This Is Our Life...

6 years ago, when my husband was diagnosed with Chiari Malformation and Syringomyelia, I remember feeling this overwhelming sense of fear. To be told that the "other half of me" would be going in to brain surgery was a shock. I can remember the two of us standing in that neurosurgeon's office, listening to the doctor tell us that if he didn't have brain surgery immediately he could die soon because his brain stem was so compressed. I shook my head and silently fell apart on the inside. I kept telling myself to blink. Breathe. Just don't react in front of him. He needs me to be strong. I did most of my crying that night after he went to sleep. We had three babies at home, one brand new. I was angry and had no one to be angry at. I was scared and afraid to admit my fears aloud. I prayed and cried and begged and pleaded with God. That surgery was the longest 9 hours of my life. The complications with his heart, during and immediately after the brain surgery, caught me off guard. I spent the night of his surgery on the floor of his ICU room-watching his heart monitor as it climbed past 200 beats per minute. That moment, late in the night, when the cardiologist came to his room and told me to call in the rest of the family. That's something I still relive at night when I close my eyes. It was the first time I ever thought there was a possibility that I could have to leave that hospital without him. When they took him for heart surgery, seven days after brain surgery, I went numb. We had never heard of Chiari, never knew what a syrinx was, never knew that it was even possible for your skull to be so malformed that it could force your brain down below your foramen magnum into your spine. It was all so much to process at one time. I never imagined that life could go so pear-shaped as quickly as it did. I know I'm making it seem like this is all about me. I know it's not. I'm not the one that was diagnosed. I'm just the one left behind in the waiting room. You see, what people fail to realize is: when someone is sick, their illness doesn't just affect them, their illness affects everyone that loves them. For the last 6 years, my husband has been suffering, fighting, and living with a Chiari and Syringomyelia diagnosis. Our girls and I have been living it right along with him. We never know what our day will be like. Until he opens his eyes and rolls out of bed, we have no clue if he will be able to walk on his own or if I will have to walk him. Picture this, if you will. He is 6'2 and I am 5'1. He's so dizzy, slumped over with nausea, and his ears are ringing so loudly that I need to shout to be heard over the ringing. Except I can't shout because his headache is so severe that he's begging me to put him out of his misery. He doesn't mean it, but it hurts my heart to see him so miserable. This is years after his decompression surgery. His left side is numb and tingling. I hold his hand or rub his arm and he can't feel it thanks to extensive nerve damage. His vision blurs or his speech slurs. His words run together. He struggles with short-term memory. He get confused easily and often complains that he feels foggy or muddled. His permanent (left side) hearing loss makes it impossible for him to hear me when I'm sitting on that side, which is every time we are in the car on the way to his numerous appointments. I drive him everywhere because he doesn't drive. I do everything for this man that was once so capable, this man that once worked from before the sun came up until long after the sun had set. I miss him, the man that he used to be. When he's sleeping all day or in bed because moving from the bed to the living room was just too much for him to consider, I feel lonely for the energy he used to bring to the room. I want that back. I want him back. I want my memories to be his memories again. I don't want to be a Chiari wife. I don't want to be a Chiari mother either. Did I mention that? Chiari can be genetic. I thought I was floored to hear that diagnosis the first time. Hearing it a second time? With my child, my first born baby sitting in the chair beside me? Floored is not a strong enough description.
Now I live with a different kind of the same fear. How will this affect her life? How do I help her deal with this? How do I send my baby off to brain surgery? Will the other two eventually start having symptoms, too? What do I say to make her feel better on those days when she's scared or hurting? I don't know the answers. It hurts me to watch her struggle to grip a pencil because her numbness or weakness is in her right side. I have to fight back tears nearly every time she comes to me with a rapid heart rate, or headache, or "my foot feels like it's not there anymore, " or her eyes feel funny, or her neck hurts, or she's falling down because her balance is off, or she can't remember how to use a chair, or she's trying to tell me something funny and her words get all tied up, or.....her list of symptoms is growing so fast that I have to write it all down. Why am I sharing this? Because, people don't get it. This is our life. I don't want anyone to ever feel this feeling that I've lived with for the last 6 years. I don't want another mother, another wife, to sit in that exam room and hear this diagnosis. I want people to be aware that Chiari exists. Chiari doesn't play alone- it likes to bring it's friends.... Sleep Apnea, Arachnoiditis, Basilar Invagination, Ehlers Danlos syndrome, Hydrocephalus, Intracranial Hypertension, Scoliosis, Tethered Cord, Syringomyelia, loss of lordosis....just to name a few. We need awareness for Chiari and Syringomyelia- all these disorders that go along with it. We need research. We need to educate more medical professionals. We need support. We need to learn how to prevent this. We need a cure. As far as surgery is concerned? It may help slow progression, and some people may no longer have agonizing symptoms, but please please please understand that decompression surgery is NOT a cure!

