Flashback Fridays!

Here's my precious Max when he was 2 weeks old. Look at those lips! He is going to be 9 in 2 weeks....how did that happen?!

Thankful Thursdays...

Today I am thankful for the gift of FRIENDSHIP. What a wonderful gift I have been given to have friends surrounding me with encouragement, love, laughter, and support.

I "googled" the word FRIENDSHIP and this is what came up...

Friendship is a term used to denote co-operative and supportive behavior between two or more people. In this sense, the term connotes a relationship which involves mutual knowledge, esteem, and affection and respect along with a degree of rendering service to friends in times of need or crisis. Friends will welcome each other's company and exhibit loyalty towards each other, often to the point of altruism. Their tastes will usually be similar and may converge, and they will share enjoyable activities. They will also engage in mutually helping behavior, such as exchange of advice and the sharing of hardship. A friend is someone who may often demonstrate reciprocating and reflective behaviors. Yet for many, friendship is nothing more than the trust that someone or something will not harm them.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GGP!

Today is GGP's (Great Grandpa Pressler) Birthday! GGP is Rich's Grandpa. He is an amazing man of God. How many 86 year olds do you know email and hang out on Facebook?!

GGP, I look forward to your inspirational emails each day...you always cheers me up, and put a smile on my face. I will never forget the first day I met you, you took me in as your own. I have felt as though you are my own Grandpa since.

I love you,

Anne

Grandpa, I love you. I love that Anne and I share the same wedding anniversary that you and Grandma had. I love how much you love Anne, she loves that you treated her as a granddaughter the first time you met her.

I love that my boys know my Grandpa!

We look forward to seeing you in Arizona in just a few days!

I love you,

Rich

Just a swingin'

What a beautiful day! We had a fun day at Desert Breeze Park. Riding bikes, feeding ducks, eating a picnic lunch, playing at the playground and

SWINGING on the swings!

Weeee!

Max was not enjoying the swings today (he had a full tummy from lunch and felt sick!)
Yeah! I can pump my legs and swing all by myself!
Yeah! No more "baby swings" for me...I'm a big boy now!

Welcome to Max Metropolis!

This is Max's "Urban Community" project he did for school. He did such a great job and we are very proud of the work he did!

Look at the cars traveling down the street...

Check out the MobiMark headquarters (Daddy had fun helping)
Thanks to Granna for keeping all of my old "Fisher Price" toys, so Max could create a park!
A little bit of crime in Max Metropolis....

Welcome...

I hope the flower cheers up this homeless man.....

Didn't he do a great job?!

Flashback Fridays!

Look at my sweet niece, Julia, 6 years ago on her 2nd birthday!

Daniel, Julia and Annika...

Erik, Kathryn, Julia, Annika, Max and Daniel (not sure who the cutie is in the front)
It's amazing how old we thought the kids were back then!
WOW...time sure does fly by.
Cherish every second!!!!!!

Thankful Thursdays......

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JULIA ANNA!

Today I am thankful for my sweet niece, Julia. She is 8 years old today! I was there in the delivery room the day she was born - her mommy made it to the hospital JUST IN TIME - Granna was still parking the car when Julia decided to enter the world! I have watched her grow into such a beautiful, fun, nice, creative, and all around awesome girl.

Happy Birthday, "Jules Anna" - we love you!

Happy 8th Birthday, Julia!

We had fun celebrating Julia's birthday tonight! She organized a craft for all the kids to do - they collected leaves in their own baggie, then created anything they wanted with glue and the leaves onto a sheet of paper. So creative! Then she opened all her gifts, we enjoyed yummy cake and ice cream, then the kids put on a High School Musical "show" for us. Fun night!
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"Ah Ha" Moment!

I am a huge Beyonce Knowles fan! She is a phenomenal singer. I really like listening to her, and watching her perform. I saw her on the "Ellen" show yesterday sing this song, and I couldn't help but relate with this song. This song is (I assume) meant to be for someone's "significant other", but I think the words are so fitting for my relationship with Jesus!

Jesus accepts me, FLAWS AND ALL, and that's why I love Him so much!

I'm a train wreck in the morning

I'm a witch in the afternoon

Every now and then without warning

I can be really mean towards you

I'm a puzzle yes indeed

Ever-complex in every way

And all the pieces aren't even in the box

And yet, you see the picture clear as day

I don't know why you love me

And that's why I love you

You catch me when I fall

Accept me flaws and all

And that's why I love you

I neglect you when I'm working

When I need a attention I tend to nag

I'm a host of imperfection

And you see past all that

I'm a peasant by some standards

But in your eyes I'm a queen

You see potential in all my flaws

And that's exactly what I need

I don't know why you love me

And that's why I love you

You catch me when I fall

Accept me flaws and all

And that's why I love you.

Stand Up For Martin Luther King!

