Churchill Commons

Long Time No Blog

2010-12-21T09:58:00.002-05:00

Wow! It has been a long time since I have posted!

I'm incredibly bored at work this week, so I thought this might be a wonderful time to update my blog, even though I am sure at this point that I have lost my two readers. Oh well, journaling is good for the soul!

Life has moved quickly since my last post. At that point we had arrived in California and were at the start of an amazing vacation. We had a great time, saw some amazing sights, including the Grand Canyon! It was incredible.

The summer was crazy busy. We traveled ALOT! We were able to take a family mission trip of sorts and went to Liberty Retreat where we have some wonderful friends that manage a camp up there. Tyler was able to participate in the camp, while Kayla helped out. I was the cook for the week and Craig was the handyman. It was a fabulous week!

Summer quickly turned into the start of another school year. Kayla started middle school this year and it was an adjustment, but I'm so proud of how well she has done. The second day of school, she started an almost week long process of trying out for the softball team - which she made. We were ridiculously proud! The coach said that she probably wouldn't play much because he pretty well had his team set, but it would give her the benefit of practicing with the team every day and growing in her game. And grow she did! It was a grueling couple of months of two-three hour practices every day and two games a week, but it was a great time. She did get to play a little and we are looking forward to doing it all over again next fall. She is doing gifted classes and they have been tough, but she is hanging in there with them. She also joined our youth group at church and has thoroughly enjoyed every bit of that. Craig and I have commented several times on how God has put leaders around her in youth that continually reinforce what we are teaching at home. It is very encouraging!

Tyler played flag football this year and had a great time. It was a little like watching paint dry, I must confess, but don't tell him I said so! :) They are so little and sort of clueless about the game, but he had fun anyway! He started first grade in the fall and has the same first grade teacher that Kayla had. She is the most wonderful christian lady and we feel so blessed to have her as his teacher! Last month Tyler made the decision to make Christ his personal Lord and Savior. I wish I had his prayer recorded where he told God that he wanted to follow His Son, Jesus. It was the most precious thing I have ever heard! Craig was the one who led him to the Lord and that was just a blessing! I was able to lead Kayla to the Lord several years ago and I was so thankful that Craig was the one to talk with Tyler.

We are now in the midst of the Christmas season and I will confess that I have kind of missed the point of Christmas this year. Praise God that He is bringing me around this week and showing me that my focus has been all wrong. I have been so busy working, shopping, cooking, etc. that I have turned into a grouch this year. I'm working on that! Things will be done differently within our family next year. Enough said.

Craig is in his final week at his current job. A couple of months ago he was offered a different position within his same company and he will begin making that transfer next week. He will be an Airframe Sales Manager...I think that is the right title! It is a corporate job, but he will still be able to be based at the facility here in Augusta where he is now, he will just move to a new floor. This job is something that we have prayed for over the last few years and God just carved this job out special for him. In September, he had his 40th birthday, and we traveled to Michigan to attend his first University of Michigan football game at the Big House in Ann Arbor. It was a huge deal for us...something that he has always wanted to do. We had an amazing time. It was the opening game in a newly renovated stadium. Very cool.

I'm not going to promise to be a better blogger, but it feels good to reflect on all that has happened the last several months. Merry Christmas!

Arrived!

2010-06-16T12:37:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was, maybe, the longest day ever, but we have landed safely in California and arrived at my sister-in-law's house and caught up with all of the family.

We woke up at 3:45 a.m. yesterday to be ready to catch our flight at 6:40. The kids thought that the plane ride was amazing. Kayla did fabulous! Tyler was a typical six year old little boy. A little wild but not too bad. I think he was so overcome with everything going on that he couldn't figure out what to do. He finally fell asleep about five minutes before we landed in L.A. Go figure! We had a short wait in L.A. to wait to meet up with Craig's aunt and uncle. Once we met up with them, we had about a 45 minute bus ride to meet up with Craig's brother-in-law. From there we had about an hour ride to get to their house. It was a loooonnnngggg day! By the time we all arrived we were all tired and hungry. My sister-in-law had a wonderful meal ready for us. We hung out on their outside patio by the pool all evening. The weather here is amazing. There is 0% humidity and a constant breeze blowing. So, even though it is hot, it doesn't feel that warm.

We are staying in a 5th wheel in my sister-in-law's back yard, so even though there is 12 people here, it feels like we have our own little home, complete with running water!

Today's agenda consists of hanging out by the pool and getting caught up from yesterday! More to come soon....

It's Finally Time

2010-06-14T14:14:00.003-04:00

Well, after months of planning and saving, the time has come. We are leaving for vacation tomorrow morning! This will be the kids first plane ride and I cannot wait to see their faces when the plane takes off!

Craig's sister lives in California, not too far from Los Angeles. His oldest nephew is graduating from high school on Thursday, so we are flying out for the occasion. His mom and dad are already out there and his aunt and uncle are also meeting us out there. Carrie, Craig's sister, has done an awesome job of planning a vacation for us to enjoy while we are out there. Here is the breakdown:

Tuesday - Get up ridiculously early and fly to L.A. Wait on Aunt Linda and Uncle Dave. Arrive at Bill and Carrie's house around supper time.

Wednesday and Thursday - relax by the pool and attend graduation

Friday - HOLLYWOOD!!! This was Kayla's pick for the day. We are going to shop on Rodeo Drive, see the stars, and catch Toy Store 3 at the El Capitan theatre, where we will also get to meet the cast! My children are going to flip over this. We are having dinner at the original Spaghetti Factory on Sunset Boulevard and then heading home!

Saturday - graduation party and pack up

Sunday - church and leave for Loflin, Nevada

Monday - Hoover Dam and then travel to Williams, Arizona

Tuesday - Travel by train to the Grand Canyon

Wednesday - Grand Canyon and back to Williams, Arizona

Thursday - Home

Friday - relax by the pool

Saturday - back to our own beds!

To say we are excited is an understatement. We don't usually do big vacations like this and I am in awe of how God has provided for us. I believe with all of my heart that God wants His children to have time away to rest and relax and enjoy His incredible creation.

An obnoxious amount of pictures to come when we get home!

The "Season" of Our Life

2010-05-21T16:46:00.004-04:00

Well, 'tis the season, baseball season, that is! It is upon us. It is killing me! And we love it!

Last year Kayla played softball and Tyler did the CCRD B.A.T.S program which is like training for underage T-ballers. We didn't have too many scheduling conflicts last year, but we haven't been so lucky with our schedules this year. Add to that, all of the end of the year school activities, like plays and honors night, and you have yourself a pretty crazy life. I'm not complaining just stating the facts. We are at the ball field several nights a week. Most games are on Tuesdays and Thursdays with a few scattered Monday games. Kayla's coach loves to practice and those usually fall on Monday nights or Saturday mornings. So, there you have it.

The kids are having a blast and so are Craig and I. Tyler's games are a little....slow. We are used to the older kids playing and have forgotten what the T-Ball games are like. BUT, he is learning and has one coach on the team that is fabulous! Tyler listens well to this guy and has improved greatly! Last week he threw a kid out at second base. I was stunned (and I think he was too!)

Kayla's games are a whole other story. They are so much fun to watch and so many of the girls are just getting really good. Kayla loves to play catcher and I just want to say that she is awesome at it! The girls can steal bases in her league and are encouraged to do so. She has gotten really close to throwing some of them out.

For about three more weeks we will eat, sleep, drive, and live baseball/softball and we will enjoy every minute of it. It is so worth it to see everything that kids get out of it. They are coordinated, athletic, and I think it is helping to build their self esteem.

So, here you go, pictures from the first games...

This is the only bad thing about playing catcher - her back is always to me, so it is hard to take a good picture! :)

Pictures!

2010-05-07T14:52:00.005-04:00

Here are the pictures of Craig and I's trip to Atlanta last weekend. We had such a great time!

This is what he found when he got home on Friday. I gave him only enough information so he would know to bring his clubs and what kind of clothes to pack. Told him to be ready to leave the house at 7:00a.m. Saturday morning.

Here he is suiting up! He doesn't look a day over 30, does he? I love this man!

Did I mention that I love this man? I do!

This is not good!

Us at the Cheesecake Factory. Craig couldn't believe that I asked the waiter to take our picture, but I did!

Buffalo Blasters - these will light you up! But they were yummy!

Original Cheesecake with cherry topping! Can I just say that it does not get any better than this folks!

Happy Day Before Your Birthday!

2010-05-03T09:57:00.003-04:00

Craig and I have a corny birthday wish thing that we do...we (more he than me), wish each other a happy day before your birthday or a happy day after your birthday. I told you it was corny! Anyway, this year my husband will turn 40 years old and I've been trying to come up with fun ways to celebrate the days leading up to this monumental occasion. So, since May 5 will mark 4 months before his 40th birthday, I decided a "Happy Four Months Before Your Birthday" celebration was in order. Since the 5th falls in the middle of the week we had to celebrate a few days early!

Can I just stop and say that this is probably one of the only surprises that I have been able to pull off with Craig not finding out where we were going ahead of time? He didn't know where we were going until we were almost there! It was awesome! We left at 7:00 a.m. this past Saturday morning, stopped for breakfast and then traveled 2 1/2 hours to the Chateau Elan to play golf on one of their courses. Pictures will be in the next post, but let me tell you, it was beautiful! I haven't gone golfing with Craig since we were dating. We had the best time. I didn't golf, just rode along, but I did prove to be a pretty useful caddy! He even let me drive the cart a couple of times! We had a great time. He taught me all about the game and the etiquette involved in the game. Who knew that so much went in to playing golf.

We left the course and drove to Atlanta and got checked in to our hotel, then went to have dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. Yum!!! Yes, I took pictures of our food - it seems that, in blogging, that is the new thing to do. Again, pictures in the next post. After dinner, we went to Dave and Busters. If you don't know what Dave and Busters is, let me tell you... it is like Chuck E Cheese on steroids. It is Chuck E Cheese with slot machines. It was so much fun! Craig and I both discovered that I have a little addiction to one of the games - it wasn't pretty. I dropped 15 tokens in about 15 seconds. So much fun!

We spent the night in Atlanta and traveled back yesterday. It really was one of the most enjoyable trips we have had. It is always fun to get away, but this trip was just all about Craig and the kind of things that he likes to do. So, Happy 4 Months Before Your 40th Birthday babe! Glad you had fun!

Spring Break 2010

2010-04-07T10:37:00.002-04:00

Ahh, spring break! I have slept until 8:30 or 9:00 for the past two days. It has been bliss!

My in-laws are here this week and they are helping with a few home projects. I think we are always doing home projects. We are a little over half way done with our master bathroom and I hope to be able to post before and after pictures of that soon. However, the big project for this week is Kayla's room. It is being painted today and she is so excited! I didn't really get any great before pictures, but I will post what I took when I also have after pictures to show! It will be a while before it is all complete, because we have a couple of pieces of furniture to buy and that probably won't happen this week. Her room is going from grass green and flowers to a sophisticated brown and turquoise. It has taken most of forever for her and I to agree upon a bed set, but we finally found one that we both liked. Can't wait to share!

Other than home projects, we have made a trip to McDonalds and Monkey Joes -that is always a spring break/summer vacation favorite! Tomorrow we are going to the movies with some friends, and we are even going to try to get in a picnic and a trip to library this week. BUT, today is stay at home and relax day, and I am loving every minute of it! It is almost 11:00 and I'm still in my PJ's! Yay!

Tyler's Birthday

2010-03-22T12:01:00.003-04:00

Happy 6th Birthday to my not-so-little Tyler man! Last Monday was Tyler's birthday and we celebrated the weekend before with a birthday party at Chuck E Cheese. This was our first-ever party away from home! I had one friend ask me if I had lost my mind. It seems that the crowd was a little restless outside the doors at Chuck E Cheese and several of my friends felt as though their lives were in danger. Go figure! :) It actually was slightly intimidating to show up for a scheduled birthday party and find a line of people waiting to get in. Imagine then how those people felt as they directed our party attenders in ahead of all of them! Yikes! Thankfully, everyone made it through the party unharmed!

Tyler had a great time with his friends! His big gifts this year were Legos. As a matter of fact, almost all of his gifts were Legos. As a matter of fact, guess what he bought with the money he got for his birthday???? That's right, more Legos!!! The kid is a Lego maniac and can occupy himself for hours with a Lego set. I fully expect for him to go into architecture and make lots of money to support his parents in their old age! It is freaky really. He sits down with the Lego sets and the directions and goes step by step until he has built his masterpiece!

This child has blessed our lives tremendously, as has Kayla! Tyler keeps all of us laughing and is always coming out with something that cracks us up. You never know what is going to come out of his mouth. It has been an amazing blessing to watch this child grow over the last six years. It breaks my heart that he is growing so fast though!

And now, for your viewing enjoyment... pictures!!!!

What is a U.N.F.O.?

2010-03-11T10:11:00.002-05:00

Well, let me tell you what a U.N.F.O. is... it is an Unidentified Non-Female Object that appears at your door one afternoon to see if your daughter can come out and ride her bike around the neighborhood with him. WHAT??? Yep! So, Kayla has boys that are friends from church and once in a while one of them will come over to play, but it doesn't happen very often. So, imagine my surprise when a very cute young man shows up at our door on Tuesday to see if Kayla can go for a bike ride. Um, excuse me, cute young man, who are you???? Well, apparently, he is a boy that goes to Kayla's school and he rides the same bus as she does. Thankfully, Kayla was grounded on Tuesday and has a flat tire on her bike so I didn't get too much grief over not letting her go. However, we did discuss that she will not be going bike riding with anyone around the neighborhood except her parents! Yeah, yeah, call me an over-protective stick in the mud, but... that's just the way that we roll. We welcome all children to come and play in our front or back yard, boys and girls alike, but my child is not traipsing all over the neighborhood with a U.N.F.O.

For clarification purposes, apparently this young man is just a friend, but still...

The past couple of weeks have been rough parenting weeks for Craig and I. We covet all of your prayers and will have blisters on our knees from our own prayers. This is the time in our life when we are hearing, "everybody else does, why can't I". This is also the time when I am learning, really learning, that it is not about being my children's friend, I am a parent. That is a hard lesson, especially when you feel as though your child is continually exasperated by you and your rules. Each new stage brings good and bad with it. Lord, let me focus on the good!

Fridays

2010-03-05T08:06:00.002-05:00

Fridays have become my new favorite day of the week! It is the day that I don't work and I just feel so incredibly blessed to have one day a week where I can almost do whatever I want. However, this is also the only day that I have that I cram in errands, grocery shopping, house cleaning, relaxing, a manicure, haircuts, doctors appointments, etc. You get the picture right? I have found myself with not much to do on Fridays the last couple of weeks, and I love it. It is like I have finally caught up or something.
We went grocery shopping last night. I cleaned half of my house yesterday. So I here I sit wondering what I will do today. Hhhhmmmm... the possibilities are endless. But, truth be told, I will probably finish cleaning my house, go to Sams, and probably back to WalMart for the things that I didn't get last night. I think I will throw in a manicure/pedicure today just for relaxation sake!
We are hosting game night tonight. We have two couples that we get together with about once a month or once every six weeks and we play games. Sometimes the competition is fierce!!! We have a great time and we all have kids about the same age. Usually my ear drums are about to explode from the noise by the end of the night and my house is trashed, but it IS fun! Boys will never cease to amaze me. The girls go in Kayla's room and you hardly hear from them during the night, except to come out and ask if they can give each other makeovers. The boys... well, they usually make us dizzy with laps through the kitchen. There is usually at least a couple of fights to break up over who had which gun first. One of the last times we had game night here, I walked into Tyler's bedroom to find that they had completely removed ALL of his bedding from his bed. I mean down to the dust ruffle folks! Where did that come from? Tsk, tsk! Boys will be boys!
Hope everyone has a happy Friday! And, somebody better leave a comment and say that they are proud of me for posting two days in a row!!!

Where Have I Been?

2010-03-04T09:53:00.003-05:00

Ugh! A horrible blogger I am, I am! I quit blogging because I just didn't feel like I had time to do it and when I did have time I was too exhausted to come up with anything witty to talk about! :) It's true!
However, we happen to be going through an extremely slow period at work right now, so maybe that will give me some time to catch up a little bit. No promises, but I'll try!
So, what have we been up to since the big wedding in November????

Well, the week of Thanksgiving we took the kids on a mini vacation and headed to Atlanta. We had a great time! We went to the aquarium, the World of Coke, and the Foam Factory! The kids had a blast. If you haven't been to the Foam Factory, I would highly recommend it. This place is like Adventure Crossing on steroids!!! Inside the building, they have a three story playground with foam balls and "guns" to shoot the foam balls. It was very cool. Outside they have a lot of rides and I got jerked every which way riding them with the kids, but I loved it!

From Atlanta, we went on to Tennessee and spent Thanksgiving with the folks. My mom and Ruth and I were at Toys R Us in Clarksville at midnight on Thanksgiving night. It was the most insane year of after Thanksgiving shopping that I have ever done. Write this down people - I may NEVER go again. They had to call the police because the crowd outside Toys R Us got so unruly. Let me tell you something - I don't need anything that bad!

Christmas was really different for us this year. Ruth and Ron were in California. My mom and dad went to my brother's house. We had a few friends over on Christmas Eve, but Christmas morning was spent with just the four of us. It was quiet but nice. We had breakfast and enjoyed watching the kids open their gifts. Sometime around noon we left and went to my brother's over in North Carolina. It was one of the worst driving trips that we have ever had. It poured the whole way. Between the wind and the rain, it was a very scary trip! But, we had a nice visit with the family once we got there.

Since Christmas, we haven't had a ton of stuff going on and that has been a nice change of pace! Kayla is playing basketball and has her last game coming up this weekend. She has done really well this year and has scored a few points for her team. She just had softball evaluations and will start that in another month or so. Tyler will be playing T-Ball this spring so we will be spending a good portion of our time at the ball field. But, we love it!

Does this catch me up???

