The Hunt Family Happenings...

Happy Valentines Day, 2012!

2012-02-14T17:20:00.000-06:00

Happy Valentines Day, from our hearts to yours!!!

May you feel loved and show love on this special day!

Love to all,

Leah

January...in i-phone pictures...

2012-01-23T15:09:00.002-06:00

Nothing too out of the ordinary been going on in our lives during January. But everyday stuff is my forte!

I like plain ole', simple, routine kind of days. We enjoy being at home. I love seeing my girls interact together...playing together inside and outside...being creative and silly, making memories. I know all too soon...our life is going to get busier and more scheduled with school next year. Lately, I have been trying to take a picture almost everyday with my phone...so I can remember what the days where like with a 4 and 1 year old.

Random pics to follow...

Maggie adores her "My little Ponies"...it is has been a big phase, that has lasted a long time. She bathes/shampoos them almost daily. They have the best groomed hair in the house. Love the high-heels too! So flattering and precious to me that she wants to be like me.

Snoozing in the car. I had to document this...because it almost never happens. She is just NOT a car sleeper, and never has been. Even when she was a tee-tiny baby. She is getting SO tall, she even looks big in her booster seat. She has grown 3.5 inches since August, and is in the 95% percentile for height (43 lbs-75% for weight). We are praising the Lord for her health and growth lately! She just had her 4 year pediatrician well visit, that is why I know those numbers.

Mags dolling up Sadie! Oh...this is just the beginning of little sister being the guinea pig. HA! Trying out some blue eye shadow!

Even though its January, we have had some sunny and nice days out. We have been enjoying our driveway, lots. Riding bikes, drawing with sidewalk chalk and watering the flowers are the girls favorites.

Sadie Rose...trying to figure out the tricycle.

Sweet sisters...

This is our Charlie. He is the best cat. Sweet and tolerant, spicy and playful...curious and confident. He startled me and I screamed out loud when I came in our kitchen and found him perched ON TOP of my refrigerator. This was indeed a first for him! Crazy cat. He entertains us daily. We love our animals, and can't imagine life without them.

The girls looking at the hamsters and mice at the pet store. We frequently make a trip to our trusty Petsmart. At least twice a month. The girls love it. Its free, a mile away, and provides at least an hour of entertainment. Both my girls LOVE animals and never seem to tire of seeing them.

Grandma Flynt (my paternal grandmother) and the girls. Aren't they all three just beauties???

My Grandma recently moved to a new retirement home and we had gone for a visit to see it. My Grandma, even though she is 87 (will be 88 in April) ...still makes every visit for grandchildren or great grandchildren a fun visit. Here she was giving a ride to both my girls on her walker! They LOVED it!

The girls got a see-saw from Gigi and Papa...just for fun. They have spent many an hour...just see-sawing. They usually sing or say "See-saw" or up-down while doing it. It's been a simple and sweet thing for them to share. This one is awesome too. All plastic, light weight and never dumps anyone out, when the other rider gets off.

We have been to our fun bounce house place twice this month too. I bought a punch card on Groupon, for $10 for 10 bounces and we have loved using it up!

Learning how to climb from sister!

My little crafty Mags got a bead kit for Christmas and this has been another fun thing for her and I to do together. Her fine motor skills are amazing, for 4. This is a sweet little ankle bracelet she made for herself.

The girls do this pretty regularly too. But usually one or two of the animals is in the cabinet with them too. HA! They jump out and scream BOO! Love hearing their little giggles from inside the cabinet.

Never a dull moment. Fun with 3D glasses left over from some movie we saw!!!

Mags has been practicing and learning her letters. She almost can recognize them all. A few still trip her up. We have bribed (no shame) her with a trip to Chucky Cheese, when she can recognize and write them all. She needed a little extra motivation to get to working on them more. We want to be ready for Kindergarten next year! YAY!

Mags loves to paint her own nails. And, yes, I let her. She does an amazing job, especially for 4! I don't even have to clean up the edges any more. I love that she is girlie and likes to change the color often. Like mother, like daughter. :)

Speaking of girlie...it is just in our DNA. My Nana (my maternal grandmother) loves jewelry and accessories. She recently cleaned out her jewelry box and made a goody bag full of "clip on" earrings for Maggie. She was in heaven!!! She sat at the bar for an hour and tried them all on and would admire them on herself in her little hand held mirror. It was so fun to watch. Nothing better than dress up, when you are 4.

Both of my girls have enjoyed playing in our dog crate. Sadie has figured out how to open/close and latch the door to ours. She can entertain herself for 20 minutes doing this. It's the simple things, right?

Okay---those are all the pics I have for now. Sorry that some of them are blurry. My camera on my phone isn't the best.

Love to all & have a good week,

Leah

Get to know ya Alphabet...

2012-01-10T11:32:00.002-06:00

Just something fun I saw on a friend of a friends blog. Seemed like something fun to do and share with the blogosphere! Copy, fill in and pass on...Happy Tuesday to all!

Love.
Leah

The "get to know ya" Alphabet!!!

A. Age: 32

B. Bed size: Queen...we are snugglers!

C. Chore that you hate: dusting...makes me sneezey and it just comes right back! Ha!

D. Dogs or cats: 4 sweet little ones...Cody (9 yrs, Pomeranian, graying and loosing teeth...sad, but he has been a wonderful dog) and Jack (6 months, Morkie-playful, cheerful and a little timid)...then cats Max (9 yr, Domestic short hair and grouchy) and Charlie (1 yr, Siamese- curious and fun, and loves the girls).

E. Essential start to your day: 2 things...Prayer & caffeine...in that order. I try and pray before my feet hit the ground. I pray for blessings and safety for my loved ones, and patience and wisdom for the day for mothering my girls. I drink either coke zero or pepsi max...only coffee on the weekends.

F. Favorite color: turquoise

G. Gold or Silver: Silver

H. Height: 5' 8"

I. Instruments you play: none currently, but played the flute for 3 years in Jr. High

J. Job title: Wife & Mommy mostly, RN a few times a month at Cook Childrens Hospital NICU

K. Kids: Maggie Caroline, 4...and Sadie Rose, 18 months

L. Live: Texas

M. Mother’s name: Ginger

N. Nick names: Shorty, Leah-Lou, L-Belle

O. Overnight hospital stays: 2 times. See Letter K...

P. Pet peeves: People who talk about themselves a lot, being mean or snobby, and dirty fingernails.

Q. Quote from a movie or favorite movie: favorite movie is Enchanted (I love romantic happy ending movies, and there is singing in this one too!)

R. Right or left handed: Right

S. Siblings: 2 awesome brothers, Justin (39) and Jason (36)

T. Tell a bible verse that gives you encouragement or strength: Nothing better than Proverbs 3:5-6 for me. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight."

U. Ultimate Vacation: Couples-Fiji...to stay in a villa over the ocean, Family-Atlantis resort in the Bahamas

V. Vegetable you hate: no hates...love them all

W. What makes you run late: see letter K and me trying to clean the house before leaving to go somewhere. I just love coming home to a clean and tidy home.

X. X-Rays you’ve had: teeth, gall bladder

Y. Yummy food that you make: lasagna, food is one of my love languages!

Z. Zoo animal: love seeing the lions, tigers and cheetahs and anything in the aquarium if there is one.

Our little Christmas at home 2011...

2012-01-06T21:37:00.000-06:00

This year we got to have Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at home just as our little family of 4. It was a nice, quiet way for us to make memories together. We read the Christmas story together, had tons of fun opening gifts and enjoyed a yummy big breakfast together. Todd and I both loved watching the girls play together and seeing them enjoy all their new toys. I love Christmas time, soooo much!

Our little family...on Christmas morning!

Mags was had been asking for a journal with a lock and key. Ha! Who knows what secrets her 4 year old precious self with write in there.

She is also super in to anything Pony, right now. She got a Barbie and a Barbie pony that walks.

Todd and Sadie Rose...

She got a new mini toddler Disney princess four wheeler. I think we are gonna put a few miles on it come Spring time. She is a crazy driver on it right now though. Watch out!

Precious girls...such little blessings to us.

Merry Christmas!

Mags loves taking pictures of everything with her new kid digital camera.

Sadie is in the "love to tear paper" phase. Gift wrapping was so fun for her!

Love her excitement!

She got some new musical toys and a microphone. My girls love to sing!

Mags got a Nintendo DS. She loves playing Hello Kitty and My little Pony games on it, and takes it with her everywhere.

Love to all,

Leah

Christmas with the Hunts...2011--

2012-01-03T13:15:00.000-06:00

This year for our Christmas time with the Hunt's we were all able to be together for several days. My in laws were gracious enough to host all of us...15 extra people and 2 dogs! We were together in Jacksboro from Thursday thru Saturday. We had a great time! The kids loved being together, staying up late and being out in the country. We ate a ton, had a bonfire and fireworks, fondue and loads of presents.

It was a MERRY time indeed!

The Hunt crew of kids...Lucy, Maggie, Faith, Sadie, Lincoln, Claire and Davis.

Maggie and all her presents...

My wonderful in laws...very thankful that I married into such a loving family!

Beautiful Faith...my oldest niece.

Davis...excited about his game and fancy pen set.

Sadie waiting patiently.

Mags got a strawberry shortcake doll that she can style her hair. How fun!

Sweet Lucy excited about her new craft!!!

Little Claire opening her first present.

Sadie had the most enormous, wrapped gift. It was so big, she could sit on it! It was a fun sand and water table for the spring.

Todd and his youngest brother, Nathan! Boys and their toys...they were assembling some target practice thing.

Me and 3 of my 5 sister in laws...God didn't give me biological sisters...but he overwhelmingly blessed me with amazing sister in laws!!! (They are gonna kill me for posting a pic of us all in our Pj's with NO make-up...but they couldn't be more beautiful.)

The kiddos loved being out in the country. Papaw took them all on a 4 wheeler ride around the place to gather brush for the bonfire. They loved having that time with him!

Bonfire time!!!

All the Hunt boys...amidst setting off fireworks! What a fun Christmas tradition. Burnett (Dad), Lincoln, Todd, Nathan, Clay, Craig and Davis.

Another fun pic of the cousins in their Christmas pj's!

Uncle Todd soaking up some Lucy love and a hold from Maggie! What darling, sweet cousins and friends!

Love to all,

Leah

Grapevine Mills Fun with friends...

2011-12-27T16:31:00.001-06:00

For some Christmas-ey fun we planned a day at Grapevine Mills Mall with some of our favorite people. We went with my bestie Sarah and her 3 boys. We had so much fun playing the day away. I had not been to that mall in a really long time, and was so impressed with all the fun things they had to do for kiddos. I think we may of decided to make this an annual Christmas tradition to do over their break from school!

For our brave little ones there was this bungee trampoline. They could jump on it and soar up in the air at least 20 feet. What kiddo wouldn't love this!!!

Since Clayton was the oldest (and bravest) he went first. He almost even figured out how to do a flip in the air too.

Next was sweet Drew's turn. Not too shabby for a 3 year old!
He was so cute as he was jumping...say "I superman"!

Next was my Mag's turn. Getting all safe and secured up in her harness.

All smiles and ready to go!!!

Here she goes...

So high, in the sky!!!

Towards the end of her 5 minute jump she started "freestyling" and these were (as she put it) cheerleader moves! Ha! Love that girl.

Precious Maggie Caroline...4 years old!

Woohoo! This was a great $10 investment of FUN!

Precious sweet pals, Clayton and Maggie!!!

All 5 kiddos in one spot...not a one of them looking...but at least in one spot. *If you are the mother of more than one child...you know the difficulty of this situation. HA!

A little ride for my littlest girl...Sadie!

Loving the ride...

While we were there we got to ride the carousel too. Such a sweet classic ride!

Round and round we go!

Yeehaw!!!

My darling Sarah and her littlest Owen!

The next adventure was a CrAzY one! It was called "bauble-ball". There were these enormous life size beach balls that you could get inside.

Then the workers would air it up with a huge compressor and hose.

Then there was a big shallow pool in the middle of the mall for the balls to roll around in.

And then they turned you loose.

It was kind of like a "hamster in ball" concept.

Maggie loved it and was so exhausted when she came out.

The kids would try and roll into each other.

Maggie IN a ball!!!

All done and climbing out! This place was really neat. Unlike anything I had ever seen.

LOVE spending time with friends! It was a day of play, for sure!

Love to all,

Leah

2011 Christmas with the Flynt's...

2011-12-27T16:30:00.002-06:00

After celebrating at my Nana & Pawpaw's house, we always stay the night over at my parents house...and have Christmas the next morning with my parents, brothers and wives and nieces and nephews. I love our time together that day. We have a big, yummy breakfast together, open gifts, eat lunch and spend the day together playing games and talking. I absolutely cherish our time together as a family, and praise God for the family he has given me.

