I'm Dreaming...

Did you know that it's only 116 days left until Christmas?  Anything over 100 sounds relatively big to me, but in reality, that's not that far away.  Here are some items I'm jotting down on my list this year.

Check out this sweet ride!  I'm loving this fun retro look - throw a basket on the front and off you go! 

Ahh..don't you wish you could jump right into this picture?!  The hubby and I will be clebrating 15 years of wedded bliss very soon, and even though it won't be happening this anniversary...someday...we will have a second honeymoon (that doesn't involve any football games).

This is at the VERY top of my list - a new camera...oh how I covet thee....

Here's to dreaming...

~S

Block Party!

Life is back to wacky once again...we are in the full swing of school (for mom too), choir is back in session, and soccer will begin soon.  Once again, weekends will become sacred.  We spent this past weekend doing a little shopping at Goodwill for a murder/mystery dinner we're invited to.  Oh my goodness, we laughed so hard!  I should say that I laughed so hard.  The dinner has a hippie theme, so I'm really excited for the costumes to come together.  I'll keep you posted on they're coming along.  That fun took care of most of our Saturday, and Sunday brought Sunday School/Church and that afternoon...our church block party.

Last year at the block party we were "newbies."  We had just begun to frequent the CLC, after a year of driving by the uptown location and feeling intimidated by the number of cars in the parking lot on Sunday mornings.  I'm so glad Shaylen guilted me into church shopping after a year of being in a church-less caccoon.  I knew after Shay began holding Sunday morning service in her bedroom with her door shut and her Bible school CDs playing full-blast, and then when she asked if I could just pay a church some money so she could go to Sunday school, it was long overdue to find a church home in our "new" community. 

What a difference a year makes.  Our Church home truly has become a home for us.  As I sat in the grass with my camera, and watched the vacation Bible school kiddos singing, I thought about the year that had passed.  Shaylen and Cavan smiled and sang and followed along with the song gestures, as glimpses of blessings passed through my mind - singing along to praise songs at Sunday morning service, seeing the kiddos sing in choir and the hubby at service, feeling the love and compassion and prayers of others after my fall, making new friends, and gaining a deeper understanding of Christ...I could go on and on.  I had to shut off the mental DVR because I felt my eyes watering up and I had to make a big gulping swallow to rectify the lump in my throat.  We have been so blessed this past year, and I am so grateful and proud to be a part of our church.  It felt great not only to participate with the family choir for the block party, but also to see so many faces I now recognize and know.  I'm pretty sure the best part for the kiddos was not participating in singing - ha - but getting to play on all the inflatables and eat all of the scrumptious food! 

(You might want to pause the music at the bottom before playing this - sorry, I know it's a pain sometimes!)

Hope you are feeling all of the blessing in your life! Thanks for being one of the blessings in mine! :)
Let the praises ring!!
~S

Wacky Wednesday

I am a little bummed to be starting back to school again tomorrow. I needed a smile on my face, so I decided to share this video of Cavan (again) from August of 2009. He's probably going to need therapy when he's older and realizes that his mother shared this with the world (repeatedly). I do love my kiddos! :)
I hope you are having a great day!
Blessings~
S
PS-You may want to pause the music at the bottom of the page before you play this. :)  Thanks!

Admiring Miss Amity

Definition:  Admire - ad·mire Verb /ədˈmī(ə)r/: 
Regard (an object, quality, or person) with respect or warm approval

When I was a little girl (around 3 or so), I had a crush on my next door neighbor, Kenny.  He had a wonderful wife and two beautiful daughters (and later two handsome sons)...and I adored him.  Whenever I knew Kenny was coming over, I would put make-up on (red creme blush), attempting to apply it as I had seen my mom do it, but I'm sure I looked more like Bozo, the Clown.  No matter how goofy I looked, Kenny always made me feel special by making a big deal out of how pretty I looked and how nice my make-up was.  Ha!  That's just the kind of person Kenny was.  He showed my brothers and I so many kindnesses over the years - helping me learn how to ride my bike, playing in the yard with us, and tolerating my repeated appearances at his doorbell - asking him to play his guitar and yodel for me.  When I was three I asked him to sing at my wedding (I was probably planning on him being the groom - ha!).  He agreed and when Brett and I were married, Kenny sang during the ceremony and yodeled for me at the reception (it made me cry - seriously).  :)  He was such a kind and caring soul, as was Sue, his wife, and they still are.  They are wonderful, wonderful people and I'm so blessed to still have them both in my life.  My crush on Kenny was so innocent, but he will always have a special place in my heart. 

My childhood neighbors - Ken and Sue at Sue's 60th birthday party.  Oh, how I miss them!

