Our Life.... Love Never Fails

Potty Training

2011-07-07T17:46:00.002-04:00

We have begun an attempt at potting training this week. It has not been successful at all. Ayden refuses to go on the potty. Mrs. Su has tried all of her 15 years experience to get him to go with no success. He will actually hold it all day long. No matter how many times you put him on the potty or how long he sits, rewards do not work either. He just does not want to do it. It is hard working all day and coming home to trying to get him to go on the potty. I am praying that at some point soon he gets it. We will see....

Exciting Days

2011-06-29T17:03:00.003-04:00

Things have been pretty exciting for us around our family. Courtney and Pat (Phill's sister and her husband) have adopted 2 little boys from Rwanda Africa. It has been amazing and inspiring to be apart of this wonderful adventure. We are on the edge of our seats waiting out these last 4 days until we get to see them ALL arrive back from their 3 weeks away! We are having a lot of fun back here in the states sharing in their blog, talking and planning the welcome home at the airport :-) We love all of them and can not wait to hug each one. Thanks to everyone who has been praying for their trip. Please continue to pray as they now embark on their final days and trip home. We love you Cassada family and can not wait to see you again!!

A Glorious Day

2011-06-15T19:09:00.002-04:00

Today is a Glorious Day in HIS image and likeness :-) Today in Rwanda Phill's sister and her family finalized their adoption of Lincoln and Levi Cassada. We are so overwhelmed with joy and gladness for this precious day!! They have been on this journey for over 2 years and to see it all unfold is a true blessing from the LORD!! We are so blessed to be a part of this wonderful revelation of the Lords power! We love you Courtney & Pat!!!

Finally Friday

2011-05-13T15:38:00.003-04:00

So happy that it is finally Friday!! Looking forward to a weekend spent with family. Tomorrow we are going to Reston Bible Church to help at Pat & Courtney's Stop Hunger Now event. Can't wait to make a difference:-) Soccer Games for Britt both Saturday and Sunday should be fun. Life is so busy but we love enjoying our time together!!

4 more days....

2011-04-18T16:37:00.003-04:00

....Before we get to head to PA to see my family :-) I am sooo excited!! I LOVE being home more than anything, yes I call it home, I think I always will. We are gathering at my Aunt Pam & Uncle Bill's house. We love getting together there. They built their own home on top of a mountain and have a LOT of land. There is enough room for the kids to run around for hours. And enough space inside for everyone to gather together for an amazing time. We will celebrate March Birthdays and Easter all in the same weekend. Can't wait for it to get here!!!

It's Over

2011-04-15T16:33:00.002-04:00

The stress of the week is over. I accomplished a lot this week at work. Have a lot left to do starting Monday however I am proud of the fact that I was able to complete several things on my check list :-)

So happy the weekend is here. Looking forward to spending it with my family!!

Stressed Out - Please Grant Me Peace

2011-04-12T16:26:00.004-04:00

I am stressed out so much today. Someday's are easier than others. I try to stay positive and remain happy at all times but it can be hard and stress me out more at times. It is hard to do it all. Work full time managing people and work and answering to all of the requests coming down to you every day, manage a home full time, 3 kids, soccer, dinner, cleaning, laundry oh did I mention soccer, soccer, soccer, school functions, helping the kids with their homework, keeping up with a toddler, trying to bring this toddler up in the right way, he is 2 and tests the limits, is strong willed and loving all at the same time. Also add into the mix grocery shopping squeezed into the kids schedules, yard work (I just want to have time to plant flowers and that is just not working out), spring cleaning, painting, picking up from events, dropping off at events, and being a support of others in their times of need and crisis since I know He has placed me in all that is happening for a reason; His reason!

I am a full time working mother of 3, I work because I have to work, not because I want to work. I wish more than anything I didn't HAVE to work. I pray about His choice in my life. I know my life is exactly as He plans, but I do not always want to live it exactly as He has chosen. My life has not been easy by any sense of the word.

