My Little Gymnast

A few weeks ago we signed Cori up for gymnastics. We had been wanting to try out gymnastics when we lived in Gainesville, but prices were just so expensive. Well, here in Birmingham, there is a church about 15 minutes from us that has an incredible recreational center!! Recreation includes gymnastics, ballet, karate, a gym for adults and some awesome bootcamp style workout classes for me at a very reasonable price! We actually spend 3 days a week over there at their recreation center! We just love it!

Cori is absolutely LOVING gymnastics. She can forward roll all by herself and flip backwards over things. She is one of the strongest 2 and a half year olds I know! Of course, I’m not saying she is the next Olympic gymnast – that would be a bit too far! HA! But, she is a natural flipper for sure!

Here are some pictures from her first day of gymnastics…

 

 

 

 

 

 

She is having a BLAST and talks about gymnastics ALL the time!! We actually have gymnastics today and she keeps asking me when we are leaving to go. Ha! Can’t wait to see the things Finley loves to do too!

Happy 30th to my hubby!!!

Almost a month ago my handsome hubby turned the big 30! Where has a month come and gone?! Dave had such a special birthday this year! Our dear friends, Lance and Lauren came to visit, as well as his little sister Jamie. We found out that we were having a BOY. And, Dave got baptized. Doesn’t get much better than that!!

The morning of his birthday, Lance and Lauren flew in. We picked them up from the airport and headed off to the doctors office for our OB apt. Lance and Lauren watched the girls in the waiting room while we headed back to see our newest little addition. We told the ultrasound tech that we didn’t want to know the gender and asked if she could just place a picture and the secret information in an envelope for us. She checked out our little baby from head to toe and all looked good! We closed our eyes as she checked out the area down below and went on with our apt.

When we left the doctors office, we headed over to my new friend, Brooke’s, house to give her the info. She then called the bakery where I had ordered a birthday cake for Dave to tell them whether to fill the inside of the cake with pink or blue!!

We even got a babysitter so Lance, Lauren, Dave, and myself could go out to celebrate his birthday!! We went to Flip Burger, which if you’ve never heard of before, is AMAZING!!! It’s a fancy little gourmet burger joint that overlooks the mountains that surround Birmingham, with a part of the city in the valley below. It’s such a beautiful view and some of the best food I’ve ever had!!! They also have THE most delicious milkshakes EVER!!!

Lance decided a picture of the food was a must! We got 4 completely different burgers and cut them in fourths so we could try more of a variety. SO GOOD!!! I think it has become the “go to” place for all visitors! We even took Dave’s dad there when he came to visit earlier this month.

 

After dinner, I pulled the cake out to tell Dave about the big reveal. Up until this point, he wasn’t quite sure how I was pulling off telling him the gender.

Dave did the honors and cut a piece out… and the inside was…

BLUE!!!!

We spent the next few minutes talking about WHAT we were going to do with a boy! We are so excited to change things up a bit, but definitely feel a little nervous about it at the same time. The more I think about having a boy though, the more God reminds me about the little warrior He has given us and the BIG plans He has for him! I’m SO excited about that!

Saturday morning we headed off to the Farmer’s Market. We have an AMAZING Saturday Farmer’s Market here. Also a key place to take incoming visitors! ha! Cori and I get some delicious homemade popsicles every time we go and we enjoy the live music and food samples. They also have some BEAUTIFUL wildflowers for sale too!

We picked up Jamie from the airport, had a quick stop at the Vulcan, and then ate lunch at Dreamland BBQ – a famous BBQ spot here in Birmingham, known for their ribs. It was delicious!

Everyone came to church with us on Sunday morning. Later that afternoon, we headed back up to church for something Dave had been looking forward to for a while now. When Dave first got saved, he really didn’t think all too much about baptism. It’s something our parents did when we were babies right? Well, sort of, yes, but no. Depends on what church you were raised in, but the bible says that baby baptism is really a dedication for the parents and family to raise a baby up to know the Lord. Getting baptized should be something a person chooses for themselves, much like Jesus chose to be baptized when he was 30 before he started his ministry. Jesus was 30. Dave was 30. Just one more reason he was so excited! :)

Our church does water baptism on the first Sunday of every month. It’s a full-fledged, get dunked in the tub type of thing. There were 30 people there that day making the choice to get baptized. So cool. Dave was the last one in line. Cori watched in anticipation for her daddy’s turn. She was just amazed by the whole experience and clapped so proudly for every person as they made a public claim to follow the Lord. She is such a precious little girl with a beautiful heart. I just adore her!

