can you see it?

TWO NIGHTS IN A ROW. i don't think i have EVER seen rainbows TWO nights in a row.

this one has nothing on last nights, but it is still awesome.

and even more awesome to hear my 5 year old running around shouting,

"God is never going to flood the earth again...that's what the rainbow tells us"

at this particular time in my life God is SHOUTING to me.

check out my handiwork.

TRUST me. I got this.

okay Lord. I got it. 

(but you could show me again tomorrow night with another rainbow)

just kidding. totally kidding.

i got it.

 ~mk.

milk and cookies.

~milk and cookies~

 we celebrated karolina's FIRST birthday and kaden's NINTH birthday

last night...with a family party. (kaden's choice)

as much chaos as it sometimes is...

i LOVE it that kaden ~always~ chooses a family party over one that would involve friends.

that is special.

that being said we were missing 2 of my siblings and their families

which brought for some disappointment, but a little more quiet. :)

 i transformed my kitchen island into a cookie shop of sorts...

(and had been baking the last 3 days or so)

i had lots of fun!!!

(lots of ohs and aghs. but this is my thing. it's what i like to do.

i don't ever put anything on here to look like a super mom, or like i have it all together.

i certainly do not.

i hate when i hear that people feel defeated and discouraged after checking out blogs...

i get encouraged and inspired when i look at other people's lives and interests...

it kind of spurs me on, to do  better next time, be better...

anyway...my hope is to inspire, not defeat...

this week has been pretty hard.

i have been much less than a super mom...infact i found i yelled at my kids A LOT on thursday.

i guess the heaviness and stress of the week finally hit.

so...while some moms pour themselves into their kids...being at every sporting event,

enrolling them into every activity under the sun, playing with them, crafting with them...that is their

thing...i love to pour myself into them in other ways...and this is one of them...

that's all. i am off my soap box).  :)

above: matt's dad reading karolina her new Bible Story book,

and matt's mom helping kaden read his card. :)

put some new *pinterest* recipes to the test.

(and some say that pinterest is a waste of time. oh my.)  :)

chocolate chip, white chocolate filled snickerdoodles, nutella stuffed peanut butter,

frosted sugar, gingersnaps with white chocolate chunks, puppy chow,

*birthday cake* oreos...

and milk...with chocolate and strawberry syrup to add...and stir.

i also had coffee and juice boxes...

 take 1.

 take 2.

 take 13?

take more than 13. :)

isn't this great of my neice, sarah??  :)

we ended the evening on the zip line at the pond.

matt worked all day putting it up.

i think it will be tons of fun, with a little more tweaking. :)

i didn't get a picture with karolina and her cookie with candle,

well...because i was the one holding the plate. :)

hope you had fun kaden and karolina.

we are blessed. and we love you.

today.

 kaden, kaycee, campbell & calli slept in a tent last night. ALL night. yippee!!

calli got her 1st motorcycle ride with daddy today. who is cuter? :)

happy NINE years!!

and today we celebrate NINE years of Kaden's life.

whew.

i remember his birth too.

he was born at Women's and Babies Hospital.

I remember the peanut butter pie afterwards. :)

I remember the nurses thinking i was CRAZY when i didn't want an epidural.

or pain medicine.

I remember my in-laws waiting in the waiting room at 5:30 a.m.

kaden was born at 1:34 p.m. or something.

that makes for a long wait. :)

let's just say my labor with him was a bit longer than the 2 and 4 hours

i experienced with all my girls.

(i have a few ideas about why that happened, hence never went back to that hospital :))

i was re-arranging furniture in the room a few hours after i was settled in.

 i wanted it to be just right. :)

oh kaden. i can't believe you are 9 already.

i am finding you are heftier than me these days...

i need to find new disciplinarian ideas for you. :)

you are a very protective big brother, most of the time.

you are sweet with your sisters, except when you punch them in their eyes. :)

especially with karolina.

i walked in the room the other day,

and you were holding karolina, and said, "oh, karolina, i love you so much."

that makes a mother's heart warm.

you love sports. you don't like running so much.

you perservere.

i am proud of your reading...and math too, but that comes much easier for you.

i pray that you continue to make good choices.

i pray for christian friends for you to spend your time with.

 i pray for you to thrive in school and make a difference wherever you are.

i love your smile. and i love you. ~mommy.

happy ONE YEAR !!

i can hardly believe it. Karlolina Grace turns ONE YEAR old today. eeekkk. !

currently...karolina is...

