A Bit of Cheer from a Little Dear

I think one of the amazing blessings of having children is that they just can't stay down. Their laughs and smiles break through even in times of sadness. So today, here are two recent layouts from our littlest jokester who says the funniest things.

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Ouch!

Well, we have had our first experience with a child breaking a bone. This past week a series of unfortunate events led to Ellie with her leg in a cast. She jumped into daddy's unsuspecting arms. He grabbed her with Spiderman-like reflexes, saving her jump. Unfortunately, as he twisted to snag her out of the air, his chair broke and they both went down.
She has done well with the imposed bedrest, but is beginning to get adventurous as the pain decreases. This should be quite the 4-6 weeks! We are so thankful for friends who have lent us a stroller for the duration...going for walks will help ameliorate the wiggles.

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Adventure in the Karpaz

Sometimes you just need a break. And sometimes that break turns into something else all together! Thus was last weekend's adventure. It was a glorious day full of beautiful spring growth and warming temperatures. It also involved two flat tires and the blessed help of those passing by. We also discovered the most beautiful beach just over the hill from our second break down. Soaking up its beauty and the calming presence of God made the day completely worthwhile. Sometimes we just need to be stopped to be refreshed, yes?

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A Gem from the Not so Distant Past

This week I was putting together our 2010 family book of scrapbook pages and combed through last year's photos for important events that had been left out. i came across this shot...not absolutely perfect as photos go, but a great memory. Nev in our Living Last Supper play...her first shot on the stage (she was unsure at practice but ended up LOVING the performances), first make-up, it was so fun for all of us to be involved. And then I was struck by just how much she has changed...amazing what a difference a year makes!

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What has Been in the Works!

These are just a few of the things going on in our household, in no particular order:

1. School...and more school.
2. Homework and quizzes
3. Reading the Wheel of Time series (Light, they are addicting!)
4. Scrapbooking a bit now and then.
5. Watching our garden grow strawberries, roses, and other random pretties (compliments of my talented husband!)
6. Multinational parties at our house.
7. Turkish language
8. German language
9. Disney princess puzzle with my princesses.
10. iPad Risk with the DH (For the record, I rule the world)
11. Eating way too much yummy fresh bread...and nutella...and tea...and cookies.
12. Sharing these with you.......

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I'm a Weener!

Winning something always makes me smile, especially when it is totally unexpected. When I signed in to my blog today, this is what I found:

If you can't read it, it says that I have been randomly selected to win a book signed by the Pioneer Woman! PW has been a guilty pleasure of mine for several years now so this is super exciting to me. And the thing is, I totally forgot that I had signed up for the drawing, so this is an even better surprise! Happy Sunday to me :)  Oh, and if you would like to get addicted to the Pioneer Woman too, click HERE. I love that it is a one stop shop for goodness--Photoshop, photography, recipes, homeschooling, ranch life, gardening, and a whole lot of fun. Plus, she posts most days, unlike me. ;-)

And now, on to cuter business. It had been a while since I had done a page on our little one, so here she is in all her cuteness. I have to say that i really like the pink and grey combination (even though I am NOT a pink person, I have become much more amenable to it with two little girls in the house!) Isn't she so stinkin' sweet?

Ode to a Little Big Girl

My oldest is so girly...honestly i have no idea where she gets her princess ways. She is so beautiful and stubborn and into all things pink, purple, white, red, and silver (all the girl colors, she says!). While I was working on this page about her, she jumped excitedly in my lap and started pointing out all the elements she wanted on it. She was especially overjoyed to see nothing but "girl colors"!

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And this one is just a little playing with the new bird brushes. I thought they looked like a couple of gossips hanging on the latest news....so here they are!

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