Grace in the Home

A Wedding and Time With Family

2011-10-16T13:21:00.001-05:00

Last week, Grace and I traveled to Clinton, LA for the wedding of some friends in my dad's church. It was a beautiful, simple, and meaningful ceremony of two people who are committed to loving each other and ministering to each other for the rest of their lives. So special.

Here's a picture of the wedding cake. Heather wanted a cascade of daisies falling down her cake.

For the groom’s table, I made a cake ball display. The flavors were White Chocolate Coconut, Double Dark Chocolate, and Chocolate-Covered Strawberry. So yummy and easy for people to pick up!

But the best part of the week was meeting my sweet nephew Jake for the first time! I know I’m slightly biased, but he is the cutest and happiest and most perfect little 10-month-old boy EVER! For this pic, I was sitting in the front seat of our car. I turned around and asked Jake to smile for the camera. He immediately pulled out his pacifier and gave me the biggest smile. What a sweet boy!

Vincent and Grace enjoyed every minute together. I know I’m still slightly biased, but you would be hard-pressed to find cousins who played together so sweetly. No fighting, yelling, screaming, or inappropriate behavior at all. They shared toys and games without being told, helped each other, and loved on each other all weekend!

What a complete joy it is to visit with my brother’s family! I only wish we could do it more often. I’ll end this post with another pic of Baby Jake!

Reflections on a Year of Homeschool

2011-06-09T13:09:00.001-05:00

What a blessing this year has been! I look back and I’m so thankful that God led us to the decision to homeschool Grace for kindergarten.

This time last year, we were agonizing over what direction we wanted to take for her education. Public school, private school, charter school, or homeschool? We finally narrowed it down to two…charter school or homeschool. The charter school fills up very quickly and in order for Grace to get in, her lottery number had to be drawn. God’s hand was evident in the circumstance that she was drawn very late. No chance to get in.

The fact that she didn’t get in the charter school gave me confidence that God wanted us to homeschool. Homeschooling is where my heart was, and I’m so glad that her lottery number was not drawn because then I would have been really confused!

I bought my curriculum and set up our little schoolroom. From the very beginning, Grace has loved it. I was worried at first because the curriculum was challenging and there were times of frustration…especially during the phonics lessons. But we kept going, full steam ahead, and God has rewarded our efforts! She is reading independently and soaking new books up like a sponge. What a joy it is to see her take delight in written word! It is truly magical when the light comes on and a child begins to read. I am so honored to be the one to see it happen!

We also love the extra time that homeschooling has given me to teach Bible lessons, catechism, cooking, household duties, and just enjoy being together! We have the freedom to visit the zoo, children’s museum, community events, and parks during non-peak hours. Grace can watch me manage our household, learning how to plan and shop for the things we need. She helps me clip coupons and is learning how to save money. Much of this would not have been possible if she were in school 8-3 every day!

And we have loved being a part of the Travis Academy of Fine Arts (TAFA). What an amazing program this is for homeschool students! I have met some very wise and dedicated home educators that have been inspirational and encouraging to me this year. Grace has loved making new friends and learning ballet! We already have her registered for ballet, art, and drama next year.

I wouldn’t change our decision to homeschool for anything. It feels so good to see how God has blessed our efforts. He leads us through the times of frustration…when I thought she’d never learn the difference between a short vowel and a long vowel…to days where she begs to have school, even on weekends!

I can’t wait to see what adventures are awaiting us in 1st grade!

21 Rules of This House – Rule #2

2011-01-26T22:43:00.001-06:00

If you are recently joining me on this series, here’s a link to all 21 Rules. And here are my thoughts on Rule #1.

Rule #2 – We love, honor, and pray for one another.

This one is huge. Basically, the first two rules are the foundation of all that follows. We love God (Rule #1), and we love others (Rule #2).

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27

I guess the first thing to point out is that Rule #2 is about others. Not ourselves. It’s a hard concept to explain in our self-obsessed society. Instead of worrying about what others do or don’t do to make us “happy”, we should strive to put others first by looking for ways to serve each other.

Can you imagine what a home would be like where every family member looked for ways to show love and serve? Where we always showed respect and consideration, and prayed faithfully for each other?

Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. James 5:16

Webster’s Dictionary defines honor as: “to regard or treat someone with admiration and respect.” From a young age, we should be teaching our children to treat family members in this way. Not just parents and other adults…but siblings as well.

We should strive to make our home a haven from the world…a place where we speak kindly to each other, consider each other’s needs, and look for ways to show love. What a wonderful legacy to leave our children!

Here are some practical suggestions for how to implement Rule #2:

Insist that everyone (including parents) speak to each other kindly and respectfully.
Nix the sarcasm. Especially the kind that is belittles others. (I’m surprised lightening didn’t strike when I typed this…I need to work on it.)
Share prayer requests with each other during family devotionals and/or mealtimes. Pray together. Consider helping your kids keep a prayer journal.
Recognize and reinforce kindness.
When we sin against each other, apologize and show forgiveness.
Don’t hold grudges. (Second lightening strike.)
This one is OH SO IMPORTANT, and it’s for parents: Don’t discipline in anger. Discipline in love. Anger and indignation have no place in a discipline situation. Take a minute…pray…then come back and handle things calmly.
Make a game out of doing kind things for each other. Secretly do something nice, then have fun guessing who did what!
And, finally…express your love to each other. For some people this is easy. For some people it’s very difficult. The bottom line is we need to hear the words “I love you.” Children, especially, need to hear these words from their parents. Just because you say it a lot doesn’t make it mean any less!

As always, I welcome your thoughts on this post! The first two rules are pretty heavy. Really, if we truly understood and obeyed the first two rules, there would be no need for Rules #3-21!

Why I Haven’t Blogged Lately

2011-01-26T21:31:00.001-06:00

The past couple of weeks have been pretty full, and I wanted to share some of the things I’ve been up to!

My mom came to visit, and like we do every time she comes, we crammed our days with shopping, crafting, and redecorating. What started with, “Will you help me paint the family room?” ended up with complete makeovers in five rooms of our house!

Ever since Todd and I got married in 1996, I have enjoyed rich jewel tones and autumn-y colors. My kitchen was a deep purple and dark green. My family room was dark green, brown, and burgundy. My living room and dining room was brown and burgundy. My bedroom was gold and dark green and burgundy. See a pattern? After almost 15 years, I came to the conclusion that I am TIRED of fall colors.

I wanted to brighten everything up!

I got an awesome set of new dishes for my birthday…

So now my kitchen is teal and green!

I sewed new drapery and mom reupholstered my chairs.

Then…I painted my family room light blue.

And got a bright, happy new picture for the fireplace.

I hung new drapery in a pretty green for the living and dining area, but you will have to use your imagination because right now it is a homeschool/craft room/sewing room/playroom/piano lesson room…warzone.

But what I am most excited about is our bedroom makeover. Before, I had an eclectic mix of hand-me-down furniture and dark colors. Now, I have this.

It is so restful and peaceful! We painted the walls a silvery gray. I changed the bedding to all white with black/white/green accents. A new headboard and picture pulled the look together.

We painted all the furniture black and added new hardware. I think it looks brand-new!

Thanks, mom, for all your help the past two weeks!

21 Rules of This House – Rule #1

2011-01-07T12:16:00.001-06:00

Thanks for all the feedback via my blog, Facebook, and e-mail. It looks like a lot of you share my interest in Gregg Harris’s 21 Rules of This House! My husband already publically committed to work on following #14-19, bless his heart. He’s not the only one…I struggle as well. My prayer is that by working through these rules, we will be on the road to a happier and more peaceful home!

Rule #1 – We obey God.

I love that the first rule is the foundation on which the other 20 rules are written, as well as the foundation of the first four 10 Commandments. In order to obey God, we must acknowledge God as our creator. He made us and is the author of our life.

“You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For you created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created.” Rev. 4:11

In His great mercy, He takes care of us.

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” I Peter 5:6

This doesn’t mean that we only love and obey God when things are going our way. God does not promise that our lives will be free of trials! This is what He promises:

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

How can we NOT want to love and obey God when He gives us the gift of eternal life? Even though we don’t deserve it! The hardships of this life are but a moment in the expanse of eternity. {Lord, help me remember this.}

Because of these truths, we should have a heart that seeks to understand God and obey Him more every day. It’s a whole new way of thinking! Everything we do, say…how we act, speak…what we spend our time doing…how we spend our money…our WHOLE LIVES should be lived in a way that seeks to obey God simply because we love Him and are thankful for the gift of eternal life.

When we shift our way of living from how to please ourselves to how to please God, it gives us great freedom AND happiness! Instead of being slaves to our own sinful desires, we can finally love others, forgive others, experience contentment, and have true joy in Christ. It is the journey of the Christian life…and it always ends with the joy of eternal life with Christ.

Practically speaking, here are some ideas of how we can implement this rule in the home:

Read the Bible. Read the teachings of Jesus, read Proverbs, do a word study on the word “obey.” There are some great examples in the Old Testament of kings of Israel who did not obey God…and the destruction that followed. Conversely, there were kings who did obey God…and were blessed.
Have a regular time of family devotions. What better way for our kids to learn how to love and obey God? When we spend time outside of church studying Scripture, it communicates to our kids how important God’s truths are!
Think before we speak/act. (“What does God teach about this? How would God have me respond?”)
Make obeying God part of our conversation. Talk out loud with our kids about different choices and which choices are obedient to God.
Post these things around the house: 10 Commandments, verses that talk about obeying God (Acts 5:29, Rom. 6:17, Heb. 5:9, etc.), 21 Rules of This House.

Thanks for following along. I would LOVE to hear from you! Perhaps you have comments, questions, or additional ideas about how to implement this rule in your home. I welcome all feedback!

21 Rules of This House

2011-01-04T23:17:00.001-06:00

A while back, I attended a small group fellowship for young families in my dad’s church. My dad, as pastor, was working through Gregg Harris’s 21 Rules of This House. I was struck by the wisdom and simplicity of the rules. They just make sense. This list was posted on the refrigerator when I was a kid, and the lessons have stuck in many ways. I’d like them to stick in more ways!

I decided at that time to work through the rules on my blog. I want to do this to expose people that might not otherwise have seen them, but also to work through them for my own family’s benefit! All comments and feedback are welcomed from anyone who wants to follow along with me!

Of course, it’s important to remember that the ultimate rules for living come from the 10 Commandments and the teachings of Jesus Christ, but these 21 simple rules are a practical application of how we are taught to live in Scripture.

What I would like to do is take one rule per week and just give my thoughts on how to apply it to the home. I want to correlate it with the 10 Commandments and other verses in the Bible. I want to share how Todd and I plan to teach the rule in our home.

Without further ado….here are the 21 Rules of This House!

1. We obey God.
2. We love, honor and pray for one another.
3. We tell the truth.
4. We consider one another's interests ahead of our own.
5. We speak quietly and respectfully with one another.
6. We do not hurt one another with unkind words or deeds.
7. When someone needs correction, we correct him in love.
8. When someone is sorry, we forgive him.
9. When someone is sad, we comfort him.
10. When someone is happy, we rejoice with him.
11. When we have something nice to share, we share it.
12. When we have work to do, we do it without complaining.
13. We take good care of everything that God has given us.
14. We do not create unnecessary work for others.
15. When we open something, we close it.
16. When we take something out, we put it away.
17. When we turn something on, we turn it off.
18. When we make a mess, we clean it up.
19. When we do not know what to do, we ask.
20. When we go out, we act just as if we were in this house.
21. When we disobey or forget any of the 21 Rules of This House, we accept
the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Happy 6th Birthday Grace!

2010-12-21T21:58:00.001-06:00

I can’t believe our sweet girl is six years old today. Wasn’t it just yesterday that we were opening jars of baby food and lugging around a diaper bag? What a joy these years have been. What a joy Grace is to us!

We celebrated today with a simple dinner at home with friends and family. Dad grilled burgers and hot dogs while mom and I fixed some baked beans and chips and dips. We had a Hello Kitty strawberry cake for dessert! The Towns’ joined us….Will and Grace played together the whole time.

For months, Grace has been asking for an hourglass. Weird, I know, but she was SO excited to receive one of her very own tonight. She sits and just stares at it!

She was also excited about getting a Crayon Maker. Kudos to Crayola’s marketing campaign for making every kid who watches PBS Kids want one for Christmas. Todd found the last one in Fort Worth!

Grace, your daddy and I love you for so many reasons. We love your sweet and gentle spirit. We love your eagerness to learn new things. We love what a good helper you are around the house and to others. We love to watch you dance and sing. We love to hear you talk about Jesus. We love playing games with you. We love that God gave you to us after so many years of asking for a child of our own. How thankful we are for you, dear daughter!

Night On The Town

2010-12-20T15:04:00.002-06:00

This weekend we had an awesome family outing in downtown Fort Worth. We ate an early dinner at Uno Chicago Grill. It was delicious and the first time for me to taste Chicago-style pizza.

Next we walked around downtown and enjoyed the huge Christmas tree and all the beautiful lights. There was a band playing Christmas tunes in the square, and we let Grace visit with Santa.

We wandered around a huge Barnes and Noble bookstore and finished our holiday shopping, then we headed to Bass Hall for the annual production of The Nutcracker. Due to a generous gift, we scored box seats on the first tier! We felt very high class with a private waiting room and beverage service. Grace had a clear, close, unobstructed view of the stage. She loved every minute of it! The production was AMAZING, and the ballet dancers were incredible. It was so fun to watch her face as she gazed in awe at the show. During intermission she entertained the other couple who shared our box by trying to imitate some of the ballet moves she had observed. So precious.

After the show, we capped off the evening at Starbucks and went home happy. It was an amazing night, and we are so thankful that we were able to have such a fun holiday outing. We hope to make The Nutcracker ballet an annual family tradition!

Homeschool Update

2010-12-02T09:37:00.001-06:00

I can’t believe it’s been so long since I have updated this blog! Check out my Cakes By Joanna blog to see why I’ve been so busy!

My days are very full, and I love it. Our mornings are spent in school, and our afternoons are spent doing household chores, baking cakes, visiting with friends, and field trips.

Homeschool is going great! We love it so much. I thought by now the newness would wear off, and Grace would start to get bored or frustrated. Just the opposite has happened…she begs me to do school on Saturdays, Sundays, and any day I decide to take off!

The kindergarten curriculum I’m using moves fairly quickly, and I’m pleased that Grace is keeping up! We are working on phonic blends and basic grammar rules. She is slowly learning to read on her own! I love to see her take an interest in all the words around her…on road signs, billboards, books, etc. She is so proud of herself when she sounds out new words she has never read before!

She is also making good progress on her scripture memorization and catechism. I love that she does not consider this a burden, but she enjoys showing others what she has learned. My prayer is that the words she learns will be hidden in her heart for her whole life.

Naturally, there have been moments of drama in our school days…especially when we learn a new concept. But I will say that she is learning to calm her emotions and simply try again when she becomes frustrated. What I DON’T want her to do is give up. In my opinion, it’s a more valuable lesson than what she is learning!

Slowly, she is gaining confidence and growing. We are so proud of her! I am so thankful to be able to teach her, and I do not take it for granted.

You Know You’ve Watched Too Much Food Network TV When….

2010-10-13T12:50:00.001-05:00

…during Bible-time, your five-year-old describes how Ruth made bread from the grain she gleaned in Boaz’s field by “putting flour in a bowl and stirring in some milk and a clove of garlic.”

Emeril would be proud.

The Joys of Homeschooling

2010-09-07T21:42:00.001-05:00

Words cannot express how thankful I am to be a homeschool mom. I realize that we are still in somewhat of the honeymoon stage…we’ve only been going for three weeks. But, for Grace, there is NO doubt in our minds that we have made the right decision to keep her home with me.

Every morning she wakes up and eagerly asks what we will learn today. She loves all the attention she is getting during our mornings together.

Granted, there have been times of stress. Even tears. But I use it as a learning opportunity for her. And me. When she gets frustrated because she can’t do or understand something, I don’t let her give up. We just try a different approach and she eventually learns that she CAN learn. And she learns perseverance. Then we take a break and do crafts. Ha!

For Grace, this is a challenging curriculum. I’m having to read and research different ways to teach some of the phonetic activities. But, despite the fact that she struggles at times, she really wants to learn and is so excited when things start to connect in her brain.

Today was so sweet. When we finished our daily lessons, I went in the kitchen to make lunch. I heard her in the school room pretending to teach a phonics lesson to another student. She went through the whole lesson and all the activities we did today, pretending to be the teacher. She even gave her imaginary student stickers and lots of verbal encouragement, “Great job, sweetie!”, etc. My heart just melted and I knew today that we made the right decision for her.

I can only pray that she will continue to grow spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually. Being her teacher is a great responsibility that I take very seriously. It’s also a great joy! All those months of agonizing over our decision of the direction we wanted to go with her education have been put to rest.

Wedding Cake

2010-09-07T21:09:00.001-05:00

This past weekend was the wedding of a special friend from high school. She asked me to make her wedding cake, and I eagerly took the challenge. Thankfully, she knew exactly what she wanted…and she is nowhere close to a bridezilla. So sweet.