Every body gathered in my parents living room, about to open gifts! Yay!

My hot-Todd-ey...love my man!

My brother Jason and wife Lindsay...

Maggie and her cousin Macy...

My niece Morgan and nephew Joshua...

We all chipped in together and got my Dad a new set of binoculars. The ones he had were older than my oldest brother. Ha!!!

Gigi opening her gifts...with a little help from Maggie.

Justin's turn to open gifts. We open one at a time, starting with the oldest down to the youngest. Never pass on an opportunity to teach your kids patience, right?!?

Todd's turn...all the boys got some nifty new magnetic, super bright flashlight. Boys and their toys....HA!

Morgan was so excited about her "fancy" duct tape. It is a new fad...crazy, huh? The kids these days design crazy objects out of colorful duct tape. I have seen bags, flip flops, wallets, phone cases, folders...etc made from it.

Macy's turn...crazy about make up and nail polish!

All the boys got new tractors from Gigi and Papa!!!! Score!!!!

And Jerod got tools...like father like son, for sure!!! All the men in my family are super handy!

Jackson got new remote control helicopters.

This excited face of Joshua's is so CUTE!!! He was super thrilled about every single present he opened.

Mags got a new McDonald's cash register set. So much fun!!!

My Sadie got some new sound/shape/color toys from Aunt Lissa and Uncle JD. She was having so much fun with it!

Maggie loved her new ponies too!

This was #2 Christmas out of 4. More pics to follow soon. What a wonderful, blessed time together! Thank you Mom and Dad for hosting all of us.

Love to all,

Leah

2011 Christmas at Nana & PawPaw's...

2011-12-26T02:58:00.000-06:00

Every year we gather together to celebrate Christmas with my Mom's side of the family. It is by far the most unique of gatherings for our Christmas celebrating. My Nana & Papaw always make our time at their house memorable. We celebrate with a theme...decorations, a program, theme-y food and dress and games galore. In years past, we have had an "old prairie" Christmas, a "Cruise ship" Christmas, Chinese, Mexican and Cajun Christmas...just to name a few. This year was as great as years past. I love the time with my family!

My little family of 4...

Nana & Maggie...playing a game of ball.

My Mom, niece Morgan and sis in law Melissa...

My oldest brother Justin and Pawpaw...

My parents and their 7 grandkids...what a precious crew!!!

My original family of 5...turned into 15!!!

My beautiful cousins...Hilary & Karis.

My brother Jason and Uncle Tom.

My Aunt Diana and cousin Tammy.

All the gang gathered in the kitchen. We had 27 there to celebrate!

We always have a birthday cake for Jesus and the kids blow out the candle.

My Mom makes the best homeade birthday cakes! Yumm!

All the kiddos surrounding Nana...playing a balloon blow up game.

A little Karoke from 17 month old Sadie. Ha!

All listening to Pawpaw read the Christmas story from the Bible.

Nana setting up an indoor bowling game.

More games...

And time for presents. Maggie loves her Barbie!

And Sadie got a new baby doll, and was sooooo excited about it. Love this sweet little grin!

This was #1 of celebrations for us....with 3 more to follow.

Love to all,

Leah

A Ginger-bread barn...

2011-12-16T21:38:00.001-06:00

I stumbled across this Ginger-bread BARN, not a house, but a barn. How appropriate for my family, with all our country roots?!?

I bought it for Maggie to do with her Gigi. My Mom had come to watch the girls for me for a few hours after I had worked one night. I thought it would be a super fun thing for them to do together. They seemed to have a ball! It has a little "Maggie flare" to it...complete with many barn yard animals and a candle so she could sing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus. LOVE that she is getting the real reason for our season.

Two of my favorite people!!!!

She really did a good job. See her little horses head coming out the barn door?

Thank you, Gigi for loving my Maggie!

Christmas pj's and a sweet sisters...

2011-12-15T21:27:00.001-06:00

It has been such a fun Christmas season so far. This year, for me, has been the most fun...mainly because Maggie has been so "in" to all the Christmas fun. It has been a joy to see the season through a childs eyes. She couldn't wait to get all of our decorations up! She has been making up her own Christmas carols, and telling everyone we meet out in town "Merry Christmas". I love her zeal for life and her joyous, peppy little attitude about it all. Sadie seems to be a fan of the season, too. She loves looking at our tree and touching our "pink tree" in Maggie's room.

We bought the girls Christmas pj's and shot some pictures in front of our trees. I have included some pics from last year...I love to reminisce!

Sweet sisters...Maggie 4 years old, Sadie !7 months.

Could their grins, BE any more contagious?!?

In front of our "pink tree"! Every house with girls needs a "pink tree", right?!?

This was from last year, 2010. My Sadie was only about 6 months old...sniffle! My oh my...time just flies by!

They have both changed sooooo much!

I CANNOT believe how different Maggie looks, here! You can see in this picture, her little face is so full and round. She had been on her steroids at this time, for about 5 months. Poor thing!

I am so thankful to report that Maggie is STILL in a pretty solid remission, and has been off her steroids for almost 23 weeks!!!! A true Christmas miracle!!!! What a difference I see in her sweet face, with out those awful steroids. Love my Maggie Caroline, so much.

Merry Christmas! Hope you are enjoying time in front of your tree, with your loved ones!!!

Love to all,

Leah

Thankful...

2011-12-15T01:01:00.001-06:00

*Disclaimer: I am way behind on blogging lately. The only excuse I can claim...is just the busy season of life I am in right now. Between, my girls, hubby and animals...working a little extra...and spending time doing "life" stuff (you know--laundry, keeping house, grocery/Christmas shopping, church, etc) my down time has become, zero. I know all of you fellow bloggers and blog readers are in the same boat. But it does make me a little sad to be so behind on keeping up my blog. We use this as a personal family scrap book. So this is a quick effort to report on several past times I want to remember! I have pics uploaded and plan to blog lots over the next few days. Happy reading~!!!

Thankful...

We had a great Thanksgiving 2011. We spent an equal amount of time with both Todd and my family. This is a rarity with so many schedules. But somehow we made it work.We had the annual Flynt Family Fish fry for Thanksgiving with my side of the family. We love to do things a little different...and none of us except Todd are all that particular about "traditional" Thanksgiving food. Yummo! We had fish, hush puppies, stuffed jalapeno peppers, coleslaw, beans and tons of fixins'. We had a total of 23 people there, which I think is something extra special to celebrate.

We celebrated with the Hunts too. We all met for dinner and fellowship at Todd's brother Clays house. We had the traditional Thanksgiving food, and it was delicious. We all ate ourselves into comas, ha! The cousins played and it was a great evening together. There was a total of 17 of us there. I treasure my BIG family, and am so thankful to get to see the majority of them on a regular basis!!!

We all have so very much to be thankful for. Our families, homes, jobs, health, freedom, happiness...but most of all our Salvation! I adore the holiday season...starting with Thanksgiving.

Below is the one and only (which is so rare for me to only take one picture???) picture I have from Thanksgiving. It's our annual "ladies" picture we take from the Flynt side of the family. Love the ladies in my life!!!

My Nana, Maggie, Morgan, my Grandma Flynt, Macy then Sadie, myself, my mom, sis in law Melissa and sis in law Lindsay...ages 87 down to 16 months...HA! Quite the group!

This is our pic from the last year...2010. Sadie was so tiny! Just 4 months old.

Here is our 2009 picture. Love it! Maggie still had a little toddler look about her. And Sadie was just starting to grow in my belly. I was about 8 weeks preggo here.

So fun to look back over the last few years!

Praise God for family.

Love to all,

Leah

Meet Jack....

2011-11-14T16:09:00.000-06:00

So, to follow up from my last post about loosing our sweet daschund Buddy...I would like to introduce you to Jack, the Morkie. Born into our family on Friday November 4th (actual birthday June 8th, 2011). He is a 5 month old, 7 pound, Maltese-Yorkie mix. We bought him from a nice breeder who lives out in Blossom, Texas...far East Texas. We had decided on a small, fluffy style of dog for their hypoallergenic-ness. He doesn't shed, and has relatively no dander either. Also, we picked a breed that seems to have a long average life span.

He has a sweet, mellow and timid personality. But we have really seen him blossom this week, some. Maggie has taught him to play fetch and he has decided the cats are great play mates. They love to chase each other. We are still working towards full potty training. But thankfully his "accidents" are tiny just like him.

You can see from the pics that he has a mix of a silky and wirey coat. He has big brown eyes, and a cute little mini docked tail. His face is his cutest asset by far. He has darling messy hair, and floppy ears...and will tilt his little head when you talk to him. So cute!!! He likes to snuggle and be held. We have had fun (being a house full of girls) putting bows in his hair, and buying him some cute doggy sweaters.

Jack...

Can't you just tell he is a sweet little thing...

Loving the warm sun...

His little face is so darn cute! Love his floppy ears.

One with out a bow...just so you know we do realize he is a boy! HA!

We look forward to many good years with this little guy. We are thankful to have another little companion to love!

Love to all,

Leah

Our Buddy...

2011-11-10T00:11:00.000-06:00

If your not a pet lover, you don't have to read on. But if you love animals...this is a tiny tribute to our little daschund Buddy.

Two weeks ago, on Tuesday October 25th our sweet daschund Buddy died. He was a precious little addition to our family. We rescued him from the pound in 2007, after his previous owners had moved and left him for dead in their back yard. He was skin and bones, wormey and mistreated when we adopted him. He lived 4 good years with us, and died a happy, fat and loved doggy.

Some of our favorite things about Buddy was how snuggley he was. If you were sitting on the floor or the couch, he wanted to be with you there. He fit perfectly in the crook of your knees when laying down. He loved to burrow himself under blankets, too. In fact, he had a blankie that he slept under every night in the crate. He was playful, a lover and crazy about Maggie and I. He had a small body, but a big heart. His brown eyes melted my heart. I often called him my little shadow, because wherever I was...he followed.

We don't know why or what caused his death. He had been throwing up from time to time (maybe once a day) for a few weeks. He still ate twice a day, drank and pottied normal. So I wasn't too worried, every dog I have ever had threw up from time to time. But over the weekend, before he died we noticed that he had lost his "pep-in-his-step". He seemed to be sleeping a little more, and didn't have as much energy. On Monday night late, I noticed that his tongue looked a little pale, and I knew that was not normal or good. So I made an appointment for him the next day with our vet on Tuesday at 4:40. I found him dead, in the crate, curled up in his blankie at 3.

I was super surprised/shocked. I had no idea he was that sick. He had been out in the house like normal not even 2 hours earlier. He had picked up Sadie's crums from her lunch at 1, and stole a vanilla wafer from her too. He barked at the UPS man aroun 1:30...and then went and got in the crate and just...died. :(

I panicked and called my bestie and my hubby. They calmed me down, and encouraged me. Todd came home as soon as he could.

We went to the parents, who live in the country to bury him later that afternoon. We buried him in his collar, wrapped in his blankie in his bed...right next to a sunflower plant.

He was as sweet of a dog, as I have ever had.

I loved him, and am thankful he was a part of our family for 4 years.

I am so glad that the Lord created such sweet companions for us to enjoy.

Buddy, such a handsome guy!

Awe, those brown eyes!

This was typical Buddy...right in the middle of whatever we were doing. In this pic, it was playing Hungry-hungry hippos on Christmas morning.

Love this picture too. He would ride in our bike trailer with Mags and keep her company.

I have always felt, the best way to heal an achey heart over the loss of a pet...is to get another one ASAP. So, we did. His name is Jack and he is a doll. Stay tuned in a few days, for a post with pictures...to meet him and hear his story.

Trick or Treat...2011

2011-11-07T22:15:00.000-06:00

This year we got to spend Halloween with family and my girls had a blast. We were able to "trick or treat" with Todd's brothers and wives and our 5 nieces and nephews. We had dinner together and then treated until all the little legs wore out. Thanks Clay and Jenny for having us over!

This year we had a Rapunzel and a Lady Bug. Funny story about our Rapunzel. If you had asked her who she was, she would tell you she was "Rectangled". You know, like from the movie, Rectangled. Well, not exactly. She really means Rapunzel from the new Disney movie about Rapunzel, called Tangled. Love that rectangle is so big in her vocabulary. HA! It's just too cute to correct. Gotta love 4 year old-isms!

My sweet girls. Aren't their little grins, the BEST!?!

Sadie (16 months) & Maggie (4 years)

My girls and I...

My precious 3 LOVES...

All the Hunt cousins...Rapunzel (Maggie), Pink Flamingo (Lucy), Lady Bug (Claire), 80's girl (Faith), Lady Bug (Sadie), Robot (Lincoln), Tough Guy (Davis)

Daddy strolling with his girls!

