Random Roadtrip to Chick-Fil-A

We were wild and crazy this evening...yup, we were wild and crazy!   Well, as wild and crazy as we get, that is....hahahaha!  We spontaneously decided to head to the closest Chick-Fil-A without telling PQ where we were headed.  We were already 30 minutes away from home (having my tires looked at) and instead of driving back home, we decided to take a little road trip.  PQ was clueless about where we were headed.  We told him that we were going to Target (which we did, by the way).  After driving for a little over an hour, PQ finally asked why we were going to a Target so far away.  (Papa H and I refrained from giggling out loud but we did smirk at one another knowing that PQ was going to be SO surprised by all of this.)

I think Sugar knew something was going on.

As soon as PQ saw the red sign, he FREAKED out!

Seriously...their chicken sandwiches are SO GOOD!

What are the chances?

The night we decide to take a random trip to the closest Chick-Fil-A, is also their FAMILY NIGHT!  Have we mentioned how much we love this franchise?  Seriously...they have FAMILY NIGHTS!  They see the importance in Family Time.  I heart them! 



PQ got a free shake because it was Family Night...and it looks like he also got a high five from the cow who wants everyone to eat more chicken.  *wink*

I felt like we all scored this evening...in more ways than one!

*wink*

An Abiding Woman vs A Super Woman- Day 1

For weeks I have been wrestling the idea of posting something on this subject. But for whatever reason, I keep pushing it to the back burner. Perhaps time got in the way or perhaps other things jumbled my brain. Who knows?!? Regardless of the reasoning, today I am starting a quick blogging series about being an abiding woman.

For years I have struggled with trying to be a Superwoman. You know the type...always trying to please everyone, continuously controlled by my expectations (for myself and others), and frustrated with my own 'failures'. I'm learning that I don't have to be a superwoman to feel accomplished. I'm learning that being an abiding woman is much more satisfying than trying to conquer the world on my own.

What is an abiding woman, you ask? An abiding woman is someone who is unshakable. An abiding woman is someone who thrives in life because of her relationship with God. An abiding woman is someone who sets out to please God. Instead of trying to impress others (like a super woman does), an abiding woman stays focused and does not fall into the trap of pride. According to Proverbs 29:25, the fear of human opinion disables us. All too often, I find myself worrying more about what others will think of me than what God sees in me. It's a trap...and I am desperately trying to overcome this hurdle in my life.

Over the course of the next few weeks, I am hoping to dismantle my struggles in an effort to become more abiding. After all, an abiding woman is more secure at the root than a woman who is trying to please the world around her. Stay tuned...

YEOP...Aka: Superhero Training!

Imagine being the person in the movies that dashes away from your opponent.  Imagine needing the fastest way to get from Point A to Point B without using the traditional paths of travel.  Imagine leaping and bouncing off from walls and structures...for fun.  Well, that's exactly what we did last night!  (Not ALL of us participated...but it was so much fun watching every other brave parent and child tuck and roll their way to a fun-filled hour!)

PQ was THRILLED to flip over structures...

...and leap over hurdles.

(He's in the far back...with the red sweatshirt on.)

Flip...flop...twist...roll...twirl...doing whatever it takes!

Two Duck Eggs!!!!

I spy PQ and several friends!

Izzy Sunshine is my new favorite Girly Superhero!

Lana Bana is a Girly Superhero in training...

look at her checking out her sister and Mama!

I might not have participated in the jumping and running...but I did play the superhero role of SUPER SPY GIRL.  Look what I found! Twirly even twirls while she's twirling!

The hour long class was a blast!  I'm so glad we had this opportunity to have some extra fun with our friends.  The kids had a blast.  The adults had a blast.  I'm confident that I could scale a building if I had to...but then again, I did think that I could jump on a rip-stick with no problems...and within a month, I was in the hospital having surgery on my back. 

I guess the moral of the story is that superheros don't really turn 'super' overnight. 

But it will never happen unless you try!

Say What??!!???

ME: "Twirly told me that the two of you are like two peas in a pod..."

PQ:  "We're more like two duck eggs, Mom."


*Hilarious...Papa H and I laughed hysterically when PQ came up with this analogy on his own.  Knowing that PQ's friend has an allergy to eggs and can only eat duck eggs, this analogy made more sense to him.  Absolutely hilarious, PQ!  You are a funny little guy, that's for sure!*

It's Funny Either Way...

 Is it a VIRTUAL PLAYDATE? 

(They were building Lego's together via Skype) 

Or HOMESCHOOL SOCIALIZATION? 

(Big shout out to Tracy and the kids down in TN!)

Pink Elephants!!!

