In the Midst of a Celebrity

My sister is up in Nashville this week for a financial counseling conference.  This conference is being put on by the financial guru himself, Dave Ramsey. 

I had heard about Dave Ramsey a few years back and have always been intrigued by his financial advice...it's simple, it's to-the-point, and it follows the wise philosophy of "don't buy it if you can't pay for it with CASH!"  Ironically he's teaching us to do exactly what the world is teaching us NOT to do as we are surrounded by credit cards and other forms of endless borrowing...but I digress...

Adam and I took Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace class last fall when it was offered at our church.  My parents, my sister, and my brother and sister-in-law have all also taken the class and we all have been completely inspired.  Erin even began exploring the possibility of becoming a financial advisor through Dave Ramsey's company so that she could help others be "financially at peace."  She learned of this conference opportunity and decided to give it a shot.  Man, am I proud of her for doing this!  She's stepped out of her comfort zone, went to this conference knowing no one, and is coming back with a WEALTH of information and inspiration to help others...way to go Erin!

I received a picture from her today with the big man himself.  This was exciting to the whole family as we all are quite large fans of big Dave.

The text that went along with the picture said, Dave says hi.  In response to that I asked if she gave him a hug...to which she responded, shook hands.  I asked if she was nervous and she replied that she was, which resulted in being a little dorky. (us??  dorky??  never!)  She went on to explain that instead of asking to take a picture with him, she said...

can I smile with you?

All I gotta say is CLASSIC!  We, Middletons, are known for not only our dorky-ness but our tendencies to get words/phrases a little mixed up at times.  We initially thought that this only applied to our mom, thus resulting in Jeanie-isms, but I'm starting to come to terms with the fact that we all seem to have this issue at times...couple that with being in the presence of a celebrity and voila!  Enter the present situation!

Needless to say, I got a good laugh for the afternoon and Erin got to meet someone very cool...I'd say it's a win-win for all!

5 Months

Yay!  Evan is 5 months old!  (Well he was 5 months old almost a month ago but who's counting??)

He's just rocking and rolling along!  Well he's rolling from his stomach to his back...not quite from his back to his stomach yet but hey, there's a lot of mass to roll over!

We've started rice cereal.  I think it's sufficient to say that he likes it!  We've moved to a three-meal-per-day eating schedule, which has worked out really well.  What can I say?  My babies like their food!

He hasn't been weighed in awhile.  We go back to the doctor in a few weeks for his 6 month check-up and I'm interested to see how much we're weighing in.  My prediction is that he's gained some more weight but maybe not at the rate that we were initially gaining...the lightning fast rate!

He's a scooting machine!  Put the child on his back and he's off!  Will go clear across the room if you'll let him!

And he can now sit on his own...yay Evan!  What a big boy!

His smile still lights up a room and he still loves to entertain all present.  Love you sweet boy!

A Marvelous Mama's Day

This year's Mother's Day celebration actually began the Friday before Mother's Day.  Thomas's school had a tea party in honor of their mamas so I got to spend a mid-morning with my sweet boy getting showered with treats!

There were crafts.

There were snacks and lemonade.

There was a sweet card and a flower made specially for me!



The best present of all was getting to spend some time with my Tom-Tom!

Sunday was a relaxing day spent with family.  When asked what we wanted for our celebratory lunch, my mom and I both felt that not making any lunch decisions would be the best gift!  So we were able to come home from church to a yummy lunch that was already prepared...whoo hoo!

It was a great day! 

Mama and her boys...Thomas wasn't feeling the camera at that point...

Mama, her boys, and her mama =)

two Mamas

my Mama and her girls and boy

Being a Mama is so much fun!  I love everything about it and I love everyday that I get to spend with my little lovelies...it's life's biggest blessing!

Catch it Down in New Orleans

In the South Land there's a city
Way down on the river

Where the women are very pretty

And all the men deliver

They got music

It's always playin'
Start in the day time, go all through the night

When you hear that music playin'

Hear what I'm saying, it make you feel alright

Grab somebody, come on down

Bring your paintbrush toothbrush, we're paintin' the town

Oh there's some sweetness goin' 'round

Catch it down in New Orleans

Loved seeing our fun family down in New Orleans!  Happy 2nd birthday to cousin Lucas and we can't wait to see all of you again!!

Stop! Grammy Time!

In light of the recent Mother's Day celebrations, I only found it fitting to reflect on another great "mother" in my life.

My mother-in-law, Madeleine, came into my life about nine years ago when I met Adam.  In those nine years, she has become not only a wonderful source of love and support, but she has also become a true friend.  One that I admire and respect and love to spend time with!

Not too long after Evan's surgery, Madeleine took time off of her busy schedule to come up to Shreveport and spend some time with us.  I was so touched that she would do this and come up to be another set of helping hands.  She was such a huge help!  She wiped noses, changed diapers, gave baths, diagnosed ear infections, fixed dinners, ran errands, read stories, sang songs, and played...oh how she played!  It was a great week and I'm so grateful she was there!

