Trick or Treat!

Halloween 2008 will go down as one of the greats. The weather was amazing, a beautiful 70 degrees that was perfect for trick or treating and enjoying the evening with friends. Both Molly and Margot were very into the whole candy thing. They were great at ringing doorbells and saying trick or treat. They even remembered to say thank you and wish people a Happy Halloween. It is so fun to watch our two little girls growing up!

Margot was a bumble bee this year. She was cute and loved to say buzz..... She is loving all the candy and definitely has enjoyed taste testing each piece that she was given!

Molly was a witch. She was the cutest witch in town. She loved her costume hat and all and when asked if she was the good witch or the bad witch she definitely wanted to be a good witch.

Molly and Margot enjoying Halloween 2008!

Move that Bus!

This isn't the greatest quality picture but it is taken of some pretty amazing people. In the blue shirt, holding little Jake Grys, is my friend Angie DeLost. Yesterday she saw a dream come true for a child that she works with. Angie along with Ty Pennington and thousands of on lookers were able to yell, "Move that Bus". They were able to give Jake Grys and his family a new home that will allow Jake to have the safe and independent life that he deserves. Angie persevered for three years working to get the Grys an Extreme Home Makeover and yesterday the miracle she prayed for was witnessed by lots of folks! Thanks Angie from the bottom of my heart and from all the others who have been changed by your hard work and determination!

Any Help in There!

Molly said the funniest thing today. She and I had gone into the bathroom at Jeff's office. It was an emergnecy pitstop on the way home from the grocery store. She went into her own stall and she was finished before I was. When she was finished she came over to the door of my stall and sweetly asked,"Do you need any help in there mommy?" They are such little parrots and so cute too!

Jump Start Halloween

Today was Halloween dress-up day at Jump Start Gymnastics! The girls were very excited to finally be able to wear their costumes. Margot was a bumble bee. Her favorite part of class is always blowing bubbles and here she is giving it her best try!

Molly wanted to be a witch this year. After much searching mommy found an acceptable witch costume and Molly was so excited to show it off! Here she is with all of the Little Lions classmates!

Margot also loves the bars and just hanging around showing off her muscles!

She got a big high five from her teacher Miss Peajay after all her hard work!

Molly had to tell me that witches can't wear hats to gymnastics, silly mommy!

Fun Times with the Reinhardts!

Saturday was a fun day spent with our cousins. All the Reinhardt kiddos came to Peoria! We headed down to Pekin to show them all the excitement at the Extreme Makeover house. The cousins are Margot, Daniel, Molly, Mia, Grace and Thomas!
The house was almost finished on the outside Saturday. They were finishing up siding and stone work on the front of the house.

All the kids were excited to try the haunted hayrack ride at Apple Blossom Farm. Margot was scared before the ride even started she did not like the "cary witch" that took our tickets. All the other kids had fun although Daniel had to keep reminding himself that he wasn't scared they are just costumes!

All the kids peeking out of the Apple Blossom bus, photo-op!

We rounded out the evening sipping hot cider by the fire listening to stories! These are the things that memories are made of and we were glad to share it with our cousins!

The Foundation has been laid!

Rib, one of the designers from Extreme Makeover Home Edition!

Rib making friends with Margot, Margot wants no part in it.

Mommy and her two shy girls with Rib

Molly watching the Grys pool be lifted into place. Jake enjoys warm water pool therapy and this pool will allow him to swim year round at home!

The big crane lifting the floor beams into place.

Margot loving her donut!

Molly the VIP.

On Thursday the girls and I along with our friends the Sauls were able to be VIPs at the home site. Being a VIP means we had a special tent right across the street from the house where we could sit and watch the progress. The girls are showing off their green VIP tags and their donuts which all VIPs have, right?

It was amazing the watch all the things that were going on at once to get this home built in time!


Classic Margot she is a character and this picture shows it all!

Let's Help Jake!

Jake Grys and his family were chosen to receive a new home furnished by Extreme Makeover Home Edition! This week my friend Angie, who nominated the family, has another goal in mind. She would like to raise 100,00 dollars for the Grys to pay off the mortgage on the home that was demolished yesterday. The money would allow the Grys to live in the new home (with higher taxes and overall expenses) without the stress of more financial burden. If you would like to help you can go to http://www.designbuilthomesextreme.com/donate.htm

Thanks for all your prayer and support for the Grys!