Ever since we brought Sugar home from Texas, she has had a 'thing' for pink elephants.  Let me rephrase that...ever since we brought Sugar home from Texas, we have had a thing for pink elephants!  *wink*

You see, when Papa H and PQ came to visit us in Texas, one pair of pajama's that Sugar had were pink elephant pajama's.  Little pink elephants laced the entire outfit.  She looked adorable in them!  One night while Papa H was changing Sugar, he said to her "You have your favorite jammies on"!  It sort of stuck...and from that point on, Papa H started saying "Piiiiink Elephaaaant Jammieeeeees" every time Sugar would have these 'favorite' pair of pajama's on at night. 

But the fun didn't stop there!  Nope.  We all started saying it.  Piiiiink Elephaaaant Jammieeeeees!!  Over and over...until we realized that pink elephants were popping up everywhere on her clothes.  Little pink elephants.  Single pink elephants.  Pink elephant families.  And then, we started noticing that all sorts of different colored elephants were popping up as well.  (Her carseat even has elephants on it and we had no idea when we bought it!  We just never paid attention until our Piiiiink Elephaaaant Jammieeeeees epidemic.  *wink*

For Christmas, I surprised the boys by having some Pink Elephant Shirts made up for our family.  (Thanks again, Fenway!  They came out great!!)  Not only did Sugar have a pink elephant shirt, but the rest of us got them as well.  You all know how much I love matchie-matchies!  I suppose not everyone will understand the pink elephant madness or our keen desire to look for more elephants for our little girl.  But hey, pink elephants make us smile...and I guess that's all that matters!

Piiiiiiink Elephaaaant Shiiiiirts!

It all started when our little girl met a pink elephant...

We love you, Sugar!

Does your family have a favorite 'thing'?  If so, I would love to hear about it!

Random Acts of Kindness

Well, it didn't go exactly like I had planned.  Unfortunately, the weather wasn't cooperating with us when I picked up the boys for our special family outing.  With sleet and freezing rain falling down upon us, it probably wasn't the best idea to drive 1.5 hours away just for dinner and ice skating.  Yes, I did just say 1.5 hours away for dinner and ice skating.  I suppose it sounds a little ridiculous but to my boys, that 1.5 hour drive would have brought them to a Chik-Fil-A. 

If you remember, our family was introduced to Chik-Fil-A on our first trip out to Houston.  Although it is a fast food restaurant, it doesn't quite taste like one.  The chicken burgers are OUT OF THIS WORLD!  My boys absolutely fell in love with the chicken sandwiches and waffle fries from Chik-Fil-A.  Unfortunately, the closest location to us is 1.5 hours away!  So, I thought I would surprise my boys with a road trip...but in order to offset the junky meal that we were about to consume, we had to offset it with some exercise.  And what better way to exercise, than to go ice skating!  (Maybe next time....maybe next time...)

So, what did we do instead?  Oh man!  We ended up having an unbelievable great time together!  We decided to drive a few towns over from where we were and stop at the local mall.  But, we weren't shopping.  Nope.  Instead, we decided to take twenty $1.00 bills and find ways to bless people with them.  Papa H and I had a blast...but PQ seemed to have the best time of all.  He was GREAT at spying places to leave random bills that someone might need.

Imagine walking up to a camera booth and finding a dollar bill sitting on the screen waiting to be used.  Imagine walking into a candy store and finding a dollar bill sticking out of the wrapper that you intend to buy.  Imagine finding a dollar bill tucked inside the pocket of a new pair of jeans.  Imagine going to get a drink out of the vending machine and realizing that someone already paid for your drink.  Imagine your child asking you to buy them a small toy and when they lift it up for you to look at, you see a dollar bill attached to the toy to help you with the purchase.  Imagine being a small child sitting on a riding toy in the middle of the mall and having a bigger kid hand you some extra quarters so you could keep riding. 

Blessings...we started out the evening trying to bless other people and we ended up being blessed beyond belief.  Our hearts were warm when we left the mall and as much as we would have liked to see people find the hidden treasures, it sort of loses it's purpose.  We set out to randomly bless people.  Not for our own glory but for God's glory. 

And we can't wait to go do it again! 

A Pillar (for Music)??!!??

Happy Thursday, Everyone!  As the snow tumbled down outside, we spent the majority of the day doing school work.  Although the local schools has cancelled, the "H Family School" did not observe the cancellation.  Instead, we trucked along through our work and we ended up growing tremendously in the process. 

During our Bible lesson for the day, we talked about Moses and the pillars of smoke.  This lesson led us into further discussion about various historical pillars.  One of which we discussed in great length was the Washington Monument.  After discussing the various pillars and what they each represent, I asked PQ to make a pillar for someone that would represent who they are and what they have done.  Without hesitation, PQ got to work on his pillar.

