Pancake Pantry

A great place to have lunch on a Saturday in Nashville. I heard that Keith Urban and Taylor Swift are seen eating there a lot.

Some cute little feet belonging to the cute little boy that was sitting next to me.

Coloring while we wait for our pancakes.

Conner being very calm. Glad I got it documented=)

Mmmmm...pineapple juice! I've got my spoon ready Mom...let the eating commence.

Still being very calm. This meal gave me hope that maybe someday we'll be able to eat out.

This may have been Conner's first taste of M&M's. I'm sure he was wondering where they had been all his life. He ate all the candy off separately(he did eat the pancakes, too)

Shep ate every last bite and then some.

I won't lie. Yes, I ordered that.

Mom, can I have pancakes with M&M's everyday??

Back Home

It's been a great trip. Going to stay the night in Dallas with friends and head home tomorrow afternoon.

It's always fun to get away from your routine and then equally fun to get back into it! I have lots of new recipes to try and a women's fellowship dinner on Thursday. Conner starts a toddler gym class on Mon. We'll have story time on Wednesdays, park play group on Fridays and lots of pool time and sno cones=) I love summer.

We're very sad to have to say good-bye to two of our favorite friends the same week. I had the privilege to reconnect with a very old friend the past 2 yrs as she and her husband (and two little ones)have lived in Austin. We met another Mommy and little girl at story time a year ago and discovered we were neighbors. Both families are moving back to Houston. This time of life, especially in a university city like Austin is like that. I'm so sad to see them go, but so grateful God put them in my life for a time. Hopefully, we can stay in touch. We spent so much time with these friends!

Pictures from our trip to come soon! Hope everyone has a wonderful week-end.

It's Been a Long Time

Something very exciting happens tomorrow. Zack and I are leaving the kids and sneaking away for TWO nights. This will be the first time we have been ALONE all day AND all night AND get to really, truly sleep in (with no interruptions)in 2 1/2 years. Also, it's our first over-night trip period in 3 years! Between no family nearby and no money, pregnancy and nursing, time away has been out of the question.

We are going up to Petit Jean to stay in Zack's Uncle and Aunt's cabin. I don't think I would be more excited if I was going to Paris (well, maybe that's an exaggeration). You have no idea how much we need this. I can't wait to hear the silence, read as long as I want to and just talk. I miss just talking and just being. We may not come back and honestly, I don't think the grandparents would mind...haha!

Picked up some yummy food to make, some sorbet and a bottle of wine. Ahhhh...it will be wonderful!

Alone to blog!!

Wow, I'm sitting alone, blogging and drinking a cup of coffee. "Now that's something you don't see everyday." (A quote from Pinky Dinky Doo, a kid's show)

We arrived left Austin around 8 am and arrived about 4:30. Remarkably, we only stopped twice. I packed us a lunch to save money, so we found a grassy area at a gas station and had a little picnic. It was kinda hot, but the boys enjoyed watching all the cars, of course! We let them run around for a little while. The boys did pretty good. Neither of them slept much, but there the screaming was limited=)

We're about to head out again in an hour or so to visit Spencer and Ashley in Nashville. Eleven of us are making the treck (minus Luke who is buried in work projects). This will be the first vacation with the entire Stanton fam since before we moved. I think we're going to hit the zoo, the Hermitage, ride a trolley and explore the area. I haven't been to Nashville in probably 10 yrs!

We'll head back to AR on Sunday, stay here through Sat and then stop in Dallas for part of Sat and Sun to visit some friends. Zack and I get to do something very exciting next week as well, but I'll post about that later.

The golfers are back, so I better get dressed so we can pack up the cars and head out! Love to all. I feel so relaxed and happy right now .

Prayers during Trials

"Our first and natural inclination in any trial is to pray for God to remove the difficulty . But God's first priority is often to strengthen us in the midst of the difficulty rather than to take us out of the difficulty. That's because He can see the treasure that lies at the end of the trail."

I don't know about you, but that is very convicting to me. I complain instead of thanking God for trials. I have very short-sighted vision, while God sees the whole picture. Trial develop perseverance which in turn develop character. Most of the time I know I would just choose the easy life instead of the life that will mold and shape me into the image of Christ.

"For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." -2 Corinthians 4:17-18

Wordless Wednesday

Prayer Request

Friends would you please pray with me for this sweet family? My heart aches for them. The mother is the daughter of one of my Dad's first cousins. She's my age. I can't imagine what she is going through right now, but she and her husband are an amazing testimony of the grace of God.

http://malachisharbaugh.blogspot.com/2010/05/at-peace-with-next-step.html