Happy Valentine's Day!

Our family would like to wish you a very Happy Valentine's Day! We are grateful for all of the relationships in our lives; it is a wonderful thing to be loved. I am personally blessed with the best husband in the world, who tirelessly gives of himself and invests his time and attention to our marriage. I am also blessed with a beautiful little girl that I cherish spending time with and who loves me no matter my faults.

However, as wonderful as these relationships are, they could never compare to the blessing of being loved by the Sovereign Creator of the Universe who is personally interested in our lives. This Valentine's Day, don't just focus on our earthly relati0nships (even though they are amazing!), but also focus on the One relationship that will matter for eternity!

More Snow Pictures

When we got up this morning, there was still about 3 inches on the ground. Justin and Addie were eager to get back outside, so I took a few quick pictures of our fun before all the white stuff started to melt.

Daddy was the "horsey" because Addie still wasn't interested in walking on the snow.

"Weeeee...." We found our old sled (from our old ski trip days in the Youth Group) and Justin and Addie slid down the hill.

Mommy and Addie sharing a moment together...

Justin decided he wanted to make a snowman, so he began the arduous task of gathering the snow for the body.

The finished project! Our olympic snowman, complete with gold medal and crown!

Another Snowy Day in Macon!

We had heard the reports since Wednesday that Macon would be receiving 2-4 inches of snow on Friday, but growing up in South Georgia, we had serious doubts. However, this afternoon, around 2:00, I was sitting at the kitchen table holding a conference online and saw large flakes start floating down from sky! Justin was able to leave the Pediatric Clinic early today and made it home just in time before the heavy downfall started. Since Addie was still sleeping, we spent a few minutes enjoying the snowfall by ourselves before we woke her up to enjoy the winter wonderland. Needless to say, she was excited to see what awaited her outside her own window...

We were sure that we had seen the one and only snow day that we'd ever have in Macon last year, but we were so glad that we were blessed with such a great day to spend together as a family.

We got Addie all dressed up to go outside, and she was ready to go play from the time we stepped into the garage!

At first, she didn't know what to do with all of this white stuff on the ground. Obviously, she had forgotten all about our experience last year! When we asked her what the stuff falling from the sky was, she said "Rain!". After a few tries, she mastered the word "snow".

She also eventually decided that snow was not only cold and wet, but good for licking too!

As she started to walk around, we noticed that she began to get really frustrated and kept looking down at her feet. As is turns out, toddler sized feet are the perfect size to attract and hold snow. The more she walked around, the larger her shoes became!

It became clear that she would not be able to walk freely around the yard, so we explored other means of getting around!

Addie enjoyed exploring each corner of the yard, and seemed to express wonder at how everything looked so different blanketted in white.

After we finished our playtime in the yard, we stopped for a minute to snap some quick pictures of Addie with mom and dad. Boy, how things have changed in only one year!

As Addie and Mommy went inside, Dad decided to sneak up on Addie at the window and surprise her from outside...silly Daddy!

After playing so hard, Addie was more than happy to stay inside and enjoy the winter weather from the comfort of Daddy's lap. They watched the snow fall from the window in the dining room and Addie kept remarking, "Cold outside! Snow! Brrrrr!"

We're so thankful that we were able to spend such a great time together today. This was the kind of experience that you could never have planned for in a million years, yet it all came together so beautifully, perfectly, and unforgettably. God blessed us with another wonderful snow day in Macon!

Valentine's Day Party

I just love Valentine's Day! As a virtual classroom teacher, I really miss the interaction with the kids -especially the parties!! I get my "fix" by going to Addie's class and helping her teacher out with special occasions. Last night, Addie and I worked on her Valentines - I wrote the names and she put on the stickers. We also made crayon hearts (thanks Meredith for the idea) by melting old crayons in a heart-shaped muffin pan. They turned out extremely cute! At the party today, we had some cookies, grapes, and goldfish and later passed out the valentines in their Panda boxes that they created earlier last week. I know I've said it many times, but I love Addie's little school and am excited that we get to share these little memories together!

"Mmmm, Yummy!"

I Love You "Beary" Much! Addie's Valentine box stuffed to the gills with goodies! (Let's just say that Justin will be taking a lot of it with him to the hospital tomorrow!)

Happy Birthday Addie!!

Today, at 12:14am, our little girl turned 2! I remember holding her for the first time and being so thankful that God had blessed me and Justin with a healthy and beautiful baby girl. At that time I had no idea what having her in our life would do. I knew there would be changes like having toys around the house and someone to care for, but I had no idea that she would irreversibly change the person I am. She is the best of us and the worst of us at times, but we couldn't be more thankful for our little girl! We love you Addie!!

On Saturday, we had Addie's 2nd Birthday party at my sister's house in Valdosta. We had such a marvelous time with all of our family and friends surrounding us! It was such a treat to see so many loved ones all in one place. Addie started out a bit shy but quickly warmed up to her typical, friendly self.

We had a cupcake-themed party with plenty of sweets to go around.

The smallest party guest...Karsyn at 9 weeks old.

Addie and Rylin enjoyed coloring while the other party guests arrived.

Addie wasn't so sure about her Gigi holding and loving another baby...

We had soup and sandwiches before enjoying our sweet treats!

Addie's huge #2 cupcake!

We were so blessed with presents and Addie enjoyed pulling new toys and books out of the packages!

Rylin was such a sweet friend to help Addie open her presents! She helped keep Addie focused on the task at hand because Addie was ready to go play with her toys and was a bit tired of opening presents!

School Birthday Party

At Addie's Mommy's Morning Out class, we got to bring special snacks for her birthday! Justin got the morning off so he could come too!! I made mini-cupcakes with rainbow chip icing (my ALL-TIME favorite!) and had cheeseballs. It was so much fun... a true riot with four 2-year olds! I don't know how Mrs. Susan does it!!

The kiddos enjoying their snack!

Finger-lickin' good!

Addie trying to explain something to me...

She loves getting a juice box! She drinks half and wears half from squeezing the box too tight!

Giving Daddy (the camera man) a book to read.

After the "party" we all went to the mat to play.

Enjoying some "tea" with the girls!