The 2 little bugs, enjoying a stroll!

Sadie enjoying not one, but two suckers...all at the same time. Hey, it was the night of CANDY! Letting the girl live a little, ha!

Rapunzel's legs were worn out...hitching a ride from Daddy!

I have never been a fan of Halloween, but it sure turned into a fun time for my girls to play dress up, spend time with family and enjoy time together as a family!!!

Love to all,

Leah

Easy, "No Sew" Pumpkin Shirts

2011-10-14T09:36:00.002-05:00

I wanted to share a fun and easy "no-sew" craft project that I did for festive pumpkin shirts for my girls.

I got everything I needed at my trusty Wal-mart, and made them in less than 15 minutes. I am super excited to be thinking of what other fun holiday type shirts I might could make. I love to see cute holiday outfits...whether for Valentines day, Christmas or Fall!

1. Buy t shirt, fabirc glue, material (1/2 yd of orange, 1/4 yd of brown and green material), ribbon (1 yd for 2 shirts)...find a pattern/outline online to print. I googled "images for pumpkin outline" and picked the one I liked best.

Here is my pattern I printed.

2. I taped my pumpkin pattern to my orange material (no pins required, yay). I cut around the edge of the pumpkin. Then for the stem and leaf...I just free hand cut out a shape that I thought would look cute. You will still have plenty of extra fabric in the brown and green if you have to cut out a few before you get one you like.

3. Apply a liberal amount of the fabric glue all over applique and as close along the edges as possible, then apply to shirt.

*Side note...I washed and ironed both my t shirts and my fabric before I began working with them.

4.I then glued a little bow in the middle where the stem, leaf and pumpkin over lap.
For washing care after they are finished and worn, I washed them on the "hand wash/gentle cycle", and hung them to dry. The fabric edges did fray a tiny bit. But I actually think it made them look even cuter!
Fun to be Festive...and thrifty!!!
Love to all,Leah
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Blackcreek Pumpkin Patch 2011...

2011-10-11T15:34:00.002-05:00

Fall, was always my least favorite season...until I had kids. Now it is one of my favorite...simply because I know it will include a trip to the Pumpkin Patch. Since we have gone to this one in Decatur two years in a row, I am declaring it an "annual" event. Ha!

We ventured to Decatur (good things come from small towns, right!) with family and friends for a fun day to play. We went with my Mommy friends Abbey, Holly and Sarah. My Mom decided to join us, too. What a great helping hand she was between our 7 children.

My Maggie especially loves this little PP, because it has several fun farm animals. She got to interact with fish, baby chicks, goats and lambs. We took pictures, fed the animals, had a hay ride and barrel train ride...got faces painted and picked a pumpkin. What a wonderful day.

After all that fun, my precious Mom invited us back to her house for a yummy lunch and girl time. The kids played outside and the babies got to be held by my Nana (a 7 time grandmother, and an 8 time great grandmother).

It was a really great day in my book. Loads of my favorite people all in one spot...happy kids, special memories and full bellies!

Pictures from the day...

Gigi and her girls!

Some of my 3 favorite ladies...:)!

My little loves...

Sweet sisters...

Sadie's funny scrunchy face...LOVE it!

Darling grin...

Mags making some 4 legged friends...the goats and lambs.

Meeting Mr. Bunny.

Some serious Bunny love...

One of my recent favorite pictures of my big 4 year old girl! Isn't she a beauty?

Riding the barrel train...

Feeding the fish...

Precious besties...me, Holly, Sarah and Abbey.

Holding a baby chick.

Sadie made a friend too!

In the pumpkins...

So funny!

Just loved this captured moment...pig tails, hay in her tutu & her crazy boots! Love this girl!

Best friends...what a gentleman...Drew pulling the babies!

A picture of 6 of the 7 of the kiddos (#7 was having his lunch). Ages 6 years to 5 months!

Best pals...and betrothed future husband and wife (that is, if Sarah and I have anything to do with it)!

Love this one!

Luke, Maggie and Gigi in the chicken coop!

Already want to go again!

Love to all,

Leah

P.S I made the girls little pumpkin shirts. I am so proud of them. They were a "no sew", $5 project! A how-to post soon to follow.

Things that make me smile!

2011-10-05T04:49:00.003-05:00

Oh how these precious girls make everyday better!

Sweet sisters...and best friends!

Playing at the park...

Maggie being silly in Mommy's glasses...

YouTube Video

Cute giggles from my Sadie over silly faces.

These everyday occurences bring me so much joy... I hope they make you happy too!
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Sadie's first hair cut...

2011-09-20T21:09:00.001-05:00

Last week, my Sadie-Bug got her first hair cut! With Maggie, I waited until she was 2.5 (see that past post HERE) to get her hair cut. I am such a sentimental schmuck...that I just couldn't bear to cut her "baby" hair any earlier. But with Sadie I was ready earlier. She is 14 months old, and her wispy hair was looking a touch shaggy.

We were super excited to let our favorite stylist...a.k.a my sister in law, Lindsay...do the cutting. Sadie was a perfect little doll and sat still savouring her first sucker in her Gigi's lap. Sucker and a grandmother...it doesn't get much better than that in toddler-land, huh? We loved her new look. Her hair instantly looked thicker and shaped. Her already precious face was even more beautiful framed by her new do!

Love all these little "life" milestones with my kiddos!

Love to all,

Leah

Her before front picture...

Her before back picture...

First snip...

Sweet little baby hair, been on her precious head from day 1...sniffle, sniffle!

Loving her sucker...

Her "beauty buddies"...Aunt Lulu & Gigi!

First little styling...

Loving Aunt Lulu! Thanks for the best cut in town...and making a fun memory out of one of her "firsts".

Sadie loves her Gigi! Thanks Mom for all your help that day, and everyday! Love you!

A first for my Sadie Rose!

2011-09-14T15:12:00.000-05:00

Had to share pictures of a major milestone...in the life of my sweet Sadie Rose!

Her FIRST pig-tails! HA!!!

Her precious little face just makes me smile!

Such a little doll (and poser)...her piggies where so thin and tiny...but we made it work.

Many more pig-tail days ahead...for sure!!!

P.S Sadie just had her first little hair cut, yesterday. Gonna upload pictures soon and share.

Love to all,

Leah

Like father, like daughter...

2011-09-10T17:02:00.002-05:00

Today, Todd came home from Academy with something....pink! Not usually the store where you buy pink things, right? He told me it was a surprise for Mags....and look at what it was!

The cutest little softball glove you ever did see!

Todd has been playing in a church softball league for the last year and a half. We love to go watch him play. We cheer for him from the bleachers. Now Maggie can take her pink glove and be ready for any foul balls that come our way.

I love that both my girls are crazy about their Daddy. He is a wonderful man! And we are blessed that he is ours.

Now Maggie can have something for only her and Todd to share....softball!

Fun times for her. And the weather right now is so nice to be out in. As I type, Mags and Todd are out "playing" catch.

Like father, like daughter!

So proud of her new gear!

Next to her Daddy...I'd say she is the cutest little softball player, I ever saw! Ha!

Love to all & hope everyone is having a good weekend,

Leah

My Maggie Caroline...

2011-09-07T22:28:00.001-05:00

Once again claiming...Ephesians 3:20...Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine. Todd and I are proclaiming that our God has done just that. Immeasurably more in the last 6 weeks, than we could have asked or imagined. Our sweet Maggie Caroline has been in a full remission from her nephrotic syndrome, and steroid free for exactly 6 whole weeks. This is by far, the longest she has been in remission and off her meds in the last year, since diagnosis.

Praise be to God alone!

We have been purely overjoyed to have our healthy, strong and sweet girl back. Those steroids just change her. They change her behavior, her moods, her spirit, her sleep, her appetite...everything. It has been such a wonderful 6 weeks, without them.

We started seeing a nutrionist (Dr. Kelli) about 8 weeks ago. She is a chiropractor and nutritionist that my brother and sis in law have been seeing and had excellent results with. We will be forever in debt to Justin & Melissa for their encouragement to see Dr. Kelli.

On our first visit she shared with me that she has had one other adult patient with Mag's same diagnosis, and she was able to get him into remission as well. I was encouraged. She asked that we give her 8 weeks, pray fervently, and see what happens. This was a great plan to us, because at that point in time, our only other option from Mags nephrologist was going to be a course of a chemo drug for 8-12 weeks. Dr. Kelli asked that we make a few dietary adjustments, keep a food journal, keep track of her urine Ph as well as her urine protein and start Mags on 3 supplements (Catalyn, Cataplex A-C-P, DHA) and an enzyme called Arginex.

Within 2 weeks of starting this regime, Mags urine protein levels (which are what we measure at home, to gauge her kidney function) were down to a trace, and she came off her steroids completely. And then at 3 weeks her protein level went completely negative. We evaluated her kidney lab work, and everything was normal. For the first time in a year, a treatment was working...and working really well! We saw Maggie's nephrologist and he was supportive of our new treatment and excited to see if it would work. We saw Dr. Kelli again at 4 weeks into treatment and she was so excited and Praising God with us. She is a delightful, Christian woman. We go back next week for our 8 week into treatment visit.

We celebrated our 6 week mark on Monday. You simply can't imagine how wonderful this is for Maggie and for the rest of our family. We know, and are realistic that a relapse may happen, but we are also prayerful and hopeful that she could be HEALED! Healed for now, indeed.

It has been one roller coaster of a year for our girl between the meds, the pokes (lab draw's), the doctor visits, the isolation, the discomfort, the emotions and insomnia....but she has handled it so very well. She is strong and resilient and such an inspiration to her Momma and Daddy.

Todd and I are so thankful that we have had a loving, omniscient and ever present heavenly Father to trust in. He is faithful, His promises are true and His care for us is never ending. His scriptures have encouraged us daily and he has revealed himself more clearly through them. We are thankful for this journey, because it drew us closer to Him.

Please say a word of Praise to God on our behalf for His wonderful work of healing in Maggie right now, and would you pray with us...that the healing is complete and that Maggie is rid of her nephrotic syndrome for good.

Love to all & thanks for caring about our sweet Maggie Caroline!

Leah

Isn't her face the sweetest???

Love my baby girl so much!

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

My sweet girls...

2011-08-26T15:16:00.000-05:00

I adore pictures of my girls together!

Love sharing them, too.

The other day...Mag heard Sadie awake through the monitor in the morning and asked if she could go in and see her, and of course I said sure. When I went in just a few minutes later...this is what I saw. They were both giggling like crazy. Maggie was so proud of herself for climbing in the crib (she is not a climber) and Sadie was just excited to have company in her crib. We all three laughed and enjoyed the moment. I am so thankful that my girls love each other.

Me and my girls ready for church

Sweet sisters and best of friends!!! Maggie Caroline 4 years and Sadie Rose 13 months.

Thank you God for my precious little loves!!!!

Zzzz's...

2011-07-30T22:08:00.002-05:00

To say that our sweet Maggie has had sleeping issues this year...is an understatement. I can count on one hand how many nights she has slept ALL night long without getting/waking up. An awful side effect of the steroids she has been on for most of the last year. But insomnia has been a small sacrifice for the benefit the steroids have offered to her kidneys. Thankfully, the insomnia has not taken too bad of a toll on Mags attitude or behavior during the day. It has just been hard on Todd and I.

Well, my girl has been getting some good, solid, long zzz's this week. She has had 4 real nights of sleep. Real meaning several long hours straight...maybe even all night (9-8)or only getting up once. Praise the Lord!!!! Such an answer to this mommas prayers.

She is completely OFF her steroids right now (almost off a week)! This I think is the primary reason for the improvement in sleep. But also we have been offering some rewards and incentives for "staying in her bed ALL night long". We have also been skipping her afternoon nap from time to time. I think she may be ready to go to every other day naps...or naps just when she seems like she needs it. We have previously been very regular about getting her nap. I am a firm believer in kids getting good rest, both for their health/growth and for their mommas sanity, ha!

As one of Mags rewards, I had bought her this sleep mask (her 9 year old cousin has one, and Mags thought it was so cool).

She just makes me giggle when I see her in it. She loves wearing it and seems to think it helps with some zzzz's.

My motto is "whatever works"!!!!

Love my sweet sleeping beauty!!!

Nightey night! Yawn!

Love to all,
Leah

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Sweet Grandma Flynt...

2011-07-28T16:13:00.004-05:00

Aren't Grandparents the BEST?!? And Great-grandparents even better?!?

My sweet girls still have all 4 of their grandparents and 5 of their great-grandparents. What an amazing blessing for them. I know this is a real rarity these days.

Last week we went to visit my Grandma Flynt. She lives in a near by retirement complex. We are so thankful that she is close and we can see her often. She has found a fun way to connect with Maggie. She let's her toodle around with her on her scooter and Maggie LOVES it!!!!

