12 November, 2009

{what's in a name?}

Let's take a moment and gaze at the wonderful chubby cheeks on this precious newborns face.....

Ok, now for the purpose behind this post.

After almost 6 years, my precious son fulfilled his name this past Sunday in children's church.

I'm sure you're asking exactly how he fulfilled his name and if you'll keep your pants on for a second I'll tell ya.

About 2 months before Eli was born, my younger brother, Tim, and his sweet wife, Sarah, welcomed their beautiful daughter, Amelia Jameson, into the world. Now, my dad's name is James and Sarah's dad's name is also James, so I knew there was a possibility that Tim and Sarah would use the name James in some fashion for their baby. We were also thinking of using James for Eli's middle name, but nothing was set in stone. So, when Tim and Sarah named Amelia, we were on the hunt for a middle name for our sweet boy. I began asking God to show me what to name our son.

At the time, our SS class was reading/studying The Purpose Driven Life. Every morning I sat in Eli's room and read and pray. One morning the reading was talking about friendship and how we all need people in our lives who will uplift us and we need to be that type of friend also. It gave the example of Aaron and Hur holding up Moses' arms during the Israelites battle w/the Amalekites. I thought that was interesting so I looked up the passage in my Bible.

In the story, the Amalekites had attacked the Israelites so Moses told Joshua to choose some of his strongest men to go out and fight the Amalekites. While they were fighting, Moses stood on top of a hill with his arms raised. As long as Moses' arm were in the air, the Israelites were defeating the Amalekites, but if his arms fell the Amalekites overtook the Israelites. Aaron and Hur were w/Moses, so they got a rock for Moses to sit on and they each held up one of Moses' arms. The Israelites defeated the Amalekites!

I loved the idea of being the type of friend who lifts others when they can no long go on on their own. So, I began praying about the name Aaron as a middle name for my son. I prayed about it for several days before talking to Rich about it b/c naming a child is a big deal and I wanted Eli to have godly name that meant something.

A few days later I approached Rich w/the name in my heart and the book in my hand. I began by telling him the story of the Israelites defeating the Amalekites, then I went to The Purpose Driven Life book to show him. Well, I could not find the little blurb I'd read just days earlier. I ended up reading the entire book again and still couldn't find it. I took that as a sign from God that He wanted Eli's middle name to be Aaron.

Fast forward almost 6 years to last Sunday. To illustrate the story of the Israelites defeating the Amalekites, Pastor Joy brought kids up to play the parts of the key characters in the story. My bff, Jean, just happened to be in children's church Sunday and was able to snap a few pictures w/her phone. Her son, Brock, was the rock Moses sat on and her sweet Luke was Joshua. And...you guessed it...Eli was Aaron!

I excited to see what great things God has in store for my boy's future. I pray he has many more chances to lift others up in the name of Jesus.

22 October, 2009

{another miracle}

Quite a few years ago...28 years to be exact...my dad was in a horrible car accident on the day I started 1st grade. My dad was 33 yrs old when he had the accident and his entire life was turned upside down. My 4yr old little brother, Tim, was in the car w/dad.



God totally saved their lives that day.



My dad suffered some sort of seizure and as Tim later told my mom, "dad laid down in the seat and stared at the radio". When the car came to rest in a cornfield, Tim was basically unharmed and Dad was a broken, bloody mess.



He suffered a broken pelvis, broken jaw, broken ankle and an unbelievable amount of blood loss. Dad technically died 3 times that day...his heart stopped at the scene of the accident, on the way to the hospital and on the operating table.



God totally saved his life that day.



Dad's ankle was a mess. In the accident, the floorboard wrapped around his foot and literally twisted his foot almost off. He was wearing a pair of cowboy boots which saved his foot from being ripped off. His ankle bone what sticking out the side of the boot...unbelievable. Dad was told he would never walk again, but he did.



God totally healed him over the following few months.



Needless to say, Dad has had trouble with his ankle/foot since the accident. About 2 years ago, the pain had started to get so bad that there were time he could hardly walk and his ankle would give out on him. It was very scary to watch. So about a year and a half ago he had surgery to fuse his ankle. He had been in more pain since the surgery, so he went to see his orthopedic surgeon in June. After doing an mri, the dr explained to my parents that the surgery done in April 2008 was not successful. There was raw bone and exposed joint where there should have been complete fusion of his ankle. So another surgery was schedule for Oct 16th.



