Sundays

 Church! Today Mike got to play electric guitar on the worship team and I visited a ladies' SS class for the first time.  Since we joined the church I've either been helping in kindergarten, or 1-2 grade.  

Lunch is almost always tacos.  So easy for the crockpot.  

THEN....my favorite.  Mike pretty much gives me the entire afternoon off and I lock myself away in my room.  But here's the completely nerdy part - I don't nap or read or take a long bath.  Instead I pay bills, budget, menu, plan the week, and catch up on any real estate stuff I can.  And I do it for FUN y'all.   It makes me feel so ready for the week ahead.  

My time for that is done now and I need to clean up my mess and put away my computer.  I hear my littles playing outside with the new neighbor kids and my others are probably wondering what's for dinner.

Tonight we will straighten up the house, I'll load up the little boys' school folder for tomorrow, probably read a chapter from our read aloud book and call it a day.  

Goodbye 2021

 Maybe, just maybe, 2022 can find me blogging again.  I kinda hope so.  

But just so I don't forget, here's our 2021 recap for just the remaining chicks in the nest.  The grown and flown kids are doing awesome too. 

In no particular order...

*Jesse graduated high school at Charleston even though we moved to Lavaca.  This summer he bravely endured getting his wisdom teeth out.  He's currently still working at UPS and hoping to stay on after the seasonal period.  He also has a construction job, an internship at a recording studio, and is developing a Youtube channel with Joshua.  He puts in quite a lot of time at our church and plays backup keys and occasional lead keys.  

*Nathan started full time as a senior at Charleston this year.  He participated in archery, and competed in the state golf tournament.  He plans to start baseball soon.   He still works at Subway.  He loves hunting and killing deer with G'ma and Nana.  And this year he's changed his style a bit.  He's very clean cut and actually likes different clothes.  

*Mallory finally found a solution to her TMJ issues with invisaline braces.  She bought a car, got her permit, and landed her first job!  She loves serving wherever she can at our church but especially likes the sound booth.  She has started a new hobby of paint-by-number kits. 

*Zeke also loves hunting in TX and has had a few more opportunities this year.   His cooking skills are still amazing and he won a dessert contest this year at church.  Zeke competed in the state trap shooting tournament this year with our homeschool group.  This year he plans to get fit and hasn't missed a day in our garage gym and even counts calories, plans his food ahead of time, and makes the hard choices necessary with all those health related goals.  

*Waylon and Bennett are the life of the party over here.  Both of them have lost teeth and learned to read.  Bennett also got glasses this year and is undergoing testing to see if he qualifies for vision therapy.  They are doing great at going to Sunday School without me.  Their days are spent with school, playing outside, building forts, asking for snacks, and hoping I'll let them play XBox.   They have learned to take out the trash every week, unload the dishwasher, and make their own scrambled eggs and instant oatmeal. 

*Owen and Noah came to visit this year.  They are such sweethearts.  I stalk them on FB but I doubt we will be seeing them again for awhile.  

*Both my parents turned 70 and Mike's mom turned 80! I love that we can all celebrate birthdays together. 

*We moved!! Those 2 words involve a lot of work.  But we love our new house. Since April, we have added a bathroom, added an exterior door, and updated the AC and electric.  

*A move also means we changed churches and love 1L. 

*My parents gifted us a super fun get away to Rainbow Lodge for our bdays and anniversary.  LB and Jared took the little boys and everyone else did great.  We caught a bunch of fish, ate amazing food, got massages, and I logged a lot of hours on the sunporch with my Bible, books, and planner. Ahhhh......

*They also took the whole family to Rocking Chair Resort for vacay!  Lots of fish, pontoon boats (!), campfires, food, and a birthday party.   Everyone came (except Ethan who had to work) and we all had a fun time.  

*We welcomed sweet Baby Kyron to the family.  I miss him just typing about him!  He has blue eyes and strawberry blonde hair just like his sister and likes to make his opinions known!! 

*Some of my kids went to the rodeo for the first time ever.  G'pa and Nana came and I don't know why I haven't gone to the rodeo every single year forever.  I love all of it.  

*Emo, Mangnay, and Shelley visited from CO! We haven't seen them in forever and I wish they'd come baaaaack!!!

