Camp Pictures

I LOVE Student Life camps. They seriously are the best camps around. They know how to put on a great camp. The people there are fantastic. They love us and treat us wonderful. One thing I love about SL is that they always welcome families to come with the band/speaker. You have NO idea how much of a blessing this is to my family. When your husband/daddy travels for a living and could spend 6 weeks of the summer away it is a HUGE blessing for you to be welcomed with open arms to travel with them. They are always happy to accomodate for families. If you run a camp or invite speakers and bands to come minister to your church, remember that they have familes. Remember that sometimes they can go weeks without seeing them. Invite them to come. Invite them to be there too. It makes a HUGE difference.

Okay anyways on to the real reason for this post ..... PICTURES of my boys. One of the drama team guys took these fabulous pics of my boys. I LOVE them.

burning cd's

I'm at camp with SPUR this week and one of the things that I love to do is to work the table for them. I really do enjoy it and have fun talking to the kids and selling the merchandise. It is fun and kinda keeps me connected to the camp. This week I have a babysitter with us, so that gives me the ability to help them out with the table while Sarah has my kids.

It never fails that this scenerio I'm about to tell you about happens at every camp. Two kids come up to the table to take a look around. They check out the posters, the buttons, the stickers and then they end up looking at the cd's. SPUR has three cd's on their table. The newest one, SLEEPWALKERS, then another one called BLESSED CATASTROPHE, and then one that is a cd with various artist and they have one song on there. So, the two SPUR cd's are $15 each and usually the kids end up saying they don't have enough money and I always feel sorry for them so at every camp I sell a few cd's for $13 or $14 - don't tell Jimmie or Chad b/c they will kill me, but oh well I'm just too nice.

So another thing that always happens at camp is that two kids come up and talk about stealing cd's right in front of me. They hold nothing back. They are not discreet they discuss their plans at the table for all to hear. It goes something like this. Keep in mind this is not in whispers but in regular voices!
Student A - I really want a cd do you have any money?
Student B - Yeah I have money but why do we both need to buy one?
Student A - yeah that is true, let's split the cost and buy one.
Student B - then we can split it - you burn me a copy and we each have one.
Student A - Okay here's $7 you pay the rest.
Student B - Okay we would like one cd here's our money.

Then they proceed to hand me 15 one dollar bills wadded together b/c they've been in their sweaty gym shorts during rec all day today.v GROSS! I am always certain I have contracted some sort of disease after working the table for thy guys and handling all their sticky dollar bills!

Well, it's time for me to manage the SPUR store again ..... Here come the kids and why don't I have any hand sanitizer with me on this trip???

a few pics ...

here are some pictures from our walk the other night. both boys were sporting their new shades and both boys spent most of the walk snoozing and sweating!!! nothing like sleeping in the sun!




I LOVE this picture. My boys are the LUCKIEST boys alive. They have all these men in their lives that love them and support them and will be some of their greatest fans in life. I'm one proud momma!

And then lastly, this is one cute boy that I want to show off!!!

we're here ....

We're here and camp has started. Big Boy thinks is it so cool to be at camp. He thinks this place we are at is actually called "camp"!!! So cute.

One thing I love about my boys is that they LOVE their daddy. When he is on stage they want to be up there with him. They love when he plays the piano. They love when they hear a "daddy song". It is so cute.

Hope your Monday was good.

It's SUMMER again!

Aaron and I have beeen married for almost 6 years (in June we'll celebrate 6) and every summer of our married life we have ventured out around the globe (not really, just the US) for summer camps. SPUR gets the awesome priveledge to lead students and adults all over the US each summer in worship at camps.

I LOVE and I HATE this part of the year. 85% love and 15% hate. Something like that. I LOVE the summers because we get to go to lots of cool places and travel a lot all summer long. I HATE the summers because we sometimes go 1-2 weeks without seeing our daddy and the traveling can get old and hard with two little ones.

Tomorrow begins camp #1 out of 8 for the summer for SPUR. I have a feeling this might be one of the BEST summer's since we've been doing this. Everyone in the band is happy. They are almost all married. Life is good. They will be with some great students this summer and some great places too.

We head out for Chattanooga tomorrow and before the summer is over the boys and I will have driven LOTS of miles in the ole' minivan. We will go to Chattanooga TN, Trinity TX, Brownwood TX, Giddings TX, Spring TX, South Padre Island, TX, Prosper, TX and then back home. WOW it will be fun. The guys will be in TN, NC, CO and TX this summer.

So, I hope that your summer is fabulous! I'll be updating here on our life from a new place each week!!! Pray for me as I travel a lot alone with two boys! Pray for us when we are away from our daddy this summer.

