Goodbye Gypsy

Almost 7 years ago, as Jason and I were traveling home from our 1 year anniversary trip, we heard some exciting news from my brother. He had a friend that could no longer take care of an adorable 10 year old black and white cocker spaniel. I immediately asked Jason if we could get a dog and he quickly replied, "No!" I accepted the answer for the time being and later on that day asked him again and he looked at me and said, "Alright, let's get a dog." I was so excited and could not wait for this cute black and white cocker spaniel to arrive at our house. Jason and I were just newlyweds, so this would be our very first treasured thing to take care of together, which would be so much fun.

 Gypsy arrived at our house with so much spunk and was running around everywhere and checking everything out. They gave us a list of her favorite food and treats and a file folder of all her vet history. That night we took Gypsy out to the nearest Petco where we picked out a cute bed, some polka-dot bowls, and a new leash.  We even engraved a new name tag for her with her new home address and the names of her proud owners on it. She was happy and we were overjoyed. She became our baby where she would sleep on our bed, lay next to us on the floor as we did crafts or watched tv, and would always be in the kitchen with us as we cooked. She sometimes would drive us nuts by doing those things dogs do, such as scratching our couches until they had holes, leaving a pee stain on the cement patio when there was a ton of perfectly green grass, or constantly itching and scratching herself from allergies; but all these things didn't even come close to how much love we had for her.

Fast forward 4 years later, and we had our baby girl, Laylie. Laylie and Gypsy quickly became the very best of friends. Laylie's first word was "dog," and they always played and did fun things together. Gypsy had the most tender and sweetest personality where we would never ever hear her growl or even get bothered by  Laylie. Gypsy cared and protected all of us and truly did her job on being the best dog.

Then came our second baby girl, Rael. Again, Gypsy didn't mind one bit when Rael would crawl all over her or even grab her fur. She acted like these little  girls were her own babies.

Today, 7 years later, with Gypsy being 17 years old (which is like 119 in dog years - simply wonderful!) we had to say the hardest goodbye to our sweet and amazing pup. No words can express how much love we have for our pup and she truly was our little family's best friend. The last days we spent with her were just what we needed. 

We had tears flowing down our cheeks as we stroked her head, kissed her cheeks, and thanked her for all the years of her faithful time to our family.  She truly was the perfect dog for our family and our hearts were so hurting to see her go. The time came where Gypsy left our family and we said our final goodbye. As our hearts were aching we gathered flowers from outside and placed her in a perfect little box just her size. 

That same evening our little family gathered around her one last time and put her to rest on Jason's parents land, under a beautiful tree. Laylie and her cousins made goodbye notes and let two balloons go up into the air for Gypsy. We all know she will be so missed, and she will always have a place in our hearts forever and ever. 

We love you, Gypsy, and we thank you for loving us unconditionally like dogs are so good at doing. I am so glad that Jason said yes to you all those years ago and that you spent some wonderful and unforgettable years with our family. 

The Angels Are Dancing

I woke up this morning thinking it would be just like any other morning. Get ready, get the girls ready, and off we go to preschool - but this morning Laylie gave me the most wonderful surprise. As I was cleaning up breakfast, I put on some worship music to brighten our morning. Laylie was dancing around the living room, twirling, skipping, singing along, and swaying back and forth. She raised her finger pointing in the air like she was singing to our sweet Savior and nothing was holding her back. At first, I smiled from ear to ear and giggled a little knowing that my little Laylie was having a wonderful time singing sweet praises to our Lord. After cleaning up the kitchen, we headed upstairs to clean our faces and do our morning hair. As I was doing her hair, her little voice said the most amazing words a mama wants to hear: "Mama, I love Jesus and I always want to be with Him." With a jump of excitement in my heart I replied, "Laylie, this is wonderful and guess what...Jesus wants to always be with you, too, and he loves you so much. Do you know what you can do to make sure we go to heaven, be His follower and be with Him? Pray and ask Him to be in our hearts." I added, "Would you like to pray with mama and have Jesus come into your life?" And she replies, "Oh yes!" So I finished doing her hair, and walked into Rael's room to get her dressed. Like any other mama getting ready in the morning I started the next task and dressed Rael. Than Laylie reminded me with her sweet words, "Mama, we need to pray and ask God." And I thought to myself oh my goodness how can this mama already forget the most important thing ever in her life? We sat together in Rael's room on the rocking chair and I explained what it meant to ask Jesus into her heart again, and we closed our eyes, folded our hands, and prayed together the most wonderful prayer. I was tearing up with joy and beyond excited that my little three old girl is now wanting to know our Savior more than ever and God is in her life. Can you say this is the greatest birthday gift ever?? Wow, my job as a mother, and to have my children honor and obey Him, are the greatest gifts my heart can ever receive. This day is one of my all time top favorites as a mama. Welcome to the family, baby girl. The angels in heaven are rejoicing!!