Doing a wedding cake is so much more stressful than a birthday or shower cake. The whole time I was decorating it, I was thinking that these pictures will be saved and looked at for generations to come. I mean, my wedding album gets looked at pretty regularly since I leave it sitting out in my living room.

I considered calling my doctor and asking for an anxiety pill. Then I thought if I felt like I needed drugs to get through a job, maybe it was not the thing for me. So I stayed in a continual state of prayer…l literally prayed without ceasing.

Anyway, there were a few scary moments, particularly during transport, but God is good and it all turned out well in the end. When I saw the final product, watched the beautiful bride cut into the cake, and saw how much the guests enjoyed eating it, all the stress was worth it!

First Day of Kindergarten

2010-08-17T22:06:00.001-05:00

Grace’s much-anticipated first day of kindergarten finally arrived! We have been literally counting down the days, marking them off our wall calendar. I really had NO idea what to expect the first day, but it was great! When we wrapped things up before lunch, she grabbed my arm and said, “Mommy, can we do this every day? Please?” Mission accomplished.

I know it won’t be sunshine and roses all the time. There will be challenges. We had a small one today. But, I can already tell homeschool is going to be a wonderful experience for us both. I am so thankful to be ABLE to do this. I am so thankful for a husband who WANTS me to do this. I am so thankful for a daughter who BEGS me to do this. I am so thankful.

Many of you have asked what our typical day looks like. We’ve only just started, and I’m sure it will evolve as we work out the kinks, but I’ll share what has worked for us so far.

I get up at 7:00 and exercise for about 45 minutes. Grace usually wakes up between 7:30-8:00. We eat breakfast and get dressed/ready for the day. Grace meets me in the schoolroom to start at 9:00. I like to start with Bible time. We work through a simple devotional together. Next I like to practice memory work with catechism and Bible verses. We finish with a short prayer time, asking God to bless our learning.

Next we have our calendar time where we learn the current day, date, year, etc. We check the weather and record the forecast. We post our letter, number, shape, and color of the day. We keep track of how many days we have been in school, learning place value. Calendar time takes about 10 minutes.

Next we move to phonics. The curriculum I’m using has daily lessons with corresponding activities and worksheets. We’ve been spending about 45 minutes on these lessons. It’s a lot of oral practice and auditory learning. I save the writing component for later.

Next we change gears and do math activities. The curriculum is very hands-on, using manipulatives and games. This is a great way to break up the more stressful phonics/language arts activities. Math is Grace’s favorite part of the day!

Now that she’s had a break with math, we go back to writing. We use dry erase boards and worksheets to practice the letters we have learned.

Since writing can sometimes be frustrating for her, I like to move into a fun craft activity next. I try to mix it up and use different materials every day.

We end our school day by reading books together for a while. Sometimes we might play an educational game.

All together, our kindergarten day takes 2 1/2 - 3 hours. We finish before lunch!

I love that we have our afternoons free to do other things. Yesterday we attended orientation for her new ballet class, which begins next week. Today we went to the science museum and played for a couple of hours.

I’m very happy with our schedule and I’m excited to see what this year has in store for both of us!

How To Make a Pillowcase Dress

2010-08-17T21:11:00.001-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, I invited two of my SAHM buddies over for a sewing playdate. Between the three of us, we had nine children from age 4 months to 7 years old. Despite the chaos, I managed to teach my two friends how to make a simple pillowcase dress for our daughters. It was a really fun time of fellowship together!

I promised to post step-by-step instructions, so here goes:

Materials needed:

1 yard cotton fabric
All-purpose thread that matches the base color of fabric
2 yards 1/2”-1” coordinating ribbon (Get more if you want to sew ribbon around bottom of dress above the hem)
Fabric scissors
Pins
Basic sewing machine
Fray Check (optional)

1. Cut two identical rectangles of fabric. Length should be the desired length of dress from neck to hem plus about 3”. Width should be about 18”.

2. Place right sides together. Pin fabric together with identical pins 6” from top on each side for sizes Birth-2T. Pin 7” from top for sizes 3T-6. Pin 8” from top for larger sizes. With right sides still together, sew 5/8” seam from marked pins (armhole) to the bottom hem.

3. Press both seams open all the way to the top, including the armhole opening.

4. Reinforce armhole by sewing down one side, turning sideways across bottom of armhole, then back up other side.

5. Make casing for ribbon. With dress still inside out, fold back a double casing a little larger than the width of coordinating ribbon across top of dress. Iron it flat to make the sewing easier. Repeat for other side of neckline.

6. Sew both seams very close to bottom of casing.

7. Make hem. Fold a double hem around bottom of dress. Iron and sew.

8. (Optional). Sew extra ribbon a few inches above the hem. It’s still just as cute without it!

9. Cut ribbon into two 1-yard lengths. Thread ribbon through casing on both sides with a safety pin.

10. I like to cut the ends of the ribbons at an angle and seal it with a little amount of Fray Check to keep it from unraveling in the wash.

VOILA!

Here is Grace modeling the dress I made for her at our sewing party.

You could also add a coordinating strip of fabric around the bottom, separating with a pretty ribbon. The possibilities are endless!

Happy sewing!

Zenni Optical

2010-07-29T13:35:00.001-05:00

I’ve been long overdue for an eye exam, so I recently went to Sam’s Club optical for an appointment. I have this weird sensitivity on my eyes. I can’t stand anything to touch them. I DREAD that puff of air they shoot into your eyes for the glaucoma test. Seriously, I’d rather get 20 shots or drink the nastiest medicine than have that puff of air touch my eye.

I finally sucked it up and went to the appointment. After I went through the torture of that puff machine, they told me it wasn’t working because I couldn’t keep still. I have to go back for a dilation test whenever I can get someone to drive me. Uugh.

Anyway, a friend of mine once told me about Zenni Optical. It is an online store where you can enter your prescription information and purchase glasses on the internet. I ordered my glasses early last week and got them in the mail today! They are perfect! My entire order was $26.80. That includes VERY cute frames, non-glare glasses, anti-scratch coating, attachable sunshades, a cleaning cloth, a glasses case, and standard shipping. Rock on! They also offer rock-bottom prices on bifocals, progressive lenses, Transitions lenses, etc.

If you decide to take your prescription and order glasses online, you need to have the optometrist write down your prescription, including the PD (Pupillary Distance). Usually, they leave this off the prescription because they want you to buy in their store…they just leave it in your file or do the measurement when you order the glasses. I kindly asked my optometrist to do the PD measurement right then and write it on my prescription.

I only wear my glasses when I read, do computer work, or play the piano. I didn’t realize how old my other glasses were until I put my new ones on today. What a difference they make! Thank you Zenni Optical!

Tennis Date

2010-07-29T13:15:00.001-05:00

I let my sweet friend Joy talk me into dusting off the old tennis racquet for a few shakes around the court this morning. Of course Grace had to come along for the ride, and she was perfectly happy to show off her pink tennis racquet and new pink tennis shoes. She also made a decent ball girl.

I made a very clear disclaimer to Joy and my other two friends who joined us that I had not played since I took a college tennis class in 1993. And back then I was more concerned with flirting with Todd than working on my swing. But, thanks to Wii Fit Tennis, I did recently refresh myself on how to keep score.

Joy and I went to a separate court to “warm up”, which is code for “chase balls around the court”. Joy is much better than me, but we were both beginners compared to the two other women we played. They mercifully split Joy and me, so we had a seasoned player and a newbie on each team.

When it was all over, I was actually quite proud of myself. Sure, I missed a lot of balls, but I also hit a lot. I even had a few great returns and volleys. I definitely want to do it again soon, if they’ll have me!

Hurricane Harbor

2010-07-22T08:56:00.001-05:00

To celebrate Todd’s last day of summer vacation, we went to Six Flag’s Hurricane Harbor this week. It’s hard to believe he’s already back at work! Summer seems to get shorter every year. Anyway, we’ve been promising Grace all summer that we would go to a water park, and it ended up being a fun day.

Of course, anything compared to Dollywood’s Splash Country is a letdown….that place is awesome. I think I’ve figured out why Dollywood is so clean, well-run, and inviting. It’s the employees. The average age is about 70…mostly retired folk. They actually care about doing their jobs well and have a sense of responsibility. Even the lifeguards are older and more experienced. At Hurricane Harbor, the 87-pound, 16-yr-old lifeguard is more interested in flirting with the bikini-clad crowd than actually watching kids in the wave pool. Just sayin’.

Anyway, Grace didn’t know the difference…she just had fun! We didn’t take any pictures because we didn’t want to risk getting our camera or phone wet. They ended up staying in our rented locker all day.

I’m quite adventurous when it comes to roller coasters, but not so much with water slides. I don’t even like the smaller ones. My idea of a water adventure is floating down the Lazy River, preferably with a cold beverage. However, Todd finally managed to talk me into going on the Roarin’ Rapids “as a family”.

After waiting in line for an hour, we grabbed our floats and started climbing the stairs to the top. Grace was tall enough to ride by herself with a life jacket. Despite my nervousness about the whole thing, Grace was thrilled to be on her own.

Sure enough, something happened. A woman was injured on a sharp protruding object and the ride was stopped for the paramedics and rescue team. A cheeky lifeguard jumped over a wall and stopped the progression of our floats to the bottom of the ride. For a long time, we waited and waited. You might think that floating on an inner tube for an hour could be relaxing, but I bet you’ve never done it with a 5-yr-old who is in constant danger of falling through the hole and wants to ride to finish.

Todd was fed up with the waiting game and started eyeing the side of the ride and looking to the ground below. He actually asked the lifeguard if he could jump over and get off the ride, and the lifeguard shrugged his shoulder and said, “I can’t stop you.” So, Todd vaulted over the wall. I pushed Grace over the wall, then started trying to figure out how I was going to do it. About 15 other riders were watching us with interest, as well as the lifeguard. No pressure.

I tried to boost myself up with my arms, but when I pushed up, the roaring water and undercurrent of the ride shoved my body off the wall. It was hard, people. I finally managed to do it (thank you, Jillian Michaels). After the three of us were safely over the side, the lifeguard decided to evacuate all the other riders. I guess we were the guinea pigs.

And that, my friends, is the final chapter in my life experiences with water slides.

Getting Ready for School

2010-07-15T20:48:00.001-05:00

Today was a special 20% off all educational supplies at my local Mardel store. I decided to get there when they opened, but was naively surprised to see a full parking lot. It was wall-to-wall people, no shopping carts, and for one panicked moment I relived my most recent Black Friday experience.

And let me just say that Kindergarten teachers are piranhas. They look all sweet and innocent, but heaven help if you’re going for the same morning meeting book as them. Or magnetic letters. Trust me.

Anyway, miraculously, I managed to get everything I needed with the exception of a Saxon K-3 math manipulative kit. (I’m keeping an eye on EBay and Craigslist for that.) I set a budget between $200-$250 for my curriculum and I got out of the store with extra things not on my list for only $186.00!

Grace was so excited to see everything I bought, and she wants to start Kindergarten NOW. We’re going to wait to start the curriculum, however, until August. I need more time to plan and get things ready!

Today, I bought our language arts curriculum. We decided to use Alpha Omega Horizons. I originally wanted to use Sonlight, but we just couldn’t justify the cost. I’m going to supplement what I bought with some Hooked on Phonics and Scott Foresman materials I already own. For math, we are using Saxon. My sweet friend Julie Williams is letting me borrow her Kindergarten curriculum for this year! I just need to find the required manipulatives.

For science, we will make frequent visits to the science museum, planetarium, and zoo. We will check out science books from the library and learn about the human body. For history, we will learn about different states in our nation and explore basic geography with our interactive globe and puzzles. We will check out books from the library that describe other cultures and lands.

We have signed Grace up for a weekly class with the Travis Academy of Fine Arts. She will be so excited to begin ballet again! Once she turns six years old, she will be eligible for other classes like drama, art, music, and bible study. If there is room, we would love her to begin a couple of extra classes in the spring.

We will start our school days with devotions and catechisms. I have not been as faithful in teaching her the Westminster Catechism as I should have been, and I’m looking forward to getting into a routine of adding it back to our bible time in the mornings. We will probably focus on one question per week.

Even though this seems like a lot, I don’t expect our school days to take more than 2-3 hours total. I hope to be done before lunchtime. We are able to eliminate classroom hassles (i.e. bathroom breaks, learning rules and procedures, discipline issues, P.E., walking up and down the hallways, lunchtime, recess, and crowd control) to have a shorter day! This leaves the afternoons free for field trips, shopping, library, playgrounds, and learning household skills.

I spent the better part of today setting up our little classroom in our dining room. I still have some things to laminate and hang up, but I’ll take pictures when I’m finished. Grace watched in awe and wanted to play with everything I bought. But, I told her it was only for kindergarten with mommy…gotta give her something to anticipate!

Kitchen Makeover

2010-07-08T16:12:00.001-05:00

When I was visiting my parents last month, mom and I caught the redecorating bug. She’s been wanting to update her kitchen for a while, so we decided to do it while I was there.

Mom wanted her kitchen to be bright and airy with a subtle tropical theme. First we went to a fabric outlet and bought a gorgeous print in the clearance bin. I sewed it into roman shades for her two windows.

We brightened up the walls with a fresh green color….kind of between mint and light sage.

The hard work came with the cabinets. They are original from when the house was built in the 40’s. Their condition is excellent…oak wood. We removed and cleaned hardware, sanded, primed, and painted three coats of white paint! It was a ton of work, but so totally worth it when we were done.

Since we were on a roll, mom decided to clean out all her cabinets and donate some older, less used items in order to display things that better match the new decor. She even added new shelf liners. We both love the result!

Spa Day

2010-07-08T16:01:00.001-05:00

Earlier this month, I decided to take Grace to a salon that specializes in haircuts for kids. Being the frugal woman that I am, I usually cut her hair myself, but I’ve had more trouble lately getting a straight line across the bottom. Her hair is really thick and heavy, which makes it harder to look like a clean cut.

Anyway, Grace was in heaven. I really wish this was a video so you could hear her delighted “Oooohs” and “Aaaahs” during the shampoo. The girl washing her hair was cracking up, and I suspect she scrubbed it longer because Grace loved it so much.

She keeps asking me when we’re going back. I watched the girl really closely when she was cutting Grace’s hair, so hopefully I’ll be able to do it myself next time. We’ll see!

Trip To Clinton

2010-07-05T22:35:00.001-05:00

Grace and I got to spend some time at my parents house visiting with them and all the cousins! I got to meet my beautiful niece Keira for the first time! Grace was helping feed her little cousin.

The kids loved playing together and it was thoroughly entertaining to watch them pick right up where they left off the last time we visited.

Even though they don’t see each other very often, they feel very comfortable together. I think it’s because my brother’s families and I talk about each other all the time and share internet pictures as often as we can. Although we are so far apart, I want Grace to feel close to her cousins.

This was my favorite picture from our visit. My parents with all the grandkids!

Youth Camp 2010

2010-07-05T22:22:00.001-05:00

Hello internet! June has been a crazy month, full of travels and family visits and lots of fun! We started off by traveling to Orange Beach, Alabama for youth camp with my dad’s church. We weren’t quite sure what to expect with the oil spill.

When we first arrived, there were itsy-bitsy tarballs on the shoreline. Unfortunately, it got worse during the week and it prevented us from swimming in the water. The Coast Guard was hard at work the whole time we were there.

The tarballs didn’t stop us from enjoying the beach, though! Grace loved playing in the sand and searching for seashells.

The lessons at camp were wonderful and the kids were great! It’s always such a pleasure to go every year, worship, and enjoy the beach!

This year two of Grace’s friends were able to be there, so they stuck together like the Three Amigos: Claire, Sophie, and Grace.

On a serious note, it was heartbreaking to see the devastation that this spill is causing the Gulf economy. Hotels, restaurants, and shopping centers were bare. Several business owners and waiters/waitresses thanked us for not cancelling our trip and helping the local economy. It was so saddening to see first-hand what the Gulf communities are experiencing. I pray that the clean-up efforts go smoothly and fast so things can get back to normal!

A Few Thoughts About The ‘Lost’ Finale

2010-05-26T14:43:00.001-05:00

For a few torturous minutes, I thought we wouldn’t be able to watch the ‘Lost’ finale live, since our satellite dish decided to break on Sunday evening around 5:30. I immediately got on the phone with Dish Network, where the rep calmly informed me we needed a whole new system due to wind and weather damage. They would be out first thing in the morning. That didn’t solve our problem!

Todd fooled around with the satellite dish and the TV for a while after I got off the phone, and he actually managed to get ABC to work! No other channels, just ABC! That’s divine intervention, people.

Overall, I was happy with the finale. Many of my questions were answered (not all…) and the character resolutions were emotionally satisfying. Here were my top 5 favorite moments of the finale:

Frank’s plane flying over Jack as he lay in the bamboo field dying. Talk about coming full circle. I literally got chills.
The Sawyer/Juliet reunion was my favorite. Wow. Charlie’s face when he saw Claire was a close second.
Hurley becoming protector of the island and asking Ben to be his right-hand man. Ben, to me, was the most interesting character on the show. I loved watching his struggle with evil and his driving search for significance and acceptance. This, my friends, is the heart of man.
Kate shooting Smokey and professing her love to Jack.
Hurley’s Star Wars-related one-liners. Classic.