Tear that House Down!

Extreme Makeover Home Edition has come to Central Illinois. They are building a new home for the very deserving Grys family from Pekin, Illinois. The girls and I headed down to Pekin to see the demo of the old house. You can check out Jake Grys the very deserving little boy who will be getting a new house at the following link:
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/jakes-declaration-of-independence.html

I have to brag on my friend Angie for a minute. Angie DeLost is an occupational therapist at Easter Seals and three years ago she nominated the Grys family for this makeover. She has been working so hard to make this dream a reality, organizing the builders, donations and working with the architect to make the right accommodations for little Jake. I have to say that when Ty came to town on Tuesday and knocked on their door, I called Angie and told her you did it! She is an amazing person and I am so happy that she is on my team too! When we went to see the demo, we were able to go and give Angie the giant hug that she deserved!Yes this is Ty Pennington. He is filming the part of the show where he has a camcorder and is recording the demo for the family to watch. He is great and it was so cool to see him there. This tape will be shown to the Grys as they are enjoying a week at Walt Disney World!

This is Carson and the profile of his mom Sally. They are good friends and they joined the girls and I to watch all the action. He was a trooper spending most of the day on his mommy's back!

Molly with the Grys house in the background before the demo began!



Molly and Margot had a blast playing with Elyse and Celeste as we waited for the demo to begin.

The demolition had begun. They had three CAT tractors and just went to town tearing that house down. Within less than ten minutes the whole thing was gone. It was an emotional moment for Angie and the Grys family as the culmination of all their work was really happening.

In the red jacket is TY! He was doing more video taping of all the action.

The demo was almost done here as the tractors moved in to the foundation.

Molly love watching! We are hoping to head down a few more time this week to keep tabs on the progress!

Happy Birthdday to Mommy!

Today is my birthday! So I thought that I would reflect back on all the things that the Lord has blessed me, especially over the past year!
Margot has been a true blessing. She is full of life and brings so much fun and joy to everything that she touches. She has spunk and energy that are contagious along with a smile that can break down any barrier. I feel blessed to be her mom and look forward to what the future holds for Margot Isabell!
Molly is my baby! She is growing up so quickly and this year I have been blessed to learn more about her personality. I have seen her blossom into a little girl with many friends who loves life and loves to learn. She is a dancer and a singer and brings music into every situation, I know that she will tackle anything that the Lord throws her way with a song and a dance!
My parents have been an incredible blessing this year. Our family has been through many valleys and the Lord has allowed my parents to walk through each one of them right by our side. I am so thankful to have them as an integral part of my life! I also feel abundantly blessed that my girls are have a Nanu and Papa that love them very much!
Lastly I am so blessed by my loving husband. Marriage is a challenge, especially during the season of raising young children. Many nights when Jeff comes home I am mentally and physically exhausted from the challenge of being a mother. He steps right in and is my partner in parenting. He loves his family and for that I am eternally grateful. I want to say thank you for Jeff for the blessing of his partnership that we are able to do life together! I Love you!

Foster Parenting!

We have officially started the foster care process. This morning Jeff and I attended session one of the PRIDE training. I have to say that I think this nin week process will be filled with lots of learning and fun. We are so excited for waht God has in store for our family through foster care. Will fill you in with more details as the traning continues!

She is Four!!!

My baby girl Molly Anne McNutt turned four years old today. I can not believe that she is becoming such a beautiful little girl right before our eyes! What a blessing it has been to see her grow and develop! I wanted to take a look back at Molly over the past four years.
Molly was pretty silly playing out in the snow when she was three!
This is our two year old cutie who finally had enough hair for pig tails
Molly at her first birthday showing off her new teeth.
The first day that we met our little beauty, October 13th, 12004.
Molly's birthday has been fun this year. We started out with a party a couple weeks before her birthday to celebrate with her cousins. She had a pink princess cake and a great time at Firehouse pizza enjoying her favorite cheeseburger pizza!
Mommy and Daddy had a birthday surprise for Molly when she woke up from her nap to find a Tinker Bell bouncer in the backyard. We had a fun party with all our Peoria friends. I think Molly believed that heaven had landed right in the backyard!
Molly hamming it up for the camera with her fourth birthday cake!
This is just a fun shot of Molly and Margot playing out in the leaves.
Daddy had to join in the fun too! He is a great daddy and loves to have fun with his girls!