Wedding Pictures

2009-11-22T09:22:00.005-05:00

The Wedding

2009-11-22T09:21:00.001-05:00

This past weekend we were blessed to be able to attend the wedding of one of our favorite babysitters, Kimberly and her new husband, Brandon. Kimberly and Brandon had asked several months ago if Kayla would be a junior bridesmaid and if Tyler would be a ring bearer, and, of course, they both agreed. This was truly one of the sweetest weddings that I have been too, from the rehearsal dinner to the reception. Brandon is a huge movie buff so the rehearsal was done in movie theme. Brandon's mom and dad outdid themselves with this! Each table had popcorn boxes filled with candy for party favors and then in the center of each table was a BIG popcorn box filled with the movie size candy and popcorn. Tyler ended up winning the popcorn box from our table - you can imagine how thrilled he was with all of that candy! He was also very thrilled when they gave him his "groomsmen" gift and it was a Bible commentary! Brandon's dad is a pastor and Tyler opened the wrong gift by mistake! It was too funny. Kayla was so thrilled with her goody bag that she got!

Kayla and I got to spend most of the morning with Kimberly and all of the bridesmaids and she just had the best time. She got her hair done and her nails done, and ya'll, she looked beautiful and so grown up! I'm so thankful that she loves Jesus and is more concerned with her inward appearance than her outward appearance. That doesn't mean that I'm still not considering locking her in her room until she is old and gray! She did a great job being a junior bridesmaid!

Tyler was basically at the church to torment the groomsmen, I think! I could just see in his mind that here are all these young guys and they are all here to wrestle with me and let me jump on their heads! A very special thank you to Andy and Ryan who I think got blessed with the majority of the torment! He looked very handsome in his tuxedo and I think he did a great job. He only dropped the pillow once when he got on stage and Andy was kind enough to pick it up and hold on to it. Thanks Andy!

Our pastor and Brandon's dad officiated the ceremony and they did a great job. It was very relaxed and I was so glad about that for them.

I don't even know where to start with the reception. It was gorgeous! I'm thinking that Craig and I should get married again just so that we can have a reception like this! The room was beautiful, the food was delicious, and the music and dancing was a ton of fun. The bride and groom left under a spray of sparklers and I hope that they are having the best time on their honeymoon! To Kimberly and Brandon, thank you so much for including us in your special day - we love you and wish you tons of joy and happiness!

Snakes and Reptile Pictures

2009-11-20T16:42:00.005-05:00

Cumberland Island Pictures

2009-11-20T16:35:00.003-05:00

Pictures of Day 1

2009-11-20T07:39:00.003-05:00

Snakes and Reptiles!!! Oh My!

2009-11-19T11:23:00.003-05:00

We have now arrived at Day 3 of the Great Adventure and it was our final morning at camp.

Our last class was about reptiles and snakes. This was one of the coolest experience of the whole trip in my opinion. We got to pet baby alligators and see various kinds of turtles in the natural habitat, not just behind the glass.

However, the most exciting part was when we went into the snake room. Now, let me tell ya'll that I am NOT a lover of snakes. We have had two snakes in the yard this year and it just completely freaks me out. But something came over me when I entered this snake room! :) Kayla and I both got to hold our first snake. Not just pet it, hold it! I think it was a king snake, but I'm not sure. I cannot even begin to explain how it feels to hold these creatures. It takes both hands to hold them and they just coil themselves around your hands and arms just as if they are coiling around a tree branch. The snake that they guide was holding actually managed to get it's tail through the belt loop on her shorts and then down into her pocket. It was crazy! I can't explain it, but it was just a really neat experience. Pictures to come soon for those of you who haven't already seen them on facebook.

That was the end of our great adventure. It was a great trip and I am so glad that I got to go with Kayla. She had a blast hanging out with all of her friends (and her mom too)!

Cumberland Island

2009-11-19T10:58:00.003-05:00

Day 2 of our field trip began with a very early morning breakfast and then about an hour drive to the place where we would get on the ferry to head over to Cumberland Island. The ferry drive lasted about 45 minutes and then we finally arrived. Ya'll - this island was beautiful. The island is full of these live oak trees that just make a canopy over the island - it reminded me of the rain forest.

This was a really long day and we were all exhausted by the time we got back to the ferry dock. We walked about 4 1/2 miles and saw a lot of stuff including several different kinds of crabs that I had never seen and many wild horses. Fortunately we did not see any of the snakes that they talked about or alligators or anything like that!

We started off by walking to the beach and dredging the ocean floor to see what kind of creatures we could come up with. That was just a very cool experience to see all of these kids out in the ocean with this huge net working together to bring up any treasure they could find. It turns out that the coolest "treasure" that we found was caught in a bucket closer to shore by one of the other moms. It was a moonshell crab that had been taken over by a hermit crab with two sea anenomes on it and in between the sea anenomes was the tiniest baby crab I have ever seen. Very cool. I had no idea that there were so many different types of crabs... ghost crabs, huge horseshoe crabs, moonshell crabs... you name it - it was crazy! I have never seen a ghost crab before and guess what? They are white and blend in with the sand, like ghosts. Hahaha!

So, from there we walked and walked and walked down the beach looking for washed up treasure and shells. I have to tell you that we didn't find too much, but there were a ton of horsehoe crabs in various stages of death and decay. We walked over the sand dunes until we got to Dungeness. I think that is how you spell it. There was a ton of history involved in that house and the outlying buildings. Since I am not much of a history buff I will just tell you that if you want to know more about all of this, ask Kayla. She is my history girl! Once we got to the house, and I use that term lightly - mansion would be a far better word, there were wild horses all over the yard area. It was amazing how close you could get to these creatures. Apparently, the Carnegies were the last family to live there and it was in Mrs. Carnegie's Will that upon her death the horse should be let go to roam the island freely.

All in all it was a good day, but very long and tiring. We got back to camp that night and after dinner we did the fireside circle. The guides that did this little program were hilarious. They told funny stories to the kids and sang crazy songs. The kids loved it! Ask Kayla to sing you the song about the moose and to tell you about... The Boyscouts of America....

Up next... Day 3 and the snakes!

FINALLY

2009-11-19T10:43:00.003-05:00

Okay, so I really have been wanting to post about Kayla and I's great Field Trip Adventure, but I have been swamped! However, I am making time today because I'm afraid if I don't get it posted I'll forget what we did! :) I happen to be having an incredibly slow and boring day at work sooooo, today it is! You'll have to wait on pictures though until I can upload those from home.

So, day 1...

Kayla and I were able to drive ourselves so it provided for some great mother and daughter time. We had an uneventful trip until we got on the island. We had finally caught up with the bus in Statesboro and so we followed them from Statesboro to St. Simons Island thinking they knew where they were going. However, that was not the case! We ended up following the bus and about 8 or 10 other parents around the island for probably 45 minutes. So, by the time that we got to Driftwood Education Center, we were very late and they were rushing us to lunch so we could get on with our afternoon activities. The first activity that we did was about the marsh. It was an enlightening discussion of how the marsh works - it really was very interesting. From there we went down into the marsh and the guide let the girls dig mud up from the bottom of the marsh area to do mud facials. Apparently all of the decaying junk at the bottom of the marsh provides for some very nutrient rich mud that is great for your skin! I opted out of that one because I wasn't sure when we were going to be able to wash it off. Had I known that we would leave the marsh to go to the water hose, I would have given myself a facial too!
From the marsh we went trawling! This was extremely fun! We went out on a boat and they put the nets down to see what kind of marine life we could come up with. Kayla and I both held live shrimp, we saw a tongue fish, an anchovie, and some other fish that I don't remember the names of.
After that, we were finally able to unpack our stuff and get into our cabins and have some dinner. That night after dinner, we all did squid dissections. It was kind of cool, but I have to tell ya'll that the smell was awful. I mean really awful!!!! Kayla loved this class - she popped out eyeballs and checked out the "goods" of the squid and finally ended with puncturing the ink sack and giving her dear old mom an ink tatoo!
So, obviously by this point, you know that we are completely exhausted. It's probably about 9:00 p.m. and all of the girls and room moms have to have showers. Nine people, one shower - you do the math. Not to mention that we had to be up and ready for breakfast by about 6:00-6:30 the following morning. It was a late night - the girls were wild and wound up, but eventually I think they all did finally go to sleep.

Stay tuned for Day 2... Cumberland Island

The Great Adventure

2009-10-27T11:11:00.002-04:00

Tomorrow morning, bright and early, Kayla and I will leave town to go on our great adventure! The field trip has arrived! We will be leaving to go to an Education Center for three days. We will be exploring ocean life, nightime animal habits, mud holes, squid, etc. I was slightly horrified when I first started thinking about all of this. My idea of camping is a very nice Hyatt Place or Hilton Garden Inn. I've done the tent camping and while it can be very relaxing, I'd much rather be at a real hotel! This is camping in a very glorified setting. There are no tents or blow up air beds that go flat on you in the night. There is a cinder block dorm with bunk beds! And get this, I really thought we would be eating at cement picnic tables, but instead we will be dining in a dining room with TABLE CLOTHS!!!! Whoohoo! The only things that freak me out a little are the mud hole that we will be exploring, the night time hike really creeps me out. A couple of the things that I read on the web site started off by saying, "get out of your comfort zone". Nice. I LIKE my comfort zone!

Anyway, my attitude is much improved from what it was. I am really getting excited about the fun that Kayla and I will have and all the memories that we will be making! We are driving down just the two of us instead of riding the bus, and I think that will provide some great mom and daughter time. Past that who knows what the next few days have in store for us. I will be sure to take lots of pictures to post when I get back.

What I'm Learning About Life

2009-10-26T11:21:00.002-04:00

Well, well, it has been quite a while since I updated. I have thought about updating many times, does that count? I had a friend tell me that she doesn't check my blog much any more because I don't ever update. Ouch! :)

We have been trying desperately to settle in to our new routine of having two children in school and me working more than six hours a week! It has been an adjustment period for sure, but it gets a little easier every week. I have learned one very big thing... I used to think that my life was busy and what I have learned is that I was a big baby. I had no idea what busy was. Some days life is just overwhelming to me and I want to crawl in a hole and never come out again. Totally depressing, huh? Yea well, that's where I've been and if I'm being honest, I'm probably still there a little bit. I'm learning all about what a selfish individual I am. Not a pretty picture at all.

I'm also learning that my daughter is at age where I have to start letting go a little bit and start letting her make her own mistakes instead of trying to control her whole life. We have had more homework battles than I care to count. These usually end with me being angry and her crying and being frustrated. So, I have made up my mind that it is not a battle I wish to face anymore. I will help her if she asks and check her work if she asks, otherwise, she is on her own. She is sooo smart, but also very lazy when it comes to school work. We are in a very interesting state with Kayla. On one hand, it is so much fun because we can do lots together. We spent the whole afternoon out running errands yesterday, just her and I, and we had a blast. She is funny and wants to joke around with you. I see so much of Craig in her. She was telling me yesterday that her Sunday School teacher had told them to ask their parents what kind of people we thought they were. I could honestly say that she is one of the kindest, most compassionate children that I know. She is an awesome teacher and is so easy going for a girl. She has Craig's sense of humor and my Type B personality! hehehe! Okay, maybe Craig's Type B personality, because if you know me, you know I am an ANAL A! So, I say all of that to say, that we are in the midst of highs and lows with Kayla.

I have learned that Kindergarten and five year old boys make for some serious temper tantrums in the late afternoon. These can come in the form of jumping up and down over not getting the kind of fruit snacks that they want, or it can come in the form of crying over not getting to wear a certain shirt, or basically anything. He is doing so well in school and his teachers LOVE him, even his P.E. teachers told me they love him. We started out the year with him being so wild when he got home that it would just make us crazy. Now we have resorted to temper tantrums and fits of crying. But I am glad that he is being good at school. He has just started receiving homework every night so now we have two homework battles to engage in. Fun stuff! He was so excited to be getting homework though - how long will that last do you suppose?

I have also learned that I have the most amazing husband in the entire world. He has pitched in in so many ways. I hate to ask for help, but am quickly getting better at it! He has ironed, cooked, helped with homework, folded clothes, helped clean, whatever I need. Sometimes he just comes out to the kitchen and wants to know what he can do to help. He is wonderful! I love you babe! As a clarifying statement, he would have done any of this stuff before I starting working, but he never really had to and I never had to ask, so basically what I am saying is that he has always been amazing, not just in the last couple of months. I have even gotten flowers just because I'm doing a good job at handling things and not having a nervous breakdown! Hehehe! Enough bragging, but seriously, I love that man!

So, that is what I am learning! I have more to post about, but I need to close this and get back to work. Look for another post SOON! No, really, I mean soon! Maybe this afternoon!

Life in General

2009-08-26T16:59:00.003-04:00

I am without a doubt the worst blogger in history! Not really, one blogger I follow hasn't blogged since April!

Life has changed dramatically for us over the last few weeks! First of all, tomorrow marks six weeks since my surgery and I am doing great! I feel wonderful and I think have recovered very well. By the end of the first week I was sick of laying around and was able to start getting out and doing a few things. It was a slow process, but it was so much better than laying around!

Tyler started kindergarten earlier this month and Kayla started 5th grade. I am overwhelmed at the fact that both of my children are in school now. They both got wonderful Christian teachers - praise God for that! Tyler's teacher actually told us that she has been praying for the kids coming into her class this year that she would be what God would want her to be for them. Is that amazing or what? Kayla's teacher is the father of one of her best friends and we know that they know the Lord. It has been such a blessing!

Tyler has made one little friend, Sarah, whom he has had a few "episodes" with. It is quite funny actually! He came home from school one day with a big hole in his shirt that Sarah cut there for him! I have to admit that I was having trouble keeping a straight face while he was telling me about it. When the story was all said and done I found out that Tyler had actually dared her to cut a hole in her shirt and she did and then she cut his too! When I fussed at him about it, he said "Mooommmmm, it was just a small hole"! Oh, the logic of a child! The next day he came home and told me that he had held Sarah's hand at lunch and that he loved her. Yep, the same boy that I'm raising is the same kind of boy that I'm warning my daughter against! He has been spoken to about girlfriends and all of that and he came home from school later that week and told me that he "didn't hold Sarah's hand today". Thank goodness!

Monday started a new schedule for our family! I'm now working 26 hours a week. So I am dropping the kids at school, heading straight to work and then leaving straight from work to pick them up. So far this week things have gone very well. I am learning to let God order my day and cut out some of my time wasters and leave some time to actually rest and take a deep breath!

Kayla brought home papers today for an overnight field trip for her Horizons class that she does. Yikes! It is two nights and three days away from school! We are discussing that. It looks like I'm probably going on a field trip in October that will include mud pitts, rope walks, night hikes, and alligators. I'll keep ya posted on that one!

Post Surgery Update

2009-07-26T10:22:00.002-04:00

Well, the deal is done. Came through surgery pretty well and am slowly healing. I went on my first outing yesterday to Walgreens and was exhausted and in a bit of pain by the time I got home. It is so funny how long it takes to regain your strength after something like this! I'm so thankful that my mom has been here to help out. She will be in town for another week and then my mother-in-law will be here to help for a couple of weeks.

So, a little realism right? Is that what you're waiting for? Skip the wonder woman "I'm doing great chat and get down to the honest truth" right?

Okay, let's see. In all honesty, my stay in the hospital was probably the worst one I ever had. Since I've only been in the hospital for two child births I don't have a ton of experience, but seriously, this hospital stay was not great. I was more than ready to come home! Coming home, my life has revolved around getting out of the chair, going to the bathroom, and lowering myself back into the chair. I have mastered the chair. The bathroom has been another story entirely. Let me just tell you that with a surgery like this, they pretty much have to remove your bladder and various other parts of your anatomy to get out the stuff that they are actually taking out. So you can imagine that when they put those necessary body parts back in they don't always land in the same place! Are you getting my drift here??? Basically, the bathroom has been the highlight of my day for a week now! Sad, but true!

I have only had a couple of days that I have truly felt like dog poop, so I am thankful for that. I have been in some pain, but I did just have my gut cut open, so I guess that is to be expected. So, all in all, I'm faring pretty well!

This week, I'm going to try small, one store outings lest I nut up being cooped up inside my house!

Insanity

2009-07-10T00:40:00.002-04:00

That is my life right now - sheer insanity! Okay, maybe not that bad, but it has been really busy. I thought things would slow down once we got baseball and softball over, but it has just continued on.

We picked up my three nephews on Tuesday night and brought them back home with us and we have been living life large since they got here. On Wednesday we went to McDonald's for lunch and playing, then followed that up with almost three hours of jumping at Jump City. They were all wore out by the time evening rolled around and everyone slept in this morning. Let me pause here and let you know that I am completely irritated with myself because I forgot the camera!!! And, yes, I forgot the camera today also. Today we headed out to the aquatics center since we have no neighborhood pool and I'm too cheap to buy a membership anywhere! Everyone had a great time! We followed that up with a hair cut for me, a run through the pizza drive thru and then an ice cream run after dinner. Can you say "diet"? Yea, I need to go back on one! Tomorrow we are headed out to get groceries and run some errands and we are going to Chuck E Cheese with a friend. I know my brother is considering coming down a day early to get them just so that he can go to CEC!!! My parents will be here tomorrow night and then my brother and sil will be here around lunch time on Saturday. It has been a fun couple of days and I'm sure the weekend will be fun with everybody here.

We have started and, almost finished, another project. This first phase of the project should be done tomorrow night so I'm going to wait to post pictures so you can truly see the change from start to finish. Craig re-tiled our shower in our bathroom. It looks so good! He is so handy to have around!

With that being said, this might be my last blog post for several weeks as I am having surgery next week so I'm going to be out of commission for awhile. I hate to know that someone is having surgery and not knowing why so I will tell ya'll that I'm having a hysterectomy and leave it at that! Lift me and my family up in your prayers over the next few weeks. I've never had true, real life, put you out cold, kind of surgery and I'm a little nervous. I'm blessed to have wonderful friends and a wonderful mom and mother in law who will be helping out with things. I appreciate you gals so much!