Here were a few of my disappointments during the finale:

Why did Sayid end up with Shannon instead of Nadia? Weird.
Why did Jack’s dad get the honor of being the “shepherd?”
Ben didn’t go into the church. Even though he asked forgiveness of Locke and presumably lived the rest of his life honorably (according to Hurley) while protecting the island.
Many of my questions weren’t answered.

And speaking of not finding out answers, let me say a word about that. I understand that the writers want us to focus on the relationships between the characters and the bigger picture, blah, blah, blah. And that aspect of the show is very satisfying to me.

HOWEVER….

The writers built up the mysteries as such an important part of the series, hooking people in and making us think so hard. They are fully aware of how important people consider these mysteries. Just look at how popular the Lost message boards have become! Considering that, it’s somewhat of a slap in the face to totally ignore so many questions. In order to make the characters the central focus of the show, it is not necessary to throw the mystery resolutions under the bus. Just sayin’….

Anyway, that said, I still feel like this is the most amazing and epic show to ever be created in the history of television. I’m sorry to see it be over, and it will be hard to see these Lost actors/actresses appear in any other film or show!

And I’m totally rooting for a spinoff to be created that shows what happens on the island while Hurley and Ben are protectors!

Keira Malie

2010-05-10T07:32:00.001-05:00

My sweet little niece was born yesterday on Mother’s Day! She came a little earlier than expected, but perfect nonetheless. Keira is 7 pounds, 11 ounces, and 19 1/4 inches long. She has a beautiful head of long, dark hair and is very healthy. Mama is doing great, too!

Jon is a proud daddy!

Ballet Pictures

2010-04-27T16:35:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, Glamourcraft Studios came to Grace’s ballet class to take pictures. She was thrilled to be able to wear her recital costume for the first time!

Her ballet instructor asked us to put a little make-up on the girls so they wouldn’t wash out in the photos. Actually, they instructed us to put on eyeliner so their eyes would “pop.” I challenge any mother out there to put eyeliner on a five-year-old. If only I had thought to take a picture of Grace’s face after I attempted the impossible… She looked something like this:

Not fun.

So I scrubbed her up and started over, sans eye liner. A little blush, pink eye shadow, lip gloss, and she looked fine.

Here she is waiting patiently in the hallway with her peeps.

The photographers (wisely) wouldn’t let any parents in the room during the photo shoot. I would have paid money to see them take the group picture with 15 miniature ballerinas age 3-5. Grace also had individual pictures taken, so I’ll be really interested to see what they look like and what kind of poses they did. I’ll post them when I get them!

See the Resemblance?

2010-04-26T13:30:00.001-05:00

This is what happens when someone accidentally gives Grace a piece of Laffy Taffy coated with egg albumen. It took two days for her lips to look Botox-free.

Surprise!

2010-04-26T13:23:00.001-05:00

Last Friday, I got a phone call from my little brother, Jon. He had an unexpected layover in Dallas on his way home from Afghanistan! We were SO thankful and excited to have him spend a few hours with us. He looked great, and we enjoyed the visit.

Jon was extremely tired and jet-lagged, but he was craving Gulf Coast shrimp, so we headed to our favorite Mexican restaurant, Pappasito’s. It was delicious and Jon assured us it was a great improvement over M.R.E.’s!

When we got home, Todd and Jon planned on catching up on DVR’d episodes of their favorite show, Burn Notice. Jon laid down on a mattress for the first time in several months while we got Grace ready for bed. He was out for the night! We’re so glad he got some good rest on a comfortable mattress before he boarded the plane home to Hawaii.

Todd took him back to the airport the next morning, and he arrived safely home to his family!

I love you, Jon!

Recent Cakes

2010-04-26T13:15:00.001-05:00

Here are a few pictures of the cakes I made last week. For more details, visit my new cake blog!

Preschooler Quote of the Day

2010-04-21T14:11:00.001-05:00

Grace: (excitedly) “Hey, Kie, did you know I went to the Cinderella show on Saturday?”

Kie: (looking bored) “Yeah, I know. I saw it on Facebook.”

HA HA HA!

Free Samples!

2010-04-21T09:08:00.001-05:00

Thanks to Deal-Seeking Mom for alerting me to this new program sponsored by the U.S. Postal Service!

The purpose of the Sample Showcase is to get new products into the hands of consumers. If you visit the Sample Showcase website, you will answer three brief questions to see if you quality to receive the free sample shipment. I qualified and should receive my package in early May. Happy sampling!

Every Little Girl Wants to Be A Princess

2010-04-19T14:13:00.001-05:00

Our much-anticipated trip to see the musical Cinderella finally arrived! Grace woke up extra-early and donned her special dress!
I even let her wear a crown and put on an itsy-bitsy bit of make-up!

First, we picked up her sweet friend, Natalie, who spent several hours in the ER last night being treated for a broken arm! She wasn’t letting that stop her from today’s extravaganza!

We ate lunch in a beautiful tea room. The girls sipped pink lemonade from a silver teapot and ate sandwiches and fruit. These girls entertained everyone with their excitement, laughter, and dancing!

Despite the rain and bad weather, everyone still looked beautiful when we got to the theater!

After the show, the characters signed autographs for our little princesses!

Despite Grace’s disappointment that Cinderella had dark brown hair, it was a FABULOUS show, full of very talented actors and musicians. The girls loved every minute of it, and we’re already planning our trip to see Peter Pan in a few short weeks!

Zoo Day

2010-04-19T14:02:00.001-05:00

Grace has been suffering from seasonal allergies, but she was feeling better, so I took her and Kie to the zoo! It was a perfect day…sunny and warm. They had so much fun! Grace paid for it later after being outside in the pollen and around animals for several hours, but they were so sweet and had a blast!

I don’t think I had to tell them once to take turns or share. They made sure each other could see the exhibits and obeyed me when it was time to move on or leave. So precious!

We rode the train around later in the day when we were tired.

I am really going to miss Kie next year when he starts school! What a blessing he and his sister have been to our family over the past two years! Grace will miss him horribly!

Preschooler Story of the Day

2010-04-12T22:21:00.001-05:00

The other day, I was driving home with Grace and the little boy I babysit, Kie. It was a beautiful day….blue skies, warm breeze. All of the sudden, literally out of nowhere, it started hailing. It was so weird. At first, I thought someone was throwing rocks at our car. No rain, just hail.

The kids got a little scared, but I calmed them down and told them it was just a crazy Texas storm that would soon pass. This is the conversation I heard between them while I was driving:

Kie: “Grace, we’ve GOT to pray. This is terrible. Pray with me.”

Grace: “Okay, let’s pray.”

Kie: “Dear God, PLEASE stop this hell (i.e. hail). Please make it a beautiful day again so we can play outside. We don’t like hell (i.e. hail), so please make it go away. Amen.”

Grace: (looking out the window at the worsening hail) “Well, that didn’t work.”

New Cake Blog

2010-04-12T21:48:00.003-05:00

Check out my new cake blog! It's called Cakes By Joanna. Original, huh? I decided to dedicate a separate space to my cakes so I can organize my pictures and refer people easily who want to look at my work.

I created this cake for our Easter luncheon with the sweet Thompson family. Since we don't have any family in Texas, they always include us as part of theirs if we aren't traveling during a holiday! This cake has a subtle peach flavor with peach buttercream filling and cream cheese icing. Grace had fun helping me cut out fondant flowers and butterflies!

As I fulfill cake orders, I'll take pictures and add them to my new cake blog! If you live in the D/FW area, feel free to contact me if I can make a special creation for you!

Thoughts on Learning Styles

2010-04-02T16:52:00.001-05:00

Many thanks to Mama Angie at Molding a Masterpiece for recommending Cathy Duffy’s book 100 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum a few weeks ago in my comment section!

I’ve spent the last few days reading this book and pondering my plan for home school. There are some very helpful worksheets and charts that I spent time completing which allowed me to think through my philosophy of education. The great thing about this book is that it has helped me understand my learning style and Grace’s learning style and how we are going to make this endeavor work!

Thankfully, we are similar in many ways. We both meet the criteria for “Perfect Paula” as described in the book…planners, organizers, neat, scheduled, rule-oriented. I’ve got a healthy dose of “Competent Carl”…logical, controlled, impatient, math/science-minded. Grace has a moderate dose of “Wiggly Willy”, partly due to her age and developmental level…impulsive, activity-loving, kinesthetic. We both have some “Social Sue”…enjoying friendships and emotionally connected to others.

“Carl” and “Willy” don’t necessarily mix, so I will need to stretch outside my comfort zone to include lots of multisensory techniques and activities for Grace’s benefit. I was the kid in school that hated group work and anything out of the “norm” of bookwork and study. Boring, I know. But I’m excited about the challenge!

This book has helped me determine that we will both benefit from a routine-based schedule. This will most likely look like morning instructional times in a consistent schoolroom-type setting in our home. We can use the afternoons for activities, experiences, reinforcement, and homemaking instruction (cooking, keeping house, sewing, shopping, etc.).

The BEST thing about this book is the Top 100 Picks Chart. Cathy scores each curriculum on a set of criteria, specifically related to the child’s learning style. It is SO helpful. I can just look at the chart and easily see where to start looking to find the best fit for us.

Interestingly, the programs that I was already leaning towards matched up as a good fit: Sonlight and Saxon Math.

I’ve also developed a new interest in the concept of unit studies. I like the idea of studying one topic and applying it towards all disciplines…I believe this would fit Grace’s learning style very well and result in better comprehension and retention for her. There are lots of great resources out there, and this is definitely something I will explore in the future. However, in my first year of homeschool, I prefer to stick with a pre-planned curriculum. I need to build my confidence as her teacher!

The next book on my reading list is The Well-Trained Mind, due to the recommendation of my readers and fellow homeschool parents. I’ve got it on reserve in my library…it’s a VERY popular book. Hopefully I’ll get it soon!

As always, thanks to everyone for the overwhelming support and good wishes I received since we made the decision to homeschool. Todd and I are both excited to see what the future holds for Grace!

Spring Break

2010-03-25T21:49:00.001-05:00

Normally, we travel as often as we can during vacation time to visit family. However, this year we decided to stay home during Todd’s Spring Break and plan a “staycation” of sorts! We tried to do something fun and different every day. It ended up being the best week we’ve had together in a long time!

On Monday, we played golf. Actually, Todd played golf while I drove the cart and tried to explain to a 5-yr-old why we had to be silent when players were teeing off. It was a gorgeous day and so nice to be outside in the sunshine! Grace was the official “flag mover.” It was hilarious watching her try to lift and maneuver the awkward pole while daddy putted.

On Tuesday, we went to see “Alice In Wonderland” in 3D. I know, I know. Probably not the best choice for a 5-yr-old. There were some pretty intense scenes. I took her out to the bathroom during one particularly scary part. She loved it, though! All the animals and creatures delighted her. Thankfully, we haven’t heard word one about the scary dragon or river with decapitated heads. She’s been sleeping as well as usual and talks about the movie happily. Just sayin’….

On Wednesday, we rode the Trinity Railway Express to the Dallas Mavericks game. Grace loved the train ride more than the basketball game! It’s a double-decker train, so we sat on top and enjoyed the view!

The Mavs game was tons of fun! At first Grace was overwhelmed by the loudness, the height of the nose-bleed section, and the screaming fans.

But she soon warmed up and ended up dancing and entertaining everyone around us when the music played. She also informed me that she wanted to dance “just like those girls.” (The Mavs Dancers). Um…..no.

On Thursday we went to Six Flags, along with every other human being in the D/FW area. I’m not kidding when I say it took us 2 1/2 hours to go one mile on the interstate, park, and walk into the park. We waited in line for about an hour for each ride we rode. Good times.

On Friday, Todd took Grace on a daddy date. Anytime Todd takes her out, you just never know what they’ll come home with. After a couple of hours, she proudly arrived home with this:

Her first bicycle. And daddy succumbed to the “Snow White” model because, of course, the most important thing about a new bike is the princess purse that is attached to the front, which conveniently holds lip gloss. That’s my girl!

And what was I doing while Todd and Grace were painting the town?

I was painting my kitchen!!!

And re-upholstering my breakfast room chairs!!!

And sewing new draperies!!!

In addition to painting my walls, I sanded and painted our cabinetry white. It was a LOT of work, but totally worth it. It really brightens up the room and makes me feel happy when I cook!

We thoroughly enjoyed the week together, and Grace was sad to see daddy go back to work on Monday. Back to reality!

Kindergarten Decision

2010-03-10T09:59:00.001-06:00

Todd and I have been spending time over the last few months researching and praying about different directions we could go with kindergarten next year for our Grace. You can read about our options and thoughts in my previous posts, Kindergarten Contemplations Part I and Part II.

I’m so thankful that I wrote about it on my blog, because I received lots of great feedback and access to resources as a result! I appreciate that tremendously!

And the decision is….drumroll….I WILL HOMESCHOOL!

There, I said it. It’s official. Whew. I’m glad to have a decision, and I’m still trying to wrap my brain around what it means for our little family.

Just of a few of the many emotions/adjectives that are running rampant through my brain are:

excited, scared, crazy, relieved, curious, happy, confident, hesitant

Anyone that has faced the possibility of homeschool has probably felt many of the same things. The first two emotions are the most pronounced at the moment.

I’m excited because:

I get to spend time with my little girl instead of sending her off to school every day!
I truly believe that Grace will enjoy it. She loves to do school at home and always asks me to do it more often.
It’s a new challenge. And I love new challenges.
I can tailor my program to exactly what she needs considering her learning style, abilities, interests, etc.
There is a whole new world of homeschool families and resources that we will meet and grow to love.
Grace will be a part of the Travis Academy of Fine Arts.
I feel that God will bless our efforts to educate our daughter at home.

I’m scared because:

I want to do a good job, but I don’t always feel confident.
What if I forget to teach her something?
The responsibility of homeschool lessens opportunities for earning money through sewing, cake decorating, etc. and increases expenses for curriculum, TAFA, organized sports, membership expenses, etc.
I’m a procrastinator by nature, and I just CAN’T be that way and be an effective home educator.

All things considered, the promise I am holding close to my heart through this decision comes from Proverbs 22:6:

“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”

Our prayer is that we are making a decision that will bless our daughter, our family, and give honor to our Lord. I also take comfort in the fact that the decision to homeschool for kindergarten next year does not mean we are stuck on that path for the next 13 years. Thankfully, public school and other charter schools are options that we feel comfortable considering if homeschool does not work out for whatever reason.

I haven’t made any solid decisions yet about curriculum, but I’m leaning toward Saxon for math. When I worked at the elementary school level, I remember our math teachers complementing Saxon very highly. It is very systematic, building concepts and reinforcing learning along the way. There are lots of hands-on activities with manipulatives and practice. I also like that there are frequent assessments to measure learning.

For language arts/reading, I’m looking at Sonlight, Saxon, Lifepac, and Horizons. I’ve still got a lot of research to do on this.

I’ll probably use supplements from my local Mardel homeschool supply store for resources relating to science, history, and geography.

Now that we’ve made the decision to homeschool, I’d appreciate any recommendations on curriculum from any homeschool moms out there! Positive recommendations or concerns through your experience…

Thanks for the continued prayers as I prepare for this exciting new journey!

Hello Old Friends

2010-03-10T09:01:00.001-06:00

Greetings, everyone! First, let me apologize about my extended absence. Several of you have asked or e-mailed to find out where I’ve been, and I don’t really have a good explanation other than being busy! In the past, I’ve been convicted that I spent time blogging when it would have been better spent doing something else (exercising, reading, teaching Grace, cleaning, etc.) So, I’m really trying to prioritize and be responsible. I’ve got several things stored in my head that I’ve been wanting to write about and hopefully I’ll have the time to do it soon.

This season in my life has been very full, and for that I am so thankful. God has opened up several opportunities for me to contribute to the family income, and so I’ve spent a lot of time lately in the kitchen baking and decorating cakes. Here’s my latest cake creation for a special baby shower:

Also, two friends have hired me to design and create draperies for their new homes! I got so excited over these projects, that it inspired me to redecorate my family room and kitchen! So, when I can find time, I’m sewing new curtains for all my windows and repainting my downstairs. I’ll be sure to post pictures when I’m done.

Next week is Spring Break, and Todd and I are planning a “staycation!” We’re going to use our season passes to Six Flags Over Texas and the science museum, go to a Dallas Mavericks basketball game, and visit the local parks, zoo, and botanical gardens. There are so many great things to do in the D/FW area…many of them free or almost free! I’m also going to use Spring Break as an opportunity to re-paint my kitchen and family room…including the kitchen cabinets. Eeek! I have a feeling it’s going to be a much bigger job than I’m anticipating.

I’m still enjoying babysitting part-time, and I’m REALLY going to miss Kie when he starts kindergarten next year!

Grace will go through withdrawal. They play so well together, and I rarely have to mediate or intervene. Since Kie is part of a family that loves musicals as much as me, he often asks to sing or watch my favorite movies. The other day, he asked me if I owned “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.” Um…YES!! It’s only my favorite movie EVER! I truly wish I had taken pictures of Grace and Kie trying to imitate the barn-raising dance scene. It was priceless.

