So, we're driving home today and Emma says, "Mama, what do you do for a baby dedication party at your house?" I told her and then asked why she wanted to know. She told me that she was just thinking of when she gets big and gets a baby. She said whe was planning the things she'd do- feed the baby, bathe the baby, change the baby, and play with the baby. I told her she had to get married before having a baby and then she wanted to know how old she needed to be to get married. I said, " Most people finish college first, so around 22-24, probably." We talked a bit about things other than birthdays that we celebrate: births, dedications, baptisms, graduations, baby showers, wedding showers, weddings, and anniversaries. She says that she wants to have one kid and then I told her that the kid would be lonely, so she says, "OK, then I'll have two. A boy and a girl." I explained that God is in charge of what kind of kids we have. She still insisted that she wanted a boy and a girl with the names of Anna (her pick for her little sister's name, but it got out-voted by Mama and Daddy) and Andrew (after Daddy). I assured her that those were very nice names and that Daddy would like that. All of a sudden she says, "Oh no, I don't know who I can marry." I reassured her that she may not even know her future husband yet. Then I told her that I didn't meet Andy until I was 21. She started laughing SO loud. She said, "You were so old. I bet you had gray hair. Maybe you walked with a cane." Then she just kept laughing about how 21 was so old to meet Dadddy... I didn't bother to tell her that I was 27 by the time we got married. She's such a cute and funny girl. I praise the Lord each day for blessing me with such an amazing child. She also was really checking out the training bras in K-Mart today. I asked her why all the interest and she said b/c her cousin, Breanna, wears one. Mind you, Breanna is only 6. I told Emma that she's got a few years before she needs a training bra. We bought some camis instead and she was happy.

Super Emma!

One morning a few months ago, prompted by a song on a cd of her favorites... Go Fish and an episode of Clifford, Emma asked me if anyone could be a super hero. I said, "YES!" She said, "Well, Cleo on Clifford said that you have to be born a super hero. I said, "Anyone can be a super hero for God if they love and trust Jesus and spend their lives doing what He wants them to do... being kind, helping others, being honest, working hard, trusting Jesus as their savior... She said that she wanted to be a super hero for God. Then she asked for a super hero cape. She gave me the exact specifications: pink and purple stripes. When my mom was here recently, we ( she sewed and I designed) made the cape. It came out great. Emma is so adorable when she puts it one... she swirls around the house and says, "Super Emma is here and ready to help!" When I want her to do something really helpful, I encourage her to put her cape on first... amazing what it does for her willingness. She also talked me into making a mask... that was interesting, but I finally got it to work. Enjoy the photos.

Our Little Dancer!

As promised, here are more pictures from Emma's dance recital.

She loved dancing this year. We were blessed to find a dance studio owned by a Christian woman. Emma's teacher was the best... a formerly homeschooled young lady who's in her first year of college. She was so sweet, taught the girls alot, and most important for me; she was a positive role model for Emma to look up to in dance and in life.

They danced to VY Word (that's how Emma says Thy Word) for ballet and I've Got A Halla-Ree-A Heart (that's how Emma says Hallelujah Heart) for tap. They really did a great job to say that they are only 4 years old (2 were five). They kept looking at one another for reassurance, though.

The entire recital was great... the older dancers were amazing... all of the music was good- it seemed more like praise and worship time at church rather than a recital. There were dancers, singers, musicians, and dramatists... encompassing all of the arts.

Photos from the LASTS!

Emma's ballet recital was the last dancing day for this year! She did a great job and had lots of fun praising the Lord through dance! More photos and writing about the recital later...

Emma went to Rainbow's for part of this year with her friends. She had a great time there, singing, playing, and learning about Jesus' love. She blew me away the last night when she recited their little pledge perfectly... I'd never heard it before then.

Emma's class enjoyed one last hurah at a local park the Friday before school was out. We had a picnic and then they played for a long time on the new playground equipment. The had the most fun chasing one another I think.

This is Emma on her last day of preschool! She had a great time learning this year and made 11 great little friends. Her teacher was great, too! The last day of school was fun because the moms got to come in and see them singing their songs for a while before we left. Although it started out rocky and emotional, the WEEK OF LASTS turned out to be a good one. We're glad it's over and we are looking forward to all the FIRSTS coming up now!

Our First Vacation Day.... Well Spent!

Because the girls are still really little and Genevieve naps twice a day, we decided to forego a week long vacation this year. We have opted for Andy to use his days through the summer and we're going to take day trips. Today was our first one. I just recently heard about a little amusement park just for small children. It was affordable, not too far away from home, and perfect for a 4 year old. My loving in-laws kept the baby girl and we took Emma.

The weather was beautiful today- sunny and just under 70 degrees. It was a bit more crowded than we had hoped, but still not too busy. This was Emma's first experience with an amusement park (other than the rides at the boardwalk and the county fair rides) and I'm so glad that we held out until now- whe was thrilled with this place! If we'd taken her to bigger places earlier, then this may have been boring to her. Not so, she had a blast.

We rode lots of rides, saw lots of little houses with story characters, and even saw a few animals. Our daring daughter loved the roller coaster the most. She couldn't wait to get on it and endured a LONG line. She and Daddy had FUN. When they were almost closing, Andy and Emma returned to the coaster for one last ride... well that turned into 5 rides in a row- 4 of which they didn't even get off for because there was not line. Emma laughed the whole time. She also rode a "carous-wheel" (that's ferris wheel for those of you who don't know Emma speak) ALL BY HERSELF. She was a very brave girl and had fun up there alone.

That's the beauty of this place... Mama and Daddy can ride w/ the kids or they can have freedom to try out some independence on rides that are perfectly sized and paced for them.

Enjoy the photos! You'll see Emma and Mama inside a whale's mouth and an illusion that Emma is being "spritzed" on (that's a word she uses for sprinkled) by that huge watering can. You can also see her enjoying some of the rides.

Spring Concert & Blessing

Wednesday was Emma's preschool spring concert and blessing day! They were adorable singing patriotic songs, pledging allegiance to the flag, singing Christian songs, and a cute rendition of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" with words changed to make it about the great life at preschool.

Her school year has been such a blessing and growing experience for our family. Letting go, allowing someone else to influence her, watching her work out behavior issues, seeing her grow in kindness to other children, seeing her confidence grow as she had new experiences, dealing with all manner of germs that she carried home froms school and shared with our family, seeing her learn about the discipline of prayer- everyday when we passed the "fountain place" we prayed for her teacher, classmates, and for Emma. We were able to see a tangible answer to our prayers about 2/3 through the year when another little girl (who was really struggling to share and get along) finally began to play nicely with Emma and the other children. What a neat opportunity to teach Emma about God's faithfulness and answers... even when they seem to take a while.

The best part of the morning was the blessing. The pastor of the church had each class come up and kneel at the altar as they were called individually by name. The pastor laid hands on each child and prayed a unique prayer for him/her. I was a teary-eyed Mama with a heart full of joy and thanksgiving! Enjoy these pictures and I may even figure out how to add some video- if Andy can help me.