Turning the tables - just for today...

Okay, so after my post yesterday about how I've lived vicariously through my children for the last 10 years, I have the need to rant.  Just a little.  And, it's about my child being "mistreated".

Of course, I'm not objective AT all here.  Everything I'm about to write about is my opinion and goodness, help me if Randy happens upon this post, because he'll be mad at me for airing out a rant on a public forum, but here goes:

Just a little background information...My 10 year old has been playing soccer since she was 5 years old.  She has always played with teams that are a grade below her because of where her birthday landed on the calendar.  (Example: Last year, she was the oldest player on her team and in 4th grade, yet played on a team of 3rd graders, etc.)  Honestly, it has been a better fit for her for her to play with kids who are not towering over her because the truth of the matter is, Elisan is a very petite child.

So, they had team tryouts last week. There's a whole new batch of coaches this year and Elisan was so excited to see all of her former teammates again!

Well, as you can probably guess, Elisan was not placed on the same team she was on last year, and in fact, it appears as if she was placed on the 3rd string team with new team members and honestly we (Randy and I) believe it has mostly to do with her size, not her skill.  Now, I'm not saying that skill was not a factor in the team distribution.  Of course not...because honestly, Elisan is not a very fast runner.  But, she's a very intuitive player and to put it bluntly,... she's aggressive and not afraid to get down and dirty when needed.

So, her landing on a third string team just really took us all by surprise.  Granted, I don't want to be "that" parent who complains and bullies our way onto the better team.  But, as a mom, I'll tell you... I want to call up the coaches and tell them a thing or two.  Randy on the other hand wants her skill to overshadow her size and not say a thing because we will not be doing her any favors for swooping and in saving the day for her.

Man, I could swing both directions on this dilemma.  Let the conviction begin... "It ain't about mama" or mama's feelings.  Sigh...

It ain't about mama

Y'all, it's time to 'fess up and be transparent here. And I'll be the first to admit... this pains me to talk about. It really does. You know why? Because I've come to realize something. It's not about mama.

Okay, let's get one thing out of the way. It's never been about me. It's about God. Always has been, always will be.

But, I'm going to bring the "It's Not About Mama" issue closer to home.

As a stay at home wife and mother, my JOB is to care for my family. That means, doing everything "home related" stuff, plus "wife related" stuff, plus "kid related" stuff. I love what I do and I'm blessed to have a husband who supports me and our decision for me to do just that... take care of the home/wife/kid related duties.

In my "kid related" stuff, it means stepping in and helping my kids be as successful as possible.

• It means, helping with homework (when needed) so my kids do well in school.
• It means, when my kids get parts in musicals, I'm there to help them practice.
• It means, when my kids get selected to play on a team sport, we're their biggest fans.
• It means, when their team wins, we get to celebrate the victory.
• It means, when my kids get a good conduct report, academic award or special acknowledgement for their accomplishments, we as parents get to stand back, with puffed out chests, saying... "That's MY girl!"

And as hard as I try, I cannot help but think I had a part in all of it. That it was me who made them successful. That it was me that caused them to succeed. That it was me that made them smart, talented, athletic. That is was me... ME... ME!

And you know what? It's not about me. It's not my accomplishment. It's not my report card. It's not my team. It's not my song. It's not my "win". It's not my award. It's not mine at all.

And how often do I stand back and pat myself on the shoulder for MY job well done? Ummm....to be completely transparent... EVERY TIME!

My child's triumphs (and failures) do not define me as a mom. They are theirs and theirs alone.

What does define me as a mom, is that I raise my kids to be respectful human beings, make good choices, work hard and love others. That's it. That is MY defining moment. And if I can't succeed in that... then I have no business patting myself on the shoulder for anything.

That's not to say that I won't ever be proud of my kids ever again. Certainly not! I will always, always be proud of my kids. I'll be the one beaming the brightest whenever they triumph in life. And, I'll be there to pick them up when they fail. Because that's my job.

But, I've come to realize that they have to make their life their own. They don't need the added pressure of mama trying to "live the dream" with them.

