My very first Mother's Day gift!!!

This little sweetie (my 5 yr old niece Allie) made me a Mother's Day present this year.
How precious is that?!?! *sniff sniff*

Styrafoam plates that she painted in my Favorite color!!!

Babies!!!

Clara, the firstborn twin

Kailey and Clara gazing at each other

TWINS!!!! A couple weeks old here.  Ella, Clara, myself, and Kailey

Ella, born one minute later. Definitely not identical:)

Naomi Jean!!! 6 days old and probably about 6 pounds. Delicate little girl:)

Group picture with big brother! Me, Naomi, Jonah

My main purpose in this post is to show off 3 beautiful new baby girls:) The bottom little lady is Naomi Coughlin (Josh and Ann). Above are the twins- Clara and Ella. Fast update on my life: Countdown is on-- 10 days of babysitting left!! I can't believe how time has flown... I scarcely remember her being a chubby little infant that sat on the floor and couldn't go anywhere on her own. Those days are looooong gone:) Now she follows me constantly and wants to help me do whatever I'm doing. If I'm making a phone call, she has her toy phone and mimics me. If I'm vacuuming, she insists on (me) dragging out her toy vacuum so she can vacuum with me. She's learning that she has to 'vacuum' at the opposite side of the room and then we switch. ;) Sometimes I fondly think back to the days where cleaning meant the girls were in their beds with heaps of books while I cleaned upstairs. That was so much easier than trying to explain to the 2 year old that no, she can't have a lysol wipe because its chemicals and she always has her fingers in her mouth. :)
One day she will vacuum all by herself.... *tear*
Eva is almost done with kindergarten. Her first day was not that long ago... I watched her get on the bus and I cried a little bit. She would be gone all day, every day, for the next umpteen years. What a strange life.

This summer will be different, I feel. I shall endeavor to stay near home as much as I can. I plan to give Eva some beginner's piano lessons... I'm looking forward to it, she is eager to learn. At this point;)
I want to do some gardening, some cleaning/organizing projects, and I want to do some crafting!!! That's what everyone is doing these days- do it yourself projects!!! I'm so far out of the loop! But fear not, I have been saving up some very special things that will turn into something beautiful. Soon. :D

Then, for my big news, this August I start watching the twins!!! I'm very much looking forward to it!
The Lord gave me a passion for babies, and I've always wanted twins:) This might be the closest I get;)

That will end my updates for now:)
~yours truly:)

Happy Grandparents Day!

No no, its not really Grandparent's Day (is it??) - but why stick to the calendar. I can celebrate my grandparents any day of the year, it needn't be a recognized national holiday, eh? (for you Canadians!)

Grandma Ballhagen and Grandma Dempster are beautiful spring chickens- so we won't mention their ages. Grandpa Ballhagen has passed the years of spring, so I proudly declare his age- 101 years and 8 months!

I love these wonderful people so much- thank You, Lord, for giving them to me!

~Memories~

Grandma D- First thing I think of is doing jigsaw puzzles with her. I specifically remember a 3-D, Thomas Kinkade puzzle we once did. My eyes were spinning and not sure how to focus after about 5 seconds. I had a hard time with that one, felt like I couldn't see straight. But Grandma proved her salt and stuck with it until completion! When it was finished, we didn't have the courage (.... stupidity) to take it apart, so Grandma glued it and it became a wall ornament. :)

It was the ONLY time I ever allowed anyone to glue a puzzle together.

I lived with her for a few years, and I remember the cozy evenings of sitting in the living room and reading books. Grandma and I are bookworms by definition.

Then there were all those times when we'd sit and watch the cats. We watched them sit. We watched them sleep. We watched them play. I won't mention how I loved to pick on Grandma's kitty;) Grandma's home-made bread... the days when I awoke or came in to the smell of freshly-made bread, those were good days:) She almost always has home-made cookies waiting to be eaten! She patiently endured the times when I had friends stay overnight. We tried to be quiet, but you know how teenage girls are;)

Love you Grandma!!!

Grandma B- Word-search puzzles, library visits, and treats are what come to mind. For as long as I can remember, she always worked on word search puzzles. During my childhood, I would go spend a week or two with Grandma and Grandpa Ballhagen. I was a HUGE bookworm as a child (and had the time for it!) so Grandma and I would walk to the library in New Hartford. As she talked to the librarian, I would find sections like "The Babysitter's Club" and accumulated a massive tower of books. Grandma was always shocked by how many I would come up to the desk with... especially when it required two trips to get them all! She was always sure I would never be able to read all those books, but I always proved her wrong! I would read for hours. When I was called for lunch, I would eat as fast as I could so I could get back to reading. She would also take me to the New Hartford Kwik Trip at some point, because she would need bananas, or bread, or those bags of milk.. and she would pick out some sort of candy and ask me if I wanted that kind. Then we would pick a few different treats and she allowed me to have one per day.

Their house in New Hartford was ruined by the floods, but I still remember the nights of waking up every time a train went by. And the mosquitos... I even remember the neighbors:)

Love you Gramma B!!!

Grandpa Ballhagen- Haha, the first thing I think of is how he always used to say, "Bless your heart." I will always remember that:) He always calls me "dear one" and always says, "I thank the Lord for you, dear one." Not only are his words very tender and loving, but I will always remember his sense of humor! You never know what witty remark is going to come out next! Saturday, when I was with him, someone was asking him "Are you sure?" He is hard of hearing, so looked at her for a moment, then said, "No, I ain't very sharp." Everyone burst out laughing:D He has a way of cheering people up with his witty remarks. I remember painting my fingernails hot pink while in their living room. Grandma just shrugged it off, because she knew how stubborn I was, so why waste breath by saying anything;) I would have been about 12 years old, or so, so this was years ago, when nail polish was highly unacceptable. And to go without nylons was extremely shocking behavior:) Anyways, while painting my nails in front of Grandpa, who of course didn't approve, I waited for his reaction. He watched me then said, "Ohhh ohhhhh, you musn't do that! You just take that stuff right off!" - in his teasing voice.

He never scolded me harshly (well, if he did, I don't remember it!), but he always scolded me in his gentle, teasing voice. :)

I love you Grandpa!!!

You are all very precious to me, and you have served your children and us, as we grew up, for all these years. Now its our turn to serve you.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Gavin!!!

Gets harder every year... :)