My Awesome Family!

A week ago, we celebrated my cousin, Vero's 22nd birthday and here are some great pics. My cousin, John Mark, enlisted in the Navy and he leaves for his training day before Thanksgiving. So we want to get some great time with him before then. We're all very proud for him! He will be missed!

Friends Forever!

This is Angie Mitchell holding Justus and her little girl, Elle, kissing him. Their family will be moving one hour north of Paris, France in November. They have been wonderful friends while we've been here and we will miss them alot. We'll be caring for their house while they're gone(renting it) and we're really excited about that!
Their little girls, Annabelle and Elle, will have an amazing experience learning a new language and living in a different country for a while. We will miss you, Mitchell's!

Move out of the Way....Here Comes Grace!

Need I say more?

Fun in the Sun (in September)!

It's still mid 90's here so we will be swimming into November, probably. The pool is open year-round and we love going! Especially with a great Francine Rivers novel and some cold grapes....

Glory is treading water but not quite a strong swimmer yet. Getting better, though! Grace just wants to hold onto someone else while they swim. We'll get the hang of it, though!

All Girls!

Glory has finally completed her amazing castle! It's a work of art!

On the end, Grace is telling us to be quiet so she can read about Zaccheus, the wee little man up in the tree. Then, she shouts real loud," Get out of that tree.I'm eating at your house today."

What peaceful, calm morning devo's!

Date Night!

Well, our date night last night was awesome although one of our friends couldn't be there at the last minute. Their little girl, Elle, fell and broke off half of her front tooth!!
SOOOO, we cancelled our reservations for PF Chang's and went instead to the casino buffet, right by our house,which is de-LISH!. $8.95 for an all-you-can-eat buffet. It was great!!!!! Then we went to the movies with our friends, Austin and Cami, and saw Eagle Eye. Great, action-packed movie! We hardly ever go to the movies so it was an awesome treat. Then Jonathan and I came home to find ALL our kids asleep and we sat down with some wine and some presidential debate!!! Exciting!
This morning, Jonathan's at drama practice. He has a big drama at church tomorrow about hypocritical people and how not to be one. Can you think of anyone like that! Hope it's not me!! Ha, ha! It's gonna be really great! When he gets home, we plan to go swimming and have some family time. I'm still getting used to the fact that Jonathan has Saturdays off!!! It's been very good for the girls.

Question to you bloggers- I want to have music on my blog background that I choose. How do I do that? Tell me, please!!! Love you all!

MORE!!!

Here's some more pics! What did people do before cameras? Top middle is one of my awesome aunts, Aunt Debbie. She keeps Grace and Justus sometimes while I'm sleeping and she's very special to us. Today she made Double chocalate brownies with Grace and they were the sauce! No joke!
Little Glory like to pose for pics before school. This was her Wednesday morning at the breakfast table after she had eaten her toast and apples. As I blogged earlier, she loves jeans!!!!!
Next is a beautiful quilt made for Justus by my friend, Wendy, back in Houston! Isn't it awesome! She has amazing talent!!And She put orange in it!!! YES!!! My fave color!
Lastly, a simple reminder with our busy lives to remember each other. So Jonathan took this pic while we were sitting on the couch together watching the Discovery Channel( where you see the lion eat his prey up close and personal)! I love that kind of stuff!
Tomorrow we're going on an awesome date night with two other couples to PF Chang's. We haven't been out for a while and I'm pumped!!! Just to sit and eat and drink without breastmilk all down your shoulder and baby farts all over your arm will be awesome!!! Yes, Justus, I still adore you! But you're all boy, my love, all boy!!!

Finally some pics of the fam!!

Ok so this is the OTHER Drolet , that happens to not be so good at this "blog" thing. But, April is working in the nursery tonight at her work and we finally got our new camera and, wouldn't you know it, April says I've just got to get some pics up before she goes crazy! So here they are.

Enjoy!

One Hundred Raindrops...Glory's Song

Several weeks ago, when my parents were in town, we were outside playing and Glory started to feel some raindrops. It was our monsoon season, so this was normal. She put her hands out to catch them and said something to the effect of, " Look, guys, it's like one hundred raindrops."
Later, laying in bed, some words started to come to mind about her and I tried to piece them together in a song. I love rain, it's my fave weather and I love to write songs but have been out of the skill for quite some time. This particular song chronicles parts of her birth and my struggle with postpartum depression, mostly my hope and desire that she will always trust Jesus. It's still a work in progress, but here's what I have so far.

