Charlie our New Puppy :)

Well.....our life has changed.  One week ago Logan and Caleb took a "surprise" trip to get our new puppy.  I did not grow up having a dog so it's going to be quite the change for me.  Our life definitely has enough things to take care of right now but so far I am glad we went ahead with it......granted it's only been 1 week :).  I haven't heard my older 2 boys laugh this much EVER.  They have so much fun together with him.  Notice I said together.....that is worth any puppy or anything we can throw into the mix :).  I know they will essentially grow up with this dog and will be close to him.  It's going to be a very good thing I think!

We have a close family friend that is very into black labs so he arranged for us to get one.  Caleb had no idea where they were going and was very excited to bring home his new puppy.  They picked up the dog in northern Oklahoma so actually Mimi and Pawpa came and met them there.   

Charlie's mama...

Charlie's brothers and sisters....

I think him and Caleb bonded on the way home.....

this dog can sleep.....it's hilarious...all of a sudden he'll be playing and just pass out :)

Mimi had tons of toys ready for him.  He was surrounded on the way home.....

They got home late last Monday night with him so only Tyson was still awake.  So needless to say Tuesday morning at our house was a bit wild!!!  We woke up the boys with Charlie in their beds.....then they chased him around the house for the next 30-45 minutes.  They were pretty excited!

Caleb and Charlie had a definite bond from the start.....

Tyson is taking a little while to warm up to him...he doesn't like when he chases him but I'm thinking the two will be best of friends before too long.

And as for Lucy Lou.....well she's still trying to figure him out.  If you look closely he's actually sitting in the little truck next to her :).

He immediately starts trying to bite and nibble at her and she's not so sure about that.  He likes to try to get in the car with her or on the slide with her.  

But she has a soft spot for him too.  It's best for her when he is sleepy.  She will come over and pat him and lay her head on him.  He doesn't care at all.....

He's pretty cute......hard to get mad at him too much.....although I have here and there when he has accidents on my floor!!!!

This picture just about melts me.....I'm not sure what it is about this girl and her thumb and those eyes.......LOVE her.

and this is one of my favorites......

and this of course is about the best we could get.....

unless I am in the picture.....

he found the dishwasher this morning.....wow....this dog will eat and/or chew on anything!!!

Just My Cutie Pies......

My baseball player....he does NOT like the practice but he loves the games.  He told me it's because at the games you can watch the score board.....gosh this boy and his brain!!! 

Here's one of his hits from yesterday.....

All this one wants to do ALL day long is ride his bike!!!  If I can't find him then I know he is just riding up and down the sidewalk and driveway!

Caleb had CRAZY hair night at church last week.  He got his spray painted, Weston wore the black fro wig, and Logan picked and blow dried his out to make his own REAL fro.  They had a fun night!

Caleb got registered for kindergarten last week!!!  He is SO excited and can't wait to be at the same school with Weston.  This is him with his 2 best buddies that will be there too.

Caleb had his big preK performance the other night.  He got to since and wear a bowtie.  He was looking pretty handsome :).

Tyson being oh so helpful by throwing every.single.toy. out of the sandbox.  THANK YOU for that!!

My little helper....we made some cookies and she may or may not have licked the beaters :)

She loves her baby dolls and I love that she loves her baby dolls.  Even when I just sit down and watch her play it's SO different than the boys.  I am amazed at just how GIRL she is sometime.  ha ha.  I love her to pieces.....really I do.

After the bed he made me I next asked him to build a desk :).  www.shanty2chic.com is amazing and has so many fun ideas!!!  So the boys helped him and they knocked it out in a few hours!  

But I got the privilege of sanding and staining it.  

This silly kid bought a package of mustaches with his kids cash from church.  He's hilarious.

Lucy carrying around the paddle....not sure what she was planning to do with it.

Losing a Friend

It was definitely the Lord but I woke up last Monday morning with just a heaviness for Justin and Misty.  I came downstairs from working out and Logan and I were just talking and laughing about Justin.  We told a few stories about him and then I picked up my phone to see texts from several Boerne friends saying that he was really bad and not going to make it through the day.  Oh so hard.  Logan was able to type a long message that was read to him before he passed away.  This man fought and fought hard.  I kept praying and hoping that all of a sudden he would just get better.....that God would just miraculously heal him.....that all the doctors would just all of a sudden find a cure for him!  But it just wasn't God's plan for Justin.  He saw the best of the best doctors and tried basically everything he could do but his body was just very sick.  He had more diseases than I can even remember or name.  But what a life he lived and in his later years was all lived for the Lord.  Logan was able to walk alongside him in Boerne when he was really searching and trying to figure out what God was all about.  They would meet up for breakfast or lunch and sit and talk about the Bible.  He would ask lots and lots of questions to Logan.  He was searching and trying to figure it all out.  He was never afraid to ask anything....there was no fear of embarrassment or dumb questions.   He just legitimately wanted to know truth.  He finally came to a point and put his trust in Christ.  Awhile later he was actually baptized by our pastor in the river.  It was an amazing and joyful day.  So Logan literally got a front row seat to see his friend and buddy change his life and start living for the Lord.  He began having such a boldness in his walk.  He wasn't afraid to tell you EXACTLY how he felt about something and how it was going to be.  It was so refreshing to be around someone that honest and open.  So after several months of us getting to know their family he was diagnosed with all the diseases.  At first it didn't even seem real but as time went on he started seeing more evidences of all of it in his body.  We moved from Boerne about 2 years into his sickness.  For Logan, I know leaving Justin was one of the hardest things he had to do.  When you walk with friends through hard times it is gut wrenching to have to walk away from that.   It has been neat to watch how the Lord has brought just the right people alongside their family though to care and love on them in a unique way.  And I will say as hard as it has been to keep up with people long distance Logan and Justin were able to do it.  They would do Voxer a lot and just send texts back and forth.  Justin encouraged Logan in ways that no one else could.  It's that honesty of his again.....he would just straight tell Logan like it was and not hide anything back.  Over the last year it began to be very hard to read them because he was just in so much pain and weary.   We know he is healed and in the presence of the Lord now.  We are so grateful he isn't hurting but just ache that he is gone from us here.  We traveled down to Boerne last Thursday morning for his funeral and to be with Misty.  Thanks to my parents we were able to leave all the kids here.  It was so good to be there and be in Boerne.  It was fun to talk about Justin and just remember his life.  His wife Misty is a rock.  You can't even imagine what all she has faced this last few years.  I can't and don't want to even know.  The Lord has given her strength upon strength to walk through it all.  They have 3 boys....Bryce, Brody and Braxton.  They are what pushes her heart to go on and get through the hard times.  She is gifted at writing and she shares it all on her blog www.keepingupwiththemcelhannons.blogspot.com if you want to read it.   So if you think about it please keep praying for their family.  The Lord is and will be carrying them through but it's just hard to not have a daddy and husband.