chris.reese.girls1.2.3.4

Do you see air? Yes, a tiny bit of it! It's a start, right?! After missing last season due to a growing belly, it was a personal goal of mine to wakeboard Memorial Day weekend as a "capstone" of sorts to my arm recovery. Let's just say it felt awesome to get up, first try, and jump a wake here and there. The arm was pretty sore and at times I certainly favored the better arm, but hey, it was totally worth it! (More blog updates to come...)

(Paige is the second from the left) We consider this a miraculous performance.  If you had seen the dress rehearsal the day before you would have known why.  Our once outgoing Paige has turned shy the past few months and during the dress rehearsal one day prior to the recital, Paige covered her eyes the entire performance and simply stared at the other dancers.  I wasn't getting my hopes up for the big recital, but let's just say we did LOTS of practicing after the dress rehearsal and tried to entice Paige with a few bribes.  I was really worried when I dropped her off in the green room half hour before recital showtime and she burst into tears.  I had no idea what emotional state she would be in for the actual performance.   Thanks to Miss Carrlee for whatever she did/said to get our little Paige to break out of her shell....and break out she did...we're glad she didn't dance her way off the stage!! Thanks to all our family who came to support Paige.  We are so proud o...

Would you think to look here? I didn't...at least, not at first. Waves of panic brought me back here as I rushed around the house, up and down the stairs, checking the front/back doors, calling her name. She's been into hide-n-seek lately, but I didn't know we were playing at the time. She must have got sick of waiting and drifted off to sleep in the dark of the toy chest. After my heart settled down, I smiled and grabbed the camera.

Chris was off to the Hendricks Annual (Boys Only) Golf Your Guts Out (GYGO) Weekend, which in essence is: one locale every year, 72 holes of golf in two days, and insanity if you want my opinion! This year the boys were in Yakima/Tri-Cities and considering the family already living there, the women decided to band together and enjoy a girls weekend. We had a great time: pedicures, PF Changs, Milk Dud cookies & popcorn while watching Australia (and the adorable Hugh Jackman). We even got a babysitter for the little girls and went to see 17 Again . Unfortunately, most of the pics were of the little girls; Joci and Paige love each other! Thanks to Chris' wonderful aunties and mom for letting me and the little girlies enjoy! Til next time! (Aunt Jana hiding on the left, Aunt Roxcy, cousin Joci, Charise, Paige) Reese and Paige Paige went back and forth on her nail color decision. She started with blue to match her shirt, then went to green, then to purple, and finally settled on...

Today as I nursed my baby alone in the mother's room at church, tears welled up in my eyes for two main reasons: (1) The gift of having children - when we know so many that are unable to - and the fact I have two little ones to call me mom. Being a mother has allowed me to feel more love than I can put into words and what a blessing that is. And (2) Because of my own mother and the gift she gave me in January. Almost daily when I nurse my little Brynn I think of my mom. She is the one I can thank for the closeness that was restored to me and my little "Brynnie" (as my mom calls her). At the time I was recovering from surgery and not nursing. I didn't think it would matter much, plenty of people bottle-feed their babies and they're healthy and fine. But I know I needed to nurse Brynn. After 4 weeks of Brynn being bottle-fed (never by me), my emotions were a roller coaster...feeling like my little Brynn didn't know me and feeling like I had missed out on a ...