Here are the MOO cows ready to go eat at Chick Fil A for appreciation night....We were Moo Papa, Moo Momma, and Moo 1 2 3 and 4. It was a fun night. The girls loved dressing up.

Dear Friends,
As many of you have heard about the murder of Melanie and Byrd Billings, I want to ask for prayer for the entire family. Melanie has been an online friend of mine for nearly 5 years. We have spoke on the phone numerous times about family, friends, our babies with DS and the joys and struggles that arises when parenting a child with DS. I am so devastated about this. I cant sleep at night, I cry at any moment just thinking about it...I was just chatting with Melanie the afternoon of Thursday, the day they were shot. They were considering adopting another infant...she was so excited. All I can ask is WHY??? WHY would someone be so hateful, thoughtless, MEAN, unloving, and filled with evil rage to take these two lives...any life at that????

I am planning on going to the funeral service on Friday...as long as nothing goes astray here at home. I have spoken to Melanie's cousin and she is letting me know about donating to a memorial for Bud and Melanie. We would love to donate books about DS for new parents as a reminder that there is HOPE...our children are a JOY! OR better yet, we would like to donate to Reeces Rainbow for a waiting child grant fund, in hopes that a child with DS could find their forever family...what a honor...I know Melanie and Bud would be thrilled.

Melanie and Bud (this is what friends and family called him) had a plan. They had a plan in the event both of them died. They knew that one day it was a possibility (one we pray never does happen) that they would be gone before their children and felt they must have a plan. I am just so sad that this day DID arrive and now the plan must be put into place. Their oldest daughter Ashley will care for the children with her husband. They have an older son as well but he lives in Tampa. Friends and family will also step into help as well as their therapists, teachers and paid staff will continue to remain the same..this is good for the children...to have some form of consistancy in their routine. Those children were loved unconditionally...Melanie and Bud didnt see any disability in them, they loved them for exactly the being our Lord created them to be....

PLEASE pray for the children, for the family and for the friends that these two beautiful people have left behind. The children are going to mourn their parents loss, for the children who seen their parents laying there and ran for help, for the ones who will never understand WHY Momma and Daddy arent there playing with them anymore....Oh my heart breaks! PLEASE PRAY! Financially the children are going to be cared for. They will have the love of their family and siblings. They will remain together...but they will never be held/snuggled by their parents again....for this my heart breaks! PLEASE PRAY!

Again I ask for all my blog friends and family....continue to pray for God's healing hand, for His almighty LOVE and for His will be done for the entire BILLINGS family.

Blessings..

Kids are so quick to answer....

Children Are Quick




TEACHER: Maria, go to the map and find North America
MARIA: Here it is.
TEACHER: Correct. Now class, who discovered America ?
CLASS: Maria.
____________________________________

TEACHER: John, why are you doing your math multiplication on the floor?
JOHN: You told me to do it without using tables.
__________________________________________

TEACHER: Glenn, how do you spell 'crocodile?'
GLENN: K-R-O-K-O-D-I-A-L'
TEACHER: No, that's wrong
GLENN: Maybe it is wrong, but you asked me how I spell it.
____________________________________________

TEACHER: Donald, what is the chemical formula for water?
DONALD: H I J K L M N O.
TEACHER: What are you talking about?
DONALD: Yesterday you said it's H to O.
__________________________________


TEACHER: Winnie, name one important thing we have today that we didn't have ten years ago.
WINNIE: Me!
__________________________________________

TEACHER: Glen, why do you always get so dirty?
GLEN: Well, I'm a lot closer to the ground than you are.
_______________________________________

TEACHER: Millie, give me a sentence starting with 'I.'
MILLIE: I is . . .
TEACHER: No, Millie . . .. Always say, 'I am.'
MILLIE: All right . . . 'I am the ninth letter of the alphabet.'
_________________________________

TEACHER: George Washington not only chopped down his father's cherry tree, but also admitted it. Now, Louie, do you know why his father didn't punish him?
LOUIS: Because George still had the axe in his hand.
______________________________________

TEACHER: Now, Simon, tell me frankly, do you say prayers before eating?
SIMON: No sir, I don't have to, my Mom is a good cook.
______________________________

TEACHER: Clyde, your composition on 'My Dog' is exactly the same as your brother's. Did you copy his?
CLYDE: No, sir. It's the same dog.
___________________________________

TEACHER: Harold, what do you call a person who keeps on talking when people are no longer interested?
HAROLD: A teacher

oh my word this is just too cute to not share!! Enjoy!