Student Life here we come.......

love family time

If you know me at all, you know that I LOVE it when Aaron is home and we just have family time. Aaron cooks a fabulous meal, I do dishes, we all play outside and then Aaron and I have mommy daddy time after the kids go to bed! :)

Read this fabulous post that my amazing and wonderful hubby posted tonight on his blog. I can not even explain how much I love him ......

kids with Uncle Tim

Last week when we were in TEXAS the boys got to spend some time with their Uncle Tim while they were at Grandma and Grandpa's house. They love Uncle Tim and he adores them as well. He is a fabulous photographer and was playing around with his new lens and happend to snap a few picturs of my boys.

Here are the disclaimers .... Yes I was there and should have made sure that Big Boy had his nose whiped, but oh well. Yes we do normally fix Little boy's hair but it was vacation and what the heck his hair was free for a few days!!!

I look at these pictures and can NOT believe that I have two beautiful little boys that are such a blessing to Aaron and I. They bring so much joy to our house that I can not even explain it. It is hard to believe that within four years of moving to a brand new state with no jobs and no idea what we were doing we have two kids, a house, a lawn mower and life is good! Thank you Jesus for too many blessings to even begin to name.

I LOVE MY BOYS!

Adoption and sex

I know the title of this post just got your attention. :)


My real question is for all adoptive parents out there. Did you specify a gender for your child? For those of you that have adopted domestically or are in the process of adopting did you choose a sex that you wanted? Or did you leave it open for either a boy or a girl?

For those of you adopting internationally is it even possible to choose your gender in the country you adopted from? I don't know since I've never been down that road. IF you can, did you?

I have some dear friends who have to make this decision within the next few days. They have a daughter who is one and she desires another daughter. She his torn as to what to do.

Any help? What did you do? What do you recommend?

So Cheeky ... A contest

Another contest is going on at Adventures in Babywearing and I thought you might want to know about it. Head over to her site to check it out, or go to the jewlery site to see it all for yourself.

I think this stuff would look great on you! Go enter!

90 days

I started a new bible study today. Thanks for the recommendation from Amanda over at Baby Bangs I bought my new 90 day study of David yesterday.

Today was the first day and it is just what I need for this summer. Some scripture to think on daily and some questions to get my mind thinking. I am going to love this.

So if you are looking for something, this is a good one for the summer. It is called DAVID - 90 DAYS WITH A HEART LIKE HIS by Beth Moore.

Great wedding weekend!

I LOVE weddings. I LOVE to see two people become one. I LOVE to see two people so in love finally get to be together all the time. This weekend we had the joy to be a part of the union of Chad and Stephanie. Chad is in the band and they have dated long distance for four years! Isn't that amazing that they stuck it out, both graduated college, and kept their relationship pure for four years. I am a proud friend.

Aaron performed the wedding and I think he did a fabulous job. He spoke from his heart and loved them and encouraged them in their journey that lies ahead of them.

Here are a few pictures from the rehearsal dinner which was at Cafe Adobe. We had so much fun hanging with friends and singing karaoke! What a fun night!

the pattern of the designer

This morning as I was reading my devotional book I flipped through the pages and found where I had written the birth of our youngest son in this book. That day in this book might be the best devotional I have ever read. It was the timing that made it so wonderful. It was as if the author of this devotional knew that my Little Boy would be born on that day and that I would need to hear these words whispered to my soul. Isn't God good!

Our youngest son was adopted at birth. Our journey from paperwork to baby was about 15 months long. We prayed and prayed for our child that God had already pre-destined to be our child since the beginning of time. We prayed for his first mommy, we prayed for his arrival, we prayed for his spirit to be sweet, we prayed for us to be prepared to accept a child that we didn't create, we prayed for him to bond with us as his new parents. Our prayers were constant and they were without ceasing for this child that we knew nothing about.

The waiting game was hard. One of the hardest things I have ever been through. If you have been down this road you know the feelings that I'm speaking of. Some of you that read this are on this journey right now and you are waiting and wondering. Some of you are wondering if you will ever have a baby. Some of you are wondering if you will ever get your baby home from their country. Some of you reading this have felt God tugging at your heart to pursue adoption and you haven't moved yet.

My emotions during our 5 month waiting to be chosen time were all over the place. I was a wreck and wanted our baby then! God's timing is so perfect and I have realized this in more than one occasion in my life. To be able to look back on the past and see how God was working is a cool thing.

Here was the devotional from the day our little joy arrived on this earth. Please allow this to encourage you as you wait for your baby. Allow these words to resonate in your heart. Allow these words to bring you comfort in the pattern of the great designer of the world.

HEAVEN'S COLOURS
LOOKING BACK YOU WILL SEE THAT EVERY STEP WAS PLANNED. LEAVE ALL TO ME. EACH STONE IN THE MOSAIC FITS INTO THE PERFECT PATTERN, DESIGNED BY THE MASTER ARTIST.