Finally, it was Dave’s turn. Let’s tell the story in pictures…

I am so incredibly proud of my husband. I love that he loves the Lord. I trust him to lead our family because I know he is a man who seeks the Lord in all he does. I am so blessed to be married to him. I am so proud of the legacy he is leaving for our children. Cori talks about her daddy getting baptized all the time. Just the other night I was tucking her into bed when she said, “Mommy, I get baptized like daddy when I get bigger. Daddy loves Jesus. I love Jesus too.” Those are words that melt a mama’s heart. I know that she is 2 and that she doesn’t really understand what her daddy did, but I just love the pure faith of a child. And, I pray everyday that she will be a woman of God’s great influence one day.

We couldn’t have had a better weekend and we are so thankful for the visitors we had to celebrate Dave’s birthday with. What a wonderful time of rest, fun, and reverence.

Cheers to being 30, honey! I LOVE you!!

“Come to Me”

I had a rough day on Monday. Just felt stressed, overwhelmed, like I had too many things to do and just not enough time in the day to do them and meet everyone’s needs in my household. It was just a rough day. Ya know, the kind where all you want to do is just cry. And, truly, you don’t know “exactly” why. But then again, that’s part of womanhood! Oh, the joys of being a girl.

Fortunately, Dave and I happen to be part of an AMAZING church here in Birmingham. One that is just alive and on fire for Christ. We started a LIFE Group (Living in Freedom Everyday) 2 weeks ago and it’s just incredible. It’s a 13 week bible study written by Church of the Highlands and it has truly strengthened my faith in just the 2 weeks we’ve been a part of it.

The group is split guys/girls. All the wives meet at one of the leader’s houses and the husbands meet in another house in a neighborhood across the street. I love the opportunity to meet with a group of women and to be doing the same study as Dave so we can talk about it together as well. What great conversation we have had!

The girls start group every week with a worship song. It just really sets the tone for the night and helps to get us prepared to hear a word. I absolutely love it! This past Tuesday we started with this song called, “Come to Me” by Bethel. I had not heard of Bethel before, but the song just touched me in so many ways. Especially after having a really tough Monday, it was just what I needed to get my week refocused on the Lord. I have put the words below as well as the link to the youtube video. I really encourage you to spend a few minutes listening and reading the lyrics. Imagine God is speaking directly to you in the words below. What life it brings! It has been on repeat in our house since Tuesday night. Cori is even learning the words.

I can’t imagine going through this life without Jesus. So thankful for Him. Praying this speaks volumes to you! Happy Friday!

 

I am the Lord your God, I go before you now.
I stand beside you and I’m all around you
And though you feel I’m far away
I’m closer than your breath
I am with you, More than you know

I am the Lord your peace
No evil will conquer you
Steady now your heart and mind
Come into my rest
And oh, let your faith arise
And lift up your weary head
I am with you, Wherever you go

Come to me, I’m all you need
Come to me, I’m everything
Come to me, I’m all you need
Come to me, I’m your everything

I am your anchor, in the wind and the waves
And I am your steadfast, so don’t be afraid
Though your heart and flesh may fail you
I’m your faithful strength
And I am with you, Wherever you go

Come to me, I’m all you need
Come to me, I’m your everything
Come to me, I’m all you need
Come to me, I’m your everything

Don’t look to the right or to the left, keep your eyes on me
You will not be shaken, you will not be moved

I am the hand to hold, I am the truth, I am the way
Just come to me, come to me
Cause I’m all that you need

“Come to Me” by Bethel Music

The Fruit of the Spirit

But the fruit of the spirit is LOVE, JOY, PEACE, FORBEARANCE, KINDNESS, GOODNESS, FAITHFULNESS, GENTLENESS, and SELF-CONTROL. Galatians 5:22.

Oh, how I need that today and everyday. It’s so easy to get caught up in the rat race of this life. Why do we do that to ourselves? God never meant for our lives to be filled with the frazzledness (is that even a word?!) of running around everyday in this “rat race.” There is just no better word for it.

God, I am praying today to remain focused on YOU, putting YOU in the center of everything. Be in the midst of cooking breakfast, putting the kids in the car, running errands, speaking to my children and my husband, Premier, doing dishes, doing laundry (which I loathe!!), cleaning the house… the list goes on. EVERYTHING I do today, let me do it for your glory, Lord.

