A Romans 8:28 Life Lesson

Well, I had gone back forth whether or not I would even acknowledge this happening via social media or not but I have decided that it may just help me get the items back (or at least get it off my chest)! So, on Saturday morning we were super excited to have a mini session set up with Suni. I had been anxious about not being able to get pictures this fall because of busy schedules, etc. but when she posted about doing a session for a family in need, I was super thrilled. Helping a family in need, having beautiful pictures taken, AND checking off pictures on my to do list on a day when we had nothing planned? It was a WIN WIN. Well, long story short, here is my letter to the editor that will hit The Toccoa Record on Thursday.

 To anyone who spends time in our beautiful downtown Toccoa area:

My name is Dana Horton. My family was having a family photo session on this past Saturday morning at approx. 10 am in the Pruitt Park/ downtown Toccoa area. We had our photo props and a white reusable shopping bag that says "Staples loves teachers" that we left beside the wall at Pruitt Park for 5-10 minutes to take a few pictures on the brick wall downtown. When we returned to use my daughter’s items as part of the photo session, they were gone. Someone had stolen a photo prop suitcase (dark brown, vintage looking), and the white bag full of my daughter’s things: my daughter's collectible Madame Alexander's baby doll, a bubble making toy, a rainbow colored outfit and bow, a lollipop, and most importantly, a hardback copy of the Dr. Seuss book "Oh The Places You Will Go". The book did have $75 cash folded up inside to give to the photographer. I desperately would like to have this book returned, as it would be of no value to anyone else. It was a gift from my parents when I graduated high school and had a very special message inside. I had planned on passing it down to my own daughter when she graduated high school. We never would have imagined items belonging to our little girl being stolen like this, especially in the few moments we walked away. While the chances of these items being found are very slim, I would ask that you please be on the look out for these items as you walk, run, or enjoy our downtown area. A police report has been filed and any person finding an item can turn it into the police department or return it to me. Thank you so much!

How cute was this going to be with Ellie Claire and her lollipop? :(

I want so badly to have the book back. It was going to be SO cute having James, Ellie Claire, and I reading it together. She loves this book and so do we. I had great plans for it. And James says "get another book and have your mom write another note"....it's still not the same. 

And what about her "baby" she is now missing? Nah-nah had brought this sweet doll back from Madame Alexander's in NYC just last month.

Now, I do realize I should have never left the bag there but I never in a million years would have thought that some person would have been waiting there in the bushes(?) ready to steal my daughter's belongings!!! We were only gone for about 10 minutes (got held up by Ellie Claire watching the trains that came through!) and it's not like Toccoa is a huge hub for crime where I was worried about this.  Sweet Suni spent extra time out of her day searching downtown and in trashcans and drove around all of downtown with me searching for any trace of the bag. We figured the person would have taken the money and dumped the rest but there's not a thing in sight after searching two days in a row. I have never had anything stolen from me which is why I think I am so bothered by it. I give people the benefit of the doubt and am too trusting, apparently. I'm not naive to think stuff like this doesn't happen, I just generally trust that most people make good choices and wouldn't steal from a bag that says "staples loves teachers". And to think they may have even been watching for us to leave and saw that those items were my daughter's....that's just really wrong. What kind of person takes a child's baby doll? But what satan tries to twist for evil.....God always turns for good. The family in need will still be lifted up and encouraged by Suni's good deed. I am praying that they be ever-so-blessed in the days to come. I am praying for the person who stole the items to have a guilty conscience and give the book to a local thrift store. I do fully realize these are all just things and not important in the big picture. I just have to keep reminding myself that God will fulfill His promise in Romans 8:28-whether the items be found or not!  

Ellie Claire is 16 months old!