We’ve made a decision about kindergarten for Grace next year, and it warrants an entire post, so my plan is to get that written later today. Blessings to you all!

Home Again

2010-02-19T14:55:00.001-06:00

Grace and I thoroughly enjoyed our trip down to Louisiana to visit my family. It was so good to see my sis-in-law and nieces before they traveled back to Hawaii. Grace and the girls played together the whole time they were together! And time with Mimi and Granddaddy is always exciting for us!

Unfortunately, when my sis-in-law arrived home to Hawaii after a long plane flight over the Pacific with two little ones, she discovered that her home had been infested by rats. Several things were eaten up and ruined including: a leather couch, mattress box springs, kitchen cabinetry, toys, shoes, and many other things. Apparently, paradise has it’s drawbacks. After Terminex, a cleaning company, and several nights in a hotel, they are safely back in their home…sans creepy critters.

The 9-hour drive back to Texas was uneventful, and I came to realize that long periods of time spent alone can be beneficial. (Grace was virtually invisible and stayed quiet with her movies and books). In addition to counting all the dead animals on the side of the road…109 to be exact…, I had time to ponder and think on things. Some of eternal significance, some petty. One of things I thought about was the direction I want to go with this blog. In addition to being a written scrapbook of sorts for my family, I’d like to do another book study or series of some kind…something about family, home, and/or parenting. I’m still trying to decide what to pick! Suggestions are welcome!

It took me several days to unpack and get back in the swing of things. I’m taking a Wilton cake decorating course right now which requires a lot of homework. Ironically, I’ve also gotten a sudden influx of cake requests. As we speak, I’ve got a cake the oven for a church anniversary party on Sunday. It’s the biggest order I’ve gotten…a sheet cake to feed 100 people! Next week I’m making a fancy baby shower cake and a 3-tier fondant cake! It’s a lot of work, and I’m not sure yet if this cake decorating endeavor will be worth the money, but it sure is fun! I’ll post pics as I finish.

Grace is under the weather. She woke up today with a nasty cough, fever, and vomiting. She also literally fell on her face yesterday while pretending to be a kitty cat and injured her front tooth. There was so much blood that the boy I babysit turned white and ran in the next room! After I got her cleaned up, Barbie and the Three Musketeers took her mind off the trauma while I called the dentist. Basically there’s nothing to do. Since the tooth is now pretty loose, it will probably fall out soon. She’ll get an x-ray in a couple of weeks at her next check-up to make sure there’s no damage to the permanent tooth underneath. I’m really looking forward to the sideways glances in the McDonald’s playground, “Don’t you take care of your kid’s teeth?” Ahh, parenthood.

This morning, despite the coughing, fever, vomiting, sore tooth, and swollen lips, she was the most dramatic about a hangnail. A hangnail. After she threw up for the third time in an hour, I asked her how she was feeling, and she said, “My finger still hurts, mama.” Bless. Her. Heart.

Visit With Cousins

2010-02-08T08:14:00.001-06:00

My sister-in-law Jaimie and her two girls flew from Hawaii to Louisiana to spend several weeks with her family while my brother is serving in Afghanistan. I was able to arrange my schedule to drive down to see them and stay with my parents! We picked an interesting weekend to visit…right in the middle of Mardi Gras and Saints Super Bowl festivities. I have never seen such commotion in mom and dad’s little town of Clinton!

The drive down was pretty rough. We experienced the most extensive rainstorm ever…in nine hours of driving, I turned my wipers OFF for about 5 minutes. Grace kept asking me, “Mama, is our car going to get stuck on the side of the road and will we stay in a hotel?” She, of course, was referring to The Tire Blowout on our last trip down at Thanksgiving.

Grace was so excited to see her cousins! They played so well together the whole time! Here are our precious girls Lila, Grace, and Emma:

We heard about the Mardi Gras parade on Saturday morning in the town square, so we bundled up and walked downtown. (Which in Clinton is at most a five minute walk from any given location). We arrived just in time to see the local motorcycle club ride in all their glory. Grace didn’t like the noise, and I didn’t like the exhaust, but it was quite entertaining. The festivities were late getting started and we were FREEZING cold, so we ended up going home before the parade.

However, Mimi had a great idea, and we had our own parade in the living room when we got back. We even opened the door so we could hear the Clinton High Marching Band in the background. The girls took turns throwing candy and plastic jewelry at each other while riding on a little car! They loved it and begged to do it the rest of the day. Grace is STILL talking about it (and asking me to do it with her). Good idea Mimi!

Jaimie and the girls are flying back to Hawaii today, so prayers are appreciated for their safe travel. Jaimie is due with their little girl Keira at the end of May, and Jon should (Lord willing) be home sometime in April.

Grace and I are going to stay a few more days and take advantage of some Mimi/Granddaddy time while daddy slaves away at work and school in Texas. (We miss you, Todd!) We’ve got some fun stuff planned for this week including a daytrip to Natchez, MS, church parties, and good cookin’.

And despite the fact that I cheered for the Colts and my boy Peyton last night, I am happy for the Saints. The loss was rubbed in when I had to endure celebratory fireworks while I was trying to go to sleep, but their win is an inspirational story. And New Orleans really needed one more reason to party this week. :)

Kindergarten Contemplations Part II

2010-02-06T00:09:00.001-06:00

Wow. I’ve had a lot of feedback since I posted our thoughts on kindergarten. I appreciate all the comments, e-mails, and words of wisdom from other moms out there! I enjoy hearing the experiences of other families who have faced similar decisions.

Here is where we are:

We will find out if Grace is accepted to the fine arts charter school in another month. The chances are pretty slim. It’s based on a lottery system, and there are a lot of families vying for a mere 14 open spots. If she is offered a spot, we will seriously consider allowing her to attend. My recent tour with the principal was very impressive, and we feel that Grace would be served well in the environment.

At this time, our hearts are leaning towards homeschool. I am feeling more comfortable with accepting this challenge, especially after hearing the testimonies of other families who have chosen this for their children. I’m reading books, doing lots of research on curriculum, and connecting with homeschool moms who are willing to share wisdom.

In preparation for the strong possibility of homeschool, I’m becoming more faithful about structured times of learning. I reorganized our supplies (workbooks, manipulatives, art and craft items) so everything is within easy reach. Grace is enjoying our “school-time” and begs to do it more often then I am able.

It’s comforting to know that we have two good options. We’ll make a decision next month after we find out if the charter school spot is available. Thanks for the prayers and thoughtful feedback!

R.I.P. Gateway J., 2006-2010

2010-01-30T19:26:00.006-06:00

Gateway J., the beloved laptop computer of Joanna J., died suddenly on January 30, 2010. She was only 3 1/2 years old.

Adopted from the local Best Buy store, Gateway J. grew up in a loving home. She was not the fastest and most technically advanced of her peers, but she faithfully tackled every job given to her. Her lifetime accomplishments include record-keeping for growing Avon and EBay businesses, family photo storage, and protection of an extensive recipe collection. Even at the end of a hard workday, Gateway J. was always willing to play a friendly game of Spider Solitaire. It is because of Gateway J. that this blog, Grace In The Home, came into existence.

Gateway J. was often seen as a companion for Joanna J. She loved to travel in a stylish bag and she enjoyed being seen at local Starbucks and Barnes & Noble stores. Her cheery desktop backgrounds always made people feel happy. She loved to entertain her big sister, Grace J., with preschool websites and activities.

Although her last year was spent in poorer health, Gateway J. had no interest in retiring. Her last official duty was publishing the blog article Kindergarten Contemplations.

A brief memorial service was held today in the Geek Squad waiting room, presided over by Gary, Senior Geek Squad Technician. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Gateway Motherboard Research Center.

Kindergarten Contemplations

2010-01-21T14:00:00.001-06:00

It’s hard to believe that I’m even writing this post because I am having difficulty with the fact that my baby will soon be old enough for school. It really doesn’t seem like five years since Todd and I held her in our arms and thanked God for her miraculous birth! And I’ve heard it only gets faster…

We have some big decisions coming up in the next couple of months about Grace’s education. There are so many things to consider. Of course, each option has both pros and cons, and we are prayerfully seeking the best choice for us.

Side note: This post is not meant to criticize any school or program. A parent’s right to determine the best education for their child(ren) is a highly personal and subjective matter. There is no right answer for everyone!

Todd and I have not made a final decision yet, but here are the options that are available and my thoughts on the matter:

1. LOCAL PUBLIC SCHOOL

PROS: I am a former employee of the current district in which we reside. I know a lot of people and I have a high level of confidence in the kindergarten program in our neighborhood school. This is obviously the easiest option for us to choose because it is FREE and CONVENIENT (a short walking distance from our home). It would be quite easy for me to become involved in the school. A few of Grace’s friends from church will be beginning this school in the fall, so she will see some familiar faces. It would also be nice to be a part of the local community in which we live.

CONS: The class size is large (up to 21) and Grace has a tendency to get lost in the crowd. She is rather quiet and reserved (until you get to know her), and she doesn’t bring a lot of attention to herself. I’m afraid that she might not get as much academic attention as she would in another option. Also, I’ve been in a lot of kindergarten classes and I’ve seen a lot of shocking things. Regardless of how excellent the teacher is, in a public classroom, Grace will be exposed to things I would rather her not see. I have no desire for her to grow up in a bubble, completely shut off from reality, but Todd and I have a responsibility to protect her as best we can.

2. LOCAL CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

PROS: Smaller class sizes and an emphasis on spiritual growth are the biggest advantages to this option. The academic rigor is also well-known. Many of our church friends attend and/or work in this school. The location is convenient (about 2-3 miles), and the area is very safe. Most of the families/employees in this school share similar values and I know it would be a great place for us to get involved and make new friends.

CONS: The main problem is cost. Private school is quite expensive, and in order for Grace to attend this school, I would need to go back to work. This is something that we are considering, but it is not ideal. When I resigned from public education three years ago to become a full-time homemaker, we realized that it was exactly what our family needed. That topic warrants an entire post, but everyone is happier since I stepped out of the workforce.

3. LOCAL FINE ARTS CHARTER SCHOOL

PROS: This is a relatively new charter school with an excellent reputation. The kindergarten class size is only 12, and there is an emphasis on fine arts: ballet, music, and art. This is right up Grace’s alley. Instead of one ballet class per week, she would receive classical ballet four days per week. The academic rigor is respectable as evidenced by high testing scores. The convenience is good (about 5 miles away) in a safe area. I have friends who have put their children in this school and are very happy. I am looking forward to a tour with the principal next Tuesday where I can learn more about the curriculum and see the learning in action. Another wonderful benefit is that this is a FREE option!

CONS: It is still a public school venue, and many of the challenges would be the same as in our local public school option. And, since Todd and I were both former fine arts teachers in a public school setting, I can say with some level of experience that artsy people are different. World views, philosophies, values, etc. are not always going to be consistent with what we are teaching her in our home. That’s not necessarily all bad, because it will provide opportunities for us to talk and teach her things from a biblical perspective. But we also feel a responsibility to surround Grace with like-minded friends and teachers to give her a solid foundation before she spreads her wings and flies off into the world!

4. HOMESCHOOL

This is the option that both excites and scares me the most. There are moments when I think, “I can do this! It’ll be fun!” And there are other moments when I tell myself, “No way. What if I do a terrible job? What if I forget to teach her something? What if …? What if…?” Anyway, here goes:

PROS: I honestly believe this is what Todd wants. For whatever reason, he thinks I will do a good job. I also believe that Grace would love it. She enjoys our times of reading and learning that we do together now, and I think that it could naturally progress into a more structured homeschool setting. The most obvious advantage to homeschooling is that Todd and I make the decisions about what and how to teach her: spiritually, educationally, etc. There is great freedom in the homeschool classroom, and I could tailor our program to meet her needs exclusively. There is a HUGE homeschool support system in our area, and many families that I esteem highly have chosen this path for their children. There are programs that I could take advantage of like co-op groups and TAFA (Travis Academy of Fine Arts), which is a fabulous fine arts education program for homeschool children in our area. There is also great flexibility in the homeschool schedule. I could decide to take a day to explore the local children’s museum or observe animals at the zoo or learn about Texas history at the Cowgirl Museum. In addition to standard kindergarten curriculum, I would have time to spend teaching her things that I love like cooking, sewing, music, etc.

CONS: My biggest fear is that I won’t do a good job. But, I guess it’s kind of like parenting: you seek God’s guidance through scripture and pray for the discipline to do what is right. Although I have moments of fear, I have finally come to a peace that if I approach this with a heart that is willing and eager to train Grace “the way she should go” (Prov. 22:6) that God will bless that endeavor. If we do choose to homeschool, then there will be the expense of curriculum, setting up a learning environment at home, and enrolling her in enrichment activities like athletics and/or dance. We would also pay for TAFA and memberships to places like museums, the zoo, etc. These expenses are minimal compared to the cost of private school, but they are expenses nonetheless. We also have concerns that Grace is an only child. She is naturally shy, although she seems to be gaining more confidence every day. We would counter this challenge and provide her opportunities for socialization through church, homeschool groups, TAFA, sports teams, ballet classes, etc.

I do have the added comfort of knowing that even if we make the “wrong” decision and our situation doesn’t work out, it’s not the end of the world. It’s not like we’re committing to one plan of education for the next 13 years! We can always re-evaluate and follow a different path on a future date.

As you can see, we have a lot to think and pray about. I would appreciate any words of wisdom or guidance from folks out there who have faced similar decisions. I realize that everyone’s situation is different, so please feel free to leave thoughts about your own experience!

A Lesson In Shoplifting

2010-01-21T11:16:00.001-06:00

Yesterday I witnessed a creative shoplifting technique at my local dollar store. Grace and I were in the back of the store perusing the Jet Dry Rinse Aids when a young man came over to look for an employee.

The kid was nervous and awkward and he started babbling about a neighboring dollar store that had just been robbed. We heard a detailed description of how the store had been closed and there were several cop cars in front. He had been trying to go to the other store to buy a microwave. (Yeah, right, the dollar store carries microwaves…)

Anyway, because of the sensational story he was telling, the front two employees wandered to the back to hear what was going on. The manager got out her cell phone and started trying to call the store that was (supposedly) being robbed.

With all the employees in a huddle in the back, the kid made his way back to the front of the store. I followed him and saw him walk up to the battery display and start stuffing his pockets. Then he slipped quickly out the door and ran off. I turned around to go back and tell the employees and I saw the manager walking up behind me. She had seen him take off through the window.

Grace and I heard all sorts of colorful descriptives from the infuriated manager…it was a classic “distract & rob” technique. I’ll admit that part of me wanted to take off running after the kid and drag him back to the store by his ear…it’s the band director coming out in me…or my Nana. Anyway, I just stood there and watched.

You have to admit the kid is pretty creative.

Quick Update

2010-01-14T10:40:00.001-06:00

I’ve been pretty busy lately, but I wanted to give a quick update about what’s going on with me and our family these days.

My exercise and healthy eating plan has been going well. I work out about an hour every day…treadmill, The Shred, or both. It’s been good to get back into a routine. My jeans were pretty tight at the end of our two-week Christmas vacation, and it’s nice to now be within two pounds of my lowest weight! It makes me excited about keeping up my good habits and perhaps seeing my goal this spring!

I’ve also embarked on a plan to read the Bible in 90 days. This challenge was given by our pastor, and many of my church friends are on this journey with me. I’ll admit that I’m behind about three days at this point, but I catch up a little more every day.

Grace is enjoying being back at home and going to her ballet class. Next Monday I will register her for kindergarten. Yikes! I can’t believe our baby is that old. We are attempting to get her into a local charter school of the arts. They enroll based on a blind lottery system, so we’ll find out mid-March whether her number was drawn. If not, there are many other options that we are continuing to explore.

Todd is back at work as a high school administrator. He is preparing for the spring testing season as well as a huge career fair that he organizes. His doctoral classes will begin again next week, so he stays pretty busy as well.

My blogging has taken a backseat among all our activities, but I will try to update at least once per week about family news, diet, and exercise goals. And if anyone wants to join me in my goal to read the Bible in 90 days, let me know in the comment section! It’s been a blessing so far, and I’d love to hear other people’s feedback about the journey!

Christmas Break

2010-01-05T21:35:00.001-06:00

Hello blog world! I’ve missed everyone. The last couple of weeks have been filled with family, traveling, and spotty internet connections.

Over the last two weeks, we have:

driven 2435.7 miles across eight states
celebrated Grace’s actual 5th birthday
visited Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, TN
spent Christmas with Todd’s mom and other relatives on his family farm in Bedford, VA
rung in the New Year with my grandmother in Gadsden, AL
celebrated my 35th birthday (gulp!)

We had a good trip, but I’ll admit there’s nothing like using your own shower and tumbling into your own bed when you get home after traveling.

I’m happy to report that Grace has reached “professional traveler” status…she was happy 99% of the time. She watched Barbie in A Christmas Carol about 47 times, read books, played her Leapster, sang “Mary and Joseph” about 2549 times in every possible vocal range and key, and entertained us with stories.

We are so thankful for God’s protection on the road during all our driving! And our awesome 1996 Isuzu Oasis minivan is truckin’ along quite comfortably at 229,000 miles! Gotta love it.

