A snowflake is one of God's most fragile creations, but look what they can do when they stick together!

Fun in the snow!

Sliding down the hill in our beach raft.... Emmah is loosing it because she lost a glove in the raft coming down the hill.....snow is a love hate relationship for this child.....she hates being cold.

Snow Angel......Paiyton is really already an angel she just doesn't know it!

SNOW.......SNOW.......SNOW......and WE LOVE IT. It has been a SUPERB Day here in Va Beach with our 9 inches of snow. We have felt like we were getting a little taste of home from Michigan today. Now, I do not miss the long long winter's up at home but having an occasional day or two of snow here is just a little piece of heaven. Job 38 God replies to JOB Vs 22 "Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail". It's a great reminder of HIS ABSOLUTE GREATNESS! We took the kids out twice today to play in it and we also went to have lunch and NOTHING was open......cracks me up.....so we came home for lunch. We wanted to be out in it all day, while everyone else was considered to be "Snowed In". I understand the fear of it when it is not a regular thing, but for us "Michiganders/Yankees" this was just a dusting. Below are some pics of the girls having lots of fun in the snow here today.......PURE HEAVEN!

Tasting her snow creation.....

mmmmm that taste's sooooo good!

Inside and warming up from the snow!

Baby Carlton #3

Here She OR He is...this is a bit blurry it didn't scan well. Ten little fingers and toes and everything measures right on track. This was a "make sure all is ok" ultra sound. Two weeks ago I was told I have a clotting disorder and needed to start daily Shot injections of a blood thinner. So each day I have to give my self a shot to prevent a clot, so I am now labeled High Risk. This is all new to me until the problems started last year I had normal pregnancies with Paiyton & Emmah. They are watching me close and on top of things though. We feel very blessed with this baby and can not wait for she or he to arrive.

Sadness....

and lots of it. Please know this post is not any comparison to the things other people are dealing with right now as well as the Haiti people, my heart is just broken for them. There is no comparison. What they are dealing with is much more important and greater. So, please know that as you read this post.

Do any of you Mom's ever panic and make the wrong decision and it affects your kids? This has not happened to me in this way before. So I am going to try to make a long story short, Emmah was having some breathing issues at night through Nov. & Dec. that I thought was our Dog Sadie. In between Dr's appointments for Emmah and her having these episodes I panicked and thought that it was the dog causing it.....looking back I am not sure how I came up with that...I just panicked....when your child has breathing issues at night you do that or at least I did. Two days before Christmas the dog left. I was thinking that I was doing what was best for Emmah, knowing it would be hard for all of us.

We have since been back to the Specialist (Dr's) to find out that it WAS NOT our Sadie girl that was the problem. Emmah has Asthma and just needed an inhaler to regulate her breathing and control attacks when they happen. I even asked the Specialist the question "Was it the dog and she said NO it was not the dog." Since Emmah received her new inhaler there have been no episodes. On the positive side of that she should out grow it so that is a releif to Tim and I.

Talk about feeling a 100 times worse. I made the absolute WORST decision about Sadie all because I panicked about Emmah and now my poor girls are suffering for my decision, especially my sweet girl Paiyton. I thought that with time AND a new kitten that it would get better but it hasn't. Paiyton still cry's every single day for her Sadie girl and that's a lot since Sadie has been gone now for 23 days. Emmah crys too but its a bit less I think just because she is younger and its harder for Paiyton because of her special attachment to Sadie and she's older.

I didn't think it would be this hard for Paiyton. But when you think about the fact that Tim has to come and go with work, Mom, sissy and sadie were her constants in her life and so this has been so much harder for her than I thought it would be. I feel like the worst Mom ever. Paiyton keeps asking me to bring Sadie backand if I could I would bring her back home. We got Sadie when she was 8 weeks old and Paiyton played and took care if her every day from the time we had gotten her, (with Mom's help of coarse). I have talked to her about it in many different ways to try to help her understand and make it better for her, I pray with her and Paiyton prays about it every night. My feelings are not whats important, it is Paiyton and Emmah's. I know now that all this didn't have to happen at all and it's my fault. It is just hard when your kids suffer from your mistake, breaks my heart.

Adding to the Family....

....Yes, you probably guessed it already.....we are having Baby #3. We found out I was pregnant the first three days we were home from our NY trip back during the beginning of November. I was having some dizzy spells while in NY City but just thought it was because I was very tired and on the go so much, little did I know it was because I was pregnant.

I am currently 12 weeks pregnant and we are Due July 21, 2010. We are very excited and feel very blessed. Our families have known for a few weeks now but we waited until now to let the news out because of the past problems with pregnancy and some other testing that has been being done on me. Everything looks good and baby has a strong heart beat. I am feeling sick to my stomach most all day long which is new for me, I didn't have that with Paiyton or Emmah. I had a Dr visit last week and I was telling Paiyton where I was going and she started jumping up and down and said to me " It's time for the baby to come out", all I could do was laugh. So the kids are excited they just don't get why it takes so long to bring the baby home.