Dear Ellie Claire,

I'm about 8 days late writing your monthly letter because I am so busy chasing you around and trying so hard to soak up every precious moment with you! This has probably been my favorite month with you thus far, as your personality is really shining through and I feel like we can really communicate well. It is such a good feeling to know that you understand exactly what I am saying and most often, I can read your mind. As parents, your dad and I finally feel like we "get parenting" enough to survive (although we aren't claiming to be anywhere near perfect)! You are growing and changing from a baby to beautiful little girl before our very eyes. You are 29 inches tall, about 25 pounds, and still in a size 3 shoe. Your little feet are so tiny and that is why we think it took you so long to muster up the confidence to finally walk independently. You started really walking on Friday, May 24 which was our last day of school and your last full week at daycare for the summer. You didn't want to leave that day because you were so excited about your accomplishment! Of course, Miss N. and everyone else were praising you and keeping you the spotlight of their day so you LOVED all that attention. You are saying SO MANY words now. Everyone always compliments you on your vocabulary and how clearly you speak. Maybe one day you will be a news broadcaster or something! You also love to sing. Whether in the church nursery, strolling through the neighborhood, or riding in your carseat, you love to hum little songs to yourself. You won't dare let us catch you on video though! You are very reflective and observant. If there is a speck of anything anywhere, you will find it and ask us about it. You are usually good not to put it into your mouth. Your favorite activities include snuggling and reading with mama, wrestling with daddy, visiting the boos and Maggie at Granny and Poppy's house, being in church nursery, eating gravy biscuits on Sunday mornings before church, swinging outside on the porch (AKA "rock-rock huh?"), coloring, singing, dancing, giving sugar, waving and saying hello to all people. You don't meet a stranger, girl!

You took this picture!

So happy after your gravy biscuit! Precious hands :)

You love babies except when mommy holds them. You MUST have at least one book read to you nightly and some rocking time with mommy in the glider. Whenever I finish our bedtime prayers, you know exactly when to whisper "Amen" in the sweetest voice that God ever created. Your favorite foods are anything we are eating, fruit, kale smoothies, peas, and Bopa-juice (sweet tea). That's seriously what you call it and although I was originally against you having it, Bopa makes it special just for you-decaf with only a little sugar.

You are super schedule oriented and we didn't even try, it just happened. You must have a morning nap (11:30-1:30) and usually a short afternoon nap (3:30-4:30) and you are in bed by 9. Our evenings are always much more enjoyable when you have had that second nap. You are just like your sleep-deprived parents and LOVE to sleep now! Whenever you see a car or anything with wheels, you say "beep beep" and have a new fascination with your pink SUV Little People toy and all other toys that roll. You still don't care very much for TV or independent play for very long. After about 10 minutes you like to be up and moving again! You LOVE to plunder through things like your sippy cup drawer, mommy's purse, and laundry that needs to be folded. You are so animated and dramatic just like her daddy. Your facial expressions are hysterical and could seriously win us some $ one day (maybe?).

My two most favorite times of day are when you wake up and when you go to sleep. There's something about seeing you all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and shouting "I want my BOW!!!!" that makes every day a little bit sweeter. Of course, there is nothing like our special bedtime ritual when you smell super good after your bath and speak to us in a whisper.

I'm going to make a list of your favorite sayings just in case we want to look back sometime and see what your common phrases were.

Mama, Dada, Nana, Bopa (Poppy), NahNah, Baby, Shhhh! (finger over lip), Play Ball Boys, Dog, Where's The ___?, I want more juice, I can walk!!, Dada work, Ben, church, outside, rocka-rock, bird, bee, boo (cow), meow, cat, milk, eat, Shew-wee (every time we change your diaper), night-night, I want ____, puff, cookie, hot, bow, shirt, shoes, head, ear, nose, teeth, water, rain, bite-bite, slide, sit, swing, bye bye, Saige, toot, beep-beep, Jesus, Amen, Awwww......

I've really been thinking and praying lately about the kind of young lady I pray for you to become and what God laid on my heart was "remind her often that she is a Daughter of the King and that she must act like it-in her thoughts, in her words, and most importantly, her actions-and this will draw her near to Me". Then I found these and thought I should definitely include them in the blog post:

Original Source unknown

 Original Source unknown

Happy Daddy Day & Saturday Summary!

Happy Father's Day to my favorite daddies! 

What great truth is in this quote-

"I never knew how much I loved you until I saw how much you loved her." My husband is a great daddy. He never hesitates to change diapers, give baths, spend 1-on-1 time, and do whatever necessary to make sure Ellie Claire's needs are met. He loves playing with her, wrestling with her, and always letting her win. He tickles her until she belly laughs and plays peekaboo like a champ. There is no doubt that he loves her and she loves him. He has set the bar quite high in 17 months of daddy-hood!  I made James a photo book of he and Ellie Claire from the past year. This is the second year I've done this because I always want to make sure Father's Day is a super happy and memorable day for him to look back on. We had Father's Day a little early on Saturday-complete with decorations, presents, chicken alfredo, salad, his favorite rolls (Sister Schubert) , and homemade frosty ice cream. Most importantly, we spend time together outside as a family on the porch and then cuddled and played with Ellie Claire before bed. Hearing Ellie Claire laugh with (or at!) her daddy is my most favorite thing! Sunday morning, we enjoyed breakfast at Dairy Queen (had planned to make pancakes at home for him but he likes our traditional breakfast on mornings when we are busy), sang a duet at church ("Your Love Never Fails" by Jesus Culture), and enjoyed lunch with my parents before he had to head work (work because he has next weekend off for the men's conference with church). What a great time together!

