Golden Goodness

For Homeschool to work around here...

2011-09-13T16:21:00.002-05:00

...God knew exactly what I'd need.

Funny, huh?

I have a hubby who says 'I always THOUGHT you could do it, but knew you weren't there, so I certainly wasn't going to shove it down your throat.'

Well, Praise God! God showed this to me in HIS time...and then there was a very supportive husband there to hold me up when I nearly caved. What a blessing!

I have a hubby who helps around the house...and knows that I need that from him now that I have a new hat to wear. We fold laundry together quite often. All he asks is that I have his work clothes hung and ready-to-wear. I can handle that!

And then...my awesome husband declared last week, "If you'll make the menu, thaw what we need, I'll cook when I come home from work."

I hear angels singing....ANGELS!...I tell you!

I am NOT a cook. I try. But it's clear that the person who grew up with a mother in the home AND worked in a restaurant for YEARS, is the better cook. Yes, I could try harder, but he's willing...do you HEAR me!??!?!

It's as if a weight has been lifted. The pressure I put on myself to be everything and provide everything to each member of this family is not as great. He has never once come home and asked, "What have you been doing all day?" (He understands that I'd never quit talking if he asked me that.) He has never once fussed about something NOT getting done. (I am taking lessons from him on this!)

He is gracious.

And I am blessed.

Changing course. Literally.

2011-09-05T05:00:00.000-05:00

We started school with a particular math curriculum. Evan's math wasn't set to start until this next week, but Ella and I have been working on hers for three weeks now.

It isn't what I thought it would be. It doesn't go where I felt it should. So, as to keep the children on what I consider a proper level, we are switching our math curriculum. As soon as the order comes in, we'll be rockin' on with something to keep us challenged. I am very excited. And, I'm glad we aren't too far into the year.

Everything else seems to be going well. We have a few books that will end sooner than the 'end' of our year, so we'll have to order the next level up and move on.

The moments of 'am I doing the right thing?' are starting to fade. I am still receiving confirmation from the Lord regarding our decision. Even from Ella's former teachers!

This seems like the biggest, best calling I've ever had in life. No, it's not for everyone...but I consider it a privilege to be in a position to take advantage of homeschooling. I can't tell you for certain that we'll do this forever...I do not believe that I am in control of that decision. If God tells us to 'change course', we will be obedient, just as we are now.

My lesson plans are typed and ready for the week ahead...it's a short week, but I'm prepared and that makes me a happy momma.

What else makes me happy? A 'holiday' is here just in time for me to mop the floors. Hey, clean the house or school the kids?

The floors could use my attention.

Otherwise, I'll have to flunk myself.

Happily schoolin' along...

2011-09-01T05:00:00.001-05:00

Pretty sure I'm long overdue for an update on how homeschool is going around here.

It's been REALLY great so far. (Praise God!!)

I cannot pretend that there haven't been moments of resistance...but they are dealt with and we move on. Both of the children seem to really like what we have happening at home.

Our day starts at 8:30 with breakfast. Before 8:30, the kids can sleep as long as they like, or play a video game, or watch tv...but they must have a short list of duties completed before meeting for breakfast. Their list includes: - Get dressed - Brush your teeth - Make your bed - Make sure your room is tidy. I will modify this list soon...I feel that they could probably handle bringing their laundry or trash down on designated days. They already do these two things, but it'd be nice to get it done first thing so I can start a load if needed.

I like the 'routine' of having this little schedule. Starting things at the same time everyday gives us a 'normal.' I am NOT rigid about how much time we spend on subjects or much of anything else, but I do like our start time. As we get older and add more subjects, we may have to get an earlier start (blech), but my goal, for now, has been to get finished by lunch time. I do not see the need to drag it out. Yet.

We eat breakfast and prepare for the day...sans tv...then we move to the classroom by 9am.

We start school with a Bible lesson...followed by Math with Ella, and Evan chooses which of his subjects he works on while I'm working with her. His math program starts this month, so there will be a small change to his routine soon.

Surprisingly, they do NOT rush through their work 'just to watch tv.' I let them watch a show at lunchtime, and go back to school, if needed, but they've gotten to where they just play. A novel idea, eh? It's been really nice to not have SO much techy stuff on all the time.

Hubby is off every other Friday...so I decided to school on his schedule. I won't be schooling those days...at least formally. A trip to the zoo, library or park can be counted one way or another. BONUS! I will look forward to these Fridays!

I will keep you posted on our new life...for now, I thought you'd enjoy seeing our little schoolroom. It makes me happy.

And....last Friday when hubs was off, we went and picked up this treasure from someone who just wanted it to have a home! FREE!! RECESS!!!!

Happy Anniversary!

2011-08-05T05:00:00.000-05:00

Eleven years ago today, my best friend became my husband.

We've been together more than half our lives...and I believe my love for him grows each year.

I am proud to call him mine.

I'm looking forward to my date tonight...(insert eyebrow wiggle).

Happy Anniversary, babe! I love you tons of bunches!

I took a left turn at 'Crazy'

2011-07-01T15:42:00.003-05:00

Yep.

Haven't posted since April.

Oh well. The Earth didn't stop.

What a busy summer it's been!!

Softball. VBS. Work. Helping with the teen camp event at church. Helping friends move. Trying to keep a clean house. THINKING about homeschooling without actually doing it.

Busy.

Just when I think I shouldn't add one more thing...I do.

My big goal is that I want to pay off our van asap. So....on kind of an impluse, I signed up to be a Scentsy rep. No...I can't make more hours in the day or more days in a week and perform tons of house-parties every week, but I can be available to handle orders from the MANY people who really like Scentsy and try to make a few bucks. I'm committing all profits to the van. The sooner it's taken care of, the sooner this momma can move on to a dream. Or two.

We'll see how it goes.

If you need a lift in your life, just bring me your nose. I'll get your surroundings smelling de-lish in no time.

Fold your arms, stomp your foot and tell God 'no'...

2011-04-27T21:34:00.003-05:00

...and see what happens.

Have you ever said "never"?

Did it ever come back to bite you?

Hubby and I once said that we'd never move back to the county we live in now. That 'never' didn't hold up. You see, if your 'never' isn't God's 'never', you don't have much say.

My daughter attends a WONDERFUL private school. We completely feel that it was God's plan to have her there...it's been confirmed over and over.

Our son is set to start kindergarten in the fall...and suddenly things have changed.

God is still providing the means to have the children attend said school...but He is telling me it's time to change the plan.

Say what, God!??!! I'm not understanding. Are you SURE?!!?

Over the past couple of years, I have gotten closer to people I was already acquainted with and developed several new friendships. Ever wonder why God has placed certain people in your life? It became pretty clear to me a few weeks ago.

In my case, it's for guidance, encouragement and support.

I'm going to need it.

After saying that I never would, I will be homeschooling our children after this school year.

knock knock knock

Did you HEAR me!??!!

I WILL BE HOMESCHOOLING OUR CHILDREN!!!

I can hardly believe that this is the journey that God is sending me on. I mean, I was looking forward to having both children in school. I was looking forward to having five days a week to do everything I needed to do. THIS was SO not MY plan! But I believe I am being obedient in my submission.

My husband has been completely supportive. My friends have been ~~as shocked as me~~ encouraging. My family seems to have handled the news well, and the children? The children are VERY excited!!!

We have no idea how long this will be God's plan...but we will follow the path He is carving for us at this time and see where it leads.

And I will do my best to never say never again.

Fun Pictures

2011-02-23T12:27:00.002-06:00

My Jedi...

My silly girl. I really think I had glasses JUST like those when I was 9!!

My sweet boy and me and Chuck E. Cheese last week.

Green and blue hair. Why? Just for fun. Why not?

My beautiful girl...with her beautiful girl, Holly Beary aka Toto!

Divisible by 11

2011-02-02T05:00:00.000-06:00

Today is my birthday!!

I'm divisible by 11 for one of the few times in life.

Maybe this 'special' occurrence will make for a 'special' year...??

Happy Wednesday!

Dave Ramsey adventure...GO!

2011-02-01T05:00:00.000-06:00

Hubby has started Financial Peace University at our church. Surely you know Dave Ramsey. He's a financial expert who gives no-nonsense advice to all who will listen.

I read his 'Financial Peace' book years ago. I implemented what I thought we needed and went about my business.

Let it be said, we are NOT in any financial trouble. Our income outweighs our expenses. We have a mortgage, one car payment and one credit card (which will disappear by March). We are not in trouble. But we want to make more wise decisions and grow financially.

I have been the one writing checks for our bills since we got married. Before that, I was even nosing around hubby-to-be's finances and keeping him straight. I know our bills by heart...I pay them without blinking. Hubby had no idea what things run us each month...until now. He had to fill out a Quickie Budget for his class. I filled in a few blanks, but he quickly told me that I needed to let him do it so he could familiarize himself with the budget. Ok.

We went through the budget...and he was secretly freaking out. He was adding numbers in his head and thought 'there's no way we're doing ok!' But to his relief, I wasn't running us in the ground each month, ha!! He didn't think I was, he just wasn't in tune with the numbers.

As I stated before, we expect to be done with the credit card by March. Then there's my van. The way we see it, it could be gone within two years, Lord willing. It will take discipline. It will take WAITING to get/do a few things we'd like to do. I believe we 'can do all things through Christ'. HE will have to help us stay focused. It's going to be quite a journey.

To kick it off, I've cancelled our land-line telephone. We honestly get about 3 phone calls a month on the home phone that aren't wrong numbers or marketing. We use our cell phones 99% of the time. I went through the caller ID and made sure that we weren't going to throw someone WAY off by not having the number. I called a business that used that number and told them to change it. I will also need to call our doctor's offices. Everyone else has our cell, email or facebook. I thought about turning the phone off before, but didn't since I feel that the children need access to a phone in case of an emergency...and then it hit me. Duh! I have an office phone that is completely separate from our house phone. It's always in the same spot and I can teach them where it is and how to use it just as I would a personal line.

So...this journey begins with us ending the flush. The flushing of $40 right down the potty every month.

That's $40 more for the van payment.

Yippie!!

The Kids...

2011-01-17T01:13:00.007-06:00

Ella...the quick-learning one...has been taking piano lessons since June...and she is doing SO well!! That sweet baby has learned so much. She has a really great ear for it. At Christmas, she went to the piano and taught herself several carols. She literally pecked out the tune until she had another one down. She amazes her momma. We also have a fantastic babysitter who is a wonderful piano player...a night out for Mom and Dad means piano blessings for my baby. Gotta love that!

