Something More

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME, HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR MEEE, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME

Well, in case you missed the HUGE news flash, yesterday was my birthday! How old, you might ask.... Um, well, older than last year! I turned a whopping 34 yesterday! That's ALMOST half way to 70! Holy cow! When did I get so OLD!?

Yes, I have noticed all these interesting creases in my face. Yes, I have found a few (yes, just a few!!) strange colored strands of hair on my head, but that's only because I haven't had time to color them lately! We'll address that problem soon!



I don't like this picture, but oh well, it was the 1st one taken in my new year!

I spent some time thinking yesterday about the past 34 years. I don't think I've done a whole lot that has been noteworthy, but I do have a lot of very good memories.
My greatest accomplishments of course are my babies! I'm not sure why God blessed me with such BEAUTIFUL children, but I'm glad that He did!

My most important decision would be accepting Jesus as my savior! I am nothing without Him!

So many people look back & reminisce on their "glory days". Well, my definition of glory is a whole lot different than most peoples. The majority of my favorite times have happened in the past 13 years & most of them have involved Justin & my kids!

Unfortunately, I also have several bad memories as well. I have made some pretty stupid mistakes in my time here on earth. Some things that I am REALLY ashamed of, some things I REALLY try to forget, & some things that I may never be able to forgive myself for, BUT .....

Thankfully God has already forgotten & FORGIVEN them! HALLELUAH!! He has buried my past.

As I was thinking, it really bothered me to admit just how little I have done for my Lord. He has given me everything! He saved my soul from an eternal Hell through His mercy. He provides, not only my needs, but also a lot of my wants with His love. He has glued my marriage together with His grace. Now He is opening door after door for my family to serve Him through His goodness so that we may bring honor to Him!

I want my next 34 (and more) years to be spent serving Him!!

I think this song sums up so much of all of our lives! Thank God we are MORE!!

Calvary's Hill

Have you seen this floating around the internet?

I thought it was one of the coolest ideas I have seen in a LONG time!

So, of course, we had to try it!

We made a quick trip to our local hardware store in search of all the necessary items. The instructions said to use terracotta, but they were out, so plastic would have to do! Hey, it was cheaper anyway! Then we went to dig in the rock piles for just the right rocks. And finally off to the mulch pile for some rich dirt.

Let the creating masterpiece begin!

Fill the saucer with about 4 cups of dirt. Put a little moss over top of the dirt. Set the pot on its side in the dirt. Place a handful of rocks on both sides of the pot to keep it from rolling. Make mud (that's always fun at our house!). Cover the top and sides of the pot with mud. You will need to mound it up to make it stay.

Sprinkle quick growing grass seed over the wet dirt. You might want to push the seed down a little bit. Then loosely cover the grass seed with more dirt. Make sure you water it! Place your small rocks around the opening of the pot. Find small twigs to make your crosses. Tie them together & plant them on top of the hill. Place your big rock partially covering your tomb. 

Now we wait for grass to grow!

Luck O the Irish

We decided that we were going to try to catch a leprechaun.

After the leprechaun escaped the traps.

 

There are sprinkles ALL OVER MY FLOOR!

I made a rainbow cake for him (with a few surprises - hehe).

 

But that little stinker ate his way out!

I guess he needed to potty before he went back over the rainbow. At least he washed his hands!

And here are the cutest little leprechauns I have ever seen!

 

Red, Yellow, Black, & White...

Jesus loves the little children,

All the children of the world.

Red and yellow, black and white,

All are precious in His sight,

Jesus loves the little children of the world

As little kids, we are taught this old song. Its still true today! And its not just about "little children". We are all God's children!

Last night, we met a missionary from West Africa. This man was just about as dark in skin color as they come & he was a little difficult to understand, but he is one of God's beloved children just as I am. He sang a native song about the blessings of God. As he was singing, I couldn't help but think about what a joy that song was to God's ears. When we get to Heaven one day, we will all be singing praises to God in a new language!

Then today, as we were playing at the college playground, we met a special young man. Colby is 8 years old & has Down Syndrome. As I was talking to his grandmother, Austin & Makenzie welcomed him in & treated him as any other playmate.

As we were leaving, Austin looked at me & said "That was fun!" My heart overflowed with joy!

Yet again, I pictured Heaven full of men, women, boys, & girls every color, every nationality, every culture. Some with "normal" minds & bodies, some with "special" minds & bodies. Each with their own problems & heartaches. Healed of whatever issue that they have dealt with during their brief lives.

HEALED!

Makes me look forward to Heaven even more!

Is He Always This Happy?

I get asked this ALL THE TIME. The answer is NO!

Its no secret, my little Logan is S P O I L E D. I can't help it. From the time he was born, he has wanted to be attached to me, or at the very least, within sight.

I didn't get hardly anything done when he was first born. I tried to set him down, I tried to let others hold him, I tried to make him cry it out. REPEATEDLY! He would not cooperate, at all.

Its rare for anyone else to get him to sleep & I feel guilty if I go out without him because I come home to find out that he has been fussy all night.

Time has helped very little. He still wants Momma all the time, he still wakes up twice a night, he still fusses if I walk by & don't pay any attention to him, & I still have to put him to bed most of the time.

That being said, Logan has been super fussy in the evenings lately. Combination of teething, ear infection, & giving up a nap. Unfortunately, he has to be rocked to sleep. You CANNOT just lay him down. Trust me, I have tried!

