10 Things To Do Today

My bloggy friend, Meredith, hosts a 10 on the 10th carnival. This is one of my favorite things about blogging. I have not been a very faithful blog reader or writer in the last few weeks (hoping to get back into the groove soon), but I didn't want this day to get by and not participate. So . . . .here it goes . . . my to-do list for today.

1. Work.

2. Pick up Ash's friend, Beth, and take kids to VBS.

3. Pack picnic lunch.

4. Pick up kids from VBS and go swimming. Meet friends at the pool.

5. Finish painting Hanna's bed.

6. Go get Hanna's mattress and 2 rocking chairs for my front porch.

7. Do 20 minute Pilate video and run 3 miles.

8. Call my sister Melissa and help her plan her homeschooling year. Call my MIL and check on her and see if she needs anything. She broke her foot.

9. Put up already folded laundry.

10. Cook breakfast for dinner (one of my favorite dinner items).

My Wordy Week

WORDS . . . they have the power to hurt. . . . the power to heal . . . the power to scar . . . . the power to love. After all the Bible gives us warning on the tongue and its power . . . its' power of life and death (Prov. 18:21). In James 3:5-10 the Bible gives us warning on how hard hard the tongue is to control.

Early in the week last week I had started thinking about WORDS. . . how flippantly we use them. . . how sincere or insincere we are when we speak them. Do we really mean the nice things we say. . . or just say them because they are the right or nice thing to say? What about the not-so-nice things we say? Do we speak them in a heated moment . . . later to regret it . . .or are they truly what we feel in our hearts?

Little did I know at the beginning of the week when I started pondering on these things, how significantly the words of other people would affect the middle of my week.

Last Thursday I had an office meeting at my real estate office. I'm really not very good at attending these things. But thankfully I have a broker who is very supporting of my homeschooling. He is super understanding. There are some new things going on in the company and I thought it would probably be a good idea to attend this meeting.

For the first time all week I had put on makeup and somewhat fixed my hair (it was pulled back). I had on a cute outfit, cute accessories, and my high heels. I was feeling pretty good about myself. I get into my meeting and my broker had some of the nicest things to say about me in front of everyone. His sweet WORDS really made me feel good.

After our office meeting I had an individual meeting with him about a transaction that was taking place between another agent and I. As he told me her WORDS, I grew really feisty and defended myself and explained my side of the story to him. There are times when I think the feist in me has died (which I don't like), but that day it was brought out alive in me. I was very respectful to my broker, yet the feist that I thought was dead had just been sleeping and it was now very much awake!!! I left my meeting with him still feeling good. His WORDS were very kind and respectful to me also. He just needed to know both sides of the situation.

As I was walking to my car I went to take my cell phone off vibrate and saw I had a new voicemail. I was secretly hoping it was this other agent to give me a counteroffer on the offer I put in for my clients. It wasn't. It was someone else who I love very much. His WORDS he left on this voicemail were hurtful and cruel. He was literally cussing me out. . . .over nothing!!! But, this is something I've had to deal with off and on for all of my life. Usually it sends me into a pool of tears, shaking, and an urgency to want to call him back and resolve the situation. . . . even if its not my fault. But this day . . . there were no tears . . . I really felt no emotion at all. In fact, for there not to be any tears brought on a feeling of freedom in my heart. But, the good feeling that I had as I left my office had gone. I just felt numb at this point.

I immediately deleted the voicemail and called my sister. Her WORDS were sweet, encouraging, and Godly. She and I will get through this situation together. . . as we always have . . . and only she can understand the feelings I had. As our conversation came to a close I felt a peace. I am a pretty emotional person so I don't like not feeling anything!!! The numbness was gone and peace came upon my heart.

The following day, the real estate agent involved in the transaction I had been working on gave me a call. At the beginning of our conversation her voice was peppy, sweet, and kind. After she told me the news regarding her seller the tone of her voice changed . . . and so did her WORDS. Now remember, this is the same situation yesterday that I was a ball of fire over. The 5-minute dissertation she said to me was clearly planned and rehearsed. As she started off talking my heart started racing, as I felt this attack of WORDS coming from nowhere. I thought the situation was resolved. I had already spoken with her earlier in the week, and she was nice to me then. But not this day . . . I felt like a boxer in a boxing ring . . . that they had called off the fight and I'm walking back to my trainer . . . and she comes up behind me swinging . . . and she was attacking me with WORDS concerning my integrity. She does not even know me!!!! She must have used this WORD, integrity, 5 or 6 times.

But, God was really good to me. As I had not prayed when she started her attack on me, I was just dumbstruck, totally unsuspecting. But God came to my rescue. He gave me such a peace in my voice. Now my heart was still racing 90 miles a minutes, but you would not know it by the tone of my voice. It was the kind of peace that only could come from Him. There were lots of WORDS I had in my mind that I wanted to say to her. But God closed my mouth with these WORDS. I couldn't get them out.