Ella also brought home another 'A' Honor Roll report card last week. I'm so happy that she does well in school!!

Evan...the ever-entertaining son...is also ever-impressive. His drive to read, and read WELL, is so awesome. The words that child can read are incredible. He won't start kindergarten until this fall...he has a super head start. I believe a lot of his drive comes from wanting to be like his big sister. He has also learned some things on the piano from of her.

Evan does well at school as well. They use a traffic light system...Evan is on 'green' 99% of the time. Oh...and as if turning five and reading don't make him 'grown' enough, he has also lost two teeth! Within two weeks of turning five, they were out! I'm still going to call him my baby...hush.

We took the children ice skating for the first time ever back in December. Ella stepped on the ice, got acquainted and took off. Wow. Evan...well...he was either hugging the side or picking himself up off the ice most of the night. At the end, he was branching out a little, but he needed more time, for sure. He was probably sore, but he had fun...and it was fun just to experience it with them.

The day after Christmas, we drove to Texas. We visited friends, went shopping, bowling and hit Sea World. We had a blast!! The kids did great in the car...one of our best road trips ever!!

Our kids are happy and healthy...and definitely busy and fun!

Happy this, Happy that

2011-01-16T22:52:00.002-06:00

Happy Halloween!
Happy All Saints Day!
Happy Election Day!
Happy Daylight Savings Time!
Happy Veterans Day!
Happy Birthday to hubby!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Hanukkah!
Merry Christmas!
Happy New Year!

Good grief!

What else have I missed!

We had a wonderful Christmas season...I hope you did as well.

I will try to get you updated this week.

Wouldn't that be nice??

Super proud!!!

2010-10-28T14:54:00.003-05:00

May it always be this wonderful!

My Baby is Five Today!!

2010-10-27T23:37:00.006-05:00

Time certainly flies!!

My handsome son is five today. He is so excited!!!

He is:

Smart -- he's reading. Very well. He's reading Ella's books...she's in first grade. It's so cool to hear him sounding out words and making connections.

Funny -- he's stinkin' hilarious. To me...and many others. A lot of times he's not even trying to be funny...he just is. He's entertaining.

Sweet -- he's an encourager, helper and comforter for his friends. He is not aggressive, particularly in sports. We need to work on that...momma thinks he should play football.

Awesome

Handsome

Loveable

Growing up too stinkin' fast!! (He has TWO loose teeth!! Crazy!)

We had a 'party of four' date to Chuck E Cheese last night...but his birthday party is Saturday. Can't wait!! I love to see him with his little buddies!!

Dear Lord, thank you for blessing me with a son. He is a delight...I am proud to be his mother. Thank you for this gift!!

Happy birthday, my sweet boy...you will never know how much I love you. I love you more than you love me. I love you forever.

Keep that fire burning...

2010-10-18T17:13:00.002-05:00

Hubs and I will soon get to attend a couple's conference...aka Marriage Retreat. In the mountains. With a few great friends. It'll be a blast!!

Why do we ditch, I mean, leave our kids and travel alone from time to time?

Because...we believe that we should.

We were Tina and Donald before we became Mom & Dad. These kids are going to grow up and leave us...more than likely...and we don't want to be staring at each other someday and NOT feel like a couple. We still go on dates...just not as many as we would like...childcare ain't cheap! But little getaways here and there are refreshing.

We are a team. We need to be on the same page...a page that cannot be torn apart...by stress or children. What better way to stay connected than to get away as a couple??

If you and your spouse aren't dating or traveling, even for just one night, I want to encourage you to do so.

The kids will survive without you!

And you'll be a better parent when you return!

A child's apology

2010-09-22T05:00:00.000-05:00

Ella had a mishap at school last week. She came to me and broke down while telling me what had happened. Poor girl. She was SO sorry...so remorseful. I asked her if she had told her teacher that she was sorry....she said no and said she could write her a note.

This is what she came up with...

I am a very proud momma....

The appointment I hate...

2010-09-21T05:00:00.000-05:00

It's probably not what you think.

It's the eyedoctor. I absolutely HATE going to the eyedoctor.

And it's not even because of the puff of air they shoot in your eye!!!

My reason is stupid. It's not logical. It could be called ridiculous.

But here it is: I feel stupid for not being able to read tiny letters on the other end of a room.

Dumb right? I know.

I know...it's not my fault that my eyes are terrible. It's not a literacy test. I get that. But I still feel dumb for not being able to READ.

What does the next line say? Um, er... 'E?' 'Q?' I don't know...ugh. It's just frustrating.

Which is better? This one or this one? NEITHER!!! I'm blind, don'tcha know?

Really, folks. I'd rather go to ANY other doctor and get 12 shots than go to the dumb eyedoctor.

Oh and as a bonus this time around, we're taking the children. Kids with dialated eyes.

This should be interesting...

SOLD!

2010-09-20T05:00:00.000-05:00

Woo Hoo!

We sold the old van with NO problems...and quick, too!!

We placed an ad for the van on Craigslist last Saturday. We got just one call about it, that was Wednesday morning. The fella had driven a Toyota van a whle back and new they Toyotas are known for getting LOTS of miles and holding their value...he just REALLY wanted another one. He and hubby had a 'gentlemen's agreement' on price and they were to meet Thursday night to complete the deal.

They met. He looked it over. He took it for a little test-drive. He said 'It's a done deal for me, man.' and he handed over the cash. Which, I might add, was more than I had originally said I'd like to get. I wanted to stick a sign on the van, park it somewhere, and be willing to take $500 less than I had on the sign. No go. Hubs looked up the blue book value and we listed it for $1000 MORE than I said and negotiated down from there. We made $900 more than I would've 'settled' for if we had done it my way. Yay for a researchin' hubby!!

I'm super excited that it only took 5 days to sell the van! (Most) Former Toyota owners know it's a good product...the buyer even said 'Keep my number, I'll buy your new one from you in a few years!'

Wordless Wednesday

2010-09-15T05:40:00.001-05:00

One more for this momma....

2010-09-13T05:00:00.000-05:00

One more van, that is.

Since that last post of mine, we've been on a little rollercoaster ride. Consumed with one project...

We started looking for a new vehicle. I kicked around the idea of getting some sort of SUV...but I decided against it. I am in the van stage. The kids are in the van stage. It works for our family.

I love the idea of having an SUV...what I don't love are the thoughts of my children banging the doors into other cars or the garage wall, etc. I came to the conclusion that one more van is our best bet at this stage of life.

While were don't relish the thought of a car payment, the thoughts of being stranded with the children is even worse. (Mommas need reliable cars, amen!?) I certainly don't want to keep putting money in my aged van when that money could pay for something newer. Also, hubby's truck won't last forever...so we had to consider the fact that eventually he'll need to replace his vehicle...we seriously want to avoid EVER having two car payments!!

And so the search began.

Locally, our search led us to things we'd be 'settling' for. Unless you can get something BRAND new, with everything you want, the way you want it, you have to decide what you will and won't settle for. For me, it needs mileage that isn't terribly high...preferably about what I put on a car per year would do. I also really wanted a sunroof and dual power sliding doors. There are plenty of other bells and whistles, but those are high on my checklist.

Since we wanted to expand our options, we began searching online for what we'd really like to have. We found a handful of possibilities...and we were willing to travel to score. St Louis...agh, sold. Houston...agh, sold. San Antonio...agh, handicapped van with wheelchair lift. Ugh. Ok.

And then we found one in Pennsylvania. It was at a dealer who specializes in high-end, loaded Siennas and Odysseys. These are hard to find vehicles because they hold their value really well...and people just don't get rid of them!!

We secured (great!) financing and contacted the dealer. A deal was agreed upon and we began arranging flights and childcare.

Hubby had just enough frequent flyer miles for one last trip...one way...alone. And then he found me a cheap flight. We have lovely people in our lives that agreed to help us with the kids so we were ready to roll.

We flew up Thursday and began driving home Thursday afternoon. Every detail was smooth and effortless. Hubby and I jammed with the awesome sound system in our new ride all the way home...it didn't seem like that long of a drive at all!!! About 900 miles later, we were home and the kids were climbing in pushing all the cool new buttons.

This should be my last van. If it will last 10ish years, our sweet Ella will be driving (yikes!) and momma will be able to finally get the mustang she's always wanted.

Right?

Please tell me I'm right??!

The soon-to-be-sold Old van

Out with the old...in with the new (to me!)!!

I'm feeling very blessed. This van has more options than I EVER thought I'd have on a vehicle. Everything is 'power'...everything is clean...everything is a bonus!!!

Inconvenience....

2010-08-24T05:00:00.000-05:00

...and I don't get along.

When something 'stinky' throws a wrench in my day, I have the hardest time fighting frustration and a poor attitude.

Monday's wrench was my car. It died on me in the middle of carline at school Monday afternoon.

Saturday, it wouldn't start...but thank goodness, it was in our driveway. Hubby pulled the battery and took it to the store...they said it was 'defective.' It wasn't even six months old.

Fine. He came home with a new battery. Problem solved, right?

Hmph.

I'm sitting in carline, the car is in drive, I'm just about to pull up to gather children, and poof! All power to the car disappeared. Grrr....

I was probably ten shades of red...from embarassment and frustration...oh and 9000 degree heat.

My inconvenience became inconvenient to others...that bugs me, too.

Having to call my friend and say, 'I know I'm supposed to bring your kid to you, but ahem, I need you to come get him...and me and my own kids' is not what I like having to do.

Having to call my husband, and text him, and call him, and text him only to find out that he's been in a meeting and couldn't answer me, much less be my knight in shining armor, is not fun, either.

I was irritated.

But I was stranded at a great place. School. Surrounded by friends and good conversation...and sympathy...it worked out ok.

When hubby got home, we went back to the school...the car would do nothing. Another parent was there to pick up his son...he offered to give us a boost. It worked, while the cables were attached and then we died again. He gave us a longer boost...and we babied the van to the shop.

Starter?

Alternator?

Soon...we'll find out if we need to sell just one kidney or four.

First Day of 1st Grade

2010-08-19T05:00:00.001-05:00

School started yesterday!!

A girl who went to bed early was not easy to wake up...oh the days of getting up on your own are gone for a while, sweets!

