A Great Day with a Sad Ending

Yesterday, July 30th Elizabeth turned 10 years old. I remember how cool it felt to turn 10- double digits, and trust me she thought it was super cool. She had an great birthday this year- full of excitement and smiles (I'm a little partial to her smiles). Her Godfather Uncle Don took her to a dinner theater and saw Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat where she got treated like a lady, got a special birthday announcement, and some delicious chocolate birthday cake.



It's hard to believe that we have been parents for 10 years- what a ride! We are very blessed. Elizabeth is turning into not only a beautiful young lady, but she is a beautiful child of God- so faithful, so inquisitive, and such a servant. She is an amazing help with the little kids and around the house. One day she said to me, "You know Mom, I've been sweeping so long it doesn't even feel like work anymore." At least I have one who gets it; she's definitely not afraid of hard work, and almost always has a very willing and cheerful attitude. We love you.

Elizabeth is turning into quite a game player, so she is looking forward to this one from her Auntie Missy and Uncle Dale.

Elizabeth's Godmother Auntie Julie has been giving her Precious Moments since she was born; the series is called "Growing in Grace" which she definitely is.

We decided that this year we would get Elizabeth a new bike, and maybe start a tradition of getting a new bike when you turn 10. I bought one bike which wasn't really bigger than her old one, and on the very day I bought it she started riding my bike. Back to the store we went to get her a BIG bike; it's a little big for her, but she couldn't care less. She loves it.

Papa decided to give Elizabeth a little lesson on hand breaks before she ventured off. I just couldn't pass up posting a picture of the notorious finger- you know he means business when it starts waving like that.

Daddy decided to give a little less intense hands on training of gear shifting; isn't he purdy?

We got her a pretty aqua helmet to match since she is very safety conscious.
I had no idea what I was going to do for her cake, but she decided she really wanted a 10. I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to accomplish this, but I decided to give it a try. It was not pretty. I had two pans of cake figuring I would cut the numbers and then just frost them. Unfortunately, one pan came out in probably 10-15 pieces with some still in the pan. Anyone who knows me knows I'm pretty stubborn and proceeded to form a one with all the pieces like I was making sand art. It turned out better than I thought it would, and thankfully the zero gave me little trouble. I got the inspiration for the multicolored frosting since she had just seen Joseph. One would not think it could take so long to do this type of frosting, but it did, and it was well worth it when I heard her exclaim, "It's so awesome; even better than I imagined it would be."

Had to throw one of me with my brood; I gotta say we're a pretty good looking bunch.

Happy birthday Elizabeth. We are so proud of you. May God bless you always and may your faith and grace continue to grow and grow.

Baby Matthew-

Unfortunately, after the party had ended and we had finally settled everyone into bed I got word that little Matthew had died. This little boy has become such a part of our family. We have prayed and prayed that he would live, and yet the Lord had other plans for him. Emily has posted some very precious pictures of their time with Matthew while he was on this earth, and they display such an amazing amount of grace and peace in God's will. If only I could have an ounce of that grace. Please offer up a prayer for Emily and John, their 5 beautiful children and all their family and friends who grieve the loss of little Matthew. Heaven has a new little saint. http://www.godscanvas.wordpress.com/

Our baby-

Also, wanted to let you know that Paul and I went on the 29th for an ultrasound- hard to believe I am half way through this pregnancy. We found out we are having another little girl, well the dr. is 95% sure. She was turned inward, so it was difficult to get good images. He's not concerned, but wants me back in a month just to get another look and get some crisper images. It was wonderful to see her, and now we are thinking pink- totally excited.