 

Click here to view this photo book larger

Not only am I thankful to parent beside my best friend, I am SO very thankful for my own dad. When I try to put into words how special that he is to me, I can't! He has always been a solid rock, a super hard working provider for our family, and a gentle spirit to quietly show me how to live like Jesus. He's always there to help me with anything I ask (over the years there have been some pretty crazy/extreme requests), listen, or provide advice when I need it-and he's never been wrong! I am so very blessed to have the dad that that I do & I don't dare take him for granted!  He's also a super good Poppy ("Bopah" according to her) these days & I just love seeing Ellie Claire interact with my dad. Their smiles when they are together are contagious! He is certainly head over heels for her! These pictures capture just a tiny bit of that!

Finally, most importantly, I am thankful for my Heavenly Father-how lost I would be without Him! I am so appreciative for how God created families, especially fathers for us to love and respect. This video is called "The Ultimate Love Letter from Our Heavenly Father."  I love this!

Saturday Summary- 6.8.13

So much has been going on since my last blog post! We have been super busy with post planning and closing out the school year, Vacation Bible School, having visits with Nana & Angel, and I didn't even mention trying to keep up with an INDEPENDENT walker. Yes, on our last day of school (May 24) Ellie Claire finally took those much anticipated independent steps. She has been walking assisted since right before her first birthday, but it took her another almost 5 months to gain the confidence she needed to step out on her own. She was so proud of herself when she finally did it! That day when I picked her up from daycare, Mrs. N. was so happy and proud of her. Ellie Claire spent about 15 minutes showing me how she could walk and didn't even want to leave. It is such a blessing to have someone keep her where she feels so safe, happy, and confident that she doesn't want to leave! She has been full speed ahead since that day....(insert mental picture of her running. everywhere. without stopping!)

In other news, I received the news during post planning that I will be teaching third grade next year! While it is bittersweet to pack up the classroom where I spent my first 4 years, I am excited and welcome the change. It will keep me on my toes and allow me to plan with James who also teaches third grade. We will really enjoy getting to lesson plan together and have some exciting competitions between our classes. Below is a picture of Ellie Claire in my old classroom, occupying herself with colored pencils. She seriously sat there for about 30 minutes contently playing and "drawing".

This past week, Ida & Angel came up for a visit. We had so much fun just relaxing, spoiling EC, and catching up on some much needed ZZZs since this was actually our first week of summer. We did visit Toccoa Falls since they had never been and had a fun little photo session.

Each night this week, James & I had the privilege of teaching the second and third graders at VBS. It was such a FUN week and we really enjoyed building relationships with the kids and sharing Jesus with them! The theme, Colossal Coaster World, was one of the best VBS themes I've ever participated in. It was about the life of Paul and our theme verse was one of my favorites- "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and a sound mind" 2 Timothy 4:7. I'm praying that each of the children remember that if God can change and use a man like Paul, He can use any of us for wonderful things for His glory! EC loved her goody bag from sweet Miss Audrey on commencement night and getting to peek through the window at her mommy and daddy teaching each night. She also enjoyed extra spoiling from aunt Dar.

On Friday night, James was working and EC wanted to stay up for him to get home so I decided to paint her toe nails. She thought she was so big and loved it! She sat very still, didn't wiggle at all, and kept smiling like she knew this was something special. May I always remember the little moments!

Today, Mama & I decided to take Ellie Claire to Babyland General. Since I haven't been in probably 20 years myself, I had more fun just as much fun than Ellie Claire. She loved the babies, but her favorites were the animals all around-the monkey especially. At the second birth we saw, the baby was a girl and we got to name her Ellie Claire! We were so excited! (Too bad she was $295...) We ended the night dancing to Bible School songs and having pizza with Granny & Poppy. Such a fun day and time to treasure! I have more pictures coming from Babyland General but I left my camera in my parents' car.

I'm hoping by starting "Saturday Summaries" I can hold myself more accountable for keeping up with our life updates in a timely manner!

Mother's Day Weekend

This weekend was a super fun and very busy weekend for us! Friday night, we enjoyed El Patron before James headed to Lowes and then Baby Girl and I finally got around to planting our garden. Since she isn't taking more than a few steps unassisted yet, I had to strap her into her red wagon to "draw" while I planted our seedlings. She enjoyed helping me water it when it was complete. Sadly, my Iphone had died and I didn't want to risk my nice camera getting soaked, so I don't have a picture of my little helper!