My Dad also has asked Barb to marry him, he asked her on Christmas so we will also have a wedding some time soon. I am very happy for him and we are very excited. It is already an exciting year for the Carlton / Martin families.

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice....

.....these pics of my sweet girls are so awesome...I LOVE THEM. These were taken the first week of December. They are Paiyton's 6yr, Emmah's 4yr and than Christmas ones together. The pic at the top of the blog is one of them as well. I can not believe they are 6 and 4 now. Time goes by so very fast with each passing year. Emmah just turned 4 three days before Christmas. I will post her birthday in another post though. My sweet girls....Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice!

Catching up.....

....well we are all alive and well and as usual I am playing catch up since getting back from NY City. There are about 600 pictures to go through at this point of NY, just have not had the time to sit at the computer for hours to go through them and to update the blog, I'll get there though soon I promise! We did have the most wonderful time and it is my new FAVORITE place and can not wait to go back again very soon.

She's finaly home...

.....the USS New York has come home to Norfolk. Tim arrived last Thursday and has had a week home and now he is off again for the Commissioning in NY City. I will be heading to NY next Wednesday to join him. We are so honored to be a part of this ship and what she stands for, her mo to is " Strength Forged Through Sacrifice, Never Forget". We will have the honor of meeting some of the 911 families while in NY and though their family members didn't join the military they sacrificed their lives.

For those who do not know much about her she has 7.5 tons of World Trade Center steel in her bow, she carries 720 troops plus the Navy crew, she supports helicopters and vertical take off and landing aircraft such as the MV22. Her length is 684 feet, Beam 105 feet and four turbo charged marine diesels shafts. There is so much more about her to tell but for now we are so very honored to be a part of her and what she stands for.

Tim I am so very very proud of you, your sacrifice and your hard work. I love you My Husband.

Paiyton's View....

Tonight while putting Paiyton to bed we were reading out of her princess bible for little girls. We were reading about the heart and having a pure heart and serving God and hiding his word in our hearts. The song that went with this reading was " I've got the Joy Joy Joy Joy Down in my heart". I am sure y'all remember that one from church growing up. It was actually fun to be reminded of that song. Anyway, we then were talking about how as a young lady who loves God, How can you have a pure heart for Jesus? Paiyton began to say different ways to do that and than she started asking questions about Jesus and heaven. She has been asking these questions a lot lately. I think because we talk about my Mom and how she is in heaven with Jesus. She is still trying to comprehend it all and understand it. So here is how the rest went:

Paiyton: What is Grandma Martin doing in heaven?

Me: She is praising Jesus?

Paiyton: Does she have a house?

Me: Well, yes the bible says that he is preparing a mansion for each of us and Grandma I am sure has one.

Paiyton: "A Mansion" wow that's a lot of work to clean and a lot of dog poop......

Me: Laughing hysterically and saying well honey she doesn't have a dog to clean up after.

Paiyton: Oh, I thought she had a dog too like us.

Paiyton: Mom does God make the air?

Me: Yes, God created the heavens and the earth he made everything. I than explain in simple terms Oxygen and how we breath.

Paiyton: Mom does God blow the air out his mouth? Or does he use a fan? Me: Again, Laughing and trying to explain it better the second time.

I love these bed time conversations with my sweet Paiyton, she just melts my heart and she has no idea how she blesses me so much with these conversations we have. I don't want her to ever grow any older. I love her sweet innocence. I love you my little lady!

SOLD......SOLD.....SOLD.....

....y'all have no idea how wonderful it is to do this post. The house in Michigan is now SOLD....whoohooo. We will have a closing date by the 15th of November. And yes Chet, what a great Birthday present for both Tim and I this year. The house has been for sale off and on since 2004, over 5 years now. I am over whelmed why God chose now for it to sell simply because there are so many other people going through so many hard things right now, things that are so much harder than selling a house and he chose to bless us with the sale of our house in Michigan. We are so relieved, excited and blessed that God has provided the buyer at just the right time, his time. Than you all for your prayers. We are so thankful!

On the Flip side of the emotions it is a bit sad too. Tim proposed to me in the kitchen of this house and we had our first baby girl here and started our family together. Tim really is a romantic despite the kitchen proposal. It was actually very sweet he just couldn't wait to ask some where else. He did take me out for a great night that night but the asking was in the kitchen of this house. Don't get me wrong we are so glad it is SOLD, just a little reminiscing that's all.

LOVE IT.....

....isn't this background the cutest? I love Hoot Owls so I thought this was the best background ever! I promise I will get caught up on postings one day soon.

ALMOST SOLD......

YEAH, the house in Michigan is almost sold. As most of you know we were loosing our renter this month she is moving out today actually. We have been a little worried about either getting it sold soon or finding a new renter because it obviously can not sit there empty. It has been for sale again since March of this year. Anyway, on Friday a couple went through the house twice in the same day and yesterday wrote an offer. So the deal is started and we are praying that it goes smoothly and we have a closing here very soon. The buyers want a closing no later than November 27Th but we are all for a closing much sooner than that. So please say a prayer that this all goes smoothly. It will be such a huge relief to have the house sold.