On that Friday, Dad was prepped for surgery and prepared to be laid up for the next 18 weeks. The surgeon visited w/Mom and Dad before surgery to explain again what he planned to do. He would take a bone graft from dad's hip to complete the fusion process, insert at least 2 screws to stabilize everything and sorta clean up anything he saw. The surgeon said he hoped to be finished in 90 minutes.

Almost 2 hours later, mom and I were called in to meet with the surgeon. He walked into the room and sat down across from us. Let out a long sigh and said "it's great news".

Once he got into my dad's foot, he found that the ankle was completely fused. He even said it was "solid as a rock". He did not have to do the bone graft. He did not have to insert any screws. Dad does not have to be in a cast. Dad will not be laid up for 18 weeks.

Mom and I sat there dumbfounded. We kept asking him about the bone graft...no bone graft. We kept asking him about the screws...no screws.

God totally fused my Dad's ankle!

21 October, 2009

{bruised teeth}

Several weeks ago, Eli fell and smacked his face on the ground. His two front teeth bled and were loose, but no major damage seemed to have been done. Thank goodness!


Well, a few days ago, I noticed that both teeth, but one more so than the other, had started to turn a funky color. Off to the dentist we went.


They took an xray. There is no damage to the roots and the teeth look just fine. They told me that just like w/any other part of our bodies, teeth can bruise. Who knew?!
The dr said the discoloring may fade and it may not. How's that for helpful? Seriously. They want to see him back for another xray in a month. I'm just praying that his little, baby teeth don't turn black or something gross like that. They're already a tad on the bucky side...we do not need our son to look like a buck-toothed hillbilly. Bless his heart.

13 October, 2009

{mini-update}

So much has happened since my last post, but thankfully it hasn't been me finding more gray hairs!

We're all moved in to our new, wonderful house...not quite settled, but that doesn't matter at this point. We're out of the middle of the city and we all love it here! God has blessed our family so much with this new home...I'm so thankful! My kids are loving school and making great new friends. I've enjoyed not hearing sirens and helicopters and strange people yelling at all times of the day. Central heat is also a new one for us! ;)

I'm in the process of transferring all my pictures onto a new external hard-drive so I can show y'all my new house. Actually the transferring is my boyfriends job...I just tell him what I want transferred!

Internet access has been a bit of a pain in the keester. Who knew moving 15 miles west of town would put us out of reach of the major internet providers? Seriously, some people out here are still on dial-up...I'd die! We're finally connected, but w/a much slower speed than we're used to and there have been a few glitches that aren't quite worked out.

Check back soon...getting pictures of our new house are on my list of things to do this week.

04 September, 2009

{what is this nonsense?}

Yesterday, Sept 3rd, 2009, 15 days before my 35th birthday, I spotted the first tiny strand of oddly textured and foreign colored hair on my head. I simply could not believe that it was there...daring to show its taunting self amid my glorious muddy-hued locks. I mean, really, what did I do to deserve such a rude, premature arrival?

I'm actually quite surprised by my reaction to this new visitor. In all reality, he's been there quite some time since almost the entire 5" strand had been affected. Jerk! I was always certain that I would just accept my aging as it came and deal with it gracefully. Well, I've changed my mind! I'm not sure yet how I'll rectify this situation, but I can assure you that it will be rectified soon.

Oh and for all you "train wreck" watching, misery-of-others lovin' folks, pictures of my nemesis will not be seen on this blog...EVER! And for my real-life friends, I'm not discussing this issue.

27 August, 2009

{talk about an uncomfortable greeting...}

After 8 years, we're closing the door, literally, on a chapter of our lives. Thursday I dropped my keys off at the house. I left the new owner a card telling him that the house had been a wonderful home for our family and that we pray he will be blessed there as well. I took one final, sobbing walk through the house, through each room...remembering good times and thanking God for His protection and provision through the years.