*Mike switched jobs and is now working as an infrastructure manager at Yoderbuilt.  He also loves driving his truck and has developed a love for country music.  Someone help me.  

*At least 5 of us had covid this year and a few are still in quarantine now.  I'm about done with that nonsense.  

*Our business is growing and it makes me smile every day.  Except for the days I'm mad at it.  But that's hardly ever.  We have 4 rentals and another under contract.  We have great tenants that pay on time and I LOVE rent day.  This year we added a house, renewed leases, made several offers, learned a little about ADA guidelines for commercial property, hired a new bookkeeper, and bought a truck and a camper.  We plan to launch our camper rental business next month!!  

*I read or listened to 40 books this year!  A couple were even fiction but fiction is still a hard genre for me to enjoy. 

*I still enjoy subbing but have sort of found my niche in high school.  Especially at Lavaca.  I would've NEVER guessed I'd enjoy HS most! 

Lots of us have set a few goals for 2022.  Mine include learning Spanish by investing 1 hour a week on it, getting the kids into TKD, growing and developing my friendships, and growing my business (of course!) I would love a multifamily property or a self storage facility!

My New Years Goals 2020

Happy 2020!  And a whole month of it is almost gone.

I love a New Year almost as much as a Monday.  #planningnerd

Most of my goals this year revolve around health and business.

1.  No chocolate.  - Just because I LOVE chocolate and it's the majority of my sugar intake.  I don't like fruity sweet stuff so cutting this out is cutting out most of my refined sugars.

2. Yoga - master the transition from downward dog to low lunge without having to use my hand, crow pose.

3. Do regular push ups.  REAL ones.  Also yoga ones.

4. Stand from a cross legged seated position without using my hands.

5. 12 real estate transactions...or 12 doors.  Whichever.

6. Read the Bible in 1 year.

That's it.  Six big goals.  Six things I'm so far from right now but racing towards victory.

25 days into it and here's the update...

~I haven't had chocolate BUT the big deal is that there's only been a handful of times that I really missed it.  Maybe I'm not as much of a sweets lover as I thought.

~I DID the low lunge transition!!  I didn't master it.  In fact it wasn't pretty and looked rough.  But I still did it.  With time and practice I know this will get easier.  I'm no closer to the other health goals yet except for the fact that I'm a pretty faithful yogi and rarely miss a practice, either at home or the studio and that alone is building strength I'll need for the pushups and the unassisted stand.

~No house yet.  I looked at over 10 properties this month and made 1 offer.   Someone beat me to it the same morning.  As in I missed it by literal hours or minutes!!  Planning to look at 3 more next week and I have another one lined up for 2nd week of Feb.

~The kids and I are reading through the Bible using the She Reads Truth app.  I love the fact it keeps track of how far along you are.  So far we are 7.1% through.  Just finished Genesis and parts of John, Psalms, Proverbs, James, and Job.  Plugging along...

Jesus Loves The Little Children

Our little Warrior went home to his mom yesterday.  I hate it.  But I've done this long enough to know that it is never good and DHS does not ever do its job correctly.  So I'm sure glad I serve a mighty God who loves babies and hears the prayers of their sad mommas.  I'm praying hard for him and I'd appreciate it if you'd join me.  He is a great kid and needs a life of love and safety and lots of Jesus.

In the meantime I'll share a picture of another little boy that I prayed hard for.  DHS did not do their job in his case either but God showed up strong!

My Bennett.  Sleeping sweetly and looking adorable.  Safe. And so very loved. 
I'm thankful for my babies and my God who loves them more than I do!

Journal Prompt: What Would You Like To Change In Your Routine?

My morning routine has been my hardest routine for forever.  It's also my favorite part of the day.  If I had all the time in the world I would completely savor this time and spend a loooong time reading, journaling, and planning my day.

But since nobody has all the time in the world, I have to do most of that the night before.
I get up around 5:00-5:30 with my husband.  He heads straight to the garage to work out...seriously y'all.  Like even when it's cold and raining.  And I didn't even mention that the garage is detached and he has to walk outside to get there!

I get up and get his breakfast and lunch packed and go back to read, plan, think, and pray.  This is where I'm needing to switch it up.  Because by the time he leaves, I don't have much time before Warrior is up, someone needs help with school, and someone else wants to tell me that the 3yo got out of bed without permission and there's a squabble over the last 4 eggs in the fridge.

