New Pictures

A little note about the pictures. Sammie has a white dress on from a gift from Paul. He knows how much she likes to dress up, so he bought her the fanciest one he could find and she LOVES it.

Sammie and Paul are posing at the restaurant we went to on my 31st birthday. We had a good time dispite the restaurant messing Paul's order up completely.

The picture of my belly is from a month ago. Imagine how big I am now!!

The picture is one Sammie drew of us at the beach, complete with sun, clouds, waves and sand. Notice Paul's beard on his face and my round tummy. In fact, I think she drew a round tummy on all of us. Ha Ha

The last picture is of Sammie asleep on the back porch. We both actually fell asleep, but when I woke up, she was all bundled up and sweating like a pig under that blanket. Okay, I know, pigs don't sweat.

I can't wait

Well, my baby shower is only a little over a week away!! I am sooo excited; my friend Jenni has gone out of her way to prepare it and get adorable invitations. She has spent so much of her time and money to make this a memorable occasion. It is so nice to have friends that really and truly care for you. And what lets me know that she is such a wonderful friend is that she encourages me on a regular basis; she never tries to tear me down or hurt my feelings, she just wants to be a devoted friend.

After the turmoil of last year, I really thank God for my friends. I am really blessed.

The cost of a child

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140 for a middle income family. Talk about sticker shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition.

But $160,140 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into: $8,896.66 a year, $741.38 a month, or $171.08 a week That's a mere $24.24 a day! Just over a dollar an hour.

Still, you might think the best financial advice is don't have children if you want to be "rich." Actually, it is just the opposite. What do you get for your $160,140? *
Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
Giggles under the covers every night.
More love than your heart can hold.
Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
A hand to hold usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites.
Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140, you never have to grow up.
You get to:
finger-paint, play hide-and-seek, and catch lightning bugs.

You have an excuse to:
keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh, watching Saturday morning cartoons, and going to Disney movies.

You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For $160,140, there is no greater bang for your buck.

You get to be a hero just for:
retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof, taking the training wheels off a bike, removing a splinter, filling a wading pool, coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the: First step, First word, First bra, First date, and First time behind the wheel.

You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren.

You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match. In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits,

So One day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren.

My grandparents

I received these pictures from Heather, my sister. They are of my grandparents on my Dad's side.
The one of my grandfather was taken when he was still a teenager. I'm guessing the one of my grandmother was from her in her early 20's.
I think I look more like my grandmother, what do you think?

The Surreal Life

As I sat on the blanket, watching Sammie from a distance; I was amazed at her swinging higher and higher into the sky.
This is something I had not witnessed before. I knew that she had the concept of pumping her legs back and forth but, she now had the momentum. Sammie was soaring higher, leaning far back to get that extra kick.
The thought came into my mind.....I now have a kid, not a preschooler. Even though she has a few months to go before 5, she seemed to grow so much in 5 minutes.