As I was closing the door for the last time I turned to tell our old house one last goodbye...with tears streaming down my face. I knew this would be an emotional time, but I had no idea that final goodbye would be so tear-filled. I had planned to walk across the street to tell my sweet neighbor, Sara, goodbye, but I was a blothcy mess that no one needs to see...gracious sakes! So, with tears still pouring out of my eyes, I turned to shut the door and escape to my car where I could cry some more as I drove away. No such luck.

There was a man standing on the sidewalk looking at me like I was crazy. Just to prove that the sobbing woman in front of him wasn't a nut-case, I straightened my shoulders and said hello in the cheeriest of voices. He continued to look at me with a very puzzled expression, so I asked if he was Steven...the "new" owner of our house, to which he replied yes. I told him who I was and that I was just dropping off my keys. He's seemed to relax a little. I then proceeded to turn into a blubbering fool before his very eyes...yes, I'm that cool! I apologized all over myself as the tears kept pouring all while trying to reassure him that I wasn't a whack-job...not too sure if I succeeded in that one.

Anyway, we talked for about 30 minutes until his realtor showed up. He told me some of the plans he has for the house and asked me what all we did to the house. He really seems like a nice kid and I pray he's as happy and blessed there as our family was.

Goodbye old house...we'll miss you!

13 August, 2009

{laundry, laundry, laundry}

Jenny at Zach's Gang is hosting her very own blog carnival today...Thursday's Top Tips. Head on over to her blog, check out all the amazing tips and be sure to give her some bloggy love.

Now, here's my tip...it's kinda dirty! ;)

In an attempt to #1-make life a little easier for ME and #2-instill a little more responsibility into my children, I've changed the way I do our families laundry.

My old method of doing laundry consisted of everyone bringing their hampers into the bathroom on laundry day and I sorted all the laundry by color and a little bit by type(jeans, school uniforms, etc), then the gigantic task of LAUNDRY DAY began. {did you just hear me say LAUNDRY DAY in the big, scary voice of the blue blob on Monsters vs Aliens when he says "SUUUUU-SAAAANNN" b/c that's how it's supposed to sound?!} Once the clothes came out of the dryer, the basket was taken to my bed and dumped out to sort all the clothes into each persons pile and then was folded and put away. Now, please don't think that all of this happened in one day. I'd hate for you to think I'm perfect! More often than not, the clothes sat in the dryer so long that the dryer could have easily been called a "dresser" or I forgot a load of clothes in the washer for a day or maybe two and had to rewash it...cuz that's how I roll people.

When we decided to homeschool last year, I knew some of the household chores would have to be changed up a bit and laundry was the first to hit my radar. Thus was born my new and greatly love method of doing laundry. It's quite simple and hopefully will help you and your family.

Step 1---cut a hole in the box...oh wait, this isn't SNL nor is it a Christmas gift. Let me start over!

Step 1-have each child deliver their hamper to the laundry room
Step 2-turn the water temp on the washer to cold/cold
Step 3-start washer and add detergent
Step 4-dump entire contents of child's hamper into washer, close the lid and walk away
Step 5-put entire load of clothes into dryer
Step 6-put all clothes into basket and call for child
Step 7-hand basket of clean clothes to child w/instructions to put them away neatly in their room

That's it! This has really made doing laundry and the task of putting it all away so much easier on our whole family. I do help Eli fold some of his, but Emma is on her own.

I'd love to hear if you try this w/your family and how it works.

12 August, 2009

{another blog carnival}

My sweet bloggin' friend Jenny at Zach's Gang is doing all these super fun blog hops and blog carnivals this week, so since she's so cool I thought I'd copy her! ;)

