February 28th...

I canNOT believe it is the last day of February!!!  Whoa...where did this month go?

And I've only written 13 posts (including this one) for this month!!  I really have A LOT to post about and talk about and plenty of pics to share...I just haven't had made the time.

I PLAN to do better next month at posting...I promise...ya know...in case you are just so curious about my daily life!!! Ha!!!

Well, I will share a little story about my day today...My day was going pretty good until we got ready to leave preschool.  Owen decided to RUN dart out into the the school parking lot.  Normally when we leave there aren't that many cars left....but today we happened to get out on time and there were lots of cars leaving.

PRAISE THE LORD a mommy was watching when Owen ran right in front of her car...I was frozen. There was nothing I could do but stare at the scene playing out in front of me. :(

The mom looked at me and I thanked her with my eyes and the wave of my hand...then my feet hit the pavement!!!  I scooped up Owen (who at this point had continued to run past that car and around behind my car), swatted his behind and then ferociously yelled at him while simultaneously crying.  I buckled him in, got the other kids in the car, got myself in and just sat there while my heart kept racing.   At this point Owen was a blubbering mess and kept crying out for me to hold him...oh, how I wanted to...but I was shaking so much it wouldn't have been safe.  I don't want to even imagine how this whole scenario could have played out.  I told myself I could be riding in an ambulance right now.  I just decided not to go there with the whole "what ifs"...so I just thanked God for his blessing and drove home...holding back tears the whole time.

Owen fell asleep on the way home...I carried him in and sat and held him for an hour...I needed that.  He needed that.  I needed to hold his hot sweaty body in my arms.  I just squeezed him as tight as I could...I love that little rugrat.  LOVE.SO.MUCH.

I hope you are having a great Thursday!!!  It's almost the weekend...whoohoo!!! :)

A {mostly} Wordless Wednesday Post

{i might be laughing so hard I am snorting! do you like his chapeaux?}

Best Friends..Enough Said!

 Ashlee and I went out to dinner Saturday night...

...we might have dressed VERY similar {turquoise, tunic tops, Coach purses} without planning it...

...we might have looked/acted/dressed/talked so alike that the waitress went on and ON and ON about how weird, but cool it was that we had so much in common...

...that might have gotten Ashlee to thinking whether we were still our own individual people...

...we might have sat at that booth for almost 4 hours...

...Ashlee may or may not have eaten 20 mint chocolates!!

In those four glorious hours we talked about so many things...birthday party ideas, my future career, children, our husbands, etc.  And we did discuss our differences...which made Ashlee feel better! ;) 

Thanks Ashlee for a WONDERFUL EVENING 

with such GREAT COMPANY!!

I love you so much!!

Is It Just My Son?

Ya know....I LURVE my boys a whole bunch.

But sometimes they are so gross I just wanna SCREAM!!  Which I did...this morning...at Aidan.

{My mom would tell me not to share all this, but I just can't help it!!!}

Owen had a rough night and during my back and forth shuffle to and from his room I noticed a HORRIBLE smell radiating from Aidan's room.  In my head, "Poor boy, must have a really upset tummy."  From my mouth, "Geez his toots stink!!!"  Well, let me say that that smell was the good part of the story! :(

Fast forward to this morning and I go check on Owen screaming once AGAIN, when I happen to follow the same horrible stench into the bathroom.  Uh.my.Gush!!!  My son pooped ALL over the toilet, on the floor and apparently on the COUNTER!!  HOW does one do that???!!!

In my head, "OMGosh that child is disgusting !!!"  From my mouth, "Aidan get in this bathroom and clean it up NNNNNOOOOOOWWWWWW!!!!"

The best or worst part is he walked into the bathroom, looked around and asked what he needed to do!!  You have GOT.TO.BE.KIDDING.ME!!!!

And it gets better...I assumed he was actually going to clean it ALL so I moved onto my other morning chores.  Later B says she can't go potty because Aidan didn't clean off the poop!  Aidan tells me he did...that what B sees is the stain on the toilet (not really a stain, but where the white color has just been rubbed off the lid).  I assure B that that must be what she sees.

So I later go and lift the lid to find he had NOT cleaned the toilet.  I am suuuuper frustrated!  Like go up to the school, pull him from class and "discuss" the issue with him!!