IT IS ALL SO WONDERFUL!

BUT THE COLOURS ARE OF HEAVEN'S HUES, SO THAT YOUR EYES COULD NOT BEAR TO GAZE ON THE WHOLE, UNTIL YOU ARE BEYOND THE VEIL.

SO, STONE BY STONE, YOU SEE, AND TRUST THE PATTERN TO THE DESIGNER.

You see, God is the designer and he is fitting each stone together to make his perfect pattern. Be encouraged. Be encouraged. Be encouraged.

Shingleton's in Brazil

Go visit The Shingleton Family blog. They are heading to Brazil this summer with their entire family and would love for you to keep up with them through their blog.

Have fun! Tell them I sent you!

I might be the lucky one ...

Are there any other mom's out there that sometimes are jealous of their husbands?

Hear me out here ...

My husband travels a lot for a living and while he is gone he eats out for every meal. Me, I'm cooking spaghetti and making PB & J sandwiches while he dines out.

He gets to sleep through the whole night with no babies waking up with runny noses, or wet b/c they've peed all over themselves. He doesn't have to change sheets or diapers in the middle of the night.

While he is gone he gets to mingle with lots of adults and most of the time has great conversations. I am happy to just get through the check out line at Target with out having to explain to the clerk why my children are yelling .... they are tired, of course!

While he is gone he gets to dress nice and look presentable. Today I wore the same t-shirt that I slept in last night all day long. I haven't combed my hair yet today and didn't even attempt any make up.

While he is gone the most he has to clean up is to put his clothes in the same area as his suit case so the housekeeper can clean up around him. Here at the house I cleaned two bathrooms today from top to bottom, cleaned up the kitchen three times today, and washed four loads of laundry.

While he is gone he only has to worry about cleaning his own body parts. Here I'm responsible for two little boys to smell clean for school tomorrow.

Okay, I know this sounds like I'm complaining, and actually I think I am. Let me explain though. Normally when my hubby travels he is only gone about 3 - 4 days at a time. Today this makes night #7 that I've been doing this on my own. I'm tired. I'm tired. I'm tired. The boys were actually in bed and asleep before 7:05! The sun isn't even down then!!!

If you keep up with my blog you know that it is not unusual for me to have these "down" days and then God ever so gently helps me get back on track. Most of my conversations with Aaron on the phone tonight were of me complaining about him being gone for so long and me holding down the house all by myself. After that as I was bathing my boys and sulking in my loneliness I thought of all the soldiers wives and husbands that literally do it all alone for months upon months at a time. I'm complaining about SEVEN days! Once again, I am sulking for nothing. I do have it really good.

Then the next thing that happened was when I was reading books with the boys tonight. I love this time. It is literally one of my favorite times of the day. Lately Little Boy has been very irratable at night. From about 4 until bedtime he only wants me to hold him and I just can't do that the whole time. BUT while we are reading I can hold him forever and he is so happy in my lap.

They each picked out their books to be read and all was well. Then we got to Big Boy's book and I sighed because I LOVE this book, but hardly ever read it without tearing up. Here this may ring a bell ...
I'll love you forever
I'll like you for always
As long as I'm living
My baby you'll be.
Of course as I got to the end where the son is rocking his mama the tears began to flow.

That is when I realized how lucky I am to be the one at home with the boys. Aaron may get lots of other perks that I don't get now, but I think that I have the best deal.

I get all the kisses.
I get all the hugs.
I get to snuggle with my babies.
I get to lay on the floor with wonderful smelling boys in their brand new jammies.
I get the run and jump into my arms hugs.
I get to hear "mom, i like your shirt" 15 times a day.
I get the head of Little Boy resting on my chest as I rock him.
I get to listen in on the conversations that Big boy has with his toys while playing.
I get to see Little boy swing on the swing by himself for the first time.
I get to smell that baby morning breath every day.
I get to hear "i love you mom" over and over again all day long.
I get to read books to my boys every night.
I get to listen to sweet, innocent, heart felt prayers from a 3 year old!

You see once again, God has adjusted my thinking tonight and for that I'm greatful. Still very tired. But, oh so grateful!

Shrek

Big Boy wasn't sleeping today so to keep him from waking up his brother I allowed him to lay on the couch and watch SHREK, that I had on TIVO from the other day, while I cleaned bathrooms.

I would come in when I heard a commercial so I could fast forward since I'm not really into my three year old being subjected to commercials that at any moment could have something inappropriate for a three year old.

So, as I was sitting here after one commercial I started watching the movie with him. It is super cute and I hadn't seen it since it came out. As I was watching I heard "shut-up" three times, "butt" once and "a**" once too. I know that it was clearly referring to the donkey as an a**, but still not appropriate for my 3 year old.

