Missed you...

"I've missed you, Village!!!"

-One of our favorite holiday's since Grace came into our lives is Valentine's Day...  hearts everywhere!!!  The kids had Valentine Parties at their school...

Abigail is an honorary member of the special ed class at her school, so anytime they have a school wide party she loves to stop by to see her sweet friends in their class.  This little guy loves Abigail as much as she loves him,  he gets SO excited to see her... it's just precious (he even had a valentine card for her)!

...and then they got to attend Grace's Valentine's Party which was certainly a highlight for all, especially Abigail because she got to love on some of Grace's classmates.

Abigail's new little buddy...

-My Mom, Nana Lu Lu, was in town from California last weekend and she blessed us by taking us to see Marvel Live.  It was way better than I could have ever imagined, practically front row seats just increased the cool factor!  Amazing stunts, choreography, and story line.  Even Grace enjoyed the show as long as I kept my hands over her ears so that all of the loud "booms" didn't scare her to tears.

Life as a teeny, but mighty Ross girl...  Lu Lu also blesses the kids with clothes (and treats for mommy and daddy too :-) when she comes to visit, this time she came bearing PJ's because that was everyone's need at this time.  As I was picking up the house, I must have put Grace's new PJ's in Abigail's room because she put them on after getting out of the shower and I thought, "those look small for being brand new PJ's"...  after checking the size, I quickly realized they were too small... because they were Grace's 2T PJ's.  Pretty impressive that the same PJ's fit an almost 8 year old and 2 year old in the Ross house :-).  

-As a family, we love American Ninja Warrior, so the kids like to "train" to be a competitor on the show some day.  Andrew is usually the coach/trainer and Abigail is the one "in training."

-On Friday of this week, Andrew had the second part of his sinus surgery where they went in for a second look, removing the gel they had put in place to keep the newly created holes (to open his airway) open.  He had to be sedated again, so aside from the inconvenience of not being able to eat for almost 8 hours in the middle of the day, he did GREAT (by God's grace of course :-).  Again, his first words after waking up from the anesthesia was "I miss Abby" and he was elated to see Grace (and David because he had to bring Grace :-) show up shortly after he woke up!  It has been pretty awesome to see how the Lord has used Andrew through all of his medical stuff, from the way he tells the Dr's and nurses that "it's because he knows that God is always with him" when they praise him for being such a big boy and great patient, to the sweetness that he exudes even when in less than ideal circumstances (to God be the glory because he's got sinners for parents :-). As much as we as parents hate to see our kids go through any level of suffering, there is no question that those experiences provide great teachable moments as to where we draw our strength, cast our fears, and the solid rock in which we should place our hope and trust.  For adults and kids alike, it's one thing to know about God, but going through tough stuff gives us a great opportunity to really get to know God (His character, etc).

9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 ESV

Grace liked the nurses hat, so they found her one!

-On Saturday we had a great time at the Campbell Elementary Fun Run!  We couldn't have been more proud of the kids...  Abigail's goal was to beat all of the other 2nd graders in the mile run, she nailed that goal (glad David runs with her because I seriously can't keep up with that girl).

Love these Besties!

These were my running buddies!  Andrew's goal was to finish the race without walking, besides the minute that he sat on the edge of Grace's stroller, he ran faster, harder, and longer than I have ever seen him run (and it was a day after having the second sinus surgery).  Andrew said that "the real credit goes to Grace because her cheering for him is what gave him the motivation to go hard!"  

After the race and carnival that followed, Andrew had his last and best basketball game of the season (we are missing next weeks game which is really the last game because we are going to the rodeo parade with Grace's school).  He got the "Christ like" award for the 3rd time this season which is super special because we talk and pray a lot (with all of the kids) about being a light for Jesus at school, on and off the basketball court/soccer field, etc.

-Grace LOVES to play in the back yard with the big kids.  David and Abigail are often times having a serious soccer match going on out there and I can hardly watch it because Grace insists on being in the middle of the action as they dribble the ball around her, it makes me nervous!  Grace won't have it another way though and David and Abigail promise me that they are being careful with her.  Grace likes to take her turn dribbling the ball across the back yard while saying "GOOOOOAL" until she gets it into the net.  By the time I got my phone out, I only caught the end of her goal, but you get the point :-).

These three amigo's love school, we pray that you look this happy on Monday morning too! 

We love and appreciate you, Village!