Then there's no going back.  The floodgates are open.  The day is in full-swing.

What I'd LIKE to happen is for me to get a work out in before I see the open eyes of a child.
I'd LIKE to have that workout finished and be dressed as well.  And if I could even make the bed before that happened.....oh my!!!

I've tried working it backward and switching things around.  I've tried exercising first and reading after.  I just can't fall into a routine with it and getting up before 5am isn't going to happen right now.
I'm fairly good at exercising later so it's not that big of a deal to me right now.

February Journaling

Still trying to jump back into blogging but not feeling very creative.  I spent some time last year with journal prompts and discovered I love them.  Pinterest is a great place for all things journal and here's one from today's prompt.....

Describe Your First Meal Of The Day

This morning was not like most.  It was my first time to ever substitute teach at the public elementary school.  I wanted something I could grab and eat while I was getting ready. 

Always, I start the day by refilling my water bottle.  While I was in there I popped a dozen eggs in the instant pot.  I grabbed a muffin, a clementine, and took my water back to my room to wait for the eggs. 

These muffins are my favorite go-to recipe.  They are made with leftover oatmeal and freshly ground white wheat and raisins. 

While I was getting dressed, my husband came in and surprised me with 2 eggs (with cheese) and toast!   I devoured the eggs (and the muffin) (and the clementine) and saved the toast for Warrior. 
The instant pot eggs got saved for later. 

I subbed in a class full of busy, smart first graders and was glad for the bigger-than-normal breakfast!

Warrior Update

God has given us the easiest, most flexible baby He ever created.  I'm serious.  

This is day 5 and he's warming up to the point of smiling at us most of the time.  He loves to roam the house and look for new things to touch.  But he's also content to stay in the room where we are.  He doesn't respond to many verbal commands yet, but is easy to re-direct.  

He sleeps in his crib and will fall asleep by himself as long as I am in the room with him.  He doesn't want to be alone.  He sleeps about 10 hours a night plus a good afternoon nap.  

Today was our first day of normal school with him joining us.  I set up the pack&play in the living room to use as a play pen for the morning meeting.  He just sat in it and played!!  No fit.  No crying.  

He eats everything but would prefer to feed himself.  He is starting to sign "all done".  

He's absolutely amazing and happy and sweet!! 

Valentine Warrior

Thursday was Valentines Day and my kids and I all planned to meet our homeschool group for a roller skating party.  FUN!! 

I always think skating is more fun than it actually is.  My older kids LOVE it.  But my littles only think they do.  I'm hoping they'll grow into it. 

On this skating trip, I got a phone call from a friend I don't get to talk to much.  It was Waylon's older sister's mom.  She was calling to let me know that their baby brother was brought into care and wondering if we could take him. 

I really didn't even have to think about it.  And I didn't have to ask my husband.  We tend to be in agreement about such things so I said yes. 

I said yes to an unknown future.  Yes to opening our entire family up to investigation again.  Yes to almost certain heartbreak.  Yes to loving a stranger. 

I called my husband and let him know and told the older kids we would load up the littles and have an emergency meeting outside the van.  I gave them the scoop and watched for reactions. 

HUGE smiles! "Let's DO it Mom!" and "We are back in the game!!" 
I was a tiny bit surprised.  It's been over a year since the adoptions were finalized and we haven't fostered since.  Everyone was exhausted and the whole family needed a break.  We even thought we would be done forever...maybe.  And I thought they would at least ask questions or want to know more details that I didn't have. 

My kids are awesome Y'all. 

So as not to leave anybody out, I had Jesse drive home so I could text all the adult kids and fill them in too.  Then more phone calls and texts to DHS updating them on our current family dynamic and sleeping arrangements.

That evening, a new resource worker came by with a mountain of paperwork to sign.   And it was perfect timing because all our older kids that had to sign just happened to be home that night too. 

Around 8pm two investigators showed up with an ADORABLE little man.  OH those brown eyes of his!!! 

He ate dinner, had a bath, and snuggled down to sleep in the pack-&-play.  SWOON!!

His name means Warrior.  (And he kinda looks like one!) For social media purposes that'll be his nickname.   I put out a quick update on Facebook asking for a crib.  We got a brand new one the same day from another foster mom.  Our friends brought diapers, wipes, clothes, and a noisy toy that all 3 little boys love.  My support group is incredible!

