The progression of art in a gymnast's world.....

To cap off a season full of hardwork by all the gymnasts, a few mothers pulled together a painting party.  Something to give the girls a break from their strenuous workouts and hard training schedules....something totally fun...painting!  And the lady who came to teach the girls was just the sweetest and had the perfect painting for our little gymnasts!  I apologize for the quality of the pics, taken with my phone, the very old and outdated iphone 3S....with no flash capabilities. Woe is me. But anyway, here we go:

Oh, she's a cutie alright, and the painting turned out pretty well too! :)

She does her own stunts. :)

Baby Girl trains hard. For hours upon hours in the gym each week. Not just for a few weeks, not even for a couple of months, or half a year....her sport never stops.  She trains ALL YEAR LONG.  And folks, I'm here to tell you, that training paid off in a big way this past December at the end of her competitive season.  

We traveled to the State Championship meet where she placed 2nd on beam! 
(A sweet friend of mine who was almost as proud of her as we were, and is also an editor at the paper, did a little write up for Baby Girl's accomplishment) 

We couldn't be prouder.  She did farily well throughout the season, especially considering this was a much harder level.

                                              

                                                

Baby Girl improved her scores with each new meet and that's what we all strive to do, right?
 Get better with each and every try, improve with each new day.

 She placed on vault and beam in almost every meet throughout the year, placing as high as 3rd, 4th and 5th.  It turns out for Baby Girl the old saying is true, she did save the best for last....and the best brought home a silver medal from the State Championship! 

That's all for this season folks!  But we can hardly wait for her new season to begin!

A 1st birthday that was finger lickin' good!

Our nephew turned the big ONE shortly after the holidays.  We were blessed to get to be in Tennessee for his birthday party....and see him enjoy a pile of chocolate, one tiny pinch at a time.

Hey Mom, gimme that cupcake......I really like the pretty fire on top!!

Do you see that cupcake right there? The one with all the chocolate? 

  

Do you see my fingers right here? 

Let me just show you what they can do.

Can you believe they just let me have it?  Just sat it right down in front of me.  Nobody even took it away. They just all stared while I ate it.  Chocolate is good, friends. Really good. In fact.....

....it's finger lickin' good. 

I can hardly wait 'til I'm old enough for fried chicken.

Generations.

Family visits are always fun, especially when you have a house full of cousins, aunts, uncles, sisters, brothers, parents, grandparents, a great-grandmother and a breakfast table filled with her great-grandchildren!

Family coming from near and far and even farther...it was certainly a "most wonderful time of the year"!

Christmas Family pics

 

Christmas morning annual photo

Kind of makes me sad to look at it.  Instead of looking all wide eyed with excitement about what is waiting around the stairwell corner that Santa brought, they just look sleepy. Of course this year we did have to WAKE them up to begin the Christmas morning festivities. They are getting older. Boo on that.  :(

Stillness = a necessity

It did not take me but a minute to realize what verse to begin with for the new year of H3.  And it won't take you but a minute to realize why I chose it, the relevance behind it, and the necessity it demands.

Do you feel like you are running in a marathon all day for some or most days, even on the weekends?  The holidays are just like a spiraling tailspin for most, if not all of us.  And they often lull me into thinking, "as soon as the holidays are over, things will slow down".  Have you ever said that?  Or as soon as we get past this birthday party month, or this next holiday, or this next deadline at work, or this next big project for school, or this next hurdle with someone's health, or this next birth or death of a loved one, or this sport's season. Well, I've come to figure out what happens after you get through "that next one"....another something comes right on the heels of it.  Not always bad, I'm not saying it's always negatives that bombard us.  Often it's many good things....but still they seem overwhelming when all is said and done.

I didn't make a list of New Year's resolutions this year.  I know what I need to do.  Without a shadow of a doubt, and this verse sums it up completely for me. To be certain my primary focus is where it needs to be in all the hustle and bustle, not of the holidays, but of everyday life.  Hopefully, you can draw from it as well. 

"Be still,

 and know that I am God."

~Psalm 46:10 

The Message version of the Bible says it like this: 
Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at me, your High God!

I love that.  And truly, could it get any simpler than that? No, not, sit on your laurels and wait for money to grow on trees, your children to raise themselves..... But do take the time to notice God in every day, acknowledge His prescence in your life, allow that prescence to guide and guard you.

Here's how it speaks to me, Kimberly's paraphrase for my life, for my busyness and unsettled days.  I know to begin my day with HIM is best...to be still in Him for a time each morning, or with prayers throughout the day, to rest well in the night.....

BE STILL, KIMBERLY! I am right here beside you, each and every day.  Look at me, I am seeking your heart daily, will you seek after me?  In today's decisions at work, at home, with your family and friends, with your testimony and walk, with the big and the small problems, with the sadness and with the joy...Be still and know that I am God. The God who works miracles.  Not all miracles will be what you expected, but all miracles are what I command. And what I command is always for the best for those who seek me. One day, you will understand. But for today, BE STILL....in ME.