playing house...

Yesterday, Matt and I watched our nieces, Avery and Atley, and nephew, Canon. Shelly, our sister-in-love is on bed rest in the hospital here in Dallas, so the kids are with her parents while Phillip works in St. Louis. Thankfully, he has gotten to come and visit fairly often. It has been a trying time for them, so we want to help as much as possible, and wish we could do more. Despite the situation, they are holding to God's Word and trusting in His promises.

With that said, yesterday was such a fun day... and a great pre-parenting experience for Matt and I both. Anytime Matt and I get to babysit together (which doesn't happen much) I feel like a little girl again, playing house. :) All my life I have wanted to be a mommy and I love getting to practice, especially when Matt is there. It is always a good little test for us... can we handle it??

The first time Matt helped me babysit was with my cousins kids. Lexie, now almost 2, was just a newborn and I gave Matt the job of holding her while I made us some dinner... the other three were already in bed, so just the three of us. Matt was a little nervous, and I should have been a little bit nicer about explaining things to him, but she was a newborn... she just laid there. He was doing good, but then panicked, just a little bit, when Lexie spit up on him :) Ok, I know, maybe a little rough first experience. I think he has always been a little afraid of babies (because in his mind they are "breakable"). The reason I share this with you is to share with you how proud I was of him after yesterday!! He has come so far :)

It was a busy day, and with 3 yr. old twins and a 15 month old, we were a little tired, just a little though ;) We tried to make the day fun for the kids and wanted to plan some activities so we weren't just sitting at home with them. So, we were off to Chick-fil-a to play in the play area and eat lunch. Then back home for a nap. A little craft project with paint ... I know, I was taking a HUGE risk with all those little hands, but they did great. Then off to the hospital to see Shelly. Back home for dinner and then time for bed. Whew, what a day! Doesn't seem like a lot, but getting all of them in and out of the car alone was hard.

The whole time, Matt was such a huge help! He put kids in their car seats, took them out, carried and put Canon to bed, and played sweetly with all of them. I was so impressed. And for all you wanna-be-mommies out there, seeing your man exceed at the daddy-role is more than enough to want you to have a baby really soon ;) At least that is how it is for me!

I guess, what I am trying to say is, baby you did an awesome job of taking care of our sweet nieces and nephew. Honestly, you surprised me. You were amazing, and I know you will be a great daddy one day. I have all the confidence in the world in you, knowing our boys will want to be just like their daddy and our girls will be daddy's girls :) Love you babe.

It was a great day with the kids. Sorry for the lack of pictures... forgot my camera and my phone is not cooperating. But, cute quotes from the day:

The girls loved wearing my digital watch and pushing the light button. Atley - "Look Avey, I have a movie on my arm."

Matt was "eating" the girls and I was saving them from him. As he was going to eat Canon, Atley yelled, "No, no. Don't eat him. Save me Lauen!"

Talking with the girls about going to see Shelly. Avery - "My daddy at the ZOE house."

we did it

Well, we finally gave into the iworld... we got a macbook pro. Still not sure how I feel about this purchase. I can never figure these computers out, but I guess I will have to learn now. Clearly, Matt is very excited. :) This was literally his face when he walked in the door with it.

This will be a great tool for Matt in ministry because he is awesome at making videos and the like. Hopefully I will benefit from that gift of his too. (hint, hint: wedding video, please) Wish me luck as I explore the world of the MacBook!

p.s. is it weird that the whole time I was writing this post I have the song "We did it! We did it!" from the Backyardigans theme song?? I think I spend too much time with children. Never to early to start practicing, right??

our first fire

If you know anything about me, you know I am ALWAYS freezing cold... so having a fireplace in our apartment is a dream come true. :) We have gotten to enjoy a few fires and it has been wonderful!

Our sweet friend, Peter Cunningham, has just transferred from University of Arkansas to Southwestern's Undergrad program. We are so excited to have him here with us in Texas!!
Aren't fires just beautiful ;) They just make everything fell so homey

RICE=my ENEMY

I am allergic to yeast, so pasta (and all the rest of the yummy-not-so-good-for-you foods on the food pyramid) don't really work for me. My mom is always telling me to eat rice instead, and many recipes call for rice instead of pasta when looking for a "healthier" option. I hate rice, and personally, I think it is just another empty carb that just adds more calories to your meal. BUT, last night I made stir-fry with a bunch of yummy veggies and chicken for matt, so rice is a kind of needed ingredient. Every time I make rice, it turns out runny and mushy. I try so hard too, I even bought organic brown rice hoping it would taste and cook better... I thought I would out-smart the rice and cook it with less water and for longer (the package says this is supposed to work for firmer rice). Well, I guess I got what I wanted. I definately got FIRM rice.

