Stop, Drop and Roll

My Pre-K'ers had their annual field trip to the fire station. Here are so quick pics:

Most of Mrs. Robin's Class

This is Karson with her first little crush.......his Mama wanted me to snap their picture together. She made her brother get in the pic too :)

I blinked...they're FIVE

I really can't believe my "babies" are five! I have dreaded this day since they were born. 5 just seems so......so.....so.....OLD! But, they are super-fun and super-sweet, so I guess I'm ok with having two awesome five-year-old-Pre-K'ers. But, I'm definitely NOT allowing them to turn six or go to kindergarten! That is just out of the question! I will put a rock on their heads if I have to! ;)

Check out their super cute shirts :). I made them the night before their b-day because my etsy seller cancelled my order after it was supposed to already be delivered.....so much for trying to be prepared and ordering a month in advance. But, that is ok. After a few screams into a pillow, this crafty mama pulled it off herself.

The Karate Kid and Mary Lou Retton

Summer is in full swing. School is out and new activities have begun! Braids started karate last week and earned his first belt tonight. He had to learn and repeat "I will live my life in a positive manner" and he had to put is clothes away, throw away trash and brush his teeth without being asked. Hard......I know ;) Karson is in a new tumbling class at another gym. Her church tumbling/dance is over for the summer, but she didn't wanna quit.

Tomorrow is or last day of our 2nd VBS of the summer. Now, we just have RISE UP creative arts camp and swimming lessons to get through!

But, we are tough......we'll make it!

Family Pictures

We just had some super cute family pics made around Easter on a friend's family's farm. Click here to see some more of our precious pics: Overbay Photography

The Ant Bully

Several weeks ago, Karson and Brady's Sunday school class studied the parable of the sower and were given a little bag of seeds to take home. Well, we forgot about those little seeds. And, in usual Osborne family fashion......we threw them in our "catch all" basket on the kitchen counter and forgot about them. Then, Daddy Oz decided to clean out said basket and get rid of junk mail and other nonsense; and, he discovered the seeds. When he pulled out the little bag, our kitchen table was immediately swarmed by tiny antlike creatures! In 2.5 seconds they were EVERYWHERE! Apparently, something had laid eggs in that baggy and now its spawns were loose! Actually, I was upstairs and missed the chaos and my hubby and sweet sis took care of those creatures quick! But, Karson decided she'd better suit up in case we had another attack!

So, here she is.....the ANT BULLY! She put on gloves, her boots a hat, stickers for tough tattoos and her "scary face." Be afraid ants.........be very afraid! Then she decided to help me wash the dishes...sans hat, boots, tatts and gloves. I wish she would beg to help me do chores forever!

Wilderness Lodge

We took a little mini-break to Wilderness Lodge. It is a pretty cool resort hotel that sports indoor and outdoor waterparks. We couldn't have picked a better time to be there! I do have to admit that the guest occupancy was so low, that for a split second, I felt like I was in that movie The Shining. But, it was awesome to be able to ride the waterslides over and over with no wait! All my water babies had a blast! And, yes, I was there.......I did go down waterslides, ride the wave pool and expose my paleness to the world........I also took all the pictures!

Brady was just over 42 inches and got to ride all but 1 of the slides. He was in HEAVEN! The kid had a blast! Karson missed the mark by a couple of inches, but had a great time anyway! She is a hardcore dare-devil but never shed a tear when she wasn't able to ride.

All work and no play......

Preschool is tough. All that pasting, finger painting, hula hooping and silly song singing is rough on a little person. But, it seems that even when we are at home......we still can't manage to take it easy. There is always something to be done.

Like.....

.......saving the world and bringing Spring to the mainland.

..........running a daycare

........having to coordinate and dress yourself and your many babies for family pictures

Nope, the work never ends!

Thank goodness it is Spring Break. Maybe we can just chillax for once ;)

Spring has Sprung!

Last Friday, we had one of the most perfect days EVER!!! So, the Oz Family headed to one of our favorite parks to play!...and ride our bikes!Then, we headed over to walk by the river where the daffodils were in full bloom!

Then, we dropped off our little friends and had a date night! Now, that is my kind of day!