It is now 10 minutes to one in the am and I am exhausted. I'm going to bed! 'Night all!

Kayla's Post About Her Week at Camp

2009-06-25T17:49:00.002-04:00

Well it was really fun. Our normal day was kinda like this,

7:00 - wake up, get dressed and set
7:30 - go raise the Christian flag and the American to. Say the pledge to both of them and the Bible. Then say tudu todu todu cone zone x2 or to the cone zone, wich was where we lined up for meals.
7:45 - breakfast
8:30 - quiet time in the cabin
9:00 - merry maids
9:30 - (if it's wednsday it's time to hike the huge moutian that takes 3hrs to climb) time to talk with the missionaries, Mrs.Edith and Mr.Tony about what they do on thier mission fields.
10:30 - We work on the quilts that we're making for the poor people in the Appalachian Moutians.
11:30 - todu todu todu cone zone
11:45 - lunch yum!!!!!!
12:45 - pool time YAYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!
1:30 - straight to the gift shop for soda, ice cream and souveniers.
1:45 - qestion time the missionaries.
2:15 - get changed and freshend up
2:30 - our choice camptivities ( archery, water sports, dance ect....).
3:30 - Bible story time
4:00 - straighten up the cabin
4:30 - take down flag
4:45 - cone zone
5:00 - dinner
6:00 - canteen
7:30 - showers
9:00 - free time
10:00 lights out

Pictures, Pictures, and More Pictures

2009-06-25T17:17:00.008-04:00

Helen Trip

The family checking out the shops in Helen.

Kayla and her cousins.

Me and Tyler enjoyed a lovely nap together while almost everybody else went shopping. He was exhausted and so was I and I hate to pass up snugglin' with my boy!

Tyler having a big time playing mini golf.

Here is my brother-in-law trying to put the ball in the hole; I think he lost!

Here is our bear - yep, he was really that close. Craig's uncle got an awesome picture of him, I hope he emails it to us!

Yes, I was very happy to have made it to the top of the falls!

Grandpa and Grandma and Tyler at the falls.

Finally made it to the top! Our hike at Anna Ruby Falls.

Kayla is taking a break on her way up the mountain!

Tyler declared that this lion looked like it had stepped right out of Narnia - he hasn't even seen Narnia, but it was a really cool sight!

The kids at the wild life preservation.

Yes, the cabin was even equipped with a guitar! They had tons of toys, movies, games - very well stocked for a week with kids of all ages!

Kayla's week at camp:

The view from the top of the mountain after they hiked it!

Face Painting

This is where my child lived for the week!

Some hyper girls ready to go to camp!

Weekend at the beach:

My little fish - he actually had rings around his eyes all weekend because he did not want to take his goggles off!

Back Home Again

2009-06-25T16:40:00.002-04:00

Aaaahhhh, what a relaxing week it has been!

We picked Kayla up from the church this past Friday night and she talked for probably an hour without breathing, telling us about camp! She had a great time although she did say that the letters I had wrote and stuck in her bag kind of made her sad. Other than that, she had a great time. They swam, hiked a mountain, learned new songs, learned about missions, and the list goes on! She has already asked if she can go again next year!

We spent Saturday packing and getting ready to go to the mountains. Left for the mountains on Sunday morning to meet Craig's mom and dad, his aunt and uncle, and his sister, brother-in-law, and two nephews. We had not seen his sister's family in probably six years, which is just terrible. But, they live in California and it is a looonggg trip! We got to Helen Sunday afternoon after stopping to shop for a little bit in the outlet malls on the way up. His aunt and uncle (Dave and Linda) got there about the same time as we did so we traveled up the mountain to check out our cabin. It was wonderful! Very accomodating for the twelve people that we had living there for four days. The rest of the family got there a little bit later and we had a great time of just visiting with everyone. That night we got to see some of the wild turkeys that live around there with their little babies; they were coming down the mountain. Monday morning everyone except for me and the kids took off for white water rafting. Dave and Linda followed everybody down the river and took pictures from the bank! The kids had to be 12 to go, so we sat that one out. They had a great time and aside from the fact that Ron, my father-in-law, fell out of the raft and got drug under the raft, it was a great time! He came home with a great story to tell. While they did that, the kids and I ventured off to a Wildlife Preservation place and checked out some very cool animals, then we went back to the cabin and had a great time just hanging out and also getting some much needed rest! We also got to admire the deer hanging out by our cabin from our kitchen window. That was pretty cool! Let's see, Tuesday, we hiked up to see Anna Ruby Falls, and then went to Brasstown Bald. We came home for supper and while fixing our plates, I looked out the kitchen window and there was a black bear right across the driveway enjoying his dinner. It was incredible! Dinner got put on hold while we watched the bear. That night we went into town and played mini golf and had ice cream - that was a lot of fun, and it didn't hurt that I one the back nine of mini golf! :) Wednesday, I stayed at the cabin all day - it was sheer bliss! I napped, I read, it was awesome! Everybody else went tubing, and I didn't miss that a bit! Again, Ron-bo got beat up on the river and he and I made a pact that if we ever go up there again, he and I will go out to lunch and go shopping while everyone else tubes! That is just not my thing and not his either. Anyway, it was a great week of getting re-acquainted with family that we don't get to see that often. We'll miss them! We did have one minor mishap during the week. Craig, who is never sick, had to go to the doctor the Friday before we left town for pink eye. That was pretty much cleared up by Monday when they went rafting. Tuesday morning, he woke up with an ear ache. I know that doesn't sound like a big deal, but Craig gets these obscene ear infections that put him out of commission. It usually requires prescription pain meds, ear drops, and a couple days off of work. They are brutal. The last one that he had, his eardrum actually burst - it was not pretty! So, we got up and around pretty quick and found a prompt care place a few miles away and got him an antibiotic and some ear drops. It bothered him off and on, but, thankfully, this one did not seem to be as bad as the last few have been.

I'm going to check out my pics from the week, so maybe I can get some of those posted soon!

Strangeness

2009-06-18T08:39:00.002-04:00

Does anybody else know how strange it is to have your child in a different place from you for several days without even being able to talk to them? I'm missing my girl, but one of the GA ladies told me last night that no news is good news. One of the parents got a call Monday night from an upset, homesick girl. Poor thing! I'm so glad I didn't get that because that has to break your heart, but at the same time, you know if they stay that they'll have fun. Kayla did good when I dropped her off Monday morning, but Monday night I was wondering how she was doing. The first night away from home is always the hardest! Thank goodness she will be home tomorrow evening!

So, they won the championship game this past Friday! It was a great game and both teams played so hard! Kayla got the championship trophy from the rec department plus her team trophy - she was so excited!

Our weekend at the beach was wonderful! We had a great time of just relaxing and enjoying being together as a family. We saw dolphins at the beach - several of them - and that was just cool!

This week has been extremely quiet and relaxing and I am loving it! With no softball and only one child at home, it has been soooo quiet! Craig and I are in the thick of AWANA planning, and I am finally starting to feel like we are accomplishing some things there. For a while it just seems like you talk and hash things out without ever actually getting anything done. I'm a "get-it-doner", so I'm happy we are making progress. We are so blessed to be seeing how God is orchestrating certain things and are also blessed by the leaders that are stepping up to serve! However, we can always use more, so if you want to serve in AWANA, let us know! We would love to have You! Shameless plug I know, but, hey, it's my blog, right? :)

We leave on Sunday for the mountains, so today I'm going to clean house and get the big grocery list ready. I may even start doing a little packing today. Tonight I'm off to get a mani/pedi and I desperately need it!

Oh, big news of the week??? Tyler and the babysitter found a snake in the back yard this week! AAAHHH! It was dead, thankfully, and had been dead for quite a while, but still...

So Proud!

2009-06-12T07:00:00.002-04:00

Kayla had her tournament game last night and they won!!! They played a great game and won 22-11. The previously undefeated team that we beat a few weeks ago played before us last night and lost - quite an upset! So, we are very well matched for the game tonight and it will probably be a very close game and I will have no nails left by the time it is over! I will miss the excitement of the games after tonight, but I will not miss the crazy schedule we have been keeping!

We are headed to the beach this weekend, just the four of us, for a couple of days of relaxation and soakin' up some sun. I'm more than ready! We'll get back on Sunday night and Kayla leaves for camp on Monday morning. I'm going to miss her like crazy! She'll get back Friday and we leave again on Sunday for a few days in the mountains with Craig's side of the family. His sister is coming and we haven't seen her and her family in over five years, so it will be a fun time of catching up.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Gettin' Smarter Every Day

2009-06-09T08:24:00.003-04:00

Tyler was cracking me up last night with revelation after revelation. They may not sound funny when you read them because most of what makes them funny is the expressions on his face and the randomness of what he is telling you.

First of all, he went to his first spend the night with a friend night on Thursday and had a great time with A. So, he tells me, out of the blue, of course, "Mama, A.'s daddy, Mr. M., told me that John the Baptizer ate grasshoppers and lived in the desert." I wish you could have seen the look on his face! I think he was jealous!!!

Then, not more than a few minutes later, he tells me, "Mom, you know it would be impossible to eat your head with your mouth because your mouth is, like, attached to your head." The revelations just keep coming!

I'm so mad at myself because there was something else that he told me last night when I was tucking him in, but I can't remember what it was - I hate when that happens!

On another note, we are running away this weekend for a quick family trip to the beach. The kids have been wanting to go and this weekend popped up with nothing else going on. So, in between softball tournaments on Friday and Kayla leaving for camp on Monday, we are going to the beach! I'm so excited - I can't wait to get out of here for a couple of days!!!

Kayla's Softball Pictures

2009-06-05T14:46:00.004-04:00

Alrighty, here is my favorite girl suited up in her uniform, in action on the ball field. Look at the look on her face when she hits - she is intense! She loves playing catcher and she is good at it. Her coaches commented that they had "found their catcher"!

My Children's Social Life

2009-06-03T06:28:00.003-04:00

Summer has begun with a bang! This is the first year since Tyler started Mother's Day Out that I have not put him in the summer program at least one day a week. I'm glad I didn't now. It is going to be a jam packed month and while it is exhausting running all over town, it is good to know that they are having fun and getting to do things that they don't normally get to do. Kayla is doing a Horizons camp this week and today is her last day of that. Fortunately, one of her friends who lives close by is also doing it and so we have been able to car pool. Yesterday was my day to drive, so I dropped them off at 8:45, went to WalMart, and then came home for a couple of hours. Then I left at 11:00 and went to pick up a friend for Tyler and we took him and met some other friends at McDonalds. From McDonalds we went to a jumpy place, and me and a friend actually got to talk and catch up with each other while the kids ran wild! After that it was back home to play for a little while. While they played, I straightened up my house and got dinner ready and set my handy dandy delayed bake oven, and off we went again. Picked up Kayla and her friend, dropped off Tyler's friend, dropped off Kayla's friend, home for dinner, off to softball where more friends came out to see the game, and then back home to clean up dinner and get everyone to bed! I have to say, I didn't "do" much per se yesterday, but I was exhausted last night! I love that my kids are old enough now to play with other kids without fussing (mostly), and that we can go and do things that they enjoy and it is also enjoyable for us!

No excitement today - I'm off to work!

Playing Catch Up Again

2009-05-31T09:02:00.003-04:00

Okay, so I know I am becoming a terrible blogger - sorry Brian! Things have been crazy around our house and I am finding that I am barely keeping up with normal household duties and there is little to none extra time for blogging and even keeping up on other blogs.

So, we have definitely entered this new phase of life with a bang. I'm working 20 hours a week right now, and to all of my friends with kids who work 40 hours a week outside the home - my hat is off to you - I don't know how you do it. I will say this though - I love my job! And, yes, I even love my boss! It has been a ton of fun being able to finally get some things done around the office that need to be done but that I've never had time to make happen. I'm also doing some work for my boss' son, just some organizational stuff that can be done at work, but that I am getting paid extra for, so that is nice too! The other plus - the kids are absolutely loving their babysitter! They can't wait for her to get here and when she leaves they want to know when she is coming back! Thanks Sarah!

Baseball season has ended for Tyler, but is still going for Kayla. She has three regular games left and then the tournament. Last Tuesday night, we stomped the undefeated team and it was awesome! The girls played great, and we have really seen Kayla's game improve this season!

I filled my last Graceful Designs order yesterday. It was a bittersweet moment to pack Gertrude up and give her back to Holly for the last time. I have loved doing the embroidery thing, but I also know that for my sanity, it is the right thing to do to be getting out of it.

I have tons of pictures to post and will hopefully get to it soon! Hope everyone has a great week!

The Good and the Bad

2009-05-15T06:26:00.002-04:00

Yesterday afternoon my door bell rings and it is my UPS man. I couldn't remember ordering anything, so I grab the envelope and look at the return address. It was from the publishing company that I sent my children's book to several weeks ago. I had received an email the beginning of the week from them letting me know that they would be reviewing my book this week. The letter was dated the 13th(my birthday, woohoo) and they had overnighted this package to me. I opened it up to find a letter telling me that they want to publish my book along with a contract for me to sign laying out all of the fine details. Yea, I called my mom and was bawling on the phone as I read the letter to her where they told me that I was among the 4% of the thousands of people who send manuscripts to them that actually get chosen. The book is about a dog named Mustard, whom my mother created years ago. We actually had a dog named Mustard when I was a kid and my mother has told stories about him for years. My kids actually call Grammy just to hear a "Mustard Story". So, you can imagine both of our excitement at this opportunity. Well, to make a long story short, this company is a company that aids you in self-publishing your book. I was a little scared to get to excited about the whole thing and it turns out I was right. They are a publishing company and they do actually publish some books, but apparently there is some question as to the legitimacy of the company. The short version is that I won't be signing their contract. Yea, pretty sad, right? I was totally disappointed, but have chosen to look at this as a compliment. If it really stunk, they probably wouldn't have bothered to even send me the letter and the contract in the first place, right?

On another note, today is my little guys last day of Pre-K. Good grief, I really hope that I do NOT embarass myself by crying all over the place when I drop him off. He had his graduation program on Wednesday and it was so sweet! Pictures coming soon, I hope!

Wednesday was my birthday and it was the best day! Craig had taken me out last weekend for a birthday shopping date! Most of ya'll know that I have a serious jewelry habit and I had outgrown my jewelry box. He bought me one of the floor kind - it is awesome! Kayla inherited my old one and it looks like she is going to be as bad as I am when it comes to jewelry! I had several friends who took me to lunch and bought me gifts, gifts from other friends and family, and tons of facebook birthday wishes. I'm ruined for years to come now - I was incredibly spoiled all day!

Yesterday was a complete blur. Tyler had a friend over to play and she was here all day and they had a blast! They got along so well and played so good together, and I got tons done. I did a bunch of embroidery and then finally got that put up, cleaned my house, did all the laundry, ironed all the laundry that needed to be ironed, cooked dinner, made it to the ball field... It was an extremely productive day! I'm hoping for the same today. I'm off to work in a little while, have to pay bills, run errands, get groceries - does it ever end? These days I feel like I pass myself on the road! Only a few more weeks of baseball left and then hopefully we will slow down some. Craig and I are off on another date night tonight - this seldom happens that we go back to back weekends like this, but my boss gave us tickets to the sunset canal cruise so we are headed out for that. Fred will be playing the sax and I can make small talk with my co-worker and my boss and their families. You know how I love small talk right? Oh, well, it will be fun, especially if it does not rain! Have a good weekend everyone!

Here Comes the Bride...

2009-05-12T12:10:00.002-04:00

...and it is Kimberly Shipp! WhoooHooo! Kimberly and Brandon came over Sunday night and asked my children to be in their wedding. Kimberly has babysat my kids since the beginning I think. She is the ultra-cool babysitter who lets her charges paint her face up like a clown! My children were absolutely thrilled to be asked and are so excited. Kayla would like to have her dress "pop" and she thinks Ms. Kimberly's dress "pops", and she is already talking about having her hair done and getting her nails and makeup done. Huh? I'm not sure if she realizes that it is KIMBERLY who is getting married. Tyler decided he wants to skip being the ring bearer and just be the one marrying Kimberly. It should be a fun time! Thanks Kimberly and Brandon! We love you guys!

Where'd They Go?

2009-05-12T10:30:00.004-04:00

I have no idea what happened to my videos of the kids choir performance - they were supposed to be on the previous post, BUT, they are not there! Let's try this again, shall we?

Kind of Behind...

2009-05-12T09:51:00.008-04:00

Okay, so I'm a little behind, but better late than never right? So I present to you... drumroll, please... Easter pics, kids choir videos and pics, baseball pics from Tyler's first game. Pictures of Kayla's games will come after I take them tonight! I have pictures of practice, but none of any games yet!

Share My Horror

2009-05-08T06:49:00.003-04:00

Okay, so I don't like animals - this is no surprise. Last night we went to Tyler's game and had to move away from the bleachers down into the grass to be able to see. I plopped myself down and looked up and thought "why here? why did I pick right here to sit?". Craig asked me why I didn't just get up and move and I don't know why I didn't except that I had no chair and I was already down on the ground, plus I was totin' a cooler, snacks, my purse, and a bottle of water. I was sitting right behind the ugliest animal I have ever seen. The bad thing? The owner treated him like he was a little baby - ya'll, he had his own stinkin' water bottle. Seriously? If you look close at the picture you will see the drool hanging down his face. Disgusting. He came up to Kayla and she reached out to pet him and came back with a soaked arm. I told her she was going to have to go home and bathe in Clorox. Ugh, it gives me the creeps. So, now for your viewing pleasure, I present you with my views from the ball field last night...

Just for the record, I did take pictures of my child playing ball too, and I will post those soon, along with Easter pictures - yea, I'm a little late.

