March Madness, Indeed!

Last week Ben and Drew had their first Spring Program at school. They did GREAT! We had such a good time watching them perform all of the songs they have worked so hard on. They are learning so much, and I find myself very thankful that they are at such a great school with teachers that not only great educators, but also love the Lord with their whole lives. I had no idea that they had learned the books of the New Testament, and many of the other songs that they sang - I can only get tidbits here and there about what they do at school - but we sure were proud. We've been staying pretty busy around here lately. But that's okay by us...we like to stay on the go. We have been taking swimming lessons at the Y again, in prep for the beach and pool this summer. We were lucky enough to snag the Director of Aquatics at our Y, and she is great with them. They are loving it this time, and making good progress. I'll be sure to keep you posted as to when they can really swim all by themselves. But in the meantime, it is one of the highlights of our week.

Now that the weather has been a little bit nicer, we've been spending as much of our weekend time together as possible at the park near our house playing soccer and flying kites. Both have become favorite ways of ours to run off some of the never-ending energy these boys seem to have.

So this week the boys have been on Spring Break and at home with me. While I do love having a little extra time to myself while they are at school, I have loved having them with me this week. I already feel like my time to play, teach them and love on them is too quickly running out, and I feel so aware of how short and precious my days are with my sweet boys. They truly are such a blessing to me, and I thank God for the honor of being their mommy every day.

Thanks for being patient about my lack of posts lately (to all of you who have been asking and asking)...my little business has been going well, and I've had so many orders lately that it is hard to do much else during naptime and after they go to bed at nights. Lots to balance and juggle while still keeping my priorities in place and often blogging doesn't make the cut. But with the economy the way it is, I am so thankful for the way God continues to bless me with business. All that to say, we are still here, and are glad you checked in on us. Love to you all!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Our 2009 has seemed to fly by already! We've already managed to begin a few projects around the house, celebrate 5 birthdays and 1 anniversary, go on a grown-ups only vacation (BIG thank you to MawMaw and PawPaw for playing with the buddies while we were away!!!!!), celebrate Valentine's day and plenty of other fun stuff in between. Here are a few pictures to document a little bit of what's been going on in the Blankinship house:

Helping Daddy tile the laundry room (we had to take a break from all the hard work to take a bath and get ready for bed).
Playing in Mommy's uggsTaking Otter (our class pet at school) for a weekend of fun. Every Saturday morning we go with Daddy for some guy time to eat donuts at our favorite place here in Spring Hill. So we took Otter with us........and then showed him how to pick out the ones with the most sprinkles........and then later that night, we showed him how we help Mommy cook, while Daddy grills out and makes us a fire for a fun night of hanging out at home together. The parents were invited to join in for the Valentine's Day party at school, and I honestly wasn't sure how the boys would do having me at school with them. I almost didn't go. But the thought of them looking around at the other mommies who were there, and then wondering where their mommy was, was just too much. So I went. As it turned out, Mimi was here spending a few days shopping and celebrating BeBe's birthday, so she was able to come to the party with me. They loved having us both there, and showing us their classroom. But when it came time for us to leave or for them to follow directions from the teachers, the fun was over. It wasn't pretty. I'm still not sure if I should go to another class party or not. Here they are with their class, who they talk about constantly. Drew (and Mimi) showing me that he likes to eat "pinecones" (or to the rest of us, pineapple.).
And my sweet Ben, who hates to have his picture taken. While this isn't the best picture of him since he isn't looking at the camera, trust me that this is the best one I got of him all day. Of course, my boys spoiled me for Valentine's Day with flowers, presents, and getting to sleep really late Saturday morning. And Ben and Drew seemed to enjoy making "Balentimes" for Daddy this year for the first time. Though I let them make his cards every year, up until this year it's been totally lost on them. So it was fun to explain they 'why' and them be able to understand. I certainly feel blessed beyond measure and loved more than I deserve. I hope I did a good enough job of doing the same for my three wonderful guys.

That about does it for whats up with us lately. Thanks for checking in on us!

Tagged!

