Adam's pride and joy

Adam as a child was totally into Star Wars. Really, what boy of his generation was not? Course, Adam took it to an entirely different level...star wars conventions, collecting toys, roll playing games, etc. Ever since the boys have been little he has been contemplating the appropriate time to introduce the boys to the phenomenon and share his geek wisdom (my perspective, obviously.) I don't know how it came about, but recently the boys have been OBSESSED with star wars. Alec constantly asks to watch the movie, play the game on the computer and to wear his Jedi costume I made him for Halloween last year. In March we let Alec wear his Anakin costume to Disneyland. It was so much fun to see him take on his new alter ego and it was equally as fun to watch the other people comment about our little Jedi. Aaron wanted nothing to do with his costume but still had his light saber. Gotta have protection at all times, right?

Alec in full Jedi garb. He is also sporting his Jedi face. Alec switches between being Anakin, Yoda, and Darth Maul.
Alec and Aaron fight-fighting at downtown Disney. Aaron sticks with one character, Darth Vader. He says it in the cutest voice, as low as he can make his little toddler voice go, "I'm Darth Vader Mommy!"
Alec in the Lego store taking down Lego Darth Vader.
Darth Vader and Darth Vader.
Alec in action! Great shot Daddy!! :)

One last star wars item to add...I was going to Home Depot the other day with all three kids in tow. While getting out of the car Alec was not happy to be doing this errand. He commented to me with major attitude, "Jedi's don't have to go to the store, SIGH!!!" OMG!! My answer back, "Well, where do you think they get all their pieces to make their light sabers?" Na-na-na-na-na-na!!! Mommy has an answer for everything!!

I love that....

I love that Alec is totally and 100% convinced that I actually DO have eyes in the back of my head!! He is absolutely fascinated by the thought of it and looks through my hair to see if he can find them. How else could he explain that I know EXACTLY what he is doing when I am not even looking at him?? ;)

Easter and Ashley's 6 month posts to follow this in a couple days, I promise! Happy Friday!

How is it...

How is it that a 4 1/2 year old can totally get and feel comfortable with the mystery that is Easter? This all came up yesterday when Alec, Aaron and I were eating lunch. I knew that Alec's class in preschool was discussing Easter this week (it is a Methodist school) so I thought I would ask him what Easter was. His answer without even hesitating, "It's when God died and then came alive again." Wow. Impressive. Later last night I of course wanted him to repeat the answer for Adam so I asked him the question again. This time he replied, "It's when Jesus died and then came alive again." Double wow. Not only did he get it, but he also interchanged God and Jesus without even thinking that they might be different things. Could he possibly understand that God and Jesus are one in the same? Impressive, right? There is more!

Today I was talking with my wonderful friend "Big" Ashley about whether or not Alec was ready for kindergarten next year (BIG topic in our house right now) and Alec came up to us with two lincoln logs and said, "Look Mom, I made a cross!" I pointed to the cross and I asked what the cross was for and his response was, "Jesus died on it." Ok. My next question, "Alec, why did Jesus die?" Alec, "for our sins Mommy!" Me, "What are sins?" Alec, "when we do bad stuff" Me, "and what happened when Jesus died for our sins?" Alec, "He made them all go away so we could be happy."

Wowie wow wow! Don't you just love the innocence and faith of a child? He makes it sound so completely simple and matter of fact. I LOVE IT!

MY Duker!!!

I have blogged before about how much the boys LOVE their little sister, but a few days ago I overheard a arguement that they were having while all three of the kids were laying on my bed. I came out to find them arguing back and forth, "My Duker!", "No, MY Duker" all while pushing eachother away from Ashley. I of couse hate them to argue, but what better of a thing for them to argue for, right? Gotta love that! By the way, I have NO idea where Duker came from. Alec started it and it kinda stuck.



Showing how behind I am...here is Ash back in February having her very first bite of food. It was oatmeal cereal and she absolutely HATED it! She liked it MUCH better once we moved onto sweet potatoes and such. She is a very good eater now...as long as I stay away from the spinach. That one did not go over well going in OR out!!

Can't resist a cute pic of my boys. This one is also from February. Gosh I love those boys!

Heading out of town with a full heart...