I hope you all are having a fantastic 4th of July. I pray that you all will stop and tell a soldier THANK you for giving you the freedom to celebrate this great nation we live in. Happy Birthday America...
I am proud to an American
where I know I will always be free!

This was emailed to me and wow....so true.


Independence Day. It’s not just a phrase. It’s something that a few good men over 200 years ago spent their whole life to see. It’s something that men and women still fight to see today. Even so, we take it for granted. As a nation,, we have been blessed with far more than we deserve, yet we still seem to do the wrong thing. Those in Washington (whom we elected) don’t have a clue what’s going on, our President is afraid to take sides, and a bill to pay back the size of Mt. Everest looms upon us. Independence Day has been stretched to something it was not intended to be.

Independence Day was not meant for each of us individually, it was meant for us as a whole. The founding fathers wrote it to make this nation free from those trying to bear power upon them. They were not thinking of their individual goals when they signed it, they wanted what was best for this land, the people and places home to me and you. From this document forward, America grew more and more, writing a constitution to explain the rights granted to the government. In today’s world, we seem to think that the Constitution gave us more than that. We do as we choose, that’s what freedom is right? Wrong. Freedom is freedom only if it is protected from those who abuse it.

I understand that we have differences among us in this country. If we were all the same, life would be boring anyway. Democrat and Republic, Liberal and Conservative serve as steel-wall dividers. However, I don’t understand how we all cannot face the truth. Since we are on the subject of Independence Day, I think the way our military is viewed is an appropriate topic. Not too long ago, there was a Marine recruiting officer murdered by a man who was anti-military and was obviously somewhat radical in his beliefs. This incident was viewed as “an isolated incident of violence.” That same week, an abortion doctor was gunned down by a man who murdered him for his hatred of abortion doctors. This event was broadcast all over the news as “terrorism, terrorism, terrorism.” A man who served his life for this country was given little to no respect, while one who took away the right to life was placed on a pedestal. Let’s face the truth: Murder is a terrible thing. Every murder is bad, but when a man serving his country is killed, I believe he deserves far more respect than any of us civilians do.

That’s not the only incident. there are more than a handful I could talk about. Across America, people line up and protest the war we are in right now. They talk bad of our troops. People shout obscenities about this country that gives them more than they deserve. I don’t quite understand, If it’s so bad here and you hate it so much, then why don’t you move somewhere else? The door’s always open. If it is that hard to stand behind those who are fighting to keep you safe, if it’s that hard to stand behind and support those who are dying for your well-being everyday, if it’s that hard to stand behind the people who give the ultimate sacrifice, then feel free to stand in front of them. Maybe then you won’t see this world with rose-colored glasses anymore. It just might change your opinion of how you view things.

There isn’t a thing in the world that could give the thanks needed to those who have served and continued to serve this country. Even more there isn’t a thing that could give God thanks for what he has blessed us with. It all started with Him when the founding fathers met to begin this country. Face the truth: This country started with the God who created the heavens and the earth. You can say what you want about the documents and what-not, but for one to say that this country had no mention of God in its birthing is completely ignorant, and is the definition of denial. There is no such thing as selective truth, truth is not what you make it. Truth is truth. As people turn their back to God in this country, I think they should be reminded of something that is a part of all of our lives.

O, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand,
Between their lov'd homes and the war's desolation;
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserv'd us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause. it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Those words ring a bell? They are the last verse to The Star-Spangled Banner. Our national anthem, what we hear when we win gold at the Olympics, what we sing before ball games to remind us of where we are, is inscribed with the one who is responsible for all of our blessings, God Himself.
May you have a wonderful 4th of July. Thank a soldier you know, and thank the God who blesses us with life.

" Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance."
Psalm 33:12
Thank you for reading. God Bless.

Well once again I come to apologize. We have been so busy. The girls and I have been hanging out and trying to enjoy a little bit of down time here at home. All of the VBS we had planned are now finished up except our church mid July. The girls have had a blast with the 5 they attended in June.