Starting All Over Again:(

I'm sorry if this becomes a long, rambling post that makes no sense. I am struggling today. First, I would like to thank everyone for praying for Destiny when she was having her testing at ETCH and for praying with us as we waited for results/answers. Throughout the last several weeks, her daddy and I have prayed that we would get the results and be able to give our girl some answers as to why she feels the way she feels. At the same time, we have prayed that the tests didn't show anything at all. Let's be honest, no one wants something to pop up in a medical test, no matter how bad we want answers! With that being said, I can share that we now know that Destiny, like her daddy, has Chiari Malformation. I can't say I am surprised, as I looked at her scans when we came home that day. I have seen enough of Bobby's MRIs in the last several years that I feel confident that I could just about find Chiari in a MRI with my eyes closed (you know, if it was possible for me to see an MRI with my eyes closed!) I've learned that knowing your child has Chiari does not feel the same as KNOWING your child has Chiari. Talk about a sucker punch! Before the doctor said those words I could talk myself into believing that I was maybe wrong. I'm not a doctor. I'm not a radiologist. I'm just a Chiari wife who has spent the last 6 years learning everything I can about this illness that has consumed our life for the same amount of years. I've always known that knowledge is power and I won't feel as helpless if I show up to battle armed and ready to defeat the enemy. Even when, as is the case with Chiari, there is no definite way to defeat the enemy, no cure. Brain surgery is not a quick fix, but can "sometimes" help with the symptoms by relieving the pressure off of the brain stem. I have to admit that I don't want to do this again. I'm still overwhelmed with Bobby's multiple weekly/monthly appointments. We are still trudging through his Chiari nightmare. I don't want to start the uphill climb with my baby. I feel selfish saying this when I consider the fact that I am not the one with Chiari. I don't want more neurosurgeons, neurologists, ENTs, brain surgeries, or the like. I want to say "no, thank you, we already have our serving of Chiari!" It would be so wonderful if that was an option, but I seriously would not wish this on anyone else. We have made it through 6 years as a Chiari family and we will continue to muddle along. We will know more about our game plan (as far as treatment/surgery plans) after she has seen the neurosurgeon and neurologist. If this starts out anything like Bobby's, we will start with more testing. Please continue to keep our family in your prayers as we do what we can to take care of our girl and help her though what I know is a scary time for her.

Something Right

There is no sweeter sound to me, than that of a praying child. Especially, MY praying child. I love to stand just outside their bedroom doors and listen to their prayers at night. I love it even more when they invite me in and ask me to pray WITH them. Delaney (a.k.a. Moosey) will even start saying her own prayers without having to be reminded. She calls them "God Bwesses" and will not sleep at night until she blesses everything and everyone she loves. I just gotta say, it makes my momma heart soar when they are troubled and turn to prayer instead of tears or anger or frustration. Makes me feel like I might be doing something right with raising them. We had one of those "make-momma's-heart-soar" moments not too long ago.

We were in the car, the girls and I, on our way to who knows where. We had just turned at an intersection in this little town when we drove up on the scene of a car accident. Traffic was backing up and we were in a hurry to get to where ever it was we were going. You could see other drivers and passengers fidget, fuss, or cran their neck to see what was happening. A few impatient people just did a u-turn and went off to find an alternate route. I'm not in the habit of "trying" to look at those accident scenes. I usually look anywhere BUT at the accident scene. Fortunately, we were far enough back that we couldn't have seen anything even if we wanted too. Long story short, it became apparent that the accident was pretty bad when a Lifestar helicopter started circling above us. As Lifestar prepared to land in the field beside the roadway, the girls watched with interest. Until they realized what was landing. They know all about what Lifestar means. My Destiny, love that sweet girl's heart, says, "oh momma, somebody must be hurt really bad!"  and then without missing a beat she says, "momma, can we pray for them? Please momma we need to pray for them right now!" And right their, in the middle of the road, with the helicopter landing in the field beside us, my little girls held hands and stormed the gates of heaven on behalf of those injured in that accident. Yes, I think I must be doing something right.

And They Said It Couldn't Be Done.....