After Ellie Claire went to bed, I finished up the garden and got started cleaning the house. It had been on the back burner for a good two weeks and when James starts to notice, you know it is way out of hand. So, I was up until 1:30 but I felt very proud to have a clean house again! It was a super good feeling waking up to no clutter also.

Saturday morning, we helped move the children's department at church into its newly renovated basement. The de-cluttering and organizing part of the morning was right up my alley. Purging is a beautiful thing. If only I could heed my own advice at home.  We worked for a few hours and headed to lunch (back to El Patron!) with mama, Summer, and Barbara. (Insert forgotten picture here.)

Saturday afternoon, I came home to a pleasant surprise. Our awesome neighbors helped us out with some pine straw for our work-in-progress embankment. (I'll blog more about this later.) They knew we had been super busy and landscaping had not been our priority! What a blessing! After working outside with them for a few minutes, it was time to get ready for the Mother-Daughter banquet at Tom's Creek.

I had a wonderful time with Tammy and Mama and enjoyed being served by my dad. I also loved hearing my BFF Noel speak words of His Truth about the influence of a mom!

Sunday, I greeted the day by my handsome husband and sweet baby yelling "MaaaaaaaaaMaaaaa"! We had our normal Sunday morning ritual of cuddling, playing, getting ready for church, and eating breakfast at Dairy Queen. I was super excited to receive a Mother's Day massage gift certificate and a new purse. Just what this mama likes!

After a wonderful message by Pastor Paul "The Secrets of a Happy Home", we came home and enjoyed a little time with Daddy before he headed to work. (James had already taken me on a Mother's Day extravaganza  last weekend and I felt it was important to celebrate my mom today.) We enjoy our front porch so much. If Ellie Claire could, she would say it's her favorite place in our home. My parents came by to pick EC & I up and we headed off to the Dillard House to treat my mama for the day! We had a delicious lunch, followed by a tour of the property and of course, lots of pictures of Baby Girl enjoying the Farm-Zoo. It was a little chilly in the mountains, which explains EC's mis-matched heart jacket in a few of the pictures. My mom loved her Origami Owl necklace and flowers that we got her. Sadly, another picture forgotten.  We had the best day together celebrating my mom!

My heart is overwhelmed with thankfulness for my own mom's unconditional love for me and for the gift I have been given in becoming a mother. My heart explodes with love for our precious girl every day. Every time someone says "time goes by way too fast so enjoy it", I know how right they are. I'm doing my best to enjoy every day, even in the midst of the struggles, and soak up this time in my life! Today, I'm thanking God for the blessing of my mom and of being given the privilege of being one. Motherhood is a true gift, honor, and LEARNING PROCESS (for sure!) but by God's grace He will help me become the mama He desires me to be.

Ellie Claire is 15 months old!

Wow! Where has the time gone? It seems like we blinked and here you are no longer a baby but a toddler becoming the sweetest little girl we've ever met. Here are some things you are up to right now:
 - Size 3 diapers and sleeping all night from around 8 until whenever we get you up around 6:45
- Size 18 month clothes
- At your last Dr. appointment a few weeks ago (for RSV) you weighed 22 lbs.
- Still only two bottom teeth & 1 on top! Lots of bumpy gums :)
- Still cruising around all the furniture but will now let go and balance for a few seconds. You love to practically RUN while holding our hands/fingers but still refuse to let go. We are totally okay with that.
-You love dogs and balls. You repeat those words about 50 times per day.
-Your vocabulary is exploding by the day it seems.
- You enjoy sitting in a pink chair that your Granny got you and drinking out of your sippy cup (you remind us of Uncle Si on Duck Dynasty). You will only sit for a few minutes until you have to be up moving again. Nothing gets past you.

Please note the adorable foot rotations :-).

 - You love doing anything outside. You point and say "rock-a rock-a" and love to play with the whind chimes while sitting in the porch swing.