Logan was very sleepy this evening. He woke up early from his nap & just fussed. Nothing would satisfy him. So after making him wait a little while, I fed him supper & went to lay him down. He would doze off in my arms, wake up, pinch my arm, pull his pappy out of his mouth, & attempt to throw it, then fall back asleep & repeat. Yes, he certainly has an attitude! After a few minutes of "calm sleep", I always try to lay him down & walk out of the room.

Sometimes, I get out of the room (sometimes I don't) before he starts crying. I always give him about 10 minutes in the hopes that one day he will fall asleep (sometimes he does), but tonight WAS NOT one of those times. This cycle literally went on for an hour & a half. My nerves were shot!

The last time I went in there, I couldn't help but be angry. I picked him up & sat in the rocking chair & emotion flooded over me. I started bawling. I felt guilty for being angry at this little person but at the same time, I felt discouraged knowing that he is so dependent on me.

Through the tears, I thanked God for the ability to hear my baby's cries. I thanked God for a baby who has lungs healthy enough to scream. I thanked God for another chance just to hold this little guy. I thanked God for the fact that Logan feels so safe in my arms.

Then, that stinker reached a chubby little hand up to my mouth for me to kiss his fingers the way I so often do. He smiled at me behind his pappy & once again, my heart melted.

This was taken as soon as I gave up on getting him to sleep -
tell me they don't know exactly what they are doing!

Out with the old

We have been on a deep cleaning spree at our house, & when I say "we", I mean Justin! Yes, that's right. My hubby knows how to clean!

Sorry, men out there, I know that this is a taboo secret, but I have to give credit when credit is do! Sorry, ladies, he's still working on our house so he can't come clean yours. LOL

In order to really clean, you have to drag e v e r y t h i n g  out of the room & then figure out where to put it when you are done, because half of the stuff doesn't actually belong there. So my bedroom, my bathroom, & my hall/laundry room/homeschool library look REALLY GOOD! The rest of the house ..... eh, don't come over please! We are a work in progress.

Anyway, smack during the middle of this cleaning spell, I discover that my washing machine has DIED - not to be resurrected. My dryer has been dying a slow painful loud death. Now, just a little background here - Justin & I have owned 6, that's right, 6 washing machines & 4 dryers since we have been married (not even 13 years)! We have always bought second hand, refurbished. We honestly just bought this last washing machine last year at this time, with tax money.

So, we head off to our local home improvement store & bight the bullet. I wanted one of those huge, front load, high efficiency sets. I didn't realize I would have to take out a second mortgage to pay for it. Holy cow!

Well, the one I REALLY wanted was pewter with stainless accents, BUT a white one just like it was $200 less. Being the cheapskate that I am, I couldn't justify that for color. This is where God entered the scene (ok, He was there the whole time, but decided to remind me of His presence in the next few moments).........

We asked the guy if the white one was in stock - nope, it would take about a week. Ugh, I need to wash clothes. We asked if the pewter one was in stock - had a washing machine, but could sell us the display dryer at a discount. The discount was enough for me to "justify" the color expense.

(not done yet) He was typing it all in the computer in the appliance section, when lo & behold, STRAIGHT down the aisle in front of us was a washing machine. Come to find out, it had a small dent in the bottom corner & was marked down 25%. YEAH! All in all, we saved over $400 off of the sale price & I got the one I wanted! Thank you Lord!

So, cleaning has been put on hold, & home improvement projects have taken its place.



Before with only a few shelves
(but not nearly this neat)



After with shelves to the ceiling
(really this neat)
I need a bigger stepladder!



While he was at it, Justin fixed my pantry shelves & moved the cabinet that was in the hall to the kids bathroom.

If you never did you should. These things are fun and fun is good.

"I do not like green eggs & ham. I do not like them Sam I Am. "

Pink Ink is NOT good to drink ..... unless you're a Yink!

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot,
Nothing is going to get better. It's not.”

"We looked! Then we saw him step in on the mat! We looked!

And we saw him! The Cat in the Hat!"

Our Cat in the Hat snacks were INCREDIBLE!

We had Zamps in Lamps & Quimneys in Chimneys.

We also had Wockets in our (Pizza Pita) Pockets & Beezlenut Juice.

"We are men of groans and howls, Mystic men who eat boiled owls,

Tell us what you wish, oh King, Our magic can do anything."

Bartholomew may not have enjoyed the oobleck, but we sure did!

 

"All the rest of that day, on those wild screaming beaches,

The Fix-It-Up Chappie kept fixing up Sneetches.

Off again! On again! In again! Out again!

Through the machines they raced round and about again."

I'm a little partial to the "Star Belly Sneetch Treat".

“I meant what I said and I said what I meant.
An elephant's faithful one-hundred percent!”

Turns out my kids are not good "mothers". Makenzie forgot her egg repeatedly before it finally died in an unfortunate accident. Austin's egg was smartly tied around his waist. 6 short hours later, it was squished when he fell on it. :(

"At our house we open cans.
We have to open many cans and that is why we have a Zans.
A Zans for cans is very good.
Have you a Zans for cans? You should."

Zans has the best Can Chili I believe I have ever ate!

We served it with Dr. Seuss Juice & Fiesta Bread
(not Seuss related, but still yummy).

We had a great time celebrating one of the greatest authors ever.

Thank you Theodor Seuss Geisel! Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!