We spent the next day getting to know each other.  He is one busy guy! He climbs on everything, investigates everything, and hates going to bed.  He's very snuggly and would prefer sleeping with someone instead of in his new crib.  He's super easy to get along with and rarely ever cries.  I don't think we've seen all that he has to offer yet, but so far he is one easy baby!

We have no way of knowing how long he will get to stay but we are enjoying every minute and thankful for the time we get.  Laney said yesterday,  "I love him already!" 

I agree.

The Day I Fell In Love With God All Over Again

10 years ago we welcomed the sweetest, goofiest, and funniest puppy into our family.  He was 8 weeks old, deaf, and as big as some full grown dogs.  He was Laney's great dane Christmas puppy.

She was absolutely the BEST mom to him.  She kept him tethered to her belt with a leash when she was schooling and he was napping.  He slept in her room so she could get up with him in the night and she taught him hand signs to obey and to keep him safe.

He was born in Wyoming where we first met him and brought him home to Colorado.  He jumped and played in the snow with us.  We moved to Arkansas and he flopped his big body in the grass to soak up the sun then got up to drink and slobbered water all over the place.  He grew to be huge.  And gentle.  He laid his head in our laps when we sat and leaned against us when we stood.  He tried to walk between our legs to make sure he got petted all over.  Such a good good boy.

As Buzzy grew, Laney grew.  She got her first job and went to college.  She bought his dog food and fed him every morning.  He was happy every day when she got home.  He slept on a crib mattress in the house and was quite a pampered boy.

This past year we noticed Buzz starting to slow down.  Oh he still ran around the yard with our other dog.  He still wanted to join us on walks.  And sometimes he still galloped around just like a puppy.  But he was a bit slower and got tired easier.  It was harder for him to get up and down.  Laney bought him special vitamins. And I started to pray.

I prayed for God to protect him.  To give him good health.  That he would not know suffering.  And when the time came for him to pass, that it would be peaceful.   I prayed this very seriously to God for about a year.

This week it snowed.  It hasn't snowed here in about 2 years so it was a big deal.  In typical Buzzy fashion, he ran and played a bit and then wanted back in to warm up.   But the next day we could tell he didn't feel good.  And we found a mass on his shoulder that literally grew overnight.  Laney took him to the vet but he just kept getting worse.  Then we had blood work done and it showed that Buzzy's system was completely shutting down.  There was nothing to do and Laney had to make the decision that she never wanted to make.

Yesterday was an awful day.  Buzz kept declining and (of all things) Laney was scheduled to work.  I decided that he would not be left alone.  He loved his people.  So Mallory or I sat with him all day.  Right in front or beside him so he would know we were there.  Kids kept coming in and out petting him and loving on him.

He was happy when his girl got home and she spent every minute with him.
In the evening our vet friend graciously made a house call.  The kids all said good-bye to our sweet boy and Laney held him and loved him until the very last breath and heartbeat.

Later that night I was holding my sobbing girl and crying with her in the bathroom.  And she said the words that made me fall in love with my God all over again.  She said, "Mom, I just feel loved.  I didn't think I would feel this way. But I feel so loved with the way God handled his life. And when he died I could feel him sigh with relief. I'm glad I got to be his last comfort.  I don't regret any of it.  It was all worth it. "

I will never get over this.

I will never get over the fact that God gave 10 years of perfect health and protection to our dog that was of a problematic breed.  I will never get over God giving him snow on the last day that he would feel well enough to play.  I will never get over the fact that God heard and answered every one of my prayers about no suffering and that He even went above and beyond to allow Buzzy to pass away in the arms of his girl in his own home.  And I will never get over how much God made Laney feel loved.

Never.

A Day At The Lake

The weather here has been PERFECT.  As in it just could not be any prettier and there's no way we could be cooped up inside doing school.

So we did our morning meeting, chores, and packed a lunch for the lake.

We had the whole place to ourselves. 

Look at that sky! 

 The trails are always fun. 

And Jes caught 2 fish. 

Love me some pretty Arkansas weather! And the awesome Creator Who makes all things beautiful. 

