WEEKEND SHARE

I have been thinking.

I felt really good this weekend. It seems like things are coming together in "my little world". I am very aware of the pain and suffering that goes on in the big world, in my own family. But as you can see from the last posts I am trying to make the most of what I have.

I have been dealing with a sinus infection since January and I have finally found something that makes me feel better. That's definitely something to smile about.

I spent the day with Joe's mom and her sister. We had lots of laughs, a good lunch and a plan to see the rest of the family. When to friends house, got goodies, made them feel better and left with a plan to help landscape her yard. Home to movies with the family.

Cleaned the house, worked in the yard. Mamaw and her sister came over, showed off my goodies had some good conversations and some good laughs. Went to church, everyone behaved! Dropped Elijah off at his dad's and came home to relaxation and a massage for Joe and me!

BIG SURPRISE! after a nice big breakfast an a plan to go to the farm my son (who WILL NOT go to the basement alone) went to the basement to get his toys and found water dripping from the ceiling, soaking the carpet. He saved the day! The refrigerators filter malfunctioned and was sending out more water than needed, a lot more water. We were able to fix the problem fairly easy without costing us more than the price of a new filter. Whew.

On to the farm...I get a chance to call my parents and actually talk for a while. I miss them so much and wish we could see them more. Maybe soon...Arrive at the farm, it is always nice place to go to. We see the most beautiful geode rocks with crystals, the wide open space and the serenity of it all. Today we were on a mission, I needed 11 trees for my friend. We ended up with the small cedar trees after a nice walk and two awesome rocks. I am learning to not pick up every beautiful thing I see although it is hard.

Stop by my friends house to drop the plants and she is THRILLED! She has another friend there that I had met before, but in talking with her she has a little boy Levi's age and wants to get together sometime.

This brings me to Sunday night. I was thinking of all the people that have touched my life. In the past month I have reconnected with two friends I had lost touch with. Spent some time with someone I admire and can learn lots of useful things from. Made two new friends and am looking forward to spending some time with my family, very soon.

The sun is shining, I am feeling well, have been working out since the first of the year. I have great kids, a wonderful husband and a family that gets along and really cares about each other. You can see why I feel so good. I love making others feel as good as I can and pray that they find the peace and love they deserve.

WHAT I SEE AND THE WAY I SEE IT

In just a weeks time the beauty unfolds before my eyes! This is a peach tree in our back yard. I think I find it so fascinating because it is so small compared to most of our other trees and as you can see it is loaded with blooms! After it blooms, small peaches start to grow. We have not tried to eat one but they look cool. We let them fall off into the soil and now have two new trees! Of course being one of the first things to bloom is a plus, we are out everyday LOOKING for beauty.
Up close and personal.
My girl in her glory. She dressed herself in the bathing suit, I found the skorts. They didn't stay on long, just enough to get them dirty! Her headdress is the necklace I got from my new friend. Most of you know I am not always conventional in the way I look and dress. I think it's rubbing off.
I think I have finally found the vehicle that suits my personality. I have ALWAYS been fascinated by shoes, high heels in particular. I don't know if it was the fact that growing up we always had to wear "ugly" corrective shoes or that we never had what seemed to be more than one pair at a time. I'm sure mom would tell me different but that's what I remember. Now, as for driving this thing I don't think it would be practical for me, but I love the thought of it. I'm not sure if the boys would go for it but I know Naomi would LOVE IT!!!

WEEKEND PICS

Mamaw and the kids. Mamaw and her sister, just a swing'n.
This is Joe's workshop. They brought it to our house on a BIG 5th wheel trailer. We had to remove fence panel's and trees. It was well worth it!
The new slide is hot already. Of course that didn't stop Naomi but that's why she has the look on her face!
Happy boy at the farm. Levi likes to help with the work and ride in the back of the truck!

WONDERFUL WEEKEND

With a title like that, I know you would love to hear about it. I had visions of getting everything I needed and wanted to do but there is always so much more. I have pics to post and stories to tell but no time to do it tonight.

I think about my family and friends and feel so blessed. I hope that you can feel it too. Good night and God Bless you all.

A FRIEND IN NEED.......

......is a friend indeed. Today was all about taking time. I made my first choice this afternoon by excepting an invitation to lunch with my mother in law and her sister. I made plans early in the week to meet her to get a present for Naomi but I didn't want to stay long. There are so many other things that need to be done. Since she ask I hated to turn her down, so we ended up taking a two hour lunch. It was nice to spend time with both of them without any interruptions something I had never done before.

