Baby Cowgirl

After taking Grace's picture, I remembered Elizabeth had a little western hat as well. I took the pictures in the afternoon while napping, and I think Elizabeth was tired, so she wasn't her usual super smily self. Still, I thought she was pretty cute.

Is Valley Center getting to me or what?

Dancing cowgirl

One of the rainy days a few weeks ago I managed to take a few pictures of Grace in her full cowgirl outfit. She was just about to grow out of her boots, so I knew I had to act fast. And sure enough, she can't wear them at all anymore.

Anyway, as I was taking her picture she started dancing. She had been doing this a lot, she has some pretty funny dancing moves. With neither Gunnar or I being dancers I asked her where she learned to dance so well. She said Mary Jesse taught her. That Mary Jesse. A video would have been better, but this was before my sweet new video camera from my parents (thanks mom and dad!), so the pictures will have to do. Funny kid.




One last one. Such a beautiful little girl.

Trip to Grandpa Hilton's

We took a quick trip up to visit my grandpa on our anniversary "weekend" (Monday-Tuesday). We enjoy the time together in the car, stopping at our favorite pizza place in Castaic, listening to Grace sing "Joshua fought the battle of Jericho" over and over again. Always good times.

We got in late Sunday night and Monday morning Grace woke up early. She was super excited to show off her new cowgirl hat and boots that she had gotten from Grandma Carol for Christmas.

God has given her and my grandpa a special bond and it is so sweet to watch them interact. She get's soooo excited to go outside and see the animals, she followed him around the house, nervous that he would go without her. Gunnar joined them in the morning, as I didn't want to take Elizabeth out in the cold.
We went out to the graveyard that morning. It was a hard time but something I needed to do. Grace was upset that we weren't at Grandpa "Hil-Kon's" house. She didn't even want us to stop for lunch as she was in such a hurry to get back.
We got back with plenty of time before the afternoon feeding. I followed them down there. Grandpa and Grace looked so cute in their hats together.
On of my favorite pictures EVER.
First she fed the cats.
Next the cows, and lastly the horses. Cutest cowboys ever!
Misty and Lacey and Grace. The horses are around my age, I can't remember them not ever being around.
Ellie and I hung out and watched the fun.
Grace found the tractor and had fun "driving." She of course loves it if she can do anything with an audience. How cute is she?
When we went back up Russell started up the bbq. The Hilton Ranch is the BEST place for BBQ ever. Watching Grace hang out with the guys was too funny. She wanted to be the center of attention, and so she went up and stood there holding Grandpa's hand to get his attention.
Grace has both Grandpa and Uncle Russell wrapped around her little finger. She got them both to read her books.
How incredibly sweet is this one?
Elizabeth wanted in on the book reading action. She even matched. :)
The next morning we pretty much got up and on the road first thing in the morning. Grace hung out with Grandpa while I was packing things up. They watched Tom and Jerry together.
We took a few pictures outside before we left.
Elizabeth and her Great Grandpa.Grandpa and the girls.
Happy Anniversary to us!

We had a nice drive home, although when you hear "Dad, can I have more gum, mine broke" from the backseat, you know it has been a little too much car time. :)

Catch up...

Well, things have been rather hectic this last month. February is always a kind of busy month for us with our anniversary and Grace's birthday, but this month seems to have been even more busy than normal. On top of that, I haven't been too much in a mood to blog, as I feel like I have been either too sad to again talk about my daughters beautiful smiles, or I am too tired and just want to sleep. I am going to try to get caught up over next week (or maybe a couple weeks).

As a summary, the month started out with a trip to visit my grandpa and to visit my grandma's grave. The trip was to celebrate our 8th wedding anniversary since we love road trips and Grace LOVES going to the Hilton Ranch.

The next week was Grace's 4th birthday. We had a party at my parents house and also we had cupcakes at church for the superbowl party on Sunday.

The next week was Valentines day (we went to a dinner with the folks from Valley Baptist and The Chapel). I didn't get any picutres from that. That weekend was also George and Evie's going away, which I will post picures and share about. Last weekend was the funeral and graveside service for Tom, a man from our church who went to be with the Lord. Gunnar had been with the family the night he died, and it was a sad time for all of us. I didn't get any pictures from that either, but it kept us busy.

Last Monday, we crashed my parents trip to Warner Springs. I was so tired, I only took one picture. And it was as we were getting into the car. We had a great time relaxing though, and my parents even watched the girls so I could go in the hot pool. I was super excited!! Thanks Dick, for lining everything up!

This week was also Elizabeth's half birthday. She is crawling all over the place, and I took some cute pictures of her on her almost big day. We actually went to the mall and met her cutie cousin Elena and Auntie Ann for lunch. So I will be sharing those pictures.