Rain, Rain, Please Don't Go Away

2009-05-06T22:31:00.002-04:00

We have already had two ball games rained out this week. And, while I love watching the kids play and, while I also know that it is not going to be fun making these up - it has been such a blessing to have the last two nights at home! Monday I went and got my nails done so I guess I wasn't technically home, but I needed that time out. The weekend was crazy busy - I won't even go into it because it makes me tired just thinking about it! I will tell you that I did the Walk for Life on Saturday morning. The turn out was slightly disappointing, but there was such a sweet spirit in our midst at the Riverwalk. You could feel God's presence there as a couple of groups sang - it was awesome! The rest of the weekend, however, was a complete and total blur! I was bordering on the edge of a serious overload meltdown when I left to get my nails done on Monday so it was nice to have some quiet time!

Yesterday I took a wild hair (no pun intended) and went and had all of my hair cut off and what is left I had highlighted. I haven't decided if I like it all that much yet, but it will eventually grow back, or I will grow used to it - one or the other! Last night I got Gertrude back - yea! For those of you who don't already know, this is my last month with Graceful Designs. I have loved it and have had so much fun and will miss it tremendously. However, with the extra hours I'm working at the office and the even more hours I will be putting in when fall rolls around, I just can't do it - there is not enough hours in the day. Holly's going to keep it rolling though so call her! But, for the month of May I get to embroider until my heart's content! After welcoming Gert back, the whole family chipped in to help clean the house. I hate asking for help with house work, but with all that has been going on, the house ain't gettin' clean. That adds ten times more stress to me knowing that my house is dirty! Yuck! My husband and kids are the bomb! I woke up today feeling much more ahead of the game than I have been feeling. I'm ready for summer, ready for a break!

Don't Do As I Do, Do As I Say

2009-05-01T14:06:00.002-04:00

Does anyone think that is a good form of parenting. I used to kind of have that attitude - I am boss, hear me roar. Okay, I still have some of that attitude - sad, yes, but honest!

So, let me tell ya'll something that my daughter said to me this morning. First of all, let me preface this by saying that growing up "suck" was a bad word. As in, "man this really sucks". Well, my parents know that I am a rebel and I say it now because I am the boss, hear me roar! :) Since I am dieting I have been making jello, the fat free, sugar free kind, because it basically is flavored water with almost no calories and it makes me feel like I have had something sweet! So, this morning Kayla was putting her lunch in her lunch box and I told her to get a lid for her jello. She said, "Mom, can a put a little dallop of whipped cream on it?". I said, "No, baby, daddy took the last of the whipped cream on his jell-o today." To which she replies, "Man, that sucks".

Now I know why my mama didn't want me saying it!

And while I'm on funny things my kids have said this week, let me tell you what Tyler said the other night coming home from a softball game. We drove by one of those churches with the cemetary on the grounds of the church. Personally, that kind of creeps me out, but, hey, to each their own. Anyway, we drove by it, and Tyler says, "Hey Mom, look there's a rock garden". Hahaha!

Where Do I Start?

2009-04-30T19:47:00.002-04:00

Goodness gracious! I have missed blogging the past week! I'm so happy to have our computer fixed - thanks babe! There has been so much going on that I'm not really too sure of where to begin.

I'm still walking with my sweet friend, Crystal, three mornings a week. We are walking about 2.5 miles and although it is really early to be up, I'm loving being back into some exercise after finishing boot camp. Speaking of boot camp, I just got my "graduate" shirt in the mail this week, and I plan on wearing it with pride! I worked hard for that t-shirt!:) This coming Saturday, Crystal and I are walking in the Walf for Life here. Want to sponsor me? We are excited about it - it is a great way to stand up for what you believe in and get some exercise. I haven't posted much about my weight loss on here because I feel kind of weird about it, but I have had several people comment about it to me lately, so I'll just tell you. I've lost 45 lbs, I'm down three pant sizes, and one shirt size. I'm very proud of myself and hope to keep going with it. Everybody seems to be on the adventure to lose weight right now - a sure sign that summer is coming!

We are in the full swing of the baseball season. Next week we will be at the ball field at least four nights for games. Kayla had a game tonight and they just got spanked - and I do mean spanked! They lost 12-1. It was not pretty. We have played this team once before and they stomped us then too. Their coach is, um, well, not so great. I haven't figured him out yet. He seems to be very encouraging to the girls but not quite so considerate in how he plays. Oh well - you can't win them all I guess! Tyler starts his games next week. Have I told ya'll how cute he looks in his baseball pants? It cracks me up!

We have made it over the slump of cut hours at Craig's job. God is so good - He provided just what we needed! He is back on a full 40 hours! I'm working three days a week and Shannon has been picking Tyler up from K4 for me so that I can get most of my hours in. I've got my babysitter lined up for summer and I will work about 20 hours a week through the summer and then come fall I'll be doing 24 hours a week. That will be about perfect for me. I'll work four days a week and then have one day for errands and helping at school and such. Next month (May) will be my last month of doing Graceful Designs. It is kind of sad, but I also know that this is what God would have me to do. There are not enough hours in my life to work for Bud, enjoy my family, take care of my home and family, and do Graceful Designs too. Rock on Holly - I hope it takes off for you!

I have pictures to post of softball/baseball and the kid's choir programs from last night. More post are coming soon, I hope...

If It's Broke, Fix It PLEASE!!!!

2009-04-24T13:59:00.003-04:00

Okay, so I am posting this quick update while I am work (that's why it's going to be quick!). My computer at home is broke AGAIN. Along with our ice maker - go figure - maybe they are both connected to the same... refrigerator??? Anyway, just wanted to let everyone know that we were still alive and I have lots of fun stuff to post about, but until my computer is fixed, that ain't gonna happen. If you need something, call, don't email! :) Would one of my facebook friends please call me every hour to let me know what I'm missing!

Playing Catch Up

2009-04-16T08:25:00.002-04:00

I have no idea where the last two weeks have gone! The kids had a wonderful time in Tennessee with the Grandparents. Tyler keeps telling me to take him back, but I don't have the heart to tell him that they probably need a break! I'm just kidding! It was kind of funny though, they all said how good the kids were while they were up there but when they got home, whoo! Tyler did nothing but run around and yell all weekend! I think he had contained himself as long as he could! They did both have a great time though. Craig and I also enjoyed the week of just being by ourselves. We both worked, but by the time evening came, it was almost like we were dating again - it was awesome! We talked and shopped and went out to eat, by ourselves and with friends. We went and got ice cream one night and cruised around town with the windows down and classic rock music blaring from the speakers - yea, we were in our minivan, but, hey, it was still fun! He took me clothes shopping and that is something that we rarely, if ever, get to do together, so that was a lot of fun also. Oh, and we had the great budget talk, and we didn't have to wait until after 9:00 p.m. when the kids were in bed! So, all in all, it was a great week for everyone.

My parents brought the kids back on Saturday and then spent a few days with us. I took a few pictures of the kids coloring eggs and opening their Easter baskets so I'll have to get those posted. We had a great time with my parents and, if you happen to know them and you are reading my blog, please tell my dad that you are so happy that he found his owl! :)

This week starts our baseball craziness. We will be at the ball field at least three nights a week, but at least the kids are playing at the same field so when games do overlap, we can split our time between games.

It seems that for some reason this week every blog and facebook status that I read is talking about people trying to lose weight or people just noticing that they need to lose weight. What's up with that? Must be summer is coming! I have started walking in the mornings again with a friend of mine. This was our first week and we were up stinkin' early! My alarm went off at 4:35 this morning and by 4:55 we were walking. Crazy, yes, but I miss boot camp and could feel all my newly toned muscles turning to flab again. Plus I do want to lose some more weight before our vacations this summer, so if that means getting up before 5:00 a.m., so be it!

I'm hosting bunko tonight! Yea! So, I've got to get off of this computer and get going so I'll be ready! Hope everyone has a great day!

The Great Outdoors

2009-04-06T12:48:00.003-04:00

This weekend we took the kids and met Ruth and Ron at Cloudland Canyon State Park just outside of Chattanooga. It was a nice overnight trip. We stayed in their camper so I didn't have to brave the bath house! I hate bath houses! Seriously, they gross me out. I was a little out of my comfort zone all weekend, but it was still fun. By out of my comfort zone, I mean, outside doing outdoorsy types of things. Now, it's not that I don't enjoy being outdoors, I love the great outdoors. I just don't like sweating, bugs, or getting dirty!:) This weekend I did all three. Right after we got to the park on Saturday we set off for a wild flower hike. I love wildflowers and much of what our guide told us was very interesting. It also helped that he had a great sense of humor and kept us laughing the whole time. However, at the beginning of the hike he told us there was just one steep part that he wanted to take us on so that we could look in these caves. Knowing that I had just finished five weeks of Boot Camp, I was feeling seriously prepared for this. And, I thought, "caves, this will be fun!" That's not something you see every day. I'm thinking this is a great adventure, right? The guide, Josh, proceeds to tell us that we need to be very careful because just the day before, a man had slipped/tripped and fallen and split his head open on a rock and bled profusely. My sense of adventure began to dwindle just slightly. Then I saw the steep part and the mud and I began to clumsily slip and slide my way to the top, but he just kept going and going and Lisa was growing more and more nervous. I finally called a halt and decided staying alive was more important to me than seeing a cave. I'm horribly uncoordinated and I just couldn't see risking it. At this point, I should mention that my in-laws who are in the sixties did this climb without missing a beat. I'm a wuss, I know.
We enjoyed the wildflower hike and came back to camp to just hang out and relax. There was a playground right next to the campsite and the kids made new friends and spent most of their time over there. There is nothing like camping to make you completely relaxed. Craig laughs at me because all I want to do when we get out there is sleep.
Sunday morning we got up and hiked down into the canyon to a waterfall. It was very pretty and very intimidating. You feel like a teeny tiny bug when you are standing in the midst of such vastness. You're surrounded by rock and water. The climb back out was quite a workout. There were about a bazillion stairs and, yes, I was sweating and out of breath when I got to the top!
We left the kids there with the grandparents and drove home. What an odd feeling to be in your house with no children and knowing you are going to have that deafening silence for a whole week! I love my children to pieces, but I'm not going to lie - I'm going to enjoy this week of getting to do things that we don't usually get to do. Like clothes shopping with just my husband with no time constraints, grocery shopping without having to constantly yank my kids out of the aisle so that they don't get run over, spring cleaning!!! By the end of the week, I will be crazy with missing them, but in the here and now, I'm going to enjoy a break from reality!

WhoooHOOOOO!!!

2009-04-02T09:07:00.001-04:00

Yea!!! I finally got my background issue figured out!!!

Kayla's World

2009-04-02T08:20:00.002-04:00

So, I've posted a lot about Tyler, but not much about Kayla, so I thought I would catch everyone up on her goings-ons! She started softball this past week. It is her first year with machine pitch. Craig took her to the batting cage on Sunday and she was not very happy about how hitting the ball hurt her hands. But, she did practice on Monday, and Craig was very proud of her. She did a really good job and is one of only a few kids who know how to hold their gloves right and she did connect with the ball. She had a blast!

She is still developing quite an education at school this year and I ain't talking about the good stuff. I'm thankful that she talks to me and she knows right from wrong. But, even still, the stuff she is learning from the kids in her class is beyond me. This week she informed me that she knows what "gay" means. Great. Also, apparently, there is a little boy in her class that sometimes feels the need to shoot the bird at the teacher when she isn't looking. Great, again. This particular boy has been a thorn in Kayla's side all year. And, I must admit, he is something else. I've had the pleasure of sitting at the lunch table with him a few times this year when I've gone to eat lunch with Kayla. I told Kayla that he is an EGR person - Extra Grace Required. Tuesday night, he was in everybody's bed time prayers as we prayed that Kayla would respond to him with kindness and God's grace. I now know why I do not work in the education system - bless her teacher's heart!

We are packing and getting the kids ready today to go to Tennessee for spring break. We leave early Saturday morning and Craig and I will spend one night camping with Ruth and Ron and then we'll head home on Sunday for a week of date nights! I'm sure I will miss them terribly, but they are so excited! I'm not working Masters this year but I will be working my other job so it will still be a busy week. Well, I guess that's it for now!

Oh, before I leave, for those of you who live in my area and are wondering if I got wet at boot camp again last night - I DID! Another night of wet sticky grass and mud and dripping ugly hair. It was our last workout! Friday is our final test - I've made it through five weeks of intense workout and excruiating pain. My legs hurt so bad when I got home last night that I wanted to cry! Fun stuff, huh?

Scared???

2009-03-31T13:55:00.003-04:00

Okay, so the kids are going to Tennessee next week for spring break and this post is purely for the fun of giving the Grandparents a little glimpse into Tyler's world. Grandpa, watch out for your trees and bushes! Don't be scared! He is wild, but sweet too! So, here he is, Tyler aka The Spectacular Spiderman!

2009-03-31T13:45:00.002-04:00

I took Tyler and registered him for Kindergarten today! Crazy, huh? So, when we got home, he wanted to play outside so I said to heck with the laundry and the housework and we sat outside and played. This is him riding his tractor AND singing "Redemption", or as Tyler likes to say it "Redemptshhhuuuunnnnn".

Tyler Randomness

2009-03-31T13:43:00.002-04:00

A couple of the conversations from today:

"Mama, do you want to sell your car?"

"Um, no, why?"

"I don't know, I was just wondering."

"Mama, do you know what I want to be when I grow up?"

"What"

"A brain surgery"

The mind of a 5 year old!

Is It Worth It? Part 2

2009-03-30T08:20:00.002-04:00

Well, another week of boot camp has passed, but I couldn't fully let it go without telling a story. Last Wednesday night it was just beginning to sprinkle as we arrived on the track. Now, Ma'am really doesn't care if it is raining or not - you WILL work out. However, the last time it rained she kept us in the gym for an hour and it was a lot like torture and there was much pain and agony as a result of that hour. So, it begins to sprinkle on Wednesday and she lets us know that we are going to do our running first and then if it is still raining we will move in to the gym. At this point let me stop and tell you that there are two things that I do not do well - I don't look good in the rain, my hair turns into a stringy mess. Also, I don't cry pretty - I do the hiccupping, snot-flinging kind of crying. The crying thing is completely irrelevant to this story - just thought I would share! So, my hair has kind of been a problem for me lately and especially with this class because it is two short to pull up into a ponytail and leaving it to hang in my face is quite annoying too. Plus, I use ALOT of hairspray, ya'll. I mean, most days my hair could quite easily sustain 45-50 mph winds and still come through without a single hair out of place. So, back to the story - mix the rain, the stringy hair, and lots of hairspray, and what you have is a mess. This has been an extremely humbling experience for me because I hate for my hair to look a mess. Well, by the time that we finished our run last Wednesday night, I had ditched the hood on my sweatshirt and was looking like a sweaty, rain soaked animal. And that was just from the sprinkling that was going on. By the time we finished running, it was coming down much more steady. But, even still, all of us were begging her to just let us stay out in the rain because we knew what happened in the gym - I think we were all still having nightmares and midnight charley horses from that evening. Well, I think I mentioned before that Ma'am really likes the great outdoors, so she happily agreed to let us continue to work out in the rain. So we began our exercises. When my friend and I arrived at the track that night we had to take our place on a slight hill because that was the only available spot other than the front row and we try to avoid that at all costs! If you will imagine with me a rainy night, a yoga mat, and a hill. Basically, I had my own personal slip-n-slide. Every time I got down for pushups or the dirty dog or elbows and toes, I had to brace myself for the slide. As if that wasn't bad enough I was dirty - I hate being dirty - you know, sticky little pieces of grass and mud on your hands and in your hair and on your legs. Yuck! So, by this point, my hair is drenched and water is dripping off of me. My sweatshirt has been soaked, but I'm scared to take it off because I did not want my T-shirt to be soaked - SCARY! I'm covered with little pieces of mud and grass and the knees of my workout pants are drenched from getting into "front leading rest position". All of that and then the unthinkable happens. Scissor-Kicks. Yep, now I'm flat on my back on my slip-n-slide. By the time we left that night, I looked so pitiful that even Ma'am commented on how wet I was. Is it worth it?

I know this is getting long but since I'm having such a great time laughing at myself in this post I'll take it one step forward and tell you one more story about my hair. Apparently I got into some not-so-nice hair care products and have developed this really disgusting film on my hair. If you have noticed me having some not-so-great hair days, please don't tell me. After some tips from my hair-dresser I went into my shower last night intent on getting this stuff off the ends of my hair. Basically it went like this: mix baking soda and water until you get the consistency of pancake batter - does anyone know how much baking soda this takes - ALOT. Then, wet hair, and then apply pancake batter to your hair and cover with shower cap or whatever and let that eat the yuck off of your hair. I thought I had a shower cap, but apparently I didn't, so I had to take alternative measures. I wet my hair, applied the goop, and then tried to decide what I was going to put on my head to cover it while the eating process began. What I learned was that my head it too big to fit into a gallon size ziploc bag, AND that my family laughs at me when I wrap my head in purple saran wrap. BUT, when it was all said and done and I had washed it all out and conditioned, my hair flowed like the girl's hair in those Suave commercials. It was awesome and I am so happy to have my hair back!

Is It Worth It?

2009-03-19T08:02:00.002-04:00

About three weeks ago, I started an exercise class that, for most people, in any kind of shape would probably just be an intense workout. Since I am NOT in any kind of shape except big and round, for me it is a matter of life and death every time I go. I would love to tell you that I have enjoyed every minute of this class, but that would be a lie. I love how I feel when the class is over and I have gotten home and had a shower and my legs and arms have regained a little stability and no longer feel like jelly - does that count? Seriously, this class is called Body Boot Camp - heard of it? Basically it goes like this... I have paid money to be abused! Our drill seargant, her name is ma'am, is about a size 0, has a six pack that any man would kill to have, and she loves the great outdoors. So, our workouts are outdoors, unless it is raining, and then, if she thinks it is not unsafe, those will be outdoors also. So, for an hour, she yells at us. My name is Recruit. If, at this point, you think I'm joking, please stay with me - this is NO joke.