So, I convinced him that after he killed the dragon and got the princess out the movie was over. I can't believe that he heard these words, and hope that he didn't really "hear" them. Wow, I had no idea that a movie would have a** in it that was PG.

This is why I stick to what is on our TIVO for the kids to watch. NO commercials and I regulate what they see, which is mostly recorded off of PBS.

Okay, now that Clifford is on I'm back to cleaning the bathroom! I think I'd rather watch Clifford!!!

Journey to their baby.

In the world of adoption it is so fun to sit back and follow someone on their journey to their baby. I enjoy doing this so much. To see God bring families together in a way that only HE could do is an amazing privilege.

Here are a few journey's that I am currently following. Go visit their blogs and maybe you could follow them as well and receive the joy I get with each day that brings them closer to their baby.

1. Hood's to baby Jadyn Also check out his wife, Amy's blog.
2. Brad & Alison Bynum (Alison is also an amazing photographer - call her to do some work for you and you won't be dissapointed!)
3. The journey to Ghana
4. Stevenson in Haiti
5. baby in Guatemala
6. Ethiopia
7. Matt & Rachel to El Salvador
7. Oatsvall's to China again!

Have fun checking out these blogs! If you feel like it leave then a note of encouragement because I know that they could ALL use it.

Have a fantastic day!

what are you reading?

As some of you know last year my New Year's resolution was to read more. I did read more and have enjoyed reading. My idea of how many books to read in a year and yours could vary greatly, but hey at least I'm reading more than I was which was about NONE!

Last week I finished reading THE SECRET MESSAGE OF JESUS by Brian D. McLaren. This was a book that Aaron highly encouraged me to read. It was a great book that challenged my thinking about church and the kingdom of God. Ideas from this book are new to me and sometimes made me uncomfortable and sometimes made me mad that I had not been taught these things while growing up. I encourage you to read this book and allow the ideas in it to at least make you think. Although you may or may not agree wiht all of it, you will enjoy the challenge.

I must say that books like that are hard for me to read. I enjoy a story, characters and a plot. It took me FOREVER to get through it and I would dread to sit down to read it. Once I started reading I enjoyed it, but it never called my name from the night stand as some books do!

Now I'm free to read another book and I am reading two. Not sure why, but oh well. Book #1 is THE TREASURE PRINCIPLE by Randy Alcorn. Our church recently handed them out to us for free so I think I should read it so that they didn't waste their money. So far I'm only on chapter four and it is okay. I honestly couldn't tell you one thing that has impacted my life so far, so hopefully it will get better.

Book #2 I just started today and LOVE it. I've only read the introduction and the first page of chapter one and can't wait to sit down to read it again while the kids play outside. It is called AN ORDINARY MAN by Paul Rusesabagina and he is the man who literally saved 1,268 people in his hotel during the 1994 Rawanda genocide. You may have seen the movie, Hotel Rawanda, well this is his book and I can't wait to get into it.

So, what are you reading these days?

new swing set

Look what we got on Saturday!







Kent and Shawnah so graciously brought this over to us. Their neighbor was getting rid of it and they immediately thought of us. My boys LOVE it! I am loving having a back yard to play in with my boys! They have so much fun out there and in fact we were out there at 8:30 this morning!!!

I sit with my coffee and my new book and they kids play until they get run down! It is just what little boys need to do!

So, thanks Shingleton's and Margo!!!

Who looks bad now ....

Get this ... my brother and dad went in together and sent my mom flowers for Mother's Day. No one asked me if I wanted to get in on that gift! Now I look like the bad child that only sent a card, and she won't get it until Monday either!!!

My dad told me today I could send him money and he would tell her that he forgot that it was from me too! I said no thanks!!!

Those dogs ....

Blah to me on Mother's Day

First let me say a HUGE Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful mom, Nancy my mother-in-law, my Grandma in San Diego, and my Mimi in Texas! I love you all!

Second I want to tell you how I got a HUGE slap in the face today from God. Ha ha! You know the moments where you feel as if God just says to you, are you kidding me? This morning was fine as I got the kids ready for church by myself and we arrived just in time for me to teach my kindergarten and first grade kids in Sunday School. As they were all making mother's day cards for their mommy's I started feeling sad that I didn't get cards from my boys today. Neither one of them wished me a Happy Mother's Day, or made me breakfast in bed and that is probably because they are 3 and 1, but still I was feeling sorry for myself. (I did get cards from school though on Thursday!)

Then after church everyone was headed out to restaurants to shower their moms with praise and a day off from cooking. Me, well I was headed home by myself to make hot dogs and left overs for my sweet boys and myself. As I drove home I felt cheated on Mother's Day. I felt as though I wasn't being praised and I wasn't important.

