First haircut

Our big girl got her first haircut today! She was so good. I talked it up yesterday: "We're going to Rebecca's tomorrow to get your hair cut. Will you sit in her chair like a big girl? Your hair will be so pretty!" (And the promise of a treat if she was a good girl helped, too.) The last thing she said to me last night before bed was, "Go Becca's. Becca cut my hair. Sit in chair like big girl." So I knew we would have a good time this morning. She did sit like a big girl and was so proud to show her haircut to her daddy. Caroline's first haircut was really fun for both of us! I forgot to select save on my cell phone and lost a cute picture of Caroline and Rebecca. Argh!

An al fresco recipe

Here's a perfect recipe for you to enjoy on your back patio. It's so easy and I guarantee it will be delicious every time (even if you don't like bourbon!). It's one of my Papa's favorite grill marinades.

Bourbon flank steak

1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c soy sauce
1/4 c bourbon (Maker's Mark, Jim Beam, whiskey will do in a pinch)
1 flank steak

Mix brown sugar, soy sauce, and bourbon well. Put steak in a marinating-worthy vessel (sometimes I use a large ziplock bag). Pour over flank steak. Refrigerate and marinade at least 2 hours, turning meat once or twice. Grill steak to desired doneness. (We love ours medium rare. So that's about 8 minutes on each side, depending on how hot your grill is.) Let steak rest for a few minutes. Slice very thin and enjoy.

It will make your tummy so happy...

Al fresco

We love eating lunch on the back patio!

Visit with the Dales

We were so excited to spend Monday with my dad's brother and parents! They drove all the way from Oklahoma to visit. We had a wonderful time!

Zoo day

Last week the weather was so nice. We had to go to the zoo!

Thank you, Crayola

Crayola has so many neat products for kids these days. The Color Wonder things are fantastic for toddlers. Last week I picked up some Crayola paints for Caroline. I thought about getting the fingerpaints. But my little princess is a bit skittish about getting her hands dirty. (Wonder who she gets that from?) So I decided to pick up the washable paints instead, which will work fine for fingerpainting or stamping. At one point I looked up and noticed that she had gotten a little dramatic with the paintbrush and there was paint on the wall. Eeek! But I got a moist rag and it came off immediately. And it didn't stain her clothes, either. Impressive. These get a 5-star rating in my book!

Bird watchers

Now Caroline can watch birds with Daddy using her new binoculars (or "knockers", as Caroline says)!

Put a smile on your face

Not too terribly much going on around here lately. We're waiting on the sunshine to come back!

We love this video - particularly the forced, "Everybody happy!" She's becoming quite the little comedienne. I have to make a point to write down some of the things she says because I know 10 years from now I'll never remember.

Easter

Here are some pictures from our Easter celebrations. I had the pleasure of making the kids some very pretty Easter frocks. I had so much fun. Ian was sick on Easter morning, so I didn't get to see him in his outfit. Hopefully, he won't grow too much and he can wear it next time I visit! We had a great holiday weekend and hope you did, too.

Happy Easter

We've been practicing our egg-hunting skills!

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

"Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world."

-John 11:25-27

Spring is finally here

Caroline meets some puppies

No, we're not getting a new family member. But I sure was tempted! Isn't he adorable?

Weekend videos

Yes, it snowed here in Memphis - and quite a bit! We had about 4 inches by late Friday evening. That's a ton of snow for us. It's all gone now... Caroline thought it was pretty neat - as long as she didn't have to touch it or taste it. She got cold and cranky not too long after this video, so we didn't really play in it all that much.


And this is my new favorite video. When we got home from dinner Saturday night, Caroline started singing to herself and I caught part of it. It's really the first time she's sung by herself - with notes and words!

Caroline is 2!

Dear God,
Thank you for the good work you have begun in Caroline Suzanne. Please carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
-Philippians 1:6

We had a big birthday bash for Caroline Saturday morning. It was so much fun. I was so happy that so many of our friends came to celebrate our little girl's life with us.

I decided we would do an arty-themed birthday party. I follow an art with toddlers blog and got a great idea to do crayon transfer tee-shirts. I found fabric crayons and tee-shirts at Michael's. It was so much fun. The kids got the biggest kick out of seeing their own artwork on a tee-shirt. OK - so the other mommies and I got a big kick out of it, too!

I kept the menu easy - BBQ, chips, slaw, a colorful fruit salad, and cupcakes. The cupcakes were topped with M&Ms, sprinkles, or gel icing. I love making cupcakes.

If we had known that there would be 4 inches of snow on the ground the morning of Caroline's birthday, we would have arranged for our guests to come dressed for a snowman-making contest!

Snow

So the day after I changed my snowy blog header to something more springy, we're supposed to get snow. Caroline and I have been watching spring videos, gearing up for sunshine, sliding in the backyard, and walks down the sidewalk. And now we are supposed to get 1-2 inches this afternoon!

For a summer girl like me, it's hard to be grateful for snow. I went to my Bible to find out if God had anything to say about snow. There were two references in my condensed concordance:

Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
-Psalm 51:7

"Come now, let us reason together,"
says the LORD.
"Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.
-Isaiah 1:18

What a wonderful, freeing reminder for me this morning as we think of snow. The Lord hears my confessions, casts my sins far from his mind, forgives me so that I am white as snow. It seems I've found a reason to be grateful for snow.

(More snow references in the Bible Gateway concordance.)

Early birthday party in Mayfield

Caroline and I took a little trip up to Mayfield while Kevin was on a mission trip to Bay St. Louis, MS. We had an early birthday party for my almost-two-year-old. The weather was great all weekend - short sleeve weather! We're very ready for more spring weather! And this week, we're busy preparing for the actual birthday. Wow - two years...

Ponytail

Caroline got her first ponytail this week! She's never been patient enough for more than a quick brush and a bow or barrette. I was able to distract her with a toothbrush and running water. I've got to learn to be much quicker. I think she liked it. She kept checking herself out in the mirror and giggling.

Little Matisse

Happy Valentine's Day!

Flowers, 'fraidy holes, and flashlights

I did a flower arrangement for our Tuesday morning women's Bible study and it was a huge success. And now I get to enjoy it... I love the pink tulips!


Not too long after we were first married, a storm came through Memphis. I told Kevin we needed to decide on a 'fraidy hole. He had no idea what I was talking about. My parents grew up in Oklahoma and were very familiar with storm shelters. So that's what I grew up calling the place where you take cover during bad weather. I remember one visit to Oklahoma when I was little where we all went down to the 'fraidy hole in the middle of the night. My Boompa stood in the doorway of the garage watching the storm blow. Mom said not to worry - he only came down when it got really bad. He didn't come down that night. He was such a funny man.

So we used our 'fraidy hole last night for the first time since living here. I don't, as a general rule, go down to our basement. It's unfinished and kind of creepy and all I can imagine are the huge spiders lurking behind the water heater. Luck would have it that Kevin did a major clean out of some of the leftover junk in the basement a week ago. I have to say that it was quite nice down there (relatively speaking) and I've never been so thankful for our little 'fraidy hole. The whole basement adventure was great fun for Caroline and Tigger.

While in the 'fraidy hole, Kevin introduced me to the most fantastic of all flashlights (our electricity was out for about 5 hours). It's a Sears Craftsman 19.2 Volt fluorescent flashlight. If you don't have one, you need one. Just on the off-chance you need a really bright flashlight. This thing is awesome. It's as bright as the noon-day sun. I'm not kidding. I was knitting by the light of this thing. And not big, bulky yarn - little, tiny baby yarn. Apparently this super flashlight was part of a tool kit I got for Kevin for Christmas. (Yay, me!)