Goooo, Bulldogs!

Ruby and her fellow Pup Squaders cheer on their team!

This first year at Brevard Academy has been a really fabulous one for Ruby.  Not only has she grown by leaps and bounds academically, she has grown so much socially as well.  Our shrinking violet has blossomed in the most wonderful ways.  Just one of those ways has been through cheering with the Pup Squad this fall and winter.  It was really fun to see her get out with her friends and cheer on the middle school girls and boys basketball teams.  I wasn't able to stay for many of the games as Cornelia isn't much for sitting in the bleachers, but I did get a few shots of our gal in action!

We also enjoyed practicing the cheers at home... in the van... at the store... and pretty much anywhere she could.  "Run, run, run that floor!  Raise, raise, raise that score!  Run that floor!  Raise that score!  TWO POINTS MORE!"  And my personal favorite:  "Let's. Get. A Little Bit Rowdy! R - O - W - a'D - Y!"  Ruby always insisted on the "a'D" part, much to my eternal amusement.  It must be a southern thing. :)

We won!  Yeah!!!!

Ruby had her first sports banquet this week signalling the end of the first basketball season (and cheer season) at Brevard Academy.  It was a fun date night for Jared and Ruby and she even got a fancy schmancy framed certificate which she has proudly displayed on her bulletin board.

What excites me most about our little cheerleader is that she is a good sport on and off the court.  I was so proud to read on her report card last week that Ruby is a great friend to ALL her classmates!  She really does love each of her classmates and treats each of them as special friends.  I hope that she can always have that loving and encouraging heart towards others--what a blessing!

I'm baaaack!

Hey!  Are you okay down there?!  I know you probably just fell out of your seat when you flipped over to the good ol' Nutty Nelsons and you DIDN'T SEE Maxwell turning FOUR!

Yes, it's true.  He's gaining on five and I'm back.  At least I want to be.

As you might guess, life is a bit busy for a humble taxi driver like me.  Between driving to and fro delivering and picking up children for school and our various activities, life is full.  Also it doesn't seem that I've had a lot to write about or time to actually do the writing.  After SEVERAL conversations with my loving hubby, I (we) have decided that this is one thing that must change in 2012. You see, I'm not a scrapbooker or journaler and I also have a terrible memory.  If I don't blog, I may turn around when I'm 40 and say, "Hey, what have I been DOING for the last decade!".  So, I am attempting a come back.  It may be a bit disjointed, but I think I have a plan.  Here is my plan (in all it's glory)!  (p.s. You may want to skip this part if lists bore you!)

Monday: A taste of the here and now of it all.
Tuesday: Tasty Tuesday returns. (I know you love it!)
Wednesday: 2011: The highlights. (more for my sake than yours, sorry!)
Thursday: More tastes of the here and now of it all.
Friday: Flashback Friday returns (I must finish scanning the Armstrong slides this year!)

So there you have it--plan your reading schedule appropriately.

As kind of an extra bonus side note to this comeback post, I would like to note that it is raining today.  One of those thunderstormy periodically heavy, but never really stopping kind of rains.  Just a few weeks ago, this would have been cause for much angst from me (what with the taxi service lifestyle I lead), but I am thrilled to report we have found a solution!  Cornelia can now hold the umbrella up over both of us while I carry her!  Oh joy!  We are both dry!  This growing up stuff is pretty great. :)

Come back soon for more exciting reads from our daily life.  Oh, and go ahead and have a glass half full kind of day today.  It's worth it!

Happy 4th Birthday, Maxwell!

It's a little bit hard to believe that four years have passed since that long ago Thursday in Denmark when Isabelle Schmidt drove Jared and I to the hospital in Hellerup for Maxwell to be born. He was a stubborn little guy, just as cozy as could be in my belly-- all ten and a half pounds of him! When he barreled his way into the world his Daddy and I were struck with his beauty and by the wonder of his Creator-- we still are! Here are a few pics from his day.

Thank you, God, for our sweet boy. He is a blessing and a pleasure! We love him more each day and we are so thankful for the work you are doing in his little heart. We love you, Jesus!

Two weeks of sickies

I'm pleased to announce that Exhibit A (to the left) has finally left the building! Not the child, but her expression and the cause!

We have had a rough go of it the last two weeks with stuffy heads, upset tummies, soaring fevers (up in the 105F range for poor Cornelia), and lots of coughing and sneezing to boot.

Our miracle child, Ruby, managed to get through it all with just one day out of school--even Jared fared worse than that! We are so thankful that at almost 6 years old she has managed to never have one dose of antibiotics! Wow!

Poor Maxwell had a somewhat miserable 4th birthday last week, down with a very bad ear infection. We still managed to squeeze a little bit of fun out of the day-- pictures to come.

Cornelia definitely had it the worst though. She's still on antibiotics and has a crusted up nose. She also has introduced us to the thrilling world of breathing treatments. Poor baby!

All in all, we are so thankful to God for our health. We are almost all better and finally able to enjoy all of this beautiful spring weather. I better get outside and take some photos of these beautiful blooms because if I blink it's going to be July... seriously.

Hope you are taking a moment today to enjoy the wonder of creation and the majesty of our Creator. See you soon!

Wedding Day Favorites

I finally attacked the photos yesterday from Heidi and Kelly's wedding. I know... it took a month, but better late than never, eh? I have soooo many photos, here are a few of my favorites from the big day...

Happy (belated) one month anniversary, guys! We love you!

Garlic-Studded Mahimahi with Sage Butter

• Back before we had children I used to do more advanced things in the kitchen like "studding" a nice fillet of fish with blanched garlic. I'm not sure what possessed me to tackle this again yesterday, along with a yummy risotto and loaded green salad, but it was almost worth that screaming baby attached to my leg once it was on the table! :)
• You will definitely enjoy it without the screaming baby part.
• Can I just interject that our sweet baby girl is ten and a half months old and STILL only has the 2 teeth she got at five months. That may explain the screaming!

This recipe is from Cooking Light magazine, oh about 7 years ago!

Garlic-Studded Mahimahi with Sage Butter

• 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 4 (6-ounce) mahimahi or other firm whitefish fillets
• Cooking spray
• 5 teaspoons butter, softened
• 1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 475°.
2. Place garlic in a small saucepan, and cover with water. Bring to a boil; remove from heat. Drain and cool slightly. Make several small slits on outside of fillets; stuff with garlic. Place fillets on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray.
3. Combine butter, sage, salt, and pepper; spread evenly over fillets. Bake at 475° for 13 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

It's a feels fancy meal that really isn't all that fussy in the end--enjoy!

**Please ignore the flighty fonts... Blogger is my nemesis today.**

1987

Just a few highlights from 1987...

Parfait joins our family... what a name, Dad!

Mom and Dad's Hawaii vacation...

Halloween in Minnesota... Heidi as a witch, Alyssa and Christina as clowns, and me as a lumberjack. Ha!