Weekend Wrap-Up

This weekend was so much fun!!  Saturday, I ran my first 5k! =) I should really say ran/walked my first 5k..... Whew, it was tough!  I'm thinking I should probably prepare a little more next time I decide to do one.... maybe run a little bit in advance! lol  I have to say though.... for someone that never runs other than in G-fit, I was proud of myself!  My friend and I finished in 38 minutes and because we did some walking, I feel like our running time was probably pretty darn good.  We had a lot of fun running it together and felt very accomplished when we were finished!  Let's be honest... we were mostly excited about taking pictures and the t-shirt!! haha! 

Yes, I did wear make-up... duh. ;)

  Love that I met this precious lady and we have became such good friends!

My sweet hubby was there at the finish line.

 YAY! We did it!

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It ended up being a beautiful day so when we got home, we loaded up the boys and headed to the park.  We met the Teff's there.  Christian and Townsend had a lot of fun playing together and Harrison and Graham got to finally meet! 

Not a fan of the swing! Climbing and slides only please.. such a boy!

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We went home and all took a very long nap... It was so nice!!  It's a good thing we set an alarm because we slept until we had to get up and get ready for the KBC men's expo.  We had such a great time there... The men that put that together at church put a lot of work and time into it and do such a wonderful job!!  There were TONS of prizes given out... Christian won a flashlight!!  He really loved the aquarium they had set up outside with the huge fish... looks like we will definitely be visiting an aquarium over spring break!

 Love these guys!

 Harrison enjoyed himself like always!

Yay! Christian won! =)

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Sunday, we had Easter pictures done with Wendy White.  She has the cutest little bunny ever... I want one so bad!!  I think Corey even wants one because we were both trying to rationalize why we needed one... haha!  We came to the conclusion that Khloe would probably think it was a toy and we all know how that ends... So, no bunny for the Iovinelli's but it sure was cute!  Christian didn't cooperate very well but he's two... to be expected I guess!  Hopefully she was able to get a shot with him being still long enough.... and then there was Harrison, pretty much smiling the entire time. lol  That is one happy baby!!  We had to miss church because it was the only time she had available and now I feel like I didn't get my week started off the right way!  We had church at home as best as we could but it's just not the same when you get together with everyone.  

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The weather pretty much stinks today and I'm praying it starts looking up this week!  St. Patrick's Day is Saturday so we will probably start our festivities tomorrow.  I got the outfits out of the closet last night and bought some good green yummies!! =)  Here are a couple more pics I took over the weekend that I love...

Story before bed last night.... Moments like these are the best. 

 Sweet brotherly love!

TGIF!

THANK GOD IT'S FRIDAY!!!

I am ready for a weekend of fun and family time!  Lots to look forward to... Tomorrow, I will run my first 5k ever with a great group of G-fit women.  I'm nervous and excited... mostly excited that one of my sweetest friends will be there with me and we always have a great time together!  We don't plan on having a winning time and we really have no expectations at all other than finishing so it will be fun! =)  Our hubbies will be going out there together to join us at the finish line.... we told them to take their time! haha!  

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We have bunny pictures with Wendy White on Sunday... SO excited about that!  Her pictures are just beautiful and I can not wait to dress the boys in their cute matching Easter outfits and get their pictures made.  I'm sad we will have to miss church but it was the only time we could get in... Hopefully we will make it to the night service though.  

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Next week will also be a fun one!  It's the week before St. Patrick's Day, which means I get to break out all their cute GREEN outfits and St. Patty's day gear.... I've already bought the Lucky Charms for breakfast! =)  I have some cute craft ideas to do with Christian, too!  G-fit measurements and weigh ins are Monday.... anxious to see if I lost more inches this month.  I know I've lost some weight but I really want to lose inches!  Work should be a little crazy next week since it's the week before spring break... the kids will be wild but I think we are all ready for a break!  The spring semester is the long one!  

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So, anyway.... lots to look forward to!!  The sunshine is out today and that makes me super happy... Thank you, Lord, for this wonderful day! =)

My precious blessings.

Harrison doesn't look too happy!

Spring Weather

Well, we got ONE day of nice weather so we took full advantage of it and played outside.  It made me so anxious for spring break and summer break home with my boys!!  Christian is going to be a blast this year because he's communicating so much with me now.  It is sooo weird to have a conversation with him... I catch myself laughing most of the time because I can't believe the things that he says now.  Just the fact that he is talking in sentences now blows my mind.  He says things that I have no idea where he learned it sometimes... We were playing outside and the school bus drove by.  He said, "momma school bus goes!" lol  It just cracked me up for some reason!  He has the cutest little voice ever.. I just want to eat him up!  Here are some pictures from our rock collecting adventure and our one day of pretty weather... 

