Making Changes

Today has been a great day!

 

Even in a house of 3 young children,

it has been a quiet afternoon.

 

Michael is sleeping.

 

Elizabeth is awake in her crib

playing with a toy she hasn't ever seen.

She seems completely enthralled by the colors!

 

Christopher is awake and sitting in the book nook

'reading' with a stuffed animal.

I might add he has been very successful on the potty today!

 

And I am enjoying these precious, fleeting, peaceful moments.

 

 

 

 

But what makes today any different?

 

Well, I decided to put facebook on the back burner this week.

 

And let me say, I LOVE me some facebook time!

Ask me how to relax and I say curled up on the couch, 

feeding the baby, and scrolling through facebook!

 

But for some reason, I feel like I have to be

"caught up" with my news feed everyday.

 

I worry I might "miss" something.

 

I check it and recheck it frequently.

 

I enjoy knowing everything about everyone.

 

I gravitate towards facebook more than my Bible.

 

Crazy, huh? and painful to admit.

Not every facebook friend has this problem, but I do.

 

So for now - very little facebook time.

(and no, I am NOT 'caught up')

 

My theory is that I will have a clearer mind,

and more time to focus on other things...

and so far it has proven correct!

 

YES, I am itching to scroll through facebook,

but I think my time can be better spent elsewhere...

 

 

 

Once I get past the initial shock,

I am hopeful this will change my life for the better :)

 

Now for some fun pics!

 

This is Casey on Father's Day!

He is truly a fantastic (and handsome) Daddy!

 

 

 Daddy and his 3 kiddos :)

 Thanks to a lovely blog I follow,

I decided to do a special photo project for Father's Day...

 

I dressed the boys in Casey's clothes and took a few pics!

Just like Daddy!

This was the final product!

 



 

The boys got bored pretty quickly

so I took them into the kitchen

to cook just like Daddy!

Chefs Michael and Christopher

 

 

Loving the bowties + aprons!

 

 

Cooking up something yummy!

Adding spices I think...

They wanted Mommy to taste test! 

2 CUTIES!

 

 

 

I think the quote from this picture,

 

"Lord, I want to be just like you

because they want to be just like me"

 

is equally applicable for me -

and all Christian moms and dads!

 

So I will continue to make changes in my life

to be a stronger example of Christ to my children.

 

Even if it means cutting WAY back on facebook.  *gulp*

<>< Stacy

 

*Please keep in mind that I have no problems with being involved on facebook!  I love facebook! 
I am just realizing that facebook is one of the few things I faithfully keep up with DAILY while other areas suffer.  I am trying to re-organize my life priorities and find a better balance in this area. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

~ Family ~

 ~ Family ~

 

We see a lot more family now that we live in the Upstate...

Parents, Grandparents, Brothers, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins...

 

Really, we see a lot more family ~ and I love it!

 

I feel like our priorities are finally

falling into place: 

 

God

Spouse and Marriage

Children

Family

Friends (and Fellowship)

Career Goals

Everything Else

  

That, of course, is a quick, simplified version of

deep relationships that require much tender loving care.

 

But it was quite hard to uphold these priorities

when we lived in separate cities!

 

It felt more like:

God

Survive

Children

Survive

Show-Ready House

Survive

Marriage

Survive

Everyone/Everything Else

Survive

 

But alas, by the grace of God, survive we did!

 

We went from juggling 2 full time jobs and 2+ part time jobs

to Casey working 1 full time and me being a SAHM

(with hopes of starting and growing a violin studio soon).

 

So let's just say this is the most relaxed lifestyle

we have had since...well...ever.

(Or at least since we lived at home with our parents!)

 

 

Here are some snapshots of some family time  :)

 

 

Grandma celebrated her birthday June 13th!

Gramps always reads to the boys - moments to treasure!

 

We got an extra dose of family time when

Casey's Grandparents came from Florida to visit!

 

Grandma jumped right in and helped me around the kitchen

(don't be jealous Mommy friends!)

 

She taught me a thing or two about a few recipes

and taught Casey how to make stuffed cabbage.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed their visit - and the boys did, too!

 

Uncle Cole hanging out and Grandma CC loving on Elizabeth

Elizabeth can get up on all fours and rock a lot,

but she just started moving her hands forward yesterday!

Our little 5 month old can s l o w l y crawl!

 

Getting SO big SO fast!

Check out the tongue...

Up on my knees :)

 

 

 By some odd coincidence,

both of the boys had their first foods

when we were visiting Grandma and Grandpa.

 

So we figured we would follow suit with Elizabeth...

(it was Thanksgiving potatoes for the boys)

 

Elizabeth tasted some potatoes

and has since been eating cereal everyday! 

 

 

3rd kid......just eats off the back of the fork.......who needs a spoon?