Big news in McNabb Land..... Today marked 2 weeks of accident-free living for my little Moosey-girl! That is, accident-free living in big girl panties! My girl has been working hard on potty training and for 2 weeks now she has been going naked except for wearing big girl panties AND going to the potty EVERY.SINGLE.TIME. I am still putting diapers on her at night, but she has also been waking up DRY every morning for 2 weeks. This week we will be working on potty training with clothes on. I am curious to see how she does with remembering to go potty once she is wearing pants.
 
I know what some of you are thinking. She's 4, right? Shouldn't she already be using the potty? Please keep in mind that she's had some serious bowel issues and has been diagnosed with incontinence. They've even gone as far as to say that she doesn't realize that she has to go to the potty, she doesn't get that "gotta go" feeling. This is a BIG accomplishment for our girl and we are SOOOOOO proud of how far she has come.
 
WAY TO GROW MOOSEY!

I'm Baaaaaaack

Is anyone still there? (Cue the chirping crickets.) It has been WAY too long since my last post and I'm sorry. I never planned to be idle for so long, but I didn't have anything nice to say, and momma always said......well, you most likely know what momma said. Anyhow. Let's get right down to business, shall we?

The girls are growing like weeds. If my Destiny gets any taller I'm going to be looking up to her. I'm thinking it won't be long before I'm needing a step stool to fix her hair. My Paisley is not far behind and is only 4 pounds lighter than her elder sis. Then there's my little Moosey. My sweet girl is looking less like my baby and more like a big girl with each new day. I'm in the process of trying to figure out how to freeze time, slow it down, or rewind it a little. Of course, I'm not having much luck with that process... Yet. And ohmygosh! You should hear her. She talks all the time. Seriously. All the time. I'm not implying that you can ALWAYS understand her, but she is talking. That's more than I could say a year ago. It's so hard to believe that she just turned 4 in November. Seems like just yesterday I was holding her in my arms watching her sleep. (Ok, so technically it was just yesterday. She is still quite the little momma's girl!)

We have settled in nicely to our new home. The girls enjoy the extra space and the big yard they have to play in now. We spent almost all Summer outside. We have fantastic neighbors that spoil the kids and I rotten with all the attention they give us. Having them next door makes me feel safe while Bobby is at work (which is all the time these days!) We are blessed to have them in our new McNabb Land:) Yes, we have awesome next door neighbors! Now, the man that lives in front of us??? He's CRAZY!!! I have several problems with him, but I'm too much of a lady to type such ugly words and this is a family blog! I just do my best to keep him away from my girls....his potty-mouth is the best feature he has if that tells you anything!!! We really got involved in making our first Christmas here a memorable one. We decked the halls, the walls, and anything else we could get lights or ornaments to hang on! This was the first year that Delaney got really excited about any of the holidays. She is still going around telling everyone she meets, "Muwwy Kissmas!!" (She was pretty excited about her birthday, too, which was November 30. When we told her "happy birthday" she said it back to us. That girl is just a mess.)

My Moosey-girl continues to attend therapy (going on 3 years this April!) and is making steady progress in all areas. I long for the day that they release her and we can make a new kind of normal that doesn't include spending a couple hours per day, several days a week in a rehab center. (We've made some great friends there and always meet interesting new people so I won't complain.) Her speech therapy is paying off and I love to listen to her talking and singing with her sisters. I'm so proud of how hard she is working. In May, she was assigned a new PT, Ashley, and I was pleasantly surprised at how much better my girl does with PT now that Ashley is working with her. They just seemed to "click" right from the first day working together and my girl has been showing rapid improvement since. She isn't stumbling or falling as often as before, and you can hardly tell a difference in muscle tone when she walks now. That little "hitch" is slowly being worked out of her step as she learns new stretches and sitting positions. She continues to enjoy her aquatic therapy, as well, and I really think the work they do with her in the pool is the real reason why we are seeing such an improvement in her balance. My little Moose is making such great strides:)

The girls are still enjoying homeschool and this year has been alot easier for us, as compared to last year. Last year I was so new at it and not very confident when it came to teaching them. I was just so afraid of screwing them up. They have actually made it up to grade level now, and really seem to WANT to learn now. Destiny hasn't had any of the old "performance anxiety" she was having in school during testing and Paisley is getting a little better about sitting still long enough to learn. We just go with the flow most days and try to fit a little fun in there with the learning:) I've discovered we all do better with less structure and more hands-on.

More updates to come soon.........

