Hump Day

Well it has only been 4 days since I have been home from Savannah, GA but I am missing it so badly. It is such a nice break to get away and forget you have any responsibilites back in Birmingham. I was soooo ready to see my children, but I wasn't so ready to be back into the norm. I was telling my sis-in-law how it only takes one day to get back into the "normal" life and forget you were ever away in the first place.

There were several praises while we were gone though. The girls were in Selma with my inlaws for 3 nights and all 3 slept great down there!!! I was so worried about Graci since she doesn't usually sleep anywhere but her bed, but God took care of that worry and she slept every night and took naps :) That was so great. The older girls always sleep so good down there. They had the best time! Their Nana Reed is always so creative and does fun crafts with them. They made beautiful butterflies with their handprints that I am going to put in our "craft frames" going down the stairs. And of course another highlight was going to the Dollar Tree and shopping for their favorite things. Candy, bubbles, flip flops and headbands. They were on cloud nine. They also got to go to the Battle of Selma - not quite old enough to understand it but they told me it was very LOUD!

Another praise was that they transferred from Nana Reed to Nana without a problem. I was worried they wouldn't want to transfer but all was well. My mom brought them to my house and spent the night with them here. They had a lot of fun. They played outside until they couldn't play anymore. My mom is real good at wearing them out by playing so hard. They all slept for her too. McDonalds, gymnastics and outside play - they had a blast!

Bryan and I really had a great time and we couldn't have asked for better company.

quotes for today...

Just had to share 2 quotes from the girls today. Too precious not to share:

Emi: Mommy, look at my brain on my arm!! (she was pointing to her vein)

Payton: Mommy, I need a cantaloupe to put my picture in. (she was meaning an envelope)

Gone Trucking with Daddy

Bryan drives the big 18-wheeler for Student Life Ministries each year and he loves doing it. This is his 6th year to do this so the girls have known that their daddy drives a big truck and they love to go and see it. This year, their precious daddy decided to take each one of them on a day trip to drop the trailer at the venue. They had sooooo much fun. He took Payton to Atlanta (since it was the shortest trip) and Emi to Nashville. Daddy did such a good job taking pictures for mommy to put in the scrapbook and on the blog.

Payton's trip was pretty uneventful so it was a good first trip for her. Emi's was a little more eventful. They started to lose tread on one of the trailer tires so they had to pull over and wait for someone to come and change the tire to the tune of 1 1/2 hours of waiting. She was such a trooper. It rained the whole way up there too. There was a wreck that put them even later. They were 2 hours late to load in which put them late getting home. They didn't pull into the house until 10:00 that night but thankfully Emi didn't take too long to wind down and get to sleep. When we were saying our prayers the first thing she said was that she was thankful for getting to spend some time with her daddy and getting to ride in the "big truck". It was so sweet. Here are some pics from the trips:

*Payton and her little traveler Callie:
*Look at me mommy!
*Ready to roll!!
*Lunch with my daddy in the truck - a taco!!
*Miss Priss Emi ready for the ride
*Look mommy!
*Little miss priss again!
*Emi took a picture of her daddy!
*The Big chicken at the truck stop
*Check out the sign in the background... leave it to daddy!

Update on Paw Paw

Please be praying. We found out today that my PawPaw has 3 to 6 months to live. He is in stage 3 of cancer and where it is located it is inoperable. Chemo is an option but they said it would only prolong his life by maybe 6 months. He isn't sure if this is something he wants to do at this point or not. He and his wife, Jere, spoke with a psychiatrist to make sure they understood what was being told to them. When asked by the doctor if he knew what this meant, PawPaw said he did and that he knew he wouldn't get better. When the doctor asked Jere if there was something that was troubling her about it she stated that she knew he wasn't Christian.

This honestly is the hardest part.
I want to see Paw Paw again in heaven one day.
I want him to leave this world knowing he is going to a better place.
I want my dad to know he will see his dad again in heaven.
I want PawPaw to be able to crawl up in Jesus' lap on the days he is feeling terrible and know he is in a safe place and just rest there.

In all of this, I know this isn't about me and my wants. I know God is ultimately in control but I want to be able to used by God if at all possible to get through to PawPaw. Please be praying for this whole situation. My whole family could use it.

My Paw Paw

Several of you have been praying for my PawPaw so I wanted to put a picture of him up so that you could see just who you are praying for. For those of you that aren't aware of what is going on here is a brief description. My PawPaw, Dale, was diagnosed with lung cancer a few weeks ago. It has taken over one lung and is already in his lymph nodes. His other lung is strong enough to support him if he undergoes surgery but the doctors still don't have a plan of action at this point.

I love my PawPaw. He is the only granddad I have ever known. Just a few thoughts that come to mind when I think of him...

* Practicing my gymnastics in his thick green grass
* His 2nd wife Dottie that pierced my ears
* Climbing up in his lap for a big hug
* Getting to work everyday in the same place with him for years
* Sharing Jesus with him and praying with him (still praying for him in this area)
* His thick white hair
* His belly that was always so comfy to snuggle on (he doesn't have it anymore)

Those are just a few of them. I love my PawPaw and I am praying for his salvation, his health, his comfort and his strength as he battles this cancer.

Easter

Easter was such a beautiful day, cold, but beautiful. It wasn't about the girls looking beautiful (which they did), but about making sure they understood just what Easter was. We didn't really talk about the Easter bunny, even though they got baskets with some candy, but really tried to focus on Jesus and the sacrifice that was made in order for us to be saved.

When the girls woke up on Sunday morning they came in and sat on the bed and were admiring all their candy. Emi laid down next to me and I asked her what day it was. This was our conversation:

M: What day is today?
E: Easter
M: What is Easter?
E: (Thinking...) Well, Jesus died on the cross but then he rose from the dead. He was put behind some rocks but when Mary went in to find him, Jesus wasn't there. When she finally saw Jesus he told her "don't be scared, see Mary, it is me, look at my hands, they have scars on them from the cross". Jesus died and then got up from the dead to save us from our sins so we can be born again.
M: Emi, that is great and I'm glad you are finally understanding what Jesus did for us.

I sat in the bed and just thanked God for the girls and for Emi listening to the stories we have been trying to teach her out of the Bible. It was such a breath of fresh air to know that the little seeds we are planting each day, are finally starting to grow.

We had a great day at church and then at Nana & Paw's house with family.

Here are a few pics to share...

My "angels". My precious mom-in-law made these beautiful dresses!! They were absolutely amazingly beautiful!!!

This was our attempt at a family picture... you know how much fun that is with 3 little ones that are tired and hungry.

These are all the cousins on the Roberts' side. Guy, Ben, Will, Brooks, Emi, Graci & Payton. We didn't get one picture with all of them looking in the same direction :)

Spring and things I'm thankful for

This past week has caused Spring fever in my house. We are outside as much as possible, despite all of us fighting allergies. The weather has been beautiful and we are enjoying it every second we can.

A few things I am thankful for:

• blue skies
• friends we can have fun with
• finding shapes in the clouds with the girls
• rolling down our front hill with the girls
• parks
• laughter

Here are a few pictures to share too: