the uhls family...

GIVEaway!

2011-02-25T15:26:00.002-05:00

Hey all - just wanted you to know about FREE giveaway from Wild Olive Tees - if you haven't heard of them - it's worth your time. Great t-shirts with awesome scripture on the front and sometimes back. I was introduced to them from my sister, who purchased these for the boys for their birthdays... the LOVE THEM!

Anyway, they are giving away a new hoodie - click on the link to the right to enter! Would be fun!!!

Hope all of you are doing well!

Love,
Mel and the boys

Merry Christmas from the UHLS family :-)

2010-12-29T13:40:00.000-05:00

howdyDO!

2010-10-04T10:40:00.004-04:00

well, let's see - once again it has been quite awhile since posting... :-)

what's going on with the uhls family? well, a lot of this and a lot of that! riley is loving 1st grade and has now acquired a love of basketball (aunt dd, know you will LOVE that!). his teacher is mrs. mcclure and riley found out a few weeks in that they share the same birthday. made his YEAR! :-) reed is doing well in his first year of nursery school. his teacher is mrs. kimberly and she says, "so far, so good!" he is quite the trooper and on MOST days, he is excited about going!

jason is doing well too - hasn't been traveling as much - for which the boys and i are so thankful. we have been so SPOILED to have him here with us... we like it A.LOT! :-) his job in arizona is on hold until about january, but in the meantime he has been working on some bids for "things" in chattanooga. we would love that!

i have started a new bible study - BSF - and we are studying Isaiah and it has been soooo good. jason is studying jeremiah, so it's fun to be studying "similiar" books. I also have started volunteering in riley's classroom on tuesdays while reed is at school. last week was my first week and I will be going back tomorrow. it is sooo fun to be in there and mrs. mcclure is so nice to have something specific for me to do! i also have been praying about giggles and company - whether to continue that - or phase it out. i haven't had a clear answer yet to that - so in the meantime, jason had the great idea that i could use it for a *kingdom* purpose. so, we (and i use that term loosely b/c it was mostly his great idea) came up with this:

it is a set of notecards - just simple thank you's or thinking of you, or whatever you could use them for - and the proceeds - all of it - will go to renovating the old richmond road mall to be southland christian church's next campus. this campus is going to be the hands and feet of jesus in an area of lexington that rarely gets any positive attention. so... if you want a way to be involved, here is a small way in which you can :-)

so, on another note... i was thinking it was time for the QUESTIONS to return!!! so... post back with your answers and i will do the same!

1. what is your favorite part about fall?
2. if you could go on a mission trip, where would it be and why?
3. what are your favorite jeans?
4. so you leave your toilet LID (not seat) up or down when not in use?
5. do you give your kids chocolate milk?
6. regular ruled or college ruled paper?
7. facebook, twitter, or neither?
8. do you like the kleenex with lotion?

let me hear from you!!!!

and just a sweet picture from a stroll down memory lane...

what.a.week.

2010-08-13T07:23:00.006-04:00

I'm just saying.

Watching your oldest walk in to 1st grade and then the very next day delivering a dear dear dear friend to the airport. Not just for a vacation, but for a move some 900 miles away.

Reality sometimes hurts.

So, here I am. On the verge of tears at ANY minute. Wishing with all that is in me that I can take back that moment of seeing Jamie walk away. Erase the HORRIBLE heaving cries that occurred afterwards (Shannon, you know the kind!) and just go back to life like it was...

Then you hear that still, quiet voice...

"I am in control. I have this. I truly do. YOU can't do for her what I can."

Then this scripture comes to mind...

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Rom 8:28

So, this is for real. We stand on this edge - about to make a choice - do we BELIEVE that - or don't we?

That's the thing. I KNOW it, it is just sometimes so hard to make your mind think what your heart knows. YOU KNOW?

I know you know :-).

So to Jamie - I thank you and will continue to thank you...

... for asking the hard questions
... for praying WITH me, FOR me and BESIDE me
... for allowing me in to your innermost thoughts
... for being the friend i wish all girls had
... for loving on my kids so very very very much
... for trusting me with yours
... for making me rely on God instead of people
... for loving me unconditionally
... for allowing Jesus to shine through you
... for not being petty
... for always being hopeful
... for making me a better me

I'm so thankful Texas is not Japan. So thankful for phones. So thankful for texting (thank goodness you all finally did that). So thankful for airplanes. So thankful for skype. So thankful for email.

I still miss you here though.

.first.grade.

2010-08-12T00:53:00.003-04:00

Well, today was the day.

Today was the day our oldest walked in to first grade. And he did great.

If you remember my post a year ago - man, it was t.o.u.g.h. And this year, well, pretty much the same. I revisited my journal entry that first day of Kindergarten and of course the tears just came a rolling. Not because I was upset really, but because the emotion of it all was still so fresh that I could feel it again.

But what I came away with was this - we sure did have a lot of answered prayers during Riley's last year of school. Right down to having "some kind" (as I put it in my journal) of a connection with Riley's teacher that we met for the first time at open house (we continually to be blessed with her friendship). And I am confident that it has a something to do with the fact that I gave Riley to HIM afresh after that first day of kindergarten, and after talking with my dear friend Jamie tonight, I am going to do that again shortly after closing this posting. As parents, we sometimes get preoccupied with our schedules, our busy lives and just those silly to-do lists that I always make.

And we forget.

Forget that we need to be intentional.

Especially when sending our kids out from under our direct protection. (Thank you DD, for that reminder today, as well.)

So, Jason and I sat down and thought of ways to specifically pray for Riley during this first grade school year. It was fun to get our ideas together and it opened up a great conversation for what we feel is important for him. It's so fun to think that we will be on the same page each and every day as we are praying for our son.

We may not get them all covered each and every day... but it will surely get us started.

building your house on the rock...

2010-07-22T08:15:00.004-04:00

the boys and i were walking along the creek yesterday surveying the damage from the storm the night before. we had left some "valuables" out - not knowing that there was a storm coming through - one of those kind that make the creek swell so big and sweep with it all that has been left unsecured...

we lost:
our 6 person tent
4 lanterns
our play pool
our slide

but some good things that were NOT swept away:
pup tent
6 lanterns
riley's favorite tool (hatchet kind of thing)
rake
hammock
edger
glass table
(and really the list could go on...)

our loses were much LESS in comparison to what was saved. isn't that like life sometimes? but we don't realize it until later on - after the storm has passed?

from that thought my mind went to the parable of building your house on the rock - meaning, have a firm foundation (be secured down) so that when storms come, your home will not be destroyed. isn't that one of the reasons we study the bible and pray without ceasing. so that we will KNOW the LORD much better - so that we can recognize his voice - so that WHEN (not if) the storms come that we will not be swept away... what better way to show the world that we mean what we say we believe - to not crumble when trials come. To be able to STAND knowing that having the LORD on our side is enough - that HE truly has our back...

so for those girls of mine that are going through such tough times right now, you know who you are...

i see the LORD in you
keep on KEEPING on...
for what other reason have you dug in to get to know the maker of the world than for times as these...

HE is relying on you to come to HIM
you are doing such a magnificent job...
and you are showing me the true meaning of FAITH and TRUST.

HE takes great delight in YOU,
you are so VALUABLE to HIM... and to me.

thank*ful

2010-06-23T00:29:00.003-04:00

I'm sitting in Bowling Green, visiting with my sister and her family and our mom and dad this week. It is always so fun to have a house FULL of fun, laughter and memories. I sure wouldn't trade it for anything...

So tonight, I get a sweet little treasure. When getting ready for bed, Riley comes up to me and says that his belly isn't feeling so well and that he wanted to sleep in the room with me and Reed. As he gets older, this is NOT a common occurance b/c he wants to be with the girls, 24/7. So, Riley and I are cuddling in the bed that I grew up in - so funny to think about that! - and just chatting and talking about Toy Story 3. Sweetness. Leigha then brings Reed up to the room (they had all been telling stories and cuddling on Nanny and Papa's bed) for him to go to bed as well. He wanted to sleep in my old bed too. So, reluctantly, I put them to bed in the same bed, in the same room. Some 30 minutes later, this is what I found...

Sweet as can be.

Out cold.

And mine... well, ours, but you know what I'm getting at...

I just stopped and marveled at them for a bit. I wasn't thinking of the "issues" we had had during the day - the bullying, the crying for dark blue blankey, the insisting that we had already had dinner so they could eat the cupcakes... no, I was just 100% completely enamored with them. It wasn't because of anything they had done, or hadn't done. I was just happy looking at them. And I got to thinking, I wonder if God feels that way about us. Sometimes, I hope it is refreshing for Him to look at us and just be PROUD that we've made some tough decision and are trusting Him through it. That we don't hide the fact that sometimes life is hard - but that doesn't mean that God isn't good. That hopefully, somehow, Jesus shines through - and that makes Him happy.

I think sometimes I forget to remember that God is head over heals about us, like I was just a few minutes ago seeing my sons conked out together :-).

Rest well, friends. Knowing that He's keeping an eye out for you - even as you sleep.

rain*RAIN

2010-05-28T08:42:00.005-04:00

So, this morning I just had to blog. I am finishing up my "believing god" bible study that I started some 3 years ago (hehe) and I re-read the story of Moses and Joshua. Joshua was moses' right hand man. Beth Moore was describing the tent of meeting, (which I sometimes wish we could physically see a cloud over a tent to know that it's GOD we are hearing from instead of our own limited minds, but I digress...) Anywho, the tent of meeting was where Moses would go to speak with GOD. However, Exodus 33:7 says, "anyone inquiring of the LORD would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp.". However, what we see happen is way different. What is recorded next is that everyone watched Moses from AFAR when he would approach the tent. Isn't that what we do?!?! We look at the Beth Moore's and the Jon Weece's and the Creflo Dollar's of this day and age and WATCH them draw near the glory of GOD? Why do we settle for a secondhand relationship?!?! Seriously?!?!

So, at that point, I laid my bible down and just started praying. We have a friend that is going through some tough times right now, so I started by just praising God that I know he is working in and through that situation and that we had NOT put him in a box - even in this HUGE deal... then I just started telling God that I didn't want to any longer just stand on the side lines watching, that I was ready... and I had closed my eyes and I heard this sweet sound... for some reason, I asked Jason this morning what the weather looked like today (and I was even in the garage and could see for myself?!?) His reply was, "well, it looks like rain." DUH! I don't know why it mattered to me today - we don't have any outdoor activities planned. So, back to the sound... what I heard was a slow hum, and when I opened my eyes, I looked out that it was just slow DRENCHING rain, followed by a very loud thunder. And immediately it was symbolic to ME, specifically to ME at that time. I have been slowly being poured in to and this morning was like THUNDER to me. Let's no longer settle for being secondhand. Let's make the effort, let's do this for REAL! AMEN?!?!?!

drop*by

2010-05-05T12:08:00.003-04:00

drop by visitors...
LOVE THEM!

a friend was inspired by having a cup of tea with a dear friend and decided to get out the "real" china during their visit. so, she got out her wedding registry china and they savored a wonderful cup of tea together. her story, and the fact that we were revamping the kitchen and ran across our china (still in the packaging, i might add) inspired me to get two cups and saucers out. so, here they are. sitting next to the coffee pot anticipating the next drop by so that we can actually use them!

after i sat them out - i got a little teary. don't know why really... well, seems like i am a lot teary lately. just living, you know how it is...

so, i got to thinking... i imagined God just waiting for us - having a fancy teacup and saucer just waiting for some time for us to sit down and visit. i've got that lump in my throat just typing it. see, i have these "things" that keep sneaking back in to my daily habits. things like being SHORT tempered with my kids, speaking to my husband in ways that i would NEVER speak to any of you, allowing my mind to focus on things that DO NOT MATTER.

so, here's the thing...

it goes back to ME.

and not being able to do IT by myself...

only HE can.

so, if i would, each morning, just sit down for a cup of tea with the One that made me... i know that my actions would change, that even my first reactions would be Godly.

now, why do we keep thinking WE can do it??? enjoy some tea/coffee time today, friends!

sun

2010-04-28T13:50:00.001-04:00

yes, hello, SUN!

i think my mood has been altered by the LACK of sun that we have had. so, despite the fact that i am a little overwhelmed with the amount of work on my plate all of a sudden, despite the fact that my half bath downstairs smells LESS than desirable (something to do with a 3 year old having trouble aiming :o) and if anyone has a cure for this BESIDES ripping up the toilet and STARTING over, i would be much obliged), and despite the fact that i have NOT planned for dinner tonight... i think the boys and i are going to try to catch us some fish this afternoon after school. holey jeans and sweathshirt, here we come...

the thing is - that i have realized, that the busier my life becomes, the less quality time i am spending with my kids. yes, i am a stay at home mom, HOWEVER, that doesn't mean that i am the best at maximizing the time that we have. it DOES mean that i sometimes take it for granted and just squander it away... and that truly STINKS. so, i'm going to be intentional today to fill my kids up this afternoon with NOTHING but fun and love. if the weather is nice where you are, i invite you to do the same. the laundry will wait, those texts can wait, that email can wait, so will those dirty dishes. i promise!!!

you.must.use

2010-04-26T13:05:00.002-04:00

For all of you out there that let your kids help out in the kitchen...

this.is.a.must.have.

AND, the cupcakes that you make look a bit like a bakery!!! well, that may be exaggerating it a bit, but you get the picture. the flavor i got was vanilla, but they also had a chocolate flavor as well. You can pile it up as HIGH as you want to. So stinkin' fun!

on another note, my sis is having FRESH milk delivered to her door - in colorado that is - for those of you who live in KY, have you heard of a place that does this? i would LOVE to have milk delivered here :-). who doesn't like a package outside the door? much less every week???

YARDsale :-)

2010-04-23T07:50:00.007-04:00

Sitting here, watching the daddy duck walk back and forth on the driveway, awaiting those die hard garage sale shoppers come and check out the goods we have in the garage for sale. It's a rainy, rainy day here, but it's so fun to sit here and just talk to those coming in...

A friend came over late last night to bring some goods and something that she said has been ringing in my mind. We've all heard it before...

"one person's trash is another's treasure"

Which is so true, so true...

Two things: one, it made me think about what I treasure... Lately I have noticed how much I hold on to "things" - like nostalgic things - doesn't matter if it's in the attic, I know that it's there if I need it. But why? I don't really know - I just know that I have been letting go of "things" lately - and it is freeing.

Two, isn't that quote kind of like God sees us? Even when we think we have trashed a relationship in our life, when we messed up in that area AGAIN, when we fail to overcome, don't we sometimes feel like trash? What about when you feel that you aren't "good enough" for that one person to invest in, you don't have anything to offer because really, what is so special about you? But you know what? God sees us and treats us as a treasure!!! Because HE is in us, we are valuable!!! 2 Corinthians 4:7 says, But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

We are never NOT ENOUGH for Him to LOVE US unconditionally. Isn't that so nice to know? Ok, better get back to the garage sale on a rainy day... Enjoy your Friday! :-)

god's hand...

2010-04-18T22:14:00.004-04:00

sometimes kids say the *sweetest* things...

like a few nights ago, riley and i were doing the good night ritual (which is usually reserved only for daddy), and he was giving me descriptions of how much he loved each of us in the family...

so, i thought, ah-ha, i'm going to one up him and so i said, quite proud of myself, "riley, i love you to infinity and beyond." i turned to him and smiled so big...

then, he said...

"well, mom, I love you all the way to GOD's hand."

enough said... that was a god wink that i wasn't expecting, but oh, how i will think of it over and over and over again. to have the faith like a child...

TEXTing

2010-04-15T19:46:00.003-04:00

Well, sadly enough we had to have the air conditioner guy come over and do a freon check on the AC. Happens every year - of course on the hottest day of the spring! Anyway, he was this nice man from Zimbabwe - and had the neatest accent... So, I admit, I was making conversation just to hear him talk!!! ha!

However, he said something that has stuck with me. He had asked me a question and in order to answer that question, I needed to talk to Jason. I knew he was in a meeting, but I tried him anyway. Voicemail. So, I said, "Well, let me try and text him, sometimes he is able to check those even in his meetings." Lovely accent man replied, "Oh, man, why is everyone texting so much? I guess, though, in this situation, it really is beneficial... however, you know what makes me so sad?

It's when people text and drive. Seriously? Is anything that important that they can't wait? Putting their life in danger is one thing, but putting MINE in danger for a silly text is another."

How true is that??? I remember promising my mom that I would NOT text and drive and I have kept that promise - HOWEVER, I admit that I do sometimes start texting at a stop light before I even come to a complete stop. Now, really. Is it that important?

SERIOUSLY?

aNEWday

2010-04-14T12:13:00.002-04:00

Howdy all blog readers - all two of you :-). I have been very lazy at blogging for a few reasons, 1. my computer and blogspot seem to have a problem getting along and 2. it has been so long since i posted that it was overwhelming to try and capture it all...

So, I'm going to give a quick update and go from there!!!

Riley is still enjoying kindergarten - we have our spring carnival on friday and he is super excited about it. As are Jason and I - we get to work at the popcorn machine. We seriously think that is FUN!

Reed is doing well too - sleeping without a diaper is his biggest achievement right now. He is still mimicking everything his big brother does - which is so stinkin' cute to us, but a little bit annoying to Riley!

Jason is now working on a jobsite in Pheonix, Arizona and has started his schedule of traveling every two weeks. Last week was quite an adjustment back to that type of lifestyle but I'm sure we will get it down pat. We are THANKFUL, so THANKFUL for this job - regardless of it being far from home.

I am still working with Giggles and Co, but trying to do as little of work as possible - ha! - just trying to figure out if we should continue with it or be done with it. We shall see!!! However, I did start reading again (ok, for those of you who know me well, just sit down and take deep breaths...ha! I just finished an amazing book by Beth Moore called, So Long Insecurity, and WOW, such a good read - even if you don't battle much with insecurity (however, beware, I don't think ANY of us are insecureless, even if you THINK you are). One of the scriptures that she asks us to memorize I wanted to share with you...

Proverbs 31: She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.

The thing is that we have this REGARDLESS - it's just hard to remember it on a daily basis and CHOOSE to BELIEVE it... You know how a few posts ago I talked about LOVE and how I was really being worked on in that area - well, now, I am searching to understand what it means to TRULY BELIEVE - and in this journey, I had a cool picture today of what I think it means to be abiding in Christ...

Hang with me here - We have an old TV in our garage and it usually stays on some sports channel, but today, for some reason, it was off. I was helping Reed get in the car and I glanced over at the TV and saw my reflection unexpectedly... well, I have been trying to get some extra weight off and I haven't been glancing at myself in the mirror lately because to be honest, I didn't want to see how that little love handle looked clinging to my knit shirt... but, out of the blue, I saw my reflection for what i truly was. Immediately, I thought, Melanie, how often do I really take the time to look at my relationship with God - I mean really look. It's so much easier to not even take the time to care than it is to look and see what needs to change, especially those silly priorities that seem to just get all out of whack. God wants us to look in the mirror and allow HIM to show us what parts need to be pruned away or tweaked a bit - but we can only do that if we know who He is. And to know Him, means to talk to him, means to read his Word, means to study more of Jesus' character here on earth, means figuring out what "loving on the poor" means for you (so in essence, abiding!). So, for me, being able to really take what Beth is teaching me to heart - I have to start by BELIEVING that what God says is truth - and in order to do that, I first have to KNOW him... so, gals, let's fall in love with Him all over again!!!

oh, and by the way, i was disappointed to STILL see that love handle in the mirror...:-)

tell me how YOU are doing!

happybirthdaydeedee

2010-02-17T08:03:00.003-05:00

today is a sweet day for me - today is the day that my sister was born, oh, some 25 or so years ago :o). it's an even more special day for me knowing that she is someone that i truly love and am so grateful for!

Thank you sister, for...

*loving me unconditionally

*challenging me spiritually

*showing me states i have never seen (:o)

*hugging on my kids

*providing me with 4 sweet nieces

*including me in your life

i never want to take you for granted. i love you dearly!!!

howdy::sept09

2009-09-23T19:58:00.015-04:00

hey all!

by request of my sista - i am blogging! it has been since the first day of kindergarten, so i guess it is only fair to update you on the status of the uhls home!

first of all - riley is doing GREAT in school. his teacher has been quite the blessing to us - and evidently she feels the same about our sweet riley. he came home yesterday with a note attached to him that said "i read a book today all my myself." now, that is progress! he is asking constantly how to spell words and just tonight - he asked if i could use my tracking finger while we were reading before bed. precious! it is still hard for mommy though. i would rather school be every other day for just two hours or so. not saying that next year might hold something different for us, but for now and for this year, our little boy is happy and therefore mom is happy. our prayers are being answered and we trust that god led us to this decision for a reason. we are enjoying seeing this story unfold!

reed is doing well too. he is enjoying his time with mommy - well, i think he is! he doesn't ask for riley much - other than when we are going to go and pick him up. he just knows he's at school. his sentences are progressing and he sounds so big! we are even entertaining the idea of a big boy bed. notice i said entertaining!!! :-) that crib is such a nice place to have a time=out, since the stairs don't seem to work for this little one. the bed is nice except, as kristina saw today (sorry you had to witness that!) he gets so upset that he tinkles in the bed. oh gosh, never thought i would have type the word tinkle... is that even spelled right??? reed's new phrases are...
::can i, can i???
::oh mom, it is so very cold (or so very hot) or so very *whatever*
::mom, can i play tennis?

he is totally cute - and totally mischievous at the same time. love his HEART!
*how do you like the leg warmers? he didn't want to give up these too small pjs, so we cut them off and he likes wearing them - without the leggings - as underwear. just in case you were wondering*

jason's job in california is drawing to a slow close. he has been there more the past two months that in the last six (well, it just feels that way, i'm sure it's not reality) - just being honest!!! so we are praying about where he will be next and praying for one that isn't quite as stressful - oh YES LORD! :o)

that's about all that is going on here - it's been rainy, but not too cold. definitely fall weather-ish - and actually, we have enjoyed the rain. it has been cozy on the days that we needed coziness. i've been discovering more and more that GOD is good, girls, GOD is good. a friend of mine challenged me to get up and get in the word for 30 days straight and it would make a difference in my life and OH, MY, she was so right. i have been kind of hermit-ish, well i feel that way at least, but what i did was i dove in to studying the different kinds of loves - eros (groovy kind of love), philos (common interest love, friends, sisterly love) and the best of all, agape (the god kind of love). what i have been so tenderly hearing is that i can easily muster up the common interest love, but it's the agape love - the unconditional love - that i have a hard time with. and so, i tried to figure out why this was and was drawing a blank. i have always felt loved by my family and my friends. that ah-ha moment was that it's that "I" have to be taken out of the equation. agape isn't the kind of love that i can muster up - it's got to be oozing out of me b/c jesus is IN me.

I CANNOT DO IT.

as hard as i try...

I CANNOT DO IT.

my motives have to be truly from HIM - and the only way to get there is to be with HIM daily and to be in the WORD daily. this kind of love is the supernatural outcome of being filled with the spirit (rom 5:5; gal 5:22)

i want to ooze with the agape kind of love.

i KNOW that god has been working on me tenderly over the last few months about how to do this with my boys - well, specifically the main boy. why is it that when the hustle and bustle of life comes that we forget to talk to our best friends - and when we do, we end up saying not so nice things? well, perhaps it's just me - but perhaps not. so i am working on being NOT a nag - and more of a safe, uplifting place for my man.

but now i am feeling a little nudge on how to love god's somebody (the ones that may not be easy to love). give it up melanie that it will be work to invest in someone new - give it up melanie that you will become weary and it will be hard to love on someone not so loveable - just give it up...

i'm beginning to understand how to do this kind of love with my family - now, LORD, make it spread to ALL AREAS of my life. give up what I think and let God do the thinking for me.

i will end with a tweet i rec'd today (yes, i joined twitter, but i'm not really sure why. i still don't "get" it but am sure loving getting updates from KLOVE!)

Words are wonderful, but when you walk in love, your commitment must contain much more than just words. (1 John 3:18)

see, even tweets can be used for encouragement!!! let me know what is going on with each of you all - what are you learning? what is going on in your worlds??? do we need another list of questions to get the ball rolling??? :o)

hugs to you all!
mel

K/1herewe*come

2009-08-12T23:25:00.008-04:00

well, guys, we made it through the first day of kindergarten. now, it wasn't pretty - well, as far as my part goes, but we did make it through...

i will tell you that i had a lot of lessons today - a lot of thinking time. i am glad that riley is willing, able, and ready to go to school. some kids close to our family just don't have school as an option this semester - and continually today the lord just kept telling me to be thankful in this day, so that is what i have done. so, not really for you all, but for me, i am putting my thoughts down so that when i look back i can remember, vividly, the pictures that were painted for me this day...

i am thankful we live in a country where schools are abundant and where parents can be actively involved in their children's schooling.

i am thankful that riley is healthy and we can send him to school.

i am thankful that riley is going to be able to be a blessing to others - lord knows he is such a blessing to us...

i am thankful that riley is excited about learning and was able to try and read a book to me - even after just one day...

i am thankful that i can have some time to pour in to our little reed.

i am thankful that riley's teacher is a christian and that we have already discussed our faith - and we are complete strangers.

i am thankful that a friend told me about mom's in touch and i am going to be able to try to charter a group at our elementary school to pray for the school and the people therein.

i am thankful for a husband that has encouraged me to stay at home with our children.

i am thankful for our neighbor, mr. jim, who came and sat with reed while i took riley to school and walked him in on his first day.

i am thankful for my peeps that continually checked on me today - b/c you know what an emotional case i was!

i am thankful for a dear friend that emailed me to share that my mom had given her words of wisdom when her first child went off to school for the first time...

i am thankful that the lord has chosen us to raise two boys to love him.

i am thankful that god is spurring me on to make a fresh start - just as riley is having a new chapter open in his little world.

i am thankful for a god that has listened to me all day - calling on him for reassurance that we have done the right thing!

AMEN!!!

happyBIRTHDAYS!!!

2009-03-12T16:01:00.012-04:00

So, I'm a little late in posting that our little boys have both celebrated a birthday!!! Riley is now 5 and Reed just turned 2 (yes, Muri, that is 2 and not 3! hehe!)

Man, how time sure does fly!

Riley is still attending preschool at the little church down the way (which so reminds me of nursery school at the Baptist church where we grew up!). He still "enjoys" it most of the time - but would rather stay at home most days. We just started t-ball again for the spring and he is enjoying that so much! We can surely see a difference between this year and last year - the attention span is a little bit longer! :-) He LOVES being outside and going on adventures looking for bugs, ducks, frogs, really anything but snakes... we caught 2 the other day and he told me today that he didn't really like them that much! However... to know our Riley is to know that he LOVES Star Wars. We are always "pretending" to be one of the characters and we make up stories that go along with the chosen characters. Normally I am Queen Amadala, he is the "young" Anniken that needs to be trained, and Reed is either C3P0 or R2D2. However, he does also like to be an Ewok; thus what I was greeted with one night after coming home from the Clinic... priceless!!!

His birthday present from us this year was Star Wars sheets and man, you would have thought they were GOLD. He loves them! Our Rilester is the sweetest thing - he comes out with some of the sweetest comments to us, especially at bedtime. It is like he winds down and just tells you what's on his mind. We are so thankful for him and for his sweet spirit! Here is is surrounded by his birthday balloons!

And here is with his cake...

and here he is asleep, the day after birthday festivities - how peaceful!!!

Reed is in to all kinds of things now -- just the other day he asked what we were going to do today! He imitates anything you ask him to say - and is now listening SO MUCH better. So, on trips to stores he at least doesn't DART away when you are walking in. Phew, mom's, remember that first day when it clicked with the child to actually LISTEN!!! Now, don't get me wrong, it is not always, but I at least know that he CAN do it! HA! His personality is awesome - he is such a ham! He loves to flirt - loves to chase - loves to smile - and loves his blankets (yes, all THREE of them!) We are so blessed to have him in our family and I dare I go so far to say that Riley feels that way too. Yesterday Riley said, "Reed, I love you." And afterwards.... "Hey mom, I think that is the first time I have said that to Reed." Yep, takes a little longer with the guys!!! Here is a sweet picture of our 2 year old. He takes some good pictures on our steps!!! :-)

Eating his birthday cupcakes that were in the formation of a 2!

The traditional "jersey" onesie that the boys wear on their birthday!

And just a blast from the past picture... that seems so very long ago!!!

We got a FUN package from Idaho for the boy's birthdays and I wanted to share the pictures!!! The theme was artsy things - the package was AWESOME, including three different pain ts, markers, paper, a dry erase board, etc. It was so fun to open. Thank you girlies!!!

Check out the cards to Riley - soooo sweet!

We are soooo glad that the girlies are going to be a quick ONE flight away... long weekends HERE WE COME! Today Reed asked if we could go and see SaraKate and Riley chimed in and said, "Yeah, I miss them, let's just go!!!" Ready DD?

happyBIRTHDAYdd!

2009-02-18T06:51:00.006-05:00

as some of you know, my sister celebrated her birthday yesterday!!! it seems that as we get older, the hype around birthdays dwindles and it just feels like another day... at least the last few birthdays of mine have seemed to just pass by... no trips to mcdonalds for a birthday cake - no going to the skating rink and skating until your hair is wet. not that we WANT that type of celebration, but it's just not the same!

so, i'd like to fill you in on what it's like to have a sister that you dearly love! from the get go i can remember just being in awe of my sister. seriously. if you have ever seen pictures of us when we were young you would know why. she was the prettiest thing you have ever seen! her hair was this beautiful blonde color and mom would curl it sometimes (with sponge curlers that you had to sleep in!) and it would look just perfect. i can remember begging her over and over again if i could just come and sleep in her room on the FLOOR! (now, why would i want to do that when i had a perfectly good bed in my own bedroom???) she was just that cool to me - OH, remember the fun tea parties on the back porch on Meadowlawn? That was fun - was it ok to just wear underwear outside then?

i can remember sharing clothes - and in all we didn't have that many fights about them! i remember styling our hair (especially our BANGS) in that bathroom on Greenwood Drive every morning before school. i remember how we came up with the cool idea to lace a ribbon in the knee hole of one of our favorite pairs of jeans - and of course the ribbon would match our outfit!!! i remember going to numerous basketball games and never once (well, once, when i was sick with strep) did i NOT want to be there. she was good, i tell you, good!!! i remember saying goodbye when she went to college and being so sad because she wasn't going to be around anymore and i knew things would change...

well, little did she know that baby sister was going to follow her to college!!! ha! you know, now that i think about it, i bet that wasn't so cool - to have me follow her there. never ONCE did she show me or tell me that it was silly for me to do that. she welcomed me and even talked me in to rushing the same sorority. all this even while she was still on campus. now, how many sisters do you know, 2 years apart, that would welcome that??? well, she did...

and to this day, there is no one that i would rather have for a next door neighbor. she does love me (and now my kids) unconditionally. she is the sister that all girls would like to have. she loves largely and lately, she has become more "cool" as she strives to be the mom, wife, daughter, sister, friend that god wants her to be. we were raised in church and we do have a solid biblical background; however, there comes a time when you learn to truly listen to god. that ladies, is what it is all about.

so, sister of mine... i love you dearly... and i am so glad that you were born... in our family... first.

ps. that picture is not of us, but it's pretty cute, eh?

2009-01-24T21:55:00.007-05:00

Hey guys! I just had to post because two of the boys, Jason and Riley, are at at Monster Truck tractor show and I just think it's funny! Jason just sent me this picture!!!

Doesn't that just make you laugh??? I love it!

While I'm here - we had such a GREAT time in Idaho with DD and the girls. My boys were so SPOILED - over and over and over again. They just LOVE their cousins so very much :-). We took lots of pictures and I posted them on facebook - sure wish there was an easy way to import them here. Well, for all I know, there is an easy way, but I just don't know how to do it. If you do, please leave and note and tell me how!!!

Here are a few...

Reed enjoying stickers on his face!

Sara Kate doing the same! :-)

Sara Kate posing in one of the dresses DD and I used to wear - oh yea, we were stylin'!

Sara Kate and Reed longing to get outside in the snow!!!

Anna B and Riley cuddling in the comfy rocking chair!

The clan watching Tinkerbell, was it??? Oh, and check out that Leigha... for those of you that haven't seen her, she is knock out gorgeous - and her sweet presence is the best. Now, I'm sure she shows some attitude at times, but man, she is such a good buddy to have!!!

And we will end the pictures on a sweet one - we found them this way in the back living room. Riley was "reading" Sara Kate a book!!! Priceless!

I also wanted to ask you all to pray for a sweet family in our life group. The mother of one of our members has been through the treatment for ovarian cancer recently - had a clean bill of health and was trucking right along... until around Christmas. She was having trouble with her bowels and was admitted to the hospital. While there, they removed a large section of her colon and her omentum. Both came back from pathology as cancerous. The doctors have asked her to concentrate on just getting better from the surgery and that they would talk treatment plans after that. So, that is what they have been doing. Yesterday, however, she began getting very nauseous and she started throwing up. She is now at the ER and they are going to admit her because they could not determine what was causing the nauseousness. So, please lift up Lannie in your prayers - she is facing an uphill battle and is very discouraged and wondering if she will ever feel normal again. I KNOW that you all prayed for Ruth while she was in Austria, so I'm asking the same for Lannie. Thanks to you prayer warriors. It sure does make a difference!

2009-01-07T19:19:00.002-05:00

Hello all! As most of you know we are in IDAHO! :-) We are having a good time - and we do have some nice snow! We haven't played much in it because the wind is so cold! I promised to post some video of Reed and Sara Kate because their interactions are so sweet. So... here is a clip!

Well, as hard as I tried, I could not get the video to work... so here are a few pictures!

hellooooo!

2008-12-07T04:20:00.007-05:00

hello all! it has been quite a bit since i posted last!!! i've been busy reading my sister's blog though - if you haven't read it... do! it's so good! she has been listing all the things that she and her family are thankful for - beginning with the letter A and going through the alphabet! pretty stinkin cool! Click to the left over there and sit down for a spell to read!!!

we have been doing well. jason is still working on that job in sacramento - man, it's a doozie. that's all i want to say about that. riley is enjoying school - his favorite part of the day is playing outside. what else??? :-) reed is growing like a weed and soooo trying to put a complete sentence together. he talks and talks and talks and looks at you like you should understand what he is saying. if i don't understand, i look at riley and he seems to always have the correct interpretation. can someone explain that to me??? :-) priceless!!!

wanted to share a few pictures... the first is a sweet, sweet picture that we took of the boys walking down to the creek. we are longing for a warm enough day to go on an adventure!!!

uncle steve - do you recognize that jersey? it's one you bought for riley when he was reed's age! precious!

this other picture is of riley's FIRST drawing of a stick person. he is just now ENJOYING to sit down and color/write/draw. before he just wanted to cut, cut, cut!!! this was a drawing of his cousin, anna brooke. sorry anna b, you never got it b/c he colored it with a very dark sharpee and you couldn't see the drawing anymore :-(. i was so sad!

that's about it from here. we had a good thanksgiving and we have so very much to be thankful for. i don't know about you all, but we are being bombarded in every direction about how americans (most of us) are so focused on material things. is there a reason that i have about 20 pairs of shoes in my closet? why do the boys have so many toys that we just don't know where to put them all? it's a bit ridiculous, so, we're going to be re-evaluating the way we do things - even a small change would make my heart feel so much better. i pray that god is tugging on your heart - there are so many out there that need a little bit of jesus and perhaps if we aren't trapped by our "things" we could be a better voice...

love you guys!

many[many]thanks!

2008-11-13T14:12:00.011-05:00

Our sweet friend Ruth made it safely back from Austria and had such a marvelous, marvelous time. Thank you so much for remembering her and praying for her. The stories that she has had a chance to tell have been so, so sweet and have made me think a lot about what God has been talking to me and our family about... so, I thought I would share two of her favorite stories. Ruth, please correct me if I misrepresent anything!!!

Story [#1] - They had a lot of "share" time on the trip - as there were people from all over the world there at Haus Edelweiss. One lady told them of a time last year at the school where she walked passed a room where a man was singing a hymn as loud as he could. I don't think it was odd that he was singing as they were about to being a worship time, but that he was all alone and singing at the top of his lungs, for awhile, did make the lady a little curious, and perhaps a little embarrassed for him. UNTIL, later that day she had the chance to talk to him and he explained that it was the FIRST time in his entire life that he could actually sing out loud to his Maker because in his country he would be prosecuted for doing so. MAN!!! Do we have it easy here or what? That just give me chills and HOW SWEET to hear a man singing directly to God - I wish I could have heard that. Don't you know God was saying - a joyful noise - THAT is what I'm talking about!!!

Story [#2] - Two foreign ladies (I cannot for the life of me remember what country they were from but I do know that Christianity was FAR from taught there) were on a very long train ride (I think they were traveling a couple countries away) and they happen to pick up a Bible and started to read it. They read and read and read and felt convicted that this Jesus was the real thing. They talked about it and realized that they knew NO ONE that was a Christ follower and therefore didn't know of anyone to talk to about "this Jesus". So, they decided to pray that God would provide that for them in their destination city. A few days passed and God spoke to one of the ladies in a dream and mentioned a street name and a number... Sure enough, they went there and guess what? It was a Christian church at that address. HOWEVER, the even cooler part was that this church, because of prosecution, CHANGED THEIR ADDRESS EVERY DAY!!! How cool is our God???

To be honest, I have never felt like I was called for Mission work - never felt led to go to a third world country. However, in order to be able to have a realistic view of how "good" we have it here - and to be able to hear worship songs sung in another's native tongue - and to hear how God is moving mightily in the places where his Name is never spoken - and to be able to teach my children about it - it just may need to happen at some point. I sometimes forget the BIGNESS of God - He is speaking to people in EVERY tribe and in EVERY tongue - not just to the people within my circle of influence. I'm so grateful for that...

austria

2008-10-28T22:06:00.002-04:00

Hello all! Just wanted to ask you for your prayers for our sweet friend, Ruth. She is currently on a mission trip in Austria. She has made it safely there and is on a team that is helping educate ministers that are coming from very far distances to have this opportunity. Just thought more praying for a successful trip for all involved would be great! They will be there until November 9th. Thank you!

aboutTHEboys...

2008-10-21T20:54:00.012-04:00

i'll start with something you think CAN'T be true!!!

check this picture out... jason had to leave unexpectedly for CA early this morning and he left us a note that said...
"the glass finally fell out, be sure to show riles". curious??? well, look!!!

yes, that is a piece of glass that came out of my husband's arm. he's been concerned about the place for a few weeks now, well, really it was just bugging him b/c he knew after a few days what was going on. you see, 20 (and that is NO exaggeration) years ago he was in a wreck with three other people and this was a piece of glass that is just NOW making it's way out of his body. have you ever heard of such a thing??? that thing was BIG too!!!

today has been one of those days that i really sat back and took a deep, deep breath. the boys and i went to the park - just the three of us - for more than 2 hours. it probably wasn't as exciting for them b/c there weren't any kids there, but it was so something that i needed. i took time to sit and listen to them, enjoy chasing them, talk to them about the sky and the trees, and the wind and why it had to be sooo cold (it wasn't really that cold). but it's rare that we are totally alone at the park - and it was kind of nice!

so, on that note - i wanted to share some pictures of those kiddos!

this one was reed climbing up the stairs making some weird, weird faces!!! here is one of the cute ones!

this one is riley at the pumpkin patch a few weeks ago. he LOVES going there! doesn't he look so big???

and to top it all off - i found my new fall/winter shoes that you can buy here.

I think they are so, so cute, so if you don't - well, don't burst my bubble at least for a week! ps. dd, check out the name of them! :-)

i sure hope you all are enjoying this fall weather. i so enjoy it!!!
ps. yes, that is a christmas song playing as the #1. i heard it the other day on the christian radio station and i've been thinking about it ever since. it's powerful!

HEY!

2008-10-08T15:16:00.008-04:00

Ok girls... have a few things for you right away...

1. does the music on the blog annoy you?
2. are you frustrated at the election comments, the non truths, the confusion? man, oh man!
3. you that have boys... is it natural to want to play with GUNS all the time??? FOR THE LOVE!
4. do you still love to get snail mail?

this is the reason i ask this question... man, we have had a GREAT time looking at this box OVER and OVER again. thank you DD and girls for such a fun box!!!

i also wanted to tell you (Mary Beth and DeeDee specifically) about my weekend. To make a long story short, Mary Beth and DeeDee introduced me to this blog...

(OK, for some reason I can't see the link... so if that's the case for you then go to the links on the right and it's Angie Smith's Blog.)

If you have not had the chance to read it, please do. It will take you awhile to get caught up, but this woman is amazing and even more so because she has a story to tell that is focused on giving God the glory - no matter what the situation. You see, this woman explained to 250+ ladies we need to realize that God is able to calm the storm (Matt 8:23 -27) regardless of if He does. We need to trust Him more than we want to be saved from the storm that we have going on in our lives right now. And girls, the storm that she is referring to for her life is no drizzle. It is a harsh storm of losing a sweet child shortly after welcoming her in to this world. She told of her ups and downs and her conversations with God in order to try and "figure" this out... to come to the realization that the silence has brought her to His voice. Isn't that what we all want - to be able to talk to Him about all things, to remember to call out to Him first, to not have the need to discuss it with anyone else. Just me and God figuring this thing out. I am so not there...

We also had the priviledge of listening to two other phenominal ladies speak. One who was in the care of Hospice and is now traveling to mission trips to spread the gospel!!! I don't know of anyone else that has this kind of testimony! The other, a woman who has trusted God to take her on a journey with Him that she had no plans of going on. On Saturday the theme seemed to be CHOSE JOY - it is a choice you know. And chose joy before you go through ANY more trials - that way, the choice is already made - you just have to keep to it (so much easier said that done, eh???). Also, we focused on the word "but" in scripture... There are so many times where there was something icky going on and it is followed by... BUT GOD. Man, does that sound familiar to you Muri? I think you know firsthand what that means! So, ladies - whatever is going on in your world right now - such as...

man, my hormones are getting the best of me and i can't seem to hold it all together, but God...
* is faithful
* is my strength
* is all knowing
* can give me peace
* can calm my mind
* is ever present
* is the God who can heal
* knows the BIG picture
* (DD - fill in my blanks here b/c I don't know if I will get it right...) can rescue me IN the storm, can rescue me FROM the storm, or can rescue me THROUGH the storm. and whichever way he choses is the way that is ordained by HIM!

the list could go on and on and on... thank you mary beth and DD for encouraging me to get there - it was such a great weekend!!!

okay, going to get back to living now :-). hehe! i so appreciate your comments and OH YEA - i guess i need to check out the calorie content on the candy corn b/c i am LOVING the apple flavored ones that a friend found at wal-mart. have you all tasted them??? man, oh, man!!!

one last thing...
questions i am currently getting from my son as i type...
* mom, were you and daddy kids or grown ups before i was born? ha!
* mom, before i was born, what did you call daddy???
my response - well, either "j" or "honey".
riley's response: mom, but you eat honey - you can't eat daddy.

priceless!

have a great day all!

fall is in the air! :-)

2008-09-24T16:22:00.005-04:00

hello all!

we are doing well - enjoying this great great weather we have been having! man, no wonder this is our family's favorite time of the year! how about coming over for s'mores??

ok, i have a challenge for you all! i'm going to post a video of reed - he's trying so hard to get sentences together and he just talks blabber all the time - LOVE IT! so, here he is asking for a specific show to be played on the TV. it makes me laugh every time i watch it!

let me know your guesses!

our next door neighbors have a son that is in his 20's now so they are always finding some fun things to give to riley that their son played with when he was riley's age. this is the giftie we got this week - some GIJoe figurines! can you tell riley loved them???

man, those guys are READY! :-)

jason is still working on the usps job in CA - travels there next week as a matter of fact. he has been faced with many challenges, so keep him in your prayers! riley is loving "nursery school" as they call it. he is in a class with all new people and is coming home talking a lot more about what they are learning. reed is doing well too- we go for his tube checkup tomorrow, so we will see if those suckers have stayed in place and are doing their job!

i haven't asked any questions in a long time... so guess what? you ready for some???
1. what is your favorite scent of a candle?
2. what is your favorite crayola color?
3. do you mind if someone burps in front of you?
4. do you have a "shoes off" policy at you house?
5. do you know of any stomach exercises that can flatten the abs FAST? :-)
6. have you ever laughed so hard that you wet your pants? if so, when?
7. what is your favorite winter shoe?
8. candy corn or jelly beans??? (yes, shannon, that's for you!)

ok, i'm awaiting your answers!!!
love you all!!!

Hello

2008-09-06T16:22:00.008-04:00

Hello all and Happy Birthday to Mr. Jason! I can't believe we are just 30 this year - HA!!! :-)
We have had a great day so far and are about to go to church but wanted to post a few pictures and get everyone up to date!

Reed did well with the tubes in his ears. He's still not really comfortable and he's a little cranky, but I think that is expected! Thank you all so much for your prayers... DD - thank you SO much for sending the balloons and the bear from the girlies. What a sweet, sweet thing to do - and they have resulted in hours of playtime and I am not exaggerating! Here is the picture I promised!

See how cute the bear is???

Also, Riley has started fall ball and here is in his uniform - and the next picture is him playing pitcher!!! WOW! He did great and payed attention. woo hooo!!!!

As many of you know, we have also had a lot of "pets" at the Uhls household...
here is a cute clip of our sweet friend, Lauren Clay, enjoying our little froggie!

And last but not least... the picture of my "batmen" - the boys have these batman pj's that have a batman symbol on the front and a black cape on the back. It was only fair that we make a similar pair for daddy! So, that was one of his birthday presents :-). The boys, well, Riley, was so excited to give it to him. I wish you could see them all in person with their pjs on - it's priceless!!!

Hope you all are doing well!

helloAGAIN! :-)

2008-07-19T10:35:00.013-04:00

well hello all! i am getting in MAJOR trouble for not posting, so here we go! lots has been going on, but i'm going to start with the end of the trip pictures from when the barfields were here. there are too many too precious not to share!

the first is a picture of the two babies gazing in to the above ground pool that mom and dad have on their back porch :-). such sweet bottoms!

i think mom caught this picture and i just LOVE it! their faces are just priceless!

ok, and here we go with 4th of july pictures. oh, we did have a good time didn't we girlies??? here is jason with his entourage of fireworks... wow there were a lot!!!

this is the scene before the fireworks began...

and here are all the bigger ones with the sparklers...

and this one is going to take your breath away... kudos to dd for such a wonderful shot! muri, don't you LOVE it???

while they were here, leigha celebrated her spiritual birthday and we had a little celebration for her!!!

and just a sweet picture of the two "littles" as anna b, leigha, and i called them...

we also got to visit with a favorite childhood pal of jason's - tom gregory, and his family - while we were in BG. what a sweet, sweet family they are and how fun to see tom in the father role. here is a pic of us all!

ok, and, if any of you are wondering about the song selection, well, it became the theme song for the summer. we all watched the movie RV and there is this funny scene where the mom is singing this song... it just stuck and now even reed and sarakate know the words and the rhythm. i just love it! and yes, once you hear it, you will be singing it over and over and over in your mind. so, please, no mean comments about it b/c it is dear to our hearts :-).

we truly did have the best summer ever - everyone enjoyed each other and there were such tears when we had to take them to the airport. i am so thankful to steve for letting us have them for so long, so thankful that dd was willing to fly back across country with four children, alone, and so thankful that we are a family that totally enjoys each others company. thank you dd for letting us love on our girls, and yes, spoil them too. it means sooooo much!

theCLAN

2008-07-06T23:59:00.005-04:00

go portrait innovations for tackling our crew :-).

bondingWITHbarfields :-)

2008-06-29T22:37:00.019-04:00

Hello all! Some of you have requested a little bit of an update, so here goes! It's not going to be a short one :-).

We have been having a great time with DD and the girlies. I do seriously think that Riley thinks he now has some sisters!!! Here are a few pictures of what went on while DD, Sara Kate, and Anna B were here with us in Lexington. Reed loves having a little one around to chase and hit - yes, he's quite the agressive one! They are too cute together though!!!

This is a picture of the awesome train that Anna B built. However, how are you to keep that train in one piece with two kids under two in the house? UMMM, we had to barricade the room, serioulsy. It lasted for about an hour and then it was demolished. She did such a great job - it's not that easy to do!

We have also had a few pets this go around... Our neighbor brought over a land turtle that their dogs found and he is officialy named Turtlee (very original, I know). This turtle is a trooper! Reed has decided that it's fun to pick him up and scoot him around the floor like he's a car. Poor thing! He has even made the trip to BG and now back to LEX for the release that will occur in the morning. I bet he'll be so glad to be back to nature! OH, and the other turtle is a turtle jason spotted while mowing... it's a soft shelled turtle like we found last year and blogged about :-).

We have had a great amount of dressing up... check out this cute picture!

and this one!!!

Even the little ones had to get in on the dress up action!

Anna B has also been doing a lot of drawing and here is what I found one night - it's a portrait of Jason and me. So cute!!!

okay, now the next few pictures are not for the tender stomach... we had an odd day at the creek yesterday...
1. riley caught a fish (many of you know the depth of the creek, so this was a feat in itself!)
2. they found a crazy looking spider (not poisonous!)
3. they found a squirrel skull
4. they found a leech (not the blood sucking kind though)

Phew, how is that for a day??? We are all doing well and are so thankful that we are getting to spend this much time with the barfield clan. Hope you all are doing well!!! OH, and for some more pictures, check out the link to muri's blog :-). she got some good ones!!!

MURI'S BLOG/

slip...and...slide...

2008-06-04T11:34:00.004-04:00

ok, well, we have had such fun!!! leigha and mckenna have been with us since saturday and we have enjoyed every minute of their visit here in lexington.

here is a video to show you what we've been up to :-). yes, that is a red neck slip and slide. we had a few scratches, but other than that no big injuries - woo hoo!!!

and here are some more pictures :-). here are the babies - so, so cute!

this is a new game that leigha is LOVING - guitar hero. together we are really good!

AND - how about this - isn't this a precious picture? i had to bribe her to leave them in. seriously!!!

FUNtimes!!!

2008-05-30T09:27:00.014-04:00

Hey all! Just wanted to post some pictures of the happenings around here :-). DD, Steve, and the girls got in last week and we are enjoying their visit so, so much. Right now the 'rents are in Hawaii and McKenna is here in LEX with me and the boys. Nanny and Papa have the big girls and Sara Kate. We're joining up again tonight! Riley and McKenna have had some fun play times!!! Here are some pictures for you! This is the first night here - they wanted to wear their matching pjs. So cute!

This is a picture of them having a picnic. We've had one every day for lunch - too funny! McKenna found this Hawaiian shirt in Riley's closet (he has two of different colors) and she has picked to wear one or the other each day. I wonder why??? :-) Also, Riley has been picking her pants - so one day he picked camo pants for her to wear. That was hilarious!!! :-)

And here we have the breakfast of champions this morning!!!

And last but not least is their quick nap yesterday before the tball game. They asked to watch a show after playing sooooo hard in the blow up slide/pool. They were exhausted!!!

Ok, that's it from here. DD leave a comment if you're able to view. We LOVE YOU!

MOVESmovesMOVES

2008-05-13T16:54:00.004-04:00

Per request of Leigha - I'm updating the blog :-).
Here are a few videos for you.. the first one - please pardon the milk on the face of reed - he had just taken a HUGE gulp!

and this one is one of riley stealing the show - what a dancer!!! i laugh out loud each time i watch it - i have NO IDEA where he got those moves!!! :-)

Thursday is Riley's last full day of preschool and to be honest he's fine with it. I almost had to beg him to go today. I think he's ready to just hang in his pjs in the morning. He has done so well and made some good, good pals AND he doesn't care to write his name now. THAT's HUGE!

We also have a huge thing to report - Reed has been off of all medicines for about a month now - and he is doing so well!!! Well, except for the ear infections (yes, both ears) that we can't seem to get rid of. We're praying this round of antibiotics works.

Jason is getting ready for the job in CA to begin full force. So far he is enjoying the assignment and learning tons!!! He's off on his annual golf trip tomorrow and we'll see him next with the tannest feet you'll ever see! Yes, he has golfing sandals. And we are all excited about the Barfields coming THIS MONTH!!! I cannot wait to hug them all!!! Let me know how you all are doing!

school*program!

2008-04-29T10:50:00.009-04:00

Hello all! Wanted to share with you all Riley's participation in his school program. So sorry for the wobblyness of the videoing! :-) Hope you don't get nauseous watching! We were so very proud of him b/c he wasn't nervous or anything - there were more than 200 people there! Oh, Riley is on the front row in the orange shirt - to his right is his good bud Mason and to his left is his other bud Ben.

Here is a picture of what the boys are loving to do since the weather is a bit warmer now! They loved that sand box - Muri, thanks!!!

And a sweet, sweet picture of Riley's back in the dugout - precious!

That's it for now! Hope you all are doing well :-).

Tball

2008-04-14T16:51:00.002-04:00

CHECK IT OUT!!! That is Riley batting - so cute! I got so excited I forgot to video him running to first... so I pan to first at the end and you can see that he makes it safely :-). I'll post more later, just wanted to get this up for aunt dd!!!

OH, AND I DON'T KNOW WHO THAT PERSON IS THAT POSTED A COMMENT FROM KIJAR... SO DON'T CLICK ON IT IF YOU SEE ANOTHER ONE!

veryFUNstuff

2008-04-09T23:53:00.007-04:00

ok, so, i had this daunting responsibility hanging over me - the taxes for my little business. i've been sooooo dreading it - i'm happy to report that they are finished - and while i should be getting in bed, i'm going to stay up and celebrate a bit longer!

i've found this fun business that i just ordered from - i was invited to a party and could not attend, but thought the concept was too cool. just browse that website - FUN! AND the application was as easy as they claim it was - well, my project we pretty small, but still... so, what i purchased went above each of the boys rooms - i think they turned out great!!!

and THIS riley and i cannot get enough of!!!

charlie!!!

and last, but not least, is another video for you... i am so sorry that it is a sideways video - but it was too precious not to share! since the purchase of the wii we have hooked it up to the internet and are enjoying a lot of the youtube videos/music on the big screen. one of the boys favorite things to do is to put music videos on there and dance. so, i was trying to get reed dancing and i did, a little, but what was more precious is what he did after he danced. what a memory!!!

that's all for now - for those of you all that don't know, the hubs is now on a job assignment in sacramento, california. he will be traveling quite a bit. however, it is on the western part of the US where we do have some pretty special family!!! woo hoo!

sweetthoughts

2008-03-30T14:35:00.009-04:00

i thought i would take this opportunity to blog some things that we're enjoying about the boys right now :-).

riles:
1. for the first time ever last week he asked jason to scratch his back. usually when we try to do that he runs away. he just leaned over to him in the middle of dinner and said, "hey dad, will you scratch my back?" LOVE IT!
2. we ask him daily... riley, if you had one wolf and then another one came along, what would you have? he replies with... two wolfeseses. we corrected him to say it right, but then said, nay, we like it better this way!!!
3. lately when i say something like - oh, riles, we don't want to do that b/c it might break, he replies with, "well that's okay with me." as if, oh, let's just do it anyway!!!
4. he is loving to dress up like jason in shorts and an all white t-shirt. does that adoration of the daddy ever go away? i sure hope not!
5. he is so excited about summer and keeps asking if we can get the pool out yet - HELLO! it's the cheap $5 hard plastic one from wal-mart. what's so fun about that???
6. he and his daddy have been going on "adventures" around the creek. they just set off walking and come back about 45 mintues later with so many stories to tell. so sweet!
7. he LOVES the waffles from WM and calls them "the ones like aunt DD had, i want those!"
8. he is really getting in to books and "reading" them to me. he'll have quiet time and sometimes just "read" books the whole time!!!
9. just today i was reading him a book and he was repeating everything i was saying except much, much, much louder... i was getting a bit annoyed b/c i couldn't read the book smoothly, then he said i wasn't reading it right b/c of the exclamation point after every word. well, he was right!!!! when you tell them something once, they remember... how does that happen and then when you say, don't throw anything but a ball in the house he somehow "forgets?" :-)
10. he's always asking "e-i-l-l-e-i, what does that spell?" i think b/c we are spelling in front of him more b/c you know those little ears are always listening!!!
11. this one LOVES wearing hats - just loves it. if you know any proven articles relating to wearing hats and early baldness, please pass them on...
12. he's a GREAT big brother!!! he plays so well with reed and is, most of the time, cautious... yes, we have had our share of him pushing reed down or sitting on him. but overall, he's so sweet to reed and they are beginning to chase each other around the house and play ball!!!

reed:
1. he LOVES the ducks and gets so very excited when he sees them! he yells duck, duck, duck, and points and makes sure that you see it too! so fun!
2. outside, at first, was a challenge with this little one... he LOVES eating sticks and dirt... so, i saw that old plastic car that we had for riles that has the long handle on it, well, we got that out and buckle him in and we can go anywhere!!! he loves it outside as much as his brother does!
3. he yells for riley like "iley" - "iley" - sooooo cute!
4. this one knows no danger - he is a climber and he tries to fall down the stairs for fun. what in the world??? he falls about a million times a day - oh and he wants to walk the first thing in the morning and he looks like he's drunk!!! it's the funniest thing!!!
5. when we change his diaper, he always crosses one leg over the other leg - and it's always the right let over the left... always! (see below)
6. he LOVES mandarin oranges
7. he's signing more, light, please, and all done.
8. great sleeper like his brother - still taking two naps a day...
9. gave the first kiss on demand today sitting in red robin - i just leaned over and said, can i have a kiss and he leaned back and gave me a serious smooth. sweetness.
10. he's learned what an elephant says - raises his arm and makes an elephant noise - AND he loves snakes and makes the ssssssssss sound!
11. reedles also loves books - he'll now go pick out a book and "back up" to you to sit on your lap so you can read it to him. precious. he really likes books with animals in them - our friends nico and lauen just gave him some maisey lift the flap books and they are now his favorite.
12. he still sucks two of his fingers... it's always the ring and middle finger. no passy for this one... OH, and some of you have asked about his belly. we are slowly weaning him off the compounded medicine and the prevacid. i can't remember the last time he's had an episode... he eats just about anything and is very messy at it... see above...- well, except black beans... doesn't like them yet, but even though i don't care for them, i'll still try to get him to try them :-). thank you so much for your continued prayer and concern. he's doing so, so good!

this is just a sweet picture i wanted to share - jason and riley were playing outside and riley came out with... anna brooke's name has 10 letters - just out of the blue. so, he asked jason to write her name. yes, riles loves his cousins!!!

on another note... this is a picture of sgt. timothy mcguire. he's the brother of our dear friend ruth. timothy is now in afghanistan as a paratrooper and he's going to be doing some pretty serious stuff. please keep him in your prayers when you lift up the military. he's the youngest of the family and they all are missing him so very much...

reedAwalking!

2008-03-27T07:18:00.001-04:00

finally :-)

soSTINKINtired

2008-03-26T08:33:00.003-04:00

just for you uhls

happyEASTER

2008-03-22T12:22:00.009-04:00

hello all!
it has been awhile since a posting, so i'll catch you up on the happenings here...
reed so enjoyed his birthday cake - he wasn't timid at all about devouring it - check it out!!!

riley has started t-ball and so far he loves it!!! his daddy is just trilled :-). he does GREAT hitting the ball, we just need to work on the catching part! here he is in his practice garb... it's just the cutest thing - jason went out and bought him a bag to carry to practice - in the bag are socks, bat(s) - yes, that is plural, glove(s) - yes, that is plural as well - snacks (riley put them in there), batting helmet, and of course a change of shoes after the practice/game is over. jason is priceless!!! OH, and there is a link to his schedule on the right hand side... check it out - we'd love for you to show up!

some of his favorite outfit combinations :-).

and yesterday was soooooo beautiful, we were outside most of the day! reed and i actually got a little red in the face :-). this is a picture of his new neighbor friend anna. she is just precious and riley enjoys playing with her so much!

and i almost forgot - our annual st. patricks day cookie baking :-). thank you for keeping that tradition going ruth!

that is all for now. we are getting ready to have some quiet time before our easter service tonight at church.

may God bless you this easter!!!!

happyFIRSTreed!

2008-03-07T09:52:00.005-05:00

we cannot believe it's been a year! our sweet reed is one today - well, at 12:47 pm he will be!!!

just like for riley's first birthday, we decorated the house with the number one - here are some pictures from this morning. hope you all are all well!

dd - recognize those pjs???

yes, he loved tearing the one's off of the cabinets - now they are shreds on the kitchen floor! :-)

that's our morning so far! we're waiting to see if we are going to get the 6 inches of snow that they are forecasting! FUN!!!

happybirthdayleigha!

2008-02-26T19:44:00.008-05:00

in honor of LEIGHA'S 12th birthday...
riley is sporting a pair of chuck taylors, which he loves because his cuz leigha has a pair!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEIGHA! I want to see pictures of you on the blog - so, no pressure DD but we're hurting for some new pics!!!

and here is reeduhls - riley picked out this outfit for him - it's a st. patrick's day shirt with a onsie underneath. too cute! check out those fun socks :-).

wanted to leave you with a list of things that i'm enjoying right now!!!
diet pepsi max - DELICIOUS!
advil liquigels - if you haven't tried these, you MUST!
very good knife - for those of you who cut yourself often, please stay away (...um, shannon)
tupperware tumblers - what jason and i reach for every time we open the cabinet to get a glass to drink!
mango huggies wipes - the smell of these wipes makes me think of summer!
song HE IS... - and the last - it takes awhile, 7 minutes, but it is one of my favorites songs... listen when you have time. it's powerful...

That's it for now! Oh, and we did not make the Valentine's Day Card - that was a freebie from our recent trip to The Picture People. FUN!

happyVALENTINESday

2008-02-14T18:46:00.001-05:00

happy4THbirthdayRILES!!!

2008-02-10T16:54:00.000-05:00

despite the flu trying to keep us down, we celebrated riley's 4th birthday and we had a great day on saturday! (ps. it was nick and caroline's birthday too - we hope you all had a great day too!) here are some sweet pictures - YES, we did stay in our jams for most of the day... riley blowing out his candle!!! this was the ronald mcdonald birthday cake that we were planning to have at his birthday party today, that we had to cancel :-(. he didn't seem to upset about it though - that boy is the sweetest thing! here is riley with his birthday gift from us... a leap pad for his age. he has played with that thing so much already - especially the dinosaur booklet. he knows more than i do already about dinosaurs! here is our tradition - balloons on riley's chair for the day (well, they are still there to be honest...) here is a picture of reed enjoying chocolate chip pancakes - his appetite has not decreased at all during all of this flu-ness. thank the lord!!! Still working on getting a new video of Reed here is one from the past............

HOWareYOU?

2008-01-22T23:00:00.000-05:00

So, here are some RANDOM pictures, just because I feel like blogging. The UK game is on, and to tell you the truth, I'm not really interested, but how fun that they are going to WIN!!! Now, the Austrailian Open is on - in between matches right now - looks like the Williams sisters are out before the semis - a bit suprising! I would love to watch the Federer vs. Blake match tonight, but oh, my, I would be no count tomorrow if I did so!

Here is Riley in a Buzz Lightyear costume that his pal let him borrow. It makes us laugh so hard!!! However, what else is new?

This is the sweet look that Reed is giving you before he attacks your face - man, that young one is a strong one!!!

A picture of us on Saturday - being lazy on the couch - we've come a long way with that little Reed. In previous months he would never have taken a bottle with all of us around... PTL!

Ok, as promised... Here are the questions :-).

1. If you could rename yourself, what would your new name be?
2. Lip gloss or Lipstick?
3. Will you be tuning in to the season premiere of LOST on the 31st?
4. Houseshoes, slippers, flip flops? What do you wear on your feet around the house?
5. Do you enjoy the beach or being by the pool more?
6. What bugs you more in the kitchen - a dirty sink or a dirty floor?
7. Do you like those candy hearts with the message on them? I saw one that said "email me" - too funny!
8. Do you think flowers are a good Valentine's Day gift to you?
9. Are you addicted to the Food Network?
10. Coffee - hot, cold, latte - or not at all?

Let us have it!!! :-) Love to you all!

NEWpicturesCHUBBYreed!

2008-01-11T16:00:00.000-05:00

I had so many sweet pictures that I wanted to share, so while both boys were asleep, I'm going to put them out here for ya!

First of all, before Christmas, Lauren Clay had us over to her Grandmother's house to make some Christmas cookies (very last minute, just like Shannon and me) and they had the best time. The cookies were delicious and the aprons were so, so adorable!

This is of New Years Eve - it was a very fun family night. I was cracking up b/c Lauren Clay was all snuggled up to Jason. Too precious! Oh, and that's Ty in the background. The new sweet addition to the Sampson family!

Our first snow!!! This was a week ago, or so! We had a good time out in it for ... 5 minutes. It was about 10 degrees. Too cold for some fun playing, that's for sure! Check out Rudolph!