And that my friends, is ALSO a defining moment.

One last hurrah!

On Monday, the girls' and I celebrated the final days of summer with a GIRLS' DAY OUT filled with shopping and lunch!

I so cherish the time I've been able to spend with my girls this summer. I just cannot put it into words... or else I'll get all teary-eyed and mushy. But, what a great way to cap off a great summer. Here a glimpse of our day!

I LOVE these girls.

Fun School Notes!

Only 5 days until school begins in our household. I don't know if I want to cry or... well, cry. This summer has been amazing and I've loved every second of having my little chickadees at home with me!

Several days ago, my friend Kim sent me a link to some fun school notes. I thought they were fun too so I decided to create my own set, customized, of course!

Please note, the details/contents of the notes are not from me. I am not that thorough and I would have probably left out a ton of stuff like... the section for my child's name, etc. I did however, revamp the design to make it more suitable to my taste and preferences.

Because I'm feeling all "back to school" and stuff, send me an email and I'll customize a school note for you. I'll send the file back in a .pdf format with 3x/page. Print it off on your home printer. On cardstock if you're feeling extra fancy.


EDITED TO ADD: The "FUN SCHOOL NOTES" has been so popular, I've made a freebie blank set available for download here! Each .pdf file is formatted with three "FUN SCHOOL NOTES" per page. ENJOY!

The long awaited post!

Yea, I know, y'all've been waiting with bated breath for this post. The post that should be entitled... "What the heck I've been doing for the last two weeks or more!"

Let me say, this is the FIRST DAY in a long list of days that we are staying home and NOT going anywhere. School begins next week and we are finally done with everything. Indoor soccer, YMCA Volleyball, 10th birthday party (and party prep...more on that later), traveling, etc. We just needed a DOWN DAY.

This in essence is going to be a big ol blog brain dump. So, skim through the parts you aren't interested in...

Class Reunion
My 20 year high school reunion was two weeks ago. Let me be the first to say that it was awesome seeing people I haven't seen since the last 10 year class reunion (or since high school graduation.) I loved catching up and meeting peoples' families. But, as expected, I mostly visited with people that I was closest to in high school. By 10 p.m., I was ready to go. So much of ME has changed, there isn't much commonality any longer. And that's okay! I didn't expect it and I wasn't disappointed!

All in all, I'm glad I went, it was everything I expected it to be and at times it was MOST entertaining.

And since there was much discussion as to what I would wear to my class reunion, you'll be happy to know that I found the cutest dress at White House Black Market. It's so stinking cute, very flattering and can either be dressed up or dressed down. I wore this dress with some jeweled flip flops for a more casual dressed down look!

And, this dress - Voile Printed Sundress - is now on sale for $60.00! Don't worry, I got it on sale too. Not for $60.... but, close!

Randy & Erica, 8/6/11

10th Birthday Party
Elisan's 10th birthday party was last Friday night. Because we're so much alike, she's been planning this party for over 4 months. She had very specific ideas as to what she wanted to do, how she wanted it to look and who was invited. (I love that about my type-A personality daughter!)
So, I began working on all the party prep stuff at least a month ago... maybe more. Here's how it turned out.

The free PLH digital kit is still available for download here.

This was such an easy party! We served pizza for dinner, then brought the girls down to the neighborhood pool for swimming. After swimming, Randy and I set up a 14 topping Sundae Buffet for ice cream sundaes! The ice cream sundaes were a HUGE hit and I think this may be our new go-to idea for birthday parties. The girls finished up the evening with presents and karaoke. Fun was had by all!

Craft Tutorial

For the party, I also worked on a craft project. I made magnets for the goodie bags using round wooden pieces, Mod Podge Dimensional Magic and the PLH round circles that I designed. The circles can also be used as stickers, tags or cupcake toppers.

This project is pretty self explanatory. My only change in the project would be to use white school glue, rather than a glue stick. I had a few that began pulling away from the wood one they dried completely. The ones I did with the white school glue did not pull away.

