Thank you!

Thanks to everyone who commented an idea for my MOPS devotion. Ugh... here's where I write... "But I'm not really equipped to talk about any of these things in a large group of women". It's one thing to write my own words in a blog post on my own piece of real estate... it's quite another to talk to a group of women who know nothing about you. Honestly, I'm looking forward to the devotional, I just hope I can convey what the Lord wants me to talk about in a clear, concise way... whatever IT is.

In other news... Randy got a new job! And let me say, it's been a stressful several weeks around here. Not to go into all of the details, but things had gotten so bad at his current job that he felt he had no other option but to find other employment.

So, I got busy searching the job listings and culling out the jobs he was qualified for. He ended up submitting a resume to a company headquartered in Minnesota that was in need of a "field" engineer in Austin. Funny stuff, since we once lived in Minnesota. I told Randy that if this job will eventually land us BACK in Minnesota then to not even apply for it! But, he reassured me that he had no intention of leaving Texas again... (God willing!)

Randy was flown out to Minnesota and had an excruciating day of interviews and presentations. And 10 days later... YES... 10 days of waiting... he was offered the job! More money, better company and better benefits.

The best thing about it was... God's timing was perfect. I wish I could go into all of the background details about what led to Randy finally deciding it was time to make a job change, but he'd rather I not. Just know that God's timing was PERFECT!

I'm stumped! Help a girl out...

I'm scheduled to give a "mentor mom" devotional next week for MOPS and I'm stumped as to what to talk about. I've been praying that God give me some kind of nugget that I can talk about for 10 minutes, but I don't want to be too preachy. I'd like to stay on the practical side of things, but of course, tie it all up with a biblical truth. I want to appeal to the masses, but wonder what I could talk about that would do just that?

So, my question is this... if you were sitting in MOPS and were about to hear a devotional from a mentor mom, what would you rather hear something about:

• an anecdote on raising kids
• healthy marriages
• friendships with other women
• living contented
• practical knowledge on spending money

Your comments are appreciated!

Blog Brain Dump

Another busy weekend is down in the books for our household. There are days when I wonder, 'could we possibly fit another thing or event in our lives?', and sure enough, we do!

I also think if we had temperatures that were in the 60's-70's consistently (at least in October) it would be very nice around here. I'm needing for it to cool off so I can break out the fall clothes on a daily basis. My summer wardrobe is wearing thin... literally.

Speaking of clothing, I bought Elisan a very cute pair of "super skinny" jeans from Old Navy last week for $12.00. She was rockin' the skinny jeans this weekend at church. I wish I had taken a picture of her. She was cute with her skinny jeans and newsboy cap. I also found a cute gray cardi-sweater (with cute multi-colored heart buttons on the front) for Kyla at Gymboree outlet for $10.00. Cute, cute!

If you haven't tried Yoplait's Greek Honey Vanilla yogurt run out right now and buy you some. Oh my...! It is really good! Slightly tart, not very sweet and the texture is incredible. The best part is that it has 130 calories, 0 fat and 12 grams protein! 12 grams of protein! That's better than cottage cheese, which is usually my "go-to" food when I'm lifting weights. Now, I can go to this yummy yogurt as well!

Speaking of lifting weights... I have NOT been lifting (anything!) for the last 8 days. I literally woke up last Monday not hardly able to get out of bed because of my back. I am not sure what I did, but whatever IT was, it left me pretty much in a pinch all week. I'm still feeling residual pain from the strained muscles, but I'm on the downhill slide of it now! Luckily, I've still been able to the stairmaster machine at the gym. It's the only machine that didn't aggravate my pulled back muscles.

I'm not ready to share any details about what "dropped in my lap" on Friday. But, it's not THAT big of a deal to anyone other than me. It's just awesome to see God give you confirmation when you need it. That's really all that it was. Don't worry... I'm not going to be doing anything drastic anytime soon!

So, I guess that's it. I wish I had more to add that was worthy of my blog brain dump. I need another blog installment perhaps called "pointless blog fodder" on days when I don't really have anything worthwhile to say. Of course, I could probably rename my blog to "pointless blog fodder" and no one would be the wiser!

Dropped in your lap

Have you ever said to God, "God, you're just going to have to make this happen for me." or "God, you're just going to have to drop this in my lap" and He did?

He did that for me on Friday. I'm still contemplating what it all means, but here's a word to the wise... Never underestimate the power of an off-the-cuff prayer.

Valuable Information

I recently had an eye exam because I needed a new pair of glasses. But, before I made my appointment I called two locations and asked if I could get a new set of glasses with my year old glasses prescription and both times I was told no. I was told that if the prescription was over a year old, then I needed to have my eyes checked again to get a new prescription in order to get new glasses.

Last week I picked up my new set of glasses, but unfortunately, the new prescription was not working for me. So, I brought the new glasses back to the store to find out what my options were about returning them, etc.

While I was there, I learned some very interesting facts about eye glasses prescriptions. The technician told me three valuable pieces of information.