I know I should focus on the positive. I am thankful for ALL the HE has given me in life. I know I have plenty to be thankful for. I have been blessed with 3 healthy children, the most loving and patient and excepting husband in the world (not too many guys who grew up as my husband did, "pretty awesome" in his words, would be able to just open their heart and arms to a ready made family at 22 years old). We are all healthy. We both have good jobs. I do appreciate all of the blessings in my life. I just feel like is it all worth it? I bring home stress, I am short with the kids and Phill on some days. I have always struggled with carrying things with me. I can't just "let go" of things. It is who I am. I hate that about my emotional side.

My prayer every morning on my ride into work is for God to grant me peace in all that I am required to do. I remind myself that everything happens in His time, not my time. I get that but it doesn't make it any easier in the moment.

Just another Monday - or is it

2011-04-11T15:40:00.002-04:00

Today is a beautiful day, it's 84 and sunny with no humidity. I ran a mile at work today outside around the trail. It felt so good. I love running outside. It has been so rainy since the temperature became high enough for it not to snow. I have been so down about it raining all the time. The rain has delayed soccer practice and games for my girls. I should be happy that I don't have to run all over creation and spend more money on gas. However that means that the girls are held up inside and are not so happy. Today they can kick the soccer ball outside and get out some energy that has been storing up inside. Today it is not raining :-) So it's not the same Monday that is has been ~ It is a spring Monday & I'm so very happy that it is!!

Finally the Weekend

2011-04-02T08:12:00.002-04:00

The week was long. Work has been tough. My boss of the past 5 years retired Friday, I got promoted into his position so that is a plus. It is strange because I didn't think I would be effected by him leaving but I was sad. You get used to having the people around you at work everyday, they become like another family to you. So this is an adjustment in my life. I am excite about the change for me personally but he was my sounding board so it is going to be a very different world come Monday.

I am happy to have this weekend at home enjoying the kids and Phill. I got to go to the Third Day concert last night. It was amazing!! A couple from our small group had an extra ticket and asked me to go along. It kicked off the weekend just the way I needed it to. Keeping me centered in Him and appreciating all that I have been blessed with!!

Happy Weekend everyone ~ Make is a GREAT one!!

Small Group Needs

2011-03-29T15:37:00.002-04:00

We meet every Monday night with our small group. They have quickly become like family to us. There are 7 amazing couples with pretty wonderful children. We learn together, laugh together and support one another. It breaks my heart that one of the couples is going through a very troubling time. They are in GREAT need of prayers. We are not sure what the future for their family holds however we ask that you please keep them in your prayers. Their names are Kendra & Tom and their daughter Parker. My heart is breaking for their situation and I pray that God guides me in the way he wishes for me to support them.

Hump Day

2011-03-16T18:04:00.002-04:00

Today was a busy day at work. It flew by and I still have a ton of work on my desk for tomorrow... Hoping everyday goes by fast so Friday is here soon! Phill and Britt are excited about going to the basketball game tomorrow. Thanks Alden & Dorian for making it possible. I am planning on taking Andrea & Ayden out for a bit I think since they will not be getting home until bedtime. Looking forward to sitting and relaxing with my wonderful husband tonight. I will post pictures soon.

Forever Friday

2011-03-11T15:25:00.002-05:00

I am so happy it is finally Friday!! The weeks seem to take so long and it is forever until Friday gets here again. It is so wonderful to be done with the week and ready to hang out with my wonderful husband and kids :-) Oh happy day!!

Remember the Rain

2011-03-10T15:23:00.004-05:00

Rain it is. Today is a rainy day. I always liked rain growing up. I used to run in the rain when I was little. It was simple, peaceful and just plain fun. I would run with my friends in the neighborhood for hours. We would find the deepest puddles that we could and we would run, jump and splash in them. Oh to be a kid again. Carefree and free to get wet and dirty and not worry about a thing. No worries about the fact that you would track water through the house or that there would be more laundry to do. No worries about anything other than trying to catch rain drops on your tongue and spinning in circles with your arms stretched out feeling the rain drops hit your face. Sometimes we forget what it was like to be a kid. For today I will have no worries, I am going to sit with my wonderful kids, enjoying the small things and remembering what it felt like to be a kid running in the rain!!

Family wishes

2011-03-08T15:36:00.004-05:00

Family ~ It has always been such an important part of my life however I feel like something is missing. I have an amazing husband and wonderful children who I LOVE spending time with!! Don't get me wrong I appreciate them very much, I just feel like I am missing a piece of something.

