Madness!

Are you ready for March Madness?? I am!!

I must say, I have not always been a fan, but upon marrying my sports fanatic of a husband nearly 6 years ago, it is now one of my favorite times of year! March in Florida is heavenly even without the tournament, but I love, love, love this time of year watching the cinderella stories and seeing who comes out on top!

I have to give props to my friend, Blair, who is a basketball maniac. She tutored me through my first several years of bracketing. You see, I don't follow college basketball throughout the season until this tournament. And, I truly don't have a competitive bone in my body, and these things both come to my advantage, because I am almost always the winner of the Dooley Bracket. And yes, this bracket is just between me and Brett. And my lack of knowledge about most teams helps me to win a small wager from my darling hubby each Spring.

What do you think we should wager this year? Usually there is some money and a small yummy treat involved. And before you think I'm a gambler, this is only one of two bets we make each year...the other one being who will win the Georgia/Auburn football matchup each Fall...I'm proud to say, I have won that one most of our married years as well. Go Dawgs!

So, the mini-man is asleep, basketball is on, and I am ready. Brett Dooley, you're goin' down!!!

Have you ever...

filed a police report??

I did this for the first time about 2 and a half weeks ago...and do you know what was stolen from me??

My stroller...from the playground...parked and LOCKED...in broad daylight...

Can you see why it has taken me awhile to post about it? It still turns my heart a smidge black.

And even worse, it was a bugaboo. AKA my heart and soul and lifeline to a lot of things at this point in life....we love to walk to lots of places...as in, if it's in a 1-2 mile radius from our house, we walk there.

But, alas, she is gone, and I don't think she will return. However, through a series of generous people, we have a new stroller....not the same kind, but a wonderful jogging stroller that I already love. So I am thankful.

I wish I could say that week had gotten better, but it ended up getting worse. I lost something else that was far more dear and not as easy to replace. Something that will keep my heart fragile for quite awhile. But, this little guy....

has caught all my tears, patted my hair, and made me laugh so much even in the midst of pain. He is quite the companion, full of compassion and comfort, just like his daddy. I'm so thankful God has let me borrow these fellows for the duration of our short little lives.

I am still sad, but I am still blessed.

I love this picture!

Things we do...

On any given day, I can be caught doing the following...

1) Eating...I love food, although I can be finicky about my veggies these days!

2) Pouting...Warning: Pout means tears are closer than they appear!

3) Reading! And in the most darndest places! I LOVE reading...especially in Mommy or Daddy's lap! I often climb onto the couch with a book and pat the seat next to me to have them sit down and read to me. We read about 20 books a day. Mommy reads them in weird voices. you should hear her!

4) You can catch lots of these on any day--even my worst ones!

5) We laugh a TON! Things that make me laugh right now: "Break the pickle! tickle, tickle, tickle!", When Daddy and I wrestle, when we have dance parties, when mommy makes up weird songs and makes silly faces, story time, and time with friends.

6) Believe it or not, I'm a thinker! The parentals say I'm very calculated and methodical...I don't know what either of those words mean, but it's because they see this expression a lot...

I hope you've enjoyed some of my typical doings in my day. There's nothing too special about most of our days, but Mommy says that's what makes them the best and most memorable ones!

Peace out! Oh, by the way, I have 15 teeth now!

Harrison's First Snow

A few weeks ago, we went to Cary, North Carolina to visit these folks:

We loved their beautiful home, including the stairs...which H loved going up and down repeatedly!

Harrison once again fell in love with his bunny cousin, Flurrie

and....we got SNOW! lots of it! Being that we are Floridians now, our blood is very thin, so we froze, yes, but we also had a BLAST in the snow since it's SO rare for us to be in it!

Hare Bear loved being pulled in the sled...please notice the plastic bags on the feet...mommy matched in this lovely motif!

We had so much fun getting snowed in with Uncle Chris and Aunt Linds....we can't wait to visit again and again over all the years to come! We love y'all!

Proud

That would be one word to describe how I feel about my husband. Yes, y'all, we are going back in time to early December....These pictures are from our church's organization service. We have been super involved in a church plant since early in our Orlando life. We have loved it from the beginning! About a year and a half ago, our Pastor approached Brett about becoming a deacon or elder. In this denomination, it is a rigorous process, and Brett was in a group that talked and studied for a year on different issues, and of course, the Bible. The process was completed in October with a written and oral exam, to which Brett passed and is now a deacon at our church. I am so proud of him for undergoing such a process, and letting God use him to serve our church in this way!

This service was held in early December and was such a special time. Our church was recognized as an official church. We are grateful to have been part of it since almost the beginning! It's small, so it's a lot of work to be involved, but this congregation has truly become the family that we don't have down here. We love, love, love it here!

Above are pastors from other churches praying for our new elders and deacons. Our pastor is in the red tie (with hair) touching Brett's shoulder. Don't you love Brett's face in that picture? hilarious!

Brett, I am so proud of you for walking humbly with our God!

My New Look...

Hey people! How goes it? just a quick update here, to let you know I got my hair cut a couple of weeks ago. Earth-shaking, isn't it?? It's haircut # 4 in 7 months! My rapid hair growth along with my long eyelashes will cause much jealousy from the female quotient over the years.. or so Mommy tells me! Maybe she is talking about herself?? Anyway, here's before and after shots!

Beware! Daddy has been uploading like a maniac...the blog will have many a new post coming very soon! Good night all!

Love,

Harrison