After I put the kids down for a nap I headed out to mow the lawn. Now mowing the lawn didn't upset me, because actually I enjoy mowing the lawn. I get free sun, a slight workout, and time alone to think! Well, thinking I did.

As I was having my pity party to God about being alone on Mother's Day and not having anyone to take me out it was as if he started whispering little things in my ears. The first was thoughts of Naomi and Ruth from the bible. This was our lesson today in church and I remembered how Naomi lost not only her husband but also her two sons. I bet she had a few lonely Mother's Day's to celebrate alone. She endured and persevered and God blessed her. Shame on me for feeling sad when I have the best hubby in the world, who is constantly praising me as a mom, and lavishing me with gifts and his time, and I have two fantastic healthy boys that love me more and more every day.

Then I remembered my friend Allison posting about her friends in a car accident this weekend. Not only is this mom in the hospital in bad shape but she is dealing with the fact that her son is hours away in another hospital not responding and probably not going to make it.

Then I think of all the women who LONG for a child and for some reason or another can not have one. Their hearts are broken and longing for a life to grow inside of them.

Then I think of all the moms that have lost children. I can not even imagine this tragedy happening to a mom. I pray that these women are comforted in the fact that God is good and just the same way as he provided and protected Naomi he will do the same thing for them.

I also think of birth mothers who have placed their children with new families. I am sure they think of these children often and have a special place for them in their hearts forever.

So, my lawn mowing today was very enlightening to me. God was gracious to gently whisper in my ear that my moaning, groaning and complaining was not necessary. Although I didn't get showered with praises today by anyone, I know that my hubby and children adore me and I am thankful for all that I have in this life.

(As a side note, Aaron did shower me with gifts before he went out of town, so don't think he forgot!!!!)

SPUR on TV

A few months ago Spur58 got the privilege to perform on the cable tv show SOUNDCHECK that is on DAYSTAR. I personally do not get that channel (bummer, I know!) so I won't be able to watch it, but I want you to watch it if you do get the channel! Actually you may want to TIVO it b/c I think it comes on pretty late! And I think the lead singer is extremely HOT!

Here is the scoop:
SPUR58
Friday, May 18th at MIDNIGHT!

On another note ... have you guys headed over to SAVE THE SLOTH yet? They have weekly challenges that I know will be great for you! I have been keeping up with them and they are on my mind constantly throughout the week and have caused me to think more about my surroundings and notice people around me. They want us to wake up and breath again. To wake up to what is really around us.

I challenge you to take the challenge! You won't regret it!

Haiti Tourism

This made my stomach sick this morning as I read this NY TIMES article about Haiti and cruise ships landing there. Tara over at the Livesay Haiti blog posted about this today and I know this hits her harder since she is a missionary living in Haiti and sees what we only read about on a daily basis.

Here is the final quote that is a real kicker from the article .... “I don’t want to see poverty,” acknowledged Helen Murphy, 66, of St. Paul, who was shopping in the tourist market one morning. “I’m on vacation. I don’t want to think that these people don’t have enough to eat.”

WOW did you hear that. That makes me so mad that I want to cuss! It is people like this that think us in America live the "normal" life. I bet that more people live as the people in Haiti do than the people in America do.

I am not opposed to the cruise ships in Haiti. In my very uneducated opinion it sounds like a great idea to provide jobs and clean up the country. Who knows. I don't like this woman though. I like to think that they took her comment out of context and she is one unhappy woman now .... but then again, how would you get what she said out of context - she doesn't want to acknowledge poor people. I feel sorry for her.

Freedom Writers

Go rent this movie now. Go update your Netflix queue now. You need to watch this movie. I loved it.

Freedom Writers - 5 Stars from me!

Mark Shultz

Have you heard about Mark Shultz's new adventure? He is biking across America to raise money for orphans. Wow is all I can say to that. Our good friend, Clay, is driving his bus daily as they make their way across the US for an amazing cause. Go here to view his video blogs.

Also, check out his website.

birth control

Today was my yearly woman exam. Isn't that always a wonderful day of the year! I look forward to this day all year long and today was my day! ha ha! I visited a new doctor and she was great, but the wait time was awful. I sat in the room with that horrible robe that opens to the FRONT for an hour waiting for her to come in to examine me.

When she was doing the bre*st exam I was chatty-cathy. I mean isn't that one of the most awkward moments in your life. Not only is a stranger touching you, but for me it was a woman today. I'm never sure if I should look her in the eyes when I'm talking to her while she is doing this, or look at the ceiling or just shut up and close my eyes. It is a no win situation. Fortunately she was super nice and made me feel comfortable throughout the whole thing.

I was also there to talk about birth control. You see I haven't been on any form of bc since before Big Boy was born. I had my own "internet birth control". I would look online for calendars for people that were trying to conceive. THen I would take those days that it said we should try and we did the opposite - NOTHING! it worked for a while and then surpise - BIG BOY happened!!! So, I'm now wanting some form of bc but not sure what to do.