Attire: Uniform (love this! No discussion, it's set!)
Hairstyle: Ponytail
Breakfast: Eggs and toast. Why? Because "Mom makes the best eggs in the world!"

That's right!!

Ella had an 'AWESOME!' first day. She's thrilled to have the teacher she has...it's going to be a GREAT year!! We are very blessed to be sending her to school where she's going...God is SO good!!

I'll take one order of 'Routine', please!!

2010-08-17T00:42:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow...

Life will get back to 'normal'...and a little more normalcy will follow next week!

School starts tomorrow for one kiddo.

Next Tuesday for the other.

Ahhhh....

It's been a VERY busy summer.

We traveled. We swam. We played softball. We took piano lessons. We worked. We fished.

Oh and we SWEATED!!!

It's not quite time for the sweat to dry up, but by golly, it's time to calm down.

Bed times will be earlier...even for the parents.

We will have schedules.

It will help me SO much in every department. My housework. My work-work. My health. Summer has been a blast, but boy has it sidetracked my eating/workout habits! Having the kids in school will allow me to get more acquainted with a new friend...a road bike. A 'Lance Armstrong' type of bike for me to take up cycling. Hubs and I had a few days this summer to ride together...17.5 miles is my longest ride so far. I plan to venture out on my own...right after I learn to change a flat by myself. I can't wait!!

Now....I must go pray for a cold-front...

Vacation to Paradise

2010-08-16T01:00:00.000-05:00

Three years ago, we went on a cruise with three other couples. My best friend and I began to kick around ideas of planning another trip, or, maybe one of the other couples brought it up, (stinkin' bad memory here)...one way another, I verbalized the thought of not cruising. I just wanted to fly somewhere and 'be'. I'd done that a few times...to the Bahamas and Cancun. It was quite enjoyable.

So, said best friend says, 'Oh, my uncle has a place on the Turks & Caicos islands.'

Well, first, where in the world is THAT? It's about 80 miles north of Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

Second, how much would it cost us to fly there? (Cheaper from Atlanta!!)

She contacted the uncle and voila! We had a booking for July!

This place has it's own website...so I had some idea of what we would see...but my, my my...

A quick shot of our arrival to the house:

and the view from the back porch:

and my island look:

There's an island beyond the hammock in the photo above. We kayaked to the island and had a photo shoot.

Me and my super husband. This trip was a second honeymoon of sorts. Our 10th anniversary was just a few weeks after this trip. I love this man!

Just the girls...

Best friends

And...for an old bloggin' buddy who loves to see her name in the sand...

This trip was an AMAZINGLY relaxing vacation. It's not a real tourist-y destination. There's no Disney World. There's no historic must-sees (that I know of). And there is nothing but beautiful water and sun to enjoy.

Thank you, God, for the beautiful work you did creating this world!

Tina

P.S. This is my 600th post. I would've SO reached it sooner had I not turned into a bloggin' slacker!!

TEN years!!!!

2010-08-05T07:05:00.004-05:00

Today is my 10th wedding anniversary!

I'm so glad that 'all things work together for good' (Romans 8:28) because God definitely worked to make this good.

In many ways, it seems like yesterday...but it definitely took us ten years to get where we are.

Ten years to learn to love each other better.

Ten years to put a nice household together.

Ten years to build a family.

I'm so grateful for these ten years...

I want fifty more!!

Then

Now

I love my husband!! Forever & Always!!

Reasons for not posting...

2010-07-30T08:15:00.002-05:00

1. Sleeping

2. Working

3. Swimming

4. Cycling

5. Traveling

6. Playing

7. Entertaining

8. Being Entertained

9. Yawning

10. Didn't even think about it.

I stink at keeping this updated anymore. I'm sorry.

Feel free to take on some of my LIFE so I'll have time for this!

**I do hope to 'come back' soon to show you my WONDERFUL vacation to the Turks & Caicos Islands...sigh**

Just heard this on K-Love...

2010-07-15T12:42:00.001-05:00

Sanctus Real - “Lead Me”

I look around and see my wonderful life
Almost perfect from the outside
In picture frames I see my beautiful wife
Always smiling
But on the inside, I can hear her saying...

“Lead me with strong hands
Stand up when I can't
Don't leave me hungry for love
Chasing dreams, what about us?

Show me you're willing to fight
That I'm still the love of your life
I know we call this our home
But I still feel alone”

I see their faces, look in their innocent eyes
They're just children from the outside
I'm working hard, I tell myself they'll be fine
They're independent
But on the inside, I can hear them saying...

“Lead me with strong hands
Stand up when I can't
Don't leave me hungry for love
Chasing dreams, but what about us?

Show me you're willing to fight
That I'm still the love of your life
I know we call this our home
But I still feel alone”

So Father, give me the strength
To be everything I'm called to be
Oh, Father, show me the way
To lead them
Won't You lead me?

To lead them with strong hands
To stand up when they can't
Don't want to leave them hungry for love,
Chasing things that I could give up

I'll show them I'm willing to fight
And give them the best of my life
So we can call this our home
Lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone

Father, lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone

Loved it...had to share it...

Went fishin'!

2010-06-24T07:13:00.006-05:00

I traded in taking the kids to the beach for taking them to the lake. A former co-worker of hubby's has a lake house a couple hours from us and she allowed us to go up for the weekend. She'd been inviting us for years...we just didn't know what we were missing!!

The kids have been fishing before, but it's been a LONG time. I'm surprised they even remember! They were so patient...I never would've imagined that they could fish without complaining, but they did. Mostly.

Evan caught a fish before Ella. She had a meltdown.

When she finally did catch a fish...

...it flipped all over crazy just after this picture...and she had another meltdown.

Daddy and I got in BIG trouble, too, because we laughed. She threw this stomping crazy fit about the fish jumping and it was hilarious. To us. She could hardly breathe as she 'yelled' "IT IS NOT FUNNY!"

Our response: "Yes, it most certainly is. If only it were on video!"

We're mean like that.

We rented a boat one day and it was wonderful to get out on the water. We need to make some friends up there so we don't have to rent one each time...my debit card was SMOKIN' after that!

Look who caught the biggest fish...

...but did you notice that she is NOT holding the line this time!!

My favorite people:

Sofia update - Updated more!

2010-06-17T06:22:00.002-05:00

Straight from her Mother's facebook posts...

Monday 6:16pm -- spoke to nurse. Doc told her it went better than expected. He got most of it out except for small piece, can chemo that. Bleeding wasn't too serious either bc it had already bled and clamped itself. Praise God!

Monday 9:00pm -- please pray for Sofia. She is having seizures. Neurosurgeons have been called to evaluate and see what the plan is. Thanks.

Tuesday 7:32am -- She's having seizures. Watching possible posturing. EEG and MRI this morning will help us know more about tumor and brain activity.

Tuesday 4:39pm MRI just about done. EEG didn't immediately show why the seizures are happening. The neuro will look it over a little better.

Tuesday 6:36pm -- We're waiting on the results of the MRI. The EEG showed no signs of seizures so the twitching/tics are not causing her any problems, even if they don't know what's causing them yet. We should know more when they take her breathing tube out. But we're not sure when that will be. It could be today or tomorrow. Pray for continued improvements. Still many questions. Thanks.

Wednesday 8:48am -- Sofia had a big scare last night. (Husband) said they gave her Ativan for seizures, which she has been given before without problems, and she just shut down. He is convinced that she was dying. He prayed and the docs rushed to help her. They gave her a 'reverse' Ativan, as explained, and within 15 minutes, she was back to normal.

Wednesday 11:04am -- Sofia smiled while she was sleeping!!! (Husband) said it was a beautiful thing! He's overjoyed and so am I!

Wednesday 11:59am -- Small update. Sofia smiled while asleep! Also, neuro suggested a feeding tube thru stomach. She's progressing slowly, but progressing. Stay at (hospital) could be short but no timetable yet. Praise God! Feeding tube means she's eating again! We'll take any good news, even if it's a piece at a time!! Jesus' name be praised!!

As you can see, it's been a rollercoaster...and it's not over...but there are so many people praying and trusting that God will take care of this little baby. Thank you all for your prayers...

*****UPDATE******

Thursday 9:07am -- MRI showed NO tumor left. Neuro said there was some microscopic left behind on tumor that he couldn't get so we still need chemo. But we're overjoyed and thankful to the Lord!!

Sofia...

2010-06-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

...is the six month old baby girl of a fellow choir member/friend at church.

She ran a high fever and became lethargic last Wednesday.

Her mother took her to the ER where she had several seizures. A CT scan revealed fluid on her brain...and a tumor. Surgery was performed to insert a drain for the fluid.

An MRI on Thursday showed a 2 inch tumor in the center of her brain.

She will have surgery today. They will remove as much of the tumor as they can safely remove...and will probably began chemo treatments soon.

Please join me in prayer for this baby girl.

God has a plan...

Wild Hair Day....

2010-06-10T16:39:00.003-05:00

...but not wild 'face' day...can't explain that one!!

VBS...that's what we've been doing. And we're about pooped!!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-06-09T14:01:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday - take 2

2010-05-26T09:19:00.002-05:00

Wordless Wednesday

2010-05-26T07:14:00.001-05:00

ABC Bible Verses

2010-05-25T06:00:00.000-05:00

We try to do a Bible story with our kids each night. We did a whole 365 day Children's Bible last year...and then we blanked out for various life-changing reasons (which, duh, is the time you need to be in the Word the most!), but one night we found a solution.

This book was given to Evan for his birthday by one of his teachers at church. It fell through the cracks until Evan brought it to me one night. From that night forward, we started doing one letter per night.

Both of my children, and even Dad and I, have learned 26 Bible verses.

It is a joy to my heart to hear the kids recite them....and use them randomly throughout the day. Most of the time, it's appropriate for the situation, but there has been a time or two when it hasn't been.

The 'Y' verse: "You are My friends if you do whatever I command you." John 15:14

My sweet Evan used this on his sweet friend Rachel.

Ahem.

Yes, there was a corrective conversation held by Dad.

But really, MOST of the time, the use of the verse is appropriate.

ABC Bible Verses: Hiding God's Word in Little Hearts by Susan Hunt

Tina

From the Baptism......

2010-05-23T20:27:00.001-05:00

Boy...am I a slacker or what?

From April 18th...

Me and my girl!

With our Children's Minister, Bro. Ian...

You have been baptized!!