My wonderful friend, Jen, tagged me JUST so she'd hurry me up and get another post on our blog. Well, my friend, I've already posted. But I'll do it because I love you! ;)

I'm supposed to find the 4th folder on our computer, the post the 4th picture in that folder, explain it, then tag 4 more people to do the same. Here goes:

Our first day in the Domincan Republic while visiting TJ and Holly back in 2007. Our luggage didn't make it there till the next evening, but borrowed clothes and all we still had a great little getaway in paradise.

Now I tag:

Hayley B

Paige E

Kim C

Amy P

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and all the other stuff in between!

The wait is finally over!! ....if there are any of you who actually still check our blog, then I'm sure you're all passed out on the floor by seeing that today there is an update, as it's been far too long since I last posted. Anyways, since this blog is more a way to scrapbook for the twins, than it is anything else, here is a brief rundown of our last 6 weeks or so...

Breakfast with Santa at Church~
This is the first year (other than when they sat on Santa's lap at a whopping 2 months old) that Ben has NOT freaked out when seeing the Big Guy. This year, I guess he got it. Drew and Ben both jumped right up there and told him very politely that they'd like a choo-choo train and a fast jeep. By the time the whole Christmas season was over they sat in a total of 3 different Santa's laps, and each time had the same answers about what they were wishing for. As it turned out, Mommy and Daddy provided the choo-choo tracks and Thomas trains...Santa only had room in his sleigh for one really big gift.

Spring Hill Christmas Parade~

Then later that night, BeBe came out to our house to bundle up and go with us for the very first Spring Hill Christmas Parade. Now, I'll just confess up front that I had really low expectations of what this Parade would be....we were really only doing this so the boys could experience their very first Christmas parade. But I cannot say enough about how well done it was. And it was HUGE! I think our whole city came out to support every business, church, civic group and organization that worked so hard on the floats. They all did a really good job with it all. And even though it was pretty cold, we had a great time.

Otter Creek Preschool Christmas Program~

This being the boys' first year in preschool, they've never had the opportunity to be in front of such a big audience and perform. So we really had no idea what to expect on this Thursday morning. Would there be tears? shouting? running through the paparazzi of parents to find us? None of the above, in fact. Drew, our little performer hammed it up and shouted "Mommy?!?!" in between every song to make sure we were watching his every move, and to ensure that we were applauding loudly enough. Ben, our little introvert, hates the spotlight, but did really well. He sang every song, and sort of did the motions, but sat back in his chair for almost the entire time just chewing his gum (that some Mommy who will remain nameless forgot to take out of his mouth, while running around the school that morning in prep for the class party).

Here they are after the program in the classroom listening to Miss Betsy read a story. Notice the stockings they hung [by the chimney, with care] that they are sitting underneath. Here they are with Miss Jeannie, who is the aide in Miss Betsy's class.And here with Miss Betsy. They are both such great teachers, and we are so thankful to have the boys in their class. They love and pray over each child, and our boys love them both dearly. They have been such a blessing to Ben and Drew's development, both educationally and spiritually. And here they both are with Miss Pat, who is a dear friend of mine. She is in her 26th year as Director at OC, and she is such a gift. Nelson Family Christmas~
So, next my parents came up to celebrate with us the weekend before Christmas. Here is the "before" picture of our den. Its a little out of control, don't you think?For some reason, we didn't get many good "during" and "after" pictures on our camera. But my Dad did, and then proceeded to post some really embarrassing ones of me and Britt on his facebook page. Thanks, Dad! ;)

My parents had never seen the Christmas lights out at Opryland. Every time we've tried to take them it's been pouring down rain and way to awful to even attempt it. And this year was no different. But we decided to brave the elements and go anyways. I'm so glad we did because my mom, who LOVES Christmas, was like a kid in a candy shop.Blankinship Family Christmas~

Then it was off to Missouri. We were able to do some really fun things that I've wanted to do with Ben and Drew for Christmas, but up until this year, they had really been to little to get it or enjoy it. So this year was so much for Michael and I to be able to experience the joy of Christmas through their eyes.

Here they are playing in a big box with their cousin Dresden.
We made sugar cookie dough and let the kids roll it out, cut it into shapes, and then decorate the cookies to leave for Santa and Rudolph. Dresi's face says it all...let's just say Shari's kitchen was covered in flour, icing and sprinkles! ;)

The finished products (that Ben hadn't eaten one or more bites off of). Not too bad, I think!And then Christmas morning, here is a picture of the boys driving [read: wrecking into all the walls, furniture, and people] the new jeep that Santa left. We will be working on our steering skills as soon as weather permits, needless to say.One of the neatest things about Centralia is that every Christmas morning the firefighters and Santa turn on the sirens and take goodie bags to every child in the city. They go street to street, and I love this tradition since it's something Michael and Michelle loved as children too. How special that they get to pass this down to these three sweet pumpkins.