This blog carnival gives you the chance to dig up an old post that is worth a re-visit. Here's one of my fave old post...enjoy!
From June 2008...
{only Eli!}
The kids and I met Rich at Taco Bell for lunch today after I picked them up from spending the morning swimming at my friend's pool. They were still in their wet suits and didn't want to change...until they got cold while we waited for Rich in Taco Bell. So, like every good mother, I got their dry clothes and told Emma to take Eli to the bathroom to change. When I turned to tell Eli to go w/his sister, I about fell out of my chair. He was standing there...in the middle of Taco Bell...NAKED!!! He decided to just go ahead and change out of his suit right there. I couldn't help but burst out laughing. He, of course, got totally embarrassed. I had to just sweep him into my arms (to try to hide his nakedness) and pull his wet swim trunks back on. It was one of the funniest things that has ever happened to me since becoming a mom. I'm sure it will be talked and laughed about for years to come! Once they both got dressed in the bathroom, Emma asked me if she ever took her clothes off in a Taco Bell. The answer to that is NO! Emma would have never dreamed of doing something like that.
For anyone who doesn't have a child like my Eli, you're probably reading this thinking how you would have just died if your kid took their clothes off in a Taco Bell. I will tell you that God has totally blessed my life w/this free-spirited little man. He is so much like me that he drives me crazy most of the time, but I couldn't love him any more if I tried.
For those of you who know Eli, you're not surprised at all!
You can view the original post here.

11 August, 2009

{another first!}

Today I'm participating in the MckLinky Blog Hop Tuesday. Today's theme is Favorite Photos and y'all know how I love to take pictures. So, without further ado here are a few of my faves: Em & Eli at the swim beach.
Em & Mimi...Em is wearing my mom's wedding dress that she made herself. Isn't this crazy!
Eli buried in the sand at the swim beach.
My tough boy...doesn't he look scary!
Em last fall...she's so beautiful!



MckLinky Blog Hop

10 August, 2009

Not Me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama.

*This is so NOT my very first time ever to participate in MckMama's super fun blog carnival! So, I'm certain that I will NOT, at some point, do something wrong in posting this and getting it to link up w/her blog.

*I did NOT just make a lunch of popcorn, grapes and a few slices of ham. How unhealthy is that! I would NEVER be such a bad example of proper eating habits for my kids.

*Speaking of that uber-delicious lunch, my popcorn was absolutely NOT drizzled {or drenched} in EVOO and an insane amount of salt! That would also NOT be very healthy...again, I'm a great example for my kids.

*My silly son did NOT just walk up to me, glance at MckMama's pictures of her kiddos on the beach and say "I loved being there!" and then run off. He is so NOT a dork and absolutely does NOT have my personality!

*I'm totally NOT sitting at the computer NOT doing my very first Not Me! Monday when I really should be packing since we're moving this weekend either.

So, what exactly are you NOT doing today? Head on over to MckMama's and see what all the other cool kids aren't doing today! You'll be glad you did!

06 August, 2009

{itchy, itchy, ichabod}
























Why, you ask, would I be posting a picture of a brand new bottle of benedryl and an empty tube of hydrocortisone cream?


Here's why...
































































My little man spent the day at his friends house and came home covered in what I thought were bug bites. I knew they weren't mosquito bites, but I was stumped as to exactly what they were. So, as soon as we got home I had him hop in the shower, gave him some benedryl and put him to bed. He woke up doing fair...he was itchy, but not really complaining. Fast forward to later this evening...the little bumps/bites had spread more and were really itchy. His little neck was covered and he had a few bumps on his face. We get home from taking multiple loads of our stuff to a storage unit and throw him in the shower again. Rich went up to help him and immediately yelled at me to get up to the bathroom. By that point, his little body was just covered! We knew it wasn't bug bites, but some sort of rash. It was spreading down his legs and up his sweet face. So, I took a few pictures and Rich headed to Walgreen's to show the pharmacist the pictures and find out what we needed to do. The pharmacist knew just from Rich's description of the rash that it was poison ivy and sent him home w/benedryl and hydrocortisone cream and instructions to apply the cream 3-4 times a day.
Eli has been such a trooper thus far...we'll see how tomorrow goes! I've got to now wash all his bedding and the clothes he had on, the towel he used and anything else he may have touched. So very excited about that...or not!

Also, I didn't know that taking a shower would cause the poison ivy oils to spread. Talk about a great mom-moment...good grief! I feel so bad for my sweet boy. If you think about him, please say a prayer that he'll not be too uncomfortable and will heal quickly...thank you!
And yes, it took the entire tube of cream to cover all the spots.