She has even started letting Maggie drive some. Only grandmothers would let a four year old drive right? Ha!

She follows the blog...so this video is for you Grandma!!!

Love you tons!
Leah & Maggie

YouTube Video

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Look who is WALKING!!!

2011-07-24T16:50:00.001-05:00

This is too fun not too share!!!

Our sweet Sadie Rose is walking. She is so cute with her wobbly "Bambi" legs. She gets so excited with herself and grins from ear to ear when she has walked a few steps. It is incredible how quickly they master a new skill and so precious to see her grow!!!

Love to all,
Leah

P.S Please excuse my squeal-ey hick voice in the background. I was just soooo excited. :-)

YouTube Video

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Happy 1st Birthday Sadie!

2011-07-13T15:31:00.001-05:00

Our sweet Sadie Rose turned 1 year old on June 29th.

She could not be a more precious daughter. She is just easy, and pleasant and so fun to watch explore and discover her world. This birthday was DOUBLE the fun, because we got to celebrate it with her cousin Claire...who is just 12 days younger than Sadie. My sis in law Jenny and I decided it would be a fun way for us to celebrate both of them. It ended up being a really sweet time with family!

The birthday spread...minus the pizza.

Cupcakes just make me smile!

Sweet Sadie Rose is 1 year old!

Happy as a little clam...

Claire Paisley...precious birthday girl too!

Claire's smash cake...

Sadie's smash cake...

This sums it up for me! Love this plate!!!

Todd and I and our big girl!

My precious family...

Double the fun...cousins!!!

Opening presents...Sadie got a precious charm bracelet. Such a fun thing to have that will grow with her for years to come. Now I, Maggie and Sadie all have one. A true timeless accessory if you ask me. HA!

More presents...

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you...Happy Birthday dear Sadie! Happy Birthday to you!

The messier the BETTER!

I am one blessed Momma, to have both my precious girls. Thank you God for their sweet little lives.

Love to all,

Leah

Sea World San Antonio-June 2011

2011-07-07T16:15:00.002-05:00

To conclude our recent vacation, we stopped through San Antonio on our way home from the coast. We spent 3 nights there and had a ball visiting Sea World. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort. It was Maggie's first time to visit Sea World, and she loved it. Below are some fun pics from our time there.

All of our favorite thing to do there...was visit Dolphin Cove and feed the dolphins. We visited it two different times and spent the most time and $$$ there. It is so fun to get such up close encounters with the dolphins.

We drew a crowd...Ha!

Sadie was not so sure about them...

They just make me smile!

Todd and his girls, checking out the beluga whale and dolphin show called "Azul".

Beluga whale in action...

About to see Shamu...

Momma Shamu and Baby Shamu swimming side by side.

Me and my sweet Sadie Rose...

Momma Shamu and Baby Shamu...

Maggie Caroline...she had a "relapse" with her Nephrotic Syndrome while we were on our trip. She swelled quite a bit from it. This was the worst day for her swelling. Yes...those are cankles. Lasix to the rescue, and the next day she looked so much better.

Sisters...

Love this one...

Maggie's first taste of Dippin' dots ice cream....and sad swollen face and eyes.

Yumm-o!

Nothing cuter to me, than seeing my hubby push the stroller. He is such a good Daddy! We are some blessed girls.

Maggie hitched a ride...

Maggie's first roller coaster...The Shamu express.

On the carousel in the Sesame Street Bay of Play...

Todd and Maggie...

Sweet Sadie was such a trooper in her stroller for 2 days...her eyes just melt my heart!

LOVE her "scrunchy" face...cracks me up!

My LOVES...

Ready to feed the birds in the Lorakeet Aviary...

They drank nectar right from a cup...

California sea lion with her 2 week old pup...

We got to feed them too....

Sea otters...

My little family....

In the aquarium...

The girls and Todd with their plush Shamu and Dolphin to take home.

Ready for a dip in the pool at our resort...

Splish-Splash....

SUCH a fun family trip!

Love to all,

Leah

Family fun in the sun!

2011-07-02T09:34:00.002-05:00

What fun a family beach trip is!

We took a little trip down south to Crystal Beach off of Bolivar Island near Galveston for a week with my side of the family. My parents, brother and wives, and nephews and nieces all went (15 total). We rented a 4 bedroom house right on the beach. It was lovely! I went from pj's to my swim suit and then back to pj's most days...didn't wear makeup for 5 days and didn't drive a car. We ate well, slept well, and played hard in the the ocean. It was a special time away with family to make some memories.

This was the first time for my girls to see and experience the ocean, and they are both FANS now.

Mags on our first day there...

Me and my girl...

Feeding the sea gulls...or as Mag's likes to call them..."beach eagles". Ha!

Sitting in the surf...

Stove-top smores....love them! Aren't those sunkissed faces so cute?

Perfect waves for swimming, playing, ocean kayaking, tubing and boogie boarding. We did them all!

A view from the beach looking towards our house. Ours was the peach colored one, 5th from the right.

Snack time on the shore...

The guys enjoyed a little beach horse-shoes game.

Our little set up, every day. It was perfect. We had shade, transportation, entertainment, food/drink and plenty of sunscreen. What more could you want?

My little family...

My darling parents...

Our entire gang!

My oldest brother Justin and wife Melissa...and their little ones Morgan, Jerod and Joshua.

My other brother Jason and wife Lindsay...and their little ones Macy and Jackson.

Sadie loved the sand and surf...she would crawl all around and loved the freedom.

Such a cutie!

Craft time with Gigi!

My summer girl!

It has been decided that this will be an annual or every other year kind of trip for us. We just had the best time and really got to reconnect and enjoy one another as a family. What a joy and blessing it is to have such a loving and sweet family. They are some of my greatest treasures!

Love to all,
Leah

P.S To finish off the week, Todd and I came home via San Antonio with the girls to go to Sea World and stay at the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort. Pics and a post about that to come soon. :)

Happy 4th Birthday Maggie!!!

2011-06-30T22:54:00.001-05:00

Talk about back-blogged...let''s go back a month and celebrate my big girl turning 4!

It was a happy birthday, indeed for my Maggie Caroline.

We celebrated with 3 of her sweetest girlfriends and had a dress up day at a little local girls salon, called Girly Girl. The girls got to play in the dress up closet, have their nails painted, hair done in an up-do with glitter hairspray and had little glittery eye shadow and lip gloss applied. Then they got to play on the stage with a microphone and be silly. We had snacks, refreshments and cupcakes.

It was a very girly party and I think Maggie and her pals had a fun time!

The refreshments table...

My sweet girl found her way to the dress up closet quite quickly...

Maggie and her cousin Lucy and sweet pal Ashton.

Best of friends...Aubrey, Maggie, Ashton and Lucy.

Getting their up-do's...

My NaNa and Mom got to come too, and they were a big help with Sadie.

My sweet girl, all glittered up. Such a sweet picture of her. She is such a beauty to me.

Getting her nails painted...

Rainbow nails was the choice for all of them...so fun!

Can you say...party nails?!?

Time for cupcakes...

Love this picture, caught her blowing her candle out at the exact time. Love that "making a wish" face!!!

Mags is an icing kind of girl! Yumm-o!

Time for gifts...

Lots of spoiling...she is much loved!

It was a day right up Mag's alley. She loves all things girly and glittery!

And then when she got home...Daddy had our surprise for her. She had quickly outgrown her bike we bought her at Christmas, and it was time for a bigger one. She loves being outside and riding bikes. It's pink and Barbie. She was so excited!

Maggie is our most favorite 4 year old in the world! We love her so much, and feel so blessed that God chose us to be her parents. She in one strong, sweet, precious girl!

Happy 4th Birthday Maggie Caroline! We pray this next year is filled with health, ease, fun and love!

Summer (well almost summer) Cuties!

2011-05-24T04:16:00.000-05:00

My girls both love to be outside...this weather has just been the best lately. We have been riding bikes, doing sidewalk chalk and playing with the neighbor kids almost every night. We are very ready for official summer time fun. We are counting down the minutes until our neighborhood pool opens.

Isn't she just such a doll? We are so smitten with our cutie pie Sadie Rose!

First sandals of the season...man...baby feet in sandals...so adorable!

Maggie has just about rode the tread off of her bicycle. She is already for the next size up. She loves to ride!

These are my favorite times of the year! We are some SUMMER-loving girls!

Love to all,

Leah

Dancing queen...Maggie's tap/ballet recital!

2011-05-22T11:15:00.000-05:00

Maggie has been taking a little class of ballet and tap at our local Community Center. She has enjoyed the time learning some fun moves. She had a small recital yesterday, Friday the 20th. The recital had an Americana theme. She danced to "The Grand Ole Flag", and "God Bless the USA". It was a really fun time for us to see our girl on stage. She did really good!

Our little ballerenia...

First time to wear makeup...a little blush and red lipstick!

Mommy and her little star...

Daddy and his dancing queen...

Waiting in line...

The Grand Ole Flag tap dance...Thats a lot of tutu's, right?

Sister Sadie...being entertained!

Ready for her ballet dance...

Sweet little ballet slippers...

God Bless the USA dance...

After it was all over...the dancers got their very own flag and cute little trophy!

Such a sweet little time for our little dancing queen!

Love to all,

Leah

Owen Thomas Carpenter

2011-05-21T11:10:00.001-05:00

Nothing sweeter, than a newborn babe! Plain and simple...newborns are one of God's greatest gift to me...and all Mommas!

Two weeks ago, today...my heart was filled up again as my best friends precious and perfect 3rd son was born.

Owen Thomas Carpenter (doesn't he have a great name) was born on Saturday May 7th, at 12:59 pm. He weighed 8 lbs 10 oz, and was 21 inches long. He and my Sarah both did superb! They both had a perfect delivery. He had the most beautiful complexion and sweet little head of hair. He was welcomed home by awesome big brothers Clayton (6) and Drew (2). You should visit Sarah's blog HERE, to hear a fun recap of Owen's birthday. It may or may not contain some hilarious antics that include selling a car, Sarah coloring her hair, and last minute packing...all before going to the hospital after her water broke!

Sarah made the pregnancy and delivery seem so easy. I was truly inspired. She bounced right back from a c-section and recovered so quickly (she only took 1 pain pill, she is some kind of super-woman). Her and Wade both have transitioned to 3 kiddos, so smoothly. They seem to have endless energy and patience. We are so glad for their excellent example.

The Hunt's couldn't be happier for our best pals the Carpenters. They have been calling little Owen their "grand finale"...as they think he might be their last...and he is SOOOOO grand, indeed!

Love at first sight! Oh my, he is so YUMMY!

What a precious family of 5!

Sweet Baby Owen

Maggie was smitten from first introduction too.

It is such a gift to share in the blessing of new life. I could not ask for a better friend in my Sarah, and I am so lucky to be a part of her kiddos lives. Oh how I can't wait to see little O grow.

Now, all I need is a 3rd daughter and we will both be set. We have signed in blood, and agreed on arranged marriages for our children. We think they will be perfect matches for one another....and Yes, they have no say in the matter. HA! Then Sarah and I will be not only friends, but family. Pretty smart, huh?

Love to all,

Leah

Maggie & Sadie...everyday pictures!

2011-05-03T11:07:00.002-05:00

I love having just plain ole' everyday pictures of my girls. Everyday pictures of them being silly, with messy hair and not posing...just being themselves. Don't get me wrong though...you know I LOVE some pictures of cutesy matching outfits, with bows and curled hair...but I also want to remember these everyday times of playing and miss matched outfits and living our blessed life.

I love my girls with all my heart. They make everyday special!

Sadie loves to play by the back door on a pretty day. She loves peeking out side and watching the dogs go in and out, as well as her sister. She has been soaking up the beautiful days we had last week (until the rain).

Oh my, these lashes are to-die-for, right! She is never gonna need an ounce of mascara! Love it!

Sadie had a first "girl" milestone last week...her FIRST pony-tail! Ha! It was the tiniest little sprig of hair, but it was super cute. It was a little "Bam-Bam" style. First of many....

Isn't my sweet Maggie just a beauty? The sun was shining on her, the wind was blowing...and she was just glowing. She is the sunshine in our day, and this picture just says that to me.

And then this picture just sums up her little personality these days. She is trying to be so big, and sound so grown up sometimes when she talks. She has recently taken to telling everyone everything with her hand on her hip. I don't know where she picked it up, but we have had many a heart-to-hearts lately on not being sassy and using a kind and sweet tone when she talks.

She loves to be outdoors, and loves to help me water the flowers outside. She was so excited when our little rose bush began to bloom. Caught her sniffin....so cute!