My flesh so can so easily be stressed out by the “things” to get done in a day, that I end up doing nothing for eternity. I know I’m not the only one who feels this way, but it’s so easy to think you are alone in feeling like this. That’s just what the devil wants for us. He wants us caught up in this world, running a million miles a minute. Praying for a PEACEFUL day filled with PURPOSE – for me and for you – focusing on the things that matter.

This is a picture of our family after Dave got baptized on his birthday weekend. I will blog about that at some point. I am sharing it here today as a reminder of what MATTERS. This life is not ours. It belongs to the Lord. Let’s live it as if it truly does belong to Him.

Smocked Sisters

Now that we truly live in the “south”, Smocking is all around!! I do have to admit, I love me some smocked dresses. Dave says that his boy will NOT be wearing smocked outfits, but we will see. :) I ordered some matching dresses off Zuililly and took some pictures of the girls in them the other day. This is actually their first set of matching dresses yet! I didn’t want to go crazy buying smocked stuff before Finley was walking, but now, let the matching begin! I already ordered them some precious smocked matching dresses for Christmas. Thank you Zuililly (and my husband for supporting my small obsession – love you!!).

Don’t they just look adorable?!

 

What precious babes I have!! I am one blessed mama and I love my girls oh so much!!!

Homeschool for a 2 1/2 -year old

I have been working hard on starting “school” this year with Cori. I’m still not 100% sure that we will be an official homeschooling family, but we are taking this year to try it out. We are using a Letter of the Week curriculum from an amazing homeschool blog called Confessions of  Homeschooler. The curriculum is pretty much already laid out for me, which is nice! I have just been spending a lot of time printing, cutting, and laminating in the last few weeks.. and making a few adjustments to make it personal to what my girl needs. Takes me back to my days as a Kindergarten teacher, but I love that I now get to teach MY little girl.

We are focusing on one letter a week with a bible verse (song) to go along with each letter. We are using Songs for Sapplings for our bible verses. Why re-create the wheel when there is already so many great resources out there for us to use?! Love that!!

First, let’s take a look at our school room! We have a little nook off the kitchen. Probably meant for a breakfast nook, but we have turned it into an office/school room. Works perfect!

David made these for me for my birthday. I found them on Pottery Barn Kids and just HAD to have them! Too bad they retailed for $180 each. Dave made all three for $100! I LOVE my handy man husband!!

This is underneath the three boards David made. Helps me stay organized!

And, of course, our calendar. I LOVE Morning Meeting!!

We officially started last Tuesday (after Labor day – the way it should be!) Here is a picture of my two girls on our first school day!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coloring the letter “A”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finley spends every morning doing “Morning Meeting” with us, then Cori and I wait to start our school activities until Finley goes down for a nap. It just works better that way so we can really focus. She did AWESOME this week! She can pick out the letter “a” in words and sentences. She knows the difference between a “Big A” and “Little A”, she has a bible verse memorized, does a great job with one to one correspondence, can trace pretty well for a 2 year old, really understands weather, etc. The list goes on. She is one bright little girl and amazes me everyday with what she knows and how easily she learns something new!! Check out a few of our activities this week…

Lining manipulatives along the uppercase and lowercase letter “A”

Matching shapes

Sorting by size

Tracing

Being excited about school and having an apple for a snack!

We really had a GREAT first week in school. She even woke up on Saturday morning asking to do school! Love it! We start the letter “E” tomorrow and can’t wait!

Until next time…

Family of FIVE

Well, I’m sure it’s not new news to most of you, but we will be adding an addition to our family this January. I am currently 21 weeks pregnant at the moment with a baby BOY!!!! We are so excited to be adding a little boy to our family. Cori had a hard time accepting the news of a brother. She just kept saying, “Baby sister (followed by the girl name we had picked out in case of a girl).” She is finally letting the sister thing go since she already has an awesome sister named Finley and getting excited about a brother! Anytime she sees something boy related or blue, she mentions her little brother.

Here is a picture of the little guy from our ultrasound last week…

Tucker David Smith

He is a healthy little guy, which always makes parents so happy to hear!! We found out that he was a boy in a really fun way, but I’ll tell the story in David’s 30th birthday post since it was a surprise for his birthday. Praying many blessings over this sweet baby boy! We love him so much already!!!

P.S. – now that we live in the real south … let the monogramming begin! hehe!