Dear Reese and Ella

I've decided to start something new and to do it regularly on here, similar to the "random updates on a Monday". It will be called "dear Reese and Ella". I want them to know what I am thinking (Neal too if I can get him to write a few lines) and feeling about them on a regular basis, maybe yearly.

So here goes the 1st one.

I recently read a Jen Hatmaker book and she does a whole chapter called dear kids, this is what inspired this. I loved every part of it and thought about how much her kids will love looking back on it one day. Her number one goals for her kids is to be kind, be you and love Jesus. I am going to shamelessly steal that as my ultimate goals for you Reese and Ella.

Without kindness we have failed as parents. I desperately want you to be kind to everyone. I want you to win people's hearts for the Lord because they see your kindness and know there is something different about you and want that for themselves. I want you to love the lonely, hurt and afflicted as you grow up causing them to feel valued and appreciated and in return gaining so much yourself from those relationships. Growing up years will be hard. Being a girl in the midst of a "mean girl" culture we seem to live in will be hard and the last thing I want is for my children to be the ones making it harder for anyone else. You both are such kind and empathetic souls. Reese is often reporting of helping someone at school and Ella recently asked why some people don't have homes and if we could just let them all come live with us since we have a house. Oh sweet, sweet girl how I wish it was that simple. I hope and pray that you continue to grow into kind people who see hurting people and do not ignore them. I also hope that I do a better job of this as well.

I never want you to try to be anyone other than who you are. You will never be happy pretending to be something other than yourself. The desire to be liked and popular during the growing up years will likely be there. You both have so much to offer just as you are and I really hope you do not attempt to change who you are. You are both so amazing and most will love you just as you are...you won't need the others if they are trying to influence you to be something you are not.

Love Jesus with everything you are. You are His and He has your future in His hands. I trust this fully and hope that you will too. There are so many things I worry about when it comes to you two but I too need to and try to give these things to Him. He loves you more than your dad and I do and that absolutely boggles my mind because we love you two more than I ever imagined was even possible. 

Reese, you are so loving, caring and full of life. You are so stubborn and I know exactly where you get it from 😬. You are incredibly passionate and you love your friends so well. You are a bit dramatic and you don't often pick your battles, you fight them all...although you are beginning to pick more as you are getting older. You have lots of dreams and plans. You actually love to plan. You are completely unreasonable when you are hungry or tired and I definitely know where that came from. You are so much like me it isn't even funny and I believe that is why we butt heads at times but I love you more than you can imagine and these things will all serve you well one day (once you learn to be a bit more rational in your reactions).

Ella, you are so funny. You have comedic timing and wit that probably came from your dad more than me. You are sweet and funny and you love to snuggle, please always love to snuggle. You have such a tender spirit and we hardly have to discipline you for doing something wrong. When we do you often beat yourself up for what you did for far longer than you should. We are working on how to navigate this because you are such a sweet tender hearted girl that doesn't deserve the punishment you often put on yourself. You love your family (including the dogs) better than anyone I know. You are very prissy and princess loving but have recently become very interested in superheroes. You are so laid back and easy going and it is very easy for most anyone to get along with you. I am so in love with you and thankful for your sweet spirit.

You are both amazing and I am blessed to be your mother!

Little daters

Neal tries to take each girl on a date a couple times a year. These girls look forward to this time with their daddy!

Ella's date was last night and she has been talking all week about how excited she is and how her date is going to bring her flowers. He did not disappoint and rang the doorbell with yellow flowers in hand, her favorite color. She picked her clothes and I put a little make up on her and curled her hair, for the very first time. When she came home she was beaming and had so many details to tell me about. They went to Chick fil a, Chuck e cheese, Big Lots and Maggie Moo's for ice cream. They did all of this in Fayetteville so even though CEC and CFA are places she normally goes these were new locations she had never been (Neal reports the Fayetteville CEC to be much different than ours and a bit scary).

Reese's date is tomorrow night and she is super excited as well, but maybe not quite as excited as her sister has been.