A little side note about our petite rose bush....we call it our "Sadie-Rose" bush. My awesome big brother Justin and his precious family bought it for her and brought it to the hospital when she was born. He said that our Sadie Rose, needed to have her own roses. I am so in love with the plant, I am such a sentimental schmuck...and I love that we will have it for years to come!

I hope you all are having a wonderful week!

Love to all,

Leah

Happy Easter, 2011!

2011-04-25T12:33:00.004-05:00

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of suffering who knew what sickness was...He carried our pains...He was pierced because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities...and we are healed by His wounds.

Isaiah 53:3-5

What a victory we have in Jesus! Praise God...for HE is alive!

I hope your Easter was a sweet time to reflect on the sacrifice God made for us, as well as a time to celebrate our RISEN savior with family and friends!

We had a great time with both sides of the family! Lots of eating, fellowshipping and hunting some eggs.

Love to all,

Leah

My pretty "purple" princesses...in their Easter dresses.

Maggie had a great time finding eggs...hide and seek is one of her favorite games these days...and she said hunting eggs was just like hide and seek, but with CANDY! ha!

Sweet Sadie bug had on her Easter bib...

Daddy and Mag...

The Flynt crew of cousins... ages 11 down to 9 months...Joshua, Jerod, Morgan, Maggie, Sadie, Macy and Jackson.

The Hunt crew of cousins...ages 12 down to 9 months...Davis, Claire, Lincoln, Maggie, Faith, Sadie and Lucy.

Flashback Friday...way back!

2011-04-22T00:01:00.004-05:00

Flashback to 1977 that is...to when Todd was a baby. Her are two pictures from then, I can't believe how much he and Sadie look alike! Two cutie pies, for SURE!!!

He kinda loves having "daddy's girls", and it is even more fun that she is his spitting image!

Todd was 7 months old here...

And 1 year old here...

Here is Sadie at 7 months...

And then here at 9 months...

Maggie looks alot like him too, but not as much as Sadie.

Here is Maggie at 7 months...

And then again at 9 months...

I think he marked them GOOD!

Love my precious little Todd-ette's! Ha!

Sadie Rose---9 months!

2011-04-12T06:46:00.002-05:00

Our sweet Sadie Rose is 9 months old (as of 3/29...I am a little behind on my blogging). My, oh my...how time flies.

Some Sadie Stats:

wt.: 19 lbs 6 oz (on our home scale...pedi appt. coming up on 4/27)

sizes: size 3 diapers, 12 months clothes

eating habits: She is still loving baby food...pretty much anything we give her she will eat. She is drinking water and juice from a sippy cup and is a huge fan of puffs or cheerios. She gets two fists fulls of cheerios and crams as many as she can in her mouth at a time. She nurses or takes a bottle 4-5 times a day. We are beginning the weaning process. She is doing just like Maggie did around this age. Very easily distracted and uninterested in nursing as much. We really are only doing it 2-3 times (morning/night) a day and supplementing with a bottle the rest of the time. I am very proud and thankful to have been able to breastfeed this long.

sleep: Takes 2 naps a day, morning and afternoon (usually1.5 hour long), and has an occasional little last cat nap at the end of the day (30 minutes). She usually is in bed by 8 or 8:30 and wakes between 7-8. She is finally sleeping the entire night through...as of this week. She hasn't woken up to eat in 6 straight days. Hallelujah!

activity: We have a crawler! Sadie is on the move...everywhere. She is so fast, too. She travels from room to room, follows the dogs and Maggie around and is loving her new found freedom. She loves to play in the floor with her musical/noisy toys, still likes to bounce in her exersaucer and likes to be outside. She is such a content and easy going girl. Whatever we are doing...she seems to be happy about, as long as she has a toy or something to look at or do. I have noticed in the last 2 days, that she is starting to pull up to her knees...won't be long before she can pull up to her feet and cruise. Sadie loves our animals, and smiles, squeals and bounces whenever she finds them or sees them. She claps all day long, plays with her feet and toes and has become a little copy cat. We can click our tongue or blow a zurbert...or make a noise and she will do it right back. It's pretty cute! She is saying Dada and Momma a lot, and trying to say dog...I think. We are so thankful for her sweet demeanor. Sadie has 2 teeth, and 2 more on the move coming in. They are all her bottom teeth. None on the top yet. Sadie is still a huge fan of bath time too.

Sadie had her first overnight stay away from Momma & Daddy this month. She stayed at Gigi and Papa's house for 2 nights while we went to Vegas for a little getaway. She did pretty good, except for waking during the night to play. Ha, she thought she would get all the time she could with Gigi...even if it was at 2 in the morning.

It is such a joy to have Sadie in our lives and we thank God for her everyday!

Loving dinner time!!!

Our little bathing beauty!

Little sister Sadie...

Love you sweet Sadie-bug!!!!

A little getaway...

2011-04-10T18:47:00.012-05:00

Viva, Las Vegas!!!!

Last week, Todd and I were able to getaway on a little 2 night/3 day trip to good ole' Las Vegas. Todd had a business expo/conference to attend, and his boss-man and him collaborated and decided it would be a perfect trip to include wives on. A little business, and a lot of pleasure. Yay, for me and Nancy (Todd's boss Brad's wife, whom I adore!).

We slept all night long, uninterrupted....we slept in late....we ate grown up food...and had adult conversation. We had quality time to reconnect and be a couple. It was glorious fun!

Some of the highlights of the trip were staying at the Paris Hotel, touring through The Bellagio hotel flower gardens, seeing the Cirque Du Soleil show "Mystere", eating at Hugo's Cellar, riding in a limo for the first time and checking out Fremont Street.

We were really excited to be away for a few days....and then equally excited to come home! We were refreshed, rested and ready to be a family of 4 again. Our sweet girls got to spend their "stay-cation" at my parents house. They had a great visit, and were totally spoiled by the time we got home by Gigi and Papa. They played, swung, crafted, saw their cousins, swam in the hot tub, cooked and played games.

Thank you Mom and Daddy for watching the girls, we are ever so grateful!

In the airport, fun little sign...

In front of the hotel...

My honey and I...

Brad and Nancy Bryant...Todd's boss and wife. A darling couple, that we get along with super! Todd is really blessed to work with and for Brad. He and Todd are a lot alike, and Brad has really mentored Todd over the last (almost) 5 years. We really enjoyed getting to know them more on this trip.

A beautiful fountain in our hotel at The Paris...

In front of The Bellagio fountain...with The Paris in the background

A view of the Eiffel Tower...

More Eiffel Tower...looks exactly like the real one (saw the real one 13 years ago).

Replica of the Arc di Triomphe...

Down on Fremont Street...

Our limo...

A floral masterpiece in the Bellagio flower garden...yes...that entire picture is made out of different fresh flowers.

More Bellagio flower garden...

Such beauty...and ALL made from fresh flowers. It smelled so good...I told Todd I thought it was what heaven would smell like!

Just because...

2011-04-01T16:00:00.003-05:00

Just because they are too cute, not to share...

Just because, they are my sunshine...

Just because, their smiles melt my heart...

Just because, they are sweet sisters...

Just because, they are MINE and I am a proud Momma and I love seeing pictures of my girls!

Happy Weekend, Everyone!!!

Love to all,

Leah

22 days!!!

2011-03-31T20:51:00.010-05:00

22 days...a small victory for our sweet Maggie Caroline! She made it 22 whole days (out of the last 8 months) with no steroids at all...before relapsing. It's not exactly the outcome we had hoped and prayed for recently. But we are completely and peacefully trusting in God's greater plan.

Her relapse began 2 weeks ago on March 17th. It seemed this time, to be brought on by some simple and mild spring allergies (sneezing, itchy eyes and nose). With nephrotic syndrome, anything that stimulates Maggie's immune system can trigger a relapse. As we have learned, even innocent mild allergies can trigger a relapse. We were able to hold off on starting her steroids for almost another week after her initial onset of protein. But after a week, the symptoms began to show...swelling, fluid retention in her face and belly and discomfort.

She has been back on her full dose of steroids, daily now for a week. She is still measuring a +4 for protein in her urine (scale of 0-4...4 being the highest measurable), but has an occasional 2 or 3. She has been on Lasix daily as well to help rid her body of the excess fluid retention. She gained about 3 pounds of extra fluid weight, and she is about a half pound away from being back close to her "dry" weight. Good progress for just a week! We will be able to start weaning on her dose as soon as she is negative or trace for protein in her urine for 5 straight days.

So 22 days is exciting for us. We are hopeful that her body gained back some immune system function (steroids suppress your immune system) during those 22 days and that her liver rested.

It was amazing to see our true and normal Maggie back for those 22 days. The steroids really affect her little personality and our day to day interactions.

We are uncertain of the future at this time, but feel pretty confident that a kidney biopsy (anesthesia/24 hour hospital stay) and a course of Cytoxan (8 weeks of a daily oral Chemo pill) will be the recommended next treatment plan, based on past conversations with her doctor. We will see her kidney doctor on April 25th and discuss her treatment.

For now we are filled up by God's grace and sufficiency. These last couple of months have been good for both Todd and I and our relationship with the Lord. When we are weak we are reminded by 2nd Corinthians 4:16-18 that there is a greater purpose for the events of life and through, and in Him we are inwardly renewed day by day.

We have found great comfort in Psalms 139 that reminds us that God knows Maggie inside and out, and that He knit her together in my womb with a purpose. We are striving to be close to God so that His purpose is our purpose. We are casting our cares and fears upon Him to carry.

The more priority we give Him in our life, the less we are distracted by the burdens of our circumstances. We are committed to seek God and His wisdom and discernment as we move forward.

Our sweet girl is truly a blessing to our life and home. She has taught her Momma and Daddy so much.

If you happen to read this, would you please pray for her? For complete healing. We are ever so grateful for all of your prayers and concern!

Fervent prayer, can accomplish great things.

Love to all,

Leah

Update on Maggie...

2011-03-10T16:04:00.009-06:00

I am overjoyed to report that our Maggie is in remission with her nephrotic syndrome and OFF her steroids now for 8 days!!!!!

Praise the Lord! HE is the great and mighty healer!

The combination of remission and being steroid free is a first for us in 7 months. We honestly did not think we could be any happier...until yesterday. To top these last glorious 8 steroid free days off... yesterday we received information on some lab work that Maggie had drawn last Friday. It was a follow up lab draw to evaluate her levels while in remission and off the steroids. Her labs were basically normal!!!!!

Yes, I said normal.

The key areas of concern were greatly improved. For example, Maggie has had super high cholesterol as a result of the nephrotic syndrome (just one of those crazy side effects from protein spillage). Her cholesterol level has been around 400-450...normal is usually 125-170. Her latest report from last Friday showed her cholesterol was 190! Also, Maggie's albumin (blood protein) levels have always been super low from spilling protein in her urine... around 1.3-1.8... and normal is 3.6-5.1...and Friday's labs showed it at 4.3!!! She also had some liver function labs drawn, since her steroids were processed through her liver, just to evaluate if there has been stress or damage to her liver after 7 months of the drug...and all of her liver levels were normal.

I hate to say it, because it makes me sound pessimistic and faithless...but I was so surprised at the excellent report. I normally don't care for surprises....but this one...I LOVED. We are just so thankful to see that when Mags is back to normal...she is still our healthy, strong, resilient girl. God is so good, and "able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us (Ephesians 3:20)".

We are going to continue to stay close to home for the next few weeks, venturing out into the "germy" community as little as possible (trying to keep Maggie from getting any little illnesses). Mags will see her kidney doctor on April 25th, and we would love to be able to "show off" at his office, that Maggie is still in remission and off her steroids. We know that if she doesn't relapse again for a while, then the chemo drug treatment won't be an immediate threat.

However, today was a day to celebrate for us...so we ventured out. Celebrating 8 days with no steroids and excellent lab results, woohoo. So we headed to the park for a picnic lunch and playtime. It has been a beautiful sunny day here...75 degrees and tons of sunshine.

We met mine and Mag's best pals (Sarah & Clayton) at our favorite park and played for 3 hours! Never fear...FYI: we "de-germed", as soon as we got home with a bath and fresh change of clothes. Ha. Yes, I have become THAT mother.

Enjoy some pics from our time at the park!

Love to all,

Leah

Our precious Maggie Caroline...

Got crack...just couldn't resist!

Clayton & Maggie...best pals...and future husband and wife...that is if Sarah & I have any say in the matter! :)

This is Sadie's "scrunchy face" smile...so darn cute!!!

Sweet Sadie-bug...loving some time outdoors too!

Sadie Rose---8 months!

2011-03-07T16:22:00.002-06:00

Last Tuesday, the 29th marked our sweet Sadie Rose's 8 month birthday!

She is such a joyous little blessing to our family. She continues to be such an easy going and pleasant little thing. We are loving this smiley, silly, learning constantly, rolling everywhere and super cheerful stage.

