the 2 days we finally found a park for the boys to play at. It was a GREAT park, I believe it was called a "creative park" where kids actually had to interact with things to make them work or make them more fun. I know that sounds like a lot of parks but it was more than a common play ground with a slide and monkey bars and swings.

The boys played for HOURS there. We all loved getting out and exploring in the fun fresh air and cool temperatures. And it was right on the Ohio River. SO MUCH FUN!

While there, I spotted this "ultimate job" (in my opinion). I will not tell you whether or not it is the ultimate HORROR job or the ultimate DREAM job. Heck it could be one and the other depending on who you are.


So, in this picture is the "ultimate job" if you can spot it too and be the first to leave the correct answer. You will receive a fun original masterpiece by Bri. :). Not sure what that is just yet but I have been feeling a bit creative and depending on who you are I will make it to suit your fancy! Get me on a rough day and you may end up with a 2 year old on your doorstep via UPS!

Have fun!

Some Serious Excitement! (Trip pt.1)

We had a wonderful family vacation. I am so glad we got to see God move in a mighty way to provide this fun adventure for our family. So amazing! And we are SO BLESSED! *J did get his job back, in case you missed that post :)*

I will be trying to post a lot about this trip (as well as lots of fun pictures) as time allows. Yeah, I know... you can stop laughing now! haha. Time is my enemy right now BUT we will see :).

This beautiful sunset graced us with it's beauty as we had dinner out on the patio of Joe's Crabshack in Louisville KY.

We were blessed to be able to splurge twice :). Woo hoo. Thank you Jesus, you love us that much that you provided for us to be able to witness and experience such beauty and fun.

The patio over looked the Ohio River. There were big boats/ships/tankers *big water vehicles transporting what looked like coal* going back and forth. The boys were LOVING watching these said boats.

NOW, The going home part of the trip was a bit more eventful. Not that going there and being there was not. Trust me on this one... this leg of the trip was just WAY more eventful!

See the excitement in the boys.

They were having a blast.

They loved getting to play in the beds and play with the UNPLUGGED phones and remote control to the UNPLUGGED TV :). I know, it's random, but because they don't get to play with these things at home it is fun for them to be able to push the buttons and pretend with them when we stay at hotels. Keeps them entertained for hours.

Now, THESE pictures did not cause the next drama-filled hour in our hotel room to occur.

THIS one did.
I was taking Bear potty and asked Moe to put the phone on the table and come to the bathroom to go potty seeing we had just got there from a 3 hour trip from KY. (We were staying in Nashville for the night to go sight-seeing a bit before we left for home the next morning.)

I heard the thud and a crash and went to tend to Moe. I see him bottoms up between the night stand and the bed. I laugh and think, "He is just scared". I pick him up and stopped laughing! PANIC! Not out loud though :). I kept my cool and was calming him. There was a HUGE hole in his forehead!

(sparing you the pictures... AND I didn't get any. I was calming him down, remember. OH and a nervous mother has the SHAKES BAD!)

Apparently he slipped and fell and hit his head on the corner of the night table (marble tops with sharp edges... NOT a good combo for a NIGHT STAND that sits between two beds!). It was not bleeding much but it was enough to make me freak a little. Not that blood scares me, but when it is your kid (or not, even) and there is a hole in their forehead... NOT COOL! So I put a tissue (read SEVERAL) on it and applied pressure to keep the bleeding at a minimal. I calmed him down enough to get a closer look.

I could see his skull... oh WOW! This is not good! The cut itself was not but about an inch long but it was just hanging open. I am thinking, "Hmmmm, we are in NASHVILLE, Where in this city are we going to go get stitches?"

J is out getting more stuff from the car to bring in and I cannot reach him on his phone. Finally he walks through the door and sees us. "OH MAN!" ... UM YEAH! So I ask him what he thinks we should do. "Does he need stitches, do you think?"

He calm and collectedly states. "Hm, no I think some butterfly bandaids will work fine". He and Bear leave to go get butterfly bandaids. They return and we dr. Moe's head. worked good. He just has a small scab left to show for :).

and not 30 -45 minutes later Bear felt a bit left out of the wounded loop and had to join in the game! (notice the look of sheer satisfaction on his precious face)

Granted his was not gaping open like Moe's was, but it was BAD enough!

I had to move this little bundle away from the beds in case someone decided to fall out of bed they would not land on him, given how this night was going. (What, like you've never put your baby in a dresser drawer ... aaand then under the table to protect him from all things falling!)

*Bear was still awake at almost 11PM. He got to go swimming in the indoor pool with daddy while mommy bathed Roo and Moe and put them to bed. He had so much fun. He came into the room so excited and telling me all about it! Completely exhausted was he :) Way to go Dad! *

I mean, really. Like there wasn't enough adventure and excitement in the 20 hour trip there! Seriously guys, when are you going to let mommy exhale!

Love my guys! Wounds and all!

**UPDATED**I pray she KNOWS how thankful we are!

**Updated with Moe's card now... Roo's is taking a bit of time :)**
And I pray she has a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY and that she knows she is celebrated as a mother who cares for her son enough to give him a chance at life. We have been BLESSED by her gift.

I know she didn't CHOOSE freely to have this life for her son. But since this is the path that has been chosen for them both she has repeatedly mentioned how thankful she is that Bear is "OUR SON"! So are we.
So for Mother's Day, I like to do something special for the Bio mothers of our children. I want them to know that just because they do not have their children, they are still mothers, they did still give life to a human being... they should be celebrated, in my opinion. It is a choice to give a child life, whatever happens after that I cannot speak much for. But I know that God would want them to feel special and would want to speak to their hearts in this way.
Today I sat the boys down to make Happy Mother's Day cards for their Bio Mothers.
Bear has been practicing his letters for a while now and I figured we could put it to the ultimate test and have him write out "Happy Mother's Day! Tristan" I put his little (read: HUGE) hand prints on a piece of paper and gave him a pencil and showed him where to start his pencil. From there I just told him what letter to write next. HE DID IT! 2 year old perfect! I am so amazed to see all the effort come forth in his work. Such an extraordinary young man.

I think it will mean so much more to her that he wrote it all himself. He had a bit of trouble doing the first "Y" so I showed him with his pencil in hand how to do it. He did the next one on "DAY" all by himself. Then I showed him how to draw a heart. He drew some right next to mine. He was so excited to see his work once completed! Of course so were Mommy and Daddy!

* Love how his "S" are all turned backwards... sorta, I guess they are Ü *

As for the other two muffins ... Ü

**Moe, I gave stickers with a "card" and crayons.

I did his foot print and hand print on the card and we wrote I (heart) U on it.

It is covered in a plethora of random stickers, ranging from veggie tales janitors, to letter stickers, to puffy hearts, to scooby doo. It has scribbled crayon marks and lots of concentration from a sweet little boy. (I have to upload his pics later, once I get his name "covered" :))

**Roo... Nobody has heard from his mother. I am going to make her one too but it may just have to stay in a memory box and one day he can give it to her if it all comes to a place of meeting her.