1.) Unless your written glasses prescription states "expires after one year" or "expires on (actual date), then your prescription is valid for 2 years in the state of Texas.

2.) You can have a new glasses made from the measurements of a current set of glasses lenses. So, say for example you do not have your actual paper prescription, all you need to do is bring in your current pair of glasses. They will get a the measurements from the current set and make you a new set based on that information. (Make sense?)

3.) If your eye doctor insists on placing an expiration date, insist upon a 2 year expiration limit.

Unfortunately, these rules only apply to glasses prescriptions and not for contact lens prescriptions, but I thought the information was valuable enough to pass along!

Sidenote: I have previously used Zenni Optical for all of my glasses and I still like Zenni, but felt like I needed to get a high quality pair of glasses as my main set. Zenni is great for funky and hip styles, but I needed an everyday "mom" pair!

My husband knows me

I'm so thankful for my husband. He truly knows me and understands me. He knows my heart and is my constant source of earthly support.

You know what else I love about my husband? Is that he remembers stuff that I don't remember... like how I felt/reacted when I've been overwhelmed. Or, when I've been stressed out... Or when I've been over-committed. And he's not harsh about it. He gently points out that his concern for me outweighs the temporal satisfaction I (we) may achieve by something that is not a good fit for me (us).

Because honestly... I'd take on the world. I'd sign up here, sign up there, volunteer here, volunteer there, over-achieve here, over-achieve there... you get the point. But, right now, I'm at a place where there is balance and because of it, everyone is balanced. My kids are full of joy. I've got the smartest kids on the block, bringing home straight A's. My husband is cared for. Our home is a welcoming safe haven. And I'm happy.

I'm so grateful for a husband who knows me and knows what I need when I can't see the forest for the trees.

Thank you Randy for letting me be me and not feel guilty for "just being a stay at home mom/wife." This is my season now and it's good.

Four Across

Four Across.
Nope, it's not a cross-word puzzle clue... it's Kyla's missing teeth.
She's missing four teeth on top! I don't think I've ever seen anything like this before!

(This makes 8 lost teeth for her. She's now caught up with Elisan!)

THE busiest weekend ever

We had the busiest weekend on record, but I have to say, the highlight of it all, was celebrating our sweet girl's birthday.

Here's a closeup of the cake that my dear friend Rachel created for us. It was so very cute and yummy! Thanks so much Rachel! Check out Rachel's website for more creative cake creations. (Pssst... she's taking orders!)

Freaked out!

So, I'm at home by myself, minding my own business... and as I'm about to go upstairs, I turn the corner and see this... It freaked me out! I almost wet my pants.


In related news... sort've... this is KM opening her presents from us.

Happy Birthday Kyla Mae!

My sweet baby girl is turning seven today! I cannot hardly believe it.

She's such a spirited, fun-loving, silly girl, full of laughter and joy. Randy and I are truly blessed by her every day.

We often joke that we aren't sure where Kyla came from... because she's not like either one of us! She's definitely her own person and I couldn't imagine our family without her spunk!

Whoooot am I?

I'm not sure whoooo I think I am, but cookie decorator... I AM NOT!

Tomorrow is Kyla's birthday and she wanted cookies to share with her classmates. I thought, sure, that's easy, why not?! Glad I'm not an over-achiever or anything insane like that.

Ya like that big "chicklet" looking glop of icing on top? That was supposed to be a heart. Since that didn't work, I opted for a triangle. Oh, and that is not chocolate. That's brown icing. At least I can totally rock the color mixing. Score one for me!

That owl on the right looks mighty fearful don't ya think?

Worth mentioning

One of my favorite cartoon programs for my girls is "Peep and the Big Wide World" on Discovery Kids. This show is semi-educational, but that's aside the point.

The point is, this show is HILARIOUS! Namely, the duck, who is named "Quack". Quack is sarcastic, has perfect comedic delivery and thinks he's the brains behind the operation, when really, he's not very smart at all.

"Peep and the Big Wide World" is truly a show I can watch with the girls and thoroughly enjoy. I even find myself laughing out loud alongside them.

Check it out! You won't be disappointed.

Mini-Me

Elle & Mom

I {heart} Picnik

Have you tried PICNIK lately? It's a free internet based photo editing website.

Because there's really not much to say...

I wish... I wish I had something worthwhile to contribute here, but the truth is, I got nuthin'.

Oh, you know what I mean... I don't have anything that is contributable, really. (I think I just made up the word contributable.)

So, Randy signed up for the Rock N Roll 1/2 marathon in November. I'm proud of him. He's been doing all of this "faux" marathon training just to say, "I can run 26.1 miles" and never had any intention of actually entering a race, but after he got an email from some running acquaintances from church who are also entering the race, he decided he'd go for it. I think his competitive nature will compel him to enter more races and eventually enter to run a full marathon. More power to him, that's what I say!

Speaking of training, or rather working out... I can't seem to shed these lasts five pounds that I've slowly put back on over the last year. Short of starving myself, I'm not sure what else to do. I s'pose I'll keep on keeping on and see if my body finally kicks in. I am resisting the idea that my age has anything to do with it. I resist you, 37 years and 10 months.