For my Christmas/birthday present, my sweet husband bought me an iPhone! It is SO INCREDIBLE. I am so comforted to know that I’LL NEVER BE LOST AGAIN. And who knew there were so many opportunities in the day to catch a quick game of Bejeweled Blitz? And imagine my delight when I discovered I can check the weather, pay a bill, or update my Facebook status in a matter of seconds? Thank you, honey!

I wish I had some good pictures to post from our trip, but I haven’t figured out yet how to transfer pictures from my iPhone to my computer. I’m still looking for the iPhone for Dummies book.

Life is slowing back down a little now, so I’m looking forward to getting back into a routine with housekeeping, babysitting, church, blogging, diet, exercise, etc. My plan is to start The Shred again tomorrow (ouch). My jeans got a little tighter during our trip, and I need to get back on track with my health goals. Can I get an “amen?”

If I can lift my fingers enough to type tomorrow after Jillian Michaels kicks my you-know-what, I’ll share a few things about our vacation…which thankfully didn’t involve any roadside assistance or questionable hotel rooms this time.

Grace’s 5th Birthday

2009-12-21T22:51:00.001-06:00

Happy Birthday sweet girl! Five years ago today our lives changed forever. How thankful we are for the gift of our precious daughter!

This year we are spending the holidays with Todd’s mom in Tennessee, so we celebrated her birthday at our favorite place…Dollywood!

But first, we had to open a few presents after breakfast. A car for Malibu Barbie!

The Snow White DVD that she’s been wanting for weeks!

She also received an Ariel bathtime toy, a beautiful ballerina ornament, Sleeping Beauty pajamas, and several books.

After a quick lunch, we left for Dollywood’s Christmas Extravaganza. It was awesomely beautiful with over 3.5 million lights all over the park. It was fun to share this special day with Nan (Todd’s mom).

We saw fabulous shows, rode rides, watched a parade, and enjoyed the holiday decorations. It was freezing, but Grace didn’t seem to mind. The Smoky Mountains had a coating of snow at the high elevations, and Christmas was in the air. As usual, the park was immaculately clean and the staff was entertaining and always in character!

Here is Todd and Grace on the ferris wheel.

After a fun and busy day, we ate dinner at our favorite Pigeon Forge restaurant, Calhoun’s Steakhouse. Everyone, including Grace, was ravenous after walking around in Arctic temperatures for several hours, and we enjoyed a relaxing meal. The wait staff sang “Happy Birthday” to Grace (much to her delight), and gave her a free hot fudge sundae.

We watched Snow White in the car on the way home, and tucked a happy little girl into bed around 10:00!

Tomorrow we’re driving to Todd’s family farm in Bedford, Virginia. There is already 18 inches of snow on the ground with more expected by Christmas, so Grace is looking forward to building a snowman for the first time! There is little to no internet access at the farm, so it might be a week or so until my next post.

I wish everyone a very merry Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

Wedding Weekend

2009-12-20T22:29:00.001-06:00

We had a fun-filled and busy weekend, full of sweet family and friends celebrating the marriage of Cal and Claire. Last summer, they asked Grace to be the flower girl, and Grace has been eagerly anticipating the moment ever since she realized that she would wear a princess tiara for the ceremony!

Of course, we spent quite a while explaining to her that CLAIRE AND CAL were getting married, not HER. Whoa. Please put on the brakes about 30 years!

Anyway, Thursday night was Claire’s bachelorette party, and I had tons of fun making a few treats for the girls to enjoy. Here are my wedding cake pops. It’s white brandied cake dipped in white chocolate candy on a lollipop stick! I couldn’t resist adding the candy pearls and tiny poinsettias.

And here’s the main cake. It’s devil’s food with chocolate truffle filling, covered in fondant to look like a lingerie gift box!

Friday night was the rehearsal. We took a few pictures before we left the house. I don’t think the basket left her hand all night…she loved it.

Here she is with beautiful Claire at the rehearsal.

We took time during a break for a quick family photo. I’m not sure what Todd and I are looking at. We can just never seem to get a good photo, which is why nobody’s getting a Christmas card again this year. Well, that and because I’m a terrible procrastinator.

Now it’s Saturday and we’re getting ready before the wedding. I got dizzy after a while watching her twirl around constantly in her “princess dress” in front of the mirror.

Here she is before the ceremony with Cal, the eager groom.

Another blurry, failed attempt to get a good picture for a last-minute Christmas card.

Minutes before the wedding….

After much prayer, stress, and anxiety, I was relieved that she did great during her walk down the aisle! She smiled, walked slowly, and threw the flowers perfectly. She also did great with all the pictures and did everything the photographer asked her to do. We were so thankful and happy that she enjoyed herself!

And here she is after the ceremony holding her audience captive with a highly entertaining story, I’m sure…

I’m sorry to say that I don’t have any pictures of the beautiful reception because there were no Kodak moments. Our sweet flower girl reached her sweet and obedient limit for the day and was in no mood to dance or party. I didn’t take pictures of anybody or anything else at the reception because I was dealing with her dramatic mood shift. We decided to call it a night around 9:30 and go home to get her in bed after a long and exhausting day.

What a complete pleasure it was for our family to be involved in such a wonderful, God-honoring union of two precious people. We wish Cal and Claire many wonderful years together as they build a family of faith.

Grace’s 5th Birthday Party!

2009-12-14T15:07:00.001-06:00

It’s so hard to believe our little girl turns five years old this month. It seems like just yesterday we were changing diapers and teaching her how to walk. I’ve heard the passage of time only gets faster, which is both grievous and exciting. We love each new phase of her life. Watching her grow up and mature is so special, yet sometimes we want to just put on the brakes and hold her close, forcing her to stay that little girl snuggled on our lap!

On Saturday, we invited ten little girls from her Sunday School class over to our home for a cupcake-decorating party! It was loads of fun and worth all the effort and preparation!

My precious friend Joy came over early to help me prepare the food. I couldn’t have done it without her!

Here’s a picture of the lunch spread. I served peanut butter sandwiches, turkey sandwiches, chips and dip, a veggie tray, an AWESOME fruit tree (with marshmallow dip) that Joy put together, cupcake pops, and birthday cake.

After eating lunch, each friend got a baker’s hat to decorate with foamies and stickers! I also sewed each little girl a cupcake apron as a party favor.

Then we decorated cupcakes with endless toppings and sprinkles! If only I had a dollar for each sprinkle that ended up on the floor after the party!

I had fun making her birthday cake! She wanted a giant cupcake-themed cake with polka dots! Chocolate, of course!

After opening some sweet gifts from her friends, the girls went in the backyard to jump in a big bounce house! It was really fun and had a basketball goal on the inside.

Grace had a BLAST at her party. It was perfect for her, and we’re so thankful for all her little girlfriends from church that helped make it so special!

Christmas Goings-On

2009-12-14T14:37:00.001-06:00

I’ve been pretty busy lately with parties, Christmas baking, and entertaining. I love this time of year, and it gives me so much joy to cook and host people in our home. But it’s severely limited my time to read or write blog posts, play Bejeweled Blitz on Facebook, and catch up on DVR’d episodes of Monk and The Closer. You know, the important things in life.

Anyway, I’ll start with my precious Pre-K/Kinder Choir at my church. We had our annual Christmas program last Sunday night, and here’s a picture of us warming up and giving last instructions before singing. You can see that Grace is practicing her “asleep on the hay” choreography.

How cute are these kiddos? I’ll admit that it was a tough sell to get some of my little guys to wear a white frock with a big red bow, but when I sold it as “Superman’s Special Christmas Cape”, most were eager to wear it!

They walked down the long aisles of our church with tea light candles and sang beautifully. I was very proud of them!

Later in the week, I had the pleasure of catering the desserts for Todd’s Faculty Christmas Luncheon. Here’s a picture of the spread:

The cake in the back is a yellow cake with almond buttercream. It has a fondant poinsettia on the top. The snowflake cake is red velvet with cream cheese frosting. The cupcakes are also red velvet with cream cheese frosting. The Merry Christmas cake is devil’s food with espresso buttercream filling. They were all fun to make and I’m glad I could do something for his staff, which is full of really great people!

We also had some special guests spend the weekend with us. The Bakers came down from Oklahoma to stay with us and attend our church’s Christmas music program last night with guest artist Scot Cameron. Unfortunately, Grace came down with bronchitis and I had to stay home with her. (More on that later). But staying at home with Grace gave me extra time to visit with our guests and play a few extra games of Rummicub!

So far, December has been a whirlwind. Things are slowing down a little this week. We’re looking forward to our friend Claire’s wedding this weekend! Not only do we get to rejoice in the union of two precious souls, but Grace has her big debut as a flower girl!

Monkey Business

2009-12-07T17:08:00.001-06:00

The other night, Todd invited us to his school’s basketball game. We met him for dinner beforehand at a restaurant close to the school. There was a man walking around who was giving balloon animals to the children for “kid’s night”, and we fell in love with this special creation for Grace:

Have you ever seen a more intricate balloon toy? In case you can’t tell from my superior picture-taking abilities, it’s a monkey climbing a banana tree. That guy had serious skills. It was quite the hit at the 9th grade basketball game later that evening.

Todd’s team won the game, and Grace had fun watching the cheerleaders and the kangaroo mascot. She even wanted to hug the ‘roo after the game, which was a major milestone. She normally wants nothing to do with costumed characters of any kind. It really made us want to take her to Disneyworld!

Christmas Cookies

2009-12-07T16:53:00.001-06:00

Grace and I were invited to a Christmas Tea at our pastor’s home last weekend, and we had fun making these special treats to carry with us!

The most challenging task was keeping Todd’s paws off of them before the party! He was quite happy to see that we brought a few back home that afternoon.

These are actually semi-homemade. Betty Crocker’s sugar cookie mix is pretty good and so easy to make. We decorated them with royal icing and sprinkles!

Christmas Party

2009-12-05T23:31:00.001-06:00

Last night, Todd and I went to his faculty Christmas party. Grace had a princess party at her good friend Aurora’s house while we enjoyed a rare night out alone!

We tried to take a picture with the timer on our camera, and this was the best we could get.

It was a potluck party, so I enjoyed preparing a couple of things. First, my friend Therese’s Tex-Mex Cheese Ball recipe is amazing. Seriously, it’s the best cheese ball I’ve ever tasted. I added my little twist by shaping it into a Christmas tree and rolling it in cilantro. Then I decorated it with an almond garland and red pepper ornaments! A cheese star was the finishing touch.

Tex-Mex Cheese Ball

2 pkg. (8 oz. each) cream cheese – softened

3 green onions, chopped

1 c. grated sharp cheddar cheese

3 tbsp. taco seasoning mix

1/4 c. salsa

1 c. pecans, chopped and toasted

2 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped

Chopped almonds and red peppers for garnish

Mix first six ingredients together and chill until firm. Shape into a Christmas tree shape and roll in chopped cilantro. Garnish with almonds, peppers, and a cheese star. Serve with crackers.

The latest edition of the Food Network Magazine had a great section on Christmas cookies. I made the Chunky Christmas Cookies and they didn’t disappoint! They weren’t kidding when they named them “chunky” because it’s basically a ton of candy and chips barely held together by cookie dough.

We had a lot of fun and I enjoyed meeting all the good folks that work with Todd. We even ~~lost miserably at~~ played pool for a while. The last time I played pool was 1992…Howard’s…Samford U. Any bulldogs out there remember?

Visit with Mimi and Granddaddy

2009-12-04T10:12:00.001-06:00

When the day finally arrived for us to leave on our Thanksgiving trip to my parents’ home, Grace could barely contain her excitement! When I started loading the car, she jumped up in her booster seat and got situated.

It reminded me of all the times we loaded our big blue bear van when I was a kid…traveling to Gadsden, AL to visit the grandparents. I would stake my claim on the left captain’s chair and dare my brothers to cross the imaginary line. Everything (snacks, books, games, drinks) were situated no more than an arm’s length away in order to maximize convenience…much like I do now when I sit on the couch to watch The Biggest Loser.

Here is Mimi reading Grace a book before bed on the night we arrived after our memorable adventure on the road.

One of the sweetest moments was listening to Granddaddy and Grace make beautiful music together! Well, beautiful to my ears! I love watching Grace play my childhood piano.

My parents also took Grace and Vincent to Chuck E. Cheese’s one afternoon, but for some reason my camera won’t upload those pictures. It was REALLY crowded, but we still had fun.

We had a great time during our quick Thanksgiving trip, and we can’t wait to go back soon. Grace and I are planning a road trip for January or February to visit my sis-in-law Jaimie and my two beautiful nieces, who are visiting for a few months from Hawaii while my brother Jon is serving in Afghanistan.

Dad had already left for church on Sunday morning, so we didn’t get a dressed-up picture with him, but here’s one last sweet picture with Mimi.

Fun With Cousin Vincent

2009-12-04T09:49:00.001-06:00

My sweet sis-in-law Audra surprised us over Thanksgiving and brought Vincent for a visit to my parents’ home during the holiday! Grace and Vincent hadn’t seen each other since June, and they picked right up where they left off. So sweet.

I don’t remember correcting them much at all…they played perfectly together. They shared the tricycle, played Nerf guns with Uncle Todd, and entertained themselves around the house while Audra and I helped Mom in the kitchen. It was so much fun! Here they are playing race cars in the hallway.

Before church on Sunday, they enjoyed exploring Mimi’s garden, looking for frogs.

One of my sorrows in life is that my family is literally spread all over the globe. It’s hard to accept that Grace only sees her grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles only once or twice per year (if that). So I really appreciate Audra making an unplanned trip to see us last week!

We love you!

Nonexistent Milestones

2009-12-01T08:54:00.001-06:00

Well, I gained a little over a pound this past week, and I must say that it was totally worth it. I ate mostly healthy foods for my meals, but I interspersed it with lots of tastings and a couple of indulgences.

While we were visiting my parents’ home for the holiday, mom and I spent most of our time in the kitchen doing what we do best: cooking for the people that we love. My parents are hosting three holiday brunches/parties in their home, and there was LOTS of preparation to be done.

In addition to the traditional Thanksgiving cooking that we did on Wednesday/Thursday, we made the following treats for upcoming parties:

Blackberry Cream Cheese French Toast Casserole
Banana Crumb Muffins
Fiesta Scrambled Eggs
Cheese Grits
Several pounds of bacon and sausage
four recipes of Stained Glass Cookies
a TON of Creme de Menthe Cheesecake Lollipops dipped in white chocolate and covered in crushed grasshopper fudge cookies
White Chocolate Cashew Bark
other stuff that I can’t remember

Mom and I did take the time to exercise one morning, but it wasn’t enough to avoid THE GAIN. Oh, well. I’m hitting the treadmill hard again this week.

Maybe someday I’ll look back and laugh. Or at least chuckle.

2009-11-25T07:24:00.001-06:00

I have an idea for a future way that government officials can get captured terrorists to talk: feed them truck stop BBQ, make them drink a 42 oz. Diet Coke, then park them on a backwoods interstate highway with a bored preschooler that “needs to go poopie” for four hours. They’ll talk.

But since this is the Thanksgiving holiday, I’ll begin with what I am thankful for.

Nobody was hurt. When our tire blew out, Todd handled the car beautifully and got us to the side of the road safely.
There are good Samaritans in the world. Several people stopped and offered to help.
One of our cell phones was fully charged.
We had a full tank of gas and could keep the car running to stay warm. (And keep the DVD player going for Grace.)
Our insurance company, GEICO, is great.
Despite the “no bathroom” issue, Grace was good and looked upon this whole circumstance as one big adventure. High maintenance, but sweet.

I began yesterday morning by getting the car serviced in preparation for our trip. Everything looked fine and the car technician, who knows our car pretty well from periodic oil changes, expressed again his amazement at how well our 14-year-old, 225,000 mile van has held up over the years. Pride goeth before the fall, folks.

Around Longview, we started feeling a slight rumble when we hit higher speeds. We pulled over (to a truck stop BBQ joint) and inspected the car. Things looked fine, so we thought maybe it was the bumpy road and our imagination. After our meal, we got back on the road. The noise got worse and the car got shakier as we drove through Shreveport. Right after we got on I-49, there was a tremendous noise that was obviously a blowout. Todd carefully maneuvered the car to the side. (Thanks, hon!)

Upon inspection, the tire was completely shattered. Beyond repair. We dug out the spare tire and car jack from the trunk and Todd went to work. I went back in the car and dealt with the endless exclamations of how Grace needed to go poopie.

It took Todd well over an hour to change the tire due to a terrible jack and a spare tire that hadn’t seen the light of day since 1996, which ended up being completely flat and undriveable. Also, the mud flap was hanging by thread and part of the back section of our car was coming off.

It was about this time that I was really regretting my decision to never be a Girl Scout. Do they teach you how to go to the bathroom in the woods?

Todd got on the phone and called our insurance company. Since we were in the middle of nowhere, they had a hard time finding a tow company that would be willing to come get us. They would call us back.

And now we wait. Todd met several good folks who stopped and asked to help. Unless they had a Port-A-Potty hidden in their trunk, there wasn’t much they could do.

After a while, a friendly state trooper stopped and offered assistance. He suggested some good tow companies, but we were still waiting to hear from GEICO. They called back while we were talking and said they had found someone in Bossier City who would be there in an hour.

