It’s no secret how much I love my niece and nephews. So much so that sometimes people have assumed they’re mine :) Today, my oldest nephew James is turning five. He is growing to be such a sweet, smart, handsome little man! Happy Birthday, buddy! I love you!
May 15, 2007- I was in love with this sweet baby the second I saw him. It's hard to believe this was five years ago!
May 13, 2012- He is still sweet and loves to be a total goofball!
See more pictures here :)
Got this is in the mail today... I'm so excited to use it!!! It came just in time for all of my upcoming events. First up: my sister's college graduation this weekend!
I’m a little late with this, but that’s life :) Spring/Summer 2012 is looking pretty busy with graduations, birthdays, a 5k, eight weddings, and who knows what else! I am so thankful for all of the upcoming reasons to celebrate and spend lots of time with friends and family! God is so good!
Easter was a great start to kicking off spring.
James and Elvin apparently thought the Easter egg hunt was a race :)
The boys lost half of the eggs they found while they were running around, which made Emma’s egg hunting much easier. But of course, everyone got the same amount of candy in the end.
Love these kids!
We have already been to one wedding and had a great time. Congrats to Jon (my cousin) and Chelsey! I am looking forward to what the rest of spring and summer has in store!
Thanks to the amazing weather we’ve been having, my brother invited Ahmed and I to go rock climbing at Blue Mounds State Park. As much fun as it sounded, I wasn’t sold on the idea since Ahmed and I have a lot of trips to make this summer. Gas isn’t free these days, so it didn’t seem like the responsible thing to do. After calling my brother at 10 pm Saturday night to inform him we didn’t think we’d be joining in the rock climbing fun this time, we changed our minds within an hour.
Sunday morning we loaded up and made the 3ish hour drive. Responsible or not, trips that involve seeing my family are ALWAYS worth it. Rock climbing was great too :)James is quite the little rock climber!
He was so excited to make it to the top! Way to go little man!This was my third rock climbing experience. I am really not the outdoorsy-athletic type, so it is quite a challenge. Actually, I’m a total wimp and my other experiences were rather short-lived. This trip I was feeling determined (plus it would be pretty embarrassing if my 4 1/2 year old nephew out climbed me). With some determination and a cute cheerleaders, I made it to the top. Woohoo!
Hearing “Lenae, I am so proud of you, cuz you’re awesome,” from James made the climbing even more rewarding. However his shouting (while looking through binoculars), “Hey Lenae! I can see your butt!” was not totally helpful :) Hanging onto a rock is extra difficult when you’re laughing.
Even though we spent half of the day in the car, I am so thankful for a few unexpected hours with my family.
Emma thought she needed a turn climbing too. Check out Facebook for more pictures!
Another wonderful weekend in Iowa to spend time with family. We had a double wedding shower for Heidi (my sister) & Preston and Jon (my cousin) & Chelsey.
Fun shower games
Heidi had some surprise guests this weekend. Our aunt and cousin drove up from Oklahoma to attend the shower, which made the weekend extra special :)
Cousins! Heidi, Tia, me
Gina and Heidi
After the shower, we spent the evening out at my parents. There was good food and lots of laughs.
Parachuting with a blanket was James' idea. Which, according to him, was "the funnest thing ever!"
And even some interluding.
We know how to have a good time.
These weekends at home always go by so quickly!
This is me with my grandma. I'm sitting on her lap in the front seat of a van... pretty sure that's not allowed anymore :) I was only nine years old when she passed away-- 16 years ago today she lost a battle with cancer at age 54. I have some wonderful memories of this amazing woman, and I hope I never forget them!
Sometimes you just have "one of those days," or in my case one of those weeks. I'll admit it- last week I just wanted to sit and feel sorry for myself. I had my reasons, but those things are always there and really aren't good reasons. I usually just need to remind myself of all the reasons I have to be thankful, and I quickly realize how pathetic it is to feel sorry for myself. But last week, I didn't want to do it anymore. I gave in.I really wanted to go to Iowa over the weekend, but to reiterate my mood, some winter weather made it seem like that wasn't going to happen. Ahmed and I decided to risk it and go anyways, and I am so glad we did. We had pretty good roads both there and back. Plus, being around my family was just what I needed. Especially this:
These kids know how to dance! Makes me smile every time... In case you were wondering they are dancing to the LMFAO parody "I'm Elmo and I know it." Haha:)
I'm not perfect, and I can't be happy all the time. But that's okay. Deep down, I still am thankful for everything even when I feel crabby. I'm especially thankful I can go home to such a loving family.