I say all this because I believe it is FINALLY time for the kids to start doing REAL chores...not clean up your room, clean up the toys, put your dish in the sink kinda chores...I mean big chores....starting with CLEANING THE FLIPPIN' BATHROOM!!  I have struggled the last few years with this...I am a SAHM and it is my job to clean the dishes, clean the bathroom, etc...but they need to learn those skills as well...but I was just stuck at what to do.

Not.ANY.more!!  It's time.  I shall pass on my toilet wand baton to my heirs and set them to work.  ;)

I hope you are having a great Wednesday!!

Subaru- I Can't Believe You...

....made such a precious commercial!!  As if I don't already cry weekly, randomly, uncontrollably over Breslyn going to Kinder this fall...then I saw this commercial tonight!!  BE.STILL.MY.HEART!!

It is SO short...but it makes SUCH an impact!  Oh how I dread this day...when baby girl gets on the bus and drives away.  Yep, here come the water works again. :(  Ugh!

I hope you enjoy the video...it is so very precious.  

Situation

Today has been such a nice day!!

I wore a new-to-me shirt from my Momma..pretty turquoise...and I got lots of compliments on it!

Praise team practice went well this morning...even though 10 minutes before we finished practicing the worship leader looked over at me and said, "Can you sing the invitation song since you soloed it before?"  Well of COURSE I can!!  Haha!  I decided that is the way I want to be told when I am going to be singing a solo from now on...I didn't have time to be nervous (and now with our new in-ear head sets, I could hear myself so much better)!  Now...I did come in late on the last verse, but the instrumentalists are awesome and covered me!!  Ha!

During Sunday school we were paired up with some other couples we don't really talk to...yes, that always makes me feel awkward...but it really wasn't.  I enjoyed hearing their knowledge on the bible.  And we are all gonna hold each other accountable for future get-togethers!!

For once...nobody really complained about lunch!!!!  Victory!!!  We had burger sliders...pop them in the microwave..super easy AND fast..which is a plus since we get home from church semi-late.

I took a small, but quality nap in my chair this afternoon...bliss!  I feel refreshed!

But refreshed for what????  Well, for dinner with my bestie!!  We so enjoy each other's company..and we get to enjoy it at our favorite restaurant, Olive Garden!!  She may or may not have eaten 20 15 10 breadsticks last time, and I may or may not have challenged myself to beat her this time!!  I will win!!  I am so blessed to have such a great and caring friend!

Tomorrow the kids are out of school, so I don't have to wake up to an alarm {and they are spending the night with Gaga and Grandpa to boot}!!  Whoohoo!

See?  The goodness of today carries all the way into tomorrow!!

I'm super happy to say I'm thankful for all these things...ya know, with my previous post about the worst afternoon EVER!  ;)

I learned something this week at women's bible study...Beth Moore said, 

"YOU don't have the ONE situation God can't CHANGE!!!"  

BLEW my mind!  I have some things I've been dealing with lately, and although I knew God was aware of them, I didn't think He would change them {because I couldn't}.  I have kept that quote throughout the week and this weekend.  It has really brought a lot of peace that I was missing.  :)

Happy Sunday friends!!  

Thank you Jesus for an awesome day!!  

Best.Afternoon.Ever

...NOT!!

I don't even know where to begin on this crappy afternoon.

It's just been a bit of a love let down day....my kids decided it was "Disrespect and Hate on Momma Day".  Or "Let's Act Like Emotional Fools and Make Momma Want to Run Away Day" or "We Complain About Dinner Every.SINGLE.Night So Let's Keep Up with Tradition Day".   Take your pick.

I had a great morning and great day at school...my kids told me they loved me this morn and I was BEYOND blessed by my school kidlets!!  I was overwhelmed by their generosity....chocolates, giftcards, Sonic drinks, a plaque, cookies, etc....just showing SO MUCH LOVE.  :)

Then 3:35 hit.

I think around that time everyday the kids decide it is time to beat up on mommy...they must all get together and say something like, "Aidan, you go in there an roll your eyes and speak disrespectfully to mom...Finley, you scream bloody murder because you can't get an arm on your Lego guy....Breslyn, you whine in the loudest voice possible about how this is the worst day ever and Owen, you go blow snot all over mommy!!!"