Since it was a slow night, the trooper kept us company. He and Todd talked shop while I changed the movie in the DVD player and started our M&M extravaganza to try and keep Grace’s mind off the lack of facilities.

After waiting forever, we got a call from an over-friendly GEICO agent that the tow truck broke down. That’s right, folks. We were back to square one. Enter more M&M’s and another new DVD movie. And contemplations of how to teach a 4-yr-old girl to squat in the woods when you don’t even know how to do it.

After a while, GEICO called back to say a tow truck had been located in Mansfield, LA, and would be there within another hour. While sitting in the car, the following conversation took place:

Grace: “Mommy, I want to tell you a secret.”

Me: “What is it?”

Grace: (leaning into my ear) “Did you know we are stuck in the grass?”

Me: (chuckling) “Yes, we’re stuck in the grass because the tire broke.”

Grace: (glancing sideways at Todd and pointing) “Yeah, it’s because Daddy wasn’t driving straight.”

After Todd and I erupted in laughter, we explained that we weren’t stuck because of daddy’s driving skills, but because of the tire. But in her mind, the car broke because daddy started swerving wildly (when the tire blew). I love kids’ perceptions of things.

Eventually the tow truck guy, Nash, arrived on the scene and was greeted by much overjoyed whooping and hollering (on Grace’s part). I attribute her reaction to a sugar rush caused by approximately 637 M&M’s.

I got Grace situated in the back seat of the tow truck while Todd and Nash loaded up the van. We soon got on the road. Nash was very hospitable and offered us a wide assortment of Honey Buns and Little Debbie snacks, which we declined due to the aforementioned sugar rush. We drove 40 miles to Natchitoches, listening to Nash describe his restored 1969 Chevelle like a proud new parent. Todd pretended to be interested while I pretended to be asleep.

We arrived at the Econo Lodge Inn & Suites with visions of a toilet in our future. Todd quickly unloaded all our stuff from the van while I got us checked in. Grace and I headed to the room while Todd went with Nash to drop off the van at the repair place. My sweet parents arranged for a friend to come pick up Todd from the hotel this morning and transport him to the repair shop when it opened.

The girl at the front desk laughed when Todd inquired about shuttle service or a cab. I guess she felt sorry for us because she upgraded us to a suite, complete with a mirrored bed with a broken vibrating feature. I can only assume it was the honeymoon suite.

Todd left early this morning to deal with the van, and Grace and I are getting ready to explore our food options at the hotel’s continental breakfast. Lord willing, we’ll be on the road again soon. Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

Monday Milestones

2009-11-23T10:39:00.001-06:00

I had a pretty good week overall. I worked out hard five days and ate well most of the time. I did cheat when we took Grace to Six Flags on Saturday and a birthday party yesterday. But I guess all the walking around the park balanced things out and I was able to lose one pound this week.

That brings me to 65 pounds lost since I began my journey last February. I’ve still got 25-30 pounds to go, and I’ll admit it’s getting harder towards the end. The weight seemed to come off so easily when I first started, and now it’s more frustratingly slow.

I’m actually not too worried about Thanksgiving week and overeating. We’ve planned healthy meals, and I’m going to enjoy everything we are cooking. As long as I don’t have a gain next Monday, I’ll be happy!

Fleur de Lis Cake

2009-11-22T20:11:00.001-06:00

My good friend Estelle had a birthday party today, and I had the privilege of making her a special cake! She loves fleur-de-lis and all things New Orleans Saints, so that was the theme I picked to surprise her.

She wanted a dark chocolate cake with cream cheese icing. Yum! I made homemade fondant to cover the cake, then colored it gold for the diamond work. Each diamond was then hand painted with gold dust. For the fleur-de-lis and black balls, I started with chocolate fondant and added black food coloring. I traced the pattern, cut carefully, and attached it all with icing.

It was a LOT of fun to make, and thankfully she loved it! My cake business has picked up a little lately with orders for Christmas, so me know soon if you are interested in a special creation for your next celebration!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ESTELLE! You’ve always been such a sweet friend to me. I’m so thankful that our paths crossed all those years ago when we taught band together. You are caring and supportive. You are inspirational and energizing. When I’m around you, my spirits are lifted. I know that I can ALWAYS count on you! Love ya!

Going Green With Baby Steps

2009-11-19T15:27:00.001-06:00

About six months ago, I bought some really cute reusable shopping bags from Central Market. They sat in the bottom of my pantry for four months. I pulled them out and took them on my weekly shopping trips a few times, forgetting to take them into the store half the time.

When I learned that most grocery stores will give you a small credit for using reusable bags, I made a concerted effort to remember every week, but I still found myself forgetting about them in my pantry. When my mom came to visit a few weeks ago, she suggested just keeping them in my car. (Hello! Why didn’t I think of that?!)

Now I use them every time I shop. I even use them at places like Walgreens, CVS, Hobby Lobby, and Michaels. In addition to not using plastic bags anymore, it’s easier to carry my groceries in the house…more stuff fits in the reusable bags.

I also (gasp!) started buying recycled trash bags. They work just as well as traditional trash bags, and cost just about the same when I combine coupons/sales.

I haven’t quite joined the “organic only” produce bandwagon, but if given the choice with a comparable or slightly higher price, I’ll buy organic. This is a good article that explains the benefits (health and environmental) of buying organic produce. It also suggests the top 12 fruits/veggies to buy organic, based on residual pesticide percentages.

If you are thinking of using reusable bags, here’s an assorted 5-pack of really cute designer bags for $14.95 on Amazon. Who wouldn’t want to go shopping with such a stylish bag?

Over The Top

2009-11-17T18:15:00.001-06:00

My bloggy friend Kim gave me this award today because she thinks my blog is over the top! She’s a sweet woman who has gone through the journey of infertility and is now entering the land of adoption. If you have time, pop on over and visit her blog, Thoughts By Kim.

Here are the rules:

USE ONLY ONE WORD! It’s not as easy as you might think. Copy and change the answers to suit yourself and pass it on. It’s really hard to use only one-word answers so try your best.

Once you’re done tag 6 other bloggers and let them know that you think they are ‘Over the Top’!

» Where is your cell phone? Purse
» Your hair? Ponytail
» Your mother? Fun
» Your father? Kind
» Your favorite food? Fries
» Your dream last night? Strange
» Your favorite drink? Coke
» Your dream/goal? SAHM
» What room are you in? Living
» Your hobby? Baking
» Your fear? Loss
» Where do you want to be in 6 years? Happy
» Where were you last night? Home
» Something that you aren’t? Spontaneous
» Muffins? Banana
» Wish list item? Cruise
» Where did you grow up? Crowley
» Last thing you did? Cook
» What are you wearing? Pajamas
» Your TV? Up (the movie)
» Your pets? None!
» Friends? Amazing
» Your life? Fun
» Your mood? Content
» Missing someone? Yes
» Vehicle? Minivan
» Something you’re not wearing? Jewelry
» Your favorite store? Hobby Lobby
» Your favorite color? Pink
» When was the last time you laughed? Today
» Last time you cried? Today (watching ‘Up’)
» Your best friend? Mom
» One place that you go to over and over? Church
» One person who emails you regularly? Todd
» Favorite place to eat? Genghis Grill

I tag:

Nicole @ Here’s The Diehl

Lindsey @ The Lewisi

Claire @ Claire’s Novels and Cal’s Footnotes

Sarah @ Barren In The Promised Land

Crystal @ Not My Steps

Larry @ Larry Thompson

Monday Milestones

2009-11-16T13:51:00.001-06:00

Well, I lost that pesky pound from last week! I’ve been on a roll with my exercise for the past few days, and I hope to build my endurance back up to where it was before I caught the head/chest cold. My mornings are looking pretty light, so I’m going to make myself work out EVERY day. I really want to move my ticker down next week!

I’ve been getting myself in the mindset for the holidays. We’re spending Thanksgiving with my parents, and my mom and I have already planned a diet-friendly menu: turkey/stuffing pinwheels, roasted vegetables, green beans, and lightened up sweet potatoes. We’re still contemplating a special low-calorie dessert, so feel free to comment if you want to share a tasty recipe with us!

I’ll be doing a LOT of baking over the next few weeks. I have several cake orders, cookie exchanges, and holiday treats to make to give as gifts. I think the key for me will be to keep plenty of fruits and HMR shakes to snack on, drink lots of water, and plan my meals carefully in order to not be ravenous at a given time. Being really hungry is when it’s easy to just grab the closest/easiest thing, healthy or not. I’ve got to keep myself fed the right stuff and stay consistent with my exercise!

Princess For A Day

2009-11-13T15:42:00.001-06:00

Grace has been doing great on stopping her thumb-sucking habit. I haven’t seen her do it in several weeks! Last time we visited the dentist, he encouraged us to start trying to kick the habit…she’ll need braces regardless due to her mama’s genetic overbite, but stopping the thumb-sucking will curb the work that needs to be done.

I spoke to several friends to get suggestions about kicking the habit. I still have nightmares about that horrible-tasting stuff that my mom put on my thumb as a child, and I only wanted to do that as a last resort. Here are the two techniques that worked for us:

Provide a replacement item that is held in the thumb-sucking hand at night. For us, it was a poodle dog beanie baby that “sleeps” under her pillow at night. She holds Duchess with her right hand and keeps it under her pillow, far away from her mouth.
Offer an incentive when she consistently demonstrates kicking the habit. For us, it is nail polish on her fingers. We told her that she cannot put nail polish in her mouth, so she can only get her fingernails painted when she doesn’t suck her thumb. After a few days of not sucking her thumb, we made a big production of going to CVS and picking out her favorite nail polish color!

Only one time have I needed to take off her nail polish because I caught her sucking her thumb. It was quite traumatic for her, but I made the point! She hasn’t done it since.

To celebrate several weeks of being thumb-free, we made our first visit to a nail salon! For only $5, my local salon made her feel like a princess. They cut, shaped, polished, and applied two sparkle flowers to her thumbs! Although I nixed the bright neon green polish she picked out at first, she was in awe the whole time, perfectly happy and perfectly still!

When we got home, she wanted to put on her Cinderella dress and pose! Her favorite new place is the “painting store!”

Cupcake Pops

2009-11-12T09:33:00.001-06:00

Grace is having a cupcake-themed birthday party in a few weeks! We are so excited…it’s the first time we’ve hosted a party for her with friends here in Texas. We’re inviting about ten girls from her Sunday School and ballet class. Part of the activities will include cupcake decorating! To work with the theme, I decided to practice making these cute cupcake pops that I found while searching the internet for ideas. Click here to get the instructions from one of my favorite blogs, Bakerella.

I found the lollipop stand at Michael’s. They turned out really well and were fairly easy to make! The basic technique is: bake a 9x12 cake, crumble it into fine pieces, mix in 1 1/2 cups of frosting, shape, and dip into candy melts. I chose to put lollipop sticks in these, but they’re just as cute sitting on a plate as petit fours. Grace and the other kids that I babysit had fun helping me make them!

For this particular batch, I made coconut cake with coconut frosting on the inside.

Side note: I am all about SEMI-HOMEMADE cakes. You just can’t beat a boxed cake mix, especially when you enhance it with flavorings or add-ins. They are better because the boxed mixes use cake flour instead of regular flour. When mixing up my cake pops, I used pear juice instead of water and added coconut flavoring to the batter. I stirred in more coconut flavoring in the tub of icing before adding it to the crumbled cake.

The end result is a moist and flavorful cake with a creamy chocolate coating!

People have asked how I’ve managed to lose 64 pounds over the past few months while starting a cake decorating business. The answer is that I’m simply not tempted by cake. I’ve never been a huge cake fan…as a child, I even refused birthday cakes. (If I ever opened a french fry business, I’d be in trouble!)

However, after I did a taste test, I liked these so much that I sent them with Todd to put in his teacher workroom and get them out of my house!

Give and Get Event

2009-11-11T09:47:00.001-06:00

The Give & Get Event is happening again at Gap, Old Navy, and Banana Republic this Thursday, November 12th through Sunday, November 15th!

Print off this coupon for 30% off your total bill, including clearance merchandise! As an added bonus, 5% of your total will be donated to the charity of your choice:

Donors Choose
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society
Feeding America
Care
Teach For America
Service Nation

Just for fun, I’m listing some of my favorite items!

From Old Navy…

I adore this Wool-Blend Bell-Sleeved Coat. It is fully lined and hits at the knee. The camel color goes with everything…casual to dressy! Although it retails for $99.50, with the in-store sale and this coupon, you can get it for $34.83.

This Ruffled Hoodie is the perfect thing to grab when you are cold around the house or need to quickly run to the store. Cozy and cute, it comes in a variety of bright colors. With the coupon, you can get it for $17.15.

From The Gap…

Love the plaid. Love the shape. Love everything about this Wool-Blend Plaid Dress. A fitted jacket or cardigan could be worn over it for cooler weather…if cooler weather ever decides to come and stay around here! With coupon, it comes to $41.65.

I couldn’t leave Gap Kids off the list, so this is a cute girls’ sweater dress that would look adorable with a pair of leggings and boots. With coupon, it is available for $24.50.

From Banana Republic…

I love the simplicity and elegance of this Twist Wrap Dress. The cut would flatter almost any body type in a timeless design. If I’m spending money on a nice dress, I want something I could wear for many years…not the latest fad. With coupon, you could wear this to a holiday party for $87.50.

The coupon is good in stores for 30% off your total purchase, including clearance merchandise! Happy shopping!

Deployment

2009-11-10T09:25:00.001-06:00

My sweet brother Jon is leaving today for another deployment to the Middle East. This time he will be in Afghanistan for several months. He leaves behind his pregnant wife, 3-yr-old, and 1-yr-old daughters.

It’s at times like this that I find it difficult to obey God’s command not to worry, especially when I’m constantly bombarded with media coverage of the atrocities that are happening over there (and here!). But part of walking in faith is trusting that God’s plan is working just as it should, no matter how difficult or worrisome it seems.

We all covet your prayers for Jon and his family during this lengthy time of service. Specifically, you can pray for protection for Jon and his entire Marine unit, a healthy pregnancy for his wife, and comfort for each member of their family during his absence.

I also encourage you to continue to lift in prayer all members of our military who give such great personal sacrifice to ensure our freedom to live as we do. Here in Texas, our national and state flags are being flown at half-mast because of the terrible Ft. Hood tragedy. It is a constant reminder of the force of evil that is at work in this world.

Thank you, veterans, for your works of service to this country.

Monday Milestones

2009-11-09T13:46:00.001-06:00

Horrors. I gained a pound this week. I was hit with a terrible head/chest cold that knocked the wind out of me, therefore I didn’t step on the treadmill or do any “Shredding” this week. I figured if I couldn’t breathe sitting on the couch watching “Dancing With The Stars”, then I would end up in the hospital if I tried to keep my appointment with Jillian Michaels.

Anyway, in addition to limited physical activity (other than extreme shopping with my mom), I also ate out several times. Even though I made good choices and counted all my calories, my sodium intake was pretty high and that contributed to my gain.

Sigh…

Hopefully this will be a better week.

Visit With Mimi and Granddaddy

2009-11-07T08:22:00.001-06:00

The past few days have been busy and fun. My parents came in for a quick visit and stayed with us while dad had some work meetings in a nearby town. Unfortunately, a ferocious head cold decided to visit me at the same time, but I didn’t let it stop me from doing as much as I could with mom!

On Thursday and Friday I was a feeling a little better, so we had marathon shopping days! Several items were on our lists:

a dress for Grace for Claire’s rehearsal dinner
shoes for a fancy dress that mom’s wearing on a cruise in a few weeks
Central Market bulk spices
slip-on casual shoes for Grace
weekly grocery shopping
wedding and baby shower gifts
Christmas gifts

In our adventures, I discovered a new love: DSW Shoe Warehouse. I can’t believe I’ve never been in this store before yesterday! What a gold mine of beautiful, name-brand shoes. Mom and I spent the majority of our time at the clearance racks. It’s amazing…hundreds of shoes on clearance, and they are ALL beautiful. No junk. I found a pair of Cole Haan red dress shoes similar to the ones below that were gorgeous.

I didn’t buy them, but boy do I understand why people pay so much money for them. How often can you step into a pair of 4.5 inch heels and feel like you could run a marathon? They were SO comfortable. The original price was $269.00. They were almost 50% off on the clearance racks, marked at $139.00. Then, you take an additional 40% off for a take-home price of $83.00. Totally worth it, but still out of my price range.

Anyway, mom did find a beautiful pair of gold dress shoes to go with her black dress. We also stumbled on a pair of red dress shoes for $20 that we are both going to wear to Christmas parties. Mom will wear them first, then mail them to me along with a pair of black heels I’m letting her borrow!

Mom and Dad went home this morning, but we’ll look forward to seeing them soon at Thanksgiving. One of my great sorrows is living far away. Mom and I never get done all the things we want to do together! And Grace LOVES being around them so much. But we're thankful for the visits that we have several times per year. God is good.

Lunch With Friends

2009-11-02T13:59:00.001-06:00

After ballet class this morning, we went to eat lunch at McDonald’s with some friends from her class. It was fun to visit with another mom (and grandmom!) while our girls played on the playground.