When we first got married the bc made me a psycho woman! Seriosly not good for a newly married couple. I was not myself and hated it and Aaron wondered who he married!

Here are the options she gave me. I would love to know if any of you have tried any of these and what you like and dislike about them.

Option #1 - Mirena - IUD placed in your uterus - effective for 5 years - BAD side for me is I'm not sure I want to wait 5 years to have another baby. It can be taken out whenever but to be the most cost effective you need to leave it in at least 4 years.

Option #2 Implanon - an impant in your arm that provides up to 3 years of protection. - Sounds good, but not so sure about something stuck in my arm for 3 years.

Option #3 - NuvaRing - flexible ring about 2" in diameter that you insert inside of you once a month. This one sounds appealing to me. Anyone used this?

Been tagged

Okay so this tagging thing is going around and I have been tagged by Gini and Heather ... so here we go:

Here are the rules. Each player starts with seven random facts about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about the seven things and the rules. You need to choose seven people to tag and list their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment that they have been tagged and to read your blog!


1. I was the mascot my senior year in high school! Go Knights! I think I just wanted to be close to the football field to get a better view. I love to watch football and I got a great seat that year, right on the sidelines. It wasn't hard for me to earn the position since I was the only one that tried out! I had lots of fun that year with the cheerleaders. :)

2. I secretly desire to be on TV! Maybe on a talk show or something ....

3. I participated in the Junior Olympics while I was younger in track. I compted in the 4x400 and the 4x800. One year we placed 3rd in the 4x400 out of the whole United States. Another random fact about that race ... out of the top 8 teams I was the only white girl on the stand! I still have that medal framed and beg Aaron to put it up in our house. Not really, but it is a running joke b/c he eventually hung it up in our garage!!! Ha Ha! After finishing my half marthon a few weekends ago I told him I wanted to frame that medal and hang it with the others!

4. Aaron was the first guy I ever dated that didn't play baseball. I'm not sure why that was, but I guess I was a groupie. Aaron was also the first guy I ever dated who was in a healthy, growing relationship with God. No wonder I stuck with him!

5. I have never done drugs. Some of you may be saying that isn't much of a random fact, but actually I was very wild in high school and college, so I'm proud that I actually said NO to one temptation that was put before me!

6. I still have the ring holder that my boyfriend in 4th grade gave me. His name was Scott Harrison and we were boyfriend/girlfriend for a long time and hardly ever talked. He actually dropped the first ring holder while riding his bike to school and his mom went and bought another one. What a nice mom. I still have it and use it every day to put my wedding ring and watch around.

7. I would love to design my own house with an architect and pick out EVERYTHING and put in so many upgrades. I want my kids to all share a room. ONE big room for boys and ONE big room for girls. Bunk beds everywhere. With a computer room, tv room, and toys room. I want them to be together and love each other but have places to go to get alone time. Also to share bathrooms. One big bathroom for boys with 2-3 showers and toilets, and ONE big bathroom for girls, with lots of showers and stuff. Is this weird to you guys? Also, it looks as though I'm going to need more than just my two boysi n my family. I know I'm weird!

So, I am supposed to tag 7 people for this thingy .... so how about:
Becca @ Four of Us
Maris @ This is Life with Us
Amy @ The Beckey Family
Christy @ The Smith Family
Amanda @ Baby Bangs
Amanda @ The Reed Family
Tara @ The Livesay Haiti Blog
& one more ... Mel @ My Life is a Sitcom
& one more! ... Kim @ Dave, Kim, Emma Bemma, Izzie Bizzie
Okay I can't stop ... Debra @ And by Faith ... the blog

one of those days ....

Does it make me a bad mom to say that my kids are driving me crazy? I mean really only one. I will not name which one to conceal his identity, but you could probably take a guess. He has wanted me to hold him all day long and that is not physically possible some days.

When we have school days he naps from about 11-1. Sounds good,except at home we nap from about 1-3. That means on school days he is SO tired by about 4, and so hungry by 4 that our house is miserable from 4-7!!!

I did do something for the first time ever tonight though .... I cooked on the grill! Did you get that? I, myself, on my own cooked some sausage on the grill tonight! It was so much fun and I love it! I had to call Aaron about a billion times to ask questions. He thought it was hilarious!

Okay back to my whiny, cranky Little Boy. Oh did I just give away his identity. Ooops. Sorry, baby boy! Oh well ... he is our BEST sleeper of the two boys and he is crying tonight wanting EVERY book off the bookcase in his bed with him. Where does he think he is going to sleep? I have limited him to two and they can't be the HUGE big books either. So, he is not happy with me.