Some Sadie Stats...

wt.: 17 lbs 5 oz

Size/clothes: 9 & 12 month, size 3 diapers

Eating habits: Sadie is a great eater! She is up to eating three baby food meals a day, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Usually oatmeal and a fruit for breakfast, a meat/veggie combo for lunch, and rice cereal, a veggie and a fruit for dinner. She still nurses 4-5 times a day. She is drinking water and juice from a sippy cup. Just a few sips after each meal. She has also started eating "puffs" (for you non-baby people...they are a grain based finger food that looks like dry cereal, that basically melts in their mouths without much chewing).

Sleep: Sadie is a good sleeper, but not a great one. She sleeps from around 8:30 pm until around 8:30 am. She usually wakes around 3-4 am or occasionally 5 for a feed...then goes back to sleep until 8:30. I know technically she is sleeping "through" the night...an 8 hour stretch...but it is still a little rough getting up during the night. She takes 2 naps a day, usually each for 1.5 hour.

Activity: Sadie loves to play...play in the floor, in her exersaucer, in the tub, in the highchair, in the walker....etc. She is learning so much through all of her play time. She really likes her toys that make noise or sing to her. She is not crawling yet, but instead is rolling everywhere. She will get up and rock on all 4's, but hasn't figured out her forward motion. She loves to clap, say "ma-ma-ma-ma" and "da-da-da-da"...she clicks her tongue, and blows "zurberts" (don't know what else to call them?) all the time. Her favorite times of the day are when she first wakes up from sleep, and right after bath time when she is getting lotioned up. She loves her little massage time. Sadie still just has her 2 little bottom teeth. No others in sight, yet.

Sadie loves "face time". She just wiggles, and giggles and jumps whenever you talk to her or look at her, and especially when you go in to get her up from sleep. She gets soooo excited. Her smile makes you feel so loved, happy and important. Funny how a little tiny baby can do that, right?

Sadie-Bug, oh how we love you! You bless us every minute!

Success

2011-02-24T11:41:00.009-06:00

Long post ahead...

We are having success, with our "operation---keep the kids well" mission!!! Praise the Lord for this.

We are rejoicing in the fact that our Maggie is finally doing good concerning her kidney disorder. Over the last 7 months (since diagnosis of nephrotic syndrome) she has experienced 4 periods of relapse. A relapse being a time period where she takes major steps backwards and has an acute onset of her worst symptoms. She will go all the way back up on her protein spillage in her urine (to a +4, on a scale of 0-4, 4 being the worst), she will swell all over her body (especially in her face and belly), she will gain 3-5 pounds of fluid weight, and have an over all feeling of ick! When she has relapsed we would have to treat with her big dose of steroids daily and also give her a diuretic medication to help her loose the extra fluid, so her heart, lung and kidneys would not be overloaded. It has generally taken her around 2-3 weeks to get "turned back around" and have an improvement in her symptoms. Every one of her relapses has been associated with an illness. Most being, very mild viral illnesses...ex. runny nose, slight cough. Although one time, it was an ear infection too. So we have determined that anything that stimulates her immune system (like a cold) triggers her body into relapse.

Sooooo, that is why we are focusing so hard on keeping her well right now. In the last 7 months, we have never been able to wean completely OFF of the steroids. Long term, constant steroid exposure is not good for children. So we are so happy to report, that we are a mere DAYS away from weaning off of them for the first time. WOOHOO!!!! We are so excited and cautious at the same time. This would be a huge success for Mags, to come off of the steroids...even if it is just for a few weeks or a month. Although, we are so prayerful...that she will go into a more long term remission.

After our visit with her nephrologist a few weeks ago we were told that we had 2 months to get/keep her into remission, wean off the steroids and keep her well. Dr. Pena said that he considered Mags relapses to be "frequent", and generally he would move forward with more agressive treatment. But with the season we are in (cold, flu, RSV) and the fact that all relapses had been associated with an illness...he would give us one more chance (or another 2 month trial). After this visit is when we decided it was time to make some drastic changes.

We are hibernating at home, for lack of a better word. We are avoiding the general public at all cost. We have pulled Maggie out of her preschool and church (just too many other kids with germs). We are avoiding the grocery store, playdates and play yards. We have become Nazi's about washing our hands, eating loads of fruits/veggies and getting plenty of rest. We have also started Maggie on some homeopathic/nutritional supplements to help boost and balance her immune system, cleanse her liver and support healthy cell growth (my sweet girl takes 8 different medications/supplements daily, ugh).

We are very hopeful that this remission will last a while. If she relapses again. We will have to move forward with the more aggressive treatment plan. This will include a kidney biopsy, so we can identify and confirm exactly what the cells in her kidney look like and evaluate the kidney damage (this will mean anesthesia and an overnight hospital stay). Then we would begin to treat her with the next level of drugs. The medication is a chemo drug, called Cytoxan. Thankfully, the dose of Cytoxan will be smaller than the dosage an actual cancer patient would receive, and therefore hopefully the side effects will be smaller too. The treatment would be for 8-12 weeks. We are not certain yet if she would be a candidate for the at home, oral form of the Cytoxan or if she would have to be hospitalized for weekly IV infusions. We will just cross that bridge if we have too....

We would covet your prayers in the most sincere way! Specifically, prayer that she stays in remission, continues to wean off her steroids and stays well!!!!

Again, looking at Maggie you would hardly know she had any issue at all...and for this we are extremely thankful for this precious mercy from God. She is still mostly happy, energetic and indifferent to being homebound. Her sleep disruption is still the primary difficulty for her and me (just a side effect of 7 months of steroids). She gets up usually 2-3 times a night.

We have been enjoying the last week or so of SUNSHINE! Maggie helped Todd wash our cars in the driveway, and Sadie has been sitting in her high chair and exersaucer soaking up some sunshine (and Vitamin D) with our back door open. Some fresh air in the house....does a body good!

MUCH, much love to all...and thank you for your care and concern for our sweet family!

Leah

Some Daddy/Daughter time outside!

Some car washing cuties!

Sweet Sadie Rose soaking up some sunshine and fresh air...

Love this little grin!

P.S Stay tuned for an 8 months post all about our Sadie-bug. She will be 8 month old in 4 days!

The faces I love...

2011-02-07T21:35:00.005-06:00

These are the precious faces I love...faces of my babies when they are WELL!

We have had our far share of sickness this last month. And below are the faces of nephrotic syndrome and RSV! Blehhhh!

Maggie got a mild cold back in early January. The cold triggered another relapse with her nephrotic syndrome. She had massive proteins back in her urine and gained close to 4 pounds of extra fluid. You can see in this picture how swollen her eyes, cheeks and nose get when she retains that extra fluid (not to mention fluid in her belly and chest too).

It took about 3 weeks this time (after her full dose of steroids and lasix) to get her turned back around...meaning trace proteins in her urine and loosing her extra fluid. She had a renal sonogram and some lab work to evaluate her kidney & liver function two weeks ago, and we will see her kidney specialist this Thursday for a follow up after those tests.

Every time Mag has had a mild viral cold, she has experienced a relapse (we have had 4 relapses total) with her kidneys. We are 7 months into treatment and have not been able to come off of the steroids yet. This is our immediate goal...stay well, then wean on her steroids...hopefully to wean off over the next few weeks. We are also looking into some homeopathic alternatives to strengthen her kidneys, liver and immune system.

We praise God that through all of this, Maggie has been relatively pain free and mostly herself. She still has some pretty bad sleep disruptions from the steroids, and has had to have some mild diet and fluid restrictions when she is swollen...but overall, you might not ever even notice she was sick. She has gotten very brave and mature about seeing doctors, having test and labs drawn. I am very proud of her "roll with the punches" attitude. She is the light of our life and keeps us smiling every day!

As if dealing with Maggie's poor kidneys, wasn't enough. We had to see our little Sadie-bug get sick this last week too. She was diagnosed with RSV(a bad respiratory virus) last Wednesday. She has had a fever, a ton of drainage and a wicked cough. She had wheezes and some increase in her work of breathing. We have been doing breathing treatments every 4-6 hours with a home nebulizer since Wednesday, and she is finally doing a lot better. She too handled her sickness like a doll and has been mostly happy during the entire sickness. In fact, her pediatrician nicknamed her a "happy-wheezer". She had a decrease in appetite, and some sleep disruptions too (but hey... I was already up and awake with Mag...so whats one more awake child at 2 o'clock in the morning, right?).

The Lord is good, and is always asking us to rely on Him more. I know in the book of James scripture says we are to count it JOY when he asks us to endure a trial. For me having sick kiddos IS a trial. I always worry so much when they are sick. My worry is a sin, and I am constantly working on repenting of this sin and turning away from it!!! Anyone else out there in the blog-o-spere struggle with this sin?

His mercies are new each day, indeed! I have learned so much about prayer for my children and have had some very sweet time of prayer with God talking about my babies.

So for now...we are in full-on "Operation-keep-everyone-well" mode! We are hibernating at home until March when all of the flu/rsv/cold crud is done. We have pulled Mag out of preschool, she is skipping church for a while, no more trips to Wal-mart and we are doing our best to keep clean hands! Any other suggestions?

Love to all,

Leah

Dancing queen...

2011-01-20T11:18:00.000-06:00

Well, we officially have a "dancing queen" in our house. Mag's is enrolled in her first little ballet/tap class once a week. She loves to dance, love to read about Angelina Ballerina and loves to make noise (she can make those taps shoes tap, ha)...so we thought this little class would be perfect.

She takes it at our local community center, once a week for 45 minutes. It is a small class of just 8 girls ranging from 3-5 in age. She gets to be around other little girls, learn to move gracefully, follow instructions...and it is a great way for her to exert some of that "steroid induced" energy (yes, we are still on them), too. We were so blessed to find this affordable little class (just $28 for 8 weeks).

I was only able to snap one photo before Miss Mindy, Mag's teacher kindly reminded me there was no photography during class (at least until the last day of class). Something about being a distraction and all...ha! So true! Anyway...so one action shot is all you got. You will have to tune back in in about 6 weeks for more dancing queen shots!

Love to all,

Leah

First day of class...so hard to smile and concentrate at the same time!

All PINKED out...nothing cuter than a little ballerina!

Big & Lil Hoot's!!!

2011-01-19T11:11:00.002-06:00

Our Big and Lil' Hoot's!!! Hoot-owl's that is...ha!

Couldn't get them to pose and show their shirts both at the same time. But, Sadie's says "Lil Hoot" and Mag's says "Big Hoot". So cute, right!

Thank you Aunt Jenny for these darling little matching outfits! We love tutu's and we love zebra print....a few of our favorite things!

Sadie Rose (6 months) & Maggie Caroline (3.5 years)...

Love to all,

Leah

Sadie Rose---6 months old!

2011-01-06T15:16:00.012-06:00

On December 29th, our sweet Sadie Rose turned six months old...a half of a year! How can this be??? These last 6 months have just zoomed by.

We are so blessed that Sadie is our daughter. She is truly such a delightful little thing. She hardly ever cries, smiles and talks all the time, goes with the flow and is such a sweet girl. She is super into playtime these days. She loves her "exersaucer" and "johnny jump up". She is especially into bouncing/jumping too. She can make her exersaucer almost come off the ground she gets to jumping so much. It cracks us up. She gets so proud of herself and smiles so big while she is jumping. She is grasping anything in sight, laughing out loud, baby talking (lots of screams and squeals) and smiles the biggest for Maggie and when she sees our cats (Great...another cat lover in the house...I am seriously out numbered as a dog lover)!

We had many first this month, too. She experienced her first major holidays Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years...she had her first tastes of cereal, oatmeal and veggies...and she drank from a sippy cup of water also. She can now roll from back to front and from front to back easily.

I have to admit the last 6 months of a childs first year go by so quickly in my mind. It seems like from here to the first birthday they are accomplishing so much. Sitting, standing, crawling, cruising, walking, talking...whew. I don't know if I am ready.

Some Sadie stats:

Wt: We go for her 6 month pedi appt. in a week, so no official wt/length...but best I can tell on our home scale...she is 17.5 lbs.

Size: Some 6, 9 and 12 month clothes...varies with brand. Size 3 diapers.

Play/sleep: She loves to play in the floor on her tummy with toys around her, in her exersaucer and johnny jump up, she is sitting inside her boppy pillow unassisted, loves music, rattles and seeing herself in the mirror. We are not using the bumbo chair or the swing much anymore. She is a good sleeper, still. She takes 2 to 3 naps a day...ranging from 1-2.5 hours. She sleeps only about 8-9 hours at night (usually from 8:30-5:30 or 6...then nurses and goes back down until 8 or 9).

