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I know most of you probably have already seen this but I have a semi-new blog where I post most of my photo shoots for friends, family, and customers:)

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http://autumnleahphotography.blogspot.com/

It's been a while...

I know I haven't posted in a while so here are a few pics of the kids! We have been busy with school, soccer and other activities... oh yes, and we have been SICK for about 3 weeks now. I am in love with the cooler weather but we need a break from the sickness! Hopefully this is it for a few months.

Such a little lady!

A New Chapter...

We did it! We dropped our big girl off for her first day of school. She was sooooo excited and couldn't sleep last night. She was a little quiet when she sat down but she was smiling and happy and sweet. She gave me hugs and told us "bye". She didn't cry or act scared or do anything that would make it even harder for me to leave:)

Please pray for her today and everyday this week! We are so thankful that God has given us such an amazing little girl and we are confident that she will be a light everywhere she goes.

"Oh MAMA, you were RIGHT! French braids DO make the best curls!" - She was excited about her curly hair today:)

It is unbelievable how much sweetness can fit in this one picture! I love them so much!

THE Cutest kindergartner ever!

Cashe was pretty upset to see his big sister go... or maybe he was upset that he was not able to stay;)

Happy 5th Birthday, Belle!

Today is the big day! Belle is 5 and we couldn't be more proud of the sweet girl she is today.

She woke up and we found her laying on the couch quietly watching cartoons... she didn't even wake us up! We started with presents and I included some little cards that will let her make several choices throughout the day (5 choices). The first was breakfast and she chose:

McDonalds.

She started by marking them both because she got so excited. But hey, it's her birthday!

We love you, Belle and we are so blessed to have had the past 5 years with such a precious gift from God. Keep your sweetness and kindness and serve Him always!

*Almost* Back to School

Can you believe it? I can't. I can't believe that it is almost that time...

Kindergarten.

In a lot of ways, it seems like forever ago that we lived in our sweet little house in Shawnee, OK. We brought our precious baby girl home and we couldn't see past the tiny cries, the wrinkly toes, the diaper changes and tiny pink dresses to what would happen 5 years later. On the other hand, time has flown! I can hardly believe the beautiful, sweet, kind, little girl who has quickly become my best buddy.

Unfortunately, she is ready, and I am not

My prayer for Belle is that she learns and benefits from this change. I pray that she is safe and stays healthy this year. I pray that she can make some good, sweet, friends. I pray that she continues to be sweet and respectful of her teachers and classmates. I pray that over the next several years she grows strong in the Lord and that she can stand up for what is right. I pray that we are teaching her, even now, how God expects her to be different, not just to fit in. How he wants her to make good choices and to also lead others to make good choices. My parents always taught us to stand up for what is right, and even when we were completely outnumbered, we knew we had to. I remember having debates with teachers, students, youth ministers at camp, etc, etc, etc, over things that I knew were right. Looking back, I know that was because my parents stood up for the truth and challenged us to do the same. I feel so blessed to have had that training from such a young age. Blake and I pray that we are passing that on to our children as well.

I ask that you pray for this as well. For Belle and for all of the kids in our church who are heading out into the world, as well as their parents. You may not think this is necessary, but Blake and I know that training up a child in the way he should go, begins at birth. It is never too early.

Mama and Daddy love you, Belle!

Daddy Daughter Date Night

Have I ever mentioned how much I LOVE Chick Fil A? Well, I do. I. Love. Them.

Tonight they had a Daddy daughter date night and it was so cute! They picked Blake and the girls up in a LIMO a few blocks away from Chick Fil A. They arrived to a red carpet entrance. They met one of the cows and they were served their food at their table. The girls each left with a flower, and a stuffed cow. All of this just for the cost of their food. I love Chick Fil A!

Here are a few pics from the "event". As you can see, Belle fit in perfectly and decided the limo is her way to ride!

Poor Cashe wasn't invited so we had our own little date and went for ice cream:)

These girls are so lucky to have such a great Daddy!