Instead I spoke very calmly and peacefully to her. I explained things from my point of view. If I would have matched the tone of her voice, this would have quickly turned into a cat fight of WORDS.

I left the conversation feeling a lot of peace of how I. . . I should say. . . how God handled the situation for me. On a side note . . . and a funny note. . . I did think about sending her a gift card to Bruster's saying "I hope this helps you cool off." But, I know that wouldn't be the right thing to do. Jon and I got a good laugh off of it though (and so did Steph and Barry)!!!

Isn't it AMAZING how WORDS affect the way we feel about our situations in life, how we feel about ourselves, how we feel about others? This makes me more mindful and more purposeful on how I use my WORDS . . . the way they should be used . . . to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15) . . . to build others up and to encourage others(1 Thess 5:11) . . .to love one another (1 John 4:7-8) . . . . even those who use their WORDS to hurt our feelings or tear us down or attack our character.

Thank you for reading about my very WORDY post about my very WORDY week. I just want to encourage anyone who reads this post to please be very conscious of the things you say. They mean something . . . whether you want them to or not. Little ears and big ears are around . . . . listening to the things we say . . . and they are being affected by them. . . . and so are we who speak them.

Have a blessed Sunday!!!

Rainwater Creek

A couple of weeks ago here in Georgia, we got a monsoon of rain. We peered out our window one afternoon and we had a little creek in our yard. We were so excited!!!!

I told the kids we had to name our little creek. Alec came up with Rainwater Creek.

I liked it since we only have it when it rains . . . makes sense?!?

The girls had to go and out and explore.

I went on the porch, and it was at that point I realized the porch is covered (is that an indicator or what of how much we've been working and not sitting?). I can actually sit outside while it rains . . .and not get wet.

I've always told Jon in our final house I wanted a screened-in porch. The kind that gives you the feeling of being outside, yet not wet when it rains. I just love to listen to the rain. . . . it is very soothing and peaceful and calm. I even like thunderstorms (not heavy winds though).

When I went out onto the porch I realized this was just as good, if not better than a screened-in porch. I can watch my kids play in Rainwater Creek now and not have to even get wet!!!

And to think . . . I said NEVER!!!

"Never, ever, never will I NOT wear a 2 piece swimsuit."

"It makes me feel young."

"I work hard for how I look."

"I want my husband to KNOW he has the best lookin' wife at the water park."

"I love it when people say to me I don't even look like I've had even 1 baby, much less 3."

Yes . . . confession is good for the soul. The above quotes are things I have said outloud, and, if I haven't said them outloud . . . I am very much ashamed that I have thought them . . . many times.

For as far back as my memory goes my stomach has always seen Mr. Sunshine during the summer. Even when I was preggo with Hanna, when there was no one at the pool we join, I'd pull up my 2-piece maternity bathing suit and get some sun on my belly.

I have always said that swimsuit shopping is not fun for any woman. . . whether you are a size 2 or a size 22. We, as women, have branded ourselves to find things about our bodies we dislike. For me, it is my small chest size . . . just keepin' it real folks!! But other than that I have always loved the way I looked in a 2 piece.

So, why in the world, would I have bought a tank top swimsuit this year. Yes, it is still a 2-piece, but my stomach is covered. I look like I have on more than just a thick material version of my bra and panties. Why? It is called conviction. Conviction of the very truest sense. . . the deep down in my heart kind of conviction.

Now every summer my girls always want a 2-piece like their mom. Jon will not allow it. I've always kinda stayed out of this argument they've had with him over this. I just felt hypocritical telling them they can't wear something that I'm wearing myself. Jon would tell me, "You are a grown woman. You can do what you want. They are little girls, and they are not going to wear a bikini. The tank top 2 pieces are fine, but nothing that shows more skin than that."

Okay, 'nuff said. I cared more about the way wearing a bikini made me feel more so than being a good example to my girls.

That is . . . . until about 2 months ago. I've been doing an extremely in-depth Bible study on Daniel since January. God has given me a ferocious appetite for His word through this study, and He has changed my heart in places I didn't even know needed changing.

The study of Daniel is broken into 2 parts . . . 1) being IN the world but not OF the world 2) prophecy. During the first part of the study God started dealing with me about modest dress. I dress pretty modestly. Don't get me wrong . . I will accessorize like crazy, but when I wear a halter top it has a shirt under it that covers my shoulders. I am 5'8" so finding shorts is rather hard for me. I wear the knee-length shorts or jeans (even in the hottest of the Southern heat). But the Holy Spirit really got to me when He started addressing the issue of my swimsuit.

