Molly's First Ballet Recital

Molly had her first ballet recital a couple of weeks ago.  She wouldn't show us her dance leading up to the recital so we weren't sure what to expect but once on stage she took it very seriously!  She paid attention to the teacher, followed her every move and smiled big the entire time.  So precious!!!!  She loves dancing just like her big sister!

I, of course, think she is a natural.

All the grandparents and great grands were there to see her debut!

sweet friend!

These sweet littles spend a lot of time together!  I hope this will be one of the pictures we post on their wedding photo collage one day:)

She got so many many flowers!

pretty pretty ballerina

Granddad's Homecoming

My grandfather went to be with the Lord yesterday...what a glorious homecoming that was I'm sure.  He wasn't even suppose to be around, not to mention for 90 years.  His mother had the first c-section in Tennessee in 1922.  When the doctor made his cut, he cut right into the back of baby Albert...realizing his mistake, he retrieved the baby and put what he thought was the lifeless body into a box in the corner and got busy saving Minnie Thornton's life.  Minnie's sister saw the baby, stopped the bleeding and alerted the doctors that this baby was still alive.  I don't know much of the story after this but I do know when I was a child of about 7-8 years old, when swimming in the pool with my Granddad, we could all stick our entire arm in the scar in his back.  Amazing....God surely had a plan for that baby's life.  90 years later we celebrate what you would call a miracle.  A wife of 68 (almost 69 years), three children, 7 grandchildren, and 8 great grandchildren (with one on the way).  My grandfather was loved by all...truly.  He learned to love all as well. He was funny and tricky and vibrant.  He was joking with us just a day before his passing.  I might take this week to relive some of my favorite Granddad stories..

Albert Eugene (Gene) Thornton, Jr., 90, of Tallahassee passed away Sunday, February 3, 2013.  He is survived by his wife of 68 years, Angelina Thornton.

The service will be held at 1:30 P.M. on Saturday, February 16, 2013 at Holy Comforter Episcopal Church, 2015 Fleischmann Road, Tallahassee, Florida.

Mr. Thornton was born in Knoxville, Tennessee on March 8, 1922, and moved to Tallahassee at age 3.   He graduated from Leon High School in 1941 and served in the United States Army Air Corps during World War II.  Along with his family, he owned the Capital City Lumber Company on Gaines Street, a business in operation from 1927 until 1974.  He also worked at Lowe’s on Pensacola Street and retired at age 85, from J.H. Dowling Inc.  He was a founding member of Holy Comforter Episcopal Church and a loyal volunteer for Elder Care Services delivering Meals on Wheels.

Survivors include three children, D’Anna (John) Wakefield of Middleburg, Florida; Albert (Bert) Eugene Thornton, III (Shirley) of Tallahassee; Ginger (Lemuel) Cooksey of Crawfordville; and sister Leone Durrance of Lakeland, Fl.  Also surviving are seven grandchildren: Mark (Heather)Wakefield and Sarah Wakefield, Kathryn (John) Gay, Nicholas Thornton, Kristin and Jake Cooksey, Angelee (Michael) Milgate; seven great-grandchildren: Kevin, Emily, John-Daniel, Kyra, Brenna, Molly and Gavin.  Mr. Thornton is also survived by his faithful dog, Timmy.

Mr. Thornton was preceded in death by his parents, Albert and Minnie Thornton, his sister Virginia Marshall and great-grandchild, Angel Cooksey.

In lieu of flowers memorials can be made to Holy Comforter Episcopal Church or Elder Care Services of Tallahassee, Florida.

Room fix up!

It pays for your husband to look on Pinterest sometimes....We saw an unusual kind of bunk bed on Pinterest and John took the idea and turned into his own.  Instead of just a hanging bed, John built a loft for John Daniel's room.  It is a smaller room so the space underneath on the floor is much needed.  Now his bed as well as a "reading nook" are in the loft.  It is so cute and just what a little boy needs!  His room is also now painted blue and beige...better than the two toned purple!

The girl's room also got a paint job to match their bedspreads...John also made shutters that look like horse stable doors...we decorated "horse like."...Emily has a huge puzzle from her Aunt Edi that John mounted on pallet wood and Emily has all of her horse figurines displayed on a shelf...it's like a funky horse stable motif...cute!

Cooking week 4 and Mom's Birthday

I decided to let the recipes from Week 4 be a treat for Mom's birthday.  So after church last Sunday I fed the whole family!  I have to say, this was probably our favorite recipe thus far...The Best Grilled Cheese!

Recipe from the Original Pioneer Woman...my grandmother Ruth Revell!  This is her sour cream pound cake.

I love cooking with my grandmother's tools and bowls...I have many of them.  This is her flour sifter!  I love it and it reminds me of her so much:)

The grilled cheese called for Green chiles, either canned (whole), which I couldn't find, or whole pablano peppers.  I am so glad I stepped out of my comfort zone and bought the whole pablano peppers...it was fun to roast them in the over and then cut them open, take out the seeds and slice them for the sandwiches.

Seriously, the best grilled cheese ever!  The side was spicy ceasar salad with homemade ceasar dressing and cornbread croutons...I kept saying, "Hopkins Eatery doesn't have nothin' on me!"

All the adults gave this recipe a "5"...the kids...a "3"!

Children of the World forever in our hearts...

 Our church hosted the Children of the World Choir for three days.  They asked members of the church to volunteer to be host homes for two children.  We volunteered and I am so glad we did.  This post is hard for me to even type because I cannot quite express the emotion we all had during their stay...We kept two little girls.  Sushma, from Nepal, was 8.  Manjeri, from Uganda, was 10.  We picked them up at the church at 4 pm on Tuesday....we hosted them in our home for less than 48 hours but they have had a huge effect on our family. Quickly, we learned that Sushma was a firecracker...lots of energy, funny personality, liked to joke around, and was a wild woman!  Manjeri was quite the opposite...she was like looking into a deep blue ocean.  She had a beautiful smile, very quiet and reserved, loved to read and do puzzles and was super organized and very deliberate in her actions.  We loved them even before we saw them in concert the next night...in which I cried the entire way through...so did John.  They are orphans which have been a part of World Help's children's choir since August.  They will return to their native country over the summer and enter some type of foster care.  The Children's Choir travels the country to bring attention to the needs in 3rd world countries ... the poverty, the need for clean water, the need for safe homes for children without abuse, and the need for prayer and the saving Grace of Jesus.  Their songs were all full of Praise to God...the one true God.  They danced until I just knew they wouldn't have any energy left (But Sushma did).  I can't tell you in words how their concert, praise and worship, stories of their hardships, and their knowledge of the Bible affected me.  One of their songs was all about wanting to be the hands and feet of Jesus and do mission work....these 14 orphaned children singing about wanting to be the hands and feet of Jesus!  It was one of the greatest experiences we have had in a very long time....so rewarding for us and such a blessing to us.  We will never ever forget these sweet sweet girls, their smiles and their hugs!  One of the things I loved about hosting them were seeing the experience through the eyes of my children...they were so excited to meet new friends.  They spent the whole day before they came cleaning the house with me, changing sheets, putting out clean towels, cleaning the tub, buying groceries...it was a special time for us to learn and serve and be hospitable as a family.  I'm glad my kids got to come alongside John and I and serve together.

 Molly was thrilled that they wanted to play dress up with her!

 I think Manjeri did every puzzle we had in the house.

 Sushma loved Uncle John (They called John and I Uncle and Auntie)