The Final Countdown......

Well, I am so very happy to say that we are now in the final countdown of several great things; My hubby coming home, Tim's Ship Commissioning and our trip to New York City.....WooHooo. We have ten more weeks until Commissioning weekend and our fun time in New York City.....WE can not wait. My best friend Dawn is going with me to New York since Tim will have to work part of the time, so it will be fun girl time too. It all seems so much more official since we now have our plane tickets booked as of today and hotel reservations made. WooHoo... we are so excited...I know I already said that.

The girls are staying in Michigan while I am gone so it will also be a kid free trip. On one part I look forward to that but I am also a worrier and don't like to be that far from my Chicky's so we will see how I do on that one....lots of prayer.

Tim will be home for Labor Day weekend thank goodness we miss him so very much. Especially the girls, they just want to hold him and play with Daddy as they tell me each night at bed time. So we can't wait for next Thursday when he arrives for the weekend. So the COUNTDOWN's have started!!!!

Another Baby........

.......I know what y'all are thinking.......Your having another baby? No, not a baby of the human kind. As you can see below this is our newest addition to our family and her name is Sadie. Back on memorial day up in Michigan we went to my sister Tara's house for the day and ended up coming home with Sadie, she was 8 weeks old at that time. She is a yellow lab as you can see. Tara's neighbor was selling a full litter of AKC labs and I got suckered into one between Tim, the girls and my sister of coarse. Tara has a small farm of oh .....lets see......horses, goats, rabbits, roosters, chicken's, ducks, cats, dogs, I am not sure if I am leaving anything out or not, there are so many animals up there I can't keep track. Any way, I told the girls that day to say goodbye to Aunt Tara's house because it was to expensive to visit her any more.....kidding of coarse.

So, me the NON-Dog lover has a dog. I must say that this has been and is a major adjustment for me because other than one cat.....that takes great care if herself....... I do not like having other animals. I like other peoples dogs but did not want one of my own. I have crate trained her and she is doing well, we just need to work on some of the other training issues of no jumping etc. I must also say she does not get to run around the house other than the entry way area to her crate or when we are right there with her. I am a neat freak and don't like the dog smell so she gets a bath once a week to prevent that, etc. etc. I know I am picky but we spend A LOT of time out side with Sadie and this works great for all of us. The one mistake about getting Sadie when I did, is that Tim has not been here to help with her, one more live and learn for Tiffany.

As for the girls, Paiyton loves Sadie and plays with her a lot and sits and rubs her belly. Emmah can take her or leave her at this point, though she is getting more involved with here just this week. It is very cute how the girls call her "Sadie Girl". So, we now have 1 cat, 1 dog, and 2 goldfish and that is plenty for Mama!

Memorial Day when we brought her home.....Sadie is 8 weeks old here.

Memorial Day....Emmah giving kiss's

It looks like Emmah is holding Sadie down but she's not...they were just sitting and lovin one another.

Sadie July 4th 2009

I often catch Paiyton just sitting with Sadie rubbing her back or belly in the grass. Paiyton has become a bit attached.

Sadie.....this was taken two weeks ago.

The 80's.....

......what a great time of music.....or least I think so anyway. I get reminded time and again of the great music of the 80's and how much I loved it. Now, mind you I was only between the ages of 6 and 15 years old at that time and my parents didn't care what kind of music we listened to, that could have been bad. I remember having christian friends that were not allowed to listen to secular music and would sneak around to listen to it....not mentioning any names here.

I remember I was in third grade when the "Thriller" album was released. I won't say anything other than it is sad how the world got a hold of this artist, and many other artists over time secular and Christian. It makes me that much more thankful for the presence of God all through my life and how wonderful his Grace is for each of us. Back to the music, I was a big fan of many different kinds of music and I still am though it is usually Christian.

When I was in 6Th grade three other friends and I did a gymnastic / dance for a gym class project at our Christian School. We chose Whitney Houston's "Wanna Dance With Somebody". We had to get special permission to use this song of coarse being a private school but they allowed it and we received an A+.....great memories.... Anyway, I know you are wondering where this post is going....I have just been enjoying some of the old 80's music this week and decided to reminisce a bit, so turn up your volume and enjoy the flash back.

This one if for the Ladies.....

....this is hilarious.....good laugh for the day....see below.....

A woman goes to the doctor for her yearly physical. The nurse starts with certain basic items. 'How much do you weigh?' she asks. '115,' she says. The nurse puts her on the scale. It turns out her weight is 140. The nurse asks, 'Your height?' '5 foot 8! ,' she says. The nurse checks and sees that she only measures 5' 5'. She then takes her blood pressure And tells the woman it is very high. 'Of course it's high!' she screams, 'When I came in here I was tall and slender! Now I'm short and fat!'

Flour and Water How come when you mix water and flour together you get glue? and then you add eggs And sugar...and you get cake? Where did the glue go? NEED AN ANSWER? You know darned well where it went! That's what makes the cake Stick to your BUTT