Eating: She still nurses every 3-4 hours...5ish times a day, she had her first solids recently, too. First cereal on 11/26, first oatmeal 12/27, first veggie (peas) 12/30, drank from a sippy cup of water 01/02. Right now we are just doing solids at night time for dinner and then just nurses the rest of the time during the day. We are going to start adding a solid food meal in the morning next week. Sadie's first little 2 teeth are working their way in.

More firsts: 11/26 rolled from back to front, 12/5 first time in the johnny jump up, 12/27 sat unassisted in a boppy, first over night sleeping somewhere besides home 12/18 at my parents home for Christmas, 12/30 first sight of first tooth...1/5 first sight of second tooth!

We love our Sadie-bug...enjoy some pics from her 5th and 6th month.

Love to all,

Leah

Exersauc-ing is hard work...ha! She fell totally asleep while I had gone out of the room to switch over some laundry...but look, she never let go of her toy!

First cereal...yum yum! She did well and seemed to like it.

Aren't her hazel/grayish eyes so beautiful???

Sweet profile and gummy grin!

Sadie Rose--6 months

Sisters and best friends!!! At least I hope they will be...:)!

Life lately...in pictures!

2010-12-29T23:36:00.007-06:00

Hello all! Long time, no see!

I guess life has just been busy. Can't imagine why, right? With a 3.5 year old on steroids and an a 6 month old...I have tons of extra time....NOT! Not complaining, though. Just sad I have slacked so much on my blogging. I promise to do better!

Seeing as how it has been two months and two major holidays since my last post...I am going to cut a few corners and just do a..."Life lately" post and catch up a little in pictures!

Love to all and thanks for keeping up with our little life!

Leah

Thanksgiving 2010

Sadie Rose, 5 months old, always so smiley!

Maggie Caroline...still loves to paint. I swear we do it almost every single day! Wonder if she will paint when she is older, too?

Sadie loves her tubby time...its her most favorite time of the day!

Sweet sisters...

Maggie Caroline...this is one of my all time favorite pics of her. I LOVE her sweet smile, red piggy tails, and her innocent tilt of the head!

Sadie Rose and one last "gummy smile" picture...she is working on getting her first tooth! Sniffle, sniffle...can't they just stay little forever?

More tubby time...together! We are just doing our part to conserve water...ha!?!

Sisters forever...

Christmas pj's...Christmas Eve!

Maggie and her pink tree...

Christmas morning together...

My family...so blessed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Precious family...

2010-11-09T14:34:00.003-06:00

Oh, how precious family truly is!!!

What a huge blessing longevity and health is as well. My girls and I got a sweet treat today. We got to go see 3 precious ladies in my family. My Grandmother (my Dad's mom) and 2 of my Great Aunts. One of my Great Aunts is in town visiting my Grandmother and Sister from North Carolina. They are all in the 80's to 90's, so traveling like this is only on rare occasions. They have been making the most of their time together visiting, seeing family, playing games and staying up late talking. What sweet fellowship for sisters to share.

I love them all dearly, and am so thankful for their amazing examples of womanhood, wifehood (they are all 3 widows now) and most importantly women of God!

Love you Grandma, Aunt Lois and Aunt Sybil!

Of course, I had my camera...and had to get a few pics of my girls with them. Maggie and Sadie are #6 and #7 Great Grand children for my Grandma, too!

My precious Grandma Flynt with Sadie and Maggie!

Aunt Lois and Aunt Sybil with Magie and Sadie!

Love to all,

Leah

More back blogging...10/31/10!

2010-11-09T14:20:00.003-06:00

Catching up on some back-blogging...Halloween 2010!

Although, as a family, Halloween is not one of our favorite holidays...we love costumes and seeing the girls dressed up is always so much fun. This year we had a little kitty cat and Strawberry Shortcake on our hands. We were able to attend a sweet little Fall festival in our area with family. Maggie especially loved it. There was a pony ride, a hay ride, games, food and fun!

On actual Halloween night, we passed out candy and pamphlets on salvation and how to get to heaven (our church had 7000 tracks printed for the members to pass out on Halloween, cool, right?). This was the first time in our nearly 8 years of marriage that I have been home, and not at work on Halloween night to pass out candy. Maggie really had fun seeing all of our neighbors and handing out candy. She would squeal and run to the door when the door bell would ring.

I love sharing pictures of our girls with you all...and hope my little Kitty and SS bring a smile to you!

Love to all,

Leah

The cutest little black kitty you ever did see...Sadie Rose 4 months.

Sweet old fashioned Strawberry Shortcake...Maggie Caroline 3.5 years old.

Sisters...

I love my girls...

Daddy and his girls....

Sadie Rose---4 months old!

2010-10-29T22:33:00.005-05:00

Our Sadie Rose turned 4 months old on October 29th. I am a little back-blogged...but better late than never, right?

It is so hard to believe my baby is already 4 months old. I have found myself on numerous occasions "stalling" Sadie...that is wanting her to stay a little baby as LONG as possible. Oh, how I love little babies!!!

This fourth month has been as wonderful as the others. Sadie continues to be an easy, pleasant and sweet baby. She eats, plays and sleeps. She has developed so much more coordination this month. She loves to play in her play gym, brings everything up to her mouth and has become more vocal. She smiles all the time and just lights up anytime anyone talks to her. She is super ticklish on her neck and collar bones and will giggle when you tickle her there. So cute!!!! Video of this giggle to come soon. :)

In the last few days we have graduated Sadie to some of her more mature toys...the exersaucer, Bumbo chair and jumperoo. So far, she is loving them.

We are so blessed to be Sadie's parents! Oh how we love our sweet girl!

Sadie's 4 month stats:

wt: 14 lb 12 oz (75% percentile)

length: 25.5 inches (50th percentile)

size 2 diapers, so close to size 3's

clothes: size 6 month, with size 9 month PJ's

eating: still nursing every 3-4 hours, takes 4 or 5 naps a day still and sleeps from around 8:30 pm until around 4 -6ish a.m then back down until 8 0r 9 a.m.

likes/dislikes: still loves bath time, her fingers and paci, music and her sister...dislikes her Poly-vi-sol vitamins (don't blame her), not a huge fan of tummy time these days either...usually

only last about five minutes.

firsts: 10/2 first pumpkin patch, 10/20 first time to roll over, did it twice in one day and hasn't done it again since (from tummy to back), 10/26 first time in the Bumbo chair, 10/27 first fall festival, 10/31 first costume/Halloween (a little black kitty cat), 11/2 first ear infection :( , 11/5 first time in the exersaucer.

This is how our girl spends a big part of her day...she has LOVED her play gym!

Tummy time...

Sweet little grin!

Love this doll face!!!!

She has started loving to stand up, when we hold her...I was trying to get an action shot! Ha!

Love to all,

Leah

Go RANGERS!!!

2010-10-27T12:39:00.000-05:00

Good luck Texas Rangers in game #1 of the World Series!!!

Our little Ranger's fan in Daddy's hat! Sadie Rose almost 4 months...

Love to all,

Leah

Just for fun...

2010-10-26T21:30:00.002-05:00

Just for fun...I thought I would compare some pictures that I had of my girls in similar poses and outfits...at the same age. I see some similarities, but they are definitely different girls. It is so crazy how much bigger Maggie was too. She out weighed Sadie by over 1.5 pounds at this same age.

Love my sweet girls!!! Can't wait to see their similarities and differences over the years.

Love to all,

Leah

Sadie Rose 3.5 months

Maggie Caroline 4 months

Sadie Rose 3.5 months

Maggie Caroline...3 months

10 things on 10/10/10!!!

2010-10-10T16:51:00.008-05:00

So, I thought I would do a "10 random things Hunt update" in honor of the day that is upon us.

Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend!

Lots of love to all,

Leah

1.10 inches...that's right 10! I recently cut off 10 inches of my hair and donated it to the "Locks of Love" organization that makes wigs from donated hair for cancer patients undergoing Chemotherapy. I have a friend battling ovarian cancer at the young age of 30. She is being so strong, brave and courageous...and I was inspired to do something for someone in her same shoes. I am so blessed to have good health, and hope that my tiny little donation will bless someone. Such a cool organization, don't ya think?

2. We have all been sickly these last 10 days or so. Todd and I have both been battling allergies, drainage and sore throats....then the girls both got sick this week and are both on antibiotics for 10 days. Mags had a sinus infection and poor Sadie bug had the H-flu (haemopholus influenza). Ugh, I sure hope we have a WELL fall and winter. Sick kiddos is the worst, to me!

3. I love cupcakes!!! I have been learning to bake them and frost them. I have made at least 8 dozen of them in the last month for various birthdays, baby showers and just because. Ha! Also, we have two new little cupcake joints in our town. Such a fun little treat, that just makes me feel happy.

4. On the cupcake note...weight loss...ha! The Hunt house has recently been a little lighter. Before I delivered Sadie, Todd and I had decided that after delivery...we were gonna get healthier. We had been inspired by my Mom, who has lost 55 pounds in the last 9 months. We followed in her footsteps and have declared our home a "low carb" home. We have been eating tons of fruit, veggies, lean meats and salads. We have dropped most sweets, with the exception of a cupcake here and there (snicker out loud...:) ). The modification has worked well for us as Todd has lost almost 25 pounds and I have lost 49 (including my 30 lbs. of preggo weight). Yay for us!!! We are proud of ourselves...this has not been easy because we LOVE to eat!

5. The terrible/difficult 3's & separation anxiety... We have hit a bit of some tough times with our sweet Maggie. She was a doll through the 2's, but the 3's have been more difficult. She has lately seemed so much more whiney, moody and dramatic. She has really been struggling with separation anxiety, too. When I leave for work, even though its just a few times a month...or when I have left her at preschool...the tears come. It is so heartbreaking for me. I hate it when she is so sad and upset. Everyone keeps reassuring me it is a phase, but I sure did like my confident and brave Maggie and hope we see her again soon. In her defense, I know she has had a lot going on in her little life lately. The birth of her sister, her kidney illness and steroid therapy (they are a huge contributor to he moodyness), preschool....etc. I pray for patience and wisdom daily, and could use some extra doses of it lately. Any ideas, suggestions, encouragement...fellow bloggers?

6.Fall Ball---my hot-Toddy is playing fall softball and LOVING it. He would love it so much more if they could just win too...but it is all in the name of fun and fellowship. We are so glad to have some nice weather to go and root on our favorite player in. It is fun to see him play, and I know he is having fun. Games are on Fridays, if any of you ever want to come and watch. :)

7. Scentsy...? Anyone heard of this? It is a flameless candle/fragrance company. I have one in my home and change the fragrances out every few days. I love for my home to smell yummy and have loved my Scentsy warmer. I am thinking of hosting a fall Scentsy party here at my house, November 6th. Anyone think they would want to come?

8. NYC---my precious mom and aunt are going on a super fun, all girls...trip of a lifetime next week. They are making their way to NYC! They will be there for 5 days. They are doing all the NYC typical stuff...subway, Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Chinatown, Broadway...etc. To say I am jealous of their trip...is a bit of an understatement. I have always wanted to go to NYC...someday, right?

9. Iphone....woohoo, I got one. My cell phone had recently bit the dust, so my hubs decided I could get an Iphone. I love it. It is really awesome. Its like a little computer, gps, calendar and tv all rolled into one. Thanks babe, for getting it for me. :)

10. TV...so glad good shows are back on. We are some TV people. Todd and I have several favorite shows that were not on this summer, and we are so glad to have some shows on with some plot. Some of our favorites are Survivor, The Amazing Race, CSI: Miami, NY and Vegas, Chuck, The Office. Todd's faves are...Golf Channels "Big Break" and Hawaii 5-0 and my faves are Vampire Diaries and 90210...I know I am such a "teeney bopper" at heart!

Okay...thats all I can think of....so RaNdOm...I know!

First Pumpkin Patch of the year...

2010-10-06T16:56:00.006-05:00

Last Friday, was our official first visit to the pumpkin patch this year. The weather has been so beautiful here the last week or so, and we were thrilled to have a fun outdoor activity to do...without melting. Ha! We loaded up with some of our favorite people, The Carpenter's, and headed north to a sweet little patch up in Wise County near my parents house. My Mom also joined us for the day once we got there. My girls loved spending the morning with their Gigi.

It was a darling place, owned by a family that I have known for years. The very best part of the trip was that we had the entire place...ALL to ourselves. It was only the patches second official day to be open to the public this year and we were so happy to be the only ones there. What a treat!

The pumpkin patch had all of our favorite things...a fish pond, a petting zoo with bunnies, goats and baby chicks...a corn maze, bounce house and swinging bridge/slide...face painting, pumpkins to buy and a barrel train ride. We had a super time and were able to get a few sweet Fall pictures from the day, too.