Drumroll please...

After creating his pillar, PQ and I started in on our Health lesson for the day.  Today, we talked about the importance of Exercise and Rest.  We had some great conversations about the benefits of each and as a reward for his efforts, he got some extra time outside to play in the snow!  Within seconds, he had grabbed a shovel and began shoveling the neighbor's walk-way.  (Our neighbor's are in their 80's and PQ is always so intentional about his visits with them.  He loves to go and check in on them every few days.  Literally...he asks if he can go over to check in on them...and he usually stays with them for about 10 minutes before he comes back home.  What a blessing!)  Today was such a proud Mama-Moment.  I unexpetectedly looked outside to see what he was up to and I immediately saw his sweet act of kindness.  What a blessing he was!

He had no idea that I was watching...and smiling...

(Matthew 6:3)

...and before long, he went inside to 'check' on the neighbors.

(Mark 12:31 Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.)

At one point during the day, PQ realized that the other kids in the neighborhood had the day off.  He was pretty upset about his school day once he realized that the other kids were outside playing.  This passed quickly but was soon replaced with a case of the "what-if-this"...or "what-about-that's".  We spent a good portion of the day talking about the importance of concentration.  What PQ hasn't quite learned is that the length of his school day is dependent upon his ability to focus on the work that is in front of him.  Instead of worrying about what it yet to come, he need to be concentrating on what is in front of him.  (WOW!  What a life lesson for anyone, really.  Concentrate on what's in front of you rather than what might be coming ahead.  Wow!  Even as I'm typing this post, I'm realizing how much I should be gleaning from this.  I'm speachless...)

Today's snack of creamy hot cocoa and Trader Joe alphabet cookies hit the spot.

(Maybe it was a little passive aggresive on my part...*wink*)

Before the end of the day, PQ decided to email this picture to his 'Pillar People'

(Mikeschair is currently PQ's favorite band...we actually went to see them perform at a bookstore in Houston while we were in TX picking up Sugar!  PQ's pillar was designed for their band.  We sent an email to the bands Manager this afternoon and hopefully it blesses them to know that their music is a blessing to many people in this world.)

Even PQ's writing prompt from yesterday was linked to the band!

All in all things went well today.  We had a few moments of frustration but it was all about learning.  We are very new to homeschooling so it's just a matter of working through the kinks and figuring out what works for our family.  I certainly need to reflect on the lessons that I learned today so I can be a better teacher and a better mother. 

Have a great night and get some rest. y'all!  Tomorrow is FRIDAY and I have something secret up my sleeve!  After I get out of work for the day, I think the boys will be quite amused by my surprise.  Stay Tuned...

Willy Wonka-ish

Princess E and I were convinced that we would win something...anything.  After all, I keep earning more tickets at the grocery store so we were bound to win something, right?  After an hour of sorting and scanning all of the tickets that we've earned over the past several months, we realized that the company keeps one prize piece from each amazing prize and never releases it to the general public.  They keep it for someone within their business who claims that they're not related to anyone from the store and then that person acts surprised when they surprisingly 'win' the big prize.  Oh, come on big box grocery stores!  Let the little guys like Princess E and me win once in a while.  (This is complete conspiracy theory on my part... *wink*)



~Searching for the Golden Ticket~

Who invents these ridiculous games, anyways??!!!??

The Weekend Report...

WOW!  What a weekend!  We started school early on Friday morning and the learning hasn't quite stopped since!  Although Sugar was sick all weekend (with the sniffles and a cough), we managed to have a great weekend full of action packed events!  Sit back and enjoy the ride!

Friday morning began as usual.  PQ and I started our day with a Bible lesson and then we moved on to math, reading, and writing.  Since Friday is our Art day, PQ's art lesson for the week was on sewing.  He managed to complete 2 dolphins during our art lesson.  He was more than impressed with himself.  According to PQ, this was the best art project that he's ever done in his whole life.  WHOA!  Who knew it was going to be so much fun for him!!??  I sure didn't!

Look out folks...we are prepping him for his future wife!

Don't ever let him tell you he doesn't know how to sew...*wink*

I don't know who was more proud...him or me!?!

He immediately gave the little dolphin to his sister...SWEET!

The Sunshine Girls came to visit mid-morning and we spent a few hours with them playing.  Unfortunately, our science experiment was not able to be completed because I could not locate one of the 'key' ingredients.  So we had some play time during our visit instead.  PQ was psyched to have some free time with the Sunshine Girls and I was thrilled to have some Girl Time with Mama Sunshine.  There never seems to be a dull moment when Baby Sunshine (Lana-Bana) is around.  Several minutes after washing her hands in the bathroom, we still heard the water running.  Upon my entrance into the bathroom to see what was going on, I was met with the most adorable smile.  Lana Bana was 'washing' the empty toilet paper roll.  Oh boy.  She cracks me up!  Without hesitation, I ran to get my camera so I could share her project with all of you.

