The SIV

Here is Sophie saying a few of her memory verses, don't mind the pumpkin muffin that is smeared all over her face.  I had a video of her saying 5 of her memory verses with a clean face even, but silly blogger wouldn't have it!

Better than Ballet

With just over 2 months left in San Antonio, there are a lot of things that I am going to miss, (all of which I will be sure to blog about for my memory's sake).  Nearing the top of that list though, is something that I just learned about last week.  It is called Ballet Gloria.  It is a ministry for children that incorporates dance and worshiping God and their theme is dancing for an audience of one.  It is held at Oak Hills Church which is Max Lucado's church.   It is just a precious ministry, and on top of that it is FREE.  Awesome.  Who doesn't appreciate that?
Today was Sophie's first class.  It was super cute and her teacher was so sweet.  I was not sure how she would do at all ...but she hung in there and tried to follow along as best as a short attention spanned 3 year old can.  She enjoyed most of it but a couple of times fell and was not happy about that.  Poor thing, I think she has inherited my physical skills, or better said - limitations.  Afterwards she told me that her legs were sore because she did a lot of exercise.  When we got home she was happy to show her daddy a  demi plie and before bed tonight she asked if we could go back tomorrow.  So even though her legs were sore and she got some boo-boo's, I think overall she had a great time.  I know I did just watching her!  And let me tell you - they don't mess around with memory verses!  This was their memory verse for the 3 & 4 year olds today:
Matthew 28: 1-2
 "After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it."  
 Sophie couldn't get over the earthquake part, she kept asking about earthquakes for the rest of the night!  Anyway, here is a little picture of our ballerina!

More Photos!

A couple of weeks ago we had our family pictures taken.  It was mostly fun, minus Sophie inappropriately throwing a fit during the middle of it, not wanting her picture taken, getting bribed with ice cream and still really did not cooperate.  Although we were NOT laughing while she was being completely defiant, it will be a good story to tell her when she's older and the pictures of her crying are priceless.  Here are some of our favorites.  Oh and all of these are courtesy of Kate L Photography -  I highly recommend her for anyone in the San Antonio area - she is awesome!

Body & Food

I can't exactly pin point when it happened, but somewhere in these last few years my body has decided to strike against the food freedoms I so once loved.  You know, a cookie every day, a donut, a latte, chocolate, cheesecake, you name it I ate it - without shame or feeling like it was going to settle anywhere. 
Well, those days have bid me farewell.  Maybe it had something to do with having kids.  I just realized that for the past 4 years since November of 2006 I have either been pregnant or nursing every fall.  Anyway, somewhere between 2 pregnancies, lots of indulging and feasting on any food at any time, 2 c-sections and 1 year later - things just aren't the same!  I actually have to watch what I eat.  I have to practice self-control.    I exercise more regularly now than before but I still have a flabby belly, and I'm NOT pregnant.  I  weigh the same as I used to, but things just did not settle where they should have.  Really they shouldn't have settled at all!  And I so crave dessert.  I love sweet things.  I hate sweet things for the same reason.  I love to bake, but I hate that whatever dessert I bake tempts me like satan to eat it.  Just a bite, just another little bite, and by the time dinner rolls around it's half gone and I was the only one who ate it!   
Of course there is a balance, I want to be healthy but I also want to enjoy the flavors of this life.  I just need to halt and control how much enjoying I do.  One piece is probably ok, half a cake is probably not.  And I am completely jealous of those beautiful ladies that bounce back from having babies in like 2 months and look like nothing ever happened to their bodies.  Grrr.
And not only I am concerned about how MUCH I am eating, but also what I am eating and feeding my family.  It is so scary to think how manipulative and political our food has become.  Well probably not the food itself, but the industry behind it.  All of the GMO's, bad industry practices, pesticides, etc.,  We are definitely trying to use wisdom here with how much to pay attention to all of that and how much to oversee.  But in all this...I cling to:
"It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man."  Matthew 15:11
I should definitely be spending more of my time contemplating that and applying it in my life and heart. 

august in pictures

enjoying our time in michigan

some family fun and of course yummy food to enjoy

princess sophie - she is totally into princesses these days!

she just likes to smile, climb & sit in places that aren't meant for it

the girls with nana & papa at seaworld

how do you like claire's double chin? we call her our garbage disposal, the girl does not stop eating! :)
the girls really love each other and have been playing together really well lately...so much so that sophie won't go to her room, or go to sleep without claire.