I am writing this blog while sitting in a hotel room in Pismo Beach! Adam has a training up here and so we were able to leave the boys with Grandma, Grandpa, Oma and Opa, and Ashley and I tagged along with Adam. Might as well take advantage of a free hotel room that is right on the beach, right?

We had a tough time getting out of the house last night due to Adam's work schedule. He was all set to come home around 6:00 but then got called out to another nasty call. ARGH! We finally left the house around 9:45 last night and go to Pismo Beach at 1:00 a.m. We literally walked in the hotel room, got Ashley settled in the pack and play and fell into bed. Today Adam had to be at his training at 7:30 but I was able to sleep in a little bit. I finally got out of the hotel around 9:00 and headed up to San Louis Obispo to see what was up there. I found a nail place and got a mani/pedi then ate some lunch. After driving around downtown a little bit Ash and I came back to the hotel and took a nap. When Adam was done we drove up to Moro bay and found a cute little Italian place right on the water to have dinner. Now I am watching American Idol, and both Adam and Ashley are passed out. Gosh it is nice to relax! Tomorrow I plan on doing a bit more shopping and then reading by the pool. It's hard work but some body's gotta do it! :)

Before we left yesterday I had to get the boys packed up and over to Adam's parents house for the week. With so much to do it was a quite frustrating day but we made it thru. I was taking them to drop them off and telling Alec about what all was going on this week. Our conversation went like this...

Me, "Alec, you are going to stay at Grandma and Grandpa's house this week, but on Friday Aunt Baba is going to pick you up to take you to Mya's birthday party. After that you are going to spend the night with her.

Alec, "But what about Aaron, is he going to come to the party?"

Me, "Nope, just you! You get to spend all that time with Aunt Baba!"

SO excited Alec, "Mama, that makes my heart sparkle!"

OH. MY. GOSH. How sweet is that? What a wonderful way to explain the feeling of happiness! I swear, that little boy just absolutely amazes me. He makes MY heart sparkle!!!

O-tay!

I did posts on Ashley and Alec so of course I need to do my little Air-bear as well! At 2 1/2 Aaron is absolutely coming into his own. His vocabulary and anunciation is improving daily and the kid is just an absolute riot! He is one of those kids who is just comfortable in his own body and does not have a care in the world. Alec always tended to be clingy in new situations and a tad on the moody side. While Aaron can certainly have his moments with moodyness, he is so outgoing and willing to jump in and do almost anything....except for eat that is. This child is SO picky. He has a small list of foods that he likes to eat, and if those items are not served, he will eat nothing and be perfectly fine.

One of the sweetest things is that Aaron is an absolute Daddy's boy. I will ask him if he loves me and his answer is, "NO! I yuv DA-DA!!" There are plenty of times when I am hugging him and I tell him I love him and he says back, "I yuv you too mama" so I don't feel too bad. Aaron's eyes just completely light up when Daddy is home and he wants EVERYTHING done by him. So stinking cute. Of couse, Adam eats that UP!

Some of Aaron's favorte phrases lately...

"O-tay mommy" - Ok Mommy!
"Dyote house!" - Coyote house, pointing into the hills near our house
"You princess Lea mommy!" - self explanatory I guess!
"Fight-fight Daddy" - his way of asking Daddy to get his light saber to play
"Baby Rashrey AWAKE!!" - Baby Ashley awake!

I LOVE this picture from Amy's wedding. Aaron was in the wedding so he had a little tux on. At the reception he spent the ENTIRE time out on the dance floor, running around like a CRAZY person! He had SO much fun and was asleep in the car the moment we pulled of of the parking lot that afternoon.
Aaron going to bed with his Ah-Ah's. He also still sleeps with his baby and his light saber.
Aaron fight-fighting with his brother. They are actually VERY good with the light sabers. Rarely do they ever hit eachother with them. They usually only hit eachother's light saber just like in the movies.

My big guy...