Oh my word... I bought Kyla a pair of leopard print flats at Target several weeks ago. They were $2.50 for the pair. I would have never bought them, but for $2.50... well, you know me... can't pass up a deal. Let me just say for the record, I WISH I had never bought those silly shoes. How do you rationalize with a 6 year old that, "No, you cannot wear your 'tiger-print' flats with ________." I mean, really just fill in the blank here with athletic shorts, shorts with floral prints and shorts in a multitude of colors. Ahhhhh... let this be a word of warning to all you moms out there toying with the idea of leopard print shoes. Avoid it like the plague. Unless your kid has better fashion sense than mine, then hey, why not?

Edited to add: I did not make up contributable. The Internets told me so!

Hoot Owls

So, Kyla wanted "Hoot Owls" for her birthday party theme. Unfortunately, there's not a whole lot of hoot owl party supplies out there, ya know? So, I resorted to making my own version of a hoot owl party favor.

I created this project from scratch... start to finish and I think it turned out pretty cute! If you are interested in the how-to's, send me an email or you can download the instructions and body shapes by clicking these links.

Here's Kyla's invitation. Honestly, I did not come up with this idea on my own. I found a similar invite and used it as my "inspiration". Oh, alright... I pretty much copied it, okay? (I'm not selling it as my own design, so really... cut me some slack for my lack of creativity!)



And finally, my sweet friend Rachel, over at "Baby Cakes by Rachel" is making Kyla's birthday cake. I'm so excited 'bout that!

So, there ya have it. Hoot Owls.

Blog Brain Dump - abbreviated version

Blog Brain Dump - abbreviated version:

I am loving this cooler weather... very nice.

I see my temper in Elisan. Not a pretty sight to have that thrown back'atcha.

Lovin' the girls' soccer this year, but with my competitive nature...it's hard for me to watch. I need to stay home and get the recap from Randy after the games because apparently, I can't handle it.

Am I too young to be in perimenopause? I know... too much information.

I've got the "let's get a dog" thing in my head again. What is wrong with me?

I've got Kyla's birthday on my brain these days. We're going with a hoot-0wl theme. More to come on that later.

Got me a new fancy crock pot over the weekend. It was 1/2 off at Target. Regularly $50.00.

I love Target for their sales. You don't see Walmart having sales, now do ya? No, they are the "Everyday Low Prices" people. Yeah right.

Speaking of Target, I bought the girls' backpacks at Target and they were 75% off in the back to school clearance stuff. I paid$10.00 for a $40 Swiss Army backpack for Kyla and $7.00 for a Jansport backpack for Elisan. Well, you know how Target donates their clearance stuff to Goodwill? I saw several of those same clearanced backpacks at Goodwill priced at $15.00. Um...? Really Goodwill? If Target can't sell them for $10 or less, you think you'll get $15 for it?

Ever had a pinched nerve in your neck? Man, they hurt. You wake up in the morning and it feels like a 'crick' in your neck, but gets progressively worse as the day wears on. And... it lasts for days. Days, people. I'm about ready for this to go away for good.

JC Penney has $10 off $10 purchase promotion going on right now.. Online code is GO4TEN. I got this same coupon in the mail to be used in the stores.

Found acopy cat recipe for PF Chang's lettuce wraps. I'm going to make these tonight and tell the girls they are Chinese tacos.

That's all for now.

Just so you know... Part Deux

I posted this "Just so you know" back in September 2008. Nearly 2 years to the date.

Just so you know... if you drop your iPod Touch in a cup of hot chocolate (with marshmallows) and remove it immediately, wipe it clean and let it "air out" overnight? It will work just fine in the morning.

Ahem... just so you know.

Between Us Girls

About a week ago, Elisan and I began reading "Between Us Girls: Fun Talk about Faith, Friends, and Family" by Vicki Courtney (for ages 8ish-12). We'll pile up in her bed and read a couple of articles or take a fun quiz. We have open and honest discussions about the things in life that she is concerned about, in a fun, engaging way. It's been such a wonderful bonding time for us... AND, she's excited about it.

The book is in a magazine style format, but it's not a magazine. It's more like a book. But, the magazine style is very appealing to Elisan. It makes her feel grown up.

If you are looking for a neat resource to share with your daughter, I would strongly encourage this book.

Making my own laundry detergent? Who am I?

Okay, I'll admit it... I'm not much of an "earthy" type person and to be honest, I've never had any desire to jump on the home-made cleanser bandwagon. I mean, we're thrifty, but not THAT thrifty. But, here's the deal... I've noticed that my family has become "itchy" lately and I decided to make a few changes in detergents and body washes.

So, after consulting with a couple of friends - both online and IRL, I decided to give it a go and make my own laundry detergent. I wanted something that was natural, unscented and/or hypoallergenic and actually worked, without costing an arm and a leg.

