happy as a bump on a pickle

"look, mama, I'm smiling!"

Eden Grace (6)

life through your children's eyes is so colorful,

priceless times

My older 3 princesses are at Church Camp this week with their memaw and 2 cousins.  Memaw is super brave.  I have the {awesome} opportunity to stay in her home {with a/c} and take care of my niece, Aurelia and my 2 babies. Prince Charming's sister and her husband and three children are missionaries in Molango, Mexico.  So it is rare that we see each other.

 Enjoying the silliness and girlie behavior of these sweeties.

You can tell they don't live in the US.

  I told them we were going to eat ice-cream sandwiches for lunch

 and they both laughed and then said, "ewww."

  Until they saw what I was talking about.  We had seconds. {hush}

Times with cousins are the best.

When you live in another country from your cousins, times with them are precious.

When you both live in different countries from America, times with them are priceless. 

  Some of my greatest childhood memories include

 jumping hay bales and roaming through the woods

 with my cousins, at our grandparent's farm.

I'm so thankful that my children are making lots of memories this summer.

 
Wow. I can't believe that it's been almost a month since I've posted.  The kids and I are enjoying a little family time in Louisiana for a few weeks before we head back to Jamaica to host 3 awesome groups.

Acorn Owls {art project}

give the girl a piece of cardboard and a glue gun and she'll occupy herself for hours!

 I recently returned to the States for 13 days to attend my Grandmother's funeral and spend some healing time with my parents and siblings...and their young-in's.  My sister Jessica brought her 4 kiddos to stay at our parents house so I wouldn't get lonely for little girls.  She has 3 girls and a baby boy.  Eva,  Gigi, and I did a fun project one windy day and it turned out great.  We went on a search around Papa's house for acorns....found a big ol' copperhead.  Next story.

Side note: Aunt Maria can pack 2 kids and run at an amazing speed through a brushy Ozark Mountain woods.  Auntie Maria is terrified of snakes.  I can handle me any spider, rat, lizard, stingray....even throw in a couple barracuda and I don't get to worked up.  But if you drop a wiggly fishing worm in my path I stop breathing! It's unBiblical to be "ok" with serpents.  I promise you.  I read it!

Back to our project.

 We collected acorns and with the help of Grandma's trusty glue gun and a little felt we made wings, feet and little beaks.  No matter how old or young you are...google eyes are da' bomb.  Seriously they are cool.  I wish I'd invented them.

 We cut up a cracker box and each girl designed it individually.

The girlies talking in their "owl" voices was cracking me up.  Gigi's owl liked books and kept reading.  Eva's owl kept jumping on his bed and hiding on top of his book case.  {sweet memories}

the hardest part

I've said, time and time again, the hardest part is... leaving family and love ones behind.  It is getting even harder as the girls get older and more attached to them.

The tears come.
The {hard to answer} questions come, "When will we see Grandma's house again?"  "Will Papa come to my birthday party?" Hugging everyone goodbye and driving away is hard....really hard.

As I look back in the rear view mirror and see them standing watching us drive away I realize {again} that I have the easy part.

(on my parents front porch right before we drove away in April)

South Missouri

So when you see that Grandparent {or aunt} in your church who sits alone because their children are another continent away....remember.  When you see them look wistfully at the little Sunday School kiddos.....remember.  As you meet your family at that restaurant after Sunday services....remember.

Tell them thank you for their sacrifices.  Even though it is not by their own choices they are sacrificing family dinners, children birthday parties, and holiday traditions.  They are missing the simple things that are part of their grandchildren's lives.  And when they see them again a few more years have slipped away.

Remember them.  Tell them "thank you" for their sacrifice.

making memories with the cousins

(all 10 grandchildren of Emile and Bonnie Wesley)

Baton Rouge, Louisiana on Memaw's famous pile of dirt

While I'm having a blast spoiling my nieces and nephews and sneaking them candy and cookies, I'm realizing that in order to make great memories it takes a lot of ......work!  Especially when they are little..and 3 of them are potty training!  It takes a lot of bandaids, wet wipes, and peanut butter but we've had a few memorable days.

They're only young once,

you as a papa

(Papa Dennis and Brynlee, age 2)

sitting on Papa's front porch Ozark Mountains, Missouri

I love my dad.