It truly is amazing to think that my first little baby, who I held in my arms and thought would never grow up, is 4 1/2 years old already. What really gets me is how every day he is maturing and showing me things that he has learned. A few weeks ago we were at his sports class and when it was over the coaches gave each of the kids a piece of sidewalk chalk so that they could go and draw on the sidewalk outside of the facility. I was standing talking to my friend Karen and looked down to see Alec writing his name. I knew he could write the "A" but he was struggling on the "e" for such a long time. He wrote it so quickly and just as if he had been writing it all his life! I of couse had to whip out the camera and take a picture of my cuttie pie and his writing break-thru.
I think the thing that strikes me more than anything with Alec is is personality. The kid just does not quit!! Sometimes that is good, and of course sometimes it can be bad. Alec makes the absolute FUNNIEST faces I have ever seen and loves showing them off. He wears his emotions so clearly on his face that you almost always know exactly what he is thinking or what he is up to. At least with me, he can't get away with anything.
After much research and prayers we have decided to send Alec to St. Francis next year for school. We are currently filling out the applications and going through the process. How strange to think that he is in kindergarten next year! I need to take advantage of every moment I have the rest of this school year and summer to enjoy my big boy before he starts off on his official school journey. I am SO proud of him!!

Ashley at 4 months

Ok, so obviously my blogging two times a week in February has not happened. Oh well. When did life just get so darn busy? Was it with the addition of kid no. 3? Or is it just that I am so far behind on stuff on here that I don't want to get on and do current stuff because I have not put on old stuff...well, if that is the case (which I think it is) then I need to just get past it. I will update the old stuff when I get a chance but still put new blogs on. Might be confusing, but this is the only scrapbook my kids will ever have of their lives so I have to do SOMETHING!

Can you believe Ashley is 4 months old already? I seriously can't. I took her to her 4 month doctors visit and she weighs 13 pounds which put her in the 50th percentile. I forgot how long she was but she was in the 75th percentile for height. Again, tall like Mommy...I LOVE it! We did have one surprise at the doctor's visit...when I took her into her appointment I knew she had a cold but come to find out, she had a double ear infection! She was not quite her full on sweet self, but I never would have thought that she was in pain. She got her first dose of antibiatocs and did pretty well with them. We have a follow up appointment on Monday to check her ears and then if all is clear she gets her 4 month shots at that point. Poor girl is just being tortured!

Ash is getting quite a bit of new hair on her head and it is coming in very blonde. She did manage to roll over at some point in the last few weeks but has not done it again since. Makes sense considering how much she HATES being on her tummy. Why should she turn over again if she is going to be miserable? Smart girl!! :) Ash is such a happy little baby and loves more than about anything else watching her brothers. They give her SO much attention and she just eats it up.

One thing we were quite surprised to discover in these past few weeks is that Asher is a thumb sucker! I have never had one of those before! I knew she never really liked the binky but lately she has figured out how to soothe herself by sucking her thumb. It is too stinking adorable!! I know I might not think this when trying to get her to quit in 3 years or paying for her braces, but right now it is just the cutest thing.

I LOVE this picture. Big Ashley had this shirt made for her when I was pregnant. Don't know if you can see but the M & M has blonde hair. SO CUTE!!!

LOVE, LOVE, and MORE LOVE!!! These three kids are my heart!!

Little lady posing for her close up!

(disclaimer...spell check is not working on here, so now you know exactly how badly I spell. Sorry!)

Christmas Eve

We spent Christmas Eve over at Grandma and Grandpa's house this year. We went over around noon, had a wonderful dinner, and then went to church at San Antonio for 6:00 p.m. mass. We had contemplated doing 10:00 p.m. mass but thankfully came to our senses and went earlier. After mass we came back to the house to open gifts and have dessert. It was a wonderful day! The Hawley's before heading out to church.
Grandma and Sugarfoot with the grandkids.
We put the kids in their pj's before opening gifts so that they would be ready to put out cookies and get to bed once we got home.
Ashley's favorite toy of the night was her stuffed piggy!

Alec and Aaron's first slumber party

In the middle of December we were lucky enough to have Ian and Cormac come over and stay the night with us while Pauline and Neil went to Neil's work Christmas party. We had pizza for dinner, watched a movie and then went to bed...notice I say "went to bed" and not "went to sleep"? Yeah, that is because it was almost 11:00 p.m. before the final hold out, Aaron, went to sleep. Ian was the first to give in around 9:00 p.m., Alec being next at 9:30 p.m., Cormac was finally out around 10:15 p.m. and then Aaron. Those boys were EXHAUSTED the next day!

