My Baby Girl is BACK!

For those of you who don't know, Olivia went on a trip with a family friend to Indiana these last 2 weeks. Well, she is back! She had the time of her life! These are just a few of the things she did while she was gone:

1. went to the zoo

2. went to a real working farm and saw 2 baby cows being born

3. went to The American Girl Place (got an American Girl doll named Krissa and had lunch at the American Girl Cafe) which is a really big deal!

4. had a princess tea party

5. had several sleep overs with her new friends, Savannah and MaryBeth

6. ate at the Rainforest Cafe

7. rode bumber boats and go-karts and played putt putt

8. went to an amish market, rode a horse and buggy and got an amish babydoll

9. went to visit her cousins, Lexie and Hunter

10. rode on an airplane there and back

I'd say she is one blessed little girl! I flew to Chicago yesterday to get her and we flew home together today. It is so great to have her home. Her brothers missed her so much. I wish I could say that we had a peaceful evening all night, but...............it was short lived. Olivia wasn't home one hour before the sibling rivalry began. Anyway, I'm just glad all my children are home under one roof. The only thing missing now is my hubby! Paul is in Charlotte, NC but will be on a 6am flight home tomorrow morning. So then our family will all be together again.

Thank You, Lord, for watching over Livi while she was away from us. Thank You for giving us such a wonderful neighbor, Ms. Pam and Mr. Bernie. They took such great care of Olivia while she was with them. Lord, give Olivia peace about starting school next week. She is sad that her best friends are at a new school this year. Comfort her as she goes into a new class and give her the courage to make new friends. I know that Olivia has awesome potential and I trust in You that You will bring that potential out in her this year, Lord. I ask all these things in Your precious Son, Jesus' name.

Love to all,

Holly

Going to get my baby girl :)

I never thought she would make it this long! Olivia has been away for 2 whole weeks and I am flying to Chicago tomorrow morning to get her. I am so excited I can hardly wait. I've never been away from my baby girl this long but this break has been a blessing for our whole family. Olivia got some much needed undivided, one on one attention from Ms. Pam. Cole got some quality time with mommy and daddy. I got some great time alone with the boys. And Paul and I got some grown up time together. But it's definately time for "the Lu" to come home. Her being gone has made me realize just how much life she brings to our family. It will be so nice to have her home where she belongs.

Ms. Pam is our dear friend and neighbor and she is like another grandmother to our kids. She made sure that Olivia's time away from home was filled with fun activities to keep her occupied. They went to see The Beach Boys in concert, the zoo, a real working farm, an amish market and The American Girl Place. Yesterday, Olivia had a princess tea party with her new friends, Savannah, Marybeth and Lilly. Tomorrow when my flight gets in, we will go to The Rainforest Cafe to eat lunch. My sister in law will pick us up and we will spend the night with Ed and Carla and come home on Monday.

Our family will all be back together next week and life will be great!

That's all for tonight!
Love to all,
Holly

He will give you the Nations

My church, White Dove Fellowship, has a heart for the nations. The bible says God will give us the nations as an inheritance. I never really thought too much about it until we made a decision to send our son to The International School of Louisiana. We chose this school because we wanted Cole to learn Spanish and we wanted him to have a really unique shool experience. But what I believe God has placed on my heart is the realization that this could be the beginning of Cole claiming that inheritance.
By the time Cole is in 5th grade he will be completely fluent in Spanish, learing French and Chinese and who knows what other languages he will be introduced by then.
Just a thought I'm having :o).
Love to all,
Holly

My Babies

A very quiet house

It's been almost a week since I've posted and so much has happened this week. For those of you who don't know, my husband, Paul, travels a lot for his job and this month his travel schedule happens to be very hectic. Those of you with kids know what the month of August is like trying to get kids ready for school. Holden started last week, Cole starts tomorrow and Olivia doesn't have her first full day till September 10th.

