April

It is now May 8th and we are STILL living with my parents! We have a great house that we've been in contract on since the end of February, but because there are several people that need to move before we can, it looks like we can't be in till the end of May. I promise to post pictures if and when we ever get our own place! In the meantime, here is an overview of the month of April here in Welch!

Asher loves his Papa! Asher never falls asleep on people, he loves his bed. So you know he loves his Papa, and was really tired!

Asher also loves to act like his Papa. He loves crawling up in the recliner, throwing that neck pillow behind him and acting like Papa. 

Having fun together dying Easter eggs!

It's funny that we got here in Febrary when it was snowing, and now the kids are playing in the spriklers! Yeah, we've been here a while...

My pretty girl on Easter Sundy

It was cool to spend Easter in Welch at church with my parents. I hadn't been there for Easter since high school, and it was cool to have my kids hunt Easter eggs in the church yard just like I did when I was their age!

It's so funny to see my kids' different personalities with things. Addalie is pretty laid back with the egg hunting. She waits till someone points one out, then casually goes over and gets it. Asher on the other hand, figured this thing out pretty quick and was aggressive! He was even sneaking eggs out of Addalie's basket and putting them in his. It was hilarious to watch!

Family pic!

All the kids together hunting eggs!

Asher's new favorite activity: Vacuuming up the "bugs" (moths/millers) all over the house. They are terrible at my parents house but Asher is loving it! He can spot them from anywhere and will not let you rest till you help him vacuum it up. We just leave the vacuum out now days. He gets so giddy when he gets to vacuum one. He shouts "bug!" till you come over then says "got it!" when it's gone. He's too cute! 

And for the most exciting part of April: Baby Krae was born! My oldest sister Jada had her fifth baby, an adorable little boy, and we went to Round Rock to see him. He's doing great and is such a cutie!

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And that's it for April!

Potty Training

God gave me this time with Addalie so that I will never judge another person's child. Addalie has always been so advanced in just about everything and so so eager to learn. But not with going to the bathroom. The girl screams and cries and begs for a diaper. So I decided I was ready to give it all I had and the past two days we have camped out in the bathroom and have hardly seen the light of day because I was determined to get this done. We had a pretty good day yesterday- no wet accidents! She even would just get on there herself when she needed to go. We played and colored and had some really sweet time together. But she would not go #2. Finally, at 6:30, I let her greet Daniel after work, and wouldn't you know it, that girl poops on the porch! Seriously?

Today was less fun. I started taking toys and shows away until she went #2. I threatened and promised rewards and wouldn't let her leave the bathroom till she pooped. I know, I sound like a terribly mean mom. But she is so stubborn! Finally, I decided to try the porch thing again. And it worked! I saw "the look" and plopped her down. She threw a fit. An hour later, I got her to go, but I had to stand behind her holding her knees to her chest while she screamed bloody murder.

This is the kids playing together in the new playroom, aka the bathroom!

Seriously, God must really be trying to teach me something or prepare for a future of fights. I'm scared.

Waiting

That's what we are up to right now- waiting. Waiting for a house, waiting for the job to pick up, waiting on a slower-than-dial-up-internet. Waiting.

We have looked at every house in both Lamesa and Brownfield and have found some promising one, but nothing that was quite right. Well, one was, but they refused to come down on the price. So we said we would be patient and wait for something else to come on the market. Well, one came up that is not even on the market yet- just a lady we heard about that was going to put it up for sale soon. So we went and looked at it and it is a contender. It's big but I would want to change so much about it. So we are just trying to decide if it would be the best option for us. I think we may put in an offer and if they go above what we want, we will walk away. Pray for us on this! We are still trying to figure out which town we should even live in! I'm so thankful for my parents letting us live here. I know it can't be easy!

Daniel is still in training at BE Implement. He's still not exactly sure where or what he will be doing permanently, but he is hanging in there. He gets to go to St. Louis on Monday for work, so that should be fun! The kids are also doing pretty good. They have broken a few things already, but thankfully the grandparents are forgiving!

Please keep praying for us as so much in our life is still up in the air!

Our Temporary Home

Well, we are here in Welch. It's been a crazy few weeks, but we made it. Leaving Round Rock was so hard- harder than I even thought it could be. Miss you Round Rock friends!

