My husband is obsessed!

The trap

The Culprit

Success!

We have a very nice yard and a large backyard for where we live. We have been trying this year to get some more flowers planted, however, every time we get new blooms the squirrels dig up our plants and eat all of the flowers. We keep telling people about our dilemma and every one's response is, "I have never heard of a squirrel eating flowers." Well... they do and they also like the roots at the bottom of the plants. So Eric and his Dad have been thinking of ways to get rid of the squirrels. Their plan was to shoot the squirrels but after much talking with Eric (and complaining) he decided to get a trap. The plan was to put peanut butter and bird seed in the cage and trap them. I told Eric I wasn't sure that was going to work because they were smart. He begged to differ! The first day the trap was set and THREE squirrels played on it, around it, and in it, while Eric watched. (I had to say I told you so!) So he left it out a few days hoping the squirrels would get used to it being there. After about two weeks it was time to reset. Yesterday, he put more peanut butter and seed in and set the trap out again. The squirrels dug under the cage and got the food. This only fueled Eric's drive to catch the rodents! Today he watched and waited and this morning I hear, "WE CAUGHT US A SQUIRREL!"

Busy Princess...

Lillie has a fascination with princesses as do a lot of little girls right now. What was it when we were little? Strawberry Shortcake? Care Bears? Hard to remember... I remember when Bryce and I were little we were always wanting to put on a show for my parents. We would come up with some "great" idea, put on a silly outfit, then come out and ask if we could preform for them. I just remember them telling us to "go and practice" and "keep practicing" (a stalling tactic!) Then we would come out and preform. Now I understand how my parents were feeling. :)

As soon as we get home every day Lillie puts on her favorite dress up gown and high heels and tromps around the house. She had been asking Eric and I if we would come to her concert all day so we headed into her room where there were two little tinker bell chairs set up, ready to be sat in. After telling her there was no way we would fit in those two little chairs we sat on the floor and took in the concert. She decided she would sit in the tinker bell chair, walked over started her CD, and then got her song book. Here is one of the songs she sang at her concert.... Keep in mind this is late in the evening and she never wants to keep her hair fixed! :)

Schlitterbaun family fun!

Bryce and Lillie
Dad and Bryce taking a break from swimming
Bryce and Lillie chillin'
Lillie attempting to cross the lily pads and alligator
Just out for a swim (again!)

This weekend we went on our annual mini family vacation to Schlitterbaun in New Braunsfels. It is a huge water park that my family has been going to since I was a child. We always have fun when we head up there but this year was really fun! Lillie was older and able to do more and Bryce was able to join us. My parents spent most of their time with Lillie while Bryce, Eric, and I were able to go on the slides. My Dad went on several slides with us as well. This year Lillie was able to go on some of the rides and she had a great time! She would just laugh at every drop, it was fun to watch. Lillie can swim all day every day if you let her and my mom is always happy to join her. I think the two of them swam about 15 hours each day. Needless to say when we got back on Sunday everyone was worn out but we had a REALLY fun time. Lots of laughs, which is what spending time with family is all about! Can't wait for next year!

Love of reading...

Lillie loves to read which we both think is fantastic! She will sit and read through ten books at a time. This past year she learned all of her letters and likes to spell things out and have you tell her what the word is. Some of her favorite books right now are the Fancy Nancy series by Jane O'Connor. She loves learning "big words" and then using them in sentences. These books are all about Nancy who likes things to be big and exaggerated, much like Miss Lillie. The main character is also very girly which is also a lot like Lillie. Every night when putting Lillie to bed we let her pick out a book or two (sometimes three :)) to read. Last night Lillie chose her Fancy Nancy book and I read it to her. Afterwards she always wants to read the book back to you. Here is Lillie's version of Fancy Nancy last night in typical Lillie style - notice the "yup, yup" in the middle of her telling the story.

PLAYFOAM - FUN!

OK - my sister in law gave Lillie some PlayFoam for Christmas and I wasn't sure to make of it at first. It is made of a little bead like material that looks a lot like the stuffing of a bean bag. I just envisioned opening the foam and it being like an exploded bean bag, however I was wrong. I brought it out yesterday for Lillie and I to play with and it is addicting. It is not messy like Playdough and it isn't sticky to the touch. It really is neat and it kept Lillie's attention for a long time. She has played with it nonstop for the past two days. If you haven't ever seen this or wondered about buying it I would say it is well worth it! I wish we would have taken it out earlier!

skating...