I am so thankful for this husband of mine that is teaching our girls what they should look for in a man one day. He is showing them that they are precious and should not be treated any less than like an absolute treasure. I am also SO thankful that even though this wasn't necessarily modeled for me growing up through His grace and provisions I have been blessed with a husband that treats me like a treasure as well. :)

Reese lost her 1st tooth & cut her own hair

As we all know Mr. Pickles is really naughty. Because of this behavior he has to wear a really thin leash at all times, so that we can pull him off the table, out of the trash, away from the door and out of whatever else he is in but he shouldn't be.

On February 20th Reese decided to put this gross leash into her mouth and play tug of war with him. In doing this her already loose tooth was pulled out. At first she was pretty upset but she then realized it was ready to happen anyways and she got happy.

Reese is almost 6 years old so I thought that we were past the point of cutting our hair out of curiosity. However, we were not past that point. Last Sunday Reese decided to experiment with cutting her own hair. I know it could be way worse but it is still pretty frustrating!

Jesus loves the little children

About a month ago Ella had been learning about salvation and the concept of asking Jesus into your heart at pre-school. This is one of the reasons that I love The Kids Studio, they have reiterated what we've been teaching at home about Jesus' love. Ella asked me about it and I told her one day when she decides it is time I would love to say the prayer with her to ask Him to come and live in her heart. She said she wanted to do it then, so we did.

Yesterday on the way to dance class Reese asked me about it. She asked me a few questions after church last Sunday and this was a continuation of that conversation. She also said yesterday that it was something she wanted to do as well, so we did...in the car on the way to dance class. Ella then asked if she could say it again. I told her that once you say the prayer you are saved and you don't have to do it again and she said she wanted to anyways, so we did.

I know both of my little girls are way young. But I do believe they have a heart for Jesus and were sincere in their desire to ask Him into their hearts and follow Him. However, Neal and I have our work cut out in the coming years to help them understand this decision and to guide them. We also have a whole lot of praying to do that they will be able to navigate in a world that is so lost and broken and that they will stand strong for what they believe and for making the right decisions. I am so thankful that they both made this decision and I pray that they will be bold in this decision to follow Him even though many times it will not be easy.

Random updates on a Monday

1. Regot
Both of my girls say "regot" instead of "forgot". So they either remember something or regot it. I may be guilty of not correcting this. I know it will get corrected by others and it is one of the very few baby like things about them, especially Reese. I will be sad the day they begin saying forgot, but I know the day will and should come.

2. He's eating our house
Pickles is making further improvements in some areas but is successfully eating our house. Needless to say the poor, sweet guy spends a lot more time in his crate when we are not home.

3. Sooie Spotlight
Reese was the student of the week a few weeks ago, they call it sooie spotlight. She was so excited to get this title for the week and Neal and I got to come up to eat lunch with her one day and read her favorite book to her class, Purplicious. It is fun to see her at school with her amazing teacher and friends. I am so proud of all that she has learned this year.

4. Car naps
I have been letting little bit skip naps some days and also take a nap in the car some days when we are running around a lot. She is so compliant and says okay when I tell her it's time to turn off the movie and take a nap. She sometimes covers herself up with a blanket or in the below case a towel, ha. I really enjoy all of the time I get with her and am so thankful for it. She is a sweetheart.

5. Little Dribblers
Reese participated in a basketball program called "Little Dribblers" with her two friends Jack and Grayson. She really liked basketball. This was a program to learn the basics, they didn't play games on teams. I wouldn't be surprised if we have a basketball player in the future. We all really enjoyed it...aren't they the cutest?!

6. Wonder Woman
Ella is so prissy and princess obsessed but recently she rented a Wonder Woman book from the library. She is suddenly really into superheroes. I think this is so cute and a good balance for this adorable girl.

7. Princesses & a Razorback
A few weeks ago we went with some friends to a Ladyback gymnastics meet. A bunch of princesses were at the meet and of course the little girls wanted their picture with them. When we got down there one of the mascots was taking a picture with them for the Razorback twitter page. I asked if he wouldn't mind staying in our picture too. I love this!

8. Picture taking obsession
The girls are still obsessed with taking pictures on my phone and I am often finding pictures that I didn't know about...and some that I did know about but make me laugh.

9. Gap closing
Neal and I met about 14 years ago working at the Gap. Recently the NWA mall Gap closed. So on Valentine's Day we got a picture in front of the vacant store. Sad day!