Potty Training

My Moosey-girl started wearing big girl panties today. Time to get serious about potty training. I think she may be ready:)

Moosey Is Four!

My little MooseyGirl turned 4 today! I am so very proud of her and how much she has overcome in these 4 short years!

Genetics....The Blame Game

Sometimes things just don't go according to our plans. That happens to me alot. I could make this all about how much I hate it when things don't go my way. I could whine and complain, but I won't. No, things don't always go according to my plans, but I'm okay with that.

Back in November, I took Delaney to have some genetic testing. I wanted some answers and so did her doctors and therapists. I walked in the doors of that facility hoping to come away with some kind of comfort. I wanted someone to finally be able to explain away all the medical issues and problems. I wanted someone to tell me that the sensory issues and the speech delays, the crooked fingers and the stomach troubles....well, I just wanted someone to look at me and say, "this is not your fault. You didn't cause any of this. This isn't all in your head. We can help."

You know, at first, I never would have even considered pointing blame. Why play the blame game anyway? I never saw anything "wrong" when I looked at her. When I was holding her or rocking her I didn't feel like something was "wrong." She was, is, and always will be my girl. I look at her and still see her, even now that I know what I know now, as this beautiful, wonderful, perfect little gift. My miracle. No, I never would have thought to place blame on anyone, including myself. UNTIL. Until someone said, "well this must be your fault that she's always so sick. WE don't have anything like that in OUR family! She must get it all from YOUR family" And just like that, the seed of guilt was planted in my brain. Over time, it gnawed at me. It ate away at my rational side. I convinced myself that I must have done something. I MUST HAVE DONE SOMETHING that would make her developmentally delayed. I must come from a family with a rotten gene pool. Makes sense, right? Well, it did to my MIL.

Well, I took my girl to that appointment with genetics and I told them all about our family histories. Turns out, I'm not the only one with a crummy gene pool! Ha! First thing they told me was, "stop blaming yourself." OK? Can I really do that? Next thing they said was, "it couldn't all be inside your own head because you wouldn't be here with her now if her physician didn't think you needed to be here." Third thing they told "Let it go. Accept her as the blessing she is. Get your answers for your own peace of mind and not someone else's. Take your answers, if we can offer them, and use them to decide what path to take with her health care from here. Some walk away from genetics with no answers at all."

Turns out, you can't really just walk in on your first appointment and walk out with all the right answers. Weeks turns into months. Months, for some, can turn into a year or more. We were fortunate, I think. We only waited a few months. I was given some of the results over the phone and then we scheduled an appointment to come in and have a counseling session.

The appointment was scheduled for yesterday and I REALLY wanted to go. I want more info and I'm sure they will have plenty for me. Unfortunately, I couldn't make it to the appointment so I will go on waiting. At least until April, when they can fit us on the schedule again. So, I didn't make it to my appointment . But I have one answer. Nothing has changed. I still love her just as much as I did before I went looking for answers. She is still this beautiful, wonderful, perfect little gift. And I wouldn't change her for anything.

No, things don't always turn out according to our plans. Sometimes, they turn out so much better.

Hero

She says I'm her hero. Doesn't matter what I do or say, she thinks I'm the greatest thing since sliced bread. I hear it at least 10 times a day. "I wub you momma, you da bess momma ebba," She says this as she leans in and grabs my face for her sloppy, little girl kisses. I wrap her up in my arms and tell her I love her too, that's SHE is the best Moosey ever. Then, I give her a kiss on the nose or a pat on the behind and she's off running again. What have I done to deserve her hero worship? Ususally, nothing. Maybe I've given her a refill for her sippy cup, maybe a little snack in between meals, but not really enough to deserve the adoration that I see on her face when she looks at me.

"I'm momma's buddy," she says as she scoots away from her daddy when I come to sit beside them. "But you just said you would be daddy's little buddy," he argues as he feigns a sad face for her benefit. "NO, my momma! Moosey am Momma's buddy!" And then she kicks him. Hard. In the stomach. And I turn my face away and laugh quietly to myself because she has chosen me over him yet again. Nope, no "daddy's girl" title for my little Laneybug. She is all mine and I love it.

She wants to help me with everything. I can't load the dishwasher without her. I can't load the washer without her standing right beside me, handing me clothes. And when it's time to start the dryer? Why yes, that IS Delaney sitting on top of it yelling, "me do it! me do it!" while waiting to press the button.