These pictures are from our after-Christmas visit with the Potts fam. We had such a great time and Riley has asked for them to come back. They just played for hours!!! Oh, and the picture of Reed I snagged from Muri's blog b/c I just loved his chunky cheeks in that picture!

This picture was from yesterday - I was folding clothes and the boys were playing in the bathroom... didn't Riley give Reed a great hairdo? Reed didn't care one bit :-).

And this is from right now... Riley asked if we could have some quiet time and not take a nap today... so, I pulled out my prayer journal and he wanted to watch Everyone's Hero. This is him 5 minutes after... so, so sweet!

Hope you all are doing well! Next post there will be some questions... so be ready!
Love to all!

HAPPYnewYEAR

2007-12-31T08:07:00.001-05:00

So very sorry it has been so long since I've posted. It's been a hectic time around our household, but still no excuse for letting this get so very behind!!! First of all, Reed is doing so, so well. He is still on the Bethanechol three times a day and Prevacid two times a day. The gastro docs said that we could decrease the Prevacid when we saw that his spit up has gotten much better. Since Christmas, we have noticed a significant improvement in Reed. He isn't spitting up much at all and there is NO projectileness (I know, that's not a word). We are so thankful for where we have come throughout all of this. Thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers!

Riley is doing great - he had such a good time over the Christmas holiday. We've been trying to explain to him the true meaning of Christmas, and I think he does get it, at least somewhat. :-) I think it would be great for kids in America to see children in other countries just to be able to put some perspective on what a "rich" society we live in. It's boggles my mind to think about how much money was spent on Christmas gifs in our neighborhood alone. We truly are a wealthy country.

Jason has been bidding on many jobs - keeping that mind sharp - running numbers over and over again. Phew, just makes my mind spin thinking about it. Giggles and Co. is doing well too - Christmas was a truly busy time!

Ok, now for the picture sharing :-).

One of the presents Riles got in his stocking from us was a chef's hat b/c he has always loved being in the kitchen - mainly turning the mixer on and off :-). So, after watching Ratatouille, we're calling him Little Chef. He had to cook something last night for us - doesn't it look delicious???

This is Reed being funny - he really thought this bowl was a hat - he was trying so hard to keep it up on his head. We were laughing so hard!

The boys on Christmas morning, well, the Christmas morning in Lexington (which was a few days after Christmas!)

Reed enjoying his first candy cane!

I don't know if you can see it or not, but he's already pushing cars around and making the vrmmm noise!!!

One of my favorite pictures - all three of the boys!

I hope you all have had a good ending to 2007 and pray that 2008 brings you many blessings. We have so much to be thankful for! Let us know how you are doing... and Kristina, thanks for checking in - your email kicked me in the tail to get on here and do some more blogging :-). Thank you!

THANKSgiving...

2007-11-20T21:57:00.000-05:00

Wow, we have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving!!! A healthy Reed, a healthy Papa, wonderful recent memories of DD and her sweet girlies, and friends and family that we feel so blessed to have!!!

Here's what has been going on with us...
Reed had his follow up appointment with the gastro docs today and they were so glad of his growth! In one month he has grown in length and in weight - more than they had expected! YEAH! He is now crawling and pulling up on anything and everything. I think seeing Sara Kate doing all that fun stuff made him think he could do it too!!! No fun just sitting around being still! :-) We are so blessed that the doctor's were able to find the issue and that this medicine is working so very well...

Wanted to share with you a few more pictures... this picture is of Lauren Clay and Riley watching the fishies. They are both doing something funny with their mouths, but it's still a cute picture. I didn't take a picture of that cute Ty - what was I thinking??? Shannon and John are doing so great as parents, the second time around!

And this beautiful thing is the turkey that Riley made for his dad today. Had the great idea of using dryer sheets to make the feathers of the turkey - and if you are wondering what that colored blue mark is on the face of the turkey - well, it's food just in case the turkey gets hungry. Oh, the imagination of a 3 year old!

That's it from here. We pray you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving... Let us know what you are thankful for this season :-).

IDAHOfun!

2007-11-13T00:44:00.001-05:00

Ok, DD posted some pictures that I didn't have - check out her blog! We are so, so sad that our visit is almost over - we are heading back to KY tomorrow :-(.

The Barfield Family Blog

goodTIMES

2007-11-11T01:04:00.000-05:00

i wanted to start by posting a picture of reed and his newfound cheeks! idaho sure is agreeing with him!!! that ickiness on his face is sand - he tried to eat it! you'll understand as you continue reading!

we had an adventurous day so i'm going to post a lot of pictures! first, getting dressed this morning was funny because at one point sara kate, mckenna, and anna brooke had on a shirt of riley's. so cute! this one, some of you will recognize. muri, does it look familiar? i think it was nicks!

and how sweet is this - mckenna giving reed his bottle. so, so precious!

so, today we went to the sand dunes - which are awesome! we got such a work out trying to get up them! phew! it was also hard to keep sara kate and reed from EATING the sand. ICK!

riley running down the dunes...

walking on top of the dunes...

what a gorgeous view! check out sara kate's hand - yep, that's sand about to go in to the mouth! :-)

we then went to a corn maze that was, well, interesting!

we had a great time walking through the maze, all alone, and getting lost. we relied on jason stacking two bales of hay on top of each other to be able to see how to get out. i think we have rubbed off on him a bit... he was making us crack up!!!

riley fell asleep on the couch when we got home - i think the kids were worn out!!!

ok, that's all for now - we'd better hit the hay!
love to all :-).

PRICELESSconversation

2007-11-07T15:18:00.003-05:00

Jason goes in the bathroom and finds McKenna AND Riley in the bathroom...

Jason says, "Hey Riley, are you finished?"
Riley says, "Yep." Meanwhile he is getting off the potty. Riley then says, "We're just talking back here."
Jason says, "What are you talking about?"
Riley says, "We're just talking about boo-boos and stuff."
McKenna says, "Yeah, know why we're staying back here in the bathroom? Because just in case I need to go to the bathroom we're going to stay here so I can make it to the potty."

They've been sitting back there for hmmm, 15 minutes or so and they are just talking - seriously, about boo-boos. Such fun memories!

Ok, well they must have been all out of boo-boo talk, b/c this is how I found them when I was going back to evesdrop on their conversation!

SAFEandSOUND

2007-11-05T22:45:00.000-05:00

Hello all!

We made it safe and sound to Idaho and we have had such a good time visiting with DD and the girlies. We have had so many laughs - it is awesome :-). DD looks GREAT - the weather has been nice - and all are playing good together!

Wanted to share some cute pictures with you...

This is Anna B and Leigha having some fun with Riley - check out his outfit - it was a jersey of Anna B's that he had to wear to eat dinner at ON THE BORDER (yes, we have already been!).

Here are the two youngest in their little hats we put on them to go on a walk. Don't they look the cutest? Check out that Sara Kate - she's picked her favorite - JASON!!! She goes up to him and raises her hands - it is priceless. DD was trying to get it on camera today, but I don't know if she was successful. We'll try to get it - I'm sure we'll have plenty of opportunities for it!

Here is McKenna in her outfit she wore to school today - i just LOVE the hat! Riley didn't want to go with her today, so he helped Jason rake the leaves - they did a great job. McKenna ended up bringing home a craft for Riley to do - how sweet is that???

Well, that's it for now - we're heading for BED! Love to you all and we'll try to post more tomorrow - either on mine or on DD's. :-)

IDAHOhereWEcome!

2007-11-02T23:15:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to post some pictures before we board the plane for IDAHO! But before we do that - WELCOME to the world, John Tyler! If you haven't done it yet, click on the link to the side to Shannon's blog and check out their new arrival. I was so blessed to be able to be there for his birth on Thursday and got to check on him and Shannon before heading out of town again! We love you all! :-)

Here are just a few of Riley's daily costume changes - I don't think I've posted these before :-). The first one, if you can't tell, is Riley as Darth Vadar (did I even spell that right?). He and Jason came up with that costume and I laughed and laughed! The second one has been around for awhile, but this one is a new one with a mask that has red lights on it - hilarious!

This is Riley at his Halloween party at Little Elks school. Beside him was his new friend, Mason. We hear a lot of good stories about Mason!

After heading home to Portland and spending two days with Jason's family, we decided to not rush back home and spend some quality time with Jason's sisters family. They invited us to go Trunk or Treating in Franklin, KY - where we grew up. It was so, so fun and we saw so many people that we knew. I think we needed that - we were all feeling a bit worn down and tired from the week. Thank you for all your hugs Donaldson clan - we are so blessed to have you all in our lives!!! Here are two pictures that commemorated our event - one of Riley and his cousins, Austin (left) and Michael (right). The second picture is of Reed TOTALLY enjoying a lollipop. It was so, so cute to see him sucking on that dum-dum. He savored each lick, I do believe.

And these last two pictures sum up how we felt after the last few days!!!

Reed has been doing so good these last few days. What a JOY it will be to travel with him and not have to worry about changing clothes every hour. YEAH!!! We are so excited to be able to see DD and her girls. We have missed them so much and can't wait to have new memories with them :-)...

GOODnewsSADnews

2007-10-29T16:56:00.000-04:00

Jason's granddaddy, Pepa, passed away on Sunday late morning - Jason was so thankful to be able to spend some time visiting with him and the family before Sunday. It's been tough on Jason b/c he has so, so many childhood memories, very fond memories, of his Pepa. If there was a baseball game, he was there. They had such a special connection. There is no one that Pepa liked talking about more than Jason. Pepa will be sorely missed - we are so thankful, though, that he is no longer in pain and that he is now visiting with his Maker.

We will be traveling home tomorrow morning to be with Jason's family - please keep his family, especially Mema (Dorothy Pike) in your prayers. She has spent many years caring for Pepa, and she has done a stellar job, so the emptiness of not having him around will be so very tough.

While we felt compelled to go to TN to be with the family, we had Reed's appointment at UK this afternoon. We are so relieved and thankful that we now have some answers to why Reed has been vomiting!!!

We had a MUCH better experience this time at the hospital and the pysician that talked to us was so very kind - and took extra time to answer our questions, bless her heart! To make a long story short, Reed has a few issues that they feel need to be addressed and we can address them with medication - woo hoo! First of all, he does have acid reflux and so we have to keep him on the Prevacid. The technician told us that it wasn't a mild case either, so to be diligent with that. So, we will. They noticed that Reed's stomach empties in to his small intestines at an exceptionally slow rate - due to the fact that the pyloris is spasming and not allowing the empting to occur normally. This results in food/milk backing up in the stomach and coming back up... and they said that b/c this has been occuring over some time that his stomach was large (so, so sad!!!). This is treated by a compounded drug that they assured us is very safe - and takes anywhere from a week to a few weeks to make a drastic difference. It will cause the flap to open and close more... So, by allowing his stomach to empty properly, the backup will not occur, vomiting won't happen and his stomach will become regular size. They explained too that different formulas digest at a different rate, so perhaps the Nutramigen just digests faster in his stomach and that may be why we saw some relief when we changed formulas (I guess that would cause less back up in his little system too). We are going to get the prescription first thing in the morning and we'll go from there.

We are so thankful that we went through the testing and we know now that there was a functional problem that needs to be fixed :-). We know that TONS of prayer and we were possibly thinking Bob Evan's multigrain pancakes (he LOVES THEM) have helped Reed tremendously!!!

Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers through this emotional and trying season for us. We have never before experienced the calmness brought on by so many people lifting us up in prayer. We have been humbled, broken, and grateful - all at the same time.

My God is so big, so strong and so mighty, there's nothing my God can not do... (DD, what is the guy's name that taught you that song? I can't get it out of my head!!!)

Love Me Some Taters

2007-10-27T20:52:00.000-04:00

This is Mr. Reed enjoying some baked potatoe. Mel could not get the video to post from the Mac so I got it to work from my PC. We have had a couple of good days - thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers!

FALLisHERE!

2007-10-26T12:48:00.000-04:00

Well, it's offical - it now feels like fall here in Lexington. I am loving it!!! So, because of the colder weather, we had to get down all the clothes we had for Riley to go through them for Mr. Reed. In the meantime, pack up those clothes that were too small the Reedster... so, I found these overalls and I wanted to take a picture with Reed like I did for Riley - wow, they continue to look so, so different but still so, so sweet!

Wanted to give you all an update on Reed... the doctor called this afternoon and told me that all three biopsies came back normal - YEAH!!! That means that Reed doesn't have any crazy allergies that are causing the vomiting to occur, and it could mean that he doesn't have acid reflux at all. I need to have more clarity on that issue though, so I'll ask about it on Monday. We've started giving Reed all the table food and baby food he wants - in the hopes that he won't want as much milk. As long as I don't give him milk (or any liquid) I've found that the solid food stays down much better. Now, it still will come up some, but it's normal kind of spit up. I'm ALL FOR THAT! So, we go on Monday at 1:30 for them to do the upper GI and look for a malfunctioning pyloris. I'll keep you updated. Thank you so much for your prayers...

Jason headed to Portland, TN today because his grandfather, Pepa, is not doing too well. Pepa was such an influence in Jason's life when he was young - and really helped shape Jason in to who he is today. So, please, keep the whole Uhls family in your prayers as well. Pepa has fought long and hard and is very loved by so many!!!

Just one more picture for you all b/c I think it's the cutest - Ruth stopped by the other night to check in on us and ended up staying for "game night" with the Uhls'. Check out her expression - she was so scared the monkeys were going to fall off the tree!!! LOVE IT! Also, DD, check out the way Riley is sitting - he does it still!

We also got to hear Amy Grant this week at church. Joseph Beth Bookstores sponsored a book signing and we dropped by for a few minutes. Click here for a warming blast from the past... (you will have to click on the play arrow in the upper left hand corner).

Love to you all and for all of you sending encouraging words or stories through mom and dad and dd, thank you all so much!

ReedUPDATE

2007-10-22T21:01:00.000-04:00

Well, phew, it's over!

Our experience today was a little less than ideal, but we are very pleased to say that Reed did very well during the procedure and they saw nothing glaringly abnormal on the scope. The physician met with us after it was said and done and told us we would just need to keep on keeping on until the three biopsies come back (5 - 7 days). He did say that he wanted the Upper GI performed faster than his office had scheduled it, so we will await the call tomorrow to see how "soon" that is - and they added that they wanted to also do an MRI of his brain to rule out any "other" reasons that he would be throwing up so often. They mentioned some other reasons, but we're just not going to go there!

Thanks to you all for all your prayers - keep it coming!!! I'll update you as soon as we know more! We're heading to bed - we're worn out!!!

WonderfulWEEKEND!

2007-10-20T14:57:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to do a quick post b/c I had some funny pictures! The first one is of Riley in his CARS costume - he has worn it for two days straight in this picture. Hilarious! :-) Doesn't it look like he is in a commercial or something?

Also wanted you all to see our praying mantis that we caught a few nights ago. It was stuck in a spider's web, so we didn't want it to be eaten, so we saved it! We gave it a worm like we did a few summers ago at Nanny and Papa's (Barfield gals, do you remember that?) but this one must not have a hankering for worms! He even turned for the camera!

Here is a picture of Riley in his UK attire - he didn't want his picture taken, can you believe it? You know what that expession reminds me of??? Those of you that were at our wedding - it's Jason's face when John Carmon (the photographer) was trying to get him to smile... HA!

Also, Reed may be small, but he can still wrestle his brother. This just cracked me up - they were having such a good time!

OK, and now, last but not least, this is for LEIGHA BARFIELD (DD, can you show this to her and post her response?). It would be great if you all would respond too. We have this book of questions, "Zobmondo!!" and Leigha and I spent hours reading through the book and asking each other questions. We found it the other day and Jason and I have laughed and laughed. So, here are two questions for you...

*Would you rather?*
Chew the beak off a chicken
or
bite the legs off half a dozen mice?

*Would you rather?*
Never have people take you seriously
or
always have people think you are no fun?

HEHE - that first one is gross, I know, but fun to find out what you think! Hope you all have a good weekend!:-)

REvision!

2007-10-17T15:09:00.000-04:00

Ok, well, the Nutramigen wasn't the solution... we had to go back to the doctor on Monday and Reed has lost more weight, so our pediatrician got us an appointment with the UK gastroenterology department. We went yesterday morning and the appointment went so well. The physician we talked to was very calming and reassuring that we would find out what is causing Reed to do this vomiting (that's what they are calling it now - nice!). She was so knowledgeable and so very kind that being in the room with her totally made me at ease. That in itself is an answer to prayer!

