We"ll Miss You Granny Jackson

A few weeks ago, Matt,Ivy and I flew up to Washinton because Matt's Grandma wasn't doing very good and in case something happened, we wanted to see her again. We are so glad we did because she passed away this morning. She was one of Matt's favorite women in the whole world! He loved to call and talk to her about life and sports. They had such a special bond. I cried as we were leaving as I watched him say goodbye to her.



I think back to when I first met her about 12 years ago. She would always give me little presents and she loved to shop with me. I remember that she had bought me a sweater and I had tried on something else. I came out in it and when I went back inside I heard Matt telling her that she couldn't get it for me because she already got me something. I kept hearing her say" But I think she needs it." She Loved to shop with me!



Whenever we talked to her about our friends, they became her friends too. Todd and Ashley, Mike and Wendy...she prayed for you and your families every single day. When she died today I thought "Who is going to pray for Reesie like she did everyday?" When we showed her pictures of Reese this month, she sat and cried. She said "I feel like she is my own because I pray for her so much."



I will remember all of the times she made me laugh, how I used to push her wheel chair really fast in the mall, how she would cry with you and pray for you so earnestly. How happy she was when Ivy entered our lives. She had the BEST snacks. Matt has so many memories from his whole life with her.



The last memory he shared was when he was in church when we were up there. He brought his trumpet and he stood up to play it in church. He said," I am going to play a song that my Grandma used to sing to me when I was little." He played "Trust and Obey". That was the last time she was in church.



In a world where you hear about so many people turning their back on their faith and being known in public for some sin they have commited. Betty Jo Jackson was known for TRUSTING and OBEYING her whole life until the end. Will we be able to say the same?



"Trust and Obey for there's no other way to be happy in Jesus. Than to Trust and Obey"

My Ivy at Play

She said that she was going to take a nap.
Wake Up Time!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy Birthday Dad (aka. Poppa):
Wish we were there to celebrate with you. (even better yet, I wish you were here so we could celebrate with your favorite Jamba Juice, In and Out, and Stonefire!)

Thank you for the great dad you have been to me my whole life. We all love you. Can't wait for you to come out here! Have a wonderful day! 11 more days! Yeah!

Sea World

We took our summer vacation early, going to Sea World with the Penberthy family. It was our first time and we had a great time. We stayed in a beautiful hotel, Marriott San Diego. Our rooms were right next to each other so we would put the kids to bed and then go out in the hallway and laugh, read magazines and eat. It was really fun. We would just forget that our kids would wake up early and we had spent the night in the hallway goofing off and they were eady for a fun packed day!

We spent all day Saturday at Sea World and then went to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. The next day we went shopping at the mall, ate lunch, more shopping at the outlets and then came home. It was a fun trip!

Side note....I cut Ivy's hair. It turned out a little short! Oh well, it will grow.

Second side note....Happy Birthday to my favorite nephew Mason. We love you and loved your magic trick (see Gorsh blog below). I wish I could be there to kiss and hug you. You're the best!

Happy Belated Birthday to one of my best friends in the whole world, Kelli Iverson! I wish I was there on your birthday. We WILL celebrate soon. I love you!

No She Didn't!

After the Hard as Nails episode, I thought Ivy had learned her lesson. Last night Matt and I were watching American Idol and I saw that Ivy wasn't there. I called her name and she came downstairs and went straight to Matt. Matt said," I think you need to go see Mommy." ....black eyeliner....enough said.

By the way....Matt came home last night and said,"Hey Kelli, I found out a new way to tell that my wife is spending money." I said," You read my blog?"......see my last post. Busted!

Baby Goes Vintage

Ok....as much as I would like to talk about my chubbiness of my last post. I needed to tell you all about this amazing sale. If you have seen the pictures in Ivy's bedroom, you have heard me talk about the online store, babygoesvintage.com. They sent me an email awhile ago and said that they were going out of business. I got an email today saying that everything is 75% off. They have the cutest stuff. I see the same stuff at the celebrity hang out, The Juvinielle Shop, (I know I spelled that wrong). I saved so much money today! It is a sale you won't want to miss. After talking to Ashley, I had to go back and order a rug. Please comment if you buy something. I want to partake of the joy of your purchase too! You NEED to punch in "a75off" when it asks you for any discounts or promotions. Enjoy!