My extended family is all so far away and I am sad that I don't have as much time with them as I would if I lived back home. My Mom is amazing and we talk as much as we can. We try to travel to see each other whenever we can. I just find that I am longing for something that I may never have. I have sisters, who I met when I was almost an adult. We didn't grow up together, we don't have that same bond and the situation with our biological father just make things difficult. I wish I had a sister to bond with. I feel so sad sometimes that I don't have that. Lately I really just feel alone. When my cousin Mandy lived here it was the closest I ever felt a "sister like" bond with someone. We loved being together, bringing our kids together to grow up together, Cousins & Friends. I feel like we are all missing out on something special. It makes my heart sad. We planned trips together, we wanted our kids to have one another and to spend time together (not just because it was a holiday or birthday). It was nice to have time together just because we wanted to be together :-)

I long to move back to PA and have an on going sister bond with someone. I want to have girl talks and visits just because we want to be together. I long for fun shopping trips even when we don't have to buy anything. I feel like staying in Virginia I will just lose this dream ~ forever! I try hard not to think about it, stay distracted and busy, however these days it is consuming me.

I'm Back

2010-11-12T13:13:00.003-05:00

Ok so I know I have not been on here since I was pregnant. We had the website for a while which was great and once Ayden turned 1 we decided we would no longer keep it. I enjoy reading everyone else's blog's so I figured it was about time that I got back to our families posts. Things are busy these days (not much change there). The girls are finishing up soccer for the fall and getting ready for winter indoor soccer :-) So exciting for them, so busy for me! Andrea will be 13 next month, welcome teen years x2. I am bracing myself for it. Brittany is actively involved in a lot of school activities and is very involved in her small group from Church and enjoys spending time with her friends from church as well. She is such a joy in our lives!! Ayden is all over the place. He is such a "boy". I never knew what that truly meant until now!! He loves cars and balls, running and jumping and getting into everything. He hates to be dirty, which is about the only thing which is not "boy" about him. He is such a blessing to all of us! He will keep Phill and I young for sure. I will have to be sure to post some pictures soon :-)

New Baby Site

2008-09-15T08:42:00.002-04:00

OK, as you all know we have been tracking our pregnancy in our online pregnancy journel and I know everyone is wondering what happened to our journal entries. Well my wonderful husband decided that he really wanted something that could continue with the baby after he is born. Soooo, with that said, he has now developed an actual web page for our new bundle of joy. I have moved my entire journal over to the new web page for all of you to enjoy. It also contains family pages, photo albums with the ability for you all to add pictures and save them to your PC, fun polls and quizes (please be sure to give us your input) and also our baby registry info along with any events that we may have. I am replacing the link above the ticker with the new website link. This will be Aydens own personal page once he is born, complete with his first pictures, polls for us to use in making choices (check them out they are fun) and many more fun things to watch him grow. The web addresss is www.aydenphillip.com. Enjoy it please! Don't forget to sign the guest book.

Dad & Daughter's Fishing Date

2008-07-16T18:14:00.003-04:00

Andrea has been showing an interest in fishing since the spring. Yesterday morning Phill took the morning off of work and he scheduled a "Fishing Date" with Andrea. It was so much fun. They got their poles ready Monday night and set off first thing Tuesday morning for Burke Lake. It was an amazing time for the both of them. He is such an amazing Daddy. He just continues to bring such amazement and joy to our family. What a blessing. Here are some pictures from that day.

What an amazing time of bonding and fun for Daddy & Daughter!!

Pictures

2008-07-14T05:16:00.002-04:00

We have posted pictures to our pregnancy journal from a photo shoot Phill took me on this weekend. The link to our journal is above the baby ticker on the left side of this blog. Enjoy.

Our Beach Trip 2008

2008-07-13T07:28:00.008-04:00

Here are some photo's from our beach trip to the outerbanks.

First stop is the farmers market.

Now we are off to the beach!

Mandy & Jake at Dinner, then off to golf.

Toasting Marshmallow's.... What fun!!

