April Fun

I've been SO behind on posting pictures and family happenings lately, I thought today would be a good day to get caught up.
April was such a fun month despite the fact that Portland was still anxiously awaiting Spring :)
Here were some fun moments we caught on camera....

A play date with our friends Charlotte and Cyrus. This happened to be one of the nicer days that month so we headed outside for some fun in the sun!
Mr. Bear also came home with us that day for the week so of course we had to include him in the shots.

OMSI currently has a very cool dinosaur exhibit. The boys both went through a period of dino obsession so this was a pretty fun day for them!

The very silly side of Brett :) I am certain he is going to be so appreciative of me posting these!

Brett, Debbie and Casey came over for dinner last month too! We had so much fun together but honestly Josh pretty much kept Pastor Brett busy for almost the entire night :)
They had fun drawing pictures and Josh made some special requests. Note the fine art displayed here - hehe!

A couple of silly pictures right before bed on Mr. Bear's final night with us before heading back to preschool. Each night Josh was careful to put him in his pajamas and brush his teeth. Josh was a good bear keeper and I think we kept Mr. Bear entertained for the whole week :)

New Friends and an Amazing Dessert Idea

Tim and Shanna Browning came over for dinner on Thursday night! I met Shanna through Bethany's "what's for dinner?" thread. Shanna came to my girls' night and I instantly became a big fan of hers!
We did a little Mexican night and I made homemade guacamole, steak fajitas and black beans.
But Miss Shanna made the yummiest dessert ever! Okay, so Tim may have not thought so with his lack of love for the espresso bean, but we adored it! She took an Oreo pie crust and softened espresso ice cream and filled the pie shell. Then she took hot fudge and spread it on the top. The finale? Heath pieces! You could easily do this with different flavors of ice cream/topping/candy combos.
Anyway, thanks for staying up way past your bed time guys (in light of Tim's work schedule)! We hope to spend more time with you soon!!!

Girl's Night

The group photo.... gotta love time delay! At least our eyes are all open

It's 9:30am right now and our Girl's night just concluded seven and a half hours ago! Yep, we were Par-TAY animals until 2:00am! Well at least Tammy, Catherine, Beckie, Laura and I lasted that long! And other than the fact that my head feels like it's going to explode this morning, I don't feel a day over 21 :)
We had the bubbly flowing (Martinelli's) and the Fondues were SOOOO yummy!
Lena worked the hot oil fondue and cooked chicken and steak. She also did a tempura batter and we made onion rings and other veggies. Aren't vegetables always vastly superior when battered or dunked in cheese?!
We had two kinds of cheese fondues and dipped broccoli, cauliflower, apples and breads in those. And of course the chocolate fondue was awesome. We dipped strawberries, bananas, pound cake, coconut covered marshmallows and brownie bites.
I think we all probably gained at least 4 pounds last night but laughing burns quite a few calories, right?! My face seriously hurts today from all the laughing we did!
We sure missed all of you that couldn't make it! I will definitely be hosting again sometime in the near future so stay tuned.....
I have to give a shout out to Tammy, Lena, Shanna (so great to meet you!), Becky, Bethany, Jill, Beckie, Tami, Laura, Catherine and Sherry for SUCH a fabulous time! I am SO blessed by each of you sweet girls!
And Brett was totally entertained by what it is exactly that women discuss after hours :) LOL!
Much love to all of you and I can't wait until next time!!!!
I meant to make sure lots of great pictures were taken. We were all too busy apparently!
Well, I do have other pictures.... but they will only be used for blackmail purposes.

L1 & L2

Tammy and Bethany

The Ladies Man

We trade off sitting with the Waxenfelters every month so the grown ups can enjoy date nights!
Well, it looks as though Matthew and Abby enjoy their date nights just as much!
The last time we were over to watch their kiddos this little photo op transpired between the two of them.
So stinkin' cute!
I think they're in love :)

Giving some L-O-V-E

I've been inspired to spread some love by an incredible love spreader!
When you are going through hard times, be it physical, relational, spiritual, financial or otherwise you find out who in your life is really a true and faithful friend.
I am blessed with many incredible sisters that I can say this about but one in particular is on my heart today.

Maybe you'll recognize her beautiful face....



So, to embarrass, I mean BLESS her, I am going to make a top 10 list that will just scratch the surface of what I love about my beautiful friend, Laura Ashland.

1. She shares my first name so that in itself obviously qualifies her as way cool.

2. She is the most stylish chica I know. No seriously, she's a mom of three little kids who manages to almost always dress and accessorize to the T. Oh, and did I mention that she somehow pays like pennies on the dollar for all of her designer duds?!

3. She is one of the most generous people I have ever met with everything from her time to her money. She watches her friends' kiddos anytime, including mine, any time she's available and without hesitation. I know for a fact that some of these kids have had the stomach flu on her watch and she lovingly took great care of them. Um, WOW.
Here are two examples of her sweet generosity:
Knowing I'm sick today, she volunteered to bring our family dinner. I haven't decided whether or not we're going to take her up on it, but just the offer is SUCH a blessing to my heart.
On Thursday morning I was feeling exceptionally sad.
So the Lord sent me a little blessing. I was on the waiting list for the amazing Brittany Jenkins who had a random cancellation that afternoon (thank you Jesus!) and could get me in for a trim and some highlights. Laura watched the boys for me so I could at least have cute hair for a couple of hours :) Doesn't that always help a girl feel better?! And actually just hang'n for a little bit after I got back was the greater blessing.
Crowns in heaven my sweet friend!

4. She is an amazing listener and encourager. That's pretty self explanatory. She has blessed me so much lately with a listening ear and encouraging words. Thank you for that!

5. She is always up to pray for and with you. What a gift it is to have someone not only say they'll pray for you but do it right then and there. I definitely have been trying to pay that one forward.

6. She is not a complainer. In times of personal challenge, she draws nearer to the Lord and blesses His name.

7. She is a great story teller. I could listen to her all day easily!

8. She is FUN-ny!!! Hilarious in fact :) Just play Bunco with her sometime!

9. She's a great mommy and a great wife. She'll probably argue with me on this one but she truly blesses her home and family in multiple ways.

10. She's an amazing chef, a fantastic decorator and the best gift-giver. OK, so those are three separate things but I said I would stick to 10 :)

All that to say that I love you SO much Laura! You bless me beyond words and I am so grateful for our friendship. You are honestly one of the main reasons I cannot see our family moving far from Sherwood. I would miss you WAY too much!
Keep doing what you're doing for as Galatians tells us...

Galatians 6:9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

May the Lord pour out His countless blessings upon your family, and multiply back to you what you do for others in His gracious abundant ways!!