New Experiences

Tonight was filled with a couple new experiences. First we tried out the new babysitting event at church, called BABS (Book A Babysitter), and secondly we tried out a new restaurant here in Fort Wayne, Tucanos. 

Both were great experiences that I'd highly recommend. BABS is something new that the church/school is doing to help parishioner/school families. Parents can drop off their kids in a safe environment and do whatever it is that they need to do. I know a friend of mine used her time to wrap presents (smart move Courtney). 

We used our time out with another parishioner couple, Allison & Marc Labrie and tried out Tucanos. It's incredible how they've transformed the Jefferson Pointe food court into an enlightening restaurant. 

You all should try it, but def make a reservation, as the place was packed. Luckily we had reservations way ahead of time and got right in, but the wait looked crazy. 

Basically Tucanos is a Brazilian meat house with an awesome salad/sides bar! You pay around $27/person but the food is unlimited and the atmosphere is well worth it. It's def not something you will go to often but is nice for entertaining out of town guests and special events. Plus it is much cheaper than Fogo de Chao out of Chicago (same concept). 

In conclusion, try BABS & Tucanos. 

Honestly, if you are a parishioner at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, you must give the BABS a try (same type of thing as Parents Night Out was ONLY you do not have to take turns working the babysitting bc the 7th graders and their parents do it). I was impressed that the kids came home happy and they did activities with them. Any questions just ask. Peace~

Thanksgiving Blessings & Life Lessons

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you all had a nice time with your loved ones! 

I was blessed to get to spend the day in Indianapolis with my side of the family. My sister, Lori recently moved from Florida to Indiana and was kind enough to host Thanksgiving dinner at her new home. It was so wonderful to have us all together again. Truly blessed!

Then we went back home to the Fort to go to Dan's mothers house. It was nice to spend time with her. 

I'm so grateful for everything that this year has brought us! Olivia is getting so much out of preschool, Gabe is getting the help he needs in his speech therapy, my job continues to allow me to work PT and I love what I do, and Dan always amazes me with his persistent drive to always wanting to learn more and push himself everyday to provide a nice lifestyle for our family. None of this would be possible without our amazing Catholic community at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parish. Putting God first has truly changed my life over the past 5 years. 

It hurts to see those that I love live without Christ, but I know all things happen in HIS time. 

This brings me to my next topic, that life truly is too short. Holding grudges only holds you back. 

Life is too short to continually focus and dwell on the past. Enjoy the present and prepare for the future. 

Life is too short to feed into any negativity aimed towards you. Focus on those that support and believe in the fabulous person that you are. You can't please everyone, so don't try (I've struggle with this one). 

Life is too short to not get out and enjoy (healthy) things. Don't be afraid to step out of your comfort zone every now and then. You'll be surprised at how much you'll discover. 

In conclusion, life is too short to not love yourself! You are the one and only you and you were created in the eyes of God to love others. Let's lift one another up and live with Christ's love in our hearts...always!

God Bless each of you for being a part of my life! XoXo

Love in Christ,

Amy

O=5?!

Today is Olivia's 5th Birthday! It's so hard to believe that 5 years ago our lives forever changed. There's no such love as the gift of life and no way to quite explain the feeling that overcomes you after you hold your baby for the first time...it's 100% God! God has truly blessed us with the joy of Olivia Marie! 

To celebrate O's special day we did the following: 1). Olivia made fruit kabobs for her pre-k class and brought them into school for her friends to enjoy at snack. 2). Olivia got to open a couple of her gifts early this morning (lipgloss, Hello Kitty rings, hand sanitizer thing for her back pack, and a Birthday Princess sash) before getting dropped off at daycare. She was most excited about her rings. Too cute!

3). We let her pick out where she wanted to go for dinner and she was insistent on going to Chic-Fil-A. It turned out Wednesdays are Kids Night there which means that our kids ate FREE...sweet!! Our dinner was only $12 and they gave O a free cow stuffed beanie baby. After dinner the kids enjoyed playing in the play place. It was nice up until the 2 other random boys (my kids ages) started acting out. The oldest boy came up to my kids and randomly said, "I'm going to KILL you!" Right then and there Dan and I turned to each other and Dan said, "Yeah, that's not likely! Bye." And we left. I really hesitated to tell his mom, but it wasn't worth it. Who knows where she's coming from. Everyone has a story. I just felt bad for those boys bc the mother was in the booth in the restaurant reading a book and on her phone the entire time. She didn't go into check on them once. I'm not trying to judge her here but I just feel so bad for those young kids and for her. She'll never get these moments back. These kids grow up so quickly! I try to cherish every moment. Yes, I do have my bad mommy moments when I need a good cry behind closed doors, but I never want to look back with regrets bc life is too short.

