A Mix of our Mothers

I have so many things I should be doing right now rather than blogging, but I had to post this...

As I was looking at pictures I snapped of the girls today at the spray park, I noticed that something about this picture of Julia reminded me of my Mom! ...That's only unusual because people usually comment about how much she looks like Janice (Collin's Mom) and she does! But today, in this picture, she really looks like both of them to me.

Funny, isn't it? Usually kids are a good mix of their Mom and Dad in features... but Julia is a good mix of each of her Grandmothers. Precious.

We Have News!

As many of you know, Collin has been considering studying for his MBA for many years and this year he actually decided to send in an application or two! :)

A few weeks ago, we traveled to Oxford, England, because Collin had been invited to interview for admission to the Said Business School at the University of Oxford. (Said is pronounced "Sigh-eed") We had a wonderful trip! Oxford was breathtakingly beautiful. We stayed a few nights there, and then headed to London for a couple days of play. What a trip!

And now we can say with certainty that it was a life-changing experience! Collin was offered admission and he begins classes at the end of September! The girls and I will join him as we move to England for the year... What an adventure this will be! We have a mountain of tasks in front of us and much to do before we move, but we know that God has opened this door for reasons only He may know at this point... and we are definitely stepping out on faith and walking through. We're excited, but it is definitely bittersweet to leave all that is familiar and loved about home. I am SO thankful for the internet where we can stay close though we'll be far away. (What would we do without it?!)

More to come regarding our crazy adventure! Add us to your prayer list and start saving your miles to be able to come and visit us!

Dear Blog...

I have something to tell you, and this is not going to be easy. Before I say anything, you must know that you will always hold a very special place in my heart. But I'm afraid I'm in love... with Facebook.

But we can still be friends, right? Honestly, you should give me some credit for resisting the temptation to join Facebook for so long... And if we're really being honest with ourselves, we've lost our momentum over the past 2 years anyway.

Don't cry, peanutpoage.blogspot.com. I will never forget you. And our relationship will continue-- just in a different way. From now on, you will always be the one I come to when I want to share my heart, or to post my most random assortment of boring pictures and videos that really only interest the Grandparents, or if I want to write anything over 200 characters long... Those things will ALWAYS belong to you, my dear, sweet blog.

So, chin up! You'll hear from me again, blogger... But you might hear more if you get on Facebook. :)

Poage Beach Trip!

Words do not even describe how much fun we had at the beach. The girls LOVED it, and I'm sure that's why it was so much fun for me and for Collin.

We spent the weekend in Valera, TX, for the annual Poage Family reunion (pictures are on Collin's computer but are forthcoming!) and then headed South to Corpus Christi for a quick beach getaway. It was fantastic. We had one full day at the beach and then spent some time at the Texas State Aquarium before heading home again. Loved every minute. Looking forward to booking another beach trip SOON.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Some videos...

For the grandparents...



And then this might be my favorite: This is Avery's "Super-sonic Soundwaves" version of I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart. (Some of the notes may be unable to be heard by humans...)

Easter 2010

It sure was a fun Easter season!

We celebrated with cookie-decorating, candy-eating, egg-dying and more. We also had fun watching the girls play with their new resurrection scene (similar to a nativity scene) and reading new books to them about the real reason we celebrate Easter, which has nothing to do with bunnies or eggs. :) Some of our favorite moments this year were watching Avery come out of her Sunday School class on Palm Sunday, waving a green palm leaf and saying, "Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna!" to everyone on her way out of the church building... The entire "He is Risen!" story about the fly (posted below)... Hearing Julia tell everyone "Happy Bee-ster!" at the top of her lungs with her little voice cracking... Watching them play with/narrate conversations between the characters of the resurrection scene, particularly when Jesus was inviting the angel to come to Julia's Birthday party. So cute. It was a very sweet year to celebrate with our girlies. They're at such a precious age.

As always, it's fun to see family on holidays... And we got to see both sides of our family this Easter, even if it was just a glimpse of the Poages. And what a blessing it was to have an entirely new member of the family with us this year as it was Bella Grace's very first Easter! She spent it being passed from lap-to-lap as a very sleepy and precious 6-day-old. She continues to be a beautiful baby and to steal the hearts of everyone she meets. (Avery is PRESIDENT of Bella Grace's fan club, and Julia is a very close VP.)

Here are some of our favorite pictures from the season... We are blessed!
Decorating Spring sugar cookies... NOT homemade... :)




Playing with our Easter Scene after it arrived in the mail...


Our impromptu Egg-Hunt with Sophie & Jake as our "Plan B" when we missed the official FBC Moms one at the Arboretum that same day...


Dying Easter Eggs...




Easter Sunday Morning: Easter Basket surprises, Egg Hunt at home, Church!...




Easter Sunday Afternoon in Sherman, TX: Egg Hunt & Confetti Egg Fun...

Easter Season and the Houseflies...

A story from the Poages...

This Spring, we have discovered that Avery is TERRIFIED of any insect that flies. (Butterflies may be the only exception.) She will attempt to be brave at first, but then the arms start waving and she starts yelling, "Shoo! Shoo, Fly!..." and then it's downhill from there.

Since the weather has been so beautiful, we've had a few days of open windows at the house and apparently our back screen door has one or two weak spots. I quickly learned, through the screams of a 3-year-old, that a "mosquito" was in the house. (Turns out it was a rather large fly.) For the next 30 minutes (no exaggeration) I tried to calm the terror, but to no avail. Avery was FREAKED OUT. And everytime the fly would come her way, she would scream and flail around like the grim reaper was coming at her. I had her go sit in her room with the door shut while Julia & I dealt with the situation... We tried shooing and swatting but neither worked. Ultimately, we used the vacuum cleaner and got him. WHEW! Fly was gone... went back to tell Avery the good news... Avery hesitantly emerged from her room to the house that I PROMISED her was now fly-free.

...Well, either we have a Houdini Housefly that found it's way out of the vacuum, OR the fly had a stunt-double... But whatever it was, we soon found another identical fly swirling around in the air. I just hoped Avery wouldn't spot it and ignored the whole thing. Several minutes later, I heard the screams. (...Now here's where it made me laugh...) Avery came running into the room and said, "Mommy, Mommy! The fly is back! He is RISEN!!"

Guess some of those Easter books are actually sinking in! ...although her theology may be a bit skewed... ;)

Happy Easter week, everybody!

Our BEAUTIFUL Niece has been born!

Bella Grace Bossen
arrived just before 11am on 3/29/10
6 pounds, 10 ounces 18.5 inches
...Everyone is well...

Just a few from today, but more pictures to come:

Park Pics

The best idea yet came from the Mom of one of Avery's classmates: WEDNESDAY play group!

Our kids are in class together on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so on Wednesdays we get together in the morning to play at the park. It WORKS so well because the kids already know each other from class, and we get to get outside, tire them out and then take them home for naps! Best part about it? Little sisters can play too! Brilliant.

Just a few pictures from one of our February outings...

Trace, Lilly and Avery try the pole swings...

Julia kept up with the 3-yr-olds like she WAS one; Avery & Jack have a snack...