And now...she's about to graduate from Kindergarten. It is SO bittersweet. We have been so pleased with our first year at school. We LOVE her teacher and will miss her more than she'll ever know! She says she'd love to have Evan in her class when it's time...I'm not sure she understands what she's asking for!!

Miss Ella is looking forward to summer. The days where she can sleep until SHE wants to get up...and days without two hours of rest time!

Praise Him in the Storm

2010-05-03T23:17:00.003-05:00

This past weekend, we had really terrible weather. We had tornado warnings/watches. And it rained so much in a short amount of time that many areas were flooded. Even my own church. The drains on top of the roof couldn't handle the huge amount of water...the roof collapsed over the lobby. Water spilled in and ran right down to the alter in our sanctuary. Praise God that no one was in the building at the time...no one was injured.

I am counting my blessings and grieving for those who have lost everything.

A levee broke.

The Naval base was flooded.

At one apartment complex, the water was nearly to the second story windows.

At one trailer park, the water damaged everything. I think they're now considering bull-dozing that whole site.

People have lost everything. Everything.

We took a load of clothes/toys/toiletries and a crib to the church to donate. (all those great deals I've been finding via sales and coupons...I passed most of them on.) I want to find more things to give.

My heart hurts for these people. For the children who have nothing.

I would love to 'adopt' a family. I would love for them to come stay in our home for a time so I could feed them and love on them. God knows of my desire and if this is something we're supposed to do, He will make it happen. We have to be cautious because we have small children to consider. But if a fellow church member, or a friend of a friend of one, needed a place to stay, I would be thrilled to oblige.

I am so very thankful for all that we have.

I am so blessed....I feel it's only right to be a blessing.

Please pray for our church family...we are hosting flood victims in our Life Center for the next few days. I'm assuming FEMA is on the way...but until then, may we all shine the light of Jesus!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-04-21T06:00:00.000-05:00

Ten on Tuesday

2010-04-20T06:00:00.000-05:00

Happenings:

1. Tball season has begun for the kids. For probably the only time in their lives, they are playing together on the same team. First game is this Saturday...should be fun(ny)!!

2. Not sure what the problem is, but we've had the paint for my office for a month and still haven't painted. Ugh.

3. There's only six weeks of school left. It's bittersweet. No more kindergarten for the girl and a break from getting up so early. Two kids at home all day again...and two kids at home ALL day! (ha!)

4. One more week of volleyball for mom and dad...then it's time for softball! We're junkies!

5. BIG trip planned this summer...without the babies (10th wedding anniversary!). Need to plan a little beach getaway WITH the babies...they so love the beach!

6. The next time I'm at a store where they have a little puddle of a kiddie pool...I'm getting it. It was STINKIN' hot here the other day and a puddle would've been perfect.

7. Wishin' we had a fence...a playground...and a big pool. :-) Wishin's like fishin'...so they say.

8. One more wish...I wish my son would be old enough for VBS this year. One more year...poor guy will not be happy in June.

9. Ella has now lost a total of four teeth. One of the ones coming in is NOT the replacement for the one lost in that spot but a big honkin' tooth that belongs next to it. It's coming in behind two teeth that still need to come out. Yikes. I can see us funding some ortho's vacation home in a few years.

10. The van that hates me is doing very well...thank you very much.

One proud momma...

2010-04-19T06:00:00.000-05:00

On Easter Sunday...my sweet girl gave her heart to Jesus!!!

She first felt 'the tug' last summer after our friend got saved while at camp. We wanted to make sure that she had a real grasp of the decision she said she wanted to make...so we waited to see if she'd bring it up again. She did, periodically, but at the evening service on Easter Sunday, she was truly moved.

What a special night!

We asked our Children's minister to counsel with her.....he said he felt comfortable that she knew what she was doing......so we celebrated and scheduled her baptism.

She was baptized last night at church.

Another special night!

We had family, friends and even her teacher from school in attendance!

I am so proud that I can call my daugher 'My SISTER in Christ'!!!

(I will post pictures soon....video is posted on facebook!)

Tina

He paid it all....

2010-04-02T06:00:00.000-05:00

...all to Him I owe...

Today, I'm just thinking.

Thinking about what Jesus did for me.

...sin had left a crimson stain...

...He washed it white as snow.

There's no greater love.

There's no greater hope.

There's no greater decision.

The gift of salvation is free.

Will you accept it?

Jesus is Risen!

Happy Easter!

Tina

I found my son's mute button...

2010-04-01T06:00:00.000-05:00

When we walked in, there were toys. The Tinkerbell movie was playing on the tv. There was an inviting checkerboard just waiting for my children to play a game.

All was well.

Until they called my son's name.

You see, we were at the dentist's office. I take the kids in every six months for a cleaning and check-up. Ella FREAKED out on her very first visit but she's been fine ever since. Evan has always done well...afterall, he has a great role model in his sister. Yesterday really wasn't any different except that the office 'cat' seemed to have gotten Evan's tongue.

They called his name. He dropped his head and slumped his shoulders. He seemed to be barely putting one foot in front of the other...to the tune of doom and gloom from all cartoons. You know the one.

He did not say ONE WORD.

He answered no questions.

He simply opened his mouth for the cleaning and barely nodded for a yes or no question.

It was quite a sight!

I told him that I know exactly where to take him next time he gets loud and obnoxious at home.

The dentist's office.

I can no longer say that kid doesn't have a mute button....

Tina

Best Target Shopping Ev-ah!

2010-03-18T06:00:00.000-05:00

Check out what I got for $.44!!!

Wow! That's less than the tax I should've paid!

Air Wick iMotion: On sale for $6.00. I had a $5 coupon from the Sunday paper and a $1 Target store coupon = FREE!!

Colgate Toothpaste: On sale for $1.00 each. I had two $1.00 coupons from the paper = FREE!

Kids Crest Toothpaste: On sale for $1.49. I had a Target store coupon for $1 and a Sunday paper coupon for $.75...I actually MADE $.26 on this deal!!!

Dial Liquid soap: $1.37 I had a $1 Target store coupon and a $.35 coupon from the paper making it $.02!!

I'm having a great time learning about coupons. I love that Kroger doubles coupons...so for all coupons $.60 and under, I check the prices at Kroger because that item with a doubled coupon just might beat what I'd get at Walmart with just a single coupon.

For instance, I recently had coupons for Secret deodorant and some shave gel. My $.50 Secret coupon doubled to make my $1.88 deodorant $.88...I've NEVER paid that little for Secret! I had 3 $.55 coupons for shave gel. They doubled making my $1.88 shave gel $.78!!

Deals like these keep me looking for more!!

***I found the Target deals on My Memphis Mommy.***

Hated by a van...

2010-03-15T06:00:00.001-05:00

"What?" you say.

Well...remember that mail truck incident?

Yea. I'm not sure my van has forgotten either.

As if Friday wasn't crazy enough, with all the birthday hoopla, the van put another chink in the armor when it decided that starting when I turned the key was optional. Evan and I were stuck at Walmart with a van that wouldn't start. Until Hubby arrived, that is. He showed up and it cranked right up. We switched cars anyway and he took the battery inside for a check up. It tested fine...they just cleaned the posts and sent him on his way.

Then, after church last night, we were on our way home...not far from home...when we suddenly had a flat. One of those with absolutely no warning....just FLAT. We pulled over, but didn't really have enough light to make the change. We decided to inch our way to a store...which was WAY further than it seemed like it should be, so we stopped again. And then...we remembered that we had BOTH left our phones at home. And so, there I was, on the side of the road trying to flag down a person with a phone. Thank God somebody stopped. I called my best friend Debbie because we live closest to her...only she didn't recognize the number and didn't answer or call it back when I didn't leave a message. We decided to send her a text that said it was me and that she should answer. Anywho, by the time we had Debbie already on the way, hubby figured out how to lower the spare and was well on his way to having the tire changed. Debbie brought me and the kids home and daddy followed very soon.

All that to say...that van hates me. I suppose I've started a domino effect of problems. We'd like to wait until the fall to NEED to purchase a new car...so I'm hoping a carwash and a good detailed cleaning will get me out of the dog house with the Toyota.

Tina

1:19 AM

2010-03-12T01:19:00.000-06:00

That's what time I became a mommy for the first time.

And my life has never been the same!!

Today is my beautiful daughter's 6th birthday.

Daddy will be surprising her with lunch at school today.

Mommy will be going to school later in the afternoon bearing snacks and crafts.

And tonight is party time!!

Can't wait to celebrate with my sweet girl....

Ella, I love you. I'm am SO proud to be your mother!!

Happy Birthday, beautiful!

Off to make some birthday muffins for a certain pretty girl's breakfast!!

Tina

Six years ago...

2010-03-11T10:19:00.002-06:00

It was a Thursday just like today.

I painted my toenails.

I ate Mexican for lunch with a friend and her CrAzY almost-3 year old.

I folded some laundry.

I sent hubby to McDonald's because I wanted dinner with a milkshake.

My water broke.

I laughed!!

I took a shower to shave my legs.

I went to the hospital.

I awaited the birth of my first child....

***to be continued***

Number 3 has left the 'building'!!

2010-03-09T06:29:00.003-06:00

Sweet Ella lost her third tooth yesterday!!

We've been working on that tooth for weeks. Wiggling and wiggling. Trying to pull it. She's so brave!!!

I got an email from her teacher yesterday telling me that it was bleeding so she pulled it for Ella.

Daddy said "Say what!??! I've been working on that tooth everyday and Miss T gets the glory!?!?"

What a memory for Ella and her teacher!!

I'm just glad it's out...now we'll move on to the other three she has loose.

She will soon have to take a break from pears and pizza!!

***Oh...and my baby girl will be six on Friday! Can't wait!!***

Jumping on the Couponing Bandwagon

2010-02-26T06:00:00.000-06:00

So...it's long overdue.

I'm not sure how I will do...but I really should try to save more money than I have been.

I do look for sale items. I do buy lots of generic items. But I do not 'work' to clip a whole bunch of coupons and shop several stores looking for the best price.

This is going to change.

At least a little.

I think what I don't like the most is filing them and weeding out the expired ones. Do I really have time for this??? I don't know! I'm trying to get myself organized. I feel like I will have to try several 'coupon filing' methods before I find one that I really like. Envelopes? A Box? A Notebook? Who knows. But I've gotten a few things to get me started...we'll see how it goes.