I would say that I am writing this out of anger...and I am, but honestly this is what almost every single afternoon looks like around these parts.

I'm tired of it.  I'm just tired.

And now....I've gotten my frustrations out....and I feel slightly better.  Thanks for sticking around.  Hope the ride was fun. ;)

Happy Valentine's Day

What an original header!  Ha!

But really...I just wanted to wish you all a Wonderful Valentine's Day!!

Joey, Aidan, Finley, Breslyn 

and Owen,

I LOVE YOU SO VERY MUCH!!  I don't need a special day to tell you that...but since it is the Day-O-Love....xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo and xo to grow on!!

I LOVE this man so very much!

I LOVE these littles so much it hurts!!

And for a little Pinterest Valentine love....

Source: skiptomylou.org via Ashley on Pinterest

...yes PLEASE!!

Source: whattopin.com via Ashley on Pinterest

Source: i.imgur.com via Ashley on Pinterest

...sorry it's so fuzzy.

Source: luxefinds.com via Ashley on Pinterest

Source: tatertotsandjello.com via Ashley on Pinterest

And at this point I WANTED to add a little "people love candy" from my People Pinterest board, but the Holy Spirit convicted me...and I don't want to cause anyone to lust.  Bummer...SO go lust after your hubby instead!! ;)))

Again, hAvE aN aWeSoMe 

Valentine's Day friends!!!  

Chick-Fil-A Date

This past Saturday was 

Daddy/Daughter Date Night at Chick-fil-a.  

It was a nationwide event and this year Breslyn and Joey were able to participate!!  

At first I told Joey he must wear a suit and she would dress like a princess...he wasn't keen on the idea...but he would have done it for his little girl!  He ended up wearing a sport coat which was a perfect match for her cute outfit!!  

This picture was post-date...she received all sorts of cute goodies at CFA!!  Among her new treasures were a stuffed cow, big red heart balloon and lip gloss!  She had a yummy dinner and she especially liked the ice cream bar!!

I am so glad that the two of them got to share such a fun date!!  Breslyn is very lucky to have such a great daddy...and Joey is very lucky to have such a precious daughter!!  

I am very blessed to have them both in my life!

His Big Weekend!

Man it is hard to throw a birthday party for an 11 year old boy!  He says he's not ready for a friend party yet...just family {cause our family is AWESOME like that!!}, but I always want him to have had a GREAT birthday!

This year he wanted to take a tour of Cowboys Stadium...mostly so he could play on the field!!  I thought that was a great idea.  We decided to also celebrate his birthday by having lunch at Chili's!  Here are a few pics from his special day {spread out over a long weekend!}.

And pics at Chili's...

Good times!!

love you Bubba!

Happy 11th Birthday Aidan

OMGoodness....I can't believe my baby boy, my first born is already 11...well, I can believe it since he has the body of a 15 year old!!  Ha!  However it does not feel like he could possibly be that old.

I am so very blessed to be his mommy.  He has the sweetest spirit and most helpful attitude.  He loves me and I DEFINITELY love him!!

This morning this song came to my mind.  My momma sang it in church many years ago...and yes, she did break down with a few tears as she looked at my little brother and me.  To this day I cannot listen to this song without crying big ole tears!!

Happy Birthday Bubba!!!  I love you Aidan and "I am so glad that God has given you to me...Little Lamb of God...YOU are a masterpiece!!"




XOXO,
Mommy

Family and The Superbowl

It was a day full of hanging out with family!  I loved every minute!!  

We celebrated Aidan's birthday and had lunch at Chili's...then this evening everyone came over to "watch" the Superbowl.  Really only Pawpaw watched...everyone else talked, played on electronic devices or watched the kids go nuts!

I just had so much fun enjoying the company of my Mom, Dad, Gma and brother as well as my MIL and FIL.  There is something so wonderful knowing you can simply  be yourself and hang out with family that just makes me smile!!  

Here are a few pics from lunch (because I didn't take any tonight)!  I will share more about Aidan's celebration on his actual birthday!  

What a fun day...full of love and laughter!!  I look forward to doing it again soon! :)