Wearing Daddy's Hat and Shades

Valentine's Day

We finished up our Valentine's Week with a fun-filled Valentine's Day. I started off the day by surprising Michael with breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts. (Earlier in the week, he had said he knew where we were going, and I knew that he knew it was Dunkin' Donuts. But then he had jokingly guessed that we were going to Waffle House, so on our way to Dunkin' Donuts, I pulled into Waffle House first. [Michael was blindfolded and wasn't sure which side of town we were on due to my expert circular driving skills that confused him :-)]. I was hoping to throw him off and thought he would laugh really hard when I took the blindfold off him and he saw we were at Waffle House. I think he believed me for a couple of minutes! But then we headed down the street to Dunkin' Donuts and had a really yummy breakfast!)

When we got home from breakfast, Viviane received a special Valentine message on the refrigerator from Mommy and Daddy--written with part of her Valentine's gift--a new set of magnetic alphabet letters!

Michael surprised me with an afternoon and evening in Saluda, NC. He had arranged for Auntie Donna to babysit Viviane. (Thanks, Donna!) We had a great time browsing in the little antique shops, exchanging our Valentine gifts, talking, and having dinner at the Saluda Grade Cafe. We finished off the evening with shakes from Cold Stone Creamery before picking up Viviane.

The day was a great conclusion to a wonderful Valentine's Week!

Valentine's Week, Part 4

Yesterday's treats were....

More "Cupid Cupcakes" and a Dr. Pepper for Michael:

A Chick-Fil-A chicken biscuit for Liz:

And a Valentine's balloon for Viviane:

The Valentine's Day fun has already started today--I surprised Michael with a breakfast treat this morning, and he has a surprise planned for the afternoon/evening! More on that later.

Happy Valentine's Day to all of you!!!!

Valentine's Week, Part 3

Michael got cards from both his girls today:

And Liz got McDonald's French Fries!!!

(Notice the carton is empty...once again, I couldn't wait long enough to take a picture before digging in :-) Also notice the theme connecting my Valentine treats: they're all health food.)

Valentine's Week, Part 2

Liz's treat from Michael:

(Mocha Frappuccino--YUMMY!)

Michael's treat from Liz:

(Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting)

Family Outing to Cracker Barrel

One of the churches we were recently in graciously gave us a Cracker Barrel gift card, so we decided to use it Monday night for a family outing! Viviane had lots of fun coloring, playing the peg game, and riding the rocking horse in the Cracker Barrel Store. And we ALL enjoyed the yummy food (and I thoroughly appreciated not having to cook for the evening :-) ).

Valentine's Week, Part 1

Viviane and I greeted Daddy with a sign on the front door this morning:



(Please excuse the strangely placed exclamation points. This was part of a "Happy Birthday, Daddy! We love you!!!!" sign, and we just "recycled" part of it :-) )


And Daddy brought home a Krispy Kreme doughnut for Mommy! Yum, yum!

(Notice the box is empty because I couldn't even wait long enough to take a picture before eating the delicious delicacy. Thanks, Michael!!!)

Happy 50th Birthday, Judy!!!

Hannah & Erin Hurst (with the expert assistance of Donna Bixby) planned a smashing 50th birthday party for their mom, Judy, and we were privileged to attend it this past Saturday night. (The Hursts are some of our dear friends from church.) It was a wonderful time of celebrating the life God has blessed Judy with! Today is Judy's official birthday. Have a wonderful day, Judy! We love you!

Visiting Mrs. Gowan

Viviane and I had a great visit with Mrs. Gowan today. She so kindly pulled out toys for Viviane to play with (Viviane especially enjoyed the teddy bear and little puppy and the miniature red tricycle). Mrs. Gowan is such a sweet lady, and we love her dearly. We are grateful to God for giving us the joy of spending part of our morning with her!

Thanks for praying!

Thanks to all of you for praying for Viviane's appointment with the allergist this morning. It went very well, and we are so thankful to the Lord for granting grace and strength. Michael was able to get off work early and go with us, so having the calming presence of Daddy was a huge blessing (especially to Mommy :-) ) Viviane was a little "trooper" and only cried a little--what a big girl! The Lord really helped her to handle things calmly. We found out she definitely does have a peanut allergy, so we're thankful to know that and learn what we need to do to handle things wisely. Thanks again for praying for us!