Monday, May 31, 2010

Family update Time

Hello from the Leonard family. This update finds us all doing well. I am VERY excited that they are only 11 and a half more days left in the school year which will give me more time to blog, among other things.

John's neck is healing very well! Overall the surgery was a great success. He still has some fatigue at the end of the day that should only continue to improve and his headaches have returned. He should be cleared soon to return to full duty. LeAnne & I have enjoyed having him home all week nights & weekends! He was even able to participate in the Dayton Days Parade this weekend. He has joined our towns American Legion group and rode their float in the parade. Thank-you honey for your service to our country, 13 years as a Military Police Officer in the Army.

Always remember those serve & protect our country!

We bow our heads in silent grace;
Proud to stand upon this place.
To honor those who we love and lost;
Whose lives were taken at such a cost.
Through the pain and sorrow, for all the brave and true;
To always be remembered by me and by you.
To heal the minds and hearts, of those who still live;
Always remembering what they had to give.
Live your lives with pride in hearing what I say;
May God bless and keep you on this and every day.

American Legion Color Guard marching in the Dayton Days Parade May 29th, 2010


American Legion - Thank-you to our veterans



We are extremely proud of our oldest, Amanda (17)! She was voted most improved and earned her letter this year in track & field, and she has a summer job in the shed with Pimm Farm in Oregon. Oh we miss our oldest girl and hope to see her this summer. It's so hard to believe she will be a senior and graduate next year.

There is never a dull moment in our house with LeAnne around! I wouldn't have it any other way either! :-)

*She is talking a ton, putting her own thoughts together and copying everything she hears so try to be extremely careful what we say.

* I LOVE when she says "try again mommy", already my little encourager. I love it!

* She has just started to sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, sings one two buckle your shoe, and the beginning of her ABC's.

* She knows her colors and shapes very well. She is curious about everything and soaks up new experiences! I love that she asked me "what's that" and already loves learning. :-)

* Her and I have a blast playing games which are puzzles teaching her new words and beginning phonics.

* We have had to take away all her chalk for a while unless we are in the room because she's been writing on every surface except the sidewalk outside and her chalk board inside. Daddy was none to happy when she wrote all over his tractor and the fence. Thank goodness it washes off.

* She loves playing with her friend, Drake, who lives down the street from us.

* She still wakes up at night at least a few times a week. I try to let her work it out herself but some nights it just doesn't work out that way so I cuddle with her for a few minutes and then she's happy to go back to bed. She still loves her big her bed too!

* She is thrilled to be able to go outside to play a lot more these days.

* She is NOT into having her picture taken at all these days. She tells me "too big" and screams when I try to take her picture.

* She continues to be a very picky eater but has begun to eat pasta and try new foods. We are thankful she continues to love fruits and vegetables. She is very excited for watermelon.

* I can't believe we are having conversations about preschool next year. Since her birthday is October 11th she will be in 3 years of preschool. We are still talking about where she will go to school.

* First we must tackle potty training. So far it's okay for everyone else to go potty on the toilet but not her. Once I am done with school her diapers are going bye bye and she will only be wearing big girl underwear. We will then set up a rewards chart for stickers, have a prize box for when she goes on the potty and we'll just start trying on a regular basis. It is my hope she gets sick of being wet, feels like a big girl and likes the rewards. I told her we'd even have a potty party! She WILL be potty trained by the end of summer!

Here are a few pictures I did manage to take recently! :-)

Playing the car she got from her cousin wearing the adorable outfit Laura got her.


I can't believe how long & thick her hair is.


Our pretty princess is growing up too fast!



Our Garden - Concord Grapes, Peas, Beans, Onions, Cabbage, Broccoli, and Peppers. Yum! We are all excited for some fresh veggies this summer!


I am beyond excited to be in the home stretch of our school year because that means more time with my family! I can't believe how quickly the year has flown by. I am extremely proud of my student and thankful for the amazing specialists he has on his team. I feel so blessed to have this young man in my life. He definitely has had a hand in shaping who I am.

This summer also means more time to focus on my new adventure as an Independent Beauty Consultant with Mary Kay Cosmetics. There is no denying love the product! My skin looks and feels better than it has in years. I am not 100% sure the opportunity is for me but I am not ready to make that conclusion just yet. One of my biggest problems is I must get out of my own way! I am not afraid to work hard but I'm having a hard time putting myself out there to face rejection. I must get more organized and change my perspective. I plan to give it all I've got this summer! I saw this quote on a friends Face book today and thought it was fitting.

Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it."- Michael Jordan

John & I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary May 19th. I feel incredibly blessed to walk each day with an awesome man by my side. John is a wonderful friend, an amazing encourager, a great daddy to his children, a super leader and is also a lot of fun. This summer we hope to get out on a few dates and would love to have Elvis renew our wedding vows in Vegas next year for our 10th anniversary. I pray many God will keep showing me how to love my guy as He loves him, I pray he will watch over us, that He will protect our marriage, that He will never let us let things of this world come between us, that He will help us to always communicate, to always be honest with each other, that He will never let us stop growing, never let us stop learning about each other, help to lead by example, help us to make time for each other and help us to be the best parents to our family.