When you came, the stars were bright
And your face lit up the night
The waiting was so worth it
Now our girl was here

You had this precious little smile and must have
known you were our child

Your love to us was like one hundred raindrops

You cried but laughed much more
Your giggles bigger than all the world

The dark days tried to come but you pushed 'em back
You knew that you were meant to fight
When nothing helped my ache inside

Your love came down like one hundred raindrops-
Precious rain

Now you're growing strong inside
I see the joy that life can't hide
Being on this path with you
Has healed me up inside

My life with you is like one hundred raindrops-
Sweet rain

So wear your courage
Run your race
and when the day is done

You will feel the hand of God where once
You had felt none

He comes to us in every season
Pouring down His grace
Hold His hand and count the raindrops-
one Hundred just for you

National Cheeseburger Day!

Well, I said heck with WeightWatchers today, my friends. Today was National Cheeseburger Day and that's what I had, in all it's fatty, artery-clogging, sodium-filled goodness!! For you Houstonians, you haven't lived until you've had In'N Out Burger, a really popular fast-food chain here and California. It's awesome!
Friends and I headed out to the park with our kids and had a great time. I wish I had a pic of Grace playing in the dirt with her little friend, Austin! She's our total tom-boy in a skirt!!
I started WeightWatchers Monday because I eat so much without even thinking about it and I just want to be more aware of what I'm eating. Not to mention things just aren't as they used to be, figure-wise! It's pretty hard, but if chocolate and bagels weren't so darn good, maybe I'd do better!! Ha, ha!! Those are my cravings!
I finally today got in touch with my great friend, Ambra, who I haven't spoken with in several months. It was great to hear her voice and and hear that our friends and family all were safe and protected during Ike. We prayed and God answered.
Jonathan gets home late tonight after six days away!!! YES!!! I could NOT be more excited!
Glory's school pics came back today and I realized again just how big and beautiful she's getting. I can't wait to frame it and put it on our desk! I'm just like every other mom, crazy about my girls!And boy!! OOOPS! Almost forgot!
We are getting ready to move, ya'll!!! Our good friends, Ryan and Angie, who live here, are moving to France with his job with Caterpillar. We are going to rent and care for their home while they're gone. It's bigger than this one and we are very excited about it! Should be moving in early November if all goes as planned. We'll have a game room and guest room, so no excuses about visiting, all you Houston people. Your room and board will be covered, just get here and the rest can be taken care of!!! I'm pumped. I love having house guests. Just another excuse to buy chocolate....we'll need some to place on our guest's pillows, right??And bagels for breakfast???

For Your Day!

" And God's hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by His Holy Spirit, whom He has given us."

Romans 5:5

On Our Own!

Jonathan left Saturday am for Minnesota for his new job training with EcoLab! We miss him still, of course, and can't wait til he gets home late tomorrow night.
We're doing well. It's better with him here but I have no complaints.
Tomorrow, my friends, is National Cheeseburger Day, so we're off to In 'N Out Burger and then to the big Tucson park to celebrate!!! So don't forget to eat your cheeseburger tomorrow! You have a great excuse!!!
Camera should be here anytime. I'm going crazy waiting to get pics! Justus smiles like there's no tomorrow and NOW he sticks his middle finger out on his right hand while he's eating....thanks, son!! LOL!!
We're pmped about the holidays! Found out recently that Jonathan's Aunt Pat is coming for a visit on October 4 and then his mom and Granny are coming for Thanksgiving and then my parents are coming for Christmas!!!! YES!! Time to bust out the spice candles and get those pumpkins on the front porch!!! And eat pie, and get a pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks, and make hot apple cider and find a Thomas the Train outfit for Grace for Halloween and on and on and on...... all of this while it's still warm enough here to swim every day!!
More to come!

Happpy Birthday, Pamela!

I would like to wish my beautiful sister, Pamela, a happy belated 22nd birthday. She turned 22 on September 11th and I miss her so much.
Pamela, we all adore you and love you! We had so much fun with you in San Diego, at the zoo and the beach, the long roadtrip home, squished into the front of the truck!!! You are the best little sister anyone could have and I'm proud of you in every way. You're an awesome aunt and our children are crazy about you!! I hope this year is your best ever!!!!!!!

