Lunch Bunch!

For years I have watched my mother-in-law talk about and enjoy her Lunch Bunch month after month... So, last year I decided to get some friends together and start our own version of Lunch Bunch! It was wonderful and such a blessing! Thanks to Grandma Barb watching some of our kids that weren't in school yet, we were able to go out to eat the 1st Friday of every month during the school year! So, now we have added a few friends and this is the start of our 2nd year! Yea! I dearly love these amazing women of God! They bless me, challenge me, inspire me, love me, and make me laugh. I hosted this month at Laura's Cafe, a quaint little ladies lunch place, and had a rose for everyone at their place! I just love this kind of thing! :)

"Be completely humble and gentle: be patient, bearing with one another in love." Ephesians 4:2

Happy birthday, Lauren!

Thankfully we didn't have to evacuate for Hurricane Gustav and we were able to go to the Swiggard's home to celebrate Lauren's 9th birthday! I can't believe she is 9... that means Andrew is right around the corner... It ended up being a sunny, beautiful day, with a nice breeze. My boys always love to go to their house! This time they enjoyed swimming, ping pong, watching "Camp Rock" in the garage room while eating YUMMY pizza and eating the cleaver, HUGE cookie/ice cream cake! What a blessing it is to celebrate with friends!

Braden had fun with Emma, Colton loves Miss Jenna, and Andrew had all sorts of fun with the pool whale! :)

Spontaneous Pajama Party!

While I was fretting over Gustav on the phone with Karen and Ang (thanks girls!) on Friday night... Andrew, Braden, and Colton ran upstairs got on their PJ's, did their bedtime routine, grabbed their blankets, pillows, sleeping friends, and Colton got his pacie. Then the made themselves at home and created their own little Pajama Party while they had a ball watching the old "Speed Racer" shows (thanks Candi for letting us borrow your DVD!)! It touched my heart to watch them take care of each other and turn just an ordinary night into a night of brotherly fun! :)

When we watch our children growing in love for each other and enjoying being together, it is in those moments that God is blessing and filling our hearts so we can endure the more difficult moments. :)

Take me out to the ballgame!

We had a great night at Minute Maid Park on Saturday night! Thanks Scott and Karen for the tickets! We have a tradition of getting there for batting practice and watching from our seats, heading off to the Squeeze Play kid area for a while, get something to eat, head back to our seats and eat while we watch the game, go back for more kid fun, watch more of the game, take a family pic, and then head home. It is great!

Where else can you eat a ginormous hot dog and sing "Deep in the Heart of Texas"?

Andrew loved the splatting cage and having his team WIN! Braden loved seeing his friend from school and climbing in the train. Colton would let out the loudest scream/squeal every time the fans cheered! He also had fun with the camera (see the silly one of me above). We all like to see the train move when the Astros get a home run, although when they play the Cardinals, we don't really like it! :)

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize." 1 Corinthians 9:24

Puzzles and Spikes

Colton is SO into puzzles these days! He gets one out of the basket and quietly takes it to the table and works on it for a long time until it is complete! Sometimes he asks for help. He is so fun! He is also WAY into spiky hair, just like big brother, Braden! He loves it! I think it looks silly, but he wants his "spikes"! :)

Thanks, God, for puzzles and Spiker hair gel so my boys don't lose their spikes! :)

Girlfriends...

On Friday night our church had a wonderful birthday party for all the women of the congregation to celebrate each one of us! It was the Women's Ministry kick-off for the year and one of their best! They had fun little kid party games, cupcake decorating (which was the only thing I did), a flower decorating demonstration, door prizes, etc.. I spent the evening reconnecting, aka. chatting and giving encouragement! It was called Girlfriends at Gloria Dei! How into that am I? I am so into girlfriends! I am so blessed to be around some amazing women of God. Thanks to them and I can be the woman God created me to be weather that be Super Sweet Sara or Scheduled Sara and feel proud of it (even when they tease me relentlessly!) :) Me, Stephanie, Shawna, and Angie are in the pic above. I love you all and treasure you always! The big group pic is our MOMS group! Now there is a group that is awesome! My week just isn't complete without it! We say it is our free therapy! :) I love that Colton is well taken care of and playing with friends while I learn from other Moms, give encouragement, eat, relax, laugh, cry, and learn to be a better mom.

"We ought always to thank God for you, brothers (sisters), and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing." 2 Thessalonians 1:3

First day of Kindergarten and 3rd grade!

Wow! Where have the years gone? We have a 3rd grader and a Kindergartner and one more at home with me this year! Andrew was so nervous this year, but prayers from Mom and Dad and Mrs. Angie helped. Braden was ready with his Speed Racer backpack, lunch box, tennis shoes, and underwear :)! Getting to school was crazy this year! We have lost two parking lots due to the construction of the new middle school building and we have added 200 new students! Great for LSA, but crazy for drop off and pick up! Braden was so excited to have his best buddy, Jonah, in his class. His daddy is the new headmaster and our family friends who have moved into our neighborhood. Looks like if Braden has some behavior problems, the headmaster is sure to find out! When Tom and I took Andrew to his class, which are in the trailers this year and added to his nervousness, it was all work and no long good-byes! I was trying to take some pics and realized that we had better move on and let him do his thing. :) They are growing up so fast, but we love this ride we are on with them and feel so blessed to be able to send them to Lutheran South Academy! We pray they will all have long and successful school career there!

As with tradition, we went out for ice cream with Mrs. Karen, Lauren, and Nicole! After my near miss accident trying to fight through traffic at pick-up, parking in a nearby subdivision, carrying Colton through the rain and grass, and picking up the boys, we were finally off for a 1st day treat! I love the 1st day because they always have so much to talk about. Pretty soon, I won't be hearing much from them. Typical boys! :)

Happy back-to-school everyone!