- You will "mooooo" when we ask what a cow says. Sometimes you get confused a little and call them "boos". You accentuate the head motion with this and it is so adorable.
- You love to blow kisses and have recently begun giving real lip kisses.
 - You hold your toy phone (or beg for mommy's iphone) to your ear and say "hello?" Already practicing your phone skills! :)
- Trying to get you dressed or change your diaper is a chore! You are soooo squirmy and strong and now takes three times as long as it used to!
-Thank you for always reminding us to put in your bow each morning. You seriously say "bow" and pat your head until we put it on you, you little Diva!
- You take 1 decent nap a day at daycare in the afternoon and usually that is all. Your bedtime in the past month has become very rigid. If we happen to still be out and about at your bedtime, your temper breaks loose!
- You love food! Anything we put in front of you, you like. Even if you have just eaten a full meal, you must have some of whatever is on mommy or daddy's plate. Your favorite foods are mandarin oranges, bananas, and sweet potatoes. And you can down those fruit and veggie food pouches in about a minute flat. This week I started making you green smoothies and you are obsessed. You suck those down like they are ice cream! You have been tricked by all those hidden vitamins!

-You have impeccable manners. The way you say "thank yooouuuuuu" is hysterical.

- Thankfully you usually don't even whimper when we drop you off at daycare. You are adjusted well to daycare life and in good hands. We couldn't ask for a better lady to "keep" you! It still makes mommy so sad to leave you every day, so usually daddy takes you to spare me.
 - You are constantly on the move. You aren't still or engaged in any one activity for more than 5 minutes. You love to plunder through everything you own like you are taking "inventory" of it. This reminds me of your Great-Grandma Purcell! Y'all would have been two peas in a pod!
-You are losing the baby face/hair and will need a haircut very soon. I also think you are beginning to look more like Granny than your Daddy now.

 Ellie Claire, you are such a JOY! You are so spunky, loving, and just so happy all the time! You smile at everyone and we cannot help but smile back. You can light up a room with your "Hey!" We thank God for you every day!

Me A-Z....A re-acquaintance with our family blog!

Me A-Z Wow! I started our Horton family blog back in 2010 and to say I've been negligent is a huge understatement. Here's an attempt to rekindle our family blog and update it for the first time since Ellie Claire was born 15 months ago! Time has a way of spinning past me so fast and I'm finding that I'm so busy in the day to day that it is difficult to remember the things I should be keeping track of. I keep telling myself that spending time with my family is more important than blogging about milestones or posting them to facebook, but at some point in time I know I'm going to look back and wish I had. Hence the reason for this post. So in order to jump start myself again I decided to do a post. I saw someone else use the "Me A-Z" and thought it would be kind of fun and a easy way to get blogging again.

 Age - In my mind I feel about 30 (not that there's anything wrong with being 30). But I'm a young 24! Teaching/motherhood has definitely aged me, with a few gray hairs to prove it ;)

 Bed Size - King

 Chore You Hate - Folding clothes-doing the laundry is fine but I prefer not to fold and put them away.

 Dogs - I prefer cats. We've been petless for over a year now since Walter escaped while James & I were at a Dave Barnes concert. We still talk about him often & wish Ellie Claire had gotten to spend more time with him! (Something tells me they wouldn't have gotten along.)

 Essential Start To My Day - My Tervis tumbler full of cold water, a "hey mama" from Ellie Claire, and a kiss from James

 Favorite Color - Coral

 Gold or Silver - Both

 House or Apartment - House

 Instruments Played - I always wanted to play the piano, but never learned. Bummer.

 Junk food - Chips & Salsa, pizza, ice cream....

 Kids - Ellie Claire, 15 months

 Live - Georgia

 Married - Happily! 3 years in June (Wow!)

 Never Again - Gain (ahem) lbs while pregnant

 Other Fun Fact - I like to get ready in the dark. Seriously. Especially while brushing my teeth & straightening my hair. Weird, I know.

 Pet Peeve - Improper grammar, bad customer service

 Quote - Saw this last night on Pinterest & loved it: "When You called me to be a mama, You didn't ask for perfection. But that with every breath, I'd point them to You". Matthew 6:33

 Righty or Lefty - Righty & Proud!

 Siblings - No biological siblings-but lots of cousins & friends I love dearly!

 Time You Wake Up - Sadly, 6 am Monday-Friday & on weekends, whenever EC decides :)

 University Attended - Gainesville State (LOVED it, believe it or not!) & Piedmont, Walden for my Master's Degree

 Veggies You Dislike - Mushrooms, Olives

 What Makes You Run Late - Sleeping in, an outfit that just "isn't right", EC needing a diaper change.

X-Rays - Are $100 a pop. Is this the best X they could come up with?

 Yum Food - Chocolate chip cookies

 Zoo Animal Favorite - If I had to pick one it would probably be lions or giraffes. However, I really am not a huge "zoo" fan. I always have felt sorry for the animals. I feel the same way about circuses. It's hard for me to enjoy those places. (Although I'm still very bitter about losing EC's first zoo pics)