I'm doing this class with a friend from work and the first night that we showed up I wondered what in the world I was getting myself into. We were running slightly behind because of a mix up in where we thought we were supposed to be. So, as we enter the class, Ma'am begins telling all of us what happens if we are late - Scissorkicks! And lots of them! And, they are not just for the ones who are late. If anybody is late and didn't call to tell her you were going to be late, the whole class does scissorkicks. Apparently scissor-kicks are her favorite exercise because she also likes to make us do these if we are not following directions well, if we don't count loud enough, you get the picture. My body has learned to despise scissor-kicks. Now, if you don't know what scissor-kicks are, let me enlighten you. Flat on your back, feet six inches off the ground (not six feet, as Ma'am would say) and you lift one leg at a time, never touching the ground. If you are thinking these don't sound too hard, please let me come over and show you how they are REALLY supposed to be done, because if it don't hurt, you ain't doing it right! Okay, so back to the first night. She is telling us all this and then we begin to exercise and she is yelling at us and I just could NOT help it - I started laughing. What can I say? Uncomfortable situations make me laugh hysterically. After a few minutes when I realized that Ma'am was for real, I tried to stop laughing because I was afraid she might want 20 pushups or something.

So, what did I learn on the first night? I learned that I do NOT know how to do a jumping jack or a side-straddle hop as Ma'am calls them. I learned that people who are well-endowed in their upper body(and I ain't talking about triceps) need to be extremely careful when jumping around. I also learned that I actually CAN run, though it is not very pretty, and I run like a girl. I learned a whole new meaning for "pushing yourself", and I also learned that you can exercise for an hour and not throw-up. I didn't even have to call my husband to come drive me home. For the day after the first night of boot camp, I learned that your body can really hurt ALL OVER, that you DO, indeed, have muscles that you may never know about, and that pain relievers are the BOMB!

On Friday, I will end my third week of boot camp. I have pushed myself like I never knew I could. As a matter of fact, last night I pushed myself so hard that I made myself sick. Seriously, we exercise on this track and right beside where we exercise is a porta-potty. Wasn't that nice of them to put that there for us? I make it a point never to go into a porta-potty unless it is a dire emergency. So, you can imagine where I was at last night and how I was feeling when the porta-potty was beginning to look like a great place for me to hang out. I made it through all the exercising, made it through an intense jogging/walking situation, and made it part way through stretching before I knew I either needed to sit down or call a medic! I opted for sitting down. I had not felt that great yesterday anyway - Craig thinks I have walking pneumonia, but, ya'll, you don't not want to miss a night of boot camp because that just means it is really going to stink when you go back. Oh, did I mention that there are kids practicing soccer on the field that we exercise on? Yea, so not only are you working out like a dog, but you also have an audience! Isn't that special? I am learning to really get over what people think of me. Like last night for instance, there was this doctor running his laps on the track - he is not in our class, apparently, he just likes to run for fun. I do not even try to understand that! Anyway, I am running/power-walking and, basically, breathing like an elephant who has been out for his morning jog, and Dr. Man goes running by barely sweating and this is, like, the fifth time that he has lapped me. Do NOT think that I am so saintly that I didn't seriously think about tripping him.

I guess that is it for now on the humiliations of boot camp. I have to get up from my chair now or else the muscles in the lower half of my body will cramp up and I will be here all day. Sorry for any mental pictures that you have had to endure while reading this!

400%

2009-03-17T17:52:00.004-04:00

FINALLY!!! We have a grade on our Science Fair Project! Remember our title? Cookies: Can You Blame The Burnt Ones on the Cookie Sheet? The grade is in and Kayla got a 400% out of 400% - pretty good, huh?

Pitiful

2009-03-17T17:49:00.003-04:00

The miserable life of a little boy who did NOT get to buy an ice cream cone from the ice cream truck. Sad, isn't it?

Wondering Why

2009-03-17T12:57:00.002-04:00

So, I went off to Wal-Mart today and while I was standing their checking out the cashier grabbed one of those little order separator sticks and stuck it down the back of her shirt and used it as a back scratcher. Yea, kind of gave me the heebeegeebees too. I bet you'll think twice before reaching for that next time!

Hulk Up Baby!

2009-03-14T17:50:00.004-04:00

Today we celebrated Tyler's 5th birthday with 8 of his friends (all boys). His actual birthday is tomorrow, but we partied today. Wow, can I tell you that this is the first real party we have done with Tyler where he has a bunch of friends his age come over? It was night and day from the parties we have done with Kayla. Big surprise, right? There is a certain noise level that comes with boys! But, I think everyone had fun. We started off with taking pictures behind the 3-4 foot Incredible Hulk that we had colored and mounted on cardboard. Those were some great pictures! Then it was off to a truck throwing contest, because you know that sometimes when the hulk gets angry he throws vehicles right? Okay, I know, probably not a great lesson in self-control, but it was fun anyway. Then we drank gamma juice (Code Red Mountain Dew) and had a jumping contest. Congrats to A.C. who threw the truck the farthest and C.G. who jumped the farthest. Then it was into the house for a quick snack and cake and ice cream. I tried to do as much green food as possible, but we didn't do a lot of food. We had chips with green french onion dip, vegetables with green Ranch dressing, Monterey Jack salsa, green m&m's, and green jelly beans. After that it was presents and the pinata, and then the Hulk wrap. We chose two kids to get wrapped in crepe paper and then they got to bust out of that! Lots and lots of fun. Check out the pics and see for yourself. I have tried to be respectful of others and not post a bunch of pictures of everyone's children just in case someone doesn't want there kids pics out there

A New Phase

2009-03-11T08:27:00.003-04:00

I have talked on here a little bit about how things will be changing for our family come fall when I have two children in school. We have taken the first step toward that change and will take another one before the month is over. Yesterday I talked to my boss about giving me more hours and he was extremely receptive. So, I have now become a 20-25 hour/week employee rather than 6-9 hours/week. God has been so good to bless me with the opportunity of staying home with my kids while they are little. Not only that, but He has blessed me with a very flexible job that allows me to work only while they are in Mother's Day Out. All of this came in light of the fact that Craig's hours have been cut twice in the past week, and while we feel confident that business WILL eventually pick back up, my extra hours will certainly come in handy. So, from now until school gets out it will be a little crazy, but that is only two months, so I think we can handle it! I'll work 15-20 hours/week during the summer and then come fall I'll just keep right on going, just adding in a few extra hours through the week.

Later in the month I have to go and register Tyler for Kindergarten. What a surreal kind of moment that will be. In some ways I am so ready for this next step; in others I think, where has the time gone? Aahhh, phases! You have got to love phases!

On a completely different note, I have been waiting to post information and picture about Kayla's Science Fair project until I have her grade. Most classes got their grades over a week ago, so, hopefully, they will be coming pretty soon. I'll have to keep you posted on that one.

Look Mom! No Training Wheels!

2009-03-10T09:47:00.002-04:00

Well, my little guy is growing up. Craig has removed his training wheels and he is doing so well riding his bike without them! His favorite part is the falling off. He rides for a few seconds and then falls off! He is a mess. Check this out! Oh, by the way - he will be five on Sunday!!! We are hulking out with an Incredible Hulk party on Saturday. Hopefully I will get some good pics to share with you.

Basketball Season Ends With a Bang

2009-03-10T09:44:00.002-04:00

Kayla had a great time playing basketball this year. She has improved so much from last year!!! That is a gross understatement - if you were there, you know what I mean. Literally, last year, she spent just about every game on the bench in tears. This year she was agressive and in your face! She took those big boys on like nobody's business! She did great!

Catching Up

2009-03-03T10:42:00.002-05:00

Let's see - what has been going on in my life?

Craig and I had a great trip to Atlanta, enjoyed an awesome conference, and also had a great time together in a belated Valentine's Day gift to ourselves. The moms had fun with the grandkids except that my mom took a fall going in to Kayla's basketball game and is just now getting back to feeling normal. In a month's time, we will be leaving our kids with the grandparents once again. Just in case you don't know, this is not something that Craig and I do often, but I usually work Master's week and Ruth and Ron wanted to take the kids camping. So, during spring break they will be having a blast with Grandma and Grandpa. Will I be working? Who knows. Masters is up in the air this year all the way around, so we'll see. The state of our economy has become a reality in Augusta and I just don't think Masters is going to be as huge this year. So, if I DON'T work, I will be spring cleaning??? Yea, something like that. What will I do with myself for a week without my children? It is going to be weird.

Speaking of the recession that we find ourselves in, Craig's hours just got cut back to 32 hours a week. Sweet. Praise God that he has a job - that's what I keep telling myself. And, God, continues to provide in amazing ways lately - it is so fun to really see Him showing off, isn't it! I just love Him! On a bright note, this does mean that we will be having a date every Friday from now until who knows when!

I have actually placed in some of the writing contests that I have entered lately. That is exciting. That means that someone besides my immediate family also likes my writing. I actually have had votes - more than one! Haven't won anything yet, but I'm thrilled to have placed. I was running second in one contest until this morning when someone gained some votes and now I'm in a tie for third. It is still very exciting though!

We enjoyed a nice Georgia snow day yesterday. They called school off before church on Sunday night and not the first snowflake had fallen. And guess what? None ever did fall. So, we enjoyed a bright sunshiny day yesterday. It was in the high forties by the afternoon and the kids played outside. I wonder what my relatives up north think about that! :)

I have more to tell, but I have to get off of this computer for now and go and do something productive. More to come... basketball, science fair, guinea pigs, and Mustard...

Frustration and Excitement!

2009-02-24T19:22:00.002-05:00

First of all, let me say - I have no idea what the heck is going on with my blog background, but I am thoroughly frustrated! Help! I tried to change my background and when I did it was just showing the background with no words. It finally dawned on me that maybe my font color was too light and the words just weren't showing up. But, then, when I tried to change the color, that button on my dashboard was gone. So, for now, I am boring blue. Blah!

Okay, but on an exciting note - Craig and I have just joined Net Flix! WhooHoo! Now, ya'll know we are not movie people so this is going to be new for us. We only signed up for one movie at a time, but, ya'll, there are so many old classics out there that I can't wait to watch with my kids. I'm so excited! Just to tell you how out of the loop we are for movies - my kids have never seen "Camp Rock". Yes, it's true and, so, that is the first movie on our list - we're so excited!

Who Says There's No Free Lunch?

2009-02-24T07:11:00.002-05:00

My husband will laugh at me for posting this, but I just can't help myself. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to find a good deal. It is one of my passions - seriously! So, yesterday, I came across this deal for a free sub at Quiznos. No purchase necessary, you must show photo ID, blah, blah, blah. I'm thinkin' to myself, "okay, I'll bite". So, I printed off three coupons. I had intentions of printing off 4, since we do have 4 people in our family, but the printer quit, and that's a whole 'nother story. Besides that, Tyler was happy with Kid Cuisine, ie...nothing of any nutritional value in this meal at all cuisine. So, off we went to do a little grocery shopping and then pick up subs and head home to eat them. Hello? There is no point in getting free subs if you are then going to spend $10-$12 on drinks and chips when you have drinks and chips at home. Craig was giving me a hard time about all this and telling me there was no way that they were going to let me use all three coupons and I knew he was probably right, but I'm so NOT too proud to try it. Ya'll I walked into Quiznos with my ID, his ID, and Kayla who doesn't have an ID. I walked back out with 3 - 5" sub sandwiches for FREEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!! I was stoked. So, if you want to try this, go to this site...www.millionsubs.com. One day I'm going to learn how to do one of those little linky things! So, there you go... there really is a free lunch (dinner) sometimes! One last thing, you do have to put in your email address, but, hopefully, like us, you have several junk emails to choose from. Go get 'em!

Snagging a Few Moments

2009-02-17T17:53:00.002-05:00

It has been a hectic day and I'm getting ready to run out the door, but I thought I would snag a few moments to post! My brother is smiling right now! :)

Craig and I are heading out of town this week to a conference. We are going to be gone four days! Yikes! The conference is Thursday, Friday, and part of Saturday, and we decided that since we had the kids taken care of, we would splurge and spend an extra night just for "us" time. So, we leave Thursday morning for Atlanta. My mom and Craig's mom are driving down together tomorrow to take care of the kids for us. The kids are so excited that they have both grandmas coming! So, today, I have been cleaning and doing laundry and finishing up Kayla's Science Fair Project. Her board is due in on Monday and since we won't be home until Sunday afternoon, we had to hurry and get it done! It looks great! I will try to post some pictures of her and her project! She did a fantastic job!

I'm so excited this week over this website that I found that hosts writing contests. I have done more writing in the last week than I have in the last year. I have entered several contests and have gotten some great feedback on the stuff I have submitted. It has been a ton of fun! I even have a fan! Somebody who signed up to get notified when I post something new. I was very excited about that! I'll keep ya'll posted!

Alright, my casserole is done and I am off for Bunko and some much needed girl time! Hope everyone has a good rest of the week - I doubt I'll get another post in before we leave!

Family Fun Night Gone Terribly Wrong

2009-02-15T08:51:00.002-05:00

Oh, the bliss of a weekend with nothing to do! Yesterday was a gloomy day and it rained off and on. Kayla had a basketball game in the morning and we decided that in the afternoon we would go to the movies. I had checked the schedule for the cheap movie online. I'm not into paying $30 for all of us to go to the movies and since we don't go to the movies very often we usually haven't seen anything that is showing at the dollar movie. Actually, did you know that the dollar movie is now the two dollar movie - yea, inflation and all that! So, we were off to see Madagascar 2 at 4:25. We get there and Craig drops us off since it is looking pretty packed. I get up to the window and ask for four tickets to Madagascar to which the man replies with the total and I had him my debit card. Did you know that they don't take debit cards at the two dollar theatre? So, now I'm waiting for Craig hoping that he has cash and he does, but when the man looks again there is no movie listing for Madagascar at the time we wanted to go. So, our choices are: 1)Wait 45 minutes to see "Bolt" or 2)See Marley and Me at 4:25. I knew M&M was about a couple that buys a dog and it had this cute picture of this dog on the advertising screen and so I thought "how bad can it be?". It was PG and that gave me a moment of pause. We have been letting Kayla see a few PG movies if I can get on movie reviewer and see that it is okay. Call me a compromiser if you want, but it is stinkin' hard to find a movie for your kids to watch that has NOTHING questionable in it. So, off we go to Marley and Me. We lasted about 20 or 30 minutes and then we left. We totally wasted $8. You know what the sad thing was though? People were packed in there with their children of all ages - did they get up and leave??? NO! I'm trying really hard not to be judgmental here, but, seriously, now I know why there are 4th grade boys at my child's school calling my daughter smokin' hot and talking about dating! It is because they watch this kind of crap. Oh, it makes me so mad - can you tell. I'm standing proudly on my soapbox right now! Okay, so I know that you are dying to know why we left right? At that point, I had heard three bad words and the couple in the movie had decided that they were doing great taking care of this horrible dog, so why not try for a baby. Yes, they went down that road in the movie and, yes, we left just as they were getting ready to "try". I mean, come on, people! I do have one thing to say though - they were married - which is at least a small step up in the right direction.

So, we left the movie, came home, had dinner, and played two rousing games of Candy Land. Now, I know why more times than not, our family nights include only games and no movies!

In Honor of Valentine's Day

2009-02-13T07:08:00.002-05:00

In honor of Valentine's Day I thought I would just say that I love my husband dearly! After 12 1/2 years of marriage I can truly say I am more in love now than I was then. It is a blessing to be married to my best friend. I love you Craig!

The Proven Hypothesis

2009-02-11T06:51:00.002-05:00

Well, folks, you have heard it hear first. The aluminum baking sheet apparently holds the most heat and, therefore, burns cookies. Or maybe, it was because it was a cheap and flimsy pan, but, for purposes of the Science Fair project we are going with the fact that aluminum holds the most heat! Lara, I was so proud of my PC stone - it just bakes beautiful cookies - there is no other way around it. Of course, I knew that before the project, but still, I fell in love all over again! :)

Kayla worked like a dog last night on this thing. She typed and typed and typed some more and has just done so well with this. She is interviewing our church hostess this afternoon to get her views and opinions on baking cookies - that should be fun! After that, she just has a few more things to type and then the written part will be done and we will just have to make her display board and we have another week and a half for that. This is, without a doubt, the most involved project we have ever done. She has had to do a research paper, a data book, an abstract(???), a timeline, and the list goes on. But she is doing a bang up job and if she doesn't get an A, I will have to fork the judges' yards or something!

In other news, my brother has been building us a Graceful Designs website. I hope to be able to share the link with you all very soon. He has done an amazing job. You will be able to buy directly from the site if you have a paypal account and we will be able to ship anywhere. Just the fact that we will have a web store and be out there for anyone and everyone to find is very cool and very overwhelming all at the same time. Hopefully, this will take our business to a new level. Thanks Brain, um, Brian!

Incredible

2009-02-09T08:55:00.002-05:00

It is Monday morning and I have 20 minutes before I have to leave to take Tyler to school and me to work and my house is straightened up, laundry is going, dishes are in the dishwasher. Wow, this is incredible. There was no fighting, yelling(ok, I yelled once in the car because Tyler was being difficult :( ) - it was overall a smooth morning. This doesn't always happen in our house. I'm not a morning person - at all. No, really, not at all. I'm thanking God that this morning went smooth and the day is off to a good, productive start.

This week is the dreaded Science Fair week. Have I expressed to you before how much I detest science fair projects? Ugh! This year Kayla and I have decided that we are going to do a baking project. It called, "Cookies! Can you blame you burnt ones on the cookie sheet". Fun, right? We'll see. I have three different baking sheets that we will test to see which ones cook the cookies the best. Really, as far as Science Fair projects go, this is the easiest. You want to know what threw me though? The teacher sent home this packet of papers explaining in detail all that must be done. This paper must have been taken from a 12th grade science project. Seriously, she has to do an abstract, a research log, etc. etc. Should be fun. I'll let you know.

Happy Monday everyone!