They all had such a good time and we look forward to having them over again! Ian and Cormac in their pajamas.
The big boys got to sleep in the aerobed on the floor...they thought it was just the coolest thing ever!
The little boys were up in the beds. Who would have thought that they would have the hardest time falling asleep? Too funny!

Catching up...

I wonder how many posts I would find over the few years that I have been keeping this blog that were titled "catching up" or something similar...quite a few I can imagine. Oh well, here is another one I guess!

I pose the question...When does life EVER slow down? I am guessing that the answer to this question is...NEVER. I of course had tons of stuff going on at the end of the year and into January, and that certainly took up a ton of my time. Since all the big events were over I thought that I would have more time to have the house clean, get laundry done, update this blog, etc. Well, the fact is, my house is NOT clean, my husband is constantly asking me when he is going to have any clean socks or underwear in his drawer, and it has been almost a month since I have updated this thing. I have come to the realization that it is just all about priorities. I make a serious declaration that from this point on (or to the best of my ability) I am going to update this blog at least three times a week. Wow, that is a bold statement, I had better follow thru. Actually, since I have all but given up on scrapbooking, this blog is all my children will have as far as organized memories in the future so I had better get my act together!!

Now that I have made my blogging promise, let's catch up on life. Following this blog entry will be several entries that I have wanted to do in the past month and a half. Have fun reading my few but faithful readers!!

Mom and Dad's retirement

After many years of hard work, I am proud to say that both my parents retired on December 21st!

My Dad worked for many years as a Technical Writer for Hughes which more recently turned into Raytheon. He worked hard and succeeded in his job so that he could provide for his family and made it so that my Mom could stay home when we were little. My Dad's work ethic and dedication to his job were/are inspiring. Thank you Papa for all you did for our family! I love you SO much!!

My Mom's professional career was a bit shorter because she made the decision to stay at home with us girls. She was not only our chauffeur to all of our activities, but she was also our room mom, PTA president, sewer of all halloween costumes and dresses. When I was in Jr. High she returned to work at the Fullerton School District as a school secretary and worked her way up from there. Her final position was at the district office where she was the I.T. Support for the entire district. Mom, I am so proud of all the work you did over the years, paid or unpaid. You are truly an inspiration to me! I love you more than you could imagine!
All of us at Mom's retirement party at the Fullerton School District office.
Grammie and Ashley

Some December Pics

This is the photo that we intended on using for our Christmas cards. I say "intended" because they were never actually made and sent out. Oh well, there is always next year!! At Home Depot with our Christmas tree! They had a wonderful selection this year and the trees were SO fresh! By the time I finally got around to taking down the tree the second week of January it was still not that bad. Last year's tree was so terrible that I was afraid to turn on the lights of the tree on Christmas morning. This year it was not an issue. Absolutely one of the best trees we have ever gotten....and only $35 bucks!!
Every year our neighborhood does a Christmas party. We have a potluck with tons of yummy food and drinks. We have a multicultural block which makes for some AMAZING home cooked food. We also have some neighbors who bring tons of their famous jello shots for the adults. Let's just say that it is a good thing that all we had to do was walk back across the street to get home!

Santa came and visited the party and brought gifts for all the kids in attendance. Alec had no problem going up and sitting with Santa, but Aaron would only go up with the promise of a gift and while sitting on Daddy's lap. Ashley had no problem, but we will see what next year brings with her.

December went fast but was a wonderful month filled with lots of good food, friends and family, and as always, TONS of blessings in our life!

Happy New Year!

I just had to throw one post in before the new year. Obviously I have not done very well at updating lately, but with Amy's wedding, her hen party, and the baptism this last weekend things have been a bit crazy.

The baptism was WONDERFUL! We kept it really small this time...just close family, because of the wedding and all else that has been going on. Ashley was an ANGEL the entire time and did not even mind when Fr. Joe got water in her eyes. I will post pictures after the wedding is over this next weekend. It truly was a very blessed day.