Well now that I've rambled on and on I must sign off and go to bed. I am headed to Tri-Cities first thing in the morning to have a root canal done. I hope this update finds you all well and I'll be posting a lot more soon. HUGZ!

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Update coming soon

Good morning! I'll be posting a long overdue family update blog this weekend! Life has been busy with us Leonard's. Nothing special per say just busy living life. I am looking forward to a 3 day weekend and looking even more forward to June 17th which is the first day of my summer break. I promise I'll post an update with pictures this long holiday weekend. For now I must run because I have one special 2 1/2 year old girl standing in my living room with nothing but her top on saying "wet". Then I'm off to the dentist this morning to fix a tooth. I am not sure what is worse the tooth ache or a trip to the dentist. Have an safe and awesome holiday weekend!

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Mother's Day 2010

Happy Mother's Day! Today is a day set aside to honor & thank our mother's.

Thank-you mama for all your love, encouragement, and for all the time you invested to help me be who I am today.

I am so blessed to be the mama of 2 beautiful girls. Thank-you for the text today Amanda, miss you tons. I can't wait to see you this summer.

Thank-you Lord for seeing us through our infertility journey and blessing our life with LeAnne. Lord, I pray you will be with those who struggle with infertility. I pray you will provide them with strength, peace and purpose.

LeAnne, I am honored to be your mama little girl. I pray each day God will help me be the best mama I can be.

Thank-you Lord for my husband. He is an amazing friend, encourager, and daddy! I pray Lord you will bless our life with one more little bundle of joy.


Not so happy I was taking pictures of her. The outfit was adorable.


Mother's day melt down


I love this silly grumpy look she gets.


Blowing bubbles with her new bubble gun.


That's the smile I LOVE! I'm so BLESSED!!


Monday, May 3, 2010

Family Update

Life with the Leonard's has been a bit interesting lately. The middle to end of April Oma Marica, LeAnne & I took a trip over to Western Washington. It was a quick trip backed with lots of goodness. I had an all day class for work about Self Regulation in children with Autism, ADHD & Sensory Processing Disorder. The lecturer wasn't he best but it was packed with lots of information that I plan to research further. While I was in class Oma Marcia & Auntie Katie took LeAnne to Bel-square for the afternoon. They went to Build-a-Bear where they created Penny Pony. LeAnne had a blast there and at the play area. They said she was timid at first but then look out! That evening I attended my first Mary Kay meeting with my recruiter and long time friend Shelly. I learned a lot, met some great women and was very encouraged. I wish I could attend this meeting weekly. LeAnne, Oma & Auntie Kaite had dinner with Cousin Alissa, Dre & Jakobi. Its very cool to see LeAnne getting to know her Auntie Katie. A few others firsts during this trip was breakfast a Panera's Bakery and new clothes from Coldwater Creek. Thank-you Auntie for spoiling us!

From what mom says LeAnne didn't care for the noise made while stuffing Penny! :-)




LeAnne LOVES Penny-a-Pony as she calls her. Penny is never far from her side these days. :-)







Lets back up a second... I had my first Mary Kay Skin Care Party April 17th. Overall I think it went very well. Of course I have lots to learn and I will get better with time. I LOVE Mary Kay products! I MUST get out of my OWN way so I can be successful with my business! My next party is May 14th. Then I look forward to growing my business this summer. I am very please to announce I am now a Senior Consultant with the recruit of a new beauty consultant! The young woman I who signed up under me is going to set the Mary Kay world on fire! I know she is going to do Amazing things with Mary Kay!

On April 30th, 2010 John had an anterior cervical fusion of C-4,C-5, C-6. He's been in quite a bit of pain for almost a year. I was very surprised to see his face so bright looking the moment I saw him after surgery. He immediately had pain relief and improved range of motion. Praise God! I can see already that his biggest challenge is going to be taking it easy to he can heal properly. He is day 4 from surgery and going stir crazy! Please pray he follows the doctors orders and listens to his body.



LeAnne had her first sleep over at Clear view Springs on the Tucannon. She had a blast with her Auntie, Uncle & Cousin. She climbed up the hay stack, was a magnet for getting stuck in the mud, rode Nubby, had a bubble bath where she washed Dottie, played Wii with her cousin and Auntie Introduced her to chocolate milk. :-)

This past weekend My Grandma Alice, Aunt Katie & Aunt Joyce came for a visit. It was a beautiful visit! A few precious moments; when LeAnne said hi to grandma Nana & gave her a kiss, and when LeAnne kept calling for Auntie Katie.

One of John's restrictions is not lifting more than 10-15 pounds which means he can't lift LeAnne so we decided to convert her crib to a toddler bed. She loves it and is doing well. Now if we can just convince her big girls go potty on the toilet.





Daddy putting together the Melissa & Doug Easel I won from the blog contest on Go Graham Go's website.




That's all for now...Good Night! :-)