A Night out to Tale of the Whale... Our favorite place to eat!

Final Stop....Go Carts!

Our Anniversary

2008-06-25T07:06:00.002-04:00

Today we are celebrating our 3 year wedding anniversary. The time has passed by so quickly. It seems like only yesterday we were getting ready for the big day, all the excitement of planning and registering and celebrating. The wedding was such an amazing event itself with all of the people who we love so very much and the memories that we were blessed enough to make. Now sitting here thinking back to that day it is so exciting for us and to think that we are once again planning and registering and celebrating the next big event in our lives.... Our very first baby! We are so very blessed to have been given this gift. We will spend the day home from work, so exciting, just enjoying one another and remembering that incredible part of our life. We plan on going out to dinner tonight, just the two of us. (Thanks Mandy) We will remember each of you today and the part you played in the memories of June 25, 2005!

Ready for the weekend.

2008-06-14T05:11:00.003-04:00

We are so happy that the weekend has arrived. The past few weeks have been wonderful. Andrea finished up soccer with a win of the championship, it was last weekend in the 100 degree weather which was a challange but with lots of tents, water, wet wash clothes and parents armed with spray bottles we managed through it. Two games, hot hot days and one amazing win. I am so proud and happy for her. The girls finished up school for the summer yesterday. So nice!! The girls have begun their daily ritual of hanging at the pool with their friends. They have grown up so fast it is hard to believe. Brittany had her first sleep over two weekends ago. That was so much fun. It was the sleep over for her birthday back in March since it was basketball and she was on all stars she was never able to have her big 13th sleepover so we waited until the pool opened to have it. It was amazing to be a part of and watch. She has made such wonderful friends. I am very proud of the young lady she has become. I continue to update the baby journal often. Things are going great. Please log onto our journal for updates. We have posted our new ultrasound picture from Monday. The baby now looks like a baby, amazing to see!! I also added a baby ticker to count down to the birth both here & on our journal. (Thanks Courtney)

Back to the swing of things

2008-05-24T07:56:00.002-04:00

OK I know it has been forever since I posted on here. We have been going through somethings which have been filling our lives. We found out in April that we are expecting a baby. This news was so very exciting for us since we had been trying for 10 months. No sooner did we find out that we were expecting I started spotting which continued up until last Friday. It has been a roller coaster for us so we have just really been focusing on the baby and praying for things to go well. We did start an online pregnancy journal which we would like to share with all of you. The link and all the information for what has been going on is http://www.babycrowd.com/jr/online/ourbabyjourney/welcome.html

I hope each of you will continue to check back on how things are going through our pregnancy. We have our first ultrasound picture posted there as well.

Catch Up

2008-04-07T17:35:00.003-04:00

Well it has been a while since I have been on the blog and I am sorry for those who have been waiting. It seems that like is just so busy and that when you work and have kids you have little time to blog. Since my last post we have enjoyed Brittany's turning 13, what a wonderful time this has been. She is just growing into the most amazing young lady. We enjoyed a George Mason Game, Brittany completed a regular season of Basketball and was picked for the All-Star team. Phill was the assistant coach, such a wonderful thing for the both of them. They both really love Basketball. We just ended the season in time for Andrea to start Soccer. She is playing with the same girls that she has played with for the past two years and she is very excited about that. As most of you are aware Phill and I have been trying to have a baby since July of last year. I recently completed all of my testing and I have been given a bill of great health for baby. It has been very hard and trying but our spirits are up. We continue to pray and seeks God's love and support in our journey. We currently have a few family and friends who have been blessed and are expecting. We are excited and happy for each of them, however it does become hard at times to be reminded of what we have yet to be blessed with. We have decided to take almost every one's advise and take a month or two off from ovulation test kits, calendars and temperatures and see if just relaxing will work better. In the mean time it is easier to stay clear of anything baby for a while. (We were so excited about the idea that we started looking at everything baby at stores and online, yes Phill too. He is amazed with all of the strollers out there. Guess that is kinda like being into cars in the baby world, smiles.) Please keep us in your prayers through this time of our life. We will continue to trust in His Will. With keeping in relaxing and taking our minds off of babies, we are looking forward to landscaping our front yard. We plan on taking out the small evergreen trees on either side of our front porch and putting in some flowers. This will be exciting and will keep our minds occupied.