Menuing For The Month

Here we are 1/2 way into October but I thought I'd show you how I do my simple monthly menu plan.  Better late than never I guess.

Setting up the grid in my bullet journal is the step that takes the longest.  Here's where the lined journals might come in handy but I still love the dotted ones best. 


Now the fun part.  And the easy tricks....

Because Wednesday is church night, we make sub sandwiches on french bread.  Easy prep.  Easy clean up.  And it's my kids' favorite dinner night of the week. I write that in every Wednesday.

Saturday is soccer so that is crock pot day.  I fill in all the Saturdays with whatever crock pot meals sound good. Sunday is always tacos after church and date night. Every Friday is homemade pizza.

See?  Super simple because that's 16 meals I don't have to think about!

Then I can just fill in all the blanks with whatever I have in my freezer, whatever the kids have requested, and whatever sounds good.  Mike was in Austin last week so we had 3 nights of kid food...whatever they wanted that they could cook and clean up themselves.  Read: Momma's not cooking when Daddy's gone. I bought easy foods for this so they could have fun with it.  I also have a master meal list in my bullet journal to make this whole process even faster.  No more thinking of what to fill in the blanks.  I just look at the list and pick from there.  Or maybe try something new on a night when I have lots of time.

When it's all done I make it cute for the month and then FINISHED!!

Because Clothes Are Of The Devil

 When Nathan was little I dreaded the seasonal transition to cold weather.  He was impossible to deal with when it came to clothes.  Long pants could not extend past the top of his ankle.  Sleeves could not touch his wrist.  And if the seam on his socks did not perfectly line up across his toes his day was ruined.  

Thankfully he outgrew it.  

Enter Bennett.  Nathan part 2.  In fact, he kinda hates clothes altogether.  He will run around in underwear and a superman cape all day until we absolutely have to put real clothes on to go somewhere.  Then we come home and he strips them all off.  

But now it's getting colder.  And rainy.  And there is just no choice.  

Yesterday it was time to get dressed and I pulled out a couple pair of pants.  I didn't even bother asking him to wear long sleeves.  One thing at a time.  I gave him a choice of which pants and then it was ON.  He dug in his heels and refused to cooperate.  He wanted shorts.  

The good thing was that we were not trying to get out of the house.  We were staying home and playing outside.  So I gave him the choice to put his pants on and join the fun outside with the rest of the family.  Or sit on his bed until he was ready to put his pants on himself.  He threw himself on his bed in the most dramatic display of despair.  

I left the pants on his bed and walked away.

I fully expected him to stay there until we came back in but NOPE.  In just a few minutes he came out with his pants on PLUS a smile on his face!  I was so proud of him. 

 I'm pretty sure if I had pressed the matter and fought with him, he would've panicked and refused even more.  I'm glad I was able to give him space and time and share the control.  He made a good choice and I'm hoping we can build on this for next time.  Otherwise, it'll be a long winter!

Happy Birthday Jesse

 

 This awesome boy is SIXTEEN today!!  

He is getting to spend his birthday week in Austin with his dad on a work trip and having a bunch of fun in the meantime.  He's played golf, slept in a hotel, eaten at fun places, toured the Capitol, and explored Austin. 

 

Isn't his smile THE BEST!?  He is such a sweetheart and I miss seeing him on his birthday.  We all called him this morning and sang to him.  We will celebrate when he comes home with some of his favorite foods and people.  

I love you Son of mine.  Happy Birthday! 

School This Week - Penmanship

I changed up almost all of our curriculum this year to a company called The Good And The Beautiful.  For the most part, I'm loving it.  One of my favorite pieces is our penmanship.  

This is Nathan's (8th grade).

I love the artwork they have to copy.  It makes developing fine motor skills more fun. 

Compare that to Jesse's (9th grade).  Totally boring.  I was hoping it would help him learn the Constitution and Bill of Rights.  Actually there's very little of that.  

 But a whole lot of this....snooze.....

Absolutely no fun and not interesting at all.  At some point he will switch.  

Here's Zeke's.  Even though Zeke is 6th grade, I bought him level 3.  Handwriting is such a struggle for him.  I had him evaluated by an OT at one point and he basically said that 

1. He's a boy. 

2. He's 10

3. He's left handed

So give him a break.  