Meanwhile, I've been visiting this site for tips and coupons. Check it out! They may just have a 'mommy' for your area!!!

Feel free to share your methods or best tips with me!! (this girl could use some ideas!!)

Why my posts are few and far between...

2010-02-25T06:00:00.000-06:00

Up too late.

Up quite early.

Up even earlier when I do what I'm supposed to do.

Busy with Facebook.

Busy with work.

Busy with kids.

Busy with the house.

Busy being lazy because it's cold.

Busy watching the Olympics.

Busy with a sick kid (who's better now).

Busy with a sick hubby (who's almost better now).

Busy busy busy.

Shall I go on?

Seems like this blog has taken a left turn at 'maybe tomorrow' which leads to 'eh, whenever'.

I stink at blogging these days.

It's not completely intentional.

But I am sorry.

I'll post something tomorrow.

I promise!

Tina

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-24T12:48:00.000-06:00

This was NOT on my 'Bucket List'

2010-02-22T06:00:00.001-06:00

I had my first wreck on Saturday.

Given the situation, it couldn't have gone better.

My best friend and I were driving down a two lane road I had never driven before. I came upon a mailman (woman) making deliveries. I decided I would pass this vehicle. After waiting behind her at one mailbox because we were on a hill making it unclear if I could safely pass, I followed her to the next mailbox. When she moved forward again, I assumed she was headed to the next driveway about 40ft away. I was looking again to see if I had a clear pass when I heard "Whoa Whoa Whoa!" via Debbie.

What I didn't know about the mailman's next stop was that it was only 4ft away, not 40ft. I was looking for a clear shot, she was stopping right in front of me for the much-closer next mailbox.

WHAM!

Oh boy.

I just rear-ended a mailman.

Everyone was ok.

The mail was quite disshoveled.

Her bumper was shoved in and down.

My passenger side headlight was busted out. My bumper and grill were cracked.

But, our bodies were intact.

Praise God!

I apologized over and over.

The first officer that arrived immediately cracked jokes with us once he saw that everyone was ok. The next two officers were just as great to us. I really don't believe I could've had better help from the 'men' in blue. My other really big helper...Debbie. Oh my. I'm so glad she was with me instead of my children. She handled all the phone calls that needed to be made and was the perfect support I needed for the whole ordeal. I'm so blessed to have her as my bff!!

I did, and still do, feel like a complete idiot. I can't believe I did this...but since everyone is ok, and the van is driveable and not too terribly hideous, all will be ok. Said van just rolled over 190k miles...I will just deal with a cracked bumper for however much longer it lasts. The 'stupid tax' I'll be paying on this one isn't nearly as bad as it could've been.

By the way, I got a ticket for improper passing. Debbie got a 'ticket' for aggravated 'whoa whoa whoa'.

So today I ask you, will you share something that cost you a 'stupid tax'?

Tina

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-17T06:00:00.000-06:00

Ten on Tuesday

2010-02-16T06:00:00.003-06:00

Actually, it's 11!!

Eleven house pictures!!!

I know you've been waiting!

Some of these spaces are finished...but most are 'almost' finished. They lack curtains or wall decor, but these spaces make me so happy. Works in progress...making our house a home.

First up, the freshly painted guest bathroom. Hubby finished this one on Saturday.

There is red in the shower curtain that doesn't quite show up in the photo, but the red walls are a perfect match...this red makes me feel so happy. I'm thinking that Hobby Lobby will have something perfect to go about the towel bar you see. Hope I can get there soon to find out!!

Next up...the living room...which we cozied up this weekend with the new lamps. I heart them!! On the far table is a tray that I found at Pier 1 on clearance for $7.50. I lined it with a place mat that I already had and it was the perfect touch. We need an area rug...oh! And the curtains we ordered!! LOVE this room!

This is our bedroom. I've been hunting for something to hang on either side of the bed. Do I go with something metal? Do I purchase coordinating prints? I'm also looking to create a sitting area in this room...itching to find the perfect chair, maybe a bookcase or screen to anchor it, with a lamp...mmmm....

I've shown you the master bathroom before, but now I have a little touch in there that I haven't shown you yet...the vases on the left with the greenery...a little bit of yumminess for the 'spa' feel I wanted in here.

This is my son's room. Sorry for the blur, but this is my favorite view in his room. I need to get him some curtains and maybe hang something in that blue stripe (???). The blue stripe is on three walls...one of the three is taken care of...ideas??

Here's a more clear picture of his bed.

Here is sweet Ella's room. This room is HUGE and there are several things I want to do with this room. She needs curtains. I want to do some kind of tissue 'ornaments' to hang in groups from the ceiling. I want her to have a small, white table/chair set. I have four empty frames to paint to hang with ribbon on a wall...these frames with have dry erase boards in them when I'm done and Ella will have a sweet place to express herself artisticly....she rocks!

Lastly, here is Ella's bathroom. This room makes me smile...and it makes her wake up each morning. How could you NOT wake up when you enter this bright, cheery room!?

She wanted a green bathroom. We found the faux flowers on the shelf at Target one day and we chose a green from the center of one flower. The white flowers on the wall used to hang in her old bedroom. She salvaged them from the yardsale before we moved. I revived them with paint to match the bathroom colors.

The 'buttons' that hold the shower curtain were simple white buttons from WalMart...a little paint and voila! I'm planning to hang a lovely picture of Ella right above the shelf...other than that, this room is complete!!

I am having a BLAST decorating the house...if only my budget could keep up!! I mean REALLY! So much I want to do!!!

Hope you've enjoyed the pictures!!

Tina

V-Day weekend

2010-02-15T06:10:00.000-06:00

Spa day was FANTASTIC!!!

I had a lovely time enjoying my massage, facial and pedicure. I even got my eyebrows waxed for the first time. (I'm a plucker, but with these babies being blonde, I've always known that I just can't get them all!! Not as much pain as I imagined, either) I also finished the day with a haircut...but my friend forgot the goods to do my highlights...so those will have to wait.

Anyway, it was a great day!!

Valentine's day was VERY untraditional for us this year.

No flowers. No fancy dinner. No chocolates. No card. (This does NOT mean that hubby is cheap. I guaranteed you he spent more on my 'choice'!!)

Just a night out without the kids and...

The whole 'having a new house to decorate' thing makes my yurn for trips to Hobby Lobby, Kirklands and Pier 1...so after hubby spent Saturday painting our guest bathroom, I told him that my idea of Valentine's day would be shopping for a few decor items, a burger and a movie. So that's exactly what we did. And it was great!

We didn't make it to Hobby Lobby, which is where the bathroom wall decor will probably come from, but we did venture into a store that we had not previously been to.

Pier 1.

Ooooo....we loved it!!

They have SO many things that BELONG in our house!!! We had to order the curtains we chose...and also a piece of art that they were sold out of, but we did bring home a couple of lamps for the living room. I luuuvvvv them!! Can't wait to get the other goods...and I can't wait until I can afford to get a few more things from that store!

Pictures are coming....

Tomorrow will be a very special edition of my very own Ten on Tuesday....don't miss it!

Friday's To-Do List - oh, it's good!

2010-02-12T06:00:00.001-06:00

"A facial and an hour and a half relaxation body massage soothes the body and the mind. A steam treatment assists the entire body by removing impurities. Finally, the Pure Fiji manicure and pedicure leave fingers and toes buffed and looking gorgeous. A light lunch in our quiet room is included."

That's right. I'm spending the day at the spa. With my bff. Oh what a day!

AND!!!

It'll be concluded with a few more highlights and a refreshing trim of the 'wig'.

Happy Friday!!

And Happy Valentine's Day!!

Tina

Wordless Wednesday - What we've been doing...

2010-02-10T05:55:00.000-06:00

Dress Up Fun

2010-02-08T06:00:00.000-06:00

Seems as though Miss Ella has had ample opportunity to play dress-up lately...and we have had a blast!!

Her school had homecoming over the last couple weeks...they had several themed days...

80s Day

Western Day
Duct Tape Day

Mix and Match day!

(Most fun, CRAZY clothes, and Ella won a candy bar this day!)

Blue and White Day

And then one of her best friends had a birthday party Saturday...a beach themed party. While in her winter clothes, she was able to accessorize with beach-wear...and entertain us all with a hula!!

I'm actually wishing for more dress -up days...a theme day once a month or so would be so fun!!

Life

2010-02-05T06:00:00.000-06:00

...is busy.

I'm trying to stick to the schedule I made for myself, but it hasn't been easy.

I let myself 'sleep in' on my birthday because...well...dog gone it...I deserve it, right?

I tend to stay up to late which keeps me from always getting up way early in the morning to get my workout in. I sometimes wait until after getting Ella off to school to do it. You see, when I get up earlier to do it, I also get showered and I'm ready for the day. When I'm lazy and I don't make it out of bed 'on time', I have to make up the workout later, I have to get showered later, and every other item on my schedule gets shifted...or knocked off completely.

Anyway...finding a balance in life is hard. I'm not going to give up, but I might have to modify the schedule. If things aren't done at the SAME time each day, so be it...as long as they get done I'll consider it a successful day.

**My birthday was fabulous, by the way. Hubby came through on the Spa Day (which I'll be enjoying next week!!), he got me flowers and an ice cream cake. We also went out for dinner, because HELLO, who wants to cook on their birthday!? We went for a simple Red Robin dinner since they sent me a 'free burger' for my birthday. But last night we went to Texas de Brazil with my best friend and our husbands...we had both received a complimentary meal for our birthdays (it's all about using those coupons, people!! I'm good at using coupons for free food, but the grocery is another story) We weren't disappointed...just overloaded!! SO it's been a great week!!

How about you!?

Yes, Love, it's Today!

2010-02-02T11:01:00.003-06:00

Today is my birthday!!

I love my birthday...it's a fun day that I share with a groundhog.

But...

Once upon a time, my husband had a girlfriend before me whose birthday was the day before mine. So one year, he told me happy birthday a day early. And I cried. He doesn't remember me getting upset, but I do. Of course, this was way back in high school, when I was ultra sensitive about such a thing. He says he did it on purpose...well, maybe.

These days, it's a running joke.

He sent me an email yesterday telling me 'happy birthday'!

My facebook friends say I should ask for two gifts and two nights out on him, since he can't get it right!!

Ah well.

That guy loves me, and I love him.

And he does a pretty fine job of making me feel special.

As a side note...I was looking through pictures yesterday and I ran across this one of my brother and me.