My Birthday

2008-02-13T07:05:00.004-05:00

Wow "32" today. It is amazing to me how quickly the year has gone by. I woke this morning to my wonderful husband wishing me a Happy Birthday. It was a much needed make me smile since I had to venture out into the icy world. Boy it was a challenge to get my car cleared off however once it was cleared no problems. I am going to celebrate today at work with my co-workers who all brought in dishes for a luncheon. I am so grateful for each one of them. Tonight I am actually doing what I LOVE to do cooking a big meal for my family. They are the best gift that God has ever given me and making them happy is really all that I need. Tonight should prove to be just a nice relaxing night at home. To each of you reading this You are my gift and I am thankful for you. I will leave each of you with my thought of the day while I am celebrating God's love: "You saw me before I was born and scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Every day was recorded in your book!" (Psalm 139:16) God made me for a reason and planned the days of my life. Today I send praise to His plan for me and each of you who God placed into his plan for my life. I love you all, God Bless!

Too Busy

2008-02-05T09:20:00.000-05:00

We enjoyed our weekend; although it was very busy it ended with us watching the Super Bowl, which was an amazing game. It was the first time we sat all weekend. It was much needed. I have two meetings at the girls’ schools this week, always busy times during the week. Phill continues to run every evening and watch his diet. I sure wish I had the drive that he does. By the time I have time to myself each day I am way too tired to run. However I am so proud of him. He really feels great and I love that!! It would be so much easier to have time if I was home more then I am away at work. Crazy how that works. Oh well, I will push through it as always. Maybe things will calm down for the coming weekend, we will see.

Reflection

2008-01-24T08:16:00.000-05:00

Last evening we learned that a dear friend of Phill's family, Buddy, passed away from brain cancer. While this is a sad time for those who knew and loved him, it is a glorious day for Buddy who has gone on to spend eternity with the Lord. I have been reading his blog and have been inspired by their Faith which held their family together through this most difficult time in their lives. Even through the darkest of storms their Faith never wavered. It is amazing and inspirational to learn of the Power of The Lord in their family. They have become an inspiration to me. Seeing the strength the Lord has given their family will strengthen our Faith within our own family. Hearing Phill speak of Buddy and his family has warmed my heart. I know because Buddy and his family were a part of his life, they helped to form the wonderful Man, Husband & Father he has become. Today we pray for the Wood family and reflect and appreciate our own family. Everyone gets busy and caught up in life. We must take time to spend with those who mean the most to us and will be there until the end, Our Family. We are all here in His time and must cherish the prized moments which He allows each of us to have together. I am ever grateful that the Lord has given us a most precious and wonderful gift in each member of Our Family. We love each of you so very much.

Where did the year go?

2007-11-28T06:22:00.000-05:00

So I know it has been a while for me to post a blog, sorry for that. We have been so busy and this year seems to have slipped away from us. Andrea finished up soccer just in time for Brittany to begin basketball. It was a great season for Andrea and her coach was wonderful. We are hoping that he is going to be coaching again next year since he did such a wonderful job. Brittany is on a team of all girls this year for the first time, no more co-ed and she is loving it. We are so excited for this phase of the girls' lives, it is so much fun!! We had a great Thanksgiving with Phill's family. It was such a blessing and wonderful to catch up with everyone. We missed all of you who were not able to attend. We are busy now getting ready for Christmas. This is such a wonderful time of the year. We are thinking of all of you during this time! I will post pictures soon:-)