You may wonder why I took you on that little trip down memory lane.  Well, you see, my little Cavy has a crush.  Last year when we found our church home, the kids began to sing in choir.  Because of their age differences, the older three kids were part of one choir, while Cavy sang with the little cherubs.  I admit Cavy and I were both nervous at the first rehearsal, and then I met his director, Miss Amity.  Her smile lit up the room and her kindness put us both at ease.  Cavy loved choir and I really didn't think too much about it until I was talking to Cavy about church and choir one day and said to him, "Miss Amity is a nice lady, isn't she?"  I expected a simple "Yes," or "Yes, Mommy," but what he said was "Maaaaaawwm!  Miss Amity isn't a LADY, she's a PRINCESS!"  Well, pardon me!  I had never heard my child refer to anyone as a "princess" other than his sister.  I had all I could do not to smile and chuckle about his proclamation, but I kept a good poker face.  It quickly became quite obvious to me that Cavy thought a lot of his new choir director. 

Throughout the year, Cavan would say things here and there about Miss Amity, and he was always excited when it was choir time!  When choir ended, we still ran into Miss Amity at church, soccer, and Bible School.  I was a bit mortified, however, when I picked up the kiddos from Bible School one day and Cavy proudly announced, "I told Miss Amity that I love her."  Whhhaaat???  LOL  My jaw about dropped to the ground, and had to compose myself, "Cavy," I told him, "I'm so glad that you like Miss Amity, and that was very kind of you to tell her that you love her...but let's not do that again, okay?"  Fast forward to the next day, on the same ride home, and Cavy again announced with great enthusiasm, "Today, I told Miss Amity that I loved her, again."  Then he giggled, the little stinker.  A bit amused and a bit annoyed I then asked him, "What did Miss Amity say when you told her that?"  To which he replied, "She said, 'Thank you'."  Ugh!!  So, I again explained that it was very sweet of him to say that, BUT to PLEASE not say it anymore - he agreed.  Can you guess what happened the next day?  This time he didn't announce it to me, but I, knowing my son, initiated the conversation and asked if he had talked to Miss Amity at Bible School.  His little legs dangled from his booster seat and I heard him giggling under his breath.  With my brow furrowed and my "mommy means business" voice I asked, "Cavan, did you tell Miss Amity that you loved her today?"  He didn't answer me right away but I saw him in my rear view mirror - smiling, looking down at his feet.  "Yes...but..but..but," he stammered, defending himself, "I told her that I loved her baby too!"  After letting out a big sigh, I decided that it wasn't worth punishing (obviously), or arguing with my little boy about his apparent affections.  Thankfully, Amity is a good sport, and being a mommy of two adorable kiddos herself, is tolerant of Cavan's obvious, smitten ways.

We see Miss Amity quite often, she really is a beautiful person (inside and out).  I can understand why Cavan thinks so highly of her.  Choir practice begins again this Wednesday, and this will be Cavy's last year in the little cherub's choir.  However, we will continue to see Miss Amity after Cavan's run with the cherubs is over.  Her hubby John is the site director for our church - his down to earth and relateable sermons are one of the reasons we decided to make AFUMC our church home.  Amity and John also are members of the praise band, Risen, and regularly head up our services with their awesome praise songs (they rock). 

Perhaps this sweet enamorment will be a short-lived...or...perhaps Cavy will grow up and always hold a special place in his heart for the first gal (other than his Momma, of course) that he admired...Miss Amity.  :)

Cavy and Miss Amity after the last choir performance last May.  :)

God's blessings to you~

S

On The Move

I'm more awake now than I was last night. :)  Isn't it amazing what sleep can do?  :)  We had a very tiring but rewarding weekend.  In case you were wondering, my haircut went well on Friday!  :)  I didn't do anything crazy; the gal that cut my hair loved it long.  She took off four inches and did a lot of blending of my layers, and thinning out of my hair.  She even thinned out the hair on the back of my head (underneath) - which was great!!  Next time we're going to thin it out even more (don't worry - I've got a LOT of hair!).  After my haircut I grabbed lunch with my friend, Tara, and later in the evening, we helped our friends, Melody and Thomas, move to their new house (it's beautiful!).  We had pizza and packed and did a lot of laughing. Oh, and we tried not to break anything - right, Tara? :)  It's amazing we got anything done with eight kiddos running around the house, but they did well and seemed to make their own fun.

Tara and Miss Melody packing up the crystal.

Tara making a face at the camera.  That girl is so much fun! :)

Make-overs!

Miss Melody getting into the Christmas spirit as she wrapped her Santa napkin holders. :)

Apples to Apples!