Ouch, it hurt. But I realized and I cared way down deep in my heart . . . that I am setting a poor example to my girls about how they should clothe themselves . . . even in a swimsuit. My son is on the verge of puberty, as are most of his friends . . . I always thought I wanted to be known as the "pretty mom." God has changed my heart. I now want desperately to be known as the "mom who aggressively pursues the very heart of God." I told God this was going to be extremely hard for me . . .to give up my bikinis . . . weird maybe? But it is something I have always symbolized with youth . . . a word our culture cleaves to. I told God He was going to have to help me not cave in and wear them this summer . . . that I needed Him to keep after my heart about this issue . . . and I asked Him over and over again to not let me ignore this conviction of His Holy Spirit.

As I would talk to God about my bikini and ask for His forgiveness of my immodesty, He began to show me things I had never even realized before. Like .. . . a bikini is no different than my bra and panties . . . just thicker material. I am showing the world a sexy middrift that should only be kept private between my husband and I. Why in the world would I want to expose myself in this way? Who knows, God could have been telling me this for years? It just took me this long to get it through my hard head.

So before summer began, I went to my kids and talked to them about what God had been doing in my heart. I told them I had been wrong wearing a bikini all of these years. . . . that I was dressing inappropriately and immodestly.

Now, please don't think I judge those who wear skimpy bikini bathing suits. Judgement is the last thing you'd get from me in this area. . . .after all I was just there.

I have a very cute tankini that I am sporting this year. My tan line will be different this year and for the years to come. No longer will those around me see my middrift. . ..

. . . . and to think. . . I said NEVER!!! Never say never. . . . especially when God captures your heart and gets ahold of you!!!

Scattered Brain Mom Trying to Remember

Okay, if you've read my blog for any length of time, you know how much I love pictures. While I'm a visual kind-of girl, pictures take time to load . . . time I'm just too lazy to put into the ol' blog right now. I have pictures to document all the things I'm going to bullet out here (this is written just so when I go back to scrapbook I'll remember). Anyhoo . . . .

