Elijah turns 1 year old!

Well, I'm slightly...ok, really obsessed with my nephew, Elijah.  He just turned one on February 13th, so Josh, Chrissy, and Elijah all came in town to celebrate his one year of life:)  He is the cutest boy in the world!

he had that doily so far in his mouth!

the game of "let's going under daddy's legs"

he loves his uncle Jess

watching a youtube video with grandpa Dougie.

 On the day of his birthday, we had a birthday party for him.  It was his first time ever having sugar...he wasn't sure what to do with it at first. He knows would not put that cake in his mouth because he knows what "no touch" means, so Josh finally put Elijah's fingers in his mouth for him.

Add caption

birthday shoutout to my momma!!

Today is my moms --th birthday!!! Once again, I hear when you are getting a tad older you don't really want people to know your age.  Anyways, I love my momma. Her and I have always been close. I think one of the main reasons for this is because I am her only girl out of 5 boys. Yep, that means she spoiled me:)  My mom is absolutely gorgeous. I always tell her I hope I look that good after having lots of babies and being her age. Ten reasons why I love my momma:
1. she raised 6 kids and is a wonderful mom
2. she and i love spending time together (shopping, eating, watching lifetime...)
3. she is an amazing cook
4. she always knows how to make me laugh
5. she loves her kids more than we can imagine
6. she is one of the most thoughtful people i know
7. she is extremely giving
8. she will cook us our favorite meal when we come home to visit
9. she's an awesome beautician...and does my hair all the time
10. she has loved me unconditionally and I wouldn't want to have any other mom in the world!

I love you mom!! Happy Birthday!

my oldest brother, Justin, with mom

Happy Birthday Big Al!

Today is my father-in-law's birthday!  I'm really not sure how old he is, but that doesn't matter. His name is Alan Schneider. I've known him for for over two years now and it's been such a delight. Alan is married to a beautiful Trina Schneider and has three lovely boys, Jered, Scott, and C.J. Here are a few reasons I'd like to give Al a shoutout on his birthday:

1. he serves his family well
2. he loves the Lord
3. he raised his children in a Godly home
4. he can fix ANYTHING...check out these antique fans he refurbished!
5. he loves to get off work and then go to his garage and work more...extremely hard worker
6. he will do anything for Jordan and I (his new daughter-in-laws) b/c he never had daughters:)
7. my husband has a lot of his same qualities...such as the amazing "Alan eyebrow"

look at Scott's right eyebrow...that's the "Al eyebrow"...sharp

8. he has a motorcycle and it's awesome
9. he tucks his sweatpants into his socks
10. he is the greatest father-in-law i could've ever asked for

Happy Birthday Big Al!! I hope it's just as great as you are!

I just love this picture of the two of them.

a shout out to Douglas Melvin Hayward.

 Douglas Melvin Hayward, my lovely father, was born on Dec. 16, 19--.  He may not want me to tell you the date, then you would be able to figure out his young age. He grew up in Ladue, MO with 2 older sisters and 2 older brothers. Dad was the baby. Now, he is currently married to my step-mom, Lynn Hayward, and lives a busy, but joyful life. He is probably the most friendly mailman you'll ever meet, a father of 8 lovely kids (5 of his own and 3 step), and the leader of the college and career group at his church.  If you know my pops, you probably love him. Here are my top ten reasons why you gotta love Douglas Melvin:

dad and Elijah (his first grandbaby)

1. He has the greatest middle name (He wants all of his grandbabies to be named either Melvin or Melvina...not happening)
2. He may be the most animated person I know (his children take after him)
3. He loves keeping his traditions (ex. Sunday after church Quick Trip run for 2 hotdogs)
4. He will fall asleep working out or anywhere he can lay down
5. He loves his diet coke
6. He has wisdom beyond his years
7. He has a sensitive heart toward the things of Christ
8. He makes extremely difficult/mean/hard-hearted people his projects in life
9. His love he has for his wife and kids is unconditional
10. He is the most God-fearing man I know who lives his life each day to glorify Christ....and it's so obvious.

I Love you dad and I'm so thankful the Lord blessed me with you as my father...the greatest father any daughter can ever ask for. Thank you for living your life for all to see Christ through you. Happy Birthday Dad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the first time dad saw me before the wedding

dad praying with me before we walked down the aisle

me and my sweet daddy

Scott is turning 23!

his freshman year of college

graduating college: hilarious picture

and now an amazing husband

 Tomorrow, my handsome husband is turning the big 2-3. It's his Jordan birthday (Michael Jordan's #)....big deal.  I am so thankful the Lord has blessed me with such an amazing husband. I'm thankful he has blessed Scott with 23 years of a beautiful life.

Today I have been trying to plan his birthday (pictures to come).  I want to make it so special for him. Its his first birthday we get to celebrate together being married. So fun. It seems my plans for his birthdays in the past always fail:( Last year I had this great idea to go to Old St. Charles and eat dinner at this great restaurant and then ice skate outdoors. Well it was beyond freezing outside, and I didn't make reservations (dumb me). We ended up walking up and down the street for a long time looking for a restaurant to eat that wasn't a 2 hour wait. We finally found a cute little cafe that wasn't busy at all. It was fine, but not the greatest place I could've taken him. After we ate, we were both still cold and lost the desire to ice skate. Fail. I hope my plans this year work out. I'll keep you posted.