Thank you not only for your help that week, Grammy, but for ALL you do.  You're a blessing to our lives and we feel your support constantly!

Happy Mother's Day Grammy!  We love you!

The Giver

Mother's Day is upon us and I am yet again reflecting not only my role as a mother but the role that my mother has played in my life. 

When I think about my mom and the best way to describe her, I think of the word "giver."  Anyone who has ever spent any amount of time with her immediately picks up on her giving spirit.  She's that person that will bend over backwards, even if it's completely inconvenient for her, to be helpful to a situation.  She's the ultimate hostess, always sensitive to one's feelings, always ready with a positive thought or suggestion to life's trials, and is never one to say "no" if she can help it. 

My mother has given me so much.  She's given me the obvious things: a loving source of support, the basic necessities of life, guidance and wisdom through all the different stages of my life.  She's also given me incredible foundations, those of Faith, Hope and Love, that I carry with me constantly and strive to teach to my own family.  She has given me the example of the type of mother that I'd like to be to my children.  The type of mother who teaches her children to be confident, humble, selfless and gracious.  The type of mother who unconditionally supports her children yet teaches them to be independent.  The type of mother who instills the value of family in her children and lives out those family values on a daily basis.

My mother is an incredible woman and I'm so grateful that she's in my life.

When I think about trying to express my gratitude for all of the wonderful things my mother has given me, I become tongue tied.  How do you appropriately thank someone who blesses you on a daily basis?  I don't think all of the "thank you's" in the world will even come close to cutting it.

But I hope my mom knows how much I love her and how much I idolize her.  I hope she sees how much she enriches my life and how she inspires me on a daily basis to be a better wife and mother myself.  I hope that I can carry forward the values that she has taught me to my children and that they will teach their children.  I hope that my mother's teachings and lessons will live on for many, many generations, molding the lives of even our great-great grandchildren and beyond.

I hope that my mother feels so, so special as we honor her this Mother's Day and I hope that in the days beyond that she continues to feel the gratitude that I feel everyday.

Happy Mother's Day Mom!  I love you so much, you're an amazing mother-in-law, and you're an incredible grandmother to my boys.  Thank you for all of our "givings."  They bless us everyday!

This Egg-cellent Easter Time!

**Warning: lots to post with this one!**

Our Easter-time this year was jam-packed with fun stuff to do and we had a blast with everything!

We started out with the annual Palm parade at church followed by a church-wide Easter egg hunt.  This year, we were highly entertained by our excited two-year-olds walking proudly with their palms.  Thomas got a smidge confused and kept asking if we needed to say "throw me somethin' mister!"...guess Mardi Gras is in that boy's blood or something... =)

We enjoyed the egg hunt in beautiful, spring weather after church. 

Thomas hunted.

Evan napped.

All of the boys were excited about their loot.

They got together to compare and share.

Of course, Thomas found a stick.

Michael and Thomas had a little photo opp.

Evan and Brian conversed.

Our next Easter event was an egg hunt at school. 

Posing with our basket.

Even though I wasn't able to go to the school hunt, Thomas came home with a full basket and said it was fun so I think it's safe to say it was a success!

Next up on the agenda was the annual "Easter Bunny visit at the Ruckers" event.  Old EB found time in his busy schedule again this year to come by and visit us.  He was kind enough to sit for some pictures and leave us some egged treats.  What a guy, what a guy!

As we prepared for the egg-citing encounter, we talked A LOT about how friendly and nice EB was. (We've been a bit nervous being around the Easter bunny in the past...)  Thomas approached this visit with renewed courage and was excited about telling his new friend "hi."

When we got to the Ruckers, EB was already there.  We went over to see him and get a quick pic with him.  While Thomas was intrigued, he was cautious about this large furry creature.

Evan was quite fond of our new friend.  Maybe he liked his satin-y vest...

We were able to get a family pic.

As always, it was great fun spending the afternoon with our friends.  It was absolutely egg-squisite!

group shot attempt...gets more entertaining every year

Our family Easter celebratory events began with dying Easter eggs for EB to hide when he came to visit us.

hard at work

Church was fabulous on Easter Sunday.  We celebrated our Savior's resurrection by rocking out to U2's "Pride (In the Name of Love)"...awesome!

coordinating buds

When we came home from church, we were egg-static to discover that our friend EB had stopped by for a visit at the house!

We followed our rabbit trail to discover the treasures that awaited us...

got a little distracted by the treats inside the eggs on our trail

needed a little help collecting our trail snacks

Thomas's Easter surprises!

Baby Evan racked up too...

Mom and Dad were excited about the "bunny tail" cheese puffs EB left for Thomas.

Mamou read the Curious George Easter book Thomas got...I think Aunt Jen Jen enjoyed the book the most!

And our Easter celebration would certainly not be complete without a slew of family photos.

best we could do with these two

Whew!  What an Easter!  And what a celebration of our God's love for us.  Good times, good times!