There are three scenarios that they think could be the culprit for the problems. So, they've placed us on the scedule for a EGD on monday and if nothing found there then we would do the upper GI. They are looking to see if his esophogus is malfunctioning (it can, based on his symptoms, be malfunctioning in two ways). So that is this Monday and we will await the scheduling of the UGI. We are keeping everything the same - formula, prevacid, etc. until Monday. So, we'll hunker down and take the ickiness as it comes! We cleaned the carpets this weekend b/c we just couldn't stand to see the stains
from the vomits that we couldn't get in time, so we are now pretty much going outside or staying in the kitchen after he eats! Oh, and a note of comic relief - Riley, on his own, renamed Reed last night to Shooter... saying he shoots his milk back out at us... we laughed for awhile at that one!

This past weekend we just had to get out of the house and we did it when we didn't think Reed's belly would be icky. So, we went to the apple orchard and had a GREAT time! We took some great pictures, so I wanted to share with you all. All of the pictures on this post are from the orchard - I just didn't want to have them one after another w/no words.

This slide was so much fun - That is jason on the top of the slide helping all the kids get situated before the slide down. It was too cute!

And last but not least, I wanted to say THANK YOU to all of you for your thoughts and prayers and encouraging, kind words. It has been a difficult season for us and without all of you, we wouldn't be sane right now, FOR REAL! Thank you for those of you who check on us daily, you just never know how much it means to me to have you all "behind" me. I love you!

we'reBACK!

2007-10-10T22:16:00.000-04:00

Well, it seems like we've been away on vacation or something - but hardly! So sorry for the lack in posting - we've had a trying two weeks with Reed. All I can say is that I have never before been able to actually "feel" that we were being prayed for - but last Thursday and Saturday, wow, they were amazing days. So, THANK YOU to all of you that have been lifting us up in prayer because we are finally now in the "normal" spit up range!!! To make a long story short - after Reed losing weight and having the doctor become very concerned, we have switched Reed to the champagne formula - Nutramigen.

The nurses and doctors, from the get go three months ago, assured me that Reed's symptoms were not consistent with any type of milk allergy and that changing formulas wouldn't work... well, not so. He is still spitting up - but it is NOT painful and it does not sail across the room on a consistent basis. Praise God! :-) I think his little belly is totally irritated, so we're concentrating on being easy on his stomach until all the irritation is healed. What an ordeal! So, here is a picture of our happy 7-month old, Reed :-).

Riley and Jason have had some pretty fun projects that they've worked on since it has been such awesome weather here! This is a picture of them working so hard on Riley's window. It had some structural damage that Jason fixed and they had to paint the finished product. Riley did a lot of the painting and he did really well! Yes, that is Jason balancing on a ladder up to the second story of our house :-).

This was after a long day of work - lounging on the couch - I just LOVE this picture of the two of them!

This is a picture of Riley posing - literally, i asked him to pose and this is what he came up with. Is that a Jason look or what?

And finally, this is a picture of us yesterday - we were running around our cul-de-sac with our masks on - it was cracking me up! This was the day that we also ran around Lexington trying to find a place that had the Nutramigen in stock (oh, and if any of you all know any nurses that work in pediatricians offices, it would be nice to have a few free samples of this stuff - it's crazy expensive!!!) and Riley had on his pirate costume. We got so many "oh, look at him" looks. So funny!

p.s. don't you love that sweet look reed is giving riley? :-)

Now, last but not least, I want to hear from you... So, here we go!!!

1. Late night snack - popcorn or ice cream?
2. Favorite meal of the day - breakfast, lunch or dinner?
3. Going to the movie theatre or Netflix (or Blockbuster by mail)?
4. What freaks you out more - a mouse or a snake? (Ruth, that's for YOU!)
5. Ocean or a lake?
6. Antiperspirant and Deodorant or just an antiperspirant?
7. Candy corn - like it or no?
8. Do you have a stack of magazines in your house that you haven't read yet? If you say NO, then you have to share the secret of how to avoid this!
9. Fabric Softener in the wash - yes or no?
10. Do you wear perfume? if so, what is your favorite right now?

Ready to hear from YOU!

HOWdy!

2007-09-23T20:58:00.000-04:00

Well, well, well, I can't believe that it's been a few weeks since I posted. Amazing how the time flies!!! I'll post a few pictures of the highlights of the weeks that have passed and in the process fill you in on what's been going on in the Uhls household...

We celebrated Jason and mom's birthday a few weekends ago in BG - we got an ice cream cake from Dairy Queen and ate and ate and ate - it was delicious!!!

We also got to visit with the entire Bennett family, which was a treat! Here is a recent picture of Josie - she's getting so big!!! Elly and Riley played well together - I have a few pictures of them, but missed the best one - of Elly coming down from the playroom in our old courderoy packers cheerleading outfit and Riley in a fancy coat that our cousin David used to wear. They were precious! :-) Thanks to them for coming over and hanging out all Sunday afternoon with us! We love you!

The next weekend I was off to Gatlinburg for a "surprise" birthday weekend for a friend of mine. Haven't been to Gatlinburg in so very long!!! It was wonderful and we have so, so many memories from the trip - one of which is to never go to Gatlinburg the first or second weekend of September or you'll run in to the worst traffic you have ever seen in your life! It's the weekends for the muscle car show. It didn't really effect us much, we had a cabin up in the hills and hiked and rode horses (that's me with the white jacket on), so we didn't do the shopping and all the other stuff usually associated with Gatlinburg - good thing! It was a refreshing and rejuvenating weekend for me - I think God's been trying to tell me a few things and it wasn't until that weekend that I slowed down enough to listen. It was very, very good. Thanks to Jason's mom for coming up and helping Jason hold down the fort :-). They had a great time as well!!!

Oh, and this INJURED video was a take away from the weekend... something about this little boy reminds us of Riley - I don't know if it's the expression, the way he's using his hands or what, but Jason and I laugh so hard each time we see it!!! Sorry if you've seen it before :-).

That brings us up to this weekend - which was action packed! We had the carnival at Riley's preschool and he thought it was so cool! They did have some fun prizes!

We then ended up being in the creek for most of the rest of the weekend - well, let me clarify that... Jason and Riley ended up in the creek! They did a lot of cleaning it up - along with our neighbor, Linda. What fun memories for a little boy to have. We are truly blessed...

And, last but not least, sweet picture of our Reed. As some of you know, we've had a tough week with Reed this week - a teary one for me. Reed's reflux has stepped it up a notch and no matter what combination we've tried, he just hasn't been very happy and hasn't been able to keep anything down. No solid food, much less any milk. So, I wanted to capture some of his happy moments and here they are. He has such a sweet dispostion - I cannot imagine how it would be if he weren't a sweet natured child to begin with. Thank you, DD, for the painful conversation to bring me back to reality and let me know that it will all be OK. I love you and miss you so much... You are amazing.

That's it from here - no cool stuff to have you respond with - I'm pooped! :)

ourTWOsons

2007-09-11T22:27:00.000-04:00

i've been wanting to compare these two pictures for awhile now, but i couldn't find the picture of riley that i had stuck in my head. so, alas, tonight i found it. i was expecting them to look more alike, side by side, but they sure don't!!! granted the picture of reed does not nearly capture the blueness of his big blue eyes...

reed - summer 2007

riley - summer 2004

riley had his second day of preschool today and he did great again. he doesn't talk much about it, but i keep prying!!! he said he loved his snack, but couldn't tell me what it was - so, i'm going to have to find out what that was... i'm hoping it was some kind of vegetable - HA! he did tell me about a new friend that he likes playing with - he said he was cool (how funny is that?). i couldn't really understand the name, so i had to get out the class roster and name all the names until he said YEAH, that one! i think his country accent was kicking in b/c the kids name is hayden and it sounded like he was saying... well, i can't even spell it. kind of like when they put his name as "rally" on his coloring sheet at church. hilarious! :-) we came home and played quite a bit outside and then we were ready for naptime!

today has been the perfect weather day - i am reminded again how much i love fall and how i am itching to get in to my favorite sweatshirts... so that leads me to the next question for all of you...

what is your favorite fall activity???

for us, we have found this apple orchard nearby that is awesome! i think we went three times last fall. it was a play area for the kids made out of hay and this HUGE slide that is soooo fun. it also has those apple slushies and the apple turnovers. my mouth is watering just thinking about it... a friend of mine asked me to make her some pumpkin carving invitations and i thought that might be fun, but didn't know how that would go over well as our pumpkin that we carved last year looked HORRID and it took us like three hours to complete. i don't think we'll be doing that again, unless anyone has any secrets to carving.

ok, gonna hit the hay for now!

FIRSTday

2007-09-08T23:25:00.000-04:00

There he is - the 3 year old Riley - so cute as a button - on his first day of 3 year old preschool. It was a non-event for him. We walked right on in and he put his backpack in it's place and said "bye mom" and was off playing with kids he didn't know. Didn't phase him a bit. He did have the BIGGEST smile on his face when we picked him up - it was like picking your girls up in White House DD - we have a school pickup number and everything... Oh, and speaking of that - I still have Leigha's pick up number in the van - how silly is it of me to hold on to that - but I love it! :-) I was a bit teary driving off, but Reed started fussing, so I had to toss a toy back there - kind of nice to have a distraction!

Riley said he liked his teachers, even though he couldn't remember their names. He also said he didn't know any of the kids names either. I asked what his favorite thing of the day was and he said, without hesitating, "snack time" - shoot, he is my son, that's for sure! :-) They had goldfish and juice and the way he talked about it, it could have been ice cream and cake!!! His class days are Tuesday and Thursday, so we will see how Tuesday goes. :-)

As far as Riles and what he is in to these days... well, he loves riding his John Deere tractor around the circle in the cul-de-sac. He's learned how to make it skid to a stop and thinks that is way cool. He likes pretend - a lot. Sometimes he's a dog (thank you Anna Brooke :-)), sometimes he's Leigha, AnnaBrooke or McKenna (i guess sara kate will come in after our visit in november), other times he's daddy, or autin, or silas. Cracks me up. Another thing he's started doing is reading books himself - of which I love. He's memorized a lot of his books - his favorites, and he's read them before, but he's started making up the stories of books he hasn't even read much. He just reads what he thinks would be going on based on the picture. Makes me smile so much. He likes roaring - acting like a race car - racing me in the driveway (running in our running shoes) - drinking chocolate milk - eating popsicles - and watching StoryKeepers videos. He still walks on his toes a lot and loves changing in to his pjs for nap time. He's like his momma and loves pajamas. He also sure does love his baby brother - and he loves picking on him too. He loves cuddling with Reed and Reed loves it as well. They are a good pair - those two. And, last but not least, he loves being silly and I have NO IDEA where that comes from... So, I'll wrap up the post with the best posed picture I could get of him with his backpack on - he was not wanting to have his picture made!!!

That's our boy!!! We sure do love him!!!

tooPRECIOUS

2007-08-31T22:23:00.000-04:00

The laughs of parenthood!!!

Riley has been wanting to sleep on the floor for some reason, so we check on him before going to bed to see where he actually ends up. Jason found him like this tonight... what is up with the pillow case??? He laughed so, so hard (that was for Lauren Clay).

So, we had to go and check on Reed too - so, so sweet...

2007-08-28T21:30:00.000-04:00

Good Tuesday everyone!

We had a good day today - Reed went in for his 6 month appointment (yes, a bit early) but I asked if we could merge two appointments (the other being a check-up for his ears) and save a copay. They were nice enough to say ok! All was well and Reed charmed the nurses! He was 85% in length, 95% in head size and a measly 25% for weight - and I thought he was chunking up. Oh well... I still think he's cute as can be - even if he's going to be a long and lean one. :-) Oh, and DD, please tell Leigha that the doctor said that the dent in his chest was normal. I think she was worried about it!

Just to bring you up to speed on what he's in to now and what he's doing... Anything that's in my hand or close to him is grabbed. it's so cute to see their hand/eye coordination develop. He's saying bah, bah, bah all the time (which I just today realized that he may be mimicking the sound R for riley instead... rah, rah, rah. It's just so hard to say. He LOVES his brother - sometimes when Riley leaves the room he about jumps out of my hands to follow Riley. Too cute! He still isn't too much of a fan for the car seat - and he's still not taking a passy - at all. His passy are his middle finger and his ring finger. That's a good indicator that it's time for a nap when he starts putting those fingers in his mouth! He's still teething and drooling on everything, but still no teeth are poking out of the gums. He's rolling from front to back, back to front and looks hilarious when he's going to sleep (we've spied on him!) b/c it looks like he's steamrolling back and forth the length of his crib. Let's see - he's always smiling and I don't think he's going to meet a stranger (much different from his big brother). He does know what he wants and when he's tired he'll pitch a little fit if he doesn't get it!!! His reflux is getting better and he's draining those 6 ounce bottles at times (of course they do have cereal in them too). All in all, we are enjoying every day with this little fellow. He steals our hearts every morning with that huge smile!!!

Ok, now share with us all what smells you are loving right now - Shannon and I are always comparing, so let's see what you all say! I'm loving the smell of Johnson's baby lotion and this Ajax antibacterial dishwashing soap (orange scent). Delicious smelling!

It'll be update time for Riley soon as he starts preschool on his daddy's birthday - September 6th. DD, anxious to hear how the first days with your girls went. We miss you something terrible...

MastersSERIEStennis - CincinnatiOH

2007-08-24T09:17:00.000-04:00

So sorry that it's taken me so long to get this posted - there were so many pictures, I think I was dreading going through all of them! We had a great time watching tennis and we made some great memories. I'll start with the posting of the collage of pictures - if you want to see close ups, just email me and I'll forward them on. Sorry Muri - we didn't get any close ups of Roddick this year because he got beat too early!!! :-)

Jason and I decided it would be fun to give you all some quotes from our Cincinnati trip... so, here goes!!!
- "That was Fedilicious" - from the young man in the right hand side picture above. He was SUCH a Federer fan!
- "Well, I went to get a Hoagie sandwich for dinner, but the lady serving them didn't have any teeth, so I didn't get one. I decided instead to stop at Bigg's and get a can of soup." This quote was from Connie, of Connie and Carl, that we had the pleasure of meeting last year. We found them again this year and had a great time visiting and watching some quality tennis with them in their very nice seats in the shade!
- "You had a great match today", said Jason Uhls. Of which Lleyton Hewitt replied as he was reaching to shake Jason's hand, "Thank you, man." In case you all are wondering, yes, this is the second time that we have run in to Lleyton Hewitt at the Cheesecake Factory after a loss in this tournament. Comfort food for him, I guess!
- As we were weaving through the parking lot (aka a golf course) to find a parking place, we found one and parked a little crooked b/c we wanted to get to the match (we were running late, much to my husband's chagrin) the man that parked next to us walked behind Jason's truck, looked at Jason and said, "You went to UK so you'll park however in the h*** you want to." He said this with a huge smile on this face??? We couldn't figure out if he went to UK or what - we just smiled back!
- Connie, as mentioned earlier, commented on one of the tennis players (can any of you guess who?), "That boy has a shelf for a butt, you could put two trays back there." HEHE!!!

Now to start a new tradition...
You have to reply with some little tid-bit of yourself...

... you'd know that I LOVE to read rhyming books aloud - like Dr. Seuss books... I could read them all day long!

CLEANing!

2007-08-16T09:25:00.001-04:00

I found the best thing!!! I know that all of you know about the magic eraser - but I found that they can make my laminate floor as good as new and I wanted to share! Check this picture out - the clean spot is after one swipe with the magic eraser! I've tried spic and span, soft scrub, you name it to get these stains out of the grooves of the floor - to no avail. So after four years, it looks brand new again!

So, I was sharing this little tid bit with Shannon and she suggested that I ask all of you all what your favorite cleaning trick is - or what your favorite cleaning product is. SO, enlighten us and SHARE!

Hope you all have a good day!

ps. word to the wise - those of you with children, please don't let the kids help with the magic erasers - they've caused some serious burns to sensitive skins :-(.

FRIday

2007-08-10T21:39:00.001-04:00

Howdy all - gonna be a quick post, but wanted to put some pictures out there :-).

This is Riley climbing a tree - can you tell that i'm showing him how I want him to smile - I guess I was cocking my head to the side and all - for the love :-).