I have to say, after two weeks of using the home-made version of laundry detergent, I am very pleased with the results. And, to top it off, we are less itchy! Yay!

Recipes for home-made natural laundry detergents are all over the internet, but because I love to show off... I thought I'd add mine to the wealth of recipes out there. Plus, who doesn't love a good photo collage, right?

Here's how I make it:

• 1 cup of Borax (found in the laundry detergent aisle)
• 1 cup of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda (found in the laundry detergent aisle)
• 2 bars of Castile soap (olive oil soap) or Ivory soap (finely grated)

Pour contents into blender and blend until mixture is fine powder consistency.
Use 2 tablespoons per laundry load.


The neat thing about this recipe is that you can play around with the soap scent. My first batch, I used lavender scented Castile soap and it gave the laundry a light scent. But, Castile soap is fairly expensive - about $4 a bar. I decided to switch to Ivory soap and I've been pleased with the results.

Oh, and talk about thrifty! The box of borax, washing soda and 2 bars of soap cost less than $8.00. I'm not sure how much powder I'll ultimately make from these boxes, but it's GOT to be cheaper than buying commercial laundry detergent.

By the way, my friend Rachel said she couldn't wait to read my blog entry about making my own laundry soap and I told her I doubt I'd write about it, but here I am... doing just that! So, Rachel, this post is dedicated to you!

Hold yer horses... or cow

Around 9p.m. last night, in the midst of Torrential Rain 2010, our neighbor knocked on our door informing us that a cow was in their backyard.

For those of you that don't know, our backyard backs up to a cow pasture. It's very nice and relaxing to sit out on the patio and look upon the quiet cows. It's one of the reasons we bought this house.

But, last night, this one particular cow was not happy to cross over into suburbia. She mooo'd and mooo'd ALL. NIGHT. LONG. And not just your typical moo'ing. It was a painful, scared moo. Of course, this morning the girls have chattered non-stop about the moo'ing and that "poor cow-y".

Ugh, I'm just hoping the neighboring farmer comes over to 'round up Bessie before she disrupts another night of sleep.

Poor cow-y.

Save the drama for your mama

Ever had one of those weeks where one day everything is right in your world and then in one moment (or email) everything you know to be right in the world is tossed up like a salad?

I don't know about you, but I'd just as soon forgo that kind of drama, thank you very much.

However, last week, Randy was 'unofficially' offered a job, that according to him, was the greatest opportunity of his life. This job was not something he was looking for. Rather, it quite simply 'fell into his lap."

The truth of the matter is, as much as I wanted to say yes to this job and subsequent life-altering opportunity, I could not. And in effect, it hurt him. And, it hurt us.

We took a hit this week, but we're stronger for it now. It made me stop and fully appreciate what a marriage is and what it isn't. What we learned is:

1. Marriage is a compromise.
2. If you know in your heart the right decision, then don't sabotage the decision-maker.
3. Being emotional doesn't give you a "free pass" to say things you don't mean.
4. Make your decision with all of the facts at hand.
5. Don't go back on promises.
   
6. God is ultimately in control and it is so important to seek Him in your decision-making process.
   

We both made mistakes this week, but hopefully the next time we are faced with a difficult decision, we'll be able to handle the situation better.

As for now, the decision was to decline the offer and continue on the path we are currently on. I can't say I'm not relieved... however, I know my husband is mourning the loss of the opportunity. I pray that we made the right decision and that God has something bigger and better in store for us down the road.

The Redneck Panini

A while back I was hanging out at my friend's house and she had a fancy Panini maker. I don't recall the brand/style, but here's a picture of what a Panini maker looks like.

Kind of reminiscent of the George Foreman Grill is it not? I got rid of my George Foreman grill ages ago. I never used it.
Anyway, back to the panini. There's something about a squished up hot sandwich that is so tasty. So, I began looking around Goodwill for a used George Foreman grill. Believe me, there's plenty to choose from, but I could never commit to actually purchasing one. Apparently, I'm not the only one who didn't buy into the fat-free "grill" that George peddled.

Fast forward to my redneck "aha" moment.

I wondered how I could replicate the panini at home with my current small household appliances and I came across my waffle maker. Yep. My heart-shaped waffle maker.

Okay, I'll admit, realistically, it's not the best design for a panini sandwich, but when you're desperate for a hot squished sandwich, it works like a charm.

So, here ya go.
The Redneck Panini

• Submarine sandwich bread (or ciabatta, etc.)
  
• 6-8 leaves fresh spinach
• 2 slices red bell pepper
• 1 slice of cheese
• 2-3 slices of deli meat
• 1 tbsp basil pesto
• (Optional Add-ons: black olives and red onion slices)
• Pam Olive Oil spray

Assemble sandwich, spray outside with Pam and squish in your waffle iron (or George Foreman Grill or Fancy Pants Panini Maker... whatever!)

Now, if anyone wants to unload their George Foreman grill, I'll gladly take it off your hands!

RED!

Ever wonder why don't see red jalapeños at the store? I can't figure out why, but I don't recall seeing red jalapeños at HEB. What's up with that?