Jesse turned 30!

My brother, Jesse, turned 30 years old on August 6th. My mom and step dad threw a surprise birthday party for him a few weeks later at a small cafe in St. Louis, called the Maya Cafe.

Before I tell you about the party, you need to know a little background about Jesse. First of all, he was born with Cerebral Paulsey. He has a hard time speaking well, his motor skills were affected and his mentality is probably at about an 8 year old level. He still enjoys life to the fullest. Jesse LOVES music. My step dad, Vince, is in a bluegrass band and Jesse thoroughly enjoys his music. When Jesse gets off work for the day (he works at St. Johns Hospital) he will probably play his guitar, listen to a band on the computer (most likely Johnny Cash), or watch the Cardinals play on T.V. so he can cheer on Albert Pujols. Those are what bring him the most joy in life. Occasionally, Vince will let Jesse practice with his band during the week or even play with them at a show (he doesn't mind that his guitar isn't plugged in). He doesn't know how to play the guitar, but he still loves to strum hard and sing loud.

So back to his party....
Josh and Chrissy (brother and sister-in-law) were moving to Austin, TX a few days later, so they came in town for one last time before moving. So with all the parties it brought the altogether again:)
Vince gathered a bunch of his friends for Jesse's surprise party and they formed a "torture chamber." Basically everyone plays an instrument that is not their main instrument. It was pretty bad, but extremely entertaining. All Jesse knew he was doing that night was playing music with Vince's band. He wore his best outfit: his khakis, tennis shoes, a button-up shirt with Cadillacs and guitars all over it, and his new favorite hat my mom bought him to play music in. He wouldn't wear his hat until he played music.

that's Jesse to the left.

Scott and I drove him to the cafe. There were large curtains we had to open before entering the room of all of Jesse's friends and family. I was a little nervous he was going to be really startled and not really know it was for him, considering his birthday was a few weeks before. I opened the curtain and everyone yelled, "Surprise!" Jesse, with a small, confusing smirk on his face just stood there and scanned the room of all of his friends and family. I tapped him on the shoulder, "Jesse, it's for you! It's for your birthday!" I think he finally got it when he saw his large birthday cake:)  He walked straight to his guitar, picked it up, and began playing with the band. The guests all just sat back, ate good food, and mingled while watching Jesse having the time of his life.  After he played, it was gift opening time. His gifts either consisted of Cardinals stuff or music stuff. He loved it all.  Scott and I bought him an Albert Pujols jersey.  We could hardly wait to give it to him because he is possibly Albert's biggest fan;) 

he knew it was a Cardinal's jersey right away

I know the party meant so much to Jesse. I was so glad we could have a party to celebrate another year with one of the most amazing people I know.  Jesse is such a wonderful brother. He is extrememly generous and tender-hearted. I am so thankful the Lord has blessed our family with someone who brings us more joy than we could ever have imagined:) Jesse, we love you!!!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Yesterday was my dad's 55th birthday. Whew, he is getting up there;) My dad grew up with 2 older brothers and 2 older sisters. His mom was a solid Christian lady. She passed away almost 7 years ago. She was the one that set a great Godly example for him. Dad didn't become a Christian until he was 20 years old. I kid you not, he began searching while sitting around with a bunch of friends who were passing around a joint. A jewish believer led him to Christ. My mom and dad married young and had five kids (4 older boys and a little girl...me:) They divorced when I was very young. Mom remarried shortly after. Dad remarried about 10 years later. My brothers and I switched off going to mom and dad's every other day and every other weekend until we were old enough to decide where we wanted to stay. We were blessed to be able to spend equal time with both parents. Before my dad remarried, he did an amazing job raising 5 kids in a solid Christian household. He took us to church with him every Sunday, led us in devotions, prayed with us, etc. The only thing he struggled with was cooking a good meal...lots of frozen and canned foods:) Besides that, I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. I loved spending time with my dad. He played hide-and-go-seek with us and the neighborhood kids, he played basketball with us in our backyard, he took us to Minnesota on vacation every summer to our lake house...we kept him young. As we got older, dad wasn't able to beat Josh and Jeremy in basketball anymore, we no longer had to be spanked with a long wooden ruler, and we were finally able to cook for ourselves. Dad remarried when I was 10 years old. Lynn already had 2 boys and a girl. That meant I now had 2 more brothers and finally a SISTER!! I was so excited. I was an awful flower girl in that wedding though. We no longer had dad to ourselves, but we were so happy dad found a wonderful woman of the Lord. Things changed drastically, but dad still maintained a Godly household with 3 extra kids. He has been my inspiration to have my own Godly household someday and my inspiration to live a life glorifying to Christ. I love him more than words can describe. Now he is 55 years old, but I pray the Lord will give him many more years to continue to instill Godly principals in my kids and my siblings kids. To my hero, my dad, thank you for loving me with Christ's love. Happy Birthday!