Wisdom Teeth out and a bit wiser

2007-09-25T19:47:00.001-04:00

So Friday I had the old wisdom tooth removal surgery. Going into this with much reassurance from all of my wonderful family and friends I thought it would be simple. No problems. Well let me say that it started out as expected, lots of rest Friday and Saturday and I expected to be turning the corner to the better side on Sunday. However this was not the case. It seemed that the pain was getting worse not better. Phill was wonderful and taking great care of me, the girls and the house so I knew it was not because I was pushing myself too fast or anything. I have a pretty high tolerance for pain as well so by Sunday night I just did not know how to get the pain to stop. Monday comes and there is no way I can make it to work. To top it off the Surgeon that I went to was very rude to Phill when he called and was the same with me a few hours later. He said there was no way that amount of pain was caused from the tooth, that he thought I was having a stroke and that Phill should take me to the ER. Can you believe this? I hang up in tears and end up talking with my regular dentist who wants to see me first thing in the morning. She tells me to double up my pain meds until then. I do and follow up this morning with her, she is amazing by the way. I go to a different oral surgeon to find out I have a dry socket, let me tell you all I am now the wiser to this condition, which is extremely painful. He fills in the socket with this medication and an hour later I feel so much better, exhausted from little sleep however the pain has now subsided!! Thank goodness for a caring dentist who actually listened and knew what was going on. So it looks like I am back to work tomorrow and I couldn't be any happier about that!!! I chalk this up as a lesson from which Phill and I are both a little bit wiser!!

To help a Friend

2007-09-11T09:22:00.000-04:00

A coworker of mine, April Mckee, is walking for a cure for brain cancer in October. She is walking along with her daughter in memory of her husband, Mack, who she lost in 2006 at age 27. I wanted to help by posting up her link for donations toward her walk. If you would like to donate please go to the site below and click Sponsor Us Now.

http://www.firstgiving.com/4mackmckee

First Day of School

2007-09-04T07:25:00.000-04:00

We are so excited to be starting our first day of school today!!

Brittany's first day of Middle School

Andrea's first day of Fourth Grade
They are growing up so fast. It is amazing and fun all at the same time!!

We love you both, have fun and be safe.

Love,

Dad (Phill) & Mom

Daytona Beach & Seaworld 2007

2007-08-25T17:44:00.000-04:00

Our Trip in Pictures......
Daytona Beach, the view laying out...

The place we lay our heads at night, Oceanwalk Resort, Amazing!!Just wanting to get to the beach or the pool, we are ready!! Lazy river for Lazy days :-) Rock wall climbing across the street from our resort. Go Kart's anyone???

or how about some golf??

We had two mini golf courses right at our resort, what fun!!

I made that shot!!! Yay. I'm ready for the movie...Me too!! The "dive-In" movie, Grease. Loved it!!

The resort had two nights of this, great fun!!

Fireworks after the movie
To the beach the next afternoon. Lets hit some waves. Family Luau Night - Poolside Games, fun times!!While dining, we watched the shuttle launch.

….while dining at this restaurant, just the two of us.
The hotel had kid’s night for the parents to have a night out alone.
They watched the launch from the hotel penthouse roof deck!!

Another wonderful restaurant with a view of the water.
Our menus were custom made to say "Smith Family Vacation 2007".
A perk of our resort concierge service :-)

This was our view, what more could you ask for.....

Caviar for the lady, she loved it!!
It was on the salad bar, amazing.

We are at Seaworld now, boy is it hot!!!!

So we got much needed relief.
Shamu made a BIG splash, Look at these seats!

We were able to pet the dolphins. That was amazing!

And watch them perform. This was our favorite show of the day!!

Inside for the artic animals and some much needed cooling off.

It's time for dinner, we are going to see a show.

The Makahiki Luau Dinner show was so much fun and what beautiful outfits.

Awesome show and day at Seaworld!
"Thanks Mom & Dad" we heard over and over!!
It felt so good to spend this time together with our family!!

We are so very blessed to have had this opportunity to enjoy time together as a family, just the four of us. Those times are precious and we cherish them always!!
This was our first trip with just the four of us so it meant a great deal to us.
We are happy to be able to share this with all of you!!

Growing up

2007-08-16T07:36:00.000-04:00

So yesterday I took Brittany to get contacts for the very first time. She just loves them and did so well, no problems. She wanted to get them for middle school. Man they grow up so very fast. It seems like yesterday that she was starting Kindergarten for the first time and now she is going to middle school. She sure is turning out to be such a wonderful young lady, it makes me so very proud of her. I will be posting pictures soon of our vacation that we returned from. So check back.