Ok enough in my rant...moving on.

3). We assembled O's big gift...her art easel and she LOVES it! She also opened up the rest of her gifts (books, blanket throw, earrings, hello kitty undies). 

4). We sang Happy Birthday to her and had a piece of her Big Cookie that Dan made for her. She was all smiles!

5). I read her new books to her, she prayed and thanked God for her "especially special 5th birthday!"

Thank you, Jesus for the gift of Olivia Marie. I pray that she touches so many lives spreading your great love!

Patience

Lately I've been noticing that I'm having a hard time with patience (in regards to my children). I try to be cool, calm, & collective but sometimes I feel overwhelmed. Luckily I've never not been able to handle it because I simply stop and pray when I need help, but I'm just really tired. 

Parenting is the hardest job and it's worth every second, that's for sure, I'm just glad I can realize what I need to work on. 

Example: As we are heading out the door in the morning, Olivia is just piddling around taking her sweet time and I'm like in a mad dash out the door. She says, "Mom, stop nagging me!" 

This is normal, right?! 

Ok, that's all. Hopefully Dan gets off work sometime soon. Xoxo

Vacation Part 2

Day 5- We spent day 5 day tripping around the Smokey Mountains & Foothills Parkway area. We took a nice trail to the 

Juney Wank Falls, which is a stunning waterfall nestled in the mountains. We found some nice lookout areas along the drive, such as Dan's favorite, the Bunches Bald Overlook. Heehee~

Day 6-We slept in, which was AWESOME! Then we went to Look Rock in the Foothills Parkway, which had a beautiful view. Afterwards, we took Deals Gap "the tail of the dragon" (hwy 129) in our SUV to Fontana Dam. It was a beautiful view and fun to watch the crazy fast motorcycles zipping along those turns. For those of you that have no IDE what Deals Gap is, it is a road with 318 curves in 11 miles. I grew up riding on my parents motorcycle and sidecar rig, and my dad took us on that ride many times, so it a blast from the past to go on it once again. I can't wait to get on that website and see our SUV pic goading around those corners. Ha! People seriously make a living out of sitting along  Hwy 129 and taking pictures of vehicles driving on the road. Ha! 

Afterwards, we went to Fontana Dam and that was absolutely incredible! It is a hydroelectric dam that is the highest dam in the Eastern US. The kids were especially in awe of the concept of a dam. 

It's been really cool to show our kids all of these great beauties that the Smokey Mountain area has to offer! I'm so thankful for the Cozy Nest cabin that we are blessed to stay at every year! www.cozynestcabin.com

Tomorrow is going to be a long trip back home but I do miss our little Winston (dog) and there's no place like home. 

Goodnight friends!

Gatlinburg 2013 in pics part 1

We are on our annual Gatlinburg vacation  having a blast with the 4 of us. 

Day 1-We went to the Tanger Outlets and checked out the Columbia outlet store. Scored some good deals! 

Day 2-Spent the day at Dollywood! Love how nice every single employee is there! So many companies could take lessons in customer service from them (& Disney of course). Drove the Cade's Cove Loop. We actually got to pet horses up close. So cool!

Day 3-My childhood friend, who lives in Knoxville now, came down to see me. It was great to catch up with her. Such a true friend! Then we went downtown Gatlinburg and walked the strip and watched taffy being made. The kids loved it! 

Day 4-We went to the Donut Friar in the Village (downtown) for breakfast. This is seriously the BEST bakery! Then we went to Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokey's. This place is well worth it, as the exhibits are ALL very interesting and engaging for all ages! Then we went down the strip to browse some shops, got a couple souvenirs, and went back to the cabin to relax. After that we drove the arts and crafts loop, which I wasn't that impressed, but it was interesting to see. Then we drove the Roaring Fork Motor Trail and got out at some of the old landmarks. It was raining and Dan got stung by a bee, but we had a nice time. The kids LOVE the mountains and waterfalls! 