A bit of fun news...just today Ashley giggled for the first time! I was changing her diaper and clothes and was ticking her and she let out the sweetest giggle I have ever heard! I have been able to make her do it a few times again today and I just can't get enough of it! I will try and capture it on video if I get a chance.

All is well with the family, and we had a wonderful Christmas. The boys are still enjoying sorting through all their toys!

I pray that you and your family have a very blessed New Year filled with lots of love and laughter!

My baking helper...

Ok, just about everyone who reads this blog is aware of my obsession and absolute LOVE of baking. Yes, I want to be Martha Stewart. There are PLENTY of other things in this world that I am not even close to proficient at, but if all else fails, I can bake. This being said, my favorite time of the year for baking is Christmas time. SO many recipes, SO LITTLE time to try and make the all!!

Before I had children I dreampt about the day that I would be doing my Christmas baking, being helped by little girls that were watching and helping me. I of course had to change this dream for a while when God blessed me with two boys first instead of the girls that were in my dreams. This year I was blessed with my daughter Ashley and from the moment I found out I was having a girl the dream returned. I figured I had about 2 or 3 years before my dream would finally come to fruition.

To my surprise, this year my dream came true earlier than I thought, and different than I thought. Instead of a little girl standing by my side and helping me out, it was a little boy...in a skeleton shirt no less!

This last weekend Alec was napping when I started rolling out my sugar cookies for the year. I make a HUGE batch so that I can bake them all off at once and then just freeze them and frost them when they are needed throughout the season. Alec woke up from his nap a little before I was done and immediately came into the kitchen and wanted to help. I got him his step stool and he watched patiently. When I only had one or two small batches of cookie dough left I told him that it was his turn. I went to go and get the camera to capture it on film and by the time I came back to help him he was doing this...

He figured it out ALL on his own from watching me!! Who would have thought that my sweet little boy would be so GREAT in the kitchen??? I am not sure if Aaron will be interested in cookie making (more like cookie eating is my guess) or even if Ashley will, but at least I know that I have Alec to help me out and to pass my recipes onto some day!!

Thank you my sweet boy Alec for fulfilling my dreams...in this, and many many other ways!!!

Similar?

What do you think? Do these pictures look like the same person? Believe it or not, the top one is Ashley and the bottom one is me! Both are taken at approximately 2 months old and in the same dress.

Shower power

YEAH!! The shower is done, and it was a success!

Amy's bridal shower was yesterday and everyone had a great time. On Friday night my Mom and Allison came over and helped set up as well as made the food. In addition to many side dishes, we served three breakfast casseroles. Those casseroles were made on Friday night so that on Saturday morning we just had to stick them in the oven to cook. It made for a much more relaxed morning on Saturday.

I received many compliments on the food at the shower and I promised I would post the recipes, so here they are!

Hash Brown Casserole

20 ounce bag of fresh hash brown potatoes (found in the refrigerated case of the store near the eggs)
1 can cream of chicken soup (I used cream of mushroom because my sis is a vegetarian and it came out GREAT)
6 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup milk
1 small onion, finely chopped

Mix all of the above and put into a 9x13 casserole dish. Cover with corn flake topping (see below) then bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes or until the center is hot and the topping is nicely brown.

Corn flake topping
2 cups of corn flakes
1 stick melted butter

Crush corn flakes in a plastic bag and mix together with melted butter.

Breakfast Casserole
1 lb bacon, cooked and crumbled (this is optional. I left it out to make it a vegetarian dish)
10 eggs beaten
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp dry mustard
3 cups milk
4 slices bread, cubed (french bread works very well)
1 1/2 cups grated cheese

Combine all ingredients. Refrigerate overnight. Bake in 9x13 pan for 45 minutes to 1 hour at 350 degrees.

Baked French Toast Casserole

1 loaf french bread
8 large eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1 cup milk
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
dash of salt
Praline Topping, recipe follows

Slice french bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9x13 inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

The next day spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup if desired

Praline Topping:

1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

2 Tbsp. light corn syrup

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well.

Excuses, excuses...

Can I list my excuses on why I have not posted in over a week? Ok, here are a few of them...

