Pick a Reason!
After lunch on Friday, Addie went to the cabinet and got some pudding after I told her she couldn't have any. I'm sure what followed was the "correct discipline approach that James Dobson would approve"! 8-)

Afterwards, we were talking about her disobeying and I asked her why she had disobeyed....through her tears she said, "I haven't picked out a reason yet". That was a good one! She is still back on her bed picking a reason...I'll let you know when she picks one!

Our Little Gymnast!

Emma is enjoying a tumbling class on Thursday mornings. As the 3rd child, she is usually being hauled around for Paul and Addie's activities. She is finally enjoying one of her own! I'm not sure that she has a future in gymnastics...sometimes her form isn't very good...but she's only 2 so there's still time to develop, right?? The best part is that she laughs, smiles, and has a great time....and she's VERY proud of herself!

Super Saturday!

Today was one of those rare days in the life of the Kelley Klan....we had a Saturday in which NOTHING was planned! We decided to take advantage of the day....we slept in (7:20!), ate a big breakfast, packed a picnic lunch, and headed to our pond in Marshallville. We took Rupp with us so he could enjoy the open fields and the cool water. We had a "relaxing" ride down to Marshallville....the kids never stopped talking and the dog never stopped barking. Around Byron, Glenn & I looked at each other with that "Are we sure this was a good idea?" look. It proved to be a wonderful day! We went on adventures around the pond, went fishing, played in the sandy bank, took tons of pictures, ate our picnic lunch, and had several moments we won't forget for a while.

One of those moments was with a butterfly...the most gorgeous large butterfly keep staying close to Addie, Emma, and their shoes which were laying in the sand. The butterfly kept landing on their shoes and Addie wanted to get close. The butterfly just sat there as Addie and I crept closer and closer...I was snapping pictures, of course! Addie finally got right up to the butterfly and held her little finger down close. The butterfly flew right to her and you should have seen Addie's face! She was holding a butterfly and she couldn't believe it! She stayed really still and kept saying over and over..."I wish I could stay this way forever!" It made me think of those rare times when we are still and quiet before God....isn't it a feeling that we wish could stay forever??

Another moment...a not-so-warm-and-fuzzy moment...came on our adventure up these dirt cliffs. Paul discovered a cactus! He said, "This can't be a cactus...they only live in the desert!" After we convinced him that it really was a cactus and that they really could live here, he was determined to take it back to show GoGoDaddy (that's my dad). I leaned over and didn't see any prickly things so I helped him break it off from the ground. It looked really smooth, nothing to fear because there was nothing to stick us! Well, that wasn't entirely true....there were these little bumps that appeared harmless...they were actually filled with "little prickly hairs". Those prickly hairs have been stuck on me all day. Even tonight after a shower I have felt them on my arms and can't get away from them! That got me thinking....that's how sin looks in my life. It looks ok....I go in to take ahold of it...then I realize it wasn't such a good idea...then it just lasts and lasts and lasts! It made me want to begin each day asking God to help me stay away from any "cactus" areas...pride, self-sufficiency, impatience, or out-of-line priorities. Got any cactus areas??

Giving It a Try!

I'm going to give this a shot! I've enjoyed reading other people's blogs and so I thought I'd try one of my own. Everyone else's life seems really interesting and full of "tidbits" to share...I'm not sure any of my blogs will be worth reading but someone may get a good laugh from THE KELLEY KLAN!

My three children are all very different and follow what I think of as the typical birth order in terms of personality. Paul (about to be 7) is the first child...he is a perfectionist, very intuitive, asks questions CONSTANTLY, and is very structured (all of these good traits, of course!). Addie (5 years old) is the middle child....she is extremely free-spirited, not very structured (AT ALL!), flys by the seat of her pants, and is not a structured, perfectionist in any way (all of these good traits, of course!). Emma (2 1/2 years old) is the baby of the bunch....she is laid back, knows how to get what she wants, and always gets it (that's okay, right??).

These kids keep us laughing with their comments...keep us on our toes by the things they pick up from observing us...keep us praying for their daily life and their futures...keep us thankful for all God has blessed us with.