• Our first night in our house was Mother's Day. For the first time EVER Ash and Hanna have their own room. We were placing bets to see who would end up where . . . They all started out in their own rooms. When I got up the next morning, Hanna was wrapped up in her comforter outside of Ash's bedroom door. . . So very, very sweet. The sisterhood is such a special relationship and I'm so glad my girls have one another. There is NOTHING like a sister!!! She told us later she got scared, but didn't want to bother Ashley. Night #2 all of them camped out in Alec's room. He actually wanted the girls in there, which was HUGE!!! He admitted to being a little scared himself. We've gone from 2200 square feet to 3300 . . . so it is an adjustment . . . for all of us.
• By the sweet grace of God we sold our other home. We originally had it rented out. The girl who was going to rent it could not pay what we needed her to. An agent from my real estate office called me one day (as I was painting the new house) asking to show my house (not ONE person had even looked at it since it's been on the market). I told her it was trashed. . . she said, "don't worry about it. Yours is not their favorite one anyway." So I wouldn't be the talk of the office . . . having a dirty house and all . . . I hurried home, push dirty laundry in the tub/shower, etc., stuffed everything I possibly could stuff under beds, put dirty dishes in the oven, microwave, etc. I had one last thing to do . . . vacuum the floor . . . they pulled up . . . I apologized for the floors being dirty . . . they looked at the house. . . I answered their questions. . . they put in an offer . . .. bada bing . . . bada boom . . . the house closed 3 weeks later. TOTAL GOD THING . . . I'm telling you!!! It was truly the easiest real estate closing I've ever experienced. The house that was their favorite was outside of the area in which their lender would lend them money . . .it was the type of loan they were using. . . Praise God for that!!
• Last week we took a field trip to the Atlanta Aquarium. The extra bonus was Jon went with us. It was a wonderful time!! We all had so much fun. The food was expensive though. . . $60 for pizza, french fries, and chicken fingers. . . but whatdoya do? The otters were our favorites . . . such personality those little guys have!!! We got to pet sting rays, sharks, sea anemone. Hanna was super hesitant about doing this. Towards the end of our time she said she'd go and do it . . . that chicken head . . . she hardly even put her fingers in the water. She gave us all a good laugh though.
• Last night I had a girls' night out with some great friends of mine. It was so much fun!!! We went to this new seafood place in town. My food was good, but the place is still trying to work out some kinks. We all laughed so hard. Then we went to see a play of Steel Magnolias. It was so very funny. The lady who played Wheezer was H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S! A fun night out on the town with my girlfriends always puts a pep in my step. We had to go back to the restaurant after the play to pay for our food (they couldn't get our checks out in time before we had to go). They were cleaning the place up. The owner looked at me and said, "You look like Jennifer Aniston." "Thank you, thank you," I said. Who wouldn't want to be told they look like Jennifer Aniston?!?. Honestly I was on cloud 9 (hee-hee). When I got home everyone was in bed. I had this note on the floor on top of a book that said, "Open Me." Inside was another note that said, "Good night. We love you. Ashley and Hanna." Oh my girls have the sweetest little hearts! Sometime during the middle of the night Ash came into my room and kissed me on the cheek as I was sleeping. She crawled in the bed beside me and I snuggled up next to her. This morning I asked her if she did this just to make sure I got home okay. "No Mama. I just HAD to come and see you." This girl is my biggest cheerleader, my super encourager . . . always!!!
• I have finally gotten back on a regular exercise routine. Exercising is my happy juice and when I'm not exercising my endorphins die. I'm so grateful to be somewhat getting back into a routine.
• The pool is opening up next week and I'm so excited!!! The pool we've joined for the last 7 years is about 30 minutes away from our new house. We joined a new one (much closer) with my friend, Suzanne, who has been a member there for years. I am so excited b/c this pool has a diving board and is in the shape of an L (so it is extra big). The one we've gone to in the past was just a plain pool (we loved it though). I will miss my old "pool friends" (friends that I only see during the summer). But, I am superdedooper excited about hanging out at the pool with my "all the time friends." (friends I see all the time . . . the same friends I went out with the other night).
• The kids and I are starting back school next week. Yes, we will have some summer school this year. We got too far behind with the move. I'm actually anxious to get back started.
• We did not get cable at our new house. For a long time now Jon has been wanting to get rid of our cable, but just could never bite the bullet because he's a huge sports nut. I never would have considered us big TV watchers before, but it has been GREAT not having cable. . . even Jon says so. We spent a lot more time together talking and playing games. We spend extra time at the table after dinner just talking and goofing off. I don't care too much for TV anyway, so I really love not having it.
• Has anyone heard of Ooma? It is a phone service where you pay a one-time fee of $200 -$240 and then you never have another phone bill again. We just got ours, and we love it. The only problem would be if they went out of business. Jon hates monthly payments (and after being together so long, I do too), so anything to take away another monthly payment is AWESOME in our house.
• We got rid of our English bulldog, Max. He stunk. He was aggressive. His shedding was horacious. We just didn't want him in the new house. Bulldogs are high-maintenace dogs and have to be kept cool. In the South this means they must be inside. Now Max is my first dog love, and I loved him dearly, but I didn't want him stinkin' up my new house. He went to a great guy. In fact, several other people called about him and we were uneasy about them. This guy we knew would love and take care of Max and treat him like he should be treated. We took $400 less for him from our asking price . . .that is how good we felt about this guy. There were many, many tears the night he left.
• We did get a new dog . . . a Bichonpoo (half Bishon, half poodle). His name is Cookie. Hanna got to name him b/c she spent the most time with Max. He is precious and he has captured all of our hearts. When we first got him and went into Pet Smart I would not allow myself to get too excited. I actually felt really, really bad. I told Jon I felt like I was cheating on Max. I'm big about being loyal and I just felt like I was being disloyal to Max especially giving him up for a small dog that doesn't shed and doesn't stink. Jon assured me that I was not being disloyal. I shook off my bad feelings and just got plain giddy over Cookie.
  

I think that's it for now. Knowing me . . . there'll be a few more addendums to come . . . things that I'll remember as I lay my head down to go to sleep.

Hello . . . .

I've missed you bloggy world. As you probably know by now I haven't blogged lately, nor have I been reading blogs.

I love lots to say, but so much has been going on. . . .when I sit at the computer. . . . I have to fight myself not to fall asleep.

Hopefully tomorrow I will be back in action. I can't wait to read and find out what you all have been doing.

So . . . . until tomorrow morning . . . as my good buddy, Tigger, says, "TTFN. . . tata for now!"

Moving Day

My parents came last Saturday to help us move all of the heavy furniture. My Dad is the muscle of the family, so we desperately needed him.

Jon compared the 2 of them moving to Popeye and Olive Oyl. Guess which one is Jon? He was cracking me up!

Mama worked so hard . . . the next morning she called me and told me she could hardly get out of bed. She said her calves and triceps were so sore.

Here's Hanna's contribution to the move . . . carrying a couch cushion . . .

This was Max's contribution to the move . . . he's such a hyper dog we had to tie him up. If we would have let him roam free he would have either been chasing a duck from the pond or a neighbor's dog.

This was Alec's contribution to the move . . . taking pictures of himself . . .

As we walked up and down the stairs . . . the tune of "upstairs, downstairs, giddy-giddy squat" kept playing in my mind. . . except we didn't get to giddy-giddy squat.