I was talking to my dear friend and neighbor, Ms. Pam, the other day. I was telling her about my dilemma with no child care for Olivia till school starts. She has a house in Indiana and she asked if she could take Olivia up to Indiana to stay with her till after Labor Day. At first I was like, "No Way!" But then the more I thought about it, the more it sounded like a good idea. Reluctantly, Paul and I let her go. I say reluctantly because when is it ever easy to let your baby girl go?

She left on Friday. Today is Monday. The reality of her being gone has definately set it. The house is so quiet. The boys have been getting along so well. I have had so much time to myself. I haven't yelled at all.

On the flip side of that, the house is too quiet. I haven't had any munchkins climb in bed with me in the morning. I miss my baby girl.

I have to say every mom needs a break every once in a while. I needed this break in a bad way. It also has made me realize how much life she brings to this family. And we all miss her so much. She is off having the time of her life right now. She has seen the Beach Boys in concert. She is going to The American Girl Store in Chicago. She is going to see American Idol Top Ten on tour. She went to the zoo. I feel like my little mini-me is going to come back all grown up!

Lord, please watch over my precious Olivia while she is away from me. Keep her safe and comfort her when she gets homesick. Hold her in the palm of Your loving hand and surround her with angels while she sleeps. I ask this in Jesus' name.

Cole starts a new school tomorrow. The International School of Louisiana is a language immersion school and he will be learning Spanish. His teacher does not speak English so this should prove to be a very interesting school year. We are very excited and nervous at the same time. We don't know quite what to expect so I'll keep posting as the year goes by.

Thanks for taking time out to read my thoughts! God Bless You!

Love to all,

Holly

The word REGRET

I once thought there was a stigma attached to the words therapy and counseling. That is until I actually went to counseling and learned that sometimes you just need to talk about things to see it from a whole new perspective. With that being said, I am a believer in christian counseling not worldly therapy. If I'm going to get someone's advice on something, I want to make sure it's biblical advice. I get enough from the world everyday. I need more from the WORD not the world.

Anyway, in a counseling session today, the counselor mentioned the word regret. And within seconds, tears were streaming down my face. Why is it that word haunts me? I try and I try to get past the regret that I have about the day of Meme's funeral and the devil knows that it is a hurdle that I have yet to conquer. I'm glad it happened because I know I need to deal with it so that I can move on.

I still feel a lot of pain when I think of Aaron and how much I miss him but mostly the pain comes from knowing that I could never do that day over again. Wondering if Aaron really knew how I felt, how much I hated the fact that they(aunt, uncle, cousins) didn't live here anymore, that I only got to see them at Christmas. Wishing that I had more moments with him as he got older like I did when he was young. If he really knew that I loved him and Adam more like little brothers than cousins.

All I can hope for is that deep down, he knew. I'll definately ask him those things when I see him again. I have so many things I want to say to him. But first, I'm gonna wrap my arms around my cousin's neck and tell him that I love him.......................When I finally make it home.

Live life to the fullest. Live like there's no tomorrow. Live without regret.

Love to all,

Holly

Mini Me

This is my little Mini Me. We even had the same color tank top that night. These moments are so few and far between that I cherish them dearly.

Lord, I lift up Olivia to you. I ask that you send your Holy Spirit to convict her when she is thinking about disobeying. Remind her of the fruits of the spirit: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Gentleness, Kindness, Faith and Self Control. Give her a desire to please us and lead her away from temptation. I ask this through Your son, Jesus.

Baby Steps

Love to all,

Holly

Cheeeeeese!

My little Abercrombie lost one of his top teeth! He is still as cute as ever. Hope you get a kick out of these photos!

Love to all,

Holly

Mattie is doing fine!

So it's been a while since I've posted. Mattie lynn is doing fine. You really don't want to know what was wrong with her because it's pretty gross. But the good news is that she is NOT dying. I think she'll be around for a while.
Love to all,
Holly