You know what I do when I have a "bad" day .... I eat. Isn't that lovely. I eat crazy stuff. For example, toinght I had dinner with the boys at 5 - who eats then??? - and now that I just went through the whole crying phase with wanting every book in the bed, I need some food loving! To make me feel better, I cut up a nice, fresh, bright red tomatoe and COVERED it with salt, pepper and shredded parmesean cheese. Oh my it was so good! I ate it all until my stomach was hurting! But, Little Boy is now asleep, I'm enjoying The View from today, and waiting for Grey's to record for about 20 min on Tivo so I can skim through all the commercials!

So, if you need a food pick me up go ahead and try my tomatoe and cheese recipe. So good. Aaron thinks I'm disgusting .... BUT he has never tried it either!

PAIN

I am in PAIN and haven't had something hurt this bad since labor! It is 3:30 and I'm up b/c I can't sleep b/c of my pain. My neck and upper back is shooting pain throughout my arms, neck and back. I think something is wrong and I can't sleep. UGH.

I'm supposed to take Little Boy to doc tomorrow and I'm just hoping this gets better in the next few hours so I can get him there.

Okay back to trying to count sheep ....

UPDATE*** Yes I am better and just have a stiff neck today. This has happend about 5 times before in my life but this was the worst. I'm looking into going to the doc. :)

One Mile.

I am ashamed to admit that today I ran my FIRST mile since my 1/2 marathon about a week and a half ago! I have gotten so lazy with no race on the calendar and no workout schedule on my ical! I need a race to be traning for.

Tonight I did pilates at the Y, and I 'm still not so sure about it. Yes it did hurt sometimes, but I didnt' sweat hardly and didn't feel as though I had really worked out afterwards. Not sure if I'll do that one again. Then I got on the treadmil and ran ONE lousy mile! Ha! I was running out of time and needed to get home for dinner and that is all I had time for. I guess one is better than none!

Karate AKA "arate"

I am the mom that is so ready for extra curricular activities. I know I'll probably be eating my words in a few years when I have 4 different kids at 4 different soccer fields and Aaron's on the road. Ask me then how much I love extra curricular activiites!

Big Boy is 3 and I'm so ready for him to be doing something. I thought about gymnastics but Aaron and the rest of the SPUR boys weren't thrilled with that idea.

I found out that 3 year olds can do karate so we called and got him in a class. They actually let you try it out for free at first in case it doesn't work out! Thank goodness!

He cried most of the time and I finally got him out there when I promised he could play outside after karate. :) He was hilarious to watch and the kids called him a girl.

So, they told us we could come back the following week for another "trial" class. All weekend long we talked about karate and how fun it was and he would always respond by saying that "arate" was scary!

Because he was timid about it we decided to not go back to "arate" class. He is only 3 and we have time to let him want to do it. Oh well. I was being pushy and he obviously is not ready for "arate"!

I am thinking about art lessons for the Fall. I called the teacher today and she said that since his young we'll try in the fall and see how he is doing then. He loves to color and actually is really good at it for a 3 year old boy. He is also good at drawing people - good for a 3 year old boy that is! He likes this, so I think we may try that!

Next year we'll be old enough for soccer! Yeah I can't wait!

I honestly have this fear that Big Boy is not going to be into sports. My family is a very sports oriented family. Aaron's family isn't. Not that one is better than the other, but one is foreign to me. I was never in the band or choir. Aaron was never in sports. We bring two different backgrounds to our kids. I'm thankful that they have both - honestly I am. I just want God to prepare me if Big Boy is not going to be athletic. As I read this it sounds silly to be thinking about my 3 year old not being athletic.

I am not saying I will be upset if he is not. I will LOVE whatever he does! Honestly!

Little Boy will probalby be into sports. He loves balls and just seems to be drawn more towards balls and stuff like that. He comes from an athletic background. His birthmom played sports and still is involved in stuff. His biological grandfather is a coach and so I know he has it in his genes.

I know that we'll have lots of various activities ahead in our future. I hope that my kids are well-rounded. I pray that the succeed in whatever God has planned for them, whether it be soccer, playing the drums, singing in the choir, writing plays, acting, performing monologues, playing basketball, karate, playing the guitar, running track, or anything else that he wants them to do! I want the best for them and I want them to be happy and good at whatever they do!

pictures

Don't you love it when you download the pictures off of your computer and most of them look like this b/c your children have gotten a hold of your camera!

a new look

Wanna new look for your blog? Maybe you or I could win one for Mother's Day. Go here and sign up!

Birthday celebration!

Birthday's don't seem like they are that big of a deal anymore these days. Tomorrow I'll hit the big 2-9! 29 years old. 1 year left until I'm 30. 11 years away from 40. Wow - isn't it funny how when I was younger 40 seemed so old and now it seems so young!