•  a speedy crawler. the real way. :)
• pulling herself up.
• walking... but only if someone is helping her.
• babbeling, and making all kinds of fun sounds.
• housing 2 teeth.
• far lighter complected than any of the other kids...which means sunscreen. :)
• sporting hair that sticks straight up and around, every which way...but it's growing. :)
• so much fun. each of the kids love her...and do special "things" with her each day.
• a mover and a shaker. no more sitting quietly thru church or appointments.
• pulling out barrettes & headbands like it's her job. :(

 karolina enjoying her mac-n-chs for lunch. "no.no. mom. not another picture."

 we are having a party for her and kaden later on this week...will  post some more pics then.

karolina grace...i remember your birth like it was yesterday...the contractions starting at midnight. i got my big stack of clothes out to iron to me keep calm and relaxed. i remember calling the midwife and telling her it was time to come in,  and she questioned me...she said my voice was too calm.
 it wasn't until we arrived at the birthcenter,
and she indeed knew you were coming when she took one look at mommy. :)

we love you to pieces. you are precious. i love hearing your laughs and giggles,
and watching you grow each day...xoxo. mommy.

**************************************

on another note...my girl, kaycee, is gifted in the arts. i really think so.

she did this water color the other day, and i loved it so much, i asked if i could have it.

i had her pick out a verse (out of my favorites of course)

and then i wrote it on top. 

now...it's hanging in our dining area.

i love.love.love it!

if only time stood still.

that's really how i feel.

if only i could press pause in life for just a minute.

we are grieving over times gone by.

my kids keep growing.

summer is speeding past me like the speed of light.

pause. please. just pause.

just some pics from july.

 kaden was helping my mom and i do corn...

only for a minute. :)



i did some crafting over the last week.

my mom tells everyone it's my "therapy"...this week i especially agreed. :)

 also some furniture re-arranging. :)

 all copied from pintrest, no doubt. :)

going down my basement steps...

gotta run. promised the girls we'd go to the playground.

it's ladies night here.

the boys are at a barnstormers game with "guys night out" at church. :)

~mk.

BELIEVE.

for those of you wondering about our dear friend glenda...

you can check out: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/glendablank

for status updates.

our hearts continue to be heavy. it just doesn't go away.

we long to see them. and cry with them. and hug them.

but that is for another time.

right now our job is to encourage and pray like i have never prayed before.

and i do consider myself a prayer warrior.

i pray a. lot. normally.

friends that i only got to know thru bill and glenda were able to stop in

last evening on their way to the beach.

jeremy and katrina and karolina and i prayed.

standing right there in my kitchen.

it was precious.

and she said something that stung.

"and we agree with you Father...in your will, in your timing."

and that is what i am grappeling with this morning.

i am trying ~really~ hard to agree with The Father and his timing.

i am believing with all my heart for a miraculous healing.

but i would like it NOW. not later. NOW.

i would like all this pain to go away.

all this heaviness and heartache.

gone.

but isn't that my problem all the time?

it's always about me.

just something else to learn ~again~ today...

as i accept and stand in agreement with the Lord's plan...

having faith and still hoping for a miracle.

i am all out of words.

i say it all the time.

my life has been pretty easy.

this is hard.

my faith has been shaken.

i am being faced with h.a.r.d questions.

these songs are great. and intentional.
i am blaring them now.
i can't sleep. again.
so i rock out and pray. some more.

glenda is hanging on.

an induced coma will now continue for 5-7 more days.

pray for restored health. healing.

a complete. miracle.

for strength for bill and family as decisions regarding glenda's care will

soon need to be made.

ugh. the heartache.

