Happy 30th Kev!

Silly Daddy!

Handsome Daddy! (This is actually a fake smile)

"Daddy, stop cutting grass and come play with ella!"

I love my Daddy!

This weekend Kev will turn 30. It's kinda hard to believe that he will be officially out of his 20's. I mean 30 used to be so old! Now it is looking younger and younger to me..as I am not so far behind myself! I always want to make Kevin's birthday special...and yet I always feel that I never can top what he does for me. He is awesome at surprising me and he is a great gift buyer. Kevin is hard to shop for. He doesn't get excited over much.....materially speaking..except maybe a new tool or gadget and to be honest I just don't have a clue. I think we own half of Sears in our garage already! I mean Kevin is the guy who has figured out that we can save money if he eats 3 granola bars a day for his lunch...totaling out to a whopping $11.00 a month! I mean really babe! He is also the guy who is determined to wear his tennis shoes until they can walk away on their own. At the present they are two years old and have holes on both sides! He reuses everything...even saves his brown paper lunch bags! (You'd think he'd grown up during the great depression!) Although he is VERY frugal...he is also the biggest giver I know and he takes great joy and giving to me, ella, our families, friends, and even strangers. He loves to give to others out of what God has blessed us with. I love this about him! So...how can I make his 30th special? Is there a gift that will get that wow!!! this is what I've always wanted reaction!! How can I let him know that I love him and I can't imagine what I'd do without him! Happy 30th babe!~ Julie

Fun with Friends

Lisa opening a baby gift from us!


Lisa and Julie

Kev, Ella, Julie, James and Jane at Myabi's (I don't recommend this with a 10month old!)

The past two weekends have been fun and busy. We've enjoyed catching up with friends of ours who live out of town. Last weekend we took a little day trip to visit our friends Josh and Lisa. Lisa was my college suite mate for a short time and we have stayed in touch throughout the years (thanks to Lisa..she is much better at it than I am)! We enjoyed catching up, introducing them to Ella, eating at a delicious pizza place and shopping around. Lisa is due in about 4 weeks with their first baby...it's a surprise but I'm thinking it's a boy! We are excited for them as they enter the parenting stage of life. They have definitely waited for this as they have moved all over...including Alaska as Josh serves our country in the Army! We are so thankful for the sacrifices they have both made for our country!


This past weekend we had friends at our house. We met James and Jane on Kev's work trip to San Diego. We sat at the same table one night and quickly discovered that they are believers as well. It was awesome to meet another young christian couple at an event like this. We often feel like we are swimming up stream at these corporate events. We hit it off immediately and it was great to continue our friendship this past weekend. We ate out a lot, went to the Dave Ramsey conference, watched some Olympics and enjoyed visiting together.

The Big Scary Vacuum

So I am usually not a deep and meaningful thinker...but I have been trying, as I have recently gone through the bible study Discerning the Voice of God by Priscilla Shirer....to listen more when God is speaking to me. The other day as I was vacuuming the Lord spoke to me. Our old, heavy, and yes very ugly, green vacuum has proven to be...might I say terribly scary to our little Ella. In fact, it doesn't even have to be on to scare her. The other week I got it out and never got it done, and so it sat in our hallway ALL week. It's presence scared poor Ella girl all week long. Every time we'd walk down the hallway she'd just stare at that ugly old thing and refuse to crawl past it. It's so funny because to her I guess it is a giant, green, mean monster...not that she even knows what a monster is yet! This past Thursday I was trying to get my housework done early and actually complete it all for once and I still needed to vacuum. It was almost Ella's bedtime and Kev was working outside in the yard, and so I knew if I was going to get the job done I better just do it. Rather than just make Ella suffer through I decided to try holding her. Let me add here that our vacuum is heavy and I always feel like I have had a good work-out upon completion...and my type A personality won't let me miss any corners or spaces...I want it all covered...so I got out the big green monster...picked miss E up and began vacuuming! She didn't even make a whimper, grimace or even a little cry. In fact, she was happy and just held on as mommy took her for a fun ride! It was then that the Lord reminded me that my presence with Ella was making all the difference. In my arms she felt secure despite the fact that her one and only fear was roaring so close below. He reminded me that I too need to cling to Him with my fears and only then will I find peace and security! (And even enjoy this ride called LIFE!) Just as Ella's mommy my presence makes a difference...God being my heavenly father...His presence should make ALL the difference.

10 Month Pictures

10 Months Already?

Time sure does fly. Ella will be 10 months tomorrow and I can't believe that we are getting so close to her first birthday! I am already planning the celebration (Kevin keeps reminding me that I said I am just having a low-key family party.) It is so fun to see Ella learning new things each month and to see more and more of her little personality developing! These are some of her latest tricks....
-She now gives kisses on demand...it's so cute she'll open her mouth so wide! She loves to kiss the animals in her books. Today we were driving and I could see her in the mirror and I said, "Ella can you give your little bunny (her favorite new friend) a kiss" and she picked him up did it! It's so fun to see her comprehending and learning,
-She also knows what a phone is now...The other night she picked up her toy phone and put it to her ear twice. Kev and I both saw it and we looked at each other and said..."do you think she knows that is a phone?" Well, she does because she did it again today. I am surprised about this because I always hold my cell phone up for her to hear my mom or family members say hi to her on speaker phone! I guess she has seen me on the phone enough to understand.
-Ella can growl like a tiger and she tries to make a monkey sound. I'll go oo oo oo oo and she goes he he he he he. It's cute and I know what she is trying to do.
-Ella completely refuses to eat baby food now so we are experimenting in table foods...most days she is only interested in her yo baby yogurt and puffs. I feel like I spend the majority of the day trying to get this girl to eat a balanced meal!
-I have been trying to get Ella to drink from a cup and hold it herself. She is doing better on the drinking part but when I try to get her to hold it she gets so tickled. I don't know why this makes her laugh but...usually she has water pouring out of her mouth and it completely defeats my purpose!
-Ella got a little scared of the vaccumm cleaner the other day and Landon's stuffed pony! These were the first times she appeared fearful.
-Ella has become a great crawler and cruiser..now she has been working on standing alone...we are yet to take any steps!
-She loves to clap, patty cake and gives hi-fives...she still refuses to wave!
-Last thing...She loves to roll her ball back and forth. The other day we were playing and I leaned in and gave her a kiss. Now she thinks this is part of the game. My mom kept the church nursery this past Sunday night and Ella and her were rolling a ball and sure enough she expected some kisses with each roll. So cute!
As you can see I am quite the proud and grateful mom! I am thankful for these 10 happy months loving little Ella.

Thankful

So I've seen this idea on lots of blogs and I like it because I know I need to focus more on praise and thankfulness in my life...so here goes my 10 things I am thankful for this Thursday!

1. Kevin who takes out the trash every Tuesday.
2. Ella stretching her arms out for me to get her!
3. Subway's 5 dollar footlongs- we've been taking full advantage of this.
4. My flowers are actually still alive this summer-it's amazing what a little water will do for a plant!
5. Ella has started rubbing/pinching my upper arm...rubbing my face...I know she loves me!
6. Homemade things-I have recently found etsy.com and rediscovered my crafty side!
7. My mom-she lets all us girls call her many times a day...to answer questions, give medical advice, listen to an Ella story etc.
8. Finding old friends on facebook.
9. Healthy Choice fudge bars-these are my indulgence...I try to keep them at 2 a day! So creamy!
10. Kevin having two weeks off of school!

So they may not be extravagent but these little things make my every day more enjoyable!

More Cuteness!