It proves that I once had hair like my son's...and I feel like carrying the picture around to show everyone who says to Evan, "Where'd you get that pretty red hair?"

And doesn't that look like Evan in a dress??!?

Tina

Productive weekend

2010-02-01T06:00:00.000-06:00

I'd say we were 'snowed' in, but really, we were iced in.

Everything around town shut town Friday because things were going to get ugly.

And we don't have snowplows in the south.

Hubby stalled leaving for work Friday morning just long enough to get the call that the base was shut down. (Yahoo! LOVE it when he gets snow days!)

Ella was out of school for the day. All of our evening activities were cancelled.

So we were in.

And we were together.

Ella sweetly asked her daddy to paint her bathroom, so while he tackled that project, I tackled the kids' rooms, big time. I did some reorganizing of toys, I unpacked anything that, ahem, should've been unpacked months ago, and I helped decorate. (I'll post pictures soon!)

So the upstairs is just about finished. One more bathroom to paint and a little more decorating to do...and I'll be able to call it done.

Sure does feel nice to have several more things marked off the to-do list!

How was your weekend???

Wordless Wednesday - Western Day

2010-01-27T06:47:00.000-06:00

Gold Party

2010-01-26T06:00:00.000-06:00

Have you heard about 'Gold Parties'?

You gather up your old, broken, out-dated gold stuff...or something from your ex-so and so...and you get your friends together to make some money.

Convenient, money-making fellowship, I'd say.

I had a broken ring, a couple of broken, tangled gold chains, a few earrings without mates and a necklace that hubby wore back in high school.

I made $290!

There were girls there who made $650 and $470...and I left before a few of the 'big stash' girls had their turn.

You might be able to take your gold to the refinery yourself...but who ever does that?

I was excited to take a few things that were just taking up space in the jewelry box and make a little cash.

Soo.....I might host a party. As the hostess, you provide a table and chairs near a power outlet, maybe a little grub for the guests...that's it. And you collect 10% of what is paid to your guests. Not that the guests lose 10%, but straight from the gold buyers.

A party where everyone leaves happy!

With more money in your pocket than when you arrived!

It's a win-win in my book!

Tina

Oh yea...I have a blog!

2010-01-25T10:31:00.002-06:00

I did not intend to go so long between updates...good grief.

I've been trying hard to stick to my new schedule...and the 'new' things that I put into that schedule have been my focus. Not the blog.

Bad blogger. Bad.

So let's catch up.

The family is great. We're all well...and as crazy as usual. January has been full of birthday parties and organizing.

My birthday is next week. So is my best friend's. We're hoping the husbands took our not-even-one-bit-subtle hint that we want a spa day. Mmm...massage...facial...pedicure. Mmmm.

I tackled my closet about a week ago. I don't believe there's anything in there that doesn't belong...certainly no more boxes! Hubby's closet is another story. (love you, honey!)

My to-paint list has become an obsession. There are three bathrooms left to paint...but I'm really only focused on two of them for now. The kids and I are about to go get paint!! I also want my office painted. It'll be a slate-ish blue...I heart blue! I've ordered a new bookcase/file cabinet for the office. I can't wait to be organized again. It's driving me so crazy that I got out the label maker, folders and stacks of paper to attack the mess this weekend. It's all filed neatly in a paper box just waiting for the new piece to arrive. An orderly office is in my future!

And then there's taxes...which I plan to blog about separately. Stay tuned...

Tina

According to my son...

2010-01-07T06:00:00.001-06:00

These are some very important people!

Luigi, Toad, Yoshi and Mario

Evan caught 'Mario fever' from my best friend's son. He's 5 years older than Evan and LOVES Mario...and so...with any time spent around him, a kid could be infected.

Evan got these figures for Christmas...the larger ones stand about 9 inches high...so they are almost like 'baby dolls' for boys. It is hilarious to watch him act out scenes from the game with these guys.

Oh yea. The game. For the Wii. I gave it to my HUSBAND for his birthday. It was dubbed 'daddy's new game.'

Everyday when hubby comes home from work, Evan (bouncing up and down) says "Dad, can we play your new game together??" It's cute. For the first three times. And then it's annoying!!

Mario has caused a great deal of male bonding around here...with Evan and my friend's son...and with Evan and his daddy.

It's sweet.

Really.

Who'da thought?

Tina

I'm trying to do better...

2010-01-05T06:00:00.001-06:00

I've made myself a daily schedule on an Excel spreadsheet.

And I think I'm more excited about it than I thought I'd be.

I'm getting up earlier. I'm getting back on a workout routine. I've built in Bible Study time. I have a window of work time each day. And for the first week or two, I'm going to shove a nap into the schedule because this will take some getting used to...but it's for the best.

I feel more productive.

I don't feel rushed.

I don't feel stressed.

I feel like I have time for things I need to be doing.

Sure there are LOTS of things to do...but they are more likely to get done if I can stick to this schedule.

Do you have a written schedule?

Do you need that kind of help for your day?

Happy Tuesday!

Tina

The Challenge: Are you in?

2010-01-04T06:00:00.000-06:00

We have had a new pastor at our church since October. He is bringing a lot of new energy to the church...it's really neat to watch.

But I don't want to just watch.

I want to participate.

He has challenged our church.

He wants us all to read through the entire Bible in 2010.

Sadly, I have never read the entire Bible. But I am on board!

Everyone is using this Bible:

With this Bible, you get an Old Testament reading, a Psalm, a Proverb, a New Testament reading and a devotional for each day...and it will get you through the Bible in one year.

I am very excited to read/learn things that I have never read or known.

I hope to gleen a lot of wonderful truths this year.

Would you like to join me??

I'm in.

Tina

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T08:54:00.003-06:00

Friends and Family - I pray that your 2010 is filled with many blessings!! Thank you for your friendship and love...it is a blessing itself!! Hugs to you all!

Happy New Year!

Tina

Wall Words for Wednesday

2009-12-30T06:00:00.000-06:00

Two little projects completed!!

Above our bed...

And in our bathroom...

I want to add some greenery, but nothing 'country', so I'm holding out for just the right thing. I'm also not exactly sure what I want to do with the window as far as a curtain/valance goes. Open to suggestions!! (I'm using greens in the sage family for accents...)

Ten on Tuesday - Christmas Gifts

2009-12-29T06:00:00.000-06:00

What we gave hubby for Christmas:

1. a Sharper Image Juicer

2. a bike stand for the garage

3. X-Men Triology

4. a Dog Bone wrench

5. a One Year Devotional book

6. Colts hoodie

7. Colts pajama pants

8. Apples to Apples

9. A chocolate orange

10. 6 Tuna pouches (LOL, hard to find flavored tuna that he likes...made a good stocking stuffer!!)

Out with Christmas, In with the New Year

2009-12-28T09:46:00.002-06:00

Christmas has been all packed away at our house...oh how I miss looking at my decorations. I really had fun with those this year. (and I'm wondering why we didn't purchase a pre-lit tree years ago...oh right...the whole moving thing...anyway, that really improved the process!) The house looks like we just moved in...time to get some things on these walls!

Christmas was great. The kids have new, exciting things to play with...and we have room for it! Evan got a power wheels Mustang that I bought two years ago on clearance. I've just been waiting for the right time to give it to him. He and Ella took off down the street and had a blast. They're not bad little drivers! Ella got a new kitchen which she has room for in her bedroom, so she's loving that. With all the odds and ends, they were two happy campers Christmas Day.

I'm looking forward to 2010.

I'm not making resolutions. Those are always broken.

I do have things I want to accomplish next year....so I suppose I have goals...I just can't call them resolutions!

Our new pastor has challenged us to read through the entire Bible...a big goal I really want to accomplish!

I want to get the house put together...with everything in it's place. If it doesn't have a place, it's gone.

I want to scrapbook again. (that'll be HUGE!)

I want to lose weight. Again.

I want to go to the beach.

I want to go snow skiing. (highly considering a ski trip between Christmas/New Years next year)

And we'll be celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary in August. (a good time to go to the beach, right honey?)

I believe that 2010 is going to be a great year! Bring it!

Merry Christmas!!

2009-12-24T06:00:00.000-06:00

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!

See you next week!!

Dear Santa -

2009-12-23T06:00:00.001-06:00

This is one evil world we live in. This world will lie to our faces and deceive us with false teachings of all kinds. I'm sure you can understand that it is my God-given job to protect my children. That protection includes my husband and I being two of the only people in this whole world that will ALWAYS tell our children the truth. About everything. No matter what.

Santa, it is our conviction that because you really don't exist, we'd be lying to our children to say that you do. Plain and simple....we just can't do it. We just DON'T do it.

Your face is everywhere...you're hard to ignore. Your songs are fun and your movies can be heart-warming...but you are no more real to our kids than Cinderella or Lightning McQueen.

Jesus is the reason we celebrate Christmas, Santa.

God sent His one and only Son to be the Savior of the world!!

He is the most important gift in the world...HE is the true magic of Christmas!!

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. Luke 2:14

Ten on Tuesday

2009-12-22T06:00:00.000-06:00

1. I love my dad...and he took yesterday's post VERY well! That old man! LOL

2. We went to our zoo last night to see their lights display. I thought it would've been better.

3. I am so happy that hubby was easy for me to buy for this year. And I didn't get everything I wanted to get for him.

4. I'm hosting Christmas Day at our house. A little unexpectedly, but it'll be fine.

5. I asked Ella one last time what she wanted for Christmas. She responded with the ONE thing I have avoided buying...simply because it's so similar to something she already has. But I 'need' one more gift for her...so I suppose her request will be fulfilled.

6. I have forgotten to get the kids' traditional stocking stuffer...new undies. It's on my list.

7. Hubby and I haven't wrapped gifts yet. It's not my favorite activity. I'm procrastinating. Big time.

8. I hope to start off the new year with a new blog design...something simple. Don't be shocked when you 'see' me on the 1st.

9. My car really needs a good scrubbin'.

10. I love my husband. Just so you know. :-)

Can't Resist, Dad....

2009-12-21T09:46:00.002-06:00

Happy Birthday, Dad!!!

I love you so much and I'm happy to call you dad.

Oh wait...

This is a big year, right?

OH!! That's right!!

You now qualify as a SENIOR CITIZEN!!!

WOW!!

Sorry to bust you out...but embrace your new discounts!

I love you!