Proud as a peacock...washing the empty toilet paper roll. 

Can it really get any better than this?

Oh wait...it CAN get better than that.

Check out her dress...it's tucked into her tights!

PRICELESS...absolutely priceless!

(I love this little girl with all my heart.)

Later that evening, the Glory family came over for dinner.  We celebrated CS's birthday!  As always, the night was filled with plenty of laughter and plenty of memories! 

Happy Birthday!!!

And what birthday party is complete without a science experiment?  (Princess E and I found the 'key' ingredient at the local grocery store so we gave it a whirl with the Glory Family.  But I do expect to complete the same project with the Sunshine Girls at some point soon.  I think they will LOVE it!)

What's the 'key' ingredient, you ask?  IVORY SOAP!

We placed a bar of Ivory Soap in a bowl full of water and it floated!  All other brands of soap will sink.  So what, you say?  Why is this a science experiment, you ask?  After dropping the soap into the water, we put the bar of soap on a clean plate...and placed it in the microwave for 2 minutes and 22 seconds.

Who thinks of these things, anyways??!!!???

After 2:22, this is what we found!

Can you guess what it feels like?

(I guess you will just have to try this out on your own to find out!)

And look who else came to visit!

Aunt Brit!

We couldn't let the fun stop here so we made PUFFY SHOWER SOAP (using the puffy ivory soap, boiling water, a blender, and a little food coloring) for the boys!  Each of them put on a pair of shorts and then we let them loose in the shower!

Can you say FUN TIMES???

Tony was PSYCHED about it...

...they each got to make a 'clean' mess...

...Science AND Art combined...

...even if it is scribbles...

...it's still SO MUCH FUN!

As you can see, the kids loved this project...

...and they were disappointed when it was time to get out.

But as soon as FEETIE PAJAMA's were brought into the equation, all was well.

On Saturday night, PQ created a new fort design.  He typically builds a fort using the cushions from the couch but this time, he wanted something with a better roofing system. 

After 15 minutes of building, this is what he came up with.

And this is where he slept on Saturday night.

I love this boys imagination!

And here it is Sunday morning.  My boys went to church while I stayed home with Sugar.  She's still really sick.  Her cough is nasty.  Her nose is running like a faucet.  And all she wants to do is sleep!  But she's still the cutest little girl I know!

Get Well Soon, Sugar!

And that was just the weekend!  Tomorrow is PQ's first full day of classes with Fletch and Twirly while I go to work for the day.  It's hard to believe that our homeschooling schedule just started last week.  It's amazing how schooling carries over into our day to day living, if we allow it to be teachable moments!  Week One went well and I am feeling EXTREMELY encouraged!  Thanks again to all of my friends who have reached out with love this week!  *hugs*

Answers please...

Sugar- 4 Month Check-Up

It's hard to believe that our little girl is already four months old.  Time really does fly, doesn't it??!!??  (Oh, Country Mouse...please tell me you've made progress on the keep-your-children-little-before-it's-too-late potion.  *wink*)

Sugar met with her pediatrician today for her four month wellness appointment.  All is well in the world of Sugar.  Her current weight is 13.1 pounds and she is 23 inches long.  She's in the 10th percentile for her height and the 30th percentile for her weight.  I think Sugar's new nickname should be Peanut!  She's a little girl, that's for sure!

PQ was reading Sugar a new book that our pediatrician gave us.

(She LOVES her big brother...can't you tell??!!??)

During her wellness check-up, we were given the go-ahead to introduce solid foods.  This evening, we gave Miss Sugar some rice cereal and it was not as dramatic as we had thought it would be.  When PQ was a baby, he was VERY animated upon his first bite of 'real' food.  So seeing Sugar have a non-chalant reaction to the cereal was something that we did not expect.

Introducing RICE CEREAL!!! 

Big Brother to the rescue!  PQ did the honors of feeding her!

I thought for sure she was going to gag...

...but she didn't!  Great job, Sugar!

According to Sugar, eating cereal for the first time is not very fun!



A Bubba...now that's something to be happy about!

Oh, Sugar!  You're so sweet.  You're changing with each new day and we are thoroughly enjoying every bit of it.  You are extremely social and you love to know what everyone is doing (especially when it's your nap time).  Perhaps you have a hint of 'busy-body-ness' in you.  Who knows??!!!??  Either way, we love being around you and we really enjoy seeing you grow.  You are such a blessing to our family!  We love you, sweetie!  XOXOXOXO