- I am hosting a bridal shower for my sister Amy here on Saturday and have been trying to get things done for that.
- The shower is a Christmas theme so I have been decorating the house like crazy for Christmas.
- Adam has been out of town so I have been a single mom again.
- We have had a nasty cold sweeping through our house that will not seem to go away.
- Thanksgiving holiday...speaks for itself.

Is that enough? :)

As you can tell, things have been pretty busy around here. Ashley had her 2 month birthday...I know, CRAZY that it has been two months already! We had her two month check up this last Tuesday and she is doing great. She weighs 11 lbs. 6 oz. which puts her in the 75th percentile. For height she is 23 3/4 inches long putting her in the 95th percentile!! I guess my little girl is going to be TALL like momma!! Besides her runny nose, Asher is doing wonderfully. She is even getting closer on the sleeping through the night thing...knock on wood. Last night she only woke up once. We will see how tonight goes! Keep your fingers crossed!

The boys are doing great as well. We went the day before Thanksgiving to see Santa Clause, figuring that we would beat the holiday rush for pictures. There was virtually no line so we were so excited. I has bought new shirts for the boys and an ADORABLE dress for Ashley for the occasion. I could not wait to get a great picture of my three beautiful children with Santa! When it was our turn to see Santa, Alec walked up right away and sat down with him to talk. Murphy's law, Aaron absolutely REFUSED to get anywhere near him. Mean Mommy that I am, I wanted to put him in Santa's lap anyway, even if he was screaming, just to get a picture of all three of them with Santa. Nice Daddy that Adam is, he refused to make Aaron do that. What this boils down to is that I spent $15.00 for a beautiful picture of Alec and Ashley with Santa Clause, with Aaron no where in sight. Sigh. Oh well! Better luck next year I guess!

Well, I gotta go and do some more stuff around the house for the shower on Saturday. I have some great pictures in my camera that need to be downloaded. Once I actually get around to doing that then I will have some better posts!

Smartalec or smart Alec?

Smart-alec or smart Alec, you decide!

Here is an example of the bit of attitude that is coming out my darling 4 year old lately....

Yesterday morning I was sitting on my bed nursing Ashley before getting Alec to preschool. I called Alec into my room and asked him to go, pick out his clothes, and get dressed for school; he ran off. About five minutes later I called for him to come in and see me. He walked back into my bedroom, still in his pajamas, holding a Thomas train. The conversation went like this...

Me, with a slightly irritated tone of voice, "Alec, what are you doing?"
Alec, with a slight sauciness to his voice, "right now?"
Me, getting even more irritated, "Yes, right now."
Alec, with total attitude, "Looking at you." (OMG!!!)
Me, now seriously pissed off, "WHAT WERE YOU DOING IN YOUR ROOM?"
Alec, now humble, "playing with trains."

Seriously!?!? Attitude like this already? AND this is not an isolated incident!! I really did not think that this would happen for a few years. In talking to my other friends who have boys that are Alec's age, this is normal. I am SO not liking it! Any advice from anyone?

For my Ashley

I was sitting folding laundry this weekend and listening to the radio and In My Daughter's Eyes by Martina McBride came on. I don't know if the song is new, or if I just never listened to the words before having not had a daughter before now, but this weekend this song touched my heart tremendously. I sat on the floor of my family room, surrounded by laundry, crying my eyes out.

I am so proud that God choose me to be Mommy to my little Ashley. I promise to set a good example and guide her so that she can grow up and achieve all her dreams.

In My Daughter's Eyes

In my daughter's eyes I am a hero

I am strong and wise and I know no fear

But the truth is plain to see

She was sent to rescue me

I see who I wanna be

In my daughter's eyes

In my daughter's eyes everyone is equal

Darkness turns to light and the world is at peace

This miracle God gave to me gives me strength when I am weak

I find reason to believe

In my daughter's eyes

And when she wraps her hand around my finger

Oh it puts a smile in my heart

Everything becomes a little clearer

I realize what life is all about

It's hangin' on when your heart has had enough

It's giving more when you feel like giving up

I've seen the light

It's in my daughter's eyes

In my daughter's eyes I can see the future

A reflection of who I am and what will be

Though she'll grow and someday leave

Maybe raise a family

When I'm gone I hope you see how happy she made me

For I'll be there

In my daughter's eyes

- Martina McBride