31 July, 2009

{memories...part 1}

As we've begun packing and just anticipating our upcoming move, I've been bombarded by all sorts memories of the almost 8 years we've been in our house. One thing that I'm continually reminded of is God's amazing provision and protection over my family all these years. The horrifying moments have been far out-weighed by the amazing memories made by my small little family of 4.



We bought our house in Sept of 2001...when Emma was just 18 months old. She was such a tiny little thing and had us wrapped around her itty, bitty finger. This is really the only house she remembers at this point.



When she was about 2ish, I found a Little Tikes House bed at a garage sale for her. She LOVED that bed...it had a little window in the headboard w/shutters that actually worked. She stored so many little treasures in that secret hiding place...books, Squeaky, Mr. Bun, barrettes, socks. One day, while she was supposed to be napping, I heard an odd noise coming through the monitor. I snuck up the incredibly creaky stairs to see if I could figure out what was going on and I peeked through the key hole in her door. Much to my surprise Emma wasn't in her bed, but I could still hear the noise. So, I very quietly opened her door to find her perched on the roof of her house bed peeling the nasty wallpaper off the wall. She had found a loose seam in the wallpaper and took it upon her tiny self to remove it. She was so very proud of herself too! I was astonished and a little upset...her bed was covered in wallpaper shreds. She still didn't know I was there so I said, "Emma Grace, what are you doing?" Her sweet little reply was, "Mommy, I'm on a tall mountain! Look!" I didn't have the heart to get mad at her. From then on, when I heard the sound of wallpaper being torn off the wall, I just yelled up the stairs for her to get off her tall mountain.

Oh my, I love that girl! Who knew a little flashback would make me so weepy?!

27 July, 2009

{stellan needs your prayers}

Visit MckMamma and pray like you've never prayed before for her sweet baby boy, Stellan. He is not doing well at all.

20 July, 2009

{ask and He'll...}

When you ask God to give you patience...He won't just give you patience. He'll give you situations in which you learn patience. Really, when I've asked God for help w/something, He's never really just swooped in and solved my problem like I really want Him to. He wants me to lean on Him and not myself. He wants me to trust Him w/my future and my family. He wants me to grow more dependent on Him and less dependent on myself.
The past few months, I've been begging God to sell our house and move our family. He's sold our house and now we're waiting for Him to move us. As awesome as it's been to have our prayers answered, it's even more amazing the patience He's taught me.
I've never been a patient person...and am not claiming to have mastered it now. My natural tendency is to present God w/a detailed list of what needs to happen to ensure my request is granted. I've usually got it all figured out...or so I think. But God's ways are not my ways and His timing is not my timing. So, this chick has had to learn to be patient. I've had to give Him my anxieties and fears. I've repeated over and over again "either I trust God, or I don't"...and wholeheartedly, I do trust Him. Sometimes it just takes my brain a little while to catch up w/my heart.
I didn't totally fall apart last week when we found out that a house we all really loved and wanted was being taken off the market b/c the family decided not to move. That's huge for me! Three months ago, I would have still be a sobbing mess 4 days later.
God is working and carrying me through this time of waiting.
I'm so very thankful!

11 July, 2009

{with a thankful heart}


Our amazing realtor, Deb Eberline, came over at 7am to post the SOLD sign so Miss Em would see it when she first got up. How awesome is that! Bless Deb's sweet heart...she willingly had her picture taken w/Em in her glasses! We love ya, Deb!
Em has been praying everyday that there God would sell our house and there would be a sold sign. After Deb left Em said to me, "God answered my prayer!"

Thank you, Jesus, for answering our prayers!

10 July, 2009

07 July, 2009

{for the love of photography}

Head on over to the creative mama and check our her new series devoted to photography. She's also got an AWESOME giveaway today!

***disclaimer***
if you win her giveaway, you must give it to me! ;)

06 July, 2009

{please, hit your knees}

I just found out about the McRae's whose young daughter, Kate, has been in the hospital since last Monday after being diagnosed w/a tumor the size of an egg in her brain.

Please visit their CaringBridge site to follow their story and let them know you're praying for them.

Pray without ceasing!

{the summer list}

Meg @ whatever does a summer activity list and I think it's an awesome idea! So, here's our summer '09 list...


Have you made a list w/your kids yet? You totally should...it's fun to find out what they think will be fun and adventure-filled.