We started in again on Saturday morning and worked most of the day, packing and moving.  I didn't do near the work that the hubby did, but I held my own.  :)  Work doesn't seem so much like work when you are enjoying the company you're with.  I did enjoy my time with Miss Melody - she is a sweetheart!  It's too bad the weather didn't cooperate a little more - it was so darn hot!  We made it through, though - and it felt so good to be able to help them.  Giving back has new meaning to me since my surgery last January.  We had so many friends, family, and church family (some we hadn't even met) bring us meals, send cards, and pray for us during that difficult time.  I try to pay that same kindness forward to others - and this was a great opportunity! 

Loaded up and heading out!

The hubby - working hard (check out that sweat).

Sunday was Rally Day at our church - back to Sunday School already!  This year I volunteered to help teach Bear's class.  Last year we had a heck of a time getting him to go to Sunday School.  He said it was "boring" and he didn't learn anything.  So, I thought I would check it out for myself.  Bear was a bit bummed when he found out I was teaching, because he knew he HAD to go then. :)  Our theme to kick off the year was "God's Team."  We wore sports themed shirts to show our spirit - it was fun. :) 

Before Sunday School - see Shay's new glasses? :)

Mr. B & myself.

I had planned to spend Sunday afternoon getting some stuff done around the house, but I got a call from our friends, the Warrens.  They had re-purposed the liner of a swimming pool as a slip n' slide down the slope of their back lawn and invited us over to try it.  We went and the kiddos had a fabulous time!  They were really getting into it - even adding some baby shampoo to make it nice and slippery!  The kids were getting so sudsy, I was wondering if I was going to need to shower them before bed!  Even the hubby took a trip down the long slide - fully clothed!  LOL  That was something! 

Brayton had to slide with his protective shoe on, but he still had fun. :)

The slide is soaped - now for the push!

There she goes!

Mr. Warren taking a turn! :)

Crash!

Splash!

He's off!

Go Daddy!

Miss Shay just had the best time! She was still going strong when her brothers gave out!

We had a busy, but wonderful weekend, and now I'm trying to get caught up on laundry and all those good things.  I begin classes again on Thursday.  I wish I felt a bit more excited about it, but quite honestly, I could use a little longer of a break.  I'm sure it will be fine though; I just need to get back in the swing of things.  I'm hoping to get down to the Main's house before Thursday and see that sweet little baby again!  We visited Miss Alexandria and her proud family last Wednesday night and I didn't get the pictures posted.  She's a sweetie! 

Heath, the hubby & their girls.

Me holding baby Alexandria. :)

Daddy & Alexandria

Isn't she precious?

Time to get back to work!  I am still holding out hope that I can get some sewing done before Thursday too!  If only there were a few more hours in the day...  :)

Blessings~
S

Please Define:

Exhaustion (en.wiktionary.org/wiki/exhaustion):
•The point of complete depletion, of the state of being used up; Supreme tiredness; having exhausted energy

We had a wonderful and work-filled weekend.  I'd love to tell you about it....perhaps after I get a good night of sleep.  Sweet Dreams!

Blessings~
S

The Long & The Short Of It

Tomorrow I am getting my hair cut...and every time I get my hair cut I view the day as a magical day of possibilities.  Sounds really, really corny, I know.  But you see, I've had this love/hate relationship with my hair my whole life.  It's been dark brown, black red, orange (an attempt at blonde), and somewhat blonde.  It's been straight, curly, long, medium, and short.  I've had bangs and no bangs.  One thing remains the same - my hair is DIFFICULT!  I accepted it long ago...I have problematic hair.  It's thick, naturally curly, frizzy and course.  I am so thankful that Miss Shay's hair is not curly and crazy like mine.  I would LOVE to have smooth, silky, straight hair..but we always want what we don't have, right?  I always tell the hubby he has it easy - no hair at all!  I'm not sure what I'll have done tomorrow.  The hubby suggests "something different - but not short."  LOL  He really doesn't like my hair short.  I thought I'd share some of my "hair-y" journey with you, some of it is quite entertaining.  :)

Here I am with my family - barely pregnant with Mr. B and with a pretty short do!

When Mr. B was little, I had a few different hair styles.  The hubby was not a fan of any of them.

 I grew it back out when I was expecting Jaron.  This pic is from Bear's baptism

Here it is, different again, while I was expecting Miss Shay.

I chopped it off again with Shay Shay.

Grew it back with Cavy.  I love having straight hair, but it takes me over an hour to straighten it.

Dark with bangs, and lighter without bangs.

Who knows what I'm going to look like tomorrow afternoon.  One more mugshot to add to the collection.  :)Wish me luck!

Blessings~

S