Here's my contribution to the move . . . carrying stuff out to 'Noah's Ark'.

Every time we've ever moved I feel awful about how much junk we have.

We headed over to the new house and I left everyone there to unload. I packed up the kids and we headed to Ashley's end-of-the-year soccer party. I guess maybe this was her contribution to the move -FUN!!! Just like Ash to add a little fun in the mix for all of us.

Her coach will always describe each girl before he hands them their trophy. He never says their name while he describes them. It is always so much fun, as the girls try to all guess who he is talking about.

This is what he said before giving Ashley her trophy. . . "I have this rabbit that I see everyday when I pull up my driveway. There is many a day when I want to try and catch this rabbit. I know though that I'm not fast enough. However, there is one girl that I think might could just give him a run for his money . . . "

These girls have played many seasons together. This will be the last one that they will all be together. It has been so much fun seeing these girls grow together . . . both on and off the field. . .

One last, "Go Lady Fury"

I get back to the new house and everyone is pooped. We start discussing dinner plans. We take them out to Mom's favorite barbecue. It is Jon's favorite too. I'm not a huge barbecue girl, but I love the atmosphere of this place. It is all thing southern. . . . a good warm feeling of family and togetherness. . .

Here we are at the end of dinner. We were all so stinkin' tired. Can't you see it in our faces?

Somebody . . . .

Please tell me. . .

Please help my insecure feelings of mothering 3 children . . .

And wondering how I am doing . . .

Please let me know that things like this happen in your home . . .

Wondering what I am talking about?

Scroll back up and look at Ashley's feet. The child only has 532 pair of shoes.

. . . I tried to be kind.

. . . I tried to be sympathetic.

. . . I tried to be understanding that we have been going back and forth between 2 houses for 3 weeks now.

. . . but she ALWAYS does this . . . even when we lived at one house . . . all the time. . . and life was normal . . . and not so crazy . . . and busy. . .

We took my parents out Saturday night for Mother's Day. We get to my Mama's favorite Barbecue place . . . Ash then lets all of us know she doesn't have any shoes!!!

Hello!!! The kid is 8, not 3. She does this all the time.

After we fussed at her, Jon took off his socks and threw them at her. She put them on and cried . . . .a little. . . because she was embarrased about having to wear socks instead of shoes . . . then she asked Papa if he would carry her. Thank goodness for Papa!!!

No, I promise we are not redneck. . . just a scattered-brained family of 5 who was tired . . . and hungry . . . and no longer cared what anyone thought if they saw our 8-year-old parading around in a pair of socks that were way too big for her.

On Your Mark. . . Get Set . . . Go

Jon and I have started off race season (what we refer to as running 1 race a month together) with the same run I beat him in last year. Yes, the one and ONLY race I have ever beat him in. I bragged about it for an entire month!!! The next race, he kicked my booty and has been doing so ever since.

I was really hoping I'd pull out another win on him. But with all of our moving I haven't been exercising like I normally do and neither has he . .. that is why I thought I had a shot at a possible win over him.

I normally place in my age group, but I had doubts that I would place this time . . .

Well, I didn't place in my age group because . . . with a time of 24 minutes and 41 seconds I was the first woman to cross the finish line!!! I was SO EXCITED!! I'm so glad the fast people stayed at home and slept in. This has been a goal of mine for awhile. I couldn't believe it.

Normally I like to be in the 23-minute range, but I had told Jon on the way to the race that as long was in the the 25-minute range I'd be happy especially with the lack of training I'd put into it.

For the first 2 miles Jon and I ran together. I was listening for all the right signs to try and pass him . . . heavy breathing, quick breaths, gasping for air. I heard it . . . but it wasn't from Jon . . . it was right under my own nose. I was the one that started slowing down after mile 2. He kept his same pace and came across the finish line at 24 minutes 6 seconds. DERN!!!

They normally give a prize to the overall winner (which most of the time is a man) and the first woman finisher. I ended up with this insulated cooler filled with all sorts of goodies.

There was someone there from our local newspaper and he asked Jon if he wanted to be interviewed. Jon told him, "No, but she'll talk to you." Of course I would, and I did. I was so pumping myself . . . telling him how I was the first girl to cross the finish line, telling him all about my shoes (which I mentioned FIRST. . . they guy didn't even notice them). I was talking so fast he couldn't keep up.

He did mention me in the paper . . . in about a sentence and a half . . . simply stating my name, my time, and that I was the first girl to finish. He quoted me as saying, "I was the first girl to finish. It was great."

He didn't even mention my shoes!!!

Summing it up in Pictures

So little time . . . so much to say. This post could really be 4 separate posts, but I have so much to say and document (this little bloggy thing is my journal) So, I'm going to try to make this as quick as I can.