She has her good days and her bad ones too, as all special needs children do. She's healthier now than she's ever been and I'm enjoying a reprieve from all the hospital stays and doctor visits. She's still in therapy, but is improving far better than I ever thought possible. There was a time when I thought she'd never talk. Now, she's never quiet, but I love it. I love her and I love everything about her....every unique feature, from her crooked little fingers to her lopsided little smile. I love the way she scoots her feet when she walks, the way she mispronounces almost everything she says, the way she scrunches up her face when she's concentrating on something. I love the way she loves....anything or anyone that crosses her path. She's so vibrant and full of energy. She loves everything...green beans and corn, hot dogs and ketchup, cookies and Reese cups, school and her best friend Mason. And ME. She loves me! She tells me I'm her hero. That I'm the "bess momma ebba." What she will probably never fully understand is that SHE is MY hero. She is what makes me the "bess momma ebba." And I'm proud of that.

A Look Inside (And Outside) Our New McNabb Land

A sunny view from my backyard
Just after sunrise (from the back porch)
I could sit out here all day watching Laney's "moo cows" graze (she thinks the cows came with the house! shh! I'm not telling her that they didn't)
Outside front of house
I'm planning to put some colorful flowers in the beds on both sides of the porch and also on the walkway
From the front porch, looking off to the side toward the back yard (and the girls' swingset)
My bradford pear tree in the front yard. The flowers in the bed are iris' that will bloom (hopefully) in May or June
From the front porch looking toward the driveway
Half of the front porch
This is a 16x20 of Paisley. Just thought I'd throw this picture in because it's one of my favorites that I just hung on the wall in the living room
One corner of our living room. Also, a 16x20 of Destiny :) I LOVE my striped curtains and had these same curtains hanging in our old home. I was very excited to discover they worked in these windows too!
Another picture thrown in just for fun. Laney loving on Sugar in MY chair. And yes, that is a photo blanket draped over my chair....love me some pictures of my babies!
Looking into the kitchen from the living room. I LOVE LOVE LOVE my french doors. This house is so much brighter than the old one! I love my windows and these doors. I only cover the windows and doors at night so we can almost always see outside (on the odd chance that we aren't already sitting outside!)
This one is really similar to the photo above, but I included this one to give you a better idea of the color in the living room and kitchen. The paint color I chose was called "Sandy Pebble" and I think it really brightened those two rooms alot. The color we painted over was a weird brown color and it was really dark in there....even with the curtains open and the lights on. I like this so much better.
More of the living room. I want to hang some more photos on the walls, but I have to wait until I can afford to have some photos of Laney printed. I have tons of printed pics of the sisters, but the only prints I have of Laney is the 16x20 of her yawning and 2 that are already framed on the TV
Destiny's room.
Looking into Destiny's room. Also, a 16x2o of Laney :)
They're playing in there now, but I took this one to show the actual color (aqua) of Destiny's bedroom
A picture just to show the actual color of Paisley and Laney's bedroom
Laney and Paisley's room. Notice that Laney and Sugar have made themselves at home on Paisley's bed.

So there you have it. (Sorry the pics were such bad quality. They were all taken with my phone. I found my camera, but now I can't remember where I hid my charger.) We still have a few things that need to be done, but we're already thrilled with what we've accomplished with it so far. I will eventually get some rugs for the girls' rooms, some new bath towels, wash cloths, and dish towels (I'm in need of some new ones anyway), maybe an area rug for the living room, and I still need to buy the paint for the bathroom that the girls are all sharing. They want it to be pink...lol go figure. It's a work in progress, but it feels like home and I'm just happy to finally live in a place where I feel like I belong.

A Change Of Scenery

We moved last week!!!!!! We are buying a house and I couldn't be happier. This new house is bigger and has more space for our little family. Destiny has her own room and Laney is sharing a room with Paisley now. The kids are so thrilled with the new house, but we all love the yard the best. We now have this HUGE back yard with plenty of room for the girls to run and play. The view from the back porch is gorgeous (especially compared to our old view!) and when I sit outside watching the girls play I feel this sense of peace....belonging. We belong here. This is home. Words just don't adequately describe how happy I am now. I will try to post some pictures of our new home very soon. I've got so much left to unpack and I've misplaced my camera! :(

All Aboard....An Adventure

This year for Destiny's birthday (my baby girl is 10 now!) we decided to take a trip. I wanted to do something special for my girls. Maybe now would be a good time to backtrack in this story. I'll start at the beginning. We had been learning all about the Titanic in home school and Destiny had taken quite an interest in all things Titanic. She had so many questions and would get so excited when she would find the answers to those questions.

