Well, after much debate and searching, we got another dog. We really grieved after losing both of our great danes, Miles and Jazzmine, in 2012 and we have gone back and forth about getting another one. I really wanted a dog for protection since I am at the house most days by myself with the kids and of course the kids wanted a dog! He reminds of so much of Miles; he looks a lot like him and they have similar personalities.His name is Duke and he is 8 months old. We adopted him from a single mom who works long hours and couldn’t care for him anymore both physically and financially. He is super sweet and great with the kids. He is still very much a puppy, so we are working on behavior training (he loves to steal the kids toys). He LOVES G and follows him everywhere which turns into G getting knocked over because Duke tries to sit on G to get attention. He hasn’t eaten a chicken yet and he is scared of the pig so he is fitting in well on the farm! I will post a better picture soon but this was our attempt of taking a picture of him and the kids. He has beautiful coloring. He is a reverse brindle and he looks like a tiger, especially from afar so I doubt anyone will be messing with me when I am home alone with the kiddos!

Here are few photos (not very good photos because I took them) of the kids eating in the garden. I made a fritatta with fresh eggs from our chickens and kohlrabi (I used the greens and the root) from the garden. I thought it would be fitting to enjoy this dinner among the remaining winter harvest with a beautiful spring breeze in the air.

Here are the most recent photos of our family of 5. It is impossible to get all 3 kids to smile at the camera but at least they were all happy!

Here are some photos from our time in Panama City this past weekend. Most of them are from a cell phone so the quality isn’t great but we had fun!

My sweet cousin, Kelly, was hit by a car as she was crossing the street in Panama City on Friday March 7th. She had very little brain activity immediately following the accident. My aunt and uncle had to make a difficult decision to remove her from all life-giving machines the following Tuesday. She went to be with Jesus early Wednesday morning, March 12,2014. We spent this past weekend in Panama City mourning her tragic death, yet celebrating her life. There were many sad moments, but we created new memories re-connecting as family. Most of us hadn’t been together in years and we were so thankful to be together, loving Kelly, loving our savior and loving each other during a difficult time.

I walked into the living room the other day to K holding MJ up to the window. They are so sweet!

I recently bought G some new-to-him, ie used, clothes. Here are some photos of K and G doing a fashion show for us. There is also an awesome shot of of Kathryn in the garden. I am so thankful Adam is enjoying taking pictures again!

We are really enjoying warmer weather. Even on the cool days, we are spending most of our time outside playing in the grass,  hanging clothes, playing on the playground and taking care of the farm animals. As long as the sun is out, we manage a way to be outside. The kids behave so much better if they spend at least some of the day outside. They are great helpers collecting eggs and filling up water just from the rain barrels. The love that chore because they end of playing in the water and mud. They will say “Can we play yucky ducky today?” Which means, “Can we get filthy and you not be upset?”

The other day I had MJ laying on a blanket on the grass so K laid on the grass next to her. She looked up at the sky and said, “God is amazing. He is so amazing.” I just love that little girl!

G is a bundle of energy right now and he talks ALL of the time. His favorite thing is to tell me is “Go, go” when I am sitting at a red light. It has worked out because I have used time in the car to teach him his colors. He now knows to only tell me “go,go” when the light turns green. He LOVES trucks; any kind, any size and he loves to read. We are teaching him how to sit still during K’s school time, which has been a challenge but he is learning!

MJ is such a joy to be around. She does have a fiery little temper but 99% of the time she is pleasant with lots of smiles. She started eating foods; I was hoping to get a little meat on her bones. She is now 12.4 pounds and she loves food. I grind fresh oats and mix that with banana or pear sauce. She also likes avocado or sweet potato mixed with breast milk. Here are her 5 month photos!

Hello all. It has been a busy few weeks so I thought I would post a quick update. Adam’s dad had a stress test on Valentine’s Day and then was admitted because the EKG was abnormal. Monday afternoon, the 17th, they performed a heart catheter here locally. The results were not good and the cardiologist recommended UAB for a triple by-pass. He was flown by helicopter Monday evening to UAB and he had a triple by-pass Wednesday morning. In the midst of all of that, G and K had a stomach bug which they passed on to Adam. I was hesitant to leave the kids since they were having vomiting and diarrhea, so I stayed behind until Tuesday evening. My SIL and I drove to Birmingham with MJ on Tuesday evening after work. (Poor Adam spent all day Tuesday and Wednesday morning in the hotel room with a stomach bug). The surgery went very well and so Adam, his brother and wife and I drove home from Birmingham Thursday afternoon so we could all work on Friday. Adam and his brother (his other brother actually lives outside Birmingham so he was there the entire time) drove back on Monday the 24th to drive his mom and dad home. Adam’s dad is recovering well and we are so thankful for a great team of doctors and nurses at UAB! We are also so thankful for my parents and our friends for taking care of the older 2 kids on such short notice. It actually was a great time of fellowship as family since we spent several days together sitting in a hospital waiting area. I wish it was under better circumstances, but we are thankful for laughter and great memories!

This is Adam’s oldest brother, Kyle. MJ was a trooper!

The second picture is his brother Ryan and Ryan’s wife, Kelly and the third picture is Adam’s mom.

We decided to celebrate Valentine’s Day all weekend, since Adam has Monday off for President’s Day. Friday evening we exchanghed cards; Adam buys cards for the girls and I give Graham a card. The kids had a stomach virus this week, so instead of pizza, I made heart shaped PB&J for dinner. Adam started a new tradition this year. He washed our feet and read John 13: 1-12. He then taught the kids about the importance of love and servanthood. It was very beautiful. Saturday morning I made heart-shaped pancakes with strawberries and whip cream on top and heart-shaped bacon. While I was making breakfast, the kids and Adam made some Valentine candy. Saturday was his mom’s birthday so we took her a decorated pancake and some of the candy. Sunday we had a family day and I made heart-shaped red velvet whoopie pies. Of course I didn’t have red food coloring, but they tasted yummy! Sunday night we had a date night and the 2 older kids stayed the night at my parents. It was a great family weekend!!