Thank you all for your sweet comments on Jon's birthday post. His day was great and around here we tend to celebrate birthdays all week long.

After he got back from his run on Tuesday the kids were anxious to give him his present from them before they left for homeschool school.

Know what they got him? 100 ink pens. He gets so frustrated because he can never find an ink pen around here, so they gave him 100 ink pens. From all of us, we chipped in and got him a Blue Ray DVD player (his eyes are in hog heaven now).

We went to our favorite Mexican restaurant to have lunch. It was extra festive because of Cinco de Mayo.

Here's a pic of Jon and his sweet Dad(who is doing better, BTW, but please still keep him in your prayers)

Me and my Mexican princess.

When Jon went to the bathroom I let our waitress know it was his birthday. . . .

That night Jon's parents came over and we had birthday cake and ice cream (for dinner). Awful I know, and I feel terribly guilty . . . my kids have been feasting on junk food for way too long now. I think when they actually get a real fruit or vegetable in them . . . their little bodies may go into shock!!

Thursday we headed with some of our homeschool friends to the Renaissance Festival. We had fun. It was one of those things that you are glad you had the chance to do, but wouldn't go back. We really did have fun though.

Here is the village liar knighting Alec with a blade of grass.

This picture is just precious to me, so I had to post it. It is Hanna and her BFF, JuJu. These girls are so precious together. Notice how their arms are locked together.

Alec and Ash duked it out with pillows on the log roll. Ash won. I'm tellin' ya, she is a feisty little thing!

See the pink furry hat? That is Hanna.

Friday night Jon's parents took Jon and I, his brother Lee and Lee's wife, Amy, to a nice little place to celebrate all the May birthdays (Lee and Amy have May birthdays too). We had lots of fun and the food was wonderful. . . the company was even better.

Shoot!!! . . . I had a great picture of Lee and Amy, but I accidentally deleted it as I was typing this thing out. I haven't figured out how to get my pictures in order on this bloggy thing. Oh well. . . .

Here is a picture of the yummy cake

Mother's Day was great and I really wish I posted this one by itself. Too little time and too many words though .. . .

We all slept in our living room because it was the last night in our old house. It is really torture sleeping with the kids because you feel like knives are sticking in your back all night long. . . you are beaten and battered by their feet kicking you. . . But it was worth it . . . especially when I wake up and I hear the following:

Ashley: "Daddy, we need to go and get Mama something for Mother's Day. I'll wake up Hanna and Alec. Let's go out the backdoor so we don't wake Mama up (all our doors but our back door dings when you open them)."

I pretended to stay asleep until they left. Most women would be so mad that they waited until the last minute. This doesn't bother me at all. . . because I know they put thought into what they get for me . . . . and . . . at least they remember without me reminding them. . . . even if it is the morning of the occasion. Plus, I'm last-minute at heart too. . .

The house was quiet. I fed Max, read my Bible, and about the time I was about to get into the shower to get ready for church, my crew came barreling through the door with . . .

cookware. . . . I was so EXCITED!!! Most would think, "What in the world?" You see, I have been so excited about my new kitchen since I first laid eyes on it. When I post pictures of what I've been cooking in and what I get to cook in . . . you'll know why.

I've never really had any nice cookware. . . so my family splurged and indulged me. I couldn't wait to use it.

We went to church with Jon's mom, then took her out for lunch, then came back to the new house.

Here is a picture of my favorite Mother's Day gift E-V-E-R!!!

Three wonderful kiddos who make life so much fun!

Jon and I were beat. We were so tired the kids could have literally set the house on fire and we wouldn't have known it. Apparently Hanna played around with the camera while we were sleeping, because look what downloaded onto my computer . . .

Dog tired we were!!!

We finished up the day working on the house. Jon's parents came over with cake and ice cream. It was a wonderful day!

I need your help

Okay . . .this Saturday my dad and my aunts are throwing my grandparents a 60th anniversary shin-dig. I have NO idea what to get them!!!

So, any ideas out there?

Honestly I don't want to spend a lot of money and I don't have a lot of time to make them something thoughtful. Tough one, huh?

If it requires ordering something I don't have a lot of time.

Usually I do wait until the last minute. However, stuff like that runs through my blood. Know when I found out about this shin-dig? Friday afternoon. I barely had a week to get something together. We are moving, packing, unpacking. . . trying to manage 3 children . . . blah!blah!blah! Therefore, all of my brain cells, creativeness, thoughtfulness are sleeping right now.

Please help a sista out and throw LOTS of ideas at me.

Thanks y'all!

10 on the Tenth

In honor of Mother's Day I am going to tell 10 things I love most about my Mom.