About a month ago, I decided that it would be fun to take our family for a weekend trip to Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge. I started researching for a good hotel and getting prices for fun things we could do while we were there. We decided to go on our trip during Destiny's birthday weekend. I found an awesome deal on a family suite. It had 2 bedrooms (each with a television!), a kitchen, a sitting area, and a private balcony. The amenities included an indoor pool, a lazy river, and a game room. The kids were thrilled and that's all we heard about for a month. Laney just kept going on about the pool. She couldn't wait to put on her swimsuit and see the pool. On the day that we left for Pigeon Forge I asked Laney, "where are we going?" and she said, "gone fim im fimmy pool! Go!"(translation: going to swim in my swimming pool! Let's go!) We left on Friday, February 18th. We decided to invite my sister to come with us. The girls love spending time with her and we don't get to see her often enough. The hotel was just as nice as the website promised. It was really the nicest place we've ever stayed at.

I had booked online for boarding passes to the 'Pigeon Forge Titanic Museum' for Saturday, which was Destiny's birthday. I was a little bummed to discover that we wouldn't be allowed to take pictures while we were inside the museum, but I was happy to take my camera and get some shots of the exterior. Talk about a neat looking building! On Saturday, we were given boarding passes and new identities while we waited in line to "board the ship." **giggles** Yes, I said we were given new identities. They gave us each a card with a name of one of the original Titanic passengers on it. The card told the age and class of the passenger. It also told basic info about that person's life before they boarded Titanic. Before entering the museum, Destiny told a crew member that is was her birthday and she had chosen to spend her special day learning about Titanic's only voyage. The rest of the day she was given special treatment. Every crew member on the ship made a fuss over her. They even gave her a special gift for being there on her birthday. We all had a fun day. The tour took a little more than 2 hours and no one was bored. Laney was even interested in looking at the various pictures and artifacts on display. Our cards told us to look for certain display cases in the museum. When we found those display cases we would find new information about our special passenger. At the end of the tour we would have the chance to search the memorial wall of names to find out if our passenger made it off the Titanic alive. We got to keep our cards and I plan to add them to my scrapbook.

Bobby was Henry Sleeper Harper. Henry was a first class passenger traveling with his family. He also had his dog with him (one of only 10 dogs on the Titanic) and the card reminded him to make sure to ask a crew member if the dog lived. (It did, by the way!) Henry was plagued with tonsillitis that came on soon after they boarded. He was a member of the famous family behind the Harper Publishing House.

I was Mary Fortune, a first class passenger from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Mary was traveling on the Titanic with her husband and children.

Destiny was Juliette LaRoche, a 2nd class passenger from Paris, France. Juliette was married to the only African American man that was aboard the Titanic.

Paisley was Emma Bliss, a crew member on the Titanic's maiden voyage. She was one of only 23 stewardesses on the ship.

Delaney was Selena Cook, a 2nd class passenger from Oxford, England. Selena suffered from a terrible toothache during her voyage on the Titanic and, oddly enough, we got to see the tooth that was giving her trouble when we went thru the cabin area of the museum.

My sister was, unbelievably, Molly Brown. This is funny to me because before we got out of the car that morning my sister said she wanted to be Molly Brown. They had a big stack of passenger cards and we weren't allowed to choose who we got to be for the day. They arrange the cards so that no one can end up with the same identity. Each stack has only one Molly Brown.

Here are some pictures of our day:

God Loves Me More Than That!

"How much loves does God have for me? More than the letters between A and Z. More than the bumbles in a bumble bee. God loves me more than that!" -an excerpt from "God Loves Me More Than That

I've discovered a fantastic new book for my girls! The book is "God Loves Me More Than That" and it was written by Dandi Daley Mackall. Mackall did a wonderful job explaining the enormity of God's love and the illustrator, David Hohn, did a beautiful job of painting visual images of the author's words.
The book is rhythmic enough to captivatate a two year old's attention. It also uses basic wording for a new, inexperienced reader, such as my middle child. My nine year old has even been begging me to let her read it aloud to her sisters every night since we got this book in the mail.
I'm happy that I was given the chance to read and review this book and I will definitely be recommending "God Loves Me More Than That" to all of my friends.


**I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group in exchange for this review. However, the opinions expressed here are my own.**

Do You See It?

Do you see the smiles on the faces
of the three little girls
that I get to spend my days with?!
< How did I get to be so blessed?