I've been letting my jalapeños ripen on the vine until they turn red. It's been a nice change of pace!

New beginnings!

No, this isn't a sappy post about how my kids are starting a new chapter in their lives with school beginning tomorrow. Nope, it's about me. Getting my butt back into the gym. Full time. Starting tomorrow. No excuses anymore.

I have been slacking BIG TIME this summer and it's time to kick into high gear. So, if you see me at the gym and I'm a big sweaty mess, you'll know why...

So, I'm stepping away from the Carmel Kettle Crunch (at least in large quantities... ) and getting back on the step machine... and the heavy weights.

No pain, no gain!

And then I heard Angels singing "Hallelujah"

Elisan has a shoe problem.

Her foot is small and wide. Not a great combination when you want to wear "big girl" shoes such as cute flats, wedges, slip-on's, etc. because "they" (meaning shoe makers) don't usually carry wide shoe sizes in cute trendy shoes. And, especially not in her teeny-tiny foot size.

Don't believe me? Go try shoe shopping with my kid and you too will want to crawl into fetal position and weep nonstop.

So. Over the weekend, I made the mistake of taking Elisan shoe shopping on Saturday. I don't know how many styles she tried on, but I can assure you, that none of them fit properly. I told her that we'd hold off on shoe shopping for another month or two and that her sandals would work until it got cooler. She seemed okay with that...

Fast forward to today. We were sitting on the couch having our morning "mommy and me" time when the conversation took a turn for the worse. What started out as a conversation about feet, turned into a complete meltdown about her "fat, wide feet". Real tears people. Real tears. After she came to her senses, I told her we'd make one last attempt at shoe shopping before school began.

We went to six stores and she tried on countless pairs of shoes and nothing worked. Nothing.

Until we tried the Hush Puppies store at the outlet mall. (Lucky number seventh store!) The FIRST pair she tried on fit AND she loved them. They were by far the cutest pair of shoes she tried on all day and at a little less than $30.00 for the pair, not a bad price either. The look of relief on her face was priceless. Absolutely Priceless. I know I heard angels singing, I just know it!
And, the store carried this shoe in red/black and pink/silver, so I may go back and grab another pair just because.

I've got the evite blues

Technology has gotten the best of me and it makes me sad.

If you've been around long enough, you know I love to create my own photo cards and invitations. I've been doing the girls' birthday invitations, photo Christmas & Valentine's cards for years. It's a great creative outlet for me and the girl's love having something created especially for them by their mom.

A few months ago I offered to make birthday invitations for the daughter of a friend of mine who was having a party. She politely declined telling me that although she loved my work, she was going to use evite for the birthday party invitations because it was easier, cheaper and people were more likely to RSVP. She also said she liked the fact that you could track when people "opened" the evite so you know everyone received it. Of course it made sense to me, but since I'm a traditionalist, I prefer the actual invitation instead.

However, I'm not so sure anymore... For Elisan's party, I created a really cute Luau themed birthday invitation, mailed them out 2 weeks prior to the event and only received 6 RSVP's in a timely manner - meaning within 3-5 days of the party. The other RSVP's occurred within 1-2 days of the party and a few people didn't bother to RSVP at all. This pains me to admit, but had I sent out an evite, I probably wouldn't have had this problem. (sigh...)

I know you can customize your evite to tailor it to your event, but it's just not the same... Sigh... Maybe I just need to embrace the evite and get over myself.

Anyone feel the same way as I do? Do you LOVE evite or LOATHE evite?

Kicking off the school year right!

A friend of mine recently mentioned that she puts together a small gift package for her kids' teachers each year of consumable items like post it notes, Sharpies, paper clips, etc. Not anything extravagant, but a little something to put a smile on their face and to let them know they are appreciated.

This year, I decided to do the same thing! Along with the consumable items, I created some postcards for the teachers to use if they need to communicate with a parent. I created one postcard and formatted four 4.5 x 5 postcards per 8.5 x 11 page. I printed the cards on cardstock and cut them out.

To finish off this simple project, I created matching circle sticker labels to tag the gift. (I made the circle stickers generic so I could use them for other gifts, etc.)


I created the circle label in Photoshop Elements using a downloaded freebie doodle brush for the birdie and conversation bubble. I added the text and selected a cute font. I saved the file as a .png file (which saves the file with a transparent background.)

Since I still haven't figured out how to format a page of stickers in Photoshop, I opted to use Scrapbook Factory Deluxe for layout and formatting. It's a bit time consuming using two different software, but it works well enough for me.

I printed the labels on a full size sheet of sticker paper. I found this sticker paper at Walmart and it was about $5.00 for 10 full size 8.5 x 11 sticker sheets.

Using my circle punch, I punch out the stickers as needed. Very cute and personalized! Who doesn't love personalized stuff? I know I do!

Finding the full size sticker paper has opened a whole new world of ideas for me! I'm thinking... cutesy address labels, birthday present labels, Christmas gift labels, etc.