Aunt Nise's Farm

Last Saturday, we spent the day at Daddy Oz's Aunt Denise's farm. The pictures are worth 1,000 words!

"He will feed his flock like a shepherd.
He will carry the lambs in his arms,
holding them close to his heart.
He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young."
Isaiah 40:11

Rejoice and be glad! We have a Good Shepherd who loves us!

How Beautiful

I am blessed to have the opportunity to be a part of Bible Study Fellowship. This year, we are studying Isaiah. I am falling IN LOVE with the Old Testament like never before. The prophecy found in Isaiah is A-MA-ZING!!! Last week, we studied Isaiah 52 and it includes one of my favorite verses. How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion,“Your God reigns!” Isaiah 52:7

It reminded me of the song that was sung at my wedding, "How Beautiful" by Twila Paris. I found this incredibly moving video. Please pause my music and watch.

Here She is.......Miss America!

While shopping at the mall the other afternoon, we came upon a Prom Expo/Beauty Pageant. Karson was over-the-moon excited! She loved checking out the "big girls" in their fancy dresses. She told me that she wanted to be in a beauty pageant. However, since I am not into that sort of thing, I told her we would do one at home. She was cool with that. So, here she is.....Miss America!

Oh, I forgot to mention that I had to be in the pageant too. She needed some competition.

The judges came up with some good questions for us. They asked us our ages, our fav. color, our address, etc..........it was tough!

We both sang and danced for our talent. She sang "King Jesus," and so did I. We also showed the judges our best moves.......which we have on video.

These were our judges. They look like they know what they are doing.....right? They decided that Karson was the winner. Brady said, "Mommy, we were gonna give you 2nd place, but we decided to give you last place instead!" Thanks a lot guys!

Grrrr.....

My beautiful, sweet princess decided to take a break from playing beauty pageant and wedding and wanted to play the part of a "scary guy."

Folks this is as scary as it gets.......

Be very afraid!

She might smother you with kisses or make you play dress-up against your will......like she did to this poor guy: But, as long as he can play his Leapster.....he doesn't seem to mind too much.

Dateable, Sex and God

Can you believe I encouraged my youth girls to take dating advice from this guy!:Our youth bible study just wrapped up a series on "relationships." It was a lot of fun! We had some great conversations and used the book, Dateable, by Justin Lookadoo and Haley DiMarco as one of our resources. Fate had it that Justin's Datable, Sex and God Conference Tour ended up 2 hours from us ...just as we finished up his book. I had the privilege of taking a van load of teenage girls to this incredible event! We participated in AMAZING worship led by Roger Williams and the All Mixed Up Quartet (Look for them to hit it big on the Christian music scene!) and heard great truth spoken about God's design for sex and relationships!

Isn't it funny how everything your mama and your youth pastor told you about high school relationships ended up being true? I wanted to stand up shout "AMEN" over and over during Justin's hilariously entertaining......yet absolutely biblical-truth filled message. My favorite truth he shared was:

"Girls, Shut up and be mysterious!" --in other words don't tell him your whole life story in a marathon phone conversation, drop your friends for him, cry like an insane person, or follow him around like a puppy dog. (Thank goodness for multiple roommates who had to share 1 land-based, long-distance phone line...and the fact that Clemson is 3 hrs from CNC...or I would have never wooed my sweet hubby!) Every time I watch ABC's "The Bachelor"......yes, I am hooked......I want to shout, "Shut up and be mysterious you fool!" Really......it is the perfect example of how NOT to be dateable:

Obviously, this is not the way to win over Prince Charming......goodness gracious!

Still not lookin pretty....

Sometimes you gotta live and learn....been there...done that! But, my prayer for the girls in my group is that they will fall so in love with the Great Romancer, our true Bridegroom, Jesus Christ..... that they will be serving Him so faithfully while they are waiting......that they won't have much time to spend crying or worrying about the future. I pray they will pursue Christ with all they have and trust that He has already gone out before them to seek out the "man of their dreams!"

The conference was so much fun......and a great time for new beginnings and healing for lots of teens! I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to be able to have a part in sharing God's crazy love for us with such awesome teenagers!