1. She will drop anything and everything to help me out. If I am sick she will take the day off work and come and take care of me. Not only will she come and take care of me she will clean my house, fold my laundry, and cook a good ole' Southern meal for us. If I ever need her to keep my kids she will take the day off work . . . even if it is just for me to play and have some fun.

2. She is so much fun!!!! She makes me laugh and I just really love her company. She's the type of Mom that I am glad my friends know. She's so much fun to just hang out with.

3. She is a worker bee, and I'm so glad to be apart of her hive. She is such an awesome example of serving others. She works nonstop and constantly. Wonder where I get this from? Thank you Mama!!

4. She's a giver. I've told the story on here before about how we didn't have very much money growing up. One time she bought a complete stranger's lunch for him at KFC. This was not a one-time, isolated incident. She's done so many other caring and thoughtful things. She won't let me tell though 'cause she likes to not let her right hand know what her left is doing (Matthew 6:3).

5. She is the world's greatest Nanna. I'm not being cheesy here, trying to sound like a statue I bought as a souvenir on vacation. She really is. Other than Jon and myself, I don't know of anyone else in the whole wide world who loves my kids more than my Mom does. She loves them with such a very special, indescribable love. No one loves them like their Nanna. She's so funny. After I had Hanna is when she changed the spelling of Nana to Nanna . . . just like her Hanna.

6. She is my biggest cheerleader. She is always the first person I want to call when something exciting is going on!!! I know I will always have her excitement and encouragement.

7. She shoots it straight. You never have to know what Mama is thinking 'cause she'll tell ya! She's honest too! These are all good things that I really appreciate about her.

8. She is the BEST cook in the whole world. Mama's house is my very favorite place to eat!!!

9. She always puts family first, ALWAYS!!! No one messes with her family . . . . she will get them if they do! She'll protect us, fight for us, and defend us all the way 'til the end.

10. Even though I know she wishes she could 'turn back the hands of time' and do things differently when we were children, I still admire her very much. I know she did the very best she could with what she had. She's a survivor!!!! She's one of my biggest heroes, and I don't know what I'd ever do without her. In my eyes she is the best Mom ever. I'm so very glad she's mine!!!

I love you Mama. I hope your Mother's Day is great. I can't wait to start putting some elbow grease into your house. It will be lots of work done with lots of love from people who love you lots!!!!

There is nothing in this world like being a Mom or having a Mom. Mother's are a special gift from God. I think no matter how old we get we always need our Mamas. I'm so very blessed to have one who loves with me a fierce, unconditional, uncompromising, self-sacrificing love!!! Thank you Lord for my Mama!!

Funny Girl

Hanna definitely is the baby of the family and loves to make us all laugh. That little thang is just like her Daddy. . . . she has his quick wit and humor. . . two peas in a pod the two of them are.

Sunday night I tried a new recipe, ranch potatoes. It wasn't very good. Hanna said, "Where'd you get this recipe, from the yucky taste bugs?" I think she meant to say "buds".

That same night Gigi brought over a shirt for Alec. The shirt had a story behind it about some kids that lived in Uganda. I told everyone, "Oh, I just love anything with a good story behind it." Hanna said, "Oh, I just love anything with a good naked behind it." (she said this as Alec was putting the shirt on)

Girls, Girls, Girls

Two Fridays ago I took Ash and went with some of my girlfriends and their daughters to dinner and a movie. We had a GREAT time!!!! I knew it would be so cool for Ash to go out with some of her Mom's friends and their girls (whom she is friends with also).

All these Yo-Yo's piled in "Noah's Ark," which was an awful mess. I made them promise me they wouldn't tell a soul how messy our car was. You guys know I got a picture, but I don't know if my friends would care whether or not their girl's picture was on the Internet, so I wanna be respectful and all. It is a cute picture though.

We went to see the Hanna Montana movie. I've never been a big Hanna Montana fan, but then we don't watch a whole lot of TV either. I have to say this movie was GREAT! I would actually rather my kids see this movie than High School Musical. It had a lot of great truth in it. We will definitely buy it when it comes on DVD.

Ash sat down on the other end from me with her friends. There was one part in the movie where Miley was remembering her mother. She is looking a picture of she and her mother when she was little. Her Grandmother walks in the room and they talk about her Mom. Ash came all the way down the aisle and sat in my lap. I knew what was going on in the heart and mind of my "Mama's girl." She had such compassion for this girl in the movie who was missing her Mom. Such a sweet moment it was.

Thanks Yo-Yos for such a fun, fun night!!!

On Tuesday I headed out for a girls' lunch with my Hanna Boo. I am not a fan of Chinese food. Always loved it until I got preggo with Hanna. My family will go out and eat it when I'm not around. Since being preggo with Hanna I have lost my love for Chinese food and all its MSG.