Cheap and Clueless

It's another installment of my complaining/whining about clothes.

Y'all, I used to love to shop for clothes. My favorite past-time used to be shopping for clothes. But, now? I hate it. I loathe it.

Why? Because I'm too darn thrifty (or cheap?!) and I have a hard time letting go of cash for new clothes. Oh sure, I see shirts/tops that I really like, but seriously, I will not pay $50.00 for a shirt. It's not going to happen.

How much does the average person pay for a shirt? Pants? Shoes?

Where does a woman who is closing in on 38 shop for clothes? Is it time I began shopping at better stores and spending more money on my wardrobe, rather than at the trendy-ish clothing stores? I can't afford Anthropology, Boden, SAKS... heck, I can't even afford the GAP. So, really... what's a gal to do? I want to look nice, stylish, hip, but not cheap and clueless.

And finally, what's up with all of the bling-y shirts/tops? Because there is a lot of bling-y stuff out there right now. Does everything have to have bling on it? And how much bling is too much bling? Just asking...

Second Chances

Yesterday afternoon, Elisan decided she wanted a bowl of cereal for her afternoon snack. I poured up the cereal and milk and like every other day, she brought the bowl from the countertop to the table. However, yesterday, the bowl did not make it to the table. In fact, the bowl, along with the contents of cereal and milk crashed to the floor in shattered bits.

I'll be honest here... I didn't handle this situation very well. It was late afternoon and was I now faced with the task of cleaning up a ceramic shard, sticky, milky mess that would include sweeping, mopping, etc. I was tired and setting out on this hour long task was not how I wanted to spend my afternoon.

So, I yelled. I yelled and she cried. She ran upstairs crying and shortly after, I snapped out of my frenzy and met her upstairs with profuse apology. We hugged, loved and finally laughed and we both walked away feeling better.

My floor needed to be cleaned anyway.

So, this morning, Kyla Mae is eating cereal and she is fiddling with the television remote (yes... I let them watch TV while they eat breakfast...sue me!) and what do you know? She dumped her cereal on the table and in her lap/chair.

Oh c'mon... Seriously?

Even given a second chance to react in a more calm way, I didn't. Although, I didn't yell, I still reacted poorly. I was given a second chance and I failed. Once I figured out that I had a second chance, I swiftly corrected my awful behavior and set to make things right with Kyla.

This reminded me that I serve a God of second chances. When I fail or sin, He's not looking down on me with disdain and unforgiveness. Oh sure, when we sin, it does grieve Him, but He never withholds forgiveness and is readily waiting for us with open arms.

And just like my Heavenly Father, my children were quick to forgive me for my poor reaction. They love me and show grace to me when I fail. When they make a mistake, I am grieved, but I forgive them, hug them, love them and (hopefully) learn how to better handle the next time they fail or make a mistake.

Parenting is such a shining example of God's love for us. It's all about forgiveness, grace and love. And, second chances.

Thank God for second chances.

Virtue en Vogue 2010

Last night, the girls and I attended Virtue en Vogue hosted at Grace Covenant Church in Austin. The event was geared toward moms and girls (ages 6-16). There was live music from the band "The Reliques", a back-to-school fashion show, a message by Christian author Vicky Courtney and yummy desserts! It was fun and we had a nice time!

My friend Rachel and her daughter rode with us to the event and we all sat with my friend Tanja and her two daughters at the event. It's nice to visit with other moms who share the same values in how we raise our girls!

During the intermission, I bid on a silent auction item and won! It was two books by Beth Moore. "So Long Security" and "John: 90 Days with the Beloved Disciple"

Check this out! Sweet!

After the event, Elisan stood in line and had Vicky Courtney autograph her book.

Blog Brain Dump

Eight more days until school begins. I'm sad and happy, all rolled into one. This summer has been extremely busy, but I've enjoyed having my little chicks roosting in the nest so I could tend to their every want and need. It comforts me to no end having them at home with me. Granted, 90% of the time, they are upstairs playing with each other and not interacting with me, but I can hear their little voices and footsteps nonetheless and know they are safe and sound. Yet, in 8 days, I'll be sending them off to school again and my heart breaks a bit.

Oh well, I know I'll get over it soon enough. That first trip to the grocery store without kids will be joyful, I can assure you. And, I'll be able to go to Goodwill without complaints (from them) or promises (from me) to buy them a toy or a book.

We signed Elisan up for some "real" soccer this year. The league that we play in is offering a specialized league for kids who want "all soccer, all the time". Practices are 2x a week and weekend games will be all over the Austin area. So far, she's enjoyed the practices and I think it will be good for her.

So, last night we were at practice. Practices were delayed because a storm was passing over producing a lot of lighting so all of the parents and kids gathered up and waited for the storm to pass (without rain, I might add!) Anyway, while we were waiting there, I noticed a group of 10 year old girls huddled together making a lot of noise - squealing, hollering, laughing, etc. So, my attention was drawn to them and I noticed this one girl in particular. She was a very pretty girl and apparently the ring leader of the group. I began to watch her and honestly, her behavior was abhorrent. She was rude and mean and a few times I noticed she hit the other girls. After about 10 minutes of watching her humiliate the other girls, I noticed that she began filling her mouth with large amounts of water and was spitting it out at the other girls! Seriously people. I AM NOT KIDDING!