The tooth fairy is going broke visiting our house. Giovanna has lost another tooth and Lily lost her first two teeth a day apart. She now has 2 little nubs growing back on the bottom of her mouth. Giovanna just walked over to William one night and said Daddy look....and pushed on her tooth...It was totally just hanging there. I barely put the paper towel on it and out it come. They both were very excited to have "prizes" from the tooth fairy.

William and I along with the 4 little ones are packing up and heading to TN for the 4th of July. My best friend Susan and her hubby Mike moved there 2 yrs ago and we dont get the spend near enough time together! She was her on the 4th of June for the musical I won tickets too....that was a blast.

I hope that everyone out there has a fantastic 4th of July and remember to stay safe. In many places it is far too dry to do fireworks...so please keep that in mind.

I will be updating pics soon.
Giovanna dropped my new camera William got me for Mothers Day and broke it. I was SOOO upset. It was a Nickon S230. Small, lightweight and would do movies and nice pictures...I kept it in my purse.. The other day when i took pictures in the pool, she seen it on the patio table after we were out and drying off and wanted to take a picture...well when i seen her i tried to say it quietly for her to put it down, she did alright....dropped it right on the concrete. There is now a crack on the screen from corner to corner. It no longer does movies and the touch screen doesnt work. All i can do it take pictures, which is good..but no video's or no touch screen. I was so so so upset! William told me I could go buy another one and this time we now have a 2yr waranty on it that covers those "drops on the concrete" with full coverage...they will give me another one!!!!


Lyndsey and Michael are doing well. They are both counting down the days...Micheal is at 27 days until he graduates and can come home. Lyndsey is counting down the days that they will allow her to take a final PT test. She is hoping she will be done by the end of July to take a test and leave for TX. Please continue to keep her in your prayers!!


Be safe.....

Well the girls are once again going to Vacation Bible School...this time at First Bpt in Prattville. They all love going! It is just so hot outside. Today we didnt go to speech, because they were all so crazy from Bible school....

I see the poll has closed ..... William really likes the name Polka Dot Princess so we may just have to have a revote...lol I need to get stuff ordered for my name so I can start pricing the items I have around here for my booth. I have so much to get done for it. I want it to be super cute, attractive and SELL some stuff. William is giving me 3 months to see if it will work...he said if it doesnt then I will need to stop and get rid of it all...nothing returning home...LOL we will see!

I will be posting pics of our fun day in the pool yesterday. I went to Target and bought the girls a pool...its 10ftx 30 in and they love it. We all got in and had a blast for about 4 hours...this will help on these REALLY hot 102 temp days here in AL.

Lyndsey and Michael are doing well.

Hey I am opening a child's consingment/

second hand store inside one of our local indoor fleamarket malls here in town July 1st. I will be selling alot of my girls clothes as well as toys and also clothes and hairbows that i make. I would love your ideas for a name. On my business cards now I have always called myself " The Princess Boutique" But I dont want it to sound like just girls things...it will mostly be this but I will also be adding some boys things as well...so i need help for a new name...

Here are just a few i come up with but then again....the Princess/girl theme always comes out in me..lol wonder why!!

Tutu's & Tiara's
Polka Dot Princess
The Princess Boutique
Mudpies & Butterflies
From our house to YOURS
Little Treasures

HELp...any ideas?? I make custom girls outfits such as Applique shirts for boys and girls, shorts, pants/pantaloons, A Line dresses, Jon Jon's, hairbows and more....so my shop will be alittle of alot...lol..There could also be some household stuff and small furniture at times as well.

Leave me a comment and Im going to try and set up a poll at the side, so if you see it vote or if you have a different name leave a comment for me.

Well the girls started VBS again this week...and are going to EMBC. They love it. There are several of Giovanna's classmates going as well, so she is excited each morning to see "her friends".

I have been running errands each morning they are gone as it is so much easier to do it alone than to run in and out of somewhere with 4 little ones in tow.

Wednesday after I dropped the girls off at VBS, Gabby and I headed to Birmingham. She had an appointment with the eye Dr. She did great. Her prescription for her glasses still remain the same so that was great news. Her optic pressure is still high, but still remains the same. I got another scrip for a MRI so we can get it done and then make our appointment with the neurosergon. Right now the plan is to continue to watch her cyst on the brain to see if there is any growth...so far there has been NONE! If it remains the same this is an answered prayer. We had no clue she has this when we adopted her so following it and learning about it has been intresting to say the least.