C U T E brother and sister love   :)

In closing, I want to share some special photos

we recently took in honor of Mother's Day.

 

Now that I finally have a girl,

my sister and I each have 4 generations of girls!

 

My brother took these beautiful pictures of

4 generations of Mothers and Daughters.

 

I will treasure them forever :)

4 Generations

Wiley side

The hands that have built happy homes  :)

Photos at Denny's Plaza

Loving my sweet girl!

The reason I am who I am!

Family blanket  :)

It's my generation's turn to raise 'em up right!

I can't get over how sweet and precious she is!

My Grandmother is such a wonderful person and example!

 

 

~ Family ~

 

Don't take it for granted.

Don't move it down the priority list.

 

Spend time together.

Make memories.

Uphold family traditions.

Create new traditions.

Pick up the phone.

Write a note.

Give a hug.

Say "I love you".

 

And most importantly,

teach your children

- the next generation -

that family really matters.

 

 

<>< Stacy

 

 

June Birthdays!

 

We recently celebrated some pretty big birthdays around here!

Both of my boys are June babies :)

 

June 4th - Christopher turned 3 years old! 

 

This just looks like a wrapping paper tube-

what do you mean there's a present inside??

{ squinkies }

 

Michael was happy to partake in the present opening :)

 

 

Christopher had a pretty fun birthday -

We opened a few presents,

met some family and friends at a $1 movie- Ice Age 4,

ate dinner at Chick-fil-a,

and had VBS at Grandma's church!

 

Christopher got a special treat at Chick-fil-a!

  

SO excited about dinner and VBS!

 

 And we can't have a blog post without a picture of

Elizabeth in one of her sideways sleeping positions.

She always twists her body and head around!

 

June 12th, Michael turned 5 years old! 

That means I became a Mommy 5 years ago!

 

CRAZY!

 

We skyped Daddy for present time.....
 

 



Gotta love technology :)

VERY happy about this gift!

Michael already had a pretty good idea

of what would be inside this tube....

S Q U I N K I E S !

 

Michael had a fun birthday, too-

he got to see some family from out of town,

take them to the park by Lake Bowen,

celebrate with lunch at Chick-fil-a,

and go to VBS at a church we have been visiting!

Michael got a special treat at Chick-fil-a, too :)

As for the birthday party,

we finally got to host one in our OWN home!

We went with a cost effective CARNIVAL theme :)
I'll let the pictures speak for the fun we had :)

Papa and Elizabeth!

Papa and all of the munchkins :)

When we said it was a carnival theme,
Michael specifically requested "fishing"

Fishing for candy and stickers!

 Surely they know their DAD is back there rigging this!

Grandpa was our pro drummer!

We also played some LIMBO!

Violet was the only one who REALLY got it!

 

The boys opened a few presents,

but this year we opted to do a Happy Wheels donation

in place of gifts since we already have so many toys.

They are pretty good at sharing!

 

I don't know why it took us 5 years to figure this out...

but DONUT HOLES are waaaaaaay cooler than cake!

 

In keeping with our carnival theme, we had "Cannon Balls".

 

Donut holes = YUM!

Singing a little Happy Birthday song :)

He's ready to chow down!

Elizabeth got passed around!

We borrowed a bounce house from some friends...
the boys were in carnival heaven!

They had it all to themselves!

 

They also got a parachute for their birthday!

(don't worry - no dangers here - it's the kiddie kind!)

 

Thankfully, some family helped us do it with the kids.

TONS. OF. FUN.

Kids running underneath - balls on top!

Running is so much cooler under a parachute!

 

Grandpa relaxing with Lizzy!

We were planning an indoor party based on the weather forecast
(lesson learned = weather forecasts are not reliable)

We didn't have a drop of rain.....
but we went ahead and did our indoor craft anyway!

Violet used a lot of pom poms :)

Michael used a lot of pom poms too!

C U T E cousins!

I can't believe how big our girls are getting!

Sisters and cousins :)

 

Overall, a GREAT, GREAT birthday :)

The whole Wiley clan :)

 

Behind the Scenes

Here are a few pictures of our fun carnival setup!

Food, food, food!

Every food had a fun name :)

Monkey Chow, Popcorn, Sweet Stix, Clown Candy,

Zebra Food, Carnival Animals, Elephant Food, Lemonade

Casey made his Boiled Peanuts...yum!

In addition to all the fun games, family, and food...
we have a box full of stuff to donate to Happy Wheels!
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you - to everyone who donated :)

For the children in the hospital - Happy Wheels

Can't believe he is 5 years old!

 

 

Another year of birthdays come and gone!

My boys are getting SO big!

 

More posts of what we've been up to coming soon......

I find myself quite busy these days :)

 

<>< Stacy