I could not believe my eyes. Where were the coaches? Where was this girl's parent? Where were the parents of the other girls? And whats more... the other girls just sat there and let her spit on them. Oh, sure, they were squealing and telling her to stop, etc., but none of them got up and walked away. They sat there laughing until it was their turn to be spit on. It was truly disgusting and I had a good mind to walk over to that girl and tell her how terribly inappropriate she was acting. BUT... I didn't. Why not? Well, because this girl is in Elisan's soccer group. She's not on Elisan's team, but she's apart of the 8-10 year olds that practice together. I didn't want this girl to retaliate against Elisan for something I did.

It grieves me to no end to see this kind of behavior. It grieves me to see other girls taking the abuse that this "mean" girl was dishing out. It grieves me to see the other girls still wanting to be her friend because she was pretty and popular. It grieves me that no one bothered to step in and stop her... including me.

What would you have done? I mean, seriously? I think now, looking back, I would approach this girl's coach and have him handle it. She's more likely to respond to a person in authority rather than some random mom (who's sole intent would really be about) embarrassing her in front of her peers.

It's apparent to me that vigilant prayer is in my future. Oh, who am I kidding... vigilant prayer is needed now!

Birthday Fun!

Birthday week has finally come to a close! Whew... I survived another round of birthday festivities for Elisan. She's my high maintenance birthday child. Probably because her "love language" is Gifts, as in receiving gifts. Of course, I can't fault her for that, because my love language is also Gifts. (Here's the link if you are interested in discovering the love language of your child. If you are curious about your love language, here's the adult love language test version.)

Anyway, as you may recall last year, we had a slumber party for Elisan's 8th birthday. Um, that party about did me in for ever wanting to prepare and plan for another birthday party in my entire life. So, this year, I decided we'd have a more laid back party and just kind of go with the flow.

The party started off at the neighborhood pool and the girls swam for about 1.5 hours. I love August birthdays because it will almost certainly include chlorinated water. Especially nice with temps in the 100's. And since it doesn't rain in Central Texas in August, there's never a reason to worry about rainouts. It's a beautifully executed plan, don't ya think?

After swimming, we loaded them up and brought them back to the house for lunch. Nothing fancy here... just sandwiches, chips, pickles and fruit kabobs. I did however, make a super yummy punch to serve in their Hurricane tumblers, with their fru-fru straws and fancy paper umbrellas.
Once lunch was complete, we served up my birthday party specialty, which is ice cream cake. I'm so glad Elisan loves my ice cream cake because it's super easy and very yummy! Plus, everyone eats it. There's no wasted cupcakes licked clean of the icing and nothing more.

And finally, we opened presents, which is always a lot of fun. We're the kind of family that allows our children to open their presents at the party, and not after everyone goes home. We feel kids like to see the birthday friend open their present and "oooooo" and "ahhhhhh" over the present. Kinda makes everyone feel good! I've never understood the concept of opening presents after the party... And, I've heard all of the reasoning behind it too.

So, that's about it. We're good for another whole year. I'm thinking at 10, we'll just have a small gathering of a few close friends and take them to a restaurant and movie. Yep. Sounds like a winner to me.



Vanilla Fruit Punch
2 2-liters Hawaiian Fruit Punch
1 2-liter Ginger Ale
2 46-oz cans of Pineapple juice
1/2 gallon of vanilla ice cream

Mix & Serve.

Ice Cream Cake
I have a step-by-step photo tutorial for this recipe here.

Painfully Shy

Lately, Elisan and I have been talking about the merits of making friends. She's the type of person who makes 1 or 2 really good friend(s) and is perfectly content.

However, this year, her closest friend from school will be home-schooled, so they will no longer be together. Needless to say, she is very sad and has mentioned on occasion that she won't have any real "close" friends at school anymore.

Of course, I dive right into the "you have to be a good friend to make good friends" mantra and although she gets what I'm saying, she has been falling back on the "But, I'm shy" safety net, which really, is no safety net at all.

Here's the deal... as a kid I was painfully shy. I mean... I was the kid that wanted to say "don't look at me", "don't talk to me", "don't sit by me because I just can't handle it." Oh, sure, I had friends and when I felt comfortable enough with them, I'd cut loose and be myself. A funny, silly, giddy girl! But, getting to that place was not easy.

So, hearing Elisan say that she is shy stirs up a well of emotions for me and I just don't want to see my girl face the same challenges I did growing up shy.

Yesterday, during one of our "shy" conversations I described a childhood (and adulthood) friend named Amy who was never shy...who had more friends what I could ever count...and who was loved (and still is loved) by many, many people. Simply put, people are drawn to her. I was telling Elisan about Amy and how much nicer it is to be nice to people, than to be shy and avoid them. I told her that most little girls her age want to be friends with other little girls and that she should try a little harder to reach out to those kids (on her volleyball team, soccer team, new kids in her class, etc.)