After the Dr's we headed over to the hospital to finally meet face to face a online blogger friend...Julie Feser. She lives in Washington state so meeting her would be just about impossible. Well she is here at children's adopting their newest little man. He is so cute!!! We were able to spend a few hours with her until it was finally time to head home in the terrible afternoon/evening traffic. Gabby slept most of the way home.

When I got home, William had fed and given baths to all the other 3...so that was wonderful! We were all in bed and asleep by 9pm....LONG AND TIRING DAY

Sorry I havent posted all week. My friend Susan came in last weekend and we had a great time together...

The girls have gone to VBS this week in the morning AND at night. They have had a busy busy week. They have really enjoyed the fun!!! William and I were able to sneak a dinner in together ALONE the other night while they were at VBS so that MADE my week.

Lyndsey will be heading back in the morning on a Greyhound bus(believe it or not it was HER choice) so she can stay the weekend and visit friends and Michael before she reports back Sunday evening. She has gotten a hotel and all...so this is a BIG test of us just cutting the rope and letting her do "her" thing. PRAY for HER please!

Michael is doing good. He has made friends at his schooling and gets to call home everyday. All is good for him at the moment.

I have had a crummy week with a BAD painful elbow. dont know what I did, but I have been unable to move it AT ALL! I was going for a shot but have been able to put it off this far.

Wednesday I have to take Gabby to the eye Dr to see if her brain cyst has grown and pushing more on her optic nerves. I think she is fine....we pray that the condition has not changed at all.

Well that was a FAST update.... Hope all is well for everyone. HUGS to you all

In less than 24 hours my BESTEST Friend in the whole wide world will be here for the weekend!! I cant wait! She is coming in town so we can have some much needed girls fun. I won tickets to a play off the radio so we are doing that on Friday night. Saturday is our fun day..what ever we wanna do, we are gonna do. If its nothing more than hanging out at home, scrapbooking, shopping, movies or whatever....this Momma needs a little break!


Tonight William has gone with the guys to see the movie Terminator. ITs just me and the little ones, and they are all in bed. Time to get off here and start picking up. Ive been lazy this week with my wifely duties!

Play dates!

Today was such a fun day. The girls went to Vacation Bible school and at 12 I picked them up and had a surprise afternoon planned. Giovanna oh so loves her little friend from school, Carson. His Aunt (whom I met at the girls birthday party in May) was coming to town and she wanted to know if we could do a play date. I said YES of course! So after I picked up the girls, we headed to Burger King for lunch and then to the YMCA play center for a playdate with the kids. It was Angela, Brandi, Carson and his twin brother Colton, Lily (Angela's little girl she babysits who just happens to have the angel gene DS) and my whole crew. They had a blast!!!

We stayed at the Y for almost 3.5 hours. The adults talked and played with the kids...and the kiddos did so much playing...cooking us imaginary meals and coffee. They were so cute together! Brandi and Angela I cant wait to do it again! Giovanna was quick to tell her Daddy when he come home tonight who she played with today...too cute.

This picture was taken the night of Family Day. The next day was the BIG day and he was so excited.

Mike we are so proud of you son! What a man of God you have become and to see you standing tall and finishing up Bootcamp, makes me one happy Momma!

I love you!

Notice Bella's face....this is about how we all felt. There was nothing to do on family day..besides go shopping at the PX, drive around and eat. It got really boring! He could not go off post at all that day. We still enjoyed spending time with our boy! Way to go Mike!

More to come and pictures tomorrow.

We are here in Columbia SC and are having a great time seeing Michael. He is sooo happy we are here too! Family Day was kinda boring, not alot to do but great having him with us for the day. Graduation was great. My only son is grown up! I am not on my computer so I cant put pics on here until i get home...I thought I could. Today is Saturday and our original plan was to be leaving...however he told us late last night that we may get to have him all weekend....so we are waiting on word from him now. He was moving to the other side of his camp for his AIT schooling and after they get him assigned to where he needs to be, the will probably give the soldiers a weekend pass if their families are still here...SO WE WAIT FOR THE CHANCE TO SPEND MORE TIME WITH MIKE!

He looks so great...gave me tears thinking back 22 years ago when I was here to see the love of my life graduate from the same Army basic training. He looks so much like his father did!!!!! It gave me goose bumps!

Thanks for following our story...Mikes journey and the exciting adventures of the Andrews Crew...LOL!