Sewin' Fool...

If you know me very well you probably know a couple things about me:

1. I {heart} being crafty and creative

2. I am ridiculously impatient and patterns/instructions are not for me.

That being said, I had pulled away from sewing (which I used to love) and my machine sat in its place for months at a time... useless. This also could be due to the sewing burn-out I experienced after making/selling thousands of baby leg warmers, but we won't talk about that.

Well, for some reason I decided to pull it out and make some pants for Piper using a pattern (yes, I used a pattern!) I already had and some scrap fabric I had as well. They turned out great! They fit and were so much cuter than anything I can get at Target (the only place I can afford to buy childrens clothes). So I went crazy and made oh, about 10 more. As

well as several pants and skirts for Belle and a dress! The only reason this was accomplished is because the pant pattern is pretty much idiot-proof and only required 1 cut... perfect.

(best pic I could get quickly)

Anyway, here are a few of the items I made. The dress was completely from scratch and thankfully its kind of a shabby style because there are more than a few mistakes on it {oops}. But Belle loves it and has twirled all day long. Pipers shirt was not from a pattern either and had to be taken apart and put back together a few times:)

Of course I couldn't leave out the little dude, so he got some baseball pajama pants.

Graduation

I know, I know, it's a little ridiculous that now even pre-school has a graduation but I am convinced that the school system has a required amount of times they expect moms to cry before their child ACTUALLY graduates. And that number is obviously increasing so they have to throw pre-school graduation in to help meet the quota.

Anyway, Belle has been the best little student that school has ever seen (no bias, I swear) and they were sad to see her go. Her sweet teacher, Miss Julie, was such a blessing and Belle just loved having her both years.

And here is her sweet little friend, Presley-Lynn

And just for the record, I didn't cry ;)

First Pony Tail

Ok, so I guess it's a bit of a stretch to call this a "pony tail", but seriously, isn't it the cutest thing ever??

And these following pictures are for my father-in-law, who doubted my ability to turn an old torn up tire into something worth photographing;) Enjoy!

Minnesota Fun

Hi everyone!

I know I have been bad about posting and I know I always use this excuse, but we have been busy:) We have all been well (thank God for this) the past few weeks and we have been enjoying the weather.

Last week we drove to MN for Blake to speak at a Bible lecture put on by a couple churches of Christ up there. He did a great job and the entire lecture was very uplifiting.
Of course, while we were there we stayed with my parents and we had a great time. The weather was a little bit on the freezing side though (literally). I was prepared for cooler weather but not winter weather... even for MN that was a bit crazy!

Belle went to work with my mom each day after school (she runs an after school program) and she felt very special. We also went to a reptile zoo there in town and met a 12 foot alligator (behind glass, of course). Cashe was in heaven. Papa decided to play a mean trick though and slid a fake alligator (shown below being drug by its tail) around a corner so Cashe thought it was real. He completely lost it and stood there screaming, unable to move, until I rescued him and showed him it wasn't real... Daddy's and Papa's have a lot in common ;)

Anyway, we loved our little getaway and the time we were able to spend with family. The kids love spending time with Nanny and Papa and we wish those times weren't so few and far between! (My three favorite little people)(Cashe playing on the stairs we spent many hours sliding down as kids... lots of rug-burn!)

(Yes, we let her touch the snake... I even touched it to show it wasn't scary. Although inside, I was screaming like a little girl) (He showed that alligator who's boss!)(Piper checkin' out the leopard spotted lizard thinking "he would make a nice little purse"... I agree)

Sweet girl

Belle is my little helper these days and she is always so sweet about it. She still loves to clean with me and shop with me and anytime I have a "project" she is right there beside me, wanting to help.

Yesterday we had some time in the afternoon to go shopping and I told her when we got home I would show her how to make a crown out of flowers... that got her attention.

Anyway, we had fun sitting in the sun and she felt like a fairy princess when it was complete. Funny how something so simple and free can create such sweet and lasting memories!