Classic Hilton's

Parenting is a huge commitment. Whether you want it not, whether you try or not, it is a lifetime of loving and teaching and influencing the little person who has irreversibly changed you forever. Today we stood up with our family, before our church, our friends and community of fellow believers, and declared our intentions to raise Madi to love the Lord. It's not a traditional christening or infant baptism. Someday she will have to make that choice to follow the Lord in obedience. It is simply us, celebrating the gift God has given to us, and committing to provide her with a home where she can learn and grow and be loved as God intends for her to be. Our community stands with us and says, we will be with you on this journey. We will love you and your children and we will help when you need it. Our children will never not know the name of the Lord. They will never not know His love. They will be surrounded by people who Will show them what love looks like, encourage them to fol...

Folks, it's January, and you know what that means, right?  Yep. It's time to start planning for your six year old's May birthday! She's been dropping hints and ideas since June and you told her over and over, "let's get through Christmas"...well Christmas is over! It is time to get serious! I am actually very excited by the plans that have started coming together, and let's face it: I love celebrating Brooklyn!   Ever since she was three years old and took a little weekend trip with Nana and GG, Brooklyn has been enamored by Panama City Beach, FL. In fact she has been known to ask why other hotels don't have tiki torches and hula dancers? Don't those come standard? So plans are in the works for the family to gather in Panama City Beach to make this little girl's dream come true.  Oh, and also a Princess Sofia Flying Horse Cake. With flip flops (for the beach). It's going to be fun!

This is my dream... It is dinner time. We've had a relaxing afternoon of nap and play. I'm finishing dinner preparations while Brooklyn sets the table and the babies are playing contentedly. Ray walks in the door no later than 5:45. He has time to put his things down and say hi to everyone before we sit down to eat. We all sit at the table, sharing pleasant conversation and delicious, healthy food. When we are finished, we all pitch in to clean up the kitchen and then have time to play together before baths and bedtime. This is my reality... It is 4:30pm. The kids are whining for their eight billionth snack. I am counting the minutes until we can pile into the car to pick Aunt Jenna up from work, trying to time it perfectly so neither of us is waiting on the other. By 5:30 we are home and I begin my final dinner preparations. No matter how prepared I am, I always find myself running around the kitchen like a chicken with my head cut off, practically throwing food at Grays...

Oh these are sweet days! After the bustle of the holidays, activities have started back  full swing, and we are settling into something that almost feels normal. Of course "normal" is a funny word that doesn't mean too much, but suffice it to say that we are in a good routine. I like to rise before every one else and enjoy one hot meal that isn't rushed or interrupted. The kids get up around 7:15 for breakfast, just about the time Ray is out the door to work. By 7:45 we are out the door to take Aunt Jenna to work and that's where things get interesting! Throughout the week we juggle school and naps and chores and errands. I'm still trying to get a better handle on dinner time. We pick Jenna up from work at 5, and Ray is home around 6:30. Somewhere in there I get the kids fed. Ray and I either grab bites as we can, or wait for the bedtime routine to be finished. This is probably my least favorite time of the day, because it is always chaotic, and we...

I'm not usually ready for the weekend to be over, but this one was a doozy! Mom, Dad, Jenna, and Brett were all out of town, so we kept the puppies (hey, it's the least we can do - they babysit for free!). It rained all day Friday, and with the three dogs cooped up in the kitchen and the three kids running around the rest of the house, things were a little crazy. I actually lost count of the poop messes I cleaned up (between the potty training puppies and two babies with some kind of stomach virus, it was a lot!). I made one feeble attempt to get Brooklyn through her school day, then gave up in favor of play time. It was just that kind of day. Saturday was warm, sticky, and muddy. We played around the house (Daddy gave Brooklyn and I time to knock out the school work) and then I kicked everyone outside so I could sweep and mop the now sticky kitchen floor. Sunday Ray sang, so I got the kids ready for church and we went to the 10:30 service. I'm in the nursery this month...

I'm so thankful for Cornerstone. I have such lofty ideals, about how I want to rise early, homeschool my kids, bake my own bread, raise chickens, garden, and write the next great American novel which I will then adapt to stage and screen. Ha!! My reality is much different! I have allergies and live in the suburbs, so the chickens and garden are out.  I'm still working on getting dinner out on time every day, and as for writing? I can barely finish a blog these days let alone a novel! But the desire of my heart is to do my best with what God has given me, particularly when it comes to my children. In Cornerstone I find a comfortable meeting place for my ideals and my reality. I love that I have room to be a parent. I can expand projects, take field trips, apply character building truths to Brooklyn's education. But if I get caught up with the babies, I can stick to the lesson plan and know she is still getting an exemplary education. I love the accountability provi...

We were playing together in the nursery, the three kids and I. Grayson brought me a book, and said, "ree!". We had literally just read that book, so I handed it to Madi and said, "Madi, do you want to read the book?". Then Grayson said,"No baby ree, mommy ree!" I love hearing his thoughts communicated so clearly!

I start this blog with a giant sigh of exasperation. I roll my eyes heavenward and shake my head with a chuckle as I tell you,  This boy is driving me bonkers!! We've reached the "terribles", that joyful time in a toddler's life that is absolutely defined by selfishness, stubbornness, show offing, and sweetness.  It's a critical phase of development as the toddler learns to express himself as something of an individual, while we mold him into a socially acceptable human being. Brooklyn went through it,though she asks me not to talk about it, because she is in the phase of development where she feels shame and embarrassment...a whole other ballgame, let me tell ya! But anyway, she not only survived, but managed to turn into a lovely, well mannered little girl. All it took was painstakingly consistent discipline, heaps of patients, lots of laughing, and a fair amount of grace. Of course Brooklyn wasn't competing with two other siblings for mommy and dadd...

This post is long over due. I've had it in my head to write for months, but there is always something else to write about. But since I'm wide awake at 2am with aches and chills, I may as well say what needs to be said. I don't think I've ever had such a clear example of unconditional love than I do in our Achilles.  He's been with us for about nine months now, and while I have not always liked him, he has, from day one, adored me. He is incontinent, under foot, and neurotic. He is mostly an afterthought, if he is thought of at all. But despite how little I show him I care about him, he just lives to be near us. He is so much more patient than I give him credit for. He really is a good dog.