We got a box!!

A week ago we drove into the driveway and Alex was so excited to see a box on our front porch. She ran to see it up close and it was addressed to Alex & Katie Hart from their cousin Kayla Whitten! We took it inside and found a box full of clothes for the girls. The girls were so excited to wear new pajamas for the next few nights - and then switched for another few nights! Here is Alex modeling her new hat & gloves.

Also, Matt is now home! WooHoo!! Unfortunately, he has been working lots of overtime, being on-call this week. Hopefully he will be able to blog a bit this next week about his trip. The team he traveled with will be getting all of their pictures placed on a disk in the next few weeks, so hopefully he will have pictures to add too.

Waiting

We are anxious and so excited to have Daddy come home tonight. Matt will arrive in Chicago around 9 and be home around 1 am. It has been a LOOOONG week, with many trying moments, but God has brought us through and I know that God will use this past week as a learning experience for all of us.

Homecoming Parade

Today was the day for Moline's Homecoming parade. We were blessed by another beautiful, Indian summer day! The girls were very excited about the parade all day. When we arrived, they sat for a few minutes...then decided that they needed to stand on the street to "see if we can see anything". They did "the princess wave" for 5-10 minutes...much like the video! Maybe they will be in one of those convertibles someday?? (sorry for the cookie crumbs / yuck on Maddie's face!)

We weren't disappointed - the parade was a fun one and they got some candy to boot!

This is the first full day with Matt gone. He left last night around 12:30. It started getting hairy around dinner time here. It didn't help that the parade interferred with naptime! So, hopefully the rest of the evening will be quiet. Please keep us & Matt in your prayers - we deeply appreciate that.

Testing, Testing, Testing

Evidently I have creative children. Katie came out of the bathroom the other day and immediately apologized to me...that can't be good! She told me that she wrote on the toilet seat. She was testing a pen that was in the bathroom. Now, in my mind, I think a little doodle to test the pen. Evidently that was not how she tests pens...

Thanks Crayola

I had all 4 of my wonderful little children at the table coloring this afternoon. It was so peaceful and so cute to see all of them getting along and doing something together. I got away to make a phone call. A few minutes later, Alex came running in to my room to inform me that "Will colored on his shirt". My first thought "Thank you Lord that it is Crayola and washable!". I told Alex that it would be okay and finished my phone conversation. I soon saw what Alex meant by "colored" and yikes! I am not sure if "washable" will work with this one!!

The Chicken Cow

We were blessed to be invited to a premiere night at our local Chick-fil-A restaurant. This premiere night was for a brand new store opening. The store owner is a friend of a friend and we know them from church. It was a great evening and we were pampered. Chick-fil-A does a wonderful job of placing its customers first. Here is a picture of the twins with the "Eat More Chicken" cow. Will loved him - giving him high fives and waving, smiling whenever he got a chance. Maddie liked him too, but was much more cautious.

"We'll See You In Heaven . . ."

My Grandfather, Covell J. Hart went home to be with the Lord this morning.

Grandpa and I shared many great memories together. Of course it was Grandma that brought the laughter and spontaneity, but Grandpa was the sentimental one and always made time to sit and talk.

Over the years we took trips together and Grandpa would always sit and share his lifes story. Of course Grandpa's life was one of many ups and downs. The self described theme of his life is "of great heights and depths."

He wrote an autobiography by that title.

I have so many stories to share, but will limit this post to sharing how thankful we are that we got to see G&G this past August! It brings comfort to us all that we got to see him one last time.

36 hours before Grandpa passed, I made a final phone call. Grandpa was able to say, with great difficulty, "Hi Matt."

I told him among other things, "we'll see you in Heaven someday, we love you."





Covell J. Hart Trivia!!

* Grandpa out lived every male Hart going back to the 1580's!!

* This is the first time in Hart history (going back to the 1580's) that there were 4 generations of males alive at the same time!! (either they had their kids late in life, or they died young). This is a 4 generation picture with Katie and Baby Alex.

* Grandpa married my parents, baptized me as an infant, married Becki and I, and baptized all 4 of his Great Grandchildren!!

* Grandpa has touched the lives of thousands of people and was loved by all!!

Is there really going to be "a next year"?

Evidently God's plans aren't like our own when it comes to our beloved Cubs. We watched the last 3 games in dismay! Why did I stay up until midnight 3 nights to watch them??? That is the amazing thing about Cubs Fans - we always have a glimmer of hope, amind the deepest despair! I guess it brought some comfort to see that the Cubs that we watched the last 3 games were not the Cubs that we watched all summer long. It was much easier to turn off the TV at the end of the game and go to sleep! We are disappointed, but as always, anticipate next year.

We look forward to next summer guys! Thanks for making baseball enjoyable to watch all summer long!

Caterpillar Season

Matt found this little guy while mowing the yard today. Will immediately wanted to hold him but Maddie would only hold him on a stick. When we let him go outside again, he crawled away as fast as possible!!!

Sign of Good Times

Here is the result of one afternoon - I wish I could say that for all of them. Hopefully it will get better over time! They have so much fun keeping each other awake! They are both decent nappers, it has just been a rough week with the new bed for Will.

Car For Will

We have been contemplating when we should move Will from a crib to a bed. With the girls, we moved them directly to a twin bed, but with Will & Maddie we decided to do toddler beds. It has been so nice to have the crib to keep Will "in bed" - especially since Maddie loves to NOT stay in bed! This weekend we were blessed through our local Freecycle to obtain a used toddler bed. The lady said that no one wanted to buy it since it had been painted, but hey...who am I to pass up free! I put the bed together this morning and the kids are still playing in it - I don't know if this a good thing or not! We will see come nap & bed time.