This evening I had promised a friend(Tina) I would come to her house and cut her boys hair. I have done her hair for 14 years but just started doing them as a "favor". It seems they are so particular that they now won't let anyone else touch their hair. So with nothing else on the agenda I agreed to today.
It just so happened that I have made a new client out of one of Tina's friends. Well, she works a very exclusive catalog company that has great sales and it just so happens that the sale was today! Now she wants to come share in the fun that she had at the sale and give to us!! Very much to my surprise she gave me six new tops, a linen shirt dress in a really cool green shade and the most beautiful blue crystal necklace. I couldn't believe it, she wouldn't take any money. The most funny thing is with the beautiful weather it makes you want new clothes. I actually wanted to go look but know that we can't spare any money so what's the point.
The boys loved there hair, I made a little money and got new clothes as a bonus!
Now I'm home with a movie for our family to enjoy for family night. I feel so blessed to take the time to spend with friends and family.

BLAST FROM THE PAST part two

As you can tell I am getting a little better with the computer. This thing is so amazing, I can't imagine being able to do half of what it is capable of!
I like this pic of Mom. You can tell she really liked her job! Wait, I think she is smiling so much because she is RETIRING. Of course you could never tell by looking at her that she was already able to retire. Mom worked for the post office for over 20 years. Starting in the postmasters office and working her way up to the FIRST FEMALE SUPERVISOR. That was really saying something for the times. I know it wasn't always easy but she made the best of it. Of course she has done many other things that I am proud of her for but this was the first picture to brag on. Way to go Mom! This is a friend from way back. She was Molly's best friend in grade school. We hung out A LOT when we both ended up in the same town with not many friends. We shared the same interest in camping and boating. This was taken on a trip to Florida in the early 90's.
One of Elijah's favorite pics. I think he is fascinated by the long hair. He is about 4 years old and wearing his dad's old jacket. Love those dimples!
This pic is sooo funny. One of the many days spent on the boat. The look is because someone has been taking his pretzels and he was not happy. You can tell we like to have fun with him!
He spent a whole year looking like this. These were some of his most favorite things, from the outfit, hat to the motorcycle! He thought (we thought) he was one cool dude.
Now that I have figured out how to work the scanner I see I MUST post MORE pics from the past! I'll try not to boor you to much. With the nice weather coming up I'll see what I can do. Hope you got a good chuckle out of these like I did.

Stay tuned and God Bless you all.

BLAST FROM THE PAST part one

This is what my honey will always look like to me! He is so strong and handsome. I love the way he is now, he has only gotten better with age.
Don't we make a cute couple? I remember taking this picture, it seems like so long ago and only yesterday. The same for this one. It is late 80's at my apartment. Mom and Dad look so cute too!!!

This is proof of what happens to you if you sit still to long! McKenzie was the first kid to come along so there are LOTS of pictures of her. I think this one is great. It shows that she likes to have fun and would let her Aunt Kathy do anything. Stay tuned for part two!

ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL DAY!!!

I must confess, I am getting very spoiled.

We have changed our schedule around some so that we now have Sundays at home. Of course with the beautiful weather it has worked out nice to get some things accomplished. From the looks of things we need to get A LOT accomplished. I keep reminding Joe that we are supposed to relax a little this year.

Any way, the weather was so nice after waking without a alarm we had our coffee and then set our sights on the glorious outdoors. Even though there is plenty of work to be done, we do enjoy it. We got the slide set in concrete and all of the beds out back cleaned and ready for mulch. It is so beautiful, I can't wait to see what it looks like THIS year.

The kids had a great time helping dad with the concrete. I can't believe our kids are already old enough to be such good helpers. It seems they really enjoy digging in the dirt and doing what ever is necessary to help get the job done. Of course we let them play all they want but it is nice when they give a helping hand.

Time is flying by, I am off now to fill out Elijah's application for high school! My babies are really growing up!

FIRST SIGNS OF SPRING

I know it is not here yet but I can still dream. The weather has been so nice this past week that things are starting to bloom and signs of spring are showing. I wanted to take a picture before the frost gets them! I always have good intentions of covering my flowers when cold weather threatens but that seldom happens. If they last, I will post a picture of what they really look like! Here's my girl, Cinderella. Doing what chickens do best, hanging out looking for food! We love having her around for the entertainment and her eggs are the best!!!

MAMMOTH CAVE

Today started out really early! Now, I'm definitely not a morning person but I would do just about anything for my kids. So, 5 am it is!! The trip was the first of three for Elijah's 8th grade class. I had volunteered thinking that we would be driving our own vehicles but was pleasantly surprised to learn we would be taking a chartered bus. With the time change it worked out really nice since it was dark most of the way there. The kids were tired and well behaved so the ride was really smooth.