There are so many things that made this year special for me: being able to really talk to Ben and Drew about the birth of Jesus and watching them absorb such an important part of our faith, watching them get excited about giving presents to people they love, letting them help me decorate our tree, then listening to Drew say "Mommy, Santa's going to LOVE it", making our own traditions that will be important to them, and so many others. It was a wonderful season. But as good as it was, I think its safe to say that I am glad we only do it once a year because at the end, we were all exhausted!

So now we have hit the ground running in 2009. Hard to believe its here. That about covers all our high points of the season. Thanks for checking on us. I'm now going to sit back, relax, and watch my inbox fill up with comments of friends who can't believe I've actually updated...you're welcome!

Our Trip to Paris!

So, for all of those still keeping track: yes, I am still playing catchup with the blog posts. At this rate, I estimate that the blog and the events of our lives will be in sync about the time the twins leave for college. ;) Until then, you all who keep up with us through this will always be about a week (or two or three...) behind. Oh well...as we always say in the Nelson family, better late than never, right?!


So, anyways, last Tuesday night, Michael and I flew back home from a wonderful few days in Paris for our anniversary! What a dream come true for me to be there with Michael! There are really no words to describe how perfect, how fun, how romantic, and even how blessed (we were absolutely covered in prayer) our time was. Michael was traveling all over Europe for work for the five days before I got there. And when he finished up with his boss, I flew over to meet up with him.

On my first day there, we headed straight for the Eiffel Tower, and a river boat ride along the Seine River. The skies were overcast, the wind was definitely strong and there seemed to always be the threat of rain. But that didn't deter us at all from adventuring all over the city almost entirely by foot.

On the boat ride, you can choose to stop at any one of ten major Parisian landmarks. We chose to hop off at the Cathedral of Notre Dame. Now, I don't know if it was the fact that we did this on the first day, or if it was because I had had so many discussions with God about getting me back home safely to take care of my boys, or if it was because it was the most beautiful church I'd ever been in. But this was, for me, such a moving experience. I couldn't get over that so many people had worked with their own hands so long ago to build a place of prayer and worship. People who - granted - don't believe the exact same things that I do, but nonetheless are my brothers and sisters through our Lord Jesus. It was so moving to be in prayer, and at the same time think that all these other hundreds and hundreds of people might be praying too. And He's not stressed out, He knows each language, He knows each heart, and is just as active as He always has been. In many ways, it's not just a church...it's a tourist attraction. But we asked ourselves as we were leaving (and passing by all the trinkets you could buy that said "Notre Dame") "would Jesus come in and overturn the tables, or would He be glad so many were in His house of worship?" I don't know. But He met me there in a powerful way.

This statue of Jesus letting the little children come to him made us think of and miss our boys because they look to be twins. Had to snap a picture.

In front of the Louvre...we could have spent the whole day here. We loved it! We took over 100 pictures here alone.

Though I didn't put any boring museum pictures from it, we also hit Musee D'Orsay and got to see a special Picasso exhibit that was pretty cool. Michael made sure to point out at every piece that "he could've done that too..." ;

After Musee D'Orsay we walked (and walked and walked) till we found the Luxembourg Gardens. They were even more stunning than I anticipated. Here is the Fountain of the Medic.

I don't speak enough French to translate what the plaque said about this statue. But I love this picture that Michael took (he's a waaay better photographer than I am). And I love that you can see the top of the Palais Royale behind it. On our last day there we were just strolling around, and realized that we could see the Arc way behind us. So we asked a lady to take our picture. I think it turned out pretty well.

We really did have such a great time. I cannot believe that I am lucky enough to be married to this wonderful man. And that he places importance on us spending time away together by ourselves is just icing on the cake.

So, now we're back home, all settled back in, and just enjoying being back with our buddies. Stay tuned....more on them to come soon (hopefully!).

Thanks for checkin in on us!