Also, in photo 3, on the top row, I'm sanding the paper edges for a smooth finish. Hot glue a magnet on the back and there ya go!

This was a CHEAP, fun and easy craft. A great take-away for the girls and something that will last a long time.

That's all for now folks. I'll leave you with this... a picture of my sweet little guy, TJ. Now, if I can only get him to NOT poop in the upstairs family room. Sigh...

At least he's consistent. And for my sake, at least we can gate off the upstairs!

Happy 10th Birthday Elisan!

Happy 10th Birthday to my beautiful daughter Elisan Rae!

You are such a blessing to your family. The day you were born forever changed the way I viewed motherhood. For that, I thank you. Your daddy and I believe that you are incredibly special, equipped with gifts and talents that God intends for you to use for His glory. Our prayer is that we can further prepare you for what God has in store for you!

We love you so much. Never forget that no matter what, we will always love you and there is NOTHING that will ever separate our love for you.

Have a wonderful birthday, my sweet sweet.

Cut me some slack people

I have much to report...

• class reunion
• craft tutorial
• 10 year old birthday party (THIS FRIDAY!)
• orthodontic trips
• kids' camp
• dress shopping
  
• general mayhem, etc., etc.

...but, it ain't happening today. Maybe not even tomorrow, but I can't be certain. Tomorrow, I have it all planned out that I am to clean my house. However, I'm torn on whether or not I should actually clean my house BEFORE the party on Friday, or just wait until Saturday, once it's all said and done.

Anyway, I leave you with this. It's a picture from my class reunion on Saturday. Y'all... I had a REALLY GOOD hair day. I mean, I was astonished at how great my hair looked. And that's saying a lot, since it was 100 degrees with 100% humidity that day. My hair and humidity do not usually jive.

(Oh, and yay... see that dress I'm wearing? White House Black Market rocks!)

PLH {Peace Love Happiness} Freebie Printables and Digital Kit Download

In honor of my soon-to-be 10 year old's birthday, I'm offering up for download the digital kit and printables I created exclusively for her!

I created this kit under strict supervision of my daughter. She wanted something cute, fun and funky. I think we were successful!

Included in this (.zip file) download are:

• 4 - 12x12 hi-resolution papers (.jpg)
• 3 - hi-resolution elements (.png)
• Printable water bottle labels (.pdf)
• Printable goodie bag toppers (.pdf)
• Printable foldover food label tents (.pdf)
• Printable foldover stationery cards (great for goodie bags and thank you notes!) (.pdf)
• Printable circle label sheet (great for cupcake toppers or stickers) (.pdf)

PLH {Peace Love Happiness}
Digital Kit & Printables

Click image to download

Sample invitation:

If you have trouble with the download link, send me an email and I'll send it to you directly.
Enjoy!

Total Brain Fart

Yes.... I said the word FART on my blog. I'm sure that will increase the traffic to my blog 10-fold... of prepubescent boys.

So, Elisan's birthday is coming up. After long discussion, we decided to have her party on a Saturday night (Aug 13th). Her actual birthdate is Friday, August 12th.

While we were in the decision making process, I created the first invitation to read Friday, August 12.

Well, apparently I didn't overwrite that file because when I placed the order for her cards, I mistakenly ordered the Friday invitations and not the updated Saturday invitations.

Being the blond that I am... (pause) Being the blond that I am... and the fact that I NEVER proofread... EVER! I didn't notice the invitations read Friday, August 12 and not Saturday, August 13th.

I got an RSVP the other day and the mom was going on and on about some possible upcoming conflicts (yadda-yadda) and mentioned that Friday should work for their schedule.

It wasn't until TWO days later that I stopped and thought to myself that I had better reread that invite. Sure enough... I mailed out the Friday invites.

What's funny, is that we have a volleyball game on that Friday night at the same time I scheduled the party. We would not have even been here!

I think to avoid looking like a ninny, we're going to skip the volleyball game and go with the party instead.

I think I've spent too much time in the sun!