03 July, 2009

{friday night...pizza night}

The sky is cloudy and threatening rain. There's a nice breeze. The birds are chirping. There are fireworks exploding all around. The kids are riding their bikes in the driveway...seeing who can make the longest skid mark. My husband and father-in-law are in the garage talking about who-knows-what. I'm sitting on the deck enjoying this beautiful evening.

This is something we do almost every Friday evening...come to Paka's(my father-in-law) for pizza. This tradition has been going on since my husband was in grade school. Sometimes we don't make it...sometimes my sister-in-law and her family don't make it...but more often than not, we're all here. The kids play, the grown-ups catch up w/each others lives. What I love so much about it is the relationships that have been fostered w/this tradition.

So much life has been shared around the table on Friday's. Just a few weeks ago, my sister-in-law announced to us that their baby was going to be a big brother! Rich's beloved Uncle Francis used to be a constant fixture on Fridays and all the time for that matter. I'll never forget the first Friday night after Uncle Franci died...it just wasn't the same. In fact, 3 yrs later, it's still not the same. But life has gone on and we're still doing Friday night pizza.

When Rich and his sisters were young, their friends were invited to join the family for pizza on Fridays. Boyfriends, girlfriends, best friends, team members...they were all invited. Some of my friends have even joined us for Friday night pizza.

I want to start a weekly tradition w/my family. What should it be...Tacos on Tuesday has a nice ring to it! ;) What family traditions did you grow up w/that you're carrying on w/your family now?

28 June, 2009

{true love}

I was blessed to spend some time this past weekend in the home of the cutest couple in the history of the world. Vernon and Joy {who are my sweet friend, Cindy's, parents} have been married for 56 years and the love they have for each other is so very evident still. I came home w/a refreshed love for my boyfriend and a personal challenge to love him they way Joy loves Vernon.

Vernon and Joy live in a picturesque setting on a rural county lake. They took my girlfriends and me on a sunset boat ride around the lake...it was breathtaking! At one point, I glanced at Vernon just as he caught Joy's eye. The grin that spread across his face and the subtle lift of his eyebrows as he shared a secret moment with his bride made me feel like an intruder in their special second in time. I think I actually blushed a little!
So, how exactly do you go through the ups and downs of 56 years of marriage and still have a sparkle in your eye when you look at your spouse? What have Vernon and Joy done to ensure that their love and marriage will endure? I asked Vernon if I could send my husband to him for some lessons! I was only kidding...I think. ;) I need Joy to give me lessons on how to love my husband.
I know they'll never read this and I'm sure they don't think they're anything special, but just observing them and their interaction w/each other has had a lasting impact on this wife of almost 11 years. I want to have a marriage and relationship w/my husband that others are jealous of. I guess it starts with me...I better get off here and go smooch my boyfriend! ;)

27 June, 2009

{the ugly truth}

We still haven't sold our house, but there is a single guy and a young, married couple who are very interested in it. We've been averaging about 3 showings each week...which is great. BUT, w/each showing I have had to scurry around getting things picked up and all the staging stuff set back up.

I've become a little anal about how the house looks when someone looks at it and I don't like that about myself. I mean, it's gotten to the point where I look at the pix I took right after our realtor staged the house and then meticulously go room by room and completely duplicate what she did. Very annoying and crazy! Each morning, the kids get their beds made and we begin our day w/a clean, picked up house. By mid-afternoon when a call comes in that someone wants to look at the house that evening, things aren't the way they should be. So, I turn into neurotic mom and set about in a frenzied manner to get the house looking perfect for the showing. I've never been a perfectionist about my house...I want my family to be comfortable in knowing they can really "live" in our home. So, this newly formed compulsion is not a proud admission of mine.

One day, I sent Em up to her room to pick up while I was sweeping. When she finished she ran outside to play. I got finished w/my stuff and told Em that I was going up to check her room. When I asked her if she was sure her room was ready, she asked me if I was going to yell at her if it wasn't perfect. Talk about convicting. Good grief, what have I become?!