Aaron surprised me and took me out on the town on Thursday night to celebrate a little early. I let the boys go home from school with Shawnah because Big Boy was begging to go over there and I headed home to mow the lawn. I was at home about to change clothes to mow when Aaron arrived and told me we were going out!!! I LOVE TO GO OUT!!!! What a surprise. Little did I know he had already made plans with Shawnah to watch the boys for us and I didn't know about it.

We went to a FABULOUS restaurant in Nashville called Radius 10. Super vibey and super cool! It reminded us of Chicago or New York City. It is in the Gulch area and we had some great drinks, great pizza, great hummus, great salad and fabulous tuna! Yummy it was good! Then we headed over to The Rutledge to listen to some great live music. Since we had gone to dinner so early we arrived during sound check! It was funny to me to watch someone else sound check. :) We sat at the bar and I read the paper!!! We were only able to listen to one band since we needed to get home and get the kids before 10.

We had so much fun celebrating my birthday. The boys got me a new watch. Apparently Aaron doesn't like the watch that I have now. I bought it at Target about 3 years ago and it is a sports watch which is great for running. I never take it off and he says it looks awful. I even wear it with nice clothes. I just never cared! Aaron gave me the gift I was hoping for all along - a new program for my computer called iRemember. It is a digital scrap booking program and I can NOT wait to get to scrapping!

As we were out that night we talked about life, love and how we wish that everyone loved each other the way we love each other. It seems like lately people all around us are somehow missing the meaning of life. Married couples are fogetting what it means to love, cherish, respect and care for each other. They are not putting their spouse first in life. We have vowed to alaways put each other before anything - even our kids and our jobs! "US" is way more important than anythinge else on this earth. We are diligent about spending time talking each day. Many nights we eat together as a family, and about once a week we feed the kids first, put them in bed, and then eat our meal together. It is a MUST that we go out at least 2-3 times a month with NO kids.

We continue to date. We continue to fall in love. We will continue on this journey together.

Encouragement

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest ifwe do not give up." Galatians 6:9

found it!

Today is laundry day. Thank goodness because I found my cell phone in AARON'S PANTS! He knew that he had taken it away from the kids and put it somewhere ..... I guess that somewhere was in his pocket! Ha Ha!

At least it wasn't my fault this time!

freaked out mom.

YES I am a freaked out mom. I freak out. I overreact. I assume the worst. I think that my child always has the one illness that no one has discovered yet and if I don't take them to the doctor they will die within 20 minutes. I freak out!

Today was no different. Little Boy woke up feeling kinda grumpy and so he took a nap from 9:30 to noon. We had to wake him up so that he wouldn't sleep through lunch. He felt so hot and had a fever of 103.8 - that freaked me out! We gave him tylenol and offered lunch, which he ate none and drank none. After lunch he laid on either his mommy or daddy all day long. About 1:30 he fell asleep on my chest and we put him back to bed. At four we woke the boys up and he felt hot again - 102.9 - ugh I HATE fevers and always overreact!

I rushed to the store for ibuprofen and came home to a cranky and hot boy. Did I mention I hate fevers? I hate fevers.

I read online that you should just watch them and if it goes down after each dosage then they are doing fine. It has to run its course and could probably be an infection that the fever is fighting.

So, I FREAK out and Aaron finally says for me to go just so I'll feel better. I'm worried about an ear infection or some MAJOR disease that has yet to be discovered and my child has it.

I take him to the clinic close to our home that is super nice and great to have so close to us. They are super nice and in a very polite way advised me to go home and love on him and make sure he drinks and makes wet diapers. They said to make sure his temp goes down with medicine and that he doesn't get dehydrated.

So, $15 later I've been told that nothing can be done to help him. This is just like me. I want a quick fix to most things. If something is wrong, let's fix it. That's my philosophy. Sometimes I want the answer NOW. It is kinda like me wanting a "real" job. I want it NOW. I want it NOW. I want it NOW. When really God may be saying ... hold on Jamie. Listen to me. Follow my direction and my time table. I know the desires of your heart, but it may not be the right time for you now.

So, now I'm home loving on my little boy as he has yet again fallen asleep on my chest as I type this. So, if you think about him, pray that my Little Boy sleeps well tonight, that his fever keeps going down, that we get him to drink even if we have to get it in him with a syringe (which the doc gave me for this reason), and that his mom doesn't freak out all the time!

again ...

guess what? i have lost my cell phone again! we know it is in the house b/c aaron saw the kids playing with it today while i was gone to the Y. i know my kids should not be plaing with my phone.... but don't get onto me until we find it, then i can take it!

seriously. why can i not keep up with my phone!

Lots of contests

Click on the sidebar to the right to go to 5 Minutes for Mom for lots of stuff to win between now and Mother's Day. They said they'll be constantly adding new stuff so go and check it out!