The problem with this advice is that I don't practice what I preach. I'm still shy (to some extent) and I know what it feels like to be insecure. I see the same behavior in my child and it makes me sad because I want better for her.

The truth of the matter is, shyness is not of God. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that God did not make us timid (shy) but instead gave us power, love and a sound mind. We are to enjoy other people. We are to develop relationships with them. We are to love them.

So, today, I stand in the gap for my daughter who is feeling shy and insecure.

Dear Lord, help my child to know that she is a daughter of the most high God and loved by you. That you, Lord are her strength and you have equipped her in advance with your power, love and sound mind. I pray Lord that she not be hindered by a spirit of shyness, but that she be empowered by your boldness. Amen.

Happy Birthday Elisan!

MY HEART

I look at you and my heart is filled with so many
emotions that I cannot even explain.

I love you dearly and completely
And my heart literally aches because of you.

You are so much like me, and yet you are not like me at all.
My heart worries over you because you are so complex.

You make me laugh, you make me smile,
You challenge me and you make me lose my temper, a lot!
My heart is crazy about you.

But, most of all you make me a better person,
Because you made me a mom.

Elisan, you are my heart.

Elisan's card

I wanted to share the birthday card Elisan received from our good friend, Charlotte in Denmark! Elisan's having a LUAU birthday party on Saturday and Charlotte matched Elisan's party theme perfectly, don'tcha think?

Thank you Charlotte for making such a sweet and special card for Elisan.

Graffiti Update

Sunday a.m., I sent an email to the city tip-line regarding the graffiti and Monday a.m., I got a return email stating the case was assigned to a local detective.

Tuesday, the detective contacted me and thanked me for reporting the crime and if I had any leads to let him know. Tuesday afternoon, the police were out in our neighborhood taking photos of the graffiti. Apparently several areas in our neighborhood were also vandalized. {Joy}

Today, when I arrived home after morning activities, the graffiti was gone. Thank goodness!

I'm just hoping it is nothing to be overly concerned about. I'm sure it's just a few kids getting their kicks with a can of spray paint. Let's hope anyway, because Randy ain't all that interested in relocating.

If the vandalism and potential for more serious crimes continues, I told him I was going to launch a full-scale campaign to move. He was nervous. He knows how relentless I can be.

The countdown is on...

Oh my. We're t-minus 9 days from Elisan's 9th birthday. Let me say to all of you moms of young(er) children something you have heard time and time again.

It. Goes. By. So. Fast.

Fiercely take hold of your children and cherish THIS day. My heart aches because nine years have passed by so quickly.

More to say... but, time is a wastin'. I'm taking the girls to Fiesta Texas today and I need to get a move on.

The 'Hood

This is the view from my front door.

I mean, I knew we lived in a neighborhood, but I wasn't aware we lived in The 'Hood.

Nice.

Maybe the HOA will use are dues to remove this offense? Ha, likely story.

Anyone know a realtor? (Ha again. Another likely story.)

Something Special

Since Elisan is at camp, we asked Kyla if there was anything special she wanted to do this week. I was 1/2-way expecting her to just go for it and ask for something ridiculous like a dog. Don't get me wrong, she asks for a dog every week, but seeing through my momentarily moment of weakness by offering her something special, I assumed she'd hit me up for a dog again. Who knows... I might've given in, seeing as how I'm weak and all.

Anyway, she did not ask for a dog, but rather Yogo Bowl. You know, the new frozen yogurt experience that is cropping up everywhere these days, with names such as YoYo Yogurt, Swirl, The Yogurt Spot, FroYoYo (Um, yes...), Sprinkles, Yummy Yo and Tart... Self serve frozen yogurt with a buffet line of toppings where you weigh it at the end. Yep. That place.

Honestly, I'm not a fan of this place or any such place peddling this brand of frozen desserts. I'm a lover of the ice cream... Stone Cold Creamery and Marble Slab. Now, that's what I call dessert!

But alas, Yogo Bowl has taken up residence at the former Stone Cold Creamery location (sniff!), so Yogo Bowl it is. (Sigh...)

So, that's our special event tonight with Kyla. She's super excited. I love that she gets excited over the little stuff. Just think if I had promised her a puppy?

I've bought my tickets!

I'm excited to report that I've bought my tickets for the August 17th Virtue en Vogue event in Austin!

Here are the details, but be sure to check out the official website!

• "The #1 Back to School Must-Have" message by Vicki Courtney
  
• Worship with The Reliques
  
• Girls' Back to School Fashion Show (featuring ways to dress fashionably while staying modest)
  
• Dessert, Raffle Items, Giveaways, Bookstore, and More!

Tuesday, August 17, 2010
7:00pm - 9:00pm

Grace Covenant Church
9431 Jollyville Rd.
Austin, TX 78759

Tickets are $10.50 each or $15 at the door.