A long night

2007-07-03T06:23:00.000-04:00

It was a long night, Andrea has been running a fever and has a pretty bad headache. Looks like we will be going to the Doctor today since a vigil last night proved to help very little. Please pray for her quick recovery. Hope we can get her well for the 4th. It will not be fun to be sick for such a fun holiday.

Home again

2007-07-01T22:52:00.001-04:00

So we are back home again from our weekend in PA. It was a nice time for us to share with family that was not a holiday weekend. Those weekends are always so busy that we really do not have time to enjoy just being together. This was a nice change however it is nice to be home again!! Well here we go to another week of work. At least we have off on Wednesday for the 4th. So exciting. Good Night to you all.

Our 2nd Wedding Anniversary

2007-06-25T22:01:00.000-04:00

Wow, it has been two wonderful years since Phill & I were married. It was been such a wonderful start to our life together. We are so greatful and happy to have found one another. Today was a great day for just the two of us. We took a day off of work and spent it together just remembering our wedding and honeymoon, while creating new memories. We have spent time looking back over our pictures and remembering just how perfect that day was. We are so blessed to have had this time to share with the most special people in our lives. It makes us so happy that those who are closest to us made such amazing memories with us on that very special day. We look forward to growing old together and making each of those who are special in our lives a part of all of the memories to come. Here's a look back to that day...

The Unity Candle (first time we got to talk)

Vows to the girls.... so proud!!

Mr. & Mrs Phillip Smith

Cake Cutting...
Our First Dance

Meet the Parents

Welcome to Aruba!!!!

Good food...

Even better Times!!!

So in love...

He swept me off my feet & still does!!

Enjoy we love each of you!!

The Girls

2007-06-16T06:58:00.000-04:00

Brittany Graduating Elementary School with Friends.

They grow up so quickly.

Andrea's last soccer game of the season.

We won!!

Catching Up

2007-06-15T09:16:00.001-04:00

Well things have been so busy for us that I am finally able to get on here and post. I have been busy with my new position and taking all of the classes that I need and just really starting to dig into things. It has been very challenging however very much a rewarding part of my life. Brittany has "graduated" from elementary school this week. She is going to her end of the year party tonight bowling. It is amazing watching your little girl grow into such a lovely little lady. Happy and sad all rolled into one. Andrea finished soccer for the spring season. She was able to make new friends on the team and she really did a great job her first year. We are so happy that summer has arrived and look forward to the warm weather, BBQ's and Swimming. This is our most favorite time of the year!!

Moved by Him

2007-05-31T07:29:00.000-04:00

God spoke to me this morning while I was listening to my radio station, WGTS 91.9. They have been doing a fundraiser for three days and it has been tugging at my heart each morning that I can help them to make a difference in other peoples lives. Thinking about how easy it would be for someone to come across their station, hear the praises to the Lord and come to Him really moved me. I was compelled to donate to their fundraiser. My donation was small in the grand total of things however I feel so good about being able to help to support such a wonderful organization who works daily in His name. Today is a beautiful day!

Back to the Grind

2007-05-29T08:12:00.000-04:00

After such a wonderful weekend it sure is hard to get back into the swing of the work week!! You would think after three days in a row off of work it would be much easier then it is to get back to the grind. At least we only have three more days!!

Birthday Weekend

2007-05-28T08:13:00.000-04:00

This seems like a great way to keep everyone updated and also stay in touch so I thought lets give it a try. Days are long for us and very involved so we will see how well I do with keeping up.

I am sitting here reflecting on our "long weekend", which is now at its third day. Wow how lucky I am to have such an amazing family!! It was Phill's birthday weekend and boy have we had a pleasurable time so far. We enjoyed time with Phill's Mom, Dad, his Brother Steve and Sister Hannah. We had such a good time with all of them. I could not be luckier then to have this wonderful family! We enjoyed great food and time together, who could ask for anything more? We enjoyed time with friends. They were all so nice to come by to see Phill for his Birthday celebration weekend. We went to the pool with the kids and even got to have ice cream from the Good Humor van, what a treat. This time was soooo much fun. Phill swam with the kids and I got to read my book, the water was a bit to cold for me. :-) It was then off to a birthday dinner at Bennigans, which made Phill very happy. We are now on day three and I am sure it is going to be a very nice one!