He had a quite impressive rock collection and he had to show his daddy each one!

 Love this little outfit!

Sweet baby bird had to get some fresh air, too! His little face just makes me smile!!

He likes to wear his daddy's shoes around! haha

He is a huge helper... I didn't ever imagine he would be since he's so little himself but he has helped me out so much with Harrison.  Such a great big brother!!

IT'S MARCH!!

Happy 1st day of March, ya'll!!  I am so incredibly happy because that means we are so close to spring weather!!  I am so over this cold, yucky, unpredictable weather.  Christian is wearing his green for the upcoming holiday, St. Patrick's Day!  Yes, I'm obsessed with every holiday... even the small ones. ;)  And I like to dress my kids accordingly.. ha  I have mixed feelings about this month having two holidays.... I really like to enjoy them one month at a time so you have a whole month to enjoy decorations and festivities.  It's going to be a month of lots of green and pastels at the Iovinelli's!  On a different note... Christian is playing with stickers in this picture, which is one of his very favorite things to do!  This was a dinosaur sticker book and he named each dinosaur... We had a dinosaur for momma, daddy, nana, papa, mimi, and grampa.  He is really starting to get into imaginary play.  He makes up his own little games and stuff... I love seeing what he's going to come up with next!  

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I need to do Harrison's 3 month post...... a little late, more like almost two weeks... oops!  He is changing SO much so I might just combine his 3 and 4 month post.  That sounds like a better idea. =)  Here is a sweet picture for now though... ;)  We were trying on his Easter outfit to make sure it fits and has a little growing room.  He looked like a little man with the whole thing on and I wanted to eat him up!  

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I am leaving for Tulsa after work today to head to the Extraordinary Women Conference with some great friends and sweet ladies from church.  We went last year and it was the most amazing time!!!  I am ready for a weekend of worship, tears, laughter, and opening my heart.  It was this time last year when I was at the conference that I felt the Lord really lay on my heart to have a baby.  We had no intentions what so ever to have another baby until Christian was about 3 years old... Sometime's God has other plans for your life.  I kept telling Corey that I really didn't want a baby but it just felt like that was what was suppose to be for our family.  He originally thought I was crazy.... until this went on for weeks.  We prayed and prayed.  We even told God that this was not our plan.  I'm sure He laughed.  When I got home from the conference I had a long talk with Corey about it and we decided to continue to pray and to just put it completely in God's hands..... It was the next week I got pregnant.  We found out just a few weeks later because I felt like I just knew immediately.  This was the post I wrote a little about it: Amazing Grace...  It seems like just yesterday and now Harrison is 3 months old and has brought such amazing joy to our life.  I can't imagine life without him right now.  I will say that we do not have the view of letting God decide the amount of children we have by just "seeing what happens" like some people do.  I do not think that is wrong by any means but it's just not our personal view.  I want to be able to give my kids what they need and some of their wants, too.  I like to do extra things for them and we want to be able to take them on vacations and do fun things.  Financially, we wouldn't be able to do that with a house full.  However, I do believe if God speaks to you, you listen.  I would like to say we are probably done having kids because this just seems to be perfect for our family but I know that it's not completely up to us.  If God ever lays that on our heart again, we will listen, we will pray, and we will leave it up to Him because He knows best.  "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight." - Proverbs 3:5-6  One of my very favorites!!  

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Well, this started out a very light post about spring and holidays and then went a different direction! =)  I know I will love looking back and reading these one day though.  Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

God is your Father-in-Law

We like to think of God as our Father and that is very true.  He is our Father... He loves us... He cares for us... He listens to our prayers... and He always wants the very best for us.

But do you realize that God is ALSO our Father-in-Law??  He is also your husband's Father.  Which means that He really cares about your husband, and He really loves your husband, and He listens to your husband’s heart cry as well.  I know that one day I am going to stand before God and He is going to gently talk to me about Corey.  He will say, "What did you do to care for my son?"  "What did you do to love my son?"

I so desperately hope that God is pleased with the way I treated my husband, His son. 

God loves your husband, and He planned for your husband to have someone to help him, to encourage him, to inspire him, to love him. God wants someone to appreciate your husband, and to urge him on in faith and in love. And that someone, that He has especially prepared for the task, is you.

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I read about this in a blog that I stumbled upon today and thought, WOW... how true is this?!  I knew I needed to write about this for myself and wanted to share it because I believe everyone can benefit from it. =)

"What if the greatest act of worship you could do today is to love your husband?" -Sally Clarkson