So we are here at my parents until we can find a place to live. We decided that we are going to go ahead and buy a house because it's a good time to buy and because we are tired of moving! We were hoping to find a place that is large enough for us to grow into and make our own. All the houses are older and need some updates, but we are ok with that. There was one I had looked at online and thought we would like, but it was way out of our price range. We looked at it and really thought it had potential, so we made a really low-ball offer and are waiting to hear if they accepted! It's got a lot of square footage and is really well-built. And it has a ton of closets! I think I counted 12 or something. Crazy. I will post pictures if we get it!

Please pray for us as we continue to transition. So far Daniel is having to be patient with the job as he learns the business, Addalie only has boys to play with, and the kids are not sleeping very good. But I know it will all get better. We have already loved spending so much time with family and I love seeing my kids bond with others. Asher has taken to his uncle Kanyon and both the kids love the animals that are always around! We will keep you all updated on the happenings!

Change is Coming

I blame my husband. He's home a lot these days and has almost exclusive use of the computer. So if I haven't updated in a month, it's his fault. Now on to what's been going on this month. Here is the short version:
- 1st, we found out the Jada and Nick would be church planting in South Austin (we actually already knew this but wasn't public knowledge till recently). We also are quite certain Leah got a new job in South/East Austin
- We went to Welch for Christmas and decided that that area would be a great place to raise kids
- Early Jan, we went to Welch again and Daniel interviewed for a job at BE Implement (John Deer Dealership) and got the job. It's totally random for him, but a great job with benefits and good pay. He will get to work with a lot of technology that goes into these tractors
- Our lease ends at the end of January, so we decide to move!

And that's what's going on. We struggled so hard to make this decision because of how much we love it here, but we just decided this would be better for our family. It would be great pay, lower cost of living, closer to most of our families, and just a really good environment to raise kids. I know, I know, those of you who know me well are shocked that I would ever move back to farmville West Texas, but you know, things change. I couldn't wait to bust out of Welch and see the world. But I did see the world, a lot of it at least. I traveled more than most at a young age. I lived up north like I always wanted to, and you know, snow gets old after a few months. I helped plant a church. I've experienced some crazy times with Daniel living off nothing in rough places working three jobs and loved it. But now we are really ready to settle down and provide some stability for our kids. I mean, this is our 8th move of our 5 year marriage! Enough already!

And the best part is, there is a whole other chapter of our lives beginning. Daniel and I are so excited to be involved in the Emmaus and Prison ministries going on there, and we are thrilled to hang out with some of our good friends that live there. We have an opportunity to find a house we can grow in and make memories in. And hopefully, we will be able to travel even more than we have financially been able to now.

It's been a strengthening process for Daniel and I as we sought God's wisdom in this decision. We grew closer to Him and each other and can't wait to see how God will use us in another area as we continue to seek Him!

Asher's First Birthday

We had a small party for him at our house, and themed it Winter One-derland. So fun. Asher enjoyed being the center of attention!

I can't believe it. Asher is actually a year old. That little surprise has given us a wonderful year and we are so thankful for him! He is joyful and loving, and seeing him and Addalie together makes me happier than I can describe.

The Party Favors

Ice Cream on his actual birthday

Cutest Birthday Boy EVER!!!

                                                          

                                                         

Our camera wasn't working well so we didn't get many pics of the actual party, but others did, so I need to get them so I can post more! It was a fun day!

I'm afraid to admit it, but I've kinda lost that lov'in feeling with my blog. My affections now lie with Pinterest and all it has to offer. Sometimes people just fall out of love with certain websites, and unfortunately, you are affected. Though I don't think any of you sit on pins and needles waiting for my next post. But in case you are wondering, we are going to stay together for the kids sake. Blogging is my best way right now to document what they have been doing and how they are growing.
So what they are doing and how they are growing: They are doing wonderful and we are all happy and healthy. Except Daniel has been fighting these headaches and sinus issues, so pray for him! Asher has returned to his love of screaming constantly. CONSTANTLY! And it's these embarrasing, high pitched screams that are probably the cause of Daniel's headaches. But he is just as cute as can be. It's hard to get mad at him because he's usually just squealing out of glee. He is very close to walking as well! Maybe by his first birthday...

Addalie is hilarious these days. She is such a talker. She will go on and on and on about everything. She repeats herself about a hundred times for no reason. And she repeats whatever she hears, so that's always fun... That's all for now because Asher is doing some of that adorable screaming and I can't focus! Here are a couple of  pictures for you.

Asher's first time up in the playscape. He is SUCH a boy!