10. Cora Beth
We don't get to see one of my best friends and college roommates nearly often enough. We did get to spend a few hours with her and her daughter last weekend and the girls had so much fun with Cora. It is so much fun that they are to an age that they remember people and their interactions are so cute at this age. We spent about an hour at Target playing on the toy aisle, picking out leotards and trying on all kinds of clothes in the fitting room...cute little girl fun.

11. Star Student
Ella is the start student at pre school this week. This little girl has been asking for months when she will be star student and when she found out it was her this week she was over the moon excited. 

We ate lunch with her today and completely forgot to get a picture so I will get one one day this week and add it here later. She's loved having mine and Neal's full attention at lunch and just ate it all up, so sweet.

I got some pictures when I picked her up!

12. I'm pretty proud of their unicorn Valentine's boxes. I actually put some work into them this year since they will also double as Reese's birthday party decor next month.

The day they brought them to school they were talking on the car ride there and they named them. Reese named hers "uni" & Ella named hers "horny". I laughed when I heard this & they wanted to know why...I told them I just thought of something funny from earlier.

13. Ella wanted to type her name. I always say no but this time I said yes :) :
Ella

A Mr. Pickles update

I will start this post by saying that Mr. Pickles is the sweetest dog and he is a permanent part of our family. He loves the girls and us well and is really snuggly and affectionate...and super, super cute. We love him a whole lot and have many great moments with him. He is going to be a great dog but needs a good bit of training to get there.

He is so so so so so naughty. We have enlisted the help of a private trainer. She has come once and gave us some tips that we are working on. Some of the more minor, annoying things such as his biting at our ankles, clothing, blankets, towels and fingers are getting better. The bigger issues seem to be ongoing and like I suspected we have a super strong willed little dog.

Below is one example of his naughty behavior this past week. Keep in mind things like this happen weekly and drive me near insanity.

Neal was traveling and I was managing dinner, baths and straightening just a little one evening before a babysitter got to the house so that I could go to community group. I had the girls eating leftover beef/ vegetable soup at the table while I was warming a roast beef sandwich on the stove. Ella got up from the table for some reason and I look over and Pickles is on top of the table finishing her soup. I was instructed to yell at him like a crazy woman (by the trainer) when this particular thing happens so I proceeded to yell and scream at him at the top of my lungs and this did scare him and he got down, but he has done this again multiple times so it didn't really make the impression we are hoping for. I had warned the girls that I would do this crazy act if he got on the table again but it still startled them a bit. I got a new bowl of soup for Ella and then realized I had burned my sandwich. I got all of that cleaned and got myself something to eat and was then trying to get the girls dressed for bed. Ella was trying to get her shirt on herself and Pickles grabbed the shirt from her and went running. I ran after him and he thought it was so much fun, I was so angry with him. He proceeded to run out the doggy door with the shirt and then run back in to taunt me. He then ran back out the doggy door, grabbed the shirt and ran back in with it. He dropped it on the floor and I went for it, he then grabbed it and ran back out the doggy door with it and he came back in without it. I quickly grabbed him, yelled at him and put him in his crate. I then went outside and found the shirt in the cold, darkness and brought it back in for Ella to put on. Mr. Pickles spent about an hour in his crate. Uggghhhh!

He went to the beauty shop last week and came home looking like a different dog. We believe in this cute, sweet dog and have hope for better behavior.

Valanakah 2016

Neal. spoils. us!! Valanakah this year was lots of fun and the girls and I were showered with 8 days of gifts, again. They seem to love gifts...just like their mom. Neal was traveling for a few days of Valanakah this year so we facetimed with him while we opened our gifts one of the days and one of the days he was in meetings and couldn't facetime so we sent him a picture of us with our gifts that we were so excited about. 

The night before Valentine's Day Ella's school did a studio at night so the parents could go out. Neal and I decided to skip the super busy restaurants and do take out and enjoy the peace of our kidless house. We both really enjoyed it but looked forward to the crazies coming back home.

Today, Valentine's Day, we trekked down to central Arkansas because it has been way too long since we have spent time with Neal's grandparents. We are having a fun time with his precious Mimi and Papa & we got some great pictures that I know will be treasures.