Other than that, we met up with friends for lunch. We hung out at the house, did laundry, preschool, all the usual. The girls went to the Dr., Gunnar threw his back out, I have been trying to be more independent in preparation for Gunnar's trip to Mongolia. I am not really a fan of going places by myself with the kids as it is a lot of work, but I have been working on that. Oh, and speaking of independence, Elizabeth has started crawling and is into everything. No shoes or scraps of paper are safe at our house anymore! :)

Well, I think that sums things up. :) Now I just have to sort through the pictures and post them. Or maybe take a nap instead. :)

6 months old

Today sweet Elizabeth Lee turns 6 months old! On the one hand, it seems like she has been around forever, on the other, it seems like she was just born. Her sweeter than sweet smiles have brightened our lives. She truly is a bundle of joy!

Happy 6 month Birthday, Elizabeth Lee!

Comfort

You might have noticed I was a little sad when I blogged yesterday. I was.

Shortly after I posted that, I was standing in the kitchen, doing dishes and going over Grace's memory verses with her. We do this most days, to review and keep up on the verses she is learning. When we review we take turns, she quotes a passage, then I quote a passage. When it came to my turn as I started quoting it hit me.

It was in front of me the whole time, yet I missed it.

2 Corinthians 4:16-19:

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

We are wasting away. It is just a fact of life. But we are also being renewed day by day. And the eternal glory that awaits us far outweighs the grief and sorrows that we have in this life.

My perspective had been so off. I wasn't fixing my eyes on the unseen. I was fixing my eyes on the here and now.
I took this picture a week or two ago and had forgotten about it. Grace had planted these flowers last year from a packet of seeds my grandma had sent her last Easter. They had sprouted and just as the flowers had started to bloom, the dog had rolled in them uprooted the plants. Grace had cried about it. After my grandma died, she had brought it up one day randomly in the car and cried about it again. I had wondered if crying about the flowers was her way of dealing with my grandmas death. We had promised her we would get more seeds in the spring.

A few months later after the rain, we found these flowers had sprouted again. Not where they had been planted, but 6 ft down by the corner of the garage. The rain had washed the seeds from the dead flowers down and had been reborn. Grace and I were both so excited.

When I thought of that verse yesterday, the flowers came to mind.

I am going to try to remember them. And not loose heart. Because outwardly I am wasting away, but inwardly, I am being renewed, day by day.

When sorrow like sea billows roll

When sorrows like sea billows roll. The line from the classic hymn has been stuck in my head for a while now.

Today marks the 6 month anniversary of my grandma's death. It has been a rough 6 months for me. I have felt so guilty for missing the funeral (even though it was out of my control). I had felt bad that I hadn't been able to talk to her or to say goodbye. I wasn't expecting her to die so soon. I wasn't ready. She was supposed to meet my new baby, not die the week before. She never even got to find out if it was a boy or girl. I miss her.

When sorrows like sea billows roll.

Last week, a man from our church passed away. He was 70. His wife is a gracious, sweet lady, who is truly a good example for a godly wife. They have been at our church for 3 years and have been a huge help and encouragement to us. Gunnar is doing the interment on Monday and helping with the memorial this weekend.

When sorrows like sea billows roll.

This week, our dear friends, George and Evie, are moving away. They are in their 80's and are moving to be closer to family. They have been like grandparents to us and a huge encouragement and help to us since moving to Valley Center. George is a retired pastor and they are roll models for Gunnar and I. They will be greatly missed.

When sorrows like sea billows roll.

A few weeks ago we visited my grandpa. He misses his wife of 55 years. He isn't one to show emotion, but he did say that her flowers would be blooming in the spring and he planned on taking some to her grave for her birthday. My uncle told me that he often comes over in the morning to find my grandpa in his chair, looking at a picture of her.

When sorrow like sea billows roll.

I guess in all this, I keep trying to remind myself that the song doesn't end there. The next line says:

Whatever my lot, thou has taught me to say, It is well, It is well, with my soul.

The author of the songs says that God has taught him to be at peace. It didn't come naturally. I think I am in a season of learning this. Or trying to learn this.

The other thought that has been impressed upon me is this:
"Only one life, will soon be past, Only what is done for Christ, will last"

Life is here one day and gone the next. I really want to make the most of my time. It is hard though. Somedays, I want to sit on in front of the computer and refresh my facebook page the entire day. I need to start sleeping more soon, too, as I am a firm believer that sleep cures most of the worlds problems. :) I just need to convince Elizabeth of this truth.

In closing, here are some pictures from our trip to my grandma's grave a few weeks ago. I felt like going to the grave was a good step in the healing process in my heart. My dad's grandparents are also buried there, which was interesting to see.