Heather

I met Heather in the fall of 1995. We were both 18 years old. We were both freshmen at Oklahoma Baptist University. And we were both randomly assigned rooms on the south end of the 2nd floor of the freshman girls' dormitory. We instantly hit it off like we had known each other our whole lives. Heather is smart, artistic, and a great listener. She was always up for an adventure! I have so many memories of those four years of school together! I remember vividly playing flag football together on our team Optimus Prime. Or taking our nightly walks to Braum's for a late-night cherry limeade. I also remember so many late night talks where we would share funny stories or dream about the future. I remember laughing until we cried when we took study breaks to sit and do a few Mad Libs. We were both a bit obsessed with music and shows and Anne of Green Gables. And we had many road trip adventures together: Illinois, Arkansas, Texas, and even Spain! We both started dating our future husbands during the fall of our sophomore year in college; we both got engaged during the fall of our senior year; and we both got married during the summer after we graduated. We sure went on lots of double dates over those years!

Fall 1995

Heather and I standing in my freshman dorm room after one of our late-night cherry limeaide walks to Braum's.

Spring 1996

Standing on the patio of Deem's Bean Scene-- our favorite college coffee hang-out venue.

Winter 1997

Silly dancing at a Fold Zandura show

Spring 1997

Double Dating! Dustin, Mike, Me, Heather

*I would like to point out that Mike and I got a good laugh out of this photo tonight because Mike looks like he is twelve years old and my eyebrows look like they've never met a pair of tweezers!

Spring 1999

Graduation Day! So many memories on Bison Hill.

Summer 2000

Heather and I at our friend (and other college roommate) Jennifer's wedding.

Of course Heather and I were both bridesmaids in each other's weddings which was really special. We had a lot of fun planning out dresses, colors, venues and cakes during the months leading up to our weddings After I got married, Mike and I stayed in Oklahoma. After Heather got married, she and her husband moved to Kansas City. Over these nearly twelve years of marriage, we've been able to visit each other often-- either us driving north or them driving south. In her pre-child years, Heather was an art teacher at in inner-city school in Kansas City while I taught middle school English in a suburb of Oklahoma City. Her oldest child and my oldest were all born the same year, while our youngest children were also born during the same year, just three months apart. It seems like all of our seasons in life have lined up side by side. And even though we are in different states, life has continued to march along together to a similar beat. I am so thankful for lifelong friendships. Friendships that have stood the test of time and have aged to such a deep, comfortable level. A level closer to sisterhood than friendship.

Today.

Me, Lucas, Heather, and Lily

Tundra

Tundra

Also known as Tunny Bunny, Toots or Tundachu

An acrostic for my sweet, twelve year old girl

Tough

Uber Cute

Nighttime snuggler

Dreams the day away

Rotund

An amazing companion

Zoo Day

The beautiful weather today was just begging for us to do something fun outside. So we rounded up the kids, picked up my dad, and headed to the Oklahoma City Zoo. Just yesterday the OKC Zoo opened a brand new, 9.5 acre, Elephant habitat. It's been a long time coming and we knew with the good weather combined with spring break and a new exhibit to see, it would be crowded. And we were right. However, we arrived only an hour before the zoo closed, which gave us just enough time to tour the Elephant Pavilion (which was awesome by the way!) and then head to the playground to run off some energy.

Papa with Lucas. Lucas loved the slide!

Hannah Monkey

Leah said she was on a spider web.

Not too sure about this swing

Fun day together! Just wish my mom was with us.

Afterwards we stopped to eat some pizza for dinner. The place we went had a few arcade games including Pac-Man and this driving game.

**Just in case my sister-in-law, Rachel, is reading this, Hannah picked Juan Pablo Montoya as her driver. I know our Juampa will be so proud! :)

Tonight we actually got all three kids bathed and asleep by 8:30. Which is a good thing since we set our clocks forward tonight. I'm glad next week is Spring Break so we can work on adjusting our internal clocks to the time change!

Today Was a Good Day For....

1. A great workout at Body and Soul Fitness

2. A lunch date with two cute little people

Lucas and his best pal Marlee

3. A few rounds of dress-up

Hannah wearing my boots, an old sweatshirt, and my Kate Gosselin wig

4. A surprise birthday party for a friend's daughter.

5. Watching Les Miserables with my Love.

What did you do this Friday?

Blessed

Mike sent me an email today with some photos of the kids he had taken recently. Along with the photos, he wrote one simple message to me:

You are blessed!

And I couldn't agree more. Gosh, I love that man. :)

One Year Ago This Month

We were riding the NJ Transit into New York City

The girls spent HOURS playing outside with their cousins at Gram and DooDad's house.

We celebrated Mike's birthday with a big family cookout. Lucas was just a wee little thing sporting a very cool cowlick!

That year flew by! And my how everyone has changed!

My Cup Runneth Over

Here's the truth: My daughters are not perfect (you're shocked, right?). They fight. They tattle. They whine. They don't always obey or eat all their vegetables or finish their chores. BUT, when I see things like this card that Hannah left on her sister's bed:

Or overhear Leah tell Hannah, "You did an awesome job reading your book tonight!"

It blesses my heart beyond belief. Sometimes I get bogged down in the difficult stuff of parenting, but what I really need to do is to have a humble, grateful heart. When I start making a mental thank you list, there is no room for frustration or mom-guilt anymore.

Lord, I am SO very thankful for my Banana and Bee. So very, very thankful.