Another thing I've found w/this process is that I'm not allowing my family to really "live" in our house right now. I won't let the kids get any art stuff out b/c I don't want them to make a mess. I've allowed them to watch way to much tv lately...again b/c if they're watching tv, they're not making a mess. UGH!!!

So, I have been trying my best to make a conscience effort to not get so worked up about the little things when it comes time to pick up for a showing. But I'll tell ya, it's hard! I'm just ready to be done w/this house. I'm ready to not have to have my house "show" ready at a moments notice.

That's the truth...and it's ain't pretty!

25 June, 2009

{take me out to the ballgame...}

The other night, we were given awesome{we were one row behind the visiting teams dugout} tickets to a T-Bones game. It was about 4,000 degrees out, but we braved the insane heat for an evening of family fun and $1 hotdogs!

These pictures are in a totally random order...thanks to blogger. We had a great time and plan to go back soon.

17 June, 2009

{8 things...}

A few weeks ago, my sweet, bloggin' friend, Jenny over at Zack's Gang, tagged me in a get-to-know-you type of list. So, here goes:

8 Things I am looking forward to...
1-seeing how God is going to work all this our for my family
2-selling our house and moving to Maple Hill
3-a date with my boyfriend...don't have one planned, just wish I did
4-finishing school
5-kickin' up my photography business
6-my kids going to school in the fall
7-fall
8-my hair being long enough to pull up

8 Things I did yesterday...
1-spent quiet time w/Jesus
2-helped kids w/breakfast
3-taught a little school
4-cleaned house for a viewing
5-took kids to vbs
6-went to dinner w/my boyfriend
7-met couple from Manhattan w/broken down car in parking lot
8-played tic-tac-toe w/new friend Will

8 things I wish I could do...
1-say my house has sold
2-ease my parents burdens
3-travel to an exotic island w/my boyfriend
4-take my kids on a Disney cruise
5-wear a binkini...;)
6-wink w/out looking like an idiot
7-finish college
8-go on photographic vacation

8 shows I watch...
1-the news
2-Young & the Restless...guilty pleasure
3-First 48
4-Intervention
5-Real Housewives of New Jersey...another guilty pleasure
6-The Office
7-Jon & Kate Plus 8
8-SpongeBob Square Pants

8 People Tagged...
1-Jean
2-Candy
3-Mandi
4-Sara
5-Laura
6-Dawn
7-Tera
8-Lindsey

Whew...that took forever! Thanks for tagging me Jenny...sorry it took me so long!

02 June, 2009

{silly...ness}

Just a little somethin' to whet your appetite while I collect my thoughts enough to put together a coherent blog post...














You just gotta love this kid! We were going to my father-in-law's for dinner and the little man wanted his hair spikey...so he got spikey! I believe this is my new fave picture!

18 May, 2009

{I've been a little busy...}

To say I've been busy is quite the understatement.

This is what I've been doing!

Our house is officially on the market and I'm prayin' like crazy for a quick sale. Feel free to pass the like to my other blog on to your friends and family...ya never know who might want to buy our house!

I'll be back soon w/a normal post...I promise!

12 May, 2009

{Come to the Table}


Take a step back to the time when life had a slower pace and was shared while gathered around the kitchen table. God wants us to sit back every once in a while and let Him fill us up with His amazing love and goodness. What better way to do that than with a group of girlfriends! Make plans now to attend this relaxing retreat and discover hot to allow God to be the one to fill your plate. It's gonna be a BLAST!!!

If you're interested in attend, let me know!

06 May, 2009

{a very happy girl}

My sweet Emma turned 9 a few weeks ago...I know, I never did a blog post about how very much I love her and how she is just the sweetest, most wonderful girl in the entire world. She truly is wonderful, just in case you were wondering.

Anywho, Em got some cold, hard cash for her birthday and she had her sights set on what she wanted. No matter how many other "things" she was interested in and her oh-so-helpful brother pointed out, she knew what she wanted and wasn't going to change her mind. That's one of the many things I simply adore about Em...she knows what she wants and isn't swayed by others opinions.

Emma has wanted another American Girl for a while and finally had enough money to get her. She was so cute as she counted down the days until she arrived...and was not thrilled about "business days" concept. The day she arrived, Emma was ecstatic!


Welcome home, Addy! You are loved.