What a Summer So Far!!!! :-)

God, I feel like I haven't written in so long!  So much going on, it's so hard to keep up!!! Well summer has been going great and we all have been keeping busy!  The kids and I had a great (unexpected) 2 week vacation in MI visiting family & friends!  We were only planning on being there for a week, but things changed and we ended up there a week earlier than planned!  The first weekend there we Celebrated by having Baby Henry and Lola Baptized together!  It was so special and HOT I may add!  It was 90 that day, crazy hot for MI!  Then this is the first year the kids have ever experienced the Fourth of July in Clawson!  All I can say, is man I miss that place!  Nothing like it on the 4th of July, anywhere!  It was so great to see it through their eyes and think back to all those days my sisters and I experienced that growing up, just awesome!!!  A great big Thank You to The Partin's for the great hospitality that day and a GREAT place to watch the Fireworks!!! :-) The kids and I also traveled over to Kalamazoo for a couple days to spend time with my brother/sister in law and kids!  So glad we made the trip and LOVED watching the kids together, truly a blessing they all love each other so much!  They may only see each other once a year, but they make up for it when they do! They have a chicken coop with chickens and Jackson was in love.  Needless to say, I'm looking into chicken coop's for us to have here in our backyard! ;-)  From there we got to the beach with my cousin Lisa one day, boating with Aunt Dawn and camping for a weekend with all my family and friends!  It was so much fun, great seeing all these kids together!  This trip back home just made my heart happy, for the first time in a long time!   It was a long trip for the kids, since they were already up in MI a week prior with their Dad unexpectedly but all in all they did great for being away from home 3 weeks!  They did great on the way home and we made it in 10.5 hours, so pretty good I'd say!!

In other news, this week I got to shoot my very first Wedding and it went great!  I just hope they like the photos as much as I do.  I have really been praying that God continues to bless me with more and more of these opportunities! I just love it! :-) From here I have another wedding in NC in September and a few more family photo shoots lined up.  I'm also looking forward to subbing at the kids Pre-School this year so I'm keeping myself busy!  I can't believe that school will be starting in another month, man summer has flown by!  Before the kids and I head back, I have friends coming down the first of August, then the kids, Katie and I head to Myrtle Beach for 4 days!  I'm really, really looking forward to these 4 days......Low key, laying on the beach and just relaxing! Yay!

Please continue to pray for the kids and I!  Lots going on "behind" the scenes and just hoping for a BRIGHT light at the end of this long.......tunnel! :-)
xoxo Heather :-)

Look Who's 2! :-)

This past weekend we celebrated Lola Grace's 2nd Birthday with lots of friends.  I can't believe that she is 2 already, where has the time gone??!  She is talking up a storm, almost potty trained and extremely independent! She is such a bright little light that has this family wrapped around her little finger! :-)

This past week was also Max's last day of Preschool and Jackson's 1st Musical! It has been busy, busy but so much fun! Next week Jackson has a Field Trip to Smith Mountain Lake that I'm hoping to go along with the class and Patriot Games (Field Day)!  Lots of end of the year fun!  He also did extremely well on his PALS testing and is reading at a 1st grade level, way too go Jackson!!! :-)

Here are a few pic's to share!  I hope this finds everyone happy, healthy and enjoying the begining of summer!!!
Much Love xoxo
Heather & Kiddos :-)

Bye, Bye Tonsils! :-)

So this past week both Jackson and Max had their tonsils out! Crazy, I know having them both go but we figured that if they needed them done, do it at the same time!  Zach and I both were there with the boys and it was great.  Our Co-Parenting counseling has really been helping us both see what is important and that is our amazing kids!

They both had great days after surgery and the day after, but they slowly started to really show they were hurting! ;-( I the key is hydration and Max has been the difficult one with that.  This is now day 4 and they both are finally getting it, that they HAVE to drink to feel better!  They are doing much better.  Lots of ice cream and Jello!!! :-) Lola has been a trooper through all this too, especially since she has had her fair share of popsicles and Ice Cream! Here are a few picks of the boys before and after surgery!  I also took a few of them coloring Easter Eggs this morning!  So excited for the Easter Bunny! Enjoy, and Happy Easter to you and your families!

Spring is Here!

We are finally having some Spring weather here in VA, so I got out my camera the other day to take some "impromptu" pic's of the kids!  I thought I would share.......Enjoy! :-)

Changes, Changes, Changes!

So much has been going on lately it's hard for me to keep up! :-) First off I took the boys to the Shrine Circus a couple weeks ago and they LOVED it!  It was so much fun and great to see their faces as the show was going on!  We had a great afternoon of hotdogs, cottoncandy, toy elephants and glowsticks!  Little miss Lola got to spend the afternoon with her dad for some one on one time!

This past week Jackson finally lost his first tooth!  And NO it wasn't the black/dead tooth, go figure!  That one is still hanging on!  He was eating goldfish and low and behold it came out!  He was so proud and couldn't wait for the tooth fairy to come that night!  She was very generous and left him $5.00 a little lego set and a note! :-) He was soooooo excited!  TOO CUTE!!!

This week both boys are at Disney World with their dad and grandma.  I have talked to them a few times and sound like they are having a great time and enjoying the warm weather!  Lola and I have been spending some great quality time together!  She is such a funny little girl and I really think she is enjoying her time with mom without her brothers around! :-)  She loves those boys but she has to fight for what she wants......this week she is getting spoiled!!!  :-)  We have done so much together with playdates and painting pottery! She loved that! :-)

In the coming weeks things are quite busy around here!  Custody Evals, Court Dates and lots and lots of worry and tears!  Please continue to pray for our family as these changes are taking place!  Through all of this the kids are doing wonderful and Zach and I are seeking counseling help to try and keep it that way for the children.  A much needed and respected approach on our part.  It's hard but we need to do it for our children.  On the brighter side, Jackson starts Karate in March and Max starts Soccer at the YMCA!  Both boys are thrilled and I myself can't wait to see how much they enjoy it!

For me, my brighter side includes attending Blue Ridge Community Church, My DivorceCare Group, the birth of my nephew this March and visiting my family after he is born. I'm also traveling to NC in a few weeks for a much needed vacation with girlfriends and to celebrate my 35th! I have also been getting more and more calls for my photography and I'm attending a vendor fair in April!  So much good to keep me focused while so much yucky stuff is taking place at the moment!  Looking for that light to continue to get brighter at the end of the tunnel, I can see it.....:-)

Here are a few pictures!  Enjoy!