Complete Stupidity

2009-02-07T22:47:00.003-05:00

Okay, so have you ever done anything that you just really wanted to kick yourself over? Yea, I know you have! Well, I did that. I had this friend that several months ago told me about this movie she had seen and how good it was. Craig and I just do not do movies that often. We watch a lot of sports at our house and we rarely go out to the movies or even rent movies. Well, a couple of weekends ago we decided that we were going to get a movie. So, I thought to myself, "self, you should get that movie that so&so told you about". So, that is what self did. I came home ready to spend the evening watching a movie with my hubby. Well, guess what? I rented the blu-ray version. Will somebody please explain to me what the heck that even means and why it won't play on my DVD player. Better yet, will someone please tell the movie rental places that they should clearly mark these things in big, huge, neon letters, with a little side note that says, "HEY, these don't play in just any DVD player". So, we totally threw $5+ bucks down the drain on that one. Craig thought I should take it back to the store and calmly explain to them what I did. Um, no - I'm not going to admit to the whole world that I'm a moron, even if I am the "Take Back Queen". So, last weekend, we tried again. I rented the same movie and made sure I did not get the blu-ray version. It took us almost the whole rental week to even find an evening to watch it and when we finally did get sat down to watch it, guess what? We had already seen it. Apparently months ago when my friend first told me about it, I had rented it. Basically, it cost us about $15 to see that movie. Ridiculous! We are so joining Netflix.

By the way, just in case you are wondering what the movie was, it was "Dan in Real Life" and it was a good, mostly clean movie. And I paid $15 to see it.

Attention Blog Heads!!!

2009-02-06T06:51:00.002-05:00

Okay, so after a long chat with my brother last night, I have been properly chastised and apparently owe all of my blog heads an apology. Seriously, I had no idea that I had a following, but my brother is a follower of Churchill Commons and has been extremely disappointed in my lack of updating and is apparently going to delete my blog from his favorites if I don't begin to do a better job. My husband echoes these same feelings. Wow! I feel so loved and needed. Brian, I could be on Facebook right now, but, NO, I'm updating my blog for you because my heart can't stand the thought of no longer being on your favorites list! :)

He also encouraged me to tell the real story of why I haven't been blogging much; I will give you the short version. The past few months have been difficult to say the least. I have not felt this kind of attack from Satan to this extreme in a long time. Basically, I am struggling with every area of life it seems, and it has beaten me down. That's the cold, hard truth people. I told you -- I'm not Super Woman, I have problems, issues, and struggles and sometimes they get the best of me. So, that is where I have been, but I don't plan to stay there any longer. You know, you can always look around and find somebody who is much worse off than you are. Right now, I have a friend who is struggling with her son and the school system, another friend who's husband is in the hospital, a friend with cancer, and the list goes on and on. Perspective doesn't necessarily make your problems go away, but it sure helps you to view them in a different light. I have a sweet friend that is so optimistic about everything - I just love her! I was fussing about the kids the other day and she basically said be thankful that you have them and that they are normal - that's perspective!

So, that's the simple version. The point is though, is that I'm going to do better, for my brother. Yesterday was his birthday, after all - the least I can do is give him an updated version of my blog to read. I have half a notion to add the "Happy Birthday" music to my blog so that when he opens this up at work later with his volume up it will blast him right out of his chair - he told me that was his favorite song!:) Okay, okay, I've messed with you enough Brian!

On my agenda for today - a new hair do. Ya'll know how I feel about new hair right? I hate it, but I'm so looking forward to getting some body put back into it. After that, it is the great world of grocery shopping. I'm becoming a famous shopper you guys! Seriously, our neighbor told me last night that I could make money teaching people to shop like I do. I think it was a compliment. What can I say, grocery shopping and shopping of any kind is my hobby. I love, love, love to see how much money I can save!

Happy Trails people! Go have a good Friday!

The Highs and Lows of Real Life

2009-02-02T08:22:00.003-05:00

Well, here I am again. My blogging experience has taken a nose dive - I just don't seem to be into it lately, but this morning I need to get some feelings out and this seems to be the best way to do it. Maybe God will even grant me the ability to find a little humor in it; then again, maybe it just really is incredibly depressing!

So, we are in the highs and lows of parenting right now. I have one child who absolutely adores me and wants to marry me and another who seems to be unable to stand the ground that I walk on. I'll let you figure out who's who! Seriously, why didn't somebody warn me how hard parenting was going to be before I had kids. Actually, I think that Craig and I have been blessed with two wonderful kids and have not had too many issues in these first 10 years or so. Okay, I had one really hard year with Kayla when she was three. Sometimes I still have nightmares about that year. Oh, and then there was the whole three and a half year potty training stint with Tyler. But, both of those things ended pretty well - Kayla is still alive and well with little or no side effects from her year of being three and, yes, Tyler is fully potty trained - thank You Jesus - I do NOT take those things lightly.

However, we are now entering the stage of ATTITUDE. By attitude, I mean, occasional eye rolling, yelling, tears, lots of tears, pouting, scowling, hair flinging, body stomping, etc. Again, Thank YOU Jesus that we have a very normal nine year old. Now if I could just find a way to deal with normal. Do ya'll have any idea how hard it is to have one kid who is in probably the cutest stage of life and then another kid who is entering the pre-pub years??? I mean, basically, you feel like you are playing favorites all the time and it is so not like that. Let me give you the run down on my morning and maybe you will understand. I wake Kayla up at 7:20 so she will be ready for us to leave at 8:05. Her lunch and snacks for the day are packed and waiting and ready on the counter. Her clothes are laid out on her dresser; oh yeah, they're actually not, because she "didn't hear me tell her that". By the time she gets dressed and out to the kitchen it is about 7:35, not too bad, and I am heading to the shower. Ya'll, I took a shower, put my makeup on, and was getting ready to blow dry my hair and she was STILL eating breakfast!!! I calmy explain to her that we are leaving in 8 minutes. "Okay, mom". Eight minutes later I walk out to the kitchen and say, "let's go", to which she responds, "what? what do you mean let's go?". Yea, I'm so NOT kidding. Calmly, I reply, "let's go, let's get in the van, it's time to leave". Please enter attitude here. Let's suffice it to say that things went down here quickly from here. Praise God, I did manage to maintain a calm exterior while boiling over on the interior. The ride to school ended with her kissing Tyler and almost completely ignoring me as she got out of the van at school; I think I got a mumbled "bye", to which I calmly and even cheerfully responded, "bye sweetie, have a great day, really enjoyed that hug, I love you". This is where the difference in the ages of my kids come up. On the way to school Tyler wants to know when he will have a spiritual birthday to which I respond that he has to have Jesus in his heart to have a spiritual birthday to which he basically replied that he and Jesus had already covered all of this in an earlier conversation! Then from there he proceeds to tell me that he loves that story about Daniel and the giant and how Daniel killed the giant with a slingshot and a stone. I let him know that that is David, David and the Giant, and that the giant's name was Goliath. To which Tyler responds, "that's a tiny name for a really, really big guy". How do you find the balance between these ages of attitude and tiny names for really, really big guys? I'm praying that God will help me to find a way to enjoy my daughter at the age that she is at and He does give those times. She talks to me about what is going on at school even if somedays it is because I have pulled and dragged it out of her. I can see why some parents begin to lose their kids at this age - it is a frustrating stage. BUT, we will continue to press on, and with God's help we will get through this stage and maybe even someday she will like me. This is the point where I am reminded again that I am not here to be my children's friends, but I am here to shepherd them and guide them and train them. Ugh!

Thank you for tuning in to "Real Life with the Churchill's" this morning. Happy Monday people!

Question of the Day

2009-01-29T10:16:00.001-05:00

So, Tyler asks me this morning,

"Mom, do boys REALLY go to Jupiter to get more stupider?"

Ya'll, he was serious. Bless his heart!

What a Day

2009-01-16T20:08:00.002-05:00

It has been a fun day! This morning I went to get a massage. I went to the School of Massage here in town because they are incredibly cheap! It was great, but I do have to give you a little warning. Um, they don't actually have rooms. They are more like little curtained-off sections. Yea, interesting, right. The lights are dim, the music is playing and I can see through the little slit in my curtain that there is a person in the bed in the next curtained-off section beside me and for all intents and purposes, said person is naked. Yikes! Now, granted, I couldn't see anything more than their back, but still, if I can see them, they can see me right? Slightly nerve-wrecking, but, man, I was in serious need, so I went with and hoped to goodness that she pulled the curtain tight when she came in! Anyway, seriously, you should try it - it was fun! Enough said!

Kayla came home from school with big news - she won her class spelling bee! How cool is that? I'm incredibly proud of her. On Tuesday, she will compete in her school wide spelling bee and then go up from there if she wins to county, state, national, etc. Craig and I are pulling for the National Spelling Bee and the trip to Washington, D.C.! So, pray for my little girl on Tuesday!

Tyler went with a friend to a karate place tonight for a "Bring a Friend, Break a Board Night". For those of you who know my little man really well - can you just picture this? Yes, I'm very scared and yes, I'm very glad Craig took him and not me! He had to move his clip at school today for pushing some little kid. I made him apologize to his teachers and his lip pooched out a mile and his eyes welled with tears and broke their hearts and mine too, but we do not put up with bodily harm! Except of course if you are at karate!!! He was so excited about going tonight because that meant they would teach him how to fight and then he could fight Kayla. Um, NO!!!! Is it possible to teach self defense to a four year old without them thinking it is okay to beat the fool out of their sister? We'll see!

So, while the boys were at their thing tonight I took Kayla to basketball practice and then we hit the town for a Girl's Night Out. We went to O'Charley's for dinner and I could have kissed our waiter for how sweet he was to Kayla. He called her "Ma'am" - his mama raised him right ya'll! Anyway we left there and went to "Justice", you know the store for girls where you pay $30 for a t-shirt - yea that's the place. James and Shannon had given Kayla a gift card to there for Christmas and she went tonight and got a Miley Cyrus CD and some lip gloss - her night was made! Then we went to Starbucks for coffee. Imagine the scene ya'll - me and Kayla sippin' Starbucks and rockin' out to Miley on the way home. It was awesome!

Okay, I'm still reading The Shack. You have GOT to read this book. My favorite thing I have read so far is this:

(God Speaking)"...just because I work incredible good out of unspeakable tragedies doesn't mean I orchestrate the tragedies. Don't ever assume that my using something means I caused it or that I need it to accomplish my purposes. That will only lead you to false notions about me. Grace doesn't depend on suffering to exist, but where there is suffering you will find grace in many facets and colors."

Wow, read that again and let it hit you!

The Shack

2009-01-14T08:27:00.002-05:00

One of Craig's friends highly recommended the book, The Shack, by William P. Young. So, before Craig went on his hunting trip I bought it for him so he would have something to read on the trip out there. Craig does not read a lot, mostly because he doesn't have a lot of time to, so he just finished this book a few weeks ago and told me that I should read it. I started reading it and wow, it has kind of rocked my world a little bit. I'm not going to tell you a lot about the book in case you want to read it, but I will tell you this: If ever you have had a tendency to put God in a box, this book will squash that box like a bug! I have always struggled a little bit with my perception of who God is and, though, He is constantly teaching me different facets of who He is, it is still sometimes a struggle. In a few short chapters this book has shattered my box-like image of who I often think God is, and taught me that He is so much more than I could ever imagine. His love for us is so deep that we can not even begin to comprehend. He meets us right where we are - we don't have to clean ourselves up to somehow to get to the level that He is at - He takes us right where we are. An awesome book, and I am only half way through!

Many Thoughts

2009-01-08T08:05:00.002-05:00

First of all, yes, I do realize that I have not blogged since Christmas day. Sad I know. I have sat down and tried to blog a few times since then, but just have not been able to do it. What can I say? I'm not in the mood to blog, but maybe I can get some of my jumbled thoughts out this morning and tell you what has been going on!

Christmas was good - we enjoyed the time with our family. Ruth and Ron stayed until after the New Year, so we got to spend a week with them, a week with my parents, and a couple of days with my brother and his family. The day that Ruth and Ron left felt so strange to all of us after having everyone here for two weeks. I don't think any of us quite knew what to do with ourselves. But it didn't take long to settle back in to daily routines. On Monday, we were all back to school and work. I think it also felt strange to finally have my house all put back together. As soon as we finished up our kitchen and closet project we put all of the Christmas stuff up. Now we have all of that back down again and no more project to work on! After having your house in various stages of repair for about 7-8 months, it feels strange, but wonderful, to have it all put back together again! Craig is already talking about starting on the next one - more to come on that later!

My heart is a little heavy as we start this new year for several reasons, but I will share one of them with you. This year will bring about lots of changes for us and basically a new season of life. I have mixed emotions about it! Tyler will start Kindergarten in the fall and while I know that it is still eight months away the preparation has already begun for it. I will have two kids in school which makes me wonder - what will I do with myself??? I want to be occupied but I don't want really want to go back to work full time. So, we are working on some options for that and praying about what God wants me to do. My parents raised us to eventually let us go one day and be able to marry and live on our own, and I so want that with my children also. But, when I think about how they are growing up, it also makes me sad because I know their days of being independent and out on their own will come quicker than I am ready for. Already Kayla is changing stages and we have been talking about how fun she is. She can play cards with us, joke with us, and even interact with us in more grown up kind of conversations. We are moving from games like "Life" and "Operation" to Skip-Bo and Yahtzee and, yes, Dad, even Backgammon. She has thoughts and opinions on everything from the Bible to politics, and we are trying to shape her to really understand and back up those thoughts and opinions. And as if all of that isn't enought she came out for school this morning with her hair parted off to one side and coyly falling over one eye. My baby has a new "do"! The simple stud earrings are moving more into larger loops and dangles and more often than not, her lips are shiny with lip gloss! And, AND, she wants to know when she can shave her legs. When did this happen? Do you know when I started shaving my legs? When I was 10 - do you know how old she is going to be this year? 10. One more thing and then I'm done with the changes in her - she loves Starbucks! Okay, like, she would rather have coffee at Starbucks than ice cream at Brusters. A Vanilla Latte is her preference just in case you were wondering. She is growing up, but at least she is growing up with good taste! :)

And, what can I say about Tyler. My heart breaks a little bit when I think about him heading off to Kindergarten. He is writing his name now and loves to color and thanks to Ms. Janna is learning his letters and sounds with amazing speed. He came home from school yesterday and told me that a little boy at school was having his "conchills" out and that we needed to take him a teddy bear so he wouldn't be scared! This past week Craig had him on Kayla's old bike WITHOUT training wheels and he was riding around the yard. Granted, Craig was holding on to the back of the bike, but still, NO training wheels! He is Mr. Super Hero. Told me on the way home from church last night that he "really believed he had super powers" and it was because of the girl power found in riding his sister's bike! He cracks us up on a daily basis and I am so blessed in that, on occassion, he STILL lets me rock him to sleep.

Please don't misunderstand, I know that this is the natural progression of life, and come August I WILL take Tyler to Kindergarten, and I WILL be okay, but it does make me sad to think about. But more than that it makes me so aware of every moment with my kids these days and makes me want to slow down and cherish every second of every day. It makes me think about something that I read in a book a while back about the "Lasts". You know we celebrate all of the "firsts" don't we? The first tooth, the first step, the first night in a big bed, but what about the lasts - do we stop to cherish those. The last time your child lets you rock him to sleep, the last puppy dog kiss, the last nap in his crib, the last car ride in a car seat, the last bike ride with training wheels. Do you see where I'm going with this? I have a friend, and you know who you are, who has cherished every moment from the day her child was born. She has not rushed through phases. I've done okay on that with Tyler. With Kayla I think I rushed her a little bit, so I'm trying to slow down with her and take those moments that God gives us and cherish them.

So, that is a small part of where I am at right now. Aside from those things, God is teaching me so much right now about grace and trusting and seeking Him. We have been praying about some things and it is so overwhelming to me when I see God's clear answers. He is so personal, isn't He? Draw near to Him, and He will draw near to you and His mercies are new every morning are the two verses that seem to be my theme right now.

Okay, I'm caught up for awhile I think! It always helps me to put my thoughts down "on paper"!

Wow!

2008-12-25T23:34:00.003-05:00

First of all, let me say "Merry Christmas". I realize it is technically only Christmas day for another half an hour, but I wanted to get my Christmas wish in to all of you!

It has been a very busy couple of days. Yesterday, I had a little melt down for myself just before the Christmas Eve service at church and my husband had to shake me a little and remind me about what is truly important. I will admit that I completely lost my focus on the true meaning of Christmas for a couple of hours. Praise God for Christmas Eve service that gets you back in the right frame of mind and puts the focus back on Christ!

My parents got here Sunday afternoon and we have just truly enjoyed them being here. Although dad has complained about me working him to death, I think he has had fun too! Ruth and Ron got here on Wednesday afternoon and her and Kayla set right about making a birthday cake for Jesus! Last night we went to Christmas Eve service and then came home and had our traditional Christmas Eve party with the Hyders. I just publicly would like to thank James for my Bubble Butt guy - you are the best - how did you know that was exactly what I wanted. By the way, I hope that Butt Station looks good on your desk! James and I are kind of like my dad and my mother-in-law - we have an ongoing battle for who can get the other the tackiest gift. I think he won this year. I will have to post a picture!

Today, the kids were up just after 7:00a.m. to open presents. They had a great Christmas! So many fun toys and stuff! The best part??? Nerf guns for the whole family!!! Tons of fun, I'm not kidding! We had some friends from church over for dinner this afternoon and then played some cards. We always play games when we are together. Sometimes it's pretty and sometimes it's not. This week it is so ugly. We have not won one game yet. It is very sad!

My brother and his family will be here on Saturday and I'm so looking forward to doing Christmas all over again with them when they get here! My kids have missed their cousins and are looking so forward to playing with them for a couple of days.

So, other than my mental breakdown yesterday it has been a great, fun filled week! I'm about to get off here and see if I can pull my pictures up and look at them and hopefully I will get some posted tonight or tomorrow! Good night everyone! Merry Christmas!