Happy Birthday!!

Wordless Wednesday. Almost.

2009-12-16T12:16:00.003-06:00

**Playing on daddy's iPhone while laying in the big honkin' bath tub.**

A Christmas Project

2009-12-14T06:00:00.000-06:00

I love Christmas decor.

I don't love paying for Christmas decor.

Unless it's half-off at Hobby Lobby! :)

Anyway, a house down the street and around the corner has something a little different on it's front door. It's not a wreath...sometimes I like stuff JUST because it's different. And I like this. A lot. So I've been eyeballing it each and every time I drive passed it. And I think 'Oh yea, I could so make that.'

Between Hobby Lobby and Michaels, with nearly everything I needed being 50% off, I bought the items I needed to make my front door pretties.

An hour later, here are my creations!

I am so very pleased with how they turned out!!

More projects and pictures to come!!

Happy Monday!

It's time for you to meet...

2009-12-11T06:00:00.001-06:00

My hearth room...my new quilt...and my new friend.

My friend...she found me. Becky found my blog at some point and began commenting...very sweet words. I remember that she was always encouraging while we had our old house on the market...hers was on the market as well. We shared the 'stress-bond' of selling...yet we knew full-well that in God's time, we'd have our answers!

Sweet Becky is having a trying year...she could use your prayers...but she has a talent that keeps her busy. I visited her blog and what I found always made me smile. Becky can make quilts like it's nobody's business. I half-jokingly told her that she'd have to make me one someday...she didn't hesitate with a response of 'Sure, you just let me know when!'

Uh...NOW!! Yippie!

I told her that I'd love something for the new house...something I could see cozying up to the fire with. I gave her my colors...which may seem odd...but they are chocolate and red.

She chose fabrics after I pointed out two that I liked...and she got right to work. I don't think it even took her a month to complete it! AND...she named it the "Chocolate covered Cherry' quilt. Love it!!

You may want to have a peek at some of her work...she has even started her own store!!!

So...now I'll show you pictures of my new quilt and the space in which it resides.

Thank you, Becky! You are mah-vulous, dahling, simply mah-vulous!! God bless you!

Ah...there's the Chocolate-Covered Cherry...

I <3 my new quilt!

And...it's reversible!! (You rock, Becky!)

Wow...a fire!! We had a fireplace in our old house and NEVER lit it! Crazy people, we are!!

I plan to show you more rooms soon...stay tuned!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-12-09T06:00:00.000-06:00

Ten on Tuesday

2009-12-08T06:00:00.001-06:00

To Do this week:

1. Bible study for Wednesday.

2. Grab one more gift for hubby.

3. Start wrapping presents.

4. Clean out storage to be completely moved.

5. Remember to get cash to send to school for various reasons.

6. File my electronic work.

7. Paint tub niche in master bathroom.

8. Deliver no-sew blankets made for a friend.

9. Watch Biggest Loser finale.

10. Love on my babies.

What's on your to-do list?

Happy Tuesday!

Fuzzy insanity

2009-12-07T06:00:00.000-06:00

Regarding new carpet...mine, anyway...it's going to drive me crazy!

Fuzzballs are created just by the 'life' that happens in carpeted spaces.

And fuzz...

floats

all

around

the

house!

And it sticks to clothes. Seriously, I dress the kids and say "don't sit in your floor, in fact, just go downstairs away from the carpet!"

The vaccuum doesn't help. It is stuffed with fuzz..and creates more fuzz when you move it around the floors.

I'm looking for a solution...or at least something to ease the issue.

Hairspray? (ha, totally kidding)

A dog brush? (halfway kidding)

Shop-vac from the garage? (highly likely option)

When the fuzz stops, the new has worn off...and probably the 'clean' look.

Maybe I should just count my fuzzy blessings and move along.

(I heart my new house, by the way, and the fuzz problem is a minor issue in the grand scheme of things!)

Happy Monday!

I want my 'normal' back...

2009-12-04T07:11:00.003-06:00

This whole year has been crazy.

I've lost sight of things I used to do.

A big one?

Keeping track of money.

I used to keep spreadsheets of different things...I have totally abandoned my 'system'.

Yesterday we were helping some friends set up a spreadsheet similar to one of mine...and I missed mine. Probably sounds crazy...but I had this urge to get myself back to normal in this area.

So I came home and doctored three old spreadsheets.

I'm beginning to feel that normalcy return.

Sigh.

Now...on with the rest of this stuff that isn't normal yet!

Happy Friday!

I hope you have a wonderful/safe weekend...and if you're shopping, be safe!

Something

2009-12-03T06:35:00.002-06:00

"Please post SOMETHING!"

Ok.

Something.

Or do you prefer...

Something.

Or maybe...

Something.

Sorry. Couldn't resist.

- Christmas cards are done.

- Christmas tree is up and gorgeous. Seriously, it's my best tree to date.

- There is more to do around the house. Isn't there always?

- Off to the dentist.

- One of these days I'll be a better blogger. (New Years Resolution??)

Happy Thursday!

Thanksgiving was a success!

2009-11-30T06:00:00.000-06:00

I wrote out my menu.

I wrote out the cooking time and tempature for each item.

I wrote out what time I needed to start preparing each item.

With the exception of the dressing, everything turned out perfectly!

The dressing was a crockpot recipe which called for four hours of slow cooking...it did not get done. I probably should've checked on it more than I did and I could've turned it up, but we just popped it into the oven to finish it off and my sweet family ate it graciously.

My aunt and grandmother prepared the desserts...which were divine, as always...there was NO way I was going to tackle desserts...spoiling that part of the meal just isn't acceptable!

We played a few games after dinner, but not as many as we normally do...we did a lot of lounging and we thumbed through the sale papers...a really calm day...and sunny & beautiful! I didn't find anything in said sale papers that I couldn't live without...so I slept in Friday morning. We finally ventured out at about 2pm for a few things, but not 'hot' items. Also, Walmart was dead at 8:30pm when I went out for more things to go on my Christmas tree. I'm so happy I missed out on the crazy crowds of the early morning!

I'm so glad that we were finally able to host our family...and use the china that's been boxed up for so long.

How was your Thanksgiving!?

Getting ready...it's almost time for turkey!

2009-11-25T06:00:00.001-06:00

To host my first Thanksgiving ever!!

Our 'fine' china has been unpacked. You must understand that it wasn't packed away simply because we moved. It was packed up because that's how it was shipped to us 9+ years ago!! We have never used it!! It is very pretty. Not sure it's what I would choose now, but I do still love it and I can't wait to use it!!

I'm trying to plan out exactly what time I need to do what on Thursday morning...and I'm SO thankful that my hubby will be home to make us some 'real' mashed potatos and help with the children. It's going to be a great day!

I've been trying to think of a new tradition to start this year. Not that we will have Thanksgiving in our home every year from now on, but you never know. I have some things rattling around in my little brain so we'll see what really happens.

What about you? What are some of your traditions?

I previously mentioned that I would make the same foods we've had all my life, but different. I wasn't trying to freak my family out...I simply meant that they won't be family recipes. This whole hosting thing is a big enough deal without me trying to measure up to the better cooks in the family!!

Post-move progress

2009-11-23T06:00:00.000-06:00

We made a great deal of progress in the unpacking department Saturday.

Things piled in the 3rd garage were sorted and either shifted to the attic, donated or trashed. I really thought we had done a good job of purging while packing the old house, but I was WRONG!

I LOVE getting rid of stuff!

I have taken two loads of stuff to Goodwill/Salvation Army within three days...it feels awesome.

We did bring a few boxes into the house that will now need to be unpacked and put away, and since they've made it INTO the house, that should get accomplished really soon.

We are closer to getting the rest of our things out of storage...and I'm thinking that most of those things will have homes in the new house...we shall see...there may be some things that the 'Queen of Purge' may banish.

One thing I must get out of storage pronto...my China. It needs to be washed so it can be used for the first time ever on Thursday!!

Eek! Thanksgiving is almost here!! So much to do!!

Happy Monday!!

(please try to let it be a happy Monday...I know it can be hard!!)

***Pep talk is for me...if you benefit, so be it!***

Happy Birthday to my guy!

2009-11-20T06:00:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow is my husband's birthday...I love that guy!!!

I love him for so very many reasons....

Let me add two more...

- I love you because you were a rock during our home selling/building process. You super rock for educating yourself about mortgages and rates and blah, blah, blah. :-)

- I love you for painting, hanging curtains, pictures and a shelf and for having decorating sense beyond most men. You are the man!!

Happy Birthday, Babe!!

You mean the world to me and the kids!! Thank you for taking care of what God has given you!

Wow: I DID remember my login ID!!

2009-11-18T06:00:00.000-06:00

I suppose blogging has moved beyond the back burner for a while.

Longer than I meant for it to.

Not sure where to start to fill you in on all our happenings...so let's get random.

- The house is great. It's coming together more slowly than I'd like...we don't do enough in the evenings to get things together. I suppose it's just too tempting to sit on the new furniture and relax since we feel like we have been on a rollercoaster for most of the year.

- The kids' rooms have been painted and put together for the most part. I haven't gotten curtains put up just yet...soon I hope. I will post pictures before too long!

- About 3/4 of my Christmas shopping is complete because I was able to travel with my girls this past weekend for a shopping trip. It's an annual event and there were twice as many of us this year. We had a great time and got TONS accomplished!

- I ate at The Cheesecake Factory for the first time ever...it was wonderful! I'm really glad we don't have one here because it would be awfully tempting to go too often. The Fried Macaroni & Cheese ball appetizer is scrumptious...my entree was superb...and the cheesecake? All eight of us ordered a different cheesecake and we each tried them all. PERFECT way to go!

- I am hosting my very first Thanksgiving dinner this year...we finally have the room!! We will have the same foods my family is used to...only they won't all be prepared the 'usual' way. I hope it will be pleasing (not to mention edible!)

I hope you are all doing well...

Happy Wednesday!

Via iPhone

2009-11-09T07:49:00.002-06:00

We closed.

We moved.

We have lots of boxes to unpack.

And we still don't have Internet.

Maybe tomorrow.

Then I will feel normal again.

Hope you're all doing well...

God bless you!

Happy Monday!!

No way, Really?

2009-10-27T06:00:00.000-05:00

My 'baby' turns 4 today!

It's really just so hard to believe that 'toddler' days are over and here we are in the midst of 'preschooler-hood.'