Dr. King stood up for Justice
He stood up for equality too
Dr. King stood up for children
He stood up for me and for you

Stand Up Stand Up
Stand Up for Martin Luther King
Stand Up Stand Up
Stand Up for Dr. King

Dr. King wanted all of America
To be tolerant fair and free
He stood up for what he believed in
He stood up for you and for me.

Stand Up Stand Up
Stand Up for Martin Luther King
Stand Up Stand Up
Stand Up for Dr. King

Dr. King taught us all to be dreamers
So one day the world could begin
To judge people based on their character
And not on the color of their skin

Stand Up Stand Up
Stand Up for Martin Luther King
Stand Up Stand Up
Stand Up for Dr. King

Flashback Fridays!

Baby it's COLD outside! We are hearing how FRIGID it is in Minnesota now! We show the boys these pictures of when we would go to MN for Christmas, and how COLD it is there. This is Max in 2002......

Today he had shorts and a t-shirt on, I love AZ weather!

Thankful Thursdays...

Today I am thankful for the SUN!

This weather is absolutely GLORIOUS!

I hear BARNEY all day long in my house (a certain 2 year old is IN LOVE with him), so I can't help but think of this song by a certain purple dinosaur:

"Mr. Sun"

Oh Mr. Sun. Sun. Mr. golden sun. Please shine down on me.Oh Mr. Sun. Sun. Mr. golden sun. Hiding behind a tree. These little children are asking you. To please come out so we can play with you.Oh Mr. Sun. Sun. Mr. golden sun. Please shine down on me.

Thank you, God, for the beautiful sun you made to shine down on us each and every day.

Rick's 40th Birthday Celebration!

We had a super fun time with Rick, Laurie and all their family and friends at Rick's 40th birthday celebration!!! Happy Birthday, Rick! We love you!

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FLASHBACK FRIDAYS!

Look at Annika and Max long ago when it was just the two of them.....

And look at them now!!!!

I'm back in business!

I'm sure you couldn't sleep just wondering how my cell phone was! Did Anne find out what was wrong with it? Is she going to be OK? Will she get her sweet friend back? Well, I will put your worries to rest, and let you know that I'm back in business! My poor phone got "liquid damage" - long story short, I'm drinking too many diet cokes!

BUT...I had another cell phone from a long time ago, that just happened to work with the old battery! So....my sweet friend and I are reunited, she just had a little face lift, that's all!

OK, now you can get back to your day.....I know you couldn't function without knowing what happened with Anne's cell phone!!!!!!

THANKFUL THURSDAYS....

Today I am thankful for my cell phone.....especially thankful today, because my wonderful cell phone is sick. Yes, my reliable friend that I'm always turning on to tell me what I'm doing today, to connect me with my friends and family in various ways (talking, texting, pictures), to tell me what time it is, and to give me the convenience I think I so desperately need is SICK. I just took my sick friend to the Sprint Maintenance Store, and I seriously thought I was in a Saturday Night Live skit. A man greeted me at a podium and asked for my name, and then I was asked to take a seat. All of us in the waiting room were holding onto our phones as if they were sick children, we all just sat in silence holding onto our sick phones. One by one, our names were called and each person jumped up with urgency to talk with the "experts" to find out what was wrong with their sick friend! I had to leave my friend there, and they will be looking at it and will let me know in an hour what the diagnosis is. I can't wait to be reunited with my sweet friend......

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RACHEL!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RACHEL!

Today is my niece (and God daughter), Rachel's 6th birthday!

It is her GOLDEN birthday.....she's 6 on the 6th!

This is a picture of her with her precious new puppy, Duggan, which the family got for Christmas!

We love you, Rachel! Have a very happy and special day, birthday girl!

FLASHBACK FRIDAYS!

Look at these cuties IN 2005.....Max was 5 and Luke was 2! I love looking back and seeing how CHUBBY Luke was and how SILLY Max was and still is!

Playing with the Rasmussen girls!

We had a GREAT time with the Rasmussen's tonight! They got a Wii from Santa, so we all got together and PLAYED! We brought over our Guitar Hero and also enjoyed their new American Idol game (I REALLY liked this game!) - Adam and Lynnette went on a much needed date while Rich and I held down the fort. It was a special time with our special cousins!
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HAPPY NEW YEAR......THANKFUL THURSDAYS.....

HAPPY 2009! Max lost his 4th tooth last night during the FUN New Year's Eve celebration at the Bragelman's! Look at what the Tooth Fairy brought him last night......$2.09!!! What a CLEVER Tooth Fairy!

Daddy made M&M pancakes this morning.....YUM!
On the first day of this new year I am so thankful for all the family and friends God has blessed me with. There is no greater gift than to have such close, loving, fun, caring, wonderful family and friends that I can go through this life with! So, I thank YOU (whoever is reading this!) for being in my life. I love you!
It's going to be a great year.