 Tomorrow we are going exploring in the Great Smokey Mountains...to be continued friends!

God Bless!

My Thursday OFF

Today I took the day off to focus on important appointments for my children. Here's a re-cap of my "day off":

1). Took Gabe in for his Speech Eval, in which they determined that he does in fact need speech. He starts speech therapy on Monday at Whispering Meadows.

2). Made lunch. Fed the kids.

3). Dropped Olivia off at preschool.

4). Went shopping for 2 birthday parties we are going to this weekend. 

5). Went to the McD's drive-thru to get a fountain drink & saw Angie Jurczak right behind me who also had the same idea while her daughter was at pre-k. LOVE ya girl!

6). Went to Olivia's preschool class so that I could be the "Mystery Reader" this week. It was so special to see the look on Olivia's face when she saw that it was me (& Gabe bc I brought him). I read them "You are Special" by Max Lucado, which is a favorite of Olivia's. 

7). Took Olivia to get her hair cut by Dylan at Pin-Up Curls. She has hair to her shoulders now and it's adorable! 

8).  Took the kids home and TRIED to clean house. Ha! Olivia begged to have a friend come over. I asked her who and she said that she wanted Julia Spoltman over. I texted her mom and she sent her down for an hour. The girls had fun playing with the dollhouse and they watched Care Bears. I love how well those girls play together. Julia is very polite and sweet with Olivia. Saw Kristin Dixon for a quick second. Love her caring heart!

9). Made dinner while Olivia & Gabe played. I then found Olivia asleep on the couch. Big day for her, plus this no nap thing is wearing in her.

10). Dan came home, we had dinner, baths, books, bedtime for the kids. Dan put together the kids trampoline in the basement. It is awesome!!

11). Now I'm finally able to put my feet up and boy does it feel nice! Goodnight friends, I hope your day was full of special blessings as well!

Sharing her LOVE for Christ with Others

I love watching Olivia's personality unravel. She truly is a good kid and I'm noticing more and more that even though I feel like I fail as a mom everyday, I'm obviously doing something right. 

Look at what she chose to bring to school for "C" share today? A Cross that she made in VBS. I love this sweetie!!

Our Tuesday in Pictures

1). We went to the downtown Allen County Vital Records office to get copies of my kids birth certificates bc I lost them when we moved. #momfail

2). Then we dropped O off at school and picked up Dan for lunch at McAllister's. Gabe is liking his special time while sissy is in school.

3). After school we went over to a neighbors house (Liliana)  for an afternoon play date. 

That's just what I took pics of, but it was a beautiful day filled with many blessings!

God bless each of you for being in our life. We love you and pray for you daily!

Meet the Teacher for Olivia

Today was Meet the Teacher at Olivia's preschool. She turned to me and said, "I LOVE school!" 

This melts my heart! Wednesday will be her official first day of school and I'm going to need many tissues. She's so ready though and I'm very happy for her. This will be really good for her.

~Until Wednesday friends...Peace~

Superb Saturday

This Saturday was so nice mainly because we totally didn't leave the house. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and you couldn't have asked for a more relaxing day.

We needed one of those after being on the go non-stop lately. 

Also, off subject but I had some time to reflect today about all of the blessings we've had over the past year. We've been able to sell our old house in 9 days, move into a beautiful new house in an amazingly friendly neighborhood, been able to help change lives by partnering with the doctors who created Proactive to help them launch their anti-aging line, Rodan+Fields, been able to reach out to new parishioners and help them feel welcome to our wonderful parish, and now on Wednesday Olivia starts pre-k, 4 days/week at St. E's. 

I'm beyond grateful for HIS abundant blessings and pray everyday that HE use me as a shepherd. 

Peace~

Melts my Heart

My babies are growing up! I took these pictures while they were sleeping tonight and be still my heart...blessings from God!

Friday Night Fun

Tonight we had some good friends, the Riemer's & Ottinger's over for for dinner and fun! It was such a nice time and I just love how well the kids play together. 

Both families will always have a special place in our hearts. They're so down to earth and genuinely good real friends. 

Life is truly too short, lets make the best of each and every day God gives us on earth by spreading HIS love and kindness!

Praise be to God!