Yeah!

2008-12-19T22:36:00.002-05:00

Guess what??? Our tree is up AND decorated! All of the presents have been cleaned out from all of the closets throughout my house and are all under the tree or around the tree. We do family Christmas so there are gifts for and from my parents and my in-laws as well as my brother and Craig's sister, so it looks like we have a huge amount of gifts. But, we cut back a lot this year and it has been nice to not be so stressed about trying to come up with money to get everybody's gifts, which is so not the point of Christmas to begin with. That is a very good change that we have made this year, and, honestly, it still looks like we all bought too much!

Tonight I am going to pull another late night and try to get the rest of my baking done. I work 10 times better at midnight than I do at 9:00 a.m.! Craig is telling me I am obsessed and I have way too much of everything, but I will just bet you that it all gets eaten. Plus that, I am on a roll! I love baking!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Tyler's Kids Choir Performance

2008-12-19T15:56:00.003-05:00

And here is my little man! He did so good! He had a few moments where he wanted to copy his little partner in crime and fall all over the stage but between a look from Aunt Shannon and his mama shaking her head he straightened up. You never know what they are going to do when they get up there on stage! They are 4 - it is always an adventure!

Kids Choir Performance - F-A-I-T-H

2008-12-19T15:41:00.003-05:00

Okay, look at me, I'm actually getting pictures and video loaded! Whoohoo! This was from the Kid's Choir concert at church on Wednesday. Kayla has a solo in the song F-A-I-T-H - she did awesome. She always had someone standing right in front of her so it was hard to get a clear shot of her, but, here it is anyway...

Christmas Concert

2008-12-19T15:32:00.002-05:00

Kayla's Christmas Concert was at school today and she played her recorder - she did such a great job! I'm so impressed by the way with her music teachers. They ended the concert with a girl from our church singing Happy Birthday Jesus - it was very clear what the true meaning of Christmas is through that song. It blessed my heart and brought tears to my eyes that in today's day and age nobody was concerned about being "politically correct" or possibly offending someone.

Ramblings of A Crazy Person

2008-12-18T22:41:00.003-05:00

Great day, it has been a whole week since I posted. What is going on with me? All of a sudden I have no time for blogging!

We have had a ton going on and have been having a blast skipping from party to party and getting our own house ready for our two week long party with family that is coming up! Let's see, last weekend was Kayla's first basketball game - she did so great! Maybe I will have pictures soon; okay, maybe not too, but I will try! Saturday was a crazy day for us and it didn't help that I just about knocked myself out. We left the basketball game and went to Ryland's two year birthday party - I can't believe that little boy is two already. He was so much fun to watch open his presents and play! As we were leaving that party I ran into the back of the van and whacked my head. Needless to say, I think I gave myself a bit of a concussion, and after visiting my chiropractor tonight, I do know that I definitely gave myself some whiplash because my neck was all out of whack. Just call me grace. I have to tell you though, it put me on the couch for the rest of the day and my head is still tender. We did make it to another Christmas party on Saturday night and got to visit with some folks that I went to Mexico with as well as other people from our church.

This week we have had something pretty much every night. Kayla had play practice on Monday and then her and Tyler had their Kid's Choir programs last night. They both did very well and I will hopefully have the video up of Kayla's solo as well as some photos in the near future! Tuesday night I went to a Bunko cookie swap and that was tons of fun. I'm telling you - I'm addicted to Bunko! There was about 20 people there and we had a great time of fellowship and food and I rolled my first Bunko - it was awesome!!! Tonight we got together with the Hyders and Maxwells for our annual kid's gift exchange! They all have such a big time together and this year Ryland was just right in the middle of everything and following Ty-Ty all around so that was fun to watch. The rest of the weekend we are home free. I think we are done with parties and we only have one more Christmas program to go to which is tomorrow at Kayla's school - she is playing a song on the recorder! Then on Sunday, Mom and Dad arrive!

I am still cooking up a storm. Today I made four batches of chex mix - we love us some chex mix! I also made some peanut clusters and chinese new year cookies and peanut butter cups. Still have more baking to do, but that it all that got done today.

I have a confession to make - our Christmas tree still is not up! Our goal is to get it put up and decorated tomorrow night. All of the rest of my decorations are up, but not the tree. Craig finished the painting last weekend and that is kind of what we were waiting on. I hope to have pictures of our finished home products soon also. Everything is done and it looks great - my husband is the bomb! I just love him!

Alright, I'm exhausted, I have to sleep - more to come soon!

The Energizer Bunny

2008-12-12T23:13:00.003-05:00

I AM the Energizer bunny! I keep going and going and going. In all seriousness, this is a busy time, but I am having so much fun! We have been to get togethers and parties this month and I still have a few left to go and it really has just been a blast. I haven't been stressed about any of it until last night and today and then I got slightly irritable. Okay, I got a lot irritable! Thank you to my friends and my mother who have listened to me whine last night and today! I think I am over it. I realize I have packed our plate pretty full this month, but, again, I have to say, I am having the best time, and I am really trying to just have fun and not stress about everything I have to do. Tonight was our Sunday School Christmas party and it was just a scream! I laughed almost until I hurt. S, I'm so sorry about laughing at your near death experience on that mountain - you know I love you! It was a great time out at this barn that these people in our church own. This is not an ordinary barn ya'll! It is NICE! It is all decorated for Christmas and is just so festive!

Let's see...tomorrow is Kayla's first basketball game! Go Kayla! We leave the basketball game and head straight to Ryland's birthday party - he is two! He was singing Happy Birthday last night and just is getting so big! Craig will be putting the last coat of paint on in the living room after the party tomorrow afternoon. Tomorrow night we have another Christmas party to go to. It will be another busy weekend with a busy week to follow. Next week, both of the kids have their kid's choir plays. On Friday, Kayla will be performing in her school Christmas play - she is playing a song on the recorder! I'm so proud of her - she has worked hard on that song!

So, there is lots going on, but I am trying to keep my perspective. I don't want to forget that Christmas is about the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. He is so good to me! Especially at this time of year you can look around and find so much to be thankful for. Thank You Lord for all of Your many, many blessings. By blessings I don't just mean outward things, but the internal things too. You know what I mean - the things just between you and God. The way He speaks to you through a scripture or a song, the way He answers a prayer that you have been praying, or just the peace of His presence. How has He blessed you this week? Think about it and thank Him!

A Cooking Frenzy

2008-12-10T23:10:00.002-05:00

It is ten minutes after eleven PM and I just put a coffee cake in the oven. I think I may have lost my mind. Craig has been craving coffee cake for a couple of weeks now. He is doing a crazy shift thing this month at work and I thought it might be fun for him to have his coffee cake when he gets home in the morning. Cooking has been the theme of my week! I'm getting ready for all of my family at Christmas and I thought I would get started early and go on ahead and make up the stuff that would freeze well. So, I have made a batch of homemade crescent rolls, about 5 dozen muffins, a double batch of chili, and a pot of homemade chicken noodle soup. The crescent rolls I did a couple of weeks ago and the rest has been done in the last day or two. Tomorrow I am making up my meatballs and am also going to do some cookies for my Bunko cookie swap next week and some cookies for Christmas. I am loving every minute of it! I love to cook and I figure the more I get done now the more I will be able to enjoy everybody when they get here!

I'm going on a sympathy quest for a moment, ok? Over the weekend I noticed that my shoulder was really bothering me; it was all around my collar bone and even into my jaw sometimes. Not fun! So on Monday I went to the chiropractor and he told me he thought I had sprained something in there and he proceeded to adjust it for me. Can you say pain and agony? Want to know the really depressing part? He said it may take more than once. It has been hurting tonight and I am dreading having to go back! However, I am thankful that my deductible has kicked in and now it costs me less than $20 to go! WhoooHooo!

On a housing update, let me just say that we are getting so close! The wall in the living room is done and painted! The bottom half, where all the molding is, has to have one more coat of paint and then it is finished. I still have shelves to go up in the new closet and Craig has to assemble our new entertainment table/stand/center thing! On Monday, the carpet cleaners come and then we will be done. The Christmas tree goes up on Tuesday and the following weekend my parents come! So, it looks like this project should be done within a week's time! It has been quite a process, but it all looks so good!

Tomorrow, Tyler and I are off to buy groceries! If you see me at WalMart tomorrow and I look like a drowned rat who is ready to hurt someone you may want to head in the opposite direction! Hopefully Tyler will be very good and I will maintain my very happy, go lucky outlook on life! :)

Breakfast with Santa

2008-12-06T09:28:00.002-05:00

Well, our crazy day started at 9:00a.m. with Breakfast with Santa at Kayla's school. I've told you before that we do not celebrate Santa at Christmas, but I couldn't resist taking them to see Santa at school. Tyler caught a glimpse of Santa at the mall last week and went a little crazy. He spent several minutes this morning practicing the hug that he was going to give Santa only to forget once he saw him. It was a fun time this morning that lasted, no kidding, less than 15 minutes. Kayla is pretty much totally out of the fascination with Santa and when we got there this morning she said, "do I really have to do this", to which I assured her that no, she didn't have to if she didn't want to. But you can see, when Santa called her forward, she couldn't resist!

So, now the rest of the day consists of me getting my hair done, a Christmas party this afternoon, painting, baking, cooking, cleaning, laundry, and on and on. I think we were invited to a total of 3 birthday parties for today, one breakfast open house this morning, and I think that is it. We are skipping all three birthday parties and even though I would have loved to go and hang out with my friends at breakfast this morning, we had already planned Breakfast with Santa. The holiday season has definitely begun for us and we are trying to pick and choose what we want to do rather than trying to do all of it and losing our sanity and our Christmas spirit! It will still be a busy time, but I am loving all the getting together, spending time with friends, and just being festive! Hope everyone has a great day!

I'm Addicted

2008-12-05T22:15:00.002-05:00

Okay, so I have just discovered that I have two addictions. Anyone have a 12 step program for being addicted to Bunko and Facebook? Seriously, I played Bunko for the first time last month with a group of ladies from church and LOVED it! Tonight Craig and I went to a couple's Bunko night and had a blast. Now, I have to tell you that I don't usually enjoy doing things where I don't know a lot of the people in attendance, but there is just something about Bunko that makes you friends with everybody who is there! Weird, I know, but true! Tonight was a hoot and I got the most beautiful gift. Last month I won this gorgeous Christmas pitcher. This month I won a Christmas serving tray with matching Christmas spreaders. So cute! You guys do know that I'm a serving piece junkie right? I love serving pieces! These two things will both be on my table on Christmas Eve! In a couple of weeks we will do a Cookie Swap Bunko night with more Christmas themed gifts! Love it! Can't wait!

Now on to Facebook. Have ya'll tried Facebook? I love Facebook!!! Used to not get on there much, but pretty much all of our Church is on Facebook and I have also connected with some people that I have talked to in over twenty years. It is bizarre! Brian, I know you are dying to catch the facebook wave, so look me up after you join!Love ya!

WhoooHooo!

2008-12-04T17:28:00.004-05:00

Wow, I'm so excited! David C. came today and sanded our wall in the living room and Craig has just finished priming it. It looks so good and makes such a huge difference in our living room, and best of all, there will be no more wasted space in the form of a wet bar. Now I will actually have a closet with storage! Here are some before and after pictures.

This is the before picture!

You thought I was joking about the new entertainment center didn't you?

This is where we are right now, only picture this wall completely pink - Craig just got finish putting on the primer!

Remodeling Update

2008-12-01T21:48:00.002-05:00

AAAAHhhhhh... That is the sigh of nearing completion! It means this project is almost over with! The past few years Craig has taken off the whole week of Thanksgiving and we have hung out around the house just relaxing or doing projects. So, he was off this whole last week and he worked like a dog all week. He told me he was going back to work early in the week because he said it was easier than what he was doing here! I just have to say again that I just love him and am so impressed by his natural talent to do the things that he does around here. My backsplash is done and grouted and sealed. The matching travertine outlet covers have been put in and they look great. All that is left to do is just caulk the counter line and under the cabinets and put on one more coat of sealer and it is done. He has painted the pantry door and the new closet door and re-hung those. He drywalled up the door that was in the living room closing in the fourth wall of the closet. He has painted the ceiling in the closet and put primer on. Today we bought paint and shelving for in there and that will probably be in by the end of the week. We had a sweet friend from church come over to help with the living room side of the dry wall project. He is awesome! Thanks David! So, we are at maybe one more coat of mud in the living room or possibly having the sanding done on it tomorrow. Then Craig has to redo the molding and paint! This has been such a long and tedious process and I am so excited to have it so close to being done. I can't put up my Christmas decorations until it is finished and that is slightly frustrating, but they will get put up even if it is the last minute. I'm being patient!

Thanksgiving Recap

2008-12-01T19:33:00.003-05:00

Wow, it seems like weeks have gone by since I posted but it was only a few days ago. Tons has happened around here so I'm going to break it down into a few different posts!

Thanksgiving was a very fun day relaxing with James and Shannon and Ryland and James' mom. The kids had a blast and Tyler wore himself right to sleep on their living room floor. We literally spent the whole day over there eating and playing games. It was great!

We left their house about 11:00p.m., were home and pretty much had the kids in bed by 11:30. Kayla and I got up about 3:15 A.M. on Friday morning to go and do the crazy Black Friday shopping. Last year was the first year I let her go with me and she asked me a gazillion times last week if we were going shopping again the day after Thanksgiving. I have most of my shopping done and just needed a few things for Tyler, so mostly, yes, I just went for the sheer thrill of being with 10,000 of my closest friends at a horrendous hour of the day/night. One of our friends saw me in Wal-Mart and commented to me on Sunday that he had seen me and could tell I was frustrated! How bad is that? Truth be told, though, I was frustrated. I found a great deal on these Nerf guns at Wal-Mart and went and bought enough for all four of us for Christmas. You have no idea what I had to go through to get those! Anyway, Kayla and I had a great time and I was home and back to bed by 6:30 a.m. I have two small gifts left to buy and maybe a few stocking stuffers and then I am done. Pretty much everything is wrapped and so I'm feeling pretty good about all that!

So, our Thanksgiving was great. We have done a ton on the house this past week and I can't wait to tell you all about it, so maybe tonight I will have time to do another post and tell you about it! However, right now I have two children who need to get in the bed!

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-27T09:03:00.002-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! It is a gorgeous day in Georgia and I find that I have much to be thankful for today. I have decided to bring the family in on this post and let them say what they are thankful for, so here we go...

Kayla is thankful for electricity, running water, family and friends, and school, and Horizons - that's it!

Tyler is thankful for mommy and daddy, cousins, and teachers, and turkey, and teachers, that's all!

Craig is thankful for a week off of work, and a wife who makes really great pumpkin pie! (I did not tell him to say that!)

Lisa is thankful for a wonderful husband and healthy children, thankful for my family and friends, a Savior who loves me and who's grace is always sufficient!

This Thanksgiving is a little different for us. We usually are either having a bunch of people here or are in Tennessee. This year we are dining at James and Shannon's with James' mom. It feels strange not to be scurring around this morning getting the turkey in the oven and getting the fixin's ready! I think it is going to be a very relaxing day! Thank you J&S for spending the day with us! To our parents and family - we will miss you tons, but we are glad that you are spending the day with other family and friends! Have a great Turkey Day!

Furniture Anyone?

2008-11-24T16:48:00.003-05:00

Okay, so I have the following items for sale for cheap! If you are interested in either one, call me and I'll let you know the specifics!

Demolition

2008-11-24T16:41:00.003-05:00

That is what my house has become - a demolition project! The kitchen is almost finished except the grout on the backsplash and the floor that probably won't happen for several more months. Craig is off this week and he has started on building my closet. Actually the closet is built, but we are closing off one door and moving it around to the kitchen side which means that he is having to drywall and redo molding in the living room. He has just told me that we are getting ready to embark on the messiest project ever. I'm scared!!! We are getting rid of the entertainment center as well and since that is sitting against the wall that he is doing all of this work on I had to empty that out so that it could be moved out to the garage. Our videos, DVD's, and CD's, and games are in a big green Rubbermaid tub and you want to know the funny part??? Our TV is on top of the green tub. Can you say "redneck"? We might put the furniture out on the front porch! Ok, maybe not. So, this week will be filled with dirt, dust, furniture strewn around, and basically, constant upheaval. I'm so thankful that we are not having Thanksgiving here - that would be stressing me out! Pictures and more updates to come throughout the week!

Girlfriends

2008-11-24T16:34:00.002-05:00

Tyler was cracking us up on the way home from school today. Now, ya'll know that I do NOT advocate boyfriends and girlfriends until you are much, much older than what my kids are, BUT, Tyler gets so funny about girls sometimes that I just had to share this. He told Craig and I on the way out from school today that he had a girlfriend, named Erin. I said, "really, is she pretty?". His reply - you are going to love this...

"Well, some parts of her body are pretty"!

He was not being mean in the least just stating his observatins. Oh, it made us crack up.

Full Speed Ahead

2008-11-20T08:24:00.003-05:00

I have pretty much been going 90 MPH this last week and cannot believe that it has been over a week since I posted last! That is crazy! There has been a lot going on to say the least. I have done a ton of fun stuff with friends the last week and it has been so much fun to get caught up with people and to also spend some time with people that I don't always get to see. I have found a new hobby! I played Bunko with some friends last Thursday and had a wonderful time. Since then I have added two more Bunko games to my December calendar, one of which is a couples Bunko night so that such be a lot of fun. S and I spent a day in the rain last week over in Aiken playing at Hobby Lobby - can you believe that we didn't even buy anything! I also got to enjoy a girl's night out this week and catch up with a couple of friends.

So, while I have been enjoying this very fun social life the past week, my husband has been slaving away in the kitchen! My back splash is all the way up, my pink walls are gone! Yea! I have to say - he has done a fantastic job - thanks babe! It still has to be grouted in, but the tile is all up. He is off next week and we'll be working on the storage closet. From one project to the next!