Lillie could stay busy about 20 hours a day, she is always wanting to go and do something. (Wonder where she got that from? :) ) Even though it has been incredibly HOT here we ventured out this evening to go skating in the neighborhood. Lillie got some skates for Christmas and has only gone out with Eric a few times. She did really well and could go a long way. I was very impressed! Here are some pictures from today.

It's me again....

A friend sent this to me and I thought it was very touching. I wanted to pass it on in case you hadn't seen it. When watching this I am inspired to try to be more bold in my faith. I long to be a person on fire for Christ and not luke warm, sharing with others God's grace, mercy, and forgiveness. God has truly changed my life through the death of his son Jesus. May God push you (and I) to be BOLD in our faith and share HIS love with others around us.

"The Sovereign LORD has given me an instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught." Isaiah 50:4

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

Get your Kleenex and watch...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvDDc5RB6FQ

Nacho Libre

Bryce (my brother) has chosen a new profession!

Lillie's Four Year Old Pictures

In this picture Lillie is a brand new baby! She was only a couple of days old. It is so hard to believe how fast they grow. Lillie turned four on April 1st this year. Sometimes in every day life it is hard to stop and cherish each moment you are given. I am very thankful for my little girl!

A ride through Africa...

On Memorial Day Weekend we went to San Antonio for Eric's birthday. We went to Sea World and the Wildlife Reserve. If you have never done a drive through zoo you should once in your life. It was a lot of fun and I laughed harder then I have in a long time. Eric drove through the first time and we were able to feed some ram looking things, zebras, and a few other animals I didn't recognize. Then we swapped and he held Lillie and I drove. Eric is much better at things like that - less fear! But the funny thing was that there were these huge ostrich's and it seemed like a good idea to feed them until they got close to the car, then it was scary. I watched as several people shook their bag of food, the ostrich would come over, then once realizing how large they were and the length of their neck they would begin to roll up their windows. It was very funny. The funniest part of the ride was in the end when we still had half a bag of food left. There was an ostrich running along side our car wanting to cross the road, but Eric wanted me to keep it on the passenger side to try to feed it. In trying to do this we angered the ostrich and it came running after our car. I thought I heard Eric say slow down so I stopped. The next thing we knew the angry ostrich was at our widow. Eric rolled up the window quickly and yelled, "Go, go!" It was a lot of fun and I am glad we made the turn off. It was a birthday I will never forget and one I hope Eric enjoyed! I love you Eric!

Anyone want to fish?

These are some pictures of Lillie taken in the beginning of May when we went out and spent time with my parents for my Dad's birthday. They have five acres and a pond filled with sun fish and catfish. Lillie loves to fish! She is very funny to watch. She uses marshmallows as bait and taps the line in the water saying, "Nope, Nope, Nope" until she snags a fish! I love this last picture because it just shows the carefree lifestyle children have and what a joy they are!

New to this....

OK... several of my friends have blogs and I LOVE going on them to check out new pictures and events in their lives. I was inspired to create our own blog to keep friends and family up to date on the latest in our lives.

Here is a brief update for those of you that I haven't been great about keeping in touch with - SORRY!

I am married to Eric Ford. He works at Hewlett Packard and is a very devoted Dad and husband! Eric is an avid sports fan and enjoys working in the yard. I have been very blessed in my marriage and we will have been married for 6 years this July 6th!

Lillie Jo is our four year old daughter. She is an entertainer and is a very happy little girl. She is the joy in both Eric's and my life. She loves to dress up, sing and dance, swim, pretend, do crafts and read. She loves being outside and with family. She is such a sweet girl!

I am currently off for the summer and enjoying every minute of it! I went back to teaching this past year and work at a Christian school. I taught fourth grade but will be teaching fifth and sixth next year. I have been truly blessed this year with this job. It has been a good transition back into work because of the wonderful atmosphere.

OK I think that is all for now. I am trying to figure all of this out and it could take some time but please keep checking back and post comments! Colleen