It's very basic but sill has simple artwork to copy.  Every day is different so it keeps him interested.  I also love that it doesn't require much from me. In fact, on this page he just wrote his own letters in the boxes!  I just check it off each day and correct anything that looks terribly wrong.  

Chicken Soup and Banana Muffins

My kid is sick today and needing some chicken soup.  Also I have a lot of over ripe bananas that need to be used up.  So that means my kitchen smells amazing today!! 

Here's my recipes to make that happen..

Chicken Soup
5 chicken breasts
3 carrots
2 large onions
3 ribs of celery
5 cloves of garlic

Chop everything except chicken and add to a big soup pot.  Cover with water and add salt and pepper.  When the chicken is done, fish it out and chop it all up and throw it back in.  Add whatever seasonings you like and some noddles.  When the noodles are soft it's all done!

What kind of noodles do you like for chicken noodle soup?  I kind of like spaghetti noodles.  But I'm not sure everyone does.  My friend is sick today too and I'm taking some to her house.  So I decided to go with the flat wavy egg noodles.

Banana Muffins
1 1/2 C flour
3/4 C. sugar
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
2-3 over ripe bananas
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 C butter melted
1 egg

Mix the dry ingredients.  Add the wet ingredients (including bananas) to the mixer and mix them all up. Add to the dry stuff and stir.  You can add nuts now if you like.  Line your muffin pan with paper liners because it's a million times easier when you have to clean it up.  Then fill them up and bake at 350 until done. 

You can also make this into banana bread but I like the portion size of a muffin better and I have better luck with getting them cooked all the way through.

Journal Prompt - 30 Things

I am trying to resurrect my blog but couldn't think of a good way to start.  But finally I decided the best way to start is just to START already!! 

What makes it even harder is that I don't have anything exciting or new to talk about and Blogger is hating me and making it difficult to upload my pictures.  Grrrr......

But here's something fun:  Journal Prompts!! 
Do you like these?
My kids do one everyday for school and I thought I would join in on some of them too.  And even though I'm pretty boring and don't have 30 interesting things, at least I could come up with 30 ordinary things and it gives me a good blogging start after a long hiatus. 

30 Things About Me....
1. I love God
2. I want to learn what it really means to "abide" in Him.
3. I am desperate for my family (and me) to make God the passion of our hearts.
4. I love my family.
5. I wish my family could feel happy all the time. 
6. I have unreasonable expectations on myself to try to make that happen.
7. I struggle with my relationships with 3 of my kids. 
8. I love real estate.
9. I want to learn everything about it.
10. I love quiet alone time.
11. I wish I had more skills/talents.
12. I'm teaching a 1-2 grade Bible class on Wed nights.
13. I hate sickness.
14. I wish I could visit my grandmother more.
15. I like my handwriting.
16. And my hair color.
17. I want my own office.
18. I love rainy days at home.
19. I love Brycen Claire.
20. I love my 2 houses and made an offer on another one today.
21. The seller said NO but I'm hoping he changes his mind. 
22. I want to white wash my fireplace.
23.  I'd like to earn money and contribute financially in our household.
24. I want to read more.
25. And eat better.
26. And exercise more.
27. I HATE (with a passion) wasting time.
28. I hate too much noise.
29. People say I'm patient and organized b/c I'm a homeschool mom of 11 kids.  (They are wrong.)
30. I love being an only child. :-)

Our Saturday

 You know you're in for a good day when you start by sleeping until after 7:00.  So nice.  

THEN! It's even better when your husband makes breakfast for everyone...thanks Love.

At that point we went our separate ways.  He took Zeke to fix the kitchen faucet at the rent house and I took the girls to the farmer's market.  Love me some small town farmer's market!

The little boys do better with a good schedule and since there was none they were all over the place, discontent, and not knowing what to do with themselves.  So I pulled out the paints. 

 

There was a lot of this going on....

 

And some shooting...

 

 

Aren't they so cute? 

 

*Catching frogs is just about his favorite thing to do.  Last night we even had one in the house!  EEEK! And while he was tormenting frogs, I called my mom to catch up.
 

*Leftover burgers for lunch.  Then soccer on TV and a nap. :-)

*Laney is driving the Explorer these days and Jesse has taken her car.  He paid to get it fixed last week and Saturday he washed it.  His dad even took him to get it waxed.