Look what the rice did to my pot!! I am officially done with cooking rice.

Any ideas on how to clean my pot??

Over the Top

A sweet friend, Emily, the wonderful mother of the four kids I spend my days with, gave me this award. I was honored to be put in the category of "over the top" because many days I feel like this blog is just a fun, and somewhat random, caption of our simple lives. A few questions to be answered with just one word... not too hard, right?

Where is your cell phone? Kitchen

Your hair? dirty

Your mother? loving

Your father? best

Your dream last night? scary

Your favorite drink? water

Your dream/goal? mother

What room are you in? kitchen

What is your hobby? sewing

Your fear? bugs

Where do you want to be in six years? babies

Where were you last night? home

Something you aren't? outgoing

Muffins? cant

Wish list item? Christ

Last thing you did? dinner

Where did you grow up? missouri

What are you wearing? leggings

Your TV? TLC

Your pets? never:)

Friends? precious

Your life? blessed

Your mood? still

Missing someone? family

Vehicle? SUV

SOmething your not wearing? make-up

Your favorite store? gap

Your favorite color? blue

When was the last time you laughed? today

Last time you cried? Saturday

Your best friend? Matt

One place you could go over and over? Colorado

One person who emails you regularly? grandpa

Favorite place to eat? mexican

I pass this award onto...

Shelly: my sweet sister in law who is an amazing mother and wife. I look up to her in so many areas and only hope to be as good of a mom as her!

Michelle: a new friend and talented writer. she is so great at so many things and definate encouragement.

really??

This morning at church a sweet friend introduced me to her small group of high school junior girls. I am really trying to get to know some of the kids at the FieldHouse, so I was excited to meet these sweet girls. Upon being introduced one of them excitedly said, "Oh, are you going to be in our small group??" My friend awkwardly responded, "Um, no. This is Matt's, the new high school pastor, wife." I laughed and really wasn't shocked or upset, this happens ALL the time to me. Carded in the mall, shocked faces of people when I introduce Matt as my husband, and "what about you sweet heart, will you be dancing this year?" comments are just part of my everyday... But, this one was a bit of a shocker even for me!!

I guess one day I'll appreciate it, right?

2010

2010 has brought much fun and excitement with it...

I would like to introduce Fielder Road Baptist Church's newest staff addition...

Matt Hunter, Senior High Youth Pastor!!!

We are excited to share with you the latest news in our lives. Matt accepted a new job serving at our church here in Arlington, Texas as the new youth pastor. We are very excited about this new opportunity. Matt is so excited to serve in this way and we can't wait to start getting to know kids! Please be praying for Matt as he enters this new role, begins to learn more about student ministry and starts investing in the lives of students. Arlington is a very diverse population with multiple high schools, so Matt has a big role. But, I know that the Lord has brought him to this position for a reason and that is to spread the joy and peace that life in Christ can be to these kids. Praise the Lord for this awesome opportunity!

We had fun ringing in the New Year in Kansas City!

Matt and his brother, Phillip, didn't miss the opportunity to

swim in the freezing weather... they are crazy :)

a freezing 2 degrees when we left KC... we were excited to get back to the warmth of TX

In early December we were blessed to go to Disney World with my cousin, Natasha, and her family. It was so much fun to be in the midst of the magic of Disney with 4 little girls. We have grown a special place in our hearts for these girls, the older three were in our wedding and I have been babysitting all of them since they were itty-bitty babies. Natasha is an amazing mom, and someone I have always looked up too - so it was great to spend a whole week with them! It was a great trip and a good pre-parenting experience for us ;) It has been one of Matt's dreams to go to Disney together, and we loved every minute of it. I think he had just as much fun (if not more) than the girls ;) My personal favorite was the Beauty and the Beast show and Matt's was the excellence of the park... "they really make you believe in magic!" Everything really is amazing there.
Here are the girls...

Elle (5)
Kate (5)

Olivia (4)
Lexie (2)

Us in Minnie's Gazebo

Cinderella's Castle - Disney during the Christmas Season is beautiful and everything is decorated with lights, it was so fun!
The Princesses
Matt was trying to get in on the parade ... he is my "Mr. Incredible" :)
Princess Tiana, from the Princess and the Frog

Natasha and husband Bill with girls

On the tram to the parks

Epcot
Matt with twins
I couldn't go without a pic of my favorite princess, Belle
All the girls just adore Matt... especially little Olivia. Every morning the girls woke up and colored or wrote "letters", ALL of which were addressed To: Matt "I Love You" :) Here is Olivia all smiles with her buddy Matt and he loves it!

Natasha and Bill, thanks again for taking us along with you. We had an amazingly fun time and fell more in love with your family and your girls!! Love and miss you!