Hanna begged me to take her out for Chinese. I teased her and told her since she was the one who made me not like it, maybe she'd be the one who'd help me like it again.

This little girl was so giddy and jolly and peppy . . . even one of the waiters said, "She likes to come and eat Chinese, no? She happy to be here."

It was actually pretty good. I enjoyed being with this sweet thing much more though.

I just love being a Mom . . . the good, the bad, and the ugly. I wouldn't have it any other way. The one-on-one time I've had with each of my kids lately has been just plain wonderful!

Homeschool Conference

Oh me, Oh my . . . the homeschool conference this year totally blew me away. I got so many good deals. I'd love to make a list of every.single.book. I bought. . . but not enough time for that. This year we will be study the time period of 1850 to modern times. Therefore, all of our literature we will be reading is from that time period. I bought the original classics for Alec, as he is a super-strong reader. But, for Ashley, I had to buy the same books, but on a 3rd grade level. I want her to be able to read independently also. We'll be reading books like The Call of the Wild, Peter Pan, Laura Ingalls Series, The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, Anne of Green Gables, Little Women and many, many more. So, this summer I will be drenching myself in reading Alec's classical literature books so I will be a prepared teacher. I'm so very, very excited. Books just make me plain giddy. Most of these books I spent anywhere from $0.50 to $2.00.

Here are a few of my other deals.

Alec's Saxon Math - I got the DIVE CD which is a teacher that actually teaches him Math on the computer. Can I get a yippee skippee from anyone out there? I DO NOT want to have to relearn Pre-Algebra/Algebra to teach it to my kid . . . lazy, I know. . . I got the teacher book, student book and DIVE CD all for $67. This would normally cost me about $120-150 brand new.

Alec's Apologia General Science - teacher and student book I got for $20. Brand new this would cost me anywhere from $50-80.

Although we will be reading classical books for literature I did get Ashley a Bob Jones literature textbook for $3.00. I thought the stories in this book would be great for pleasure reading. I've done Bob Jones literature in the past, and I really liked it.

I got Hanna a 1st grade reading text book too for $2. I think alot of the short stories in this book will be so good for her to improve her reading skills.

I got LOTS of Adventures in Odyssey. These are awesome. Since we aren't big TV folks (i.e., no TV in the car, very little here at home), my kids love these stories. They teach great Biblical truths and are very entertaining.

I also got some "Your Story Hour" CDs. . . they tell stories of different historical figures. . . George Washington, Eleanor Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, etc. . . and dramatize them. Good stuff folks, good stuff. I really love to listen to things like this with the children as I am cooking dinner. Alot of times they will draw or color as we listen to them together. I think I enjoy them just as much as the kiddos.

Here are the 2 suitcases I filled up full of books.


Here are the kids in our new house in what will be a homeschool room checking out all the things Alec and I bought.

I'm so glad they all love books.

I'm so ready for this school year to be over. . . yet, I can't wait for next year. Weird, huh?

The only thing I have left to buy is our Bible curriculum, Shurley Grammar for both Alec and Ash, and a time line for history. I am bound and determined to order it before June though . . . that way I'm not last minute like usual.

I say every year that I want to go and hear the speakers. I've never done this. Maybe next year?

I love meeting new homeschool moms. I met this one mom who helped me decide on the Math to do next year. Another mom I met as we were sorting through our books . . . we talked about classical literature and she reminded me to not forget the library. I saw several Amish/Mennonites. These people fascinate me, and I would love to sit down and have a cup of coffee or 2 with them. I wanted to take their picture, but I know they don't appreciate things like that, and I wanted to be very respectful.

Homeschoolers certainly have a stereotype. I will say I did not see the first woman in a denim jumper . . . although I did see some with hair pulled up in buns. I saw this really cute mom decked out in a cute shirt, a great pair of jeans, some great accessories, a cute pair of high heels and a super-cute boy with her . . . oh wait, that was me!!! Just kidding. . . most of the moms there were cute moms. . . normal moms . . . just like the rest of us. You don't have to wear a denim jumper, no makeup or jewelry, tennis shoes, and pull your hair up in a bun in order to homeschool. It's simply a calling . . . a calling from God . . . certainly not for everyone though and certainly not for every season of life. It doesn't matter what you wear, or how much money you make, or what neighborhood you live in or don't live it, or if your friends homeschool or not, or your education level. You just have to have passion and a desire to do it.

More to come on homeschooling later. I actually plan on devoting a whole week's worth of posts to it soon. Since I have been doing this for almost 8 years I'd love to answer questions and dispel some myths about homeschooling. Get your thinking caps on . . . and your questions . . . 'cause in a few weeks I'm going to want to know what you want to know.