Proverbs 22:6 - Train up a child in the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not depart from it. Later today she said, "Mama, when I get to heaven and be with Jesus, I am going to hug Grandpa GG and D.L." (two of our sweet loved ones who have passed) Wow! She simply amazes me at times.

Sweet daughter of mine, continue to be a light in this world and keep seeking Him with everything you do.  

Our Lovee

We had our very first parent teacher conference at Laylie's preschool. Jason and I were so excited to meet with Laylie's teacher, Miss Wendy, and hear all about our little girl. Jason came home from work to meet me at the house, and we left our two girls with Auntie Lindsay and Uncle Tim. As we entered the preschool doors, I was a little nervous. It was our first parent teacher meeting and I did not really know what to think. We walked up to Laylie's classroom where her teacher was waiting by the door, and she greeted us and invited us to come in and sit with her. We sat across from her in these cute little preschool chairs, and she then began to share some extremely wonderful things with us about our little girl. She told us that Laylie is the youngest in her class but she is her #1 helper and her "go to" girl, and that she loves to help clean up. She said that Laylie also enjoys playing dress up, reading books, and playing with her friend Bailey. Laylie is so smart and helps everyone find their name tags and placemats, since she can read everyone's name. Miss Wendy then pulled out a piece of paper that had a straight line and a curvy line, and each line had been carefully cut out with scissors. She said that in 14 years of teaching at the preschool, never has she seen a three year old with such scissor cutting skills! Also, Laylie is an amazing girl, and that she is really behaved and a good listener. Hearing all these words made me want to raise my hands up in the air and yell, "that's my girl!" I am thankful to God for letting us raise his daughter. Jason and I will continue to teach her about Him, and let her be a light wherever she goes - especially her classroom. We walked out the two doors of her preschool as extremely proud parents and it truly was a good day being parents to such an outstanding preschooler. 

 Here is Laylie's work that she gave us that day: 

Her drawing of her self portrait 

All about Laylie 

Her amazing scissor cutting ability 

We love you Laylie! We are so proud of you! Continue being a light in this world - you are doing such a good job. 

Rael is 7 Months...

Our Rael is 7 months!

I feel like this last month she has grown up so fast and she is accomplishing so much. She now can crawl anywhere and everywhere. She enjoys getting on all fours, flying through the air, and then landing right on her belly. She now has the nickname "little seal".

Rael can pick up her own food all by herself and gets really excited if you place little puffs on her tray or even pieces of cooked egg yolk. It's so cute to watch her chew the little pieces with her tiny teeth.

She has her two bottom teeth and now is getting her top four.  They look like they are going to pop any day now! Her adorable little smile makes anyone and everyone smile right back.

She is now making some sweet sounds like "dada" which makes Jason so proud, even though we aren't quite sure yet if she is meaning Jason, or if she is just practicing.

Rael is now our best sleeper and sleeps from 7pm to 7am and we are loving it.

She still is my little petite baby, weighing in at 13.6 pounds, which makes her 7% in weight and 26 inches in height. I love it when her little body melts into my arms when she is tired, and when she looks at me with her big blue eyes the world just seems to fade away. 

We love our little Rael and can't wait to see what her 7th month will bring. I'm sure more joy, happiness, and love.  

7 Month Doctor Visit

Dressed up as "Tinker-Bell" for Disney on Ice with friends

Hanging out with her best friend - Laylie

 First time playing in the sand

Bedtime stories are the best

Look who's crawling...

Watch our little Rael Gracelynn go...

Happiest Place on Earth

We had an amazing unforgettable trip to the Happiest Place on Earth – Disneyland!!!

Jason’s parents blessed the whole family with a 2 day extravaganza trip to Disneyland and California Adventure where all the cousins got to spend some incredible time together. We had the most wonderful time going on countless rides, watching the parade, walking around the parks, enjoying all the Christmas decorations, and just really having a ball with all of the family. All 14 of us snuggled up in a 2 bedroom hotel room where the kids slept peacefully and soundly after the day's activities. Each morning they woke up eager to start the day looking forward to the new things that were waiting for them just around the corner. Disneyland truly is a magical place, especially when viewed through the eyes of a young child.
Mom and Dad, thank you so much for your love and generosity. We are so blessed by you and thank the Lord every day that He blessed us with such wonderful parents. Thank you for going on rides with your grandchildren, for giving them treats, and most especially for loving them. You truly are amazing!

We sure had a GRAND time!!