*Speaking of soccer....this is my current lock screen.  When I get a text or call the whole day stops.  I want to know everything!! I am loving getting to "follow" him around Russia.  And he's all the way across the world but it seems like he's still right here.  Of course there's pictures and videos and updates that he's texting us, but also questions about artichokes and what he thinks of the Russian church.  My heart just might explode!!

 

*I took some quiet time to work on my bullet journal....

   

 

Still working on our Destin trip layouts....

 

*A friend gave us zucchini from his garden.  So I shredded it and make a new zucchini muffin recipe.  I made a healthy one last week that was delicious.  But this time, I didn't have all the same ingredients so I just looked up another one using what we had.  They were good.

*Remember I said that Mike made breakfast?  And we had leftovers for lunch?  Well it gets even better!!....My man also made dinner.  I KNOW!!  Blackened chicken that he planned, shopped for, cooked, and cleaned up.  It was simply amazing.  And I was out of the kitchen almost all day.

*Meg and Brycen joined us for dinner and for some Wii Dance.  Brycen Claire is so cute shaking her booty and trying to keep up!

*I squeezed in a short walk.  I'm walking in my first 5K next week and trying to get used to the heat.

*We ended the day with kids beating me at Dutch Blitz on my bed.  They beat me every single time. 

God's Goodness This Week

Isn't it funny how you don't usually recognize the goodness until after the time has passed?  Maybe that's why it's such a bitter sweet time looking through old photos.  It always seemed hard in the moment.  But after you lived through it and didn't die, THAT'S when you see how faithful God has been to you all along.  

It's Saturday night.  My heart is so full.  It's been a great week of being home with my crew.  

This is my happy place.  I love this chore.  In fact, unless there's a big storm brewing I don't let any kids help me at the clothes line.  

"Momma! Come take a picture of my bed.  I made it by myself!"  

*swoon*....my little boys are doing great learning their chores.  

This kid is always finding frogs.  But this week he found this tiny turtle.  

I love summer time for toddlers.  Naked kids outside in the pool all day.  Filthy.  Tired. And so happy.  

Nana bought us new decorating tips and Mallory made us a cake.  Yay! Just because.  

Getting to share life with this baby makes me so happy.  I love Brycen Day.

Jes is quick to try to bless his momma.  I sure appreciate him making breakfast for the family without being asked.  

Look what Zeke grew! 

This.  This was the last detail to work out today.  Christian leaves for Russia tomorrow for World Cup and I could not be more excited for him.   Such a dream come true and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him.  He has planned the entire trip by himself and I love that he has let me be privy to the particulars.  He's been telling me all his plans and preparations and new Russian words.  But his phone plan situation wasn't clear and I sort of resigned myself to not hearing from him much for 17 days.  But today was the day to nail down this important matter and we (he....completely him) found out he has free roaming for the entire time!  No buying a new sim card, no buying Passport, no figuring out which is a better option.  Nothing.  Just this!!  

And I actually cried after he told me.  Now we can talk, text, send pics, ....the whole thing for the whole time.  Plus he has all the data he needs for navigating his way in a foreign country.   Maybe that's even more important than talking to his mom. :-) 

God is so so good.  

Spice Cabinet Love

 

 Have you ever seen such a mess?

I've been looking at this at Walmart for awhile but was slow to lay down the 20 bucks.  But my mom's kitchen store in TX had one and I decided I couldn't live without it another day. 

 

 So I pulled out every single thing, wiped the shelves down, and did something scary....shelf paper!! 

The stress y'all!  Because if you don't do it right the first time, it's a nightmare to get it off and try again.  So I told everybody not to talk.  But Laney took pity on me and took over.

 

 So pretty!

 

Ta-Da!!  It's beautiful!!  I wish my whole house was as nice as my spice cabinet.  

A Little Bit Of Lately (in pictures)

Whiffle ball in the back yard...

When your brother is in danger of being the easy out...

Hit it Mallory!

Oh them blue eyes!

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Laney had an idea to build a fence around our trash can area.  I think this turned into more of a project than she planned. 

Silly girls leaving selfies on my phone

1/2 Price burger night at Sonic AND beautiful flowers! Thank you Nana!

Waiting for an appointment with my guy. I love him.

And LOOK IT.  Another future driver in the house!! Proud of you Jesse.