On a Graceful Designs note, it has been very busy, which is a great thing. However, it was apparently a little bit too much for Gertrude because her mother board gave up the ghost on Tuesday. Can I tell you how very uncool that was? Thankfully, our handy dandy repairman is going to try to get her back to us by the end of the week. Thanks Jeff! She is mine for one more week and then gets to go back to Holly's for the month of December.

I'm starting to really get organized and ready for Christmas. We are going to have a house full of people including both sets of parents and my brother and his family. I'm looking forward to having everyone here! I have almost all of my shopping done so that is a load of my mind. I still have a few things to finish up and hope to get to those in the next week or two.

Does that catch me up? I think so! I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Commercial Soapbox

2008-11-12T06:45:00.002-05:00

Okay, so yesterday I felt like I had been run over twice by a really big truck so I spent the entire evening yesterday camped out on the couch in front of the television. This is not something I normally do. As a matter of fact, Craig and I have one show that we watch every Tuesday night, we watch football on Saturday, and that is pretty much it. The TV is on at other times, but I'm not usually in there watching it. I know you are all wishing I would get to the point, right? Well, I was astounded by the commercials last night. I may have posted on this before, if I have then bear with me cause I am going to post on it again. First of all, have ya'll seen some of these drug commericials? Oh my goodness! Craig and I were getting the biggest charge out of those last night. There was this one commercial for this depression medication. I'm not down playing depression - I think it is very real and does sometimes require medication, but, come on people. Would you rather be depressed or experience the side effects of this medicine. I am not kidding, it is terrible. "If you take this you may experience fainting when standing, death, high sugar levels that may lead to a coma or DEATH, yellowing around the eyes or difficulty with your liver, tingling in your arms, legs, hands, itchy ears, stinky feet, frequent urination, constipation, diarrhea. I mean the list goes on. Okay, some of those I just added for fun, but seriously, the possible side effects are worse than the drug! Then there was one about frequent urination - yes, I am going to go here! So the commerical shows these guys on this golf course and it is discussing the need to "go" often. The side effects of this medicine - passing out when standing up among other things. Oh, isn't that great, instead of having to use the bathroom on the golf course I may pass out instead. Yea, that wouldn't be embarrassing. At least maybe you wouldn't, you know, "go" on yourself WHEN you pass out. Give me a break!

Okay, then the other one that I saw was just not humorous at all. Have ya'll seen the Macy's commercial about Santa Claus? We don't do Santa. Before you freak out, my children know about Santa, we joke about Santa, we have even had breakfast with Santa. However, we do NOT celebrate Santa at Christmas. My children know that Christmas is about the birth of Christ; we may throw a little Santa in for fun, but that is it. They even know that mom and dad by their gifts. So, this commercial has several celebrities (Martha Stewart included, don't get me started) that are saying different things about Christmas. For a moment I honestly thought, "wow, are they promoting the birth of Jesus at Christmas time". NO, they are not. They kept saying things like, "it only takes the faith of a child", and "it is a love that goes on and on forever".(I don't remember the exact words but this was the jest of it) So you want to know what they were advertising? SANTA CLAUS - apparently at Macy's you can now go and mail your Christmas letters to Santa. It was sickening. I looked at Craig and said, "wow, they just made Santa look just like Jesus Christ". We will NOT be going to Macy's to mail letters to Santa. If you play Santa at your house, I'm not bashing you, but it is so important that our children understand the REAL meaning of Christmas and WHO Christmas is about.

I'm stepping down off of my soapbox now...

Catching Up

2008-11-10T06:51:00.003-05:00

Well, here I am again, Monday morning and playing catch up! Last week was a blur. I have been struggling with some things and just did not function well at all last week. I pray this week is better. I have been covered up with Graceful Designs stuff which is a huge blessing. I worked all day Thursday, Friday afternoon, and all day Saturday, and I'm still not caught up, and still have people bringing stuff. It is awesome!

Kayla had a sleepover at my neighbor's house on Friday night and while she was doing that, Craig, and Tyler, and I went out to do a little shopping. Craig and I have decided that for Christmas for each other this year we are going to buy a couple of pieces of furniture. It is so fun right now, but on Christmas morning I'll be sad that I don't have any gifts to open! Pitiful, huh - I'm still a little kid at heart. You know you are too! Anyway, I have been searching the stores for the perfect table/cabinet for this spot in my dining room and on Friday I found it. So, we went and bought it and guess what? It is too big for my spot. Can I just be honest and tell you that for a few minutes I wanted to have a two year old size tantrum and throw myself on the floor and kick and scream? Yea, well, I resisted, but I still wanted to! So, that has to go back to the store, and I will continue to look. We did end up with a book shelf for my hallway and I was excited about that.

On Saturday, Craig played in a golf tournament while I embroidered all day. And then Saturday evening we went to a Sunday School fall fellowship at a friend's house. We had a great time and my children played so hard. Tyler was so upset when it was time to leave. It was a great time of fellowship and food and fun. And it was cold! That just adds something, you know! Drinking coffee around the fire pit and making smores! It just doesn't get any better than that! Thanks J&D for opening your home!

Yesterday started our fall revival at church and I just loved it. I love this preacher's style of preaching. He is very easy to listen to and just tells it like it is. I'm going to try to sneak away from work today for the lunch time message and then we have service Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday night. I'm looking so forward to it. He is preaching through the book of Jude.

We signed Kayla up for basketball yesterday. She did not exactly enjoy playing last year so I am shocked that she wanted to play again. I'm also sad because she is too old this year to play with the kids she played with last year, but, I guess we will make friends with a whole new group this season!

We don't have anything extraordinary planned for this week, it will mostly just be work, school, Graceful Designs, church, etc. Not necessarily in that order, but you know what I mean! I hope everyone has a great week!

Smokin' Hot

2008-11-06T07:57:00.003-05:00

What is smokin' hot? Apparently, my daughter. Kayla and I had an enlightening conversation this morning in which she told me that one of her classmates told his friend that Kayla was "smokin' hot", in the appearance sense, not the bodily temperature sense. In an age of hot flashes and hormone surges, I'm hoping to goodness she was sweaty and hot after leaving recess or something and Mr. Joe Cool is just making a harmless observation. Not the case. Ya'll, he called my baby "smokin' hot". I just want to go on record as saying that my daughter is NOT hot! Cute, yes. Pretty, absolutely. Hot, NO!!! Smokin' hot implies something very distasteful in my book, especially when you are talking about a 9 year old. May my husband and I instill in Tyler a respectfulness for girls and women alike to not tell somebody that they are smokin' hot unless he is married to her! Do these parents of these boys not realize how much harder they are making my job? We have always tried to teach Kayla that inner beauty is far more important than outer beauty. That if you are the most beautiful creature in the world and are ugly on the inside, that that ugly will always come through on the outside, and that's what will be seen. Arrrgh! Want to know something else? Last week when we were having our annual Halloween dinner with the H's, Kayla was telling about some friends at school and I have to admit I was only half listening b/c she was talking to Uncle James. However, I hear her say something about "making out" and my ears instantly perked up. It seems that some of her friends were saying that this boy and girl were making out at recess or something. WHAT???? They are in FOURTH GRADE! The bad thing is is that I asked Kayla if she even knew what that meant and she did! Let me assure you that I did not teach her about making out! Before half of you wonder if I am going to pull her out and start homeschooling, the answer is no. For all of my homeschool friends, and I have a bunch, I love ya'll dearly, and I think what you do is amazing. I also think that homeschooling is a very special calling that God does not give everyone. If God had not given Craig and I clear directions when Kayla started Kindergarten maybe I would be considering it. Our friend that we carpool with and us had our kids enrolled and ready to start Kindergarten at a small Christian school in the area. In May (school starts in August), the school shut down - no warning, no nothing. At that time Craig and I really explored our options and really felt that God was leading us to Brookwood so that Kayla, as well as us, could be a light and a testimony there. I think we have done that and we will continue to do that until God tells us otherwise, but somedays it is hard. Especially on the days when my daughter gets educated about something that I didn't know about until much later in life! I was just reading another blogger's entry this morning about praying for our kids. We MUST pray for our children, they are under attack in so many ways. Lift your kids up today whether they are doing school in a classroom somewhere or whether they are doing school at your kitchen table - they need our prayers!

The Worst Ever

2008-11-03T08:02:00.002-05:00

Yea, that title pretty much sums up my pedicure that I went and got yesterday afternoon. I don't indulge in getting my nails done as much as I used to, but they were pretty bad and I had some time. Let me explain my time. Kayla had a birthday party from 2-5 yesterday and Craig and I were supposed to be in an AWANA meeting at 4:30. So, it was decided that I would take Kayla to the party and instead of coming all the way back home I would do some Christmas shopping, maybe take in a cup of coffee with my book, maybe a pedicure. Craig would take wild boy and go to the meeting. Yea, worked out good for me, huh? So, I set off on my afternoon of bliss. Dropped Kayla off at the party - what could be more fun than lots of junk food, laser tag and putt-putt for three hours? After that I went to a few stores and got some more Christmas shopping done (more on Christmas in my next post!), so then I had about an hour and a half before I had to pick Kayla up. Now, I have a regular nail place that I go to when I get my nails done, but I was on the opposite end of town completely out of my comfort zone and I was on a time schedule. So I finally find this little place that looks like it is not very busy (HELLO, should a light bulb have went off at this point?) and I mosey in there with my book looking forward to being pampered while I read and have my back rubbed by a chair with massaging hands built into it. Sure enough I walk in and notice there is not another soul getting a pedicure, somebody shouts at me to pick a color and then this YOUNG BOY begins to draw water in the tub at one of the chairs. My first thought is "wow, he's young, he must be a helper or something, surely there is someone else to do my nails." Yea, well, that thought vanished when he plopped himself down at the foot of my chair. The next thing that I notice is that there are two HUGE screen TV's up in the place and they are both playing football. FOOTBALL!!!! I can watch football at home; at the nail salon I want Lifetime television or the cooking channel or HGTV, NOT FOOTBALL. The story goes on and I got my pedicure, but I was so close to getting up and walking out and I don't usually do that sort of thing, but I was close. This boy, who was maybe 18, proceeded to give me a very mediocre pedicure all while watching two football games, monitoring his laptop, and answering multiple phone calls on his cell phone! I was livid. I kid you not, he was filing my poor toenails with his eyes glued to the television that was BEHIND him! UUUUUGGGGHHHH!!!!! Oh, and on top of that, my comfortable chair, well, let me tell you --- have ya'll sat in these chairs where there are also massaging hands in the seat of the chair? That's right, you basically get your backside massaged along with your back. I'm SO NOT about that! Well, this chair also did this air thing where it kind of filled up with air and then compressed until.... well, I'll let your imagination figure out the rest. I have to admit that I did leave it on for a few minutes hoping to goodness that it would compress a few pounds off of my rearend, but I don't think it helped!

Well...

2008-10-29T22:05:00.002-04:00

Well what? Well, there just has not been much of anything going on this week. We are trying to settle back in to normal family life! I have almost gotten all of the laundry done from Craig's trip - whoo-hoo! Yes, we did eat our elk steaks on Monday night and I have say - they were yummy! Yesterday, Tyler and I had a huge PJ day and I let him veg in front of the television for way too long. We even napped together on the couch. It was a most lazy day!

Friday night we are doing our annual Halloween get together with the H's. Every year we go to the same restaurant and have dinner and then come back to our house, turn out all of the lights at the front of our house and hide from the trick-or-treaters! Yea, it is terrible I know. Just for the record, for all of you out there who trick or treat I think it is awesome! Craig and I didn't grow up trick or treating and just have chosen not to celebrate that day. We celebrate fall with fall festivals and carnivals and pumpkin patches, but we don't trick or treat. That doesn't mean that we think bad of those of you who do - to each their own! Sometimes I wish that we did do it only because now we have so many friends in the neighborhood whose houses we could go to, but... it is just not for us I guess! I hope everyone will be extremely careful on Friday night. Our neighborhood gets crazy as I'm sure most do with traffic and everything. I can't wait to see everyone's blogs with all of the cute costumes and stuff!

I think this coming Saturday is our last Saturday that we don't have anything planned at least until the end of November so we are going to try to just hang out around the house and probably work on the back splash. I'm also due to get Gertrude back on Saturday. I have not seen our sweet embroidery machine in a month - one long, blissful month! Honestly, I'm ready to get back at it - I have missed it!

I'm still reading the Karen Kingsbury books! I'm reading the redemption series and book 1 was semi-depressing, book 2 was great, book 3 - ugh, don't even get me started. I hit a wall about half way through the book because I looked ahead and found out about something that I didn't want to know and wasn't expecting and it ticked me off! Tonight I think I have pushed through that part and now I'm into it again. She deals with such real life issues - where are my roses and rainbows Karen????

Fire Station

2008-10-29T22:01:00.002-04:00

Before we left for Tennessee this past Friday Tyler has his field trip to the fire station. It was so much fun! I have to tell you - I've never been to the fire station and I think I was just impressed if not more impressed than Tyler was. We got to see the training room, their "bedrooms", the trucks, the kitchen, and we got to see one of the guys go down the pole. Plus we learned tons about response time and how the 911 calls go and all of that - it was very interesting. I got lots of great pictures, but I'm only posting one because most of the ones that I have have pictures of other kids too and I want to be respectful of the fact that there may be parents out there who don't want their kids faces plastered on my blog! Here is my boy in his fireman's hat - he has played with it like crazy since Friday!

Never Say Never

2008-10-27T07:14:00.003-04:00

That's right - never say never. I told ya'll I am a city girl. I have always told Craig that there is no need for him to hunt because I will never cook anything that he might bring home. Well, let me tell ya'll - he brought home 121 POUNDS of meat yesterday and I will be cooking it. Has anyone looked at the price of meat in the grocery store lately? I will be cooking it. Of course now that I have seen the pictures and heard the details it might be a little harder to eat it but I am determined to do this. I mean people eat fresh kill all the time right?

Obviously we made it home safe and sound last night. I drove the whole way home since Craig had only had about two hours of sleep in the last 24 hours. We had great weather to travel in and the kids were very good. Friday's trip up to Tennessee was stressful with the wind and the rain and all the traffic but, even still, God gave me peace and we had a safe trip. My dad got to visit with the kids over the weekend and that was fun.

I'm posting some pictures from Craig's trip. I am only posting one picture of him with a dead animal so you have full warning if you don't want to look - it is not gross though!

Can you tell it was cold there on this day? Craig says that that was not the norm for the week though. He said it was pretty warm, but on this day they got a little sprinkling of snow and it was COLD!

Here is my man with his first kill of the week! That's all I'm going to say about that!

This is where they called home for the week. That had quite the setup. Can you see the "outhouse" off in the background on the right? Like I said, they had quite the setup!

This was a sign that was posted at kind of the "entrance" to where their campsite was. This is where they picked up their horses. Craig thought it was too funny not to take a picture of. Now that I know that they didn't actually see any snakes, I think it is kind of funny too!

Is God's country beautiful or what?

On the Road Again

2008-10-23T22:54:00.002-04:00

Well, tomorrow begins the downhill slide of this journey we have been on! Me and the moms and the kids leave for Tennessee tomorrow to collect my husband and take mom and Ruth back home. What fun we have had! They have worn me out with all this shopping, but it is a good kind of worn out:) We now all have our Christmas shopping almost done, we are mostly outfitted for winter, and it has just been a blast! We have played Skip-Bo with Kayla every night while they have been here and I think my mother has won EVERY game! Tonight I introduced my mother to The Diary of a Mad Black Woman movie - she has been enlightened! What a great movie - love it! Ruth has sewn and sewn and sewn some more and my mother has told more Mustard stories than she ever realized she knew. Since I was little my mother has made up these stories about a dog named Mustard - they are too funny and my children LOVE them! It has been quite a week and a half!

I still have not heard from my husband. I know ya'll are tired of hearing me say this, but that is too bad,I'm gonna say it again - I miss him like crazy! I can't wait to see if he actually makes it home with a beard. I can't wait to hear all the stories. I hope he has a set of horns the size of Texas with him as long as he doesn't hang them over my mantle in my living room. They will pack up camp tomorrow and head back into town to clean up and spend the night so I should hear from him tomorrow. Yea!

I hope you all have a great weekend!

WhooooHOOOOOO!!!!

2008-10-21T23:16:00.002-04:00

Just received word today that my freezer will be fully stocked with meat for the next several months! Craig has never hunted since we have been married so this will be a new experience for me. His dad called Ruth today and let her know that they had taken some of the "meat" to town for processing when they delivered one of Craig's cousins to the airport. Apparently last night Craig shot a mule deer and while he and his cousin went to "dress" that his uncle radioed and said they were chasing two "cows"(female elk) over the mountain. So, Craig and his cousin grabbed their guns and they got both of them about 10 minutes after Craig shot the first deer! They then spent the next two to three hours trying to get those things dressed and on the horses and hauled out of the woods - did I mention that it was raining and hailing in the midst of all of this??? I'm getting such an education. If I haven't told you before - I'm a city girl, all the way. Love my bed, my air conditioner, WalMart, etc. I asked Craig's dad if the "cow" had horns. How was I supposed to know that female elk do NOT have horns. Ruth was sweet enough to explain it all to me and I feel much more informed now! She has been through this once before when Ron went a couple of years ago. He still has the chance to shoot a "bull" elk, but once he gets that I think he is done. They only allow one per license. I can't wait to talk to him - I know he is excited! This is day three of not talking to him, so I was glad to hear from my father-in-law today. I miss him like crazy. It is the weirdest thing - we have never gone without talking to each other for three days. But I know he is safe and that he is having a blast, so that makes it easier. I can't wait to share pictures with all of you when he gets home! Now, I will have you know that they were all having fried elk liver and onions for dinner tonight. That makes me want to vomit, but, hey, whatever! I don't do liver. I mean you might as well fry up it's eyeballs for goodness sake. Gross. How big is an elk's liver anyway?