My son...

Is a Gift from God.

Is handsome.

Is hilarious.

Is loud.

Is not a good listener.

Is a good snuggler.

Is a conversation piece. (you should join us for lunch or shopping...we will, without a doubt, get stopped to talk about his hair!!)

Is super smart.

Is curious.

Is loving.

Is brave.

Is a blessing.

Is my baby boy.

Forever.

Happy Birthday, Evan!

I'm so proud to be your mother...I love you!

Today!!!!

2009-10-26T07:37:00.002-05:00

God-willing, we will close on the new house in a matter of hours!!

While we were on our trip, several things came up that really had me doubting the timely close...but thank God we were able to resolve the issues with a ~~dozen~~ few phone calls.

We're getting the kids situated and then we're headed to the bank...

And by this afternoon...after a good hour of signing papers and developing a hand cramp, we will be *owners of a new home.

*actually, we are merely borrowers. It's God's house...He provided it and we are grateful!

Happy Monday!!!

Gone...

2009-10-22T06:00:00.001-05:00

...Bus-ridin'

to the mountains

for couple time

with the hubster

and a group

of thirteen other couples.

Catch'ya on Monday...the BIG DAY!! :)

Hubby thinks like a lady blogger....

2009-10-21T05:53:00.002-05:00

LOL

At least in regard to yesterday's post.

Thank you, ladies, so much for all the comments...there were several ideas for the cause of the problem...and a few possible solutions.

Anxiety = quite possible. Evan doesn't show much anxiety toward anything, that I've noticed. Maybe a big, furry spider, but he appeared to have taken all the changes of selling our old house and moving into an apartment very well...so I just didn't think of this one.

Bladder infection = I just don't think so. I could be wrong. From what I know, and have experienced, a bladder infection doesn't feel very good. There's pain and possibly blood in the urine...neither of these things have shown up thus far. I think I can rule this one out. (Thank you, Lord!)

Heavy Sleeper = most likely. It's gotten cooler around here and he snuggles hard in that bed...OR maybe it's because we have a lot going on and he hasn't been napping a lot lately. Maybe he's just flat exhausted at night and sleeping heavier than ever before...

Hubby had already said that when the kids are no longer sharing a room, ahem, when we move to the new house (NEXT WEEK!!). that we'd get Evan his own alarm clock so we could see if he'd get up to go on his own. But for now, hubby has gotten him out of bed the past couple of nights to make him go. And he does. And he goes right back to sleep.

So...hubby is on the same page as my lady readers...

I'll pat him on the back today! :)

Happy Wednesday!

Lil Help?

2009-10-20T06:19:00.002-05:00

Out of the BLUE...

My son has started having accidents at night. We've started limiting his drinking before bed, but really, he's still doing it. For about the past week or so.

This is so not good!

I'm completely open to suggestions, or just encouragement, from those of you who've been here.

Thanks --- and Happy Tuesday!

One more week!

2009-10-19T06:00:00.000-05:00

Wow...we are getting SO close to that new house!!

The house has a name...per se. We love the name of our street...I actually knew I wanted to live on that street from the moment I found it's name. Anywho, we call the house by the street name. We are constantly saying, "It's almost time for ___!!" or "X sleeps until we get ____!!"

We have had the best time watching our house go up from the ground up. The kids feel at home there already...Ella said so as she laid down in the master bedroom floor one day.

It makes us feel good. We believe that God has worked out each and every detail of this entire process.

And it's the little things, not just the big things.

We chose granite from the options they had in the showroom. We sort of went with the least ugly one...none of them were really to die for. But!! When our granite was installed, it was several shades darker...giving it a rich, cocoa/dark chocolate sort of feel. It's scrumptious, IMO.

The back door and garage door have blinds INSIDE the glass...no more mini blinds beating the doors to death as you open them. That wasn't a feature in the model home...just a cool little surprise for us.

The patio out back extends about 10 feet beyond the covered portion...didn't expect that.

It's all been amazing.

People say that building a house is stressful and can cause a lot of marital conflict.

Spsh.

We had a great time making selections...and now we are having a great time hearing that we chose some nice things.

So today...they are going to start sanding off the poly they had put down on the hardwood because when they tried to fix a spot and put new poly on it, it had a different finish. It will be redone to give the entire area a uniform look. Yippie!!

A good, thorough cleaning will be the only other thing desired before we move in...

NEXT WEEK!!!

Seven more sleeps and "_____" is ours!!

Counting Sleeps

2009-10-16T06:00:00.000-05:00

Not Sheep. Sleeps.

That's how we keep track of when important things are going to happen around here.

For example: Daddy used to travel a LOT...so each time, I'd make the kids a calendar counting down the sleeps until Daddy would be home. Each morning they would take turns marking through the previous nights' sleep.

Thought I'd share a few things we're counting sleeps for (although only one has a kid-marked calendar.)

2 sleeps until I get to meet our new pastor. (Ella had the flu when he came for the vote, so I missed meeting him)

3 sleeps until Ella is out of school on a weekday again...so I think I'll take the kids to see the 3D Toy Story movies...we love those!

6 sleeps until hubs and I get to leave town...with a bus load of friends headed to a couples' retreat in the mountains!

10 sleeps until we close on the new house and begin moving!!

11 sleeps until my baby turns 4...and each day he marks through his calendar while asking 'am I four yet?' or commenting 'this is taking forever!'

14 sleeps until we have to be out of the apartment! Although we can extend if need be, we WANT to be done b/c that means we're in our new home!

I don't typically keep track of ALL of those sleeps...but I felt that the list needed to be a little longer...

Are you 'counting sleeps' to anything important in your neck of the woods??

Happy Friday!

Wordless Wednesday - My Favorite Guys

2009-10-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

Birthday plans a'coming

2009-10-13T06:00:00.001-05:00

My son's 4th birthday is two weeks from today.

This will be the day after we close on the new house. It will be an extremely busy week with the move and the birthday and the deliveries of furniture and appliances and the painting.

I don't want the sweet boy to get lost in the shuffle. Since the children's first birthdays, we've had a family tradition of just the four of us going to Chuck E Cheese. We still plan to do this...but we're also planning another little something.

We plan to spend our first night in the new house on his 4th birthday.

In tents.

Pitched in the master bedroom.

With microwaved smores.

Creating memories of a new life in our new home...together.

On a very special little boy's 4th birthday...I'm so excited!

We will spend the next few days shifting apartment garage items into the house garage along with moving completely out of the apartment by the 31st.

It will be a crazy week...but we are going to love the memories!

Bargains, bargains, bargains!!

2009-10-12T06:00:00.001-05:00

We had a wonderful weekend of fabulous finds!!

Hubs and I went out on a quest for master bedroom bedding.

At Bed, Bath & Beyond, we did not find anything that we loved in the bedding department...however, there are tons of other wonderful things we'd love to have. One thing in particular was a pot rack to hang over the island in the new house. We found one on clearance for 20% off. We then asked a clerk if we could use a 20% off coupon for an additional discount...the answer? YES! Now we had to find a coupon....we'll come back later.

At Sears, the bedding selection was blah, so we mozied over to the appliances to measure the fridge we had purchased a month ago....just wanted to remind myself how big it was, really. We found that the 'deal' we had gotten was not the best deal. The fridge was on sale...over $200 difference!! We needed our receipt to get a price adjustment...we'll have to come back later.

We hit the Vera Bradley store...made a purchase...not a bargain...moving on! ha!

Back through Sears, hubs found a tie on sale...and some jeans. Young dude at the register rang up the tie...for $0.00. No questions, no investigation...he said 'guess it's free' and put it in the bag! Tell the truth...can you see a sweet older lady making that decision? "Oh my, I need to go check on this...it just can't be"...and twenty minutes later, you're paying something for the tie.

Cutting the long story a little short, we went back to BB&B and bought the pot rack for a total of 40% off. We went back to Sears and got over $200 back for the fridge. We hopped right over to JC Penney's where we found some lovely bedding that we both loved and the window treatments to match...which rang up for $5 less than we thought they would...AND we found a few coupons sitting at the register to save a total of $30.

There are plenty of things to buy for the house...but so far, we have gotten a deal on everything!

Furniture, our bedding, the kids' bedding, appliances and a pot rack...everything has been on sale or we've had a coupon. This is incredible.

May it continue!!!

Next up, a set of frames at Kohls...and I have a coupon!

A new friend, a new find

2009-10-09T06:00:00.000-05:00

I'm in a new Bible study this year...Bible Study Fellowship. I'm in a wonderful group of fellow mothers who share a common faith and want to learn more.

We had a gathering Tuesday night so we could get to know each other better and it was just lovely! I love meeting new people...and it's a bonus when I find out that they blog!!

So I have a new friend named Lindsey...and I fear that I may have spelled her name wrong.

Anyway, she mentioned that she's a blogger while we were talking about home decor. Then she mentioned a few blogs that she follows who have great, thrifty decorating ideas. Now, you all know about the new house I will soon have...which means I will have lots of decorating to do...therefore it must be on a budget.

I've explored these two new blogs and thought I'd share them with you...if only I could tell you how many things I now plan to try in my new house! I love these...hope you like them as well!!

Thrifty Decor Chick

Design Dazzle

***but if you tell me that you already read these and you haven't shared...you'll get 60 lashes with a wet noodle. I'm just sayin'!!***

It's so sad...

2009-10-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

...I'm absolutely NO good at keeping up with blogs anymore.

I used to read and comment on stuff everyday. But I just don't get around like I used to.

So...I'm going old school.

Some of you probably never went 'new school' with Google Reader...but I did...and I really think it has attributed to my lack of blog reading.

With Google Reader...it's super duper easy to subscribe to all of your favorite blogs...and the ones that belong to people who have made one comment on your blog in the two years that you've been blogging. OR...blogs of folks who haven't posted in FOREVER...why were THOSE still sitting there? I found that I racked up so many posts to read that I actually dreaded going to my reader because I'd have a mountain of things to read. It became a chore, really. I've done some housekeeping.

I love my friends in blogville, but I really had a LOT of stuff in there that belonged to people that I don't really even want to keep up with.

So I'm revamping my 'favorites'. I will watch for your new posts on my dashboard...but mainly I will go back to the way I did things when I first started...work my way down a list every day or so.

I'm really hoping that this will help me make 'rounds' to check on folks....

Wordless Wednesday

2009-10-07T06:43:00.002-05:00