Ike

Well, since almost all our family is in Houston, we've been following the hurricane pretty closely.Our family's power is out but they are all safe and no severe damage to their homes. we were up most of the night watching the Weather Channel and waiting for it to pass. My sister, Pamela, was up too, studying throught the storm. She's in nursing school and she has her first exam on Tuesday! I'm so thankful that our loved ones are ok. My mom sure is gonna miss her morning coffee since her coffee pot won't work. :) And my dad's really missing the A/C!!!!
If you are in the are, blog back and tell what your Ike aftermath is like! Love to all!

On It's Way!!

Jonathan bought a new camera and it will be here next week, so get ready for some more pictures that are long overdue!!! I'm pretty excited!
Jonathan left the house this am at 5. Off to Minnesota for his training with EcoLab, which we're so excited about! We will miss you, Jonathan!
All is well here! We're planning to have a lazy day at home. I'd like to do some crafts with the girls and make some fudgy, fattening, brownies!!!!!
The thing I'm most excited about is that we found and bought all the kids Christmas gifts last night! I've been hunting for 3 months for a full Thomas the Train set with all the accessories, the tracks, trains, buildings, etc. Well, we found it!!!!We picked it up last night and I was dancing with excitement around the truck while Jonathan loaded it up!Grace loves Thomas and Glory enjoys it too so Christmas morning is gonna be awesome!!!!!!!!! I can't wait til Justus is old enough to play with it.

SOOOOOOORY!

So sorry no updates for so long. The stinkin' camera is still broke and we have had some great memories to post, but I can write for now and you wonderful readers can take mind pictures, as my mom would say.

Glory is doing great in kindergarten. She has two special friends she speaks of the most, a little boy named Spencer and a little girl named Cameron. She absolutely DOES NOT want to wear anything but jeans to school. Good thing that Gran and Grandad got her two new pair!! She wears them well! She does her own hair with cute little headbands that tie at the nape of her neck and she has a hard time waking up in the morning. Sometimes we make her "little girl coffee." Hey, whatever works!!!

Glory and Grace are still in love with their frogs. The only catch is those live crickets....I just can't do it! I can't feed those things to the frogs!!! The antennas are long and wiggly and then the frog jumps and eats it and half the legs are hanging out and...oohhh...it just gives me the heebie jeebies! Glory will have to do it when Jonathan leaves next week. She's got the courage there!

Speaking of Jonathan, for those who don't know, Jonathan begins a new job with Ecolab, a nationwide company that provides cleaning and sanitation products to large businesses. He will be a route manager and travel around to his different clients, offering services and building new clientele. Probably a six-month training period. I guess there's alot to learn, so they're flying him out to St. Paul, MN for 8 days next Saturday, the 13th! We will miss him, but I'm SOOO excited about this. He's been waiting for an interview with Ecolab since we were about to move here in Nov.It just took a while!

Grace is having fun with Justus. She likes filling up the bathtub and wahing all her dolls' hair. She loves to run and do somersaults on the livingroom floor! We are looking for a local gymnastics place around here because she'd like that alot!

Justus is amazing and makes our family even happier! He just started really smiling around 2 weeks ago and he eats ALOT!!!!!! He wakes up around 3 and 6 which is great for the little guy. Jonathan does the night feeds since I went back to work on August 25. Just two nights a week still and it feels good to be back at my job. I really like it. And Jonathan and Justus get some good times together too!

All is well at church...we may have to look for some land soon. We're getting big and there's new faces all the time. Lots of young families!
One great new development is a new opportunity for me. The friends we came out here with are Austin and Cami Ryan. Their purpose in coming to Tucson was to start a ministry called WorshipCatalyst, intended to find new churches in the area and help find and train musicians and worship leaders to meet the needs of these local churches.
My involvement with this ministry currently is searching and contacting possible fits for this through Craigslist and a website called BandMix.
But now, I am getting the chance to lead worship when needed at one of these new churches called "The Foundry." My first day will be tomorrow at 5 pm. The church meets in the evening.I'm a little nervous, but mostly excited! Jonathan and the kids will go with me. "The Foundry" is a new church that is in Vail, AZ, about 20 min. away and started in July. Please pray that they grow and reach the community they're in the middle of. There are so many people moving to the areas we are near to and they need a place to connect and know God. We are excited to see how our work here will make a difference.

All for now....keep posting comments, keep calling. I do love to hear from each of you and will try to call back whenever I get a chance!
Love to all!