After getting our food and taking it to our table, I noticed that they had forgotten Grace’s apple juice. I went back and showed the cashier my receipt and told him that we hadn’t received her drink.

He looked at me with a blank stare and said, “Yeah, we’re out of apple juice.” Silence.

I said, “Oh, you don’t have any more in the back?”

More blank stares, then he reluctantly turned and asked his buddy, “Hey, man, do we have any more apple juice in the back?” The other employee confirmed that they were out, then my cashier turned back to me and said, “Nope, we’re out.” Silence.

I said, “Okay, I guess we need a cup so I can get her a Sprite.”

Cashier turns to his buddy and asks, “Is it OK for me to give her a Sprite?”

Me thinking, “Duh! We already paid for a drink!”

After getting “permission”, he gave me the cup as if he was doing me a huge favor.

Here’s what I’m wondering: Would it have been too difficult for him to say, “I’m sorry, ma’am, we’re out of apple juice. What other drink can I get for you today?”

Ah, customer service. It ain’t what it used to be.

Monday Milestones

2009-11-02T13:41:00.001-06:00

Well, the good news is that I lost a little over half a pound this week. The bad news is that I still don’t get to move my weight loss ticker. I’m taking full responsibility for not losing more this week because I ate pizza one night, exercised only twice, and raided the Three Musketeers candy from Grace’s trick-or-treat bucket.

I consulted with The Diet Evangelist (a.k.a. Larry Thompson), and he gave me some good advice about my general plateau over the past few weeks. I am not drinking nearly enough water. And, my caffeine consumpton has practically tripled over the past 3-4 weeks. My sodium has gone up as well. That combined with only exercising a couple of times per week has contributed to my stalling.

I guess the silver lining is that I haven’t gained anything back! I’m not going to meet my ultimate goal by Christmas, which is what I’ve been wanting, but I’ll just keep trucking along and praying for the self-control and motivation to stay consistent!

Preschooler Quotes of the Day – Halloween Edition

2009-10-31T23:19:00.001-05:00

“Mommy, can it be Halloween tomorrow, too, PLEASE??!”

“How about we eat candy for breakfast tomorrow, OK?”

“Where’s my pixie dust? Did daddy take it AGAIN?”

[Pointing to the edge of the driveway at our neighbor’s house while Trick-or-Treating] “Mommy, Daddy, you can stay right here. Don’t worry about me a bit. I’ll be just fine. I know how to knock on the door and say ‘Trick or Treat’ and ‘Thank You’ all by myself!”

Nightime prayer: “Dear God, thank you for Tinkerbell and trick-or-treating and Jesus. I saw lots of monsters but I wasn’t scared. I don’t have to be afraid. Please help nobody to be scared at Halloween. Amen. Oh, and please don’t let my daddy go back to work. I want to play with him all day long. Amen.”

***OUR LITTLE GIRL IS GROWING UP AND THERE’S NOTHING WE CAN DO TO STOP IT!!!***

Family Fun Night

2009-10-30T22:37:00.001-05:00

Our church hosted a fall carnival tonight and we all had a blast! Grace dressed up as Tinkerbell…we took a few pictures in the front yard before we left.

She was very excited because I let her wear a little bit of makeup and “pixie dust” on her face and arms.

There were different games in each of the rooms in the Children’s Building. After each game, they got to pick candy to put in their buckets!

Todd helped her shoot the rubber band gun. She actually hit the bulls eye all by herself on her last shot!

The balloon room was a big hit!

She chose a rainbow to be put on her cheek in the face painting room.

Here’s Grace with her friend Natalie.

And here’s Grace with her friend Kie. His muscles looked so cute!

After all the games and candy, she jumped in the bounce houses and played on the indoor playground for a while.

It was a really fun time of fellowship with our friends and family time together. After the carnival, we enjoyed pizza at the Mellow Mushroom. It’s a totally hip and happening restaurant in the TCU area that uses all fresh, organic ingredients. Very yummy…I highly recommend the Funky Chicken pizza. It had homemade BBQ sauce, grilled chicken, grilled onions, bacon (sadly…I left it off), and a mix of cheddar and white cheeses.

Fun times!

Belle Dress

2009-10-30T12:12:00.001-05:00

Our sweet friend Claire asked me to help her get together a Belle dress to wear to her costumed bridal shower this weekend, and I was so excited to help! I managed to find some pretty yellow satin at the fabric store that had a small stain the size of a dime. The girl who cut the fabric offered to mark it down and call it “damaged”, so it was dirt cheap! The rest of the supplies (zipper, laces, tulle, buttons, etc.) I had on hand.

To design the dress, I tried my best to copy Grace’s Belle costume from a couple of years ago. It worked out pretty well without a pattern. I kept it really simple and didn’t line the dress or finish the inside seams…so it was fairly easy and not stressful!

Doesn’t Claire look just like Belle? I told her she could work at Disneyworld! Grace wanted to wear her Belle dress, too, for the picture!

Preschooler Quote of the Day

2009-10-30T11:49:00.001-05:00

I was in the kitchen cleaning up breakfast dishes when I heard Grace’s excited voice from the family room:

"Mommy! Mommy! There’s a BIG lizard under the couch! He’s soooo cute! Can we keep him, PLEASE???!”

I caught a glimpse of him an hour later (and he IS big), but as of now, he is still on the loose.

How To Go On A Date, Get Exercise, And Wear Out Your Daughter At The Same Time

2009-10-27T09:08:00.001-05:00

Step One: Go to Wal-Mart and buy a pink tennis racket.

Step Two: Go to the tennis court and let your child hit the ball around for a while.

Step Three: Tell your child that it’s time for mommy and daddy to play tennis, and her job is to be the “ball girl”.

Step Four: Enjoy playing tennis with your spouse while watching your daughter run to get every stray ball that you miss or over-hit.

Step Five: Hit a few extra balls out on purpose that she must run far to catch.

Step Six: Repeat steps four and five over and over and over.

Step Seven: Take home an exhausted daughter and watch her literally collapse into bed for an early bedtime.

Step Eight: Enjoy a quiet evening with your spouse.

Monday Milestones

2009-10-26T18:28:00.001-05:00

Same song, fourth verse. For four weeks I’ve stayed at the same weight. Grrrr. I’m not quite sure what is going on. I’m staying within my daily calorie count every day. I rarely eat out. I could exercise more, but I’m working out hard 2-3 days per week.

Someone suggested that maybe my body is trying to hold on to extra weight for the winter. At first I laughed it off, but now I’m starting to wonder…

Anyway, I’ve still got almost 1/3 of my journey left towards my ultimate goal, so I need to figure something out. On a positive note, this is the healthiest I’ve been in a long time. I played tennis with my husband for a long time on Sunday afternoon, and actually gave him a run for his money! I have a lot more endurance and don’t get worn out as easily as I used to. My blood pressure has been great. So I guess I’m doing something right, but I wish the scale would reflect it too!

Wedding Blessings

2009-10-25T15:35:00.001-05:00

Last night Todd and I attended a special event for a sweet young woman who is getting married in a few weeks. We’ve known Claire for many years and been good friends with her family. We’ve watched her grow and mature into a beautiful woman who is eager to marry and start her own family. This wedding is extra-special because it’s also Grace’s debut as a flower girl!

I’ve never been to an event like last night, and it was the perfect way for people who love Claire to give their blessings on her upcoming marriage. After a time of fellowship and dessert, we gathered in a group and went around one at a time, giving words of encouragement and advice about marriage. Claire and Cal got to hear words of wisdom from people who have been married as many as 50 years! Then we had a brief time of prayer for the couple.

In lieu of gifts, the people who came were asked to write cards and/or letters that Claire and Cal will open and read on their 1st, 10th, and 25th wedding anniversaries. Isn’t that a neat idea? Todd and I had fun writing our letters together.

In a world where marriage is often treated as flippantly as buying a new car, it was truly special to see this couple treat their upcoming nuptials with such reverence and maturity. Marriage isn’t easy, but it can be filled with joy and comfort when it’s built on a solid spiritual foundation. I wish Claire and Cal many, many years of happiness!

Things I Love Thursday – Silicone Baking Mat

2009-10-22T08:58:00.001-05:00

I’ve been eyeing these silicone baking mats for a while, and I finally took the plunge a few weeks ago. I like the idea of having an instant non-stick surface with minimal clean-up and no added fats or cooking sprays.

I chose to buy the Wilton Easy Flex Silicone Baking Mats. As a cake decorator, I trust Wilton products, and this did not disappoint.

I must say that they work perfectly! Nothing sticks to them! I’ve used the mats to bake cookies, bake biscuits, roll pastry dough, and roll fondant. When baking, I love that I don’t have to scrub a huge cookie sheet…I just rinse the baking mat and put the cookie sheet back in the cabinet!

Although I invested $8.99 per mat, in the long run it will probably save me money because I no longer use cooking spray when baking. And, it has definitely saved me time and energy!

For more Things I Love Thursday posts, visit The Diaper Diaries.

Monday Milestones

2009-10-20T13:31:00.001-05:00

I’m starting to think I should call this series “Tuesday Trackings” since this is my third time to not post on Monday! My life has been crazy-busy the past couple of weeks, and I haven’t had much time to focus on my weight loss. Thankfully, God has helped me sustain without gaining any weight back, but I am still stuck for the moment.

I did manage three workouts this week, but I did not have the time or energy to cook separate low-cal/low-fat meals for myself. I should have had extra HMR meals stockpiled for myself, but I finished them off and ran out. (Another order is on the way!)

Anyway, life is getting back to normal (for now), so my goal is to get back into my routine of eating and exercising regularly.

Remembrance Day

2009-10-15T17:49:00.001-05:00

Today is National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day.

From the official website:

In October 1988, President Ronald Reagan Proclaimed October as National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. "When a child loses his parent, they are called an orphan. When a spouse loses her or his partner, they are called a widow or widower. When parents lose their child, their isn't a word to describe them. This month recognizes the loss so many parents experience across the United States and around the world. It is also meant to inform and provide resources for parents who have lost children due to miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, molar pregnancy, stillbirths, birth defects, SIDS, and other causes."

Losing a child, born or un-born, is one of the hardest burdens for a person to bear. This pain has touched my life as well as the lives of many people that I hold dear.

Many women (and men) are reluctant to talk about the loss of an unborn child. They might think intense grief is an over-reaction. But it’s not. It’s a real loss…a real life, real hopes, real dreams. It’s not easy to “get over” and parents should allow themselves to go through the grieving process.

Here are some excellent suggestions of things to do this month to raise awareness and support for parents who lose a child.

Despite the terrible and painful things that happen in this world, God is still good. He has blessed me immeasurably in my life, and I look forward to praising His name with ALL my children when I get to Heaven.

Works For Me – Coupon Binder

2009-10-14T09:09:00.001-05:00

I’ve been wanting to put together a larger coupon binder for a while now, and I finally took the time to do it! Up until now, I’ve used the Couponizer.

It’s worked fine and been worth the money I paid for it…but I’ve worn it out. With lots of use it begins to fall apart, especially when you stuff in coupons from three or more Sunday papers every week.

I decided to put my own notebook together, so I looked around on the internet for pictures of what works for other moms. Then I got on EBay and ordered 30 plastic baseball card holders for $4.25. I had planned on buying a Trapper Keeper so I could keep everything zipped up to minimize the coupons falling out, but I couldn’t pass up the cutest binder ever at Target the other day for $4.99. So, here’s my completed binder!

Inside, the first pocket holds all of my weekly circulars.

The next pocket holds my lists, pens, and other small objects.

Then I place my coupons, divided by category, into the baseball card holders.

I had enough holders to actually separate most of them by brand within each category. Now, when I’m in the store, it only takes a second to see if I have a coupon for Bounty dryer sheets, instead of digging through a loose stack of “household cleaning” coupons and watching them fall all over the floor!

When a friend saw my completed binder, she asked, “Do you carry that to the store every time?” Yes, I do. Couponing has saved us a lot of money over the years, and it’s worth the minor inconvenience of remembering to carry it with me!

Happy couponing!

For more Works For Me ideas, visit We Are THAT Family.

Monday Milestones

2009-10-13T22:23:00.001-05:00

I’ve been dreading writing this post…in case you can’t tell considering it’s Tuesday! Frankly, I’ve lost my focus the past couple of weeks. I’ve eaten well (mostly), but I’ve only worked out once or twice a week.

But as I sit here watching my DVR’d recording of The Biggest Loser, I’m realizing that nobody is going to push me on that treadmill but myself. Unless you count Jillian’s voice, which I hear shouting in my head sometimes. So, I’m throwing away all the excuses I used this week in the trash (too busy, too tired, sore toe, sore back, etc.) and getting my groove back on.

My whole purpose in blogging my journey is for the accountability it provides me. So feel free to pray, cheer, question, and/or send some encouragement my way…I need the motivation.

Sadly, the ticker is staying put another week.

Birthday Cake!

2009-10-08T21:27:00.001-05:00

I finished this birthday cake tonight for the sweet girl that I babysit…she’s turning ten! Grace loves it and wants one just like it for her birthday in December. Everything is edible except for the ribbon around the middle. The inside is devil’s food cake with pink buttercream icing. The hardest thing about making it was keeping Grace from eating all the fondant!

Snow White DVD

2009-10-07T08:49:00.001-05:00

I recently learned about this great deal on the newly released Snow White. You can buy Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + BD Live w/ Blu-ray packaging) [Blu-ray] (1937) on Amazon for only $9.99! Simply enter the code snowhite at checkout and instantly receive $10 off the already low price of $19.99.

I ordered it last night and we will be giving it to Grace for her birthday! She’ll be so excited…when the commercial comes on TV advertising the new release, she looks at me with puppy dog eyes and says, “I don’t have that movie. Mimi has that movie, but I don’t have that movie.”

I don’t particularly like the ending scene with the dragon. It’s a little scary for small eyes, but the rest of the movie is beautiful. I can’t wait to see her open it!

Fall Cake

2009-10-06T22:30:00.001-05:00

For a while I’ve been wanting to experiment with fondant to expand my cake decorating skills. I bought some Wilton fondant from the craft store just to play with it and see what it was like…it was disgusting. I see now why people peel it off their cakes at weddings!

I got on the internet to look around and see what people had to say about improving the taste of store-bought fondant. I quickly realized that it would be MUCH cheaper and tastier to make it myself! And it was so easy…done in a matter of minutes.

So, here’s my practice cake, done in a fall theme.

I covered each layer with white fondant, then mixed some fall colors in to make acorns and leaves. The best part? It’s truly delicious! People aren’t going to be peeling off THIS fondant! Here’s the recipe:

Homemade Marshmallow Fondant

1/4 cup vegetable shortening (Crisco)
1 pound of white mini marshmallows
1 teaspoon clear vanilla flavor
1 teaspoon butter flavor
2 tablespoons water
2 pounds powdered sugar

Grease the inside of a large microwavable bowl with vegetable shortening (Crisco).

Put marshmallows, flavorings, and water into the bowl. Microwave on high for 60 seconds. If marshmallows are completely melted, you’re ready to move on. If not, stir and return them back into the microwave for 30-second intervals – stirring after each – until the marshmallows are completely melted.

Put powdered sugar into large mixing bowl. Fit stand mixer with dough hook. (If not using a stand mixer, use a wooden spoon.) Add liquefied marshmallow mixture to powdered sugar. Process at low speed until well incorporated, then turn speed up slightly and allow dough hook to “knead” mixture until sugar is fully blended into the liquid.

Turn your Fondant out onto your work surface that has been dusted with equal parts of cornstarch and powdered sugar. Make sure your hands are well dusted too. (If fondant is still sticky, knead in some more powdered sugar.) Knead fondant into a loaf. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and let cool for at least one hour.

To store fondant, wrap in plastic wrap and then put it in a re-sealable plastic bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible. Marshmallow Fondant will keep very well in the refrigerator for weeks.

Monday Milestones

2009-10-05T08:17:00.001-05:00

No change this week on the scale. Nada. It’s so frustrating considering that I KILLED myself on the treadmill/Shred and ate mostly HMR foods during the week. I’ll just try to console myself with the possibility that I built more muscle mass…someone DID comment on my calf muscles as I was walking up the stairs to the choir loft yesterday!

I’ll just keep doing what I’m doing and see if I get a payoff next Monday!

The Jungle Book

2009-10-03T16:36:00.001-05:00

Today was our much-anticipated trip to see Casa Manana’s production of The Jungle Book. We went with our sweet friends from church, the Millsaps, so Grace had a buddy! Here’s a picture of Grace and Natalie with their respective elephant and tiger ears.

The show was even more special because the part of Kaa (the snake) was played by their children’s choir teacher, Miss Michelle. During the whole show, Grace kept leaning over and whispering, “When is the snake coming back? I want to see Miss Michelle!” We got to take some pictures after the show and meet the cast!

It was a really fun day. I’m embarrassed to admit that it was our first trip to the Casa Manana children’s theater, but it won’t be our last! Cinderella is coming in April!

Preschooler Quote(s) of the Day

2009-09-30T22:19:00.001-05:00

Heard from the backseat as we drove to church this evening:

“Hey Mommy, guess what?!? My arm is under [the seatbelt] and my finger isn’t in my nose! Isn’t that great?!?”