i know we serve a BIG. HUGE. MIGHTY. God.

i KNOW it.

but it's still hard.

a heavy heart.

oh. my heart is so heavy.

so sad.

good friends of ours are going thru a tragic situation right now.

a freak bicycle wreck, this morning, during their vacation in oregon,

 threatening to take the life of my dear friend, glenda.

pray for bill- husband

and emily- daughter, a junior in high school,

and

ultimately for a healing miracle for glenda.

we know HE is able.

my garden.

girls night.

monday night i hosted a girls night for our sunday school class.

i was really super excited because i had a * my favorite things * party.

this may not be exciting for some...

but one of my love languages is receiving gifts...

it could be a card, a lipstick, flowers, even a rock. seriously.

so, i think that's why i got excited about this party.

(i got the idea from joys hope: http://www.joyshope.com/)

it was down at our pond.

it started at 8 p.m. so everyone could get kids tucked in, if need be,

and then come in your jammies. :)

each person was to bring 5 favorite things. $6 or under.

and then we were going to pick names, to see who got to take what home.

as it turned out, there were only 5 of us here,

so we each got to take one of everything.

super. fun.

(from left to right: rhonda, glenda, me and laura. sadly missing kristen...she had to leave as her twin babies
were not cooperating well for their daddy.)   :(

it was fun to see what everyone brought.

kristen- homemade bread and yummy smelling candle.

rhonda- burts beeswax tinted lip balm.

glenda- assorted jewelry and burts beeswax lip balm

laura- new guinea impatiens

me- homemade pink bunting banners...for my love of pinterest. :)

(like these)

now...to research another fun party idea for next time. :)
we don't get together that often...but it's so fun when we do.

to sit and talk the night away.
and eat too of course. :)

Big & Rich

so who can see at 6:45 p.m. on the computer that Big & Rich are in concert in Aberdeen, MD

and be in the car leaving at 7:00 p.m. on their way, that very night?

yep. that would be my man and ME.

we have 5 kids, can i remind you?

ha.ha.ha.

thanks to our ROCKSTAR babysitter

who happened to be playing field hockey (practically) in our front  yard...

and showed up so we could run away. :)

the pics aren't real great.

we ran out of here without our cowboy hats and camera's. :(

this was my first *eva* secular concert.

call me a sheltered preacher's kid, i guess?  :)

and it totally rocked.

it was a great show.

very.very.much fun.

p.s. mom and dad...we'll take a rain check on the rita's.

and huge, huge shout out to Kristy, who was doing my dishes when i got home.

she's amazing.

i left my house in a hurry and total mess.

i had company for lunch and didn't clean up right away...

need i say more??? 

thanks girl.

here's who we saw in concert:

ocean city, new jersey

2012

(kaden-8, calli-3, campbell-5, me-34, kaycee-7, matt-37, karolina-11 months.)

so if any of you check out my sister in law's blog...that's where i stole these from.

sorry for the repeats...but mark took most of the pics this year. :)

kaycee-7, sarah-6, zion-8


this is the crew. all 28 of us. i don't know what "take" this was...but we are rockin' it, eigh? :)

my little man could be found on his boogie board most of the day...

thank God for brother's who play with your kids in the water. :)

wonder what calli-3, is thinking, exactly?

kaycee and zion...shells or creatures in the bucket. who knows during this "particular" trek. :)

...pool side...

so it's just been easier to go to the pond...

but a pool sure is nice. :)

what a fun couple hours.

this summer's been so much fun.

very busy.

yesterday we spent a couple hours at doug and wanda lapp's pool.

she gave me a whole bag of pool "shock" to pour over my poison, and soak in.

wow-0.

in addition to my topical prescription and steroids,

night-time soaks in our over chlorinated hot tub,

you would think it would be almost gone.

so itchy. all.the.time.

i am going to be a round up girl forever now.

forever.

i may never touch another weed again. :)

kaycee's on another round of antibiotics for strep.

zithromax now.

we'll see if that kills it.

and one more glance of fireworks for tonight.

yippeee.

stay cool.