This one is of Reed in SaraKate's float for the first time on the back porch. He did so good and was in there for quite awhile. He was so funny because his little feet were just pushing on the bottom of the pool (b/c you can so see how NOT deep it is...) and he was just running around and around that pool. Love it! This smile of his, I sure wish I could put it in a bottle forever. It melts me... Took him to the doctor this afternoon and he has a double ear infection. He hasn't been napping very well, and he started pulling on his ear while we were at Shannon's this morning, so I thought we'd better get him in to the doc before the weekend. So, we're on his first antibiotic - FUN! You know what - despite the not sleeping, I would never have known that this child was sick - amazing!

And, last but not least - here's Riley in the pirate costume that we got in Walgreens for $4 while we were waiting for Reed's prescription to be filled. Isn't it hilarious? He wore it all afternoon - despite the heat! Too stinking cute :-).

Ok, and a few more things... one of my pet peeves is the mess that I leave each morning in the area of my coffee pot. Meaning - the spoon that leaves coffee on the counter and the mess that the splenda (or sugar) makes when I don't get it all in the coffee mug. I've been putting a towel there and I just don't like that. Do any of you have any fun ideas?

Another thing I've been brainstorming about are new things for the catalog this season. A couple of friends have suggested notes to the teacher (in a notepad). Something like...
Dear ________,
Riley was late or absent (circle which one) today because:
_ Doctor's Appointment
_ Sick
etc.
Sincerely,
__________

What do you think about that? Another thought was the waterproof sippee cup labels. Do you all think they would sell? What about a laminated chore list (thanks Muri for this idea) that could hang on the door knob of your kids room and they could mark off what they had done???

Let me know what you think about these ideas and also give me any more that you may have! I'm ready for some new additions!!!

Now, some links that you may be interested in...
If your child is eating baby food and you have access to Target, you must check this out! You can print the coupon as MANY TIMES AS YOU WANT!!! It's amazing! gerber foods coupons

I rec'd Rachel Ray's magazine as a gift from Dottie and I'm LOVING every issue - I'm especially loving her section of everyday favorites. Check it out when you have the time.

I know this may sound odd, but I am loving this angel food cologne spray. I leave it by my door to the garage and spray some before I head out for the day. It's so handy to have by the door. It's such a subtle scent!

Ok, over and out - I'm exhausted!

TheWEEKsoFAR

2007-08-07T22:17:00.000-04:00

Howdy all - just a few observations before I post some pictures... have you all noticed that the flies are slower??? I killed five flies this afternoon by swatting them with my hand. Now that never happens... Perhaps the heat has e(a)ffected them (too late in the night for my brain to figure out which one of the spellings is correct). Anyone have any ideas?

Speaking of the heat - Riley and I played outside today for an hour but the only reason we were able to is because of these icee popsicles... they are the best!!! The cherry are my favorites... I think I've had three today - and they are only 1 point (some of you will be fortunate enough to NOT know what I'm talking about).

Ok, on to the pictures...
We went for a family day to the Icthus park (well, it wasn't a whole day, but a morning...) and afterwards we went to the Red Robin - a new family favorite. Delicious! Anywho - this slide was the steepest slide that I have seen in a park. It was so fun! It did, however, give us all the static head. Oh well!

And another picture at the park of the two oldest boys in the family!

It was a fun day! Now, this isn't a very flattering picture of me, but we've had to wear these things, so I wanted to pass it on to other moms if their kids are in to masks - you can go to the peter pan website and download templates for the masks. Pretty fun!

This picture was taken of Reed last night - he was so stinking cute in the walker - he was having a great time in there and I think he was in that walker for more than 45 minutes. He was watching us play - he's such a cool baby to have around :-). And for those of you who don't know sign language, Reed is saying "whassssupppp???"

This picture really cracked me up. We got a sample diaper in the mail yesterday and Riley wanted to see if it would fit him. So, here we go... trying it on. It barely would go around him - it was a size 2!!! I laughed so hard...

This is a picture of what our mornings look like. Riley has started coming in to our bed (this is around 7:30ish) and cuddling with me until Reed wakes up. He then watches a show while I give Reed his bottle and then they cuddle for awhile. Riles is so funny b/c he snuggles right up to Reed and Reed just loves it! Reed was just a bit out of it - I think he was still sleepy and I couldn't get a smile out of him for a change!!!

Ok, now to make a long blog even longer... I have some questions for you!!!
1. Morning person or night person?
2. Shower or bath?
3. Mechanical toothbrush or a regular one?
4. Favorite mode of communication - phone or email?
5. Reading preference - book or magazine?

From the last set of quesions, Kristina, can you elaborate on the pen that you use?

Wednesday::FUN!

2007-08-02T08:32:00.000-04:00

We had a great day Wednesday - Kimberly (and her little girlie to be), Shannon (and her little boy to be) and Lauren Clay came over to visit with me and the boys. We had such a good time. Kimberly and Shannon are too cute with their bellies, so, of course, I had to take some pictures of them!

This is Lauren Clay and Riley playing in the blow up slide/pool that Jason found at BigLots. It's awesome!!! It's not quite as big as Julie's was, but it sure is fun! Plus, of course, those of you that know Jason will not be surprised that he found this one on clearance. His deals...

After playing for awhile, they needed a brief break so they decided it would be fun to relax in the hammock together. It was the cutest thing. They fit in there so nicely!

Also wanted to post a picture of Reed and Riles playing underneath the playgym - I think Riley likes it as much as Reed does. Thanks Ms. Oldham for the great gift!!!

Okay, now, comments on the poll. I'm not too fond of it because I can't tell who voted for what and that's disappointing :-(. I also so enjoy getting comments on the post and the poll robs me of that joy... So, I'm going to have to figure something else out...

But, for those of you anxiously awaiting the answers....
A yonker is a YOUNG MAN.
Scultch is JUNK.
Wuzzle means to MIX.
A baloo is a BEAR.

There we have it!!! You all did pretty great :-).

Now, on to seriousness, I don't know if most of you realize that on Wednesday, Steve starts his deployment. So please keep DD and the girls in your prayers - as well as Steve for safety. AND - if you don't regularly check out their blog - do so - there's a great one right now - SO FUN!!!! Their link is to the left...

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

MobileALABAMA

2007-07-31T11:06:00.000-04:00

This weekend I traveled to Mobile, Alabama for the USTA Southern's Tennis Tournament. It was so odd to be flying and to be staying in a hotel all by myself!!! Mom and Dad came to stay with the boys (Jason, Reed and Riley) and they had a great time! Wanted to post some pictures of the weekend - the first is a picture of freckleland (Yasemine, Michelle and Me). These were the ladies that I had the priviledge of playing doubles with this weekend. That's a lot of freckles, isn't it???

The next two pics are from the restaurant where we had dinner one of the nights. The first is of a battleship, of which you can take tours and fun stuff like that, and the second one is of the beautiful sunset in Mobile! We had an enjoyable dinner with Heather and her sweet, sweet family. Even though it took them hours to get our food to us, it was nice to get to visit with everyone and to hear some funny stories! Thanks for the memories gals!

That's all from Alabama. It was a very quick trip!!! We didn't win, but we sure had a good time and had some great exercise!!!

I also wanted to post some pictures of Reed - he just loves bathtime - I think he would stay in there as long as Riley does. AND, he doesn't scream when we take him out. Riley used to do that and we could never figure out if he didn't like the cold, didn't want to get dressed, or what. So, it's nice to have a smiling boy after bathtime as well!!!

Okay, now for something fun!!! Kristina, I'm taking your suggestion of a poll - so let's see how it works!!! No looking in a dictionary allowed (for those of you who had to take achievement tests in high school, you will have a great advantage!) hehe :-). I don't even think these are real words - at least I couldn't find them in my dictionary! The questions are to the right!!!

2007-07-25T21:59:00.000-04:00

WOW! i am loving the responses from everyone! they totally brought a smile to my face! those of you who chose Luke Duke - what are you thinking??? :-) I'm still coming up with the next 10 questions, so keep checking back!!!

Wanted to bring you up to speed on what's been going on around here. We took Reed for his 3 month panel picture on Sunday (yes, a little bit late) and Riley fell in love with a pair of "Cars" tennis shoes next door at Payless. To make a long story short, we compromised and found these skater shoes at target - he wants to put them on first thing in the morning. hilar! (ok, is that so middle school or what?) And don't ask about the undies - yes, they are the training pants that haven't been worn for about a year - they still fit though!

We also celebrated Missy's birthday on Monday - it was so good to see the Lunch Bunch again. We've missed you guys! Missy was so very kind to having help blow out the candles :-).

Dottie, sure wish you could have been there - you sure would have enjoyed gazing at those flowers - i'm attaching a picture of them as well!!! wow - they were beautiful! Check out the spread of food on the table too - it was all so very yummy!!!

Now why don't my sweet potato vines look that nice???

Today we spent the day running errands and the boys did so well - it's quite different running around with two than just one. I think Riley's getting used to having to hear a little fussing from Reed while in the car seat. Today Riley told me that the reason Reed was crying was because he wanted to turn around and watch the movie Riley was watching. You know, he probably was right!!! He sure does crane his neck around to see what is capturing his big brother's attention!

We also went on our first real walk in the double jogging stroller today and Reed didn't get fussy until the very end. YEAH!!! I was wondering how he was going to like it - Riley loves it these days and asks to go for a ride whenever I even mention walking. Thanks Allison for joining us at the last minute - it's always fun to have someone to talk to to make the walk go even faster!

New addition to the blog - I'm attaching some links to my favorite things as of late. Please share some of yours...

babydoll shirt Ruth, i thought you would appreciate this one!!!
tatoo bandaids
reed's favorite bottle
prayer journal
the best walking shoes ever

That's it from the Uhls house for now! Time to get in the bed :-). Hope you all have a good rest of the week!

Friday in Louisville :-)

2007-07-22T22:56:00.001-04:00

Wanted to share some pictures from our visit with Muri and the kids on Friday. They were doing great and we had such a good time visiting with them. For those of you who keep up with Muri's blog... here is a picture of her broken leg! OUCH! She was able to get a walking cast put on last week, so she can let her leg "breathe" when she needs to. That is quite nice. It looks like she is being such a good sport that the leg is healing well. Good going Muri - all that on top of keeping up with two 5 year olds. wowzers! The picture after the break is Muri holding Reed - this was before one of the two bottles that Muri gave him while we were there. She just loves giving bottles to babies!!!

This picture pretty much summed up how the kids spent the day... the boys playing and caroline taking care of reed. it was too precious. i think she was born to be a mom - she loved it! thanks caroline for taking such good care of reed while we were there!

riley always loves to go back to nick's room and find all his cool toys, so he came out playing the guitar. i couldn't help but take a picture - it was too cute! i have no idea what song he was trying to play, but it sounded okay to me!

Nick is so in to baseball and he's so very good! Check out his pants in the pictures - I think he has to wear his baseball pants every single day - and you should see his collection of baseball cards. Wow - amazing is all I have to say, and he's only 5!!! Thanks to the Potts for letting us come and spend the entire day with you!!!

Just a few more pictures - I was messing around with the camera b/c I thought the couch would make a nice backdrop to some pictures, but I think the shine is a little much...

Also, wanted to let you all know that Angela (cousin from previous posts that just got married) and her new husband, Nathan, are going to be on a few eharmony commercials. Check out the link to the right to see them. They are just too cute!!! There's another one of Angela talking that Jason saw last night - can't wait to see that one too!!!

Okay, now, for those of you that read the blog - going to get you involved. This little game is something that DD, Dana, and I played when we were in BG. I'll come up with some original questions so you gals aren't off the hook!!!

What do you prefer???
1. Pen or Pencil?
2. Black ink or Blue ink?
3. Spring, Summer, Fall or Winter?
4. Polka dots or stripes?
5. Honey or molasses?
6. Running or walking (or neither)?
7. Photos - color or black and white? Ruth, that one's for you!
8. When writing - cursive or print?
9. Chocolate milk or white milk?
10. Bo or Luke Duke?

For those of you who don't know how to leave a comment, all you have to do us hit the comment button at the bottom of the blog entry and it will prompt you on how to leave a comment. It's not rocket science, so just chose another user name and password and there you have it!!! Looking forward to hearing from you!!!

Baptism Sunday :-)

2007-07-17T07:53:00.000-04:00

Wanted to share with you the happenings of this weekend. Riley's cousin, Austin, was baptized on Sunday so we went down there to celebrate with them!

Their church was the sweetest thing ever! I had forgotten what a small church feels like - it's an awesome feeling! Michael, Austin's brother, was going up and down the aisles sitting with each and every row. They all knew each other - it felt great. So, after church we were invited to Julie's house for a cook out and some play time for the boys. Wanted to share a picture of their house - such a beautiful setting!!!

Julie and Mark had blown up this slide and needless to say it was quite a hit! Riley was a little cautious at first - for about a minute - then they were starting the daredevil moves! Craziness!

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Michael just loves Baby Reed - and has since Reed was born! I think Michael was the first child to give Reed a bottle! Too fun! Anyway, Michael kept making sure Reed was okay, so this is a picture of how he was making Reed smile. We loved it! That's Nana holding Reed in the swing :-).

These skate Riley found in Austin and Michael's playroom. He wanted to go and try to skate immediately. So, Austin told him he could have them, so we inherited a pair of Scooby Doo roller skates... thanks Julie!

And for those of you that haven't seen Reed in awhile - his hair is filling in - check out the "thick" hairline! He is such a smiling baby - can't get enough of that!

Also wanted to post a link to Shannon's blog - Lauren Clay and Riley had a fun play date last week!!! You'll have to check our their mischieviousness!

www.familiasampson.blogspot.com

Okay, can't figure out how to make it a link you can click on, so check out the link to the right to Shannon's Blog.

theLASTfewDAYS... Barfield fun!

2007-07-08T07:24:00.000-04:00

Wanted to finish the postings of the fun we had with the girlies. Boy, do we sure miss all of them... This first picture will only be funny to the Barfields and the Deans, but I thought I would post it anyway. These are the things that seemed to come up over and over and over - whether through a joke, just in everyday conversation, or whatever. We all would laugh when we heard any of these comments made. Such fun memories!

We got to visit with Ashley's family and Kelly's family before the Barfield's left. For those of you who don't know who I'm talking about - Ashley and Kelly were Dee Dee and my childhood friends. They lived right behind us and we did everything together. We've been friends for as long as I can remember. Kelly is a year older than DD and Ashley and I are the same age. Ashley and I used to call each other "dumb baby" - now go figure that??? Anyway, they live in Alvaton and have such a huge yard - so, here's a picture of the kiddos in the pool in the backyard. Kelly has two children - Abby and Sam. Ashley has two too - Elly, who is a few days younger than Riley, and Josie that was just born last month!

This is Reed in the seat that Ashley introduced us to - the Bumpo. It's so funny and Reed loves to sit in it! We got a tray yesterday at Target and it's great because it holds the toys for him. Of course, all he does now is clear the tray of the toys :-).

This is Josie - being held by Jackie (Ashley and Kelly's momma). She is precious!

The Barfields did get to come to Lexington for a few days and visit - which was rather fun! We thought it would be too cramped to have everyone in the house, but it didn't feel that way to me at all. It was actually way fun and I would do it all over again today if we could! We had lots of friends stop by to visit us while we were here for a short 3 days. Plus, I had a tennis tournament that we had to work around. Fun and games!!! First, thanks to Ruth for coming by and loving on the fam when we got in to town. I didn't get any pictures of you - what was I thinking???

We had Mandy and Doug (remember the post earlier in the month about Mary Beth and her sister DeeDee? Well, Doug is their brother, so we used to babysit him too). Oh, and get this - he shared a funny story with us. He remembers that one day I was taking him home from school (he remembers the exact location we had this converstation, so those of you from Franklin will recognize the location) and as we were rounding Sunset Circle, he said I told him that I had just stated dating Jason and that, I quote, "I feel like my life has just begun" - hehe! Doug was probably in 4th Grade at the time and I have no idea why I was being so sentimental with a kid that probably was more worried about going home to tell his mom that he got his name written on the board that day rather that the state of my love life. So, sorry Doug for boring you at such a young age!!! That just lets you all know how long I've been daydreaming about that Jason boy! :-) Anywho - here's a picture of Doug and his PRECIOUS wife, Mandy. They made us laugh so hard. Do you have those people in your life that no matter what the situation, you totally enjoy being around them? Well, Doug and Mandy are so in that category with me and my entire family. We love you guys!