We topped off the day with some McDonald's for lunch, and everyone was down for a nap by 3! Whew, what fun. Hope to get to a few more pumpkin patches again soon. Such a fun Fall activity!

Love to all,

Leah

Clayton, Drew and Maggie feeding the fish...

Holding a baby chick...they were only 2 weeks old! So fun for my little animal lover to be so close and get to hold one.

How cute, right? Bunnyville!

Me and my girls...

Impossible to get them both looking in the same direction....

Sisters...

My Mom and I...what a wonderful Momma I have!

My bestie....my Sarah blesses me so much!

The barrel train ride...hold on Mag!

In the pumpkins...

Feeding the goats....

This one is for Mag's Poppa!!! A city girl can be country, too??? He will be proud!

Pals checking out the swinging bridge/slide!

A pink pumpkin face painting!

HAPPY FALL, Y'ALL!!!!

Ranger game...2010

2010-10-01T16:40:00.004-05:00

This last Thursday our family got to take a trip to the ballpark in Arlington to see the Rangers play. It was a Hunt family night at the ballpark. We were invited to go with Todd's brother Clay and his two oldest kiddos Lincoln and Lucy. Then we found out that his other brother Craig and wife Mandy and kiddos Davis and Faith were also going to the game as well. It was a gorgeous fall night, and Maggie had a really fun time.

We were so lucky to get great seats. We were 2 rows behind ths opposing teams duggout! They were the best seats I had ever sat in. We took in a million calories of yummy concession stand food...hot dogs, cokes, nachos, peanuts and ice cream! Yumm-o!

Even Sadie enjoyed her time in the Baby Bjorn taking it all in. She did so well and was happy as a clam.

Enjoying some junk food...forgive M's crazy smile. She is such a turkey to get to smile "real" right now. It's like pulling teeth to get her to look at the camera AND smile.

Great seats...so close to the action.

Thanks Clay, Lincoln & Lucy for inviting us to the game!

A cousin picture...had to get in the pic myself...so Sadie could be in it too! She was attached in the Baby Bjorn. HA!

Sweet cousins and friends...Maggie and Lucy.

Sadie....just hanging out!

Mag's favorite part of the night...doing the WAVE!

A family pic!

Love to all,
Leah

Sadie Rose--3 months old!

2010-10-01T16:17:00.008-05:00

Oh my sweet Sadie bug! Could you really already be 3 months old?

It is true, Wednesday was her official 3 month birthday. I don't want to sound like a broken record...buuuuutttt, Sadie is still just sweet as pie. She is such a good baby. So easy going and pleasant....smiley and chubby! We could not love her more! It feels like she has been a part of our family forever.

Sadie is becoming more alert and interactive. She loves tracking and watching Maggie. She has strong and steady head control and is able to get up on her side right now. She has not rolled over yet, but I feel like we are just a few weeks away from that. Sadie has found her voice and is cooing and talking a ton. Her voice is so precious. I love her breath-ey excitement! She has started grasping at objects hanging from her play gym and still loves her swing and car seat. One of my favorite things she does right now is gets excited with her entire body. Like when she wakes up and I go to get her out of the crib, as soon as she see me her arms, legs, hands and feet all start wiggling and moving and her face lights up...and we get a HUGE smile. It is just the sweetest thing.

Here are some 3 month stats:

wt.: 13 lbs. 7 oz.

size: Size 2 diapers, 3-6 month clothes and 6 month Pj's

eating/sleep: still nurses anywhere from 5-8 times a day, usually about every2.5-3 hours, sleeps from 9-6 or 7 most nights with the occasional night of waking for a snack around 2 or 3 a.m. Still 3-5 naps a day, anywhere from around 45 minutes to 2 hours after each feed.

likes: her fingers (new thing this week...loving to suck on her pointer and middle finger...I can hear her sucking on them from a mile away), also loves any face time (she is super smiley anytime anyone talks to her, melts our hearts), likes being outside and playing under her play gym, LOVEs bath time with Mommy and sister, too.

firsts: 9/3 first official bottle (not a big fan at first, but eventually got it figured out) 9/17 first overnight with Daddy...Mommy had her first night back at work, 9/19 first slumber party...ha...Cousins Davis and Faith spent a few days with us, 9/30 first Ranger game, 10/1 first Pumpkin patch trip.

Sadie Rose Hunt....a few of her expressions!

Thinking and studying her surroundings....loves having her hands mid line and clenched like this.
Content and happy...

Sideways grin...and laughing out loud!

So serious....

Yummmm, did I mention she LOVEs her fingers?

Sweet eyes....

Again, so happy with those fingers...cracks me up!

All done, photo session over, Momma.... I am ready for bed! Sleepy!

Love to all,

Leah

Like mother, like daughter....

2010-09-23T17:55:00.005-05:00

I recently read an article from Home Life magazine that really encouraged and convicted me at the same time. As a mother, and especially a mother to daughters I pray that I can be a Godly example to them and train them up to be wonderful women of God. I want to positively impact their lives. I know children truly are reflections of their parents.

The article listed 10 things a daughter should see a mother doing regularly. I wanted to share it with you...even if you have sons....I think the article should have said 10 things your CHILDREN should see you doing.

Love to all,

Leah

Let your children catch you doing these 10 things.....

1. Read your Bible regularly and pray out loud.

2. Treat your husband with the utmost respect.

3.Dress and behave modestly.

4. Look well to the ways of your household.

5. Speak kindly to unkind people.

6. Reach out to the poor as well as those in need.

7. Keep a positive attitude, even in difficult circumstances.

8. Give honor to your parents and inlaws.

9. Turn off the TV, when inappropriate programs are on.

10. Tell the truth.

They all sound so simple, right? However, I know I have fallen short on these many times. I hope these encourage you in a few small practical ways to be a Godly example to the little people in your life.

What you say and what you do each and every day matters and will make a big difference in the lives of our children. And when you hear someone say, " They are just like their mom", well....you know how you will feel! :)

A Wife of Noble Character

Proverbs 31:10-31(NLT)

¹⁰ Who can find a virtuous and capable wife?
She is more precious than rubies.
¹¹ Her husband can trust her,
and she will greatly enrich his life.
¹² She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.

¹³ She finds wool and flax
and busily spins it.
¹⁴ She is like a merchant’s ship,
bringing her food from afar.
¹⁵ She gets up before dawn to prepare breakfast for her household
and plan the day’s work for her servant girls.

¹⁶ She goes to inspect a field and buys it;
with her earnings she plants a vineyard.
¹⁷ She is energetic and strong,
a hard worker.
¹⁸ She makes sure her dealings are profitable;
her lamp burns late into the night.

¹⁹ Her hands are busy spinning thread,
her fingers twisting fiber.
²⁰ She extends a helping hand to the poor
and opens her arms to the needy.
²¹ She has no fear of winter for her household,
for everyone has warm clothes.

²² She makes her own bedspreads.
She dresses in fine linen and purple gowns.
²³ Her husband is well known at the city gates,
where he sits with the other civic leaders.
²⁴ She makes belted linen garments
and sashes to sell to the merchants.

²⁵ She is clothed with strength and dignity,
and she laughs without fear of the future.
²⁶ When she speaks, her words are wise,
and she gives instructions with kindness.
²⁷ She carefully watches everything in her household
and suffers nothing from laziness.

²⁸ Her children stand and bless her.
Her husband praises her:
²⁹ “There are many virtuous and capable women in the world,
but you surpass them all!”

³⁰ Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last;
but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised.
³¹ Reward her for all she has done.
Let her deeds publicly declare her praise.

Sweet and a little sassy....12 weeks old!

2010-09-22T22:27:00.004-05:00

Our Sadie Rose is 99% sweet and about 1% sassy! Ha! Well at least her outfit is a little sassy!

Sadie is officially 12 weeks old. Thought we would have a little mini-photo shoot in her crazy, sweet & sassy zebra outfit. Enjoy!

This is her serious face...

She has found her hands...

Laughing out loud....

Have you ever seen cuter shoes....or chunkier thighs?

You know we love some zebra print at our house! Ha!

Hope you are having a good week!

Love to all,

Leah

First Day of Preschool!

2010-09-13T16:47:00.002-05:00

It's official folks....we have a PRESCHOOL-er!

It just does not seem possible that my precious baby girl is old enough to go to preschool. But, today we faced reality and Maggie attended her first day. She is attending a sweet little one-day-a-week program at a local church in our area. She is in a small class of just 10 kiddos and has two sweet teachers.

Maggie had a really good first day. No tears at drop off and a good report from her teacher. She painted, colored, did puzzles, worked on some scripture memory, the pledge of allegiance, the letter "A" and the color red. She had a snack, lunch and a little "rest" time too.

We are so thrilled that she had a good first experience. Sadie and I had a great day, too. It's amazing what all you can get done without the assistance (ha!) of a busy 3 year old. I got the house cleaned, sheets changed, laundry started, went to the pharmacy, had an eye exam and got my oil changed and my car washed...woohoo...for a productive Monday! Sadie just ate and slept the day away, like a sweetie.

We sure do love our precious girls, and look forward to many more of their "firsts"!!!!

Love to all,

Leah

Maggie Caroline....first day of preschool 9/13/10.

So excited about her "nap-nat"...aka her "nap mat"! Ha, too cute to correct.

Maggie and her teacher Mrs. Marcie. She is a doll and we feel super thankful for her careful watch care and kindness at the preschool.

Their "learning" center...colors, letters, numbers and calendar...

Maggie and some of her classmates....getting started on the morning fun!

Cute & Fun with Daddy's glasses....

2010-09-12T22:27:00.004-05:00

My shirt says I am C-U-T-E....what do you think?

Getting so big...10 weeks old!

Todd had some fun with sweet Sadie this weekend...he came into the kitchen where I was, he was holding Sadie, and said "Look at me Momma"....and this is what I saw....HA!

Such a little studious thing! How is it that no matter what you put on a baby....they are ALWAYS just cute! Don't know which is cuter the glasses or that double chin?

Love this little doll to pieces!

Have a good week & love to all!

Leah

P.S Stay tuned for a "Maggie's first day of preschool post"...she starts tomorrow! Yay!

Cousins...

2010-09-03T05:43:00.000-05:00

On my side of the family there are 7 cousins. Ages range from 10 down to 2 months. They are all such great kiddos and all play really sweetly together. They all seem to be crazy about Sadie too...since she is the baby of the family. They are so helpful and hands on, especially my nieces.

What a dear sweet blessing that they all live within 30 miles of each other and get to see each other often. I am so thankful for each of my nieces and nephews....love you guys so much!

Macy, Maggie, Sadie, Morgan

Jackson, Jerod, Joshua

Love to all,

Aunt Leah

Lions Club Carnival...

2010-09-02T05:37:00.001-05:00

On August 20th, our local Lions Club hosted a small town Carnival. We loaded up and decided to take Maggie and Sadie. Maggie was so excited. This was her first carnival experience. She really had a good time and it was some sweet quality family time. Enjoy some pics from our time there.

Todd and Mag enjoying the carousel....

Maggie and her pal Drew enjoying the alligator merry-go-round...

Todd and Maggie on the super-slide...

Maggie loves trains...and got to be the conductor on this one...Chooo-chooo!

Sadie had her first experience in the Baby-bjorn...at 7 weeks old. She was a trooper...just looking around and snoozing some while we were out.

2 Months and 2 of a kind!

2010-09-01T17:46:00.001-05:00

On August 29th, our Sadie-bug turned 2 months old. What a sweet and blessed 2 months it has been. She is still such a delightful baby and a joy to be around. She is so content and happy.

Here are some of her stats...

*size 1 diapers, wt: 12lbs 2oz (75th percentile), length: 23-1/2" (75th percentile)

*size 3 month clothes, and even a few 3-6 month onesies

*schedule...eat, play, sleep. She takes about 4-6 mini naps a day anywhere from 45 minutes to 2 hours long. She sleeps through the night, going to be at 10 and sleeping until 6 or 7. She is starting to want to play more under her floor play gym or in her swing. She loves to ride in the car and always falls asleep in there. She loves bathtime and cries when we get her out.

*Firsts...8/1 first time to church, 8/9 stroll in the double stroller, 8/20 first tailgate party before Daddy's softball game, 8/21 first swim, 8/25 first story time at the library, 8/30 slept in her room in her crib.

Two of a kind....My Maggie and Sadie! LOVE matching outfits...one of the perks to having girls, ha!

I tell Maggie every night in the tub that she is my best friend, and that her and Sadie are gonna be best friends, too! I think they already are.....:).

Love to all,

Leah

Puppy love...

2010-09-01T05:36:00.001-05:00

Buddy our little daschund has some serious "puppy love "for Sadie!

Smart pooch, huh?

Sadie and Buddy during Sadie's tummy time...:)

Love to all,

Leah