Fat Mommy Returns

Some things never change.....You know your name is "Fat Mommy" when your eating a sucker and your daughter walks in, so you quick eat the sucker and then give her the stick to suck and chew on....I know...you don't have to say it

......I'm ashamed of myself!

Hard as Nails

Yesterday I was taking a shower. I heard Ivy getting into my bathroom cabinets. I called out to her and told her to get out of there and I heard her take off running. Something told me her running meant that she was up to something. I got out and smelled a familiar smell but I couldn't put my finger on what it was.....until she came running around the corner with my "Hard as Nails" fingernail polish. A closer look showed me that she had put it all over her cheeks and lips. (She was pretending to put her makeup on with a makeup brush like her mommy.) I was shocked. ( If you know Ivy lately...I don't know why I was so shocked!)

It took forever to get it off. Everytime I thought that I got it all, some would peel off later that night. I thought that it was going to ruin her perfectly soft cheeks. She got ****reminded**** not to do it again. Oh...sigh...Kelli I. maybe Ivy and Ben will get married. We just have to hire security to sit across the street 24/7....I love her!

Washington Trip

We took a quick trip up to see Matt's family and Grandma Jackson, Mother's Day weekend. We had a great time. (Fat Mommy was in full force when they pulled out something called "Poke Cake"). Here are some pictures.

Elliott Look-alike Meter

This is so funny! Tracy, you have to do this!

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celeb - Collage - Morph

Fost- Adopt Update

Here is the lastest. We thought that we were all done but they found out that we need to have an extra set of finger prints done for the FBI. It is a pain! This step takes the longest so I have no idea how long it is going to take to get certified.

I was going to get frustrated but then it occured to me that my baby isn't ready for my yet. If they were, I would be certified. It is so reasuring to know that God already knows who my children are. I just have to rely on His Providential control of our situation.

Here is Jerry Bridges definition of God's Providence. "God's orchestrating all cirumstances and events in His universe for His glory and the good of His people." So basically, He is in control of it all. That gives me comfort.

One thing that makes me sad is that with fost-adopt, something bad needs to happen for the court to take the child away. I don't want any of my kids to go through that....but again God is in control! I will keep you posted!

Top 5

I was tagged by Tracy. Here it goes.....

5 things under $5 that I couldn't live without: (this is hard!)

lip moisterizer
nail file
Diet Coke
Deodorant
gum

5 favorite movies:(this is hard too!)
A Walk to Remember
Pride and Predjudice (new one)
Save the Last Dance (hee hee)
....I'm stumped......

5 baby names I love but wouldn't use:
Gavin
Ruby
Ava
Jesse (boy)
Jillian

5 songs that I could listen to over and over again:
His Eye is on the Sparrow (my favorite song)
In Christ Alone
How Great is our God
One World (Toby Mac)
More Than Anyone (Gavin DeGraw)

5 people who have influenced me in a positive way

Matt (my honey buns)
Terry Pagach
My Pops (dad)
My friends
Tom Patton

5 things always in my purse

gum
wallet
lip gloss
hand sanatizer
sugar free candy for Ivy

5 moments that have changed my life forever:

my salvation
moving out to go to TMC (Iowa to California)
my wedding day
seeing Ivy for the 1st time
being done with infertility

5 obsessions I have now

blogging
Ivy
Carmel Frapachinno Light at Starbucks
biographies
adopting

5 places I would like to go

New York City
Isreal
Hawaii
Savannah, Georgia
Nashville,Tennesse

5 kitchen tools I can't live without

knives
cups
silverware
microwave
fridge

Happy Birthday Wendy!

Happy Birthday my dear and faithful friend. You are one of my favorite people in the whole world! Thank you for always being caring, giving, loving, loyal and fun to me and my family. I love you! See you tonight! Kelli

My New Canon Camera!

I tried to do a slideshow but it wasn't working so here are a few pictures from last night. Mike Penberthy's home. Yeah! Let the summer fun begin!