Tonight’s bedtime prayer:

“Dear God,

I forgive mommy for giving me a spanking today. Please help me to be a sweet girl tomorrow so I don’t have to forgive her again. In Jesus’s name, Amen.”

Priceless.

Monday Milestones

2009-09-28T09:05:00.001-05:00

Yay! I finally get to move my ticker down again! I forgot to post last Monday because it was one of the craziest days of my life…I babysat five other kids in my home that day at various times, plus company. When I finally remembered on Tuesday, I was disgusted because I had gained THREE pounds. Yes, that’s right. I’m keeping it real, folks. I attribute my gain to lack of exercise and eating out in restaurants.

Last Tuesday, I got reacquainted with Jillian and went back to meticulously recording my calories. By this morning, I lost the three pounds I had gained plus one more! That brings me to 64 pounds lost.

I really need to stay focused if I want to meet my goal by the end of the year. Since 2009 has been the year of losing, I’d love for 2010 to be the year of maintaining!

Tonsillitis

2009-09-26T19:16:00.001-05:00

Grace woke up sick and out of sorts this morning, even fussier than she was yesterday. There was also a slight yellow tint to her skin, a rash, and she didn’t want to eat breakfast.

Since she had no fever, I suspected that she was having side effects from the antibiotic. Isn’t it strange how weird stuff always happens with kids at night and on the weekend? So, instead of going to her regular pediatrician, we braved another trip to the urgent care clinic.

After waiting a few hours, we saw the doctor. Grace’s throat was still very red (to my surprise) and the subsequent strep throat test was positive (again). Apparently, the antibiotic has not cleared the infection since last Tuesday night. She was diagnosed with tonsillitis caused by strep and given an antibiotic shot in the same dosage that would be given to a 200+ pound man. The shot was so big that it was divided into two shots and given simultaneously by two male nurses that were holding her down while she was screaming “Help me, Mommy!” I think it was as traumatic for me as it was for her.

Because of her yellowish color they also decided to do a liver function test via another traumatic blood draw. I found out that when strep is untreated or not affected by antibiotic treatment, it can spread to internal organs. We’ll find out those results tomorrow or Monday morning. We must go back in 2-3 days for another strep test as well.

Even though she had no fever, they assured me that she was highly contagious. I want to apologize now to my friends and family that we spent time with yesterday at the Founder’s Conference…if I had suspected she still had strep, I would not have taken her out of our home! I’m praying that she didn’t pass it along to anyone else.

When I filled her new antibiotic prescription at the pharmacy, I couldn’t resist buying her a doll.

To a 4-yr-old little girl, Tinkerbell makes everything better.

All We Needed Was Popcorn and Maybe A Bullet-Proof Vest

2009-09-25T21:41:00.001-05:00

Grace was feeling better today, so we took her to hear my dad preach at the Founder’s Conference, then out to lunch at Chili’s, then shopping. I think that was about three places too many considering her level of discontent and fussiness. Apparently, after being cooped up for a few days getting over strep throat, she decided to make up for all her lost energy.

Our main shopping goal this afternoon was to find my mom a new pair of jeans. I’ve decided that it is just as easy to search for a mythical unicorn. On a whim, we decided to look in Dots. With the help of an overly cheerful and helpful sales clerk, mom actually found her unicorn in the form of a very hip, mid-rise, dark-wash, classic-fit, boot-cut, extra-long, slight-stretch, flap-pocket, low-priced pair of jeans.

But it wasn’t as amazing as what we witnessed in the store.

Mom was in the dressing room while Grace and I sat in a chair and waited. A middle-aged female customer walked in the store and immediately started giving our very friendly sales clerk some attitude about availability, size, basically anything she could find to complain (loudly) about. Our clerk kept her cool and remained professional.

About that time mom came out of the dressing room and I enthusiastically approved her choice of jeans. Our sales clerk used that opportunity to get away from PMS-lady and come see mom in her jeans. That infuriated PMS-lady. She angrily demanded that the clerk open a dressing room for her, after telling her that she was “rude” and “inconsiderate.”

While PMS-lady was in the dressing room, the sales clerk, clearly ruffled, came up to me and asked, “Do you think that I’m rude and inconsiderate?” No, I replied. You’ve been very kind and helpful. I’m thinking: Shhhh, she can hear you in the dressing room.

The clerk got louder. “I can’t believe she said that to me! I’m a positive person!” Shhhh, she can hear you in the dressing room.

“I’m always happy! I was so nice to her even though she was rude to me!” Shhhh, she can hear you in the dressing room.

PMS-lady busts out of the dressing room: “YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT ME BEHIND MY BACK NOW??? I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT ME! WHO THE @*&^ DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? YOU ARE SO RUDE! YOU SHOULD BE FIRED!” Gets in the startled clerk’s face: “$&@*# YOU!” [Storms out of the store muttering curses.]

PMS-lady actually said a lot more than that, but mom and I couldn’t remember everything…we were in a state of shock. Grace stared wide-eyed at the whole exchange, then provided a little comic relief after the woman left.

Grace: [shaking head] “Mama, she wasn’t using sweet words.”

No, she wasn’t.

Things I Love Thursday – Devotional Books for Kids

2009-09-24T11:00:00.001-05:00

It’s been a while since I participated in this carnival, but I thought I’d share a couple of books that we love to use for kid’s devotionals! My friend Susan introduced these books to me, and I bought them on Amazon to use with Grace.

The first is The Jesus Storybook Bible: Every Story Whispers His Name. When I looked it up on Amazon to link, I saw that it’s only available now in the more expensive deluxe edition. The original version is available on EBay for a better price.

What I love about this Bible book is that every story takes you right back to God’s plan for His people…salvation through Jesus Christ. Even the Old Testament stories point to the coming Savior. It is explained very clearly and is appropriate for both very young and older children.

Another great book is My ABC Bible Verses: Hiding God’s Word in Little Hearts.

In this book, there is a Bible memory verse for each letter of the alphabet. (Ex: A is for “A gentle answer turns away wrath.”). Each verse has a story that shows how to apply the verse in real life for kids. It’s a great way to teach kids that we can use God’s Word to help us in every circumstance!

We try to have a short devotional each morning with Grace where we read the Bible, practice a memory verse, and sing a song. If we’re running late for something, I’ll move it to naptime or bedtime. It’s a favorite time of day for both of us!

For more Things I Love Thursday posts, visit The Diaper Diaries.

The Joys of Motherhood

2009-09-23T22:21:00.001-05:00

The past 24 hours have not been very glamorous. Grace came down with a nasty case of strep throat. After spending 2 1/2 hours of my life that I’ll never get back in an emergency clinic, holding a 4-yr-old with a 104 fever, I look back and think of the pre-baby nights where my biggest decision revolved around choosing between a book, a TV show, or a crossword puzzle. Or maybe even enjoying a leisurely dinner at a restaurant with my husband.

But I’m not complaining. Not at all. This is what I asked for, and this is what I am so thankful for. Granted, I had to remind myself several times last night while I was cleaning up the vomit at 3:00 in the morning, but I wouldn’t trade my current job for anything in the world!

Grace has been so sweet while she’s been sick. She has taken her nasty medicine without complaining, even though the taste makes her shudder. She has cuddled and been very affectionate. She has been obedient and happy. I must admit that although it hurts me to see her sick, I have enjoyed a quiet day with her. We watched movies and read books and did puzzles and played the piano.

I even managed to get in a good workout and do some yard work while Grace rested in the afternoon. Thankfully, she is feeling much better. Her fever has come way down and she has more energy. The vomiting has stopped, but she’s not really eating yet. She’s been good about drinking fluids, though. Here’s hoping for an uninterrupted night!

But truthfully, I wouldn’t trade sleepless nights and vomit for ANYTHING. She is such a joy to me! She is a totally undeserved gift from God. He didn’t have to give her to us…God would have been just as good and powerful and holy if He had not.

But I’m so grateful that He did.

Fun Day

2009-09-19T21:55:00.001-05:00

It’s still too wet to play outside, so we headed to the mall playground this morning to run off some energy.

In case anyone notices…they are wearing the same clothes as yesterday! The Princess Aurora and Lightening McQueen t-shirts were a huge hit, so we did a load of laundry and let the kids wear them again today.

They love to pose for the camera, so here’s my favorite Brad pose:

Here’s my favorite Grace pose:

Anne wasn’t as enthused about posing and just wanted to play:

After playing for a while, we ate lunch in the food court. They chose Sonic! I bought three kids meals and two large drinks while Mom bought our food at Chick-Fil-A.

After eating, we threw some pennies in the fountain. Thankfully, our Sonic toys narrowly missed an untimely demise in the water.

When we got home, Anne went down for a nap. I had promised Brad that we would decorate cupcakes, so I grabbed some frozen cupcakes and frosting from the freezer and we went to work.

Every cupcake (and kitchen floor) needs sprinkles.

They enjoyed their handiwork. Good times!

Because we thought a visit to the zoo was fitting…

2009-09-18T21:48:00.001-05:00

It’s been pretty crazy around my house lately, but in a good way! My mom flew back into town earlier this week, and our friends Brad and Anne are visiting for a few days while their parents go on a trip to New York!

We spent most of today at the Fort Worth Zoo! It’s rated among the top five zoos in the nation, and for good reason. There is so much to do and it was a great way to keep everyone entertained and ensure an earlier bedtime due to utter exhaustion.

The kids helped me make a picnic lunch for the day. We had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and they enjoyed using cookie cutters to make them into fun shapes.

Here we are at the zoo in our single and double strollers! Mimi bought them special t-shirts for the day. Brad’s is a Lightening McQueen shirt, Anne’s is a Princess Aurora shirt, and Grace’s shirt says, “What happens with Mimi stays with Mimi.”

This was a sweet picture of Grace and Anne at the toddler interactive playground.

The petting zoo was a big hit. When the zookeeper assured Brad that the chicken was nice, he replied, “Everybody loves chicken!” Mimi thought that was hilarious.

We rode the train four times!

It was a fun-filled, exhausting day! When we got home, I decided to order pizza instead of cook, which was quite exciting for the kids…Brad was giving me the excited fist pump!

Grace has been thrilled to have some full-time playmates for the weekend. Tomorrow we have a trip planned to a local mall playground and lunch at the food court. It’s been raining here so much lately that we can’t even play outside because of the mud and wetness, so I’m having to brainstorm inside activities to keep us busy!

Our Little Angel

2009-09-15T00:20:00.001-05:00

We’ve been having a new issue with our sweet Grace. Lying. Yes, she’s starting to figure out that she can lie about something in order to get what she wants.

Example:

When she finishes her meals after lunch or dinner, I will sometimes give her dessert. She can pick a cookie or a fun pack of M&Ms, etc. She doesn’t get dessert until she finishes everything on her plate. Lately she’s been doing really well. At dinner the other night, she finished her meal very quickly and proudly showed off her empty plate. “Now I get a treat, Mama, because I ate ALL my food!”

In a brief moment of mama’s intuition, I realized that she could not have eaten it all that quickly. Especially the zucchini/squash stir-fry that she usually takes longer to eat… So I asked her where the zucchini was. She hung her head, stood up from her chair, and lifted the dining room chair cover. Underneath was some fresh zucchini along with a variety of food from other meals over the past few days that she had hidden. I asked her if there was food anywhere else. She walked over to our low coffee table, got on her hands and knees, and pulled out a muffin from last Tuesday as well as some green beans and pieces of cheese.

It’s truly a miracle that we haven’t seen any R.O.U.S.’s. (Rodents Of Unusual Size…name that movie!). Nor have we smelled anything, which is even more surprising.

Needless to say, I had a great opportunity to teach her about what God thinks of lying. Since then, she’s done it two more times. On both occasions, I took the time to discipline her and teach her about honesty and trust. My very wise friend Joy pointed out that she’s getting old enough to begin to comprehend her sinful nature and learn about why she needs a Savior.

You know, we really shouldn’t be surprised when our kids lie. Frankly, I’m surprised that we haven’t dealt in depth with this issue until now. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, when sin entered the world, our human nature is completely self-centered. That’s why we have to teach kids to love others, to share, to obey, to be respectful…it doesn’t come naturally.

I think it’s important to not gloss over or chuckle when our kids do something like hide food in order to get dessert. Teaching them when they are young about lying shows them that sin is serious. It’s not “cute”, nor is it simply a developmental milestone. It’s so serious that God had to send His only Son to die a blameless death on the cross in order to save us from our sin.

My deepest desire, what I pray for most, is that one day Grace will realize her need for a Savior, accept God’s precious gift of salvation, and live a life of service to Him.

In the meantime, I’ll just keep hoping I don’t run across any more hidden decomposing vegetables around my house.

Monday Milestones

2009-09-14T08:26:00.001-05:00

I only lost about 1/2 pound this week…not enough to move my weight loss ticker. So I’m holding steady at 63 pounds lost since February. I’ll admit I’m a little discouraged because I’m not losing as fast as I was in the beginning, but I know it’s healthy to lose slowly. I’m just impatient!

I’ve actually been contemplating a new 30-day Shred challenge, but my body hurts just thinking about it. I manage to get in 2-3 Shreds per week, but doing it every day would speed things up a bit. I’ve got lots of activities planned and we’re welcoming family and friends into our home for visits the next couple of weeks, but maybe I’ll do another challenge during the month of October.

Unless Todd talks me out of it because he doesn’t want to live with a whiny, achy woman for a whole month. Maybe if I promise him I’ll just take it out on my blog….

Thoughts on 9/11

2009-09-11T14:28:00.001-05:00

I still remember exactly where I was and what I was doing. I was working as a school counselor at an elementary school, preparing for a difficult parent conference. My principal knocked on my office door and told me that I needed to go to the library and watch what was happening on the news.

The librarian had moved the TV out of view of public eye and a few of us gathered around to watch the horror. I remember the fear that went through my body. Not necessarily fear for myself, but the fear of the unknown and of being responsible for 500 children DURING the unknown. I remembered that I was supposed to be the calm one, and I started praying.

Parents soon began to arrive to pick up their children. I completely understood…while it presented challenges for us, if I had been a parent at that time, I would have wanted my child with me too. The superintendent released a statement asking school personnel to go about our duties as normal, releasing students to parents if requested.

Since most teachers were in their classrooms working with kids, they didn’t have the freedom to get information. Of course word (and panic) got around quickly, and teachers were doing their best to remain calm and not show their students that anything was wrong. Every time I walked by a classroom, a teacher would signal me and ask what was happening. I talked one teacher through a panic attack. I can honestly say that 9/11 was one day in my life that I literally prayed without ceasing.

The images of the two towers falling is one that will stay in my mind until I die (or lose my mind!). Pictures of the Pentagon and the plane crash wreckage will always haunt me. Everyone’s life changed that day. Many experienced deep personal loss while the whole country grieved.

We will never completely win the war against terrorism until the Lord returns. In the meantime, many of our men and women are fighting the battle for us to remain safe and protected in our country.

My brother Jon is leaving for another tour of duty in Afghanistan in a few weeks. He leaves behind a sweet wife and two beautiful daughters.

We are constantly praying for his protection and the safety of his unit. In reality, we know that as Chief Surgeon he will probably see and experience many horrors. Not to mention the loneliness that comes with being separated from his family for nine months.

I hope that today we can all remember the lives that have been lost as well as the folks who are giving their lives to ensure the freedom that we often take for granted.

American Girl DVDs

2009-09-08T08:00:00.001-05:00

Thanks to Alyssa at Keeping the Kingdom First, I was alerted to a great sale on American Girl DVDs. Other moms have told me that they are really good and wholesome, but I’ve haven’t seen one yet. They are a little on the expensive side, but this is a GREAT promotion that is going on right now on the American Girl online store!

Until Sept. 30th, you can get four DVDs for $5 each. They normally retail for $19.95 each, so this is a fabulous price!

The four DVDs that are included in this promotion are:

Molly: An American Girl on the Home Front DVD
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl DVD
Samantha: An American Girl Holiday DVD
Felicity: An American Girl Adventure DVD

Even though the videos are geared for girls aged 8 and up, other moms have told me how much their little girls enjoy them…as young as 4 years old. The reviews that I have read rave about these movies good values, strong lessons, and beauty. I’m definitely getting one for Grace’s Christmas stocking!

Monday Milestones

2009-09-07T09:15:00.001-05:00

This was a good week. I ate really well and lost one pound. I only worked out twice, so that definitely needs improving, but overall I’m satisfied.

This brings my total to 63 pounds. I’m excited to move my ticker a little this week!

We have a fun and relaxing day planned for the holiday. Todd is off from work and it is my parent’s last day in our home for dad’s sabbatical break. We’re just hanging out and spending time together. Todd is going to rent Enchanted, a Disney movie that looks cute and is rated pretty well. The preview is hilarious, so I’m looking forward to seeing it!

We’re also planning a yummy lunch of garlic shrimp, grilled corn, lemon broccoli, and sponge cake with berries for dessert.

My goal this week is to bump up the exercise to at least four workouts. I'm also trying to expand my eating habits to include more seafood. I've never been a big fan other than the occasional tuna salad. However, shrimp is practically a perfect protein and VERY low in calories, so I got a big bag and I'm going to experiment with learning how to cook them. Todd will be happy because he loves shrimp!