I asked my girls to describe Papa Dennis and here are their answers...
moustache
soldier uniform
nice
John Wayne
hunting
fishing
pickles
American flag
really tall
chicken farmer

sweet memories,

Don't forgive the giveaway of the Seahorse Necklace going on right now!  Comment your favorite Bible verse and get an extra entry!

1st stop

We just booked our tickets back to Jamaica for the kids and I!  May 10th is the day!

I'm so excited to get back to our home and a regular schedule.  I feel that bittersweet twinge I always get when it's time to leave loved ones behind.

The count down has started and it makes me more aware to treasure each day and memory.  First stop on this journey back to Jamaica was Great-Grandma Grace's farm near Queen City, Missouri.

Gram loved holding her latest great-grandson.  She couldn't keep her hands off of him. {sweet}

The girls and I were really praying that we would have a good snow before we went back to the Island.  We were not disappointed. The days spent there was so much fun.

(talking to Grandma's cows)

(Eden tasting the snow)

(Brynlee learning how to make a snowman)

 (cooking with Grandma)

 (riding in the tractor with Uncle Steve)

(Eden thought it was hilarious that the cow's hair stood up!)

(helping with the chores)

Making memories in Missouri,

lots of extra family memories

life...being life never turns out like planned.

I think this has been my longest stretch without blogging since I started.

I missed it dearly.

Hummm....let's see. {deep breath}

  At the beginning of February Prince Charming returned to Jamaica. Good things are happening there. Soon after returning, Pastor Dice from New York visited and they spent a crammed packed few days together.  One of the highlights was doing the morning devotion over the loud speakers at our local Spot Valley High School. He had 52 in the first service after returning and last Sunday he ran out of chairs it was so packed!  I'm itching to get back.

As for the girls kids and I, we had planned on staying in my hometown until Josh returned in April. But the house was sold the day before Josh flew out.  So I packed up our belongings and moved into our Suburban.    We will spend the next several weeks cramming as much family time in as possible as we move from family member to family member and load up on memories before we return to the Island.  It's not the way I had planned and it's a lot more work driving from Missouri, to Iowa, to Missouri, to Oklahoma, to Louisiana, but God knows what He's doing.  Whenever I'm in Jamaica I miss my family more than anything and maybe this is His way of giving me lots of extra family memories to take back with me. 

Baby Truman (9 weeks) playing trains with Princess Brynlee (age 2)

Please pray for Truman's paperwork to be completed and for Eden's paperwork because she has to have an updated passport and they both will have to be stamped at the Jamaican embassy before I can take them home to Jamaica.

Christmas tea party with great-grandma Grace

over the river and through the woods to Grandmother's house we go...literally.

the plans were made, the girls were all dressed in their Christmas finest.

inches of fluffy beautiful snow covered everything...

including the 45 miles of country roads leading to Grandma's house.

Grandma (being a Grandma) said "don't try and make it."

Me (being Me) bundled the kids up in their warm fluffy coats,

 packed some extra blankets in the Yukon and headed out.

We had been planning a Christmas tea Party at Great-Grandma Grace's Farm for weeks.  I was disappointed but not as much as my girls.  So....Onward we go!  Honestly there was a lot of snow packed onto the roads.  I drove about 30 mph for most of the way with no problems at all.  We passed several vehicles in the ditch though that made me slightly nervous.  When we arrived at the gravel road leading to her gravel road my uncle said that it was to bad to continue that way because there is a giant steep {scary} hill.

So, what do Missourians do?  They take the cow pasture!

{clearing throat} my sister, Rachel, has a very colorful version of me getting stuck while closing the gate.... and her having to "rescue" me.  Something about me forgetting how to drive after being in Jamaica for so long.  I'll spare you her side of the story and say, "I made it just fine." {blush}

Now, look at this picture of Tiny Baby Truman and his Great-Grandma Grace.

Wasn't those icy roads worth it?

On to the Tea Party!

It was a wonderful affair with

 the good china, real silver tea spoons, and yummy crumpets.

Along with very amusing dinner companions.

(Eden Grace 4 and cousin Evan 4)

(this one makes it look like Brynlee is fixin' to conk Evan on the head!  very possible)

(Alexis 7 and Moriah 8)

(cousin Natalie 1 and Brynlee 2)

the price of my children making memories with Great-Grandma and their cousins...priceless.