Once there we were all excited to go into the cave. Some of us had been there before but it is always nice to do things as a class. Our guide was very experienced and really seemed to enjoy his job. The kids were very well behaved so it made for a great learning experience and a fun couple of hours.

Once out of the cave we ate a good lunch at the cafe' and then back on the bus. Of course the kids were wound up for the ride home so it was a little more entertaining. Things were taken away, candy was thrown but still well behaved for the most part. One of the dads got to be the heavy so it made it easy on us girls. The kids had a great time and I think they came away with some real knowledge. Class pic.
Looking up inside the cave. IT WAS AWESOME
Ranger Joe showing off a cave cricket.

WEEKEND FUN

The past week all three of my kids have been sick. Naomi started two Fridays ago with strep. She was really sick for a couple of days and just when she seemed a little better Elijah got sick. The same with Levi so it ended up dragging on for over a week. I was able to work when I needed to because Joe was able to take a little time and stay with the kids. The weather here has been wonderful so it made it a little easier for him. I am happy to say I think we are on the mend.

That said, we started our weekend fun on Saturday night. One of my old friends, David King had his 40th birthday party. It was held at a local restaurant and the kids were invited. I was a little leery at first because I hadn't been to this restaurant before and the thought of lots of little kids running around scared me. I turned out great, we got to see some really good friends that we had lost touch with and David seemed really happy to have everyone there. The kids behaved themselves so we had fun too!

Now, we can't stop there. The next day was glorious! After a week of feeling bad we couldn't waist a minute. We have a big yard so that means there is more opportunity for work and play. Looking around, we saw LOTS of work that needed to be done. We both enjoy being outside and of course the kids do too! First on the list was to make a garden. We have been wanting to do it for some time but with a big dog outside I didn't see it happening. Now that she has passed on the time is right. A digging we go. (I mean Joe) I thought we should use the tiller but Joe likes to do things his way so I put him in charge. Of course I can't let him be in charge of me so I made my own project. THE SLIDE MUST GO UP! The only catch was there were holes to be dug there too! Now two blisters, sore muscles later the holes are dug. Now this may not seem fun to some but with the music on and seeing our kids playing it made it a good time.

We are all looking forward to planting the garden and watching it grow. Even though it's not here yet, I am ready for spring and looking forward to the days ahead. Naomi helping clean out the holes that I dug. As you can see it was a sloooow process.
Levi being creative with the tools. He wanted to carry the buckets on his shoulders. It seemed to be more work but he was determined to make it work. More power to you, boy!

Almost halfway done! My cutie likes to work hard but doesn't mind to stop for a quick pic.

A LOOK BACK

The highlight of Naomi's actual birthday. To end the day my special dolls were brought out to play with. She has never seen them before so they were quite a treat. I hadn't seen them in some time so it was fun for me too! Some of the dolls had not aged as gracefully so they were a little more fragile. Naomi treated them really well so I'm sure that they will be brought out as long as they last. This is the BIG PARTY! I would love to post all of the pictures because of the SMILES that are so abundant. It was so nice to see a group of friends that seem so happy together.
Of course, Naomi can't stand to not be in the thick of it. The boys didn't even seem to notice her but she didn't care, as long as she could be there she was happy.
PINEWOOD DERBY!!!! Levi worked really hard on his car. It didn't go as fast as he would like but he was going more for style. Papaw showed up to cheer him on!
More art! Joe has been inspired since his retreat. He spends the little time he has in the evenings working on drawing or Flint napping. I had just cut his hair and told him he looked like Ellen.

MORE BIRTHDAY FUN

Different birthday of course. Only 2 days until my oldest turns14!!!!

We have never got to have him a "real" birthday party with all of his friends. So, with this being his last year in middle school I decided it was time. He goes to a small school and the thought of inviting all his classmates crossed my mind but then I snapped out of my fog. WHAT WAS I THINKING!!!! I have heard about the "girls hate the boys" and I know that there is a little division in the class anyway. So, what was I thinking.

New plan, have a surprise party! I called the boys that I knew were his really good friends and got A LOT of positive feedback. They all wanted to come. One had a religious obligation and was very disappointed. (The reason I told you this was because E thinks we are uncool and no one would want to come to our house!)

We got him out of the house to get a movie so I had to work fast. I put the boys to work putting up streamer and the party had started. (We only had to wait for the birthday boy). That's when It got a tricky. I can't lie very well so when he came home I told him to find Naomi but I couldn't tell him where she was. So he opened the basement door and saw one of his friend but when we went downstairs the lights were dim and all the kids had hidden! Too cool. So the surprise was over and the party really started.

He got lots of great presents and they all seemed to have a really good time. The boys were really nice and used their manners. I am so glad that I chose to have the party and know he has some really good friend that may last a life time!