Oh, and for the record - they don't have any children. That's Sara Kate, DeeDee's youngest! :-) We also had some GREAT times in the creek - I think Jason and the girls spend at least 10 hours in the creek. They were the cutest. So, we can't not share some pictures from those adventures. Here too is a picture of Riley and McKenna being creative on the picnic bench. They were painting... :-)

Thanks too to Allison, Jon, Silas and Ava for stopping by and meeting the clan. It was so fun to have you all there and to have you meet the family. They totally enjoyed you all! I should have taken a picture of all the kiddos in the back yard, but once again, I wasn't thinking!!!

Now, to wrap it up - just a few pictures to make you laugh. Riley and McKenna so enjoyed the blow up pool in Nanny and Papa's back yard. They would play in there for hours and would just crack us up. Well, this day they decided to be funny and swim in different outfits. Well, McKenna chose some clean clothes from the laundry room and Riley chose Anna Brooke's old bathing suit. Check it out...

No real story with this picture, but it was just too cute not to share!

And this was the attempt at the annual 4th of July picture - we didn't have great success because it wasn't a good time for either babies - so this is the best we could do... I think we all were sweating by the time this picture shoot was over! What do you think DD, acceptable???

That's how we spent the days with the Barfields. It seems like it went by so fast because we were having so much fun. Even though they are so far away, we feel blessed that they are able and WILLING to come home for an extended period of time in the summers. The bonding of the kids and the memories that we make are priceless. weLOVEyou!

forREAL

2007-07-03T14:28:00.001-04:00

Sometimes do you fall in love with your kids all over again? This morning has been one of those mornings for me. I look at both of them and see some of me and some of Jason and it just makes me smile. The picture of Reed's hands was the first time that I looked at them and thought - oh no, those newborn hands are gone... The picture of Riley is just... let's see - Riley being Riley. I'm sorry to say that he gets some of his silliness honestly from his mom! And the picture of Riley feeding Reed is becoming more and more of a request at our house. I know that seeing Sara Kate and how fun she is has helped Riley understand that his brother will be that fun someday - so, he is helping out more and loving it when he can make him laugh. Thank you again, DD, for sharing your children with us. :-)

Fun Times, continued!

2007-07-03T07:11:00.001-04:00

Well, even though our visit with the Barfield girls has ended (of which we are all still very sad about) I haven't posted since last week of the happenings while we were all together. We were quite busy, so I'll try to do the best that I can!

Muri and her kiddos came to visit and ended up spending the night at Nanny and Papa's. They met us at the pool and we swam until the late afternoon and then came home for some FUN play time.

I don't know if you can tell or not, but those are the boys (Nick and Riley) hiding under the same chair in a highly competitive game of hide and seek. Caroline had the best hiding spot - inside a box!

And for those of you that play cornhole - a totally new way to master the game... just run from board and board and drop the corn bags in the hole! A winner every time!

Some more just sweet pictures of them all - they had such a good time with each other!

2007-06-20T10:28:00.000-04:00

SUMMER FUN!!!!!

Well, we'll start this with the breakfast of champions. Leigha was craving this - ice cream on top of a toasted cinnamon pop-tart. DD and I used to have this for breakfast in high school - after the sugar ban was over!!! We all had to get a bite of it because it was soooo good!

McKenna and Riley have had some fun times together, so I'll post all of theirs together. They are too cute!

This is the outfit that McKenna and Riley picked out for Nanny to wear. She was such a trooper and put it on to humor them. They did quite a good job :-).

We also went racing - of which is always a fun trip :-). Wanted to share a cute picture of Sara Kate watching the racing - and a picture of the sheer delight that Papa has racing these cars :-).

Also wanted to share with you all how Reed has changed - all of his dark hair is mostly gone and it's slowing being replaced by blonde/reddish fuzz!

Someone visiting with us noticed that each member of our family had a pair of crocs on - so we thought it would be fun to get all our crocs together and take a picture. This cracks me up!!!

And - to show you how we are wearing out the youngest....

2007-06-15T23:55:00.000-04:00

Okay, here's goes a seriously long post. I'm so sorry that I'm about to overwhelm you with pictures, but hey, we've had a fun few days!!! First of all, on Tuesday Dana and her children (DD's pals from White House, TN) came to BG to visit and we had such a blast with them.

Dana's youngest, Leah, is about one month younger than Sara Kate, so it was nice to get to introduce them again!

We went to the park and fed the millions of ducks... there were so many that it was almost freaky (seriously!). But there were some really cute baby ones in the mix...

After having a snack break, the kiddos went back to Nanny's car and turned up the radio - LOUD - and guess what song was on? Those of you who have heard my ringtone know the signifance of this song... push it, push, to the limit, limit... Need I say more.

Then, we came to Nanny and Papa's house and played outside for the rest of the day. The kids were throwing each other in the pool with a beach towel... it was hilarious!

Ok, what else has been going one? We also spent some time at the hotel pool - here's a picture of Reed's first dip in the pool.

We also had the pleasure of visiting with our former across the street neighbors - the Donaldsons and Schlossers. The kids got to play together - we had a lot of fun in the bouncy castle - we even got a stunt show. Sorry, no pictures from that... But here is a picture of Mary Beth holding little Reed - this is the Mary Beth that used to sit at the end of her driveway and she would holler - can Melanie and DeeDee come over and play??? She was the cutest - and still is. We love you and your girls! Can we come see your new upstairs next week before you all leave for FL?

Another highlight of the visit was getting to meet little Dee Dee's (yes, she is our official namesake - Dee Dee Marie) hunk of burning love, Josh. We gave him a really hard time, and Dee Dee helped us out. He's a keeper!

AND today - so FUN - we went to Beech Bend and had a marvelous day! I'll let the pictures speak for themselves; however, i will say that i was so very impressed with dd's 4 year old who rode EVERY ride that they would allow her to ride. she was such the trooper.

And to sum it all up... the statement by McKenna after getting off one of the rides, "THAT WAS AWESOME!"
LOVE TO YOU ALL!

2007-06-11T15:16:00.000-04:00

Well, today brings good news! Ashley had her sweet baby girl yesterday - and all are doing well. Josie was 7 pounds and 1 ounce and was 5 days early (from c-section date). I got to go and visit with Ashley and Josie this morning and you so forget (even with a 3 month old) how small newborns are! Mom and baby look great!

Riley and McKenna went swimming and they got cold, so they both put on camo undies. Then, they decided it would be fun to eat popsicles and act like visitors to Nanny's house. So, this is them on the front porch after they knocked on the door and pretended to be Silas and Alice - HILARIOUS!

Also found out something interesting about my sister. She is the jelly bean EXPERT! She knows all the combinations to make a yummy recipe out of the flavors of the jelly beans. Pretty cool - she made me a mochalatte last night :-). So for those of you that pass by the jelly bean bowl and just grab a handful (that's me!) - well, that's just not right!

Anna B and Riley had a tea party - here they are drinking the last of the "tea" - it was actually Diet Pepsi :-).

This is a picture of Riley hugging McKenna, which makes McKenna's heart happy b/c Riley usually is following Anna Brooke around all day long.

Here the girls are making a band - AFTER Leigha made fun of me and Riley doing that exact thing at home with a kazoo and a harmonica. We just had to be creative b/c we didn't have any real instruments readily available!

And, here is Reed's mohawk - his hair is still falling out! :-) Nanny had just rocked him to sleep on the swing on the back porch. I think he's getting a bit spoiled!!!

Here is Riley with a wristband on that Nanny and Papa wear at night when they go walking. He thought it was cool b/c it would give him big muscles??? Don't know what that was all about... Ok, got to go - Anna Brooke would like for me to help her dress Hanna Montana on www.disney.com - hope I'm up for the task!

2007-06-09T08:38:00.001-04:00

We are having such a good time here in Bowling Green with DD and all her girlies :-). Steve had to fly back to Idaho yesterday and Jason was able to get here before Steve had to go. The kids are having a good time playing hard... it's been a bit yucky weather, so it's been playing in side for all of us. Wanted to share a few pictures - this is the life! :-)

Yes, good meals sometimes aren't a necessity here (at least lunches) - and clean rooms either! :-)

Reed and Sara Kate are liking the baby pool - it is so warm that all the other kiddos think it's kind of gross!

2007-06-06T07:20:00.001-04:00

Our oldest has made us laugh so much the last two days, so I wanted to share!!!

Two nights ago, Jason put him to bed and we stayed up to watch a movie. When we went upstairs to go to bed, this is what we found... This is not Riley's bed - it's ours!!!!

Then, last night, Jason put him to bed and we were in our bedroom packing for our trip to BG and when we went in around 10pm to give Reed his last bottle, this is what we found.

He doesn't mention it the next day, but I'm wondering what is going through his mind when he is looking for an alternative place to sleep. Where are we going to find him tonight? In his closet??? It's kind of fun!

Yesterday we were also playing "band" where I have a kazoo and he plays the harmonica. We just march around the house and act silly. Well, yesterday, he just stopped playing and looked at me with the biggest smile on his face and he said, Mom, you're funny! If you really knew me, you would know that I think that is the COOLEST thing to hear my son say that - for now I'm funny and not weird - wooo hoo!!!

OH, and we had hail last night - DD, glad I could give you an excuse to say hail :-) in a sentence. You made me laugh!

Hope you all enjoy this sunny Wednesday!

2007-06-04T09:16:00.000-04:00

Well, it's a beautiful morning here - we just got back from our first walk in the double jogging stroller and it was very fun! Here is a picture of the boys. They did great! Riley had to take his big boy bat. He and dad got that while they had a daddy/son trip to Target. It was probably inspired by Nick who has hit THREE homeruns this season. You go Nick! Can you give Riley some pointers??? :-)

Mr. Reed is doing great - he's learned how to roll over in the mornings, which was quite surprising - that just always catches you off guard to see them in a different position that when you put them down! I think it scared him :-). We'll see if he continues to do that!

We got a replacement tent - the last one we had got swept away in a big storm... so, here are pictures of the tent event. Girls, you can sleep in that when you come :-).

2007-05-30T10:55:00.000-04:00

Just a few more from the weekend!!!

2007-05-29T09:07:00.001-04:00

We've had a great weekend - I hope you all have too! Riles slept in until 10:10 yesterday, that is a FIRST - and today, well, it's after 9am and he's still snoring away! He's had such a great time playing with his cousins :-).

I'm going to post lots of pictures - the first ones will be of the wedding this weekend. Angela looked GORGEOUS and as far as we know the wedding went without incident - and the food afterwards was awesome :-). The girlies did so very good in the wedding - and they looked as cute as can be! Enough talking - so here you go!!! I'll post more of the weekend later on today - Riley's stirring :-).

Love to all!

2007-05-22T15:52:00.000-04:00

Hey all! We are doing well - Reed is on the mend and we are all smiling in relief! :-)

We went to see Caroline in a dance recital this weekend and she was so good! Here are some pictures for you all to enjoy. Riley had a great time playing with Nick and Caroline after the recital. :-) He was exhausted!

Riley came out of the Muri's house with this outfit on - he cracked me up!

And last but not least, a cute picture of Happy Reed today!

Oh, and I wanted to show you all some other random fun pictures. Yes, that is Riley trying to fly a kite behind his tractor. Ha!

That last one is a picture of Reed in the bib PattiSue sent - isn't it funny? It looks like he has on a tie!

Well, that's it for now - the next pictures will probably be of Riles and Reed with the Barfield girlies. We are so excited that they are coming to BG!!! WOOHOO!

2007-05-19T09:33:00.001-04:00

I'm so behind in posting what's been going on! First, we had a fun bridal tea for Angela's upcoming wedding!!! Angela looked gorgeous!!! Here are some pictures!

We also rec'd a FUN package from Patti Sue and check out these cool socks she sent for Reed. We all love them!

2007-05-03T21:46:00.000-04:00

Wanted to post some pictures of the happenings here - Riley and Elly had a play date at Basil Griffin Park here in Bowling Green and WOW, I cannot believe that we've never been there before - it's awesome! They had such a great time feeding the ducks - all 100 of them!!!

And here is a picture of Riley being sweet on Mr. Reed and another picture of him posing in Nanny and Papa's hallway. And last, but not least, Papa holding Reed before heading off to work. We are still on the LEX schedule of getting up at 7:30 in the morning, which is 6:30 here - that's early!

DD, thank you so much for all the pj's you sent! I'm going to try the sleep sack and see how Reed likes it - does SK still sleep in them? Also, Angela said today - I sure wish all the girlies were here too - WE ALL DO! How many days left now???

2007-05-01T22:20:00.000-04:00

Just a few pictures from today - as promised, Jason! We miss you!!!
Silas got a golf cart for Christmas and they had a great time riding around in it. I was pretty impressed that there wasn't a fight about who could drive it! YEAH!

This is a picture of Riley's ouchie - a bandaid wouldn't stay put, so Nanny made this contraption for him. He loves it and it makes me crack up :-).

Hope everyone is doing well. Love you!

2007-04-30T09:25:00.000-04:00

we had a great weekend, i hope everyone else did too! we love this sunny weather!!!

jason and riley cleaned out the fish pond this weekend and we wanted to share the clean version of the pond. it looks so much better!!! jason bought a different pump and it's fun b/c it is like a fountain!!!

these are the fishies that we had to take out of the pond while the boys were cleaning it. jason found a BIG frog in there too - we had a good time watching them in riley's aquarium!

we also had some visitors this weekend - baby ducks are here! this momma had 11 we think - wowzers!

ok, just a few more - one is of jason and riley's matching flops - too cute! and the other is of riley's hair after a bath - we sneaked and put some gel in it... hehe! isn't he the cutest??? AND a picture of riley and reed enjoying playing on the floor! hope you all have a great week! love to you all :-).

ps. sorry they are out of order - riles wants to use the computer to "play games", so i need to get off of blogger!

2007-04-26T09:11:00.000-04:00

we are having a lazy day today - it's warm but rainy outside. so, i downloaded the rest of the pictures from our camera and there were some cute ones on there to share.

this is reed in the moses basket that angie powers let us borrow. isn't it fun?

this is riley with his "big boy" toolbox that daddy brought home for him. it has real tools in it - a real hammer and all. we've had a few splinters and a few smashed fingers, but they have been worth it. he loves it!

i wish the picture had a time stamp on it. this is what we were doing at 7am the other morning. jason and riley had caught some crawdads and he wanted to go out and check on them first thing. now, they catch something from the creek and add it to the aquarium daily. pretty cool the stuff they come up with :-).

this is them in ACTION!

and the latest - this is for mom and dd - know how we love those little leg rolls - check reed's out from yesterday. I LOVE IT!

hope you all have a great day!

2007-04-25T10:21:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to post a picture that Ruth took - such sweet boys! Hope you all are doing well!

2007-04-16T14:19:00.000-04:00

Trip to Lousiville :-).
Just wanted to post some pictures of our visit with Muri, Nick and Caroline on Friday. We had such a good time - the weather was nice and the kids were able to play some outside. With all the rain and cold weather we've been having, that was rather nice! Caroline was the perfect mom - she wanted to keep an eye on Reed the whole time. If you'll notice, Reed had a great nap on Muri and John's bed and Caroline had to go in and put her pink poodle in there to keep Reed company. Isn't that the cutest thing??? I love it!

Now just a few more random pics of the boys!

2007-03-29T21:17:00.000-04:00

thank you aunt dee dee for this cutie pie outfit!

2007-03-24T08:41:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to post some more pictures of the boys! :-)
We all are doing good!!!

This is daddy's big find at Big Lots - it's Riley's fun gift for being such a good big brother. This thing blows up in minutes and folds right down for storage - just the thing for the Uhls household!!!

This is Riley's good friend Silas. They had a full day of playing yesterday and had such a good time. Here they are on the couch eating popcorn and enjoying the movie Peter Pan!

And last but not least, more pictures of Mr. Reed :-).

2007-03-16T15:04:00.000-04:00

Wanted to keep you updated with the Uhls family. Here is big brother with his gardening gear. He is loving his rain boots so much we are wearing them EVERYWHERE! The other picture is of Riley trying to help give Reed a bath - that was hilarious :-).

2007-03-10T17:51:00.000-05:00

Riley VS Reed :-)

Okay, Jason came up with the funny idea to put some pictures out here to see if other people could tell the difference between Riley and Reed. So, give us some feedback!!!

2007-03-08T21:40:00.000-05:00

This one goes out to : La-de-Freakin'-Idaho